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In Colorado, Residents Seek to Protect Their Dream Homes From a Fracking Nightmare

Elias Shiffman — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 12:39:10 -0500

Distributed by Trice Edney Newswire

“Forever home.” That’s how folks from Aurora, Colorado, whom I met last week describe the houses they bought outside Denver.

Now those dream homes are caught in what may be America's most dire urban fracking nightmare.

Over the last year, Aurora residents have discovered, and began a grassroots challenge against, a plan to erect 174 10-story-high oil wells that stretch horizontally underground for thousands of feet.

The project is to be built next to a pristine, vital reservoir that hugs the city’s edge and shares its name. Nearby communities without reservoirs buy their water from Aurora. The snowmelt-fed water is so clean you can drink it while you swim in it.

That all could change fast. Civitas, an oil company whose biggest investor is the Canadian equivalent of the Social Security Administration, wants to frack under the reservoir, nearby neighborhoods, and close to a Superfund toxic waste site. (“Fracking” is the process by drilling companies inject water, sand, and toxic chemicals underground to extract oil and gas.) The entire area in the proposal is more than 33,000 acres, with one drilling pad within 3,000 feet of a neighborhood.

What started as a Facebook page grew into a full-fledged campaign involving residents and allied environmental groups pushing city, county, and state officials to stop the fracking proposal from moving forward. Residents only learned of the plan when Civitas started trying to acquire the mineral rights under their houses and common areas controlled by homeowners’ associations.

At public hearings, “it’s the suits versus the T-shirts” says Marsha Goldsmith Kamin, referring to the blue shirts she and other fracking opponents wear. Kamin and her husband learned about the fracking proposal after they moved to the area in November to be closer to their three grandchildren. Opposing the wells amounts to a full-time job for the retiree now.

In Colorado, like most Western states, access to water remains a contentious issue. As its name suggests, the leading opposition group, Save the Aurora Reservoir, leads with the threat to drinking water for much of metro Denver.

Beyond the direct threat of fracking under and around the reservoir, the proposed wells will demand billions of gallons of water that end up so polluted they’re lost to other uses. So Aurora, which has experienced recent droughts, would see precious water used to produce fossil fuels that are accelerating climate change that can make water even more scarce.

The fracking would worsen Denver’s poor air quality as well. The Environmental Protection Agency raised its concern about ozone levels in the Rockies’ Front Range from serious to severe last year. The proposed wells would emit thousands of tons of “volatile organic compounds” and nitrogen oxide that make up ozone.

A nearby Superfund site, created by a now-closed US Air Force base and city and county dumping, could be an unlikely hero in the story. The EPA won’t allow fracking under the unlined landfill, and more recently has raised questions about the impact of fracking on the already-leaking site’s structural integrity. Opponents hope that federal concern will help sway regulators in Colorado.

Opponents have made progress. Civitas agreed to move five well sites. The county commission, which narrowly defeated a drilling halt, this week is considering closing loopholes to its oil and gas ordinances to ensure no development within a mile of the reservoir. US representative Jason Crow wrote to commissioners reiterating residents’ concerns.

But Save the Aurora Reservoir activists are learning how far powerful interests can tilt the playing field. Civitas needs mineral rights from fewer than half of the property owners to force fracking on the rest. While the city has a one-mile setback preventing drilling near the reservoir, opponents must fight for the same from the county.

“We think it’s so obvious that the downside is so much greater than the upside,” says Julie Huygen, an air force veteran who moved to Aurora two years ago. “But it feels like so much of the structure—the laws and regulations and approval process—are really working against us.”

Kamin said she’s fighting for the grandchildren she relocated for. She’s energized by her eight-year-old granddaughter’s desire to take part. “She asked me, 'If they do that to the ground, where are the prairie dogs going to go?'”

Water-Stressed Arizona Says State Will End Leases to Saudi-Owned Farm

Elias Shiffman — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 12:25:49 -0500

An Arizona farm owned by a Saudi Arabian company that grows alfalfa for export is set to lose its access to state land in a move Gov. Katie Hobbs said would “protect Arizona’s water future.”

The farm, in Butler Valley in western Arizona, has been mired in controversy over its pumping of unlimited amounts of groundwater, free of charge, to irrigate its water-thirsty alfalfa crop. The company then ships the alfalfa to Saudi Arabia, where the crop is fed to dairy cows.

