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US sets new record for billion-dollar climate disasters in single year

The Guardian - Tue, 2023-09-12 07:12

Country has experienced 23 extreme weather events costing $1bn or more already this year, passing previous mark of 22 in 2020

With four months of 2023 still left, the US has set a record for the most natural disasters in a single year that have cost $1bn or more, as fires, floods and ferocious winds were among deadly events experts warn are being turbo-charged by the climate crisis.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) announced on Monday that there have already been 23 extreme weather events in the US this year that have cost at least $1bn. The current figure surpasses the record of 22 such events set in 2020.

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Categories: Around The Web

Financial services company makes first fully automated sale of carbon credits

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2023-09-12 06:40
A new blockchain-based platform from a Chicago-headquartered financial firm has completed processing its first fully automated transaction of carbon credits, according to a press release on Monday.
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Verra deactivates 10 carbon credit methodologies, reviewing others

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2023-09-12 06:38
Carbon credit standards body Verra is eliminating the use of 10 VCS methodologies, including a deforestation and low-flow water project type, due to lack of use in the past five years, and is instituting a review of all their methodologies every five years.
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How we brought mistletoes back to the trees of Melbourne – while warding off hungry possums

The Conversation - Tue, 2023-09-12 06:09
Mistletoes are ecological keystones that boost habitat value for wildlife, so we added them to established plane trees in the inner city. David M Watson, Professor in Ecology, Charles Sturt University Rodney van der Ree, National Technical Executive in Ecology at WSP Australia Pty Ltd. Adjunct Associate Professor, School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
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EU’s renewable energy directive set to overcome last hurdle with full Parliament vote

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2023-09-12 05:01
The EU is set to take its final step in approving a revised more ambitious renewable energy legislation as the bill faces a full EU Parliament vote on Tuesday, with most parties likely to vote in favour.
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EU metals sector deploys taskforce to work with EU on aligning with the bloc’s 2050 goals

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2023-09-12 03:46
The European metals industry started a process to establish its own transition pathway in collaboration with the European Commission, two sector associations announced on Monday.
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VCM Report: REDD sinks lower to add further gloom to the market

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2023-09-12 03:05
REDD avoided deforestation credits slipped lower last week to underline the lack of demand and reflecting an increasingly bleak voluntary carbon market as it waits the arrival of the ICVCM’s first batch of Core Carbon Principle labelled credits.
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Investor reduced its exposure to UK water companies due to pollution

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2023-09-12 02:48
Allianz Global Investors has reduced its exposure to UK water companies due to risks associated with them dumping sewage in waterways, an executive at the firm said as the company ramps up its nature-related engagement.
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Heat pumps twice as efficient as fossil fuel systems in cold weather, study finds

The Guardian - Tue, 2023-09-12 01:00

Doubts about whether heat pumps work well in subzero conditions shown to be unfounded, say researchers

Heat pumps are more than twice as efficient as fossil fuel heating systems in cold temperatures, research shows.

Even at temperatures approaching -30C, heat pumps outperform oil and gas heating systems, according to the research from Oxford University and the Regulatory Assistance Project thinktank.

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Keeping cats indoors is a rare solution where everybody wins | Calla Wahlquist

The Guardian - Tue, 2023-09-12 01:00

In the debate over protecting native wildlife from domestic felines, one thing is often overlooked: cats should be kept indoors for the sake of cats

There is a bird bath in our garden frequented by fairywrens and red-browed finches. We put it under the flowering elm tree so the little birds would feel protected and hang out there for longer. It’s a few metres from our back door. Most days, when the sun hits that part of the floorboards, our cat Laurie can be found there, lazing in a sunbeam watching the birds through the glass. Sometimes, when they hop closer, she will sit up and make little chattering noises. It’s cat TV: enriching for her, safe for the oblivious birds.

I wish I could say we’d done it for the birds’ sake. But like an extraordinary number of decisions in the past 13 years, I did it for Laurie.

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Red fire ant colonies found in Italy and could spread across Europe, says study

The Guardian - Tue, 2023-09-12 01:00

Researchers identify 88 nests of destructive invasive non-native species near Syracuse in Sicily

An invasive non-native ant species has become established in Italy and could rapidly spread through Europe to the UK with global heating, a study warns.

The red fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, has a powerful sting, damages crops and can infest electrical equipment including cars and computers.

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IMO shipping strategy a major step forward for sector’s climate action -study

Carbon Pulse - Tue, 2023-09-12 00:33
The International Maritime Organization’s strategy for the transition to renewable energy is a major step forward in ambition that has overtaken many of the national, regional, and industrial steps already in place, according to research released Monday.
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Australian corporates talk net zero, but are still gun-shy about 1.5°C climate target

RenewEconomy - Tue, 2023-09-12 00:06

Drought dust storm small iStock-1183248853Australian businesses are still gun-shy and conservative when it comes to the need for targets that align with the 1.5°C Paris climate goal.

The post Australian corporates talk net zero, but are still gun-shy about 1.5°C climate target appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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UK, South Korea commit billions to UN’s Green Climate Fund

Carbon Pulse - Mon, 2023-09-11 23:57
Britain and South Korea have respectively pledged $2 billion and $300 mln to the latest replenishment of the Green Climate Fund (GCF), a mechanism established to channel climate finance from rich nations to the countries in the Global South to aid them with climate action.
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Dolly the Sheep creator Ian Wilmut dies aged 79

BBC - Mon, 2023-09-11 23:42
Creating the world's first cloned mammal was arguably one of the greatest scientific achievements of the 20th Century.
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Canada-based carbon credit financier rebrands to showcase climate action mission

Carbon Pulse - Mon, 2023-09-11 22:35
A Canada-based carbon credit project financier has rebranded to underscore the urgency needed in the global mission to decarbonise economies and the company’s focus on the climate action required.
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Our energy market is designed for a system that no longer exists: It’s time for change

RenewEconomy - Mon, 2023-09-11 22:04

A new National Electricity Objective should promote urgency, not just efficiency. But it needs other reforms that require imagination, and SWAT teams.

The post Our energy market is designed for a system that no longer exists: It’s time for change appeared first on RenewEconomy.

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Euro Markets: Midday Update

Carbon Pulse - Mon, 2023-09-11 21:55
European carbon prices rose slightly on Monday morning despite a relatively weak auction result, as EUAs garnered some support from a strong advance in natural gas after a major Australian LNG producer said there was little prospect of a swift resolution to strikes that have cut gas output.
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Project developer sets its sights on nature-based removal credits

Carbon Pulse - Mon, 2023-09-11 21:35
A developer is seeking investment into a new afforestation project in India to boost the supply of removal credits in the voluntary carbon market (VCM), despite uncertainties about the country’s future carbon market.
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INTERVIEW: UK can play leading role in hydrogen production and CO2 storage, says gas pipeline operator

Carbon Pulse - Mon, 2023-09-11 21:10
The UK is in a unique position to act as an important hub for hydrogen development in Europe thanks to its pressing need to decarbonise its gas-reliant heating system, wealth of renewable energy for powering hydrogen electrolysis, and ease of access to the North Sea for potential CO2 storage, said one of the country’s leading pipeline operators.
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