[GWSG] AMOC muddle; heat pumps rule; $2b buy; House GOP bought; oil hedging; blue carbon; time to shade; internet imperiled

[Tilley, Al]

1. Does a slowing AMOC portend a period of warming? A RealClimate analysis of a recent paper in Nature claiming that it does illustrates the difficulties of the issue. http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2018/07/does-a-slow-amoc-increase-the-rate-of-global-warming/



2. Heat pumps are three times as efficient as straight electric heaters in heating homes. https://qz.com/1331709/global-sales-of-emissions-reducing-heat-pumps-are-soaring/



3. The fossil fuel industry has spent nearly $2 billion on lobbying in the US since 2000, outspending renewable energy-friendly sources by ten to one. The greatest spending came in 2009-10, when the Waxman-Markey carbon control bill passed the house but died in the senate. A standard corporate tactic is to openly adopt pro-environment postures while quietly opposing climate action. New IRS rules from the Trump administration will make it more difficult to track spending in the future. https://thinkprogress.org/fossil-fuel-industry-outspends-environment-groups-on-climate-new-study-231325b4a7e6/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=tp-letters



4. 97% of US House Republicans have voted for a resolution maintaining that "a carbon tax would be detrimental to the United States economy." 39 of the 43 Republican members of the Climate Solutions Caucus voted for the resolution. "The fossil fuel industry still owns the GOP."  https://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-consensus-97-per-cent/2018/jul/20/97-of-house-republicans-foolishly-reject-carbon-taxes



5. Three European-based oil companies are acquiring charging networks as a hedge against electrification of transportation. https://cleantechnica.com/2018/07/19/does-big-oil-think-it-can-transition-to-an-electric-vehicle-world/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+IM-cleantechnica+%28CleanTechnica%29





6. Coastal ecosystems such as salt marshes, sea grasses, and mangroves are several times more effective than forests at sequestering carbon. They perform other services, such as acting as fish nurseries, cleaning water, and lowering coastal storm damage. Existing support for "blue carbon" might be simplified and extended to encourage the development of such coastal resources.   https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X15003905



7. Former adversaries on the issue now agree that with rising heat it is time to enact protection for workers, particularly those who must work outside. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/climate-change-isnt-just-cooking-the-planet-its-cooking-our-workforce/2018/07/19/15dd33e0-89fd-11e8-85ae-511bc1146b0b_story.html?utm_term=.05cb1e85057b



8. The internet depends on buried fiber optic cable and other physical infrastructure. In the US that could soon be compromised by sea level rise. https://mailchi.mp/climatenewsnetwork/flooded-internet-is-possible-by-2035?e=ea792e87f2  ?

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