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As the world launches into COP29 in Azerbaijan, this week, it may be useful for us to review some of the sustainability metrics that the world has agreed to as a foundation for peace, prosperity - and a world devoid of climate change.
There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (or SDGs) in total, though not all of them deal with climate. The ones that do, though, provide us a bit of a report card on how we're doing, as a globe, in combating climate change. In this episode, Paul explains a bit more as to what these SDGs represent - and highlights some of the findings from the UN's latest report card.
For further research:
"The 17 Goals" - United Nations
"2024 Progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals" - United NationsFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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The United Nations estimates that we lose about one third of our global food supply every year to waste and loss. And that organic matter contributes about 10% of our global emissions each year.
Getting a hold on our food waste is a big issue and a huge opportunity, not only for climate action but also in economic terms. In this episode, Paul breaks down the different points in the food value chain where spoilage and waste occurs - and discusses some of the innovative solutions that are emerging to address these issues.
For more research:
"The Enormous Scale Of Global Food Waste" - Stastita
"Food loss and waste account for 8-10% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions; cost USD 1 trillion annually" - UNFCCC
"7 innovative solutions for fighting food waste" - World Economic ForumFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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The DOE recently released a report outlining a pathway for the US to meet recent pledges of tripling of domestic nuclear capacity by 2050. Nuclear needs to play a role in a clean energy economy, but the industry may be fooling itself in thinking that learning curve cost decreases will help to make these advanced nuclear reactors more economically viable.
In this episode, Paul discusses the challenges facing the nuclear industry in reducing costs, including the need to customize between facilities, the challenge in translating workforce experience across construction firms, and the ongoing costs associated with the high regulatory hurdles associated with this technology.
How can the US support new nuclear, but in a way that ensures affordability for the energy transition?
For more research:
"Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Advanced Nuclear" - Department of Energy
"To meet US nuclear goals, big reactors need to get built today, DOE says" - Canary Media
"Historical construction costs of global nuclear power reactors" - Jessica Lovering, et al. (2016)
"The economics of nuclear power: Further evidence on learning, economies of scale, and regulatory effects" - Cantor, et al. (1988)
"EDF’s UK Hinkley Nuclear Costs Balloon as Plant Delayed Anew" - BloombergFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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Paul reflects a bit on having just completed the second year of hosting Eight Minutes, and takes a moment to indulge in how the process of developing climate strategy needs to change if we are to keep up with the rapid advances in climate industries. Long term strategic planning may need to be replaced by "agile" strategic processes.
For more research:
"CCUS Market Outlook 2023: Announced Capacity Soars by 50%" - Bloomberg New Energy FinanceFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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After the devastating impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton over the past few weeks, it's a good time to review the science on why (and how) warming sea temperatures are affecting the intensity of these mega storms. Big, intense tropical cyclones are a part of our future and we should understand why today's storms are so much more powerful than those of just a few decades ago.
For further research:
"Are hurricanes getting worse? Here’s what you need to know" - NPR
"Yet another hurricane wetter, windier and more destructive because of climate change" - World Weather Attribution
"Why Hurricane Milton Got So Strong, So Fast" - NY Times (video)
"A Force of Nature: Hurricanes in a Changing Climate" - NASAFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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For all of the economic advantages being created by the energy transition, some of that value isn't being fully captured by consumers who don't fully understand their utility bill. As energy prices are rising and these bills are becoming more complex and obtuse, maybe now is a good time to review how utilities are charging for not only the power that they provide, but also the policies that their state regulatory commissions are encouraging.
For further reference:
"The simple way to read your electric bill" - Energy Sage
"How Much Electricity Prices Increase Per Year in the U.S." - Solar Reviews
"Getting Answers: solar and EV charges on electric bills" - Western Mass NewsFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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We sometimes use certain terms in the energy transition interchangeably - chief among them is "geothermal". In this episode, Paul discusses some of the different types of emerging technologies that get tagged with this moniker - and why and how these different systems have different use cases and applications. No, no one is suggesting drilling a hole to the earth's core in order to heat your building ... yet!
For further research:
"Geothermal Energy vs. Ground Source Heat Pumps: What’s the Difference?" - GetGreenNow
"Explainer: This is how geothermal energy works" - World Economic Forum
"The geothermal innovation powering Google’s data centres" - SeequentFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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In this follow-up episode to last week's overview of Project 2025's climate related suggestions, Paul digs deeper into some other recommendations of the conservative roadmap, including its emphasis of national security as well as its animosity toward renewable energy projects. But Paul also highlights areas where compromise may be had, outlining a few discrete areas where Project 2025 brings up interesting points.
