International: Australia
Australia's greenhouse gas emissions highest on record
12 Dec 2017
Australia’s emissions over the past year were the highest on record, when relatively unreliable emissions from land use are excluded, according to new estimates.
Is this the end of the road for Adani’s megamine?
8 Dec 2017
Adani’s operations in Australia appear to be hanging on by a thread, as activists prove effective at undermining the company’s chances of getting the finance it needs.
Yes, it's a massive battery, but it does quite a lot
6 Dec 2017
Australians are watching in anticipation to see what impact South Australia's Tesla battery has on the local electricity market, and whether it could be a game-changer nationally.
‘I don’t know how Turnbull faces his grandkids’
5 Dec 2017
Former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd talks about the failure of his country’s climate policy, the rise of China and the Carmichael coal mine.
Tesla big battery officially switched on in South Australia
4 Dec 2017
The Tesla big battery – the world’s biggest lithium-ion battery storage installation – was officially switched on in South Australia on Friday.
Victorian logging could trigger ecosystem collapse
4 Dec 2017
Decades of unsustainable logging has created an “extinction debt” in Victoria’s central highlands that will trigger an ecosystem-wide collapse within 50 years without urgent intervention.
Labor victory could spell end of Adani coal mine
1 Dec 2017
Queensland Labor looks certain to form a government promising to veto a $1b public loan, which observers say puts the giant Adani coal project in serious doubt.
Australian shareholders should be told, says thinktank
30 Nov 2017
Australian companies need to start developing sophisticated scenario-based analyses of climate risks, and incorporating them into their business, a thinktank has said.
Musk's Australia battery poised for final testing
27 Nov 2017
The world’s largest lithium-ion battery, which is being built in South Australia by Tesla to store renewable energy, is about to enter final testing.
Melbourne consortium underwrites windfarm
27 Nov 2017
Three Melbourne councils, two universities, Zoos Victoria, and half a dozen corporations have banded together to underwrite a windfarm in western Victoria.
Disaster on Australia's doorstep, officials warn
24 Nov 2017
Climate change is creating a disaster on Australia’s doorstep, according to a government white paper.
Former UN climate chief lobbies against Adani loan
21 Nov 2017
Former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres has made a rare intervention in Australian politics, urging the Turnbull government not to grant a controversial coal project a near A$1 billion loan.
Australia a Top 10 nation - for cutting down trees
20 Nov 2017
Eastern Australia ranks in the top 10 of the world’s major deforestation fronts – the only area in a developed nation.
Medibank drops millions worth fossil-fuel investments
15 Nov 2017
Australia’s largest private health insurer, Medibank, will shed tens of millions of dollars in fossil-fuel investments because of the effects of climate change on human health.
Coal-fired plant sent $1b offshore while pocketing public's $117m
10 Nov 2017
The owner of one of Australia’s dirtiest coal-fired power plants quietly moved $1bn offshore within days of pocketing $117m from taxpayers.
Whyalla steel goes green with solar and storage
2 Nov 2017
UK billionaire Sanjeev Gupta has made good on his commitment to transform his newly acquired Australian steel business into a renewable energy powerhouse.
Billion-dollar renewables boom boosts Queensland
1 Nov 2017
Queensland is a leader in Australia’s renewables boom, with more than $1.6 billion dollars invested in large-scale projects creating more than 1300 construction jobs.
Demand for fresh vegetables all year round is killing soils
31 Oct 2017
Consumers’ expectations that certain types of produce will be available all year round mean that farmers must engage in unsustainable and destructive practices.
Regional businesses use renewables to slash costs
31 Oct 2017
From solar to running generators, some regional businesses in Australia have quit the energy grid and several others are showing interest in defecting.
China’s carbon market exposes Australia’s energy paralysis
27 Oct 2017
When China’s national carbon market is launched later this year it will be the world’s second-largest carbon market, after the European emissions trading scheme.
Car lobby wants better testing to combat emissions
25 Oct 2017
Australia’s motoring lobby wants “real-world” vehicle emissions testing, arguing the current system is misleading consumers and regulators.
Turnbull convinces party to unite on energy policy
19 Oct 2017
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has secured party-room backing to impose new reliability and emissions reduction guarantees on energy retailers and large energy users from 2020.
