Sat.Oct 12, 2024 - Fri.Oct 18, 2024

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Climate, Energy, and Environment on the Ballot

Legal Planet

Elections are primarily about electing candidates, but many states have adopted some form of popular democracy. This year, the highest-profile state initiatives are about abortion. But there are also seven state initiatives relating to energy and environment. Of those, the two biggest are a $10 billion green bond proposal in California and a proposed rollback of Washington State’s new cap-and-trade program.

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Ask a Scientist: How Close Are We to a Clean Energy Transition?

Union of Concerned Scientists

After the hottest summer on record, the world continues to witness extreme weather fueled by the burning of fossil fuels. In the United States alone, we’re in the midst of a record-setting hurricane season, with back-to-back destructive hurricanes, Helene and Milton, causing immense destruction in Florida and neighboring states. Both hurricanes were exacerbated by warmer ocean surface temperatures, and are examples of “what hurricanes will look more like in the future,” according to Dr.

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Climate Change Made Hurricane Milton Stronger, With Heavier Rain, Scientists Conclude

Inside Climate News

A rapid analysis of rainfall trends and Gulf of Mexico temperatures shows many similarities to Hurricane Helene less than two weeks earlier. By Sean Sublette A preliminary analysis from the team of scientists at World Weather Attribution indicates the rainfall from Hurricane Milton across Florida was 20 percent to 30 percent heavier and rainfall intensity was about twice as likely as it would have been in the climate of the late 19th century.

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Researchers Parse the Future of Plankton in an Ever-Warmer World

Yale E360

Plankton form the base of the world’s food chain, but warmer and more acidic oceans are affecting their numbers and variety. Some species, on which fish rely, are in decline; others, which soak up carbon, are on the rise, while others are shifting their range and bloom times.

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How to Drive Cost Savings, Efficiency Gains, and Sustainability Wins with MES

Speaker: Nikhil Joshi, Founder & President of Snic Solutions

Is your manufacturing operation reaching its efficiency potential? A Manufacturing Execution System (MES) could be the game-changer, helping you reduce waste, cut costs, and lower your carbon footprint. Join Nikhil Joshi, Founder & President of Snic Solutions, in this value-packed webinar as he breaks down how MES can drive operational excellence and sustainability.

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How to Make Trees Worth More Standing Than Cut Down

Legal Planet

West of Sydney, Australia, lies the Blue Mountains, a range of plateaus and panoramic canyons forested with eucalyptus trees. Oil in the leaves produces a bluish haze, hence the name of the area. Twenty-five years ago, in 1999, a new NGO called Forest Trends brought together a small international group to the town of Katoomba to brainstorm over increasing capital flows to protect nature, how to “make trees worth more standing than cut down.

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Hurricanes Helene and Milton Further Proof We’re Not Ready for Fossil Fuel-Caused Climate Change  

Union of Concerned Scientists

In August, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued its updated forecast for the 2024 hurricane season. It was to be above normal in every regard: more named storms and stronger hurricanes than usual. One of the main reasons for this forecast? Significantly warmer than usual surface temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean, which come largely as a result of human-caused climate change.

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Scientists Breed Corals That Can Withstand More Heat

Yale E360

Scientists have successfully bred corals that are more tolerant of heat, showing for the first time that corals can become better adapted to warming within the space of a single generation.

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Reflections on “Yes they can control the weather.”

Legal Planet

Since U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted earlier this month that “Yes they can control the weather” — a bunch of commentators have pointed out that she’s wildly wrong. Yes, she’s wildly wrong. No one can make, intensify, or steer hurricanes. No ability to do anything like this is even on the horizon. Her comment obviously got traction because it plugged into a deep strain of populist paranoia, including active, current conspiracies.

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

Union of Concerned Scientists

Power plants fueled by methane gas have a serious climate problem. The fuel, commonly known as natural gas, now powers the biggest portion of US electricity generation—more than 40 percent. It has also grown to be the largest source of carbon pollution from the US power sector, even as zero-carbon renewable energy has been growing by leaps and bounds.

