Policy & Regulatory The United States and Canada target net-zero emissions by 2050 25 Feb 2021 The United States and Canada have agreed to work towards achieving net zero emissions by 2050, also reaffirming their shared commitment to cutting oil and gas methane emissions. The United States, which has just…
Actualidad científica: Del 1 al 25 de febrero, 2021 Microbiología Identifican cómo un hongo almacena recuerdos Marta Pulido Salgado Aunque no posee sistema nervioso central, Physarum polycephalum memoriza la localización de los nutrientes. Física cuántica Un paso clave hacia la Internet cuántica Davide Castelvecchi Un experimento logra conectar tres dispositivos…
Policy & Regulatory France awards 452 MW of solar PV capacity 24 Feb 2021 The French Energy Regulatory Commission has selected 69 PV projects representing a total capacity of 452 MW. In the first category, which comprises ground-mounted PV projects exceeding 5 MW in size, the CRE allocated 216 MW (less than…
Policy & Regulatory The United States officially re-enters the Paris agreement 23 Feb 2021 The United States has officially re-entered the Paris agreement on climate change, after having officially withdrawn in November 2020. The Paris agreement was signed by nearly 200 countries in December 2015, in an attempt to cut…
Table of Contents: February 2021 Article | 22 February 2021 Magmatic flare-up causes crustal thickening at the transition from subduction to continental collision Carlos E. Ganade, Pierre Lanari, Daniela Rubatto, Joerg Hermann, Roberto F. Weinberg et al. Communications Earth & Environment 2 , Article number: 41 | doi: 10.1038/s43247-021-00103-z Article |…
Policy & Regulatory France launches tender for 700 MW of solar PV capacity 22 Feb 2021 The French Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) has launched its 10th tender for the construction of 700 MW of utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) projects exceeding 500 kW in size. The country aims at allocating 450 MW for ground-mounted PV projects…
Volume 6 Issue 2, February 2021 NET result Direct air capture (DAC) of CO2 is a promising negative emissions technology (NET) that could help to achieve climate targets. However, the energy and materials demands of DAC need to be better understood. Based on industrial data, Deutz and Bardow evaluate the…
Volume 11 Issue 2, February 2021 Global urban climate projections Climate projections for built landscapes are needed to project risks from climate change in urban settings. In this issue, Lei Zhou and colleagues use an urban climate model emulator with a multi-model archive to estimate that many cities will warm…
Companies EDF’s power generation dipped by 10% in 2020 to 502 TWh 19 Feb 2021 EDF has released its 2020 full-year results, posting a -3.4% decline in its turnover to €69bn and an 87% fall in its net results to €0.7bn. The group’s power generation declined by 10% to 502…
Policy & Regulatory Poland plans to deploy smart meters at 80% of end users by 2028 18 Feb 2021 The Sejm, Poland’s lower house, is currently examining an amendment to the Energy Law, which would force distribution system operators (DSOs) to roll out electricity smart meters at 80% of consumers by…
Volume 2 Issue 2, February 2021 Glaciers in the Himalaya and Karakoram mountain ranges provide freshwater and hydropower to millions of people, but are also melting at unsustainably high rates. This Review discusses recent and projected changes in glacier melt and resulting implications for regional water-related hazards and water resources….
Companies South Africa’s Eskom should unbundle its transmission grid by end-2021 17 Feb 2021 South Africa’s state-owned power utility Eskom intends to complete the legal separation of its power transmission unit by the end of 2021. The generation and distribution should follow in 2022. As presented in November 2019, Eskom…
Policy & Regulatory Germany’s Bundestrat approves law to fast-track 30 transmission projects 16 Feb 2021 The Bundesrat, Germany’s upper house, has approved the Federal Requirements Plan Act, which will fast-track 35 power network expansion projects, including the 1.4 GW NeuConnect HVDC submarine power cable between Germany and England (United Kingdom), the 700 MW…
Policy & Regulatory South Africa will launch a tender for 2,600 MW of wind and solar capacity 15 Feb 2021 South Africa plans to issue a request for proposal for 2,600 MW from wind and solar projects as part of Bid Window 5 in the coming weeks. Another bid window is…
Volume 11 Issue 2, February 2021 Global urban climate projections Climate projections for built landscapes are needed to project risks from climate change in urban settings. In this issue, Lei Zhou and colleagues use an urban climate model emulator with a multi-model archive to estimate that many cities will warm…
Policy & Regulatory China considers 40% of renewables (including hydro) in its 2030 power mix 12 Feb 2021 The National Energy Administration (NEA), which regulates the energy sector in China, has proposed to increase the share of renewables in power generation from 28.2% (including hydropower) in 2020 to 40% in 2030….
