Multi-sector Air Pollutants Regulations (SOR/2016-151)

This is a recently approved regulation and will go into effect January 1, 2017.

The Multi-Sector Air Pollutants Regulations (i.e., the Regulations) require owners and operators of specific industrial facilities and equipment types to meet consistent performance standards across the country. The objectives of the Regulations are to:
 

• Limit the amount of nitrogen oxides (NOX) emitted from modern (new) and pre-existing (existing), gaseous-fuel-fired non-utility boilers and heaters used in many industrial facilities
• Limit the amount of NOX emitted from modern and pre-existing stationary spark-ignition gaseous-fuel-fired engines used by many industrial facilities (e.g., those used for gas compression or back-up generators)
• Limit the amount of NOx and sulphur dioxide (SO2) emitted from cement kilns

The Regulations are part of the federal government's contribution to the implementation of the Air Quality Management System (AQMS) under the auspices of the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME). The AQMS provides a harmonized approach for governments to work collaboratively to improve air quality in Canada and protect the health of Canadians and the environment. The AQMS includes:

• Canadian Ambient Air Quality Standards (CAAQS), which provide the drivers for air quality improvement across the country
• A framework for managing air quality through local air zones and regional airsheds
• Base-level Industrial Emission Requirements (BLIERs) that set a base-level of performance for major industrial sectors and equipment types
• An intergovernmental working group to improve collaboration and reduce emissions from mobile sources

If you have any questions, please reach out to us:  mtingle@ortech.ca

Another Update on the Large Renewable Procurement II

The IESO has posted an Addendum to the LRP II RFQ in accordance with Section 2.3 of the LRP II RFQ. This Addendum further clarifies the definition of Facility Service Extension and formalizes the previous update to the Prescribed Form – Qualification Submission Information for the Standard Process. A blackline of the changes (from the originally posted LRP II RFQ) has also been posted. These and all other LRP II materials are available in the Program Resources section of the LRP website.

The Qualification Submission Deadline is September 8, 2016, at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Prevailing Time (EPT).

Supplemental Transmission Circuit Testing

The IESO will provide an update on the LRP II supplemental transmission circuit testing process and schedule in conjunction with the second LRP II TAT Table posting next week.

If you have any questions, please reach out to us:  mtingle@ortech.ca
 

Large Renewable Procurement Update

Here is an update on the LRP II Transmission Circuit Testing Process

The IESO has posted the final process documents and associated form for the LRP II Transmission Circuit Testing process. As discussed during the LRP II Technical Session on July 21, 2016 (archived here), the IESO is offering an early and supplemental connection testing process for RFQ Applicants for a standard fee. The Transmission Circuit Testing process is an entirely optional process available to RFQ Applicants who would like early, location-specific information about available capacity at a proposed connection point.

Each RFQ Applicant is limited to submitting one Form – Transmission Circuit Testing. The deadline for submitting the form is September 8, 2016, at 3 p.m. Eastern Prevailing Time (EPT).

The Transmission Circuit Testing process documents and form are available on the Program Resources web page.

Updated LRP II TAT Table

The IESO has also provided an updated LRP II TAT Table, which includes the latest TS availability information for LRP II. The Table is available on the Program Resources web page under Connection Related Resources.

If you have any questions, please reach out to us:  mtingle@ortech.ca
 

August 22, 2016: Energy Matters: Climate Change

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.

August 22, 2016: Energy Matters: Renewables

 - IF the DC Court rules in favor of the Clean Power Plan, expect the share of energy generated by renewable and nuclear energy sources in the US to increase from 38% in 2015 to 45% by 2025.

- Planned corporate investment in energy efficiency is at an all-time high. 

- Apple has gotten approval from Ireland to build a wind-farm on the island.

- The US Department of Defense is the second-largest consumer of renewable electricity in the world. Only Google buys more. 

- The US DoE offers incentives for the purchase of LED lights in 48 states because the agency considers the widespread adoption of the technology essential: "LED lights offer the greatest potential impact on energy conservation in the country." 

- Installed residential solar is declining in California (down about 6%) but burgeoning in other areas, like Texas. 

- China installed 20 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacity in the first half of 2016, three times as much as the same period a year ago

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

August 22, 2016: Energy Matters: Conventional

Petroleum

 - The total rig count in the US has gone up again (by one); the US oil rig count has increased in 9 of the last 10 weeks. Meanwhile, the amount of oil the Middle East contributes to the global total continues to rise; now 35 per cent, this is the greatest percentage from the region since the 1970s.

