2018-10-04 Energy Week, Number 284

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Energy Week Number 284, 10-4-18

 

Thursday, September 27: 

Solar array near Burlington, Vermont (Robert Nickelsberg | Getty Images)

• “Election 2018: Clean Energy’s Future Could Rise or Fall with 36 Governor’s Races”
  Some of the most consequential elections for climate policy this fall could be the 36 governors races, where a blue wave could position clean energy advocates as a significant counterforce against the Trump administration’s fossil fuel agenda. [InsideClimate News]
• “South Australia’s Tesla battery on track to make back a third of cost in a year”
  The Tesla lithium-ion battery in South Australia is on track to make back a third of its construction costs in its first year of operation, new financial documents show. The capital cost of the 100-MW/129-MWh battery was A$90.6 million (€56 million, $65.8 million). [The Guardian]
• “Utility Solar + Storage Accelerates Ahead Of Expectations”
  The US utility market for energy storage this fall is warming ahead of expectations, with requests for proposals accelerating from a mild demand level earlier this year. The 2018 market was not expected by some storage system manufacturers for another two years. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, September 28: 

Turbines on the island of Eigg (Photo: WL Tarbert)

• “Offgrid communities: using renewable energy to live independently”
  According to CE Delft’s report, The Potential of Energy Cities in the European Union, by 2050 almost half of all European Union households could help to produce renewable energy, with off-grid communities contributing 37% of this amount. [Power Technology]
• “New Jersey utility proposes $4 billion plan to advance state’s clean energy goals”
  PSE&G, New Jersey’s largest regulated utility, has a $4 billion plan to make the Garden State greener and advance the state’s bid to become a clean energy leader. Its six-year plan, Clean Energy Future, aims to reduce both costs and emissions. [CNBC]

• “Solar & Wind Energy Destined To Expand Faster Than Other Global Energy Sources”
  Global market analyst DNV GL peeled back the layers of its recent forecast on global energy source evolution to show that solar and wind energy will grow, buoyed by offshore wind, to represent nearly 70% of global electricity production by 2050. [CleanTechnica]

Saturday, September 29: 

• “The Inevitable Oil Supply Crunch”
  “The warning signs are there – the industry isn’t finding enough oil.” That statement is the start of a new report from Wood Mackenzie, which concludes that a supply gap could emerge in the mid-2020s as demand rises at a time when too few new sources of supply are coming online. [OilPrice.com]

Just one reason (Source: Forbes | Credit: Bloomberg)

• “Forbes: Electric Cars = The Future, Gasmobile Killers”
  Are the days of the gas guzzler numbered? Tom Raftery (via Forbes) says there are “seven reasons why the internal combustion engine is a dead man walking.” He explains, “…the move from ICE vehicles to electric will happen sooner and more quickly than most people suspect.” [CleanTechnica]
• “NantEnergy Says Zinc-Air Battery Ideal For Grid Storage”
  Compared to most lithium-ion batteries, NantEnergy’s zinc-air batteries offer lower cost and longer duration. The company says its batteries, which rely on abundant and inexpensive zinc, are already at the $100/kWh level, and that the price is expected to drop as production increases. [CleanTechnica]

Sunday, September 30: 

Floodwaters from Hurricane Florence

• “UN report under review presents nations with tough choices on climate”
  The world’s nations will gather at a UN conference in South Korea on Monday, October 1, to review and approve a 20-page bombshell, distilled from more than 6,000 scientific studies, laying out our narrowing options for staving off a climate catastrophe. [The Japan Times]
• “Report: Don’t bother to fight climate”
  Deep in a 500-page environmental impact statement, the Trump administration made a startling assumption: On its current course, the planet will warm a disastrous 7° F (4° C) by the end of this century. But the paper justifies reduced transportation fuel efficiency, saying acting will not help. [Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]

Massachusetts boy wearing a gas mask to avoid smoke (Paul Bilodeau | Eagle-Tribune Staff photo)

