Lots of news and reports in October to digest. The Energy Transition is well under way. But Australia is still approving new fossil fuels as we approach the UN climate conference COP29.

At the end of October, Massive intense rainfall and flooding event in Valencia, Spain is making the news with 95 deaths so far and many people reported missing. There is a major rescue effort underway. (Guardian Valencia Spain Floods Live Page). The events “are yet another wake-up call that our climate is changing rapidly”, according to Hayley Fowler, professor of climate change impacts at Newcastle University in the UK as reported in the Guardian, “Our infrastructure is not designed to deal with these levels of flooding,” she added, saying “record-shatteringly hot” warmer sea temperatures fuel storms that dump extreme levels of rain in one place.

The CSIRO and BOM published the latest State of the Climate report at the end of the month warning that our situation is worsening here in Australia, and Australia is already passing the 1.5C guardrail. The prestigous Medical Journal, The Lancet, issued a major warning on climate change impacts on human health. But the really big science news in October was the Risk of Collapse of Ocean Circulation (AMOC) underestimated: Continued greenhouse gas emissions could trigger a regional cooling around the North Atlantic, and this may start immanently or over the next half century. And yes, this will accelerate warming in Australia.

Latest science assessment says World is in deep peril with the Climate Crisis. “We are on the brink of an irreversible climate disaster. This is a global emergency beyond any doubt. Much of the very fabric of life on Earth is imperiled. We are stepping into a critical and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis.”

Meanwhile, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek is approving development or delaying decisions which could cause species extinctions, just as the Convention on Biological Diversity is meeting at COP16 in Columbia trying to start the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).

Now is the time for climate action. Buckle up and get active.

Climate Diary

31 October 2024 – BOM & CSIRO release 2024 State of the Climate for Australia. State of Australian Climate 2024 paints a worsening picture: 13 graphs and maps (Climate Citizen | Guardian | The Age)

31 October 2024 – The Victorian government will cut more than 130 positions from its bushfire forest service and close six regional locations, acknowledging budget restraints.(Guardian)

31 October 2024 – While Ocean acidification has been raised as a biodiversity threat, a new report by Climate Extremes ARC and Minderoo Foundation raises the under-reported issue of ocean deoxygenation driven by ocean warming. Report: Ocean Oxygen Loss: If Fish Could Talk (Climate Extremes)

Ocean oxygen loss is widespread and accelerating in both coastal waters and the open ocean due to climate change and nutrient runoff, with profound consequences for ocean life and humanity.

31 October 2024 – Lancet Countdown report on health and climate change is out. It clearly indicates that we are facing record-breaking threats from delayed action. Key Messages: (Lancet CountDown)

• People all around the world are facing record-breaking threats to their wellbeing, health and survival from the rapidly changing climate. 
• Despite years of scientific evidence exposing the imminent health threats of climate inaction and numerous global commitments and pledges, countries and companies continue fuelling the fire, reversing the limited progress made so far and exacerbating inequities. Years of delays in adaptation alongside persistent fossil fuels investment are reducing the chances of survival of people around the globe. 
• There are opportunities to build an equitable and healthy future, but it requires resources to be urgently redirected away from activities that hinder a just transition to zero-GHG emission systems, towards those that benefit people’s health and wellbeing

30 October 2024 – PNG announces it will not attend COP29 in protest at Developed country lack of action (ABC News Pacific Beat) PNG’s foreign minister Justin Tkatchenko announced that PNG would not participate in the UNFCCC COP29 in protest and defence “of forest nations and small island states”.

“Papua New Guinea is making this stand for the benefit of all small island nations. We will no longer tolerate empty promises and inaction, while our people suffer the devastating consequences of climate change,” he said. “Yet, despite contributing little to the global climate crisis, countries like PNG are left grappling with its severe impacts.”