Arizona is moving to immediately terminate one lease held by Saudi-owned Fondomonte Arizona, which operates the farm, and will not renew three other leases that are set to expire in February, Governor Hobbs said in a statement this week.

The action by Arizona is the latest sign of a worsening groundwater crisis affecting farmers and communities nationwide. A recent New York Times investigation found that America is depleting its reserves of groundwater at a dangerous rate. The majority of the nation’s drinking-water systems rely on groundwater, as do many farms, particularly in the West.

Arizona, in particular, has seen an explosion of wells, which are getting deeper as users chase falling water levels downward. The state, home to some of the country’s fastest growing communities, said in June that it would stop granting permission to housing projects in the Phoenix area that rely on groundwater.

Alfalfa, grown year-round in Arizona, is a particularly thirsty crop that relies on irrigation. It is mainly used to feed dairy cows and other livestock, which has increasingly made milk and meat products a burden on the nation’s water supply.

Saudi Arabia banned growing alfalfa and other green fodder crops within its own borders in 2018 in a bid to relieve pressure on the kingdom’s water resources.

Arizona’s decision to cancel the Fondomonte leases was triggered by violations by the company, including longstanding equipment problems confirmed during a state inspection earlier this year, the governor said. But the underlying concerns have gone beyond technical violations in a state contending with worsening drought and water scarcity, driven by decades of over-pumping, as well as climate change.

Fondomonte did not immediately return a request for comment.

Fondomonte’s leases, which covered more than 3,000 acres west of Phoenix, had given the Saudi firm license to pump the region’s dwindling groundwater for free. Governor Hobbs had been under pressure to curtail that access.

“It’s unacceptable that Fondomonte has continued to pump unchecked amounts of groundwater out of our state while in clear default on their lease,” Governor Hobbs said. She said she was determined to do “everything in my power to protect Arizona’s water so we can continue to sustainably grow for generations to come.”

Hiroko Tabuchi is an investigative reporter on the Climate desk, reporting widely on money, influence and misinformation in climate policy. More about Hiroko Tabuchi

Japan's thirst for biomass is having a harmful impact on Canada's forests

Elias Shiffman — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 12:17:49 -0500

When you walk through a fresh clearcut in British Columbia, you are surrounded by a “one-dimensional, dead landscape,” says Michelle Connolly of Conservation North, a volunteer conservation group based in the Canadian province.

The forest’s soft, mossy ground, the birdcalls and the cool moisture in the air are gone. In their place, twigs and debris lay everywhere, occasionally interspersed with pieces of garbage. Sound and movement from plants or animals have almost ceased, except for the buzzing of insects. The smell of burned piles of slash — wood debris not profitable enough to bring to a mill — hangs in the air.

“That’s the story of conventional forestry in BC,” Connolly says.

Last month, Connolly visited Japan to share how such scenes are linked to the nation’s “green” energy: A portion of BC’s razed forests are being used to make wood pellets, a type of biofuel that Japan is importing and burning in increasing quantities as an alternative to fossil fuels.

The Japanese government claims wood pellets are “carbon neutral” because trees absorb carbon dioxide throughout their lives and, therefore, do not result in a net increase of atmospheric carbon dioxide when burned. The Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, which is in charge of Japan’s biomass policy, did not respond to a request for comment.

Experts in the field, however, warn that this kind of carbon accounting is dangerously misguided.

Drax’s Meadowbank pellet mill in British Columbia in 2022. Piles of logs and, in the background, what appears to be woodchips await processing into wood pellets. | MIGHTY EARTH

Research by British think tank Chatham House details how woody biomass fuels like wood pellets release a large amount of carbon dioxide during combustion — even more than coal — due to having lower energy density. Burning trees for electricity increases atmospheric carbon dioxide in the near term, precisely when the world most needs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. And when forests are cut, their ability to absorb and sequester carbon is halted for decades.

The Japanese government plans to have biomass contribute 5% of Japan’s power needs by 2030, putting it on par with wind. Hydrogen and ammonia, the government and industry’s controversial long-term bet to decarbonize the power sector, are expected to only contribute 1% by that year.

