Category Archives: Environment

Queensland to spend $5bn on 1,100km CopperString power line to unlock renewables potential

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‘Eureka moment’ project will provide future energy certainty and trigger new minerals processing, Palaszczuk government says

The Queensland government has said it will take control of a $5bn proposal to build a 1,100km power line connecting Mount Isa to the national grid, which it says will “unlock” development of new-economy mineral deposits in the state’s north west.

The project, known as CopperString 2.0, has long been touted as necessary to provide future energy certainty to Queensland’s north-west minerals province, where miners are considering the potential to extract large amounts of copper, cobalt, vanadium, lead, zinc and phosphate.

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NSW Labor vows to fix ‘broken’ environmental offsets system if elected

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Spokesperson Penny Sharpe says current system has ‘no red lines’ and party will deliver changes within first 18 months of government

New South Wales Labor has promised to fix the state’s “broken” environmental offsets system if it wins government in March, saying current policies are causing decline of endangered ecosystems instead of avoiding more damage.

“I think there’s a role for offsetting but the current system is skewed the wrong way,” the party’s environment spokesperson, Penny Sharpe, said.

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Philippine officials believe they have located leaking oil tanker

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Officials believe MT Princess Empress, which sank last week, is 400 metres below surface off island of Mindoro

Officials in the Philippines believe they have located a leaking oil tanker that sank last week and has since coated nearby shorelines in thick sludge, threatening areas of rich marine biodiversity.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said it “may have detected the possible site where the vessel is actually located”, adding that the site was about 1,200ft (400 metres) below the surface.

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Queenslanders to be banned from dumping solar panels in landfill under new recycling program

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More than 25m panels are expected to be installed across the state over the next decade

Queenslanders would be banned from dumping solar panels in landfill within the decade in order to reduce electronic waste under a proposed recycling expansion program.

The Palaszczuk government on Sunday announced its draft e-products waste action plan, which outlined the proposal to ban the dumping of solar panels within five to 10. The plan also aims to encourage the repair and reuse of household electronic products like fridges and mobile phones.

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Revealed: cabinet ministers warned of legal action over UK’s failure to tackle climate crisis

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Senior civil servants have issued the warning as government is way behind on net zero pledges, according to leaked documents

Cabinet ministers have been warned by senior civil servants that they face court action because of their catastrophic failure to develop policies for tackling climate change, according to secret documents obtained by the Observer.

The leaked briefings from senior mandarins – marked “official sensitive” and dated 20 February this year – make clear the government as a whole is way behind in spelling out how it will reach its net zero targets and comply with legal duties to save the planet.

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Weather tracker: back-to-back winter storms in California

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More than a dozen counties declare state of emergency after heavy snowfalls, avalanches and freezing conditions

Back-to-back winter storms in California this week have brought strong winds and blizzard, and freeze warnings, causing a state of emergency to be declared across more than a dozen counties.

Palisades Tahoe ski resort in the Sierra Nevada mountain range received 3.6 metres (12 feet) of snow over the week, with 66 centimetres falling in a single day on Tuesday. This brings its cumulative total to 12.8 metres for this season, making it the snowiest since 1970.

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NSW government called out on net zero goal as own data projects coal and gas emissions until 2050

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Data also shows land sector will absorb more carbon than it emits from 2015 despite passage of laws that make land clearing easier

Labor, the Greens and independent politicians have called on the New South Wales government to explain how emissions projections square with its 2050 net zero goal, after its own data showed pollution from coal and gas extending out to mid-century.

The figures, which are contained within the government’s emissions dashboard, also show the land sector growing as a sink for carbon emissions even after the government loosened land clearing laws allowing farmers to remove more vegetation.

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Philippines oil tanker spill prompts fears for protected marine areas

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Authorities scramble to contain leak from sunken tanker that was carrying about 800,000 litres of oil

Authorities in the Philippines are scrambling to contain an oil leak from a sunken tanker that could threaten the rich biodiversity of more than 20 marine protected areas.

The MT Princess Empress, which was carrying a cargo of about 800,000 litres of industrial oil, sank on Tuesday off the coast of Naujan, Oriental Mindoro province, after it experienced problems with its engine and began to drift due to rough seas. A passing cargo ship rescued the 20 crew onboard.

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Florence and her cubs give hope that west African lion can come roaring back

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National park in Senegal shows off three surprise new recruits in fight to save critically endangered species from extinction

A lioness in one of the world’s rarest lion populations has given birth to three cubs, new video footage shows, raising hopes that the critically endangered big cat can be saved from extinction.

In contrast to their southern cousins, west African lions have almost completely disappeared. Scientists believe between 120 and 374 remain in the wild, their historic range reduced to four populations clinging on in Nigeria, Benin, Niger and Burkina Faso.

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Toyota accused of greenwashing in Greenpeace complaint filed to ACCC

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Complaint focuses on claims about performance of vehicles and net zero by 2050 plans while company says it is committed to sustainable future

Greenpeace Australia Pacific has asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to investigate whether environmental claims by Toyota are misleading or deceptive.

