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The governor of Jalisco this week announced that the jurisdiction will apply a CO2 levy starting next year, becoming the latest Mexican state to forge ahead on carbon pricing.

• Air pollution and heat exposure linked to negative outcomes
• Researchers discover ‘pretty scary health burdens’

More than a decade of overwhelming evidence links air pollution and heat exposure with negative pregnancy outcomes in the US, according to a new review of dozens of studies.

The investigation, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, identified 57 studies since 2007 showing a significant association between the two factors and the risk of pre-term birth, low birth weight and stillbirth.

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The coronavirus pandemic is making it easier for the EU to raise its 2030 emissions target and tighten the EU ETS cap due to energy market dynamics and stronger political will, experts told the Carbon Fast Forward Online conference on Thursday. 

Coronavirus has emphasised health, social, economic and environmental inequalities facing BAME people

Tackling systemic racism is fundamental to achieving environmental and climate justice, according to leading activists, as Covid-19 disparities and the global uprising against police brutality lay bare the ramifications of racial inequalities in every sphere of life.

Related: One reason why people of color are dying at higher rates in the US? The air they breathe | Mustafa Santiago Ali

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The International Energy Agency on Thursday outlined a $3-trillion plan to recover from the coronavirus pandemic that it says would reduce global 2023 GHG emissions 4.5 billion tonnes of CO2e below BAU levels while adding to economic growth, and saving or creating millions of jobs.

European carbon prices spiked to a three-month high on Thursday, as positive coronavirus news out of China helped lifted wider markets and send EUAs above their 200-day moving average for the first time since late last year.

Stoves that produce pollutants known to make people sick can be donated to tribes and Appalachian communities

Wood heaters that US regulators have deemed too dirty to sell can now be donated to tribal nations and Appalachian communities, under a program organized by a trade group and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Public health experts warn the donations could force more pollution on already vulnerable populations amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Wood-burning devices emit pollutants known to make people sick, including fine particle pollution and chemicals like benzene, formaldehyde, acrolein and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

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Trina Solar "paves the way" to 600W PV modules with the launch of an ultra-high power "Mega" series with an output of more than 500W.

The post Trina pushes further into large-scale solar market with TrinaPro Mega appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Animals sold in markets and restaurants in Southeast Asia harbour multiple coronaviruses, study shows.

Scottish parliament votes to give mountain hares special protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act

Gamekeepers and grouse moor managers will be banned from mass culling mountain hares after Scottish ministers bowed to intense pressure from conservationists.

The Scottish parliament voted on Wednesday night to give mountain hares special protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, which will make it an offence to intentionally or recklessly kill or injure the hare without a licence.

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Tesla big battery at Hornsdale gets regulatory green light for expansion of what is already the world's biggest lithium ion battery, and a crucial component of South Australia's net 100% renewables plan.

The post Tesla big battery expansion gets regulatory nod, testing to begin soon appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Tesla teams with global catamaran racing championship, SailGP, to switch the fledgling sport’s diesel-fuelled mobile recharging stations to solar and battery storage.

The post Tesla Powerwalls help world’s fastest sailing race ditch diesel appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Farmers report devastating losses as poor control measures are blamed for spread of infection across the country

Hundreds of thousands of pigs have been culled by Nigerian farmers in response to an explosion of African swine fever (ASF). The outbreak began around Lagos and parts of neighbouring Ogun state earlier this year, pig farmers say, but has now spread to many other parts of the country.

In the absence of official data, farmers who spoke to the Guardian estimated that nearly a million pigs had been put down so far. Mrs Bello, a farmer at Lagos-based Oke-Aro, the largest pig co-operative in west Africa, who preferred not to give her first name, said the co-operative alone had culled around 500,000 pigs. So far the virus has spread to more than a quarter of Nigeria’s 36 states.

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While the world hangs on news of battery update, Tesla takes time out to explain how it has cracked the 400 mile barrier with its Tesla Model S.

The post Tesla cracks 400 mile range barrier for Model S as world waits for battery update appeared first on RenewEconomy.

CSIRO releases new forecasts for solar, battery and electric vehicles, while more solar firms under pressure from Covid-19 despite overall resilience of rooftop solar market.

The post Solar Insiders Podcast: CSIRO’s new solar, battery and EV forecasts appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Shares in molten silicon energy storage hopeful 1414 plunge by more than 50% after frank technology review finds reliability and efficiency problems.

The post 1414 Degrees hits major bump on road to utility-scale thermal energy storage appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Exclusive: project will store renewable energy and reduce climate-heating emissions

Construction is beginning on the world’s largest liquid air battery, which will store renewable electricity and reduce carbon emissions from fossil-fuel power plants.

The project near Manchester, UK, will use spare green energy to compress air into a liquid and store it. When demand is higher, the liquid air is released back into a gas, powering a turbine that puts the green energy back into the grid.

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Ed Davey says there is a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ to reshape economy

The Liberal Democrats have unveiled proposals to invest £150bn in green projects over three years as a way to transform the economy in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, warning that the government must act soon on the issue.

Ed Davey, the party’s interim leader, said there was “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to both tackle potential mass unemployment due to Covid-19, and reshape the economy on more environmental lines.

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More than five years of positive outcomes from the National Environmental Science Program are showcased in an exciting new e-book released this week.

More than five years of positive outcomes from the National Environmental Science Program are showcased in an exciting new e-book released this week.