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Sen. Bartolotta, Sen. Yaw Announce Bill To Withhold Gas Drilling Impact Fees To Municipalities That Set More Protective Standards On Natural Gas Development Than State Law, And While There Is a Legal Challenge To Local Restrictions

PA Environment Daily

On October 9, Sen. Camera Bartolotta (R-Washington) and Sen. Gene Yaw (R-Lycoming) announced plans to introduce legislation to prohibit municipalities from receiving Act 13 drilling impact fees if they set more protective standards on the development of natural gas than required in state or federal law and while a challenge to local restrictions is being litigated.

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The Key to Sustainable Energy Optimization: A Data-Driven Approach for Manufacturing

Speaker: Kevin Kai Wong, President of Emergent Energy Solutions

In today's industrial landscape, the pursuit of sustainable energy optimization and decarbonization has become paramount. ♻️ Manufacturing corporations across the U.S. are facing the urgent need to align with decarbonization goals while enhancing efficiency and productivity. Unfortunately, the lack of comprehensive energy data poses a significant challenge for manufacturing managers striving to meet their targets. 📊 Join us for a practical webinar hosted by Kevin Kai Wong of Emergent Ene

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Nine Tons of Illicit Pangolin Scales Recovered in Nigeria

Yale E360

On a single day in August, Nigerian officials recovered more than 9 tons of illicit pangolin scales. The stockpile would be worth an estimated $1.7 million in East Asia, where pangolin scales are sold for their use in traditional medicine.

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Model Uncertainty in Politics and Climate Policy

Legal Planet

The polls are predicting very tight election results. The state results could turn out to be within the margin of error, with half going one way and half the other. But there’s another plausible outcome: a sweep by one side or the other because the polls were all off a few percent in the same direction. If you could get a large and truly random sample of the population and get them to answer all questions truthfully right before they voted, the life of a pollster would be much easier.

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Powering the Data Boom: How Will the Grid Keep Up?

Union of Concerned Scientists

Data use for everything from video conferences to cryptocurrency to calendars, and related data center construction, is booming. Infrastructure and resources for those data centers are relatively scarce. How will we go forward? Is this a lawless frontier for an industrial revolution that breaks the bounds of human activity, or will we find constraints and apply limits that protect the health and welfare benefits of our society and economy?

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Observer-Reporter Guest Essay: Why Politicians Want You To Pay More For Natural Gas

PA Environment Daily

By Patrick McDonnell, CEO of PennFuture , Former Secretary of DEP This guest essay first appeared in the Observer-Reporter on October 17, 2024 Politicians often speak out against higher taxes, grocery bills, or utility rates, promising to work hard in office to prevent you from paying more. However, there is one notable exception: how much you pay for natural gas.

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Implementing D.E.J.I. Strategies in Energy, Environment, and Transportation

Speaker: Antoine M. Thompson, Executive Director of the Greater Washington Region Clean Cities Coalition

Diversity, Equity, Justice, and Inclusion (DEJI) policies, programs, and initiatives are critically important as we move forward with public and private sector climate and sustainability goals and plans. Underserved and socially, economically, and racially disadvantaged communities bear the burden of pollution, higher energy costs, limited resources, and limited investments in the clean energy and transportation sectors.

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‘Legacy’ Forests. ‘Restoration’ Logging. The New Jargon of Conservation Is Awash in Ambiguity. And Politics

Inside Climate News

Among environmentalists, government agencies and logging interests, a war of words is raging over the future of our forests. By Nathan Gilles, Columbia Insight In 2019, conservation activist and longtime Washington state resident Stephen Kropp did something he’d never done before: he explored a forest managed as state trust land by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources.

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Minimalism and Sustainability: How Owning Less Can Save The Planet

Earthava

The post Minimalism and Sustainability: How Owning Less Can Save The Planet appeared first on Earthava. Minimalism and sustainability are deeply connected. Owning less reduces consumption, leading to a lower environmental impact. This approach encourages mindful decisions about what we own, pushing people to get only what they need and truly value. Living with fewer possessions not only curbs waste but also promotes a more sustainable lifestyle.

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La Niña Looking Less Likely as Ocean Waters Stay Balmy

Yale E360

As ocean temperatures remain stubbornly high, forecasters see a diminished chance that the Pacific Ocean will enter its cooler La Niña phase this fall, as was predicted.

