Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Cop 29 live: Poor countries may have to compromise on climate funding, says former UN envoy

admin — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 07:20:41 +0000

Negotiations continue amid disputes over climate finance goals and previous commitments on transitioning from fossil fuels

News is so sparse on the final day of Cop29 that the Associated Press, US-based news agency, took a board game to the climate summit, and then reported on people playing it.

Activists and experts who are pushing world leaders to save an overheating planet learned it’s not so easy, even in a simulated world.

Friday briefing: The pressure is on at Cop29 to fill in the blanks in the climate finance deal

admin — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 06:57:00 +0000

In today’s newsletter: After two weeks of fraught negotiations, the draft text still contains an ‘X’ in place of a number. Is consensus on a trillion-dollar funding target for developing nations possible?

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Holding a grudge – is it a petty character flaw or a desire for justice in an unjust world? | First Dog on the Moon

admin — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 06:08:23 +0000

Who better to ask than corvids

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NSW government passes bill to repair ‘broken’ biodiversity offset scheme

admin — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 05:45:23 +0000

Reforms include public registers to track how developers are meeting their commitments and avoiding damaging endangered ecosystems

Now is the time to unplug and reset. Next year we enter a more dangerous world – but for now I need the silence of nature | Paul Daley

admin — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 22:46:47 +0000

The return of Trump demands extreme watchfulness. But effective vigilance also requires energy and strength, mental and emotional recharge and balance

A long walk in the mountains last weekend brought sudden perspective to just how heavily the shoutiness and anger was weighing.

Australia news live: Greens say leaked pokies reform report ‘a huge concern’; Coles sells shoppers’ ‘de-identified’ data, inquiry hears

admin — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 20:09:35 +0000

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Heatwave conditions are building over parts of Victoria and New South Wales today.

According to the Bureau of Meteorology, much of Victoria will experience heatwave conditions, with maximum temperatures in the mid to high 30s.

Poor nations may have to downgrade climate cash demands, ex-UN envoy says

admin — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 19:04:13 +0000

Rich country budgets are stretched amid inflation, Covid and Ukraine war, Mary Robinson tells Cop29

Poor countries may have to compromise on demands for cash to tackle global heating, a former UN climate envoy has said, as UN talks entered their final hours in deadlock.

In comments that are likely to disappoint poorer countries at the Cop29 summit, Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland and twice a UN climate envoy, said rich country budgets were stretched amid inflation, Covid and conflicts including Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Reduce whale-ship strikes by making 2.6% of ocean surface safer, study says

admin — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 19:00:02 +0000

Researchers identify collision hotspots around world but reveal almost all these lack preventive measures

Collisions between whales and ships can prove fatal for the marine mammals, but researchers say expanding mitigation measures to just 2.6% of the ocean’s surface would reduce the chance of such strikes in all risk hotspots.

US moves to list giraffes under Endangered Species Act for first time

admin — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 18:38:45 +0000

Climate crisis, habitat loss and poaching have reduced its numbers – but will Trump put the kibosh on protections?

They are the tallest animal to roam the Earth and have become an icon of children’s books, toys and awed wildlife documentaries. But giraffes are in decline, which has prompted the US government to list them as endangered for the first time.

Environmental impacts of plastics: Moving beyond the perspective on waste

admin — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 16:58:00 +0000

The fact that plastics pollute the environment and generate problems has been well-researched in many areas. However, there is little information on the impacts of plastics on climate and biodiversity. Researchers have analyzed the impacts of plastics on the three planetary crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental pollution. They are calling for plastics regulations that account for the multifaceted impacts of plastics in these three crises.