Free Republic

Sen. Joe Manchin's deal with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer for an oil and gas permitting bill in exchange for the West Virginia senator's support for the White House's $739 billion climate change spending and tax hike, signed into law last week by President Biden, is in jeopardy, as progressives say they are not bound by any agreement and vow to oppose the legislation.

Sheltering from air raid sirens in Kyiv last month, Ukrainian meteorologist Svitlana Krakovska said what we all know: climate change and the war on Ukraine are both rooted in fossil fuels, and our dependence on them. This conflict is hastening a difficult but crucial transition for Germany. In recent years, it has made significant strides in recognizing climate's links with national security. This alone has not freed the country from the tether of Russian oil and gas. The shocking force of Russia's invasion, financed by its grip on the world fossil fuel market, shows that Germany's national security depends on...

Mercedes-Benz EQXX 1,000 km Mercedes-Benz raised eyebrows with the design of the EQXX, a study that closely previews a production model whose main traits are its low weight, aerodynamic efficiency, as well as taking energy from the sun to go further than comparable EVs. When the automaker revealed the concept, it announced that it could do over 621 miles (1,000 km) on one charge. Well, now it has demonstrated that it can actually achieve the number by driving exactly 626 miles (1,008 km), averaging a truly remarkable 8.7 kWh/100km, which equates to 7.14 miles/kWh. However, there is more to this,...

Climate change made the record-smashing deadly 2020 Atlantic hurricane season noticeably wetter, a new study says. And it will likely make this season rainier, too, scientists said. Human-caused climate change made the entire season -- 30 named storms -- drop 5% more rain. During the 14 storms that reached hurricane status the rainfall was 8% heavier, according to the study in Tuesday’s Nature Communications. “It doesn’t sound like a lot, but if you’re near a threshold, a little bit can push you over the top,” said Lawrence Berkeley National Lab climate scientist Michael Wehner, co-author of the paper. “The implication...

RENO, Nev. (AP) — In a rare emergency move, the U.S government temporarily declared a northern Nevada toad endangered Monday, saying a geothermal power plant in the works could result in its extinction. The Fish and Wildlife Service announced it is formally proposing a rule to list the Dixie Valley toad as an endangered species subject to 60 days of public comment under the Endangered Species Act’s normal rulemaking process. But it said the emergency listing goes into effect immediately and will continue for eight months while more permanent protections are considered for the toad at the only place it...

In about half of people, mental illnesses arise before age 18 - add climate change fears and the outlook is grim Suppose you wake up in the night and you notice flames coming from downstairs. You ring for the fire brigade and they say you’re probably imagining it. Anyway, they add, by the time they could get there it would be too late anyway. As you watch your house burn, your feelings might include anger, a sense of betrayal and grief. Is that an extreme metaphor for the feelings of young people towards older generations and governments in regard to...

In July of 2021, this writer took a little trip through rural Missouri. Besides visiting kinfolk whom I hadn’t seen for far too long, one purpose of my trip was simply to do something else, something different. You see, I’d become something of a recluse and I really needed to just go outside, blow the stink off, maybe even commune with Nature, whatever that is. My destination was a spot near the center of the northeast quadrant of the state, about a three-hour trip by car. The most expeditious route from Kansas City would be to take I-70 to Columbia...

The "Greens" promise renewables, solar and wind power, will replace fossil fuels. After all, the wind and sun are free, and they don't pollute! Oops. Now countries that embraced renewables are so desperate for power that they eagerly import coal, the worst polluter of all! Do they apologize? No. Greens never apologize. Germany was a leader in renewable energy, so confident in solar and wind power that they closed half their nuclear plants. Oops. That leaves Germans so short of power that Germans are now desperate to buy fossil fuels from Russia. Even worse, pollution-wise, high-pollution coal now tops wind...

With the influx of competition derived from the initiatives of various automakers, the market offers more electric cars than ever. Range is all the rage when it comes to electric cars and today's EVs don't disappoint. There are numerous choices out there with ample range and this all-important metric continues to rise over time. Disclaimer: the metrics used for this list are from the EPA’s official tests. Due to the variability in electric vehicle range figures, intermingling EPA and third-party tests would convolute this list. Some vehicles, especially the Porsche Taycan, can achieve far better range figures in certain real-world...

A man submerged up to his chin in brown, murky floodwaters and a group of miners covered head to toe in black soot -- these are a few of the images featured at a new climate-inspired photography exhibit at the Kennedy Center called Coal + Ice. The display, running through April 22, features a spread of photos and videos taken across the globe and documents the harmful effects of human activity on the planet. It showcases the work of more than 50 photographers and videographers from around the world and the varying ways climate change manifests. Coal + Ice comes...

