Search Climate Insights Directory

The U.S. experienced significant growth in wind electricity generation between 2000 and 2020, with wind turbines accounting for 8.4% of total utility-scale electricity generation. Research from Net Zero America's 'High Electrification (E+)' scenario suggests that by 2050, Texas could lead the country with over 180 gigawatts of installed capacity, while Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, and Nebraska could each exceed 100 gigawatts. Offshore wind potential is particularly high along the East Coast, with Environment America estimating a potential for over 7,200 terawatt-hours of electricity per year. The document also highlights job growth potential, noting that Texas could support over 130,000 wind energy jobs by 2050, and rural states like Wyoming, Nebraska, Montana, and Iowa could see more than 200 jobs per 10,000 residents.

The document outlines the current state and future potential of onshore and offshore wind energy in the U.S. It details the economic benefits, including job growth and rural revenue, while addressing environmental impacts on wildlife. It specifically highlights the 'high electrification' scenario from Net-Zero America, projecting significant capacity increases and employment growth by 2050, particularly in states like Texas and the Midwest.

The document argues that climate change impacts are not equal and are influenced by intersectional factors such as race, gender, power, and poverty. It provides examples of coalitions uniting debt activists, homeless advocates, racial justice groups, indigenous leaders, women's rights organisations, and labour unions to address systemic inequalities alongside the energy transition. These collaborations range from demanding unconditional debt cancellation for the Global South and vaccine equality to promoting 'carbon banks' for Black farmers in the US and integrating trans rights into environmental movements. The briefing highlights that integrating a social justice lens—recognising interacting systems of oppression—is essential for a diverse and effective climate movement.

The document analyzes the 'Big Freeze' in Texas, attributing the disaster to a combination of inadequate building codes, failures in the natural gas supply chain, and an 'energy-only' electricity market design that failed to incentivize winterization. It argues that scarcity pricing is insufficient for managing 'high-impact common-mode events' and recommends a holistic approach to risk management, including emergency price caps, improved building codes, and demand-side investments.

The testimony argues that US fossil fuel subsidies primarily increase excess profits rather than creating jobs, undermine global climate goals, and contribute to public health crises and environmental inequalities.

The report estimates that retiring four nuclear plants in Illinois would lead to 1,200 to 2,700 premature deaths and $10 to $24 billion in monetized damages over ten years. Retiring two plants (Byron and Dresden) would result in 500 to 1,100 premature deaths and $4.4 to $10 billion in damages over the same period. These impacts are driven by increased PM2.5 emissions from fossil fuel plants used to offset the loss of zero-emission generation.

The Clean Air Task Force asserts that draft rules from the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) contain exemptions that would allow a large portion of oil and gas sites to avoid emissions reduction requirements. By analyzing NMED's own helicopter flyover surveys from 2019 and 2020, the authors found that at least 57% of sites with large, visible emissions would be exempt under the draft rules, specifically those with calculated potential volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions of less than 15 tons per year.

The document outlines the role of zero-carbon fuels (ZCF), primarily hydrogen and ammonia, in achieving net-zero greenhouse gas targets. It identifies transportation and industry as key demand drivers and evaluates production pathways, including electrolysis and fossil-based reforming with carbon capture and storage (CCS). The guide highlights that while electrolysis is commercially available, 'blue' hydrogen (fossil CCS) currently provides significant scale, with some projects in the US and Canada already operational.

The report examines KKR's energy investment strategy from 2010 to 2020, highlighting a strong preference for fossil fuels over renewables. It details significant financial losses, including negative internal rates of return (IRR) for several funds and bankruptcies of assets like Longview Power and Samson Resources. Additionally, the document links KKR's investments to environmental and social harms, specifically citing Indigenous opposition to the Coastal GasLink Pipeline in Canada and the disproportionate impact of oil and gas operations on Latino and minority communities in Texas and New Mexico.

The document argues that U.S. nuclear policy is currently operating in an "information vacuum," with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) often prioritizing licensee cost-savings over public safety and environmental data. It highlights systemic risks in "fast-track" decommissioning, the vulnerability of thin-walled spent fuel canisters to corrosion and failure, and the lack of scientific evidence supporting 80-year license extensions for aging plants. The authors further caution against the deployment of small modular reactors (SMRs) and the establishment of consolidated interim storage facilities (CISFs) without comprehensive risk and cost analyses. The briefing concludes with ten recommendations to policymakers, including mandating ASME N3 standards for waste containers, requiring "hot cells" for repackaging damaged fuel, and reforming NRC oversight to reduce regulatory capture.

