Planet & Environment
Planet & Environment on InSnip: climate, energy, nature and the environment. Source-backed Australian news snippets you read in under a minute.
Today in Planet & Environment 1 Destructive storms to batter east coast with giant hail and winds PerthNow, 8h ago 2 Recovery plan offers hope for Australia's rarest lizard, the earless dragon Region, 13h ago 3 Australian festivals cut waste through shared transport and gear rental The Guardian, 15h ago
Destructive storms to batter east coast with giant hail and winds
Severe thunderstorms will bring winds over 120km/h to eastern Australia from Saturday through Monday. They will also bring giant hail and heavy rain.
Recovery plan offers hope for Australia's rarest lizard, the earless dragon
Four critically endangered earless dragon species got a major recovery plan in October with 50 recommendations.
Australian festivals cut waste through shared transport and gear rental
Festivals like Strawberry Fields rent camping gear and run charter buses. This cuts transport emissions and waste at campsites.
Australia protects half its oceans but questions remain over real impact
Australia protects 52 per cent of ocean territory but only 24 per cent bans fishing and mining.
94,000 gather at climate talks but key leaders skip and ambition stalls
Climate negotiators admitted this week the 1.5°C warming goal is gone; forecasts now point to 2.7°C.
Perth bushfire sparks evacuation warning as flames near homes in Ellenbrook
A bushfire near Perth put residents on evacuation alert in Ellenbrook, Aveley and The Vines, with flames threatening homes.
Western Australia urges animal owners to plan for emergencies
The state launched an animation campaign teaching owners to make emergency plans for their animals.
Australia dodges fossil fuel talk at its own climate summit
Australia and Turkey have largely ignored fossil fuels at their own climate summit.
A quarter of Earth's reptiles need rocky habitats, but we're destroying them
One in four terrestrial reptiles use rocky habitats, but mining and quarrying are erasing these refuges faster than they reform.
Australia's coffee stall at climate summit costs $32,000 and draws queues
Energy Minister Chris Bowen defended Australia's A$32,000 coffee budget at COP31 in Turkey as Australian officials pushed a Pacific climate fund.
Australia tricks invasive weed into destroying itself with fake crops
Scientists plant soybeans to trigger red witchweed seeds to germinate. But the weed cannot survive on soya roots and dies.
Rural towns power cities but have little control over their land
Rural communities host clean energy projects for cities but feel excluded from major decisions affecting their land.
Woman who swam in Hume Dam as a child now manages its water for Albury
Jacqui Hickey now leads river management for 1.5 million people across three states, a dam she swam in as a child.
Why the Paris Agreement mattered even as the world misses its targets
The Paris Agreement united 190+ countries around climate action, but the world will still likely overshoot the 1.5°C warming threshold.
Mt Magnet buried in hail as WA thunderstorm drops 40mm rain
A severe thunderstorm dropped large hail and 40mm of rain across Mt Magnet. It changed the outback landscape.
COP31 methane deal puts Australian livestock farmers on high alert
A COP31 declaration calls for policies to cut methane. Australian farmers fear it could lead to livestock rules.
Low-emissions concrete cuts CO₂ by 80%, so why is it so rare
Concrete causes 5-8% of global emissions, but geopolymer alternatives cut that by 80% using industrial waste.
Marshall Islands president warns time is running out to stop climate overshoot
Climate leaders warned at COP31 that overshoot will destroy island nations as Earth warms past 1.5C.
ANZ, Macquarie, Westpac finance $7.7 billion in fossil fuels
ANZ, Macquarie and Westpac provided $7.7 billion for coal, oil and gas in 2025, including Beetaloo Basin fracking.
Greyhound breeding surges even as racing closes in 2029
Greyhound births jumped to 175 this season, up from 155 last year, leaving a rehoming crisis when racing ends in 2029.
Nepal's flood aid from global fund reaches just 0.7% of reconstruction cost
Nepal requested $20 million from a UN loss and damage fund; received $21.6 million, covering less than 1% of actual economic loss.
Severe thunderstorms leave 70,000 Queensland homes without power
Supercells hit south-east Queensland, leaving 70,000 homes without power and sparking 320 emergency calls.
AirTrunk lines up $3.7B data centre's renewable power in Hunter
AirTrunk is progressing solar, wind and battery projects in NSW's Hunter to help power its proposed Kurri Kurri data centre.
Severe storms leave 76,000 Queenslanders without power
Widespread outages across south-east Queensland after several severe storms brought 96 km/h winds, 50,000 lightning strikes and almost 80mm of rain.
Brisbane faces week of severe thunderstorms starting Wednesday
Brisbane will face thunderstorms this week. Wednesday brings the highest risk of damaging winds, heavy rain, and large hail.
Half Australia's wind pipeline stalls in Queensland, $5.8B at risk
Queensland has substantial planned wind capacity. But building it is painfully slow.
Australia backs plan to double household solar installations by 2030
Australia joins five nations pledging to expand rooftop solar to 300 million households by 2030 at the climate summit in Turkey.
Australia's Big Four banks block Beetaloo gas pipeline funding
ANZ joined CommBank, NAB and Westpac in refusing to fund new gas pipelines. This leaves Beetaloo unable to find bank backing.
Guide stops snorkeller from grabbing sea turtle off Sunshine Coast
Snorkelling guide Kayla Forshaw stopped a man on Saturday. He was trying to grab a sea turtle near Mudjimba Island.
Volunteers collect truckloads of debris from wrecked fishing vessel off Orkney
All 17 crew rescued; volunteers collecting debris expected to wash up for years.
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