In a Big Change to Its Energy Policy, Japan Wants to Make Nuclear Reactors Last Longer.

Japan has chosen a plan to increase the lifespan of its nuclear reactors, signaling a significant change in nuclear policy. The nation also has plans to upgrade outdated reactors and build new ones in light of the paucity of fuel in the world, the rising cost of gas and the requirement to lower its greenhouse gas emissions.

For a nation that had intended to progressively phase out nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in 2011, this is a huge shift.

According to the Financial Times, the public in Tokyo is reconsidering the restarting of its reactors due to the rising cost of energy and concern over blackouts. The 10-year plan for Japan’s updated nuclear strategy, developed by a government advisory council, would hasten the restart of the nation’s current nuclear reactors and extend their operational lives beyond 60 years. Additionally, it would create sophisticated nuclear reactors.

Energy Crisis Is a Possibility.

The panel’s roadmap made reference to the global rise in energy costs that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as reported by the Financial Times, for the first time since the 1973 oil crisis in the midst of a very difficult scenario. We were reminded of the vulnerability of the energy infrastructure in our nation, which puts our energy security at risk.

Eight more nuclear reactors have been restarted since the Fukushima Daiichi disaster when an earthquake and tsunami crippled the plant’s cooling system and power supply. According to the World Nuclear Association, two of Japan’s nuclear reactors were restarted in August and October of 2015 as a result of the disaster.

Before Fukushima, 54 nuclear reactors provided nearly one-third of Japan’s electricity requirements, according to the Financial Times. Nine of the reactors are currently operational, which has increased the nation’s reliance on natural gas, coal, and fuel oil. By 2050, Japan has pledged to have net zero carbon emissions.

The Japanese government has set a target for nuclear power to account for 20 to 22 percent of the nation’s energy supply by 2030 in the wake of Fukushima, according to The Associated Press. But following the accident in 2011, safety regulations were tightened. Only ten of the 27 reactor restart requests made by utility companies in the previous ten years has been granted.

For reactors that have been operational for 30 years, extensions would be permitted every ten years under a new plan developed by the Economy and Industry Ministry and approved by Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority. Additionally, periods, when a reactor was offline, could be deducted from its operational life.

Read More: Arctic Air Brings Dangerously Cold Weather to The U.S., Which Could Test the Grid in Texas

The Parliament Has Not yet Given Its Approval to The New Safety Inspection Regulations.

Takeo Kikkawa, an economist and energy specialist at the International University of Japan, expressed skepticism regarding the continued use of old reactors, claiming that the new policy would permit utility operators to continue using outmoded equipment instead of investing in modern advancements or renewable energy.

Naturally, we should strive to employ cutting-edge technology safely. Thus, prolonging the lives of reactors is a bad idea, according to Kikkawa, as quoted by the Associated Press.

The majority of Japan’s nuclear reactors are older than three decades, and four of them have been given permission to continue operating after operating for more than four decades. Currently online is one of the reactors, which is 40 years old.

Read More: Big Oil Conspired to Mislead the Public, According to A Lawsuit Alleging Climate Terrorism.!

Atomic energy now provides less than 7% of Japan’s total power. To achieve the government’s target of 20 to 22 percent nuclear electricity by 2030, approximately 27 reactors will be required. According to Kikkawa, who was quoted by the Financial Times, this is our final opportunity to move the delayed nuclear program forward in order to reach carbon neutrality for 2050.

The Coldest Christmas in The US in Decades May Have Been Caused by The Climate Crisis.!

This holiday season, the weather will undoubtedly be dreadful over much of the United States.

Over the Christmas holiday, a storm that the National Weather Service (NWS) in Buffalo, New York, described as occurring just once in a generation is predicted to bring record low temperatures and potentially fatal conditions to most of the central and eastern United States.

Please heed the regional warnings, I implore everyone. So far, we’ve made contact with 26 governors in the impacted areas. Visit weather.gov for more details. According to The Independent, President Joe Biden stated this before the catastrophic weather incident. This is not like the snow days you remember as a child. This is important material.

According to the NWS, there are more than 30 states currently covered by advisories and watches, ranging from Florida in the southeast to Washington in the northwest. As of Thursday at lunchtime, almost 300 million Americans were under some kind of winter weather notice or advisory.

According to BBC News, the chilly and wintry weather is advancing eastward and may intensify into a bomb cyclone by Friday.

