Opinion:
¶ “Black Mass, Black Gold, And The Truth About EV Battery Recycling” • Detractors are quick to point out the shortcomings of EVs, not the least of which being the massive carbon cost of mining metals needed for them, such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese. But those detractors are missing a critical bit of information: battery recycling. [CleanTechnica]
Battery materials (Courtesy of RecycLiCo Battery Materials)
¶ “Georgia’s New Nuclear Reactors A Cautionary Tale” • Electric monopoly Georgia Power hailed the recent Vogtle construction as an “American energy success story.” While nuclear energy is impressive, the Vogtle project has been an absolute mess. It’s less of an American success story and more of a boondoggle that should serve as a cautionary tale. [R Street Institute]
¶ “The US And China Must Unite To Fight The Climate Crisis, Not Each Other” • Climate change is a global crisis and cannot be solved by any one country alone. If the US, China, and other industrialized countries do not come together to dramatically decrease greenhouse gas emissions, the world [will become] uninhabitable. [Senator Bernie Sanders]
Wildfire (Tim Mossholder, Pexels)
Science and Technology:
¶ “Peer Reviewed Research Confirms ClearVue Solar Window Benefits” • ClearVue, based in Perth, Australia, makes PV solar windows. In a two-year study of ClearVue windows installed in the roof and vertical walls of greenhouse at Murdoch University, researchers found that ClearVue’s clear solar glazing produces consistent energy generation. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Multi-Day Energy Storage Increases Grid Capacity By Factor Of Ten” • Form Energy announced it has been awarded a $12 million grant from NYSERDA for a 10-MW, 1000-MWh pilot battery project in New York by 2026. This will be Form Energy’s first grid-scale project in New York. Similar projects are going up in Colorado and Minnesota. [pv magazine USA]
Form Energy battery (Form Energy image)
World:
¶ “Japan Will Start Releasing Treated Radioactive Water This Week. Here’s What We Know” • After months of controversy and anticipation, Japan is set to begin releasing treated radioactive wastewater from its Fukushima nuclear plant later this week despite fierce objections from some countries. The plan has been in the works for years. [CNN]
¶ “Kelowna: Cooler Weather Brings Hope As Firefighters Make Progress” • Officials said firefighters have made some progress aided by cooler weather but the “battle is not over.” Blazes from hundreds of fires have driven over 30,000 people from their homes. Some firefighters are working even after discovering that they have lost their homes to the fires. [BBC]
Kelowna in 2019 (Lewin Bormann, CC-BY-SA 2.0)
¶ “Volkswagen Begins ID.7 Production At Upgraded Emden Factory” • In a press release on August 21, 2023, Volkswagen announced the symbolic start of production of the ID.7 at the company’s newly revamped and upgraded factory in Emden, a city in the northwest corner of the country not far from the border with the Netherlands. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Zimbabwe Declares That Load-Shedding Has Ended, But There Is Still A Lot Of Work To Do!” • After a very frustrating period of prolonged load-shedding, providing electricity only from midnight to 4:00 am, Zimbabwe declared the end of electricity rationing. This follows construction of two 300-MW coal-powered plants. [CleanTechnica]
The Kariba Dam (Courtesy of Zambezi River Authority)
¶ “Fukushima: Wastewater From Ruined Nuclear Plant To Be Released From Thursday, Japan Says” • Japan is to start release of wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant on August 24, in defiance of fishing communities, China, and some scientists. The plan has caused controversy because the water contains tritium. [The Guardian]
US:
¶ “In Maui And Across America, Climate Change And Extreme Weather Are Hurting Housing Affordability” • For people on Maui and across the US, climate change is making the affordable housing crunch worse. In many cases, Americans have sought affordable homes in areas that are in greater risk of hurricanes, floods, extreme heat and wildfires. [CNN]
¶ “Tropical Storm Harold Is Heading Toward South Texas, Threatening Floods And Dangerous Storm Surge” • A tropical depression in the Gulf of Mexico has strengthened into a tropical storm as it continues to churn towards South Texas, where residents were bracing for heavy rain, flooding, powerful winds, and dangerous rip currents. [CNN]
¶ “Storm Hilary: Flooding Cuts Off Palm Springs” • Hilary, the first tropical storm to hit southern California in 84 years, cut off the desert city of Palm Springs after dumping a year’s worth of rain. Flooding closed major roads in and out of Palm Springs after 3.18 in (8 cm) of rain fell. Death Valley National Park got a full year’s worth of rain in one day. [BBC]
Predicted Flooding (Andrew Orrison, Weather Prediction Center)
¶ “Biden Tours ‘Overwhelming’ Hawaii Wildfire Damage” • Pres Joe Biden toured wildfire damage in Hawaii, arriving in Maui on Monday, 13 days after the deadliest US wildfire in over a century. He told survivors the nation “grieves with you.” As Mr Biden and First Lady Jill Biden toured the charred ruins, at least 114 people have died and 850 people are missing. [BBC]
¶ “‘Adding Insult To Injury:’ RI Needs Renewable Energy” • We recently hit a snafu when Rhode Island Energy rejected Ørsted’s proposal for the 880-MW Revolution Wind 2 project because costs “were ultimately deemed too expensive for customers to bear.” Just a few days later, Rhode Island Energy announced a 24% hike in electricity rates. [ecoRI News]
Have a quintessentially flawless day.
geoharvey 
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