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Australia recorded one of its biggest annual emissions drops since COVID: 2.2% lower in the year to June, mainly due to electricity, industry and agriculture. Preliminary data suggests an even larger 2.8% drop for the September quarter. Government says Australia is on track for its 2030 target of a 43% cut from 2005 levels, and for its new 2035 target of 62–70%. Emissions are now 28.5% below 2005 levels, with about half of the 2030 carbon budget already used. Transport emissions are rising, driven by diesel utes and SUVs: Diesel road emissions up 7.8% in a year. Diesel vehicle numbers up 101% since 2014; petrol vehicles up only 5%. Chris Bowen says climate policies—renewables, home batteries, safeguard mechanism—are working. Australia missed out on hosting COP31, but Bowen will lead global climate negotiations for the next year. Bowen accuses the opposition of being “unpatriotic” for criticising the arrangement. The Climate Change Authority will release its own report, with Chair Matt Kean calling for bipartisan, fact-based climate policy. Australia slashes emissions despite diesel ute love affair from the Financial Review

I take your point, but it’s worth recognising the difference between mining coal—which is burned once and contributes directly to emissions—and mining metals like copper, nickel and lithium, which are long-lived, recyclable and essential for clean-energy infrastructure. The environmental footprint per unit of long-term usefulness is simply not comparable. I’m not anti-mining; in fact, through my ethical super fund, I hold shares in PLS (formerly Pilbara Minerals). Mining is unavoidable if we want electricity, transport, communications, and modern technology of any kind. The real issue is how we mine. That’s why I think the focus should be on raising environmental standards and supporting responsible producers. Australia is actually well-positioned here: strong regulations, better labour standards, and the potential to supply much of the world’s demand for critical minerals needed in batteries, electrification, and renewable energy. If anything, responsible mining in countries like Australia reduces reliance on operations in places with poorer environmental controls.

Interesting article about emissions in China. Here is the short version A new analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), published on Carbon Brief, shows that China’s greenhouse gas emissions have been flat or declining for the past 18 months, starting from March 2024. This puts China on track for a possible full-year emissions drop in 2025, which would be symbolically significant because China has previously left its peak-emissions timeline vague. Key Findings Power sector: Even though electricity demand grew sharply from July–September 2025, power-sector CO₂ emissions stayed flat. Renewables boom: China added 240 GW of solar and 61 GW of wind in the first nine months of 2025, setting up another record-breaking renewables year. Solar electricity output grew 46% in Q3; wind grew 11%. Transport: Rapid EV adoption reduced oil-related transport emissions by 5%. Industry: Emissions fell in cement and metals by 7% and 1% respectively; steel emissions also declined. Chemical sector: Emissions rose 10% due to growth in plastics and chemical production, partly offsetting reductions elsewhere. Context and Challenges China is still off track for its 2020–2025 carbon-intensity target (emissions per unit of GDP), meaning deeper cuts are needed. Analysts note China has a history of under-promising and over-delivering on climate goals. China’s newly submitted 2035 climate plan (NDC) commits to reducing net economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 7–10% from their peak. Global Perspective COP30 officials praised China for driving down renewable energy costs globally. A new UN analysis including China’s updated pledge says current global climate commitments put the world on track for a 12% emissions reduction by 2035, up from 10% in the previous assessment. Here is the longer version: https://www.euronews.com/green/2025/11/11/have-chinas-carbon-emissions-peaked-new-analysis-shows-they-havent-risen-in-18-months

