Most recent 40 articles: AP News
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Uranium is being mined near the Grand Canyon as prices soar and the US pushes for more nuclear power - AP News (Mar 30) |
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Mar 30 · The largest uranium producer in the United States is ramping up work at a mine less than 10 miles from the rim of the Grand Canyon.
The shaft tower at the Energy Fuels Inc. uranium Pinyon Plain Mine is shown Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, near Tusayan, Ariz. The largest uranium producer in the United States is ramping up work just south of Grand Canyon National Park on a long-contested project that largely has sat dormant since the 1980s. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) Read more ...
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US energy industry methane emissions are triple what government thinks, study finds - AP News (Mar 13) |
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Mar 13 · FILE - A flare burns at a well pad Aug. 26, 2021, near Watford City, N.D. American oil and natural gas wells, pipelines and compressors are spewing three times the amount of the potent heat-trapping gas methane as the government thinks, a new comprehensive study calculates. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
American oil and natural gas wells, pipelines and compressors are spewing three times the amount of the potent heat-trapping gas methane as the government thinks, causing $9.3 billion in yearly climate damage, a new comprehensive study calculates.
But because more than half of these methane emissions are coming from a tiny number of oil and gas sites, 1% or less, this ... Read more ...
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2023 Smashes Hottest Year Record - AP News (Jan 9) |
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Jan 9 · Earth last year shattered global annual heat records, flirted with the world’s agreed-upon warming threshold and showed more signs of a feverish planet, the European climate agency said Tuesday. (Jan. 9) (Video produced by Teresa de Miguel)
FILE - The cracked earth of the Sau reservoir is visible north of Barcelona, Spain, March 20, 2023. Earth last year shattered global annual heat records, the European climate agency said Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)
FILE - Sweat covers the face of Juan Carlos Biseno after dancing to music from his headphones as afternoon temperatures reach 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46.1 Celsius) July 19, 2023, in Calexico, ... Read more ...
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Deadly storm batters Northeastern US, knocking out power, grounding flights and flooding roads - AP News (Dec 18) |
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Dec 18 · High winds drive surf into a retaining wall in front of a residence in Mattapoisett, Mass. on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023 as a storm makes its away across the region. (Peter Pereira/The Standard-Times via AP)
Pedestrians stop to take a picture in a wet and foggy Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
A man sits under an umbrella in a wet Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy ... Read more ...
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Decades after Europe, turning blades send first commercial offshore wind power onto US grid - AP News (Dec 6) |
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Dec 6 · A turbine at a commercial-scale offshore wind farm is producing power for the U.S. electric grid for the first time, a milestone many years in the making. (Dec. 6) (AP Video: Ted Shaffrey)
The first operating South Fork Wind farm turbine, Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023, 35 miles east of Montauk Point, N.Y. The turbine at the commercial-scale offshore wind farm is producing power for the U.S. electric grid for the first time. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A barge carries blades for the third turbine at the South Fork Wind farm, Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023, 35 miles east of Montauk Point, N.Y. A turbine at the commercial-scale offshore wind farm is producing power for the U.S. electric ... Read more ...
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To phase out or phase down fossil fuels? That is the question at COP28 climate talks - AP News (Dec 5) |
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Dec 5 · Activists protest against fossil fuels at the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
COP28 CEO Adnan Amin speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Vanessa Nakate, center, poses for a photo with Lisa Goeldner and Joseph Sikulu with a sign that reads “end fossil fuels” at the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong) Read more ...
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It's not yet summer in Brazil, but a dangerous heat wave is sweeping the country - AP News (Nov 15) |
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Nov 15 · People cool off in a water fountain at Madureira Park amid a heat wave in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)
A youth cools off in a water fountain at Madureira Park amid a heat wave in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)
A man cools off in a water fountain at Madureira Park amid a heat wave in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)
A woman cools off in a water fountain at Madureira Park amid a heat wave in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)
People cool off in a water fountain at Madureira Park amid a heat wave in ... Read more ...
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Siemens Gamesa scraps plans to build blades for offshore wind turbines on Virginia's coast - AP News (Nov 10) |
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Nov 10 · FILE - Two of the offshore wind turbines stand off the coast of Virginia Beach, Va., Monday, June 29, 2020. The company Siemens Gamesa said Friday Nov. 10, 2023, that it canceled plans to build blades for offshore wind turbines in coastal Virginia. It was the latest sign of struggle within the U.S.'s nascent offshore wind industry. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
NORFOLK, Va. (AP) - A European company has canceled plans to build blades for offshore wind turbines in coastal Virginia, the latest sign of struggle within the U.S.'s nascent industry.
