EnviroPolitics Blog

National climate pledges are too weak to avoid catastrophic warming. Most countries are on track to miss them anyway.

The global effort to combat climate change boils down to this: Bending a very stubborn curve.

By Harry Stevens and Brady Dennis Washington Post

At the upcoming U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland — COP26 for short — countries will face pressure to make more ambitious pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions with the goal of keeping average global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, or 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit, compared to preindustrial levels.

Global greenhouse gas emissions

An analysis of national climate pledges by Climate Action Tracker, an independent international collaboration of climate scientists, shows the policies of many countries are inconsistent with their public pledges to cut greenhouse gases.

Those pledges, in turn, are mostly too weak to collectively meet the goals forged as part of the 2015 Paris agreement: to keep global warming “well below” 2 degrees Celsius, or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, and, if possible, stop at 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Projected greenhouse gas emissions in 2030

			Required
	Total	Per person	Pledged	Required for 1.5°C
China	13,828megatons CO₂e	9.4tons CO₂e	13,625megatons CO₂e	7,711megatons CO₂e
U.S.	6,163	17.5	3,967	3,329
India	3,932	2.6	5,346	1,863
E.U.	2,854	6.5	2,246	1,833
Russia	2,087	14.6	2,423	1,112
Indonesia	1,259	4.2	1,817	559
Iran	1,094	11.8	1,937	446
Brazil	1,034	4.6	1,307	714
Japan	986	8.2	813	536
Saudi Arabia	984	25	983	395

Earth has warmed more than 1 degree Celsius on average over the past century, and many places have warmed by at least 2 degrees, a Washington Post analysis of multiple temperature data sets found. The United Nations warned in a recent report that the world is on a path to reach 2.7 degrees Celsius, or 4.9 degrees Fahrenheit, of warming over the course of the century.

The United States has pledged to further reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, but its emissions are currently projected to remain mostly unchanged over the coming decade, according to the Climate Action Tracker analysis. Altering that path would require significant shifts in the way Americans travel and power their homes and businesses, scientists say.

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Ciattarelli, New Jersey’s Republican candidate for governor. would ratchet back pace of climate response

Climate change is real, but Murphy moving too fast, Ciattarelli says

By Tom Johnson NJ Spotlight

Jack Ciattarelli is no climate denier. The Republican candidate for governor believes climate change and global warming are real, humans are accelerating the problem and carbon emissions must be reduced.

But he says Gov. Phil Murphy’s ambitious plan to transition to 100% clean energy by mid-century is “too much, too soon and too fast.’’ Ciattarelli, a former assemblyman, said the plan is not realistic and it does not tell the people in New Jersey what they will have to spend to achieve it.

Ciattarelli also has faulted Murphy’s Board of Public Utilities for failing to produce a comprehensive analysis of what his energy plan will cost each and every household in New Jersey, particularly to phase out the use of natural gas to heat homes.

Candidate’s vision for clean energy

“As governor, I will implement a balanced, rational energy policy that includes natural gas and renewable energy to create jobs, keep energy prices down and provide safe, reliable and cleaner power sources,’’ Ciattarelli vowed on his gubernatorial website.

Ciattarelli’s plan would aim to minimize carbon emissions through incentives until emerging energy sources are found safe, reliable and cost-effective. These sources include micro nuclear, geothermal, hydropower, carbon capture and hydrogen batteries.

“Within the next two or three years, we will see an entirely different energy marketplace,’’ Ciattarelli told NJ Spotlight News, referring to those emerging technologies. He does not view natural gas as a long-term solution, but says it is needed now as the state waits for those alternative energy sources to become commercially viable.

Ciattarelli wants to see a national energy policy develop — one that puts New Jersey on an equal footing with other states. “He (Murphy) is trying to solve global warming one state at a time,’’ he said.

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University of Florida bars faculty members from testifying in voting rights lawsuit against Governor DeSantis’ administration

By Andrew Jeong Washington Post

The University of Florida barred three faculty members from testifying for plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging a voting-restrictions law enthusiastically embraced by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), which activists say makes it harder for racial minorities to vote. The school’s move raises sharp concerns about academic freedom and free speech in the state.

