Climate Change

Community solar is on the move. Just a few weeks ago, Minnesota’s Xcel Energy opened up a solicitation for new community solar projects. Expecting approximately 100 megawatts to be proposed, it received more than four times that amount.

Was the four-year-old military conflict in Syria, which has claimed the lives of over 200,000 people, mostly civilians, triggered at least in part by climate change? A new study by Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory says “a record drought that ravaged Syria in 2006-2010 was likely stoked by ongoing man-made climate change, and that the drought may have helped propel the 2011 Syrian uprising.”

It is no secret that the residential solar market is booming. Declining panel prices, the rise of third-party PPAs, and the spread of the Solarize model—these are familiar storylines to anyone with a passing knowledge of the solar industry. And those of us with a passion for clean energy are more than happy to share the good news.

Switzerland announced its post-2020 climate action plan yesterday, making it the first country to officially submit its contribution to the international climate agreement to be finalized in Paris at the end of this year. More countries are expected to propose their commitments, known as intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs), over the coming months.

New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has announced funding for a new energy competition that will award up to $20 million for the most forward-thinking, advanced energy projects in Albany, Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Yonkers. First proposed by the Governor in 2014, the projects aim to reduce energy costs by as much as $400 million annually, lower carbon emissions, and support clean energy technologies and jobs. ...

From Marketplace: The Oklahoma Supreme Court will soon rule on a case that could hold oil and gas companies liable for earthquake-related damage. Since 2009, Oklahoma has experienced earthquakes at a rate nearly 300 times higher than previous decades. Several peer-reviewed studies link seismic activity with oil and gas development — in Oklahoma's case, that's fracking.

Marine ecosystems can take thousands, rather than hundreds, of years to recover from climate-related upheavals. 2013 Fellow Sarah Moffitt examined fossilized fauna on the seafloor to chart the changes. "There’s not a recovery we have to look forward to in my lifetime or my grandchildren's lifetime. It’s a gritty reality we need to face as scientists and people who care about the natural world and who make decisions about the natural world," she says.

New Tucson Electric Power home solar customers relying on “net metering” to save on their electric bills would face a $22-per-month increase under a TEP proposal. The utility asked the Arizona Corporation Commission Wednesday to approve what it calls a more equitable price for electric service, while still offering solar users significant savings. They say it would reduce the “subsidy” that other electric customers pay to cover costs incurred by solar customers. ...

From the Christian Science Monitor: California Gov. Jerry Brown took aim at two of the GOP’s brightest lights and their position on climate policy during his appearance on “Meet the Press” Sunday. His ammunition: the havoc that a four-year drought continues to wreak on the state of California. ...