 - Although the oil market appears balanced, oil inventories are at an all-time high and continue to pose a threat to the stability of recent oil prices. Even floating storage – one of the most expensive methods of stockpiling oil – is at a record high.  

 - Oil prices are rising, in part because Saudi Arabia’s Oil Ministry mentioned that short positions on crude caused prices to fall. This led to frantic covering that pushed prices higher. Firms like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are not bullish because production fundamentals (rig counts and oil inventories) do not support recent price changes.

 Natural Gas

  - Without much fanfare, the natural gas sector has gone through a major transition. Two forces are at work: supply and demand. Supply: producing countries like Australia and especially the US have adopted new and improved production techniques, strenthening their positions. Demand: in addition to traditional markets like Japan and South Korea, new markets are emerging. The combination of increasing supply and increasing demand has created new opportunities for natural gas storage operators. The winner in this "new world market" will probably develop technologically advanced storage products and services that are flexible and cost-sensitive.

 Coal

 - In the second quarter of 2016, the top 10 coal-mining companies accounted for nearly three of every four tons of coal mined in the country - about 75% of all mined coal.

 - Global demand for coal is starting to increase, especially metallurgical coal used in steelmaking. Leading the way are China (except in regions that are dealing with pollution problems), India, and Vietnam, a recent net-importer of coal. Nearby producers, like Indonesia and Australia, are picking up the slack. (Note: Europe is still the most popular destination for US coal exports.)

 Nuclear

 The US and Mexico are planning a new nuclear power cooperation agreement. AES Premium Members have access to the White House proposal and its draft agreement.

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

Ontario cap-and-trade deadlines

Two important Ontario cap-and-trade deadlines are fast approaching:

1.  Participants must apply for free allowances by September 1, 2016.

2.  Participants must register with the Compliance Instrument Tracking System Service (“CITSS”) by November 30, 2016.

Click here for information on deadlines, and our guide to Ontario's cap-and-trade regime »

Source: Thanks for Gowlings LLC for this information.

July 22, 2016: Energy Matters: Climate Change

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

 - Three billion people around the world use wood and dung to cook their food, a solution that is dirty, dangerous and deadly. In India, for instance, about 600 million people rely on wood or dung as their primary source of energy. But, consider this dilemma: on the one hand, coal might be a cleaner solution; on the other hand, India is already the world’s third largest greenhouse-gas emitter. It is home to six of the 10 most polluted cities, and conditions in the Indian coal industry are dire.

 - Researchers have re-examined all 195 individual country pledges at the Paris climate conference (also known as Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, or INDCs), and have come to the conclusion that reaching the pledges still won't be enough to prevent global warming, as was originally believed. AES Premium Members have access to the peer-reviewed study.

 - Energy is the second largest consumer of water in a drought-threatened world. Worldwide, annual water consumption for energy is about 100 billion cubic meters. A nuclear power plant, for example, uses up to 17 million gallons of water per day for cooling. A single fracking well may use on average 1 million gallons of water. Biofuels – when produced from irrigated crops – require water both to grow the crops and again for cooling when they are burned. In the US, energy production uses about 11% of all freshwater water consumption.

 - As global warming opens up new shipping lanes and access to valuable resources, some countries are increasing their military presence in the Arctic. 

 - There are 5 trillion pieces of plastic floating in our oceans. The location of the plastic debris is not centralized, but rather is universally prevalent in tiny, confetti-like pieces ... everywhere.

 - Cars and trucks contribute about 22 percent of US climate pollution and 17 percent of the global total. The US portion is holding steady, but the global percentage is growing rapidly.

July 22, 2016: Energy Matters: Renewables

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel

- Investments in renewable energy are declining in 2016:

* China’s investments fell 34 percent, down to $33.7 billion. 

* In Africa and the Middle East, investment fell 46 percent, to $4.2 billion. 

* The United States saw a drop of 5 percent, to $23.1 billion.

Note: Brazil and Europe were the only regions to see an increase, led by Europe’s 4 percent gain.

