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Don’t Believe the Lies: Five Facts to Consider as the UN’s COP27 Comes to a Close

Union of Concerned Scientists

Union of Concerned Scientists’ (UCS) research shows that top fossil fuel producers’ emissions are responsible for as much as half of global surface temperature increase. of the observed rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide and 52 percent of the rise in global average temperatures between 1880 and 2015.

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The State of the Air in 2024? Not Great

Union of Concerned Scientists

That means it includes the extreme wildfires exacerbated by the fossil fuel industry that burned more than 4% of California in 2021 and 2022. come from burning fossil fuels and pesticide use, and ultrafine particles (PM0.1) Ozone plays a dual role in our atmosphere. These particles are categorized by size.

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If the US Meets Its Climate Goals, We Can Save Money and Lives

Union of Concerned Scientists

Communities and ecosystems continue to suffer the consequences of human-caused climate change , primarily from the burning of fossil fuels across our economy. The case for phasing out of fossil fuels and making a just and equitable transition to clean energy has never been more clear. comes from burning fossil fuels.

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Ask a Scientist: Gas Plants Disproportionately Harm Marginalized Communities

Union of Concerned Scientists

Responsible for 12 percent of all US global warming emissions from human activities, methane traps significantly more heat per molecule than carbon dioxide, making it 86 times more harmful for the first 20 years after it is released into the atmosphere. First, there’s air pollution.

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The Supreme Court’s Latest Decision Is a Blow to Stopping Climate Change

Union of Concerned Scientists

The majority 6–3 decision sharply curtails the EPA’s authority to set standards based on a broad range of flexible options to cut carbon emissions from the power sector—options such as replacing polluting fossil fuels with cheap and widely available wind and solar power coupled with battery storage. There is no time to waste.

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Gas Plants Have a Real Climate Problem. So Do Some Proposed Approaches for Addressing It. 

Union of Concerned Scientists

The second perspective we offer in our new analysis comes from pulling back the lens to take into account not just carbon at the smokestack, but also the carbon from other steps in the process, as well as other gases that also trap heat when thrown up into the atmosphere. And we don’t need to have all the answers to make a difference.

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Reliance on Gas Power Plants Fuels Inequity

Union of Concerned Scientists

In New England, the percent of people of color living near fossil fuel power plants is up to 23.5 Even as some parts of the country transition away from fossil fuel infrastructure, the retirement of gas plants has become another driver of inequity. Most notable of these polluting emissions are nitrogen oxides (NOx).