Analysis of Inflation Reduction Act suggests working-class Americans missing out on renewable energy transition
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed exactly two years ago, was pitched as a policy that puts the “middle class first”. But the spending bill’s residential tax credits have so far disproportionately benefited wealthy families, new data indicates.
That’s a major challenge for the efforts to decarbonize the US economy in time to avert the worst consequences of the climate crisis.
Continue reading...
Breaking Waves: Ocean News
08/16/2024 - 07:00
08/16/2024 - 07:00
Friederike Otto of World Weather Attribution says poor people and outdoor workers are dying around the world
Heat inequality is causing thousands of unreported deaths in poor countries and communities across the world, a leading analyst of climate impacts has warned, following global temperature records that may not have been seen in 120,000 years.
Sweltering conditions act as a stealthy killer that preys on the most economically fragile, said Friederike Otto, co-founder of World Weather Attribution, in an appeal for the media and authorities to pay more attention to the dangers.
Continue reading...
08/16/2024 - 06:54
People say they are determined and that prevention will be key to mitigating the effects of the climate crisis
“I used to talk to them every day.” Dimitris Petrou takes in the creatures that were once his fluffy chicks but now look like coals. The buckled cage with its carbonised birds is part of the cataclysmic scenery left behind by the fire that bore down on Athens after raging across the Attica plains consuming everything in its path.
The 72-year-old retiree and his wife, Frosso, though red-eyed and fatigued, are “somehow still going” but are profoundly shocked.
Continue reading...
08/16/2024 - 06:00
Compound used in refrigeration and air conditioning accumulates at much higher levels that other chemicals
Rain and air samples collected in metro Detroit that researchers checked for toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” showed the highest levels of TFA, an alarming finding because the compound is a potent greenhouse gas and more toxic than previously thought, but not well-studied.
While PFAS are a chemical class known to be ubiquitous in the environment, the new research is part of growing evidence around the globe that points to TFA, commonly used in refrigeration, air conditioning and clean energy technology, accumulating at much higher levels than other well-studied compounds.
Continue reading...
08/16/2024 - 05:38
An oarfish, which resembles a serpent, was found floating dead on the ocean surface off the San Diego coast and was brought ashore for study. Scientists say it is only the 20th time since 1901 an oarfish is known to have washed up in California
Stonehenge megalith came from Scotland, not Wales, ‘jaw-dropping’ study finds
Continue reading...
08/16/2024 - 04:17
In issuing the protection order, environment minister Tanya Plibersek said ‘protecting cultural heritage and development are not mutually exclusive’
Sign up for the Rural Network email newsletter
Join the Rural Network group on Facebook to be part of the community
The federal government has made a rare protection order under Indigenous heritage legislation to protect a sacred site near Blayney in western New South Wales from becoming the site of a tailings dam for a goldmine.
The environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, made a partial declaration under section 10 of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection (ATSHIP) Act to protect part of the headwaters of the Belubula River on Kings Plains, which was the proposed site of a tailings dam for the McPhillamys goldmine.
Sign up to receive Guardian Australia’s fortnightly Rural Network email newsletter
Continue reading...
08/16/2024 - 04:09
Data shows continued surge in wind and solar power amid hopes Chinese greenhouse gas emissions may have peaked
China added as much new clean energy generation in the first half of this year as the UK produced from all sources in the same period last year, data shows, as wind and solar power generation continued to surge in the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases.
Electricity generation from coal and gas dropped by 5% in China in July, year on year, according to an update from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) thinktank, basing its analysis on data released by the Chinese government on Thursday.
Continue reading...
08/16/2024 - 02:00
The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world
Continue reading...
08/16/2024 - 01:00
An architectural zigzag design can limit how much heat is absorbed by buildings – and emitted back to space
Incorporating zigzag patterns into building walls could help cool overheated buildings, research has found.
Buildings are now responsible for approximately 40% of global energy consumption, contributing more than a third of global carbon dioxide emissions.
Continue reading...
08/15/2024 - 23:00
Researchers at Australia’s Flinders University hope the acoustic method will make it easier to find and fix soil degradation
Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast
Ever wondered what the Earth sounds like? New research suggests healthy soil has a distinctive soundtrack of its own – the crackles, pops and clicks of ants and worms bustling around underground.
Scientists from Australia’s Flinders University listened to microphones planted in the ground to see if invertebrate instrumentals are a good indicator of biodiversity and soil health.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup
Continue reading...