30 October 2024 – Doctors for the Environment (DEA) member, Dr Carolyn Orr, discusses how Fossil fuel pollution kills more people globally than smoking. Transitioning to renewable energy would make the world cleaner, healthier and safer for us all, but how can we get there? Watch her powerful keynote speech, ‘Fast Forward from Fossil Fuels’. “Fossil Fuel companies want fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions to come down like a feather, but we need them to drop like a stone.” Recorded at the Clean Air Conference, Hobart, 26-28 August 2024 (Youtube)

28 October – OXFAM report: Carbon inequality kills. Why curbing the excessive emissions of an elite few can create a sustainable planet for all. (Oxfam Report | Make Polluters Pay Petition | Guardian) Report reveals the stark reality of carbon inequality and its consequences for our planet. The analysis shows billionaires emit more carbon pollution in 90 minutes than the average person does in a lifetime. The richest 1% of the global population are responsible for more emissions than the poorest two-thirds of humanity combined. The consumption and the investments in fossil fuel corporations of the richest billionaires are driving the unsustainable levels of emissions we see today.
“Our research signals that climate breakdown cannot be avoided without reducing excessive wealth concentration among an elite few. We must take urgent action to dramatically change the consumption and investment habits of the richest people.”

The richest 10% in Australia emitted 31% of national consumption emissions between 1990 and 2019. The emissions of the wealthiest 1% of Australians during that time are enough to cause $243bn in economic damage globally between 1990 and 2050. While Australia is experiencing some climate impacts, the loss of Gross Domestic Product(GDP) will be 5 times higher in the Pacific than in Australia.

28 October 2024 – Corporations using ‘ineffectual’ carbon offsets are slowing path to ‘real zero’, more than 60 climate scientists say. Pledge signed by experts from nine countries reflects concerns that offsets generated from forest-related projects may not have cut emissions. (The Guardian | Lethal Humidity Global Council) Note: the fallback for corporate emission reduction under Australia’s Safeguard Mechanism is companies can 100% use carbon offsets (with questionable integrity) to meet targets.

28 October 2024 – Greenhouse gas levels surged to a new record in 2023, committing the planet to rising temperatures for many years to come. (World Meteorological Organization). Carbon dioxide (CO2) is accumulating in the atmosphere faster than any time experienced during human existence, rising by more than 10% in just two decades. (Guardian) “The last time the Earth experienced a comparable concentration of CO2 was 3-5 million years ago, when the temperature was 2-3°C warmer and sea level was 10-20 meters higher than now.”

28 October 2024 – Pollutants from gas stoves kill 40,000 Europeans each year. Study says harmful gases linked to heart and lung disease shave nearly two years off a person’s life. Estimate is conservative as study only looked at impact of NO2 emissions. (Guardian | Universitat Jaume I) New paper proposes policy solutions to address critical health impacts of gas cooking (EPHA) 

28 October 2024 – Miscarriages due to climate crisis a ‘blind spot’ in action plans. (Guardian) This comes from a report on 10 New Insights in Climate Science 2024/2025 (10insightsclimate.science):

1. Methane levels are surging. Enforceable policies for emission reductions are essential. Methane levels have surged since 2006, driven primarily by human activities. We have enough information about our methane emissions to take action, but more enforceable policies to drive reductions are vital. While reductions in the fossil fuel and waste sectors are most feasible, addressing agricultural emissions is also critical. 
2. Reductions in air pollution have implications for mitigation and adaptation given complex aerosol-climate interactions. me events. Mitigation and adaptation strategies cannot afford to ignore aerosol climate interactions.
3. Increasing heat is making more of the planet uninhabitable. Rising heat and humidity are pushing more people outside of habitable climatic conditions, with over 600 million already affected and many more at risk as warming continues. Heat action plans, early warning systems, and targeted measures for vulnerable groups are a priority for adaptation in the most affected regions.
4. Climate extremes are harming maternal and reproductive well-being. Climate change is increasing risks for pregnant women, unborn children and infants, threatening decades of progress in maternal and reproductive health (MRH). These impacts are exacerbated in contexts with high levels of poverty and entrenched gender norms. Effective interventions should be integrated with broader efforts to advance gender equity and climate justice.
5. Concerns about El Niño-Southern Oscillation and the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation with an increasingly warm ocean. 
6. Biocultural diversity can bolster the Amazon’s resilience against climate change. 
7. Critical infrastructure is increasingly exposed to climate hazards, with risk of cascading disruption across interconnected networks. 
8. New frameworks for climate-resilient development in cities provide decision-makers with ideas for unlocking co-benefits. Few cities have effectively integrated mitigation and adaptation strategies in their climate action plans. 
9. Closing governance gaps in the energy transition minerals global value chain is crucial for a just and equitable energy transition. 
10. Public’s acceptance of (or resistance to) climate policies crucially depends on perceptions of fairness. 

