If You Have Started to Zone Out on Tariff Announcements, Here is One to Focus On
You are among many if you have given up on trying to figure out what tariffs are in force, which have been pulled back, and which are yet to come. But when it comes to clean energy, there is something happening, and its not good. See more here and here.
What if Everyone Needs Air Conditioning but There is not Enough Electricity for it?
The number of people in the world without electricity has fallen steadily, more due to remote solar and wind than to grid expansion. But even those in the developing world that have access to power may not have enough electricity to meet the growing need for air conditioning. Check out this new Report to understand more about thjs.
More on the Boom in Gas Power Plants
In my Essay of a month ago titled “Choosin’ Texas and the Climate Impacts of That” I talked about how rapidly the world of gas-fired generation was expanding and growing. Here are a few Headlines that caught my eye since then, with underlying links.
AI Dominance Comes With Major Air Pollution
Gas Dominates PJM Interconnections Grid Queue
Duke to Issue 10b in Equity to Capture Once-in-a-generation electricity growth.
Siemens Gas Turbine Backlog Nears 70 GW as Company Expands Manufacturing
More on Wildfire Smoke Impacts
In my most recent Essay “My Kalshi Money was on a Different Climate Impact Than This One” I talked about the growth in wildfires, the reasons why there are more of them, and the idea that while fire directly affect too many people, it is a small number compared to the people affected by wildfire smoke - especially children. Here are some things that caught my eye on that topic since then.
Wildfire is Now a Bigger PreNatal Threat Than Human Sources of Air Pollution
U.S. Wildfire Season Exceeds 10-Year Average
Pennsylvania Confronts an Unfamiliar Climate Hazard: Wildfire Smoke
Another Take on Whether the Inflation Reduction Act was a Success
I think many observers would say that the clean energy and efficiency parts of the IRA have not been a success, whether because many parts were cancelled or pulled back in the change of Administrations or because they were flawed in some way. But an article I read recently tells a different story, with the message that many parts of the IRA were sucessful, although more slowly and less visibly than expected.
Is Local Opposition to Solar Farms Getting Fresh Fuel From Hyperscalers?
Opposition to Data Centers is bringing some communities together, with people of different political persuasions joining together to battle what they view as a common foe. However, this article discusses how the Hyperscalers behind the Data Centers are trying to divert opposition to focus on another use of open land - solar farms.
New Research Shows You Should Trade-In Your Gas Car for an EV Sooner Than was Thought
I have always kept my cars for many years before trading or selling them. Part of the reason was that I liked those cars. Another was that it is commonly assumed that hanging on to things longer is of environmental benefit. That thinking has also been applied to trading in a relatively new car to purchase an EV. This article makes the argument that going to an EV will be environmentally better no matter how new your gasoline car is.
Big Gas for Big Plants by Big Names
When folks like Elon Musk and Amazon do something big it normally gets attention, and that is what is happening when it come to news that a big chip plant (Musk) and big data center (Amazon) will run off of large new natural gas power plants here. More here and here.
Want to Know if You Have the Same Opinion on Clean Energy and Climate as Other People in Your County?
There is a new tool available that allows you to see how your Clean Energy and Climate opinions stack up against the other people in your specific County. See it here.
Here’s a New Word to Add to Your Climate Vocabulary …
I was looking for something else when I stumbled upon this item from a while ago. The word seems not to have caught on but it still might, as it is a good one to refer to the creeping of climate zones away from equatorial zones. The word? Tropicalization. More here.
AI May Cause More Oil & Gas Production to Cancel Out AI’s Help in Growing Renewables?
A new Report finds that AI-spurred oil and gas production could outweigh AI’s benefits to renewable energy. It forecasts a net increase in emissions due to AI. The researchers showed that while AI can help oil companies find new resources and recover more from existing fields, it can also help renewables by improving forecasting and operations. But the new study argues the fossil-fuel gains are likely to dominate. See more here.
Solar Farms Showing Up In Cloudy Places?
The idea that solar could only be used in “mostly sunny” places is starting to fade. This article talks about how the solar boom going on in Europe is reaching places that were previously thought of as being too dark.
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About CCS …
CCS Stands for Carbon Capture and Storage, and it refers to capturing carbon emissions as they are emitted and before they enter the atmosphere. The captured gases are then stored underground and/or in various media. If you want to better understand CCS, this document is good overview and explanation of what it is and what its role is and can be.
A Solar Farm Can Still be Farmland, but a Data Center Can’t
I have talked about Agrivoltaics a few times and knowledge and experience is growing that solar doesn’t totally rule out crops or grazing. It doesn’t take much thought to realize that Data Centers don’t allow that co-existence, and some local communitities are realizing that. More here.
Ask Americans How They Have Been Affected by Increased Temperatures and Here is What They Say
No surprise that that the list of impacts identified by this new research report included higher electricity prices as #1. But the list is long. See it here.
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