Environment

Originally published by Union of Concerned Scientists, The Equation.By Julie McNamara, senior energy analyst with the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists In April 2021, President Biden committed the United States to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions 50 to 52 percent below 2005 levels by 2030, in line with science-informed targets, in line with

A bulldozer parked near a coal mound on the grounds of the Peabody Energy Francisco coal mine in Francisco, Indiana, U.S., on Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021. Luke Sharrett | Bloomberg | Getty Images LONDON — As world leaders prepare for one of the most important climate summits ever held, U.N.-backed research shows governments are collectively

Originally published by Union of Concerned Scientists, The Equation.By Rachel Cleetus  In the last week, Senator Manchin (D-WV) has become increasingly public with his opposition to the Clean Electricity Performance Program (CEPP), a policy designed to drive down power sector carbon emissions which is part of the reconciliation bill under consideration in Congress. With the vote margins so slim in Congress,

Jet fuel prices are rising to levels not seen since before the Covid pandemic and it’s set to drive up airfares, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said Wednesday. “Higher jet-fuel prices lead to higher ticket prices,” Kirby told CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street.” “Ultimately, we’ll pass that through.” United forecast average fuel costs of $2.39

As states reach higher toward 100% renewable operation, energy storage will be key to enabling a more variable power supply. But no single technology will be a silver bullet for all our energy storage needs. Rather, a portfolio of storage solutions makes best economic sense for future energy systems, according to a recent National Renewable

In this article RY4C-IE The CEO of Ryanair has acknowledged the need for ambitious sustainable aviation fuel targets while also expressing concerns about how food prices could be affected. During a discussion at CNBC’s Sustainable Future Forum on Wednesday, Michael O’Leary said his firm was investing “a lot of money” with Trinity College Dublin on

Surrounded by local, state and national officials, California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference at Bolsa Chica State Beach in Huntington Beach, site of the the recent offshore oil spill, on Tuesday, October 5, 2021. waters. Mark Rightmire | MediaNews Group | Orange County Register via Getty Images California Gov. Gavin Newsom on

Saudi Arabia’s finance minister has told CNBC that an “even worse” energy crisis could be triggered if the world is not careful with its climate policies. “If we are not careful about what we are doing to achieve our targets, we may end up having [a] very serious energy crisis like what we are seeing

Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party leader Armin Laschet visit the construction site of Tesla’s Gigafactory in Gruenheide near Berlin, Germany, August 13, 2021. Patrick Pleul | Reuters Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said the fundamental good the electric car maker does will be measured in the acceleration of the world

The last 3 months have demonstrated a surge in solar installations in India. If this rate continues, coal-fired power could peak in 2024 and this increased solar generation could satisfy India’s increasing thirst for energy. After a dip in 2020 due to COVID, solar installations have quadrupled in the last three months — from a

The concept of “clean coal” is a scam, according to former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Speaking with CNBC Tuesday as part of its Sustainable Future Forum, Turnbull said the idea of carbon capture and storage “simply doesn’t work” despite years of investments. “The proposition was that you would … effectively separate the CO2 from

Justin Sullivan | Getty Images You may want to get used to higher prices at the pump, at least for now. As of Monday, the average cost of a gallon of gas was $3.30, up 7.5 cents from a month ago and $1.08 higher than a year ago, according to fuel savings app GasBuddy. By

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today awarded nearly $40 million to 40 projects that are advancing the next generation of solar, storage, and industrial technologies necessary for achieving the Biden–Harris administration’s climate goal of 100% clean electricity by 2035. Specifically, the projects will reduce the cost of solar technologies by increasing

As I sit at my desk in front of my computer, the sun is shining and my pool looks very inviting outside my office window, but I am driven to write. Australia gets a lot of bad press internationally about our love for fossil fuels and how we are dragging our feet on climate change

Afghanistan’s gross domestic product could see a contraction of up to 30% following the Taliban takeover, the IMF said in its latest regional economic report. Jihad Azour, director of the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia department, said the country’s situation was deteriorating, even before Kabul fell. “They were facing more than one shock — drought,

Andrew Forrest, Mukesh Ambani, and Larry Fink walk into a bar — “looks like it’s coke zero all round,” says the bartender. The richest man in India (Ambani) has set a goal of net-zero emissions by 2035 for his company. Australia’s Andrew Forrest has pledged net-zero emissions in phases, mostly by 2030 (scope 1 &

Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue Future Industries has bought a majority stake in technology group HyET. Its “Powerfoil” solar technology is described as extremely lightweight (5% of the weight of traditional glass panels), and with a significantly lower levelized cost of energy. HyET is also invested in hydrogen electrolyser technology. “The electrically active layers consist of SnO2:F,

