Opinion:
¶ “The FUD Against Global Warming Lives On” • FUD – Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt – about global warming persists, despite the science being solid for decades. Whenever scientific evidence challenges the revenues of large corporations, a strategy has been cooked up and continually used to obscure the truth of the new evidence. It’s still happening. [CleanTechnica]
Atmospheric CO₂ at Mauna Loa Observatory (NOAA image)
¶ “Why ‘Bio’ And ‘Green’ Don’t Mean What You Think” • The rising public enthusiasm for climate action has led to a surge in corporate climate claims, making it increasingly difficult for consumers to distinguish between good environmental practices and misleading statements, including a practice now referred to as “greenwashing.” [BBC]
¶ “Creating A One-Stop Shop For Whole-Home Retrofits” • To decarbonize the US building stock, we must start by ensuring that low-income residents have easy access to healthy, safe, and climate-aligned housing. Funding from the US DOE, provides a momentous opportunity for communities in the US to deliver retrofits for low-income housing. [CleanTechnica]
Apartment building (Brandon Griggs, Unsplash)
¶ “Dire warning on climate change ‘is being ignored’ amid war and economic turmoil” • Scientists fear that their last-ditch climate warnings are going unheeded. The third segment of the scientific report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will be published. The fear is it will be ignored with the war in Ukraine and high energy prices. [The Guardian]
Science and Technology:
¶ “New Sulfur Battery Promises 300% More EV Range” • German startup Theion is promising a new sulfur battery technology that could help mainstream electric cars offer 900 miles of range on a single charge. The best part? Compared to lithium, sulfur uses much less energy to produce and costs just pennies on the dollar to source. [CleanTechnica]
Natural sulfur crystal (Didier Descouens, CC-BY-SA 4.0)
World:
¶ “Norway At New Record High 92% Plugin EV Share” • Norway’s combined plugin result of 91.9% was overwhelmingly comprised of full battery electrics at a record of 86.1% of sales. Plugin hybrid vehicles contributed just 5.8%. All other powertrains were less than half of that, with petrol-only internal combustion engines taking just 2.8%. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “As Energy Prices Soar, UK Faces A Cucumber Crisis” • Growers of vegetables in UK greenhouses are facing a problem because of high energy costs due to the high price of natural gas. A year ago, paid 40 to 50 pence per therm for natural gas, or about 65¢. Last week, it was £2.25, or nearly $3. The costs of fertilizer and labor have also soared. [MarketScreener]
Cucumbers (Jonathan Pielmayer, Unsplash)
¶ “India Is Set To Miss Renewables Goal For 2022” • From curbing emissions to increasing forest cover, India has often boasted about making progress toward its pledges under the 2015 Paris climate change accord. But officials have kept quiet about renewable energy. That may be because India is on track to miss its goal for renewable energy. [Regina Leader Post]
¶ “Ukraine Hoists National Flag Above Chernobyl Nuclear Plant After Russian Troops’ Departure” • Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, Energoatom, a nuclear power company in Ukraine, announced in a statement on Telegram, “Today, April 2, at 11:00, the Ukrainian flag was raised over the Chernobyl NPP and the anthem was sung,” CNN reported. [Republic World]
Chernobyl nuclear plant (Viktor Hesse, Unsplash)
US:
¶ “Tesla Delivered Over 300,000 EVs In Q1 2022” • In Q1 2022, Tesla once again proved its naysayers and critics wrong. Tesla announced earlier today that it produced over 305,000 vehicles and delivered over 310,000 in the first quarter of 2022 while facing the challenges of the ongoing supply chain hurdles and factory shutdowns. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Five Grid Plans To Cut Fossil Fuel Dependence” • The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is in the midst of proposing new transmission planning rules. While these reforms are open for discussion, it would be useful to take a close look at the five regional US grid operators’ recent practices to see what FERC should include in its new rules. [CleanTechnica]
Solar array in California (Courtesy of Sempra Energy)
¶ “Buzz Solutions Takes Out 50% Of Grid Inspection Image Effort And Duration” • Buzz Solutions has a platform for utilities to analyze, store, and manage the increasing load of inspection images of transmission and distribution assets. Its CEO took interest in energy when she was involved in the fight to close the San Onofre nuclear plant. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Dangerous Combination of Intense Wildfires and Extreme Rainfall Likely to Happen More Often” • The dangers of extreme wildfires followed by torrential rainfall leading to deadly flooding and landslides will likely become more common in western US as the world becomes warmer, according to a study in the journal Science Advances. [The Weather Channel]
Deluge on the way (Jim Witkowski, Unsplash)
¶ “Can Texas Replace Coal With Wind And Solar Power?” • How likely is a scenario in which renewables overtake coal in the US, and where will all of that renewable energy come from? It could be coming sooner than you think. According to research from Rice University, Texas could replace nearly 100% of its coal output with wind and solar. [Oil Price]
¶ “Fossil Fuel Protest Held In Northampton Against Banks” • In Northampton, Massachusetts, local organizations held a protest to target TD and Bank of America over climate destruction. Area groups including Climate Action Now had members demanding that the banks stop funding, insuring, and investing in climate destruction. [Western Mass News]
Have a fondly memorable day.
geoharvey 
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