[GWSG] Extinction points; renewable footprint; solutions canopener; China's H; China's coal; hurricane wind forecast

[Tilley, Al]

1. In The Great Dying 250 million years ago ecosystems generally proved resilient until they crossed a critical line of loss in biodiversity and tipped into collapse. We must reverse our current rate of extinctions to keep from crossing that line. We are now losing species faster than we have in the five previous mass extinction events.  https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/24/ecosystem-collapse-wildlife-losses-permian-triassic-mass-extinction-study

2. For years a standard fret about the energy transition has been that solar and wind would require gigantic stretches of the country. The truth, according to the National Renewable energy Laboratory, is that renewables would require much less land than is now devoted to fossil fuels, and their impact would be far more benign—even setting aside the effects of fossil fuel emissions. https://blog.ucsusa.org/steve-clemmer/how-much-land-would-it-require-to-get-most-of-our-electricity-from-wind-and-solar/

3. NPR has a succinct few minutes on how to evaluate claimed climate solutions. If the solution offered does not involve ceasing to burn fossil fuels as we transition to renewable energy, your resistance should be aroused.  https://www.npr.org/2023/02/26/1159528485/theres-no-shortage-of-climate-solutions-heres-how-to-tell-which-ones-are-legitim
A subset of reactions are called for when the topic is agricultural emissions: watch out if the solution does not involve getting meat off the menu.

4. China is building the world’s largest green hydrogen plant, displacing another one in China. The new plant and the old one both replace gas made from fossil fuels. https://cleantechnica.com/2023/02/26/green-hydrogen-project-is-new-worlds-biggest/

5. China is also engaged in building coal power capacity at a rate six times that of the rest of the world. https://phys.org/news/2023-02-china-ramps-coal-emissions-pledge.html
Both China and India seem to be clinging to coal even as they develop renewables. I don’t understand why. The “need for energy security” both countries claim seems to be at odds with their (and our) need for existential security.

6. As storm strength grows, hurricane force winds are likely to reach further inland in coming years. The First Street Foundation, which has done similar studies for floods, wildfires, and extreme heat, provides an interactive map for 2023-53. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2023/hurricane-risk-map-us-climate/

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