Three of the most popular plug-in hybrids in 2020 all emitted more CO2 than advertised when tested in the real world, according to tests commissioned by European environmental NGO Transport & Environment (T&E). T&E said governments should therefore end the purchase subsidies and tax breaks for plug-in hybrids. T&E has... Read more →

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) has approved draft new mandatory regulations to cut the carbon intensity of existing ships. This builds on current mandatory energy efficiency requirements to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions from shipping. The MEPC also agreed the terms of reference for assessing... Read more →

Global renewable energy investment increased between 2013 and 2018, reaching its peak at US$351 billion in 2017, according to a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and Climate Policy Initiative (CPI). The 2020 edition of Global Landscape of Renewable Energy Finance highlights however, that while a cumulative... Read more →

Audi of America is among the first in the automotive industry to implement an internal carbon price program as a key initiative in the brand’s pursuit of lower CO2 emissions. This is part of the global commitment Audi has made to lower its carbon footprint by 30% by 2025, and... Read more →

California’s latest greenhouse gas data shows that while the state continues to stay below its 2020 target for emissions, there is much more work to do to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045. The California Air Resources Board released GHG emissions data for 2018 showing that emissions remain below 1990 levels... Read more →

AFWERX, the US Air Force’s innovation catalyst (earlier post), is seeking solutions from public and private industries; commercial sectors; government; and academia for the Department of Defense (DoD) Reimagining Energy Challenge to modernize and create the future of resilient energy production, transmission, utilization and storage for the US Air Force.... Read more →

A new study by a team from San Jose State University and Stanford University has found that—even under heightened damage estimates—the additional mitigation costs of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C (relative to 2.0 °C) are higher than the additional avoided damages this century under most parameter combinations considered. An... Read more →

The California Independent System Operator (CAISO), California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), and California Energy Commission (CEC) issued a Preliminary Root Cause Analysis of the August 2020 heat wave and rotating outages in California, finding that resource planning targets have not evolved to keep pace with extreme weather events, and that... Read more →

With demand for lithium set to increase over the next decade, Roskill has calculated, using its in-house analysis, that CO2 emissions from lithium production are set to triple by 2025 versus current levels and to grow by a factor of six by 2030, with the vast majority of this coming... Read more →

Crop switching and relocation of crop production to different states could prevent up to half of predicted losses in agricultural profits from climate change impacts according to new research conducted by the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics and Political Science... Read more →

Ricardo plc has made a public commitment to its shareholders, customers and workforce to achieve net zero carbon emissions from its operations by the end of calendar year 2030. Ricardo has been working actively towards this goal of achieving Net Zero carbon emissions for some time and has been helping... Read more →

Aviation accounts for 3.5% of the human-made climate impact; two-thirds of this impact are caused by emissions other than CO2, according to a new study by researchers in Europe and the US. The study was published in the journal Atmospheric Environment This new study is based on a thorough review... Read more →

The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (APRA-E) will award $16.5 million in funding for six projects as part of the Systems for Monitoring and Analytics for Renewable Transportation Fuels from Agricultural Resources and Management (SMARTFARM) program. These projects will develop technologies that bridge the data gap in the biofuel supply chain... Read more →

A new study led by Colorado State University predicts significant climate benefits stemming from the use of advanced biofuel technologies. Accounting for all of the carbon flows in biofuel systems and comparing them to those in grasslands and forests, the team found that there are clear strategies for biofuels to... Read more →

A new study led by researchers from Northwestern University projects that if electric vehicles replaced 25% of combustion engine cars currently on the road, the United States would save approximately $17 billion annually by avoiding damages from climate change and air pollution. The open-access paper is published in AGU’s journal... Read more →

Canada Nickel Company Inc. has created a wholly-owned subsidiary, NetZero Metals, to begin the research and development of a processing facility that would be located in the Timmins, Ontario region with the goal of utilizing existing technologies to produce zero-carbon nickel, cobalt and iron products. The Company has applied for... Read more →

NYK Line, Japan Marine United Corporation (JMU), and Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) signed a joint R&D agreement for the commercialization of an ammonia-fueled ammonia gas carrier (AFAGC) that would use ammonia as the main fuel, in addition to an ammonia floating storage and regasification barge (A-FSRB). Ammonia-fueled Ammonia Gas Carrier... Read more →

