Roll Forward Environment

03/29/2025

Used EV batteries may hold far greater value than initially expected. The team aims to ensure components are given a second life, either as parts in batteries needing service and repair, or repurposed for energy storage systems with a lifespan of up to 15 additional years.

Researchers have found a way to give used EV batteries a second life, extending their lifespan by up to 15 more years.

03/26/2025

“The core of it is about care, and kindness, and connection, and compassion, and generosity,” Hawken said. “That’s where regeneration starts.”

Hawken, author of Carbon: The Book of Life, argues that the climate movement is thinking about its work, and messaging, all wrong.

In a new book, Paul Hawken writes that carbon isn’t the enemy, but the animating force of life.

02/27/2025

As Germany prepares for a new government, climate experts are hopeful the country will continue to be a leader.

“A lot of the policies the new government will put forward might not come in the name of climate, but it will be for prosperity, innovation and competitiveness.”

Germany has long been considered to have relatively ambitious climate goals and it’s likely that combatting climate change will remain a priority.

02/26/2025

“This decision marks a monumental leap forward in climate litigation, placing some of the world’s largest fossil fuel companies on track to face trial for their role in deliberately misleading the public about climate change while suppressing clean energy alternatives.”

Climate litigation activity is heating up in the US as a lawsuit against coal and oil companies moves closer to the discovery stage

02/26/2025

Indigenous and local community-centered solutions to deforestation are among the most effective and enduring strategies for mitigating climate change. Social innovators in these communities pioneered a new playbook for getting the world to take notice.

02/26/2025

If we had approached WWII in the same way we are approaching the climate crisis…

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/picture/2025/feb/18/jon-davis-uk-government-climate-crisis-cartoon

02/26/2025

Introducing a pack of over 160 grey wolves would control the deer population and could lead to significant woodland regeneration, absorbing up to 1 million metric tonnes of CO2 annually. This would account for 5% of the UK's woodland carbon removal target.

Scotland's red deer population has skyrocketed to approximately 400,000, with no natural predators like grey wolves to control their numbers.

02/26/2025

The refrigerators, named Koolboks and manufactured in Kenya, are fitted with ice compartments that can chill food even without a source of power. The devices can keep food cool for up to four days without electricity, even with limited sunlight.

The off-grid refrigerators can provide continuous refrigeration for up to four days

02/26/2025

Yet another battery storage facility is operational and adding energy capacity in Texas. Apex Clean Energy announced this week that its 100-megawatt (MW) battery energy storage system (BESS) in Hidalgo County is up and running.

Apex Clean Energy of Virginia announced that its Hidalgo County, Texas, facility has powered on.

02/25/2025

A new analysis shows that a clear majority of people submitting comments on a planned central Ohio solar farm support the project — a stark contrast with how opponents have portrayed public sentiment. 80% of commenters expressed support for its project.

A large majority of public commenters support Open Road Renewables' plan to build a big agrivoltaics project in central Ohio.

02/25/2025

PV Circonomy, a California company, has taken up the task of solar panel recycling with its proprietary automated technology.

With a 99.3% material recovery rate, the company’s technology reduces waste and allows for the reuse of valuable resources.

With a 99.3% material recovery rate, the company's technology reduces waste and allows for the reuse of valuable resources.

02/25/2025

California has kicked off 2025 with impressive clean electricity generation, marked by a decline in gas use, increased wind and battery output, and—last Sunday—solar meeting nearly 100% of grid demand in the middle of winter.

Forty-eight days into 2025, CAISO gas use for electricity is down almost 28%, while battery use is up 78%, and solar has already met 100% of demand in the midst of winter.

02/25/2025

The UN conference on biodiversity that ran out of time last year will resume its work Tuesday in Rome with money at the top of the agenda.

That is, how to spend what’s been pledged so far — and how to raise a lot more to help preserve plant and animal life on Earth.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — An annual United Nations conference on biodiversity that ran out of time last year will resume its work Tuesday in Rome with money at the top of the agenda. That is, how to …

02/25/2025

Despite resistance from the Trump White House, California government officials and administrators at the state’s ports say they are still going full-speed ahead on offshore wind projects.

“We acknowledge uncertainties,” but cite state’s economic strength and targets that extend beyond Trump’s term.

02/25/2025

Colorado River Basin communities, searching for ways to save water in times of drought, are looking to floating solar panels. In Colorado, the solar-powered savings could be big: more than the water used by all of the state’s cities and towns combined.

The solar technology seems like a win-win: It produces power and cuts water losses from evaporation. But big barriers stand in the way.

02/25/2025

US Energy Information Admin. expects 63 GW of new utility-scale electric-generating capacity to be added to the U.S. power grid in 2025.

Together, solar & battery storage account for 81% of the expected total capacity additions, with solar making up over 50% of the increase.

Energy Information Administration - EIA - Official Energy Statistics from the U.S. Government