Environment news

• Dali helps scientists crack our brain code

  21-04-2016 23:51 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists at Glasgow University establish a world first by cracking the communication code of our brains.
  
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• Oil down 3 percent; producers hint of more output add to glut worry

  21-04-2016 23:13
  By Barani Krishnan and Sarah McFarlane NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices fell 3 percent on Thursday, pausing after a two-day rally, after producers from Russia to Saudi Arabia and Iran to Libya hinted at more output amid growing U.S. crude stockpiles. Oil markets rose initially when the International Energy Agency, an energy watchdog for the Western world, said non-OPEC production would fall this year by the most in a generation. IEA chief Fatih Birol said low oil prices had cut investment
  
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• US solar company SunEdison files for bankruptcy

  21-04-2016 22:39
  
  SunEdison makes bankruptcy filing as the renewable energy company’s years of debt-fuelled acquisitions prove unsustainableSunEdison, once the fastest-growing US renewable energy company, has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as years of debt-fuelled acquisitions proved unsustainable.In its bankruptcy filing in a New York court on Thursday, the company said it had assets of $20.7bn (£14.4bn) and liabilities of $16.1bn as of 30 September. Continue reading...
  
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• What is behind the diesel cars emissions scandal?

  21-04-2016 22:08
  
  All 93 vehicles tested in Germany and UK exceeded EU-set limits on air quality and pollution in real-world situationThe air pollution scandal that hit front pages around the world last year with VW’s admission it had been cheating emissions tests has got much bigger.A UK government-sponsored trial launched in the wake of the VW revelations has found that every single one of the diesel-fuelled vehicles tested had higher emissions of nitrogen oxide pollutants than permitted under EU laws. Fo
  
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• Mexico's Pemex puts blast death toll at 13, blames leak

  21-04-2016 21:41
  By Lizbeth Diaz MINATITLAN, Mexico (Reuters) - A leak caused a deadly petrochemical plant blast that has killed at least 13 people and the toll could rise, Mexican oil company Pemex said on Thursday, the latest in a series of fatal accidents to batter the company. Pemex CEO Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya, who travelled to the site of Wednesday's blast near the port of Coatzacoalcos, one of Pemex's top oil export hubs, told local television it was unclear what caused the leak that prompted the blast
  
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• Diesel cars' emissions far higher on road than in lab, tests show

  21-04-2016 21:05
  
  UK inquiry after Volkswagen scandal finds much higher nitrogen oxide levels than when vehicles are tested in laboratoryDiesel cars are producing many times more health-damaging pollutants than claimed by laboratory tests, with some emitting up to 12 times the EU maximum when tested on the road, according to a government investigation undertaken following the Volkswagen scandal.
  A Department for Transport (DfT) study of cars made by manufacturers such as Ford, Renault and Vauxhall found there was
  
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• Sandhill cranes vs windmills

  21-04-2016 18:37 via feedproxy.google.com
  The current placement of wind energy towers in the central and southern Great Plains may have relatively few negative effects on sandhill cranes wintering in the region, according to a U.S. Geological Survey study published today.Midcontinental sandhill cranes are important to sporting and tourism industries in the Great Plains, an area where wind energy development recently surged. Scientists with the USGS compared crane location data from the winters of 1998-2007 with current wi
  
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• Solar Impulse sets off for California

  21-04-2016 18:36 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The zero-fuel aeroplane, Solar Impulse, renews its effort to circumnavigate the globe, leaving Hawaii to fly across the Pacific Ocean to San Francisco.
  
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• Mexico's Pemex says blast death toll hits 13, blames leak

  21-04-2016 18:33
  An accidental leak caused a deadly petrochemical plant blast that has killed at least 13 people and the toll could rise, Mexican oil company Pemex said on Thursday, the latest in a series of fatal accidents to batter the company. Pemex CEO Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya, who travelled to the site of Wednesday's blast near the port of Coatzacoalcos, one of Pemex's top oil export hubs, told local television it was unclear what caused the leak that prompted the blast. "We know there was a leak, what w
  
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• Shell eyes $700 million exit from Gabon - sources

