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Flames from an exploding battery were put out in less than half a second during tests.

ETI says technology is 10 times dearer than other low carbon power sources and UK should prioritise tidal stream

An embryonic industry trying to harness the UK’s waves to generate clean electricity has been dealt a significant blow by a warning that the technology is too costly.

Wave power devices being tested in Cornwall and at Orkney are 10 times more expensive than other sources of low carbon power and need a radical rethink, the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) said.

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The remaining climate change uncertainties point toward higher risks and greater urgency for action

President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of State – and until recently the CEO of ExxonMobil – Rex Tillerson was given a confirmation hearing by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week. In his testimony, Tillerson accepted the reality of human-caused global warming and that “The risk of climate change does exist and the consequences of it could be serious enough that action should be taken.”

While he accepted the problem exists, Tillerson nevertheless proceeded to downplay its risks, saying:

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Sharp rise in discarded electronic goods is generating millions of tonnes of hazardous waste, putting pressure on valuable resources and the environment, study shows

Asia’s mountains of hazardous electronic trash, or e-waste, are growing rapidly, new research reveals, with China leading the way.

A record 16m tonnes of electronic trash, containing both toxic and valuable materials, were generated in a single year – up 63% in five years, new analysis looking at 12 countries in east and south-east Asia shows.

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Cardigan Bay, Ceredigion Made up of rounded cobbles graded in size, this ‘causeway’ looks beguilingly like the work of our ancestors

The amount of ice on the narrow footpath came as a surprise. Hidden from the sun on the south side of the valley, it had probably accumulated over a number of days – along with the layered, crusted frost on the nearby vegetation. Few people seemed to have walked this stretch of the Wales coast path recently; a fox crossing the track ahead and a briefly perched buzzard both seemed shocked to see me.

As I reached the footbridge above the beach at Wallog, I folded away my heavily used Ordnance Survey map and consulted its nautical equivalent. While OS maps provide only scant information about the space beyond the coast, admiralty charts give detailed data on the underwater landscape – in this case the geological oddity that is Sarn Wallog.

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Engie to invest in new large scale solar farms as it prepares to close Hazelwood, confirming the rapid shift from coal fired power to solar in Australia. Still, conservatives and fossil fuel lobbyists are continuing to attack renewables.

Tesla reveal how those without unlimited Supercharger access for the Model S and Model X electric vehicles will be charged.

Masen, Morocco’s public agency for renewable energies, has revealed that Acwa Power will develop 170 MW of solar PV plants in the country at a rate of €0.0422 per kWh.

Spot electricity prices averaged $447/MWh for the week in Queensland, and surged above $13,000 on a couple of occasions. Of course, there is no newspaper article when this happens because, since there is basically only rooftop PV in the state in the way of renewables, there is no convenient scapegoat.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo promises declining carbon emissions even as the state closes the Indian Point nuclear power plant.

Obama sees the world as at a tipping point and that a clean energy revolution is already underway.

This video taken from a drone shows travel blogger Isabelle Fabre’s close encounter with a great white shark while kitesurfing off the West Australian coast. Fabre explains that she initially thought the shadow under her board was from her kite, and then that it was a dolphin. ‘I heard Cyril shouting “Shark! Isabelle, get out!” He saw everything through the drone and he thought I was done’

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Environment minister says government ‘deeply disappointed’ after Sea Shepherd photos show minke whale killing in Antarctic sanctuary

The federal environment minister, Josh Frydenberg, has criticised Japan following the release of photographs allegedly showing the slaughtering of protected whales inside Australia’s Antarctic whale sanctuary.

Frydenberg’s statement came as conservationists called for tougher action from Australia.

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Afghan refugees are happy to call Shepparton home; training up the next generation of jackeroos and jillaroos; we cruise Wilson Inlet with fisherman George Ebbett; and give baby crocs a helping hand into the world.

In the past, extreme weather and disastrous harvests have proved socially divisive. We have been warned, say climate researchers

In the winter of 1432-33 people in Scotland “had to use fire to melt the wine before drinking it” ran a line in the research about the coldest decade of winters in the last 1,000 years.

Short of real temperature readings, descriptions of such incidents and records of rivers and lakes freezing over for months at a time, tree rings and ice cores are what climate scientists have to use to trace weather extremes of the past.

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Over the weekend, former Prime Minister Tony Abbott urged the Coalition to dump the Renewable Energy Target.

Overwhelming majority believe they are living with the effects of warming and 46% say coal-fired power should be phased out

Ninety per cent of people living in rural and regional Australia believe they are already experiencing the impacts of climate change and 46% believe coal-fired power stations should be phased out, according to a new study.

A poll of 2,000 people conducted by the Climate Institute found that 82% of respondents in rural and regional Australia and 81% of those in capital cities were concerned about increased droughts, flooding and destruction of the Great Barrier Reef due to climate change, and 78% of all respondents were concerned there would be more bushfires.

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If you're feeling hot this summer, consider a retrofit. Fan image from www.shutterstock.com

Sitting at home in the summer heat, your mind may start to wander to that fancy new air conditioner.

But when it comes to making your house comfortable and sustainable, prevention is better than cure. By prevention we mean simple retrofits that will set you on the path to comfort and sustainability.

As we spend more than ever on maintaining and improving our homes, we’re also becoming more aware of how their design and use impact on our health and society. Add to this climate change and rising energy costs.