Japan began seriously investing in woody biomass after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster triggered a sudden shortage of zero-emission energy, as the nation took all of its reactors offline. Beginning in 2012, generous government support for renewable energy projects led to 434 approvals for power plants designed to run either partially or fully on woody biomass, although only 191 had come online as of June 2022 and many don’t use imported pellets.

Still, the country’s wood pellet imports from Canada shot up accordingly, from 76,000 metric tons in 2013 to 1.4 million in 2022, representing 31% of Japan’s total pellet imports that year (other top sources of pellets include Vietnam, the U.S. and Malaysia).

Japan received 40% of all Canadian wood pellet exports in 2022, according to Canadian government statistics. Over the first 10 months of 2023, that figure rose to 55%, with practically all of that coming from BC.

However, Connolly and other experts warn that BC’s overstretched and declining forestry sector may not be able to provide Japan with a steady supply of wood pellets for long — and, for the present, it is leaving a trail of environmental destruction in its wake.

Conservation North’s Michelle Connolly stands in front of an under-construction storage tank at Sumitomo Corp.’s Sendai biomass power plant. | MIGHTY EARTH

Unknown exploitation

Wood pellets are enmeshed in BC’s forestry industry, and proponents claim that pellets help utilize waste generated from producing other products, such as lumber. The catch, according to Connolly, is that “BC’s forestry system is fundamentally unsustainable.”

The province has experienced roughly a century “of forest exploitation, and the last 60 years of that has been ultra-aggressive,” she adds.

Forest land accounts for roughly two-thirds of BC’s total area, and that’s a large area — the province is three times the size of all of Japan. It’s unknown exactly how much of the province’s 600,000 square kilometers of forest remain untouched by logging, but experts and activists warn that such “primary forests” are dwindling. Although BC does release figures for “old growth” logging, primary forests represent a wider category of ecosystems that don’t contain signs of human disturbance but whose trees might not fit the definition of “old growth.”

The results of a government-initiated strategic review of old-growth forests in BC noted in 2020 that the province’s “economy is heavily dependent on trees harvested from primary forests of old trees.” This is especially true of logging in the province’s interior, where “large-scale commercial cutting of primary forests” began 50 or fewer years ago and where it can take “several decades” for replanted trees to be ready for a second harvest.

BC’s pellet industry is located in the interior. As a result, wood pellet feedstock likely comes from clearcut primary forest, whether a pellet mill uses byproducts such as sawmill waste or whole trees sourced directly from a logging site.

Connolly’s home city, Prince George, lies in an area of the BC interior where forests are currently being harvested — in part, for pellets.

Primary forest near Revelstoke, British Columbia. Forest land accounts for roughly two-thirds of the province's total area. | MIGHTY EARTH

From 2017, 9% of the output of the 80,000-square-kilometer Prince George timber supply area has been set aside for “bioenergy stands” — trees fit for logging for pellets — defined as “mature, damaged pine-leading stands” with relatively low marketability as saw logs.

However, Andrew Weaver, a professor at the University of Victoria’s School of Earth & Ocean Sciences and a former member of the province’s Legislative Assembly, told The Japan Times that even harvesting such “damaged” stands could set a dangerous precedent. After being cut, replanted trees will take decades to grow, during which time the wood pellet industry will need more raw materials. The impacts of climate change also make a future second harvest less predictable, Weaver added.

Connolly argues that BC’s remaining primary forest would be better left as-is.

Primary forests are the best habitat for much of BC’s wildlife, especially large-bodied mammals, including critically endangered caribou, as well as bears that make dens in large tree trunks. They also keep watersheds clean, an essential ecosystem service that benefits both animals and people (Vancouver, the province’s economic capital, has banned logging in its watersheds since the 1990s).

In addition, primary forests contribute significant carbon sinks, with much carbon dioxide stored in large, old trees and undisturbed soil and peat. Scientists note that primary forests are more effective at storing carbon than single-species plantation forests; it can take centuries for a replanted forest to store as much carbon as the primary forest it replaced.

Currently, U.K.-headquartered Drax — a utility at home and a pellet producer in Canada and the U.S. — controls eight of 12 BC pellet mills, roughly 80% of the province’s total wood pellet production capacity.

