Australia’s clean energy goals could be thwarted by recent amendments to the Victorian Planning Framework in 2011 for wind farm developments, a study by the University of Melbourne Law School has found. [ + ]

A Queensland University of Technology (QUT) researcher is developing a solar cooling and heating system for the home that will run independently of the electricity grid and generate domestic hot water as a by-product. [ + ]

Researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) have shed some light on why some countries are more reluctant to agree to an international carbon price than others. [ + ]

Schneider Electric has formalised an academic alliance with Queensland’s largest trade and technician training TAFE institute, SkillsTech Australia - its sixth partnership with a tertiary education institution in Australia. [ + ]

Silver Spring Networks has announced that it has been selected by Unison for a smart grid project in New Zealand. The company’s standards-based IPv6 networking solution will be deployed across the entirety of Unison’s service territory (in Hawke’s Bay, Rotorua and Taupo). [ + ]

The largest solar system in North Queensland was officially opened today at Townsville RSL Stadium, which now boasts 1800 solar photovoltaic panels across its roof, producing two-thirds of its energy requirements. [ + ]

The Australian Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, the Hon Greg Combet MP, and the European Commissioner for Climate Action, Connie Hedegaard, announced yesterday that Australia and Europe will be linking their emissions trading systems. [ + ]

Trimble Navigation has launched its Transport and Logistics solution at Future Logistics Living Lab, alongside SAP and NICTA. [ + ]

A major University of Canterbury (UC) research project has begun looking at the national grid to make it ‘smarter’. [ + ]

The Minister for Industry and Innovation, Greg Combet, has welcomed the announcement by GE, in collaboration with its venture capital partners, to provide $10 million to find, fund and bring to market the best ideas from Australia and New Zealand that will improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon pollution. [ + ]

The California Institute of Techology’s (Caltech’s) solar-powered toilet has won the Reinventing the Toilet Challenge issued by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Caltech engineer Michael Hoffmann and his colleagues were awarded $100,000 for their design, which they demonstrated at the Reinvent the Toilet Fair, a two-day event held 14-15 August in Seattle. [ + ]

How to create an energy-efficient transport sector is a question about to be tackled by University of Otago researchers in a multimillion-dollar, multiyear project. The university’s Centre for Sustainability has won a bid to run a national project looking at energy uses in New Zealand’s homes, small businesses and transport sector. [ + ]

CO2 Group has announced that it has signed a joint venture agreement with Asia Energy Development Partners (AEDP), a Singapore-based carbon and renewable energy specialist, to establish CO2 Asia. This new company will specialise in the development and commercialisation of projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol. [ + ]

The Gillard government will provide more than $42 million to deliver nine innovative and sustainable stormwater harvesting and re-use projects to help secure water supplies in urban areas across Australia. [ + ]

EMSc, manufacturer of the Star range of energy-saving solutions, is expanding its international footprint with the opening of a dedicated Powerstar office in Melbourne. [ + ]