Feed aggregator

Australia has a mammoth opportunity to bring downstream mineral processing back onshore – and risks a huge opportunity cost if we do not act.

The post Australia’s mammoth renewable minerals opportunity – and how to harness it appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Standardised voluntary emissions reduction (VER) prices lost as much as a fifth of their value over the past week, amid ever-growing concerns that companies would put offset buying on the back burner as they grapple with major macro-economic woes.

A US carbon removals marketplace has teamed up with a global life science conglomerate to expand its offsets platform for farmers that adopt a suite of sustainable agricultural practices, the firms announced on Monday.

Saudi Arabia's public investment fund (PIF) will auction carbon credits generated from 16 projects on Tuesday, according to sources familiar with the situation, as the country announced the creation of a firm to manage its voluntary carbon market activities and spur efforts to become a regional hub.

Local councils are on the front line in a planning system that lacks an up-to-date planning framework to properly assess flood risks and prepare responses. Mark Ellis, PhD Candidate in Planning, Bond University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Climate change shouldn’t be used as a “get out-of jail free” card to excuse bad decision-making and poor planning decisions. Quentin Grafton, Australian Laureate Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Gilad Bino, Senior lecturer, UNSW Sydney John Williams, Adjunct Professor Long Chu, Associate Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Richard Kingsford, Professor, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Discovery raises hopes that species may be able to survive global heating despite slower genetic evolution due to their long lifespan

Narwhals have been delaying their seasonal migration because of the impact of the climate crisis, suggesting an ability to adapt to the changing Arctic but increasing the risk that they may become trapped in ice, according to new research.

Narwhals, recognisable by their long spiralled tusk that has earned them the nickname “unicorns of the sea”, inhabit the Arctic waters of Greenland, Canada and Russia. They are a migratory species that spend summer months in ice-free coastal areas before moving to deeper waters between late September and mid-November.

Continue reading...

Wind energy sets new record share of 75 per cent of demand in the state of Victoria.

The post Graph of the Day: Wind energy delivers three quarters of Victoria’s demand for first time appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Canadian investment bank TD Securities (TDS) has hired a North American carbon and VER trader from Australia-based financial services firm Macquarie.

Three veteran European carbon analysts are leaving Refinitiv to join a rival market intelligence firm that is assembling a crack team of emissions trading experts, Carbon Pulse has learned.

It is crucial the capacity built under the 250-plus methodology CDM is used rather than starting from scratch for the mechanism under UN Paris Agreement Article 6.4, experts told an event on Monday, stressing the need for pragmatism given the time pressures and complexity of the task ahead.

As our leaders feign shock at its severity, the weather continues to undermine even best management practice on the land

• Sign up for the Rural Network email newsletter
• Join the Rural Network group on Facebook to be part of the community

As the rainfall started in northern New South Wales last week, I received a survey from the NSW Farmers Association about the big issues in agriculture.

It asked me to rate the issues in agriculture, which it listed as biosecurity, road and rail infrastructure, workforce, land use pressures and farm productivity, all of which are big. But there was not a mention of the biggest issue of all: extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change.

Sign up to receive Guardian Australia’s fortnightly Rural Network email newsletter

Continue reading...

Exclusive: 66% of people back nonviolent action and 75% support solar power being installed on farmland

A large majority of the UK public supports nonviolent direct action to protect the environment, according to an opinion poll. People also strongly backed solar power on farmland and opposed fracking.

The poll indicates the unpopularity of a recent swathe of government policies, with more than twice as many people saying they trusted Labour to protect the environment as said they trusted the Conservatives.

Continue reading...

The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) will include Scope 3 emissions in its forthcoming climate standard, recommending mandatory reporting of emissions associated with companies value chains, a controversial requirement that may not survive the US version.

Two Just Stop Oil protesters have smeared cake on a Madame Tussauds waxwork of King Charles, quoting the monarch: 'In the words of the King, the science is clear.' They went on to say: 'The demand is simple, just stop new oil and gas, it's a piece of cake. The stunt was part of a series of protests organised by the environmental activist group

Continue reading...

Strong compliance demand for carbon credits and increased Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCU) issuance are likely to mute the potential market disruptions that could follow in the wake of the ongoing Chubb Review, according to analysis released Tuesday.

EUAs clawed back some of their early losses on Monday morning after a firm auction, but the market firmly entrenched in its recent range as traders await signals that would trigger a breakout while energy prices continued to weaken amid healthy gas supplies and above-average temperatures.

Up to 60% of country in designated drought zone, as jet stream heats up parts of Europe

The US drought monitor declared 60% of the country to be in a designated drought zone last Thursday, with 34% in a severe or deepening drought. Although such conditions are not unusual in the US, with approximately 14% of the country having experienced severe to extreme drought every year since 1895, the extent of the current situation certainly is.

Western states and parts of the Great Plains are experiencing the most severe droughts in the country. Some central states including Minnesota and Iowa have recorded less than 25mm of rain in the past month, compared with an average of 70-100mm in September.

Continue reading...

Thermal power generation in China continued to rise in September amid increased coal output, while total generation growth saw a minor decline from a year ago, government data showed Monday.

Industry associations for sectors from oil to agriculture in the US and Europe found resisting wildlife-friendly laws, say researchers

Industry groups representing some of the world’s largest companies are “opposed to almost all major biodiversity-relevant policies” and are lobbying to block them, according to a new report.

Researchers found that 89% of engagement by leading industry associations in Europe and the US is designed to delay, dilute and block progress on tackling the biodiversity crisis, which scientists say is as serious as the climate emergency. Just 5% of support was positive and the remaining 6% was mixed or neutral, according to the climate thinktank InfluenceMap.

Continue reading...