Opinion:
¶ “Alaska Just Had The Most Ridiculous Summer. That’s A Red Flag For The Planet” • Alaska’s summer of fire and no ice is smashing records. With the Arctic warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet, America’s “Last Frontier” feels like the first in line to see, smell, and feel the unsettling signs of a climate in crisis. [CNN]
Smoke from the Swan Lake fire (Bill Weir | CNN)
¶ “Rich Countries Aren’t Stopping Climate Change. Can Poor Nations Save Themselves?” • Climate change is not affecting the world equally. And failure of a meeting of Pacific leaders to agree on stronger action was a pointed reminder that the countries most immediately endangered may not be able to count on others for a quick solution. [CNN]
¶ “Every Automaker Should Develop Conversion Kits For Their Gas Vehicles” • We recently learned Volkswagen is going to sell an EV retrofit kit for its classic Beetle. It’s the true revenge of the electric car. If a 70 year old vehicle that was not developed for electrification can be retrofitted successfully, then many other vehicles can as well. [CleanTechnica]
Electric VW Beetles (VW image)
Science and Technology:
¶ “Combining Solar And Farming Benefits Both” • Researchers at the University of Arizona confirmed the benefits of growing crops beneath the shade provided by solar panels – more electricity, higher yields, and less water used. That last part is of vital interest to farmers in Arizona where access to water for irrigation is crucial. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “The Bizarre New Fabrics That Fashion Is Betting On” • A growing movement is turning its back on disposable products. In its sights is the growing waste and sustainability crisis prompted by the fashion industry, which is responsible for 20% of the world’s waste water, and 10% of carbon emissions. Bio-materials offer part of a solution. [BBC]
Leather look-alike made from mushrooms (Bolt Threads)
¶ “Jeff Dahn Claims New Pouch Cells Could Be Good For 1 Million Miles” • Battery guru Jeff Dahn, along with colleagues, published a report on the development of a lithium ion pouch cell that “should be able to power an electric vehicle for over 1.6 million kilometers (1 million miles) and last at least two decades in grid energy storage.” [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “Climate Change: ‘Invest $1.8 Trillion To Adapt'” • Investing $1.8 trillion over the next decade, in measures to adapt to climate change, could produce net benefits worth more than $7 trillion, according to a global cost-benefit analysis by the Global Commission on Adaptation. GCA is a group of 34 leaders in politics, business and science. [BBC]
Plant expert in Uganda (Georgia Smith | CIAT)
¶ “Fraunhofer ISE Pushes For Integrated Solar Solutions at EU PVSEC” • Fraunhofer ISE is promoting a number of ways solar power can be integrated to good advantage. It says building-integrated solar technologies and agrophotovoltaics could offer Germany a combined technical potential of several hundred GW, and that is just a start. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Plans Floated For $1.2 Billion, 550-MW Gippsland Solar And Battery “Energy Park”” • Victoria’s Gippsland region has been earmarked for a $1.2 billion “renewable energy park,” starting with a 50-MW solar farm with a 50-MWh battery storage system. Solis RE is said to have acquired three parcels of land for the project already. [RenewEconomy]
Australian solar array
¶ “Lithuania Proposes Green Energy Auctions To Cut Power Imports” • Lithuania has proposed three green energy auctions for 2020-2022 to help attract investment, its energy ministry said. The country has an energy independence strategy, under which it needs to get some 38% of its power from renewables by 2025. [ETEnergyworld.com]
¶ “DB Signs Five-Year Renewable Energy Contract” • German Rail (DB) has signed a five-year contract starting from 2024 for the supply of electricity from the Nordsee-Ost wind farm located off the northwest coast of Germany. The 25-MW contract is the first offshore corporate Power Purchase Agreement in Germany. [International Railway Journal]
German Rail train
¶ “French Nuclear Giant EDF Warns Of Substandard Reactor Parts” • Electricite de France SA, which dominates power production in France, said some of its nuclear reactors are equipped with key components that may be substandard. EDF didn’t say whether any of the country’s 58 nuclear reactors will have to be halted. [Bloomberg]
US:
¶ “PG&E Pledges To Honor Renewable Contracts In Bankruptcy Plan” • Pacific Gas & Electric submitted a reorganization plan that would pledge up to $18 billion to wildfire victims, while it would also allow the California utility to exit bankruptcy by mid-2020. The date is a key deadline for it to take part in a multi-billion dollar state wildfire fund. [Greentech Media]
Sign on PG&E fire safety work (Shutterstock image)
¶ “Sen Elizabeth Warren Pledges Not To Invest In Nuclear Energy And Focus On Renewables Instead” • Not only did Sen Elizabeth Warren pledge at climate town hall meeting to block the construction of new nuclear power plants, she also said she would phase out all nuclear power by 2035 and replace it with renewables. [MassLive.com]
¶ “Nearly 1,000 Amazon Employees Plan A Walkout To Protest Climate Change” • Nearly 1,000 Amazon employees pledged to walk out in protest of what they say is inaction on climate change on the part of their company. The walkout is scheduled for September 20, prior to the week-long international Global Climate Strike. [CNN]
Have a superbly positive day.
geoharvey 