At its mills, huge piles of trees await processing. Although the company previously claimed to only use “sawdust and waste wood,” a 2022 investigation by BBC Panorama found evidence that Drax was also sourcing directly from primary forests. Drax responded to the BBC investigation by saying that 80% of its source material is “sawmill residues” and the rest is “waste material” from forests at risk of fire or disease.

A pile of timber waste following a clearcut near Mackenzie, British Columbia, that had been designated for Pinnacle Renewable Energy, a pellet producer that was later taken over by Drax. | CONSERVATION NORTH

“In Canada, good forest management includes managed removals, which create less dense stands of trees and reduce what’s left lying on the forest floor, helping to protect from fires, pests and diseases, and preserving biodiversity,” a Drax spokesperson told The Japan Times in an email. “We support good forest management by providing a market for this material and turning it into something useful — sustainable biomass — which can be used as fuel for renewable, low carbon power.”

During her trip to Japan, Connolly felt that Japanese audiences — including wood pellet stakeholders, media and members of the general public — were puzzled and disappointed to learn how BC’s primary forests are being turned into wood pellets.

“It was actually really emotional for me to see people’s faces fall,” Connolly says.

A finite amount of wood

Although wood pellets are often billed as a “sustainable” resource, there may be a limit on the amount of pellets BC can provide Japan, warned Ben Parfitt, a resource policy analyst for the Canadian Center for Policy Alternatives who also covered forestry in BC for many years as a journalist. Parfitt traveled to Japan with Connolly to speak about wood pellets.

BC’s logging industry, which pellet manufacturers rely on, is shrinking. Roughly 51.3 million cubic meters of timber were logged in 2022, down from 76.6 million in 2013, according to data Parfitt compiled from government statistics. Many companies are moving their operations to the southern U.S., where trees grow faster in a milder climate on already extensive forest plantations. The number of sawmills in BC is also decreasing, down from 111 in 2005 to 64 in 2023.

In Parfitt’s view, the logging industry is contracting primarily because it logged too much, too quickly. “They have run out of the easiest-to-access and cheapest fiber,” he said.

Ben Parfitt (right) stand outside Renova’s Sendai Gamo Biomass power plant. The round tanks on the left are for storing biomass fuel. | MIGHTY EARTH

With logging in decline, Parfitt predicted increasing competition for resources going forward.

“That’s pretty much where, I think, the rubber hits the road,” he concludes. “There’s a finite amount (of wood) out there.”

In a public event during his visit to Japan, Parfitt highlighted both Drax’s overwhelming control of BC’s wood pellet industry and the fact that the company itself consumes vast quantities of wood pellets at its own power plant in the U.K. As competition for resources intensifies, the decisions Drax makes going forward could potentially have a big impact on Japan’s wood pellet supply, Parfitt warned.

The company itself brushed off such concerns, saying in its statement to The Japan Times that it responsibly manages its commercial agreements and closely analyzes market issues affecting itself and its suppliers.

“The majority of the sustainable biomass we supply to Japan is sourced from British Columbia in Canada where the forests are sustainably managed and subject to environmental regulation, careful management and third-party certification,” the Drax representative wrote.

Still, Parfitt is not alone in his concern over the future of Japan’s supply of BC wood pellets. Weaver too sees BC’s relatively slow-growing forest resources as “mismatched” with the wood pellet industry and its eager customers in Japan. Wood pellets aren’t anything more than a “short-term fix” for the country’s energy needs, he said.

Going forward, Weaver suggested that Japan, known abroad as a nation of innovators, could show more international leadership in renewable energy.

“Burning wood is literally what our ancestors and Neanderthals did many hundred thousands of years ago,” he says. “Surely we’re better than that.”

A satellite view of clearcuts in the vicinity of Prince George, British Columbia. | GOOGLE EARTH

Take out dams and keep the Snake River salmon’s last, best place

Elias Shiffman — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 12:06:45 -0500

In the face of relentlessly dire headlines for Pacific salmon and steelhead — 28 populations listed as threatened or endangered, emergency fisheries closures in California, Oregon and Washington, tribal assessments that some wild Chinook runs are approaching “quasi-extinction” levels — the Snake River’s thousands of miles of pristine wilderness habitat make it the last, best place for America to save wild Pacific salmon and steelhead.

But until the White House and Congress tackle the heart of the problem — four dams on the Snake in Eastern Washington that are, quite literally, blocking the way to recovery — these once-epic populations will continue to slide toward extinction.

