"The declaration is the latest sign of shifting sentiment toward nuclear power, which doesn’t produce carbon dioxide emissions, but has often been criticized over the waste it generates, the cost of building plants and potential security issues. Support has gained traction especially as clean back-up for renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. The countries will also commit to new technologies, such as small modular reactors."
All Is Quiet in Oil Markets—for Now
"Despite roiling the region politically, the war between Israel and Hamas doesn’t threaten supplies directly. That would change if the war were to spread or expand into areas housing the infrastructure—production facilities, tankers and pipelines—that enables the flow of oil and gas. About 21 million barrels of oil pass through the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz daily, along with substantial amounts of liquefied natural gas. Since the U.S. shale revolution, the bulk of those supplies now head to Asian markets."
Three climate fights will dominate COP28
"A deal is hard to reach because the legitimate climate ambition of a rapid end to burning fossil fuel runs into the equally legitimate reality of fossil dependence. As Mr Cohen observes, 'You can wish fossil fuels away, but they still comprise 80% of world energy supply and are growing.' A new scenario from the IEA, a global forecaster, for achieving net-zero emissions envisions a significant amount of fossil-fuel use even in 2050 (albeit at much lower levels than today), making a mockery of talk of rapid phase-out."
Climate startup OCOchem, which recycles CO2 into fuels and chemicals, lands $5M
"The approach has two climate benefits, said CEO and co-founder Todd Brix. First, it uses CO2 that’s captured as an industrial waste from facilities such as biogas and bioenthanol producers or it’s pulled from the atmosphere using a direct air capture device. Second, it generates formic acid and other formate chemicals that can replace fossil fuels as a feedstock for fuels and other products."
USDA’s Conservation Reserve Program needs reform to improve climate benefits
"The reason why the CRP is storing less carbon in soil than if the acres were placed randomly has to do with where program acres are concentrated. The Southern Great Plains have a disproportionately high amount of CRP acres, compared to the rest of the country, and the 'coarse-textured soils' in this area store carbon poorly."
Policies Meant to Address Climate Change Can Worsen Human Suffering
"It’s time to move beyond 'save the planet no matter what the cost' to 'saving the planet is about protecting the people on it in both the short and long term.' If we don’t accept this reframing, policies meant to reduce human suffering by addressing climate change can actually make that suffering worse. In the end, voters own this issue. We cannot support politicians based on slogans. We must hold them accountable for the results of their policies, taking all relevant factors into account."
Biden’s electric vehicle strategy is not the silver bullet to reduce emissions
"The bottom line: Electrification is not the silver bullet for reducing transportation emissions. Without greatly expanding our electric infrastructure and bolstering our domestic critical mineral supplies, an EV-only approach will do more to harm the environment than it will to help it, at the expense of consumer choice."
Brazil to propose financing plan to protect tropical forests at COP28
"'It’s not top-down. It has to be a bottom-up exercise,' said André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, a senior Brazilian diplomat, about Brasília’s environmental efforts. 'At COP28, we’re going to have the beginning of a very important new stage. What has to be done will be debated first by the countries that have tropical forests.' said André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, a senior Brazilian diplomat, about Brasília’s environmental efforts. 'At COP28, we’re going to have the beginning of a very important new stage. What has to be done will be debated first by the countries that have tropical forests.'"
Economic and Environmental Lessons from Korea
The way to unlock the power of society and the private sector is by giving people the freedom to innovate. Strict federal mandates, on the other hand, are a path to failure.
Cleaning Up European Energy
"The key is to remove all the market, cost, and fiscal barriers in the way of beneficial innovators. When streamlined policy makes new investments cheap and easy, newer, cleaner technologies replace older, dirtier technologies at an ever faster pace, accelerating innovation and the energy transition."