Edition 06: March 3, 2025
These days it's a struggle to find stories about progress on climate that don't include China, and to be honest? That's fantastic news!
Majority of New Energy Projects in United States Are Renewable
Nearly all new energy projects completed in the United States last year were renewable, and because of that, the country now gets 44% of its electricity from clean energy sources. Around 90% of energy projects added to the American grid last year were renewable — with solar alone accounting for 80% of those additions. Battery storage capacity nearly doubled last year, but hydro and wind didn’t grow significantly. The vast majority of these recently built clean energy projects can be tied directly back to the Inflation Reduction Act. The Biden-era law has helped quickly scale up domestic clean energy manufacturing capacity while simultaneously making it more affordable for utilities and governments to deploy clean energy projects, but the current administration is trying their best to take back all the funding for these projects. However, it should be noted that their actions are illegal and are actively being challenged in court.
Source: Andy Corbley writes for Good News Network
Researchers Make Aluminum-Ion Batteries More Efficient
Right now lithium-ion batteries are the most popular type of batteries for climate solutions like electrified transportation, but they require extensive amounts of conflict minerals. Because of that, researchers have been trying to develop less harmful yet more efficient alternatives, and a group of researchers in China might have cracked the code when it comes to aluminum-ion ones. Aluminum-ion batteries are quicker charging, easier to recycle, and require less conflict minerals compared to lithium-ion ones. However, they couldn’t compete financially with them until now. The researchers developed a solid-state electrolyte for the battery by adding an inert fluoride salt, and it is significantly cheaper to manufacture than the current liquid electrolytes used. Further research is needed before these solid-state aluminum-ion batteries can be commercialized, but it just proves once again that experts aren’t ignoring the known issues with climate solutions.
Source: Marija Maisch writes for PV Magazine
France Set to Limit PFAS Chemicals in Consumer Products
Lawmakers in France recently approved a bill to limit PFAS chemicals in certain consumer products. The bill calls for a ban on the manufacture, import, and export of cosmetics, footwear, and textiles containing PFAS, and it is expected to be signed into law by President Macron after a constitutional review. The ban will go into effect next year with cosmetics, footwear, and consumer textiles, but all other textiles containing PFAS, with the exception of personal protective gear, will be phased out by 2030. The bill was set to include PFAS-containing cookware, but it was removed after intense lobbying from the non-stick cookware industry. It does, however, add PFAS chemicals to the list of substances required to be monitored in drinking water supplies. More countries are expected to pass similar legislation because the European Commission recently called on their member countries to monitor and limit PFAS pollution.
Source: Vanessa Zainzinger writes for Chemical & Engineering News
Clean Energy Generates Record 10% of China’s GDP
Clean energy generated a record-breaking 10% of China’s GDP last year by contributing $1.9 trillion to the national economy. Solar, electric vehicles, and batteries made up the majority of that contribution, and these sectors are currently growing three times as fast as the rest of the Chinese economy. That’s because China is investing almost as much in clean energy as the rest of the world combined is on fossil fuels, and they are mainly investing it in scaling up domestic manufacturing capabilities so they can quickly and affordably build out clean energy projects. This incredible feat is further proof that climate action is good for the economy — and that scaling up clean energy is absolutely possible in a short time period with the right support, partnerships, and regulation.
Source: Lauri Myllyvirta, Qi Qin and Chengcheng Qiu write for Carbon Brief
First Environmental Lawsuits Filed Against Trump Administration
The first environmental lawsuits have been filed against the second Trump administration. Two of these lawsuits are focused on executive orders overturning Biden-era bans on offshore drilling. Over the course of the Biden administration, nearly 800 million acres of coastal waters were protected from future oil and gas drilling, but President Trump has attempted to remove that ban via executive order. Environmental groups including, but not limited to, the Natural Resources Defense Council, Earthjustice, Sierra Club, and Greenpeace are arguing that the Trump administration illegally overturned coastal drilling protections and therefore they must be reinstated. The other lawsuit has been filed by environmental groups and farmers against the U.S. Department of Agriculture for unlawfully removing climate information and tools from their websites. This information, they argue, is vital for farmers to effectively grow and raise food in a changing climate. If the outcomes of the other nearly 100 cases filed against the administration are any indication, then there is a good chance these environmental groups will win their suits. But will the Trump administration actually listen? Only time — and our continued activism — will tell.
Source: Dharna Noor writes for The Guardian
China Breaks Its Own Record for Fastest High-Speed Rail Train
Over the past decade, China has built nearly 28,000 miles of high-speed rail line, and the trains running throughout the rail network are the fastest in the world with an operational speed of 217 mph. However, a new prototype developed for China Railway has broken that record. This prototype was designed to be less noisy, more energy efficient, and have better braking capability than the trains currently in service. With an operational speed of 250 mph, it will officially be the world’s fastest passenger train once it enters service in a few years after further testing. That’s just under half the average speed of a commercial jet — which means we are inching closer and closer to having the technology to make domestic air travel obsolete. Obviously that can’t happen without an extensive rail network, but I think China is well on its way to prove that it is possible in the era of the plane and automobile.
Source: Hassan Tayir writes for CNN
Transitioning to Clean Energy Cheaper Than Carbon Capture
A new study has shown that it is cheaper for most countries to immediately transition to clean energy than to offset emissions with carbon capture technologies. This study looked at whether or not 149 countries could transition to 100% clean energy by 2050, and the researchers concluded that it is absolutely possible — so long as carbon capture isn’t prioritized over transitioning away from fossil fuels. Some carbon capture will still be necessary because of how many tons of greenhouse gases we’ve emitted to date, but far too much funding and development is currently going into carbon capture technologies. This is mostly due to big polluters attempting to avoid extracting less fossil fuels, and that is why many experts have been weary of the rise in carbon capture funding.