Energy Week #352: 1/2/2020

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.

Also NOTE: Because the last regular weekly show was on December 19, this show covers two weeks.

Energy Week #352: 1/2/2020

Thursday, December 19

Liquid air energy storage (Credit: Highview Power)

• 1 “First US Long-Duration Liquid Air Storage Project Planned In Vermont” • Highview Power Storage and Encore Renewable Energy are planning to build the country’s first liquid air energy storage system in northern Vermont, in a bid to address transmission issues in the region. The proposed project will be at least 50 MW. [Utility Dive]
• 2 “Bob Murray Paid For Science Denial Instead Of His Coal Workers’ Wages As Company Went Bankrupt” • While his company spiraled into bankruptcy, Robert Murray spent tens of millions from the company coffers to pay himself, his successor, and several anti-science and anti-environment lobby groups, according to new court filings. [Electrek]

Friday, December 20

Coal trains (Benjamin Lowy | Getty Images)

• 3 “FERC Order Could Boost Coal Over Renewables, Raising Costs For Consumers” • Rules approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission are designed to counteract state subsidies that support the growth of renewable energy and use of nuclear power. The change would require higher minimum bids for subsidized power plants. [InsideClimate News]

Saturday, December 21

• 4 “Scientists Created A New Sponge That Could Clean Up Oil Spills” • The secret to cleaning up water contaminated by oil may lie in the cheap, common polyurethane foam used in mattresses, enhanced with a special coating. In a study published in Nature Sustainability, Scientists found the material consistently captured almost all of the oil in under three hours. [Grist]

The following story on fires in Australia has two images:

Australian bushfires (Getty Images)

(The Peshtigo fire burned 1.2 million acres – Vermont is 6.16 million acres) Batemans Bay to Byron bay is 660 miles.

• 5 “Australia Fires: A Visual Guide To The Bushfires And Extreme Heat” • Australia is grappling with massive bushfires fueled by record-breaking temperatures and months of severe drought. Fires in New South Wales have already burned at least 2.7 million hectares (7.4 million acres) this season, destroying more than 700 houses. Here is a visual guide. [BBC]

Sunday, December 22

• 6 “The Global Price Tag For 100% Renewable Energy: $73 Trillion” • A global effort to transition to 100% renewable energy by 2050 would cost nations $73 trillion upfront. But the expense will pay for itself in under seven years, and create 28.6 million more full-time jobs, according to a new report from researchers at Stanford University. [Yale Environment 360]

Monday, December 23

Lockheed Martin flow battery ( Lockheed Martin image)

• 7 “Lockheed Martin Tests Innovative Flow Battery Technology” • Lockheed Martin announced that it is partnering with TC Energy to develop energy storage systems based on Lockheed Martin flow battery technology. They say the ingredients are not toxic or expensive but have sufficient energy storage capability to be commercially viable. [CleanTechnica]

Tuesday, December 24

• 8 “Renewables Are A Bright Spot In Texas’ Tumultuous Energy Market” • A survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas estimates about 8,100 Texas oil-and-gas-sector jobs might soon disappear in another oil downturn. But it’s not all bad news, especially for the renewable energy market. Texas produces 20% of all US wind power. [Texas Standard]

Daniel Knox in a controlled burn (Daniel Knox | Andrew O’dwyer)

• 9 “Australia fires: The Thousands Of Volunteers Fighting The Flames” • “We’re doing it because it’s a passion” said Daniel Knox. “It’s a brotherhood.” He is one of thousands of Australians who’ve dropped their ordinary lives to battle the nation’s raging fire crisis. He said, “When that photo was taken of me, I had done a 15-hour shift out there.” [BBC]

Wednesday, December 25

• 10 “Scientists Struggle To Save Vital Seagrasses From Coastal Pollution” • Seagrasses grow along coastlines nearly everywhere around the world, and they can store twice as much carbon in a given area as temperate and tropical forests. But the over 70 species of seagrasses in coastal habitats are among the most poorly protected. [The Weather Channel]

Thursday, December 26

No-till field with cover crops on the left, conventional farming on the right (Rob Myers | University of Missouri)