28 October 2024 – SANTOS being sued in a groundbreaking case for greenwashing its climate targets. (Guardian) Case began in federal court today, brought by one of its own shareholders, the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR). The organisation claims Santos did not have a proper basis for saying it had a clear pathway to reduce emissions by 26% to 30% by 2030 and reach net zero by 2040, which constituted misleading or deceptive conduct in breach of Australian corporate and consumer laws. Focus will also be on description of natural gas as a “clean fuel” and representations of blue hydrogen (produced using natural gas with carbon capture and storage) as “clean” and “zero emissions”.

28 October 2024 – Thirty-eight per cent of the world’s trees are at risk of extinction according to the first Global Tree Assessment, published in an update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™(IUCN) “For the first time, the majority of the world’s trees have been listed on the IUCN Red List, revealing that at least 16,425 of the 47,282 species assessed are at risk of extinction. Trees now account for over one quarter of species on the IUCN Red List, and the number of threatened trees is more than double the number of all threatened birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians combined. Tree species are at risk of extinction in 192 countries around the world.

26 October – At CHOGM the Apia Commonwealth Ocean Declaration for “One Resilient Common Future” adopted, calling on all 56 Commonwealth nations to protect and restore the ocean in the face of severe climate change, pollution and impacts related to over-exploitation. (The Commonwealth | Climate Citizen)

26 October 2024 – Madeleine King Selling Australian Gas expansion in Japan while Prime Minister pacifies Island Nations facing Sea Level Rise existential threat (Climate Citizen)

25 October – UK-Australia Bilateral on sidelines of CHOGM: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met in person for the first time the UK Prime M inister Keir Starmer and agreed to step up cooperation on climate and energy. (PM Gov AU)

25 October 2024 – UNEP Emissions Gap report calls for immediate action (UNEP | Climate Citizen – Emissions Gap Report 2024: we are out of time, teetering on the edge of climate disaster)

25 October 2024 – Over 17,000 community members, including Traditional Owners, scientists, and healthcare professionals have called on APA at its AGM not to light the fuse on the Beetaloo carbon bomb. Will UniSuper do the same? Petition to UniSuper (Market Forces | MSN)

24 October 2024 – Aviation sector rated as Critically Insufficient in latest Climate Action Tracker Assessment. Despite agreeing on ‘carbon neutral growth’ in 2020 & a ‘long-term aspirational goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050’, there’s little sign of appropriate action from #ICAO govts to reduce international aviation emissions. While government focus has been on Scaling up the use of SAF; Investing in research and development of other decarbonisation options, such as electric batteries for small aircrafts; Implementing operational measures, such as optimising routing, air traffic flow management, and minimising flight distances; Improving energy efficiency of aircrafts; there has been little attention on reducing demand for international aviation. “it is unlikely that the aviation sector can move towards a 1.5º-compatible trajectory without reducing demand.” (Climate Action Tracker)

24 October 2024 – New report launched at Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Samoa reveals the stark imbalance in fossil fuel extraction across the Commonwealth and highlights the dominance of three wealthy nations—Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom—in driving fossil fuel expansion and emissions. The Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Hon Feleti Teo, did not mince his words when he called these fossil fuel expansion plans a “death sentence.” (Fossil Fuel Treaty | The Conversation | Climate Citizen – CHOGM meeting in Samoa: new report highlights Australia, Canada, UK role in fossil fuel emissions)

24 October 2024 – Michelle Grattan on timing for announcing Australian 2035 climate target, its level of ambition, and hosting COP31 in 2026, in light of possible Trump election in the US (The Conversation)

A bold target would make the government more vulnerable, just when Labor would want the attention on the Coalition’s problematic nuclear policy. On the other hand, if the target were modest, that would be exploited by the Greens.

Next month, Bowen will attend COP29 in Azerbaijan, where the central issue will be a financial goal, replacing the 2015 goal, for developed and major economies to help fund developing countries’ emission reduction efforts. Bowen, with Egyptian Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad, is leading the consultations on this, and so has a significant role at the conference.

23 October – International Court of Justice schedules hearings on States’ legal obligations concerning climate change. A record-breaking 100 oral statements are expected to be presented to the International Court of Justice in the upcoming, highly-anticipated public hearings. Vanuatu is up first on December 12 (Climate in the Courts)

23 October 2024 – Over-reliance on land for carbon dioxide removal in net-zero climate pledges, new global science study asserts. (Nature Communications) On Australia it says:

• Of the 10 largest country pledges, only Saudi Arabia and Australia explicitly mention that they intend to use internationally traded credits or tree planting in other countries to help meet their pledges.
• Australia’s land area pledge is inflated by a large reliance on BECCS to meet its 2050 targets, despite no policy discussion to date on this approach, and includes internationally traded forest carbon credits

22 October 2024 – From laggards to leaders: An assessment of Australian banks’ climate commitments 2024 progress report, with email action (ACF)

22 October 2024 – Where there’s smoke: the rising death toll from climate-charged fire in the landscape (The Converrsation)

22 October 2024 – New report reveals Global targets to save 30% of the ocean by 2030 aren’t being met. (The Conversation) Australia cririticised: while adding recent sub-Antarctic Heard and MacDonald Islands MPA brings total protection up to 52%, only about 15% of mainland coastal areas are protected. Much of it is still open to industrial fishing and oil and gas production.

21 October 2024 APA Group under pressure for Beetaloo gas pipeline at AGM. Major questions also to major APA investor UniSuper (Investment Magazine) Sign the Open Letter: APA Group: don’t light the fuse on the Beetaloo carbon bomb (Market Forces) or the ACF email to APA (ACF)

21 October 2024 – Adani Carmicheal Coal mine – Adani launches attack on scientists who revealed new evidence of mining risks to the protected Doongmabulla Springs in peer-reviewed study (ABC News)

21 October 2024 – Alan Kohler: Australia’s bulls–t climate policies (New Daily) See Also Video by Alan Kohler on Carbon Offsets (Youtube ABC News)

19 October 2024 – Risk of Collapse of Ocean Circulation (AMOC) underestimated: Continued greenhouse gas emissions could trigger a regional cooling around the North Atlantic (Icelandic Met Office) An Open Letter by Climate Scientists, including 3 Australian climate scientists, was presented to the Nordic Council of Ministers warning of AMOC collapse “risk has so far been greatly underestimated. Such an ocean circulation change would have devastating and irreversible impacts especially for Nordic countries, but also for other parts of the world.” Global impacts may include “a shift in tropical rainfall belts, reduced oceanic carbon dioxide uptake (and thus faster atmospheric increase) as well as major additional sea-level rise particularly along the American Atlantic coast, and an upheaval of marine ecosystems and fisheries” See Climate Citizen: AMOC collapse: Scientists issue open letter warning on catastrophic risk of Atlantic ocean circulation collapse. Followup 24 October: Oceanographer Stefan Rahmstorf explains AMOC tipping point threat: ‘We don’t know where the tipping point is’: climate expert on potential collapse of Atlantic circulation (Guardian)

18 October 2024 Australia at Biological Diversity COP16 in Columbia 18-27 October (Live Climate Citizen Page) See also Inaugural Global Nature Positive Summit more financial greenwash than tackling decline in nature and biodiversity (Climate Citizen)