• “Disaster could be a turning point in energy debate”
  Arguing that money would be better spent shifting to renewable energy, environmentalists have been prodding Massachusetts for years to move away from natural gas. The recent gas fires and explosions in the Merrimack Valley have renewed debate over the use of natural gas. [Eagle-Tribune]

Monday, October 1: 

• “The many faces of climate denial”
  While North Carolina’s state legislature mandated a wholesale denial of the problem of climate change, Massachusetts’s state government adopted a different form of climate denial that is arguably just as pernicious and even more widespread: denying that the problem is as grave as it is. [CommonWealth magazine]

Planeta-DeAgostini head office in Barcelona (Getty Images)

• “The people building a greener future”
  Constructing new environmentally-friendly buildings is expected to generate more than 6.5 million jobs by 2030, according to predictions by the International Labor Organization. Following energy, building will be the second fastest growing sector for green jobs in the coming decades. [BBC]
• “Vermont’s energy efficiency utilities under inspection in new investigation”
  Almost 20 years after Vermont became the first state in the country to start a separate energy efficiency utility, with the creation of Efficiency Vermont, members of a state board are now re-examining how energy efficiency utilities operate. [vtdigger.org]

Tuesday, October 2: 

Tesla Gigafactory car production

• “Tesla Is 2 Years Ahead Of Schedule On Gigafactory 1”
  Tesla is often criticized for slipping on targets. But Tesla’s Gigafactory 1 in Nevada is solidly on track to achieve a battery production volume of 35 GWh per year by the end of 2018. This is two years ahead of the original 2020 target date that was set for achieving such volumes. [CleanTechnica]
• “Consumers Energy energizes drive to electric cars and renewables”
  Michigan utility Consumers Energy is stepping on the pedal in its move toward more EVs and increased renewable energy in the birthplace of the automobile. The company is teaming up with General Motors to speed a shift to EVs in their home state. [Daily Energy Insider]

GE assembly line (Luke Sharrett | Bloomberg | Getty Images)

• “The problems at GE’s troubled power unit can’t be fixed quickly”
  General Electric’s board ousted CEO John Flannery, but the problems at the heart of its power business defy a quick solution. At the core of the problems is its failure to forecast a downturn in demand for its turbines amid booming demand for renewable energy. [CNBC]

Wednesday, October 3:  

• “Origin says solar cheaper than coal, moving on from base-load”
  Origin Energy says the cost of wind and solar farms has fallen so far it is now cheaper than the marginal cost of coal generation. The Australian company is moving on from the concept of “24/7 base-load,” according to its head of energy trading and operations. [RenewEconomy]
• “Yep, Tesla Is Gobbling USA Luxury Car Market – 8 Charts & Graphs”
  Tesla increased its deliveries by more than 100% in the third quarter compared to the second quarter, its previous best quarter in history. In 6 years, its Q3 sales jumped from 321 to 83,500. The cars it is most directly competing in are the luxury classes. [CleanTechnica]

Joshua Tree National Park

• “Climate Change Will Devastate National Parks, Impact Electrical Grids, & Spur Mass Migration In The US”
  For a Chinese hoax, climate change is having some very real impacts on the United States and its people. As the evidence grows that the Earth will continue to get warmer, the US government continues to ignore the obvious. [CleanTechnica]

2018-09-27 Energy Week Number 283

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Thursday, September 20:

Flooded Amazon (Photo: Jochen Schöngart, National Institute for Amazon Research)

• “Flood frequency of world’s largest river has increased fivefold, study finds”
  Flooding on the Amazon River has increased fivefold over the last two or three decades, a new study has found. Analysis of more than 100 years of river level records from the Amazon showed that both floods and droughts had become more frequent. [The Independent]
• “Buoyant gas industry may be blindsided by renewables”
  The global gas industry, boosted by new projects to feed booming demand, claims to be in the best shape in five years. Not everybody is buying into the industry’s confidence. Analysts warn it is getting ahead of itself, pointing to renewable energy as a threat. [Reuters]