• 11 “After A Rough Year, Farmers And Congress Are Talking About Climate Solutions” • The Midwest floods of 2019 revealed another benefit of sustainable agriculture: fields farmed with conservation practices recovered faster from flooding. Farmers saw the difference, and now they are taking their new knowledge to congress. [InsideClimate News]
• 12 “As Fracking Companies Face Bankruptcy, US Regulators Enable Firms to Duck Cleanup Costs” • In over their heads with debt, US shale oil and gas firms are now moving from a boom in fracking to a boom in bankruptcies. This trend could put the US taxpayers on the hook for paying to shut them down properly and clean up the drilling sites. [EcoWatch]

Friday, December 27

Wind turbines in Texas (Xcel Energy)

• 13 “Renewables Account For 100% Of Oct 2019 Capacity Additions In US” • The US put into service 722 MW of new power capacity in October, 2019, and all of it was renewable, the latest monthly report by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shows. For January through October, slightly less than 50% of new capacity has been natural gas. [Renewables Now]

Saturday, December 28

• 14 “From Global Warming To Plastic Pollution, This Was The Decade When People Learned The Planet Was Facing A Climate Emergency” • This was the decade when science demonstrated climate change was happening beyond any reasonable doubt. Record high temperatures, droughts, floods, and storms were all plainly visible to anyone who looke. [iNews]

Antarctic glacier (Jeremy Harbeck | NASA | EPA)

• 15 “Submarine To Explore Why Antarctic Glacier Is Melting So Quickly” • An international team of scientists at the Thwaites glacier in Antarctica is preparing to drill through more than half a kilometer of ice into the dark waters beneath. They plan to lower down a torpedo-shaped robotic submarine to explore with hopes to find out why it is melting so fast. [The Guardian]

Sunday, December 29

• 16 “The Future Of Energy Is Being Shaped In Asia” • A Frenchman is credited with being the first to discover the photovoltaic effect that produces electricity from sunlight. The first solar panel was built in the US. But when Abu Dhabi decided to build the world’s largest individual solar power project, they looked east for help, to China and Japan. [The European Sting]

Spoon-billed sandpiper chick (WWT image)

• 17 “With A Million Species At Risk, What Do We Save?” • A decade-long project to save one of the world’s most endangered birds has finally found success, as two chicks hatched. But with an estimated million species at risk worldwide and nothing like the money and resources to save them all, how do conservationists choose the few they can save? [BBC]

Monday, December 30

• 18 “Green New Deals For The World Are Green Good Deals” • World leaders at the UN Madrid climate talks failed to agree on a path forward. The core of the problem is the belief by some leaders that solving global warming will be expensive and drain the economies of their countries. However, new research indicates that this belief is incorrect. [CleanTechnica]

Tuesday, December 31

Mallacoota, pitch dark at 10:00 AM (Jason Selmes)

• 19 “Australian Wildfires Force Thousands To Flee To The Beach” • Thousands of people had to take refuge from wildfires on a beach in southeast Australia, as fires swept through the town. About 4,000 residents and visitors were forced to evacuate Mallacoota, Victoria, authorities said. Roads were cut off, and there was no way in or out of the town. [CNN]
• 20 “How Energy Storage Could Revolutionize Industries In The Next 10 Years” • Over the last ten years, a surge in lithium-ion battery production drove down prices to the point that for the first time in history electric vehicles became commercially viable from the standpoint of both cost and performance. Next comes utility-scale storage. [CNBC]

Wednesday, January 1

House built to code for floods and hurricanes (Nexus Media)

• 21 “In Mississippi, The Costs Of Coastal Flooding Are Adding Up” • First Street Foundation research found that between 2005 and 2017, flooding erased nearly $16 billion of real estate appreciation in coastal areas from Maine to Texas. Researchers did not even calculate losses in Louisiana due to the complexity of issues in that state. [CleanTechnica]

Energy Week #352: 1/2/2020

 

Energy, renewable energy, wind power, Solar, batteries, Nuclear, coal, oil, gas, Climate Change

Energy Week #351: The Year 2019 in Review

Please note: This show will be recorded on December 19. It is intended to be put transmitted for the week after Christmas instead of a regular edition, because the studio will not be open during that week.

