Global warming?

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By Lisa Friedman and Hiroko Tabuchi
It’s difficult to figure out who’s funding climate denial, because many of the think tanks that continue to question established climate science are nonprofit groups that aren’t required to disclose their donors. That’s true of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free-market research organization in Washington thatdisputes that climate change is a problem.
So, the program for a recent gala organized by the institute, which included a list of corporate donors, offered a rare glimpse into the money that makes the work of these think tanks possible.
Among the sponsors for the Game of Thrones-themed gala were groups that have long been aligned with fossil fuel interests, including the Charles Koch Institute and the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers. The fuel and petrochemical group, which lobbies for gasoline producers, pushed to weaken car fuel economy standards, one of the Obama administration’s landmark climate policies.
But the program for the event, obtained by The New York Times and verified by the Competitive Enterprise Institute, also included major corporations, like Google and Amazon, that have made their commitment to addressing climate change a key part of their corporate public relations strategies.
Those companies both signed a pledge of support for the Paris Agreement and joined a coalition that vowed to stick to the climate pact’s goals after President Trump announced the United States would withdraw from it.
A Google representative said the tech giant’s support of the gala did not necessarily mean it supports climate denial. “We’ve been extremely clear that Google’s sponsorship doesn’t mean that we endorse that organization’s entire agenda,” said a spokesman for the tech giant, whose manager for outreach was listed on the dinner’s host committee.
A spokeswoman for Amazon, where employees have been urging the company’s chief executive, Jeff Bezos, to adopt a climate change policy, said the company “may not agree with all of the positions of each organization,” but believed that its $15,000 contribution to the event “will help advance policy objectives aligned with our interests.”
Analysts at C.E.I. do advocate on a wide range of policies, including opposing antitrust laws, an issue dear to tech and telecom giants as well as other major corporations.
Still, the organization is arguably best known for its work disputing the science of climate change, and the corporations’ support comes at a time when the think tank has played an outsized role in the Trump administration. The head of the environment program at the C.E.I., Myron Ebell, led the Trump administration’s transition team at the Environmental Protection Agency, spearheaded the opposition to the Paris Agreement.
How does the C.E.I. itself view corporate America’s support? In a statement, the organization’s president, Kent Lassman, was clear. The institute asks support from those, he said, that “share our values.”

• See the dinner gala program here

Courtesy of East West Market


Public shame. That's the tactic one Canadian grocery store used to get customers to ditch single-use plastics and instead utilize reusable shopping bags. Shoppers who didn't bring their own bags to East West Market in Vancouver, British Columbia, left with groceries in plastic bags that read "Wart Ointment Wholesale," "Into the Weird Adult Video Emporium" or "The Colon Care Co-Op." (Listening time, 5:02)


▶ LISTEN

 

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MORE GRIST FOR YOUR MILL

National Grid to NYC customers: Support the Williams Pipeline or no new service

Some NYC customers ask, is it OK for my utility company to email me pro-pipeline spam?

Bernie Sanders and AOC want to declare a climate emergency. Does that mean anything?

Declaring a climate emergency is largely symbolic. How have countries that have passed similar resolutions fared

Manila’s New Mayor Wants Solar Panels, Rainwater Collectors for City’s Schools

AOC, Bernie Sanders to Introduce Emergency Resolution Calling Climate Crisis an 'Existential Threat'

23 Governors Join California in Opposing Trump's Fuel Efficiency Freeze

Flooding Disrupts DC as Capital Receives Month’s Rain in 1 Hour

Antarctic Glacial Melt May Be Irreversible Causing Sea Rise, Research Says



PUT THE ‘FORWARD’ IN CLIMATE FWD:
If you like what we’re doing, please spread the word and forward this email to your friends. If this email was forwarded to you, be sure to sign up here to get our newsletter delivered to your inbox each week.