When a storm’s core air pressure falls by at least 24 millibars in 24 hours, an indication of rapid intensification, it is referred to as a bomb cyclone. They frequently come with blizzards, torrential rain, or thunderstorms.

The NWS reported that a significant and unusual storm system is expected to spread heavy snowfall, high winds, and dangerously cold temperatures from the northern Great Basin to the Plains, Upper Midwest, Great Lakes, and the northern/central Appalachians through early this weekend.

Travel schedules and power are already being affected by the storm. According to Flight Aware, there were 1,932 cancellations and 4,522 delays for flights into, into, and out of the United States as of 1:56 p.m. Eastern Time. According to PowerOutage.us, there were 17,364 people without power in Texas as of 1:48 p.m. Eastern Time, 14,504 in California, and 9,935 in Oregon.

A mass of Arctic air has been flowing south and east over the country in advance of the storm.

According to the NWS, temperatures behind the front had already dropped by 50 degrees F throughout the central High Plains in a matter of hours, with widespread readings of or below zero occurring across most of the central/northern Plains, the northern Rockies, and the Great Basin.

According to BBC News, the storm and cold spell may cause Florida to have its coldest Christmas in 30 years, while other U.S. regions may also see their coldest Christmas in decades. In some areas, the temperature may drop as low as -50 to -70 degrees Fahrenheit.

Read More: The U.K.’s £2 Bus Price Cap Will Lower Vehicle Emissions in England and Promote Public Transportation.

Extreme cold snaps and winter storms like this weekend may still be climate signals even though winter is often the fastest warming season in the United States and the climate crisis is likely making the classic white Christmas ever more unusual.

According to Newsweek, this is due to the Arctic warming roughly four times faster than the global average over the past 40 years. One theory is that as the Arctic warms, the stratospheric polar vortex that usually confines the arctic air to a small ring becomes unstable.

According to MIT meteorologist Judah Cohen, “the frigid air generally limited to the Arctic can migrate southward to the mid-latitudes, including the U.S., Europe, and East Asia.” This can happen as the circulation around the polar vortex becomes less and less circular in shape.

The polar jet stream typically destabilizes along with the polar vortex as it becomes unstable, changing weather patterns. The contrast between cold, Arctic air and warmer, southerly air can foster the ideal environment for a bomb cyclone that is fast increasing.

According to Jason Furtado, a professor of meteorology at the University of Oklahoma, “the creation of any mid-latitude storm system involves a contrast of warm air from the lower latitudes and cold, polar air masses from the high latitudes.” “As a result, low-pressure areas at middle latitudes benefit from this temperature difference. The intensity will intensify more quickly the greater the temperature difference since there will be more energy available to lower the core pressure.

Although it’s not definite that climate change is to blame for the polar vortex’s instability, similar occurrences have been more often over the past 30 years.

They also affect a population that is generally accustomed to milder weather, even in the winter.

According to NWS Weather Prediction Center warning coordination meteorologist Alex Lamers, there will be a more drastic departure than what people and other living things have been experiencing lately, as The Guardian reported.

Read More: The Uk Met Office Projects that By 2023, Global Temperatures Will Be 1.2°c Higher than Pre-Industrial Levels.!

Since people are not acclimated to temperatures that might result in frostbite in less than five minutes, this change could overburden the electricity supply and put people in danger.

Animals could also experience a shock, particularly bird species whose ranges have grown or whose migration has been postponed due to climate change.

Brooke Bateman, director of climate science at the National Audobon Society, warned The Guardian that birds like bluebirds, which frequently time their migration based on weather and food availability, may find themselves unable to handle the cold spell while also attempting to flee from it.

Could the Climate Crisis Be to Blame for the Coldest Christmas in Decades in the United States?

Big Oil Conspired to Mislead the Public, According to A Lawsuit Alleging Climate Terrorism.!

As part of the Climate Desk partnership, this article was originally published by the Guardian and is being reprinted here.

Oil and coal firms are accused of colluding to mislead the public about the climate problem, and the same racketeering legislation that was used to bring down mob chiefs, motorcycle gangs, football executives, and multinational fraudsters will be put to the test against them.

Communities in Puerto Rico who were devastated by Hurricane Maria in 2017 are bringing a lawsuit in an attempt to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for years of deceit.

One of the regions of the world most impacted by climate change in Puerto Rico. It is the ideal location for this climate litigation because it is so dangerously situated and gets attacked from all sides by hurricanes, storm surges, heat waves, and coral bleaching, according to Melissa Sims, senior attorney for the plaintiff’s law firm Milberg.

