December 2022 - News - lists.bikelover.org

HISTORY IS MORE THAN DATES IN TIME, NOW AFFECTING EVERYONE
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 15 Dec '22

15 Dec '22

# [HISTORY IS MORE THAN DATES IN TIME, NOW AFFECTING EVERYONE](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/10/history-is-more-than-date… in-time-now-affecting-everyone/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2022/12/DC60DBCA-B25A-4028-B48C-8168AE02118C.jpeg)](https:/… content/uploads/2022/12/DC60DBCA-B25A-4028-B48C-8168AE02118C.jpeg) COP27 was infiltrated by fossil energy interests, not in the public interest **THESE EVENTS HAVE SHAPED OUR LIVES, more events to come …….** **December 7, 1941 ~** Japan bombed Pearl Harbor including the USS West Virginia battleship; **December 8, 1941 ~** U.S. declares war on the Empire of Japan; **December 11, 1941 ~** U.S. declares war on Germany and Italy. Over the course of the war, B-29s flew 20,000 sorties and dropped 200,000 tonnes (180,000 tons) of bombs. B-29 gunners were credited with shooting down 27 enemy aircraft. In turn 78 B-29s were lost; 57 B-29 and reconnaissance variants were lost in action and 21 were non-combat losses. **May 8, 1945 ~** Victory in Europe Day (VE Day); **August 6, 1945** ~ The first atomic bomb, named Little Boy, was dropped on Hiroshima from the Enola Gay, a B-29 bomber, at 8:15 AM on The second bomb, named Fat Man, was dropped on Nagasaki from the Bockscar, also a B-29 bomber, at 11:02 AM on **August 9, 1945.** **September 2, 1945 ~** Victory over Japan Day (VJ Day). **December 11, 1946 ~** UNICEF established. UNICEF, originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide. It is herewith proposed that our UUFM donate $500 to aid in relief for the children of the Ukraine. **March 21, 1994 ~** The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) established an international environmental treaty to combat "dangerous human interference with the climate system", in part by stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. [International meetings called Congress of the Parties (COP1 thru COP27) continues negotiations.] **December 11, 1997 ~** United Nations sponsored a Kyoto Protocol. In short, the Kyoto Protocol operationalizes the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change by committing industrialized countries and economies in transition to limit and reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions in accordance with agreed individual targets. China was not included, and the U.S. failed to adopt it. **December 12, 2015 ~** The Paris Agreement (aka Accords) is a legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted by 196 Parties at COP 21 in Paris. The goal is to limit global warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels. To achieve this long-term temperature goal, countries aim to reach global peaking of greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible to achieve a climate neutral world by mid- century. ######+++++++######+++++++######+++++++###### **COP27 UPDATE ~ Historic “loss and damage” deal reached at climate talks but not much else, Channel 4 News Video. See Video:** <https://youtu.be/MQ06Uq8TyZ0> **See Also:** <https://youtu.be/YKukrOHMn3I> URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/10/history-is-more-than-dates-in- time-now-affecting-everyone/>

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Sustainability Students Learn to Repair Broken Solar Panels at Cornell Univ.
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 15 Dec '22

