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Renewable Energy Jobs

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According to a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency, more than half a million new jobs were generated by the renewable energy industry last year, an increase of 5.3% when compared with 2016.  The total number of people working in the renewables sector – which includes large hydropower facilities – has now exceeded 10 million people worldwide.

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Cold Weather In A Warming Climate

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The climate is warming.  The average global temperature is going up year after year, bringing about significant changes to weather around the world.  But the fact is that these changes don’t always lead to warmer weather.  And ordinary variations in local weather can also go in either direction.

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Climate Change And Temperature Variations

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It’s no surprise that not everyone on the planet is equally responsible for the effects of climate change.  For instance, the Northern Hemisphere, which is home to 13 of the 15 largest countries by GDP, emits far more greenhouse gases than the Southern Hemisphere does.  But the whole planet heats up as a result. 

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Another CO2 Milestone

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The global concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was measured at 400 parts per million for the first time in recorded history in May of 2013.  It was a brief event at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii at the time.  Within the next couple of years, however, readings of at least 400 ppm became standard.

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Is It Time to Ban Neonics?

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Neonicotinoids (or ‘neonics’ for short) are a class of insecticides chemically related to nicotine.  In fact, the name ‘neonicotinoid’ literally means “new nicotine-like insecticide.”  And like nicotine, neonics act on certain kinds of receptors in the nerve synapse.  Most corn, soy, and wheat seeds planted today are coated with neonics, which is reportedly 5,000 to 10,000 times more toxic than DDT. 

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Greenhouse Gas Emissions Rising Again

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If we want to avoid drastic global warming this century, we need to sharply reduce greenhouse gas emissions over time.   For the previous three years, emissions had been holding steady, but last year, global emissions from the use of coal, oil and natural gas increased by 1.4%.  According to the International Energy Agency, this unfortunate new data should serve as a strong warning that we need to increase our efforts to combat climate change.

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A Milestone For Energy Storage

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The United States has now added the capacity to store a billion watts of power for one hour and it may double that total by the end of this year.   According to the firm GTM Research, the energy storage industry – previously nearly invisible – is undergoing rapid growth.  Much of the growth has been in homes with products like the Tesla Powerwall but has also been on the scale of the electric grid, where power companies can use storage to control when to deploy excess electricity generated from renewable sources such as solar power.

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Air Pollution Reducing Global Warming

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Pollution particles emitted by diesel cars and trucks, coal-fired power plants, factories, primitive cook stoves, and the burning of forests are major contributors to the pervasive air pollution that plagues many cities and regions of the world.  In India and China, such pollution leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths each year.   And countries around the world are working hard to reduce pollution.

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The Chinese War On Pollution

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For years, China has been struggling with some of the worst air pollution in the world.  According to the European Union, only 1% of the country’s half a billion city dwellers were considered safe because almost all of its major cities were covered with what was described as a toxic grey cloud.

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Cold And Snow From Global Warming

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The Arctic has been experiencing record warm temperatures and record low sea ice levels.  During February, there were nine days in a row with temperatures averaging 27 degrees above normal and often above freezing.  Over the previous 20 years, there were only two previous readings above freezing in February – once in 2011 and once last year.

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Renewable Powered Cities

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Cities are responsible for 70% of the world’s energy-related CO2 emissions and it appears that they are taking responsibility for reducing them.  Over 7,000 mayors around the world have signed up to the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, thereby pledging to act on climate change.

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How Safe Is Drinking Water?

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Water is life.  It’s a fundamental need for every human being on the planet.  Each person requires more than five gallons of clean and safe water a day for drinking, cooking, and keeping clean.  Dirty water, on the other hand, can be deadly.  An estimated 1.8 million people die every year as a result of diarrheal diseases like cholera.  And tens of millions of people are seriously sickened by water-related maladies. 

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The Changing Face Of Air Pollution

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Air pollution in cities is a global problem that has reached crisis proportions in places like China and India.   In our country, since the Clean Air Act was passed in 1970, there has been a great deal of effort exerted in controlling pollution from vehicles.  A combination of pollution-limiting changes to engines, fuels, and pollution control systems has significantly reduced the amount of air pollution associated with the transportation sector.

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WAMC Northeast Public Radio

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio is a regional public radio network serving parts of seven northeastern states (more...)