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California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) prices have continued their steady increase over the month of June as compliance buying has persisted, but some participants have questioned how much further the bull run will last.

This month, the United Kingdom has made two landmark achievements in its bid to reduce carbon emissions.

Because it happened within the Australian Plate rather than at a plate boundary, shockwaves from the quake travelled more efficiently to Darwin than to cities closer to the epicentre. Brendan Duffy, Lecturer in Applied Geoscience, University of Melbourne Mark Quigley, Associate professor, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Severe coral bleaching may have been the crucial factor in bringing home the reality of climate change for many people. Matt Curnock, Social Scientist, CSIRO Scott Heron, Senior Lecturer, James Cook University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Discover Australia’s threatened plant species, as well as their major threats

Humans are devastating the world’s plants and causing a “frightening” number of extinctions, according to a global scientific survey of the issue. This is certainly the case in Australia, where plants make up 72% of the total threatened species list, with 1,308 listed species, and 370 species listed as critically endangered or endangered at a state level. This accelerating decline in the world’s biodiversity will have grave consequences for human society according to the UN’s recent global assessment report.

In Australia, recent research by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub listed the 100 plants that are most at risk. Dr Jennifer Silcock from the University of Queensland said the list, published in the Australian Journal of Botany, showed the main threats were urbanisation, inappropriate fire regimes, introduced plant disease and habitat loss.

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Treasury proposes rise from 5% to 20%, while the tax on coal will stay at lower rate

Homes hoping to shrink their carbon footprints by installing a solar-battery system face a steep VAT increase from October under new laws proposed by HMRC.

The Treasury put forward legislation on Monday to raise VAT for home solar-battery systems from 5% to 20%, on the same day that MPs are debating the government’s new net zero carbon target for 2050.

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**Following some reader suggestions, we’re trialling a new brief midday EU ETS market report.**

Organisers of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing have released a plan to minimise the event's greenhouse gas footprint, including a goal to buy or ensure donations of local carbon offsets and ETS allowances to make up for any emissions that can’t be avoided.

Spot emissions exchange operator CBL Markets will merge with commodity data firm Xpansiv, the companies announced on Monday.

Lax security at a Nasa lab let a hacker lurk on the agency's network for almost a year, says report.

New Zealand Climate Change Minister James Shaw has said he is “not keen” to shift the emissions trading scheme’s de facto price cap level up from the current NZ$25 level until the full market reform package is ready, the clearest indicator yet the cap will stay where it is and weigh further on NZUs.

Nasa's Mars robot records its largest measurement yet of methane in the Red Planet's air.

Green hosting first emerged at the start of the century, but times have changed and the sector has evolved as consumers awareness increases.

The post Green Hosting, the future of eco-friendly websites appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Conservationists urge Sussan Ley to get her priorities right, saying her job is to protect species, not industries

Victoria’s faunal emblem, the tiny Leadbeater’s possum, will keep its critically endangered listing after the environment minister, Sussan Ley, rejected a push by Coalition MPs to downgrade its conservation status.

But Ley has been criticised for suggesting a long-delayed recovery plan for the possum should also consider the needs of the Victorian timber industry.

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Ana María Hernández says shifting society out of ‘comfort zone’ is difficult, but young people are inspiring

The survival of the natural world upon which humanity depends hangs in the balance, according to the new chair of the global scientific body for biodiversity.

Ana María Hernández said she did not know if society could make the major changes needed to stop the annihilation of wildlife, which some scientists thought was the start of a mass extinction. It would be very difficult to shift society out of its current “comfort zone” of business-as-usual, but she thought the much higher environmental awareness among young people was a reason for great optimism.

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The ACT doubles down on its renewable energy commitments as Australia's largest community solar farm moves towards construction after securing funding.

The post ACT looks beyond 2020 renewables target, seals community solar off-take deal appeared first on RenewEconomy.

W.A.'s 207MW Collgar wind farm now entirely owned by Rest Industry Super, after the minority shareholder bought up UBS Asset Management's 60% stake.

The post Western Australia’s biggest wind farm now fully owned by retail super fund appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Rangers and scientists and a white cartoonist converge for the night parrot but where is the night parrot???

Greetings from Paraku. I’m here at the Species of the Desert Festival having a lovely time. We are 12 hours drive eastish from Broome on the shores of (currently empty) Lake Gregory (Paraku) near the community of Mulan. It is very in the middle.

This festival is a gathering of Indigenous rangers who live and work on country and also sometimes get together at events like this to share knowledge, do some organising and have a friendly chat. For a humble and very white cartoonist from rural Tasmania it is another world and I am feeling very lucky to be here and thoroughly enjoying myself – although the red dust gets into literally everything, even one’s undies (sorry TMI but it really does).

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To make energy more affordable and future-proof our grid, we must better coordinate rooftop solar, batteries and other devices owned by consumers.

The post The real energy revolution is happening in our homes appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Having the power system frequency poorly controlled is like driving a car on a rough road.

The post Rule changes, reform needed to address poor network frequency control appeared first on RenewEconomy.