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Production and combustion of fossilfuels imposes enormous costs on society, which the industry doesn’t pay for. One option, a tax on carbon dioxide emissions, gets the most attention but seems politically impossible. A more promising alternative might be a clean-up tax on the fossilfuel industry.
They’re called Scope 3 emissions, and they are key to understanding the big picture of a company’s impact on the environment. First, let me explain the three “scopes” of carbonemissions. Scope 1 emissions come from power plants, oil rigs and other sources directly owned or controlled by a company.
Heres a taste, from US projects, technologies, electrons, and investment, to happenings in the world as a whole. Policy drivers State leadership has been important in driving the development and adoption of clean energy for decades, and remains key to accelerating the move toward clean energy and away from fossilfuels.
utilities have been slower to adopt the energy- and emissions-saving technologies than those in other parts of the world. Despite the economic advantages of these technologies and their potential environmental benefits, U.S. Despite the economic advantages of these technologies and their potential environmental benefits, U.S.
Quickly and sharply tapering down the use of fossilfuels, which are the main driver of human-caused climate change, is just as crucial if we are to have any chance of keeping climate extremes from spiraling further out of control. We must also demand that fossilfuel companies be held accountable for the harms they are causing.
The bill, introduced by State Representative Supreme Moore Omokunde and State Senator Chris Larson, creates an enforceable timeline with specific objectives, allowing flexibility for discussions of the various technology and policy approaches to come later. billion in higher energy costs compared to cleaner alternatives.
. – Ontario has launched the second phase of a program to expand fossilfuel gas pipelines to new communities. Instead of supporting viable and more cost-effective clean technologies like heat pumps, Ontario is spending more than $234 million to support approximately 8750 connections – a subsidy of over $26,000 per customer.
That’s because the case, which was about the nature and scope of EPA authority in regulating carbonemissions from existing power plants, turned on a rule that does not exist. First and foremost, despite some fossilfuel interests swinging for the fossilfuel-favored fences, the Supreme Court’s decision in West Virginia v.
The majority 6–3 decision sharply curtails the EPA’s authority to set standards based on a broad range of flexible options to cut carbonemissions from the power sector—options such as replacing polluting fossilfuels with cheap and widely available wind and solar power coupled with battery storage.
Fourteen states now have net-zero emissions targets for the economy as a whole, and sixteen have zero-carbon targets for the grid. New California legislation will require corporations to disclose their carbonemissions. I don’t mean to imply that technological progress will automatically fix things.
Minnesotans are facing concurrent crises of climate change, high energy prices and inflation, and the inequitable public health impacts of fossilfuel air pollution. Minnesota’s current goal is to reduce statewide carbonemissions 30 percent by 2025 compared to 2005 levels and 80 percent by 2050.
Carbon-reduction plans, if not well designed, can worsen water scarcity and pollution. Plans to reduce carbonemissions should take water into account. Some low-carbon energy options require significant amounts of water. But other low-carbontechnologies do not tread as lightly. Carl Ganter/Circle of Blue.
New research from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) confirms renewables are continuing to outpace fossilfuels on cost. They found that the share of renewable energy that achieved lower costs than the most competitive fossilfuel option doubled in 2020. C climate pathway.
EPA regulation of greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act (CAA) A. Standards for carbon and methane emissions from new sources Permitting requirements for carbonemissions from new stationary sources of major sources of existing pollutants. Standards for emissions from new vehicles.
In December 2018, after having successfully reduced greenhouse gas emissions from the power sector by 53.3%, a majority of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) jurisdictions announced plans to design a program to address carbonemissions from the combustion of transportation fuels.
Because one of Pennsylvania’s two hubs, ARCH2, is also proposing to be heavily reliant on fossilfuel-based hydrogen production projects, I also detailed the serious risks of policymakers propping up such an approach. Here are three critical flags with pursuing a fossil-based “clean” hydrogen future.
One place to look is the power grid , responsible for a quarter of the United States’ carbonemissions. Paul Arbaje is an energy analyst in the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists and an expert on electricity policies and reforms that reduce fossilfuel use and reliance.
Some estimates suggest they could disappear by 2030 due to the climate change triggered by human fossilfuel use, which began less than 200 years ago. As I continue my work with the Union of Concerned Scientists, I’ll carry this journey with me and use it to fuel my dedication to tackling the climate crisis.
Meanwhile, annual reports show corporations are pushing ahead with plans to expand production, betting on new technologies to somehow make it all okay in the future. Companies are spending millions fighting lawsuits that would hold them accountable for the costs that fossilfuel extraction has imposed on people and the planet.
The biggest takeaway : without robust new policies, US energy sector heat trapping emissions will continue to remain high, far off-track from where we need to be to meet our climate goals. CO 2 emissions remain mostly level through 2050—nowhere close to meeting US climate goals. Carbonemissions remain high.
Reduce the dependency on fossilfuels It urges governments, companies, and individuals to reduce fossilfuel dependency and scale up sustainable alternatives. Canadas Cleantech Expo Hosted by LumeSmart, this event in Toronto showcases green technology and youth-led innovation.
The IRA gave us effective tools for cleaning up the power sector through dedicated support for the rapid and widescale deployment of renewable resources and the technologies that support them. Indeed, EPA still retains the ability to set strong standards that curtail carbon pollution at the scale, speed, and rigor required.
