Henry Harrell"s Blog: January 20 Green Energy News

Headline News:

Climate change threatens the sugar maples in northern hardwood forests. As global temperatures rise, drought could stunt their growth, a decades-long study found. The number of sugar maple trees will decrease, diminishing the amount of maple syrup available and eliminating the stunning colors of these forests during autumn. [Newsweek]

Sugar maples, threatened (Photo: Muffet, Wikimedia Commons)

Despite initiating a slew of regulatory rollbacks allegedly aimed at helping the struggling coal sector regain jobs, the entire sector grew by just 771 jobs during President Trump’s first year in office. Moreover, several key coal-producing states like Ohio, Kentucky, Montana, and Wyoming lost more coal jobs than they gained in the year. [ThinkProgress]
The government in Canada says it plans to invite expressions of interest in a renewable energy power program that could include offshore wind. The Honourable Jim Carr, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, announced C$200 million (US$161 million) of funding for innovative emerging renewable power to expand renewable energy sources. [Offshore Wind Journal]
Panasonic is building a smart city in Colorado. Called CityNow, the futuristic city is rising outside Denver and will be a living lab experiment for creating towns that can survive a disaster, run on clean, renewable power, and contain sustainable infrastructure that improves people’s lives, according to a report from Inhabitat. [Proud Green Building]
Opinion: “It’s Time for Electric Companies to Pivot” • Renewable energy is rapidly changing the electric grid, and utilities need to adapt or face still greater disruption in their industry, according to a report from the Rocky Mountain Institute. Two directions in particular appear likely to offer opportunities for growth, the report says. [IEEE Spectrum]

Henry Harrell"s Blog