10% of Fossil Fuel Subsidy ‘Could Pay for Green Transition’

Posted on 2019-08-02 by arjaybe

via Just 10% of fossil fuel subsidy cash ‘could pay for green transition’ | Environment | The Guardian

In the global energy market, renewables get about U$100 billion per year in subsidies. Fossil fuels get U$370 billion per year. Subsidies are defined as direct financial or more indirect tax support for purchasers or producers. It has been estimated that diverting from 10 – 30% of the fossil fuel subsidies to renewables would pay for a rapid transition to clean(er) energy.

From the Guardian:

Switching just some of the huge subsidies supporting fossil fuels to renewables would unleash a runaway clean energy revolution, according to a new report, significantly cutting the carbon emissions that are driving the climate crisis.

Coal, oil and gas get more than $370bn (£305bn) a year in support, compared with $100bn for renewables, the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) report found. Just 10-30% of the fossil fuel subsidies would pay for a global transition to clean energy, the IISD said.

To quote Richard Bridle of the International Institute for Sustainable Development:

“Almost everywhere, renewables are so close to being competitive that [a 10-30% subsidy swap] tips the balance, and turns them from a technology that is slowly growing to one that is instantly the most viable and can replace really large amounts of generation,” said Richard Bridle of the IISD. “It goes from being marginal to an absolute no-brainer.”

It will help us reach our climate protection goals and reduce pollution.

“Taking away subsidies from fossil fuels and channelling them towards clean energy would boost their development at a much faster pace, and help secure our climate goals,” said Ipek Gençsü of the Overseas Development Institute. An added bonus is the social and economic benefits, such as reduced air pollution and health spending, she said.

The cost goes up if we include indirect subsidies. Yes, that’s U$5.2 trillion.

The IMF also includes the cost of the damage fossil fuel burning causes to climate and health, leading to an estimate of $5.2tn of fossil fuel subsidies in 2017, or $10m a minute. Ending the subsidies would cut global emissions by about a quarter, the IMF estimates, and halve the number of early deaths from fossil fuel air pollution.

You can find the full article at the Guardian’s website. They might ask you for a donation, but they’ll let you look whether you choose to make one or not.

via Just 10% of fossil fuel subsidy cash ‘could pay for green transition’ | Environment | The Guardian

rjb

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Drought Returning

Posted on 2019-08-01 by arjaybe

“Enchanted Light | New Mexico” by Jim Crotty is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


Since the last report where the drought level was easing due to low temperatures and wet conditions, things are picking up again. While Droughtman seized the opportunity to point out that the wildfire hazard was low, it didn’t last. We’ve had a few hot, dry days and the scale is back up to very high, just short of an extreme hazard. — Breaking news: it just went up to extreme. — July was the only month to exceed normal during this period when we expect to get a good share of our annual precipitation, and it didn’t even reach 115%.

It looks as if the jet stream might be thinking of moving into its usual summer position, which is well to the north of us. When that happens we settle in for that long period of summer heat that we’ve usually had, or at least begun by now. This year, though, the jet stream seems to have stalled with an arm of it looping down to the west of us. That means there’s an avenue for a series of weather systems to pass nearby or right over us. Hence the lower temperatures and wetter weather.

The fire suppression crews got control of the big fire that was threatening to come over the mountain and descend on us. Those people are champs.

One of these times I’m going to have to talk about the deep duff.

rjb

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Guest Post – A Migraine

Posted on 2019-07-29 by Laird Smith

Credit Ben FrantzDale – CC-BY-SA

Guest Post

From time to time I will be publishing posts from guest authors whose writings I think will interest people. Of course, all opinions and assertions in these posts belong solely to the authors and do not necessarily agree with mine. Please direct your praise and criticism to the author. — rjb

Today’s guest author is Laird Smith

Laird Smith


Before I begin I would like to remind you to check out the free novels and audiobooks while you’re on the Green Comet website.

A Migraine

Recently a relative of mine was abroad when a heat related migraine headache struck. The migraine was so intense, the relative was hospitalized.
I was around the same age as my relative when I suffered my first migraine symptoms. At the time I didn’t realize what it was because all I saw was a jagged, colored aura in my vision. It wasn’t until years later, while in my mid twenties, that I really felt the effects of a full blown, knock you down, head splitting, beastly migraine! To deal with it, all I could do was sleep and fortunately I was home at the time. I thought later about the occurrence and realized the migraine came on as a result of lack of sleep. I resolved to not allow myself to be sleep deprived.

I was visiting someone in the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton Alberta, and was browsing through a pamphlet information rack. I came upon an item that spoke of a way to deal with migraine headaches. The pamphlet spoke of the pain centre of the migraine being filled with blood. The key was to transfer that inflamed blood centre to another part of your body. The example they used was your wrist. If you are one of the fortunate ones to be pre-warned of the migraine, then you begin to slap your wrist, hard enough to make it turn pink. When the migraine symptoms depart and the migraine is supposed to come on with its vengeance, it does not, because the inflamed blood centre is now in your wrist!

I decided to try the procedure next time a migraine afflicted me. I stopped being careful about getting enough sleep. Sure enough, not too far along, my vision pre-warned me with an aura, and I wanted to begin the slapping but was in a public setting and didn’t want to make a spectacle of myself. I held my wrist and plunged my thumb into the soft tissue repeatedly. When the aura went away, so did the migraine, mostly. There was a bit of tenderness in my head from the ordeal and I took a pain killer to deal with it. I decided that next time I would take the pain killer as soon as the symptoms manifested themselves and that worked much better. For the next thirty years I dealt with every migraine headache the same way. Never again was I debilitated by the beast!

In 2015, I began to take blood thinners and anti-cholesterol drugs to mitigate a possible stroke after being afflicted with TIA’s (Transient Ischemic Attack.) There have been many days since when I have experienced a lack of sleep and expected to combat the beast again, but didn’t get the migraine symptoms nor the migraine. I don’t really know, but suspect it is the drugs I’m on, that have alleviated the migraine problem.

My journey with migraines has been an eventful one to say the least. I am not a medical doctor nor do I aspire to be one, all I have is my experience which I hope some may find beneficial.

Laird Smith

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment