Science and Technology:
¶ “Megawatt Electrical Motor Designed By MIT Engineers Could Help Electrify Aviation” • To electrify large commercial airliners, megawatt-scale motors are required. To meet this need, a team of MIT engineers is now creating a 1-MW motor, to be powered by a battery or fuel cell, that could be a key stepping stone toward electrifying larger aircraft. [CleanTechnica]
Airbus electric and hybrid airplane designs (Airbus image)
¶ “Big Test Coming For Hydrogen Fuel Cells At Sea” • The jury is still out on hydrogen fuel cell passenger cars, but just about every other means of conveyance is fair game, including racing yachts. The clean tech accelerator OceansLab has announced plans to showcase hydrogen fuel cells in high profile races, with an eye on decarbonizing ships. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “What Attacks Have There Been On Dams?” • Ukraine has accused Russian forces of blowing up the Kakhovka dam. The Russian authorities have accused Ukraine of shelling it. The Kakhovka dam is one of a number that supply Ukraine with 10% of its electricity. A number of them have been attacked by Russia. Such attacks may be war crimes. [BBC]
Dnieper hydro station (Olga Drobiazgina, CC-BY-SA 4.0, cropped)
¶ “Canada Wildfire Crews Try To Control The Uncontrollable” • Hazardous smoke from Canadian wildfires blanketed large parts of North America last week. The government says Canada is on course for its worst year for wildfires on record. In Quebec, over 120 fires are burning, and fire crews are battling an element that always surprises. [BBC]
¶ “Transformer Launched And Yewt Getting Closer – New Electric Vehicles In Australia” • Australian vehicle maker ACE is establishing an electric vehicle industry in that country. ACE has already launched its transformer van, and expects to bring its yewt to market in 2024. (“Yewt,” or “ute,” is Australian for “utility vehicle,” or pickup.) [CleanTechnica]
Ace Yewt (Courtesy of Ace EV)
¶ “Fair Cape Dairy Spurred By Its Renewable Energy Projects Explores Biogas To Fuel Its Delivery Vehicles” • Fair Cape Dairy is one of countless businesses in South Africa that have been forced to turn to alternative energy sources. Apart from benefits for the environment, its renewable energy systems have begun to make it more competitive. [IOL]
¶ “Massive Clean Energy Investments Propel China’s Energy Transition” • China is racing toward decarbonization at a rate that few could have predicted. China is still burning more fossil fuels than almost any other country , but its turbocharged clean energy sector bodes well for a cleaner future for the nation and the world. [Oil Price]
Solar panels (Thomas Coker, Unsplash)
¶ “Last Reactor At Ukraine’s Biggest Nuclear Power Plant Shut Down For Safety” • Ukraine’s nuclear energy agency says the last operating reactor at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been put into a ‘cold shutdown’ for safety. The other five reactors at the plant, which is occupied by Russian forces, are already in cold shutdown. [Metro UK]
US:
¶ “New York City Will Charge Drivers Going Downtown. Other Cities May Be Next” • New York City is moving ahead with a landmark program to toll vehicles entering Lower Manhattan. The Federal Highway Administration signed off on the release of an environmental assessment, and the public review period is ending on Monday. [CNN]
Manhattan (Jenin Abumazen, Unsplash)
¶ “Cities Across The Northeast Experience Better Air Quality As Hazardous Wildfire Smoke Subsides” • Sorely missed blue skies are returning and cities across the northeastern US have better air quality after the monstrous cloud of smoke from the wildfires in Canada dissipates. The area of Canada that has burned so far is more than twice the size of New Jersey. [CNN]
¶ “New York Protects “The Birds And The Bees” With Nation-Leading Legislation” • The New York State Legislature has passed the Birds and Bees Protection Act, a first-in-the-nation bill that would rein in the use of neurotoxic neonicotinoid pesticides, banning most use of neonics in the state. The bill is now heads to Governor Hochul for her signature. [CleanTechnica]
Beekeeper (Annie Spratt, Unsplash)
¶ “Youth Environmentalists Are Bringing Montana Climate Case To Trial After 12 Years, Seeking to Set A Precedent” • Whether a constitutional right to a healthy, livable climate is protected by state law is at the center of a lawsuit going to trial Monday in Montana. Sixteen young plaintiffs and their attorneys hope to set an important legal precedent. [USNews.com]
¶ “Governor Launches New Climate-Focused Forestry Initiative” • The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced an initiative to ensure Massachusetts’ forests are managed to optimize carbon sequestration and mitigate climate harms as part of meeting the state’s aggressive climate goals, which include net-zero statewide greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. [iBerkshires.com]
Have a generously enriched day.
geoharvey 