Climate Change News & Discussions

User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by caltrek »

Desert Climate Overtaking More of Central Asia
July 20, 2022

Introduction:
(EurekAlert) Rising annual temperatures and dwindling yearly precipitation across the mid-latitudes of Central Asia have extended its desert climate 60 miles northward since the 1980s, says a recent study led by the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

An analysis of the region’s climate has revealed that what was once a zone of semi-arid climate, featuring at least some summer precipitation, has since transitioned to a drier and hotter clime offering little rainfall during the growing season. The average annual temperature of the once-temperate areas rose roughly 9 degrees Fahrenheit when comparing the 20-year stretch of 1960-1980 to the 30-year period of 1990-2020.

More than 70 million people live in Central Asia, which comprises five former Soviet republics — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan — but is sometimes considered to encompass Afghanistan, western China and fragments of other neighboring nations. Because more than 60% of its land contends with arid or semi-arid climate, the region is especially susceptible to drought and sensitive to fluctuations in precipitation, the researchers said.

“The region is dry, so small deviations from the average or anticipated amount of growing-season rainfall can be devastating to the agricultural production and social stability of the region,” said Qi “Steve” Hu, professor of natural resources and of Earth and atmospheric sciences at Nebraska. “It’s a place very vulnerable to climate change.”
Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/959378
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by caltrek »

Who Cut Checks to Manchin Last quarter
by Daniel Lippman
Updated July 18, 2022

Introduction:
(Politico) WHO CUT CHECKS TO MANCHIN LAST QUARTER: Sen. Joe Manchin’s rejection of Democratic plans to forge ahead with a reconciliation package centered around climate and tax reform ahead of the August recess prompted anger and shock from Democratic colleagues and activists alike.

— While the West Virginia Democrat negotiated behind closed doors with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to find agreement on a skinnier party-line bill, Manchin continued to rake in thousands from executives and corporations whose industries could be altered or who, as billionaires, could face higher taxes under such a package, according to a campaign finance report filed today.

— Manchin, who chairs the Senate Energy Committee, has long been a top recipient of campaign contributions from the energy sector, and last quarter’s campaign finance data shows that trend has continued. The senator received donations from executives at Georgia Power, including the utility’s CFO Aaron Abramovitz, and from Dominion Energy CEO Robert Blue.

— Energy services firm Concord Energy CEO Matthew Flavin gave Manchin the maximum allowable amount of $5,800, as did Southern Company Gas CEO Kim Greene and Harvest Midstream CEO Jason Rebrook. Southern Company’s chair and CEO Chris Cummiskey gave Manchin $2,000, while three other company executives gave at least $1,000. An in-house lobbyist for the company donated $1,000 as well. Kara G. Moriarty, president of the Alaska Oil & Gas Association, gave $1,000, too, along with two executives from the energy storage company Form Energy.

— Manchin also took in more than $19,000 from political action committees belonging to fossil fuel or energy companies and their trade groups, including the Coterra Energy, NextEra Energy, North American Coal Corp., the American Exploration & Production Council’s PAC. The PACs for private equity giant the Carlyle Group and AT&T contributed $10,000 and $5,000, respectively.
Read more here: https://www.politico.com/newsletters ... -00046169
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by caltrek »

How Many of Joe Manchin’s “Energy Sector” Donors Does It Take to Screw In an Apocalypse?
by Ali Breland
July 17, 2022

Extract:
(Mother Jones) On Friday, reports emerged that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) torpedoed another climate change proposal and nixed Democrats’ plan to tax the rich. It’s the end of months of negotiations and the final death knell for the Biden agenda. Even centrists like Jonathan Chait in New York have said that Biden’s agenda has now, officially, failed.

After, I found myself reading a Politico summation of the Senator slash coal magnate‘s donors (see article cited above in this thread).
After looking at the donations I happened to read a bit of political theorist Sheldon Wolin. He has a theory of “inverted totalitarianism.” Wolin’s theory posits that we’re turning into a thinly veiled, autocratic “managed democracy,” in which people hold less and less power, as elite individuals and institutions gain more and more.

Wolin’s argument is wide-ranging and comprehensive but as I was skimming through an essay he wrote on it, I found a couple of fun passages:
  • Inverted totalitarianism, in contrast, while exploiting the authority and resources of the state, gains its dynamic by combining with other forms of power, such as evangelical religions, and most notably by encouraging a symbiotic relationship between traditional government and the system of ‘private’ governance represented by the modern business corporation. The result is not a system of codetermination by equal partners who retain their distinctive identities but rather a system that represents the political coming-of-age of corporate power.
Fascinating. This too:
  • (The)… emergence of the corporation marked the presence of private power on a scale and in numbers hitherto unknown, the concentration of private power unconnected to a citizen body.
Source: https://www.motherjones.com/mojo-wire/ ... alypse/

For more from Sheldon Wolin: https://www.kettering.org/sites/defaul ... -2010.pdf
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
weatheriscool
Posts: 12952
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 6:16 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by weatheriscool »

Biden Announces Climate Change Executive Actions
Source: Weather Channel

President Joe Biden today announced three executive actions aimed at helping curb the impacts of climate change.

