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Seeing an animal in distress after disaster makes us want to help. But feeding them doesn’t always make the situation better. Samantha Finnerty, Postdoctoral Research Associate - Wildlife Ecology, University of Sydney Catherine Herbert, Associate professor, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A reviled Australian bird has figured out how to eat one of the few animals locals hate more - cane toads.

Exclusive: No 10 hopes management consultant and former spad will burnish PM’s image on environment

• UK politics live – latest news updates

Rishi Sunak is hiring a vegan former special adviser to be his head of environmental policy as part of an effort to improve his green credentials, the Guardian can reveal.

No 10 has approached Meera Vadher to overhaul the prime minister’s image on the environment.

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Climate policy sequencing has played an important role in the eventual adoption of carbon pricing policies as well as their level of stringency, with research showing that countries have normally implemented a series of climate policy measures before ultimately placing a price on emissions, an article published in an academic journal has found.

EUAs extended Wednesday's gains as traders again targeted a key technical level, though trading volume remained lacklustre, while energy markets were weaker after the European Union delayed the introduction of a price cap on gas.

Never mind the yuck factor: precision fermentation could produce new staple foods, and end our reliance on farming

So what do we do now? After 27 summits and no effective action, it seems that the real purpose was to keep us talking. If governments were serious about preventing climate breakdown, there would have been no Cops 2-27. The major issues would have been resolved at Cop1, as the ozone depletion crisis was at a single summit in Montreal.

Nothing can now be achieved without mass protest, whose aim, like that of protest movements before us, is to reach the critical mass that triggers a social tipping point. But, as every protester knows, this is only part of the challenge. We also need to translate our demands into action, which requires political, economic, cultural and technological change. All are necessary, none are sufficient. Only together can they amount to the change we need to see.

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The European Parliament sent a strong signal to the EU to withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) on Thursday, passing by a large margin of 303 votes a non-binding resolution urging the bloc to exit the pact due to its incompatibility with EU climate law and policy.

CEC says renewable investment has been throttled by uncertainty, and at lowest levels for five years just as the nation needs to accelerate.

The post Investment in storage projects jumps, but wind and solar “throttled by uncertainty” appeared first on RenewEconomy.

This year’s temperatures would have been virtually impossible without climate crisis, scientists say

More than 20,000 people died across western Europe in this summer’s heatwaves, in temperatures that would have been virtually impossible without climate breakdown, figures show.

Analysis of excess deaths, the difference between the number of deaths that happened and those expected based on historical trends, reveals the threats posed by climate change-induced global heating, scientists said.

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Forestry Commission response to freedom of information request reveals only 15 convictions in a decade under its regime

Fewer than 1% of alleged illegal tree felling cases reported to the Forestry Commission have ended in a successful prosecution over the past 10 years in England.

The Forestry Commission received 4,002 reports of trees being destroyed without a licence from 2012-13 to 2021-22.

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Singapore’s goods and services tax (GST) will be waived for transactions in the voluntary carbon credit market, the government’s tax authority has announced.

Objections to active travel infrastructures are now picking and choosing data to fit the narrative

I’m starting to wonder if anyone is ever going to make an honest argument against cycling and walking infrastructure again. They do exist. People used to say things like “I want to drive and park wherever I like”, or “why should cyclists and pedestrians inconvenience my much more important car journey?”.

Those are still the basic objections, but these days most prominent opponents realise that it sounds a bit politically incorrect. You need some higher public interest ground, however shaky, to pitch your tent on.

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South Korea on Thursday outlined a number of changes to its emissions trading scheme that it will implement in the near term to improve the effectiveness of the programme, while it will continue to work towards broader, more fundamental market reforms in the longer term.

Report exposes scale of human waste discharges into UK waters, including potentially illegal ‘dry spills’

Water companies have been releasing sewage on to beaches and in rivers even when it is not raining, according to a report from Surfers Against Sewage.

Sewage spills are only supposed to happen under exceptional circumstances; when it is raining so heavily that the system cannot cope with the amount of water and effluent being spewed at once.

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Beijing sold only around half of the 2 million allowances on offer at Wednesday’s auction, which was held for emitters still needing to acquire units for 2021 compliance, with the sale clearing at the floor price.

Ark Energy cuts area of Chalumbin wind farm in half, to avoid sensitive ecological and cultural heritage sites. But it doubles size of turbines.

The post Ark Energy halves size of Queensland wind farm, but doubles size of turbines appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A look at South Australia’s week in isolation and the role of rooftop solar. Plus: Another failed venture.

The post Solar Insiders Podcast: Turn it off, turn it on appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Climate change – driven largely by the burning of coal – is driving extreme weather events that are taking an increasing toll on unit costs for coal miners.

The post Coal-driven climate change is becoming a big problem – for coal appeared first on RenewEconomy.

New large scale solar farm to supply power to major glass manufacturing facility in South Australia.

The post South Australia to host another large scale solar farm to power glass manufacturer appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The federal government will legislate new protections for Indigenous heritage sites, accepting all but one of the recommendations of a report on mining company Rio Tinto's catastrophic destruction of a 46,000-year-old Aboriginal sacred site at Juukan Gorge. But the organisation representing the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) traditional owners of the site says it is 'angry and disappointed' by the government's response because it was not consulted on the content. A spokesperson for Tanya Plibersek said the environment minister's office attempted to engage with the PKKP 'on at least four occasions since the response was approved by cabinet on Tuesday'

• Labor commits to new Indigenous heritage protections but response to Juukan Gorge report angers traditional owners
• Juukan Gorge traditional owners sign agreement with Rio Tinto to co-manage WA mining land

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