Policy & Regulatory France’s GHG emissions declined by 1.7% in 2019 to 437 MtCO2eq 11 Feb 2021 According to the CITEPA, France’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reached 437 MtCO2 in 2019, a decrease of 1.7% compared to 2018. This represents a 19.7% decrease compared to 1990 and a 20.7% decrease compared…
Policy & Regulatory France awards 520 MW of onshore wind capacity in auction 10 Feb 2021 The French Ministry for the Ecological Transition has selected 15 onshore wind power projects representing a total capacity of 520 MW at an average price of €59.5/MWh (-0.3% compared to the previous tender) in its AO7…
Daily Report Wednesday, 10 February 2021 United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) Policy Councils Meeting 2021 The Policy Council on “The Right to the City and Inclusive Territories” met this Tuesday, discussing, among other issues, the role of local governments in ensuring respect for human rights. Speakers noted that the…
Policy & Regulatory The Crown Estate (UK) awards leases for 8 GW of offshore wind projects 9 Feb 2021 The UK Crown Estate has selected six proposed new offshore wind projects in the waters around England and Wales (United Kingdom), which represents just under 8 GW of potential new offshore wind…
Policy & Regulatory Russia plans to tender 500 MW of solar capacity in June 2021 8 Feb 2021 The Russian government intends to tender 500 MW of solar capacity in 2021. The auction, which is managed by the trading system administrator JSC ATS, is likely to take place in June 2021….
En armonía con la naturaleza Veinticuatro / siete ¿Qué podemos hacer para vivir en armonía con la naturaleza? Los ecólogos de Krebs #SabrososSanosSustentables Naturalista destacado Calendario de eventos Veinticuatro / siete ¿Qué podemos hacer para vivir en armonía con la naturaleza? ¿Cuántas decisiones tomamos a lo largo del día? Muchas…
Policy & Regulatory Denmark approves a 3 GW offshore wind hub in the North Sea 5 Feb 2021 The Danish coalition government has approved the creation of a 3 GW offshore wind energy island located 80 km from the shore of Jutland. It could be expanded to a capacity of 10 GW at…
Policy & Regulatory Poland adopts its new energy policy until 2040 4 Feb 2021 The Council of Ministers of Poland has approved Poland’s energy policy until 2040, which aims to shift its power mix to less emitting energy sources and will limit the share of coal in electricity production to…
Volume 5 Issue 2, February 2021 Tropical forest community structure A view through the canopy of this Bornean rain forest in Lambir Hills National Park (Malaysia) shows the diversity of plant forms present in one of the most species-rich forests on Earth, where fundamental trade-offs in resource allocation constrain tree…
Policy & Regulatory India issues tender for 5 GW of solar power projects 2 Feb 2021 The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency has launched a tender, inviting state-owned power generation companies to develop 5 GW of grid-connected solar power projects under the third tranche of phase II of the Central Public Sector…
Policy & Regulatory The US extends the wind energy production tax credit through 2021 1 Feb 2021 The US Congress has extended the production tax credit (PTC) for wind power projects at 60% of the full credit amount (US$1.8c/kWh) for another year until the end of 2021, and qualifying wind projects will have…
Publication – A new dawn for the US energy policy President Biden’s first days of office are set to reverse many of the policies of the past four years, and to restore an emphasis on climate policies. Our latest analysis takes an in-depth look at energy trends under President Trump’s…
Policy & Regulatory The US president signs a series of executive orders on climate change 29 Jan 2021 The US president has signed a series of executive actions to address climate change. The orders intend to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies, to pause to all oil and gas drilling on federal…