Criminal charges threatened over Amazonian deforestation

The Gaurdian

A report carried out by Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research has found that deforestation in the Amazon increased by 228% compared within last year.  Commentators have cited the upcoming Brazillian elections, along with the global food crisis and increased pressure on soya production, as exacerbating local problems.  The Brazilian environment ministry plans to bring charges against other sections of the government who have been implicated in the increased deforestation, including the land and agrarian reform agency Incra.  An 3000 officer environmental police force has also been proposed.

posted by ruby on September 30, 2008 at 9:26 pm · filed under

Australians support investment in renewables over cash compensation for polluters

Greenpeace Australia Pacific

A Newspoll commissioned by Greenpeace has found that 84% of Australian adults polled think that any profits generated by PM Kevin Rudd’s propsed emissions trading scheme should be invested in renewable energy rather than paid back to coal-fired power generators.  Under the PM’s current emissions trading proposal, coal-fired generators stand to receive around 1.2 billion dollars in compensation.

posted by ruby on September 30, 2008 at 9:10 pm · filed under

Garnaut report handed down today

ABC News

Professor Ross Garnaut today released his final federally commissioned report on the recommendations for action on climate change in Australia. According to some interpretations, the report sticks to his previous, criticised, recommendation of a 10 percent cut of 2000 levels by 2020, with Garnaut saying that realistic targets must be set if a global agreement to succeed. Other interpretations have Garnaut recommending Australia pursue much stronger cuts.

Disclaimer: Eco Media has received varying interpretations of the recommendations made in the final Garnaut report released today. We will cover further reaction to the report as it is fully digested.

posted by megan on September 30, 2008 at 3:17 pm · filed under

Emissions increasing four times faster than the previous decade

CSIRO

Latest figures have shown that in the period since 2000, human-generated carbon dioxide emissions have increased four-fold compared with the previous decade. “This is a concerning trend in light of global efforts to curb emissions,” said Dr Pep Canadell, Executive Director of the Global Carbon Project (GCP). For Australia, continually growing emissions will mean steeper reductions needed in the future if we are to meet the target of a 10 per cent reduction in fossil-fuel emissions from 2000 levels by the year 2020, said GCP co-Chair, Dr Michael Raupach. 

posted by anna on September 29, 2008 at 3:18 pm · filed under

Companies fined over 2006 Snowy River Pollution

ABC News

Two companies have been fined for polluting the Snowy River in NSW in August 2006. Snowy Hydro Corporation and Fulton Hogan were each fined $100,000 and forced to pay an additional $86,000 in costs after pleading guilty to the incident which resulted in sediment pollution of the river for 15km downstream. The effects of the pollution increased turbidity of the river causing significant damage to river ecosystems.

posted by steve on September 29, 2008 at 11:35 am · filed under

Scientists urge PM to push for 25 per cent reductions in carbon emissions

ABC News

The Prime Minister has received a letter from a group of top level climate change scientists urging him to push for twenty-five per cent reductions in carbon emissions. It is an unprecedented move for a group of scientists to advocate emissions targets, but they believe that the ten per cent reduction by 2020, recently flagged by Professor Garnaut, is too little. Professor Matthew England stated that targets of anything less than twenty-five per cent reductions will commit us to dangerous levels of climate change.

posted by steve on September 29, 2008 at 11:28 am · filed under

Are Australians becoming less concerned about climate change?

ABC News

Surveys conducted by the Lowy Institute indicate that global warming has slipped in importance to most Australians from first to fifth. Whilst global warming and water shortages are still areas of concern to most people, they are now lesser worries than job security and strengthening the economy. Penny Wong, the Federal Climate Change Minister, responded by stating that the survey does not represent the concern she is hearing from Australians, who want to see changes made in respect to climate change issues.

posted by steve on September 29, 2008 at 11:15 am · filed under