Feed aggregator

The Zambian government has said will not downgrade the protected status of a key forest in the country and will instead seek to fund its conservation through carbon finance.

The film How to Blow Up a Pipeline makes a case for using sabotage, but hope remains that we can build rather than destroy

The new film How to Blow Up a Pipeline raises loudly the question that many protesters are asking quietly: what happens when peaceful climate protest fails? In its sympathetic depiction of a group of climate activists who set out to blow up a huge oil pipeline with homemade explosives, it gives the same answer in fiction that Andreas Malm’s 2021 book of the same name gave in nonfiction: sabotage.

Its UK release could hardly be more timely. As thousands prepare to gather for Extinction Rebellion’s new wave of peaceful protests this weekend, there is a sense of desperation in the air. So much has already been tried – so many marches and choirs, sit-downs and stunts, assemblies and pickets. Yes, we will gather again. Yes, we will paint more placards. Yes, we will sing more songs.

Continue reading...

Andreas Malm says he has no hope in ‘dominant classes’, and urges more radical approach to climate activism

International climate diplomacy is hopeless, the author of How to Blow Up a Pipeline has said, as the film adaptation of the radical environmentalist book is released.

As activists around the world take increasingly desperate actions against destructive projects, Andreas Malm told the Guardian he had not “a shred of hope” elites were prepared to take the urgent action needed to avert catastrophic climate change.

Continue reading...

EUAs dropped to test technical support at a three-week low in Friday morning trading as sentiment continued to turn bearish as the compliance buying season neared its end.

Europe’s first new plant in 16 years comes on stream in Finland day after Germany pulls plug on last reactors

When Europe’s first new nuclear reactor in 16 years came online in Finland, it was hailed by its operator as a “significant addition to clean domestic production” that would “play an important role in the green transition”.

The opening last Sunday of the long-delayed Olkiluoto 3 plant, Europe’s largest, means about 40% of Finland’s electricity demand will soon be met by nuclear power, which the government says will boost energy security and help it achieve its carbon neutrality targets.

Continue reading...

Weekly trading volume in China’s national emissions market improved from the previous week, though the spot price for Chinese CO2 allowances was dragged down by a block deal amid sluggish demand.

A Japanese shipping giant has set a target to remove over 2 million tonnes of CO2e by 2030 by investing in carbon removal projects, the company announced on Friday in an update on its climate and environmental targets.

An important part of parenting is securing children’s future. Too many of us are reading bedtime stories in a house that’s burning down

Parents do a lot. We spend hours reading stories or freezing on the edges of sports pitches. We buy food, clothes, buggies, car seats, bikes, music lessons, gadgets, parties, holidays, not to mention hundreds of toys. But here’s the bad news. While we obsess about our kids as individuals, we’re missing a last-ditch collective chance to save them from environmental catastrophe.

Take that seriously, and being a “good” mum or dad is about much more than what you do with your child or the opportunities you buy them. It becomes political.

Continue reading...

Forecasts suggest highs of 35-38C and even 39C in Seville, easily surpassing the peak of 37.4C set in 2011

For much of Europe, April so far has been rather cold and reasonably wet in places. However, Spain has remained very dry and very warm, retaining the subtropical air that has led to forest fires and a widespread drought. Plumes of heat from the tropics are expected to continue to affect the country throughout the coming days, threatening the April maximum temperature record.

The highest temperature ever recorded in Spain for the month is 37.4C (99.3F) in Murcia on 9 April 2011. Forecasts suggest that on 26 April temperatures will widely reach 35-38C, and Seville may even hit a maximum of 39C. For comparison, the April high in Seville stands at 35.4C. It is possible that records for the month will not only be broken next week, but smashed.

Continue reading...

John Price jailed after admitting ‘wanton’ destruction of one of UK’s most unspoiled rivers

A farmer has been jailed for “the worst case of riverside destruction” seen by environmental authorities after ripping up 1.5km of the River Lugg in Herefordshire, wrecking the habitats of otters, kingfishers, trout and salmon.

Following the first prosecution under the farming rules for water legislation, John Price was jailed for 12 months, ordered to pay prosecution costs of £600,000 and disqualified from being a director of a limited company for three years after admitting seven charges related to his “wanton” destruction of one of the country’s most unspoiled rivers.

Continue reading...

Australia it will launch a sovereign green bonds programme next year as well as develop a sustainable finance taxonomy, in a bid to encourage greater, more transparent private sector investment in the energy transition.

The best of this week’s wildlife photographs, including a sleepy sloth, a black-backed jackal and a breaching whale

Continue reading...

Genex solar farms yields fall back to earth as market prices soften, but focus now on storage projects with its first big battery ready to charge.

The post Genex solar yields fall back to earth as it readies to charge up first big battery appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A lack of demand from businesses and clear regulation in Thailand is likely to stymie the growth of the nation’s nascent carbon market as heavy emitters look cut emissions at source, according to analysts. 

Why does a wealthy, powerful nation struggle so badly while a small, much poorer one succeeds?

One of the world’s greatest environmental heroes doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page. Though he has done more to protect the living planet than almost anyone alive, his name is scarcely known. It’s partly because he’s quiet and self-effacing and partly because of a general ignorance about Central America that so few of us have heard of Alvaro Umaña.

This might be about to change. He stars in a fascinating film, now released in the Netherlands and negotiating global sales, called Paved Paradise (disclosure: I was also interviewed). It’s the first feature-length documentary I’ve watched that engages intelligently with the most critical environmental issue: land use. By contrast with popular but misguided films such as Kiss the Ground or The Biggest Little Farm, it recognises that sprawling extractive land uses are a lethal threat to the living world. It makes the case that, unless we count the hectares and decide together how best they should be used, we will lose the struggle to defend the habitable planet.

Continue reading...

Plans to create green space cancelled because soil contamination levels pose risk to human health

Plans to plant a new woodland have been cancelled after local councillors discovered a field was so saturated with sewage the soil could be too toxic for the trees.

The woodland was to have been planted in a council-owned field located by Otterspool Road in Romiley, Greater Manchester. Officials hoped the woodland would improve the environment, provide green space and encourage wildlife habitats.

Continue reading...

A rapid rise in reduced power tariff offerings reserved for load-controllable heat pumps has sent their operating costs up to a third lower than gas heating.

The post How Germany is driving the electrification of home heating – and beating out gas appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Tesla says big batteries can deliver system strength services around one third cheaper than spinning machines currently favoured by network companies.

The post Batteries battle with spinning machines for key role in 100 pct renewables grid appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Former competition czar Rod Sims emerges as chair of Superpower Institute, promoting Australia’s low cost green energy opportunity, and fighting the info war. Plus: Big battery boom.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Sims to lead Superpower info war appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Global thermal coal trade is beyond its peak. So why does Australia expect to gain an increasing share in a declining market?

The post Australia’s thermal coal outlook faces “fragile” global demand appeared first on RenewEconomy.