The Age - Food shortage catastrophe creeping up on the world

The underlying issue is highlighted in the graph, which shows that world stocks of wheat have been on a downward trend for 40 years.

This trend has continued in the past three years even though we have had two of the largest wheat crops in history during that time.

The same general trend has occurred in the coarse grains (corn, sorghum, oats, barley and triticale) and rice over the past 10 years, which means that it covers all of the key grains in the human food supply chain. This is only the surface problem — we must delve deeper to get a true picture.

Stuff.co.nz - Local banks stand firm despite chaos

But there's a fear the Australian parents will lean on their subsidiaries to bolster balance sheets hit by the global financial crisis. What would happen in the unlikely event an entity like ANZ fell over?

Herald Sun - Carbon trading scheme could force transport prices up

PUBLIC transport fares will jump unless compensation payments are made to offset the costs of Australia's fight against global warming, according to the Brumby Government.

Its submission to Canberra on the response to climate change warns that public transport that runs on electricity would be hit by moves to put a price on carbon pollution.

Otago Daily Times - Hospital moves to save energy, money

Moves to increase energy efficiency at Dunedin Hospital are expected to save $324,000 a year.

Voxy.co.nz - Fitzsimons: Free Travel A Good Start But What About The Rest?

The Green Party welcomes free off-peak public transport for superannuitants but says the most urgent thing is better quality, more reliable and more frequent services.

"The Green Party agrees that public transport needs to be more accessible to more people, and part of the solution is lowering the cost to passengers, particularly for off-peak services, which often run with just a few passengers anyway," Green Party Co-Leader Jeanette Fitzsimons says.

"However, it is a shame this initiative only covers superannuitants. So now Bob Jones can travel for free, but a young mum earning minimum wage can't.

The Australian - New laws give green light to coal project: Felix

FELIX Resources said today the passing of new laws in NSW has cleared the way for the development of its Moolarben coal mine.

Work on the mine had been stalled after the NSW Court of Appeal upheld an appeal by Xstrata, which owns the adjacent Ulan coal mine, against the development consent granted to Moolarben by the State Government.

Whyalla News - Mayor gets behind fuel campaign

Mayor Jim Pollock is rallying behind the Whyalla News campaign: Fight for Cheaper Fuel ... Bring Our Prices Down!

He said the situation is serious and has been a huge concern for a long time.

Mr Pollock said it was not only ridiculous but disheartening when authorities and governments came up with excuses saying nothing could be done

ABC - Carbon trading scheme 'could close mines'

The Federal Government has been warned coal mines could close unless it broadens the compensation scheme for its emissions trading scheme (ETS).

Marlborough Express - Fuel project wins top prize
Is the Internet smarter than a Year 9 student? Nope.

The Year 9 Marlborough Boys' College student took the top prize in the Marlborough Lines Science and Technology Fair 2008 for his project Run You Car on Water? Yeah Right!

Leatham first became interested in whether fuel efficiency could be increased by using an electriliser to split water into hydrogen and oxygen after his father told him about an article he had read online.

He took matters into his own hands and made his own electriliser.

Manawatu Standard - School's turbine a power bill saver

Sanson School is to become the first in New Zealand to be powered by its own wind turbine, and the move is set to be a big money spinner.

The turbine, officially welcomed yesterday, could knock $1000 off the school's annual power bill, which is budgeted to be around $3600 this year.

ABC - QLD farmers call for farm land protection over miners

The argument over mining needs versus farming rights has reached new heights in Queensland with farmers calling on the state government to pass legislation to protect so-called 'iconic' farmland.

Grain and cotton grower, Jeff Bidstrup, says he was told this week that mining company Tarong Energy Corporation has secured a Mineral Development Licence over his entire property.

ABC - Darwin chosen for multi-billion dollar Inpex project

Northern Territory Chief Minister Paul Henderson has announced Darwin Harbour has been chosen as the onshore site for the multi-billion dollar Inpex liquid natural gas plant.

NZ Herald - Jim Watson: Practical science the only way forward for New Zealand

Scientific knowledge affects our environment and resources. It underpins any improvements we hope to make to our economy, environment, infrastructure, health, energy supply, communications, entertainment and the operation of the many institutions on which a civil society depends.

The Age - New Hope eyes coal-to-liquid concept

New Hope Corporation Ltd is investigating a novel concept that could allow the company to commercialise some of its coal resources in Queensland without the headache of infrastructure constraints.

The coal miner is in the early stages of investigating the potential for a coal-to-liquids project at its New Acland mine, 150 kilometres west of Brisbane in the Darling Downs region.

The coal-to-liquid process involves the transformation of coal into a combustible gas for power generation, or as a feedstock for synthetic crude, diesel, gasoline or jet fuel.

ABC - Climate change expert calls for $600b clean energy fund

An international expert on climate change is calling for an urgent 10-fold increase in funding for clean energy.

Harvard University Professor Paul Hoffman says the $60 billion the world spends needs to rise to $600 billion.

ABC - Proponent of geothermal energy to explore nine WA sites

An energy company has announced plans to drill nine sites to potentially develop "hot rocks" technology in regional Western Australia.

The Australian - Environmentalists 'out of touch on emissions plan'

AUSTRALIA'S most active unionist pushing for clean coal technology says the Greens are becoming increasingly marginalised by maintaining their opposition to clean coal.

CFMEU mining division president Tony Maher said his union had done polling that showed roughly 5 per cent of the population supported the Greens' position of opposition to clean coal.