18 October 2024 – Malaysia will introduce a carbon tax for iron, steel & energy industries by 2026 (The Edge)

17 October 2024 – New report on how Japan is fuelling gas expansion. Faces of Impact: JBIC and Japan’s LNG Financing Harms Communities and the Planet. Discusses communities in several countries. For Australia it discusses Scarborough Gas, Burrup Hub and the Browse gas project, and NT Middlearm hub. “A recent memorandum of understanding between JBIC and the Northern Territory Government of Australia suggests JBIC is considering financing the Northern Territory Government’s proposed gas export and petrochemical facility at Middle Arm in Darwin Harbour.” (Fossil Free Japan)

17 October 2024 – New comprehensive report on growing global water crisis which will leave half of world food production at risk in next 25 years (Guardian) “The growth in consumption and changes in land use and pollution globally are impacting the quantity and quality of freshwater resources locally. Climate change, deforestation, and loss of biodiversity are mutually reinforcing drivers of shifts that are causing imbalances in the water systems, and changing rainfall patterns— the source of all freshwater.”

16 October 2024 – Review of geo-engineering risks: The Risks of Geoengineering: Accelerating Biodiversity Loss and Compounding Planetary Crises (October 2024) Briefing note released ahead of Biodiversity COP16 and Climate COP29 (CIEL)

15 October 2024 – WA Environmental Protection Authority has been stripped of power to assess greenhouse emissions and set reduction targets by the WA Labor Government. An Extraordinary, regressive development in Western Australia, one of the world’s largest exporters of liquefied natural gas. (WA Today | ABC News)

15 October 2024 – Oposition leader Peter Dutton pledges Coalition to fund more gas and gas power plants using the Capacity Investment scheme that is funding renewables. (SMH) Coalition’s energy policy includes abandoning Australia’s target to slash emissions by 43% by 2030 and commits to building up to seven nuclear power stations to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

14 October 2024 – Trees and land absorbed almost no CO2 in 2023. Is nature’s carbon sink failing? Decline in global carbon sink uptake of emissions for both land and oceans. The sudden collapse of carbon sinks was not factored into climate models – and could rapidly accelerate global heating (Guardian) “In Australia, huge soil carbon losses from extreme heat and drought in the vast interior – known as rangelands – are likely to push its climate target out of reach if emissions continue to rise, a study this year found.”

13 October 2024 – Carbon Pollution from Australian cremations set to double. Michael Robertson, chief executive of Adelaide Cemeteries, said if Australia mandated low-emissions cremators like those used in Europe, an additional 6000 tonnes of carbon and other particulates could be diverted from the atmosphere every year by 2050. (The Age)

12 October 2024 – Australia facing one of the hottest summers on record, according to BOM prediction (ABC News) due to exceptional heat in our surrounding oceans. It suggests more rain than average, warmer days than average. Look out for hotter nights in particular. (BOM: Climate outlook for November to February) More immediatley… Dome of sweltering NT heat set to spread across vast swathes of Australia (Guardian) Hot wet summers becoming the norm (SMH)

12 October 2024 – Rooftop solar causing more Minimum System Load events in Australian NEM grid (a good problem to have) (Guardian) Clean Energy Council says subsidising household batteries provides a solution to bring down their cost. (Clean Energy Council) Another option is cutailment. 

12 October 2024 – USA – Impact of Hurricane Helene and Milton. Scientists say Climate Change Made Hurricane Milton Stronger, With Heavier Rain (Inside Climate News) Milton’s rainfall was made 20-30% more intense by Climate Change, the intensity of rain made 2X more likely. The storm made 10% more intense and storms of a similar intensity now have a 40% greater likelihood of occurring according to a rapid attribution study (World Weather Attribution). Climate change behind almost half cost of Milton and Helene damage in Florida (Imperial College) Grist estimated the damage costs of Hurricane Helene may be $US200 billion, largely not covered by insurance. (Grist) Milton could cost insurers alone up to $US100 billion. (SMH) The Guardian view on Hurricane Milton and other disasters: extreme politics is worsening extreme weather (Guardian) Straining resources with competing climate disasters (Guardian)

11 October 2024 – Victoria. Golden Plans wind farm switched on. It is so far the largest wind farm in the Southern Hemisphere, and the biggest onshore wind farm in the world. (The Age) 40 local landholders, 52 turbines. Another 163 turbines due by the end of 2026. When complete, its 215 turbines will produce more than 4000 GWh of energy each year – enough for 765,000 homes and 9 per cent of Victoria’s energy requirements. Payments to landholders will provide drought-proof income, plus local community fund and payments to the local Council.

