Feed aggregator

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

US President-elect Joe Biden (D) is unlikely to prioritise a federal carbon pricing plan despite the Democrats now controlling the Senate, while the executive and legislative branches may work in tandem to advance other decarbonisation policy goals, a panel heard Friday.

Regulated entities unwound their California Carbon Allowance (CCA) holdings for the fifth straight week as speculators bolstered their positions by roughly the same amount, according to US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data published Friday.

Analysts have raised their forecasts for EU carbon allowances in 2021, though most don’t see prices rising this year much beyond this month’s record high.

Two participants in the US Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) market have filed or sought to intervene in lawsuits that allege a Texas-based commodity shop violated contractual obligations to deliver biofuel credits (RINs), bringing the total number of involved parties to four.

EUAs dropped to below €32 on Friday, falling further amid continued losses to the energy complex and cancelling out gains since new year that had pushed carbon to record highs.

A California oversight committee urged regulator ARB to address the WCI carbon allowance surplus to ensure the state hits its long-term climate goal, while continuing calls to alter industrial allocation and the design of quarterly auctions.

The US EPA indicated Friday that it will solicit public feedback on requests to waive or reduce 2019 and 2020 biofuel blending requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) brought forth by small refiners and oil-state governors last year.

A carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) will be most effective if the EU reinvests revenues into R&D for low-carbon technologies and clinches multilateral deals with trade partners, according to a report released this week.

A New York-based environmental trader has joined an multinational investment firm after spending the past decade at a RGGI compliance entity.

Hostile dispute over trophy hunting fuelled by ‘myths driven by emotion and morality that ignore critical facts’

Leading scientists have warned that global conservation is being undermined by celebrity power after they suffered death threats and abuse in a hostile dispute over trophy hunting.

Groups such as the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting and Born Free are pressuring the UK and US governments to ban trophy hunting, with support from many famous names, much of the public and more than 150 MPs across the political spectrum.

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Call for world leaders to act in wake of French extradition case that turned on environmental concerns

Air pollution does not respect national boundaries and environmental degradation will lead to mass migration in the future, said a leading barrister in the wake of a landmark migration ruling, as experts warned that government action must be taken as a matter of urgency.

Sailesh Mehta, a barrister specialising in environmental cases, said: “The link between migration and environmental degradation is clear. As global warming makes parts of our planet uninhabitable, mass migration will become the norm. Air and water pollution do not respect national boundaries. We can stop a humanitarian and political crisis from becoming an existential one. But our leaders must act now.”

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Experts say council funding shortfalls mean many old landfills not being dealt with appropriately

Hundreds of landfills around the UK containing hazardous waste are located beneath green spaces, schools and housing, analysis of official data has found.

Experts say authorities are “setting themselves up for a large sequence of nasty surprises” if the toxic substances were to escape, with council funding shortfalls meaning many sites are not being dealt with appropriately. The contents of hundreds of sites remain unknown even to the Environment Agency (EA).

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Thought at first to be a racing pigeon posing a biosecurity risk, Joe could be free as a bird after suggestion of mistaken identity

Australia’s Department of Agriculture is making inquiries after the American Pigeon Racing Union claimed that Joe, a pigeon that was thought to have travelled to Australia from the US, is actually a fraud – a revelation that may well save his life.

The public rallied to the defence of Joe after Australian agricultural authorities said he would be euthanised to prevent the risk of diseases from the US being transmitted to Australian native birds.

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Partially protected areas don't have more wildlife than unprotected areas. They consume conservation resources and occupy space that could otherwise be allocated to more effective protection. John Turnbull, Postdoctoral research associate, UNSW Carly Cook, Lecturer Head, Cook Research Group; School of Biological Sciences , Monash University Emma Johnston, Professor and Dean of Science, UNSW Graeme Clark, Senior Research Associate in Ecology, UNSW Kelsey Roberts, Post doctoral researcher at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University (The State University of New York) Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A Broome shopping centre will feature a 1.2MW of solar and its own battery after gaining clearance from Horizon Power.

The post Broome shopping centre to host massive solar and battery system appeared first on RenewEconomy.

AEMC to fast-track assessment of new rules requiring energy regulators to undertake annual reviews of energy system security risks.

The post AEMC fast-tracks new rules for identifying electricity system risks appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Researchers counted particles in seaballs that washed up on beaches in Spain

Underwater seagrass in coastal areas appear to trap plastic pollution in natural bundles of fibre known as “Neptune balls”, researchers have found.

With no help from humans, the swaying plants – anchored to shallow seabeds – may collect nearly 900m plastic items in the Mediterranean alone every year, a study reported in the journal Scientific Reports said.

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ASX-listed Vulcan Energy Resources unveils pre-feasibility study for profitable, zero carbon, lithium plant in Germany

The post Australian company reveals ‘positive’ results for zero carbon lithium production appeared first on RenewEconomy.

NSW environment minister Matt Kean to declare ‘dinosaur trees’ an asset of international significance

The world’s only known natural stand of Wollemi pines has become the first site in New South Wales to be given special protected status to try to ensure its survival for future generations.

The environment minister, Matt Kean, will declare the so-called “dinosaur trees” an asset of intergenerational significance after heroic efforts by remote area firefighters in the Blue Mountains world heritage area saved the pines during the 2019-20 bushfire disaster.

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