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World’s consumption of materials hits record 100bn tonnes a year

by Damian Carrington, The Guardian, January 22, 2020 Highlights: The report highlights that every person’s ecological footprint equates to 13 tonnes of materials per year Half of the 100.6 billion tonnes of material consumed in 2017 were sand, clay, gravel, and cement Only 8.6% of the material consumed is recycled and this percentage is falling … Read more

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NASA has broken down all the disturbing ways 2019 smashed records

The sun sets on the Building 29 High Bay. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Michael Weiss

by Carly Cassella, Science Alert, January 21, 2020 Highlights: According to data from more than 20,000 weather stations and Antarctic research stations, 2019 was the second-hottest year ever recorded, beaten only by 2016 The earth has continually warmed since the 1960’s Since 1750, the global annual mean CO2 level has gone up by 46 percent Rapid … Read more

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World Economic Forum makes sustainable aviation fuel available for first time

Plane View Over Mountain Range

by Alyssa Danigelis, Environmental Leader, January 20, 2020 Highlights: The World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland is providing sustainable aviation fuel for its arriving business jets Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) has an 80% smaller carbon footprint compared to normal aviation fuel The use of the SAF is meant to demonstrate that the fuel is available, … Read more

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Survey: 58% of Americans are now alarmed or concerned about climate change

No Planet B Protest

by Matthew Goldberg, Abel Gustafson, Seth Rosenthal, John Kotcher, Edward Maibach, and Anthony Leiserowitz, Climate Change Communications, January 16, 2020 Highlights: A study was performed to collect data on Americans’ belief in global warming ‘Nearly six in ten (58%) Americans are now either “Alarmed” or “Concerned” about global warming From 2014 to 2019, the proportion … Read more

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New Jersey executive order leverages land use rules to control where and what developers can build

Gov. Philip D. Murphy, a Democrat from New Jersey, (New Jersey National Guard photo by Mark C. Olsen) found on https://www.flickr.com/photos/njnationalguard/44910726671

by Tracey Tully, The New York Times Highlights: A New Jersey democrat has introduced legislation that requires new building projects to account for climate resiliency and mitigating environmental impacts such as GHG emissions in order to receive government approval The state is currently experiencing sinking, accelerated sea-level rise, and flooding along its 130-mile coastline The … Read more

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Climate Tipping Points Are Closer Than We Think, Scientists Warn

From melting ice caps to dying forests and thawing permafrost, the risk of ‘abrupt and irreversible changes’ is much higher than thought just a few years ago “We must admit that we have underestimated the risks of unleashing irreversible changes, where the planet self-amplifies global warming,” said Johan Rockström, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate … Read more

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Part of California’s power outage solution is sitting in half a million driveways

Last week, when PG&E shut off power to almost one million customers, many of us were left without heat, refrigeration, internet, light, and other essential functions for days. While some people fired up gas and diesel generators to bridge the power gap, these fossil fuel generators are no treat for neighbors with asthma and other … Read more

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Opinion: Microgrids could prevent need for planned power outages

Community microgrids are safe, reliable, clean, smart, and distributed.

Our aging and unstable electrical system must be replaced now, not decades from now This piece was originally published in the Mercury News opinion section on October 25, 2019. (Subscription required.) The dramatic increase in the size and severity of California’s wildfires in recent years is just one example of the devastating effects of climate … Read more