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Exactly 30 years ago, Tracy Chapman was atop the Billboard album charts with her self-titled debut, so she's got today's unforgettable intro song...
Welcome back and thanks for reading.
Exactly 30 years ago, Tracy Chapman was atop the Billboard album charts with her self-titled debut, so she's got today's unforgettable intro song...
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A major climate storyline in the Trump era has been the way that cities, regional governments and companies worldwide have been pressing ahead with low-carbon efforts.
Driving the news: Two U.S. developments this week illustrate the trend...
Yes, but: A new report provides a glass half-full (or maybe empty) global perspective on that trend.
Why it matters: It's the most comprehensive global analysis yet of these efforts. A Yale University interdisciplinary project called Data Driven Yale released the report along with the NewClimate Institute and a Dutch national institute called the PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency.
What they found: The existing individual pledges would lead to emissions in 2030 that are about 3%–4% below where they would be under current national policies alone.
The big picture: The effect of sub-national and corporate efforts is important at a time when...
Our thought bubble: Put all that together, and it's clear that the burst of regional government and corporate actions are important, but insufficient. A lot of things have to break the right way to prevent blowing far past the Paris goals, and that's a very tall order.
Speaking of California's plan, my colleague Amy Harder caught up yesterday with Ernest Moniz, President Obama’s former energy secretary, to talk about California’s landmark new electricity policy.
The bottom line: Moniz, a widely respected energy expert and nuclear physicist, praised the law but said it faces two big challenges: Ensuring reliable electricity and maintaining cooperative land use.
Driving the news: The legislation mandates that 100% of the state's power come from carbon-free sources by 2045, with a renewable-specific target of 60% by 2030. It cleared its final legislative hurdle last night and is headed for Gov. Jerry Brown's desk.
“Here you have the fifth largest economy in the world saying we’re going to a carbon-free electricity sector in roughly 25 years. That is a very, very big deal.”— Former Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz
Yes, but: Moniz says that one of the challenges the plan will face is the need for reliable electricity, which will call for more storage.
Go deeper: Read Amy's full story in the Axios stream.
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Two events just hours apart yesterday underscore the hurdles facing White House efforts to help the coal-fired power industry.
The first was the revelation that the EPA is eyeing a revision of 2012 regulations that imposed first-ever federal limits on mercury and other toxic air pollution from coal-fired power plants.
Later in the day, the power company FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. (FES) said it plans to shut down two coal plants in Ohio and one in Pennsylvania in the 2021–2022 period. The Cleveland Plain Dealer has more on the announcement here.
My thought bubble:
The bottom line: The Trump administration has made aiding the coal sector a top priority, but it has limited levers to pull that will fundamentally change power market trends favoring other fuel sources.
Fracking: Amy reports that Colorado's oil industry is facing an existential battle, as an initiative that would significantly curtail oil and gas production will be placed onto the state ballot for a vote this Election Day.
Flaring: The Wall Street Journal reports that oil producers in the Permian basin are burning about 3% of the natural gas they extract from the region because there's not enough pipeline capacity to move it to market.
Sanctions: S&P Global Platts, citing a top Japanese official, writes: "Japan remains firmly committed to seeking US exemption for Iranian oil imports as it sees the supplies as important for the country's energy security and businesses."
Dyson: Per Reuters, "James Dyson, billionaire British inventor of the bagless vacuum cleaner, outlined plans on Thursday to build new testing facilities and invest another 116 million pounds ($150 million) to develop an electric car to be launched by 2020."
Tesla: Via Bloomberg, "Tesla Inc.’s head of human resources and facilities has been on a leave of absence as the electric-car maker has dealt with a period of intense tumult spurred by Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk."
Big picture: The Associated Press writes about growing competition in the EV market.