Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The UN Convention to Combat Desertification issued a new report, “Drought in Numbers 2022 on Friday, warning of the dangers of the climate emergency for further desertification and wildfires and massive loss of human life. “The report warns that The number and duration of droughts has increased by 29 percent […]
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Energy
Climate Change isn’t just making Cyclones worse, it’s making the Floods they cause worse too
By Laurence Hawker, University of Bristol; Dann Mitchell, University of Bristol; and Natalie Lord, University of Bristol | – Super cyclones, known as hurricanes or typhoons in different parts of the world, are among the most destructive weather events on our planet. Although wind speeds within these storms can reach 270 km/h, the largest loss […]
Wind and Solar generate Fully 20% of US Electricity in April for First time as Renewables Jump to 26.5%
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The United States generates 6.5% of its electricity from dams, producing hydroelectricity, mainly in the West. Up until about a decade ago, that was the major renewable source of electricity in the country. In 2021, the total proportion of renewables in the US energy mix was 20%, i.e. 13.5% came […]
What Remains of the U.S. Green New Deal?
By John Feffer | – In November 2018, the Green New Deal became a rallying cry for climate activists when members of the Sunrise Movement occupied House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office and adopted the slogan as their unifying message. A few months later, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who had joined the young activists in Pelosi’s […]
Could Europe Install a Terawatt of new “Freedom Solar” by 2030 to Escape Russian Gas?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – John Ainger at Bloomsberg reports that a coalition within the European Union is pressing Brussels to set a goal of 1,000 gigawatts of new solar capacity by 2030 as a way of escaping dependence on Russian methane gas for electricity generation. The European Union is seeking to boycott Russian goods […]
Phasing out Oil can offer a better Life for Many
By Jack Marley | – The EU could ban crude oil imports from Russia within six months if a new round of sanctions is approved. Excluding a handful of countries, refined Russian oil products like petrol and diesel could cease to flow into the EU by the end of 2022. The EU currently relies on […]
How treaties protecting fossil fuel investors could jeopardize global efforts to save the climate – and cost countries billions
By Rachel Thrasher, Boston University; Blake Alexander Simmons, Colorado State University; and Kyla Tienhaara, Queen’s University, Ontario | – Fossil fuel companies have access to an obscure legal tool that could jeopardize worldwide efforts to protect the climate, and they’re starting to use it. The result could cost countries that press ahead with those efforts […]
Denmark makes Bid for “Putin-Free” Energy by Accelerating Mammoth Artificial Wind Island Plan
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Europe has faced a dilemma in standing up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, since most European countries have tied themselves to Russian methane gas and petroleum imports. These countries are thus funding the very war they rail against. Denmark, for its part, is accelerating the building of two mammoth wind […]
Could a European Union boycott of Putin’s Oil, with Qatari and UAE help, Crash the Russian Economy?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The breaking news is that the German Minister of Economy and Climate Robert Habeck, who is also the Vice-Chancellor has just announced that Germany is all in on a European Union plan to boycott Russian petroleum. Germany has already reduced its imports from Russia from 35% to 12% in only […]