Floating LNG facility

• “Shell Announces Methane Emissions Target For Oil & Gas Of 0.02% By 2025”
  Royal Dutch Shell, better known simply as Shell, announced a target to reduce and maintain its methane emissions intensity for all its oil and gas assets below 0.02% by 2025. To achieve the goal the company will implement a variety of programs. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, September 21:

• “US Solar Installation Costs Declined In 2017, Little Progress So Far In 2018”
  The eleventh edition of Berkeley Lab’s Tracking the Sun report published this week shows that the installed price of solar continued to fall across the country in 2017 but only saw small declines through the beginning of 2018. Tariffs on solar PVs may be to blame. [CleanTechnica]

Mussels from an offshore wind farm (DEME Group image)

• “Offshore mussels from Brussels”
  Mussels were cultivated at an offshore wind farm in the Belgian North Sea as part of a test project of a Belgian consortium that includes DEME Group, other companies, and research institutions. They are researching the potential of offshore wind turbine foundations as a habitat to grow the seafood. [reNews]
• “Solar Energy Largely Unscathed by Hurricane Florence’s Wind and Rain”
  Faced with Hurricane Florence’s powerful winds and record rainfall, North Carolina’s solar farms held up with only minimal damage while other parts of the electricity system failed. The state’s nuclear and coal power plants had some problems. [InsideClimate News]

Saturday, September 22:

Mar-a-Lago (Onasill Bill Badzo, Wikimedia Commons)

• “Homeowners who live on the coast are sleepwalking toward climate catastrophe”
  Sea levels are rising faster than predicted. Relative sea levels in vulnerable places like South Florida are roughly four inches higher now than in 1992; projections by the Army Corps of Engineers and others see rises in South Florida of 12 inches by 2030. [CNN]
• “Canceling Georgia nuclear plant could cost owners billions”
  In a letter to the three owners of Plant Vogtle, the DOE said that if the construction project is canceled, the government is “prepared to move swiftly to fully enforce its rights under terms of the loan guarantee agreements, including the repayment provisions.” [KTAR.com]

Offshore wind farm

• “New Jersey Makes Way For 1.1-GW Offshore Wind”
  The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities voted unanimously to move forward with its expansive offshore wind development plans, opening an application window for 1,100 MW of offshore wind capacity, the largest single-state solicitation of offshore wind to date in the US. [CleanTechnica]

Sunday, September 23:

• “Portugal third in renewable energy production”
  Portugal got 54.1% of its electricity from renewable resources in 2016, Eurostat reported. Portugal was one of only EU five countries that got more than half their electricity from renewable sources: 50%, Austria (72.6%), Sweden (64.9%), Portugal (54.1%), Denmark (53.7%) and Latvia (51.3%). [The Portugal News]

View from the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (National Park Service photo)

• “Companies End Effort to Buy Navajo Generating Station”
  The companies negotiating to purchase the largest coal-fired power plant in the southwestern US have broken off their pursuit of that goal. This means the 2,250-MW Navajo Generating Station near Page, Arizona, remains scheduled to close by year-end 2019. [Power magazine]
• “Putting a dollar value on one of oil’s biggest subsidies: military protection”
  Securing America’s Future Energy, a clean-energy advocacy group composed of retired military and business leaders, published a paper on the costs to the US military of defending oil supplies. They said the cost is at least $81 billion per year. [Vox]

Monday, September 24:

Greenhouse in a desert

• “Jordan’s plans to turn the desert green”
  According to the Food and Agricultural Organisation, food production needs to be increased by 50% by 2050. Food production accounts for about 70% of our freshwater consumption and emits 25% of greenhouse gases. While arable land is being lost to climate change, Jordan is farming in a desert. [BBC]
• “GE unveils 5.3-MW onshore titan”
  Turbine manufacturer GE has taken the wraps off a new 5-MW-plus onshore wind turbine featuring a novel two-piece blade design. The 5.3-158 is part of the Cypress platform to be unveiled at WindEnergy Hamburg 2018 this week. It offers a 50% power increase from GE’s 3-MW turbine. [reNews]
• “Volkswagen Plans 16 New Electric Car Assembly Plants, One In North America”
  Volkswagen plans to make as many as 10 million electric cars in the coming years. As part of that plan, the company expects to have 16 electric car assembly plants in operation by 2022, part of its $40 billion dollar EV investment strategy. [CleanTechnica]