  21-04-2016 17:46
  By Freya Berry and Ron Bousso LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell is working on selling out of its onshore assets in Gabon, according to two sources familiar with the matter, seeking to refocus its African presence. Shell has announced plans to sell at least $30 billion worth of assets over the next three years, in order to finance its $52 billion BG acquisition and focus its portfolio on deep water oil production and the rapidly-expanding liquefied natural gas market. The sharp drop in oil pri
  
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• Experts race to stop bananapocalypse from hitting Latin American producers

  21-04-2016 17:34
  
  ‘Fusarium wilt’ is the hot topic at the International Banana Congress, where some fear it may already be too late to save the Cavendish from the fungal diseaseBanana experts from around the world have gathered in Florida to find a way to halt a disease that is wiping out the fruit across the world, amid mounting fears that it may soon invade Latin America.The International Banana Congress was shifted to Miami at the last minute from Costa Rica, following concerns that attendees would
  
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• Queen's Awards recognise sustainable development among British business

  21-04-2016 16:11
  
  Seven companies including Premier Sustain Division, the British Land Company and the Fairtrade Foundation have been awarded Queen's Awards for Sustainable Development in honour of Her Majesty's 90th birthday today (21 April).
  
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• At least 13 killed in blast at southeast Mexico petrochemical plant

  21-04-2016 15:24
  At least 13 people were killed in a blast at a major petrochemical plant of Mexican oil company Pemex, its chief executive said on Thursday, in the latest deadly accident to hit the oil producer. Gonzalez, who travelled to the site of the blast, near the port of Coatzacoalcos, one of Pemex's top oil export hubs, told local television that the death toll could rise. The explosion was the latest in a string of safety disasters that have plagued the state oil giant, which has vowed cost cuts to cop
  
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• COP21 signing ceremony: 100 corporations call for clear policies and swift actions

  21-04-2016 15:21
  
  IKEA, Starbucks and Unilever are among more than 100 global companies that have expressed support for the Paris climate change agreement to be enshrined into national law as a matter of urgency, on the eve of the official COP21 signing ceremony in New York.
  
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• U.S., Gulf partners to address regional conflicts, economic issues including oil - Obama

  21-04-2016 15:18
  The United States and its Gulf partners pledged to continue working together to fight Islamic State and de-escalate other regional conflicts, U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday, adding that concerns remain over Iran and economic issues including oil. "The United States and the GCC will launch a new high-level economic dialogue with a focus on adjusting to lower oil prices, increasing our economic ties and supporting GCC reforms as they work to provide jobs and opportunities to their yo
  
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• Rolls-Royce targets LED upgrades and on-site solar systems in global emissions crackdown

  21-04-2016 15:10
  
  EXCLUSIVE: Engineering group Rolls-Royce is planning a full-scale roll-out of energy efficiency initiatives and low-carbon technologies across its international estate, including the installation of a giant rooftop solar system at one of its largest UK factories.
  
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• Satellite maps nuclear blast aftermath

  21-04-2016 14:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The ground convulsion resulting from North Korea's underground nuclear bomb test in January has been mapped by Europe's Sentinel-1a radar satellite.
  
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• Pressure grows for price on carbon

  21-04-2016 14:33 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A group of world leaders and international finance chiefs has urged the world to rapidly expand the pricing of carbon pollution.
  
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• Oil higher as IEA expects biggest non-OPEC output fall in 25 years

  21-04-2016 14:27
  By Sarah McFarlane LONDON (Reuters) - Crude prices firmed on Thursday after the International Energy Agency (IEA) said non-OPEC production would fall this year by the most in a generation and help rebalance a market dogged by oversupply. IEA chief Fatih Birol said low oil prices had cut investment by about 40 percent over the past two years, with sharp falls in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Russia. The drop in supply from some producers, however, could be offset by increased outpu
  
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• Study reveals greater climate impacts of 2C temperature rise

  21-04-2016 14:00
  
  Analysis of difference between 1.5C and 2C of warming finds extra 0.5C would mean longer heatwaves, greater droughts and threats to crops and coral reefs A difference of half a degree centigrade may be barely noticeable day to day, but the difference between 1.5C and 2C of global warming is a shift into a new, more dangerous climate regime, according to the first comprehensive analysis of the issue.The scientists found the additional 0.5C would lead to longer heatwaves, greater droughts and, in
  