Siemens Gamesa confirmed the cancellation in a statement Friday. The company’s proposed $200 million factory at the Port of ... Read more ...
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‘Loss and damage’ deal struck to help countries worst hit by climate crisis - AP News (Nov 5) |
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Nov 5 · FILE - A villager holding umbrella to protect himself from sun, walks over parched land on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar, India on May 2, 2009. Tense negotiations at the final meeting on a climate-related loss and damages fund - an international fund to help poor countries hit hard by a warming planet - ended Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023, in Abu Dhabi, with participants agreeing that the World Bank would temporarily host the fund for the next four years.(AP Photo/Biswaranjan Rout, File)
BENGALURU, India (AP) - Tense negotiations at the final meeting on a climate-related loss and damages fund - an international fund to help poor countries hit hard by a warming planet - ended Saturday ... Read more ...
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How US Companies Fund Amazonian Destruction - AP News (Nov 3) |
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Nov 3 · FILE - Restaurant workers move a sign advertising the grand opening of a beef hotpot restaurant along a street in Beijing, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017. As incomes in China have risen in the last decade, beef, once a luxury, is now popular on middle-class menus. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
FILE - In this Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009 file photo, cattle graze in a deforested area near Novo Progresso in the northern state of Para, Brazil. China is now the world’s biggest importer of beef, and Brazil is China’s biggest supplier, according to United Nations Comtrade data released in 2023. More beef moves from Brazil to China than between any other two countries. (AP Photo/Andre ... Read more ...
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PA Court Strikes Down RGGI Membership - AP News (Nov 1) |
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Nov 1 · FILE - The Conemaugh Generation Station emits steam in New Florence, Pa., Feb. 6, 2007. Pennsylvania cannot enforce a regulation to make power plant owners pay for their planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, a state court ruled Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023, dealing another setback to the centerpiece of former Gov. Tom Wolf’s plan to fight global warming. (Todd Berkey/The Tribune-Democrat via AP, File)
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Pennsylvania cannot enforce a regulation to make power plant owners pay for their planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, a state court ruled Wednesday, dealing another setback to the centerpiece of former Gov. Tom Wolf’s plan to fight global ... Read more ...
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UK farmers warn of rotting crops after Storm Babet flooding - AP News (Sep 28, 2023) |
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Sep 28, 2023 · Timothy Kinyua unloads sacks of onions from Ethiopia at an open market in Nairobi, Kenya Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. Restrictions on the export of the vegetable by neighboring Tanzania has led prices to triple. The prices for onions from Tanzania were the highest in seven years, Kinyua said. Some traders have adjusted by getting produce from Ethiopia. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
People buy onions at an open market in Nairobi, Kenya Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. Restrictions on the export of the vegetable by neighboring Tanzania has led prices to triple. Some traders have adjusted by getting produce from Ethiopia. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Charina Em poses in one of her food stores ... Read more ...
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Flooding drives millions to move as climate migration patterns emerge - AP News (Sep 20, 2023) |
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Sep 20, 2023 · FILE - The aftermath of a devastating wildfire is seen, Aug. 22, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Americans nationwide face hefty increases in their homeowner’s insurance premiums in the coming years, a report by the First Street Foundation said on Wednesday, Sept. 20, as climate change intensifies floods, wildfires and storms in ways insurance companies are simply unable to keep up with. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
FILE - Floodwaters rise, July 10, 2023, in Bridgewater, Vt., submerging parked vehicles and threatening homes near the Ottauquechee River. Americans nationwide face hefty increases in their homeowner’s insurance premiums in the coming years, a report by the First Street ... Read more ...
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Beijing heat wave clouds long weekend and sets multi-day temperature record - AP News (Jun 24, 2023) |
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Jun 24, 2023 · TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Beijing and parts of northern China are experiencing record temperatures, with authorities urging people to limit their time outdoors.
The Nanjiao observatory in southern Beijing on Saturday for the first time recorded temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for a third consecutive day, according to the China Meteorological Administration.
