[GWSG] CAN CH4x2; LA sets emissions goal; CH4 vs. goals; world vs. CH4; groundwater rising; Greenland's subtle tip

[Tilley, Al]

1. Canadian methane emissions from active fields more than doubled in the first half of this year, perhaps as a result of cost-cutting. The government expects to tighten standards to keep on track for carbon neutrality by 2050. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/as-canada-curbs-methane-emissions-new-measurements-show-problem-bigger-than-thought/ar-BB181ui7?ocid=msedgntp

2.  Louisiana’s governor John Bel Edwards has signed an executive order setting a goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. LA joins at least 23 other states and the District of Columbia in setting an emissions goal. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/louisiana-governor-s-goal-net-zero-greenhouse-gases-by-2050/ar-BB189XdA?ocid=msedgdhp

3. The governor of LA spoke as if the gas industry was somehow going to play a constructive role in achieving the state’s emissions goal. Gas propagandists have been busy fostering such foolish impressions and in opposing measures to move toward eliminating emissions from the methane industry. Electrification especially threatens the industry, which hopes to lock itself in with infrastructure expenditures and legislation forbidding its removal.  https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/aug/20/gas-industry-waging-war-against-climate-action

4.  George Harvey argues in CleanTechnica that fossil fuels have a brief future whether Trump has a second term or not. They may have already peaked. “When you have science, the market, and religion all against you, a purchased government is just one more stranded asset.”  https://cleantechnica.com/2020/08/17/fossil-fuels-are-so-so-screwed/

5. In coastal areas groundwater level is higher than sea level. Rising groundwater can bring pollution to the surface and degrade water and power supply before sea level rise becomes a problem. This LA Times article, written after a Nature article highlighted the issue, describes the effects of rising ground water in northern CA. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-08-17/sea-level-rise-flooding-inland-california
Here is the Nature article, “Increasing threat of coastal groundwater hazards from sea-level rise in California,” made available by Springer. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-020-0874-1.epdf?sharing_token=vsEIVOSdf93UfipV4wMLHNRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0P8odRFT2h_wxABOT9NiWFnAAHH5eB0EX3Tu5mE2fc6Lkt2_IjBKmgEvmMHzyDTDTl7xUMXk9YkIxgz-Gwl6hl9tryul_X7xxUYkJHHNrX_5Mokc90inOkY7fEnphvOfoNyttm34S_fyUO17rJVWjkVMBJerejZwg5HEtxs0HzPg8jg9ZhfDozHH9-zsnFBAoThQ8zyMjiiZHtwNUKrRv3arihnOIJSloSIKDLhMs_Ztg87LorimXI4l3RmaBUa4y_v_X3jhUYWnx--wjbLhLQX&tracking_referrer=www.latimes.com
Seven years ago, I heard from a participant that a groundwater study was in progress in FL but I have not seen any report of results. The CA study indicates we are probably close to having some problems.

6. Greenland is indeed melting. Rather than thinking of its state in terms of a tipping point, though, it better fits the historical records to think of its mass loss as a series of plateaus. The tipping point may exist somewhere among the records but we may not know whether it has passed. https://climatecrocks.com/2020/08/17/greenlands-demise-some-clarification/
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