There are many ways to reduce energy and stay comfortable (for instance here and here). Numerous reports suggest it should be possible to reduce your energy use by 50-80% using existing and available materials and appliances.

Appliance are the easy bit, and you can find the most efficient appliances using energy star ratings. But before you go out and buy that air conditioner, consider the following principles that can help you decide what you need to create a comfortable home.

Prevention better than cure

For a long time the perfect “room temperature” was considered to be around 21℃. But we now understand that as humans we like temperature variations rather than vanilla indoor environments.

As explored in Lisa Heschong’s book Thermal Delight in Architecture (1979), most of us are not looking for a beige thermal environment after all. So to start with, we need a change in attitude. Bring back the cardigan for winter and the shorts for summer!

The next point is basic knowledge about your climate zone. For instance, in Melbourne there are more heating days (159) than cooling days (35). So, if you are retrofitting in summer, remember the main annual task is actually letting the sun in in winter.

Even with climate change, Melbourne will still require heating on more days than cooling for decades to come, whereas in Brisbane the priority is keeping out the heat and catching the breeze.

So Melbourne homes need reversible sunblock. You can use plants with seasonal foliage to shade summer windows, or temporary techniques like temporary sail shades or movable window awnings can work. Plants can also cool outdoor spaces through evapotranspiration, which helps combat the growing “urban heat island” problem and makes the backyard a more pleasant place to be.

Despite some bad press over the years, insulating ceiling, floors and walls where possible remains the best way to address 50-80% of heat gains/losses. In many homes ceiling insulation is cheap and easy to fit and can even be topped up. Insulated homes have also been found to perform better during extreme weather events and are quieter, more comfortable and natural places to be.

In summer sun, black roofs are bad news. Coating surfaces can reflect excess heat. Coating technology has been employed in paint products for your walls and roofs, and is also being developed in landscaping materials for the backyard.

Single-glazed windows are responsible for 10-35% of heat gains/losses in our homes. A range of double-glazed window products is now available, or you can even get a secondary glass pane to place over existing windows.

Double-glazed (or triple-glazed) homes are more comfortable in extreme weather, and are also quieter and more comfortable. Add drapes and blinds for added temporary use to keep out sun or keep in warmth when needed.

While these preventive passive measures might seem basic, the fact is that (a) technologies, markets and pricing are changing rapidly, so it makes sense to be open to new retrofitting ideas and products; and (b) comfort remains the big-ticket item and it will only get more so as climate change affects all of our homes. Addressing this first will reduce the requirement for other technologies and appliances.

The principles of retrofitting

Another area of technology progress is digital data systems to monitor indoor energy services. Energy supplier portals, temperature loggers and smartphone apps are now widely available.

For the more enthusiastic, if you buy a couple of temperature loggers and place one in your main living area and one in your main bedroom you can collect data at intervals as small as one second. You can use this data to identify how your house is performing and how you are using it. More importantly, you can satisfy yourself that the retrofit you’ve just paid for has made a difference.

We’ve only covered a few focus areas in this article. There are many good options we haven’t dealt with. However, we propose three principles for any retrofit project:

1. prioritise big-ticket items (such as thermal comfort) – what do you need most and what uses the most energy? – to plan and design around your climate zone and home needs

2. prevention is better than cure – focus on passive elements before turning to appliances

3. diversity is better than standardisation – don’t aim for 21℃, aim for controllable comfort, openable windows and adjustable systems room by room. Design in easy adjustment through movable technologies such as fans, curtains, plants and shades.

With all the hard work done, it’s time to sit back and enjoy the new indoor environment, but be aware that, as with our climate, our conventions, routines and expectations of comfort are constantly changing.

Some argue for evidence of a comfort dividend, where occupants of newly eco-retrofitted homes increase their use of heating or cooling appliances (or both).

Undoubtedly, as consumption patterns change and social standards shift, we will need to adjust our eco-retrofit priorities. Homes are not just a material work in progress, but are sites of social and cultural life after all.

Trivess Moore receives funding from the Australian Research Council and built environment and related bodies from time to time to fund research on housing, including sustainable housing retrofit.

Andrew Carre has previously undertaken life cycle assessment studies of buildings for Forest and Wood Products Australia.

Ralph Horne receives funding from the Australian Research Council and built environment and related bodies from time to time to co-fund research on housing, including sustainable housing retrofit.

You report (Tidal lagoon power is ‘reliable and affordable’, 13 January) that the Swansea Bay scheme “would be the first of its kind in the world”. In France, the Rance estuary plant has been operating since 1966. In Canada, in the Bay of Fundy, which has the highest tides in the world, the plant at Annapolis Royal has been operating since being opened by Prince Charles in 1984. However, the French have no firm plans for more such plants and the Canadians have abandoned them altogether. In Canada, a major consideration has been the devastating impact on fish stocks.

It seems to me that the major objective of the proposal might be to extract taxpayer funding for no useful purpose, and the government needs to study the proposals very carefully to ensure we do not end up with a number of very large white elephants in the Severn estuary.
Ian Brittain
Owermoigne, Dorset

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Amount of electronic waste up 63% in five years, with China’s more than doubling, United Nations University report finds

Levels of electronic waste are rising sharply across Asia, as higher incomes mean hundreds of millions of people can afford smartphones and other gadgets, according to a UN study.

The amount of e-waste in Asia has risen by 63% in five years, a report by United Nations University said, warning of the need to improve recycling and disposal methods across the region to prevent serious environmental and health consequences.

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