ENVIRONMENT POLICIES, ANALYSIS, AND RESOURCES
Latest Environment Posts
Offshore Turbines a Windfall for the Transition to Cleaner Energy
Brief #126 – Environmental Policy
By Todd J. Broadman
Today, 67,000 wind turbines are spinning kilowatts of energy throughout the country. That is the wind behind President Biden’s back in his recent wind energy initiative; that, and his pledge is to cut the nation’s fossil fuel emissions 50 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. The cost to make and deploy wind energy has gone down over 50 percent since 2008. The administration wants to seize the moment; the plan is to install 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind turbines in U.S. waters by 2030.
Trapped by Bureaucrats: The Gray Wolf’s Struggle For Survival
Brief #135 – Environment Policy
By Tim Loftus
After a century of slaughter that brought an iconic species of the North American landscape to the brink of extinction, the gray wolf (Canis lupus) was among the first species to gain protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1974. The ESA had just been signed into law by President Richard M. Nixon the year before and prohibited the “taking” of a listed species without explicit permission. “Taking” meant killing, harassing, or damaging habitat necessary for the survival and recovery of the species. The designation applied to all remaining wolf populations, small as they had become, in the lower-48 states.
Offshore Turbines a Windfall for the Transition to Cleaner Energy
Brief #136 – Environmental Policy
By Todd J. Broadman
Today, 67,000 wind turbines are spinning kilowatts of energy throughout the country. That is the wind behind President Biden’s back in his recent wind energy initiative; that, and his pledge is to cut the nation’s fossil fuel emissions 50 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. The cost to make and deploy wind energy has gone down over 50 percent since 2008. The administration wants to seize the moment; the plan is to install 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind turbines in U.S. waters by 2030.
Climate Change Poses A National Security Threat Says 2 New U.S. Government Reports
Brief #134 – Environmental Policy
By Katelyn Lewis
In dual reports, the U.S. Department of Defense and the National Intelligence Council reached the same conclusion: Climate change poses an exacerbating, adverse effect on national security.
“To keep the nation secure, we must tackle the existential threat of climate change,” the DoD Climate Risk Analysis (DCRA) report said.
Both evidence-based reports were released on Oct. 21 in response to Executive Order 14008.
Climate Change, Silent Killer of the World’s Precious Coral Reefs
Brief #133 – Environment Policy
By Jacob Morton
The world’s coral reefs are dying, and humans are to blame. 14 percent of the world’s coral reefs perished within just ten years from 2009 to 2019, says a report released earlier this month by the International Coral Reef Initiative, a partnership of countries and organizations that works to protect the world’s coral reefs. The cause? Climate change. If we act now, we may have a chance at redemption.
Bears Ears National Monument: A Proper Boundary Reestablished
Brief #132 – Environmental Policy
By Tim Loftus
In December of 2016, President Obama issued Presidential Proclamation 9558 – Establishment of the Bears Ears National Monument. This relatively new monument is unique. Situated in southeastern Utah, the monument was created largely at the behest of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition composed of five Colorado Plateau tribes who share a longstanding cultural connection to the landscape: Hopi, Navajo, Ute Mountain Ute, Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, and Zuni Tribe.
Our Chance to Avert Climate Catastrophe May Have Gone Up in Smoke
Brief #131 – Environment Policy
By Todd J. Broadman
80% of the world’s energy comes from coal, oil and natural gas; carbon sources which account for 89% of human-derived CO₂ emissions. These daily emissions have accumulated in the earth’s atmosphere to produce a global climate crisis; a recent U.N Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report forecasts global average temperature will rise 2.7 degrees Celsius by the year 2100. Accordingly, the U.N. Secretary General António Guterres has warned, “the world is on a catastrophic pathway.”
Introducing A Fossil Fuel State’s Carbon-Pricing Plan
Brief #130 – Environment Policy
By Katelyn Lewis
Pennsylvania’s carbon-pricing plan cleared its final regulatory hurdle on September 1, making the Keystone State the first major fossil fuel state to adopt a cap-and-trade policy.
U.S. Can Become 45% Solar Powered by 2050. Too Much to Ask or Too Important to ignore?
Brief #128 – The Environment
By Jacob Morton
A new report from the Department of Energy shows that solar power has the potential to generate 40% of the nation’s electricity by 2035 and outlines how the nation could move toward producing up to 45% of its electricity from solar power by 2050. The climate crisis suggests this is more than necessary, it is imperative. But does the country have what it takes to make it happen.