Solar energy cost hits par with coal fuel
Ben Cubby, Brian Robins, Melissa Lahoud The cost of solar power in parts of NSW has for the first time crept below that of coal-fired electricity - seen as a key tipping point for the expansion of renewable energy.
Land-holders lock gates on explorers to protect Sydney breadbasket
Ben Cubby When New England farmer James Bishop chose to lock his gate against a mining company, the decision wasn't made lightly.
Inquiry into leak
Ben Cubby The NSW opposition is pushing for an inquiry into why it took three days to warn some residents in the Newcastle suburb of Stockton that they might have been exposed to chemicals that leaked from a...
Good news for cannery, and for sustainable tuna
Ben Cubby For the first time in Australia, a big brand of tinned tuna has been assessed as ''sustainable'' after a detailed analysis of fishing methods.
Coal seam damage to water inevitable
Ben Cubby The coal seam gas industry has conceded that extraction will inevitably contaminate aquifers.
Emissions possible: plan to link carbon pricing with NZ scheme
Ben Cubby New Zealand's emissions trading scheme has started smoothly, its first annual report says, and Australia is considering linking its carbon pricing plan across the Tasman in 2015.
Yellow and White Pages get green tick
Ben Cubby The Yellow Pages and White Pages have been certified as carbon neutral by the federal government's carbon offsets agency.
Tequila sunrise: that low-emission rocket fuel could run your wagon
Ben Cubby The Mexican plant used to distil tequila and mescal is famous for producing ''rocket fuel'', but it is being trialled in Australia as a source of low-emission car fuel.
Repeated logging breaches go unpenalised, says report
Ben Cubby THE rules governing logging in the state's forests are being systematically broken, a new report produced by the Environmental Defender's Office of NSW says.
'Greenest' Sydney building using rainforest timber
Ben Cubby One of Sydney's "greenest" new building developments - No.1 Central Park on Broadway - is using rainforest timber logged in Malaysia, putting its advertised "five green star" rating at risk.
Farmers see threat in $900m Santos buyout
Ben Cubby, Brian Robins A gas exploration company chaired by the former deputy prime minister John Anderson will be bought out for $900 million, in a move expected to pave the way for the first large-scale coal seam gas...
Don't credit farmland as a carbon sink, both sides told
Ben Cubby, Environment Editor Australia's ambitious plans to use farmland to soak up carbon dioxide – an important part of the government's new carbon price scheme and the keystone of the opposition's policy – have...
Australia will have renewed authority in next global talks
Ben Cubby THE carbon price plan is likely to have more of an impact in global climate negotiations than Australia's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, international law experts believe.
O'Farrell to do sums on power plant closure
Ben Cubby, Anna Patty THE Premier, Barry O'Farrell, is seeking advice from the NSW Treasury on the fate of the state's coal-fired power plants, following the federal government's plan to pay some power generators to close...
Reforms mean wave power is closer to paying its way
Ben Cubby In an unremarkable warehouse in Mascot, a machine for making electricity from the tidal force of the ocean is being built.
Reductions set in motion, but will take some time to work their way through
Ben Cubby The government's new climate change plan leaves the door open to a binding global agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but the implication is that the nation will not have to make deep...
Look north for a vision of east coast future
Ben Cubby If we want to know what Australia's climate will be like towards the end of the century, we could start by looking north or north-west.
73 workers a day losing jobs: solar industry
Ben Cubby A fresh fight is brewing within the solar panel industry, as installers prepare to mount another public campaign against the NSW government over the state's axed tariff.
Giant task set for tree-huggers
Ben Cubby Derek McIntosh's love of large trees was kindled during a childhood spent birdwatching in South Africa.
Agency for massive mine muddies independent waters
Ben Cubby AN AGENCY hired by the Chinese coalmining company Shenhua to prepare independent environmental assessments for a proposed $40 billion mine near Gunnedah has also been urging the state government to...
