clean energy

July 8, 2024

Electric vehicle batteries adding to toxic PFAS pollution, study finds

By Shannon Kelleher

A type of toxic PFAS in lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles and other electronics is polluting air, soil and water in the United States and Europe, adding to concerns that the growing clean energy sector could harm the environment even as it strives to combat climate change, according to a new study.

Researchers said they analyzed samples of soil, sediment and surface water collected in 2022 near manufacturing plants in Minnesota, Kentucky, Belgium, and France, finding they were commonly contaminated with a subtype of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) called bis-perfluoroalkyl sulfonimides (bis-FASIs) at concentrations in the parts per billion.

The study, published Monday in the journal Nature Communications, also found that bis-FASI emitted into the air at these sites may travel long distances, potentially polluting areas far from the facilities where they are made and used.

“If we are not careful about the choices of materials and chemicals used in renewable energy technologies, then it is a concern that this may become a new source of PFAS pollution,” said Ariana Spentzos, a science and policy associate at the Green Science Policy Institute. Spentzos was not involved in the study.

“However, it is a false choice to choose between renewable energy and less PFAS pollution,” she added, noting that there are viable alternatives for many uses of PFAS in renewable energy.

April 30, 2024

Controversial California power plant set to stay online after court decision

By Shannon Kelleher

A federal court on Monday cleared the way for California’s last nuclear power plant to keep operating for five years after its licenses expire, rejecting arguments from environmental advocates that the facility poses ongoing risks that could prove catastrophic, including the potential for a “nuclear meltdown”.

The move by the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals upholds a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) decision to exempt Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E)’s Diablo Canyon Power Plant from a rule that would require its two reactors to shut down in 2024 and 2025. The court rejected the environmental groups’ claims that the NRC did not properly account for safety and environmental concerns.

“We filed our lawsuit because NRC was playing fast and loose with decisions that could quite literally lead to a nuclear meltdown,” Hallie Templeton, legal director for the nonprofit Friends of the Earth, said in a statement. “We will keep fighting to ensure that all involved officials properly and thoroughly apply pertinent laws to Diablo’s attempted extension.”

The NRC’s decision to grant an exemption for Diablo Canyon, which has been operational since 1985, was not “arbitrary, capricious, or contrary to law,” US Circuit Judge Consuelo Callahan wrote in his opinion. “NRC adequately explained why California’s changing energy needs constituted a special circumstance, and why the record supported its findings of no undue risk to the public health and safety.”

The court decision comes on the heels of a lawsuit Friends of the Earth filed earlier this month against the US Department of Energy (DOE) over a more than $1 billion award the agency is granting PG&E to help keep Diablo Canyon up and running. The group alleges that the DOE’s assessment of Diablo Canyon’s environmental impact relies on an outdated analysis that fails to incorporate a range of safety risks posed by the plant, including an outdated cooling mechanism, dangerous wear and tear, potentially catastrophic risks from earthquakes, and increased flooding risks due to climate change.

Critics of the plant also say it will be costly for Californians. A 2023 analysis by the Environmental Working Group suggested Diablo Canyon could cost the public nearly $45 billion if it stays open through 2045.

April 22, 2024

EPA announces $7 billion to make solar more accessible

By Shannon Kelleher

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said on Monday that it will provide $7 billion to create or expand low-income residential solar programs across the country, a move the agency said will lower energy costs for roughly 900,000 households in communities that might otherwise struggle to access the alternative energy source.

The grants will be awarded to 60 recipients made up of the state agencies, Tribes and nonprofits selected through a grant competition funded by the Inflation Reduction Act. The program includes services to help communities overcome barriers to switching to solar, including assistance with siting and permitting solar projects and connecting to the grid. according to an EPA press release.

In at least 25 states and territories, the agency says the grants will launch new programs “where there has never been a substantial low-income solar program before.”

“The United States can and must lead the world in transforming our energy systems away from fossil fuels,” said US Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) said in a statement.

The “Solar for All”, which Sanders introduced, “will not only combat the existential threat of climate change by making solar energy available to working class families, it will also substantially lower the electric bills of Americans and create thousands of good-paying jobs,” Sanders said.