 - The prevailing theory about renewable energy is that “variability” or “intermittency” caps the amount of electricity that wind and solar can contribute to the grid at 15 to 20 percent of the total (the sun and wind are not constant sources of energy). However, there is new evidence that renewables are beginning to break through that barrier. AES Premium Members have access to the report by the White House Council of Economic Advisors.

 - The total number of electric vehicles worldwide has tripled since 2013.

 - Without question, battery storage is a hot topic, with some calling it the "Next Big Thing." However, consider the future promise of the technology in the current context: in 2015, a record 221 megawatts (MW) of storage capacity was installed in the US, more than three times as much as in 2014 (65 MW). But more than 160 MW of the 2015 total was deployed by a single regional transmission organization (the PJM Interconnection market). And 221 MW is not much in the context of a total US generation capacity of more than a million megawatts. Storage might be the "Next Big Thing," but there is a lot of work to be done.

 - The top 3 largest rooftop photovoltaic installation projects in the world:

* 11.5MV rooftop solar plant at Beas Dera, India (spread over 42 acres on the Dera Baba, the plant has the capacity to produce 11.5MW electricity).

* 8.1MW in Pfenning Logistics distribution centre in Germany. 

* 6.4MW solar array on the rooftop of the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino campus in Las Vegas.

(Note: for the rest of this list and similar stories, visit your AES website account).

July 22, 2016: Energy Matters: Conventional

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

Petroleum

- It's been a while, but it appears as if the global oil market is almost balanced. Production is slowing while demand is rising. AES Premium Members have access to the IEA report. 

- On the supply side, some Saudi Arabian and other Middle Eastern producers are now pumping oil for less than $10 a barrel. On the demand side, India is the "world’s growth leader of oil consumption" - up 8.3 percent from the same period last year. (Note: China's demand is rising at the second fastest rate, 3.3 percent.) 

Natural Gas

- Natural gas generates about 34% of all electricity in the US; coal has a 30% share; nuclear and renewables come in at 19% and 15%, respectively. After 2016, renewables will have an increasingly larger role in the energy mix, while natural gas generation will shrink due in part to rising prices of NG. AES Premium Members have access to the early release of the EIA Energy Outlook 2016.

Coal

- There are about 13,000 coal mines in operation in the US. The US Mine Safety and Health Administration did not identify any mines for a "pattern of violations" in 2015 ... the first time there were no citations issued in a very long time. 

 - Korea is building a series of new coal-fired power plants.

Nuclear

- South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. is asking state regulators for $852 million more to complete the VC Summer 2 and 3 nuclear units (making it a $14 billion project). The primary reason for the request is that management decided to replace the contractor of the project.

IESO Regulation Service: Interesting!

On June 22, the Independent Electricity System Operator (“IESO”) tendered a Regulation Service Request for Information (“RFI”).  This service has historically been provided by conventional generators under capacity based ancillary services contracts.  The IESO has recently contracted energy storage facilities to provide regulation service under both the Alternative Technologies for Regulation (“ATR”) Request for Proposals (“RFP”) and the Phase 1 Energy Storage RFP.

This RFI represents a step in reforming the process for procuring regulation services in Ontario.  This opens up the possibility for the development of a regulation services market, similar to what is used in many US jurisdictions.  The RFI specifically references FERC Order 755 which addresses how providers of regulation services are to be compensated – i.e. on a pay-for-performance basis.  FERC Order 755 favours regulation service providers which are capable of responding quickly and accurately to control signals such as some types energy storage facilities.

June 20, 2016: Energy Matters: Renewables

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

 - Featured story: The 2016 Bloomberg New Energy Finance market forecast report has been released; here is a summary of the five most important points:

   * Clean energy investments are outpacing gas and coal 2 to 1;

   * There will be no golden age for gas, except in North America;

   * Wind and solar power will reach about 60% of installed capacity worldwide in the next 25 years; 

   * Cumulatively, clean power will explode, but the amount of power from sources that produce greenhouse gases will remain steady;

   * The climate fight will be won or lost in India.

 - The 65th BP Statistical Review of World Energy has also been released. Perhaps the most compelling of its many points: global energy consumption is expected to increase by 34% between 2014 and 2035. AES Premium Members have access to this report.

 - If current trends continue, the US solar industry will install 14.5 gigawatts of capacity in 2016, about double the 7.5 gigawatts capacity installed in 2015. As a comparison, 1 gigawatt is the equivalent amount of power produced by: 400 wind turbines, 1 nuclear power plant, 1,500,000 horses, or 1 lightning bolt. (Note: for the first time, solar accounts for a majority of new power generation.) 

