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Four astronauts leave Florida in a Dragon capsule bound for the International Space Station.

Fighting climate change may be the most important task we face today – and the US’s renewed commitment to it is welcome

Nearly three decades ago, during the Earth Summit held in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, the international community acknowledged the need to address the growing challenges posed by the state of the environment. Several resolutions and agreements emerged from that historic conference, among them the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The ultimate goal of this multilateral initiative has been to prevent unchecked, runaway climate change from harming natural ecosystems, threatening food production or hindering sustainable development. In short, to preserve the world as we know it.

For three decades, countries – or parties, as they are known under the convention – have debated and deliberated on the mounting threat posed by human activities to the stability of the climate system and, consequently, to the future of our planet. Progress has been slow, often disappointingly so. But there have been major achievements, such as the Kyoto protocol in 1992 and, most significantly, the 2016 Paris agreement, which constitute landmarks in the development of an international regime that protects the climate.

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Australia will develop a carbon offset programme across parts of the Indo-Pacific region that can generate “high-integrity” units eligible under the Paris Agreement, Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor announced Friday.

The US, EU and UK are leading the race to cut emissions targets among the world’s biggest economies

Well, it’s complicated. The UK has committed to cut emissions at a faster rate than other developed nations, with a target of 68% cuts by 2030. That’s measured against its emissions in 1990; over the last few years emissions have been reduced, so measured against the 2018 baseline, for example, the cut needed is smaller.

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Massive melting of glaciers has tilted the planet’s rotation, showing the impact of human activities

The massive melting of glaciers as a result of global heating has caused marked shifts in the Earth’s axis of rotation since the 1990s, research has shown. It demonstrates the profound impact humans are having on the planet, scientists said.

The planet’s geographic north and south poles are the point where its axis of rotation intersects the surface, but they are not fixed. Changes in how the Earth’s mass is distributed around the planet cause the axis, and therefore the poles, to move.

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Victoria government puts out call for aggregators to expand the state's offerings of virtual power plants harnessing resources of rooftop solar and household batteries.

The post Victoria puts out call for virtual power plants with rooftop solar and batteries appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Researchers at Glasgow University identified two cases where they believe cats developed Covid-19 after their owners.

Ausgrid deploys second community energy battery in Sydney suburb of Bankstown as part of two year trial.

The post Ausgrid unveils new community battery project in Sydney’s Bankstown appeared first on RenewEconomy.

CarbonTracker’s Kingsmill Bond on his new report showing why wind and solar are already driving the most rapid energy transition the world has seen. Plus: Biden’s stunning climate pledge, Morrison digs in, and the AGL break-up.

The post Energy Insiders Podcast: Solar and wind driving fastest ever energy transition appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A Newcastle explosives factory dominates the latest Emissions Reduction Fund auction, as participation in the fund remains subdued.

The post Orica bags half of Coalition’s latest carbon auction with explosives factory upgrades appeared first on RenewEconomy.

There was palpable relief as Biden brought the US back to the table on global climate action, warning "we have to get this done". Depressingly, Morrison showed little sign of hearing the message. Lesley Hughes, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University Will Steffen, Emeritus Professor, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The country remains out of step with other major nations by refusing to commit to deeper emissions cuts.

Lawmakers should introduce a price corridor in the EU ETS to instill some certainty and guard against the risk of a speculator-led spike, experts said Thursday, while welcoming the role that investors play in helping to value carbon allowances where they need to be to achieve the bloc’s higher climate ambitions.

Our team discovered clear changes in the distribution and strength of ocean eddies. These changes have never been detected before. Navid Constantinou, Research Fellow, Australian National University Adele Morrison, Research Fellow, Australian National University Andrew Kiss, Research fellow, Australian National University Andy Hogg, Professor, Australian National University Josué Martínez Moreno, P.h.D. candidate, Australian National University Matthew England, Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow; Deputy Director of the Climate Change Research Centre (CCRC); Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence in Climate System Science, UNSW Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia bought 6.8 million carbon credits at last week’s Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) auction at marginally higher prices than in the previous round, the Clean Energy Regulator announced Friday, though almost all the contracts were for optional delivery.

The US EPA may be able to circumvent a divided Congress and implement a national low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) programme through existing authority, a conference heard Thursday.

Activist changes Twitter bio after UK prime minister tells Biden climate summit there’s ‘nothing wrong with bunny-hugging’

Greta Thunberg appeared to poke fun at Boris Johnson after he derisively used the phrase “bunny hugging” to describe climate activism – by changing her Twitter bio to read simply: “Bunny hugger.”

The UK prime minister was taking part in Joe Biden’s virtual climate summit, which has brought together dozens of world leaders for a two-day event.

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California should start a cap-and-trade rulemaking concurrently with its Scoping Plan update to ensure long-term climate goals are met, while Canadian provinces could look at other carbon pricing options to comply with the federal 'backstop' mandate, panelists said at the North American Carbon World (NACW) conference on Thursday.

A study found no mutations associated with a parent's exposure in the 1986 nuclear accident.

Australia’s 2030 target of a 26%-28% reduction is totally inadequate compared with those from our best friends and allies

The US climate target for 2030 blows Australia’s out of the water. Together with dramatically strengthened targets by several other major countries, it resets expectations. And it puts big pressure on Australia to lift our game. If we don’t, we will be seen in the ranks of countries such as Russia, Saudi Arabia and Brazil. If we do, it will help position the economy for the future.

The US has now pledged to cut emissions by 50% to 52% by 2030 relative to 2005. In 2019, US emissions were just 13% below 2005 levels. The target is far stronger than most would have thought possible not long ago. To achieve, it would require deep change across the US economy, with comprehensive policies from both federal administration and the states, and rapid action by investors.

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