[GWSG] Geothermal energy drill; economics of renewables; sustainability in Babcock Ranch; 8 reasons to hope

[Tilley, Al]

1. Quaise Inc. is completing a pilot project using high-energy waves to drill by melting rock for installing a geothermal power plant. They intend to complete the pilot by the end of the year and to have a small commercial operation by the end of the decade in Oregon. The earth’s heat is used to create steam, which runs a standard turbine—perhaps one at an existing power plant. The company will begin to produce power competing in price with that from gas or coal and hopes to lower costs to the level of wind or solar. Current geothermal plants are restricted to locations where heat is near the surface; the new process is free from the requirement. https://thinc.blog/2025/07/22/is-thisdeath-ray-the-geothermal-answer-or-just-quaizy/
The MIT Technology Review has further information. Technical challenges remain for Quaise. https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/22/1120545/geothermal-drilling-quaise/  (The Review has a paywall but provides a few free stories if you have not read it recently.)
 2. Drawing on reports from the International Renewable Energy Agency and the UN, Carbon Brief lists five reasons why switching to renewables is smart economics. “In 2024, 91% of renewable power projects that were commissioned were more cost effective than any new fossil-fuel alternatives, according to IRENA.” The case for renewables is now so compelling on economic grounds that any further investment in energy from fossil fuels appears perverse. When the implications for the climate are included, the case for fossil fuels seems absolutely sinister.  https://www.carbonbrief.org/un-five-reasons-why-switching-to-renewables-is-smart-economics/?utm_source=cbnewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=2025-07-23&utm_campaign=Daily+Briefing+Clean+energy+breakthrough+Landmark+climate+ruling+due+Japan+eyes+post-Fukushima+nuclear
 3.  South Florida’s Babcock Ranch community has been struck by four hurricanes but has not been flooded, thanks to its design. The fact that it is miles inland and somewhat protected from storm surge helps, but other imitable features make the difference. Amy Wicks, engineer for Babcock Ranch, explains. A second video explains how Babcock Ranch, with almost 2000 homes, suffered eight hours of 100-150 miles an hour winds with no significant damage and no power failures. Its solar panels and battery backups are part of a hardened grid. https://thinc.blog/2025/07/23/floridas-solar-town-is-also-flood-proofed/
4. As the Republican majority in Washington attacks our climate scientists, our legal framework for climate action, and our capacity to monitor and remedy the advance of dangerous heat, it is easy to forget that the US is increasingly a noisy minority actor and nuisance on the international stage. The Guardian lists eight reasons to be hopeful. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/ng-interactive/2025/jul/29/global-future-challenges-optimism

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