New York and all six states in New England have aggressive, long-term, economy-wide CO2 emission reduction targets, with five having set a goal of reducing emissions 80% from 1990 levels by 2050. According to the most recent data, the Northeast has achieved a 16% economy-wide reduction from that benchmark.
Yes, but: Despite this progress, the current rate of reductions is insufficient to meet the 2050 goals. To do so, Northeastern states would have to triple the pace of gains made between 1990 and 2015.
The death toll from devastating wildfires in Greece rose to 80 on Wednesday after a firestorm roared through coastal villages surrounding Athens earlier in the week.
The big picture: Officials sifting through charred wreckage have found that these blazes were so swift-moving and burning so hot that many victims had virtually no chance of outrunning them. Some victims were found still hugging each other, according to news reports.
Visitors are being ordered out of Yosemite Valley to avoid unhealthy air quality and other risks posed by the Ferguson Fire that is raging nearby.
What's new: The two-week old, 38,000-acre Ferguson Fire is inching closer to Yosemite, the nation's most popular national park. The closure will stay in effect until Sunday as firefighters work to control a fire that's only 25% contained. A heat wave that is roasting California, along with much of the Southwest, shows no signs of abating, and is making firefighting efforts challenging.
More than 3,000 people are still waiting to be rescued in Laos after a dam collapse from heavy rain stranded them on Monday, Reuters reports.
By the numbers: Around 19 people were found dead, local media reported, and roughly 3,000 have already been rescued. Rescue teams from Thailand and China were heading into the area on Wednesday to help get the remaining people out. The U.N. reported that there are "34 missing, 1,494 evacuated and 11,777 people in 357 villages affected."
Installations of home energy storage system in the U.S. hit a record high in the first quarter of 2018, according to a new industry report. The new capacity of 36 megawatt-hours will sustain an estimated 4,000 home systems and adds to the 1,080 megawatt-hours installed in the past 4 years.
The big picture: Home energy storage systems commonly use batteries to store the electricity generated by rooftop solar panels, which can then be used during peak times and on demand to reduce utility costs or for backup power during inclement weather. The increasing penetration of residential and commercial solar installations has lowered energy demands on utilities. But the policies they have implemented to offset those losses have ended up making home energy systems even more attractive.
Wildfires in the Attica region of Greece, which includes the capital Athens, have killed at least 60 people and forced hundreds to evacuate, reports Reuters.
Why it matters: These are the deadliest wildfires in Greece since 2007, when three consecutive heat waves resulted in more than 3,000 fires across the country, killing 84. The European Union has dispatched firefighters and aid to Greece, Sweden, and Latvia, where forest fires have also forced evacuations, reports AFP.
ExxonMobil's mammoth discovery off Guyana's coast has grown even bigger — the deepwater Stabroek block is now estimated to contain 4 billion barrels of recoverable oil, the company announced Monday.
Why it matters: The new estimate (its prior estimate was 3.2 billion barrels) is a bright spot for Exxon, and a key part of Exxon's long-term recovery strategy. The last several years have been an atypically difficult stretch for the company, including a stock price plunge earlier this year with only partial recovery, and it has struggled to grow production even as crude prices have come back.