Energy Week #351 – The Year 2019 in Review

Ocean waves

• January 13: “Oceans Are Warming 40% Faster than Predicted”
  News Flash! The oceans are warming 40% faster than predicted just a few years ago. That finding is contained in a new study published January 11 in the journal Science. As the oceans warm, they will absorb heat less efficiently, and that means that with time, the land will get hotter faster. [CleanTechnica]
• January 30: “Major Utility Implicated In More Than A Dozen Wildfires Files For Bankruptcy”
  California utility Pacific Gas and Electric has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It faces billions of dollars in potential damages and fines stemming from liability in 2017 and 2018 wildfires. PG&E has secured $5.5 billion for operations while it restructures. [Ars Technica]
  

  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (Photo: Angela Weiss | AFP | AFP | Getty Images)

• Feb 8: “Ocasio-Cortez And Markey Unveil Green New Deal Resolution”
  Two Democrats, Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Sen Ed Markey of Massachusetts, unveiled their “Green New Deal” resolution, which outlines the definition of the massive piece of legislation they hope will tackle issues related to the US’ role in climate change. [CNN]
  
• Feb 13: “How Teenage Girls Defied Skeptics To Build A New Global Climate Movement”
  Greta Thunberg’s climate activism got her invited from her native Sweden to Davos, Switzerland, where she excoriated a room full of executives, telling them they were to blame for the climate crisis. She is not alone. Young women are rising in many countries. [CNN]
  

  Harbour Air seaplane

• April 7 “Harbour Air Is Switching Over To 100% Electric Seaplanes”
  Harbour Air, based in Vancouver, Canada, will be the first seafaring airline to convert its complete fleet of aircraft to be powered by electricity. Its 41 aircraft will be converted to reach a longer lifecycle with highly improved efficiency and lowered maintenance costs. [CleanTechnica]
• April 13 “Fraunhofer Reports Combining Farming With Solar 186% More Efficient In Summer Of 2018”
  The Fraunhofer Institute has conducted experiments in what it calls agrophotovoltaics for two years in Germany. In 2018, they found that the potatoes they grew beneath solar panels did better than they would have in full sun. [CleanTechnica]
• April 22 “‘It’s Already Begun’ – Feedback Loops Will Make Climate Change Even Worse, Scientists Say”
  Rising Arctic temperatures set free a vast amount of carbon previously locked beneath permafrost, these additional greenhouse gases speed up warming, and that melts more permafrost. It is a feedback loop, and scientists say it has begun. [Yahoo News]
  

  
  Re-establishing vegetation on parched land (Getty Images)

• May 10 “How Weeds Help Fight Climate Change”
  Most people see weeds as a problem. But one farmer has found they can help make dry, damaged land lush again, and they also absorb carbon from the atmosphere. His observations of the flow of water from high to low places inspired what is called natural sequence farming. [BBC]
• May 25 “The Bus Wars Are Over. Electricity – And China – Won.”
  The bus wars are over and electricity has won, thanks to a big boost from China. With China’s massive investment in and support for electric buses, electrics are now racing past a 50% share of new bus sales worldwide, according to a recent analysis by Bloomberg NEF. [ThinkProgress]
  

  Nickel Ride cars (Courtesy of Nickel Ride)

• May 27 “Nickel Ride Finds EVs Are So Affordable … They Can Give Rides For Free”
  Nickel Ride, which operates in some Florida cities, found a way to use the advantages of electric vehicles for a competitive edge. Customers can download a Nickel Ride app to request free rides. The company uses advertising revenue to pay for the drivers and cars. [CleanTechnica]
  
• June 11 “US Renewable Energy Generating Capacity Has Now Surpassed Coal”
  According to an analysis by the SUN DAY Campaign, using newly published data from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, US electrical generating capacity of renewable energy sources is now – for the first time – greater that of coal. [Windpower Engineering]
• June 29 “Fracking Creates A Glut Of Fossil Fuels And A Mountain Of Debt”
  Steve Schlotterbeck, former chief executive of EQT, one of the largest shale gas fracking companies in the US, shocked people at a petrochemicals conference in Pittsburgh recently by telling them that fracking has been an “unmitigated disaster” for investors in shale companies. [CleanTechnica]
  