The 1970 Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act was created to fight organized crime, such as the mafia, but has subsequently been applied in civil courts to argue organized crime claims involving the harms caused by opioids, car emissions, and even e-cigarettes.

A network of paid think tanks, scientists, and other operatives is now accused of conspiring to mislead the public, primarily Puerto Ricans, about the direct connection between their greenhouse gas-emitting products and climate change in the first-ever RICO case involving climate change.

According to the lawsuit, this fossil fuel business, which is still in existence, caused numerous damages as a result of climatic calamities that the defendants knew about but chose to conceal in order to increase profits.

The plaintiffs include 16 Puerto Rican municipalities that were severely impacted by Irma and Maria in September 2017, which resulted in thousands of fatalities, severe food shortages, extensive infrastructural damage, and the longest blackout in US history.

The difference in this [RICO] case, according to senior counsel Sims, is that we have written evidence of the decision made by rival companies, their front groups, scientists, and associations to collaborate in order to sway public opinion about the use of their consumer products by spreading false information.

The defendants, which include ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, and Rio Tinto, formed the Global Climate Coalition as a not-for-profit corporation in 1989 to influence, advertise, and promote the interests of the fossil fuel industry by disseminating false information to their customers and the general public, according to the lawsuit filed in the US federal district court of Puerto Rico.

It contends that supposedly competitive businesses collaborated to mislead customers and create confusion in order to maintain high and lucrative fossil fuel sales and that the GCC was a propaganda apparatus specifically created to oppose the Kyoto protocol, the first significant international effort to combat climate change. A written action plan was created in 1998 to deceive customers into believing that global warming was not happening and that, even if it did, there was no scientific agreement over whether fossil fuels were to blame.

In other words, the action plan purportedly served as a climate change denial strategy that was carried out through a network of dark money invested in think tanks, research institutions, trade associations, and PR agencies. It also served as a road map for an ongoing, open-ended enterprise.

The complaint claims that the oil and coal industries understood that Puerto Rico was particularly vulnerable to climate change-related phenomena, such as hotter and wetter storms, excessive heat, and rising sea levels, as a result of the island’s geographic location.

According to the Germanwatch Climate Risk Index, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and Myanmar have been the three regions most impacted by extreme weather events like storms, floods, heatwaves, and droughts over the past 20 years. These events are becoming more frequent due to greenhouse gas-driven human-caused global warming. A large portion of the island was left without electricity and water in September when Hurricane Ian damaged crucial infrastructures like roads and bridges.

Read More: The Uk Met Office Projects that By 2023, Global Temperatures Will Be 1.2°c Higher than Pre-Industrial Levels.!

The lawsuit claims that the oil and coal companies, along with their international partners, are collectively accountable for at least 40% of greenhouse gases. This puts them at fault for the damages brought on by the storms of 2017 and the likelihood of the island experiencing worse climate disasters in the future.

It’s the most recent in a string of civil class actions that municipalities, towns, and cities have taken against businesses and organizations they claim have harmed locals. Cities have a nearly limitless potential to employ their nuisance statutes and local ordinances, according to Sims, who has also represented Puerto Rico towns in opioid action that led to damages reimbursement.

Read More: The U.K.’s £2 Bus Price Cap Will Lower Vehicle Emissions in England and Promote Public Transportation.

 

Republican and Christian Sims claimed that cities all around the country have realized their potential and are beginning to use it almost like miniature attorneys general. Using their rights under the racketeering and other laws we’ve helped develop over the years, they are increasingly frequently the first ones to bring lawsuits on opioids, Juul electronic cigarettes, pollution, reverse redlining, and now climate change.

Among the defendants accused of consumer fraud, racketeering, antitrust, false misrepresentation, conspiracy to deceive, product liability, and unjust enrichment are seven oil companies, three coal companies, and hundreds of organizations and operatives.

Requests for feedback from the National Mining Association and American Petroleum Institute went unanswered. In statements, a number of the defendants have criticised the litigation.

Arctic Air Brings Dangerously Cold Weather to The U.S., Which Could Test the Grid in Texas

The lower 48 states are being hit by a bomb cyclone of Arctic air that will bring dangerously low temperatures, copious amounts of snow and rain, and blizzard conditions.

