news round up, autumn edition

It’s fall, y’all.

Here’s a few things I’ve been reading:

Fulton County solar energy project expected to lower utility costs (WSBT) The Fulton County Rural Electric Membership Corporation is a non-profit that provides energy to nearly 5,000 homes. Any money saved goes directly back to members of the REMC. Fulton County REMC CEO Joe Koch says members can expect to save up to $8 million, not including the project paying itself off… When fully charged, the two Tesla batteries can power 2,200 homes for a month, which can be the difference between life and death during an ice storm.

NIPSCO Continues Path Toward Lower-Cost, Sustainable and Reliable Energy Future (Press Release) Recent analysis points to a balanced and flexible approach to transition the generation portfolio

People are realizing that degrowth is bad (Noah Smith substack) The mad schemes degrowthers advocate are a fantasy that distracts us from real efforts to save the planet

Excess fertilizer use: Which countries cause environmental damage by overapplying fertilizers? (Our World in Data) Fertilizers have transformed the way the world produces food. They have not only brought large benefits for food security, but they also bring environmental benefits through higher yields (and therefore less land use). But, there can be a downside.

‘Listen to the cry of the Earth’: Pope, top Christians urge world leaders to act on climate change (NBC) Pope Francis, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew released their first joint statement ahead of a U.N. conference. [Here’s a link to the statement].

Editorial: Bishops must commit to saving the Earth now (National Catholic Reporter Editorial Staff) Given that the very habitability of our planet may depend on the results of the [climate] summit, it is a good time for Catholics everywhere to be praying and fasting, in hopes that our leaders will finally (finally!) commit to doing whatever it takes to save the Earth we are destroying.

Anxiety from climate change isn’t going away. Here’s how you can manage it (NPR)

5 Midwestern governors agree to create a network to charge electric vehicles (NPR) The governors of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin are joining forces to build a new network for charging electric vehicles. The bipartisan plan aims to improve the region’s economy while also reducing toxic emissions from cars and trucks.

Let’s bust the myth: a car-friendly neighborhood isn’t a child-friendly neighborhood (GGW) What these arguments boil down to is that the convenience of drivers – even in objectively walkable neighborhoods – should take priority over the lives and health of children. Parents should run a mile from such logic. Motor vehicle crashes kill and injure more kids than any other cause in America.

We will not ban cars (Noah Smith) Electric vehicles are crucial for fighting climate change [A very sober and data-filled look at the promise and peril of the future of cars in the U.S.]

Hertz orders 100,000 Teslas, the single-largest EV purchase ever, with Tom Brady campaign (Electrek) Bloomberg reported the news a few minutes ahead of the press release, with sources who asked not to be identified, and said that it represents around $4.2 billion of revenue for Tesla. It will be the single-largest purchase ever for electric vehicles. The cars will be delivered over the next 14 months from an already tight supply of Tesla vehicles.

Birds Thrived Where Humans Feared To Tread During The Pandemic, Scientists Say (NPR) “Anthropause” is a word scientists have coined to describe the scaling back of human activity since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. While it’s probably safe to say that most people have found it uncomfortably restrictive, a new study published on Wednesday suggests the pandemic has allowed many bird species to finally stretch their wings.

Ancient Footprints Suggest Humans Lived In The Americas Earlier Than Once Thought (NPR) The question of when humans first migrated to North America has long been a matter of hot debate among researchers who have continually uncovered evidence of ever-earlier dates. Now, analysis of ancient fossilized human footprints in New Mexico has pushed the date back once again — to at least 21,000 years ago.

The Myth of Regenerative Ranching (The New Republic) The purveyors of “grass-fed” beef want you to believe that it solves meat’s environmental problem. But this is merely a branding exercise, not a climate solution.