15 Dec '22

# [Sustainability Students Learn to Repair Broken Solar Panels at Cornell Univ.](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/09/sustainability-students-lear… to-repair-broken-solar-panels-at-cornell-univ/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2022/12/1F052C75-FED7-4DB3-9B95-4806EC617A92-300x168.jpg)](… content/uploads/2022/12/1F052C75-FED7-4DB3-9B95-4806EC617A92.jpeg) Members of the Solar Panel Reboot team at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY **Sustainability students bring dead solar panels back to life** From an [Article by Blaine Friedlander, Cornell Chronicle](https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2022/12/sustainability-students- bring-dead-solar-panels-back-life), December 7, 2022 **Students are using polyurethane, resin, epoxy – and gallons of wit – to give new life to cracked, broken and nonworking solar panels.** “We’re refurbishing solar panels and that has probably never been taught in class, as far as we know,” said Anant Gupta ’25, leader of the Cornell University Sustainability Design (CUSD) Solar Panel Reboot team. “By giving these panels a second life, we’re learning how to solve problems that don’t have a definite solution.” **In 2019, Tobias Hanrath, the Marjorie L. Hart ’50 Professor in Engineering at the Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, received 1,200 damaged solar panels from the installers of a utility scale solar farm near Ithaca.** Hanrath, in turn, gave the panels to the CUSD group and asked them to design, implement and test refurbishing methods – and evaluate panel durability. The living-laboratory, circular-economy project paused during the pandemic, but students returned to the panel problem when the university reopened. In addition to Gupta, the current team members include master’s degree students Sarah Alruwaily and Saikant Kamble; and undergraduates En Lo ’25 and Michelle Yang ’26. In their Ward Laboratory setup, an extra space to conduct work adjacent to the Engineering Quad, the students test the panels using a halogen light array system, originally built by the Cornell chapter of Engineers for a Sustainable World. The apparatus imitates the sun. The students – who hope to create a handbook on the process – test each solar panel’s performance and measure power output. “In class, you can always look in the textbook and find an answer. You get your exam back and there’s a solution key,” Gupta said. “As we work through problems on these broken solar panels, there’s no one to say that’s right or that’s wrong. We’ve encountered weird problems, that if you look online, you won’t find an answer. We figure it out for ourselves and I think that’s valuable.” **To fix damaged glass, for example, they put the panel on a flat surface and use liquid resin to repair it. That’s logical. The setback: the resin does not settle evenly. It bunches up and wrinkles. For now, the students applied thinner coats – which has worked to some extent.** Another big issue: fast degradation when the panels are not in use. The students believe that deterioration occurs in each panel’s junction box system – the wires that connect panels to each other. “Every time we test the panels, they degrade,” Gupta said. “We’re sort of sapping a little bit of life out of them, because we’re disconnecting and connecting, but we’re trying to figure out how to make sure our power data results are reliable.” **One new panel’s output is about 400 watts per hour. After the reboot team finishes, the students aim to achieve an output of 150 watts. Some of the renewed panels have gone to the Ithaca Re-Use Center, where they have found new homes.** In fact, the group has begun talking with local farmers to sell them refurbished panels for production agriculture needs – such as powering a small irrigation system, a water pump, a fan or a few barn lights – where a full- power electric system isn’t needed. “We’ve met with farmers and I was amazed by how much a refurbished solar panel can help them,” Alruwaily said. “It had never crossed my mind that a repaired item like a solar panel can do that. It was a proverbial light-bulb moment for me.” Gupta said the group aims to connect further with the local community and wishes to find more opportunities for refurbished panels. For Yang, the team’s youngest member, this was an opportunity to work and absorb. “Refurbishing panels feels very fresh,” she said. “You go to the Ward lab and put on gloves, wash down the panels, refurbish them and conduct testing. We’re learning firsthand about energy.” URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/09/sustainability-students-learn- to-repair-broken-solar-panels-at-cornell-univ/>

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The “Dirty Deal” of Senator Manchin Threatens Our Planet
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 15 Dec '22

