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Your weekly intelligence on Decarbonization Policy and Impacts
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We’re going to flip the script a bit this week and start with some curated content. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gets this week’s Head-in-the-Sand Award for signing a bill that will erase the words “climate change” from a range of state statutes and also remove consideration of climate impacts from the decision-making of state agencies, according to the Florida Phoenix and a range of other media outlets. 


Climate change is accelerating sea-level rise in South Florida, which could be swamped by an extra 2 feet of water above current levels in the next 40 years, according to a report in the Miami Herald


Sea-level rise is also a concern in Boston, where major sections of the city are built on landfill and could be under 2 to 5 feet of water by the end of the century, Jon Lamson writes for NetZero Insider. Those rising waters could be a problem for Massachusetts’ main utilities, which are mandated by state law to submit plans for electric system modernization every five years, including how they are going to prepare for potential flooding that could knock out their transformers. 


In California, environmental groups are lobbying the state’s Public Utilities Commission to dedicate $233 million in federal funds from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program to installing fast chargers for medium- and heavy-duty trucks, our Ayla Burnett reports. The caveat: As in many other states, California has yet to install its first NEVI-funded charger. 


New York and California often compete on which state has the most aggressive climate goals and policies, but John Cropley found storage industry stakeholders at New York’s Capture the Energy 2024 conference pushing hard to identify the economic and regulatory policies needed to meet the state’s goal of deploying 6 GW of storage by 2030. 


On the federal policy beat, K Kaufmann has the story on President Joe Biden’s announcements of major increases in tariffs on Chinese imports, including solar cells, solar panels, battery components and electric vehicles. 


Moving back to curated content, as GHG emissions from the power and transportation sectors are trending downward, heavy industry could become the top emitter in the U.S. by the mid-2030s, according to a new report from the Rhodium Group, covered by Canary Media. 


Speaking of which, Argonne National Laboratory is looking to slash emissions from iron production with a “microwave-powered hydrogen plasma in a rotary kiln furnace,” which would use half the electricity of traditional iron making and produce no GHG emissions, according to Hydrogen Central. 


In an op-ed in The Hill, Rep. Brandon Williams (R-N.Y.) invokes the historical role of the Republican Party as champions of environmental conservation ― think Teddy Roosevelt ― and calls for the GOP to focus on an all-of-the-above, common sense strategy. “American energy is clean energy, plain and simple,” Williams writes, including “responsible use of fossil fuels.” 


An op-ed from The Revelator looks at the “silent tragedy” of anti-renewable ordinances being adopted by counties across the country. Many of these areas are already struggling with job loss and falling tax revenues, author James Goodwin argues, and anti-renewable ordinances put them at risk of missing out on the vitally needed economic and environmental benefits of clean energy projects. 


Want more? Check out this week’s Intelligence Report:


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Finance & Investing
Impact & Adaptation
Policy & Politics

 
 

Finance & Investing

California

California PUC rejects PG&E plan to spin off 5.6 GW in non-nuclear assets

The California Public Utilities Commission has rejected Pacific Gas & Electric's plan to spin off its non-nuclear generating assets, totaling 5.6 GW, into a subsidiary called Pacific Generation and sell a minority interest to a third party to raise capital. Utility Dive


Georgia

How the Bank-Run Bond Market Could Make Clean Energy Cheaper

Georgia utilities are getting a discount on gas -- but paying full price for renewables. Capital and Main


Michigan

Enviros push back on bills giving tax breaks to data centers

As legislation aimed at enticing data centers to set up shop in Michigan makes its way out of the Senate and heads to the House, various advocacy groups are sounding the alarm on the potential harms these sites would bring. Michigan Advance


U.S.

What Powell's Interest Rate Remarks Say for Green Investment

Clean energy projects typically have high upfront costs. As a result, the price of clean energy is to a significant extent determined by the cost of the debt that developers take on when they first build the project. Time


Insurance

U.S.

Homeowners Face Rising Insurance Rates Amid Costly Climate Change Disasters

In 2023, insurers lost money on homeowners coverage in 18 states, more than a third of the country, according to a New York Times analysis of newly available financial data. New York Times


U.S.

How is Climate Change Impacting Homeowners Insurance in Your State?

To measure the financial health of the homeowners insurance industry, The New York Times assembled data that compares revenues with costs for insurers in each state. New York Times


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Impact & Adaptation

International

Are Floating Cities the Solution to Rising Seas?

