Energy

Top 5 Environmental Impacts of Bipartisan Infastructure Bill, from Electric Vehicles to Electric Grid

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Although the the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill passed by the senate on Tuesday has been criticized by environmentalists for not doing enough for green energy and the environment, it should be pointed out that it is the largest investment in those issues ever in U.S. history. It is to […]

Climate Change

Will the move to Solar-Wind-Battery Accelerate as Natural Gas Spikes 1000% in Europe with long term price rises expected?

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Anna Shiryaevskaya, Stephen Stapczynski and Ann Koh at Bloomberg.org report that natural gas prices have risen 1,000 percent in Europe since the pandemic crash of May, 2020. Other parts of the world with more natural gas of their own also saw price increases over the past year, though not on […]

Climate Crisis

Germany’s solar PV expansion soars by over 20%, but incoming Government will need to do more

Clean Energy Wire

By Benjamin Wehrmann | – ( Clean Energy Wire) – The construction of new solar photovoltaic (PV) installations in Germany has grown by 22 percent in the first half of 2021 but would still have to be three to four times higher to be in line with the country’s climate targets, solar industry group BSW […]

Climate Crisis

Biden’s Moonshot: America’s Cars are going Electric, “Fast!” with Union Labor

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Joe Biden is good at multi-tasking. His announcement on Thursday that he wants 50% of all cars sold in the US in 2030 to be electric or plugin hybrids will appeal to many environmentalists, or at least the electric part will. But the transcript at rev.com/ demonstrates that President Biden […]

Featured

Trump’s Tehran Poison Pill: US Trade Embargo provokes Iranian Attacks in Gulf, Making Return to Nuclear Deal Harder

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The BBC reports that a bitumen tanker, the MV Asphalt Princess, was boarded by nine men on Tuesday and hijacked. It cites unnamed “analysts,” presumably MI6, to the effect that the hijacking was the work of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps. The MV Asphalt Princess, owned by the United Arab […]

Climate Crisis

Climate Emergency hits Mideast as Massive Wildfires In Turkey destroy livelihoods

Global Voices

By Doga Celik and Arzu Geybullayeva | – ( GlobalVoices.org) – Since July 28, a total of 125 forest fires have raged through 21 provinces of Turkey with 8 still raging as of August 2. The first fire was reported on July 28. So far, the death toll has reached 8 people, including two firefighters. […]

Coal

Renewables for first time on Record generated more Electricity than either Coal or Nuclear in US in 2020: EIA

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Energy Information Administration, the primary authority in the federal government on energy numbers, concludes that renewables, primarily hydro, wind and solar, rose to become 21% of electricity generation in the US in 2020. This is the first time on record that renewables were the second-largest generator of electricity in […]

Featured

Only Electric Cars can save the Planet, with as much as 4/5s fewer Emissions than Gasoline Cars

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – A life-cycle study of automobile emissions in four major new-car markets globally by Georg Bieker of non-profit The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) has demonstrated conclusively that battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are dramatically cleaner than gasoline cars under virtually all circumstances, no matter how dirty the electric grid in […]

Climate Crisis

How food prices are affected by oil, trade agreements and climate change

The Conversation

By Wyn Morgan | – ( The Conversation) – Concerns about inflation rates have risen as the UK economy begins its much-needed recovery from the effects of the pandemic. The Consumer Prices Index, the measure most commonly used to measure inflation, rose by 2.5% in June 2021, the highest level for three years. That headline […]