article thumbnail

As Use of AI Soars, So Does the Energy and Water It Requires

Yale E360

Generative artificial intelligence uses massive amounts of energy for computation and data storage and billions of gallons of water to cool the equipment at data centers. Now, legislators and regulators — in the U.S. and the EU — are starting to demand accountability. Read more on E360 →

Cooling 363
article thumbnail

Why Were 2023 and 2024 So Hot?

Union of Concerned Scientists

The two leading theories to explain the record-breaking warmth are a reduction in tiny particles in the atmosphere called aerosols due to shipping fuel regulations that reduced sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions, or decreasing cloud cover. This question was a focus at the 2024 annual American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting in Washington, D.C.,

2024 289
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Florida and California Have This Need in Common: Clean Backup Power

Union of Concerned Scientists

Instead we made do by putting our perishable food on ice, making coffee with the JetBoil propane burner we have for camping (in an outdoor stairwell), and keeping the blinds closed to keep the apartment as cool as possible. Drivers buying used EVs have less control. Their choices are limited by what comes on the used market.

article thumbnail

A Dangerous Disruption

Legal Planet

First, the cooling from the reflective materials they will inject, for which they are already selling carbon credits, charging $10 per gram of SO 2 released (!) And in all likelihood, they are not breaking any current law or regulation. They assert that their activity will provide two benefits. Could this activity change the climate?

Cooling 364
article thumbnail

Can the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant Avoid a Major Disaster?

Union of Concerned Scientists

While the IAEA has limited authority over nuclear safety even in peacetime, there are practical steps it could take to help the plant cope with any damage that would disrupt the systems that keep its highly radioactive reactor cores and spent nuclear fuel cool. However, the V-320 does not have such a system.).

Cooling 354
article thumbnail

Boston-Area Communities Work Together to Beat the Heat

Union of Concerned Scientists

These areas experience higher temperatures relative to surrounding areas because they have a denser concentration of heat-trapping surfaces and limited green spaces that offer cooling benefits. Some themes that emerged were the lack of shading trees, vulnerable populations, the need to be creative when cooling, and issues related to water.

Cooling 299
article thumbnail

What Should EPA Do After Repealing the Clean Power Plan?

Legal Planet

Here are the options going forward for regulating existing power plants. Switch to another legal basis for regulation. There’s been a lot of discussion among academics and advocates about instead using section 115 of the Clean Air Act as a basis for carbon regulations. Download as PDF. appeared first on Legal Planet.