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The genus is named Saurona, as marks on the insect's wings look like the all-seeing eye in Tolkien's books.

First, you’ve got to drive a long way before you overcome your EV’s embedded carbon debt. And then there’s the trouble with the minerals in its battery…

So you’ve finally taken the plunge and bought an electric vehicle (EV)? Me too. You’re basking in the warm glow that comes from doing one’s bit to save the planet, right? And now you know that smug feeling when you are stuck in a motorway tailback behind a hideous diesel SUV that’s pumping out particulates and noxious gases, but you’re sitting there in peace and quiet and emitting none of the above. And when the traffic finally starts to move again you notice that the fast lane is clear and you want to get ahead of that dratted SUV. So you put your foot down and – whoosh! – you get that pressure in the small of your back that only owners of Porsche 911s used to get. Life’s good, n’est-ce pas?

Er, up to a point. True, there’s nothing noxious coming out of your exhaust pipe, because you don’t have one; and the electric motors that power your wheels certainly don’t burn any fossil fuel. But that doesn’t mean that your carbon footprint is zero. First of all, where did the electricity that charged that big battery of yours come from? If it came from renewable sources, then that’s definitely good for the planet. But in most countries, at least some of that electricity came from non-renewable sources, maybe even – shock, horror! – coal-burning generating stations.

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Higher rates slow the renewable energy transition and shield oil and gas producers from competition by low-carbon producers

In late 2021, consumer price inflation surged in many countries. Prices shot up again following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In response, central banks drastically tightened monetary policy – raising interest rates from near zero to around 5% or more. Since the interest rate hikes have failed to bring down core inflation to the target rate of 2% favored by the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank (ECB), the pressure for further rate hikes has been insistent.

We have long doubted that central bank rate rises could control the new inflation at a socially acceptable price. In most countries, wages lag well behind inflation. Too much of the rise in prices clearly reflects the impact of higher profit margins and obvious supply bottlenecks.

Thomas Ferguson is professor emeritus at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and director of research at the Institute for New Economic Thinking

Servaas Storm is a senior lecturer at the Delft University of Technology

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A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

Financial entities built up their California Carbon Allowance (CCA) net length this week as they continued to pare down in RGGI, while compliance players shed length across the board, data from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) showed Friday.

A summary of legislative, regulatory, and policy action on carbon, clean fuel standard, and clean energy markets at the US federal and subnational levels this week, including rescheduled and newly scheduled hearings for California climate and cap-and-trade bills, committee approval of a bill to develop offset projects on Alaska state-owned lands, progress on a Delaware climate bill, and Vermont's governor once again vetoing clean heat standard legislation.

Federal lawmakers are questioning inconsistencies in the US EPA's proposed 'e-RINs' pathway for renewable electricity supplied to electric vehicles (EVs) to generate Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) credits, which has drawn renewed support from biogas groups in recent days following reports of possible delays.

The German economy and climate ministry unveiled plans to subsidise power prices for ETS-covered heavy industries on Friday, though the idea faces a battle for approval in the country’s coalition government as the finance ministry said funds were lacking.

The High court dismisses case brought by animal activists against a government change in policy.

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A carbon credit ratings agency has downgraded two Verra-certified African afforestation projects while upholding the score of another.

Eleven standard bodies, including national registries from Japan, South Korea and Thailand, have applied for their carbon credits to have eligibility in CORSIA, the international aviation emissions scheme devised by the UN body ICAO, between 2024-26.

A European airline group plans to buy up to 100 million carbon removal credits by 2050, and potentially 2 mln a year by 2030, it stated Friday, adding that this requires clear and globally agreed verification and quality standards, inclusion of the credits in emission trading schemes, and stable policy support. 

UK-based biodiversity credit developer rePlanet Wildlife has secured £600,000 in fresh investments to help it roll out its global portfolio of nature protection projects.

Extreme event would have been expected once in 40,000 years before global heating, scientists estimate

The record-shattering temperatures that hit the western Mediterranean last week would have been “almost impossible” without the climate crisis, according to scientists.

The heatwave across Spain, Portugal, Morocco and Algeria was made at least 100 times more likely by global heating, the researchers calculated. Before the climate crisis, such an extreme event would have been expected only once in a least 40,000 years, making it statistically impossible on human timescales.

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The UN-backed Biodiversity Credit Alliance (BCA) expects to release the first results of its work within the next three months, with a glossary of terms, demand side concepts, and the inclusion of Indigenous peoples and local communities among the first issues to be tackled by the group.

European carbon rallied for a second day on Friday amid short-covering and de-risking ahead of a three-day weekend in the UK, with the benchmark EUA contract trimming a near-5% weekly loss while UK carbon was poised to post its third consecutive increase.

Environmentalists from the Philippines urge investors to avoid LNG projects which they say threaten the Verde Island Passage

Campaigners from the Philippines have urged British banks not to fund the expansion of fossil fuel use in their country. It follows a huge oil spill that threatened a globally important marine biodiversity hotspot.

Filipino environmentalists have travelled to the UK to meet representatives from Barclays, Standard Chartered and HSBC as part of efforts to stop the expansion of liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plants and terminals in and around the Verde Island Passage, a global marine biodiversity hotspot known for its whale sharks, corals, turtles and rich fisheries, which was badly affected by the oil spill this year.

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More than 30 banks have joined a working group led by the UNEP Finance Initiative (FI) to hash out guidelines for financial institutions to set nature-related targets and align their portfolios with global biodiversity targets.

Activity in China's carbon market has remained slow in recent weeks with low trading volumes and prices, driven by low permit demand amid pessimistic economic expectations and new rules that could further boost supply in the market, analysts said.