It was a “once in a generation winter storm,” according to the Buffalo, New York office of the National Weather Service, which is used to dealing with severe winter weather. Eastern Wyoming may have wind chills as low as -70 degrees Fahrenheit due to the lowest weather in decades, while the Eastern Seaboard will likely experience its coldest Christmas since Taylor Swift was born.

Tragically, the intense cold is also likely to highlight the devastating effects of harsh weather on those who are homeless.

The cold will certainly test the Texas electrical grid, which fell catastrophically in 2021, primarily as a result of the failure of the methane gas system, in addition to driving methane gas costs even higher for people throughout the central United States. The Texas grid now has more than 7,300 megawatts of additional wind, solar, and energy storage capacity, which might assist maintain grid stability.

Read More: 3M Claims that By the End of 2025, It Will Stop Producing and Using Forever Chemicals.!

Research indicates that the fast-warming Arctic may be contributing to the increased likelihood of cold air descending to the south.

Read More: The U.K.’s £2 Bus Price Cap Will Lower Vehicle Emissions in England and Promote Public Transportation.

To Delve Farther Further:

The Texas grid: The Texas Tribune, The Dallas Morning News, Houston Chronicle, OilPrice; Climate Signals background: The Washington Post, AP, CNN, Axios, Reuters; Texas grid:

Amplified by The Arctic

You may subscribe to daily Hot News, follow Climate Nexus on Twitter and Facebook, and visit their news website, Nexus Media News, for additional information on climate change and clean energy.

Explosion on A Russian Gas Pipeline to Europe.!

A section of the Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhhorod natural gas pipeline in western Russia exploded Wednesday, killing three repair workers. One driver was also experiencing shock, according to Reuters. The pipeline is now the main gas export route from Russia to Europe and carries gas from Siberia to central Europe via Ukraine.

According to local authorities, supplies had been redirected and the gas flare had been put out.

The gas pipeline’s damaged part was quickly localized. According to a statement from the Russian gas business Gazprom Transgaz Nizhny Novgorod, which was obtained by Reuters, gas is being delivered to consumers in full using parallel gas pipelines.

According to The Associated Press, Oleg Nikolayev, the governor of the Russia’s Republic of Chuvashia, said it was unclear how long the explosion-related pipeline repairs would take.

The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines exploded beneath the Baltic Sea in September, making the Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhhorod pipeline the main route for gas from Russia to Europe. This pipeline was constructed in the 1980s.

With the excuse that there were equipment problems, Russia abruptly halted supplying gas to Germany through Nord Stream 1 in August. Germany denied these assertions, claiming that Russia was attempting to raise gas costs and spread disbelief.

Just before Russia invaded Ukraine, Germany halted the licensing process for Nord Stream 2, and the pipeline was never used.

According to Reuters, Gazprom stated that it planned to flow 1,518.5 million cubic feet of gas through the Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhhorod pipeline to Europe the day after the incident, a volume commensurate with recent deliveries.

Read More: Australia Announces Its First Wind Zone out At Sea.!

However, according to OilPrice.com, that is just 5.4% of the roughly 5,473.8 billion cubic feet of natural gas that Russia supplied to Europe last year. Europe has started importing liquified natural gas to complement its supply of natural gas from Russia.

A report from the nonprofit organization Environment America claims that a gas pipeline problem occurs in the United States once every 40 hours or thereabouts. Between January 2010 and October 2021, there were around 2,600 pipeline gas discharge occurrences that were significant enough to be reported to the federal government. 328 of them set off explosions and flames, which resulted in 122 fatalities and hundreds of injuries.

Read More: The U.K.’s £2 Bus Price Cap Will Lower Vehicle Emissions in England and Promote Public Transportation.

Approximately 26.6 billion cubic feet of methane gas have been released into the Earth’s atmosphere as a result of leaks that the federal government has documented, which has the same impact on global warming as the annual emissions of more than 2.4 million cars.

The reported gas leaks have cost and damaged about $4 billion since 2010.

According to the analysis, the volume of gas seeping into the environment is significantly more than what is indicated by federal leak reporting or emissions projections from the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Biden Administration Is Taking Steps to Phase out Cf Ls and Promote Le Ds.!

In order to gradually phase out compact fluorescent lightbulbs in favor of even more energy-efficient LEDs, the Biden administration unveiled a new regulation on Monday.

