Sustainability

A team of international researchers featuring ANU’s Prof Frank Jotzo has published a study on the ‘just transition’ from coal to renewable sources of energy. The paper looks at comparative examples of transitioning economies, taking account of political realities, and ultimately shows that a ‘just transition’ is just about the only transition worth having.

1000 sites into the Sunburnt Country and McDonald’s has had the bright idea of investing in solar. The fast-food giant has begun construction on its 1000th Australian site, a ‘sustainable flagship’ which utilises rooftop solar and other sustainable practices as a possible model for fast-food franchises going forward.

The New South Wales town of Parkes, famous for its involvement in the Apollo 11 Moon landing, is set to play a part in another scientific wonder, the transition to renewable energy, after the NSW Government approved the development of the 80 MW Quorn Park Solar Farm. A small step in the plan , but a giant leap for the planet.

The Western Australian Government’s $5.5 billion WA Recovery Plan was released yesterday, the plan features $66.3 million in renewable energy investment, most of that to go on solar and batteries, along with a significant top up of the Clean Energy Future Fund.

Atlassian Co-Founder, Scott Farquhar, says the company’s new headquarters in Sydney’s planned tech precinct will host thousands of workers and embody “the best new ideas”, including a solar-energy-generating facade — inspiration for a post-COVID, yet still warming world.

“Accelerating the uptake of renewable energy for the industrial sector is a critical part in Australia meeting its long-term emissions reductions commitments,” said ARENA CEO Darren Miller at the announcement of $300,000 funding to support a collaborative industrial transition initiative.

Many charities might find it a stretch to allocate the capital for their organisations to become solar powered, but Australian startup Allume Energy, with the help of funding from ARENA, is set to test an everyone’s-a-winner solution.

La Trobe University is well on its way to achieving its ‘net zero’ carbon emissions by 2029 goal thanks to 7,500 solar panels installed by Solgen Energy Group at its Bundoora campus in Melbourne’s north. VIC Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said the feat demonstrated what could be achieved with leadership, clear targets, and renewable energy.

Thanks to the Covid-19 many of us find ourselves in lockdown with little reprieve other than a morning potter or an evening stroll. In Goulburn, thanks to what is being called Australia’s largest solar lighting installation, locals can now more easily walk and cycle their way to the salutary effects of a daily jaunt.

Hesta, a leading industry superannuation fund trusted by 860,000 Australians, has joined a host of other major investment firms nationwide calling on the Federal Government to encourage large-scale renewable investment by setting an emissions target and cleaning up its strategy.