With ExxonMobil set to begin oil production in Guyana next year, this tiny South American country will soon become unthinkably rich. But neighboring Venezuela shows how an oil boom can go bust.
The coal seam gas industry and its regulators still have work to do in persuading local communities that old wells can be decommissioned without future problems, according to new CSIRO research.
Development is peaking in the high country between India and China.
Vinay Vaars/Wikimedia Commons
For decades, China and India have clashed over their disputed Himalayan border. This clash is also playing out via a development boom that threatens the health of one of the world’s biggest river catchments.
Before taking that tempting upgrade, ask yourself if it’s really necessary.
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The most sustainable phone is the one you already own. But if you’re in the market for a new handset, consider choosing one with replaceable parts to avoid having to replace the whole thing again.
A Chinese road-building corporation felling rainforest in the Congo Basin.
Bill Laurance
Chinese investment is driving an unprecedented investment boom in global infrastructure. But despite its claims to be pursuing green development, China’s building bonanza is harming the planet.
Cities like Melbourne are a store for such huge amounts of resources that they could be used as urban mines.
Donaldytong (own work)/Wikimedia
Even though they don’t consistently have a roof over their heads, the homeless do their best to create a routine, form communities and make a home – just like the rest of society.
BHP will go back to the future following the move to ditch “Billiton” from it’s name.
Alan Porritt/AAP
BHP’s rebrand is unlikely to affect the bottom line, research shows. But if it improves relations with politicians and voters, it would still be a success.
Western Australia’s largest private solar array covers the roof of this food distribution centre in Perth’s south.
AAP Image/Bidvest
Despite its name, the National Electricity Market doesn’t reach WA. But those charged with guiding the eastern states’ energy transition should look west once in a while.
No matter how hard we dig, the Earth’s resources are ultimately finite.
Mining image from www.shutterstock.com
The Anthropocene is often associated with problems such as climate change and inequality. But there is also hope that it can come with positive change for the benefit of people.
Australia failed to properly capitalise on the resources boom.
AAP Image/Kim Christian
How WA managed to emerge from the mining boom with an estimated debt burden of $40 billion is one of the West’s great mysteries. Or not, if you bother to look more closely.
Australians are missing out on revenue from our country’s natural resources.
Will Russell/AAP
The mining industry is more resilient because of the recent downturn and it will be global supply and demand that will affect these companies in the future.
Artisanal small-scale mining in Africa competes for resources with farming.
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Without careful policy consideration the rise of artisanal and small-scale mining in resource rich African countries stands to disturb agricultural activity and associated livelihoods.