Tuesday, September 25:

Alaska’s North Slope (Photo: Al Grillo | AP file)

• “Global warming harms national parks more than rest of US, study finds”
  According a climate study published by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Wisconsin, areas that are chock-full of national parks, places like Alaska and the American Southwest, have already seen dramatic temperature hikes. [NBC News]
• “Plan put forward to dodge US sanctions”
  The remaining members in the Iranian nuclear deal say they will set up a new payment system to maintain business with Iran and bypass US sanctions. The system would facilitate oil companies and businesses to continue trading, without relying on the US-led global market and dollar. [BBC]
• “RE100: Green companies outperform their peers”
  Those companies that use renewable electricity outperform their rivals financially, according to a report released by RE100, The Climate Group’s initiative to encourage firms to commit to using 100% renewable power. The report compared 152 RE100 companies with rivals. [businessgreen.com]

Wednesday, September 26:

Solar plus storage system at Mount Tom

• “Holyoke solar plant gets battery storage”
  One of first states to enact an energy storage target, Massachusetts, received its largest utility-scale energy storage system when ENGIE and Holyoke Gas & Electric launched a 3-MW/6-MWh system connected to a solar farm at the site of the closed Mount Tom Power Station. [GazetteNET]
• “China steps up green energy push with revised renewable target of 35% by 2030”
  China is aiming for renewables to account for at least 35% of electricity consumption by 2030, according to a revised draft plan seen by Bloomberg. Previously, the goal was for “non-fossil fuels” to make up 20% of energy use by 2030. [South China Morning Post]

MHI Vestas V164 (MHI Vestas image)

• “MHI Vestas enters 10-MW territory”
  MHI Vestas kicked off sales of its much-anticipated 10-MW wind turbine. Commercial installations are to start from 2021. The Danish manufacturer officially broke the double-digit barrier with the V164 10-MW machine through a series of relatively small upgrades to the technology. [reNews]

2018-09-20 Energy Week Number 282

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Thursday, September 13:

Hurricane Irene in North Carolina, 2011 (Jim Lo Scalzo | EPA)

• “North Carolina didn’t like science on sea levels … so passed a law against it”
  In 2012, North Carolina reacted to a prediction by its Coastal Resources Commission that sea levels could rise by 39 inches over the next century by passing a law banning policies based on such forecasts. Now it is in the path of Hurricane Florence. [The Guardian]
• “Nuclear plants in Florence’s path prepare to weather storm”
  As Hurricane Florence churns its way towards the Carolinas, at least 8 nuclear power plants stand in its way. North Carolina’s Brunswick Nuclear Plant, and South Carolina’s Robinson and Vogtle Nuclear Stations are in areas that will likely see the worst impacts. [The Weather Network]
• “Clean energy can provide 100% of electricity”
  A report by the Centre for Alternative Technology says clean energy could meet all our electricity needs, using only existing technology, at all times of the day, and all year round. It draws on “scenarios” designed to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement, developed at various scales. [Eco-Business]

Friday, September 14:

Damaged house (Getty Images)

• “Gas-related explosions set fire to homes near Boston”
  At least one person has been killed and others injured in 60 to 80 incidents thought to be gas explosions and fires in towns north of Boston. A fire chief said investigators suspect the fires were caused by “over-pressurisation of a gas main” belonging to Columbia Gas lines. [BBC]
• “Wind and solar power are unstoppable, even without government support: Deloitte report”
  Australian wind and solar power are booming despite the Australian government’s retreat on carbon emissions and energy policy, a Deloitte report claims. The report also says Australia enjoys the lowest global cost for solar panels. [Energy Matters]