  Swedish spruce forest (W.carter, Wikimedia Commons, public domain)

• July 5 “Restoring Forests Could Capture Two-Thirds Of The Carbon Humans Have Added To The Atmosphere”
  Restoring the world’s lost forests could remove two thirds of all the planet-warming carbon that is in the atmosphere because of human activity, according to a study from Swiss university ETH Zurich published in the journal Science. [CNN]
  
• July 11 “US Is World’s Largest Producer Of Fossil Fuels”
  BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy 2019 was released in June, and the findings revealed that the US is leading the world in production of fossil fuels. Among the important facts in the review, one thing stood out: The US made 98% of total global additions, an astonishing figure. [Modern Diplomacy]
  

  The Planet Earth (NASA image, Wikimedia Commons)

• July 24 “Climate Change: 12 Years To Save The Planet? Make That 18 Months”
  Last year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reported that to keep the rise in global temperatures below 1.5°C this century, emissions of CO₂ would have to be cut by 45% by 2030. But the decisive, political steps to make that possible will have to come very soon. [BBC]
• August 4 “Germany Hopes To Replace Coal With Hydrogen”
  Germany is increasingly looking to hydrogen as an alternative to gas to end the dependence on coal. Last month the Economy Ministry announced funding for 20 hydrogen research labs, and natural gas pipeline owners asked for rule changes to allow hydrogen to be added to the mix. [Energy Reporters]
  

  Electric VW Beetles (VW image)

• September 10 “Every Automaker Should Develop Conversion Kits For Their Gas Vehicles”
  We recently learned Volkswagen is going to sell an EV retrofit kit for its classic Beetle. It’s the true revenge of the electric car. If a 70 year old vehicle that was not developed for electrification can be retrofitted successfully, then many other vehicles can as well. [CleanTechnica]
  
• September 24 “23 States Sue Trump To Keep California’s Auto Emission Rules”
  California sued Friday to stop the Trump administration from revoking its authority to set greenhouse gas emission and fuel economy standards for cars and trucks, enlisting help from 22 other states in a battle that will shape a key component of the nation’s climate policy. [Associated Press]
• October 22 “PG&E Head Says To Expect Rolling Blackouts For The Next 10 Years”
  Pacific Gas & Electric is shutting parts of the California grid down to prevent wildfires during periods of dry, windy weather. The CEO of PG&E told the California Public Utilities Commission that the state will likely see blackouts for another 10 years, NPR reported. [CleanTechnica]
  

  Farming the desert (Image credit: Stefan Botha via YouTube)

• October 26 “UN Scientists Say There Is A Way To Delay Climate Change For 20 Years For Pocket Change”
  Rene Castro Salazar, of at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, told Time that almost half of the 5 billion acres of land around the world that have been degraded could be restored for $300 billion, about two months of worldwide military spending. [CleanTechnica]
• November 5 “US Begins Formal Withdrawal From Paris Climate Accord”
  The Trump administration announced that it will begin formally withdrawing the US from the Paris climate accord, the first step in a year-long process to back out of the agreement to reduce emissions of planet-warming gases. Trump is working to reduce federal regulations on pollution. [CNN]
  

  Lazard LCOE graph (Lazard image)

• November 8 “Wind And Solar Kill Coal And Nuclear On Costs, Says Latest Lazard Report”
  The cost of wind and solar continue to decline and are now at the point where they beat, or at least match, even the marginal costs of coal-fired generation and nuclear power, according to the 13th and latest edition of Lazard’s Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis. [RenewEconomy]
• November 9 “Fed: $500 Billion In Losses Show Economic Threat of Climate Change”
  A Fed official warned risk managers not to ignore climate change. “The US economy has experienced more than $500 billion in direct losses over the last five years due to climate and weather-related events,” Federal Reserve Bank of New York Executive Vice President Kevin Stiroh said. [Newsmax]
• November 28 “Nine climate tipping points now ‘active,’ warn scientists”
  More than half of the climate tipping points identified a decade ago are now “active,” leading scientists have warned. Three of them, collapse of ice sheets in Greenland, West Antarctica, and part of East Antarctica, would commit the world to around ten meters of irreversible sea-level rise. [Science Daily]
  

