From Byron Bay, Australia to Cologne, Germany: Collaborating internationally sends climate change message viral — RenewEconomy
The key messages of the presentation given by Professor Will Steffen at the Zero Emissions Byron (ZEB) BIG U TURN AHEAD event last June, have been passed on to more than 72,000 people, thanks to a series of Twitter posts distributed from Cologne, Germany. The post From Byron Bay, Australia to Cologne, Germany: Collaborating internationally sends…
Fear of drought, flood and fires leads farmers to plea for urgent action on climate change
Fear of drought, flood and fires leads farmers to plea for urgent action on climate change ABC, NSW Country Hour, By Tim Fookes 13 Sep 19
The farmer from Larras Lee, in central west New South Wales, has lived through drought before, but not like this.
“The cattle I had were about to start calving, and I just haven’t got enough to feed them,” he said.
“I was proud of those cows that have gone this week; I bred them, and I regret I have to sell them.”
Having already destocked, Mr Lee knows of other farmers destocking because there is a better opportunity for them in southern NSW and Victoria where they have had rain.
“The agents tell me how embarrassed they are with the amount of rain they’ve had in Victoria,” Mr Lee said.
“But it’s great to hear that some people have had [rain] and have got some grass to take on stock that we can’t handle. “With the way the climate is, with warmer-than-average temperatures and lower rainfall, I have to be much more nimble with how much stock I have.”\
Farmers for climate activism
Mr Lee is not alone in his concerns over the climate and has become a member of the lobby group, Farmers for Climate Action.
It involves people from rural Australia pushing for more action on the effects that climate change is having on agriculture. A conference this week in Orange attracted nearly 200 people to discuss ways of lobbying for more action on the effects a warming, dryer climate is having on those who make a living on the land.
Two thirds of those at the conference were farmers who had travelled from around NSW to attend……… https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2019-09-13/fear-of-drought-flood-and-fires-leads-farmers-to-plea-for-action/11508834
Julian Assange to remain behind bars
Julian Assange to remain behind bars due to ‘history of absconding’ SBS 13 Sep 19, The founder of Wikileaks has been told he will be kept in jail beyond September 22. Julian Assange has been told he will stay in prison after the custody period finishes on his current jail term because of his “history of absconding”.
In June, then home secretary Sajid Javid signed an order allowing Assange to be extradited to the US over computer-hacking allegations.
A 50-week jail term was then imposed in the UK after he jumped bail by going into hiding in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in 2012. He would have been released from HMP Belmarsh on September 22, Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard on Friday, but the 48-year-old Australian was told he will be kept in jail because of “substantial grounds” for believing he will abscond again……. Another administrative hearing will take place on October 11 following by a case management hearing on October 21, the court heard.
The final hearing in Assange’s extradition case is due in February……https://www.sbs.com.au/news/julian-assange-to-remain-behind-bars-due-to-history-of-absconding?cid=news:socialshare:twitter
John Quiggin sets out a very unlikely course for nuclear power in Australia
The central recommendations of my submission were as follows:
Recommendation 1: A carbon price of A$25/tonne should be introduced immediately, and increased at a real rate of 5% a year, reaching A$50/tonne by 2035.
Recommendation 2: The government should immediately adopt the recommendations of its own Climate Change Authority for a 40% to 60% reduction in emissions by 2030, relative to 2000 levels, and match other leading OECD countries in committing to complete decarbonisation of the economy by 2050.
Recommendation 3: The parliament should pass a motion:
affirming its confidence in mainstream climate science and its acceptance of the key conclusions of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change;- legislating a commitment to emissions reductions;
- removing the existing ban on nuclear power……..There are immediate political implications of my proposal at both the state and federal level. It will be more difficult for the Coalition-dominated committees running the two inquiries to bring down a report favourable to nuclear power without addressing the necessary conditions – including a carbon price. If the government’s hostility to carbon pricing is such that a serious proposal for nuclear power cannot be considered, it will at least be clear that this option can be abandoned for good. ……..Given the urgency of addressing climate change – a task that is best addressed through a carbon price – it makes no sense to reject action now on the basis that it opens up the possibility of nuclear power sometime in the 2030s. And, if renewables and storage perform as well as most environmentalists expect, nuclear power will be unable to compete even then. ……… https://theconversation.com/nuclear-power-should-be-allowed-in-australia-but-only-with-a-carbon-price-123170
Climate change pushing Queensland’s bushfire and cyclone seasons on a collision course
Heatwave-like conditions across the two eastern states were expected to push bushfire alerts to “very high” with potentially dangerous fire conditions forecast. …… https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/national/2019/09/13/bushfires-queensland-nsw-weather/
New investment fund targets small solar and wind farms in Australia — RenewEconomy
Foresight Renewable Energy Income Fund to make loans of $5-$30 million, predominantly to smaller-scale wind and solar projects in Australia. The post New investment fund targets small solar and wind farms in Australia appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via New investment fund targets small solar and wind farms in Australia — RenewEconomy
AEMO slashes output of five big solar farms by half due to voltage issues — RenewEconomy
In another blow to solar industry, five big solar farms in Victoria and NSW have output slashed in half after AEMO identifies system strength issues. The post AEMO slashes output of five big solar farms by half due to voltage issues appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via AEMO slashes output of five big solar farms by half due to voltage issues — RenewEconomy
Network giant says renewables transition will deliver lower prices and cut emissions — RenewEconomy
Spark Infrastructure says clean energy transition can lower emissions and prices, but is being held back by lack of policy and out-dated rules. The post Network giant says renewables transition will deliver lower prices and cut emissions appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Network giant says renewables transition will deliver lower prices and cut emissions — RenewEconomy
Taylor wants coal generators to stay on line and “run at full tilt” — RenewEconomy
Taylor says renewables are growing but he wants existing coal generators to stay online and “run at full tilt”. The post Taylor wants coal generators to stay on line and “run at full tilt” appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Taylor wants coal generators to stay on line and “run at full tilt” — RenewEconomy
Wind overtaking brown coal is only a matter of time — RenewEconomy
As Australia’s installed wind capacity rises, wind farms generating more than brown coal plants will happen reasonably often. And this dynamic is only heading in one direction. The post Wind overtaking brown coal is only a matter of time appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Wind overtaking brown coal is only a matter of time — RenewEconomy
Why pay thermal generators to stay online? It’s totally nuts — RenewEconomy
You can’t run a modern, vibrant Australian or NSW economy on a fleet of clapped-out 40 and then 50-year-old coal generators. The post Why pay thermal generators to stay online? It’s totally nuts appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Why pay thermal generators to stay online? It’s totally nuts — RenewEconomy
Antinuclear 