Ambition has awakened the global energy giants, China and the United States. Both nations have recently strengthened commitments to address climate change and announced plans to strengthen collaboration…
But that’s exactly what investors are doing, says a new report.
Takver/Flickr
Investors are continuing to pour money into fossil fuel reserves that could end up being worthless due to efforts to combat climate change, a new report has found. The Climate Tracker report found that…
Every which way but forward. Are biofuels an answer to aviation emissions we can agree on?
pearsongraphics/Flickr
Aviation is a growing source of greenhouse gas emissions. In other industries emissions are declining, or at least are better regulated. Airline emissions, however, continue to soar. How viable are laws…
Emissions growth in the 21st century was overwhelmingly concentrated in developing countries. My own calculations on “business as usual” emissions for the Climate Change Review Update suggested that in…
Bushfires release CO2, but how much?
AAP Image/Kim Foale
“Indeed I guess there’ll be more CO2 emissions from these fires than there will be from coal-fired power stations for decades.” - acting Opposition leader, Warren Truss, January 9, 2013 On Wednesday, leader…
Carbon reporting regulations are controlled by a select few.
freefotouk/Flickr
Five years ago, we really didn’t have a clue what an organisation’s carbon impact might look like, and few firms had any sort of carbon-oriented business plan. Now, the trend is to fill this gap by producing…
What’s behind Australia’s Kyoto target, and could we shift it?
##Erika**/Flickr
At the Doha climate conference, Australia has submitted a 99.5% emissions target for a second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. Why is Australia doing it, and what does it mean? Setting a good example…
The earth’s crust might be our most valuable resource yet.
prawnpie/Flickr
For centuries, the shallow parts of the earth’s crust have provided us with fuels to burn in our fireplaces, foundries and generators. Now, as we try to break free from our reliance on some of the dirtier…
More and more people are flying. International emissions regulation isn’t keeping up.
Dave Sag
Aviation has – and has had for some time – an emissions problem. That problem was illustrated in dramatic fashion last week when it was announced that the European Union (EU) would freeze until late next…
The American people have spoken in favour of climate change by re-electing Barack Obama to a second presidential term.
Flickr/350.org
In his acceptance speech of November 6, Barack Obama at long last reaffirmed the need to address global warming. But unfortunately he also reaffirmed the spurious goal of US oil independence, which can…
Do you value this? The Energy White Paper doesn’t.
Green MPs
Burn it all. That is the plan in Australia’s new Energy White Paper. Released yesterday by Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson, it talks about responding to climate change while planning the…
The government’s projections of future emissions don’t seem to account for a reduction in demand for energy.
Cowboy/Dave Flickr
New greenhouse gas emissions projections have been released by Australia’s government. They suggest that only a minority of the task to meet Australia’s emissions target will be achieved through domestic…
Australians may be cutting back carbon-intensive activities, but until the government is more transparent about emission cuts there’s no way to check.
Adrian Tritschler
Last week we had good news from the Federal Government that the carbon price is already working. Many of us from across the political spectrum have wondered whether the complex new financial arrangements…
Traditional burials take up space that could be used for forest or farmland.
Stuck in Customs/Flick
Yuan Gao, The University of Melbourne and Roger Short, The University of Melbourne
How we die, as well as how we live, has profound and lasting effects on the environment. Nowhere is this more true than in China, the most populous nation on Earth. According to the National Bureau of…
In the aftermath of the world’s worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl, Japan is phasing out nuclear power.
EPA/Julien Warnand
On 14 September 2012, the Japanese Government considered a new policy that excited many self-proclaimed environmentalists and anti-nuclear power protestors. Following intense political wrangling, they…
We want our pets to be happy, but how much luxury do they need?
nezitic[x]/flickr
People around the world are worrying about their carbon footprint. But what about their furry friends’ carbon pawprints? Consider the numbers: there are currently around 1 billion pet cats and dogs worldwide…
Compensation candidate: The Yallourn power plant in the La Trobe Valley.
Flickr/Dallas75
In some respects, we should be relieved by the collapse of the Labor government’s negotiations to decommission some of the most polluting brown-coal electricity generation plants. The notion that decommissioning…
Other countries - either in the European Union or elsewhere - could be the main beneficiaries of the Australian Government’s move to link carbon pricing with Europe.
AAP
Linking Australia to the European Union carbon emissions trading scheme by 2015 will undoubtedly affect the revenue gained from carbon trading. The question is, how much? One should expect up to 50% less…
Iran’s gas could make a difference to the world’s carbon-reduction efforts, if only the world was allowed to use it.
EPA/Abedin Taherkenareh
The problem of climate change policy at an international level is not only about reaching agreement on sharing the mitigation burden. It is also about how dysfunctional foreign policies - not directly…