Offshore wind farm

• “DNV GL Predicts Global Energy Demand To Peak In 2035”
  The world’s energy demand is expected to decline from 2035 onward, according to global risk management and quality assurance company DNV GL. It published a report predicting that the demand decline will result in a reshaping of energy investment trends. [CleanTechnica]

Saturday, September 15:

• “Hurricane Florence Is Part Of What Al Gore Got Right In An Inconvenient Truth”
  This was supposed to be a lighter-than-usual season due to the El Niño cycle, but due to climate change, lighter does not mean what it used to. In context of this, it’s worth revisiting the predictions made in Al Gore’s film to assess their quality. [CleanTechnica]

A boat wedged between trees

• “Worsening storms are the price of greed”
  The necessary and terrifyingly overdue efforts to combat climate change at the source of worsening storms are simply not being made in the US. Instead, even small victories, such as reducing pollution from coal and US participation in the Paris Climate Accord, are being walked back. [CNN]
• “Hurricane Florence is the latest setback to struggling flood insurance program”
  Hurricane Florence will bring flooding and destruction to thousands of homes in the Carolinas and Virginia. It is another blow to the federal program providing insurance against flood damage that has already had $16 billion in debt forgiven by congress. [CNN]

Sunday, September 16:

Frequency Stabilizer (Siemens image)

• “Siemens Launches Frequency Stabilizer to Support Power Grids in Milliseconds”
  With its SVC Plus Frequency Stabilizer, Siemens is the world’s first supplier to combine reactive power compensation capability with the use of a supercapacitor. In less than 50 milliseconds, it can provide power needed for stable grid operation. [Transmission and Distribution World]
• “Hurricane Florence Is 50 Miles Larger, with 50% More Rain, Thanks to Climate Change”
  For the first time, researchers have calculated the impact of climate change on a hurricane as it was active. Hurricane Florence, they found, was about 50 miles (80 km) larger and dumped 50% more rain than it would have had without climate change. [Infosurhoy]

Strip mine (Photo: Dominik Vanyi | Unsplash)

• “Marubeni’s shock exit from coal”
  Japanese energy giant Marubeni Corp is getting out of coal and accelerating its shift into renewable energy dramatically, according to a story in Nikkei. If the story is true, it will send shockwaves around the energy world and confirm that renewable energy is not just cleaner, but more economic than coal. [Michael West News]

Monday, September 17:

• “Oyster Creek shutting down for good today: 5 things you need to know”
  The aging nuclear reactor at Oyster Creek is closing after a half-century run. The station has been a local icon since its construction in the 1960s. It has also been the source of concern for local people, who will continue to worry about safety during decommissioning. [Asbury Park Press]

Sunrise at a low reservoir (RJ Sangosti, The Denver Post)

• “Colorado rolls with climate shift, grappling with low river flows and a complicated debate over reservoirs”
  Colorado’s ongoing shift toward a hotter and drier climate is spurring such quick adaptations as allowing taller stacks of hay on trucks rolling into the state. But it is also forcing a scramble to examine climate change. [Canon City Daily Record]
• “Nature Roars. Washington Hears Nothing.”
  As if this past summer of merciless heat waves, droughts, and megafires were not warning enough, in the past several days the elements sounded another alarm about global warming caused by burning fossil fuels. Meanwhile, the EPA proposed weakening the rules on methane. [New York Times]

Tuesday, September 18:

Floating wind turbine

• “The Public Wants Renewable Energy and They Want It Now!”
  Utility companies, like automakers, would like to party like it’s 1999 forever, but consumers are beginning to realize their future lies with zero emissions vehicles and renewable energy. The transition has begun. If the people will lead, their leaders will follow. Spread the word! [CleanTechnica]
• “SoCalGas to Offer Renewable Natural Gas at its Fueling Stations for the First Time”
  Southern California Gas Co announced it will soon begin using renewable natural gas at the 25 utility-owned natural gas vehicle fueling stations across its service territory, as well as at six fueling stations in the San Diego area. [Markets Insider]

Coal-fired power station (Pixabay image)

