Science and Technology:
¶ “Scientists Are Growing Sustainable Buildings From Fungi Now” • The age of energy-sucking, carbon-emitting concrete is still upon us, but more sustainable building materials are starting to emerge. The latest development is mycocrete, a fungal paste that can be injected into textile molds. That may not sound very appetizing, but neither is concrete. [CleanTechnica]
Fungal shape (Hub for Biotechnology in the Built Environment)
¶ “Solar Farms Out At Sea: Clean Energy’s Next Breakthrough” • There are numerous challenges still to overcome for solar farms on the ocean. They include high costs, destructive winds, and corrosive salts. Yet developers are increasingly confident that offshore solar power can become a significant new segment in renewable energy. [Gulf Business]
World:
¶ “John Kerry To Step Into Searing China Heat As World’s Two Biggest Polluters Try To Fix Fractured Ties” • When John Kerry arrives in Beijing to restart climate negotiations, he will step off the plane into one of the hottest summers ever recorded in the city. Since 1951, Beijing has seen 104°F (40°C) on 11 days, almost half of which were in the past few weeks. [CNN]
Beijing (Henry Chen, Unsplash)
¶ “Can US And China Set Aside Rivalry For Climate Action?” • Mr Kerry, the US special envoy on climate, is the latest top official to be dispatched from Washington after visits by Antony Blinken and Janet Yellen, as the US seeks to restart stalled relations with Beijing. He will meet his Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua and other officials on his four-day trip. [BBC]
¶ “Electric Buses For The Hague, Cracow, Aarhus, Novi Sad, And Novi Ruda” • Electric bus delivery stories used to be few and far between. Now, you can get multiple stories a week! There are so many stories showing up that several are coming in one article. That is at least partly because Europe is supposed to reach 100% zero-emissions buses by 2030. [CleanTechnica]
Mercedes-Benz eCitaro (Courtesy of Daimler)
¶ “BYD Battery News – $1 Billion Factory In India, Sodium-Ion Batteries In China” • According to Reuters, BYD has submitted a $1 billion investment proposal to build electric cars and batteries in India in partnership with a local company, Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructures, three people with direct knowledge said. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Australia Annual Renewables Share Ticks Over To 37%, Lot More Needed” • The share of renewable energy in Australia’s main grid went to 37% for a rolling 12 month period for the first time, showing strong growth in recent years. The renewables share was 13.6% just 10 years ago. But more needs to be done by the end of the decade. [Renew Economy]
The 6-MW Rye Park wind turbine (Tilt Renewables image)
¶ “Germany Plans Hydrogen Use For Heating And Mobility In Strategy Update” • The German government wants to use hydrogen for decarbonising road transport and heating, in addition to industry, according to a highly anticipated revamp of the national hydrogen strategy, which was leaked to business daily Handelsblatt. [Hydrogen Central]
¶ “Top UK Energy Firms To Warn Rishi Sunak: ‘Don’t Back Off Green Agenda’” • More than 100 of the UK’s biggest energy companies will tell Rishi Sunak this week not to back off the green agenda after an Office for Budget Responsibility report warned of catastrophic effects on the economy of continued overreliance on gas. [The Guardian]
Solar panels (Andreas Gücklhorn, Unsplash)
¶ “Iberdrola Reaches 41,246 MW Of Solar And Wind Power” • Iberdrola reinforced its commitment to the energy transition, with data published today by the National Securities Market Commission showing the company has increased its renewables installed capacity by 6.5% worldwide in the last 12 months, to reach a total of 41,246 MW. [Evwind]
¶ “Russia Invites Residents Of Enerhodar Near Zaporizhzhia NPP To Move To Far East” • Russians have urged the Ukrainian citizens in Enerhodar, the city closest to Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, to relocate to Russia’s far East. Russia reportedly asked the people to leave at least 18 settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region ahead of the Ukrainian offensive. [Republic TV]
Enerhodar (Федя Кузнецов, CC-BY-SA 4.0)
US:
¶ “US Heatwave: ‘Dangerous’ Temperatures Could Set New Records” • Parts of the US are likely to see record temperatures on Sunday, with warnings of “dangerous” heat levels into next week across the south-west. On Saturday, an all-time high of 118°F (48°C) was recorded in Phoenix, where temperatures hit 110°F (43°C) for 16 days running. [BBC]
¶ “Will Texas Become Too Hot For Humans?” • The EPA is warning that in the coming decades Texas summers are likely to be “increasingly hot and dry, creating problems for agriculture and possibly human health.” The agency predicts that seventy years from now, Texas will have days above 100°F (38°C) three or four times as often as it does now. [BBC]
Austen (MJ Tangonan, Unsplash)
¶ “USDA Investing Millions In Renewable Energy In Nebraska” • The US Department of Agriculture Rural Development said Nebraska will get $21 million in grants to help small businesses and agricultural producers access federal funds for renewable energy and energy efficiency upgrades. They will come through the Rural Energy for America Program. [KLKN-TV]
¶ “EIA Predicts Record-Breaking Natural Gas Consumption In US” • The US Energy Information Administration has forecast record natural gas consumption in the US in July and August, largely due to demand for air conditioning. The EIA predicts a 4% increase in US electricity generation from natural gas, compared to the same period last year. [GreentechLead]
Have a significantly clement day.
geoharvey 
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