In nearby Hebei province and the port city of Tianjin, temperatures also soared above 40 C over the past few days, prompting authorities to issue “red” alerts for extreme weather.
In China’s four-tier weather alert system, red indicates the most severe conditions, ones with potential ... Read more ...
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Texas Heat Strains Grid As State Strips Worker Protections - AP News (Jun 20, 2023) |
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Jun 20, 2023 · AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Texas’ power grid operator asked residents Tuesday to voluntarily cut back on electricity due to anticipated record demand on the system as a heat wave kept large swaths of the state and southern U.S. in triple-digit temperatures.
On the last day of spring, the sweltering heat felt more like the middle of summer across the South, where patience was growing thin over outages that have persisted since weekend storms and tornadoes caused widespread damage.
In the Mississippi capital, some residents said Tuesday that they had been without power and air conditioning for almost 100 hours, which is longer than the outages caused by Hurricane Katrina in ... Read more ...
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Lithium batteries have a 4-hour limit. Mateo Jaramillo hopes to solve that - AP News (Jun 19, 2023) |
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Jun 19, 2023 · Wind and solar power are sometimes dinged for not producing electricity 24 hours a day, but one of the most abundant minerals on the planet, iron, could be key to changing that.
Form Energy, founded in 2017, recently broke ground in West Virginia on its first commercial-scale factory to make iron-air batteries - totally different from lithium ion. The company’s goal is to one day help supply the electrical grid across the United States with renewable energy 24 hours a day and slash the need for burning coal and natural gas, polluting energy sources we currently rely on.
CEO Mateo Jaramillo spoke with The Associated Press about progress toward achieving this vision. The ... Read more ...
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UN Blasts Fossil Fuel Industry, COP President - AP News (Jun 15, 2023) |
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Jun 15, 2023 · BERLIN (AP) - The head of the United Nations launched a tirade against fossil fuel companies Thursday, accusing them of betraying future generations and undermining efforts to phase out a product he called “incompatible with human survival.”
Secretary-General António Guterres also dismissed suggestions by some oil executives - including the man tapped to chair this year’s international climate talks in Dubai - that fossil fuel firms can keep up production if they find a way to capture planet-warming carbon emissions. He warned that this would just make them “more efficient planet-wreckers.”
It’s not the first time the U.N. chief has called out Big Oil over its role in ... Read more ...
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Youth environmentalists bring Montana climate case to trial after 12 years, seeking to set precedent - AP News (Jun 11, 2023) |
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Jun 11, 2023 · HELENA, Mont. (AP) - Whether a constitutional right to a healthy, livable climate is protected by state law is at the center of a lawsuit going to trial Monday in Montana, where 16 young plaintiffs and their attorneys hope to set an important legal precedent.
It’s the first trial of its kind in the U.S., and legal scholars around the world are following its potential addition to the small number of rulings that have established a government duty to protect citizens from climate change.
The trial comes shortly after the state’s Republican-dominated Legislature passed measures favoring the fossil fuel industry by stifling local government efforts to encourage renewable ... Read more ...
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El Niño Cycle Officially Declared - AP News (Jun 08, 2023) |
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Jun 08, 2023 · An early bird El Nino has officially formed, likely to be strong, warp weather worldwide and give an already warming Earth an extra kick of natural heat, meteorologists announced.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Thursday issued an El Nino advisory, announcing the arrival of the climatic condition. It may not quite be like the others.
It formed a month or two earlier than most El Ninos do, which “gives it room to grow,” and there’s a 56% chance it will be considered strong and a 25% chance it reaches supersized levels, said climate scientist Michelle L’Heureux, head of NOAA’s El Nino/La Nina forecast office.
“If this El Nino tips into the largest ... Read more ...
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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - AP News (Jun 05, 2023) |
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Jun 05, 2023 · The cause of global warming is showing no signs of slowing as heat-trapping carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere increased to record highs in its annual Spring peak, jumping at one of the fastest rates on record, officials announced Monday.
Carbon dioxide levels in the air are now the highest they’ve been in more than 4 million years because of the burning of oil coal and gas. The last time the air had similar amounts was during a less hospitable hothouse Earth before human civilization took root, scientists said.
The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration announced that the carbon dioxide level measured in May in Hawaii averaged 424 parts per million. That’s 3 ... Read more ...
