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Environment + Energy – Articles, Analysis, Comment

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Balancing the environment and development in New Zealand is proving to be tricky. Flickr/rambla

New Zealand’s environmental approvals: best in the world?

In Australia, Queensland and New South Wales will soon have a “one stop shop” for environmental approvals and assessment, including a 12-month limit on the assessment process. The reforms, according to…
We should be talking about future bushfires. AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts

Fire and climate change: fire risk needs to be managed

Recent fires in New South Wales highlight our current vulnerability, remind us about potential future risks and prompt us to think more strategically about risk management. Some key questions have come…
Remote beauty: Twin Falls in Cape York. www.shutterstock.com/John Carnemolla

The battle for Cape York: whose vision will win out?

From its stunning wetlands in the west, across a dry central spine, to the coastal heathlands and rainforests in the east, Cape York Peninsula is deservedly world-famous for its rugged beauty. For many…
The Prime Minister knows a lot about fires, but does he understand their connection with climate change? AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts

Are the NSW bushfires linked to climate change?

The New South Wales fires have sparked a hot debate on the question whether these fires are linked to climate change. Prime Minister Tony Abbott joined in too stating, “These fires are certainly not a…
Yasuni National Park in Ecuador is one of the world’s most biodiverse regions. It’s home to country’s largest oil field. Flickr/joshbousel

Leave it in the ground! How fossil fuel extraction affects biodiversity

Greenhouse gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels have resulted in well-publicised changes to the Earth’s climate. But the impacts of fossil fuels start long before their carbon dioxide reaches…
Transplanting the suburban house to a bush setting needs a rethink. AAP Image/Lukas Coch

How can we build houses that better withstand bushfires?

As we are currently witnessing, transferring the suburban house into a setting susceptible to bushfires causes a lot of problems. Put simply: if you are going to live in a bushfire area you should expect…
Woylie have decline by up to 95% since 2001. Why is a mystery. Flickr/Arthur Chapman

Australian endangered species: Woylie

The introduced red fox (Vulpes vulpes) has had a devastating impact of Australia’s native mammal fauna, particularly on those in the “Critical Weight Range”, between 35 and 5500 grams. Combined with landscape…
LNG will soon be heading offshore in Western Australia. Flickr/yaruman5

Why isn’t Western Australia on board with floating LNG?

The Browse Basin off the north west coast of Australia is rich in liquified natural gas (LNG), but questions remain over how best to exploit it. Oil and gas companies and the Australian Federal Government…
Official advice is important, but if it doesn’t match up with local knowledge it’s often ignored. AAP Image/Damian Shaw

Why don’t they do as they’re told? Taking fire risks on the fringe

It’s alarmingly familiar. Scenes of bushland burning on the fringes of an Australian city. The roofs of threatened homes just visible through the forest canopy and the smoke. Fire-fighters beyond exhaustion…
Firefighters have plenty of ideas about disaster management - so why don’t we listen? AAP/Dan Himbrechts

What firefighters say about climate change

You do not find many climate change sceptics on the end of [fire] hoses anymore… They are dealing with increasing numbers of fires, increasing rainfall events, increasing storm events. – A senior Victorian…
Fighting fire with fire: how can we best target hazard reduction burns? Flickr/Anthony Clark

Bushfire hazard reduction: the sword or the shield?

The Greater Sydney region contains the largest urban centre in Australia, and is also, thanks to its landscape and forests, prone to intense bushfires. Tens of thousands of properties and businesses are…
Food eco-labelling should be standardised or farmers will suffer. John Keogh

Food eco-labelling – green credentials or green-mail?

Australia has seen a boom in eco-labelling: more than 50 different organisations were eco-certifying products in 2010. Queensland National Senator Boswell calls it green-mail, forcing food producers to…
In a democracy, there is no ‘wrong time’ to talk about an issue. spunkinator/Flickr

There’s no place for politeness when you’re fighting a fire

Peter Phelps is no friend of mine. He’s Government Whip in the NSW Legislative Council, and he’s previously had some interesting things to say about science. He’s also a fun and feisty Twitter user, who’s…
It really is time to talk about whether climate change is responsible for bushfires. AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts

Fire and climate change: don’t expect a smooth ride

With fires still burning across New South Wales, it’s time to have a look at the role climate change might have played. Are the conditions we’re seeing natural variation, or part of a long term trend…
Planning law could do much more to prevent us living in bushfire-prone areas. Brian Yap

Living with fire: deciding where to build

With an early, devastating start to the bushfire season in New South Wales and Queensland, recent disasters in Victoria and Tasmania, and projections that current trends will continue under climate change…
It’s loud out there! We’re just beginning to understand how our noise affects whales’ ears. Sam Scholes

Too much noise in the ocean for whales’ sensitive ears

We might only notice whales when they appear in our world, but beyond the scopes of whale watchers, whales and dolphins live rich - and noisy - lives. In fact scientists are only just beginning to understand…
Sydney’s environment evolved with fire. AAP Image/Dean Lewins

Sydney fires caused by people and nature

Even without the official tally it looks like the fires that started yesterday in Blue Mountains will be the most costly in terms of property since 1968. But how have they come about? Why is the area vulnerable…
Bushfire modelling predicted the Dunalley fires a day before they happened, but that’s not the whole story. AAP Image/News Limited Pool, Chris Kidd)

Tasmanian bushfires: should we have trusted the models?

This week the Tasmanian government released its inquiry into the January 2013 bushfires that destroyed numerous properties on the Tasmanian Peninsula. A key finding is that modelling predicted fires would…
New Zealand’s ancient tuatara might need a helping hand to cope with climate change. Flickr/Sheep"R"Us

Should we move species threatened by climate change?

Climate change is one of the greatest threats the world’s animals and plants are facing. In fact the world is facing an extinction crisis, which should concern all of us. The major problem with climate…
This tiny tinker frog is lives in the gullies of Queensland rainforests. Flickr/Smithsonian's National Zoo

Australian endangered species: Tinker frogs

South-west of the port of Gladstone in Queensland lies Kroombit Tops National Park, housing many plants and animals, some of them unique. The reserve includes steep escarpments with wet, rainforest gullies…
The path to climate change resilience is better land management. Flickr/jennifrog

The key to fighting climate change is in the land

Australia could lead the world in combating climate change. Wouldn’t you like to believe this was true? Actually though, Australia has a world-beating model to deal with climate change. But I’m not talking…
There’s a reason we have a price on carbon. Repealing it may save taxpayers a little money, but it will cause long-term problems. Roxy Chen

Repealing the carbon tax: hidden costs and unanswered questions

There are reasons Australia has a price on carbon. Let’s recap. The IPCC has released its Fifth Assessment Report stating that the increase in atmospheric concentrations of CO2, methane, and nitrous oxide…
The threat to human rights should be a central focus of climate change action. Flickr/The World Wants a Real Deal

Human rights and climate change: a fresh perspective

Climate change has been considered under many lenses – economic, geopolitical, diplomatic and developmental. However, human rights are rarely considered. Instead, they are a peripheral concern for the…