Climate

- Countries that are not members of the OECD have passed the OECD developed world in terms of total energy consumed and will consume almost twice as much energy by 2040.  

- The European Commission sets emission targets for each country from a 2005 baseline. Greece, Hungary, Croatia, Bulgaria, Portugal and Romania have already met their 2030 allocation; however, that is because these countries were essentially given a pass and have only had to hold the line at a 0% increase to meet their targets.

- Biologists believe that biodiversity levels are falling below "safe" levels. AES Premium Members have access to a peer-reviewed abstract.

- A new study of naturally accumulating carbon dioxide (CO2) that has been trapped underground for around 100,000 years has found that the greenhouse gas has not significantly corroded the rocks above, suggesting that storing CO2 in reservoirs deep underground is much safer and more predictable over long periods of time than previously thought.

- The fuel efficiency standards championed by President Obama in 2012 will fall short of the 54.5-miles-per-gallon 2025 target the administration set because consumers are buying more pickup trucks, vans, and sports utility vehicles than expected.

- The production of wheat, soy, corn, rice, and palm oil crops emits more greenhouse gases annually than any of the world’s countries, save for the US and China.

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.