That picture isn’t actually an argument against wind turbines — it’s an argument for better mining standards, which applies to all forms of energy. Every energy technology, including coal, oil and gas, requires huge amounts of mined materials. Fossil fuels require steel, concrete, copper, and aluminium too — plus they involve continuous extraction of fuel forever. Wind turbines, by contrast, require one-time mining, then they produce energy for 25–30 years with no fuel burned and no ongoing extraction. 1. Wind uses far less total mined material over its lifetime than fossil fuels. Coal and gas plants need constant mining and drilling for fuel. Wind needs materials once, then no more digging. 2. Minerals for renewables are increasingly coming from countries with strong environmental and labour standards. Australia, Canada, the US and Scandinavia are ramping up production of nickel, copper and rare earths precisely to avoid reliance on poorly-regulated mines. The solution is improving supply chains, not ditching clean energy. 3. Wind turbines don’t use many “rare earths” anyway. Only some turbine designs use them, and manufacturers are rapidly shifting to rare-earth-free generators. 4. Fossil fuel extraction also happens in countries with poor environmental controls — and much more of it. Oil spills, coal sludge, gas flaring, and abandoned wells cause orders-of-magnitude more environmental damage than the mining required for renewables. 5. Modern wind turbine materials are highly recyclable. Copper, steel and aluminium — which make up most of a turbine — are recycled at very high rates, reducing mining needs over time. 6. Showing a single mine doesn’t prove wind is bad; it just illustrates that mining should be cleaner. If the standard is “this technology requires mining,” then all energy sources fail. The real comparison is: Mining once for decades of clean power (wind) vs Mining and drilling continuously and decades of pollution (fossil fuels).

There’s a safety requirement for a gap between the bonnet and the engine. In older cars, when pedestrians were struck, their heads often hit the bonnet. The gap acts as a cushioning zone to reduce the force of impact before the head reaches the engine. Many modern cars reduce this gap for aerodynamic reasons, so they use dynamic bonnet systems to meet safety standards.

The active hood has been around on European cars since 2005, so not a new feature The Jaguar XK was the first car to feature a deployable bonnet pedestrian safety system in 2005, although the system was first unveiled by Honda in a concept vehicle in 2004 and introduced in a production model in 2008. The system uses pyrotechnic actuators to lift the rear of the bonnet upon impact with a pedestrian, creating a cushioning effect to reduce head injuries. Jaguar XK (2005): This was the first vehicle to publicly unveil the production system, which was designed to meet new European safety legislation. The system automatically "pops" the hood up a few inches to create a cushion between the pedestrian and hard points in the engine compartment. Honda (2008): Honda unveiled its "Pop-up Hood System" technology in 2004 and incorporated it into a production vehicle in 2008. Honda's system uses sensors in the bumper to detect an impact, then an actuator raises the rear of the bonnet by about 10 centimeters. General Motors (2007): GM introduced its active hood system in 2007 in the European market. This system works at speeds between 25 and 48 km/h (16-30 mph) and is designed to reduce pedestrian fatalities. Buick Regal (2017): Buick made the active hood standard in China with the new generation Regal in 2017.

Australian (and European) Tesla models have a little-known feature called "active hood" "Tesla has installed a pyrotechnic system that raises the rear portion of the hood (closest to the windshield), if a frontal pedestrian crash is detected. The hood immediately lifts by a few inches so that the pedestrian's impact hits a softer, and more movable surface than that of the solid parts beneath the hood, or even the windshield." https://insideevs.com/news/333820/teslas-active-hood-safety-feature-could-save-lives/ There have been cases of this deploying during a collision with a kangaroo.

Sadly, most rules or safety features are designed for the idiots, and the rest of us just have to endure them.

What I am thinking is that it is very easy to speed at least partially through a school zone. Usually, I have this mild panic near a school. Am I in the school zone yet? What time is it? Is it the school holidays? I can see a place for speed bumps that only operate when needed. Also, speed bumps are unpleasant even if you travel over them slowly. A road near me has about 6 speed bumps. I understand why, because it is a residential street that has become a throughway. Travelling at the set speed of 40KPH, you still have to come to a crawl 6 times. It certainly would be nice to travel the whole street at 40KPH without having to almost stop. I don't think this is a wholesale replacement for the fixed speed bump (reverse or otherwise). Apparently, they have been adopted in Sweden and Iceland. I believe there are other styles, but they broadly fit into the category of "dynamic speed bumps ", which I think was first developed to aid emergency vehicles. I don't necessarily see a case for mass adoption, though.

