In spite of tougher standards, European cars get dirtier

English traffic, from European Environment Agency reportEuropean automakers need to sell many more electric cars, but their customers aren't buying. Instead, they're buying more gas powered SUVs that emit more pollution than the cars they drove before. The ramifications for automakers could be dire if they can't sell more electric cars by next year. The European Union is scheduled to introduce the...

Climate change presents $1 trillion in risk, but more in reward: study

Ocean waves [CREDIT: Global Climate Budget 2018]The latest climate study, released Tuesday, doesn't look at sea level rise, carbon counts, or government policy—at least not directly. Instead, it takes a strictly capitalist approach. The study, by CDP, sent questionnaires to more than 200 of the largest global companies about their forecasts for how much money they're budgeting to lose to...

Trump administration takes aim at National Climate Assessment

Hurricane Florence approaches U.S. East Coast Sept. 12, 2018As the Trump administration works to reverse efforts across the government to reduce climate change, the biggest thorn in its side has perhaps been the quadrennial National Climate Assessment, a report last published in November, which the administration buried by releasing on Black Friday, as Americans hit shopping malls in record numbers. The...

Hawaii responds to global warming threat against Waikiki beach

Island of O'ahu, Hawaii. Image: Wikimedia CommonsClimate scientists have issued frequent warning about the effects of rising sea levels from global warming on cities such as Miami and New York. But among the first places in the U.S. that may suffer the effects of climate change could be Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, according to a 2017 report by the Hawaii Climate Commission report, which showed...

New wind and solar power costs less than keeping old coal running

Smokestacks pollution air qualityFrom an environmental standpoint, it's rare that buying something new can have a lower impact that keeping whatever's old. But that's what's happening with renewable energy now, according to a new report published by Energy Innovation. For most of their history, the knock on renewable wind and solar power is that they cost more than fossil fuels...