News for July, 2025

The news this month is a variable mish-mash. There is much to celebrate (chiefly the recent finding of the International Court of Justice), and... there is also much to despair of. Here is a sampling of both.

 

The ongoing efforts by the Trump regime to quash all information pertaining to climate action and good science in general is being countered by people reconstructing websites that have been shut down or 'adjusted to the required ideological standards'.

 

These iconoclastic activities remind me of 'The Book Smugglers of Timbuktu', which describes the lengths residents of that city went to in 2012 to  preserve ancient writings from an invading force perfectly willing to destroy them.

 

An account of bibliographic defence on a par with that of the websites of the US Government

... which just goes to show we've done this before, somewhere.

Environment

The Ugly

• Coercing Indian scientists to produce the favourable environmental reports required to approve the clearing of 130 sq km of rainforest on Great Nicobar Island is not science.
• Forrest: if they can't put a salt plant on this stretch of the Exmouth Gulf, can we mine it instead? (article suggests 'Twiggy's interests here might be strategic)

The Bad

• The toxic algal bloom first reported in South Australia in March has continued to grow, and now covers an area twice the size of the ACT. Apart from concerns about local businesses, and the impending cuttlefish gathering, there are fears it may result in the collapse of the Coorong ecosystem. The only hope at this stage is that another form of predatory algae may bring the outbreak under control.
• It's all about the aragonite! Ocean acidity is reaching critical levels, which is going to effect every sea creature with a shell.
• When relocating wildlife (koalas in this case) goes horribly wrong.

The Good 

• Recall that Venn diagram in last month's post showing the economy embedded in and dependent on the environment? Nice to have the notion backed up by the occasional article. 
• After bushfires almost wiped them out, Taronga Zoo is releasing corroboree frogs back into the wild
• 50 years after they were declared extinct on the NZ mainland, little spotted kiwis have been observed there once more.
• Zooplankton: an unexpectedly effective mechanism for carbon sequestration.
• Vampire bats have a bad enough reputation without the rabies. So it's nice to hear that a vaccinating gel can spread through a colony via grooming.
• An Indigenous Voice to (Victorian) Parliament looks set to become a thing.
• Hunting for platypus with... dogs on paddleboards!? It's true! (and effective)
• Ocean with David Attenborough shows us the world beneath the waves, what awful things we are doing to it and, most importantly, what hope remains for its revival (more than you might think). Well worth a view, either at cinemas, or Disney+.

Climate

The Ugly

• This link should (but won't) take you to the 2023 US National Climate Assessment, considered to be the most influential source of information about how climate change affects the United States. Don't bother clicking it, though: the Trump administration has shut down the website with no explanation (but see 'Resistance').
• Mauna Loa Observatory has been recording changes to atmospheric CO2 levels for thirty years. Trump is defunding it. Fortunately, there are other measuring sites, like Cape Grim.
• It only takes a change of government to change direction on climate action. We've seen it in Australia, and the US under Trump is a glaring current example. But it's not the only one. New Zealand currently has a similar problem.
• While the ICJ decision is something to be celebrated (see below), it needs to be borne in mind that respect for international law is currently at a low ebb. 

The Bad

• Sadly, it has been reported that MethaneSat has lost power, and is no longer operating.
• Climatologist Michael Mann discusses the effect of climate change on heat domes, as extreme Summer heat waves are reported  in Central Europe, Scandinavia, the Middle East, and central US.
• While cities have always had a heat dome associated with them, the extremes are now being felt in rural settings as well.
• The summer heat is threatening the viability of cricket
• Heat waves are deadly, with the current ones in Europe causing a tripling in reported heat stroke fatalities.
• We've known that greenhouse gases trap heat for over a century. Unfortunately, more is being trapped than existing models suggest.
• NOAA is proposing to shutter its research labs, including those concerned with hurricane modelling.

The Good 

• With Trump's rending of renewable energy, and his open climate denialism in the ascendency, it's easy to think that all the climate action over the past couple of decades has achieved nothing. In fact, it has averted some truly horrific scenarios. (and Trump will be gone soon)
• In showing what's happening, these postings frequently make reference to graphical data. Useful if you know what to look for. Many people don't, though, so it follows that climate apathy is something that will not be shifted by nuanced and trending graphs. Cognitive scientists have found that a more blunt depiction of the data is more effective.
• The recent loss by Torres Strait Islanders in seeking federal protection against climate change for their communities is an interesting case. The loss is bad, of course, but the reasons for that loss have ramifications. First, the judgment noted the plaintiffs had ample grounds to be fearful for their community's future if sea level rise from climate change is not addressed. The sticking point was that the Federal Government did not have a duty of care under common law. The judge clearly thought this was a failing of common law that needed addressing, and pointedly referred the issue to Federal Government. Which brings us to...
• ...Last week's International Court of Justice judgement, which holds that states do indeed have an obligation to reduce harm from climate change, and can claim damages against other states for failing to do so. While not binding, this is a profound ruling. Australia needs to start considering the implications carefully. I'm sure the Torres Strait Islanders are doing so.
• Incidentally, here's an account of how that ICJ case come about. The kids are all right.

