Opinion:
¶ “Australian Politicians Working Hard To Destroy The Planet” • In the lead-up to COP26, while Prime Minister Scott Morrison is facing greater and greater international pressure to set a net zero emissions target for 2050, members of his government are working hard to make sure he can’t. Mushrooms with their heads in the sand. [CleanTechnica]
Blue Mountains, New South Wales (Jacques Bopp, Unsplash)
¶ “Car Industry And WHO Driving In Opposite Directions” • Europe’s car lobby is using misinformation and dirty tricks to oppose new air pollution standards, just as the World Health Organisation is saying air pollution limits should be much stricter. T&E says citizens’ health will suffer for decades if the EU caves in to car industry demands. [CleanTechnica]
Science and Technology:
¶ “First ESS Iron Flow Battery To Go Online This Month” • Iron flow batteries use three of the most abundant elements on Earth: iron, salt, and water, but their technology is new. ESS, based in Oregon, has products ready to go and has signed a deal with SB Energy, a division of SoftBank, to provide 2 GWh of its iron flow batteries between now and 2026. [CleanTechnica]
Flow batteries (Image courtesy of ESS Inc)
¶ “Lack Of Access To Fresh Water Is Increasing. Can Hydropanels Help?” • Nearly half the world’s population lacks consistent access to fresh water for drinking, irrigation, and basic sanitation, according to the latest report from the World Meteorological Organization. Rising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns are making things much worse. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “German EV Rental Car Company Makes Tesla Its Only Brand” • ElektroHub is a German battery EV rental company that once offered a variety of EVs. It is now changing its selection to only renting out Tesla vehicles. Alex Voigt shared a video on Twitter about this and added that he sharply criticizes auto makers for offering inferior battery EVs. [CleanTechnica]
Screenshot from video about ElektroHub (Image via YouTube)
¶ “A Global Energy Crisis Is Coming. There’s No Quick Fix” • A global energy crunch caused by weather and a resurgence in demand is getting worse, stirring alarm ahead of the winter heating season. Governments around the world are trying to limit the impact on consumers, but acknowledge they may not be able to prevent bills spiking. [CNN]
¶ “GE Renewable Energy To Supply Wind Turbines For JSW’s Projects” • GE Renewable Energy will supply 810 MW of onshore wind turbines for JSW Energy’s projects in India. JSW selected GE’s 2.7 MW model, which is ideally suited for Tamil Nadu’s wind speed regime. The supply of the turbines will be completed by the first quarter of 2023. [Mercom India]
Wind turbines (Rabih Shasha, Unsplash)
¶ “FG To Electrify 5 Million Homes, Create 250,000 Jobs With Renewable Energy” • The Federal Government of Nigeria has said it will electrify five million homes before 2023. The project, Energy Compact, which is a renewable energy solution to some of the nation’s electric power needs, would also create 250,000 jobs and impact 25 million people. [The Sun Nigeria]
¶ “UAE Becomes First Gulf State To Commit To Net Zero. Oil Will Still Flow” • The United Arab Emirates is the first country in the Persian Gulf to commit to net zero carbon emissions by 2050. But it’s not turning its back on oil just yet. Dubai’s ruler said that the UAE will invest 600 billion dirhams ($163 billion) in renewable energy as part of the commitment. [CNN]
Dubai (David Rodrigo, Unsplash)
¶ “As Power Woes Loom, India’s Nuclear Reactors Fail To Provide Solar-Like Success ” • The recent coal crisis has raised an alarm as over 60% of the electricity produced in India is derived from thermal power plants, and thus from coal. There has been a great increase of wind and solar power to reduce dependence on coal, but nuclear energy seems stagnant. [India Today]
US:
¶ “Puerto Rico’s Power Grid In ‘Critical Condition’: Officials Fear Complete Collapse” • Puerto Rico is in the process of declaring a state of emergency due to the “critical condition” of its generating power plants. The declaration would help speed up “the acquisition of essential goods and services required to fix their generation units.” [NBC News]
Tangled power lines in Puerto Rico (Lorie Shaull, CC-BY-SA 2.0)
¶ “Google Will Prevent Climate Change Deniers From Making Money From Ads” • Google said it will no longer allow ads to appear alongside “content that contradicts well-established scientific consensus around the existence and causes of climate change.” Google will also prohibit advertisements that deny the reality of climate change. [CNN]
¶ “Hundreds Of Scientists Tell Biden: Halt Development Of Fossil Fuels Now” • More than 330 US research scientists sent a letter to President Biden urging him to use executive authority to stop all new fossil fuel projects and declare a climate emergency, actions they say are necessary to avoid the worst damages of the climate crisis. [Food & Water Watch]
Oil rig (Worksite Ltd, Unsplash)
¶ “US Solar Industry Frozen By Proposed Tariffs On Modules: Swinerton Renewable Chief” • US solar development is virtually frozen while the Commerce Department decides on proposed tariffs that could spike module costs up to 250% and prevent domestic clean energy goals from being reached, the president of a top solar contractor says. [S&P Global]
¶ “Southern, Duke, PJM, Others Call For More Transmission, Coordination To Handle Renewables Surge” • Eastern Interconnection grid operators and planners including Southern Co, Duke Energy and the PJM Interconnection called for more transmission and coordination to help meet renewable energy goals in a white paper. [Utility Dive]
Have a majestically cool day.
geoharvey 