As California experienced uncharacteristically low precipitation in February, normally its peak rainy season, parts of the state are moving into drought conditions. This is likely to increase wildfire prevalence in the state in 2020, and it underscores the point that communities need to be thinking about a range of strategies to increase their resilience to wildfires.
Today, Lawyers for Good Government Foundation (L4GG), a non-profit network of more than 120,000 legal advocates with lawyers in all 50 states, unveiled its latest comprehensive state energy resource profiles — Ohio, Louisiana, and Oklahoma — as part of its pro-bono climate change program, which seeks to provide the legal resources desperately needed for municipalities to reach 100 percent renewable energy goals.
Originally published by the EIA. Nearly 18 gigawatts (GW) of electric generating capacity was retired in 2015, a relatively high amount compared with recent years. More than 80% of the retired capacity was conventional steam coal. The coal-fired generating units retired in 2015 tended to be older and smaller in … [continued]
The Clean Power Plan just finalized by the Obama administration has occupied the media for most of a week now. So what’s the big deal? The Earth has a significant problem with climate change, and the US government has put together a coherent nationwide approach. Individual states hold high responsibility for its … [continued]
Originally published on Today in Energy by JenAlyse Arena Coal production from mines with mountaintop removal (MTR) permits has declined since 2008, more than the downward trend in total U.S. coal production. Total U.S. coal production decreased about 15% from 2008 to 2014. Surface production decreased about 21%, and mountaintop removal, … [continued]
Much has been made of Australian Prime Minister’s Tony Abbott’s backward (read: downright insane) environmental and energy policies, without looking further into the role that the individual Australian States are playing. A new report from the Australian Climate Council attempts to rectify this, by providing the latest research on which … [continued]
NerdWallet have compiled the top 5 states in the US for residential solar energy, according to four specific criteria. Top of the pile was California, thanks to a sunny location, the pioneering of solar leasing, and great cash-back incentives. Filling out the top 5 were Hawaii, Arizona, Maryland, and Delaware. … [continued]
With the addition of Hawaii; the latest state to allow SunRun solar power purchase agreements to compete with utility power, homeowners in nine states now have the option for solar that’s cheaper from the first month than dirty power and costs little or nothing to start. In Hawaii, SunRun hits … [continued]
Well, telling us something we should have learned in high school, a new study by researchers from the University of California shows why it is so difficult for the US to move forward on critical environmental issues. [social_buttons] The basics of it is that there is a severe misrepresentation of … [continued]
Major power companies in Florida and New Mexico announced this week that they would start buying large amounts of energy from certain solar power producers soon. In New Mexico, Southwestern Public Service Company (SPSC), a subsidiary of Xcel Energy, said that it would buy 50 MW of solar power from … [continued]