  Batteries (Mk2010, Wikimedia Commons)

• December 4 “Battery Prices Falling Sharply, Says Report”
  Battery prices are falling sharply and will continue to fall, according to a study by Bloomberg NEF. The paper showed prices declining sharply between 2010 and 2019. In 2010, battery prices were above $1,100/kWh, but they decreased to $156/kWh in 2019. This is a decline of 87%. [Down To Earth Magazine]
  
• December 7 “Permafrost Hits A Grim Threshold”
  According to research based upon field observations conducted from 2003 to 2017, a large-scale carbon emission shift has occurred in the Arctic. The region had been a carbon sink, but the “entire Arctic” now emits more carbon than it absorbs. This can only be described as worse than bad news. [CounterPunch]
  

  Young activists (Pablo Blazquez Dominguez | Getty Images)

• December 13 “Youth Climate Activists Storm COP25 Stage”
  Young activists took over and occupied the main stage at the COP25 climate conference in Madrid, Spain. They demanded world leaders commit to far more ambitious action to address the ecological emergency. “World leaders have left us no choice,” said 14-year-old Alexandria Villaseñor of New York. [EcoWatch]

Energy Week #350: 12/19/2019

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 #350: 12/19/2019

Thursday, December 12

Time Person of the Year

• “Time Person Of The Year: Climate Crisis Activist Greta Thunberg” • Time magazine has chosen Greta Thunberg, the Swedish climate activist, as person of the year. Thunberg, 16, is the youngest person ever chosen. “Thunberg has become the biggest voice on the biggest issue facing the planet,” Time editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal wrote. [CNN]
• “Renewable Developers Raise Eyebrows Over GMP Green Energy Trading App” • An effort by Vermont’s largest electric utility to make it easier for business customers to buy green power is meeting resistance from some renewable energy proponents. This is because the app allows trades from already established renewable energy systems. [vtdigger.org]

Vanguard Renewables facility in Deerfield, MA (Business Wire image)

• “Dominion Energy, Vanguard Renewables Partner On Dairy Renewable Natural Gas” • Dominion Energy and Vanguard Renewables announced a nationwide strategic partnership of over $200 million to convert methane from US dairy farms to produce renewable natural gas to heat homes, power businesses, and fuel vehicles. [Biomass Magazine]

Friday, December 13

Young activists (Pablo Blazquez Dominguez | Getty Images)

• “Youth Climate Activists Storm COP25 Stage” • Young activists took over and occupied the main stage at the COP25 climate conference in Madrid, Spain. They demanded world leaders commit to far more ambitious action to address the ecological emergency. “World leaders have left us no choice,” said 14-year-old Alexandria Villaseñor of New York. [EcoWatch]
• “Natural Gas Plant Replacing Los Angeles Coal Power To Be 100% Hydrogen By 2045: LADWP” • Los Angeles’ municipal utility is planning to convert a Utah power operation from coal to natural gas, and then to 100% hydrogen by 2045. The gas-fired generation is replacing a 1,800-MW coal plant, which will cease operations in 2025. [Utility Dive]

Block Island wind farm (Ionna 22, Wikimedia Commons)

• “New Report Envisages 10-Fold Increase In Global Wind Power By 2050” • An International Renewable Energy Agency report says deep electrification, accelerated deployment of renewables, and greater energy efficiency, can together achieve over 90% of the energy-related CO₂ emissions reductions needed by 2050 to meet Paris climate targets. [UN Environment]

Saturday, December 14

• “Massachusetts AG Healey Stokes Grassroots Effort For Clean Energy Market Rules In ISO-NE” • Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey launched an online effort to educate ratepayers about the region’s grid operator, ISO-New England. Included in the effort is a petition for market rules that promote clean energy. [Utility Dive]

