Feed aggregator

The European Commission will create a ‘climate action social fund’ with revenues from an expanded carbon market if it decides to bring emissions from vehicles and buildings to the EU ETS, the bloc’s climate chief Frans Timmermans said on Wednesday.

Energy experts say the cost of proposed Kurri Kurri gas plant could exceed $1b, while the potential benefits have been overblown.

The post Kurri Kurri costs could blow out and could run out of gas, energy experts say appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Shell will “accelerate” its energy transition strategy and will likely take “some bold but measured steps” in the coming years to reduce emissions, its CEO said on Wednesday, after a Dutch court ruling ordered the oil major to substantially cut greenhouse gases by the end of the decade.

EVs could supply three times Germany's peak demand by 2040 if every one was fitted with vehicle-to-grid technology, says BloombergNEF.

The post EV-to-grid could supply three times peak electricity demand: BNEF appeared first on RenewEconomy.

‘Historic’ move to ban destructive fishing methods in five habitats welcomed, but conservationists say change must come faster

The UK government has announced plans to increase protection of wildlife and habitats by banning fishing and other damaging activities from a handful of selected marine sites off the coast of England.

More than 97% of British offshore marine protected areas (MPAs), designed to safeguard habitats and biodiversity, are being dredged and bottom trawled, according to data published by the Guardian. They have long been criticised by conservationists as ineffective “paper parks”.

Continue reading...

Draft paper says Bełchatów coal-fuelled plant to be phased out as part of plans to transform country’s energy

Poland plans to close Europe’s most polluting power plant by the end of 2036, according to a draft document published by local authorities.

The document, which is subject to public consultation, is part of the Lodz region’s application for support from the EU’s Just Transition Fund, aimed at helping regions bear the cost of shifting to a climate-neutral economy.

Continue reading...

Some employers are upending the industry standards by paying their employees better and offering stronger benefits

Across the US, restaurant owners reporting problems in finding employees have fueled pushes among Republican-led states and business industry groups to end federal extended unemployment benefits.

The justification, they say, is that these pandemic era benefits are preventing workers from returning to work, despite some research indicating childcare and health and safety are bigger factors in these decisions.

Continue reading...

A veteran carbon market analyst is to join hedge fund Andurand Capital Management, where he will advise on the launch of new environmentally-focused investment vehicles.

Melbourne-based Tiverton Agriculture Impact Fund has taken a majority stake in an Australian offset developer and carbon advisory firm.

Member of fox family is on list of 20 invasive species likely to reach UK shores and destroy wildlife

They are cute and furry, and could become the UK’s next major non-native pest.

Raccoon dogs, an exotic member of the fox family that is native to Japan, China and Siberia, are one of the most destructive invasive species at risk of becoming established in Britain, experts say.

Continue reading...

Corporate Carbon Advisory is seeking a Carbon Account Executive to play a key supporting role in a team-based approach to developing and operating the firm’s portfolio of Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) projects.

This role is responsible for the development of analytical capability and generation of commercial insights for the Low Carbon Trading business with a focus on compliance and voluntary carbon markets over all time horizons.

Nasa's Juno probe makes the closest pass of the Solar System's largest moon in more than 20 years.

A thick layer of organic matter known as marine mucilage has spread in the Sea of Marmara, covering harbours, shorelines and swathes of the surface south of Istanbul. Some of the ‘sea snot’ has sunk below the waves, suffocating seabed life

Continue reading...

The Crown's Jason Watkins will star as a professor who found himself at the centre of a media storm.

The ambitious $2 billion Forest Wind project, set to become one of the biggest in the southern hemisphere, faces 15 month delay.

The post Massive 1,200MW wind farm planned for Queensland flags 15 month delay appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Solar tax criticised by Tesla and Enphase, the makers of battery technologies the proposal is supposed to support, while networks baulk at removing zero export limits.

The post Victoria, Tesla and Enphase line up against proposed solar export tax appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Landowners to be paid for planting that protects wildlife, reduces flood risk and increases public access

Landowners will be paid thousands of pounds in bonuses for creating new woodlands that boost wildlife, increase public access and reduce flooding, under a new £16m scheme for England announced on Wednesday.

The Forestry Commission plan will for the first time allow payments for natural regeneration, where wind-blown seeds colonise land. This can be the best way to recreate native woodlands and some landowners have complained that past grants only allowed tree planting. Support for planting trees along rivers to improve waterside habitats will also be offered for the first time.

Continue reading...

There are fewer than 30 breeding pairs in Britain, and the one I saw at a Scottish loch was at its springtime finest

Chestnut flanks and neck. Ruby-red eyes. Dagger-like bill. And, on either side of its matt-black head, golden plumes shimmering in the Speyside sunshine. All wrapped up in a buoyant waterbird, gliding across the silky-smooth surface of the loch, before disappearing beneath, then yo-yoing into view again, with a tiny fish as its prize.

The Slavonian grebe’s splendour is enhanced by its rarity: there are fewer than 30 breeding pairs in Britain, spread out across the Scottish Highlands. Being relatively unknown, it might not win a competition for Britain’s most beautiful bird. But it would certainly give any other contenders a run for their money.

Continue reading...

‘Massive biodiversity gains’ to be made, says letter signed by academics and public figures

More than 100 academics, experts and public figures have signed a letter calling on the royal family to rewild their lands as a public commitment to help tackle Britain’s biodiversity crisis and to show climate leadership.

Organised by the rewilding campaign group Wild Card, the letter’s 120 signatories include the broadcasters Chris Packham, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Anita Rani as well as the leading environmental scientist Prof Sir Robert Watson.

Continue reading...