QUICK NEWS, August 7: The Injustice Of Climate Change Impacts; Welcome National Wind Week; Solar’s Fight Against Old Energy
The Injustice Of Climate Change Impacts In Sweltering South, Climate Change Is Now a Workplace Hazard; Workers laboring outdoors in southern states are wrestling with the personal and political consequences of a worsening environment.
Yamiche Alcindor, August 3, 2017 (NY Times)
“…[Galveston, TX, landscaper Adolfo Guerra’s co-worker vomited and convulsed after hours of mowing lawns in stifling heat. The man was quickly covered with ice and recovered. The landscapers spend] nine hours a day six days a week doing yard work…[The episode reveals] the dangers that exist for outdoor workers as the planet warms…[Instead of a polar bear, environmental justice advocates say, the climate change] icon should be a kid who is suffering from the negative impacts of climate change and increased air pollution, or a family where rising water is endangering their lives…[The seemingly small average warming of 2 degrees to 3 degrees Fahrenheit] leads to a much greater chance of extreme [weather and] heat waves, scientists say…[And the] unleashing of the fossil energy sector that Mr. Trump has championed could have [more immediate] repercussions…Communities surrounded by refineries and chemical plants, [face significantly increased levels of asthma and lung disease]…” click here for more
Welcome National Wind Week Announcing the first ever American Wind Week; Nationwide event launches dedicated to U.S. leadership in wind power
August 7, 2017 (American Wind Energy Association)
“…[American Wind Week, the first annual celebration of U.S. leadership in wind power, will run] through August 12…[It is intended to recognize that] wind power is now the largest source of U.S. renewable energy capacity and supports over 100,000 U.S. jobs across all 50 states…Wind power has grown to be a mainstream source of affordable, reliable electricity in the United States. A standard two-megawatt (MW) wind turbine in the U.S. generates enough electricity to power more than 550 average American homes, nearly twice the productivity of wind turbines in China and Germany. Today there are over 52,000 wind turbines in 41 states, producing enough electricity for 25 million average American homes…Close to 99 percent of U.S. wind power capacity can be found in rural communities…[and, nationwide,] U.S. wind projects built over the last decade represent over $143 billion of investment…Wind jobs grew 9 times faster than the overall economy last year, and “wind turbine technician” is the fastest growing job in America, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics…” click here for more
Solar’s Fight Against Old Energy Dirty energy's quiet war on solar panels
Basav Sen, August 5, 2017 (The Hill)
“…In statehouses all over the country, there's a growing movement by [fossil fuel] industry front groups to undermine net metering and other renewable energy incentives…These front groups include the Edison Electric Institute, the utility industry’s trade association, and outfits such as the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and Americans for Prosperity, both of which are funded by the Koch brothers…These groups scored recent victories against net metering in Indiana and Maine, and have turned the renewable energy mandate for utilities in wind-rich Kansas — known in the industry as a Renewable Portfolio Standard — into a toothless voluntary goal…Industry groups and the politicians they effectively buy claim that distributed solar energy imposes costs on customers who don’t install solar panels, because solar users don't pay their fair share of the costs of maintaining the grid…[I]ndependent energy experts — even those who don't support net metering in all circumstances — argue that the practice can be a “reasonable proxy for the value of solar.” The case against the utility and Koch-led attack on renewables is strong on logic, but evidently weak on campaign cash, which is why the onslaught of anti-net metering and anti-renewables bills continues…The truth is the best antidote…When people learn the benefits of renewables, they push back against these policies, defying partisan political stereotypes…” click here for more
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