 - The DoE has selected three offshore wind projects to fund (Atlantic City, NJ; Lake Erie; Maine) and withdrew its support for two others (Virginia Beach and Oregon). As a result, Dominion Virginia Power lost $40 million in federal money to help build a wind turbine demonstration project. The rumor in Richmond is that Dominion isn't terribly upset: no one wanted a construction project close to the naval military base; and, Dominion tends to prefer solar over wind.

 - Hydroelectric generation across the western US is on the rise as the region's protracted drought conditions improve.

June 20, 2016: Energy Matters: Conventional

Courtesy of American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

Petroleum

- The number of oil rigs in the US rose by 3 to 328; the number of gas rigs rose by 3 to 85. This brings the total active rig count to 413. This is the first time rig-counts have risen two weeks in a row in about a year. (Note: in January 2015 there were 635 active oil rigs and 221 gas rigs.)

 - Assuming no further surprises, oil markets appear to have balanced. However, there are about 50 US-based oil drillers that are in bankruptcy and yet have not slowed down their production. The phenomenon makes sense at the micro-level; given that creditors want to be paid, they expect drillers to continue to produce. At the macro level, however, zombie producers are the primary force that is keeping oil markets off-balance.

 - The decline of oil prices had its greatest impact on Vnesheconombank, Russia's largest bank and the one that Vladimir Putin used to finance mega-projects like the Sochi Olympics and his secret aid to Russian loyalists in Ukraine. The VEB has stopped new lending, cut off financing, and requires government emergency assistance to avoid default.

 Natural Gas

 - For the first time since 1957, exports of US natural gas will outstrip imports in a shift that could occur as soon as the end of this year.

 - In a recent survey of energy executives from all sectors, 92 percent said they expect natural gas prices to stay below $3/MMBtu in 2016.

 Coal

 - To raise cash amid an unprecedented downturn in the global coal sector, non-US coal producers have placed $1.23 billion of coal assets on the market in the last year.

   1st place: Australia - $757 mm, or about 61.5% of the total

   2nd place: Poland  - $585 mm, or about 33% of the total

   3rd place: Canada  -  $34 mm, or about 2.7% of the total

 Nuclear

 - The Tennessee Valley Authority's Watts Bar nuclear plant has been synced to the grid and will next undergo systems and controls testing. The plant will supply power to roughly 1.3 million homes in the TVA service area. This is the first nuclear reactor to come online in about two decades. 

June 6, 2016: Energy Matters: Climate

- Track failure was likely the cause of the Union-Pacific oil train that derailed alongside of and into the Columbia River about 70 miles east of Portland, Oregon.  

 - The Earth’s eight warmest months on record have occurred in the last eight months.

 - A cloud of secondary organic aerosols — air pollution - sits above the Alberta oil sands, an amount that often exceeds the total emissions of Canada’s largest cities. 

 - Trees in California's Sierra Nevada mountain range (pines, firs, aspen, redwoods, etc.) are shifting to higher elevations in search of cooler temperatures. Coral species in the Great Barrier Reef are moving to deeper waters to try to avoid mass bleaching and die-out.  

 - In recent years, in the Southern Louisiana archipelego, the Isle de Jean Charles Band of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw Tribe has lost 98 percent of its land to the rising Gulf waters. Of the 22,400-acre island, only a 320-acre strip remains. The US HUD is giving the tribe $48 million to relocate.

 - The UN’s flagship Green Climate Fund will miss its target to approve $2.5 billion of new projects because there haven't been enough applications submitted.

 Courtesty of The American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

June 6, 2016: Energy Matters: Conventional

Oil

  AES expert members, including Daniel Yergin, believe that $50/barrel is here to stay.  

 - One reason oil climbed to $50/barrel is because a group of privately owned Chinese refineries— dubbed “teapots” because they're small compared with state-owned companies—have been granted unprecedented authority by the Chinese government to make private and direct purchases of crude oil on the open market. Their activities are driving the global market, and oil tankers line up sometimes for weeks to deliver the crude oil. Teapots now account for 15% of China's crude imports.