The public university said the three faculty members — political scientists Daniel A. Smith, Michael McDonald and Sharon Wright Austin — could present “a conflict of interest to the executive branch” and harm the school’s interests by testifying against the law signed by DeSantis in May.

“As UF is a state actor, litigation against the state is adverse to UF’s interests,” school officials said, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post.

Lawyers trying to reverse the Florida law, also known as Senate Bill 90, have sought to question DeSantis on whether he was involved in the decision to prevent the academics from testifying, according to the New York Times, which first reported on the university’s move.

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European Union would ease Trump steel and aluminum tariffs under a deal announced with European Union

In this Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2021, photo Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo speaks at The Economic Club of Washington. As President Joe Biden’s de facto tech minister, Raimondo is tasked with ensuring the United States will be the world leader in computer chips. But there is a global shortage, creating a drag on growth and fueling inflation on the cusp of the 2022 elections. Raimondo is working to increase production of chips as well as solar panels and batteries to help the United States thrive. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

By Seung Min Kim and Jeff Stein Today at 2:49 p.m. EDT

ROME – The Biden administration has struck a deal with European Union officials to lift some tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, resolving at this year’s Group of 20 summit a bitter trade stand-off that began under president Donald Trump three years ago.

The deal announced Saturday allows “limited volumes” of steel and aluminum products from the EU to enter the United States tariff-free, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said.

Even as supply lines strain, Biden is in no rush to scrap Trump’s steel tariffs

In return, the European Union will drop their retaliatory tariffs on American goods. The EU had been poised on Dec. 1 to boost tariffs to 50 percent on various U.S. products, including Harley-Davidson motorcycles and bourbon from Kentucky.

“This agreement is significant in that it will reduce costs for American manufacturers and consumers,” Raimondo said.

Biden officials have faced a difficult task in deciding how or whether to unwind Trump’s duties on foreign imports, which were panned by many economists as raising prices for American consumers but in many cases were cheered by labor groups powerful among Democrats for shielding industry groups from foreign competition.

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Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn receives $1.5M in funding for offshore wind training program

Kingsborough Community College. Photo: Kingsborough Community College.

By Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Kingsborough Community College’s Maritime Technology program is on its way to becoming a certified offshore wind (OSW) basic safety training facility, with $1.5 million in capital funding awarded by the New York City Council.

And, because New York State allocates matching funds for capital appropriations provided by the city to CUNY community colleges, Kingsborough is expected to receive another $1.5 million in the state’s next fiscal budget, bringing the total to $3 million.

The Office of NYC Council Speaker Corey Johnson awarded Kingsborough’s Division of Workforce Development, Continuing Education & Strategic Partnerships the funding for purchase of necessary equipment to become a Global Wind Organization (GWO)-certified Basic Safety Training facility that can respond to the workforce demands and the long-term needs of the projected OSW industry.

Read the full story here

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GEMS landfill, once a notorious NJ Superfund site, to be transformed into a productive solar energy field without public funding

By Bill Duhart NJ.com

A former federal Superfund site will now be the source of clean solar energy and generate revenue for a town it had polluted, officials said.

A groundbreaking Wednesday at the GEMS landfill in Gloucester Township kicked off the transformation of the former dump into a 25-acre solar panel field. The panels will sit on top of hulking hills of dirt and other sources of pollution remediation.

When completed, the site will produce up to 4.5 megawatts of electricity and offset 4,313 metric tons of carbon dioxide, officials said.

None of it will be used to power homes and businesses in Gloucester Township, a sprawling municipality in Camden County, eight miles from Philadelphia. The juice will be sold into a grid run by Atlantic City Electric, which supplies power to towns largely to the south and east.

“It’s a great story, it really is,” said township Mayor David Mayer. “What this once was was unusable. We’re taking a polluted site and turning it into a positive project.”

No public funds are being used for the project. Syncarpha Capital, a New York City private equity firm, will pay for the installation and operation of the site. It operates 100 megawatts of ground and rooftop solar arrays in New Jersey, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Nevada, Vermont, and Arizona, a statement from the company said.

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