Something for nothing... really? @gernotwagner sends along this image from the latest document by the IPCC (the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), implying that there are some measure that we can take literally for free or better than free (i.e. they will yield profit as well as climate dividends). Top of the list? Solar energy and wind energy....
As I get ready to teach the energy unit, I'm catching up on the latest news about offshore wind energy production in Maryland.
In December 2021, the Maryland Public Service Commission rewarded renewable energy credits to two companies for their plans to build offshore wind energy plants 15 miles out of Ocean City. Plants are expected to be operational by 2026, in time to meet the requirements of the Clean Energy Jobs Act of 2019, which requires that half of the energy used in Maryland come from sources like solar or wind.
February 2022: the groundwork is being laid in Sparrows Point for a large steel plant that will produce the turbines and "monopiles" which are the structures to which the turbines are attached.
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Update, August 2022: Virginia is getting in on the action. Two test turbines have been up and running since Fall 2020, and the full project will consist of 176 turbines, enough to power 660,000 homes, by 2026.
In other words, things keep moving...
Great thread by @GernotWagner detailing why the currently fashionable holiday for gas taxes (such as the one that recently went into effect in our home state, Maryland) is probably not the best idea. The basic idea (in his Bloomberg column): higher prices motivate people to use their cars less, and that's a good thing. Rather than making gas cheaper, we should just give people money to let them make up the difference in their own way. As he puts it, "Don't decrease energy prices. You'll encourage consumers to use more of it, and you'll send more $€¥£ to Putin."
In part due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, two countries normally responsible for 30% of global wheat production, global food prices are on the rise. (h/t @StellaNordhagen)
...or is that really true? Fascinating Twitter thread by Sarah Taber, who says that most of the shortfall is already being made up, as the instability was already factored into plantings. She says that the real issue is more of a localized shipping problem: the overall supply should be fine, though regional concerns continue to be serious in, for example, the Middle East and Northern Africa.
In this Twitter thread, Tamar Haspel reminds us that all types of food come with tradeoffs. And yes, that even includes broccoli! She says that the best choices are staple crops like wheat.
In other agricultural news, it seems like the USDA is looking into anti-competitive practices in the prices of fertilizer and seeds. We will be learning about market power shortly after the break.
So say the countries of OPEC. I'm curious what the elasticity of demand for EVs with respect to the price of gas is: do you think it's tiny or minuscule? Still, someone is worrying about it....
On the other side of the question is a twitter thread on how Zoom has done more to cut emissions than electric vehicles. I hadn't thought about that!
While many are worried about the intermittency of solar and wind power, this article (based on this research) contends that it's actually better at coping with shutdowns. The researchers note that mid range batteries, built to provide energy for lots of folks for just a few hours, are pretty good at coping with short term outages. And long-term outages are best avoided by having lots of sources around, and importing energy where possible. I do notice that there is some geothermal or hydroelectric in the background, though.
Of course the potential for renewables to improve human health and clean up the environment are huge. Seven million people die a year because of air pollution, and many asthma cases are tied to that as well.
One curiosity: "Transitioning to all clean, renewable energy could also decrease energy demand in California by 60 percent." Apparently a lot of energy actually goes into producing more energy, and once we get through the transition to renewables (which will not be easy) overall demand should drop. Interesting...