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• Oakland's coal war pits economic survival against environmental justice

  21-04-2016 14:00
  
  Proposed terminal to export coal to Asia creates tense showdown in port city as key players cite potential health risks, yet industry could provide needed jobsMargaret Gordon will not get out of the car. She is in the shadow of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay bridge on a triangle of land where a bustling maritime terminal is planned.“The pollution is too bad,” the 70-something activist declares, and the terminal isn’t even built yet. She rummages through her purse for an inhaler.
  
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• California's coal war pits economic survival against environmental justice

  21-04-2016 14:00
  
  Proposed terminal to export coal to Asia creates tense showdown in port city as key players cite potential health risks, yet industry could provide needed jobsMargaret Gordon will not get out of the car. She is in the shadow of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay bridge on a triangle of land where a bustling maritime terminal is planned.“The pollution is too bad,” the 70-something activist declares, and the terminal isn’t even built yet. She rummages through her purse for an inhaler.
  
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• Cambodia bans film about murdered rainforest activist

  21-04-2016 13:55
  
  British documentary I Am Chut Wutty has been watched tens of thousands of times online following the government banA documentary about the murder of a rainforest activist has been viewed tens of thousands of times online after being banned by the Cambodian government.
  The film I Am Chut Wutty was due to be shown this week in a Phnom Penh cinema to coincide with the fourth anniversary of the killing of the environmentalist by an unidentified military police officer in April 2012. Continue reading
  
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• Volvo targets a million EV cars by 2025

  21-04-2016 13:04
  
  Swedish carmaker Volvo Cars has announced a commitment to sell a total of one million electric vehicles (EVs) by 2020 through the introduction of a new range of plug-in hybrids and its first all-electric model.
  
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• Tesla Model X glitches lock owners out of cars

  21-04-2016 12:38
  
  Early adopters facing teething issues with doors, sensors, screens, brakes and quality control, as electric SUV continues to roll off the production lineEarly models of Tesla’s electric SUV, the Model X, are facing teething issues, plaguing users with glitches that lock them out of their cars and bang their falcon-wing doors into things.
  Weeks after the recall of 2,700 Model Xs, which at the time was nearly the entire fleet, over a safety issue with the rear seats, reports from buyers have
  
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• Vietnam investigates mass fish deaths

  21-04-2016 12:16
  
  Authorities are looking into whether pollution is to blame for a spate of mysterious mass fish deaths along the country’s central coastVietnam said on Thursday it was investigating whether pollution is to blame for a spate of mysterious mass fish deaths along the country’s central coast after huge amounts of marine life washed ashore in recent days.Tonnes of fish, including rare species which live far offshore and in the deep, have been discovered on beaches along the country’s
  
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• New Zealand conservationists celebrate rare parrot breeding success

  21-04-2016 11:27
  
  The kākāpō has had its most successful breeding season since conservation efforts rescued it from the brink of extinction in the 1970sThe world’s heaviest parrot, a critically endangered bird that only lives in a remote part of New Zealand, has had its most successful breeding season since conservation efforts began more than two decades ago.Thirty-seven kākāpō chicks are currently surviving, providing a much-needed boost to the population of 123 adult kā
  
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• 'It's a disaster': children bear brunt of southern Africa's devastating drought | Lucy Lamble

  21-04-2016 11:27
  
  In southern Malawi and Zimbabwe, drought is overwhelming communities, forcing families to rely on meals of leaves and watermelon soupChidyamakondo high school, near Masvingo in southern Zimbabwe, has won the national girls’ football championships three years in a row. But that cherished record – and far, far more – is now at risk. “Students are fainting, struggling to concentrate in lessons, dropping out of school … we’re having to shorten our assemblies and
  
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• Oil steady as IEA expects biggest non-OPEC output fall in 25 years