I wonder if an ideal scenario might be for areas like school zones, where the speed restrictions only apply during certain hours.

Here is another method of cleaning panels by drone, but this time the drone has a connected hose.

I think the drop is quite small and probably no more hazardous than hitting a normal speed bump at high speed. Apparently, they are used in Sweden, with one of the benefits being that they are not triggered by emergency vehicles, which I guess is a great benefit. All in all, though, I think it's probably too expensive to install and maintain. Apparently, they are being used overseas. https://www.york.gov.uk/downloads/file/2037/annex-b-actihump-leaflet

The "negative speed bump" idea may be a little overly complex, as it relies on radar. I guess if the radar fails, it stops working.

Well, it seems such a thing does exist. The good thing about it is that it only deploys for the vehicles that are speeding. https://www.facebook.com/share/v/17TjHhm1De/

In no way would I try to convince you to buy an EV, but facts do matter. In terms of hitting a roo I would rather hit one in this vehicle, which has nothing critical to get damaged. I would rather hit a roo in this and probably be able to keep driving than a typical IC car. As far as cost goes, the price of EVs is falling. In fact already more economical if you consider the lifetime cost (maintenance and fuel) As far as batteries falling out, I don't really think that is a thing? As far as catching fire goes, the statistics show that IC fires are more common than EV fires. As battery chemistries change, EV fires will become almost nonexistent. Already, there are many cars on the market with LFP that have an even better fire history. Like it or not, EVs are here to stay and are only getting better year by year. Yeah, I look back at my first car, a 1970 Ford Cortina with rose coloured glasses. A carburettor that needed to be constantly adjusted, also the distributor gap. Later, I got a car with fuel injection, and then later airbags, etc., technology has never stood still.

Not sure why it being an EV makes any difference.

For those who find the article too long to read, here is a short AI summary Very Short Summary (Bullet Points) Recent revelations—including documents from Epstein’s estate—show deeper ties between Epstein and powerful political figures such as Lord Peter Mandelson. A U.S. bill to release the Department of Justice’s Epstein files is unlikely to pass due to political obstruction. The article argues that enough public evidence already exists to understand Epstein’s operations without the files. Epstein’s Network (Transnational Overview) UK: Epstein’s associate Ghislaine Maxwell’s father, Robert Maxwell, had suspected Soviet intelligence ties and may have used social events for blackmail. Ghislaine Maxwell may have procured girls even in the 1980s. Canada: Epstein allegedly became involved with sex-trafficking circles in Montreal in the early 1970s. Europe: Epstein was mentored by people in arms-trafficking circles, gaining access to elites and criminals. France: Jean-Luc Brunel, a modelling agent and serial rapist, collaborated closely with Epstein and ran agencies used for trafficking. USA: Epstein used Les Wexner’s companies as a front to recruit victims. Mike Jeffries (Abercrombie) and Donald Trump are described as part of overlapping networks using modelling fronts to access young women. Trump’s modelling agency was widely viewed as linked to trafficking. Russia: Epstein interacted with Russian intelligence (FSB) via officer Sergei Belyakov. He had relationships with women with intelligence backgrounds. He engaged in blackmail involving Bill Gates and a Russian woman. The St Petersburg Economic Forum is portrayed as a centre for prostitution and kompromat gathering. Main Conclusion Epstein’s network was global, involving sex trafficking, organised crime, financial fraud, and espionage with substantial Russian links. The U.S. government cannot be relied upon to fully investigate it—particularly under political figures with ties to these networks. Europe should take a larger role, as the case reflects broader threats to Western democracy from illiberal leaders aligned with Russia.