• “S&P Global: Coal-fired power stations are a poor investment”
  Private investment in coal-fired power plants is highly unlikely due to poor investment returns, S&P Global said. Its analysis shows renewable energy backed by battery storage or gas offers the most prudent investment, according to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald. [Energy Matters]

Wednesday, September 19:

Miami (Hoberman Collection | UIG via Getty Images)

• “Miami’s Existence Is Threatened With As Little As 18″ Of Sea Level Rise”
  Miami is very vulnerable to the effects of climate change. It sees sunny day flooding as regularly as clockwork. It has the third-tallest skyline in the US, but most of the buildings are close are sea level. It is built on porous sandstone, so even a seawall will not work. [CleanTechnica]
• “More Than 130 Companies Have Made Science-Based Targets This Year Alone”
  Since the beginning of the year, more than 130 companies have joined the Science Based Targets initiative, pushing the total number of companies close to 500 and representative of about one-eighth of total global market capitalization. [CleanTechnica]

Ørsted offshore wind farm

• “Q&A: Why Offshore Wind is the Future”
  Energy company Ørsted has abandoned the oil and gas business it began with for renewables. Now it has eleven offshore wind farms in the UK, including the world’s biggest, Walney Extension. Matthew Wright, Ørsted UK managing director, explains the thinking behind the move. [Raconteur]

2018-09-13 Energy Week Number 281

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Thursday, September 6:

Gloucester (Don Emmert | AFP | Getty Images)

• “Court Upholds Massachusetts’ Authority to Cap Power Plant CO2 Emissions”
  Massachusetts’ highest court resoundingly upheld the state’s power to impose limits on carbon emissions from power plants. It is an example of states establishing their authority to fill the regulatory void the Trump administration is creating. [InsideClimate News]
• “Advocates: Trump’s coal-friendly power plan will hurt Ohio’s health”
  Ohioans likely face more early deaths, more asthma attacks, and higher electric bills under the Trump administration proposal to replace the Clean Power Plan, say environmental groups. Those conclusions come from the EPA ’s own analysis of the proposal. [Energy News Network]

Block Island Wind Farm

• “Average Atlantic Coast Offshore Wind Farm Could Add Billions To Economy & Thousands Of Jobs”
  A report shows that an average-sized offshore wind farm located off the Atlantic Coast of the US could result in billions in economic benefits and yield thousands of jobs. Such wind farms could be put up in any of several states. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, September 7:

• “Big wind, solar farms could boost rain in Sahara: study”
  A study in the journal Science used computer modeling to simulate the effect of covering 20% of the Sahara Desert with solar panels and installing three million wind turbines there. In addition to slowing global warming, it would also give a small but beneficial boost to rain. [ETEnergyworld.com]

Studying under an electric light

• “‘Bold’ Climate Action Could Deliver $26 Trillion In Economic Benefits Through 2030”
  A report from the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate shows that benefits of climate-smart growth are “significantly” underestimated. It says “bold climate action” could drive at least $26 trillion in economic benefits through 2030. [CleanTechnica]
• “August the ‘cleanest energy month of the year in modern times’ in UK”
  Fossil fuel generation in the UK fell to record lows last month, while renewables provided a quarter of all electricity, making August “the cleanest calendar month of the year in modern times” energy experts at consultancy EnAppSys said. [Power Engineering International]

Liddell coal-burning power plant

• “No future: Even existing coal to be beaten by renewables and storage on costs”
  A new report authored by Australian and international researchers suggests there is no prospect for a new coal generator in Australia, and even existing coal generators are going to be challenged by the falling costs of renewables and storage. [RenewEconomy]

Saturday, September 8:

• “Federal Policy Vacuum Spurs Surge of State Environmental Ballot Measures”
  At least 11 states will get a chance to vote this fall on a variety of environmental ballot measures, in a surge of activity that could foreshadow policies of a future Democratic administration. The measures run a gamut of environmental policies. [Scientific American]

Living between the breakers and the wet place (Credit: Fiona Goodall | Getty Images For Lumix)

