President Cyril Ramaphosa blames ‘catastrophic’ rainfall in KwaZulu-Natal on climate crisis
The death toll from devastating floods in and around the South African port city of Durban has risen to 306, the government said Wednesday, after roads and hillsides were washed away as homes collapsed.
The heaviest rains in 60 years pummelled Durban’s municipality, eThekwini in Zulu. According to an AFP tally, the storm is the deadliest on record in South Africa.
Continue reading...Scientists say bleaching could be ‘canary in the coalmine’ for climate impact as eastern Tasmanian sea temperatures rise
Bleaching in marine sponges in temperate waters off Tasmania’s east coast has been observed for the first time, with scientists warning the discovery could be an indicator of climate change in deeper reef systems.
Researchers at the University of Tasmania’s Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies used seafloor surveys to discover the bleaching of cup sponges in the Flinders commonwealth marine reserve after heatwave events.
Continue reading...Rivers that supply Santiago with water are running low, forcing rotating cuts to different parts of the city
As a punishing, record-breaking drought enters its 13th year, Chile has announced an unprecedented plan to ration water for the capital of Santiago, a city of nearly 6 million.
“A city can’t live without water,” Claudio Orrego, the governor of the Santiago metropolitan region, said in a press conference. “And we’re in an unprecedented situation in Santiago’s 491-year history where we have to prepare for there to not be enough water for everyone who lives here.”
Continue reading...Global heating speeding up their decline as terrain of newly discovered alpine species disappears
Six new alpine species of New Zealand’s most unusual and beloved insect – the wētā – have been discovered, but it is a bittersweet victory, with another piece of research describing the threat global heating poses for their snowy mountain habitat.
Wētā belong to the same group of insects as crickets and grasshoppers, and there are between 70 and 100 species of wētā endemic to New Zealand. They are wingless and nocturnal, and some, including the wētāpunga, are among the heaviest insects in the world – comparable to the weight of a sparrow.
Continue reading...Activists call for end to fossil fuel investment at sit-down demonstration in Regent Street and Oxford Circus
Supporters of the environmental activist group Extinction Rebellion have taken part in a mass sit-down protest in the heart of London’s shopping district.
Several thousand demonstrators with multicoloured flags bearing the group’s “extinction” symbol gathered near Marble Arch on Saturday morning as samba bands warmed up.
Continue reading...Of 57 species sampled, 35 decreased in number by 50% over four decades, with climate crisis likely factor
Bird populations in a Central American tropical rainforest are suffering severe declines, with likely factors including climate breakdown and habitat loss.
Scientists from the University of Illinois tracked species of birds in a protected forest reserve in central Panama to determine if and how populations had changed from 1977 to 2020.
Continue reading...Carbon border adjustment mechanism would penalise companies and countries trying to evade responsibility for cutting emissions
High-carbon goods imported into the UK should be subject to new tariffs, to help ensure other countries are fulfilling their obligations to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions as well as the UK, an influential committee of MPs has said.
A carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) would penalise companies and countries trying to evade responsibility for cutting emissions, the MPs said, and provide an incentive for certain industrial sectors to move away from environmentally damaging practices.
Continue reading...Sydney media’s reactionary momentum machine can help explain crackdown on climate activists
On Wednesday night, as the New South Wales parliament debated a bill that makes blocking roads in the state a jail-worthy offence, the independent MP for Sydney, Alex Greenwich, asked, rhetorically, what had prompted the government’s urgency to pass the legislation.
The bill had been introduced into the parliament late on Wednesday afternoon, with the Coalition providing a one-page brief and no forewarning to the crossbench.
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Continue reading...New law, which brings in fines of up to $22,000 and up to two years in jail, passes on extra sitting day of parliament
The New South Wales Labor party has helped pass a bill that could see protesters who block roads, ports or rail in the state spend up to two years in jail, despite outrage from unions and environmental groups.
After being forced to call an extra sitting day, thanks to the Greens mounting a filibuster attempt, the government was able to pass the bill into law with Labor’s backing on Friday, just two days after it first introduced the legislation into parliament.
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Continue reading...UK Export Finance used £5.24bn of taxpayer money to fund overseas energy and infrastructure ventures – despite its own review raising concerns
The British government has provided more than £5bn in the past three years to overseas energy and infrastructure projects linked to labour abuses and environmental damage, according to documents and interviews with workers.
The funding – a combination of loans and guarantees – comes from the government’s export credit agency, UK Export Finance (UKEF), a government department to help UK companies access business contracts overseas.
Continue reading...Environmentalists call changes ‘everything you could ever dream about’ but industry says they ‘undermine the economics of delivering housing’
Property developers in New South Wales are fighting against the introduction of a wide-ranging planning policy aimed at ensuring houses are more energy-efficient and climate-resilient, which one environment group described as “everything you could ever dream about”.
Public comment closed last month on the draft Design and Place state environmental planning policy, hailed late last year by the then planning minister Rob Stokes as “NSW’s first comprehensive design policy”. It would offer “an important opportunity to reshape the look and feel of the places we live in”.
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Continue reading...Aerial surveys show almost no reefs across a 1,200km stretch escaping the heat, prompting scientists to call for urgent action on climate crisis
The Great Barrier Reef has been hit with a sixth mass coral bleaching event, the marine park’s authority has confirmed, with aerial surveys showing almost no reefs across a 1,200km stretch escaping the heat.
The Guardian understands a United Nations mission currently under way to check the health and management of the reef will be briefed on the initial findings of the surveys as early as Friday in Townsville.