15 Dec '22

# [The “Dirty Deal” of Senator Manchin Threatens Our Planet](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/08/the-%e2%80%9cdirty- deal%e2%80%9d-of-senator-manchin-threatens-our-planet/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2022/12/42750114-2DCB-426F-BD7C-10831BB2E4FA-300x198.jpg)](… content/uploads/2022/12/42750114-2DCB-426F-BD7C-10831BB2E4FA.jpeg) Join CCAN's Virtual Night of Action to STOP Manchin's Dirty Deal! **Manchin Releases Permitting Text and Urges Colleagues to Support MVP and Permitting Amendment to NDAA** From the [Appeal of Grace Tuttle, Protect Our Water—Heritage—Rights](https://act.chesapeakeclimate.org/page/46961/data/1), December 7, 2022 **Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, released the full text of the Building American Energy Security Act of 2022. He also urged his colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support amending the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to include this comprehensive, bipartisan permitting reform and complete the critical Mountain Valley Pipeline. “Failing to pass the bipartisan, comprehensive energy permitting reform that our country desperately needs is not an acceptable option. As our energy security becomes more threatened every day, Americans are demanding Congress put politics aside and act on commonsense solutions to solve the issues facing us. The Senate must vote to amend the NDAA to ensure the comprehensive, bipartisan permitting reform our country desperately needs is included,” said Chairman Manchin.** To read the Building American Energy Security Act of 2022 in full, [click here.](https://www.energy.senate.gov/services/files/FAED4818-E382-4210-B452… [To read a summary of the changes, click here](https://www.energy.senate.gov/services/files/66701873-A0CC-4DD3-A5A0-…. **CCAN Event:** **RSVP** : ** <https://act.chesapeakeclimate.org/page/46961/data/1>** **Description: Join CCAN 's Virtual Night of Action to STOP Manchin's Dirty Deal!** It's time. Our senators need to hear from us. We will not stand for Manchin's dirty deal. We can't make policy with backroom negotiations that exclude impacted communities. We can't keep feeding our addiction to fossil fuels. **Our goal is to get 150 residents to email their senator in one night to stop the dirty deal. 6:00-6:15 Latest policy update, Q&A 6:15-6:30 Outreach to personal VA friends and family 6:30-7:00 Textbank with CCAN ** >> _Grace Tuttle, Development & Programs Coordinator Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights (POWHR)_ #######+++++++#######+++++++######## **P.S. The members of the US Congress need to hear from you. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) is trying to include his Dirty Deal – to roll back bedrock environmental protections and force the construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline – in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). We can only block this if enough Senators stand up and promise to vote against the NDAA if it includes the Dirty Deal.** **Priority List:** Senator Kaine (202) 224-4024 Senator Warner (202) 224-2023 Senator Carper (202) 224-2441 Senator Schumer (202) 224-6542 Senator Schatz (202) 224-3934 Senator Murray (202) 224-2621 Senator Reed (202) 224-4642 Senator Leahy (202) 224-4242 Senator Warnock (202) 224-3643 URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/08/the-%e2%80%9cdirty- deal%e2%80%9d-of-senator-manchin-threatens-our-planet/>

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ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE? ~ Renono Gas-Fired Power Plant Given +18 Months Extension
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 15 Dec '22

15 Dec '22