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UN climate chief calls fossil fuel phase out key to curbing warming but may not be on talks' agenda - AP News (Jun 05, 2023) |
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Jun 05, 2023 · The world needs to phase out fossil fuels if it wants to curb global warming, the United Nations climate chief said in an interview with The Associated Press. But he said the idea might not make it on to the agenda of “make-or-break” international climate negotiations this fall, run in and by an oil haven.
A phase out of heat-trapping fossil fuels “is something that is at top of every discussion or most discussions that are taking place,” U.N. climate Executive Secretary Simon Stiell said. “It is an issue that has global attention. How that translates into an agenda item and a (climate talks) outcome we will see.”
Stiell told AP he couldn’t quite promise it would get a ... Read more ...
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Earth is 'really quite sick now' and in danger zone in nearly all ecological ways, study says - AP News (May 31, 2023) |
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May 31, 2023 · Earth has pushed past seven out of eight scientifically established safety limits and into “the danger zone,” not just for an overheating planet that’s losing its natural areas, but for the well-being of people living on it, according to a new study.
The study looks not just at guardrails for the planetary ecosystem but for the first time it includes measures of “justice,” which is mostly about preventing harm for countries, ethnicities and genders.
The study by the international scientist group Earth Commission published in Wednesday’s journal Nature looks at climate, air pollution, phosphorus and nitrogen contamination of water from fertilizer overuse, groundwater ... Read more ...
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Shippers Establish Green Corridors To Accelerate Clean Shipping Technology - AP News (May 27, 2023) |
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May 27, 2023 · It’s among the world’s busiest container shipping routes - a stream of vessels packed with furniture, automobiles, clothing and other goods, traversing the Pacific between Los Angeles and Shanghai.
If plans succeed, this corridor will become a showcase for slashing planet-warming carbon emissions from the shipping industry, which produces nearly 3% of the world’s total. That’s less than from cars, trucks, rail or aviation but still a lot - and it’s rising.
The International Maritime Organization, which regulates commercial shipping, wants to halve its greenhouse gas releases by midcentury and may seek deeper cuts this year. “Shipping must embrace decarbonization,” IMO ... Read more ...
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Fifteen properties across seven German states were searched as part of an investigation into whether the German climate protest group Letzte Generation - AP News (May 24, 2023) |
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May 24, 2023 · BERLIN (AP) - German police raided 15 properties linked to the Last Generation climate activist group Wednesday, seizing assets as part of an investigation into its finances in a sign of growing impatience with disruptive protest tactics also seen in other European countries.
Members of the group have repeatedly blocked roads across Germany in an effort to pressure the government to take more drastic action against climate change. In recent weeks, they have brought traffic to a halt on an almost daily basis in Berlin, gluing themselves to busy intersections and highways. Over the past year, they have also targeted various artworks and exhibits.
The raids, ordered by ... Read more ...
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Pressure Mounts For Oil Exec To Not Lead Next U - AP News (May 23, 2023) |
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May 23, 2023 · BERLIN (AP) - Scores of members of Congress and the European Parliament called Tuesday for the designated chair of the next United Nations climate summit to be replaced over his ties to the fossil fuel sector and for the industry’s influence at the upcoming talks to be sharply limited.
The United Arab Emirates has been strongly criticized by environmental advocates for nominating Sultan al-Jaber, the head of the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, to preside over the Nov. 30 - Dec. 12 meeting in Dubai known as COP28.
In an open letter, the lawmakers urged U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, U.S. President Joe Biden, European Commission President Ursula von ... Read more ...
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India scorched by extreme heat with monsoon rains delayed - AP News (May 22, 2023) |
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May 22, 2023 · LUCKNOW, India (AP) - Swathes of India from the northwest to the southeast braced for more scorching heat Monday, with New Delhi under a severe weather alert, as extreme temperatures strike parts of the country.
The Indian Meteorological Department issued a heat wave alert for seven southern and central states last week and broadened it to the capital and some northern states on Monday as sizzling temperatures breached normal levels.
It warned that blistering heat will continue for the next few days before rains bring some relief. The southwest monsoon is slightly delayed this year and will hit in the first week of June, causing temperatures to stay high longer than ... Read more ...
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UN Report Finds Global Temperature Increase Getting Closer To 1 - AP News (May 17, 2023) |
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May 17, 2023 · There’s a two-out-of-three chance that the world will temporarily hit a key warming limit within the next five years, the United Nations weather agency said Wednesday.