January 26, 2024

Biden hits the brakes on controversial gas export projects

By Shannon Kelleher

The Biden administration will temporarily pause pending applications for facilities that export natural gas, citing climate change considerations, the White House announced Friday.

The announcement, which comes after heavy pushback from environmental groups and affected communities along the Gulf, will put the brakes on eight new export terminals while the Department of Energy (DOE) reviews its approval process, including how to account for the impact of greenhouse gas emissions. The pause will not affect liquified natural gas (LNG) export terminals that are already operating.

“Today, we have an evolving understanding of the market need for LNG, the long-term supply of LNG, and the perilous impacts of methane on our planet,” said the White House in a statement. “We also must adequately guard against risks to the health of our communities, especially frontline communities in the United States who disproportionately shoulder the burden of pollution from new export facilities.”

“The pause, which is subject to exception for unanticipated and immediate national security emergencies, will provide the time to integrate these critical considerations,” the White House statement said.

LNG is made of methane, a potent contributor to climate change. While industry groups have called LNG “the cleanest of the fossil fuels,” new research from Cornell currently undergoing peer review suggests its total greenhouse gas emissions are higher than those from coal.

September 20, 2023

EPA announces $4.6 billion in grants to combat climate pollution

By Shannon Kelleher

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $4.6 billion in competitive grants on Wednesday to fund state, city, and Tribal programs designed to reduce climate pollution, advance environmental justice, and transition to clean energy.

The announcement came as business leaders, nonprofits, and government officials convene in New York for the annual Climate Week NYC, which takes place alongside the UN General Assembly.

The grants mark the second wave of funding through the agency’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) program, which was developed under the Inflation Reduction Act. The CPRG program is intended to advance the Biden administration’s Justice40 Initiative by helping to ensure that overburdened communities receive federal climate change funding. The newly available grants will fund projects planned using the initial $250 million in CPRG funding announced in March.

“Together, these grants will stimulate economic growth, spur the creation of new industries and jobs, and enable communities, especially low-income and disadvantaged communities, to chart a path towards unprecedented emissions reductions,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said on a press call. “We recognize that it won’t get us all the way, but it’s a significant shot in the arm.”

August 31, 2023

As hydrogen projects accelerate, fears mount about environmental impacts

On a recent hot August evening, residents of the tiny rural community of Universal, Indiana packed into a public meeting to barrage operators of a proposed fertilizer plant with an array of concerns about what risks the project may pose for their health and the surrounding environment.

One after the other, worried residents quizzed officials with Wabash Valley Resources about their plans to construct what would not just be a fertilizer plant, but also one of the nation’s largest carbon sequestration projects, near their town of less than 400 people.

Wasbash proposes to produce hydrogen and anhydrous ammonia for fertilizer through a process that will capture and store the resulting carbon dioxide created by the plant underground. When the plant is fully operational, Wabash Valley Resources expects to inject and store 1.65 million tons of carbon dioxide into the ground.

Company officials say the operation will be safe, producing affordable and much-needed fertilizer for farmers in an environmentally friendly manner. “While empowering agriculture Wabash Valley Resources will play a vital role in the transition to a greener world, ensuring energy security and supporting a robust economy,” the company states on its website.

August 18, 2023

Critical hearing looms in battle over California’s last nuclear power plant

By Shannon Kelleher

Opponents of a nuclear power plant in California face a key court hearing next week, a potential turning point in a long-running battle over the fate of the state’s last nuclear power plant.

The environmental group Friends of the Earth (FOE) is set to square off against Pacific Gas & Electric Power Co. (PG&E) in an effort to keep alive the group’s legal challenge to PG&E’s continued operation of the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, which is located on the coast roughly halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

FOE filed suit in April in San Francisco County Superior Court alleging that PG&E is violating an agreement it signed with the group in 2016 pledging to fully retire the plant by 2025. Now, with the support of state and federal officials, the utility is seeking approval from regulators to keep the plant running until 2045.

PG&E is asking the court to stay or dismiss the FOE lawsuit. Both sides will air their arguments on the issue Monday morning in San Francisco County Superior Court.

