A new report describes catastrophic climate deterioration in Iraq. This nation of 39 million is always among the hottest places on Earth in the summer months, with an outlook for still higher levels to come. That, combined with a steady decline in rainfall and river flow, is turning large swathes of land into dessert. “As water levels have plummeted, salinity has increased dramatically, particularly in the south of the country, due to evaporation and saltwater intrusion from the Gulf. Often, because of salinity and pollution, there is little or no drinkable tap water in Basra, a city of more than 2 million.”
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A clear set of facts shows that climate change is the cause behind growing severity of US wildfires (Carbon Brief). This post compiles all kinds of interesting information, well-charted, with discouraging future implications. “The recent period of large wildfires in forested areas of the western US has coincided with near-record warm temperatures.”
–Several leading scientists describe the fundamental processes that are at work behind these fires, such as the behavior of the jet stream. “Research by Michael Mann…..suggests that the change in the jet stream is partly the result of warming in the Arctic.”
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Lazard has issued new reports on the levelized cost of energy and energy storage. This investment banker, backed by twelve years of specialized research, now believes that price declines for new wind and solar in many cases make them cost competitive with existing fossil fuel generators that are fully depreciated. “Such an outcome would have been unthinkable for many people a decade ago…..but Lazard estimates that since 2009 solar has fallen in cost by 88 per cent and wind has fallen by 69 per cent.” Those declines have not yet ended.
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The US petrochemical industry has major expansion plans, which are not getting enough attention. “The chemical and petrochemical sector is by far the largest industrial energy user, accounting for roughly 10 percent of total worldwide final energy demand…..Carbon emissions from petrochemical and plastics manufacturing are expected to grow 20 percent by 2030…..using raw materials and energy from fracked gas wells in states like Texas, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.” The industry does not seem to recognize, or care, that the planet has a plastics problem that is comparable in many ways to its greenhouse gas problem. Foreign investment money is in play, attracted by the fact that the US is one of the only countries giving up its commitment to abide by the Paris agreement.
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A fascinating new technology for long-term storage of solar-collected heat. This development is going on at a university in Sweden, and appears to have credibility. The researchers believe the technology could be in commercial use within ten years.
Carl