The Stream, October 13: Australian MPs Pass Carbon Tax Bill

Australia’s lower house of parliament narrowly passed a historic bill to cut carbon emissions and introduce a national carbon tax scheme, the Guardian reported. Though the Senate is almost certain to follow, opposition leaders said they would repeal the bill if elected.

Meanwhile, China said it would introduce a national resource tax next month, BusinessGreen reported.

An AlterNet first-person account tries to figure out how bad North Korea’s food crisis really is.

The controversial proposed route of the Keystone XL oil pipeline across Nebraska is unlikely to change, according to TransCanada, the company in charge of the project, Reuters reported.

A recent survey by the European Environment Agency shows that approaches to resource efficiency across Europe are diverse but not comprehensive.

China will invest up to $600 billion over the next decade to overcome a huge water shortage that threatens to upend the country’s economic growth, AFP reported, citing a senior official. Read more about China’s water-energy collision on Circle of Blue.

Peru’s national government has promised to establish formal talks between mining company Southern Copper and the government of the Tacna Region to solve a dispute over scarce water supplies, Reuters reported.

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