Opinion:
¶ “Why The US Is So Horribly Incapable Of Meaningful Climate Action” • Runways are melting in the UK. Lakes are drying up in the US. Fires are raging all over. But the US government is frozen in time. For now, while the climate crisis continues, the biggest plans to fight it are on ice. There are many reasons for this, and there’s plenty of blame to go around. [CNN]
Dry river bed (Markus Spiske, Unsplash)
¶ “Your Electric Bills Are Skyrocketing. Blame Our Failure To Invest In Renewable Energy” • Utilities that generate power from natural gas and coal face fuel costs two or three times as high as they were just a couple of years ago. Those costs are passed on to customers. The increase will depend on how much your utility generates from fossil fuels. [Virginia Mercury]
Science and Technology:
¶ “Greener Pastures: Can Ancient Eco-Engineering Help Fix Our Degraded Landscapes?” • Land management is one of the key issues facing the planet in the 21st century. As a result of climate change droughts are becoming longer and more intense and severe flooding is getting worse. But the land can be restored by use of old techniques. [CNN]
Restoration from 2018 to 2020 (Courtesy of Justdiggit)
World:
¶ “UK Heatwave: Hottest Day On Record Likely With Highs Of Up To 42°C” • The UK’s current record high temperature of 38.7°C (101.7°F) was set in 2019. A high of 38.1°C was reached in Suffolk on Monday, but it is getting hotter. The UK is set to see its hottest day on record, with temperatures on Tuesday expected to reach up to 42°C (107.6°F). [BBC]
¶ “Hot Records Are Outpacing Cool By More Than 10-To-1 This Year As Europe And US Brace For Dangerous Heat” • Records for high temperatures are far outpacing cool records worldwide this year as Europe and the US brace again for dangerous heat waves. Globally, 188 all-time heat records were broken this year versus 18 records for cold weather. [CNN]
Dry weather (Wolfgang Hasselmann, Unsplash)
¶ “ACT First State In Australia To Ban Conventional Cars” • The Australian Capitol Territory announced that the sale of new cars and light trucks with internal combustion engines within the ACT will be prohibited beginning in 2035. To ramp up to that goal, at least 80% of new light vehicles sold in the ACT are to be zero-emission models by 2030. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Australia’s Environment In ‘Shocking’ Decline, Report Finds” • Australia’s environment is in a shocking state and faces further decline from amplifying threats, the latest five-year survey of Australia’s ecological systems says. The declining condition can be blamed on climate change, habitat loss, invasive species, pollution, and mining. [BBC]
Australian outback (Tarryn Myburgh, Unsplash)
¶ “GreenZo To Develop 50-MW Green Hydrogen Capacity In Nepal” • India’s GreenZo Energy has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Nepal-based renewable power producer API Power to develop 50 MW of green hydrogen capacity in Nepal. It will install green hydrogen plants at various locations in Nepal over three years. [pv magazine India]
¶ “Siemens Gamesa Bags 277-MW Swedish Wind Order” • The 277-MW Kölvallen wind project in Sweden will have 42 Siemens Gamesa turbines, each of 6.6 MW capacity. Siemens Gamesa is working with Arise and Foresight Group on the project. It is due to be installed in early 2025, close to the Skaftåsen project, which is currently being installed. [reNews]
Wind farm in Sweden (Siemens Gamesa image)
¶ “Macron Pays Out £8.2 Billion To Nationalize EDF – And Faces Even Bigger Bill To Fix Nuclear Fleet” • The French Government agreed to buy out EDF at about €12 (£10.2, $12) per share, for the 16% it does not own. The company has immense debts, as nuclear reactor flaws and cost overruns on nuclear plants in France and Britain have cost billions of euros. [Daily Express]
¶ “Iberdrola Opens 1.1-GW Portuguese Pumped Hydro” • The 1158-MW Tamega Giga Battery pumped storage hydroelectric facility in Portugal was commissioned by Iberdrola. The €1.5 billion Tamega plant can store 40 GWh, enough energy for 11 million people during 24 hours in their homes. It is in northern Portugal on the Tamega river. [reNews]
Iberdrola pumped hydro plant (Iberdrola image)
US:
¶ “Bernie Sanders Just Accused Joe Manchin Of ‘Intentionally Sabotaging’ Joe Biden’s Agenda” • As West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin plays for more time to consider a climate and tax legislative package, his colleagues are venting their frustrations with him and his tactics. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders made a statement that reflects this. [CNN]
¶ “US Senate Democrats Urge Biden To Declare Climate Emergency” • Two US Senate Democrats, Sheldon Whitehouse and Jeff Merkley, urged President Joe Biden to declare a climate emergency and use the Defense Production Act to ramp up production of a wide range of renewable energy products and systems including solar panels. [MSN]
US Capitol Building (Andy Feliciotti, Unsplash)
¶ “Zinc-Air Energy Storage Race Just Got Hotter, Too” • The Canadian battery maker Zinc8 Energy Solutions has been trialing a new rechargeable zinc-air battery in New York State. Earlier this month it let out the word that the company is also considering the Empire State as home base for its new battery manufacturing plant. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Governor Hochul Announces Charging Discount Programs For EV Drivers Across New York” • Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the State Public Service Commission approved New York’s investor-owned utilities’ active and passive-managed programs to charge EVs. This is a key element in developing New York’s EV infrastructure. [CleanTechnica]
Have a certifiably marvelous day.
geoharvey 