Australia outlines low end emission cut targets
News
Australia disappoints with weak UN climatepledge
Australia’s climate pledge to the UN — a 26-28% reductionby 2030, based on 2005 levels — has met with disappointment onmany fronts. Carbon Brief looks at how it compares to otherdeveloped country pledges. If Australia meets its target, percapita emissions in 2030 would be 50% above those in the US anddouble those in the EU.
Mapped: The world’s top ranked countries fornuclear power
Yesterday, Japan restarted a reactor for the first timesince it shuttered its nuclear sector in the wake of the 2011Fukushima disaster. To mark the occasion, Carbon Brief has mappedthe world’s top countries for nuclear power, showing Japan’sdramatic fall and the rise of its Asian neighbours.
Climate and energy news
Australia outlines low end emission cuttargets
Canberra’s 26-28% emissions reduction pledge for 2030 from a2005 baseline is “towards the lower end” of developed nationofferings, says the Financial Times. The BBCdisputes prime ministerTony Abbott’s insistence that the pledge is on par with others.Lord Deben calls the pledge “pathetic” and says it puts Australiaamong the world’s “don’t cares”, in an interviewwithThe Guardian. InsideClimate Newssays the plan”drew instant derision” whileGristlabels it a “joke”. A commentfrom The Australiansays Australia is”not in the business of taking the lead”. New Scientistsays the pledge”defies the 2C target”. Unpublished government forecasts show thepledge will hit the coal sector hardest, says The Guardian. The New York Times, The Telegraph, RTCC, The Hill, Climate ProgressandBusiness Greenall carry thestory. Carbon Pulseasks carbon marketexperts for their views on the plan. Meanwhile Reutersreports on the billionsbeing poured into Australia’s coal industry. Carbon Briefalso coveredAustralia’s climate pledge.
Japan Restarts Reactor in Test of NuclearPolicy
Prime minister Shinzo Abe is “seeking to reassure a nervouspublic”, as Japan restarts its nuclear industry, Reutersreports. The Mailand The Financial Timesalso have thestory. The move won’t cut carbon in line with a 2C goal,reports Nature News. The BBClooks at why Japan isrestarting Sendai reactor while Business Greencarries opposingreactions. Carbon Brief has chartedthe fall of Japan as anuclear power.
Govt advisor urges full revamp of India’s UNclimate talks strategy -media
A major shift in India’s climate negotiating tactics isbeing recommended, according to media reports. They say thecountry’s chief economic advisor wants India to drop its focus onclimate finance, stop insisting on a “firewall” between developedand developing nations, put more emphasis on cutting its emissionsand work more closely with coal-rich nations.
Shell Arctic drilling ‘risky’ – ex-BP boss LordBrowne
Drilling for Arctic oil could harm Shell’s reputation, saysformer BP boss Lord Browne. Shell boss Ben van Beurden tells theBBC he has been on a “personal journey” before deciding the riskswere manageable. The Guardiansays Shell is nowready to start drilling. It also profilesAnn Pickard, the “littleknown executive” leading Shell’s Arctic operations.
Climate and energy comment
Paris climate deal ‘not a failure’ if it busts 2Cgoal
Paris cannot solve the climate problem on its own, say theco-chairs of the UN talks in an interview with RTCC. “No-one in hisright mind expects to solve climate change on the 11 December2015,” says Ahmed Djoghlaf, who adds that the atmosphere at climatetalks is “very delicate”. His co-chair Dan Reifsnyder stresses thatthe talks will not have a failed if they do not deliver a 2C deal.
New climate science
Environmental controls of marine productivity hotspots around Antarctica
Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
A new study suggests melting ice from Antarctic glaciersreleases the nutrient iron into the surrounding waters, boostingphytoplankton growth and feeding the whole marine ecosystem fromthe bottom up. This means future changes in ice shelf melt coulddramatically influence Antarctic coastal ecosystems and the abilityof continental shelf waters to sequester atmospheric carbondioxide, say the researchers.
Other stories
- Pope’s climate push at odds with U.S. Catholic oilinvestments (Reuters)
- China’s July coal output dips on lowprices (Reuters)
- EPA confident in climate rule’sfuture (The Hill)
- Canadian government spent millions on secret tarsands advocacy (The Guardian)
- Green with gas: Oil majors eye UN climatedeal (RTCC)