The winners of 'Antarctica: No Ordinary Place, No Ordinary Assignment' - an initiative which will take environmental enthusiasts to Antarctica to assist National Geographic photographer Jason Edwards - have been announced. [ + ]

Jacobs Engineering has completed its merger transaction with Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM) - an agreement which was initially announced in September. Jacobs purchased SKM for approximately AU$1.3 billion in cash. [ + ]

Elemental Energy Technologies (EET), supported by ATSA Defence Services, has been testing a new type of turbine at its Endurance Testing Centre at the Eraring Power Station, Lake Macquarie, NSW. [ + ]

In an effort to consider the transport and packaging of stock when it comes to recycling waste products, the team at Source Separation Systems has launched upcyclable packaging. [ + ]

Water solutions company Total Eden has announced a new operating division, Total Eden Water Engineering Services, which will strengthen the company's involvement in wastewater treatment. [ + ]

The Australian Packaging Covenant (APC), a voluntary scheme aimed at reducing the environmental impacts of consumer packaging and litter from packaging, has released its 2013 annual report. The report finds that recycling rates in Australia have broken new records. [ + ]

Curtin's Sustainable Engineering Group (SEG) has found that red sand could be used as a viable and more environmentally friendly alternative to virgin sand and limestone in road construction. This would reduce the need for quarries to extract those materials. [ + ]

The '1200 Buildings, Melbourne Retrofit Survey 2013', released by the City of Melbourne last night, explores how Melbourne's older office buildings are upgrading to more sustainable systems and fit-outs. [ + ]

Northern European energy company Dong Energy has entered into a technological and commercial partnership with energy management specialist Schneider Electric. The aim of the agreement is to enable electric network operators of remote or isolated island grids to increase the share of renewable energy used while maintaining grid stability and reliability. [ + ]

The University of the Sunshine Coast (USC), which has begun rolling out a new waste management system, has won its category of the Sunshine Coast Council's inaugural Good Recycler awards, held recently at the council’s launch of a recycle market at the Buderim Resource Recovery Centre. [ + ]

Glenlyn Aged Care Facility, located in Glenroy, Victoria, was last month the recipient of a grid-connected solar power system expected to generate over 392 kWh of solar energy daily - approximately 50% of the facility's electricity requirements. [ + ]

The City of Sydney has released a draft policy calling on residents to green their roofs and walls as a way of improving air quality, supporting biodiversity and creating new spaces in the heart of the city for food production and relaxation. [ + ]

Scientists have discovered huge reserves of fresh water several kilometres out to sea from Australia, China, North America and South Africa. [ + ]

The Metropolitan Waste Management Group (MWMG) has successfully facilitated a competitive tendering process for the provision of organic waste processing services on behalf of eight participating councils in the south-east of Melbourne. [ + ]

Dr David Cruickshanks-Boyd has been elected as national deputy president of Engineers Australia for 2014 and will assume the position of national president in 2015. [ + ]