PG&E says the plant can “ensure the long-term availability of a valuable source of safe, clean, affordable and reliable electricity for more than three million Northern and Central Californians.”

In contrast, FOE, along with several scientists and environmental advocates, says the Diablo Canyon plant is a danger to public safety and the environment. Plant critics fear the plant’s continued operations put the state at risk of a nuclear accident, prevent the state from fully embracing a transition to clean energy, and saddle the public with an unnecessary financial burden.

July 14, 2023

Deep-sea mining has larger-than-expected impacts on sea life, study says

The fast-growing practice of deep-sea mining poses significant threats to important sea creatures, such as fish, shrimp, corals, and sponges, according to a new study.

Researchers say they found evidence that disturbances caused by deep-sea mining can slash populations of nearby ocean animals roughly in half and impact marine life across larger areas than scientists have previously thought.

The study, published Friday in Current Biology, adds to evidence that mining the deep ocean for minerals used to make electric vehicles and renewable energy components has harmful ecological impacts that must be weighed against the climate benefits of transitioning away from fossil fuels.

Although deep sea mining may be one way to meet the world’s growing demand for certain metals, “it also has the potential to greatly disrupt many deep-sea habitats,” the new paper states.

“Is it worth it to get these [metals] and mess up the sea versus mess up somewhere else? I don’t know, but we have to use everything we have to make the right call,” said Travis Washburn, an ocean floor ecologist and author on the new study.

March 7, 2023

Almost nobody on Earth is safe from air pollution, study says

Nearly the entire global population is regularly exposed to unsafe levels of air pollution, according to a study published this week.

Researchers at Monash University in Australia analyzed air pollution data from across the globe between 2000 and 2019 to estimate global daily exposure to PM 2.5, a type of air pollution made up of inhalable particles 2.5 micrometers or smaller. The particles can enter the bloodstream through the lungs and contribute to an array of health problems, including premature death, asthma, and heart disease.

The team found that between 2000-2019, only 0.18% of the world’s land area and only 0.001% of the world’s population — about 78,000 people — had annual PM 2.5 exposure lower than the 2021 air pollution guidelines set by the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO’s guidelines recommend that a person’s annual exposure to PM2.5 should not exceed 5 micrograms per cubic meter.

“Almost no one is safe from air pollution,” said Yuming Guo, an author on the study and a professor of environmental health at Monash University. “All people might face serious air pollution.”

The new findings come as the United States and countries around the world are wrestling with how to regulate harmful air pollution, which was estimated to cause almost 7 million premature deaths in 2019, according to one study. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently proposed lowering its standards for annual exposure to PM2.5 from the current standard of 12 micrograms per cubic meter to between 9 and 10 micrograms per cubic meter, a measurement it said reflects “the latest health data and scientific evidence.”

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March 1, 2023

EPA announces $250 million for states, local communities to fight climate pollution

By Shannon Kelleher

The Biden administration announced Wednesday that is offering $250 million in grants for states, cities, tribes, and territories to further US goals of cutting greenhouse gas emissions, promoting clean energy, and supporting environmental justice.

The grants, which will be administered through the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), mark the first wave of funding for states and local communities from the $5 billion Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) program, a part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Later this year, EPA plans to announce $4.6 billion in competitive grants to implement projects that recipients begin planning now.

“The climate and clean energy investments in [the Inflation Reduction Act] will drive, and in fact are already driving, new economic growth and creating good, high-paying jobs by reinvigorating American manufacturing, strengthening our clean energy supply chains, and building a clean energy future that will benefit all of us,” Kristina Costa, a deputy assistant to the president, said at at a press briefing.

States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico will be eligible to receive as much as $3 million in climate planning grants. The 67 most heavily populated US metropolitan areas will each be eligible for $1 million in grants, while the territories of Guam, American Samoa, US Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands are each eligible for up $500,000 and tribes are eligible for a total of $25 million.

“We know that eligible states, local governments, territories, and tribes are at different starting points in planning to address the challenges and opportunities posed by climate change,” Janet McCabe, EPA deputy administrator, said at the briefing. “This funding can be used to start work on a brand-new plan or to enhance work on an existing plan.”