WA to go net-zero by 2050

The Western Australia government announced plans yesterday to legislate an emissions target of net-zero by 2050. Climate Action Minister Reece Whitby will introduce a bill to parliament later this year, which will also set interim targets every five years. However, private sector polluters will not face enforcement if they don’t comply with the government’s new laws.

The Doomsday Clock, founded by Albert Einstein in the 1940s to assess the risk of nuclear Armageddon, has been set at “90 seconds to midnight”, the worst reading in its history as the threat of nuclear war over Ukraine looms.

Consumers will get some welcome relief after wholesale electricity prices more than halved in the final three months of 2022, an analysis of Australia's biggest power market shows. The report also shows that renewable energy output soared to record levels during the quarter as generation from coal-fired power plants dropped to new lows.

WA to legislate emissions targets
The Western Australia government announced plans yesterday to legislate an emissions target of net-zero by 2050. Climate Action Minister Reece Whitby will introduce a bill to parliament later this year, which will also set interim targets every five years. However, private sector polluters will not face enforcement if they don’t comply with the government’s new laws. Minister Whitby said it was up to the WA Environmental Protection Authority to manage big polluters.

Doomsday clock ticks to 90 seconds to midnight
The Doomsday Clock, a symbolic timepiece founded by Albert Einstein in the 1940s to assess the risk of nuclear Armageddon, has been set at “90 seconds to midnight”, the worst reading in its history as the threat of nuclear war over Ukraine looms. A board of scientists, including 13 Nobel Laureates, discuss world events and determine where to place the hands of the clock each year.

Record levels of renewable energy output
Consumers will get some welcome relief after wholesale electricity prices more than halved in the final three months of 2022, an analysis of Australia's biggest power market shows. This is in part due to the Albanese government’s price caps on fossil fuels, but the report also shows that renewable energy output soared to record levels during the quarter as generation from coal-fired power plants dropped to new lows.

Germany weighing up crop-based fuels
Germany's government is considering proposals to phase out the use of biofuels produced from food or animal feed crops by 2030 under the premise that it could reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The German biofuels industry association said draft proposals to cut crop-based biofuel use would mean an increase in Germany's transport carbon dioxide emissions by around 32 million tonnes up to 2030.

Campaigners criticise Japanese “whale meat vending machines”
A Japanese whaling company has sparked an angry response from animal rights campaigners after it started selling whale meat from vending machines. Campaigners from the Whale and Dolphin Conservation accused the firm of making a “desperate attempt” to “prop up the cruel and declining whale industry in Japan”.

Pat Cummins debunks claims he cost Cricket Australia $40m sponsorship
Australian test captain Pat Cummins says suggestions his concerns about climate change cost Cricket Australia a $40 million sponsorship deal with Alinta Energy are “absolute rubbish”. Cummins, a member of the Cricket for Climate group, decided not to appear in Alinta’s most recent commercials and has said he has no regrets about speaking up about climate change.

Huge iceberg breaks off in Antarctic
An iceberg measuring 1,550 square kilometres — roughly the size of Greater London — broke away from the Brunt Ice Shelf near a research station in Antarctica on Sunday, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said a day after. They added that this calving is a natural part of the life cycle of the ice shelf, not related to climate change.