Qantas eyes transpacific biofuel flights by 2020
18 Oct 2017
Qantas has announced that its Los Angeles to Melbourne flights will be powered by biofuel from 2020.
Chevron dumps plan to drill in Australian Bight
17 Oct 2017
Chevron has become the second big oil company to abandon plans to drill for oil in the Great Australian Bight, almost exactly a year after BP ditched its more advanced plans for the untapped basin.
Abbott reckons climate change is 'probably doing good'
11 Oct 2017
Former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott has suggested climate change is “probably doing good” in a speech in London in which he likened policies to combat it to “primitive people once killing goats to appease the volcano gods”.
Cities must face the reality of living with 50deg heat
9 Oct 2017
The predictions of extreme heat in Australian cities is worrying, but not particularly surprising given the fact that the country is setting hot weather records at 12 times the pace of cold ones. But it does call for an urgent response.
Brisbane aims to be centre for aviation biofuel
6 Oct 2017
Brisbane is set to become a hub for sustainable aviation fuel under an agreement between Virgin Australia and United States-based biofuel producer Gevo.
Sweltering September sets Australian records
6 Oct 2017
Australian temperature records tumbled again in September, with the country experiencing the hottest day since records began, and New South Wales breaking that record twice within a few days.
Australian cities head for 50deg summer days
5 Oct 2017
Even if the Paris Agreement to limit the global temperature rise to below 2deg is met, summer heatwaves in major Australian cities are likely to reach highs of 50deg by 2040.
David Suzuki: Australia's marine threat is sickening
28 Sep 2017
Growing global momentum to protect the world’s oceans from overfishing could be undermined by Australia, warns renowned conservationist David Suzuki and nearly 1500 other scientists.
Australia failing to meet Paris targets, report says
26 Sep 2017
With the Coalition still hamstrung by internal divide over a clean energy target, a new report shows Australia is in danger of not meeting its Paris agreement commitments unless it acts soon.
We need coal power, Joyce tells Australians
15 Sep 2017
Australia's deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, says any new investment mechanism for the energy sector, be it a clean energy target or an alternative, will need to keep coal-fired power stations open.
Coal plant closes but emissions still on the rise
14 Sep 2017
Australia’s overall greenhouse gas emissions last financial year were the highest since 2011, despite the closure of the Hazelwood coal-fired power plant.
South Australia commits $150m to new-energy fund
13 Sep 2017
The government of South Australia has just announced it will invest $A150 million in renewable energy projects as part of its Renewable Technology Fund.
Australian business gets the tech message
6 Sep 2017
Australian businesses are now starting to grasp the fact they need to cut greenhouse gas emissions, says a company that had to take its carbon dioxide-capture technology to Europe because there was no interest at home.
Australia’s record winter linked to climate change
5 Sep 2017
Australia’s winter had the highest average daytime temperatures on record. It was also the driest in 15 years.
Abbott to be keynote speaker at climate sceptics' meeting
4 Sep 2017
Former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott next month will give the annual lecture to a London-based climate sceptic group.
More states powering ahead on climate targets
1 Sep 2017
Australian states and territories are powering ahead, developing policies that will meet the federal government’s internationally agreed greenhouse gas emission targets, with South Australia, the ACT and Tasmania leading the race.
Renewable energy boom could turn to bust
31 Aug 2017
Australia produced enough renewable energy to power 70 per cent of households last financial year, but advocates warn the booming industry will flounder unless the Turnbull government commits to a clean energy target.
Australian firm converts carbon emissions into 'green' concrete
28 Aug 2017
An Australian pilot project capturing carbon emissions and storing them in building materials aims to have a full-scale production plant by 2020.
Victoria moves to enshrine renewables targets in law
25 Aug 2017
The Victorian government has introduced legislation to enshrine its renewable energy targets in law and establish a reverse auction mechanism to build 650 megawatts worth of new projects.
Solar towers and storage plants will reshape energy markets
23 Aug 2017
The 150MW solar tower and molten salt storage plant to be built in South Australia could help to reshape Australian power markets, including the end of “baseload” power.
Premier renews warning states could go it alone
23 Aug 2017
South Australian premier Jay Weatherill has renewed his warning that Labor-led state governments could go it alone on energy policy if the Turnbull government can’t resolve its internal battle over the clean energy target.