But it likely would only be a fleeting and less worrisome flirtation with the internationally agreed upon temperature threshold. Scientists expect a temporary burst of heat from El Nino - a naturally-occurring weather phenomenon - to supercharge human-caused warming from the burning of coal, oil and gas to new heights. Temperatures are expected to then slip back down a bit.
The World Meteorological Organization forecasts a 66% likelihood that between now and 2027, the globe will have a year that averages ... Read more ...
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Exceptional rains in drought-struck northern Italy kill 8, cancel Formula One Grand Prix - AP News (May 17, 2023) |
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May 17, 2023 · CASTEL BOLOGNESE, Italy (AP) - Exceptional rains Wednesday in a drought-struck region of northern Italy swelled rivers over their banks, killing at least eight people, forcing the evacuation of thousands and prompting officials to warn that Italy needs a national plan to combat climate change-induced flooding.
The heavy rains also forced Formula One to cancel this weekend’s Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix to not overtax emergency crews that were already stretched thin in responding to the rivers of mud that have torn through the region, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and homes.
Days of rainstorms stretched across a broad swath of northern Italy and the Balkans, where ... Read more ...
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EU countries adopt law banning products which fuel deforestation - AP News (May 16, 2023) |
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May 16, 2023 · BRUSSELS (AP) - The 27 European Union countries on Tuesday formally adopted new rules that should help the bloc reduce its contribution to global deforestation by regulating the trade in a series of products driving the decrease in forested areas across the world.
Under the legislation, companies trading palm oil, cattle, wood, coffee, cocoa, rubber and soy will need to verify that the goods they sell in the EU haven’t led to deforestation and forest degradation anywhere in the world since 2021.
The regulation also covers derived products such as chocolate or printed paper.
Forests are an important natural means of removing greenhouse gas emissions from the ... Read more ...
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The US Bureau of Land Management - AP News (May 15, 2023) |
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May 15, 2023 · BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - Biden administration officials on Monday sought to dispel worries they want to exclude oil drilling, livestock grazing and other activities from vast government-owned lands, as they faced pushback from Republicans and ranchers and over a contentious proposal to put conservation on equal footing with industry.
The proposal would allow conservationists and others to lease federally owned land to restore it, much the same way oil companies buy leases to drill and ranchers pay to graze cattle. Leases also could be bought on behalf of companies such as oil drillers who want to offset damage to public land by restoring acreage elsewhere.
But more than a ... Read more ...
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New pipeline agency rule aimed at cutting methane leaks - AP News (May 05, 2023) |
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May 05, 2023 · WASHINGTON (AP) - The federal agency that regulates pipelines announced new rules Friday aimed at reducing leaks of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, from a network of nearly 3 million miles of natural gas pipelines that crisscross the country.
The proposal by the Transportation Department’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration would significantly improve the detection and repair of leaks from gas pipelines, keep more product in the pipes and prevent dangerous accidents, officials said.
If finalized, the rules would eliminate up to 1 million metric tons of methane emissions by 2030, equivalent to emissions from 5.6 million gasoline-powered cars, the ... Read more ...
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Spain's April heat nearly impossible without climate change - AP News (May 05, 2023) |
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May 05, 2023 · MADRID (AP) - Record-breaking April temperatures in Spain, Portugal and northern Africa were made 100 times more likely by human-caused climate change, a new flash study found, and would have been almost impossible in the past.
A group of international scientists did a rapid computer and statistical analysis of a late-April heat wave that stretched across the Iberian peninsula into Algeria and Morocco. The four countries experienced temperatures as high as 36.9 degrees Celsius (98.4 degrees Fahrenheit) to 41 degrees Celsius (105.8 degrees Fahrenheit) degrees.
Study lead author Sjoukje Philip of the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute said in a briefing that a ... Read more ...
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Drought and rising heat bring unusual wildfire warnings in northern Europe - AP News (Apr 20, 2023) |
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Apr 20, 2023 · BERLIN (AP) - Europeans, particularly in the south of the continent, are being subjected to more heat stress during the summer months as climate change causes longer periods of extreme weather, a study published Thursday shows.
The European Commission’s Copernicus Climate Change Service said comparisons of data going back over decades showed record heat last year resulted in hazardous conditions for human health.
