Environment
Climate change
Opinion
Energy
NSW's bullish coal export plan defies the global market realities
The world is turning off coal-fired power, so the NSW government's optimism that thermal coal has a bright future is baffling.
- by Simon Nicholas
Latest
Renewables
The surprising way renewables can help farmers cope
It turns out that even the grass is greener during a drought with solar panels, or so one farmer near Dubbo found.
- by Peter Hannam
Exclusive
Paris Agreement
State government banking on coal exports as world chases Paris targets
The state government is banking on global coal demand defying the Paris climate goals, predicting only a marginal cut in consumption by mid-century.
- by Nick O'Malley and Peter Hannam
Bushfires
Confusing warning system 'risked escalating fire disaster'
Emergency warnings prompted traffic jams in areas later overrun by fires, the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements has heard
- by Nick O'Malley
Extreme weather
Town in the Arctic Circle records temperature as hot as Florida
A town in Siberia is likely to have set a record for the hottest temperature in the Arctic Circle, a region that is warming at more than twice the rate of the rest of the globe.
- by Andrew Freedman
Exclusive
Emissions
Beefed-up ute sales help to erode vehicle emission fall
Improvements in the carbon emissions intensity of new cars sold in Australia have all but stalled, with a shift to large pick-up trucks mostly nullifying a leap in demand for electric cars.
- by Peter Hannam
Environmental protection
Hazelwood 'pit lake' proposal lacks environmental tick: residents
Gippsland residents have urged the state’s planning minister to order an environmental assessment of a proposal to turn the vast Hazelwood mine pit into a lake, which would take up to 25 years to fill and require almost twice the amount of water Melbourne consumes in a year.
- by Miki Perkins
Paris Agreement
Three years and $3 trillion to save the world climate and economy
The world's leading energy advisory body says the world could save its economy and its climate over the coming years if it adopts the right post-pandemic policies.
- by Nick O'Malley
Exclusive
Environmental protection
Climate change 'threat multiplier' ignored in national environment laws
Scientists warn the federal government’s key environment laws are failing to protect wildlife and ecosystems from climate change.
- by Mike Foley
Vanishing coast
Squeaky or sticky sand shows beaches most at risk
Acidifying oceans are posing additional threats to Sydney's eroding beaches.
- by Peter Hannam
Analysis
Electricity
A tweak to the way we price electricity could spark profound changes
New technology will allow battery-owners to more effectively buy energy from the grid when demand is at its lowest, and sell it back when demand is high.
- by Nick O'Malley