The rule would increase the brightness-per-watt standard from 45 to 120 lumens, more than doubling it. The Department of Energy estimates that the proposed rule will reduce U.S. climate pollution by 131 million metric tonnes of CO2 and 903 thousand tonnes of methane over the next 30 years, or about the annual emissions released by 29 million homes. LED bulbs use significantly less energy and last much longer than CFLs and incandescent bulbs.

The rule is expected to be completed before the conclusion of Biden’s current term, according to the administration.

Read More: Australia Announces Its First Wind Zone out At Sea.!

According to The Hill:

According to calculations from the Energy Department, the proposed regulation that was announced on Monday would save consumers $20 billion in total expenses over the next three decades and stop 131 million metric tonnes of carbon emissions.

Although today’s LEDs are a terrific product, it turns out that the most advanced technology may make the lights much more effective. We use so many light bulbs that this innovation, according to [Appliance Standards Awareness Project]ASAP Executive Director Andrew deLaski, will significantly lower energy expenditures for homes and businesses while reducing climate pollution from power plants.

Compact fluorescent bulbs, which are still available in some stores today but are inferior to LEDs, would likewise come to an end under this proposal.

Read More: The U.K.’s £2 Bus Price Cap Will Lower Vehicle Emissions in England and Promote Public Transportation.

To Delve Farther Further:

Washington Examiner, The Hill, Bloomberg, CNN, and MarketWatch

You may subscribe to daily Hot News, follow Climate Nexus on Twitter and Facebook, and visit their news website, Nexus Media News, for additional information on climate change and clean energy.

 

Australia Announces Its First Wind Zone out At Sea.!

The coast off of Victoria’s southern Gippsland region has been designated as Australia’s first offshore wind zone. The action will aid the country’s transition away from fossil fuels. The government first granted Major Project Status to an offshore wind project, Star of the South, after establishing this zone.

According to a statement from Australia’s Ministry of Climate Change and Electricity, the zone has been declared for a 15,000 square kilometer (5,792 square miles) area of the Bass Strait and has the capacity to handle more than 10 gigawatts of energy. According to Electric, this is roughly equivalent to the energy produced by five coal plants.

The government stated that over the course of the next 15 years, projects in the new offshore wind zone could sustain 300 ongoing operational jobs in addition to over 3,000 development and construction jobs.

According to a statement from Minister for Industry and Science Ed Husic, we want to see more massive projects constructed in the upcoming years. This will facilitate the integration of Australian industry with infrastructure for renewable energy, creating additional jobs for Australian businesses.

Offshore wind, according to Lily D’Ambrosio MP, Minister for Energy and Resources, could assist Victoria in achieving its target of 95% renewable energy by 2035 and ultimately provide renewable energy to millions of households and businesses. The government predicts that by 2050, the region may support 13 gigawatts of wind energy capacity because of Victoria’s breezy coasts.

Read More: The U.K.’s £2 Bus Price Cap Will Lower Vehicle Emissions in England and Promote Public Transportation.

The nation’s first offshore wind farm, Star of the South, is the first offshore wind project to be granted Major Project Status. With 200 wind turbines, the project is anticipated to generate 2.2 gigawatts of energy, enough to power 1.2 million homes. According to Offshore WIND, construction is anticipated to start around 2025, and the first turbine should start producing electricity by 2028.

One of the suggested offshore wind zones was the Bass Strait, off the coast of Gippsland. The Pacific Ocean region of the Hunter in New South Wales, the Pacific Ocean region of the Illawarra in New South Wales, the Southern Ocean region off Portland in Victoria, the Bass Strait region off Northern Tasmania, and the Indian Ocean region off Perth/Bunbury in Western Australia are among the five additional zones being taken into consideration.

Read More: The Uk Met Office Projects that By 2023, Global Temperatures Will Be 1.2°c Higher than Pre-Industrial Levels.!

We want to create a foundation of community cooperation and support around Australia’s exciting new chapter of opening the offshore wind industry. We have some of the best wind resources in the world, said Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen in an August statement regarding the proposed offshore wind zones.

Just one rotation of one offshore wind turbine produces as much energy as the average rooftop solar installation generates in one day. Offshore wind energy has been successfully harnessed for many years in other nations, and the time has come for Australia to embark on the path to securely establishing this dependable and major kind of renewable energy.

The U.K.’s £2 Bus Price Cap Will Lower Vehicle Emissions in England and Promote Public Transportation.

Making bus fares more affordable is the deceptively straightforward strategy the UK government has announced to cut transportation emissions in England.

