Union of Concerned Scientists

MAY 10, 2023

This year has brought new evidence of what major fossil fuel companies knew and when about the role their products play in climate change, as well as what they did in spite of what they knew. But these technologies are no substitute for sharp cuts in fossil fuels if we keep the goals of the Paris climate agreement within reach.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Carbon Dioxide Renewable Energy 363

Union of Concerned Scientists

APRIL 4, 2024

A new dataset released by InfluenceMap provides information on heat-trapping emissions traced to the 122 largest investor and state-owned fossil fuel companies in the world. Fossil fuels are the main driver of climate change and the terrifying effects of it that we see happening across the world.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Paris Agreement Carbon Dioxide 328

Yale E360

NOVEMBER 14, 2023

This allows wealthy nations to report progress on emissions reduction goals, while shipping their fossil fuels — and the pollution they produce — overseas. Oil, gas, and coal exports are not counted when countries tally their greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris Agreement. Read more on E360 →

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Fossil Fuels Paris Agreement Greenhouse 363

Union of Concerned Scientists

DECEMBER 4, 2023

It’s not just the poor air quality, long lines, and excessive fossil fuel company representation ; nations are still too far apart in their positions on a fossil fuel phaseout, the top priority for this COP. Yet global fossil fuel production and use continue to expand. Particulate matter (PM2.5)

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Fossil Fuels Nitrogen Oxides Clean Energy Paris Agreement 328

Yale E360

NOVEMBER 2, 2023

With UN climate negotiations set for next month, a growing number of nations and business leaders are calling for a phaseout of fossil fuels. But with major fossil fuel expansion projects moving ahead around the globe, advocates of strong action face a daunting challenge. Read more on E360 →

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Fossil Fuels 362

Union of Concerned Scientists

DECEMBER 8, 2023

Yet, driven by vested interests in the fossil fuel industry , misleading narratives aim to distort and hinder meaningful climate commitments. Fossil fuels are the problem It’s pretty simple: the burning of fossil fuels is the main driver of climate change. billion tons of the 40.5

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Renewable Energy Carbon Dioxide 340

Union of Concerned Scientists

JUNE 24, 2024

This month, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a ban on advertising by fossil fuel companies, invoking the ban on tobacco ads as a relevant precedent. So what can we learn from the ban on tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship that may be relevant to tackling the fossil fuel industry-driven climate crisis?

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Union of Concerned Scientists

NOVEMBER 14, 2022

The destruction caused by climate change is directly linked to human activity, primarily burning fossil fuels. This dangerous delay in action is largely due to the fossil fuel industry continuing to increase carbon emissions and standing in the way of change. . Tuvalu endorsed the fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Renewable Energy Natural Gas 353

Union of Concerned Scientists

OCTOBER 16, 2024

Fossil fuel-caused climate change was a driving force in these storms, and despite the nearly perfect forecasts, we are still not ready for the effects of climate change. Why are the oceans so warm and fueling this rapid intensification? million people throughout the central part of the state.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Ocean Atmosphere 334

Union of Concerned Scientists

OCTOBER 12, 2022

Earlier this year, The Guardian ran a powerful article exposing the ties of Elsevier, one of the world’s largest academic publishing companies, to the fossil fuel industry. The article caught my attention because I’d never considered the ways in which an academic publisher might be perpetuating and enabling a fossil fuel economy.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Clean Energy Paris Agreement 355

Union of Concerned Scientists

MAY 8, 2024

Some years ago, I began to feel the most important thing I could do was learn how to replace fossil fuel with renewable energy. For 30 years I have been an advocate for offshore wind development off New England’s coast and for the creation of institutions to support a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

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Fossil Fuels Wind Power Ocean Renewable Energy 334

Union of Concerned Scientists

APRIL 24, 2023

In an important win for climate accountability in the United States, the US Supreme Court decided that lawsuits filed in Colorado, Maryland, California, Hawai’i, and Rhode Island against fossil fuel companies including ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, Suncor, and others will remain in state courts.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Government Carbon Dioxide 312

Union of Concerned Scientists

FEBRUARY 21, 2023

The world’s biggest fossil fuel companies recently released their 2022 earnings reports, revealing record-breaking profits last year; just five companies–ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, Chevron, and TotalEnergies–reported a total of nearly $200 billion in profits.

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Yale E360

AUGUST 31, 2023

Global subsidies for fossil fuels reached $7 trillion in 2022, an all-time high, according to the International Monetary Fund. Read more on E360 →

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Union of Concerned Scientists

MARCH 16, 2022

Deputy Policy Director Julie McNamara urges policymakers to see calls from the fossil fuel industry to invest more in their operations--in response to market instability because of the war in Ukraine--as an opportunistic attempt to lower their costs and increase their profits, at great cost to us.

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Fossil Fuels Clean Energy Renewable Energy 312

Environment + Energy Leader

NOVEMBER 9, 2022

The post UN Net-Zero Guidance Calls for End of Fossil Fuels Financial Support appeared first on Environment + Energy Leader. Other topics include fighting greenwashing and supporting climate regulations.

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Union of Concerned Scientists

APRIL 27, 2023

Fossil fuel power plant owners are facing increased accountability for their air and water pollution, including from a new round of environmental and public health protections that are being rolled out by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). We’ve heard these lazily disingenuous narratives before.

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Union of Concerned Scientists

JUNE 12, 2023

The same scenario has played out with the power plants that use fossil fuels, predominantly methane (“natural”) gas, delivered by pipelines. At the same time, extreme weather events are becoming more common as more fossil fuel is burned and carbon is released into the air. It’s a vicious feedback loop.