 

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Tyler Varsell

By Tik Root
So, you’re committed to reducing your carbon footprint and you’ve identified theindividual actions that work for you. Great! But what next?
Try talking to others about climate change.
“Family and friends are our most trusted source of information,” said Connie Roser-Renouf, an associate professor at George Mason University who specializes in science communication. “Talking about what you do and giving people a sense that they can do to make a difference is extremely important.”
One example, Dr. Roser-Renouf said, is the strong link between parents and children in terms of attitudes toward climate change. A recent study found that children talking to their parents about the issue can have a big influence. “The parents get more engaged,” she said, “and everyone does more.”
Another study found that people were better at conserving electricity when the power company informed them of their neighbors’ energy usage. Researchpublished in June concluded that “perceived social consensus is associated with a higher percentage of people who believe climate change is real and human-caused.”
Yale Climate Connections has guides on how to talk about climate at social gatherings, and to children. The Times also has advice on discussing climate change with young people. Dr. Roser-Renouf says the first step in talking to others is to find out how they feel about the issue, then you talk about why you care about the issue.

 

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Trump Saw Opportunity in Speech on Environment. Critics Saw a ‘“1984” Moment.’
By KATIE ROGERS AND CORAL DAVENPORT
Consultants thought the speech would help President Trump’s re-election efforts. But experts said many of the president’s claims weren’t based in fact.






Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez Launch 'Climate Emergency' Resolution in Congress

Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduced a resolution Tuesday asking Congress to declare that global warming is an emergency demanding a massive mobilization of resources to protect the U.S. economy, society and national security. They envision a mobilization on par with the U.S. response in World War II.

(InsideClimate News)

White House Won't Review Climate Science Before Election

The proposed White House panel that would conduct an "adversarial" review of climate science is dead, at least for now, as President Trump grapples with negative perceptions of his environmental record at the outset of his reelection campaign.

(E&E News)

Glacial Loss in Antarctica May Become Irreversible

A NASA-funded study has found instability in Antarctica's Thwaites Glacier and suggests the ice sheet faces a tipping point at which point glacial melting will accelerate and become irreversible even if global heating eases.

(The Guardian)


France Moves to Combat Climate Change by Making Flights More Expensive

France will begin to charge an "ecotax" on flights departing from the country starting next year, in an effort to tempter the effects of carbon dioxide emissions resulting from air travel. The money from the tax will be reinvested in lower-emission transportation systems, like rail networks.

(Washington Post)

UK Not on Track to Meet 2050 Climate Goals, Advisers Warn

There is a growing gap between Britain's carbon-cutting ambition and policies, according to a progress report published by the Committee on Climate Change on Wednesday, and most sectors are not prepared for the impacts of even modest levels of global warming.

(Climate Home)

States Urge Power Grid Operator PJM to Pick a CEO Who Can Address Climate Change

The attorneys general of Maryland, Delaware and the District of Columbia are urging PJM Interconnection, the nation's biggest electric grid operator, to choose a CEO who will help with "efforts to address climate change" and embrace a shift to clean energy. The company's former CEO retired in May.

(Washington Post)

Quarter of World's Biggest Firms 'Fail to Disclose Emissions'

About a quarter of the world's highest-emitting companies do not report their greenhouse gas emissions, with nearly half failing to properly consider climate risks in their decision-making, according to a new study by a group of investors. The research looked at 274 publicly listed companies, which are required to disclose key financial data.

(The Guardian)

Washington Floods Expose a Double Threat: Old Drains and Climate Change

Washington, D.C., received almost a month's worth of rain over just a few hours Monday, overwhelming the city's storm-water system and flooding homes and streets and showing the vulnerability of cities in the era of climate change. "We're still approaching this 21st-century problem with 20th-century infrastructure, and it's completely inadequate."

(The New York Times)

Climate change could be paused by planting trees, researchers say, as they map out avai

• 
  
  
  Updated Friday at 10:50
  
  
  First posted Friday at 07:

 

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• 
  Australia is one of six countries that together hold around 50 per cent of the world's tree planting potential.
  