 - Another reason why oil prices have climbed to the $50/barrel range - the "Niger Delta Avengers" have blown up a series of Chevron wells, a Shell terminal, and sections of the AGIP pipeline operated by Eni, the Italian oil company, reducing the global supply by more than one million barrels/day. 

 Gas

- The LNG export market is becoming highly competitive. In two or three years, new pipelines currently under construction will become operational in Azerbaijan, Russia, China, Iran, Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan and India.  

 - FERC has approved the Kinder Morgan LNG export terminal project on Elba Island near Savannah, Georgia. This is the first of 10 liquefaction units to be built by Kinder Morgan; the units will be operational in the second quarter of 2018.

 Coal

 - Top publicly financed international coal projects (by nation; $42 billion total investments in 2015)

1. Japan: $22 billion (or 52 percent of the total)

2. Germany: $9 billion

3. United States: $4 billion

4. France: $3 billion

Note: In 2015, the G7 agreed to begin phasing out domestic coal.

 - The US coal industry employs about 90,000 miners, of which 12,000 are in West Virginia.

 Nuclear

 - The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has submitted an application to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission to build a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) - more evidence that smaller and cheaper nuclear units are on the rise.

 Courtesty of The American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

June 6, 2016: Energy Matters: Renewables

- Breaking news: Rumors about Apple - in Cupertino and in the media - the company is following Tesla and Nissan into the EV and/or home battery market(s).  Called "Project Titan," the company is hiring engineers, creating new software programs, exploring charging infrastructure, etc.

 - Low coal, oil and gas prices are beginning to attract investors' capital, pulling it away from long-term clean energy projects; on the other hand, oil and gas companies are shifting investments into wind and solar. For instance, Europe's biggest oil companies (Shell, Eni, Total and Statoil), reeling from losing billions in the two-year oil market rout, are intensifying their push into renewable energy for new sources of future revenue. AES Premium Members have access to the IEA report.

 - 6 KiloWatt-hours of electricity is used to refine one gallon of gasoline and drive an EV the same distance as a car using a gallon of gasoline. 

 - Google has expanded Project Sunroof, an online resource that analyzes whether a rooftop is suitable for solar panels, but it is still not available for residents of Texas, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Idaho, South Dakota, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alaska, or the District of Columbia. 

 - What state offers the most generous rebates, incentives and tax breaks to buy an EV?  Colorado.  What state is the leader in wind energy, per capita?  Iowa.

 - For the first time, renewable energy sources (excluding hydroelectricity) generated more than 10% of US electricity in a single month (March 2016), up from 7.7% in the same period a year ago and just 2.6% 10 years ago.

 Courtesty of The American Energy Society and Eric Vettel.

May 24, 2016: Energy Matters: Renewables

Courtesty of Eric Vettel at the American Energy Society (www.energysociety.org )

Renewables

 - Bill Gates speaks often about the need for an "energy miracle," but Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) Chairman Michael Liebreich has made a compelling case that the energy miracle is already here, and they are, in order: solar, wind, LED lighting, electric cars, advance[ing] batteries and smart grids.

 - The US grid added 1,291 megawatts (MW) of new renewable power in the first quarter of 2016: wind (707 MW), solar (522 MW), biomass (33 MW) and hydropower (29 MW). To put these numbers into perspective: natural gas added 18 MW of new generating capacity and no new capacity for coal, oil, or nuclear power.  AES Premium Members have access to the report.

 - Long a niche industry burdened by expensive financing, solar appears on the verge of unlocking cheaper sources of capital. Natural-gas plants are getting financed at about $1.20 per watt, which is considered a benchmark; as a comparison, utility-scale solar plants are going as low as $1.25 per watt in the southeastern US, $1.27 per watt in the southwest, and $1.32 per watt in California. AES Premium Members have access to the full NREL report. 

 - A Saudi-backed consortium is building a solar farm in Dubai for only 3¢/kWh, half the local price of power from natural gas. That price is consistent with bids by Enel Green Power to build a solar plant in Coahuila, Mexico, for 3.6¢/kWh, and an onshore wind farm in Morocco for 3¢/kWh.

 - The Pacific Biofuels plant on the Big Island of Hawaii is the first to be certified as "sustainable."

 - Japan now has more electric car charging stops than gas stations.

 - In the 1970s, Denmark was addicted to oil, burning petroleum to power its cars AND generate electricity. Today, more than 40 percent of the country is powered by wind.