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DCNR: 4th Fall Foliage Report: Cool Weather Will Bring A Very Colorful Change To Most Areas In Penn’s Woods This Coming Week

PA Environment Daily

On October 17, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources issued its fourth Fall Foliage Report saying consistently cold nights and cool days have spurred a very colorful change in Penn’s Woods! Bright color can be found from the southern Poconos though the middle and southern Appalachians. The Allegheny Plateau is gorgeous from northwestern Pennsylvania to the southwestern reaches of the Commonwealth.

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Shaping a Resilient Future: Climate Impact on Vulnerable Populations

Speaker: Laurie Schoeman Director, Climate & Sustainability, Capital

As households and communities across the nation face challenges such as hurricanes, wildfires, drought, extreme heat and cold, and thawing permafrost and flooding, we are increasingly searching for ways to mitigate and prevent climate impacts. During this event, national climate and housing expert Laurie Schoeman will discuss topics including: The two paths for climate action: decarbonization and adaptation.

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The Evolving Legal Landscape for Geologic Carbon Sequestration in the United States

Law Columbia

Stephen Hui, Pembina Institute. Geologic carbon sequestration—i.e., the storage of carbon dioxide in underground rock formations—has been the subject of much debate in recent years. Many see it as an important tool for combatting climate change. It is, after all, a necessary component of point-source carbon capture and storage (“CCS”) systems that seek to prevent carbon dioxide produced by power plants and other industrial facilities entering the atmosphere (i.e., by capturing it before release

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Long COVID Is Harming Too Many Kids

Scientific American

Pediatric long COVID is more common than many thought, and we keep letting kids be reinfected with new variants

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'Forever Chemicals' Linked to Poorer Sleep

Yale E360

Young adults with higher levels of certain “forever chemicals" in their blood reported poorer sleep, a new study finds.

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Why farming fish is more unsustainable than catching them in the wild

New Scientist

Producing a kilogram of farmed salmon may require 4 or 5 kilograms of wild fish, which isn't a sustainable approach to feeding the world's growing population

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Sustainability at Retail

Sustainability impacts every nation, company, and person around the world. So much so that, in 2015, the United Nations (UN) issued a call for action by all countries to work toward sustainable development. In response to this and as part of a global Sustainability at Retail initiative, Shop! worked collaboratively with its global affiliates to address these critical issues in this white paper.

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EPA Announces Release of Interim Guidance for the Evaluation of Products for Claims against Viruses

Nanotech

On October 10, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of interim guidance to expand the availability of virucidal claims for antimicrobial pesticides. This new guidance provides the framework for registrants who seek to make virucidal claims for antimicrobial products that meet the criteria for a bacterial disinfectant and/or sanitizer (e.g., household antimicrobial wipes and sprays) consistent with current test guidelines.

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Cultural Competency in Health Care Can Save Lives

Scientific American

Medical professionals who connect with their patients’ language and culture provide better care

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New Ways to Protect Water After Supreme Court Disaster

NRDC

Protecting the future of America's waters.

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De-extinction company claims it has nearly complete thylacine genome

New Scientist

Colossal, a US firm that is aiming to revive lost species such as the woolly mammoth, says it now has a near-complete genome of the extinct thylacine

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Date Labels and the New California Law

National Law Center

On September 28, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB660 into law. This bill was the first in the nation to. The post Date Labels and the New California Law appeared first on National Agricultural Law Center.

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Birds Practice Singing in Their Sleep

Scientific American

New work listens in on bird dreams

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More Jobs, Lower Costs - Solar for Schools Grants Opening Soon

NRDC

DCED Guidelines Now Available

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6G phone networks could be 9000 times faster than 5G

New Scientist

Next-generation phone networks could dramatically outperform current ones thanks to a new technique for transmitting multiple streams of data over a wide range of frequencies

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Focusing on Foreign Investments: Congressional Considerations on Evaluating Foreign Acquisitions in U.S. Agriculture

National Law Center

Over the past decade, foreign investments in U.S. agricultural land have grown. At the start of 2023, foreign persons held an. The post Focusing on Foreign Investments: Congressional Considerations on Evaluating Foreign Acquisitions in U.S. Agriculture appeared first on National Agricultural Law Center.

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Hidden Patterns in Folk Songs Reveal How Music Evolved

Scientific American

Songs and speech across cultures suggest music developed similar features around the world

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