Human civilisation is headed for collapse. Collectively, we are pushing planet Earth beyond the limits of endurance. There has to be a better way. Now a new book makes the case for systemic change.
- Honorary Associate Professor, UNSW
Key to success will be transitioning to an ecologically sustainable economy, with greener technologies and industries.
In 2000, fossil fuels were 80% of total energy consumption. In 2019, they were 81%. Renewables are simply not growing fast enough. It’s time to talk about cutting energy consumption.
The government’s latest energy plans are a failure of logic, and will lock in fossil fuel use for decades.
Labor’s policies have to get a lot more ambitious if they want to see real reductions in emissions.
Twelve power projects are in the running for federal government dollars: six pumped hydro, five gas and one coal. It’s clear which one shouldn’t be on the list, for economic and environmental reasons.
Will the renewable energy transition end up creating yet more greenhouse emissions, as we ramp up the manufacture of wind turbines and solar cells? Not if their manufacture is itself powered by renewables.
Here are some short- and medium-term strategies for transitioning to renewable, reliable and affordable energy in South Australia.
The South Australian royal commission recommended the state investigate a high-level nuclear storage facility. But the costs don’t stack up.
We have the technology to phase out fossil fuels, but it will take more than that.
We don’t know how much it would cost to store nuclear waste in Australia - or how much other countries would be willing to pay.
Can Australians be sustainable and enjoy endless economic growth? It’s not likely
Coal closures announced this week in South Australia will cause employment pain, but could also help pave the way for the state to go 100% renewable - something that modelling suggests is eminently possible.
Is nuclear power worth it? No, says Mark Diesendorf – it’s never been a major world energy force, it has caused huge accidents, and its greenhouse emissions are higher than many people realise.
In a recent article on The Conversation, University of Melbourne Professor Emeritus Frank Larkins wrote that Australia’s targets to increase renewable energy will make electricity more expensive, thanks…
Nuclear power is back on Australia’s radar. In its recent issues paper released as a preface to September’s Energy White Paper, the Abbott government reopened the debate thus: With environmental considerations…
Coal-fired electricity may have little or no economic future in Australia, a new analysis has found. While the new government seems determined to turn its back on renewable energy, our study shows that…
The future of civilisation and much biodiversity hangs to a large degree on whether we can replace fossil fuels – coal, oil and gas – with clean, safe and affordable energy within several decades. The…
Solar thermal energy will halve in cost by 2020, the new director of the CSIRO’s Australian Solar Thermal Research Initiative said today. Solar thermal energy uses the concentrated heat of the sun to create…
Energy production must shift from fossil fuels to renewable sources within four decades to avoid the most damaging consequences of climate change, a government report has found. The Climate Commission’s…
Around the clock solar power could be a reality for Australians in the foreseeable future, but experts say a hostile state government stands in the way of Queensland becoming the solar power leader suggested…
In part 13 of our multi-disciplinary Millennium Project series, Mark Diesendorf argues that it is high time we got smart about power: how we generate it and how we deliver it. Global challenge 13: How…
The Victorian Government is severely limiting areas where onshore wind farms can be built. The New South Wales Government might soon attempt to follow. So, if Australia is to cut its greenhouse gas emissions…
The myth that renewable energy sources can’t meet baseload (24-hour per day) demand has become widespread. After all, the wind doesn’t blow all the time, and there’s no sunlight at night. But detailed…
There is much hypocrisy in the statements of those who wish to terminate subsidies to renewable sources of energy through the certificate scheme associated with the federal Renewable Energy Target and…
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