Dry winter primes NSW for 'horrific' fire season
22 Aug 2017
After a dry winter, NSW is preparing for an early start to bushfires with fire fighters forecasting an “horrific” season.
South Australia to build solar thermal plant
18 Aug 2017
South Australia will build a 150MW solar thermal plant to bring clean, reliable power to the state.
Miner Adani faces claims of financial fraud
17 Aug 2017
Indian mining giant Adani, seeking public funds to develop one of the world’s largest coal mines in Australia, has been accused of fraudulently siphoning hundreds of millions of dollars of borrowed money into overseas tax havens.
Carmichael matters to Australia – and the world
17 Aug 2017
Proposals for Adani's Carmichael coal mine in Queensland threatens not only the Great Barrier Reef, but also global efforts to reduce carbon emissions.
UK wrapping up $3b Green Bank sale to Australia
17 Aug 2017
The UK government this week is preparing to complete the $3 billion sale of its Green Investment Bank to a group led by Australia's Macquarie Group.
THE MADHOUSE EFFECT: How Australia and the US compare
16 Aug 2017
Climate policy in both Australia and the United States is being built upon alternative facts, fake news, outright lies, PR spin and industry-written talking points.
Climate change could spell disaster for Australia
15 Aug 2017
Military and climate experts, including a former chief of the defence force, have warned that Australia faces potential “disastrous consequences” from climate change.
California, Connecticut preparing 'attack' against Trump's repeal of basis of US climate regulation
Fri 20 Feb 2026
California and Connecticut are working together on a multi-state "plan of attack" against President Donald Trump's repeal of the foundation of federal climate regulation of vehicles, the states' attorneys general told Reuters on Tuesday.
As Trump retreats from climate goals, China is becoming a green superpower
Thu 19 Feb 2026
How the world's biggest carbon emitter is now at the helm of a renewables revolution.
EU countries back stronger price curbs on new carbon market
Fri 20 Feb 2026
European Union countries on Wednesday backed plans to strengthen price curbs in the bloc's upcoming carbon market, EU diplomats told Reuters, in response to concerns from some governments that the policy could raise fuel bills.
Britain strengthens ties with California as new clean energy and climate agreement signed
Thu 19 Feb 2026
Britain has forged a deeper alliance with California on clean energy and climate action, as Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new agreement aimed at boosting transatlantic investment and environmental protection.
Mark Carney just picked his lane on climate change
Tue 17 Feb 2026
COMMENT: Mark Carney's time as prime minister has been defined in part by his decision to roll back Trudeau-era climate policies.
Modi's rooftop solar push slowed by reluctant lenders, states
Thu 19 Feb 2026
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's push to accelerate the rollout of rooftop solar power is falling short of targets despite heavy subsidies due to loan delays and limited support from state utilities, vendors and analysts say.
Pacific fisheries summit gives a boost to albacore and seabirds
19 Dec 2025
Much of the world’s albacore tuna catch, which usually ends up in a can, comes from the southwestern Pacific Ocean, where fishery managers just passed a new set of conservation rules.
Warming climate threatens Greenland's ancestral way of life
12 Feb 2026
The Arctic region is on the frontline of global warming, heating up four times faster than the rest of the planet since 1979, according to a 2022 study in scientific journal Nature, causing the sea ice to retreat.
Africa leads growth in solar energy as demand spreads beyond traditional markets, report says
Mon 16 Feb 2026
A report shows that Africa has emerged as the world's fastest-growing solar market even as global growth slowed last year, driven by a 60% surge in imports of solar panels from China.
Argentina fires ravage pristine Patagonia forests, fueling criticism of Milei’s austerity
4 Feb 2026
The wildfires, among the worst to hit the drought-stricken Patagonia region in decades, have devastated more than 45,000 hectares (174 square miles) of Argentina’s forests in the last month and a half, forcing the evacuation of thousands of residents and tourists.
Why Trump might be onboard with a UN carbon-offset programme for airlines
12 Feb 2026
The president’s team has backed the rollout of an initiative that calls for the use of sustainable aviation fuel and carbon credits, even as Trump has pulled back from other international emissions-reduction efforts.