• “Ryan Zinke brushes past threatened islands’ most pressing demand during visit”
  Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has spent his week traveling through a series of tropical islands in the Pacific Ocean, part of an effort meant to strengthen strategic and security-based alliances. But he is ignoring their need to deal with climate change. [ThinkProgress]
• “Bombshell: Tesla Announcement Implies HUGE Quarter 3”
  The latest Company Update from Tesla had a statement buried in it that really stands out when it is allowed to sink in. “We are about to have the most amazing quarter in our history, building and delivering more than twice as many cars as we did last quarter.” [CleanTechnica]

Sunday, September 9:

Demonstration in Sydney harbor

• “Climate change: Protests held ahead of California summit”
  Organised by New York-based group 350.org, environmentalists held protests around the world demanding stepped up action on climate change, ahead of a summit in California. Thousands took part in Paris, days after France’s environment minister quit over perceived policy failures. [BBC]
• “Dirty Reality Catching Up With Fossil Fuel Vehicles”
  The new Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure has been put into force in the EU from 1st of September 2018. With it and the Real Driving Emissions test, OEMs whose cars have always been highly polluting, and are finding that they are now running out of road. [CleanTechnica]

Solar panels and a thatched roof

• “30,000 Zambian households gain access to energy”
  Over the course of a period of nine months, 30,000 Zambian households have gained access to energy for the first time. The increased access was achieved through the collaborative efforts between renewable energy company Fenix International and telecom firm MTN. [Lusaka Times]

Monday, September 10:

• “Australia could be 100% renewable by 2030s, meet Paris targets by 2025”
  Australia could reach the equivalent of 100% renewables for its electricity by the early 2030s by merely maintaining the current pace of wind and solar development, according to a report from Australian National University researchers. [RenewEconomy]

Sales by renvenue

• “Tesla Model 3 = #1 Best Selling Car In The US (In Revenue)”
  In August, Tesla’s Model 3 became a top 5 best-selling car in the US in terms of units sold. But it cost twice as much as the cars by Toyota and Honda that sold greater numbers. In terms of the revenues from the cars sold, the Tesla Model 3 was the number one car. [CleanTechnica]

Tuesday, September 11:

• “Plan to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is getting underway”
  An ambitious project to clean up the ocean’s plastic pollution got underway over the weekend as members of The Ocean Cleanup project began towing their system out to sea. It is being taken 240 nautical miles off shore for a two-week test in the open ocean. [CNN]

Atlantic hurricane (NASA image)

• “Hurricane Florence: Four Things You Should Know That Your Meteorologist is Truly Too Busy to Tell You”
  Florence has an unusual path and conditions are making it powerful. We should keep that in mind as we look at the climate dynamics that make Florence stand out from others in the history of Atlantic hurricanes. [Union of Concerned Scientists]
• “UN chief Guterres calls on world leaders to prevent ‘runaway climate change’” •
  Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that the world is facing an existential threat and must shift from dependence on fossil fuels by 2020 to prevent “runaway climate change.” He called the crisis urgent and decried a lack of global leadership. [France 24]

Wednesday, September 12:

Flaring (Credit: Orjan F Ellingvag | Corbis, via Getty Images)

• “Trump Administration Wants to Make It Easier to Release Methane Into Air”
  The Trump administration is about to take its third major step this year to roll back federal efforts to fight climate change. It is preparing to make it significantly easier for energy companies to release methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. [New York Times]
• “Fossil Fuel Demand Set To Peak In The 2020s”
  The rapid growth of clean technologies is expected to cause fossil fuel demand to peak in the 2020s, according to a new report from Carbon Tracker, serving to put at risk trillions for investors ignorant of or unwilling to participate in the transition to a low-carbon economy. [CleanTechnica]

SeaWing kite sail

• “Airbus SeaWing Kite Sails To Cut Fuel Costs For Cargo Ships 20%”
  Last year, some Airbus engineers formed a company called AirSeas to develop wind power technology for ocean-going cargo ships. Airbus will use prototype kite sails on cargo ships that move parts for aircraft between its locations in Europe and the US. [CleanTechnica]