  (ABC Newcastle: Robert Virtue)
  
  
  Planting trees to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere seems like a no-brainer in the fight against climate change.
  
  But until recently it's not been clear how much land we'd need to make a tangible difference to warming, and whether we'd need to reclaim farm and residential land to do it.
  
  
  Key points:
  • Researchers identified 0.9 billion hectares of land that is available to be reforested
  • That could buy us a 20 year pause in climate warming
  • Coastal ecosystems are capable of storing carbon up to 40 times faster than forests and should also be considered, expert says
  
  
  Now new research published today in Scienceestimates there's enough suitable unused land on the globe for reforestation to store around 205 gigatonnes of carbon.
  
  That's enough to buy us about 20 years in the fight against climate change, according to researcher Jean-Francois Bastin from the Institute of Integrative Biology in Zurich.
  
  
  
  Deforestation in Australia is undermining efforts to rejuvenate habitat.
  
  (Supplied)
  
  
  The researchers also modelled the effect that climate change will have on how much of the earth's surface will be able to support trees in future.
  
  Their findings suggest that reforestation needs to happen soon if it is to be effective.
  
  Under current forecasts, they project that global tree canopy cover will shrink by up to 223 million hectares by 2050.
  
  The impacts will be most significant at the tropics, according to Dr Bastin.
  
  "The tropics will be under a lot more climatic stress. There will be more severe droughts," he said.
  
  Brush-tailed bettongs or woylie's are one species that could benefit from increased forest habitat.
  
  (Supplied: Zoos Australia)
  
  
  More than half of the land available for what the researchers call "tree restoration potential" was identified in just six countries.
  
  Australia ranked fourth on the list, behind Russia, the United States and Canada, and was followed by Brazil and China.
  
  Twenty million trees are expected to be planted in Australia by 2020 under a federal government program.
  
  But critics say any reforestation efforts in Australia are being undermined by land clearing.
  
  Deforestation in Australia in recent years has spiked, drawing comparisons with tree-clearing hotspots like the Amazon rainforest in Brazil.
  
  In 2017 around 1,000 football fields were being cleared each day in Queensland, and more than a million hectares were cleared in that state between 2012 and 2016.
  
  The Nature Conservation Council (NCC) claims around one football field of bushland was cleared in New South Wales every 10 minutes, in 2017-18.
  
  according to a UN-backed report published in May this year.
  
  
  In Australia, 121 species are listed as critically endangered by the IUCN, with 41 species having gone extinct.
  
  A further 239 are endangered.
  
  Numerous critically endangered and endangered species, including Leadbeater's possum, swift parrots and bettong could benefit from forest restoration in Australia.
  
  'Armpits of the ocean' can store carbon 40 times faster
  
  
  
  
  Blue carbon habitat has an image problem, according to Dr Macreadie.
  
  A billion hectares of new trees could pause the climate-change clock

 

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Anchorage Had Never Reached 90 Degrees. That Changed This Week.
By MIKE BAKER
Anchorage could set a heat record this week, with a forecast high potentially reaching 90 degrees. The city has canceled its Fourth of July fireworks celebration

Heat Wave Nudged the Planet to Its Hottest June, European Forecasters Say
By HENRY FOUNTAIN
A United States government analysis due this month is expected to reach similar conclusions, though the rankings of record months might differ slightly.

NEED HELP?
Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

Twenty-four governors are urging the president not to roll back vehicle emissions rules put in place by President Obama. They include three Republicans (in Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maryland) and four leaders from states that voted for Trump in 2016 (Montana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin). Joining the elected officials are some of the biggest car companies in the world, as well as some in the chemical industry and power sector, the New York Times reports.