The future of a major liquified natural gas facility proposed for northeastern Pennsylvania was thrown into question Monday after its developer settled a legal challenge brought by environmental activists. A subsidiary of New Fortress Energy Inc. agreed to pull the plug on its proposed LNG plant in Wyalusing — at least for now — in an agreement with a coalition of environmental groups that filed suit seeking to overturn the company’s air emissions permit. The $800 million plant was intended to liquify million of gallons of natural gas from the Marcellus Shale gas field per day, with the liquified gas...

On Thursday’s broadcast of CNN’s “New Day,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said European nations that are “much more reliant upon Russia for natural gas and for oil,” are “doubling down” on becoming energy independent through green energy, “and we should be doing the same.” Co-host Brianna Keilar asked, “[W]e’ve seen these reports, the administration’s reaching out to Saudi Arabia and to Venezuela. I think folks that many Americans might consider unsavory characters, in this search for energy, to kind of fill this Russian energy void. How should Americans view this?”

MADISON, Wis. — Over the last 50 years, the average temperature on St. Patrick’s Day in Madison has increased by more than 3 degrees. Madison isn’t alone; close to 97% of weather stations in the United States have seen an increase in average spring temperatures since 1970 (data collected from the Applied Climate Information System). Climate change may have a big impact on the unofficial drink of St. Patrick’s Day: beer. Three of the key ingredients are quite fragile when it comes to rising temperatures and prolonged drought. Large qualities of water are required to brew beer; water makes up...

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D) wants the Biden administration to intervene in the dispute over the state’s Line 5 oil pipeline and shut it down because keeping the pipeline open could result in an oil spill, Nessel says. Nessel told the Royal Oak Area Democratic Club during its March monthly meeting that the Department of Transportation, led by Secretary Pete Buttigieg, has jurisdiction over federal pipeline regulations and could therefore use its authority to close Line 5, according to a video of Nessel’s remarks to the club, which the conservative group Michigan Rising first provided to Breitbart News.

Today’s hawky-dove announcement by The Fed (raises rates by only 25 basis points, but hints that many rate hikes are around the corner. The US Treasury 10Y-5Y curve has slumped to zero as inflation climbs and the number of rate hikes hits 7. Do I detect a trend? And then there is the USD OIS curve. Steep much? And electric battery metal, nickel, is surging … again. Up 66.25%. When they made Narcos, Pablo Escobar should have said “Nickel or Lead” instead of “Silver or Lead.”

Climate change has already made allergy season longer and pollen counts higher, but you ain’t sneezed nothing yet. Climate scientists at the University of Michigan looked at 15 different plant pollens in the United States and used computer simulations to calculate how much worse allergy season will likely get by the year 2100. It’s enough to make allergy sufferers even more red-eyed. As the world warms, allergy season will start weeks earlier and end many days later — and it’ll be worse while it lasts, with pollen levels that could as much as triple in some places, according to a...

President Joe Biden reassured donors Monday that he would use his executive powers to act on climate change, even as energy prices are at record highs. “The climate crisis is the existential threat. That’s not hyperbole; it’s a fact,” Biden said after taking the podium at a Democratic National Committee Fundraiser in Washington, DC. Biden promised to take “aggressive” executive actions on climate regulations even if the Supreme Court overruled him. He acknowledged that progress on the issue of climate change was difficult to achieve in Congress, hinting that donors could help him pressure lawmakers. “Our grandchildren will never forgive...

OVERSCHILD, Netherlands, March 15 (Reuters) - Images of bombed-out hospitals and apartment buildings across Ukraine reminded Jannie and Bert Schrage of their home country during World War Two. Then the retired couple, who live in the north of the Netherlands, realised they had a resource to help slow President Vladimir Putin's campaign – natural gas. The Schrages live above the Groningen gas field, Europe's largest. They have been opposing gas production since earthquakes started to force them out of their homes a decade ago. Now, like a majority of those polled in their province, they say that if it would...

Talks between Riyadh and Beijing have accelerated as the Saudi unhappiness grows with Washington (Rest behind paywall)

The Wall Street Journal reports active talks between Riyadh and Beijing about pricing some Saudi oil sales to China in yuan instead of dollars. Chatter about this sort of arrangement has been ongoing for several years, but recent events have brought a new urgency to talks, according to the report, which says the Saudis are questioning longstanding U.S. security commitments to the Kingdom. Among the issues is what the Saudis believe to be less-than-enthusiastic support for the war in Yemen, the White House's attempt at an Iran nuclear deal, and shock at the American withdrawal from Afghanistan. China is a...