Woman in her garden (Faarm Project image)

• “Can Kitchen Gardens Combat Climate Change?” • Growing fruit and veg in the garden is already seen as environmentally friendly, but it could also be a weapon in the fight against climate change. That has been the experience of a community in Bangladesh, whose rice crop was ruined when seasonal rains came early. [BBC]
• “US Has Only One Offshore Wind Energy Farm, But A $70 Billion Market Is On The Way” • Today, from Maine to Virginia, statesare poised to join a renewable-energy revolution that will provide abundant clean electricity, create tens of thousands of jobs, revitalize port cities, and spur economic growth in dozens of coastal communities. [CNBC]

Sunday, December 15

High-school science lesson (Luna Anna Archey | High Country News)

• “How Coal Country Becomes Solar Country” • In Colorado’s North Fork Valley, solar energy, along with a strong organic-farm economy and recreation dollars, is helping to fill the economic hole left by the dying coal industry, which sustained the area for more than 120 years. Two of Delta County’s three mines have already closed. [The Atlantic]
• “70% of Americans Support Solar Mandate on New Homes” • CITE Research recently conducted a survey for Vivint Solar and found 70% of Americans said they would support a nationwide mandate requiring that solar panels be installed on all newly built homes. The survey was conducted online, and 2,000 US adults age 25 and up participated. [CleanTechnica]

Activists at COP25 (Bernat Armangue | AP)

• “UN COP25 Summit Ends With Anger With Global Warming’s ‘Window Of Escape’ Getting Harder” • Major economies have resisted calls for bolder commitments as a UN summit in Madrid limped towards a delayed conclusion, dimming any hopes that nation governments would act in time to mitigate the impacts of climate change. [ABC News]

Monday, December 16

• “Georgia Power Inaction On Renewables May Lead To Loss Of Large Industrial Customer” • Last April, Georgia Power filed a complaint with the Georgia Public Service Commission to block a competing utility from providing Nestlé Purina with renewable electricity at a lower price than its own. The case is now being considered. [Energy and Policy Institute]

Greta Thunberg (Andrea Comas | AP)

• “Why Madrid Climate Summit Fell Short Of Global Expectations” • COP25 climate negotiations, the longest in 25 such gatherings, ended with major polluters resisting calls to ramp up efforts to keep global warming at bay. Here is a look at the main issues resolved, and the sticking points for future negotiations. [Christian Science Monitor]
• “All The Good (Under-the-Radar) News About Renewable Energy” • The National Renewable Energy Laboratory came out with three reports last week that should give stakeholders in fossil fuel the willies. Big solar arrays and wind farms make big headlines, but these reports deal with behind-the-scenes research that carries more weight. [CleanTechnica]

Tuesday, December 17

Disko Bay, Greenland (Ian Joughin | University of Washington)

• “Greenland Ice Melt Matches Worst IPCC Predictions” • New findings by an international team of researchers show the melting of Greenland’s ice sheet over the past 26 years are close to the most pessimistic predictions of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The research appears in the journal Nature. [KJZZ]
• “World Demand For Coal Falls Despite Growth In Asia” • Global demand for coal has fallen this year for the first time in two years as Europe and the US turn their backs on coal-fired power plants in favor of cheap gas and renewable energy, an International Energy Agency report found. The future of coal now rests largely in China. [The Guardian]

Artisanal mining in DR Congo (AFP | Getty Images)

• “Top Tech Firms Sued Over DR Congo Cobalt Mining Deaths” • Apple, Google, Tesla and Microsoft are among firms named in a lawsuit seeking damages over deaths and injuries of child miners in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where 60% of the world’s supply of cobalt is produced. Cobalt is an important material for lithium-ion batteries. [BBC]