# [ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE? ~ Renono Gas-Fired Power Plant Given +18 Months Extension](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/06/environmental-justice- renono-gas-fired-power-plant-given-18-months-extension/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2022/12/BAA2EE41-79BB-4466-9424-DB94DDCCC61F-300x224.jpg)](… content/uploads/2022/12/BAA2EE41-79BB-4466-9424-DB94DDCCC61F.jpeg) Renovo, PA, is 28 miles northwest of Lock Haven on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River **GROUPS APPEAL PA-DEP’S EXTENSION OF ILLEGAL POWER PLANT AIR PERMIT** From the [Web Site Blog of the Clean Air Council, Pittsburgh, PA](https://cleanair.org), November 22, 2022 RENOVO, PA ~ **The Clean Air Council, PennFuture, and the Center for Biological Diversity have appealed an extension of Renovo Energy Center’s air pollution permit for a large gas-fired power plant — a significant source of new pollution within an environmental justice area.** The extension by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA-DEP) allows the power plant developer an additional 18 months to build the North-Central Pennsylvania power plant. **PA-DEP originally permitted the gas-fired plant in April 2021, but Renovo Energy Center has failed to secure financing to move forward.** This extension comes amid an ongoing appeal by the same groups, challenging the power plant’s air permit, which PA-DEP extended in October. In August, the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board ruled in favor of the groups in that appeal, finding that DEP set pollution limits too high for two harmful pollutants. That legal challenge continues toward trial on other claims. Still, rather than allow the illegal permit to lapse, PA-DEP sent Renovo Energy Center a letter granting the requested extension. PA-DEP did nothing to alter or fix the illegal permit. In their Notice of Appeal, the environmental groups object that the extension is illegal because the permit it extends is illegal and the requirements for an extension were not met. Renovo is an environmental justice area located along the West Branch Susquehanna River. The permit authorizes the plant to emit hundreds of tons of noxious pollutants annually and more greenhouse gases than the City of Pittsburgh. Pollution from the power plant would impose a cost of billions of dollars in impacts to health and communities over the course of its lifetime. The power plant is being developed by Bechtel Corporation, a Virginia-based multinational engineering corporation. “Extending a permit that judges just found to be illegal is a slap in the face to residents of Clinton County and to the rule of law,” said Joseph Otis Minott, Executive Director and Chief Counsel of Clean Air Council, on behalf of all three environmental groups filing this appeal. “Why in the world would DEP break the law just to ensure that a giant fossil fuel power plant can dirty the community’s air? Renewable energy is cleaner, cheaper, and more abundant.” ### **Clean Air Council** is a member-supported, non-profit environmental organization dedicated to protecting everyone’s right to a healthy environment. The Council has offices in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Wilmington, and works through public education, community advocacy, and government oversight to ensure enforcement of environmental laws. For more information, please visit www.cleanair.org. **PennFuture** is leading the transition to a clean energy economy in Pennsylvania and beyond. We are protecting our air, water and land, and empowering citizens to build sustainable communities for future generations. Visit www.pennfuture.org. The **Center for Biological Diversity** is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.7 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places. URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/06/environmental-justice-renono- gas-fired-power-plant-given-18-months-extension/>

