Mar 18, 2021 10 am CST
Register here.
Attend this webinar to get an introduction to ERI’s newest tool – the CIVIC Workbook. This series of spreadsheets provides benefit cost analysis templates for the most common and high impact greenhouse gas reduction strategies. Attend this webinar to learn how to use it.
The first part of the webinar will provide a high level overview of the tool, and the remainder of the training will be dedicated to small group help sessions.
Mar 10, 2021, 11 am CST
Register here.
Hazard mitigation planning is important for reducing the impact of disasters and for receiving funding from FEMA following a disaster declaration. Attend this webinar to learn how to address climate risks in your Multi-hazard Mitigation Plan development process.
Read the full story from Massive Science.
Plastic decomposition is sped up by the flash Joule heating method
Recent improvements and price declines associated with wind, solar and battery technologies have disrupted energy markets and created new hope for addressing the climate crisis. However, questions remain regarding the feasibility of scaling up these technologies to more comprehensively meet society’s energy needs. This essay compares the rapid deployment of wind/solar/battery technology to other disruptive innovations that have transformed society. Specifically, innovations brought to market in the last century by Henry Ford (the Model T and the Assembly Line) are analyzed in detail, and lessons learned from their diffusion are applied to the future of energy technology. Many policy makers, anxious to find carbon free sources of energy, have acknowledged the recent advances in wind/solar/battery technologies. A vast array of policy and financial incentives have been implemented globally to encourage production and deployment of these technologies. However, challenges persist with respect to the intermittency of power generated by wind and solar systems. Additionally, the need for large capacity energy storage options that are economical, equitable, and mobile, far exceeds anticipated advances in battery technology. Lessons learned from studying the diffusion of Henry Ford’s innovations suggest that a hydrogen economy will likely become our best option for enabling complete deployment of CO2 free energy.
Read the full story in Wired.
Mechanical cooling revolutionized the global food supply—and accelerated global warming. Peter Dearman’s liquid air engine could change all that.
Read the full story from the University of Illinois.
Industrial hemp, used for fiber and food, is one of the newest crops in Midwestern fields, but high demand has outpaced available data. University of Illinois Extension commercial agriculture educators are working with growers to source field data and provide cutting-edge research through the new Midwestern Hemp Database.
Boneyard Creek is a tributary that flows into the Saline branch of the Vermillion River. The Creek runs through the center of the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana campus and is 3.3 miles (5.3km) long. Beautification efforts to improve the overall appearance and prevent flooding during the summer months have resulted in landscaped stonework around the creek.
Boneyard Creek is home to a variety of fishes. Look at the FISH LIST to learn more about each fish species, or use the FISH KEY to identify the fish species.
The website is updated and maintained as part of the University of Illinois’ Ichthyology class (IB 463).
Read the full story from WVIK.
There’s been a lot of hype around how farmers can make money from selling the carbon their plants naturally remove from the air, but there are still questions about how much of a difference these markets can make in reducing greenhouse gases.
Read the full story in Wired.
The attacker upped sodium hydroxide levels in the Oldsmar, Florida, water supply to extremely dangerous levels.
Read the full story at Treehugger.
While pikas aren’t yet an endangered species, they are sensitive to temperature changes, which means they are vulnerable to the effects of climate change. They have disappeared from some large swaths of land where they had historically been found, and scientists say it just got too hot for them there.
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