The political classes are stuck and the consequences could be catastrophic

In the odd hours following Donald Trump’s election victory, many of us traced our shock to the obvious fact the world had just changed. But soon enough we realised that this obvious fact was wrong. The world had changed some time ago. It was just that we had missed it, caught in old ways of seeing, old ways of being. We often take a while to catch up to the present.

Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack attacked the Greens.

Those memories have come back to me over the past couple of weeks, as heavy grey-smoke skies have pressed down on Sydney, and the scent of bushfire has made its way inside. Yes, there have been fires before, just as there had been election upsets before – but to many of us this year feels different. You strike up conversations with people you don’t know about the fact this is the way it’s going to be from now on. And you know, too, that really we’ve been heading this way for some time, it’s just that we are now beginning to comprehend the scale.

And yet debate in this country, as conducted by politicians and the media, remains stuck, unproductively nostalgic for what debate once was, unwilling to concede the change that many citizens feel instinctively.

Read the opinion piece from The Age by Sean Kelly - “The political classes are stuck and the consequences could be catastrophic.”

With the LNP returned to power, is there anything left in Adani’s way?

After months of “start” and “stop” Adani campaigning, the coalmine is poised to go ahead following the surprise success of the Coalition government at the federal election.

The habitat of the endangered black-throated finch must be protected.

So is anything still stopping the coalmine from being built?

Australia has a federal system of government, but states own coal. This means the Queensland Labor government is responsible for issuing the Adani mining licence.

Read the story from The Conversation by the Director of the Centre for Energy and Natural Resources Law from the Deakin Law School at Deakin University, Samatha Hepburn - “With the LNP returned to power, is there anything left in Adani’s way?”

State of the Climate: Farmers for Climate Action response

FOLLOWING the release of the biennial State of the Climate report, some farmers are calling for the Federal Government to take immediate steps to mitigate climate change.

Farmers for Climate Action, CEO Verity Morgan-Schmidt said the report demonstrated the worsening conditions that many Australian farmers have been struggling with for months now, and the urgent need to take climate action immediately.

“Climate change is here now. We can’t afford to kick the can down the road any further,” she said.

“In the past few months alone, we’ve had a debilitating drought in eastern states; blistering heatwaves and unprecedented fires in Queensland; and widespread flooding in Victoria and NSW.

Read the FarmersOnline story by Sharon O’Keeffe - “State of the Climate: Farmers for Climate Action response.”

(Listen to Farmers for Climate Action, CEO Verity Morgan-Schmidt during an interview on “Climate Conversations” - Robert McLean)

Why the Bomb Cyclone hitting the east coast is so unusual

NOW, THE FIRST thing you should know about a bomb cyclone is it’s just a name—and unlike a sharknado, it’s not a literal one. The very real scientific term describes a storm that suddenly intensifies following a rapid drop in atmospheric pressure. Bombing out, or “bombogenesis,” is when a cyclone’s central pressure drops 24 millibars or more in 24 hours, bringing furious winds that can quickly create blizzard conditions and coastal flooding.

A "bomb cyclone" is stalking America's east coast.

It’s actually not that rare a phenomenon; meteorologists estimate these kinds of storms break out in the Northern Hemisphere about 10 times a year. They can go by other names, like Nor’easter and mid-latitude cyclone, which may explain why you’ve never heard of one before Winter Storm Grayson started dumping snow in Tallahassee on Wednesday morning. But Grayson isn’t your typical bombogenerator.

It’s what happens when everything comes together just right (or just wrong). Grayson is expected to explode up the East Coast between now and Friday, intensifying as it makes its way from Florida to Nova Scotia, blowing record snowfalls around at category 3 hurricane wind speeds. “This storm is a synoptic meteorologist’s dream,” says Paul Huttner, who watches the weather for Minnesota Public Radio. “It’s a perfect alignment of the three things we look for.”

Read the Wired story by Megan Molteni - “Why the Bomb Cyclone hitting the east coast is so unusual."