  21-04-2016 11:16
  By Sarah McFarlane LONDON (Reuters) - Crude prices steadied on Thursday, as the International Energy Agency (IEA) said 2016 would see the biggest fall in non-OPEC production in a generation, helping to rebalance a market dogged by oversupply. IEA chief Fatih Birol said low oil prices had cut investment by about 40 percent in the past two years, with sharp falls in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Russia. The drop in supply from some producers could be offset by increased production i
  
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• San Francisco adopts law requiring solar panels on all new buildings

  21-04-2016 11:01
  
  Tech capital is first major US city to require all new buildings of 10 storeys or under to have solar panels, reports BusinessGreenSan Francisco has this week passed landmark legislation requiring all new buildings under 10 storeys in height to be fitted with rooftop solar panels.The city’s San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously passed the new rule on Tuesday, making the metropolis the largest in the US to mandate solar installations on new properties. Continue reading...
  
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• L'Oréal chases "carbon-balanced" commitment as footprints shrink

  21-04-2016 09:31
  
  Cosmetics giant L'Oréal has made significant progress in its sustainable development plan, with figures showing the company is on course to reach targets to reduce emissions, water consumption and waste generation by 60% by 2020.
  
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• Oil rises as IEA expects biggest non-OPEC output fall in 25 years

  21-04-2016 08:57
  By Henning Gloystein SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Crude prices rose on Thursday, reversing earlier declines, as the International Energy Agency (IEA) said that 2016 would see the biggest fall in non-OPEC production in a generation, helping rebalance a market that has been dogged by oversupply. The IEA's chief Fatih Birol said on Thursday that low oil prices had cut investment by about 40 percent in the past two years, with sharp falls in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Russia. "This year,
  
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• Mourning Loomis Reef - the heart of the Great Barrier Reef's coral bleaching disaster

  21-04-2016 07:53
  
  Corals on Loomis Reef are dying as one veteran scientist lets the “veil” of academia drop to reveal anger and frustrationStretching for half a kilometre or so, Loomis Reef is the place where the alarm bells started going off.Professor Justin Marshall has been diving this reef, about 270 kilometres north of Cairns, for about 30 years. Right now he is, to say the least, angry. Continue reading...
  
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• 'Innovation is in our blood': how South Australia leads the way on renewables | Kathy Marks

  21-04-2016 07:22
  
  South Australia is expected to generate more than half its electricity from wind and solar power this year. Who says you can’t run a modern economy on renewables? The sunbaked streets of Snowtown were deserted when I drove up from Adelaide in late 2000, 18 months after the dismembered remains of eight people were found in barrels of acid in a disused bank vault. The gruesome discovery brought the glare of publicity to the little country town in South Australia’s mid north, and &ndash
  
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• Times's climate change coverage 'distorted' and 'poor quality'

  21-04-2016 07:06
  
  Newspaper is losing people’s trust on its global warming coverage, say group of UK’s leading climate advisers and top scientists in letter to the editorThe Times newspaper has been criticised for “poor quality” and “distorted coverage” of global warming by a group including some of the UK’s most eminent scientists, the chair of the government’s official advisers on climate change and a former chair of oil giant Shell. “If you lose trust, you
  
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• Chilled newt in the grass

  21-04-2016 06:30
  
  Crook, County Durham On dry land palmate newts are ungainly but in the pond they become water dragons, weaving about with an undulating wriggle of the tailIn the garden in spring the hour after sunset is sometimes the best. As the afterglow fades in the western sky the sounds of the day die away and even the rooftop blackbird, whose song echoes around the houses in late afternoon, falls silent. Then the creatures of the night begin to appear.We were hoping we might see the hedgehog that left dro
  
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• IEA chief says oil market, prices to return to balance by 2017

  21-04-2016 05:42
  By Osamu Tsukimori TOKYO (Reuters) - International Energy Agency (IEA) chief Fatih Birol said on Thursday he expects the oil market to come back into balance from oversupply by next year, providing there is no major economic downturn. Birol said low oil prices have cut oil investment by about 40 percent in the past two years, with sharp falls in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Russia, and the world's reliance on Middle East oil will accelerate substantially in the next few years. "T
  
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• India's changing climate – in pictures

  21-04-2016 04:00
  
  From deadly protests to billion dollar insurance schemes, we look at the impact of extreme weather and what the world’s fastest growing major economy is doing about it
  India crippled by extreme weather as 100 million exposed to floodsContinue reading...
  
