Opinion:
¶ “I’m A Climate Scientist. If You Knew What I Know, You’d Be Terrified Too” • If seening our once stable climate break doesn’t terrify you, then you don’t fully understand it. As far as we know, our world has never – in its entire history – heated up as rapidly as it is doing now. Nor have atmospheric greenhouse gas levels ever seen such a precipitous hike. [CNN]
Climatology ship (NOAA image via Unsplash)
¶ “SEC Climate Emission Disclosure Rules Are Only A Small Step Forward” • The SEC voted 3-2 to issue a final rule about climate disclosures, establishing a framework floor for some publicly listed companies. It requires a baseline transparency around climate risks and emissions, but only certain companies, and only Scope 1 and 2 emissions. [CleanTechnica]
Science and Technology:
¶ “The Planet Just Shattered Heat Records For The Ninth Month In A Row” • Last month was the hottest February on record. Each of the last nine months set a record for heat, Copernicus’ data shows. February was 1.77°C warmer than the average February in pre-industrial times. The last twelve month period was 1.56°C above pre-industrial levels. [CNN]
Dog on a hot day (Akanda Kilicarslan, Unsplash)
¶ “PIK Researchers Devise Ways To Protect An Electrical Grid From More Powerful Storms” • Researchers at the Potsdam Institute For Climate Impact Research, using a computer model of the Texas electrical grid, say they found a way to guard against widespread power outages from more powerful storms by better protecting a few critical grid components. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “Crude Oil Processing In China Hit A Record High in 2023” • Crude oil processing, or refinery runs, in China averaged 14.8 million barrels per day in 2023, which is an all-time high. The record processing came as the economy and refinery capacity grew in China following the country’s COVID-19 pandemic responses in 2022. [CleanTechnica]
Oil tanker (Etienne Girardet, Unsplash)
¶ “Nearly Half The Electricity Produced In The Netherlands Is Now Renewable” • Between May and July of 2023, over half of the electricity generated in the Netherlands was from renewable sources. It was as high as 57% in July. For the whole year, 48% of electricity was generated from renewable sources such as solar, wind, and water. [Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek]
¶ “UK Onshore Wind Capacity Hits 15 GW” • Now, with the installation of EDF Renewables UK’s 30.1-MW West Benhar wind farm in North Lanarkshire, there are 15,000 MW of operational onshore wind capacity in the UK, and there are 2,631 operating onshore wind farms across the land. Onshore wind now provides 11% of Britain’s electricity. [reNews]
Wind turbines (EDF Renewables image)
¶ “Russia And China Are Jointly Pursuing Plans To Establish A Nuclear Power Plant On The Moon’s Surface” • Russia and China have embarked on a collaborative venture aimed at establishing a nuclear power plant on the lunar surface. The project is set to unfold between 2033 and 2035. It showcases partnership of the two nations. [East Coast Daily Malayalam]
US:
¶ “Inflation Reduction Act Giving Solar Power And Electric Cars Big Boost” • The Solar Energy Industries Association expects the US may have enough solar power capacity in 2034 to power 100 million homes. However, there’s a huge difference between the organization’s “bull case” and “bear case” for solar, depending on political and economic factors. [CleanTechnica]
Solar panels (Gabriel, Unsplash)
¶ “Used Tesla And Electric Car Market Getting Huge Boost – Thanks, Hertz! (And Xcelerate Auto)” • First Hertz, and then other rental car companies, decided to go electric in a big way a few years ago. Now, they are starting to retire their older vehicles in a big way. The thousands of used Teslas and other electric cars offer buyers new opportunities. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Ford Pops E-Transit Van Out Of Stealth Mode To Boost EV Sales” • The good news about EV sales keeps pouring in. Ford Motor Company racked up a strong performance in February with a 93% uptick in sales of the F-150 Lightning, YOY, and a 64% increase for the Mustang Mach-E. Ford released the all-electric E-Transit to keep things going. [CleanTechnica]
Ford E-Transit electric commercial van (Courtesy of Ford)
¶ “Developer Pulls Plug On Transmission Project That Would Have Brought Millions To Northeast Kingdom” • National Grid has pulled the plug on building a major transmission line. Not only would the line would have carried power between Quebec and New England, it would have been a major income source for Northeast Kingdom communities. [Vermont Public]
¶ “Vermont Governor Opposes Ambitious Renewable Energy Bill Over Costs” • Citing a disputed cost study, Vermont Governor Phil Scott is pushing back against a bill mandating faster, wider adoption of renewable energy by power utilities. House Bill 289 would require utilities to purchase 100% of their electric power from renewable sources by 2030. [The Energy Mix]
Killington (Emily Ho, Unsplash, cropped)
¶ “Kentucky Senate Bill Would Add More Hurdles To Utilities Retiring Fossil-Fueled Power Plants” • In the wake of a new law that makes it harder to retire coal-fired power plants, Republican Senator Robby Mills from Henderson is back with a bill to create more restrictions on retireing fossil-fuel power plants – to the possible detriment of ratepayers. [Hoptown Chronicle]
¶ “West Virginia Updates Renewable Power Projects Laws to Expand Solar Energy Use And Attract Businesses” • In West Virginia, House Bill 5528 is raising the size limit for renewable projects. The old limit was 50 MW, but now it to be 100 MW. The bill also gets rid of a rule that would have ended the program in the upcoming year. [WV News]
Have a profoundly positive day.
geoharvey 
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