The historic moment when  the UK ended coal for good

Look at the gif above and witness a historic moment in the history of fossil fuel energy.  This short clip, from September 30, captures the exact moment when the United Kingdom ended coal. For good.   Since the opening of “Jumbo,” the world’s first coal power plant in 1882, UK coal plants have burned through…

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Taxes are better than subsidies – but a harder sell

Green subsidies may have hidden costs, experts warn Some subsidies that appear to encourage sustainability are not so simple Date: October 3, 2024 Source: University of Connecticut Summary: Government subsidies for business practices and processes should be approached with caution, even when they seem to be environmentally friendly, writes a group of scientists and economists.…

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OECD coal generation halved since 2007 peak: 87% replaced by wind and solar

A report by Ember, a climate policy think tank, estimates that coal power generation has fallen by 52 per cent since 2007 in the 38 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Ember estimates that wind and solar generation mostly replaced coal power. The report states that coal generation accounted for…

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Failings of Neoclassical economics driving our current crises

Sustainability scientists’ critique of neoclassical economics Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 September 2024 Mark Diesendorf[Opens in a new window], Geoff Davies, Thomas Wiedmann[Opens in a new window], Joachim H. Spangenberg and Steven Hail Show author details Article Figures Metrics Save PDF ShareCite Abstract Non-technical summary Neoclassical economics (NCE) theory and neoliberal economics practice together…

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People power stops world’s largest seismic blasting project

Southern Ocean coastline communities celebrate David Prestipino – September 27, 2024 National Indigenous Times NEWS Community, environmental and First Nations groups are breathing a sigh of relief after multinational gas exploration company TGS backtracked on plans to conduct large-scale seismic blasting off Australia’s south coast. (Image: Matt Sedunary) Concerned community, environmental and First Nations groups…

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‘Reconductoring’ to equip the grid for the energy transition

Image: Conventional conductor technology compared to lines reconductored with advanced conductors. (A) A comparison of a cross-section of a conventional ACSR conductor compared to an equivalent-diameter advanced composite-core conductor and (B) a schematic of an existing transmission line reconductored with advanced composite-core conductors. Source: Chojkiewicz E. et al.  “Accelerating transmission capacity expansion by using advanced conductors in…

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F-List! Marketing and Ad agencies with clients whose primary business is the extraction, processing, transportation, or sale of oil, gas or coal.

From Clean Creatives The first combined F-list for Australia and New Zealand has revealed oily lobbying and dirty greenwashing. Clemenger/Omnicom’s GRACosway has the most fossil fuel clients (8) followed by SEC Newgate, Spring Street Advisory and WPP’s Purple, with 6 each. The most marketed fossil fuel company was Ampol, with 6 agencies in Australia and…

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Albanese and Plibersek approve three new coal mining projects

– 24 September 2024 by Ed Hill Climate Action Network Australia The Albanese Government published its decision on Tuesday afternoon to approve three new large coal mining projects in NSW: Whitehaven Coal’s Narrabri thermal coal project to 2066, MACH Energy’s Mount Pleasant thermal coal project to 2058, and Yancoal’s Ashton coal project to 2064. See…

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UK and US legal decisions against fossil fuels

High Court overturns decision approving new UK coal mine:  The High Court has overturned the December 2022 planning permission granted by former Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Levelling Up, Michael Gove, for West Cumbria Mining’ (WCM) proposed Whitehaven mine. Mr Justice Holgate ruled in favour of the appeal brought by Friends of the…

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Tipping points could work both ways as nature can evolve rapidly

Coral reefs can reach a tipping point where small environmental changes trigger a dramatic shift from vibrant, diverse ecosystems to bleached, depleted ones. Michael J. McDonald/Wikimedia Commons How do ecosystems collapse? Our study shows evolution plays a role – and can delay a disaster Christopher Blake PhD Student, Monash University Michael J. McDonald Associate Professor of…

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Saying “97% of scientists believe climate change is real and caused by humans” increases action and reduces polarisation

A massive multi-country study suggests that simply closing the gap between the actual and perceived consensus moves the needle on climate beliefs without polarizing groups. By Sarah DeWeerdt in Anthropocene September 17, 2024 Communicating the overwhelming scientific consensus about climate change – at least 97% of climate scientists agree that climate change is happening and…

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Personal cooling device overcomes AC’s flaws

Figure 6 Energy comparison between traditional convective air-conditioning systems and pure radiant cooling device (A) Schematic diagram of the experimental platform. (B) Cooling energy transport process in traditional convective cooling scenario. (C) Cooling energy transport process in pure radiant cooling scenario. (D) Energy consumption of the two systems in scenarios with different air changes per hour…

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What to do? Project Drawdown’s Interactive table of solutions

LEARN. Familiarize yourself with the spectrum of climate solutions. Project Drawdown’s Solutions Library offers eye-opening insights into 93 science-based technologies and practices that together can halt climate change. DO. Alter your own activities to reduce your personal contribution to climate change. Check out our Get Involved page for specific suggestions. SHARE. Communicate the opportunity to…

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Succesfully deploying offshore renewable energy

Image WWF report: Figure 2: Projected installation of wind energy capacity (gigawatts) 2022-2026, Source: Global Wind Energy Council, Global Wind Report 2023 The Global Wind Energy Council expects 680 GW of wind capacity to be added globally between 2023 and 2027, of which 130 GW will be offshore. This represents more than half of the…

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WA and NT undermining Australia’s climate targets

Image: SBS News and Climate Council The two places ‘undermining’ Australia’s efforts to cut emissions Australia is making “impressive” progress on transitioning to renewable energy — but not every state and territory is pulling their weight, according to a new report. Two parts of Australia are “undermining” national efforts to embrace renewable energy and cut…

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