The greenwashing complaint, filed Friday by the Environmental Defenders Office on behalf of Greenpeace, focuses on claims about the environmental performance of Toyota’s vehicles and its net zero ambitions.

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Unprecedented snowfall on US west coast is ‘once-in-a-generation’ event

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California governor declares state of emergency in 13 counties while Portland, Oregon, sees second snowiest day in history

The west coast of the US, from Oregon to the mountains of California and the golf courses of Phoenix, has received nearly unprecedented levels of snowfall this week in what officials are calling a “once-in-a-generation” event.

The mountainous regions of California have received so much snowfall – more than 40ft of snow since the start of the season – that entire towns have shut down as they are virtually cut off from the rest of the state. The governor has declared a state of emergency in 13 counties due to the unusual snowfall.

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‘Like a little dragon’: new gecko species discovered on rugged Queensland island

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The carnivorous Phyllurus fimbriatus is only found in the wettest, rockiest pockets of Scawfell Island

A new species of gecko that “looks like a little dragon”, with a beaky face and spiny leaf-shaped tail, has been discovered on an uninhabited Queensland island.

The new lizard was found on Scawfell Island, a rugged island about 50km offshore from the north Queensland city of Mackay.

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David Pocock wants urgent action on carbon credit system ahead of vote on key climate policy

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Crossbench senator’s support is crucial if government is to introduce planned revamp of safeguard mechanism

Independent senator David Pocock has urged the Albanese government to quickly implement all recommendations from a review of Australia’s carbon credit system, given it wants to introduce a climate policy that relies heavily on offsets.

Pocock’s is a key vote if the government is to introduce a planned revamp of the safeguard mechanism, a scheme that is meant to reduce carbon pollution from 215 big polluting industrial and resources sites.

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‘A part of winter is missing’: Ottawa grieves over lack of canal ice for skating

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Rideau has not turned into world’s long ice rink as usual, laying bare unpredictable realities of climate crisis

Every winter for more than two decades, Chris Macknie has laced up boots, clipped on skis or slipped on running shoes to compete in Ottawa’s Winterlude triathlon.

The event, held in dead of winter, has hundreds skate along the frozen Rideau canal, swapping out their blades for nordic skis and then finish with a run.

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Nearly half of English neighbourhoods ‘have less than 10% tree cover’

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Analysis for Friends of the Earth also finds lower-income areas have far fewer trees than wealthier ones

Nearly half of English neighbourhoods have less than 10% tree cover, with lower-income areas having far fewer trees than wealthier ones, analysis has found.

England’s tree cover is just 12.8%, according to the research by Friends of the Earth, with only 10% made up by woodland – paling in comparison with the EU, where woodland cover stands at 38%.

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Scientists prove clear link between deforestation and local drop in rainfall

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Study adds to fears Amazon is approaching tipping point after which it will not be able to generate its own rainfall

For the first time researchers have proven a clear correlation between deforestation and regional precipitation. Scientists hope it may encourage agricultural companies and governments in the Amazon and Congo basin regions and south-east Asia to invest more in protecting trees and other vegetation.

The study found that the more rainforests are cleared in tropical countries, the less local farmers will be able to depend on rain for their crops and pastures.

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ACCC to crack down on ‘greenwashing’ after survey reveals spike in misleading claims

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Competition watchdog analysis of 247 businesses showed 57% had promoted concerning claims about environmental credentials

The competition watchdog will step up its probe of companies’ environmental claims after an initial sweep found more than half made misleading statements ranging from overstating climate action to developing their own certification schemes.

The survey of 247 businesses or brands across eight sectors by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission last October found 57% had promoted “concerning claims about their environmental credentials”.

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US firm to bid to turn DRC oil permits in Virunga park into conservation projects

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Exclusive: company plans to sell carbon and biodiversity credits in endangered gorilla habitat and Congo basin rainforest as alternative to drilling for fossil fuels

A New York investment firm is to launch a $400m (£334m) bid for oil concessions in the Congo basin rainforest and Virunga national park with plans to turn them into conservation projects, the Guardian can reveal.

EQX Biome, a biodiversity fintech company, has sent an expression of interest to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) government for 27 oil exploration blocks put up for auction last July, some of which are in critical ecosystems.

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Canadian government urged to test sick patients for herbicide

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Patients in New Brunswick with array of symptoms ‘show signs of exposure to glyphosate’, says neurologist

A neurologist who believes his patients are suffering from a suspicious illness has pleaded with the Canadian government to carry out environmental testing he thinks will show the involvement of the herbicide glyphosate.

For more than two years, dozens of people in the Canadian province of New Brunswick have experienced a distressing array of neurological symptoms, initially prompting speculation that they had developed an unknown degenerative illness – and that figure is believed to be far higher than official reports.

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UK energy firms must pass on price savings to customers, ministers warn

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Grant Shapps to tell suppliers that reduced wholesale prices must be seen in consumer prices

Ministers have warned energy firms that they must pass on the benefits of lower wholesale prices to consumers, amid concern that bills could rise this spring.

In a speech on Wednesday, Grant Shapps will tell energy suppliers that reduced wholesale prices must be seen in consumer prices, “no ifs, buts or maybes”.

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