Wednesday, December 18

• “Australia Heatwave: Nation Endures Hottest Day On Record” • Australia has experienced its hottest day on record with the national average for high temperature reaching 40.9°C (105.6°F). The Bureau of Meteorology said heat on 17 December exceeded the previous record of 40.3°C set on 7 January 2013. Some places had high temperatures of 45°C. [BBC]
• “Earth’s Hottest Decade On Record Capped By Years Of Extreme Storms And Deadly Wildfires” • Deadly heat waves, wildfires, and pervasive flooding in 2019 punctuated a decade of climate extremes that may show global warming kicking into overdrive. Scientists say 2019 was Earth’s second-warmest year on record. [InsideClimate News]

US Capitol Building

• “US Lawmakers Stiff Solar, Wind Gets Modest Victory In Tax Deal” • After months of lobbying, the clean energy industry secured minimal tax credit extensions in the $1.37 trillion end-of-year deal. It included $250 million for programs to aid advanced nuclear reactors, but solar power and electric vehicles were left out of the deal. [Greentech Media]

Energy Week #350: 12/19/2019

 

Energy, renewable energy, wind power, Solar, batteries, Nuclear, coal, oil, gas, Climate Change

Energy Week #349: 12/12/2019

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 #349: 12/12/2019

Thursday, December 5

Hot day in Paris (Samuel Boivin | NurPhoto Via Getty Images)

• “Even 50-Year-Old Climate Models Correctly Predicted Global Warming” • Climate change doubters like to claim that computer simulations conducted decades ago didn’t accurately predict current warming. Now, the most sweeping evaluation of these older models – some half a century old – shows most of them were indeed accurate. [Science Magazine]
• “NV Energy Wins Approval For 1.19 GW Of Solar, 590 MW Of Energy Storage In Nevada” • Nevada utility NV Energy said it has approval from the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada for 1.19 GW of new solar projects and 590 MW of energy storage in Nevada. The projects will help NV Energy double its renewable energy capacity. [Renewables Now]

Flood in Guerneville, California (Justin Sullivan | Getty Images)

• “40 Years Of Atmospheric River Storms Left Staggering Price Tag In Western US, Study Finds” • Flooding from ‘atmospheric rivers’ caused about $43 billion in damage in western states in the last 40 years, a study from the US Army Corps of Engineers and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography found. Climate change is making the flooding worse. [The Weather Channel]

Friday, December 6

• “Vineyard Wins Connecticut Offshore Wind Tender With 804-MW Bid” • Connecticut announced it selected Vineyard Wind LLC’s 804-MW Park City Wind Project as the winner in a major solicitation for offshore wind projects. It had “a price lower than any other publicly announced offshore wind project in North America.” [Renewables Now]

Queue at the top of Mount Everest (Nimsdai | Project Possible | Getty Images)

• “As He Scaled World’s 14 Highest Peaks, Nepalese Climber Shocked By Climate Change Effects” • Nepalese climber Nirmal “Nims” Purja smashed the record for taking the shortest time to climb all 14 of the world’s 8,000-meter-high mountains. But his expeditions made him acutely aware of the environmental changes the world is undergoing. [CNN]
• “EPA Watchdog Says White House Budget Office Blocked Part Of Its Investigation Into Controversial Trucks Rule” • The EPA inspector general report concluded that the EPA, and possibly the budget office, bypassed key steps when it rushed through Pruitt’s proposal to lighten regulations on some heavy-duty trucks using older, less-efficient engines. [CNN]

Saturday, December 7

BMWs boarding a ship (Image courtesy of BMW Group)

• “BMW Group Joins ‘Getting to Zero Coalition,’ First Carmaker To Do So” • BMW Group joined the “Getting to Zero Coalition” ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference in Madrid. By 2023, BMW Group will be offering 25 electrified models. Its factories in Europe have been powered by 100% green electricity since 2017. [CleanTechnica]
• “Australia Bushfires North Of Sydney ‘Too Big To Put Out'” • A “mega blaze” raging across a 60 km (37 mile) front north of the Australian city of Sydney cannot currently be put out, fire officials have warned. The severity of the blazes so early in the fire season has caused alarm, and prompted calls for greater action to tackle climate change. [BBC]

Melting permafrost (Boris Radosavljevic – CC BY 2.0)

