Aussie farmers nervous about El Niño

Australian farmers are increasingly nervous about a return to dry conditions. The El Niño weather pattern is expected to bring months of low rainfall, causing more farmers to reduce livestock numbers, downsize crops or increase supplementary feeding of their animals. However, experts say this will not inflate food prices at this stage.

Rooftop solar, which generated more than a quarter of Australia’s total renewable energy in 2022, is expanding even faster this year. However, the regulator’s chief executive, David Parker, said in contrast to the uplift in small-scale renewables, the first half of this year was quiet for investments in new large-scale renewable energy projects.

Sea ice that packs the ocean around Antarctica hit record low levels this winter, according to the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). This heightens scientists' fears that the impact of climate change at the southern pole is ramping up, having dire consequences for animals like penguins who breed and rear their young on the sea ice.

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El Niño, low rainfall, and food prices
Australian farmers are increasingly nervous about a return to dry conditions. Confirmation that an El Niño weather pattern has developed follows months of low rainfall, causing more farmers to reduce livestock numbers, downsize crops or increase supplementary feeding of their animals. However, experts say this will not inflate food prices yet.

Solar soars in homes while big investments hits roadblocks
Rooftop solar, which generated more than a quarter of Australia’s total renewable energy last year, is expanding even faster this year. However, the regulator’s chief executive, David Parker, said in contrast to the uplift in small-scale renewables, the first half of the year was quiet for investments in new large-scale renewable energy projects in the face of rising costs, and transmission and planning bottlenecks for big projects.

Sea ice density dwindles in the Antarctic
Sea ice that packs the ocean around Antarctica hit record low levels this winter, according to the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). This heightens scientists' fears that the impact of climate change at the southern pole is ramping up, having dire consequences for animals like penguins who breed and rear their young on the sea ice.

Hydrogen port secures funding with hopes for green steel manufacturing
A future hydrogen terminal near Whyalla has secured funding commitments from the state and federal governments, with expectations of large-scale global exports before the end of the decade. The government suggested the hydrogen terminal could operate in tandem with the Whyalla steelworks to create green steel.

LEGO ditches plans to make bricks from plastic bottles
Danish toy manufacturer LEGO is cancelling a plan to make Lego bricks from recycled plastic bottles. Instead, LEGO wants to look into other materials to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. A LEGO spokesperson said the company wants to invest more than $1.2 billion in greening by 2025.

Fishers fined for ignoring breeding season restrictions
Two campers have been fined $619 on the spot and others have been cautioned after breaching a freshwater fishing ban designed to protect the critically endangered Mary River cod.