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Fossil Fuels Renewable Energy Electricity Regulations 278

Law and Environment

AUGUST 3, 2023

On July 31, 2023, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu signed an executive order ending the use of fossil fuels in new construction and major renovations of city-owned buildings. Covered buildings and projects will require heating, ventilation, air conditioning, hot water, and cooking systems that do not use fossil fuels.

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Fossil Fuels Carbon Emissions Clean Energy Law 243

Union of Concerned Scientists

MAY 16, 2023

But this new study from my colleagues working on climate change and fossil fuel accountability couldn’t be ignored. In short, the study concludes that fossil fuel companies are in part to blame for the extraordinary damages resulting from western wildfires (including those sparked by utilities). That equates to 19.8

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Electricity Regulations 264

Yale E360

NOVEMBER 15, 2024

At least 1,773 fossil fuel lobbyists are attending the U.N. climate negotiations now underway in Baku, Azerbaijan, according to a tally by a coalition of climate groups. Read more on E360 →

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Fossil Fuels 247

Union of Concerned Scientists

JANUARY 24, 2023

Utilities and grid operators prepared for the storm as it was coming down the pike, but they still underestimated the energy demand it would trigger, as well as the number of outages at fossil fuel power plants—mainly natural gas-fired, plus some coal-fired plants.

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Fossil Fuels 2014 Climate Change Electricity 290

Yale E360

JUNE 12, 2023

Thanks to a growing buildout of renewable power, fossil fuels now account for less than half of China's total installed power capacity, state media said Monday. Read more on E360 →

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Fossil Fuels 269

Yale E360

OCTOBER 18, 2023

Multiple recent analyses find that global fossil fuel demand is nearing its peak, with energy emissions at last headed for decline. Read more on E360 →

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Fossil Fuels 238

Environment + Energy Leader

JUNE 26, 2023

A report by global safety charity Lloyd's Register Foundation shows individuals in countries heavily reliant on fossil fuel production are less likely to perceive climate change as a significant threat.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change 246

Union of Concerned Scientists

MARCH 23, 2023

And fossil fuel power plants may not stick to their retirement schedules for a variety of reasons. The bottom line: There’s still a long way to go, and the clean energy transition must move quicker than it has been—despite the fossil fuel industry’s self-serving claims to the contrary. A bit more on those reasons later.

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Yale E360

OCTOBER 6, 2021

Coal, oil, and natural gas received $5.9 trillion in subsidies in 2020 — or roughly $11 million every minute — according to a new analysis from the International Monetary Fund. Read more on E360 ?.

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2020 Fossil Fuels Natural Gas 361

Yale E360

JUNE 24, 2021

For years, analysts have predicted that rising world oil consumption would peak and start declining in the coming decades. But with a recent string of setbacks for big oil companies and the rapid advance of electric vehicles, some now say that “peak oil” is already here. Read more on E360 ?.

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Fossil Fuels Electricity 355

Union of Concerned Scientists

OCTOBER 31, 2024

This could be met from a variety of sources—including pollution fees on fossil fuel companies, the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies, and wealth taxes on the richest people. Despite important gains in renewable energy, there is still more progress needed and fossil fuels continue to expand at odds with this agreement.

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Fossil Fuels Paris Agreement Renewable Energy Climate Change 290

Union of Concerned Scientists

OCTOBER 15, 2024

After the hottest summer on record, the world continues to witness extreme weather fueled by the burning of fossil fuels. We need to stop burning fossil fuels immediately. Thankfully, we are in the midst of a much-needed transition away from fossil fuels and towards a future powered by more renewables.

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Clean Energy Fossil Fuels Renewable Energy Electricity 321

Union of Concerned Scientists

MARCH 16, 2023

Previous IPCC reports have concluded that human activities such as burning fossil fuels are the primary cause of climate change: about 70 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions come from burning fossil fuels for electricity, transportation, and industry. The result is a world that is rapidly warming.

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Fossil Fuels Carbon Emissions Climate Change Sea Level 331

Union of Concerned Scientists

MAY 22, 2023

For years, fossil fuel companies have socialized the costs of their pollution while privatizing the benefits. Since local and state governments are on the frontlines of paying for worsening wildfires, they should also be on the leading edge of holding fossil fuel companies accountable. Source: YouTube.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change Government Paris Agreement 290

Yale E360

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

Farmers in hot, arid regions are turning to low-cost solar pumps to irrigate their fields, eliminating the need for expensive fossil fuels and boosting crop production. But by allowing them to pump throughout the day, the new technology is drying up aquifers around the globe. Read more on E360 →

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Fossil Fuels Technology Technology 361

Yale E360

JANUARY 25, 2024

Boosters see a plentiful green replacement for fossil fuels, but skeptics say its large-scale use may not be practical or cost-effective. As studies show far more natural hydrogen underground than believed, well-funded efforts to drill for the gas are underway around the globe. Read more on E360 →

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Clean Energy Fossil Fuels 72

Union of Concerned Scientists

FEBRUARY 2, 2022

More than two dozen states, counties and cities have sued major fossil fuel companies for climate-related fraud or damages, or both.

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Fossil Fuels Climate Change 363

Union of Concerned Scientists

NOVEMBER 20, 2023

New science has shown that the largest fossil fuel, dairy, and waste methane super-emitters contribute a sizeable fraction of the total methane emissions in the regions the study authors monitored. Their use of these tactics underlie the calls to hold both the fossil fuel and meat and dairy industries accountable for their actions.

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PA Environment Daily

NOVEMBER 13, 2024

On November 12, Moms Clean Air Force , Environmental Health Project , and Clean Air Council held a press conference at the Pennsylvania State Capitol calling on state leaders to safeguard Pennsylvanians from the impacts of a fossil fuel and plastic industry buildout. Steele, executive director of the Environmental Health Project.

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