The document argues that the massive scale of Covid-19 recovery spending will determine whether the global economy locks in fossil fuel infrastructure or transitions to a zero-carbon economy. It encourages reporters to frame 'green stimulus' through the lens of the Green New Deal, climate justice, and historical comparisons to the 2008 financial crisis and the 1930s Great Depression. The guide highlights that green investments in wind, solar, and energy efficiency create more jobs per million dollars spent than conventional oil and gas, and urges local coverage of mass transit, building renovations, and the influence of utilities and regulatory bodies like the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The document outlines several federal programs that leverage veterans' skills for roles in land management, agriculture, and conservation. Key initiatives include the Veterans Fire Corps for wildland firefighting, the BattleGround to Breaking Ground program for farming and ranching in Texas, and the VetsWork and NOAA Veterans Corps Fisheries programs for natural resource management and habitat restoration across multiple U.S. states.

The document argues that the US power sector faces a critical investment window between 2020 and 2030, with an estimated 420 GW of resource procurement needed. It advocates for a shift toward 'all-source', 'objective-aligned', and 'least-regrets' procurement practices to move away from legacy processes that reflect past conditions rather than emerging trends. The guide provides specific actionable recommendations for legislators, state commissions, and utilities to increase transparency, engage stakeholders, and better integrate distributed energy resources (DERs) into the planning and procurement cycle.

The study assesses the environmental performance of incorporating bakery byproduct meal, chemically-processed grocery food waste feed, and Black Soldier Fly larvae (BSFL) meal into laying hen diets in the US. Results indicate that while all alternative diets can reduce land use and marine eutrophication by replacing agricultural ingredients like soybean meal, they often introduce trade-offs, particularly increasing global warming potential and water consumption. Bakery meal showed the most modest impacts, whereas BSFL meal caused the highest increases in greenhouse gas emissions. The report concludes that the environmental benefits of waste-to-feed systems are modest and highly dependent on energy use, suggesting that renewable energy is essential to ensure positive outcomes and that preventing food waste remains the top priority.

The briefing highlights the vulnerability of India's power sector to climate-induced extreme weather, citing the Tapovan Vishnugad hydropower plant disaster. It argues that current infrastructure is insufficient for future needs and calls for a shift toward flexibility, decentralized renewables, and higher design standards for grid hardening to protect critical services and social resilience.

The briefing outlines a strategy for the U.S. federal government to support fossil fuel workers facing displacement due to the energy transition and the economic impact of COVID-19. It proposes three immediate federal interventions: employing workers to rehabilitate abandoned coal mines and plug orphan oil and gas wells, expanding funding for existing economic development programs like the POWER Initiative and the EDA ACC program, and utilizing innovative financial mechanisms such as securitization to lower costs for ratepayers and fund community support. For long-term stability, the author advocates for a comprehensive federal energy transition adjustment assistance program modeled after the Department of Labor's Trade Adjustment Assistance, providing retraining, relocation allowances, and wage insurance.

The fact sheet explains the structure of revolving loan funds (RLFs) as self-replenishing financing tools that lower financial barriers for environmental improvements. It highlights the Maryland Shore Erosion Control (SEC) RLF, which shifted from 'hard armor' to 'living shoreline' projects, and a feasibility study for a similar RLF in Puget Sound, Washington, aimed at armor removal and structure relocation to combat sea level rise and erosion.

The document describes revolving loan funds (RLFs) as self-replenishing financing mechanisms that provide low-interest loans to help property owners and municipalities fund environmental improvements. It highlights the Maryland Shore Erosion Control Revolving Loan Fund, which has provided approximately 700 loans over 52 years to support 'living shoreline' projects. It also discusses a feasibility study for a proposed RLF in Puget Sound, Washington, aimed at funding armor removal, soft shore protection, structure relocation, and structure elevation to combat sea level rise and coastal flooding.

The report examines how sea level rise and coastal flooding threaten elderly populations in the U.S., particularly those in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. It highlights the dangers of evacuation for frail seniors, the impact of 'sunny day' flooding on access to healthcare, and the hidden financial risks to real estate equity for retirees on fixed incomes.

The document consists of ten sets of questions and demands addressed to Société Générale, urging the bank to align its financing with the 1.5°C climate goal. The authors criticize the bank's continued support for coal (specifically mentioning Glencore and EPH), unconventional oil and gas, and projects in sensitive areas like the Arctic, the Amazon, and Mozambique. They also call for a zero-deforestation policy regarding imported soy and for the bank to vote against Total's climate strategy.