Georgia Elliott-Smith’s Post

The world is dependent upon fossil fuels, which provide about 80% of world energy. Energy transitions take time. The first energy transition from wood to coal and fossil fuels began around 1800, and is still ongoing. 3 billion people still use biomass-wood and cosl and dung for heating and cooking. Transitioning electricity to renewable power is the easy part. Transitioning ships, jets, ag equipment, and key industrial processes, such as making iron, steel, fertilizer, will take longer. Taxing fossil fuels as retribution, or to finance a transition to new energy sources, will only make energy more expensive, and make the transition longer. It will hurt the poor and people who use less electricity. There are few energy transition people who have any understanding of the math and science involved.

This is fantastic news! #FossilFuelImpacts #SarahFinch "The climate impact of burning coal, oil and gas must be taken into account when deciding whether to approve projects, the supreme court in London has ruled. The landmark judgment, handed down on Thursday, sets an important precedent on whether the “inevitable” future greenhouse gas emissions of a fossil fuel project should be considered. Campaigners hailed the ruling as a “huge win in the fight for a livable climate” and said it gave a boost to several other domestic lawsuits challenging fossil fuel extraction. The case was initiated by the campaigner Sarah Finch, who challenged Surrey county council’s decision to extend planning permission for an oil drilling well at Horse Hill, on the Weald. She argued it should have accounted for greenhouse gas emissions from using the oil when assessing the environmental impacts of the project, not only the drilling site itself. These are known as “scope 3” or downstream emissions. The council argued it had discretion to decide what the full impact of a project would be. While the lower courts were not sympathetic to Finch’s arguments, the majority of the supreme court said it was “plain” that the combustion emissions of an oil project were part of its overall environmental effects. “The whole purpose of extracting fossil fuels is to make hydrocarbons available for combustion,” three of the five judges agreed. “It can therefore be said with virtual certainty that, once oil has been extracted from the ground, the carbon contained within it will sooner or later be released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide and so will contribute to global warming.” The International Energy Agency has said no new oil and gas exploration should take place if the world is to limit global heating to 1.5C (2.7F) above pre-industrial temperatures. The court noted that the law governing environmental impact assessments in the UK did not impose a geographical limit on impacts. “In principle, all likely significant effects of the project must be assessed, irrespective of where (or when) those effects will be generated or felt. There is no justification for limiting the scope of the assessment to effects which are expected to occur at or near the site of the project.” The court emphasised that proper impact assessment was key to ensuring democratic legitimacy of decisions that affected the environment. “You can only care about what you know about,” it said. ..."

When is this Government going to stop backing down and away from its climate commitments? I feel at odds with a government more concerned about beating Labour than doing the right thing. What could be more “more pragmatic, proportionate and realistic” than taking a world-leading stance to protect our planet, invest in green technologies, do good, and ensure our children and their children have a future? Stop looking at short term vote politics. Labour sadly no better. The plot has been lost. Can the Lib Dems and Greens work together if enough sensible, caring MPs who left disillusioned by the fiasco of the last three years, work together? I hope... but suspect I am not the only one despairingly scratching my head wondering which party to vote for and feeling we are at the bottom of a barrel. If you do care, sign the petition, add your voice to protect our oceans. Together we are many who care. #climatechange #climatecrisis #climateaction https://lnkd.in/ensVRBV3

We welcome Biden administration rules to reduce gas and oil drilling on public lands and hope court challenges do not derail this important step to mitigate the climate crisis. https://lnkd.in/epird--n

We welcome Biden administration rules to reduce gas and oil drilling on public lands and hope court challenges do not derail this important step to mitigate the climate crisis. https://lnkd.in/g8Er8arN

Plenty covered in this edition of Currents, including your opportunity to support revised groundwater allocation rules, a deep dive on the mechanics of thermal trading, and the end of this year's short legislative session in Salem.

👀 Where are you watching today? The High-Level Dialogue starts at 2pm. Watch government and business leaders talk all things coal phase-out: https://lnkd.in/dE-rUPNJ

Sen. Manchin has introduced a bill to unleash the fossil fuel industry on our federal lands and waters and make it harder for communities to protect themselves from pollution. This toxic legislation is straight from Big Oil’s playbook, and it’s being voted on by senators in the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee tomorrow: Wednesday 7/31. Will you help stop it? Please call any or all senators listed below and ask them to vote NO on the Energy Permitting and Reform Act of 2024. This bill requires the federal government to offer 60 million acres off our coast for sale to Big Oil every year. It also allows mining companies to claim thousands of acres of our public lands to dump their waste. It’s a disaster for communities, our public lands and waters, and the climate. Sen. Wyden (OR): 202-224-5244 Sen. Cantwell (WA): 202-224-3441 Sen. Heinrich (NM): 202-224-5521 Sen. Hirono (HI): 202-224-6361 Sen. King (ME): 202-224-5344 Sen. Cortez Masto (NV): 202-224-3542 Sen. Hickenlooper (CO): 202-224-5941 Sen. Padilla (CA): 202-224-3553

Water Is Life. The Line 5 Oil Pipeline Threatens So Much Of It

Let's not take drought impact lightly! Over the past two decades droughts amounted to approximately $28 billion loss in hydropower generation across the United States, let alone its adverse environmental impact often compensated by reliance on natural gas leading to substantial emissions of CO2, SO2 and NOX. For more, please see our paper led by Pouya Moghaddasi with contributions of Keyhan Gavahi and Hamed Moftakhari https://lnkd.in/euyBnTby