President Trump’s proposal to weaken fuel-efficiency standards, if put in place,could lead to an extra 320 million to 931 million metric tons of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by 2035. Those emissions affect the local air, too — the coalition of governors opposes the increased pollution in their communities. But that’s not the only reason a growing number of officials and industries are against the changes.

Labor groups, for instance, say that the Obama-era emissions standards support 300,000 new jobs in developing fuel-efficient vehicles. And 17 automakers, including Ford and General Motors, say the rollbacks would hurt their profits and create an unstable market, as California and Canada plan to stick to the stricter standards. Energy utilities have already started investing in electric car–charging infrastructure, and chemical companies have been working on compounds to lighten the weight of car parts to aid in reducing emissions — both creating manufacturing jobs. One chemical company told the Times the rollbacks would “reverse nearly a decade of progress.”

The growing opposition to Trump’s plan puts him in an awkward position, potentially having to defy the wishes of the manufacturing industries he has vowed to revive. It also shows that the market can favor climate-friendly regulations, at least once policies are in place.

— Molly Enking

 

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Bernie Sanders and AOC want to declare a climate emergency. Does that mean anything


Billionaire and climate activist Tom Steyer is running for president. His messages sound … familiar

MOLLY ENKING

Veteran Fox News reporter now works for a climate-conscious blog

ZOYA TEIRSTEI

Bathtubs, paint, and couches land in Seattle’s homeless encampments. Guess who gets punished?

ERICA C. BARNETT

Trump delivers environmental address, forgets to mention climate change

ZOYA TEIRSTEI
Dig it? If this email was forwarded to you, sign up here.

Americans disapprove of Trump’s actions on climate

REBECCA LEBER

Cargill promised to end deforestation. It’s telling farmers something else.

NATHANAEL JOHNSON

First major U.S. insurance company moves away from coal

CHRIS D'ANGELO

Are pistachios the nut of the future?

MARK SCHAPIRO

OPEC head: Climate activists are the ‘greatest threat’ to oil industry

MIYO MCGINN

 

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Aerial Images of the Amazon Rainforest Destroyed by Mining

Ernesto Benavides hangs out of helicopters to document the devastation inside Peru's Tambopata National Reserv

“Everyone knows that indeed wind power generation is good, but does anyone remember about birds in this case? How many birds die?”

—Russian President Vladimir Putin, echoing the sentiments of U.S. President Donald Trump [URL='https://www.google.com/url?q=https%3A%2F%2Flink.mail.bloombergbusiness.com%2Fclick%2F17462003.24883%2FaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmxvb21iZXJnLmNvbS9uZXdzL2FydGljbGVzLzIwMTktMDctMTAvdHJ1bXAtYW5kLXB1dGluLWFyZS1vbi10aGUtc2FtZS1wYWdlLWFib3V0LXdpbmQtcG93ZXItdG9vP3V0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1uZXdzbGV0dGVyJnV0bV90ZXJtPTE5MDcxMSZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249Y2xpbWF0ZWNoYW5nZWQ%2F5509c1353b35d063458b6c6bBb7dff121&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEoKcMjMb4h1oj67JoCy5zgqVkF1Q']concerning wind farms. Wind power developers say the threat to wildlife has been grossly exaggerated.




Top stories

The world is spending the least on clean energy in six years, according to a new report by BloombergNEF.

A simple climate fix may be hiding in plain sight: some 3.5 million square miles of land capable of supporting new forests and removing 750 billion tons of CO2 from the air.

Trump boasted of what he described as U.S. environmental gains despite seeking to roll back rules meant to preserve them. As the effects of the climate crisis become more apparent, his administration’s agenda has focused chiefly on rewriting Obama-era rules limiting emissions that accelerate global warming.

Senator Bernie Sanders is teaming up with Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on a resolution calling for “massive” federal government action to reverse climate change.

A tropical storm formed in the Gulf of Mexico and could strike Louisiana as a hurricane Saturday, potentially causing $1 billion in damage and worsening flooding in New Orleans.




