June 18 Energy News

Headline News:

“Can The US Survive California’s Drought?” • The drought facing the Western US is bad. Really bad. It is a national and international crisis. California produces more than a third of the vegetables and two-thirds of the fruits and nuts sold in the US, so the drought is affecting more than California and the Southwest. It is threatening our food supply. [CleanTechnica]

Drought in 2020 vs 2021 (US Drought Monitor)

“California Prepares For A Long Wildfire Season As Record Heat Parches The State” • As record heat and an drought tightens their grip, vegetation in California has dried to historic levels, and the region at great risk of wildfires, officials say. “Live fuel moisture remain at or near historic lows at all sites for June 15,” one Bay Area Cal Fire unit tweeted. [CNN]
“The Amount Of Heat The Earth Traps Has Doubled In Just 15 Years, Study Shows” • The planet is trapping roughly double the amount of heat in the atmosphere that it did nearly 15 years ago, according to an alarming new analysis from NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. [CNN]
“Combining Energy Storage And Solar Offers Unexpected Power Reliability Boost” • New research from North Carolina State University and North Carolina Central University finds that when a power system combines energy storage and solar power generation, the result is greater reliability in the system’s ability to handle peak energy demand. [NC State News]
“G7 And SEC: Mandatory Climate Risk Disclosure Needed Now” • G7 leaders met in the UK last week, and climate was high on the agenda, as it must be. One of the areas of agreement among the leaders of the world’s largest economies might seem new but has been in the works for years: mandatory climate disclosures from companies. [CleanTechnica]

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