Environment
Conservation
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Marine life
‘Not doing what they should’: Shark nets a threat to critically endangered species
The state government has installed nets to deter sharks at Sydney beaches since 1937 and will do so again next month. But there is growing doubt about their effectiveness.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
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Royal National Park
Royal National Park a haven for native species, environmental stocktake shows
The biggest ecological survey to date for Australia’s oldest national park and adjoining areas found previously unseen mammal species.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
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Renewables
The simple fix that could reduce bird deaths from wind farms
Painting one blade black, or using stripes, on wind turbines is proven to dramatically reduce bird strikes. There are also high-tech solutions helping endangered Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagles.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
‘Unpick the damage that’s been done’: Inside NSW plan to rein in rampant land-clearing
The Minns government will tighten land-clearing laws loosened by the Coalition in 2016 and strengthen the contentious biodiversity offsets scheme.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
Common product banned around the world is killing our owls
Powerful owls predate on possums, snatching as many as 250 a year. But those possums are increasingly falling prey to another predator: rat poison.
- by Bianca Hall
‘Absolutely incorrect’: The evidence is in on whales and offshore wind farms
Those who hold doubts about offshore wind farms may not be aware that their misgivings have been deliberately planted.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
The world’s toughest lion broke an epic record. Australians were filming
Jacob the lion has survived being mauled, trapped and gored. Now his life – charted by an Australian biologist – has a dramatic new chapter.
- by Angus Dalton
The dirty history of ‘Nukey Poo’, the reactor that soiled the Antarctic
At an American base on NZ-claimed Antarctic territory, a small nuclear reactor was once installed to provide energy and save money. The after-effects are still being felt.
- by Nick O'Malley
Bone found at Balmoral Beach reveals origins of Australia’s apex predator
When Sally Wasef sent a bone found in an exclusive Sydney enclave off for carbon testing, she thought it would be a couple of hundred years old. She was wrong.
- by Catherine Naylor
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Heritage
Ray of hope for beach shack owners in the Royal National Park
The beach communities at Little Garie, Era and Burning Palms in Australia’s oldest national park are heritage listed. Their licences expire in March 2027, and the government is yet to decide what happens after that.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
The biggest threat to whales
Entanglements with fishing gear is the biggest killer of whales and dolphins.