A summary of today’s top climate and clean energy stories. Email the team on [email protected] or get in touch via Twitter.
A communist policy of giving out free coal everywhere north of the Huai River in central China between 1950 and 1980 is blamed for deaths
China: A national policy of giving free coal for heating to residents in the north has contributed to shaving 5.5 years off life expectancy there, a study says. (BBC)
China: Beijing has suspended plans to curb imports of poor quality and high sulphur thermal coal, trade sources said on Monday, a move that will be a boon to Indonesian miners. (Reuters Point Carbon)
China: Police have made greater efforts to prosecute and punish environmental polluters, the Ministry of Public Security said. Police have finished investigating 112 environmental pollution cases since January. (Xinhua)
UK: The future of offshore wind power generation in the UK is in serious doubt, as the government’s plans to encourage new windfarms are over-expensive and flawed (Guardian)
USA: Phoenix Solar AG’s U.S. unit is building a solar power facility at a former cotton farm in Georgia that will be the state’s largest when completed later this year. (Bloomberg)
India: Central government plans to increase spending on flood forecasting and river management five-fold to 33.69 billion rupees ($555 million) over the next five years. (Bloomberg)
Australia: Green spaces, trees and bodies of water are must-have design features for future development in Sydney’s suburbs after researchers found that by 2050 global warming combined with Sydney’s urban heat island effect could increase temperatures by up to 3.7°C. (Science Daily)