For further reference:
"Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise" - Project 2025
"What Project 2025 would do to climate policy in the US" - Yale Climate Connections
"Texas' frozen power grid is a preview of climate change disasters to come" - CBS NewsFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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In this first of two parts, Paul takes a deeper dive into the climate implications of the conservative policy playbook, Project 2025. Paul unpacks how the document lays out a vision for a smaller federal government, and how doing so may impact not only climate action but America's leadership across emerging economic industries.
For further reference:
"Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise" - Project 2025
"What Project 2025 would do to climate policy in the US" - Yale Climate Connections
"The Endangerment Finding: What Does It Actually Do?" - Resources.org
"2024 Poll: Americans’ Views on Climate Change and Policy in 12 Charts" - Energy Policy Institute at the University of ChicagoFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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The demand for electricity continues to go up. But instead of relying upon utilities to build more dirtier gas and oil fired power plants, a more novel approach is emerging. These Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) aggregate together a number of residential or commercial buildings and adjust demand in order to keep the grid operating optimally.
Paul talks with Courtney Blodgett, Co-Founder and Director of Strategy at Edo on how VPPs work and how Edo is helping commercial buildings become powerful grid assets.
For further reference:
Courtney Blodgett
"Sector Spotlight: Virtual Power Plants" - Department of Energy
EdoFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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In order for the IRA to realize all of the benefits from the subsidies it allocated to renewable energy and advanced manufacturing, the legislation needed to revise how tax credits were going to work. The traditional form of tax equity financing wasn't going to be enough, so the IRA introduced something called tax credit transferability. This new process has opened up the tax credit market to a whole new batch of investors, able to invest in even smaller projects, and at rates that are encouragingly beneficial to the clean energy economy.
Paul outlines how this new structure works and the impact that it is already having on clean energy projects.
For more research:
"Monetizing Energy Tax Credits: A Guide to Transferability and Tax Equity Transactions" - Cherry Bekaert
"Understanding Direct Pay and Transferability for Tax Credits in the Inflation Reduction Act" - Cap 20
"Transferable Tax Credit Market Intelligence Report, 2023" - CruxFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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The ocean is already a huge carbon sink - and it could do even more. A burgeoning industry of carbon removal solutions, looking to leverage the enormous potential of our marine system, is starting to emerge.
Paul looks at how our oceans currently help us combat carbon emissions, while also dissecting some of the innovative solutions that are emerging within this space.
For more research:
"CO2 and Ocean Acidification: Causes, Impacts, Solutions" - Union of Concerned Scientists
"Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal: Integrity at a Cheaper Price?" - Cleantech Group"Leveraging the Ocean's Carbon Removal Potential" - World Resources Institute
"The oceans are absorbing more carbon than previously thought" - World Economic Forum
"The Ocean is the Next Frontier for the Carbon Removal Industry" - Time Magazine
NOTE: Paul references the company Running Tide during this episode as experimenting with ocean based carbon removal. Just prior to this episode being published, Running Tide announced that they would be shutting down.Follow Paul on LinkedIn.
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The nuclear industry achieved something remarkable in July - full bipartisan support of new legislation aimed at supercharging growth of this clean energy technology.
Paul digs into the specifics of the ADVANCE act, why it makes sense for helping to license new reactors faster (and cheaper), and why it garnered rare bipartisan support.
For further reference:
"Congress votes to advance nuclear energy development in the US" - Verge
"The Senate just passed a critical clean energy bill to pave the way for more nuclear" - CNN
"Nuclear Power" - Our World in Data
"ADVANCE Act Strikes Right Balance for Nuclear Energy Regulation" - Harvard Law Review
"Newly Signed Bill Will Boost Nuclear Reactor Deployment in the United States" - DOEFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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Let's get into the wonky world of emissions accounting, where the corporate standard for reporting is in the process of being refined. The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard has solicited input into whether a market-based or location-based approach to accounting is appropriate. And the final determination could significantly impact not only tomorrow's decarbonization activities, but possibly how today's approaches are handled as well.
Paul digs into this topic in order to better understand the implications for companies of any size.