Energy

The Ugly

• A lot of astonishingly good news about the uptake of renewable energy (see below) is overshadowed by Trump cutting a deal with the EU to reduce his tariffs in exchange for buying $750 billion in US oil and gas over the next three years. The EU has no use for this amount of oil and gas, and the US probably can't even supply it. The word you're looking for is 'extortion'. (Bluesky link used since it provides a good summary of the Politico article referenced, and the article itself is heavily overlaid)
• ... and, in breaking news, Trump's cynical disdain for renewables is shown in the order banning permits to be issued on federal land if they can't provide the same energy density as coal or nuclear power stations. 
• Fossil fuel companies are great sponsors of public institutions... primarily so they can determine their policies on climate action.

The Bad

• In a classic depiction of George Monbiot's definition of capitalist enterprise ('Boom. Bust. Quit'), gas has been found leaking from Chevron's recently ended Barrow Island project. The question is how much effort Chevron will put into decommissioning an exhausted project.
• Our old friend, Adani (aka Bravos), having promised to invest $22 billion into Australia's economy for the privilege of running a massive coal mine for 99 years, has not paid a single cent in corporate tax in three years.
• Apart from the saboteurs, the rush to renewables is hitting the predictable snarls, with developers withdrawing from offshore wind projects, and delays in planned transmission links,  

The Good 

• Bill McKibben reports on the profound changes solar power is having on the world's energy system
• Volts provides a more in-depth podcast on just how advanced solar and battery storage is now (from a US perspective).
• The US state of Georgia is not renowned for its progressive attitudes. Even there, though, farmers are picking up that agriculture and solar farms can co-exist.

Housing

This new section is intended to cover issues relating to chronic housing shortage. Having a reliable dwelling is fundamental to personal well-being, and having time to care about anything else.

The basic solution to a housing shortage is... build more houses. Sounds simple, doesn't it? Well, experience suggests otherwise...

 

Stories relating to general social activities may also feature.

 

On this occasion, nothing comes across as outright ugly, so on to...

The Bad

• When developing high density urban centres, like Dandenong, it doesn't do to disrupt the existing community in the process. 

The Good 

• How Finland is tackling homelessness.
• Those used to their gardens and third acre lots may find this counterintuitive, but dense housing is a very environmentally friendly strategy (it's the lower infrastructure costs). Here's how the YIMBY movement has been developing in the States.
• Volts has a podcast on how housing projects have been evolving in California 
• Some buildings in Massachusetts are being set up to regulate their temperatures with geothermal energy. 
• Inspired by a similar event in Michigan, customers and locals form a chain to move a Melbourne bookstore's stock.

Transport

All Good 

• Taking the entire production process and use, electric vehicles are now 73% cleaner than the ICE equivalent, and improving. 
• 25% of new haulage trucks in China for the first half of this year are electric. This is estimated to reduce diesel demand by 6%.
• California is seeking to follow suit, despite 'federal' regulations
• A podcast concerning electric boats. 
• Helsinki has just managed to go a full year without a single traffic death. 

Resistance

Here is where you'll read about the chaos being unleashed by ICE and its now obscene levels of funding. It's a grim time to be a US resident; especially one who isn't white (yes, they are racially profiling their targets).

 

Even so, ICE is not getting its way for much of the time. People are fighting back: not with cudgels, but with cameras, legal recourse, and persistence. People are being released. With stories.

 

The sheer extent of Trump's nihilist strategems may be soul destroying, but they do put me in mind of a famous scene in the Sandman comics where Morpheus, the King of Dreams, is engaged in a shape-shifting duel with Choronzon, a Duke of Hell, for the return of an artefact.

 

A scene from the Sandman. I find the colour choice interesting in context

 

 

 

Morpheus gets his opponent to overreach by retreating and expanding the arena until it is the whole Universe. At this point Choronzon comes in for the kill with:

 

Choronzon: I am anti-life. The beast of judgment. I am the dark at the end of everything. The end of universes, gods, worlds... of everything. Sss, and what will you be then, dreamlord?

 

 Morpheus: I am hope.

 

Which turns out to be the winning move. (for what is hope, if not a dream?)