The actions focus on helping communities cope with heat; providing money for cities to build infrastructure more resilient to extreme weather; and expanding wind energy production to the Gulf of Mexico.

[snip]

“As president, I have a responsibility to act with urgency and resolve when our nation faces a clear and present danger," Biden said in his speech. “This is an emergency and I will look at it that way.”

The president announced that the Department of Energy is proposing, for the first time ever, putting wind turbines in the Gulf of Mexico to boost clean energy. Biden is also directing that wind energy development be advanced in waters off the mid- and southern Atlantic coasts.
Read more: https://weather.com/news/news/2022-07-2 ... =hp-slot-1
User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by caltrek »

Metallurgists at Saarland University Aim to Decarbonize Aluminium Production
July 22, 2022

Extract::
(EurekAlert)…In Isabella Gallino's case, the time between completing her doctorate and the practical application of her research has taken more than a few years. But it may all have been worth the wait, because Gallino's PhD thesis could potentially pave the way for a paradigm shift within the energy-intensive and environmentally challenging aluminium industry….

The conventional method of producing aluminium from its oxide alumina releases enormous amounts of the environmentally damaging greenhouse gas CO2. 'Smelting one tonne of alumina results in the emission of eight tonnes of CO2 if electricity from coal-fired power stations is used,' explained Ralf Busch, Professor of Metallic Materials at Saarland University. 'And,' added metallurgist Isabella Gallino, 'even if we were to use green electricity, smelting one tonne of alumina would still emit 1.5 tonnes of CO2.' The reason for this lies with how aluminium is produced industrially. The alumina (Al2O3) is electrolysed in the smelting furnace, where it is decomposed into its negatively and positively charged components, which are separated from one another by the anode and cathode of the electrolytic cell. Up until now, the oxygen from the alumina is separated from the aluminium metal by means of a graphite anode. The carbon of the anode combines with the oxygen from the alumina to produce CO2, with 1.5 tonnes of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere for every tonne of alumina processed... Germany's largest aluminium producer is the company Trimet, which now has access to the scientific expertise of Isabella Gallino and Ralf Busch as part of a major research project…. According to the industry body that represents the aluminium sector, around 63 million tonnes of primary aluminium are produced annually – a fact that clearly underscores the need to introduce more climate-friendly means of producing aluminium (see also http://www.aluinfo.de/production-worldwide.html ).

This is where Isabella Gallino's PhD thesis comes into play…In (her doctorate)…she demonstrated that so-called inert anodes do in fact work in practice. Put simply, she replaced the conventional graphite anode by one made from an alloy of iron, copper and nickel. When this anode is used, the gas produced at its surface is not CO2 but oxygen (O2) and, unlike the graphite anode, the metallic anode does not get consumed as electrolysis progresses.
Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/959613
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
User avatar
Time_Traveller
Posts: 2090
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 4:49 pm
Location: Clermont, Indiana, USA, October 7th 2019 B.C.E

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by Time_Traveller »

Afghanistan is facing a climate calamity – it’s time the world took notice
Mon 25 Jul 2022 18.30 BST

If it bleeds, it leads – so goes the media expression – and this is especially true of news out of Afghanistan, which made global headlines during the presence of US forces but few while lives are being lost to the climate crisis.

The main attention Afghanistan gets these days is when big international aid agencies put together posters of hungry women and children for donations, or when a calamity like the June 2022 earthquake hits.

But as you are reading these lines, many towns and villages in the war-ravaged country remain submerged by flash floods triggered weeks ago by a relentless spate of untimely rains and melting glaciers, claiming lives and destroying livelihoods of marginalised communities already surviving on small amounts of foreign aid.

It’s currently peak summer harvest season when farmers gather fruits and collect staples for the approaching winter. But it snowed briefly in the central highlands after long and crippling dry spells, when farmers were desperately longing for the usual spring season rains.

Then came violent hail storms destroying orchards and eventually rain that ruined the wheat crops. None of these events are anywhere near normal in terms of the climate of this landlocked country of nearly 40 million people.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... ook-notice
"We all have our time machines, don't we. Those that take us back are memories...And those that carry us forward, are dreams."

-H.G Wells.
User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by caltrek »

Van Andel Institute, University of Freiburg Study Reveals Insights Into Enzyme That Combats a Common Greenhouse Gas
July 27, 2022

Introduction:
(EurekAlert) GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (July 27, 2022) — An enzyme that combats the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O) may one day give scientists a potent new tool for reducing the amount of the gas in the atmosphere thanks in part to new findings published today in Nature
( https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05015-2 ).

The study details how the enzyme — N2O reductase — is assembled and offers key insights into its ability to render nitrous oxide into harmless nitrogen and water.
Conclusion:
N2O reductase is used by certain microbes to break down nitrogen-based molecules as part of the Earth’s natural nitrogen cycle. Use of nitrogen-heavy fertilizers can overwhelm these microbes’ ability to fully mitigate nitrous oxide, allowing it to escape into the atmosphere. Understanding exactly how this happens is a crucial step toward strategies to mediate nitrous oxide, thus reducing atmospheric levels.

