Author: cne4h

Intense wildfires can threaten lives, destroy homes, worsen air quality hundreds of miles away, and contribute to global warming. When trees and plants burn, they emit carbon dioxide and other climate-warming gases. Kelly: “These emissions are going to have a pretty big impact on the climate.” This is Douglas Kelley, a fire scientist at the UK Center for Ecology and Hydrology. He said there were massive wildfires in Canada last year that swept through large tracts of forest. In a recent study, Kelly and his team found that due to their size and intensity, these fires produce about nine times…

Guest post by Gordon J. Fulks At a time when campaigning politicians are challenging reality with extravagant promises, recent developments suggest the power industry may be returning to sanity — despite the Biden administration’s frantic attempts to spend billions on so-called “renewable energy.” Much of this drama is playing out in my part of the Pacific Northwest, where policymakers prefer popular ideological approaches to energy needs over practical technologies that rely on fossil fuels, nuclear power, or hydropower. One result is the intrusion of expensive, unreliable and environmentally harmful wind turbines into the Northwest’s unique beauty. Among those who saved…

A recent article published by The Conversation (TC) titled “COP29: Climate change could kill millions, world leaders must work to limit deaths” warns that climate change could kill millions. This is wrong. A critical review of empirical data reveals the opposite: Deaths from extreme weather events have decreased significantly over the past century, despite increases in greenhouse gas emissions. Historical data outlined in the Climate Overview show that deaths from extreme weather have fallen significantly. In the 1920s, such events killed approximately 485,000 people annually. By 2020, that number had dropped significantly to about 7,790 people per year, a decrease…

Author: Linnea Lueken and H. Sterling Burnett The Nation recently published a post titled “Climate Change is a Real National Security Threat,” claiming that climate change is the reason hurricanes Helen and Milton have caused such devastation and is the number one national security threat facing the United States. This is nonsense. Not only is there no evidence to support the idea that climate change is “exacerbating” hurricanes, but contrary to El Pais’ claims, mass migration and riots are not caused by climate change. The Nation begins by describing the usual threat assessment report submitted to Congress by the Director…

Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are asking the Department of Energy's (DOE) Green Technology Loan Office to stop issuing loans amid the prevalence of lame-duck loans. [emphasis, links added] Republican Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington state, Jeff Duncan of South Carolina and H. Morgan Griffith of Virginia A letter was sent to Jigar Shah, director of the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office (LPO), requesting During the final days of the Biden administration, LPOs stopped issuing any new conditional commitments, loans or loan guarantees. LPOs – which provide support to emerging green technology companies that might…

yesterday, washington post Published a popular article about Energy Secretary nominee Chris Wright. Post Questioning Wright's claims: “[R]Reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) actually show no increase in the frequency or intensity of hurricanes. Post Claims Wright misrepresented the latest IPCC assessment report. [emphasis, links added] But rather than citing the IPCC itself to show where Wright might have gone wrong, washington post Instead, rely on the description of a contributor to the IPCC (emphasize): “he [Wright] obvious distortion [the IPCC] report,” said [Jim] Kossin said the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report shows that climate warming…

A reader asked us: What are the consequences of climate change for Mexico? I would like to know what types of animals, species or plants are becoming extinct in Mexico in recent years. We enlisted the help of YCC contributor Tree Meinch from La Paz, Mexico, to answer this question. Here's what they found: In the field of species conservation, “extinction” is a difficult term to define. First of all, how do you know when a particular species has officially disappeared from our planet? To say this with confidence, you have to look at a lot of things, both literally…

A recent article published by The Conversation (TC) titled “COP29: Climate change could kill millions, world leaders must work to limit deaths” warns that climate change could kill millions. This is wrong. [emphasis, links added] A critical review of empirical data reveals the opposite: Deaths from extreme weather events have decreased significantly over the past century, despite increases in greenhouse gas emissions. Historical data outlined in the Climate Overview show that deaths from extreme weather have fallen significantly. In the 1920s, such events killed approximately 485,000 people annually. By 2020, this number had dropped significantly to approximately 7,790 deaths per…

Author: Ananya Bhatia and Vijay Jayaraj From my residence overlooking Ho Chi Minh City, I embrace the tranquility of dawn. Soon, the idyllic morning transformed into a vibrant canvas of middle-class ambition coursing through the arteries of this booming metropolis—Vietnam's largest city, known to some as Saigon. It's an inspiring scene, emblematic of a country that aspires to progress, driven by the industrious spirit and tenacious energy of its people. However, without a supportive economy and a strong policy framework, Vietnam's ambitions may not be fully realized. Vietnam’s expanding energy economy often contradicts external pressures from Western countries to promote…

Pension funds, with their large pools of patient capital, are a key (but underutilized) source of funding for the climate transition, including underpinning the UK’s commitment to net zero emissions by 2050. However, recent debate around UK pension funds has focused on the use of their investments to boost the economy and their integration into growth through defined benefit and defined contribution arrangements. These aspects are also critical to combating the climate crisis. CPI’s research sheds light on European pension funds’ progress in setting climate targets and taking action. While the UK is pleased that it is not one of…