The Ugly

• ICE is the curse that keeps on continuing to act with impunity, hauling people off the streets for any hint of illegal residence. Even those who are applying to replace lost green cards. Even US citizens. It now has been granted an order of magnitude increase in funding that exceeds that of most militaries. It has just opened a holding facility in the Florida Everglades with the charming (and official) name of 'Alligator Alcatraz'. Simply put, it is a concentration camp.
• It's not just climate and medicine. The Trump administration has been systematically purging all information from Government websites that 'are not in keeping with their ideology'. The underlying motive alone should chill. The means of doing so would be hilarious if the outcome weren't so dire. eg, any occurrence of the string 'trans' (as in 'transit' or 'transform') causes a page to be removed. A similar filter applies to any funding requests ('diversity' is another very bad character sequence) 
• School is out forever. The US Supreme Court has lifted a stay on Trump's order to abolish the Department of Education.
• Under Trump, the EPA is in the process of destroying every anti-pollution measure it has passed, including the finding that CO2 is a pollutant. 140 staff who have signed a letter of dissent have been placed on leave. 
• Trump isn't the only source of concern. The UK Government has just passed a law proscribing  'Palestine Action' as a terrorist organisation. It's a group formed to highlight the ongoing IDF genocide in Gaza. Their heinous acts include daubing paint on some RAF planes. A misdemeanor, sure. A crime even. But... terrorism? The truly ugly fallout from this is the freezing effect it has on dissent. That someone holding up a piece of cardboard in support of Palestine Action (including reference to a genocide in Gaza) can be arrested and charged with terrorism themselves. There is some good news on this front, though (see below).

The Bad

• A tragic irony of Trump signing his 'Big, Beautiful Bill' into law on July 4 is that Texas experienced severe flash flooding that led to the deaths of dozens of people. Changes to FEMA slowed the disaster response by days. The bill strips out funding for weather warnings and disaster relief...
•  Funds intended for Florida's disaster relief were diverted to build Alligator Alcatraz.
• While going all in on fostering a climate conducive to heatwaves, six US Congress members lodge a complaint with Canada over the reduction in air quality from wildfire smoke.

The Good 

• It beggars the whole point of citizenship if a government can strip a person of it at whim. Trump's attempts to do so are likely unconstitutional. Not that that seems to stop him trying. However, a Federal judge has done so. For the moment.
• As previously reported, the Trump administration took down the National Climate Assessment report because, out of sight, out of mind. Fortunately for knowledge, it is still accessible by other means. For example, you can view it here.
• Similarly, information on the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) website has been systematically purged, because gender, vaccines, and germ theory in general, is bad. Activists have recreated the site as it was on the day of Trump's inauguration (plus, of course, other countries have their own)
• By this point, the transgressions of ICE have become too many to list in an article like this. Nevertheless, the cameras are out, and incidents are being documented meticulously. I refer you on to sites like 'LA Taco' for more information
• The legality of 'Alligator Alcatraz' is being questioned. 
• On the matter of showing support for a proscribed terrorist organisation. Cardiff aside, and a bit of initial confusion, most UK police forces have so far exhibited common sense in their interactions with the protesting public. And now, the High Court has given Palestine Action permission to challenge the ruling.

Plaigue

Apart from the fundamental drive (fossil fuel consumption), the fundamental problem with AI, as it stands at present,  is one of positive feedback. The more one looks, the more one sees, and the more one sees, the more one looks. But there's little caution for the relevance of what one is seeing. This is how unwarranted opinions form, and harden into dogma: the feed simply providing more of what one wants to see. Apart from attitude, this can and does lead to psychological problems.

 

It's hard to avoid, too: AI 'slop' is taking up an increasing fraction of the internet (positive feedback = exponential growth). What to believe is real online? 

 

And, of course, positive feedback runs out of feed eventually. Bubbles burst, and then the fun starts.

 

Fortunately, the problems are becoming increasingly widely noted.

The Ugly

• Literal ugliness... AI chatbots giving opinions on body shape might be amusing(?) to some. It's a lot more serious for anyone with dysmorphia.
• ... or lonely teenagers. 
• When publications like Business Insider starts questioning the true motivation for the AI hype (life support for fossil fuels)...
• ... maybe someone will realise that AI hype is a bubble on a par with the 1999 dotcom bust. (and it might be time to start referring to the GFC)
• Of course the fossil loving Trump is embracing AI 

The Bad

• The hazards of AI feedback is plain to see in the wild claims of the AI experts themselves.
• Big media appears to be eating itself. They build and promote AI chatbots that scrape and summarise someone else's articles, while providing links... that nobody's reading (or paying for). So, where does that leave the revenue stream for the original publisher?
• Nobody likes criticism. However, the review process is fundamental to the scientific method. And if the reviewers are using AI for assistance in summarising a complex article? The authors start adding hidden prompts to encourage positive impressions. Is this bribery? 
• More AI calls for more data centres which, in turn, calls for more energy and water. Water that West Melbourne may have trouble providing.

The Good 

• AI produces a lot of fake articles ('slop').... and videos. Here are some tips on how to spot the latter.
• My views on the threat of AI should be all too clear by now. Am I a single voice in the wilderness? It seems that, increasingly, I am not.