In this article VWS-DK The shadow of a turbine from a wind farm is seen on a field in Brandenburg, Germany. As technology develops, the size of wind turbines is increasing. Patrick Pleul | picture alliance | Getty Images Vestas has announced plans to install a prototype of its 15 megawatt offshore wind turbine at

GP – View of the Pipeline Inspection Gauge receiving station, the Nord Stream 2 part of the landfall area in Lubmin on Germanys Baltic Sea coast. JOHN MACDOUGALL | AFP | Getty Images Lubmin, GERMANY – Remote, quiet but energy-rich: the coastal area of Lubmin in north Germany hosts the world’s most controversial gas pipeline.

A Shell employee walks past the company’s new Quest Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) facility in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada, October 7, 2021. Todd Korol | Reuters As energy sector demand roars back and commodities market pundits talk about the return of $100 oil, there are new factors in the energy sector pushing producers to

Here’s the thing about renewables like wind and solar that many people don’t get. The “fuel” that makes them work is free. That is not to say the devices we construct to harvest energy from wind and solar don’t cost anything and don’t contribute some greenhouse gas emissions. But let’s not pretend that somehow all

Prince William photographed during a visit to Dulwich Hamlet FC in south London on September 23, 2021. Kirsty O’Connor – WPA Pool | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images Prince William appears to have taken a swipe at the space tourism espoused by some of the world’s most high-profile billionaires. Speaking to the BBC, William

Courtesy of RMI.By Ryan Shea & Russell Mendell Through the Justice40 Initiative, President Biden has made clear that bringing clean energy benefits to marginalized and low-income communities is a priority. Right now, low-income households experience up to three times higher energy burden (the percent of household income spent on energy costs) than high-income households. Rooftop solar is one of

By Samantha Wilt, Senior Policy Analyst, Climate & Clean Energy Program The landmark Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act’s (CLCPA) ambitious goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 85% by 2050 will require a  transformation of the power, transportation and building sectors. As highlighted in the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) recently released draft Carbon

The growing supply of environmental, social and governance-related exchange-traded funds won’t be enough to meaningfully mitigate broad issues such as climate change, Van Eck Associates’ CEO says. “ESG is good as a coherent investment approach on a fund-by-fund basis to make a difference and it’s good signaling, but to put it in perspective, it’s not

In this article BMW3-FF Chris Martin of Coldplay performs at the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire on October 12, 2021 in London, England. Simone Joyner | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images British rock band Coldplay has announced dates for a world tour in 2022, with the band planning to integrate a range of sustainable features

Oh the irony, it burns! Solar power is supposed to open the door on a new era in which humans and their ecosystems exist in harmony, but for now the record is still stuck on fossil energy. Oil, gas, and coal producers continue to dig up carbon from underground and disburse it about the surface,

Amanda Kolker. Photo by Amy Griffin, NREL From Iceland to Alaska to France, NREL geoscientist Amanda Kolker has studied geothermal energy all around the world. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in geology, Kolker went to study volcano and glacier interactions in Iceland but was quickly distracted by Iceland’s vast geothermal energy systems. As an earth scientist,

The Power Squeeze That Inspired Me Last month, I bought a house. I could have afforded something a lot nicer, but I didn’t feel like being in debt up to my eyeballs. So, I bought a doublewide manufactured home that needed some repairs that I could do. After the purchase and getting the basic things

A new cold front could open up in the political tension between the European Union and Russia over energy. This time in the Arctic. On Wednesday, the EU put forward proposals that could see it pushing to ban the tapping of new oil, coal and gas deposits in the Arctic in an effort, it said,

As part of my family’s journey to learn more about residential renewable energy, I decided to look into solar panels for our house. We are in the middle of Texas, and who can forget power going out for one week across the entire state in February. We were fortunate, but many of our neighbors had

In this article BTC.CM= ETH.CM= Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during the Russian Energy Week event on October 13, 2021 in Moscow, Russia. Mikhail Svetlov | Getty Images Russian President Vladimir Putin thinks cryptocurrencies have value — but he’s not convinced they can replace the U.S. dollar in settling oil trades. Some months

The world is going through historic transitions, a global shift of energy, transportation, and consumption that will impact every aspect of our lives, but is that not the norm and could we learn from De Nederlandse aardgastransiti (“the Netherlands natural gas transition“) in the 1960s? De Nederlandse aardgastransitie Humanity has not always used petroleum, natural