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I breathe the same polluted air that Ella Kissi-Debrah did. Change must be her legacy | Anjali Raman-Middleton
For the first time, air pollution has been recognised as a cause of death. The dangers are known, and people of colour are most at risk
I live less than five minutes from the road that killed Ella Kissi-Debrah. Like so many in our community, I spend much of my life near the South Circular, a major road that runs through south London, whether I’m walking to the train station or catching a bus, and I can often hear the traffic. In a landmark ruling, Ella has now become the first person in the UK to have air pollution officially recognised by a coroner as a cause of death.
The result of the inquest will, first and foremost, give some sense of justice to the family. I was in Ella’s year at primary school. After she died at just nine years old in February 2013, I saw her mum, Rosamund, spend years fighting for the death to be examined by a second coroner. Thanks to this courageous campaign, which included finding expert medical advice, the second coroner concluded that “air pollution was a significant contributory factor to both the induction and exacerbation of her asthma”. As Rosamund has said, the judgment means that the family can finally rest – and have a Christmas knowing that some justice is done.
Continue reading...The poison found in everyone, even unborn babies – and who is responsible for it | Rob Bilott
Chemicals called PFAS and PFOS – known as forever chemicals – are in the blood of virtually every person on the planet. And they will only accumulate
Imagine that a small group of people coordinated the intentional manufacture and release of a lethal poison – and imagine they knew this poison had special properties that meant, once released into the world, it would be inevitable that it would make its way into the blood of virtually every person on the planet, even babies in their mother’s womb, and stay there, like a ticking time bomb.
Well, that “ticking time bomb” waiting to explode into serious, even fatal, disease is not a fictional device from some doomsday thriller; it is real, it is inside virtually all of us, right now. Tick, tick, tick.
Continue reading...Battery prices dip below $US100/kWh, down 90 per cent from levels a decade ago
Bloomberg New Energy Finance reveals that, for the first time, battery pack prices have dipped below $US100/kWh in China’s e-bus market.
The post Battery prices dip below $US100/kWh, down 90 per cent from levels a decade ago appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Biden adds to dream “green team” to lead on climate and clean energy
US President-elect to appoint former Environmental Protection Agency head Gina McCarthy as domestic climate adviser, and Pete Buttigieg as Transportation Secretary.
The post Biden adds to dream “green team” to lead on climate and clean energy appeared first on RenewEconomy.
'World's ugliest orchid' tops list of new discoveries
Australia's newest coal-fired power plant deemed worthless by Japanese owner
Sumitomo writes off stake in WA’s Bluewaters due to difficulty in refinancing loans for coal projects
The Japanese part-owner of Australia’s newest coal-fired power plant has written off its investment amid dimming prospects for coal.
The conglomerate Sumitomo and another Japanese company, Kansai, each own half the Bluewaters power plant, which provides about 15% of Western Australia’s electricity, after buying it for a reported $1.2bn in 2011.
Continue reading...Showy orchids to scaly desert dwellers – Kew presents 'new' species
Botanists list plants newly discovered or named by scientists in 2020
- RBG Kew selects 10 of 156 species officially named this year
- The ugliest orchid in the world, a toadstool found at Heathrow airport, UK, and a potential food source from Peru, among showstoppers on list
- Orchids account for more than a third of the newly named species
- Concerns that several of these rare species, already threatened by habitat clearance, face extinction
Ella Kissi-Debrah's mother calls for Clean Air Act in wake of landmark ruling
Campaigners urge action after a coroner rules air pollution contributed to her daughter’s death
The mother of Ella Kissi-Debrah called for her legacy to be the passing of a new clean air act to force the government in the UK to clean up the environment for future generations of children.
Rosamund Kissi-Debrah spoke after a coroner ruled that illegal levels of air pollution, predominantly from traffic, had caused the death of her nine year old daughter in south London in February 2013.
Continue reading...‘Ugliest orchid in the world’ among 2020's new plant discoveries
Kew Gardens botanists also named a new toadstool found at Heathrow airport and a bizarre scaly shrub from Namibia
The “ugliest orchid in the world”, a toadstool discovered at Heathrow airport, and a bizarre scaly shrub have topped a list of new species named by scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and their collaborators in 2020.
The researchers said the 156 new plants and fungi highlighted the amazing diversity of species that remain to be found, with the potential to provide new crops, medicines and gardener’s favourites. One is a morning glory plant, whose sweet purple tubers are already eaten by local people in the high Andes of Peru.
Continue reading...Victorian woman charged with animal cruelty after almost 130 wedge-tailed eagles found dead
Poisoning birds among allegations after discovery during search of property at Violet Town
A Victorian woman is facing almost 300 animal cruelty charges after wildlife officers allegedly found the carcasses of 140 protected native birds, including 128 wedge-tailed eagles, at her property.
The office of the conservation regulator said police, wildlife officers, and officials from the agriculture department searched the woman’s property in Violet Town in August after a number of dead wedge-tailed eagles were found in the area.
Continue reading...Australia’s first remote, renewable hydrogen microgrid to be built at Denham
Horizon Power appoints local outfit to build Australia’s first renewable hydrogen demonstration plant in a remote power system in Denham, Western Australia.
The post Australia’s first remote, renewable hydrogen microgrid to be built at Denham appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Tesla sales in Australia top 10,000, still selling twice as many EVs as all rivals combined
Tesla has shipped more than 10,000 electric cars to Australia since 2014, and is still selling double that of all other car makers combined in 2020, new data has revealed.
The post Tesla sales in Australia top 10,000, still selling twice as many EVs as all rivals combined appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Japan sees offshore wind as energy of the future, targets 45GW by 2040
Japan is reportedly eyeing offshore wind as the country’s energy of the future and has set a target to install up to 45GW of offshore wind capacity by 2040.
The post Japan sees offshore wind as energy of the future, targets 45GW by 2040 appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Premier directed Hydro Tasmania to enter into loss-making deal, utility says
Documents show Tasmania's publicly-owned companies expect to lose tens of millions on 'onerous' wind farm contracts.
The post Premier directed Hydro Tasmania to enter into loss-making deal, utility says appeared first on RenewEconomy.
China biodegradable plastics 'failing to solve pollution crisis'
Australia sets April dates for next ERF auction
Brighte to take on big electricity retailers, backed by Cannon-Brookes and Farquhar
Solar finance provider Brighte to enter retail electricity space, following a $100 million injection by investors led by Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar.
The post Brighte to take on big electricity retailers, backed by Cannon-Brookes and Farquhar appeared first on RenewEconomy.
CP Daily: Wednesday December 16, 2020
Aerial vision captures extent of flooding in northern NSW – video
Footage captured by the New South Wales State Emergency Service shows the wide impact of flooding on the region after parts of Australia's east coast were hit by heavy rain. Wild weather has battered NSW and southern Queensland, with severe thunderstorms and flash flooding hitting hard. The SES has attended thousands of jobs since the downpours began on Saturday
Continue reading...Dancing starling spectacle solves power cut mystery in Airth
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