Science and Technology:
¶ Birds are increasingly threatened. Overfishing and changing sea temperatures are pushing seabirds to the brink of extinction, new data on the world’s birds shows. Birds that are now globally threatened include the kittiwake and the Atlantic puffin. And on land, the Snowy Owl is struggling to find prey as Arctic ice melts, say conservation groups. [BBC]
Black-legged kittiwake (Photo: Ed Marshall)
¶ Here’s another good news item that will certainly bother EV critics. Though most people seem not to know it, the batteries that power EVs keep getting cheaper. The average price of a lithium-ion battery pack is down to $209/kWh and the prices are set to fall below $100/kWh by 2025, according to a Bloomberg New Energy Finance survey. [CleanTechnica]
¶ A joint study by the highly respected Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research finds that plug-in hybrid cars with at least 36 miles of electric-only range (eg Chevy Volt) are just as good at keeping carbon emissions out of the atmosphere as pure battery electric cars (eg Chevy Bolt). [CleanTechnica]
Chevy Volt
¶ Independent assessment group Climate Action Tracker has published a new study outlining 10 key short-term sectoral benchmarks for climate action that must be taken by 2020-25 if we are to simply “keep the window open for a 1.5°C-consistent GHG emission pathway.” It appeared in the peer-reviewed journal Climate Policy. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ One of the UK’s most important oil pipelines is being closed after a crack was discovered. It carries crude North Sea oil across land to a processing plant. More than 80 platforms will have to suspend production. The price of Brent crude rose about 2% to $64.69 a barrel amid surprise that the pipeline could be shut for about three weeks. [BBC]
Oil processing plant (Photo: Mat Fascione)
¶ French President Emmanuel Macron announced the first 18 winners for his “Make the Planet Great Again” initiative, which he announced in June after US President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change. The grants will provide recipients with funding of up to $1.8 million over a three to five year period. [CNN]
¶ German offshore wind farms put power on the country’s grid 363 days a year, a Fraunhofer IWES report said. The authors of the report, which was commissioned by the German Offshore Wind Foundation, said that if Germany wants to achieve the acting government’s zero-carbon emissions target, it needs 25 GW of offshore wind by 2030. [reNews]
Offshore wind farm (Pixabay)
¶ Renewables company Lekela said it has signed key project documents for a 250-MW wind project in the Gulf of Suez region of Egypt. Lekela, which focuses on Africa, is a 60/40 joint venture between private equity firm Actis and a consortium led by wind and solar developer Mainstream Renewable Power, based in Ireland. [Renewables Now]
¶ South Africa’s Khobab and Loeriesfontein wind farms began their 20-year commercial operations, the firm spearheading the projects Lekela Power has announced. Lekela Power said that the 280-MW wind farms will help power 240,000 households in South African. The projects’ 122 turbines are located in Northern Cape province. [cce online news]
Wind turbines
¶ French state-controlled utility EDF said it plans to speed up its roll-out of solar energy in France to help the government’s fight against climate change. EDF’s chief executive Jean-Bernard Levy said the utility and associated investors will put about €25 billion into development 30 GW of solar capacity in France between 2020 and 2035. [ETEnergyworld.com]
¶ After spending tens of billions of euros each year, German emissions have decreased much slower than the EU average between 2000 and 2016. EU average reduction was almost 15%, while Germany managed around 10%, almost a third slower. The main reason for this is the accelerated shutdown of nuclear power. [Energy Collective]
Canal at a nuclear plant (Assenmacher, Wikimedia Commons)
US:
¶ The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is highlighting how greenhouse-gas emissions in Iowa dropped for the second year in a row, primarily with decreasing power plant emissions. This includes notable increases in windpower and decreases in the use of coal. GHG emissions statewide decreased 9% from their peak in 2007. [North American Windpower]
¶ Two large solar-powered generating plants were dedicated near Las Vegas. Together, the power plants are designed to generate the equivalent amount of electricity to meet the needs of 46,000 Nevada homes, according to a company statement. The 179-MW output will be used by Switch plants, however, in Reno and Las Vegas. [Danbury News Times]
Solar array north of Las Vegas (Photo: Michael Quine, AP)
¶ South Carolina Electric and Gas announced last week that it had reached its state-mandated goal of building 42 MW of utility-scale solar capacity by 2020 three years ahead of schedule. Before SCE&G breaks its arm patting itself on the back, however, it should be noted that 42 MW is an exceedingly modest goal. [pv magazine USA]
¶ The parent company of South Carolina Electric & Gas Co is offering the site of a failed nuclear reactor project to the state-owned utility Santee Cooper. SCANA has proposed giving the Fairfield County site to Santee Cooper so the project could be preserved and perhaps finished at some point in the future, The State newspaper reported. [Charleston Post Courier]
geoharvey 
December 12, 2017 at 7:44 am
Reblogged this on AGR Daily 60 Second News Bites.