What we’ve been reading

Major corporations, includingGoogle and Amazon, were sponsors of a recent gala held by a think tank that disputes climate change is a problem. The same companies have publicly made commitments to help combat the crisis.

The first round of Democratic presidential debates barely mentioned the defining issue of the 21st century. The DNC has so far declined to host a climate debate, so a group of climate journalists plan to host their own. Let’s see who shows up.

There has long been a climate debate over whether to deploy existing clean energy technology (such as solar and wind) or invest more in developing new technologies. There may be a simple answer: Do more of both.

The shakiest earthquake myths debunked

[/URL]

 

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Networks representing more than 7,000 institutions offering post-secondary education declared a climate emergency on Wednesday, releasing a three-point plan aimed at addressing the crisis. The California State University system, Southern Connecticut State University, and the University of Glasgow in Ireland are just a few of the many universities or colleges that joined the effort.

What’s the point of such a declaration? It’s basically a way to announce a commitment to going carbon neutral and adopting good sustainability practices. It doesn’t mean much without an actual plan in place that dedicates more resources to the problem and puts actual emissions reduction targets in place. Luckily, these universities and colleges did their homework.

Here’s what they propose:

1. Carbon neutral by 2030 — or 2050 AT THE ABSOLUTE LATEST
2. More resources (read: $$) for climate change research and skill development
3. Boost environmental and sustainability education big time

Some members of the U.S. Congress are also into the idea of declaring a climate emergency. This week, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined Bernie Sanders and others to introduce a climate emergency resolution. Right after that resolution was introduced, 450 elected officials from across the U.S. called for a nationwide plan to address the climate emergency, phase out fossil fuels, and increase production of renewable energy. Progress!

— Zoya Teirstein

A Ford F-150 truck on an assembly line in Dearborn, Michigan in 2018. AP PHOTO/CARLOS OSORIO


OPINION
Despite Industry Pleas, White House Halts Progress on Fuel Economy
In its anti-regulatory zeal, the Trump administration is moving to weaken vehicle fuel efficiency standards so much that even U.S. carmakers are balking. The administration’s hard-line stance appears likely to stall efforts to make major cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.

BY JOHN DECICCO • JUNE 13, 2019



Despite Industry Pleas, White House Halts Progress on Fuel Economy

CLIMATE
SCIENTISTS ZERO IN ON TREES AS A SURPRISINGLY LARGE SOURCE OF METHANE
Recent research is showing that trees, especially in tropical wetlands, are a major source of the second most important greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, methane. The knowledge that certain woodlands are high methane emitters should help guide reforestation projects in many parts of the world.

By FRED PEARCE

 

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FOOD & AGRICULTURE
As Climate Changes, Colombia’s Small Coffee Farmers Pay the Price


Hundreds of Colombia’s small coffee growers have stopped cultivating the bean in the face of low prices and reduced harvests linked to a shifting climate. As farmers struggle, the nation’s scientists are seeking to develop new varieties that will flourish in a changing environment.

By RICHARD SCHIFFMAN


ition:

• Alaska Chokes on Wildfires as Heat Waves Dry Out the Arctic

Alaska Chokes on Wildfires as Heat Waves Dry Out the Arctic
Fires are spreading farther north, burning more intensely and starting earlier, in line with what scientists have warned would happen with climate change.
BY BOB BERWYN

Under the choking black smoke from the bog and forest fires in Siberia and Alaska, it can feel like the Earth itself is burning. The normally moist, black organic peat soil and lush forests have been drying, and when they catch fire, they burn relentlessly.

SEE ALSO:
Iconic Forests Reaching Climate Tipping Points in American West, Study Finds
Climate Change Fingerprints Were All Over Europe's Latest Heat Wave, Study Finds
How Wildfires Can Affect Climate Change (and Vice Versa)
Drier Autumns Are Fueling Deadly California Wildfires

read more

NOAA/NWS, Esri, HERE, Garmin, Earthstar Geographics


Here’s what we’re following today.

