Environment news

• Fact v fiction: Adani's Carmichael coalmine – video explainer

  29-05-2017 22:00 via theguardian.com
  
  A reality check on some of the big claims made to justify the proposed new mine, which would be the biggest in Australia. From ‘tens of thousands of new jobs’ to ‘good for the environment’, we unpack several of the most common claims to see if they stand up to scrutiny
  • The new coal frontier: Australia’s carbon bomb• Indian solar power prices hit record low Continue reading...
  
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• Sky-high carbon tax needed to avoid climate catastrophe, say experts

  29-05-2017 19:52 via theguardian.com
  
  Economists, including Joseph Stiglitz and Nicholas Stern, say taxes of $100 per metric tonne could be needed by 2030A group of leading economists warned on Monday that the world risks catastrophic global warming in just 13 years unless countries ramp up taxes on carbon emissions to as much as $100 (£77) per metric tonne.Experts including Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz and former World Bank chief economist Nicholas Stern said governments needed to move quickly to tackle polluting industries
  
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• EU moves to crack down on carmakers in wake of VW emissions scandal

  29-05-2017 19:38 via theguardian.com
  
  European commission given more powers to monitor testing and fine firms after Germany’s initial objections are overcomeThe European Union has moved towards cracking down on carmakers who cheat emissions tests by giving the EU executive more powers to monitor testing and impose fines. The European council overcame initial objections from Germany and agreed to try to reform the system for approving vehicles in Europe in the wake of the Volkswagen emissions scandal.Continue reading...
  
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• Leave oil rigs in the North Sea, say conservationists

  29-05-2017 15:46 via theguardian.com
  
  Under ‘rigs to reefs’ idea, oil firms asked to consider turning decommissioned platforms into artificial reefs for marine lifeConservationists want oil companies and regulators to consider leaving more old rigs in the North Sea rather than removing them, with the savings paid into a fund to protect sealife.After the Brent Spar debacle in 1995 when Shell provoked public outrage with plans to sink an old storage buoy, international regulations were imposed that work on the presumption
  
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• Fisherman on his shark encounter: ‘it knocked me off my feet’ – audio

  29-05-2017 12:55 via theguardian.com
  
  Terry Selwood, 73, from New South Wales, Australia, describes the moment a great white shark launched itself into his boat while he was out fishing on Saturday afternoon. Speaking to Australia’s ABC News Selwood says the coastguard initially didn’t believe his story when he called them for helpFisherman says great white shark jumping in his boat was ‘just a mundane thing’Continue reading...
  
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• Perth ramps up groundwater replenishment scheme to drought-proof city

  29-05-2017 11:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Recycled water pumped into underground aquifers as part of plan to make Perth’s water supply ‘climate independent’ by 2022Perth is pumping recycled water into the underground aquifers that provide its drinking water supply as part of a strategy to drought-proof the city against climate change. The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) on Monday approved an application for the Western Australian water authority to double the capacity of its groundwater replenishment scheme, b
  
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• The heavy legacy of lead in the world's most toxic town – in pictures

  29-05-2017 10:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Kabwe in Zambia has been left with extreme levels of lead pollution after almost a century of metal mining and smelting, harming generations of childrenRead more: The world’s most toxic town: the terrible legacy of Zambia’s lead mines
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• Josh Frydenberg rules out carbon trading in electricity sector

  29-05-2017 08:59 via theguardian.com
  
  Energy minister says Turnbull government will not support emissions intensity scheme regardless of Finkel reviewThe energy minister, Josh Frydenberg, says the Turnbull government will not allow carbon trading in the electricity sector despite the high likelihood that the looming Finkel review will endorse an emissions intensity scheme as one of the better policy options that could be adopted.
  Frydenberg told Sky News on Monday the government would not go down the path of an emissions intensity s
  
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• A treasure trove of beetles

  29-05-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  
  The Meadows, Chester The brightest colours drew my novice eyes: a vivid yellow ladybird, a tiny blue weevil and the polished emerald of a dock beetleA gentle breeze shimmers through the grass and the babble of the breeding season surrounds me. This patch of water meadows, just across the river Dee from the city centre, invites us to take things easy. But last time I visited I was carrying a petrol-powered leaf blower, helping Julie Rose of the Friends of the Meadows users group and entomologist
  
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• Fisherman says great white shark jumping in his boat was 'just a mundane thing'

  29-05-2017 04:44 via theguardian.com
  
  Terry Selwood was hurt when 2.7-metre shark, which weighed 200kg, leapt into his boat near Evans HeadA fisherman who watched a 2.7-metre great white shark land in his boat has downplayed the experience, calling it “just a mundane thing”.Terry Selwood, 73, was caught by surprise while fishing off Evans Head, on the north coast of New South Wales, on Saturday afternoon when the shark launched itself into his 4.5-metre boat. Continue reading...
  
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• Coral bleaching on Great Barrier Reef worse than expected, surveys show

  29-05-2017 03:46 via theguardian.com
  
  Surveys taken throughout 2016 show escalating impact from north to south, with 70% of shallow water corals dead north of Port Douglas Coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef last year was even worse than expected, while the full impact of the most recent event is yet to be determined.Queensland government officials say aerial and in-water surveys taken throughout 2016 had confirmed an escalating impact from north to south. Continue reading...
  
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