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GREENHOUSE GASES (GHG) ~ Let’s Attend to All Those Conventional Oil & Gas Wells
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 15 Dec '22

15 Dec '22

# [GREENHOUSE GASES (GHG) ~ Let’s Attend to All Those Conventional Oil & Gas Wells](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/05/greenhouse-gases-ghg- let%e2%80%99s-attend-to-all-those-conventional-oil-gas-wells/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2022/12/0AC4B130-F6C3-45D2-B224-91DC36340B70.jpeg)](https:/… content/uploads/2022/12/0AC4B130-F6C3-45D2-B224-91DC36340B70.jpeg) The Earthjustice group agrees; plug the leaks a.s.a.p. **Methane mitigation means opportunity for West Virginia** Guest Essay by [Delegate Evan Hansen, Morgantown Dominion Post](https://www.dominionpost.com/2022/12/03/guest-essay-methane-mitigatio… means-opportunity-for-w-va/), Sunday, December 4, 2022 Methane, the primary component of natural gas, is used to heat our homes and cook our food. Yet, much of this valuable natural resource is wasted into thin air via emissions from the many smaller, low-producing wells with leak-prone equipment that dot our landscape. These wells are responsible for roughly half the emissions at U.S. well sites but account for merely 6% of the nation’s oil and gas production. This waste does not serve West Virginians or our economy and must be addressed. Commonsense standards to cut this waste such as those proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency will produce good-paying, family-sustaining jobs and economic opportunities for our residents. The methane mitigation industry is a rapidly expanding field, deploying robust technology to capture emissions, generating revenues that will rev up our economic engine. These jobs create opportunities in communities where natural gas is being sourced, allowing them to profit from the industry directly. As West Virginians, we take pride in our reputation as a top energy producer. The methane mitigation industry will help ensure our status as the fifth- largest energy producer in the United States and will provide our energy workers with continued job security as we promote energy security. This is possible while creating a brighter, healthier future through reduction of the state’s greenhouse gas footprint. I hope you’ll join me in encouraging other legislators to support the EPA’s sensible rule to cut methane emissions from the oil and gas sector, in order to provide new opportunities for West Virginia’s energy workers. _>>> Delegate Evan Hansen represents the current House of Delegates 51st District in Monongalia County._ #######+++++++#######+++++++#######+++++++ **[Clean Air Council, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh& Wilmington, DE](https://cleanair.org), December 5, 2022** Clean Air Council and its supporters have worked for years to urge the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce air pollution from new and existing oil and gas facilities. The gas industry emits large quantities of climate-changing methane as well as smog-causing and health-harming volatile organic compounds (VOC), including known carcinogens like benzene. **Earlier this month, the EPA proposed pollution standards for gas wells and compressor stations that will better protect public health and help address the climate crisis by reducing 36 million tons of methane, 9.7 millions tons of VOCs, and 390,000 tons of air toxics from 2023 to 2035.** This rule requires air pollution inspections at all oil and gas extraction facilities regardless of size and includes significant updates to required pollution control technologies. While the EPA has taken great steps to reduce air pollution from the gas industry, we need them to improve this rule by eliminating the **unnecessary flaring of fracked gas**. **Comments will be accepted until February 13th and there will be two virtual public hearings January 10th and 11th.** [**Click here to urge EPA to adopt stronger pollution standards.**](https://cleanaircouncil.salsalabs.org/fracking/index.html?eTy… URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/05/greenhouse-gases-ghg- let%e2%80%99s-attend-to-all-those-conventional-oil-gas-wells/>