A storm system in the Gulf of Mexico could become a hurricane as it nears landfall this weekend. Louisiana’s governor declared a state of emergency as dangerous flooding and life-threatening storm surges are expected to drench Louisiana and the upper Texas coast.

President Trump is expected to take executive action to try and add a question about U.S. citizenship status to forms for the upcoming 2020 census. It's the administration's latest effort in a more than yearlong legal fight to include the question, which has been blocked by the Supreme Court for now. The question asks "Is this person a citizen of the United States?"

Two former top officials in Puerto Rico were arrested on Wednesday and indicted on charges related to steering lucrative government contracts to business friends. The charges come at a politically sensitive time for the island's government, which is projecting a polished image to Congress as island leadership expect billions of dollars in recovery aid.

The Trump administration has invited high-profile, conservative activists and bloggers to the White House on Thursday for a social media summit. But they did not invite Facebook and Twitter.


The Daily Good
"Operation Thunderball” — cracking down on global wildlife trafficking.

Interpol


Big cats, apes, reptiles and elephant tusks were just some of the discoveries made by the World Customs Organization and Interpol last month. The joint crackdown operation, which operated out of Singapore, is being called the most widespread wildlife crime raid ever. Nearly 2,000 animals and plants were rescued in 109 countries over the month of June; nearly 600 suspects were arrested.




clever sperm whales waiting patiently then nicking the longlinemans catch ... cool/like
delicately doing so,leaving the species they dont want ha

 

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Workers repair the damaged Oroville Dam spillway in Northern California in March. CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES


In an Era of Extreme Weather, Concerns Grow Over Dam Safety
Many of the United States’ 91,000 dams are aging and sorely in need of repairs that could collectively cost tens of billions of dollars. Experts are increasingly worried that as extreme precipitation events increase, dams are at greater risk of failure, threatening lives and posing environmental risks.

In an Era of Extreme Weather, Concerns Grow Over Dam Safety

If the plan stopped there, environmental groups and consumer advocates would be almost completely supportive. But there are two other provisions that make this plan controversial:

• Xcel wants to move forward with an agreement to acquire Mankato Energy Center, a plant that runs on natural gas. And the company wants to convert part of its Sherburne County Generating Station, a coal-fired plant, to run on gas.
  
• The company wants to add 1,700 megawatts of “firm load supporting resources” in the Upper Midwest, starting in 2031. That is utility-speak for power plants or other resources that run for short stretches, usually at times of high demand, to help maintain reliability. Xcel does not specify the technologies that would be used, but environmental groups have concerns that this may lead to the construction of even more natural gas plants.

Xcel had announced some of these proposals over the last few months, but some are new. Among those is the commitment to add 400 more megawatts of demand response across the Upper Midwest, which is the equivalent of a power plant that would no longer be needed.

Pereira is happy to see this. He told me that Xcel lags other major utilities in developing a robust program that entices large customers — such as factories — to shut down at times of high demand on the system.

“They haven’t been using these opportunities well at all,” he said.

He is one of many advocates who thinks that demand response, energy efficiency and the emergence of battery storage can displace the need for new gas plants.

This debate has importance beyond Minnesota as other utilities and other regulatory commissions are looking for hints about how to manage the transition to clean energy.

(While we’re talking about Xcel, check out a story that ran this week on National Public Radio that prominently features the company and talks about the changes the power grid will need to make to accommodate the growth in wind and solar. Grace Hood, the reporter who did the story, does an admirable job conveying the essence of a complex issue.)

(Photo: Windtech)





Meanwhile, in Michigan and Indiana

While Minnesota regulators consider the Xcel plan, there are similar cases involving the largest utilities in Indiana and Michigan.

Duke Energy in Indiana and DTE in Michigan have made proposals to phase out fossil fuels and ramp up carbon-free technologies, but at a much slower pace than Xcel.