Yeah, a bit more than the normal flaring. Geelong TV tpnSrdoseofuhf9hhim6g46g10h0663885163ch46u15i7uhlcllg9g79g2i · POWER FAULT SPARKS LARGE FLARE AND FIRE RESPONSE AT GEELONG REFINERY A major alarm sounded at the Geelong Refinery today after a brief power disruption triggered a visible, smoky flare and a small grass fire on site. Viva Energy’s internal emergency response team quickly attended the scene and extinguished the fire. The company says the flare, which was noticeable from outside the refinery, is a standard pressure-relief safety device used globally to safely burn off excess materials when systems are disrupted. Fire Rescue Victoria has been notified and is supporting Viva Energy’s response. Officials stress the alarm was intended for on-site personnel only and there is no risk to the surrounding community.

The oil refinery near me is putting on a bit of a show.

That is the most important thing. I guess you will be hoping that this bodes well for your longevity and mental acuity. I can think of nothing worse than your body outliving your brain. I tell my wife that when my brain goes, she "put me to bed with a shovel" (do me in). The trouble is when I lose my keys, she does look at me strangely. Anyway, the positive: we are back from our little trip to the Grampians. We walked a substantial number of KMs. saw some awesome sights and met some lovely people and generally had a most excellent trip. Now it is back to my arduous life of retirement.

Stress tests, both ECG and Echo, are pretty important for me. They are quite safe, with only 1 in 10000 having a cardiac event (not necessarily a heart attack) If you are going to have an event, it's definitely the place to have it. During my stress echo, there was a cardiac nurse who hooked me up to the ECG and took my blood pressure during the treadmill part. There was also an echocardiographer doing the echo and a cardiologist monitoring the ECG all throughout the test. After the treadmill, they rush you to the table where they do an echo to see what your heart is doing under stress. It is better to find this out with a stress echo in a medical environment than during a stressful drive in city traffic. In my case, my heart was looked at 164bpm, and whilst it is far from normal, there is nothing dangerously abnormal at this stage. During my bush walks, which some of you seem to believe are dangerous, I seldom get above 100BPM. Bush walking is extremely good for bone density. Loss of bone density can be a major factor in fractures from falls, etc. Likewise, older folks tend to lose muscle mass. Anyway, I am not sure how this became the "health report" Perhaps this is not the right forum for this kind of post. I was elated by the whole expedition, and I thought people might be interested.

Yes, I agree, fascinating seeing it all working

Jeez the post was supposed to be joyous. Fir the record I about a year ago an stress echo where you have an echo at rest and you go on the treadmill and when you heart gets above a predetermined maximum safe rate they very quickly do another echo to observe how your heart works under stress. This test has a good rate of detecting blockages. Normally I would post a link but I am on my phone in a park after another highly dangerous walk. It feels like some of these posts are kind of condescending. We use an App called All Trails which gives accurate information about trails and their conditions, elevations etc ass well as currant track and weather. We would average about 3 walks a week although the last few days we have been in the Grampians so multiple walks a day Are usual regime includes a daily short exercise session guided by an app. We alternate between cardio, muscle building and flexibility. So we are not naive idiots wandering off until the bush. We are just sitting in a picnic ground after climbing down and up which if course was a little more arduous to see a magnificent waterfall My heart rate hovered between 90 and 100bpm

This thread is supposed to be about celebrating positives. We did not just decide one day to go on a strenuous bush walk. Since retiring 4 years ago we have done about 3 bush walks a week. There are many walks we would not do. Known bush walks are very easy to research in terms of difficulties. As far as age goes one of the greatest threats to health is inactivity. This is a threat both physical health and mental health. Depression is not uncommon amongst the aging. Whilst bush walking we do cross paths with older bush walkers who are older than us and obviously very fit. I do in fact have a cardiac condition. I do yearly stress echocardiograms. The last one whilst noting my abnormalities pronounced me to be much fitter than the average for my age (63). If we're not fit I would be having symptoms, I do not. My cardiologist advises me to keep up the exercise It is important that as we age we don't give up.