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• India crippled by extreme weather as 100 million exposed to floods

  21-04-2016 04:00
  
  Ranked top in a list of populations most at risk from natural disasters, India must find solutions to make its economy less exposedIndia’s changing climate – in pictures
  High temperatures and a crippling shortage of rainfall in India is forcing schools to close and communities to ration drinking water. In Chennai, the oppressive heat currently gripping the east Indian city has led to workers demanding an allowance for working in stifling factories and vets offering advice on caring f
  
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• Deadly explosion at Mexican state-run petrochemical plant

  21-04-2016 03:38
  
  Residents warned of toxic fumes from fire at Coatzacoalcos works in Gulf state of Veracruz that produces chemicals for making plastics A large explosion has rocked a major petrochemical facility of Mexican national oil company Pemex in the Gulf state of Veracruz, killing at least three people, injuring dozens more and pumping a black cloud into the sky. Related: New US oil drilling regulations aim to prevent another Deepwater disasterContinue reading...
  
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• Deadly explosion at Mexico oil plant – video

  21-04-2016 03:15
  
  Several deaths and dozens of injuries were reported after an explosion at the Clorados 3 plant of Petroquimica Mexicana de Vinilo in Mexico. Javier Duarte, the mayor of Mexico’s Veracruz state, said authorities were co-ordinating with the operators and the state oil company, Pemex, to deal with the emergency Continue reading...
  
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• Three dead, dozens injured in blast at chemical plant in Mexico

  21-04-2016 02:56
  A massive explosion rocked a major petrochemical facility of Mexican national oil company Pemex in the Gulf state of Veracruz on Wednesday, killing at least three people, injuring dozens more, and pumping a cloud of noxious chemicals into the sky. Luis Felipe Puente, head of federal emergency services, told Reuters that three people had died in the blast and as many as 45 were injured. Pemex said the explosion, which sent a huge, dark plume of smoke billowing upwards, occurred just after 3 p.m.
  
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• IEA chief says oil market to return to balance by 2017

  21-04-2016 02:22
  TOKYO (Reuters) - International Energy Agency (IEA) chief Fatih Birol said on Thursday he expects the oil market to come back into balance from oversupply by next year, providing there are no major economic shocks. Birol, who also said the IEA expects non-OPEC oil production to fall by about 700,000 barrels per day this year, was speaking after meeting Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. (Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori; Writing by Aaron Sheldrick; Editing by Richard Pullin)
  
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• Brazil corruption investigators vow to keep digging

  21-04-2016 02:02
  By Brad Brooks CURITIBA, Brazil (Reuters) - In a Brazil deeply divided by the battle to oust President Dilma Rousseff, one sentiment unites ordinary people on both sides of the impeachment fight - outrage against corruption. Some worry a historic investigation uncovering huge graft scandals at state oil firm Petrobras could be quietly quashed if, as expected, the Senate votes to put Rousseff on trial next month for breaking budget laws. Rousseff will be suspended by mid-May if the trial goes ahe
  
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• At least 3 reported killed in blast at Pemex complex in Mexico

  21-04-2016 01:51
  An explosion rocked a major petrochemical facility of Mexican national oil company Pemex in the Gulf state of Veracruz on Wednesday, and the state governor said he was told that three people had been killed. The blast injured as many as 40 people, although oil exports were not affected, officials said. Pemex said the explosion, which sent a huge, dark plume of smoke billowing into the sky, occurred at the facility's chlorinate 3 plant near the port of Coatzacoalcos, one of the company's top oil
  
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• Scientists resort to advertising to get Great Barrier Reef crisis in Queensland paper

  21-04-2016 00:25
  
  Climate Council pays for full-page advert as expert says the Courier Mail, Queensland’s biggest newspaper, is not covering coral bleaching properlyScientists say they are fed up with Queensland’s biggest newspaper not covering the worst bleaching event to hit the Great Barrier Reef, so have taken out a full page ad to get the message out.The ad comes as a survey revealed 93% of the Great Barrier Reef was affected by the bleaching. That finding motivated the Queensland government to c
  
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