I asked Ben Inskeep, an Indiana-based clean energy analyst for EQ Research, to walk me through the differences between the plans.

He is particularly disappointed in Duke’s plan for Indiana, released last week, which would continue to use coal into the 2040s. He said Duke’s approach to planning is “an artifact” of an era when there were fewer viable alternatives to fossil fuels.

“It looks like a slow transition from coal to mostly natural gas with a little bit of solar and wind sprinkled in,” he said.

Duke says it will continue to operate the Edwardsport coal plant until 2045. (I should note here that this 618-megawatt plant is a saga unto itself. It opened in 2013 following more than a $1 billion in cost overruns that were due in part to a “coal gasification” system that uses coal to make natural gas and then burns the gas to make electricity.)

Duke says in the filing that it has not considered whether to close Edwardsport earlier than the end of its expected lifespan in 2045. It says the plant remains young and is a valuable asset for the company and its customers.

DTE, which filed its Michigan plan in March, would add almost no solar power between now and 2025 and would continue to rely heavily on natural gas through 2035.

Inskeep said the Duke and DTE plans are examples of a mindset that natural gas will remain an essential part of electricity generation for decades, a view he thinks is out of step with the need to rapidly reduce carbon emissions.

But he has optimism that the future looks much more like Xcel’s plan than Duke’s or DTE’s.

“What we’re going to continue to see with each iteration of these plans is a quicker and quicker move away from coal,” he said. This is largely because renewable energy and battery storage are getting less expensive.

And, it’s important to note that utilities file updates to their long-term plans every few years. Duke and DTE will have opportunities to change their plans in the mid-2020s.

In the meantime, he thinks the best thing that can happen is that Xcel succeeds with its plans, as do other utilities that are being proactive in cutting carbon.

(Photo: Edwardsport power plant, Duke Energy)





Clean Energy Investment Is Down This Year, Globally and in the U.S. Here’s Why.

Global spending on clean energy was down 14 percent, to $117.6 billion, in the first half of this year compared to the first half of 2018. That included a big decrease in China and smaller drops in the United States and Europe, according to a new report from BloombergNEF.

A former rare earth mining site in Longnan county, Jiangxi province. MICHAEL STANDAERT/YALE E360


China Wrestles with the Toxic Aftermath of Rare Earth Mining
China has been a major source of rare earth metals used in high-tech products, from smartphones to wind turbines. As cleanup of these mining sites begins, experts argue that global companies that have benefited from access to these metals should help foot the bill.

 

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doing very well,thank you
in self discipline
ie
refraining,no definitely no interest in heading off to the pointless task of kidding myself of the BS importance of political contributions
incl GW/CC
usually building up to a hate
less than a week but ... long may it last
occassional one like above OK
not completely trying to be a/the perfectionist

getting rid of those am alerts does rhe trick

 

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still not happy with the damn Japanese govt
lying decietful bastards like the rest of them
selfish ignorant overpaid, no more brains than anyone on this site
- i said

This map shows where commercial fishing boats and sharks butt heads

An interactive chart shows the journeys of open-ocean sharks, and where they could run into trouble.


This map shows where commercial fishing boats and sharks butt heads

 

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a supposed 3rd world country and it can do that
compared to others


Ethiopia plants 350 million trees in one day, breaking record
It's part of the nation's massive reforestation campaign that aims to plant 4 billion trees in 2019.
STEPHEN JOHNSON
30 July, 2019

Ethiopia plants 350 million trees in one day, breaking record

 

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great
for them,to be forward thinking like that
make it happen please,and more be nice


Logging, mining companies lock eyes on a biodiverse island like no other

Logging, mining companies lock eyes on a biodiverse island like no other

 

[deleted15807]

Death everywhere you turn thanks to "innocent" humans.

