Rooftop solar PV has boomed in the past 12 months but it is often accused of causing nothing but trouble, but the myths are unwinding, writes Giles Parkinson of Climate Spectator.
Energy efficiency
Parkinson: EU carbon … a zero-sum game?
Just as the federal government prepares to announce details of its carbon pricing regime in the next week or two, the European emissions trading scheme is lurching through another crisis, writes Giles Parkinson.
Parkinson: are Australian utilities smart enough?
There is no shortage of new competitors keen on grabbing a share of game-changing technologies such as smart meters, smart appliances and electric vehicles, writes Giles Parkinson, of Climate Spectator.
Our poor report card on energy efficiency
A government-funded report highlights the country’s relatively poor performance over the past two decades, writes Giles Parkinson.
Save the earth: print your emails. So says the paper lobby…
According to the Australasian Paper Industry Association, it is better for the environment to print your emails than to check them repeatedly. Not quite, reports Nick Johns-Wickberg.
Garrett’s demotion could give clean energy some clear air
The shift of ministerial responsibility for energy efficiency allows fresh thinking about the management of Australian climate solutions and low carbon development, writes John Connor.
Ban big-screen TVs?
The US state of California is poised to ban big screen TVs in order to cut energy usage and spare itself the cost of building a new power plant. Could this be the way forward for curbing Australia’s energy-guzzling ways?
Do fridges use more energy when filled with food?
The NY Times answers a chilling question.
EU kyboshes goods that aren’t energy efficient
The EU agreed to set environmental standards for household products such as windows and shower heads in a bid to reduce energy consumption. And it won’t end there.
Cleaning up the Oz’s cleantech mess
The Australian’s Matthew Warren failed to compare apples with apples when writing about the clean technology sector yesterday, writes Garth Lamb, journalist at WME Environmental Management News.net.
Is the Sydney Declaration environmentally harmful?
As the dust settles on APEC 2007, details are starting to emerge on the deals and agreements struck by the 21 nations in attendance. In particular, the energy intensity targets in the Sydney Declaration on climate change have come under scrutiny, with some experts suggesting they are actually worse than doing nothing, reports Thomas Hunter.
Sydney Declaration: weasels with words
There are two Sydney Declarations: the aspirational one, compiled before the negotiators of the 21 APEC nations uncapped their red pens, and the actual one, the refined and re-refined final document that everyone agreed to sign. Call it an exercise in decoding international diplomacy.
How are you going to make millions from climate change?
With climate change rewiring everything from global politics to our choice of light globes, there is an emerging market for energy efficient, eco-friendly, green-tinged good and services. Here, Crikey identifies gaps in the marketplace.