 - Renewable energy production in Germany caused power prices to go negative for several hours, as it has in California and Texas - meaning commercial customers were being paid to consume electricity.

Explainer: 10 ways ‘negative emissions’ could slow climate change

This is from the good people at Carbon Brief Staff. http://www.carbonbrief.org
Original Post ( http://buff.ly/1TnWCKA )

The Paris Agreement, adopted at the COP21 climate talks in December, sets out a global aim to limit average global surface temperatures to “well below 2C” above pre-industrial levels. It adds that there should be “efforts” to limit it to 1.5C.

A study published last year warned that all the scenarios for keeping global temperature rise to 2C require “negative emissions” – removing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing it on land, underground or in the oceans.

Here is a nice graphic summarizing 10 ways to remove emissions.

View fullsize

May 5, 2016: Energy Matters: Climate Change

From Eric Vettel, American Energy Society

Climate

- Featured resource: For the first time ever, the US Geological Survey has mapped human-induced earthquakes. In the past, USGS maps only identified natural earthquake hazards. AES Premium Members have access to this report and maps.

- Featured story: Wealthy countries gave developing countries tens of millions of dollars in aid to help them design and publish their carbon-cutting pledge programs at last year's COP 21 Paris Agreement. Funds were generally used to pay for technical expertise and educational workshops to help the world's poorest, under-resourced governments put together presentable plans.

- The methane gas leak in Southern California's Aliso Canyon has led many US cities to examine their own gas-storage infrastructure. Boston has perhaps the most dangerous system. Researchers looked at 100 randomly selected underground gas leaks across Boston metro: the oldest gas pipe has been in service since 1893; 15 of the 100 leaks are Grade 1-leaks (an immediate explosion hazard); 7 of the 100 leaks are classified as "super-emitters." AES Premium Members have access to the peer-reviewed abstract of the report. 

- According to China, carbon dioxide emissions fell by 1.5 percent last year, leading to a 0.2 percent reduction in global emissions. However, according to researchers at the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research (CICERO) in Norway, CO2 emissions in China rose 0.5 percent last year. Somebody is wrong.

- There are about 20.5 billion devices connected to the Internet around the world; data centers in the US use around 2 percent of overall energy, or around 100 billion kilowatt-hours of power.

- To combat rising smog levels, Mexico City will require that every car remain off the road for one day each week. Randomly assigned government stickers will identify which days are prohibited.

- 4 billion people live under conditions of "severe water scarcity" at least 1 month a year.
 

- Four new documentary films about the science and consequences of global warming:
     The Ice and the Sky - how meteorological data is collected in Antarctica.
     Planet Sigma - an experimental film useing images to build the script.
     Deep Time - an economic look at climate change, with an emphasis on North Dakota.

     Children of the Arctic - what climate change means for the Iñupiat of the Alaskan tundra.
 

May 5, 2016: Energy Matters: Renewables

Renewables

 - Top 3 developed nations' investment in renewable energy:
   1. China ($102.9 billion USD)
   2. United States ($44.1 billion)
   3. Japan ($36.2 billion)

Top 3 developing nations investment in renewable energy:
   1. India ($10.2 billion - up 22 percent from the previous year)
   2. South Africa ($4.5 billion - up 329 percent)
   3. Mexico ($4 billion - up 105 percent)
(Note: global investments in renewable power projects totaled $266.0 billion last year, which was more than double the $130.0 billion invested in coal and natural gas-fired power plants in 2015.)
 

- The World Bank, the largest provider of public finance to developing countries, is going to spend 28% of its investments on projects related to renewable energy.

- Off-shore wind is common in some parts of Europe; in the US, the first off-shore wind project is under construction off the coast of Rhode Island. Virginia will have the next in Virginia Beach. The next 3 currently under review for permits are: Morro Bay in California, followed by South Carolina, and then New Jersey.

- There are about 2.5 million people in the US working in clean-energy jobs; of that total, about 1.9 million are in jobs related to "efficiency."
 

- In 2016, the solar sector will add more new electricity-generating capacity than any other - including natural gas and wind. Planned installations include 9.5 gigawatts of utility-scale solar, followed by 8 gigawatts of natural gas and 6.8 gigawatts of wind. However, official projections for solar are consistently understated because they only consider large or utility-scale solar arrays and do not account for .