11 October 2024 – Glencore withdraws massive HVO Hunter coal mine expansion with 1.2 billion tonnes of lifecycle emissions from Federal approvals process (Australia Institute | Lock the Gate)

11 October 2024 – new research questions integrity of Australian carbon offsets scheme. ‘It’s almost beyond belief’: Findings blast Australia’s biggest carbon offset scheme (The Age) Major administrative failings in Australia’s carbon credit scheme. “The Clean Energy Regulator’s administration of Australia’s carbon credit scheme has let us all down terribly,” Professor Butler said. “They’ve used hundreds of millions of dollars of public money to build a house of cards that is enabling climate inaction and will render the Safeguard Mechanism, ineffective. The failure of this scheme will only become more obvious as time goes on.”(UNSW)

10 October 2024 – Global wildlife populations have plunged by an average of 73% in 50 years, a new scientific assessment by WWF UK has found, as humans continue to push ecosystems to the brink of collapse. (Guardian)

8 October 2024 – Latest science assessment says World is in deep peril with the Climate Crisis. “We are on the brink of an irreversible climate disaster. This is a global emergency beyond any doubt. Much of the very fabric of life on Earth is imperiled. We are stepping into a critical and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis.” William J Ripple, Christopher Wolf, Jillian W Gregg, Johan Rockström, Michael E Mann, Naomi Oreskes, Timothy M Lenton, Stefan Rahmstorf, Thomas M Newsome, Chi Xu, Jens-Christian Svenning, Cássio Cardoso Pereira, Beverly E Law, Thomas W Crowther, The 2024 state of the climate report: Perilous times on planet Earth, BioScience, 2024;, biae087, https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biae087 Summary at (The Conversation)

8 October 2024 – Environment Minister announces ‘Huge environmental win’: Australia to protect 52% of its oceans, more than any other country, Plibersek says. Sub-Antarctic marine park expansion welcomed but scientists say some areas important to penguins and seals missed out on sanctuary-level protection (Guardian), and under the Biodiversity convention definition only about 25% is now adequately protected according to Dr Ian Cresswell.(Guardian)  Meanwhile 400km from the Nature Positive Summit The NSW Forestry Corporation has started logging in Bulga state forest, inland from Port Macquarie,in habitat of threatened species including endangered koalas and the endangered greater glider. (Guardian) 

7 October 2024 – Australian Government spends around 50 times more on subsidising activities that harm the environment than it spends on helping biodiversity each year argues the Biodiversity Council. The assessment found that around 4% of the federal budget goes to subsidising activities that are likely to have a medium to high adverse impact on biodiversity; a total of $26.3 billion per year. (Biodiversity Council)

7 October 224 – Japan backs fossil fuels in Southeast Asian “zero emission” initiative. Japan’s Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) supported 56 projects using fossil fuel technologies in Southeast Asia — including LNG and carbon capture (Climate Change News) Zero emissions or fossil fuels? Tracking Japan’s AZEC projects. Results show AZEC is supporting prolonged fossil fuel use (Zero Carbon Analytics)

7 October 2024 – Australian Security Leaders Climate Group calls for overhaul of federal government’s climate threat preparedness strategy (ABC News) Read the Australia Security Leaders Climate Group  National Climate Security Summit Communiqué: Addressing the threat of climate change to Australia’s security landscape (ASLCG)

6 October 2024 – Australia claims progress in climate action, while fossil fuel expansion for export continues under Labor claims Energy analyst Ketan Joshi – The blurred self image of progressive climate villains. It includes some analysis of the effectiveness of the Safeguard Mechanism: “there hasn’t been any change in total emissions since the time it became active in July 2023” (KetanJoshi)