Two percent of the world’s North Atlantic right whales have died in the last two months​

 

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HUMAN ANIMALS,THERE ARE MANY
all cultures all colors
theyv should have no rights bor sympathy for there lifestyles or the biasters in life they may endure

The challenges of campaigning against wildlife trafficking in Vietnam

The challenges of campaigning against wildlife trafficking in Vietnam

 

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how foolish humankind can be
several years ago we ignored and now everyday theres crying
media everyday now,and still many ignotre
pathetic
we dont deserve this planet,and still they look for morte to destruy
bastards


Greenland's Melting: Heat Waves Are Changing the Landscape Before Their Eyes
The ice sheet is in the midst of one of its most extreme melts on record, with worrying consequences for Greenland's people and the planet.
Sabrina Shankman
BY SABRINA SHANKMAN

AUG 1, 2019

 

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POMS losing out big time
in everything

no sympathy

support the KILLER SAUDIS along with the ausa
O FOR ONE WEILL SAY IT EVERY DAY
YOU bad bastards
FOLLOW
YOUR SPECIAL RELASTIONSHIP WITH THE usa/pommies


Solar power
UK risks losing out to Europe in home battery boom, report warns


Controversial tax hike could leave country lagging behind as continent powers ahead

Jillian Ambrose

Tue 6 Aug 2019 19.56 BSTLast modified on Tue 6 Aug 201920.11 BST

Shares
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A Tesla home battery. The VAT increase on the technology comes into force this October in the UK. Photograph: Gareth Phillips/The Guardian
The UK risks being left behind in Europe’s home battery boom because of a controversial tax hike on solar-battery systems, according to a report.

The energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie has predicted that Europe’s home battery capacity could climb fivefold in the next five years as more households plug their rooftop solar panels into battery packs.

The analysts expect that by 2024, annual home battery installations across Europe could total more than 500MW, the equivalent of building a new gas-fired power plant every year.

The report said the battery boom had already taken hold in Germany and would accelerate across Italy and Spain as battery power became more economic.

[paste:font size="5"]
However, the UK is likely to lag behind its European neighbours due to its “unfavourable” policy frameworks and a VAT increase for solar-battery packs this October.

Rory McCarthy, a senior researcher at Wood Mackenzie, said Germany’s lead had made Europe the largest residential storage market globally.

“Off the back of Germany’s success, residential storage is beginning to proliferate into other European countries, particularly where market structures, prevailing power prices and disappearing feed-in tariffs create a favourable early stage deployment landscape,” he said.

“The economics of storage have been challenging in the past, however we are in the midst of an economic tipping point.”

The UK’s laggard status comes after the government vowed to put energy storage at the heart of its plans for a cheap and clean energy system, which included a £246m pledge to develop battery technology.

Greg Clark, the former business secretary, said the falling cost of energy storage meant it had a role to play in making renewable energy “abundant”.

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It will be more difficult for households to access the potential of low-cost renewable energy after the VAT hike on solar batteries installed from October.

The UK has blamed EU rules for the VAT change, a claim disputed by Molly Scott Cato, a Green MEP for South West England.

“There is appetite from [UK] utilities and technology providers but the market has no incentives so is lagging behind thus far,” said the report. “The recent VAT increase from 5% to 20% confirmed to begin in October 2019 is not an effective way to kickstart a market with challenging economics.”


Topics

• Solar power

 

[rbkwp]

we never stopped to ask hw that can be
too interested in being bettere than anotrher huh

killing in the process to attemt to achieve your goals
enlisting likemined forever and a day, both sides

yes
i do blame and am continually targetting the USA
they are the ones who want to lead the world, and what are they doing
killing off everyone including there own with mass shootings
why not keep in mind mass killionghs, of many other countries, since WW2 theye had that killing mania

Alaska Chokes on Wildfires as Heat Waves Dry Out the Arctic

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Alaska Chokes on Wildfires as Heat Waves Dry Out the Arctic