Last April I told you for a second time not to worry about the proposed fuel economy standards (CAFE) rollbacks because even if the Trump Administration did issue lower regulations that most likely they wouldn’t be implemented and if they were, the auto manufacturers would not adhere to them. 10 Months Later the Story’s Still the Same: Trump is Irrelevant You’ve seen that…
There have been a great deal of articles recently with information and developments which I want to share with you. My practice has been not to deluge you with emails from me and limit my posts to 2 or 3 a week. I’ve decided to alter that practice for the time being and write to you more often, if I can find the time.…
I’m sure you are aware that over half of US coal fired power plants have been closed since 2002 when the Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign began. (281 retired and 249 to go) And almost no new ones have been permitted for construction. This has not only reduced significant amounts of CO2 but also small particulate matter and other emissions…
In following up on my last post about how insurance companies are retreating from providing coverage for the coal industry, here is information published by Sierra Club reaffirming that the retirement of coal plants is continuing unabated by anything that is happening in Washington right now. The information presented below speaks for itself but here are some of the highlights. …
As I have written about on many occasions, the world is increasingly moving on from fossil fuels to renewable and distributed energy. One of the reasons is that renewable energy now is cost competitive or cheaper that fossil fuels. This is especially true if the fossil fuel energy is from a new plant. Secondly, more and more it is being…
Over the years I have written about how climate change is a threat to world peace. In fact, the Pentagon has been saying this in its security threat reports since the ’90′s. They actually call it the highest threat to peace. The reason is what climate change is doing to natural resources. For instance, what would you do if your…
When Sierra Club began the effort to challenge the final permitting of a proposed coal fired power plant being built by Indeck in Elwood, Illinois southwest of Chicago near Joliet, we never could have imagined where we’d be some 16 years later. After 8 years Indeck threw in the towel and gave up. Now, burning coal to boil water to produce electricity is a…
There are untold numbers of articles reiterating the fact that regardless of what the Trump Administration does about reducing the current CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards it would be insane for the auto manufacturers NOT to continue pushing forward on maximum fuel economy for their ICE’s (Internal Combustion Engines) and rollout of electric vehicles. The article below is one…
Sierra Club Board of Directors Meeting Oakland, CA May 18 – 19, 2018 Our recent May face to face meeting I found to be rather routine. I do not mean in any way to diminish its importance whatsoever. I only mean that I didn’t find that there was anything that occurred that would qualify as something that would change the…
I’d love to be wrong on my prognostications about the consequences of a warming climate as that would mean that the future is not so bleak as I’ve often made it out to be. And I guess it’s a bit braggadocios to be an “I told you so”. But, as has been the case over and over, the early warnings…