“ Southern Europe experienced a record number of days with 'very strong heat stress,’” defined as temperatures from 38 to 46 degrees Celsius (100 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit), it said.
The number of summer days with “strong” (32 to 38 Celsius) or “very ... Read more ...
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As Earth warms, more 'flash droughts' suck soil, plants dry - AP News (Apr 13, 2023) |
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Apr 13, 2023 · Climate change is making droughts faster and more furious, especially a specific fast-developing heat-driven kind that catch farmers by surprise, a new study found.
The study in Thursday’s journal Science found droughts in general are being triggered faster. But it also showed that a special and particularly nasty sudden kind - called “flash droughts” by experts - is casting an ever bigger crop-killing footprint.
It comes only in the growing season – mostly summer, but also spring and fall – and is insidious because it’s caused not just by the lack of rain or snow that’s behind a typical slow-onset drought, hydrologists and meteorologists said.
What happens is the ... Read more ...
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EPA awards $177 million to environmental justice groups - AP News (Apr 13, 2023) |
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Apr 13, 2023 · The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday that it’s investing $177 million to create 17 technical assistance centers around the country to help environmental justice organizations successfully apply for federal funds.
Better training on how to navigate the complex federal grant making process is something environmental justice organizations have been demanding since the beginning of the Biden administration. The community groups want to compete for federal money for projects including pollution cleanup, air quality monitoring and workforce development for jobs in wind and solar.
EPA administrator Michael Regan made the announcement in New York City with ... Read more ...
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The US leads the world in weather catastrophes. Here's why - AP News (Apr 02, 2023) |
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Apr 02, 2023 · The United States is Earth’s punching bag for nasty weather.
Blame geography for the U.S. getting hit by stronger, costlier, more varied and frequent extreme weather than anywhere on the planet, several experts said. Two oceans, the Gulf of Mexico, the Rocky Mountains, jutting peninsulas like Florida, clashing storm fronts and the jet stream combine to naturally brew the nastiest of weather.
That’s only part of it. Nature dealt the United States a bad hand, but people have made it much worse by what, where and how we build, several experts told The Associated Press.
Then add climate change, and “buckle up. More extreme events are expected,” said Rick Spinrad, head ... Read more ...
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House Passes Pro-Fossil Fuel Energy Bill - AP News (Mar 30, 2023) |
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Mar 30, 2023 · WASHINGTON (AP) - House Republicans on Thursday approved a sprawling energy package that seeks to undo virtually all of President Joe Biden’s agenda to address climate change.
The legislation would sharply increase domestic production of oil, natural gas and coal, and ease permitting restrictions that delay pipelines, refineries and other projects. It would boost production of critical minerals such as lithium, nickel and cobalt that are used in electric vehicles, computers, cellphones and other products.
By a 225-204 vote, the House sent the measure to the Senate, where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called it “dead on arrival.” Four Democrats joined with all ... Read more ...
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US Renewables Produced More Electricity Than Coal In 2022 - AP News (Mar 27, 2023) |
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Mar 27, 2023 · Electricity generated from renewables surpassed coal in the United States for the first time in 2022, the U.S. Energy Information Administration announced Monday.
Renewables also surpassed nuclear generation in 2022 after first doing so last year.
Growth in wind and solar significantly drove the increase in renewable energy and contributed 14% of the electricity produced domestically in 2022. Hydropower contributed 6%, and biomass and geothermal sources generated less than 1%.
“I’m happy to see we’ve crossed that threshold, but that is only a step in what has to be a very rapid and much cheaper journey,” said Stephen Porder, a professor of ecology and assistant ... Read more ...
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Judge cancels Montana gas plant permit over climate impacts - AP News (Mar 20, 2023) |
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Mar 20, 2023 · BERLIN (AP) - Humanity still has a chance, close to the last, to prevent the worst of climate change’s future harms, a top United Nations panel of scientists said Monday.
But doing so requires quickly slashing nearly two-thirds of carbon pollution by 2035, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said. The United Nations chief said it more bluntly, calling for an end to new fossil fuel exploration and for rich countries to quit coal, oil and gas by 2040.
“Humanity is on thin ice - and that ice is melting fast,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. “Our world needs climate action on all fronts - everything, everywhere, all at once.”
Stepping ... Read more ...
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