Science and Technology:
¶ “Vanadium Batteries Keep The Energy Flowing For The Telecommunications Industry” • The US Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, announced last year that vanadium flow batteries are “good for grid storage.” There are few places where that may be more evident than in the telecommunications industry. [CleanTechnica]
Vanadium flow battery (Image courtesy StorEn Tech)
World:
¶ “Climate Change: New Fossil Fuel Funding Is ‘Delusional’ Says UN Chief” • Spending money on new coal, oil and gas as a result of the war in Ukraine is “delusional” according to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. He says that our global energy mix is broken, and more coal will only reinforce the “scourge of war, pollution, and climate catastrophe.” [BBC]
¶ “Sri Lanka Gives Government Workers Extra Day Off A Week” • Sri Lanka is giving government officials an extra day off a week to encourage them to grow food, amid fears of a food shortage. Sri Lanka is in the worst economic crisis in 70 years and struggles to pay for critical imports such as food, fuel, and medicine as it faces a severe foreign currency shortage. [BBC]
Situlpawwa, Sri Lanka (Anusara Weerasooriya, Unsplash)
¶ “EU Parliament’s Lead Committees Vote Against Gas And Nuclear In The Green Taxonomy” • Two lead committees of the European Parliament have voted to throw out the European Commission’s sustainable investment taxonomy, which had inexplicably labeled gas as green. They voted by 76 to 62 against greenwashing gas and nuclear. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Canada Post: 14,000 Vehicles To Be Fully Electric By 2040” • Canada Post has earmarked $1 billion to reduce emissions and transform its fleet. Canada Post has 14,000 vehicles and close to 6,000 post offices. It will transform its fleet to non-emitting transportation, with commitments to reach a 50% electric fleet by 2030 and 100% by 2040. [CleanTechnica]
Canada Post vehicle (Jeangagnon, CC-BY-SA 3.0)
¶ “Renewable Energy Delays In 2016 Haunt SA Today” • South Africa could have basically solved load-shedding if it had not stalled critical renewable energy projects in 2016, according to a report by energy advisory firm Meridian Economics. The report says the outlook for SA’s escalating load-shedding problem is worse than generally recognized. [ITWeb]
¶ “BP Takes Stake In Oz Mega-P2X Project” • BP agreed to take an equity stake and be the operator of a huge green hydrogen hub in Western Australia. BP has acquired a 40.5% stake in the Asian Renewable Energy Hub, which will comprise 26 GW of renewable energy capacity (14.5 GW wind and 11.5 GW solar) plus 12.5 GW of electrolyser capacity. [reNews]
Western Australia (BP image)
US:
¶ “Across The US, A Day Of Extreme Weather Prompts Heat Warnings, Severe Flooding, And Power Outages” • All entrances to Yellowstone Park are closed due to flooding. Storms in the Ohio area left hundreds of thousands without power. The heat wave in the Southwest is moving to Mid-America, putting 125 million under a heat advisory. [CNN]
¶ “Wind And Solar Power Are ‘Bailing Out’ Texas Amid Record Heat And Energy Demand” • Texans are cranking on the air conditioning this week amid an unusually early heat wave, setting new records for electricity demand in the state. But the grid is holding up well, largely because solar and windpower are covering 40% of the demand. [CNN]
Azure Sky wind farm (Enel Green Power image)
¶ “Arizona’s Pipeline Fire Has Burned More Than 20,000 Acres In Two Days” • Arizona’s Pipeline Fire, about six miles from Flagstaff, has scorched more than 20,000 acres, about four times the area it was on Monday afternoon, according to Coconino National Forest officials. It was at 0% containment as of Tuesday afternoon, a press release said. [CNN] (Please note: ‘Pipeline’ is just the fire’s name. It does not mean a pipeline is on fire.)
¶ “Nikola Gets $185,000 Incentive Boost, Way Ahead Of Tesla” • Just weeks after announcing that early customers had begun taking delivery of Nikola’s Tre battery-electric semi trucks, the brand has announced that its trucks have officially qualified for massive incentives in the State of New York. The incentives can be worth up to $185,000 per truck. [CleanTechnica]
Nicola electric truck (Nicola image)
¶ “House Approves Ruggiero Bill Requiring 100% Of RI’s Electricity To Be Offset By Renewable Energy By 2033” • Rhode Island’s House of Representatives voted in favor of legislation to increase the state’s renewable energy supply by requiring that 100% of its electricity by offset by renewable production by 2033. The Senate has passed a similar bill. [What’s Up Newp]
¶ “DOE To Support Clean Energy Transition In 12 Remote And Island Communities” • The DOE announced it will work with 12 remote and island communities to help strengthen their energy infrastructure, reduce the risk of outages, and improve their economic outlook. Among the 12 are communities in Maine and Massachusetts. [Department of Energy]
Aquinnah, Martha’s Vineyard (MV Vacation, Unsplash)
¶ “New Mexico State Land Office Triples Renewable Energy” • Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richard announced that the State Land Office has tripled renewable energy leased on state trust land since 2019, bringing renewable energy production to about 1,200 MW, up from about 400 MW when she took office. [Los Alamos Daily Post]
¶ “NextEra Energy Launches Zero Carbon Ambition” • NextEra Energy has committed to eliminate carbon emissions from its operations by no later than 2045, while leveraging low-cost renewables to provide affordable energy for its customers. Reaching the goal would require “significant investment,” according to the company. [reNews]
Have a beguilingly pleasing day.
geoharvey 