Weifang Port’s “zero-carbon” certification was primarily achieved by transitioning away from fossilfuel use, according to China Electric Power News (CEPN). It has built a wind power system to provide green energy for its operations and deployed hydrogen-powered vehicles to replace fossil-fuel-powered trucks.
The Inflation Reduction Act’s new hydrogen production tax credit , known as code 45V, is intended to incentivize a shift to low-carbon hydrogen production by offering producers a credit that increases in value as the carbonemissions associated with produced hydrogen declines.
However, the bill’s definition of what constitutes clean energy includes nuclear power (which doesn’t emit carbon but isn’t “clean”) and fossil gas power plants that capture and store at least 90 percent of their carbonemissions. What Still Needs to be Done?
Assessments by the IPCC have made clear that the most feasible way for the world to meet its target of restricting climate change to below two degrees Celsius of warming includes rapid and massive expansion of carbon removal technology – technology that would extract carbon dioxide and permanently sequester that carbon dioxide underground.
There are an increasing number of companies and countries that are pledging to reach Net Zero carbonemissions–or carbon neutrality–by 2050. What the IEA found was that the world should not invest in or approve new fossilfuel projects. degrees , the “safe” threshold for global warming.
It highlights the most active fossilfuel companies and industry associations, as well as the Members of Parliament, ministries and ministers targeted for lobbying. The report compiles data from the Federal Registry of Lobbyists. That means Big Oil lobbied Parliament nearly five times per working day.
A 1 megawatt vanadium flow battery (a different technology from lithium-ion, but also used for energy storage) is in Pullman, Washington, built by UniEnergy Technologies and owned by Avista Utilities. Source: UniEnergy Technologies / Wikimedia Commons. Engineers develop energy storage battery technologies. Batteries.
By Jiang Mengnan Chinas oil demand is projected to peak at approximately 770 million tonnes in 2025, according to a forecast by the China National Petroleum Corporations Economic and Technological Research Institute (ETRI), reports Caixin.
These firms recognized that they could not assume the risks of exacerbating climate damage from continued burning of fossilfuels. Thus the progress so far with large-scale solar in reducing carbonemissions is offset by the present levels of energy use by data centers.
EVs powered by today’s electricity grid produce significantly less carbonemissions than gasoline cars and can be powered by renewable energy. Batteries for EVs require more minerals than gasoline cars. As we phase out petroleum, we have an opportunity to create a more efficient transportation and manufacturing system.
Hydrogen may have lost the race to fuel electric cars but it looks a likely contender to replace fossilfuels in trucks, ships, planes and heavy industry. The Tokyo Olympics will be powered by a fuel with ambition – hydrogen. It is planning to replace fossilfuels with hydrogen in heavy industries such as steel-making.
By Anders Lorenzen The consumption of coal, the most climate polluting fossilfuel, is predicted to peak by 2025 in China, the world’s highest emitting country. Emissions peak China’s total carbonemissions from energy activities are expected to peak during 2025 at 10.1 million bpd of oil this year.
When it comes to the transition to clean energy, 2023 was quite a year for progress: record-breaking amounts of solar installed in the United States, a solid drop in carbonemissions from the US power sector, more than one million electric vehicles sold in the country for the first time, “breakneck” growth in renewable energy globally, and more.
In contrast to other solutions which primarily serve to enhance resilience, microgrids also help get more renewable energy on the grid, supporting a reduction in carbonemissions while reducing energy costs. Modernizing our power grid by shifting from fossilfuels to renewables makes sense for many reasons. What is next?
In 2021, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) set a target for the aviation industry to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. of the world’s total carbon dioxide emissions from fossilfuel combustion, many airlines are considering carbon-capture-and-storage technologies and electric-powered planes.
In the same release, Rhode Island Acting State Energy Commissioner Christopher Kearns added: This will help our regional New England grid make the transition to clean energy, reduce our collective carbonemissions significantly, and deliver a major victory in our fight against climate change.”
This is the second post in our series on the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act , covering how the Act invests in strengthening our electric grid, which could better prepare us for the shift from fossilfuel generated electricity to renewable power. Smart Grid Investment Matching Grant Program.
Continual reform is necessary so that emissions trading systems do not become merely symbolic regulation, or even worse create harmful negative consequences for climate policy – by for example subsidizing fossilfuel use or preempting useful complementary regulations. Implications for China.
Fossil gas, or “natural gas,” as it’s been cunningly branded, is a fossilfuel that causes warming and is harmful to human health. Its mainstream name is nothing more than a clever marketing scheme by Big Oil to make the fuel sound natural, safe, and clean. This is a huge problem. Many reasons!
With the advancements in battery technology, the demand for EVs has grown significantly. It is even harder if these investments mean much less money is available to invest in the new fossil-free businesses that are ready to take off. Putting a cap on oil and gas carbonemissions. You can learn more here. .
There’s much about the IRA that deserves our support, but due to the influence of powerful fossilfuel lobbyists, the plan also includes projects whose benefits are questionable, even counter-productive. That footprint, Howarth goes on to say, “is worse than if you simply burned natural gas directly for fuel instead.
One strategy is to counterbalance carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions that contribute to climate change by drawing an equal amount of carbon out of the atmosphere, such as through planting trees. Reports from these studies and partnerships are found on the DCNR website.
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