Seventh Anniversary Post!
Opinion:
¶ “Trump War On Climate Science Will Cost American Lives” • Because of Trump maladministration policies, Americans will have more health issues and die sooner. It is truly amazing how many people are okay with killing their friends, family members, and even themselves, with fossil fuel pollution for the sake of gaining political power. [CleanTechnica]
Pump jack
¶ “No Joke: We Should Build More Solar & Wind Than Needed – It’s Cheaper” • One entrenched, and very prevalent, idea is that all the power generated by renewable resources must be sold as it is generated. This old idea ignores a fundamental proposition: oversizing and proactively curtailing wind and solar when the demand is low. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Midwestern GOP: We Voted For Trump, But We’re Not Out To Wreck The Environment” • The reality of floods and the warnings from respected local university scientists make a difference with Midwestern Republican suburban-exurban voters. They assess climate change differently when they see risks to the Great Lakes and clean water. [The Hill]
Pigs in a flood (© Getty Images)
¶ “Climate Change: Australia’s Election Has Far-Reaching Consequences” • Despite being condemned by both the UN and the IPCC for continued inaction, newly re-elected, pro-coal Prime Minister Scott Morrison has repeatedly told Australian media outlets that the country is set to reach their emissions reduction targets “in a canter.” [Forbes]
Science and Technology:
¶ “El Niño Is Back. Is It To Blame For Our Severe Weather Woes?” • After a spring that soaked parts of California and saw destructive tornadoes rip through towns stretching from Texas to Pennsylvania, scientists are paying close attention to how much of the country’s recent severe weather is due to the return of El Niño. [NBCNews.com]
Arkansas flood (Yell County Sheriff’s Department via AP | AP)
¶ “NASA To Bore Beneath Europa With Nuclear-Powered ‘Tunnelbot’ In Alien Life Search” • The planet Jupiter has many moons. One of them, Europa, has liquid water ocean beneath its thick icy shell. NASA is planning for a nuclear-powered drone to drill through Europa’s icy shell in an attempt to find alien life in its oceans. [Express.co.uk]
¶ “Rising Temperatures Cause Epic Flood” • Storms have become much stronger than they ever were and the people who live in the central US have recently experienced one of those fierce storms that were currently in the news. The storms break the record of the wettest 12 months in the US since they began recording rain in 1895. [Science Times]
Cows on a temporary island (Photo: werner22brigitte)
¶ “Rise In Methane Emissions Threatens Paris Agreements” • The levels of methane in the atmosphere are rising with rapid and unexpected rates. According to the latest report by the UN climate science panel, one tonne of the gas is considered to have 28 times the global warming potential of one tonne of carbon dioxide. [The Green Optimistic]
World:
¶ “Hyundai Debuts Electric Double Decker Bus With 186 Mile Range” • At the Land, Infrastructure, and Transport Technology Fair in South Korea last week, Hyundai unveiled a 70-passenger double decker electric bus. With a 384-kWh water cooled polymer battery, its range is 186 miles on one charge, and it can be recharged in just 72 minutes. [CleanTechnica]
Hyundai double decker electric bus
¶ “Chinese Tesla Model 3 Price Crushes BMW 3 Series And Mercedes C-Class Prices” • Tesla launched ordering for the Tesla Model 3 made in the Shanghai Gigafactory. The 328,000 RMB ($47,475) price for the Standard Range Plus is before local incentives, and crushes the fossil rivals in the same class that are made in China. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Nigeria’s Unreliable Electricity Costs Its Economy $29 Billion A Year – Solar Power Would Save Billions” • Lengthy power cuts are pretty much a daily experience in Nigeria. The country’s epileptic power supply has been identified by businesses as the second biggest obstacle to doing business in the country, after a lack of access to finance. [Quartz]
Cleaning solar panels (Noel Kokou Tadegnon | Reuters)
¶ “IRENA Says Falling Renewable Energy Costs Will Drive Global Climate Action” • Lower cost of production and cheaper rates of power will strengthen the business case and solidify the role of renewables as the engine of transformation for global energy, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said in its latest report. [Arabian Industry]
US:
¶ “Coal Industry’s Survival In Question As Companies Go Green” • In May, at the Virginia Coal and Energy Alliance’s 40th Annual Conference, a lobbyist for Dominion Energy, the industry’s best local customer, gave the keynote speech. In it, he highlighted the company’s agreement with Smithfield Foods to use hog waste to generate electricity. [Voice of America]
Dominon Energy coal-burning power plant (AP photo)
¶ “US Farmers Hit By Triple Whammy – Torrential Rain, Tornadoes, And Trump” • Farming is one of the toughest ways to make a living. Despite fancy new technology, government price supports, and advances in science, it is still a hard struggle fraught with challenge from weather. And then there is the pressure put upon farmers by politicians. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Saturday Marks Start Of Glenwood Springs Being 7th US City To Use 100% Renewable Energy” • Glenwood Springs, Colorado, is now the seventh US city powered 100% by renewable energy. The city now gets 6.8% of its electric power from hydroelectric generation, with the remainder being supplied by wind power sources. [Summit Daily News]
Have an extraordinarily positive day.
geoharvey 