South Australia 'should seize chance to build nuclear dump'
The state would reap billions of dollars in revenue by hosting a dump, says royal commissioner and former governor Kevin Scarce South Australia should seize the opportunity to store the world’s high-level nuclear waste, the state’s nuclear royal commission has recommended. Related: Nuclear waste is zombie waste: Australia must not become a dumping ground | […]
The energy transition could be profound – and there's a lot to lose for those who can't keep up
The energy internet, the ‘smart’ grid, solar energy and battery storage are converging and the economic benefits are clear Change is coming to the energy landscape. A transition to a new energy economy is happening. In a country like Australia – awash with energy both under and above the ground – this transition could be […]
Fugitive colour in a sea of bluebells: Country diary 100 years ago
Originally published in the Manchester Guardian on 11 May 1916 Nowhere, surely, do the bluebells grow more luxuriantly or look more ravishingly beautiful than they do under the beeches in the grounds of the Queen’s Cottage at Kew. Here the varying thicknesses of sheltering boughs make varying shades of colour in the sea of flowers […]
Europe's problem with diesel cars
New UK government tests confirm that diesel cars produce a lot more air pollution in real-world driving when compared with the legal tests. Those sold since 2009 emitted six times more nitrogen oxides, on average. Compared with the stricter standards applied to petrol cars, the average diesel sold between 2009 and 2015 emitted 19 times […]
Hinkley Point: UN report says UK failed to consult over risks
UN Economic and Social Council says Britain has not met its obligations to discuss the impact of nuclear accident with neighbouring countries The British government has run into a major new problem with the Hinkley Point C nuclear project, with a United Nations committee ruling that the UK failed to consult European countries properly over […]
'He has been my lifetime inspiration': how David Attenborough influenced our lives
To celebrate naturalist’s 90th birthday, we asked Guardian readers to share how he’s shaped their lives I like watching all of his wildlife and nature documentaries. He is my favourite guy. I like that he gets to see lots of rare animals. He saw a bird that could make a noise like a chainsaw. My […]
A birthday gift for David Attenborough – how about the Great Barrier Reef? | John Sauven
Of all his amazing experiences, the television legend recalls his first dive on the reef as the most memorable. But it’s dying before our eyes The patron saint of quality television is 90 years old today. When his Great Barrier Reef series was broadcast at the start of the year, it was reported that this […]
The innovators: slow fashion that cuts waste and lasts longer
Designer Dan Vo is a proponent of the zero-waste movement within the fashion industry At first appearances, Dan Vo’s new range of wool jackets for men appear to be pieces of well-made clothing with the price tag to match. Behind that appearance however is a precise method of design, where every part of the jacket […]
Island Home by Tim Winton review – a love song to Australia and a cry to save it
In his wonderfully honest memoir cum manifesto Tim Winton traces how he came to revere the natural world he grew up in – and long to preserve it Island Home is Tim Winton’s insightful and vibrant testament to what it is to be a non-indigenous Australian living in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Less […]
Microsculpture: hidden beauty of the bugs beneath our feet
When photographer Levon Biss turned his lens on the insects his son was collecting in the garden, it opened up a miniature world in which art meets science to dazzling effect Two years ago, exhausted by the frantic pressures of commercial portraiture, photographer Levon Biss was searching for a way to relax. His son Sebastian, […]