[GWSG] SF checklist; 100% renewable; conveyer shift; drying Amazon; worse winters; renewable growth; wind reliable; GridBanks

[Tilley, Al]

1.  San Francisco has adopted a checklist to be completed before developing with public funds.  It rates the project’s vulnerability to sea level rise and asks for information on steps taken toward adaptation.  It does not prescribe limits or conditions of development, though it does require that sea level rise be considered.  This mild but innovative step toward effective planning for sea level rise deserves imitation.  http://www.climatecentral.org/news/san-francisco-threat-of-sea-level-rise-18189

2.  Burlington, VT, now gets 100% of its power renewably.  Over the past 24 years the municipal utility and the citizens have spent $44.7 million on efficiency measures which now save over $10 million yearly.  The state has set a goal of 90% renewables by 2050.   http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2014/10/24/vermonts-largest-municipal-utility-goes-100-percent-renewable

3.  2.5 million years ago, a shift in the oceanic circulation altered the climate with no help from atmospheric CO2.  We should be alert for similar changes prompted by the current climate disruption.  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141025152717.htm

4.  Since 2000, rainfall has decreased by up to 25% in the southeastern Amazon, threatening to set off a feedback loop which would release significant amounts of carbon from the soil.  http://www.climatecentral.org/news/drying-amazon-carbon-concern-18241?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climatecentral%2FdjOO+Climate+Central+-+Full+Feed

5.  “The risk of severe winters in Europe and northern Asia has been doubled by global warming, according to new research.”  As the polar vortex is weakened by heating in the Arctic, dips in the jet stream become more stable, pulling chilled air south.  http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/26/global-warming-has-doubled-risk-harsh-winters-eurasia-research-finds

6.  Poor nations installed renewable energy at almost twice the rate of rich nations from 2008 to 2013, with 143% growth rate compared to 84% among the better off.  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-28/cost-competitive-clean-energy-installs-surge-in-emerging-nations.html

7.  Fossil fuel power plants are subject to unpredictable shutdowns and to large fuel price variations.  Wind is more reliable.  http://cleantechnica.com/2014/10/28/wind-power-cheaper-reliable-natural-gas/?utm_source=Cleantechnica+News&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=aabafec2d4-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_term=0_b9b83ee7eb-aabafec2d4-331994013

8.  The German firm Alevo is set to begin manufacturing GridBanks, innovative 2 megawatt batteries, next year at an old cigarette factory in North Carolina.   GridBanks are long-lived with no significant increases in internal resistance even after 40,000 recharges.  They are meant to replace fossil fuel backup installations for utilities.  http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2014/10/from-ashes-to-energy-1-billion-alevo-battery-factory-surges-one-the-scene?cmpid=WNL-Wednesday-October29-2014
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