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Greenhouse Gases (GHG) Still the “Elephant in the Room” after COP27
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 15 Dec '22

15 Dec '22

# [Greenhouse Gases (GHG) Still the “Elephant in the Room” after COP27](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/04/greenhouse-gases-ghg-still- the-%e2%80%9celephant-in-the-room%e2%80%9d/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2022/12/54141D15-389E-4651-800C-FCE64A49EE0F-300x150.jpg)](… content/uploads/2022/12/54141D15-389E-4651-800C-FCE64A49EE0F.jpeg) The “Elephant in the Room” is not seen but was obvious at COP27 **Op-ed: It’s time to re-think the United Nations’ COP climate negotiations** From the [Opinion-Editorial by Ruth G. Bell, Environmental Health News](https://www.ehn.org/climate-change-cop-2658803975.html), December 01, 2022 **When you work on climate change, cognitive dissonance is a daily experience. I recently visited West Virginia to bask in the glorious colors of fall. All seemed right with the world — normal in a way that can make one forget the existential crises humming along in the background.** I felt the same jarring disconnect as I watched the now concluded Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It might be time to strip away the parts of this annual ritual that have value and jettison the rest. The people trying to hammer out solutions to this vexing global challenge are serious individuals who care deeply. Some have spent entire careers moving from venue to venue, making their best efforts to find a pathway toward a safer world. The negotiations are sober and sincere. The cognitive dissonance arises because they have nothing to offer that matches the severity of the problem. Carbon emissions might have been worse without this annual attention, but it’s hard to escape that the current pathway is essentially business as usual. What is the return on value of almost 30 years of meetings? We’ve seen record- breaking increases in global average atmospheric carbon dioxide and little progress toward concrete support for poor countries that suffer the most from the climate’s radical changes, though they contributed the least to the destruction. **Climate accords built on mutual trust** ~ The international process has produced breakthroughs. The 2015 Paris Agreement rejected conventional thinking to recognize that each country must find its own way to lower its emissions with steadily more ambitious targets. Its innovation was acknowledging that by working together, each pushing the other to improve, countries could collectively build the momentum toward progress. Then came the Trump years. Progress as envisioned in Paris requires mutual trust. Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord delivered a gut-punch reminder that agreements are not just about signatures on a page. Post-Trump, President Biden recommitted to the accord and brought back John Kerry, who had built the coalition for the Paris success. But even Kerry’s credibility on the world stage can’t erase the doubts made tangible by Trump’s destructive behavior. **Years of talk already (30 years or more)** ~ On one side of the ledger, the COP is an annual platform for the countries that stand to lose the most from mounting emissions. For two weeks, at least, they can make their case on a public stage. **On the other, the meetings have made those with genuine claims into supplicants.** For decades, they brought their case to the streets and the side events. The remedies they propose, like taxing fossil fuel companies’ profits, are out of step with political reality. Their concerns finally became central this year, but the answer they got was, as characterized by David Wallace-Wells, a shell, “vague on all of the important points: who will pay into the fund and how much, who will distribute that money and to whom.” **The credibility of the COP is eroded by years of failure to meet commitments, with many wrong turns and the perception of slow bureaucracy.** And the unstated objective of wealthier countries appears to be to maintain their current lifestyle, only by changing the source of the energy that powers it from fossil fuels to more benign inputs. While efficiency has improved, the U.S. and similar countries continue as wasteful energy consumers. The West doesn’t seem to want to make the kind of changes that might cause a little discomfort, much less **Making the side events the main event** ~ With limited progress toward the root mission of lowering greenhouse emissions, it’s time to rethink COP. **Most of the good news on climate comes from technological developments: the plummeting price and wider availability of solar; advances in wind; improved efficiency.** This suggests shifting from formal negotiations to a consultative platform that facilitates information sharing, financing and partnerships that might produce faster technological change. This would draw on the strongest parts of the meeting process, making the side events into the main event. The hallway conversations are more concrete, informative and realistic than the negotiations. For example, the New York Times highlighted how entrepreneurs came together at the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers program to develop the Waterplan software that helps companies facilitate water resource planning. This model could be strengthened at COP. Annual COP climate talks have also become a magnet for financiers backing the development of energy-efficient technologies. Regular meetings with that focus could broker partnerships that might not happen otherwise. A redesigned COP could also be a place for high-level, off-the-record conversations. Leaders need to meet, but maybe the current model is too formal. Although Copenhagen in 2009 is considered in much of the environmental community to have been a failure, Barack Obama used his time to have unscripted conversations and infuse a sense of urgency. Admittedly, unplanned discussions with heads of state are an outlier. But climate has shifted over time to what is now an ongoing crisis. More frequent if less formal meetings might better meet the urgency of a developing crisis, more akin to generals planning a constantly shifting war. And why not hold these meetings where the impacts on poorer populations can be more readily grasped — out in the field, so to speak. **One piece of the current process that works well is the critically important work of the IPCC,** the independent scientific body founded under the auspices of the World Meteorological Organization and the U.N, Environment Programme. The IPCC is independent of the COP, but it provides the increasingly blunt, comprehensive and credible assessment reports used by UNFCC, policymakers and a world audience. These reports are widely seen as the most reliable sources of scientific information on desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems. Even the deeply conservative U.S. state of Louisiana used IPCC data to prepare its highly acclaimed Coastal Commission Report. A benefit of redesign would be to free the UNFCCC itself from the need for annual conference planning and allow it to be more opportunistic in the best sense, to focus instead on unexpected possibilities of achievement. **Real climate opportunities** ~ Asking whether we should reimagine this convoluted international process will not win me friends in the environmental community. I am aware that raising these questions can be misinterpreted by climate deniers and opponents of collective world action. But not asking the question is equally dangerous, committing us to thinking that repeating the same routine year after year will somehow lead to a better result. The real issue is whether we will assure a minimally habitable world for our children and their children. If the pathway involves stripping down to the essentials to identify real opportunities of change, so be it. >>> Ruth G. Bell is a Public Policy Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/04/greenhouse-gases-ghg-still- the-%e2%80%9celephant-in-the-room%e2%80%9d/>

