Australian lawmakers are demanding a review of foreign investment rules to stop foreign mining companies, including those from China, buying up prime farmland.
Chilean experts warned Wednesday that a cork of lava could lead to another explosion at the Puyehue volcano, which has caused major flight disruptions from Argentina to Australia.
A volcanic ash cloud, which originated in Chile on 4 June and has caused significant disruption to air travel around Australia and New Zealand since 12 June returned on Tuesday to Australasia forcing further cancellations for at the least the next 48 hours.
A cloud of ash from an erupting volcano in Chile has drifted over the Atlantic and Indian oceans to lie over southern parts of New Zealand and Australia, prompting the cancellation of dozens of flights.
Australia marked the start of its whale-watching season Wednesday with predictions that some 4,000 of the giant animals will be spotted as they make their way along the coast during winter.
The Australian Climate Commission has warned that acceleration of sea level-rise will be faster than anticipated. Global sea level is projected to rise by one meter by 2100, according to the Commission's first report published on Monday.
The Australian government filed a written submission at the International Court of Justice in Netherlands calling for an end to Japan's Antarctic whaling program on the grounds that it breaches the international ban on commercial whaling. Australia made the official presentation of its case Monday at the ICJ.
The Antarctic ozone hole is about one-third to blame for Australia's recent series of droughts, scientists say. Writing in in the journal Science, they conclude that the hole has shifted wind and rainfall patterns right across the Southern Hemisphere, even the tropics.
Canada’s Vancouver has been selected as the world's most liveable city, while Toronto remained the fourth most attractive place to live, according to the Economist magazine.
Floods in Australia have dragged business conditions particularly in Queensland to depths not seen since the global financial crisis, according to a local analysis that offered a more pessimistic view than the government’s assessments.