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David Suzuki: Australia's 'sickening' threat to marine reserves undermines global protection

Conservationist and 1,461 other scientists release statement describing Australia’s oceans as a ‘global asset’ that must be protected

Growing global momentum to protect the world’s oceans from overfishing could be undermined by Australia, warns renowned conservationist David Suzuki and more than 1,461 other scientists.

Australia is currently considering the world’s biggest downgrading of a protected area with a reduction in the size of its network of marine reserves.

Related: Tourists doubting value of trip to Great Barrier Reef, dive operator tells inquiry

It is absolutely disgusting that coal is still considered a great economic input to Australia

Related: Trump just passed on the best deal the planet has ever seen | David Suzuki

Related: David Attenborough on the scourge of the oceans: 'I remember being told plastic doesn't decay, it's wonderful'

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Wind power is now cheaper than nuclear – the energy revolution is happening | John Sauven

Far-sighted government policy means the cost of offshore wind energy has halved. The benefits in terms of climate change and UK jobs will be enormous

In March I went to see Henrik Poulsen, the boss of Dong Energy, in Copenhagen. Never heard of him or his company? You are not alone, but the chances are he is keeping your lights on. The largely unknown story of his company is worth telling because it is genuinely revolutionary.

Dong stands for Danish oil and natural gas. It was, like Shell and BP, involved in fossil fuel exploration and production. But in less than a decade it has become an 85% offshore wind company, and is divesting its coal, oil and gas interests. By 2023, Dong Energy will be very close to zero carbon. That is a pretty staggering transformation in a very short space of time.

Related: Nuclear plans 'should be rethought after fall in offshore windfarm costs'

This month’s contracts for the next round of offshore wind farms mean billions in foreign investment coming into the UK

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Antarctic sea ice levels hit record low, but experts are not sure why

Unpredictable nature of Antarctic sea ice levels the focus at conference of meteorology experts in Australia this week

Sea ice levels in Antarctica dropped to a record low this year, but experts say there is not a clear link to climate change.

More than 60 meteorologists and scientists from around the world are holding a week-long meeting in Hobart, Tasmania, to better understand sea ice changes on the frozen continent.

Related: Scientists discover 91 volcanoes below Antarctic ice sheet

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The Mail's censure shows which media outlets are biased on climate change | Dana Nuccitelli

Right-wing media outlets like Breitbart, Fox News, and Rush Limbaugh echoed the Mail’s “significantly misleading” and now censured climate story

Back in February, the conservative UK tabloid Mail on Sunday ran an error-riddled piece by David Rose attacking Noaa climate scientists, who had published data and a paper showing that there was never a global warming pause. The attack was based on an interview with former Noaa scientist John Bates, who subsequently admitted about his comments:

I knew people would misuse this. But you can’t control other people.

Hilarious screw up by @DavidRoseUK and #FailOnSunday 1st picture is 'evidence' of misconduct, 2nd shows diff when baselines are correct. pic.twitter.com/R5VsqqlNHr

NEW | Factcheck: Mail on Sunday’s ‘astonishing evidence’ about global temperature rise | Guest post by @hausfath https://t.co/e7gGNGxIKc pic.twitter.com/BruRecUo34

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Climate experts criticise Scotland's greenhouse emissions cuts strategy

Committee on Climate Change says policies needed to reach 2050 goal of 90% reduction are too weak and ill thought out

Climate experts have warned the Scottish government its ambitious plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions lack credibility and risk stalling unless its strategies improve dramatically.

The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) said the devolved government had so far led the UK in its efforts to cut emissions, reducing its actual CO2 emissions by 38% by 2015 compared with 35% at UK level. Scotland is now on the brink of meeting its 2020 target to cut emissions by 42% several years early.

Related: A four-step plan to keep Labour’s revolution rolling | Neal Lawson

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What would an entirely flood-proof city look like?

The wetter the better. From sponge cities in China to ‘berms with benefits’ in New Jersey and floating container classrooms in the slums of Dhaka, we look at a range of projects that treat storm water as a resource rather than a hazard

They call it “pave, pipe, and pump”: the mentality that has dominated urban development for over a century.

Along with the explosion of the motorcar in the early 20th century came paved surfaces. Rainwater – instead of being sucked up by plants, evaporating, or filtering through the ground back to rivers and lakes – was suddenly forced to slide over pavements and roads into drains, pipes and sewers.

It’s very simple, but it’s very difficult for people to grasp, because we’ve not designed like that in a century

By neglecting the fact that they were building in a swamp, they forgot that it was a tidal area

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Red admiral thrives in butterfly count while whites show decline

A record 60,000 people took part in the Big Butterfly Count but each participant saw on average only 11 butterflies, the lowest since the count began in 2010

Summer’s washout failed to dampen the prospects for the red admiral, one of the UK’s most popular butterflies, whose numbers rose by 75% compared with last year, according to the annual Big Butterfly Count.

Other butterfly species were less fortunate, however, with declines seen across the three common species of white butterflies. The green-veined white and both the large white and small white were down more than a third on last year, reflecting difficult weather conditions.

Related: Urban butterfly declines 69% compared to 45% drop in countryside

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Quitting coal: a health benefit equivalent to quitting tobacco, alcohol and fast-food | Jonathan Patz

The Turnbull government needs to stop playing politics with Australians’ health and end its addiction to coal

Imagine, for a moment, that climate change was not synonymous with doomsday scenarios, but rather presented an opportunity to radically transform society for the better. This is not an attempt to downplay the seriousness of the risks facing our climate. Rather, it is about reframing the choice we face, away from the prospect of bleak minimalism often associated with a low-carbon future.

Consider the following realities: the World Health Organisation estimates 7 million deaths are attributed to air pollution every year; and rates of obesity and chronic diseases are rising in nearly all regions of the world. Burning fossil fuels, especially coal, accounted for 78% of the total increase in carbon dioxide between 1970 and 2010, with deforestation comprising the balance of emissions. Burning coal also releases pollutants such as fine particulates, eg PM2.5, which are deadly to human health.

Related: Australia failing to meet Paris targets and more renewables needed, report says

Related: Farmer wants a revolution: 'How is this not genocide?'

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Portuguese children to crowdfund European climate change case

Group from region hit by deadly forest fires to sue 47 countries alleging failure to tackle climate change threatens their right to life

Portuguese schoolchildren from the area struck by the country’s worst forest fires are seeking crowdfunding to sue 47 European countries, alleging that the states’ failure to tackle climate change threatens their right to life.

The children, from the Leiria region of central Portugal, where fires this summer killed more than 60 people and left hundreds injured, are being represented by British barristers who are experts in environmental and climate change law.

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Australia failing to meet Paris targets and more renewables needed, report says

Australia Institute report says 66-75% renewable energy target by 2030 needed to meet its commitments

With the Coalition still hamstrung by internal divide over a clean energy target, a new report shows Australia is in danger of not meeting its Paris agreement commitments unless it acts soon.

A report by the Australia Institute’s climate and energy program examined the government’s own modelling of the nation’s greenhouse gas emission reduction targets and found Australia could either transition to a 66-75% renewable energy target by 2030 to meet its commitments, or push the responsibility on to other sectors, such as agriculture or manufacturing.

Related: Liberal MPs did not stand in Abbott's way on renewables target, Greg Hunt says

Related: Turnbull rejects efforts to ‘dumb down’ energy debate into renewables v coal

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