As the planet continues to warm, the twin challenges of diminishing water supply and growing energy demand will intensify. But water and energy are inextricably linked. For instance, nearly a fifth of California’s energy goes toward water-related activities, while more than a tenth of the state’s electricity comes from hydropower. As society tries to adapt to one challenge, it needs to ensure it doesn’t worsen the other.
To this end, researchers from UC Santa Barbara, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and UC Berkeley have developed a framework to evaluate how different climate adaptations may impact this water-energy nexus. Their research appears in the open access journal Environmental Research Letters.
Airlines could save fuel and reduce emissions on transatlantic flights by hitching a better ride on the jet stream, new research has shown. Commercial flights between New York and London last winter could have used up to 16% less fuel if they had made better use of the fast-moving winds at altitude.
Researchers found flights between London and New York could have used up to 16% less fuel by more accurately following jet stream tailwinds or avoiding headwinds, at a fraction of the cost of other emissions-cutting technologies.
The city of Denver, Colorado, blanketed by smog.
Image: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Satellite data reveals bonds between emissions, pollution and economy
Matthew Carroll
January 26, 2021
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Burning fossil fuels has long powered world economies while contributing to air pollution and the buildup of greenhouse gases. A new analysis of nearly two decades of satellite data shows that economic development, fossil-fuel combustion and air quality are closely linked on the continental and national scales, but can be decoupled at the national level, according to Penn State scientists.
“We know air pollution and economic development are linked, but we want to know how tightly and whether our actions can change this,” said Ruixue Lei, a post-doctoral researcher in the Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric Science. “We found they are not inherently bonded and can be decoupled under favorable policies.”
(Renewable Fuels Association) A comprehensive new study by scientists from Harvard University, Tufts University and Environmental Health & Engineering Inc. shows that using corn ethanol in place of gasoline reduces greenhouse gas emissions by almost half. The “central best estimate” of corn ethanol’s carbon intensity is 46% lower than the average carbon intensity of gasoline, according to the study’s authors, with some corn ethanol in the market today achieving a 61% reduction. The study credits recent efficiency improvements and the adoption of new technologies for the steady reduction in the lifecycle carbon intensity of corn ethanol. The new study will be published in an upcoming volume of