For further reference:
"Detailed Summary of Responses from Scope 2 Guidance Stakeholder Survey" - GHG Protocol, July 2023
"Detailed Summary of Responses from Market-based Accounting Approaches Stakeholder Survey" - GHG Protocol, April 2024
"Location-based and market-based: Understanding Scope 2" - CarbonaryFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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While we talk a lot about the energy "transition", some countries have already fully pivoted to renewable power. In this episode, Paul takes a look at how these countries were able to successfully make the change, while outlining a few common lessons that the rest of the world can learn as we try to catch up.
For further research:
"California achieves 100 days of 100% electricity demand met by renewables" - Electrek
"Fostering Effective Energy Transition 2023" - World Economic Forum
"Renewable energy statistics 2024" - IRENAFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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The US has enough renewable energy stuck in the permitting process to fully replace every single gas and coal facility on the current power grid. But the interconnection process, a convoluted analysis of impact, costs, siting and permitting requirements, has become a chokepoint for getting new renewable projects built. Only a percentage of those projects being developed are likely to ever come to completion.
In this episode, Paul discusses some of the reasons as to why the interconnection queue has swelled to more than 2 Terrawatts of proposed capacity - and what we can do about that.
For further research:
"FERC approves PJM’s ‘first-ready, first-served’ interconnection reform plan, steps to clear backlog" - Utility Dive
"Explainer on the Interconnection Final Rule" - FERC
"Why the energy transition broke the U.S. interconnection system" - Utility Dive
"Queued Up: 2024 Edition - Characteristics of Power Plants Seeking Transmission Interconnection As of the End of 2023" - Lawrence Berkeley National LaboratoryFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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In this episode, Paul discusses why the up-front emissions of new products and new construction can be so important in climate activity. These locked-in, embedded emissions could account for up to a quarter of the globe's total carbon - and over 50% of the carbon for construction and buildings.
For further research:
"What is Embodied Carbon?" - Carbon Cure
"What Is Embodied Carbon And Why Does It Matter? - Carbon Herald
"Reducing embodied carbon in new construction" - McKinsey
"Embodied Carbon 101" - Carbon Leadership ForumFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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It seems that every day we see another media article about the growth (or demise) of climate action. So - what's really going on? In this episode, Paul provides some perspective and critical analysis of recent media headlines in order to fully understand both the good (and the bad) in today's climate action.
For further reference:
"How EVs became such a massive disappointment" - CNN
"AAA survey confirms the trend: More buyers worry about EVs, favor hybrids" - AAA
"EV Sales Are in a Slump — Why Aren’t More Car Buyers Going Electric?" - Money
CEBA Deal Tracker - Clean Energy Buyers Association
"Amazon Says It Reached a Climate Goal Seven Years Early" - NY TimesFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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In this episode, Paul sits with Stephanie Doyle, the California State Affairs Director for the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), to discuss the changes that California has implemented to their net metering tariff for rooftop solar.
NEM 3.0 (or also known as the Net Billing Tariff (NBT)) has reimagined the solar market in California, dramatically reducing the compensation that homeowners receive for generating excess power while incentivizing investment into battery storage and into disadvantaged communities. One year on from the launch of NEM 3.0 and we have a bit of perspective on how the new tariff is working. Paul and Stephanie dig into what NEM 3.0 is all about and the impact it's having on California's solar market.
For further reference:
Stephanie Doyle
"NEM 3.0 in California: What you need to know" - Energy Sage
"One Year In: Tracking the Impacts of NEM 3.0 on California’s Residential Solar Market" - Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
"The fight over the future of rooftop solar in California" - Canary MediaFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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With all of the success of the global EV car market comes a looming question in a few years - what do we do with all of those batteries at a car's end-of-life?
While it may be a small industry today, the EV battery recycling market is poised to grow exponentially over the next few years. And the success of that market is likely to help define just how successful the overall EV market will be as well. Paul dives into the mechanics of battery recycling and how the market is maturing in these early times.
For further reference:
"5 innovators making the electric vehicle battery more sustainable" - World Economic Forum
"Everything You Need to Know about EV Battery Disposal" - Car & Driver
"Electric cars: What will happen to all the dead batteries?" - BBC
"Battery recycling takes the driver’s seat" - McKinsey
"Trends in electric cars - Global EV Outlook 2024" - IEA
"Recycled Battery Materials Can Work as Well as New Ones" - WIREDFollow Paul on LinkedIn.
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