Researchers at the University of Surrey (UK) are to begin work on a new lithium-ion battery technology that is capable of capturing CO2 emissions, following a £243,689 award from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). The project, which will be led by Dr Yunlong Zhao, will undertake research... Read more →

New research by the IHS Markit Canadian Oil Sands Dialogue shows that the combined greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity of Canadian oil sands projects has declined 20% from 2009 levels. The new analysis, using most recent data available, shows trends remaining in line with previous IHS Markit projections that oil sands... Read more →

Researchers from the GEOMAR Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel have found that considerable quantities of the greenhouse gas methane escape uncontrolled into the water from abandoned oil and gas wells in the North Sea. The work, published in the International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, confirms earlier studies based... Read more →

The Office of Inspector General of the US Environmental Protection Agency plans to begin an evaluation of the EPA’s actions on the final Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule Part 2. (Earlier post.) The SAFE rule reduces the increase in stringency of CAFE and CO2 emissions to about 1.5% each... Read more →

Inspired by naturally occurring processes, a team of Boston College chemists used a multi-catalyst system to convert carbon dioxide to methanol at the lowest temperatures reported with high activity and selectivity. A paper on the work is published in the journal Chem. Methanol is a promising renewable fuel that can... Read more →

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards for airplanes used in commercial aviation and large business jets. This proposed action would align US standards with the international CO2 emissions standards adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in 2017, making domestically manufactured aircraft competitive... Read more →

SCS Global Services (SCS), Electrify America and Verra announced the first validation of a carbon-offset project under a new methodology for electric vehicle (EV) charging systems. Electrify America’s achievement (for its direct current (DC) fast chargers) came last month after successful validation and registration of the project’s design under the... Read more →

The SMUD (2020 Sacramento Municipal Utility District) Board of Directors adopted a climate emergency declaration that commits to working toward an ambitious goal of delivering carbon-neutral electricity by 2030. In 2018, SMUD successfully reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 50% from 1990 levels, the equivalent of removing 377,000 vehicles from the... Read more →

Although large emissions cuts are urgently needed to achieve global climate goals, it may take decades before we can measure the effect of the reductions on global temperature evolution, according to a new study by researchers at Norway’s CICERO Center for International Climate Research. In the open-access study, published in... Read more →

Researchers at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have developed a novel machine learning approach quickly to enhance the resolution of wind velocity data by 50 times and solar irradiance data by 25 times—an enhancement that had yet to be achieved with climate data. The... Read more →

The Environment Committee of the European Parliament voted to include CO2 emissions from the maritime sector in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS). The European Commission had put forward a proposal to revise the EU system for monitoring, reporting and verifying CO2 emissions from maritime transport (the “EU MRV Regulation”)... Read more →

Neste, the world’s largest producer of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) produced from waste and residue raw materials, has delivered its first batch of sustainable aviation fuel to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) via pipeline, where it will be used by major airlines committed to reducing carbon emissions.... Read more →

In an open-access study in the EGU journal Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, an international team of researchers reports that the greenhouse gas sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is rapidly accumulating in the atmosphere, driven by the demand for SF6-insulated switchgear in developing countries. Simmonds et al. Of all the greenhouse gases regulated... Read more →

Ford Motor Company intends to achieve carbon neutrality globally by 2050, while setting interim targets to address climate change challenges more urgently. Carbon neutrality refers to achieving zero carbon emissions by balancing such emissions with carbon removal. To achieve its goal, Ford will focus initially on three areas that account... Read more →

A preliminary analysis of global data has found that carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel sources reached a maximum daily decline of 17% in April as a result of drastic decline in energy demand that have occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Percentage change in global daily fossil CO2 emissions, Jan-May... Read more →

US energy-related CO2 emissions declined by 2.8% in 2019 to 5,130 million metric tons (MMmt), according to data in the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Monthly Energy Review. CO2 emissions had increased by 2.9% in 2018, the only annual increase in the past five years. Because of continuing trends in... Read more →

Audi of America (AoA) and the Audi Environmental Foundation are awarding a $100,000 grant to the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), the lead institution in the Climate Modeling Alliance (CliMA). The grant will fund researchers in their pursuit of a novel new climate model, a critical tool for understanding future... Read more →