4 October 2024 – Exported gas produces far worse emissions than coal, major study finds. Research challenges idea that sending liquefied natural gas around the world is cleaner alternative to burning coal (Guardian) “Overall, the greenhouse gas footprint for LNG as a fuel source is 33% greater than that for coal when analyzed using GWP20 (160 g CO2-equivalent/MJ vs. 120 g CO2-equivalent/MJ). Even considered on the time frame of 100 years after emission (GWP100), which severely understates the climatic damage of methane, the LNG footprint equals or exceeds that of coal.” (Energy, Science and Engineering Journal) Debunked: All those speeches rolled out over the last decade, especially by Labor politicians, justifying gas expansion as a lower emissions ‘transition fuel’.

4 Octoberr 2024 – Gap in Albanese government’s new fuel efficiency rules means ‘biggest, dirtiest polluters’ exempt. New vehicle efficiency standards (NVES) will not apply to at least four large vehicles, source says (Guardian)

4 October 2024 – Ex-carbon offsetting boss charged in New York with multimillion-dollar fraud (Guardian) Wonder if the same could happen in Australia? Given integrity issues and supervision of Carbon Offsets? See The Age 16 Sep 2024, ‘Extreme risk’: Carbon watchdog mismanaged conflicts, ‘intimidated’ scientists 

3 October 2024 – Australia sees a rise in “greenhushing,” where carbon-neutral firms underreport their sustainability efforts. This silence stems from fears of scrutiny and low consumer interest. (Groundreport.In)

3 October 2024 – Gas power in future grid will be “tiny” and its cost exorbitant, IEEFA report finds (RenewEconomy). IEEFA claims while the capacity of gas generating capacity increases, its use in the generation mix actually falls significantly. Future role of gas in the NEM is likely overstated (IEEFA)

2 October 2024 – Two cancer doctors highlight Beetaloo gas fracking and Middlearm petrochemical hub could generate a ‘cancer alley’ in the Northern Territory in a letter to the Medical Journal of Australia. “Australia risks creating its own “sacrifice zone”, harming the health of its people and contributing irrevocably to the climate crisis.” (MJA)

2 October 2024 – WA Labor government accused of shelving climate laws as emissions continue to rise (Guardian) “WA is the only Australian state without a 2030 emissions reduction target. National data says climate pollution in the five eastern states fell by at least 27% between 2005 and 2022 while rising 8% in WA, largely due to the state’s expanding liquified natural gas (LNG) export industry”

1 October 2024 – Tuvalu climate minister declares Australia’s coalmine decision ‘immoral’, akin to drowning Pacific neighbours (Guardian) “I have made my view on new coal projects very clear at last month’s Pacific Islands Forum: fossil fuels are killing us, all of us. It is therefore immoral and unacceptable to any country to open new fossil fuel projects, as Australia has recently done with the three coalmine expansion projects it has just approved,” Talia told Guardian Australia.

1 October 2024 – Azerbaijan is using Cop29 to ‘peacewash’ its global image (The Conversation) See also Climate Action Tracker 25 September assessment rating Azerbaijan as Critically Insufficient. “Azerbaijan appears to have abandoned its 2030 emissions target, moving backward instead of forward on climate action. Its renewable energy targets remain weak. Azerbaijan’s economy is dependent on fossil fuel production and the government plans to increase fossil gas extraction by more than 30% over the coming decade. Emissions from exported fossil fuels are twice as high as domestic emissions. (Climate Action Tracker)

1 October 2024 – Highest Annual Growth of Renewables Jobs in 2023, Reaching 16.2 Million (IRENA) The levelised cost of electricity produced from most forms of renewable power continued to fall year-on-year in 2023, with solar PV leading the cost reductions, followed by offshore wind according to a new report on renewable generation costs (IRENA)

Read September 2024 Climate Diary News

References:

This post is based on John Englart’s Climate Citizen post: Australia at COP29 Climate Diary. https://takvera.blogspot.com/2024/08/australia-at-cop29-climate-diary.html