U.S. refiners, chemical makers pare insurance coverage as accidents boost costs

Insuring your petrochemical plant is getting more expensive due to more and more accidents in the industry. The industry response: ditch insurance. They could have chosen to focus on more safety and less risk. But no, short term profits and fingers crossed.....Get ready for more bankruptcies! ... See more

U.S. refineries and petrochemical plants are cutting back on insurance because s...

AE, but not drivers, charging toward renewable goals - Austin Monitor

We are on our path to a NET-ZERO greenhouse gas community wide city. How are we doing?

The City of Austin has made considerable efforts to reduce the community’s carbon emissions. Austin Energy, a City-owned electric utility, is on track to meet or even exceed its goal of generating 65% renewable energy by 2027. Austin Energy is making progress to stop energy generation from its power plants that emit large amounts of carbon. The City is also working to help the community reduce transportation emissions. However, it is unclear if the City will reduce transportation emissions enough to meet its goal for a carbon-neutral community by 2050. The City can do more to promote electric vehicles to advance the community’s progress toward carbon neutrality. ... See more

A report from the Office of the City Auditor states that Austin Energy is on track to reduce carbon emissions from utility operations so the city can meet its goal of being carbon-neutral by 2050. But auditors also found that… ... See more

Almonds are out. Dairy is a disaster. So what milk should we drink?

All milk alternatives are far better for the planet than dairy. A 2018 study by researchers at the University of Oxford showed that producing a glass of dairy milk results in almost three times more greenhouse gas emissions than any plant-based milk and it consumes nine times more land than any of the milk alternatives.

Plant milks can, nevertheless, have a dark side, as when any crop is produced in mass quantities. It’s important to consider not just whether they are grown using organic methods. Other factors include how the farming of the crop affects people and native habitats in developing countries, the carbon footprint and water use. And while each product has its trade-offs, some plant milks are more sustainable than others.

Which one is best? Meet the winner: the unassuming oat.

Retail sales of oat milk in the US have soared from $4.4m in 2017 to $29m in 2019, surpassing almond milk as the fastest-growing dairy alternative. But unlike almonds, there are already plenty of oats to go around. “Right now, 50 to 90% of global oat production goes into animal feed,” says Specht, “so there’s a huge existing acreage that we can safely steal share from without moving the needle at all on total production.”

Oats are grown in cooler climates such as the northern US and Canada, and are therefore not associated with deforestation in developing countries. The only drawback with this trendy and guilt-free option is that most oats come from mass-produced, monoculture operations where they are sprayed with the Roundup pesticide right before harvest. A study by the Environmental Working Group found glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup and a possible carcinogen, in all the foods it tested containing conventionally grown oats and even in one-third of products made with organic oats. However, the popular Oatly brand oat milk company maintains its oats are certified glyphosate free. ... See more

A glass of dairy milk produces almost three times more greenhouse gas than any plant-based milk. But vegan options have drawbacks of their own

Lekkages in VS van sterk broeikasgas methaan vanuit de ruimte opgespoord

Dutch satellite maps worldwide methane emission: a powerful tool to monitor emission sources and emission control programs. 40% of US man-made emissions of methane come from oil and gas exploration. Special case study for the Permian basin if you are interested. ... See more

Het Nederlandse satelliet-instrument Tropomi meet de luchtkwaliteit en de uitstoot van methaan. In nieuw onderzoek zijn lekkages gevonden en gemonitord in de VS.

Terrein Lowlands krijgt carport van 90.000 zonnepanelen

Music festival generates 5 times more solar power than it needs to operate by installing 90,000 panels as a solar covered parking lot. Multiple use of space, being net positive on energy, what is not to like? ... See more

Festivalgangers kunnen straks hun auto kwijt op het overdekte zonnepark, dat genoeg stroom moet leveren voor 10.000 huishoudens.

Charged EVs | Sweden to develop plan to phase out fossil fuel cars

Sweden’s government has appointed a commission of inquiry to offer proposals on when and how sales of new fossil fuel cars, and fossil fuels themselves, should be phased out. The group is also tasked with developing a plan to bring about the same changes in the EU as a whole.

The commission is to propose a year by which fossil fuels should be phased out in Sweden, and the measures needed for this to happen in the most cost-effective manner possible.

Sven Hunhammar, Director of Sustainability and Environment at the Swedish Transport Administration, has been named the commission’s chair. The inquiry’s findings are due February 1, 2021.

“Sweden will be the world’s first fossil-free welfare nation,” said Per Bolund, Sweden’s Minister for Financial Markets and Housing. “The transport sector is responsible for a third of Sweden’s emissions of greenhouse gases, and thus has a significant role to play in the climate transition.https://chargedevs.com/newswire/sweden-to-develop-plan-to-phase-out-fossil-fuel-cars/ ... See more

Sweden to develop plan to phase out fossil fuel cars Posted January 23, 2020 by Charged EVs & filed under Newswire, The Vehicles. Sweden’s government has appointed a commission of inquiry to offer proposals on when and how sales of new fossil fuel cars, and fossil fuels themselves, should be phase... ... See more

Norway says its new giant oil field is good for the planet. Critics call it climate hypocrisy

Carbon neutral by 2030 as a country? Norway is planning for it. But wait. They also export 5 times their current emissions as the 2nd largest oil exporter after Russia in Europe. When does this madness stop? ... See more

It's not a boast you usually hear about an oil field: Norway says its huge new facility is great for the environment. Its critics, however, see Norway's third-biggest oil field ever as a perfect symbol of the Scandinavian country's climate hypocrisy. ... See more

Microsoft wants to capture all of the carbon dioxide it’s ever emitted

The new goal setting boundary: aiming to not just being carbon neutral but committing to removing all emissions you have caused. Microsoft is doing it. I call it NET ZERO for life.

It plans to slash emissions over the next decade.

Climate crisis fills top five places of World Economic Forum’s risks report

For first time, environment is at top of list of issues worrying world’s financial system. The World Economic Forum says the top five financial risks in terms of likelihood in the next 10 years were:

1. Extreme weather events with major damage to property, infrastructure and loss of human life.
2. Failure of climate-change mitigation and adaptation by governments and businesses.
3. Human-made environmental damage and disasters, including environmental crime, such as oil spills and radioactive contamination.
4. Major biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse with irreversible consequences for the environment, resulting in severely depleted resources for humankind as well as industries.
5. Major natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and geomagnetic storms.

More and more people and organizations are defining what it means to (not) deal with climate change. ... See more

For first time, environment is at top of list of issues worrying world’s elite