The UK Department for Transport revealed on Monday a plan to limit bus trips in England to a maximum of two per trip between January 1 and March 31.

Bus Minister Richard Holden stated at the announcement that Britons adore buses. They account for half of all journeys in England and are the most widely used mode of public transportation. In order to assist commuters, families, and students, as well as to help get people back on the bus, we are investing $60 million to cap single bus prices at $2. The program will also eliminate 2 million automobile trips, and it is wonderful to see so many bus operators sign up.

The UK government invested 60 million to make the cap achievable. More than 130 bus companies operating outside of London, including National Express and Stagecoach, will be subject to it.

Tom Stables, CEO of National Express UK, stated in the announcement that more bus ridership is advantageous for the economy, environment, and larger society. We are happy to participate in this program since we are aware that low and exceptional-value fares encourage people to switch to the bus. Furthermore, we are also freezing child fares at 1. This is even better. The time is now to board a bus since it is convenient, affordable, and easy.

The cap will aid English passengers who are experiencing a cost of living problem in addition to lowering traffic congestion and climate-changing emissions by restricting the usage of private vehicles. For a single trip, the average bus fare in England is 2.80, however, in certain remote locations, the price might exceed 5.

According to Graham Vidler, chief executive of the Confederation of Passenger Transport, riding the bus for two allows passengers who are struggling with rising costs to get to work, school, public services, leisure, or visit loved ones while also giving them the opportunity to try a new mode of transportation.

Read More: The Uk Met Office Projects that By 2023, Global Temperatures Will Be 1.2°c Higher than Pre-Industrial Levels.!

In England, Capping Bus prices Is Not a Novel Concept.

According to The Guardian, fares are already restricted at 2 in Greater Manchester, Liverpool, and West Yorkshire and at 1.65 in London. However, it does so at a time when bus travel has declined as a result of the coronavirus shutdown, with a quarter of routes being halted. According to the government, a trial program to promote bus travel in Cornwall, which began in April, has been successful in filling seats with more people. Riders can purchase a 2.50-day ticket in towns or a 5-day pass for the entire region.

Campaigners for public transportation applauded the new price cap but contended that it might be raised.

For the benefit of our wallets, our economy, and our environment, it shouldn’t be limited to three months but should instead be extended permanently, according to Norman Baker of the Campaign for Better Transport (CBT), as quoted in The Guardian.

Read More: Despite Warnings About Climate Change, Coal Use Will Reach a Record High in 2022: IEA

The organization argued that UK citizens use public transportation, including buses and trains, when it’s inexpensive in a blog post on Thursday. For instance, when electric train operator Lumo began offering tickets between Edinburgh and London for an average price of 37, rail replaced air travel as the preferred mode of transportation.

People should be urged to take the buses instead of their cars instead of leaving them at home. An inexpensive, convenient service is required to persuade people to leave their automobiles, Heather of Milnsbridge wrote in the blog post.

The Uk Met Office Projects that By 2023, Global Temperatures Will Be 1.2°c Higher than Pre-Industrial Levels.!

2023 is expected to be one of the warmest years on record for the planet, according to the UK Meteorological Office’s annual worldwide projection for the upcoming year.

According to a press release from the Met Office, the average global temperature is expected to be between 1.08 and 1.32 degrees Celsius higher than the pre-industrial average. This will mark the tenth year in a row that the Earth’s average temperature has risen to at least one degree Celsius higher than pre-industrial levels.

Dr. Nick Dunstone, the Met Office’s chief climate scientist, said that over the past three years, La Ni a has caused sea-surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific to be lower than average, which has led to an overall cooling of the planet.

However, that Is About to Alter.

Our climate model predicts that the three years of successive La Ni conditions will stop the next year and that some areas of the tropical Pacific will return to relatively warmer conditions. According to Dunstone, who was quoted in the news release, this shift will probably cause the global temperature to rise in 2023 relative to 2022.

Professor Adam Scaife, Head of Long-Range Prediction at the Met Office, claims that 2016 was the warmest year on record going back to 1850.

Read More: Solar Panels Are Being Used in A New Project in California to Bring Back Native Prairie and Pollinator Habitat.!

Warmer seas in some areas of the tropical Pacific contributed to an El Ni year in 2016, which raised the average global temperature. Without an El Ni o to raise global temperatures, 2023 might not set any records, but given that greenhouse gas emissions are continuing to rise globally, Scaife predicted in the press release that the following year will likely be another noteworthy one in the series.

