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Pebble Mine Permit Denied by Trump Administration

11/27/2020

The Trump administration on Wednesday denied a permit for a controversial gold and copper mine near the headwaters of the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery in southwest Alaska. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said application to build the Pebble Mine was denied under both the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act. The corps said the discharge plan from the Pebble Limited Partnership did not comply with Clean Water Act guidelines. The agency “concluded that the proposed project is contrary to the public interest...” - High Country News

The Pebble Mine was proposed at the headwaters of the Bristol Bay where sockeye salmon migration can exceed 46 million fish annually.

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20 Signs the Climate Crisis Has Come Home to Roost

11/27/2020

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See the graphics in the High Country News article.

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An Unusual Snack for Cows, a Powerful Fix for Climate

11/27/2020

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One of the most powerful weapons in the fight against climate change is washing up on shorelines around the world, unnoticed by most beachgoers. It’s seaweed. In lab tests and field trials, adding a small proportion of this seaweed to a cow’s daily feed — about 0.2 of a percent of the total feed intake in a recent study — can reduce the amount of methane by 98%. That’s a stunning drop when most existing solutions cut methane by about 20 or 30%. - Seattle Times

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A Desert City Tries to Save Itself With Rain

11/25/2020

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In an average year, Brad Lancaster can harvest enough rain to meet 95% of his water needs. Roof runoff collected in tanks on his modest lot in Tucson, Arizona where 100 degree days are common in the summer months — provides what he needs to bathe, cook and drink. When Lancaster gets thirsty, he sips filtered rain “known as sweet water,” he says, having never picked up salt from soil. When he wants a hot shower, he places his outdoor shower’s water tank in the sun. To irrigate his fruit trees beyond the Sonoran Desert’s two rainy seasons, which bring the vast majority of Tucson’s precipitation, he uses fresh rainwater or greywater — the latter being, in his case, used rainwater leftover from the shower, sink, or washing machine. - Bloomberg

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New Zealand Geologists Plan to Harness Volcano Heat to Reduce Emissions

11/25/2020

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A group of geologists in Dunedin are hoping to reduce climate-damaging emissions by drilling deep into an extinct 11-million-year-old volcano below the South Island city to harness its heat. Geologists hope to drill two bores through the veneer of sedimentary rock, 500 metres deep into the volcano, and are seeking backing for the NZ$1m (US$700,000) project from the government’s Smart Ideas programme. - Guardian

New Zealand lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire with volcanoes and hot springs part of the landscape. Dunedin geologists hope they can harness the Earth’s heat to reduce climate emissions.

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Amount of Materials Extracted from Earth Tripled Since 1970

11/25/2020

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More than 38 billion tons of material were extracted from the Earth in 2017 for trade, a figure that shows how much the demand for raw resources has increased in recent decades, a new United Nations report has found. The materials include biomass, such as wood and crops for food, energy and plant-based materials; fossil fuels, such as coal, natural gas and oil; metals, such as iron, aluminum and copper; and non-metallic minerals, such as sand, gravel and limestone, according to the report. From 1970 to 2017, the amount of materials extracted from the Earth globally tripled, according to the report. - ABC News

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Remains of Master & Slave Unearthed from Pompeii Ashes After ~2,000 Years

11/25/2020

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Skeletal remains of what are believed to have been a rich man and his male slave attempting to escape death from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago have been discovered in Pompeii. Parts of the skulls and bones of the two men were found during excavation of the ruins from what was once an elegant villa with a panoramic view of the Mediterranean Sea on the outskirts of the ancient Roman city destroyed by the volcano eruption in 79 A.D. It’s the same area where a stable with the remains of three harnessed horses were excavated in 2017. Pompeii officials said the men apparently escaped the initial fall of ash from Mount Vesuvius then succumbed to a powerful volcanic blast that took place the next morning. The later blast “apparently invaded the area from many points, surrounding and burying the victims in ash,” Pompeii officials said in a statement. - NBC

Casts of the bodies of two men, a master and his young slave, after they were found during recent excavations of a Villa in Civita Giuliana in the outskirts of Pompeii.

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Putin Orders Russian Government to Work Towards Paris Climate Goals

11/21/2020

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President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree ordering the Russian government to work towards meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement to fight climate change, but stressed any action must be balanced with the need to ensure strong economic development. Russia, the world’s 4th largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has previously signalled its acceptance of the accord even as environmentalists have criticised Moscow for shunning compulsory emissions targets for companies backed with fines. In a decree published on Wednesday, a public holiday in Russia, Putin formally ordered the government to work towards a cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 of up to 30% below emission levels in 1990. - Reuters

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How Utah Cities Are Pursuing 100% Renewable Energy

11/21/2020

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In the absence of federal action on climate change, local communities have taken on the responsibility of reducing their greenhouse emissions. To date, more than 150 cities, counties and states across America have passed resolutions to commit to 100 percent net-renewable electricity in the coming years, defined as meeting the city’s total electricity demand with the gross amount of electricity generated and purchased from renewable sources, such as solar, wind and geothermal as well as energy efficiency, demand management and energy storage. Six cities already have achieved this goal: Kodiak Island, Alaska; Aspen, Colorado; Georgetown, Texas; Greensburg, Kansas; Rock Port, Missouri; and Burlington, Vermont. In Utah, 23 cities and counties have resolved to adopt 100 percent net-renewable electricity by 2030, representing about 37 percent of Utah’s electricity load. - GreenBiz

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Carbon-Free Energy Required by 2050 Under ACC Proposal

11/21/2020

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tates across the Southwest have adopted clean energy plans that regulate utility companies and work toward carbon-free goals. After lagging for several years, Arizona is starting to catch up. The Arizona Corporation Commission on Friday passed a proposal requiring utilities to be 100% free of carbon emissions by 2050 and meet particular benchmarks along the way. According to the commission, carbon free requires the use of resources that do not generate carbon emissions “resulting from the combustion of fossil fuels, such as coal, petroleum, natural gas, oil, shale, and bitumen.” Nuclear and hydroelectric generators are considered carbon free, as are wind and solar. The 4-1 vote initiated the commission’s formal rulemaking process, which includes opportunities for customer comment and will provide the foundation for a final commission vote in 2021. - Cronkite News

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<<Previous

Pebble Mine Permit Denied by Trump Administration

20 Signs the Climate Crisis Has Come Home to Roost

An Unusual Snack for Cows, a Powerful Fix for Climate

A Desert City Tries to Save Itself With Rain

New Zealand Geologists Plan to Harness Volcano Heat to Reduce Emissions

Amount of Materials Extracted from Earth Tripled Since 1970

Remains of Master & Slave Unearthed from Pompeii Ashes After ~2,000 Years

Putin Orders Russian Government to Work Towards Paris Climate Goals

How Utah Cities Are Pursuing 100% Renewable Energy

Carbon-Free Energy Required by 2050 Under ACC Proposal

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