TreehuggerTougher targets needed for Australia’s renewables
Environmental experts say the Australia Government’s renewable energy targets aren’t aggressive enough to impact on global warming.The Population Health Congress in Brisbane has heard climate change will eventually expose Australians to greater heat extremes, weather events and changes in infectious…
Govt releases paper on renewable energy target
The Federal Government has released a discussion paper that outlines two ways it could phase in its renewable energy target by 2020. The Commonwealth wants renewable sources to provide 20 per cent of the country’s energy by that…
ACT residents can produce electricity
ACT residents can now harness their own electricity and sell it back to the grid, under new laws passed by the ACT Legislative Assembly. Under the Electricity Feed-in (Renewable Energy Premium) Bill 2008, Canberrans can install photovoltaic (solar) cells or other renewable sources, produce their own…
Solar Bonus Scheme environmental PR stunt
The Bligh Government s solar rebate scheme serves to highlight their focus on the PR of climate change, rather than creating policy with substance. The State Opposition has criticised the Governments flawed scheme, which involves merely 1000 households state-wide and only pays the 44 cents…
59 new Green Corps projects announced
The Minister for Employment Participation, Brendan OConnor, today announced 59 Green Corps projects across Australia, providing new work experience opportunities for young people and also helping to improve their local…
Adelaide’s desal plant: catastrophe for marine ecosystems?
Environmentalists fear that Adelaide’s proposed billion dollar desalination plant in the St Vincent Gulf will have catastrophic effects on the local marine ecosystem. The plant is expected to discharge 50 billion litres of saline water each year, and this is predicted to kill the sea grasses that stabilise the marine environment. The plant is considered essential by SA’s Government to safeguard Adelaide’s water supply, but protesters fear that the plans are being pushed through without enough studies or consultation in order to meet the target of having the plant online by the end of 2011.
Petrol out of Emissions Trading
Within days of the release of Prof Ross Garnaut’s report on Climate Change and it’s impacts on Australia, the Federal Government has signalled that it will be rejecting some areas of the reports’ recommendations into how Australia should deal with the issue. Key areas that so far are being knocked back by the Government are including petrol in an ETS. The Government is also considering compensation for electricity generators.
Govt gives $46m to help farmers reduce emissions
The Federal Government has tripled earlier allocated funding to help farmers reduce greenhouse gases and adapt to climate change.
Australia: Peter Garrett rejects heritage call to protect eucalypt forests
Australian: AUSTRALIA will defy a call by the 21-nation World Heritage Committee to extend Tasmania’s Wilderness World Heritage Area to include tracts of tall eucalypt forests scheduled for logging. The WHC meeting in Quebec called on Canberra to “consider extension of the property to include appropriate areas of tall eucalypt forests”. Conservationists immediately urged federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett to heed the call, but late yesterday he rejected it. “The …
Most stumped by emissions scheme: survey
A survey has found the vast majority of people are unsure of how an emissions trading scheme will work and more than half have never heard of it.