The 2020 edition of US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) comprehensive annual report on nationwide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions shows that emissions increased from 2017 to 2018 by 3.1% (after accounting for sequestration from the land sector). In 2018, US greenhouse gas emissions totaled 6,677 million metric tons of carbon dioxide... Read more →

A container ship leaves a trail of white clouds in its wake that can linger in the air for hours. This puffy line is not just exhaust from the engine, but a change in the clouds that’s caused by small airborne particles of pollution. New research led by the University... Read more →

In the US, Model Year (MY) 2018 vehicle fuel economy was 25.1 miles per gallon, 0.8% higher than the 24.9 miles per gallon MY 2017, according to the annual Automotive Trends Report released by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In model year 2018, the average estimated real-world CO2 emission... Read more →

Black carbon particles absorb heat in the atmosphere. For years, scientists have known that these particles are affecting Earth’s warming climate, but measuring their exact effect has proved elusive. Researchers at Michigan Technological University and Brookhaven National Laboratory, along with partners at other universities, industry, and national labs, have now... Read more →

North Dakota-based Red Trail Energy (RTE), which since 2007 has operated an ethanol production facility with annual production of about 60 million gallons per year, is proposing sequestration of CO2 produced from starch fermentation to lower the overall carbon intensity of the fuel for the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard... Read more →

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists have identified a suite of technologies to help California to become carbon-neutral—and ultimately carbon-negative —by 2045. To achieve the goal of carbon-neutrality, California will likely have to remove on the order of 125 million tons per year of CO2 from the atmosphere. In the... Read more →

The gasoline direct injection (GDI) engine is one of the most prominent technologies car manufacturers adopted to achieve the fuel economy and carbon dioxide emission goals established in 2012 by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The market share of GDI-equipped vehicles increased from 2.3% in model year 2008 to 51%... Read more →

Despite reports that global emissions of the potent greenhouse gas, HFC-23, were almost eliminated in 2017, an international team of scientists, led by the University of Bristol, has found atmospheric levels growing at record values. Over the last two decades, scientists have been keeping a close eye on the atmospheric... Read more →

The Rhodium Group, an independent research provider, estimates that, after a sharp uptick in 2018, US greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fell by 2.1% in 2019 based on preliminary energy and economic data. This decline was due almost entirely to a drop in coal consumption. Coal-fired power generation fell by a... Read more →

A new analysis led by a team from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, estimates that on a global scale, obesity contributes to extra GHG emissions of ~49 megatons per year of CO2 equivalent (CO2eq) from oxidative metabolism due to greater metabolic demands; ~361 megatons per year of CO2eq from food... Read more →

Driven by rising natural gas and oil consumption, levels of CO2 are expected to hit 37 billion metric tons this year, according to new estimates from the Global Carbon Project (GCP), an initiative led by Stanford University scientist Rob Jackson. The findings are outlined in three new papers published in... Read more →

Cummins Inc. announced its next environmental sustainability strategy—PLANET 2050—which includes science-based goals that meet or exceed the goals in the United Nations Paris agreement on climate change. By 2050, Cummins is targeting net-zero carbon emissions. PLANET 2050 focuses on three priority areas: addressing climate change and air emissions; using natural... Read more →

Although hydropower is broadly considered to be much more environmentally friendly than electricity generated from fossil fuels (e.g., earlier post), a new study by a team at Environmental Defense Fund finds that the climate impact of hydropower facilities varies widely throughout the world and over time, with some facilities emitting... Read more →

The application period has opened for the 2020 Keeling Curve Prize, which awards $25,000 to each of 10 projects designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or increase their uptake. Each year, this prestigious competition attracts entries from around the world. The prize is named after scientist Charles David Keeling’s iconic... Read more →

Researchers at MIT have determined that growth in aviation causes twice as much damage to air quality as to the climate. In an open-access paper in the journal Environmental Research Letters, they examine how this damage can be mitigated, and provide consistent comparative assessments of aviation emissions trade-offs, considering both... Read more →

ExxonMobil and FuelCell Energy, Inc. signed a new, two-year expanded joint-development agreement to further enhance carbonate fuel cell technology for the purpose of capturing carbon dioxide from industrial facilities. The agreement, worth up to $60 million, will focus efforts on optimizing the core technology, overall process integration and large-scale deployment... Read more →