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Hydrogen is So Elusive, You May Never See It?
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 14 Dec '22

14 Dec '22

# [Hydrogen is So Elusive, You May Never See It?](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/14/hydrogen-is-so-elusive-you-may- never-see-it/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2022/12/E6B7AA86-F39C-4763-803F-71EEDF34F8C1.jpeg)](https:/… content/uploads/2022/12/E6B7AA86-F39C-4763-803F-71EEDF34F8C1.jpeg) What if the fossil fuel interests infiltrated the government, as happened at COP27? **Much of This Hype for Hydrogen “Energy” is Just Smoke and Mirrors?** From an [Article by Jim Walsh and Mia DiFelice, Food & Water Watch](https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/2022/12/13/hydrogen-energy-hype/), December 13, 2022 **The recent outpouring of attention and funds for hydrogen just distracts from renewables, while doubling down on pollution. Industry advocates herald hydrogen energy as the “fuel of the future” — but after clearing away the smokescreen, we find many reasons for skepticism.** Unfortunately, policy makers worldwide are buying into the industry hype, as they finally start looking to address the climate crisis. But with a closer look, it becomes clear that the hydrogen hype is just another greenwashing effort from fossil fuel interests and Big Ag. Ultimately, so-called hydrogen energy isn’t an energy source, but rather an energy-user. Hydrogen “energy” is inherently inefficient, expensive, and emissions-intensive. This hype will cost taxpayers and ratepayers billions of dollars, with few — if any — climate benefits to show for it. **Hydrogen’s Threat to Climate Change** Proponents claim that hydrogen is a greenhouse gas-free energy source. However, this ignores the climate impacts of hydrogen production, transportation, and use. Even so-called green hydrogen, produced with renewables, can divert renewable energy that could otherwise displace fossil fuels. Right now, a whopping 95% of hydrogen we use today comes from methane, sourced mainly from fracking. This gray hydrogen requires both fossil fuel feedstocks and fossil heat for production. Currently, hydrogen production accounts for 2% of global CO2 emissions. Its climate impact is even greater considering methane leakage from hydrogen production. You may have heard of blue hydrogen, too, made with carbon capture technology built to grab CO2 emissions from gray hydrogen production. But research shows that blue hydrogen is worse for the climate than burning coal. It’s also costly — billions in U.S. subsidies for carbon capture have only financed failures. Moreover, carbon capture claims allow dirty energy companies to continue operating business-as-usual, just with a shiny new toy attached. This means more pollution from the fracking that blue and gray hydrogen rely on. Hydrogen, green or otherwise, has a dirty little secret the industry likes to ignore: hydrogen in the air has a climate impact 33 times greater than CO2 over 20 years. That means any leaks — which are likely, due to the small size of hydrogen molecules — would invariably harm the climate. **The “Fuel of the Future” is Less Fuel, More Farm** Though boosters call it the “fuel of the future,” we only use a bit of the hydrogen we produce for energy. The rest goes to a variety of industrial processes, like steel-making and ammonia production for fertilizers. In the U.S., almost 70% of hydrogen produced here goes to oil refining. But worldwide, ammonia fertilizers comprise the vast majority of demand, with the industry pushing to make the U.S. a major exporter. These fertilizers have a huge climate impact, thanks to their fossil fuel feedstocks. Moreover, fertilizer escaping from soil into the air creates nitrous oxide, which has 265 times the global warming potential of CO2. The risks of ammonia are compounded by the fact it can be very explosive. The industry suggests “green” hydrogen can make “carbon-free” fertilizer, but that only greenwashes other issues with fertilizers that need addressing. Big Ag already over-treats fields, leading to polluted waterways and public health problems. If the market expands, so will these issues, its climate impacts, and industry profits. **Hydrogen “Energy” is Expensive, Inefficient, and Harmful** Hydrogen is stored, transported, and burned as-is, but it’s also stored and transported as liquid ammonia. That ammonia is less explosive than pure hydrogen, but still dangerous. Transitioning hydrogen to ammonia, then back to hydrogen at end-use, is also energy-intensive. At the same time, utilities are pushing plans for “hydrogen blending.” That entails mixing hydrogen with fracked gas in pipelines for home heating and energy production. But hydrogen blending can be even more harmful to public health than methane. Burning it releases six times as much nitrogen oxide as burning methane, which worsens respiratory harms and other health impacts. Furthermore, it can require infrastructure changes that increase gas prices for consumers (and profits for private utilities). Moreover, this practice is inefficient, emissions-intensive, and doubles down on the public health risks of fracked gas heating. Any utility or company advocating for hydrogen in our daily lives is just trying to prolong the life of their dirty business models. **Hydrogen Comes for Communities Across the Country** Hydrogen investment is growing around the world. That support will have dire consequences if we don’t have guardrails that stop polluting projects hiding under the guise of “emissions reductions.” Right now, fossil fuel corporations are planning huge blue hydrogen projects, touting their “clean” credentials. But no one should call any of these projects “clean” when they prolong the life of polluting infrastructure, instead of shutting it down. **The Ohio River Valley faces one such project: a massive hydrogen hub spanning Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia. It stands to further harm a region already threatened by fracking and petrochemical infrastructure.** Meanwhile, in New Jersey, the fossil fuel industry is pushing legislation to define hydrogen and other petrochemicals as “renewable natural gas.” This would allow utilities to charge ratepayers for dirty energy investments, while claiming them as “renewable.” In Los Angeles, the City Council is advancing hydrogen plans that will keep dirty power plants online, rather than shutting them down and replacing them with clean renewable energy. **We’ll Stay Vigilant as Hydrogen Hype Rises Higher** No matter the color, hydrogen is full of problems. It greenwashes and entrenches harmful industries like oil refining, fracking, and unsustainable fertilizer. And while there could be a few niche uses for hydrogen energy, there’s no reason to use it in, say, cars and home heating — other than corporate profits. As the hydrogen hype grows, we need to stay wary of industry claims. Before making any investments in hydrogen or issuing permits, governments must evaluate the full impact of hydrogen. That includes comparing it to the tools we already have to transition away from fossil fuels, including electrification, energy efficiency, and clean renewable energy. **Warn your friends and family: Don’t believe the hype!** URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2022/12/14/hydrogen-is-so-elusive-you-may- never-see-it/>

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