Continue reading...Researchers outline urgent steps to improve food security in the face of increasing natural disasters caused by the climate crisis
The climate crisis is threatening food stocks in sub-Saharan Africa, but a comprehensive approach to food, farming and resources could increase crop production by more than 500% in some countries in the region, according to new research by more than 200 experts.
There is no single technological fix to the threat posed by the barrage of natural disasters striking the region, they said, but significant improvements could be achieved with new approaches, based on modelling done by the network of researchers in Malawi, Tanzania, South Africa and Zambia.
Continue reading...Government’s reef envoy says visiting scientists ‘have to see the good and the bad’ as widespread bleaching confirmed
A UN mission under way in Queensland to see if the Great Barrier Reef should be put on an “in danger” list will not get “the whole picture” unless it visits reefs currently experiencing coral bleaching, conservationists and the government’s own reef envoy have said.
Details of the 10-day mission, which began on Monday in Brisbane, are being kept confidential and the locations to be visited have not been formally disclosed.
Continue reading...NSW government seeks to suspend Gareth Ward; Craig Foster lashes treatment of asylum seekers in National Press Club address; new research suggests long-lasting Covid immune response from vaccine-induced T-cells; at least 26 Covid deaths recorded; Atagi expected to green light fourth booster shots for some Australians. Follow all the day’s news live
David Koch:
Have you spoken to the “mean girls” – Kristina Keneally, Penny Wong – in the last week or so since Kimberly Kitching’s death about the allegations of bullying?
I think that term is really unfortunate.
She used it, it is not just us.
There is a lot of people speaking on other people’s behalf at the moment. I think that in politics, there are a range of people who are involved in party politics who play it pretty hard. One of those was Kimberly Kitching. She was somebody who engaged in politics and was passionate about her belief and from time to time that could produce some conflict. But it needs to be done in a way that is respectful, in a way that is understanding, and attempts to reach consensus.
It is rather bizarre ... I am always available and indeed I lobby regularly to be on the Sunrise program. I am always happy to discuss things with the media, but I won’t be taking lectures from a prime minister who visited Lismore and had strict streets shut off so victims of floods could not get near him.
Continue reading...NSW MP Gareth Ward denies historic sexual abuse allegations; South Australian hospital system ‘under extraordinary strain’ new premier says, as at least 23 Covid deaths recorded nationally; Anthony Albanese proposes award in late Victorian senator Kimberley Kitching’s honour. This blog is now closed
Peter Malinauskas has promised to keep his shirt on from now on, after a photo of his muscled torso made quite a stir in the world of Australian politics.
ABC radio host Patricia Karvelas:
During the campaign, you were photographed shirtless in swimming shorts, and it caused a bit of a stir. I have to ask you ... the Australian’s Greg Sheridan said jokingly on [ABC] Insiders that you’re “far too good looking”. Which I thought was quite a statement. What have you made of the reaction to that picture?
Do you have any idea how much grief I’ve copped around the place as a result of that?
Have they told you just to buff to be premier?
They’ve piled it on, let me tell you. I haven’t stopped copping it, and I deserve every bit of it.
We were announcing a big investment at our major aquatics centre here in South Australia and a whole bunch of us jumped in for a swim in our boardies with our kids there. And, yeah, it got a bit more attention than I anticipated, fair to say.
So you’re going to keep your shirt on from now on?
Damn straight!
I think we’re about to see a federal election where a cost of living is a front and centre issue. And I think Australians get the price of petrol, but they can’t control the price of groceries.
The way we address cost of living as a nation is to start having an incomes policy focus on how we improve working in small businesses to improve the productivity of their labour, so they can earn a higher income. And that’s why education, training and skills is so important.
Continue reading...Climate action rules announced by SEC chair Gary Gensler expected to face opposition from Republicans and industry groups
The US’s top financial watchdog proposed on Monday that publicly traded companies report information on their greenhouse-gas emissions and even those of their suppliers and consumers in one of the Biden administration’s most sweeping environmental actions to date.
The new Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules faces staunch opposition from some politicians and members of the business community and will be open to public comment for at least two months before final rules are released.
Continue reading...People asked to record flowering cherry and plum trees near them to see whether patterns are changing
The British public have been asked to track flowering fruit trees to help determine whether climate change is changing blooming patterns, in one of the largest studies of its kind.
The University of Reading and Oracle for Research have developed a fruit recording website where citizen scientists can easily post their findings. People will initially be asked to record the flowering cherry and plum trees near them, with apple trees soon to follow.
Continue reading...Former defence force chief Chris Barrie says it’s a disgrace that we’ve made a left-right issue out of global heating and its impacts
The former chief of the defence force Chris Barrie says defence personnel are not allowed to speak out on the national strategic threats posed by climate change without prior approval from Peter Dutton’s office.
The suggestion was immediately rejected by the defence minister’s office. Asked for comment, the minister’s spokesperson said: “That is not correct.”
Continue reading...Centrist Democrat, who holds key swing vote in US Senate, has poured scorn on the idea of phasing out gasoline and diesel cars
Faced with rising gasoline prices, many Americans are now looking to switch to an electric car. But the shift away from fossil fuel vehicles has been criticized by Senator Joe Manchin, who has said he is “very reluctant” to see the proliferation of battery-powered cars.
There has been a surge in interest in buying electric vehicles (EVs) in the wake of the war in Ukraine, analysts say, with drivers in the US unnerved by gasoline prices that have surpassed $4.30 a gallon as a result of the conflict and the supply chain issues from the pandemic.
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