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Wildfire smoke may cause life-long harm
Flying high, not getting high: the poppy-eating cockatoos of Tasmania are no opiate addicts
Scientists say it’s the poppies’ fat and protein, not their narcotic alkaloids, that keep the birds coming back for more
Tasmanian farmers have reported their poppy crops are being ravaged by cockatoos, but experts say it is likely that it is a taste for the fatty seeds, and not an addiction to opiates, that is attracting the birds.
Tasmanian farmer Bernard Brain told the ABC on Tuesday that flocks of about 300 white cockatoos had decimated his harvest by ripping capsules from his poppy flowers and eating them, leading him to believe that the native birds were addicted to the alkaloid found in the seed.
Continue reading...Is disunity in politics really death any more? I'm not so sure | Katharine Murphy
If you were a political scientist, you might wonder if some of these internal differences within the major parties are irreconcilable
I’ll get to the divisions on coal and climate afflicting both of the major parties shortly, but before we arrive there I want to ask a bigger question about disunity, one I’ve been carrying around with me since election night last year. Forgive this indulgence, I need to get this off my chest.
Politics watchers will know that prime ministers and opposition leaders intone with all the sobriety of an undertaker that “disunity is death”. People in my line of work tend to amplify that line dutifully, not because we are ciphers, but because it appeared to be true – one of those truisms so true it required no rebuttal.
Continue reading...'A moment of complete despair': last population of Macquarie perch wiped out in NSW river carnage
Fisheries managers arrived too late to save more of the endangered species as heavy rain washes ash into NSW rivers, robbing fish of oxygen
Luke Pearce had arrived at Mannus Creek for a three-day mission to rescue the Murray-Darling Basin’s last population of Macquarie perch.
For 10 years Pearce had visited this spot on the edge of the Snowy Mountains that, just weeks earlier, was ravaged by fire. There had been rain and the creek was flowing fast.
Continue reading...Climate Change Policy Manager, British Embassy – Jakarta
Climate Analyst, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) – London
ETS revenues set to bolster post-Brexit EU budget as leaders re-attempt deal
'Ghost' human ancestor discovered in West Africa
US airline Delta sets out international CO2 neutrality goal that minimises offsets use
Coastal floods warning in UK as sea levels rise
Coastal erosion: The homes lost to the sea
India’s cKinetics acquires carbon market data firm CaliforniaCarbon.info
School climate strikers join Valentine's Day protests across world
In UK, students march on first anniversary of nationwide protests by young people
Striking students have joined Valentine’s Day rallies across the world as the protest movement attempts to ratchet up pressure on governments and companies before crunch UN climate talks in Glasgow later this year.
In London, the young demonstrators held banners proclaiming “Roses are red, violets are blue, our Earth is burning and soon we will too” and “Climate change is worse than homework” as they marched through Parliament Square on Friday to mark the first anniversary of nationwide climate strikes in the UK.
Continue reading...Oregon advances WCI-modelled ETS bill with prolonged fuel sector phase-in
Virgin Galactic: Unity rocket ship moves to operational base
EU Midday Market Briefing
EU spending tens of millions of euros a year to promote meat eating
Campaigns to promote consumption of pork and veal labelled ‘indefensible’ in light of health and climate concerns
The EU has been accused of an “indefensible” approach to human health and the climate crisis in spending tens of millions of euros each year on campaigns to reverse the decline in meat eating and trying to rebut so-called “fake news” on the mistreatment of animals bred for food.
Campaigns range from those designed to counter official warnings about the risk of cancer from eating red meat, to improving the public image of veal products said to be crucial in “deriving value from young male calves” superfluous to the dairy industry.
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