• “Permafrost Hits A Grim Threshold” • According to research based upon field observations conducted from 2003 to 2017, a large-scale carbon emission shift has occurred in the Arctic. The region had been a carbon sink, but the “entire Arctic” now emits more carbon than it absorbs. This can only be described as worse than bad news. [CounterPunch]

Sunday, December 8

• “Soil: The Secret Weapon in the Fight Against Climate Change” • Battered by effects of climate change, agriculture is also an important – in fact a necessary – partner in fighting it. The science is clear: We cannot stay beneath the most dangerous climate thresholds without sequestering a significant amount of carbon in our soils. [EcoWatch]

Fracking well in Texas

• “California Ends New Fracking Pending Results Of Scientific Study” • Despite plenty of petrodollars sloshing around California’s capitol in Sacramento, Governor Gavin Newsom halted approvals of new hydraulic fracturing in the state until the projects can be reviewed by an independent panel of scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. [CleanTechnica]
• “New England Grid Operator: Region Has Enough Power For Winter Despite Station Closing” • ISO New England says this will be the first winter without the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts. But officials say the reactor’s retirement coincided with some solar and wind projects and several dual-energy power plants coming online. [CBS Boston]

Monday, December 9

Solar array (Image: Alliance for Clean Energy)

• “Alliance For Clean Energy New York Pushes For Carbon Fee On Thermal Generating Stations” • New York State has an energy standard calling for 70% of its electricity to come from renewable sources by 2030. But the Alliance for Clean Energy New York says the state is unlikely to meet that goal without a fee on carbon emissions. [CleanTechnica]
• “Polluting Firms ‘Will Be Hit By Climate Policies'” • Carbon-intensive firms are likely to lose 43% of their value due to policies designed to combat climate change, according to a report commissioned by the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment. Meanwhile the most progressive companies will see an uplift of 33% in their value. [BBC News]

Biogas system

• “India Can Generate 18,000 MW Of Renewable Energy Using Biomass: Power Minister R K Singh” • India can generate around 18,000 MW of renewable energy using biomass and an additional 7,000 to 8,000 MW from bagasse cogeneration in sugar mills, according to the country’s power and renewable energy minister, R K Singh. [ETEnergyworld.com]

Tuesday, December 10

• “Newly Identified Jet-Stream Pattern Could Imperil Global Food Supplies” • During the summer of 2018, highly amplified jet stream patterns remained stuck in place for unusually long periods of time, producing disastrous weather patterns. The patterns are believed to be twenty times more likely because of climate change. [Scientific American]

Rooftop solar system (Shutterstock image)

• “Renewable Energy Installations In Michigan Up By 57% In 2018” • The annual report from the Michigan Public Service Commission shows continued growth of distributed energy in the state, with a 57% growth of installations for 2018. The year saw 1,952 renewable energy installations with a combined capacity of 13,910 kW. [Daily Energy Insider]

Wednesday, December 11

Homer City Hall (michaelh2001, Wikipedia, public domain)

• “93-MWh Tesla Megapack Coming To Alaska To Save Customers Cash “ • A new 46.5-MW, 93-MWh Tesla Megapack system installed in Alaska by the Homer Electric Association, Inc, will be used to offset electricity that otherwise would have come from a peaker plant. The new battery pack will be installed at the Soldotna Power Plant. [CleanTechnica]
• “Green Mountain Power Introduces Plan That Allows Homeowners To Sell Solar Power Direct To Businesses” • Green Mountain Power is creating a platform that will allow residential customers with rooftop solar systems to sell the electricity they generate directly to businesses for the first time in America. The program is currently limited in scope. [CleanTechnica]

Takeoff (Harbour Air And magniX)

• “‘World’s First’ Fully-Electric Commercial Flight Takes Off” • An all-electric powered seaplane has taken flight for a test flight in Vancouver. It was the first flight of what the operators say is the aviation industry’s “first all-electric commercial fleet.” The six-passenger Harbour Air aircraft is fitted with a magniX electric motor system. [BBC]

Energy Week #349: 12/12/2019

Energy, renewable energy, wind power, Solar, batteries, Nuclear, coal, oil, gas, Climate Change