The study centered on N2O reductase’s structure and the way it interacts with other molecular complexes. Using a host of mapping and modeling techniques, the team discovered that N2O reductase acts as a conduit that converts chemical energy into mechanical energy, which in turn powers the delivery of copper ions required for the creation of more N2O reductase.

The findings reshape a decade-old belief about this crucial copper delivery system and reveal a novel mode of operation for similar molecules. Although additional research is needed, the findings provide a detailed blueprint that may be translated into future environmental remediation strategies.
Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/960084
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
User avatar
R8Z
Posts: 267
Joined: Mon Jun 28, 2021 6:25 pm
Location: Remote

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by R8Z »

From all the climate changes we could possibly have, I think we have got the best one (least worst?). The global cooling of the 70s would probably be much worse and if it had been true it would probably be much harder to control/terraform.

In other words, ditching excess energy is usually cheaper than generating excess I'd say.
And, as always, bye bye.
User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by caltrek »

Decarbonizing China’s Energy System to Support the Paris Climate Goals
July 28, 2022

Entire EurekAlert article:
This study is led by Prof. Dr. Wenying Chen (Institute of Energy, Environment and Economy, Tsinghua University), Prof. Dr. Xi Lu (School of Environment, Tsinghua University), and Dr. Xunzhang Pan (School of Economics and Management, China University of Petroleum-Beijing).
China surprised the international community by announcing carbon neutrality before 2060. A critical question arose as to the strategic decarbonization pathways for China’s fossil fuel-dominated energy system. The research team used an integrated assessment model (GCAM-TU) with a detailed representation of China’s energy system to derive how China could decarbonize its energy system to 2100 in the context of carbon peak, carbon neutrality and the global goal of keeping temperature increases well below 2°C or 1.5°C. The researchers designed new mitigation scenarios by combining temperature-control goals (1.5°C/2°C) and development narratives (net-zero/net-negative/deep-net-negative emissions development).

The team showed that China’s energy system would need to achieve carbon neutrality in 2055–2080 for staying well below 2°C and in approximately 2050 for staying below 1.5°C. “Our analysis indicates that China’s carbon-neutrality vision could align with the Paris climate goals,” Wenying Chen says. The team found that all scenarios suggested China to rapidly scale up end-use electrification, low-carbon electricity share, and non-fossil energy share. “China might need to peak coal consumption immediately, oil by 2035 and gas by 2045. It should also accelerate the deployment of carbon capture and storage and negative emissions technologies through targeted investments and policies,” Xi Lu says. “The installed capacity of coal-fired power plants in China is still growing slightly. However, it is robust across scenarios that China might need to completely phase out its conventional coal power plants before 2060 under 2°C and before 2050 under 1.5°C,” Xunzhang Pan says.

China’s decarbonization is critical to the success of the Paris climate goals. Through a comprehensive assessment of CO2 trajectories, sectoral mitigation, end-use sectors, electricity production, primary energy, and carbon capture and storage, this study provided illustrative references that could help Chinese decision-makers develop energy system decarbonization pathways, targets, and policies to achieve its carbon neutrality vision and global Paris goals. The study could also provide an example for other developing countries in considering Paris-compliant decarbonization pathways.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/960193

For Science Bulletin article introduction and to purchase PDF version: https://www.sciencedirect.com/sdfe/pdf ... t-page-pdf
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Climate Change News & Discussions

Post by caltrek »

Reduction of Methane Emissions from Lakes Possible with New Approach
August 2, 2022

Introduction:
(EurekAlert) Lakes and other freshwater systems emit large quantities of methane, which is the second most important greenhouse gas worldwide after CO2. Dredging and the use of Phoslock (a phosphate-binding clay particle) can reduce these lake emissions by over 50%. This is the conclusion of a study by Radboud University researchers, published today in Science of The Total Environment.

Methane largely originates in natural systems, with 49% of all emissions coming from freshwater systems. Worldwide methane emissions also continue to increase as a result of global warming and eutrophication (an excess of nutrients in water). Radboud University researchers investigated whether reducing this eutrophication could help curb methane emissions.
Conclusion:
The researchers say that it is a little premature at this point to extend this approach to as many lakes as possible. Nijman: “These experiments first have to be repeated on a large scale. The first results are promising, but we want to measure the effect in more locations and over a longer period of time to see whether the positive effects lasts.”

In addition, this approach is not suitable for every situation, it is too expensive for that, as Nijman shows with a simple calculation. “An approach based on the use of Phoslock can easily be six to ten times more expensive than an approach that focuses on the environment surrounding the lake. This is not always possible in the Netherlands, think of lakes that are surrounded by trees or agricultural land, in some cases with little to no water flowing through. In such places you cannot simply overhaul the entire environment, in which case it might be useful to use dredging or Phoslock. But in places where the environment can be adjusted, the latter is always preferable. Prevention is still better than a cure.”
Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/960444

For a technical review of the results of the study: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/a ... via%3Dihub
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
Post Reply