Is living on the water our future? Floating developments, including a project in progress in South Korea, suggest that it's more than a pipe dream. The New York Times


International

OPINION: Climate Change Is Making Allergies Worse

Seasonal allergies are nothing new, but they've been worsening as the climate grows warmer. And the resulting misery arises not just because there's more pollen to breathe in or because it's around for increasingly longer seasons but because the pollen is more potent, writes Margaret Renkl, who covers flora, fauna, politics and culture in the American South. The New York Times


International

Record-Breaking Increase In CO2 Levels In World's Atmosphere

Experts issue warning after finding global average concentration in March was 4.7ppm higher than same period last year. The Guardian


International

The doom vs. optimism climate debate

How to reconcile two new reports that seem to tell very different stories about the state of climate change. New York Times


Montana

Groups request Public Service Commission respond to petition to consider climate change

State utility regulators are at odds with groups asking the agency to incorporate climate change and greenhouse gas emissions into its decision-making. The two sides disagree over what timeline the agency must proceed in responding to the petition submitted earlier this spring. Montana Public Radio


New York

How 5 N.Y.C. Neighborhoods Are Struggling With Climate Change

As New York City leaders explore which neighborhoods are most vulnerable to a warming world, they are also focusing on less obvious factors like poverty, chronic health conditions and language barriers that can deepen the impact of climate change. The New York Times


Virginia

Climate resilience project aims to reimagine neglected, flood-prone Norfolk neighborhood

A winding "blue greenway" is being designed to tame torrential rainfall, mitigate extreme heat and introduce green amenities to an underserved community. Energy News Network


Virginia

Virginia's Biennial Budget Includes Record Investments for Resilience, but Misses Opportunity to Support RGGI

Virginia lawmakers are preparing to vote on a newly released budget agreement with Governor Youngkin that includes some notable wins for climate and flood resilience. Environmental Defense Fund


Geoengineering

California

Cloud Brightening Study in California Is Halted by Local Officials

Researchers had been testing a sprayer that could one day be used to push a salty mist skyward, cooling the Earth. Officials stopped the work, citing health questions. New York Times


Wildfires

International

Canada's "zombie" fires are a legacy of record-breaking 2023

They are a threat to homes and businesses and show how a wildfire season worsened by climate change can defy a clear end date. Axios


International

Wildfire smoke is back -- fires burning across Canada are already triggering U.S. air quality alerts

At the same time, the southeastern U.S. is getting smoke from Mexico, where drought conditions have been fueling fires. The Conversation


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Policy & Politics

U.S.

More bark than bite: U.S. solar tariffs and the shadow of larger trade measures

It represents a significant policy step, however, the impact is clouded by global manufacturing shifts, price decreases and looming Commerce Department trade complaints. pv Magazine


California

California proposes $1.7 billion for climate disclosure law

California Governor Gavin Newsom revised his 2024-2025 state budget proposal to include $22 million to fund the state's corporate climate disclosure laws, SB 253 and SB 261, among other climate programs. GreenBiz


California

Can California's new fixed rates really help the energy transition?

Amid rising electricity rates, regulators add flat charges and drop power prices to try to boost EVs and heat pumps. But underlying utility costs are a problem. Canary Media


International

Gavin Newsom Accuses Trump of Corruption at Vatican Climate Meeting

Burnishing his climate credentials at a conference hosted by Pope Francis at the Vatican, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, criticized former President Donald J. Trump for reportedly meeting with fossil fuel executives and asking them for $1 billion in contributions to his election campaign. The New York Times


International

U.S. discussed 'overcapacity' in Chinese solar manufacturing, coal in climate talks

Liu's U.S. visit came as solar companies filed new trade petitions, asking the Biden administration to levy penalties on solar components from Chinese factories in four southeast Asian countries, citing unfair competition. Reuters


Michigan

Nessel says Michigan plans to sue fossil fuel industry over climate change impacts

Michigan is expected to become the latest state to file litigation against the fossil fuel industry over the impact of climate change. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has announced her office will begin seeking proposals from attorneys and law firms to serve as Special Assistant Attorneys General to pursue litigation related to the climate change impacts on Michigan caused by the fossil fuel industry. Michigan Advance


U.S.

Hitting the brakes: How the energy transition could decelerate in the U.S.

A victory for former President Donald Trump in the election in November would mean new policy priorities and an immediate deceleration in support for decarbonisation. Wood Mackenzie


U.S.

OPINION: Strong conservative leadership is needed to solve our climate challenge

Putting conservative values into action to solve our current environmental challenges, however, requires strong leadership in Congress and beyond, write Brandon Williams, who represents New York's 22nd congressional district and is the only nuclear engineer in Congress, and Chris Barnard, president of the American Conservation Coalition Action. The Hill


U.S.

OPINION: The Silent Tragedy of Local Restrictions on Renewable Energy

New research shows how policies blocking cleaner energy sources, often inspired by persistent disinformation, harm the communities that adopt them, writes James Goodwin, a senior policy analyst at the Center for Progressive Reform. The Revelator


U.S.

U.S. Treasury issues new IRA guidance

Move provides additional clarification around eligibility determination for domestic content bonus. reNEWS.biz


U.S.

Virtual power plants, DERs and home electrification get boost from trio of new Maryland laws

The laws could help Maryland meet its goals to generate 14.5% of electricity from solar by 2028, achieve a 60% greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2030 and install 3 GW of energy storage by 2033. Utility Dive


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