Opinion:
¶ “REpowerEU: Europe’s Chance To Say Bye To Fossil Fuels” • REpowerEU is the EUʼs flagship strategy to reduce its energy dependence on Russia. It is planned for publication on May 18. The strategy provides the perfect opportunity for the EU not only to wean itself off Russia energy but to reduce hugely its demand for fossil energy. [CleanTechnica]
Wind farm (Efe Kurnaz, Unsplash)
¶ “How Europe Could Cut 35% Of Its Transport Oil Demand” • As the EU plans a ban on imports of Russian oil and oil products, a paper assesses how the EU could end the imports by reducing oil demand instead of creating new dependencies on producers that are similarly authoritarian and human rights abusers, such as Saudi Arabia or Iran. [CleanTechnica]
Science and Technology:
¶ “This Solar-Powered Plane Could Stay In The Air For Months” • The solar powered airplane Solar Impulse 2 circumnavigated the Earth powered entirely by sunlight in 2016. In 2019, the airplane was sold to Skydweller Aero, a US-Spanish startup, with the intention of turning the plane into the world’s first commercially viable “pseudo-satellite.” [CNN]
Skydweller taking off (Skydweller Aero Inc)
World:
¶ “Europe Is Planning To Ditch Russia’s Oil. Will It Go After Its Gas?” • Europe has proposed a ban on Russian oil, but has again stopped short of sanctioning Russia’s natural gas, a more potent move. The European Commission’s sixth package of sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, would phase out all crude and oil products by the end of the year. [CNN]
¶ “New Law In France: Green Roofs On All New Commercial Buildings” • The French Parliament approved a law requiring all new commercial buildings to partially have their roofs covered with plants or solar panels. The law will apply to all new buildings in commercial zones. Environmentalists had wanted the roofs to be completely covered by greenery. [CleanTechnica]
Green roof in Paris (cocoparisienne, Pixabay)
¶ “UK Plugin Share 16.2%, BEVs Grow 66% YOY, Supplies Can’t Keep Up” • The UK market saw plugin electric vehicles take 16.2% share in April, up from 13.2% YOY. Full battery electrics grew strongly YOY, while plugin hybrids fell. Overall auto volumes were down over 25% from pre-pandemic seasonal norms, at 119,167 units. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Volvo, Alison Seek To Clean Up Diesel Truck Emissions With Electric Drivetrains” • Volvo Trucks says it will work with Bucher Municipal to electrify sewer cleaner trucks. By the end of 2023, the two companies expect to deliver up to 80 fully electric sewer cleaner trucks to cities in Europe. Bucher is a leading supplier of municipal street vehicles. [CleanTechnica]
Volvo electric sewer cleaning truck (Volvo Trucks)
¶ “Energy Vault Signs Deal With India For Gravity-Based Energy Storage” • Indian utility NTPC Ltd and Energy Vault, based in Switzerland, signed a memorandum of understanding to forge a long-term strategic partnership for EVx gravity-based energy storage technology and software solutions to support its clean energy initiatives. [pv magazine Australia]
US:
¶ “Drought Expands In The Southwest, Worsening The Region’s Fire Risk And Water Crisis” • Drought conditions worsened in much of the Southwest over the past week, according to the latest update from the US Drought Monitor, deepening the region’s water crisis and fueling record-setting wildfires. More than 98% of the Southwest is in drought this week. [CNN]
Drought in the US on May 3 (droughtmonitor.unl.edu)
Please click on the image to enlarge it.
¶ “DOJ Announces New Office To Enforce Laws Around Climate Crisis, Toxic Pollution” • Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that the Justice Department is opening an office specializing in environmental justice efforts. The Office of Environmental Justice is part of a strategy to prioritize the issue, with a focus on the climate crisis. [CNN]
¶ “Foundational Agrivoltaic Research For Megawatt Scale” • The DOE’s Solar Energy Technologies Office has announced the Foundational Agrivoltaic Research for Megawatt Scale (FARMS) funding opportunity, which will award $8 million in funding for projects that examine how agrivoltaics can be scaled up for new opportunities. [CleanTechnica] (Horrible acronym!)
FARMS publication (Solar Energy Technologies Office)
¶ “Offshore Wind Can Be The Future Of Renewable Energy In South Carolina” • The Carolinas could get all their energy from offshore wind. North and South Carolina could capture enough wind off the coast that they could abandon all other sources of energy, if everything were converted to run on electricity, an Environment America report says. [WSPA]
¶ “BOEM Completes California Offshore Environmental Study” • The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management concluded offshore wind energy activities will have no significant environmental impact in the Humboldt Wind Energy Area, off the coast of northern California. The finding follows a BOEM review of potential environmental impacts. [reNews]
Humboldt Bay (Humboldt Bay HR&C District)
¶ “Ohio Democratic Party Sues DeWine Over FirstEnergy, Nuclear Bailout Law Records” • The Ohio Democratic Party filed a lawsuit against Gov Mike DeWine’s administration, saying it is breaking the state’s public records law by providing documents with information blacked out. The documents relate to a nuclear bailout corruption scandal. [The Statehouse News Bureau]
¶ “Site Of Retired Iowa Nuclear Plant To Become A Solar Farm” • Iowa’s only nuclear power plant shut down in 2020. Now there are plans to build the state’s biggest solar farm on and around the site. It will include enough solar photovoltaic panels to power tens of thousands of homes and batteries to store energy for times when it’s needed. [Yale Climate Connections]
Have a stunningly beautiful day.
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