Unexpected occurrences like large-scale volcanic eruptions that would temporarily chill the environment are not taken into account by the Met Office prediction.

Temperatures in various parts of the world can vary dramatically from the worldwide average, according to Dr. Doug Smith, one of the Met Office’s top specialists in climate prediction.

The significant temperature difference around the world is hidden by the fact that the global average temperature has been at or above 1C for the past ten years. According to Smith, certain places, like the Arctic, have warmed by several degrees since the beginning of the industrial age.

The average worldwide temperature was predicted by the Met Office to rise by 0.97 to 1.21 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by the end of last year. The global average is currently 1.16 degrees Celsius higher than the pre-industrial norm, according to data collected from January through October of this year.

Read More: The Biden Administration Purchases Oil to Restock the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and Counter Keystone Leak Disruption.!

There is no question that global temperatures are rising, and if humans want to prevent the most severe effects of climate change, we must act rapidly to keep the average world temperature below 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

Richard Allant, a professor of climate science at the University of Reading, told BBC News that until policies are in place to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions, warming will continue to accelerate over the next year and into the future. This will also result in more severe wet, dry, and hot extremes.

Despite Warnings About Climate Change, Coal Use Will Reach a Record High in 2022: IEA

In order to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial levels and prevent the worst effects of the climate crisis, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has warned that coal use must be mainly phased out by 2050.

In spite of this, the International Energy Agency‘s 11th annual Coal Market Report predicts that in 2022, use of the carbon-intensive fuel would hit all-time highs (IEA).

We are not there yet, according to IEA Director of Energy Markets and Security Keisuke Sadamori, who stated in a news release that the world is near to reaching a peak in the use of fossil fuels, with coal projected to be the first to decrease. The demand for coal is steadfast and is projected to reach a record high this year, driving up global emissions.

Despite the scientists’ warnings, coal continues to be the world’s top source of greenhouse gas emissions, the primary energy source for the production of cement, iron, and steel, and the world’s top source of power.

The report’s Executive Summary stated that the IEA had forecast that coal might reach its peak in 2022 or 2023 in 2021. With demand expected to rise by 1.2 percent and reach a record high of more than eight billion tonnes, this seems to be the case. According to the news announcement, this would surpass the previous high set in 2013.

A number of factors that, in some cases, acted against one another in 2022 had an impact on coal use, which prevented the fuel from reaching its potential peak.

Read More: The Biden Administration Purchases Oil to Restock the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and Counter Keystone Leak Disruption.!

According to the Executive Summary, the energy crisis brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine increased gas prices, forcing several regions, most notably Europe, to switch to coal. At the same time, this increase has been partially mitigated by the economic downturn and increased use of renewable energy.

While the amount of coal used to generate power is expected to rise by more than 2%, the amount of coal used in industry is anticipated to fall by more than 1%.

The economic slowdown brought on by ongoing coronavirus lockdowns in China, which consumes 53 percent of the world’s coal, offset a summertime shift to coal as drought and heat waves reduced hydroelectric power but raised demand for air conditioning.

In addition to consumption, it is anticipated that coal-based energy generation will set a record of 10.3 terawatt hours in 2022 and that coal production will rise by 5.4 percent to a new high of 8.3 billion tonnes, according to Reuters.

Read More: Solar Panels Are Being Used in A New Project in California to Bring Back Native Prairie and Pollinator Habitat.!

The fact that coal use is expected to remain stable until 2025 in 2022 unless governments take extra measures to hasten the energy transition, is arguably even more worrisome than this year’s peak.

According to the press release, the spike in coal consumption in Europe is only likely to last a short while, but a decline in coal use there is anticipated to be countered by economic expansion in Asia.

There are some positive indicators. Europe’s consumption of coal should decline to levels below those of 2020 by 2025.

Additionally, despite the fact that the top three coal producers in the world—China, India, and Indonesia—plan to reach record levels of production in 2022, there is little indication that investments in coal export projects would similarly soar. This shows that multinational banking and mining firms are concerned about the long-term prospects for coal.

Read More: A High-Stakes Meeting on Biodiversity Ends with A Deal to Protect 30% of Nature by 2030.

According to Sadamori’s news statement, “there are many indications that the current crisis is speeding the deployment of renewables, energy efficiency, and heat pumps and that this will lower coal demand in the next years.” A secure and sustainable future will be made possible by government initiatives.

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