A famous theologian once said, “Not to decide is to decide.” That seems to be the approach of these policymakers as they ignore the free-falling decline on the Snake.

Three years ago, U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, said what conservationists have long known. We can remove the dams, reopen hundreds of miles of rivers to salmon and steelhead, and replace the dams’ socio-economic benefits: irrigation, power, barging for agricultural products. Gov. Jay Inslee and U.S. Sen. Patty Murray affirmed this conclusion.

But building on decades of senseless inaction, their fellow elected leaders and policymakers are fumbling away the most promising opportunity to recover imperiled salmon and steelhead, and in the process failing to make good on America’s treaty obligations to tribal nations.

The Snake is a five-star hotel for salmon and steelhead. Forty percent of its lands and waters are wilderness quality, and it possesses 50% of the remaining habitat for these fish in the West.

The four dams on the lower Snake are relics of the 1950s, concrete anchors locking us into anachronistic thinking and destined to be tombstones for wild salmon and steelhead runs if we do not change course.

My life in conservation began many years ago when I witnessed the wonder-inspiring journey that salmon make, returning sometimes thousands of miles from the ocean to their natal streams to spawn and die, their decaying bodies providing the nutrients that power the cycle of life.

In a free-flowing system, their progeny, known as smolts, would be flushed downstream by high spring flows in a few days.

Instead, they face a two-week journey through 140 miles of warm reservoirs created by the Snake dams.

These small fish — carrying genetic code thousands of generations old — die in turbines. They are attacked by predators in the stagnant water above the dams. They perish in the tanks of barges that attempt to move them past the dams. More than 50% never make it past the dams. Fewer than 1% return to spawn, which is not a sustainable number.

We have spent $25 billion in a failed effort to recover these fish. For 50 years, we have barged salmon past the dams, created fish ladders, spilled more water over the dams, built hatcheries and deployed dozens of other mitigation strategies.

But we now know that the only way to recover wild Snake River salmon and steelhead is to remove the dams. So say scientists at the National Marine Fisheries Service, calling dam-breaching “the centerpiece action.”

We could keep waiting. We could conduct more studies. We could stand by as elected leaders issue platitudes praising salmon but refuse to aid in their recovery and refuse to make good on treaties with tribes that relied on these fish for thousands of years.

Or we can decide to demand dam removal and salmon recovery. We can decide to stand with the tribes. We can decide to act.

Something will have been lost from our humanity if we allow these fish to slip into extinction. Will we walk away as a nation knowing we could have intervened? What a loss. What a stain on our nation; to humanity, really.

We can replace every social and economic benefit provided by the Snake River dams.

But the salmon and steelhead? They need a free-flowing river. We just need to decide — decide that we want to give them one.

Chris Wood

Special to The Seattle Times

Chris Wood worked on the roadless rule for the Forest Service and is now president and CEO of Trout Unlimited.

Nowhere for the water to go: Dubai flooding shows the world is failing a big climate change drainage test

Elias Shiffman — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 11:56:42 -0500

The Dubai flooding last week illustrated how urban engineering is failing a major climate change test. In a world marked by the increasing possibility of extreme weather events, no matter how big and modern expanding urban environments around the globe get, they don’t have enough places for all the water to go when there’s too much of it.

The United Arab Emirates’ city and others like it built on previously uninhabitable areas reflect 20th century urban development ideas that result in the blocking of natural water absorption systems. Add increased populations, bringing with them more waste — and more need for landfills and other waste disposal methods — and the drainage challenge will continue to bedevil major global cities like Dubai facing more frequent, massive rainfalls.

Last Tuesday, the UAE received more than 10 inches of rainfall in some places, and roughly half of that level in Dubai, amounts equal to annual rainfall averages in the UAE. More frequent rain in recent years in the UAE is expected to get even worse in the years ahead, in particular, intense daily rainfall accumulations. Claims were made last week that experiments the UAE has been conducting with cloud seeding contributed to the rainfall, but the government told CNBC that was inaccurate, and other experts have dismissed those claims.

What’s known is that Dubai was built on sand, a natural environment which lets water seep into the soil very easily. But by pouring massive amounts of concrete on top of Dubai’s natural terrain, the developers effectively blocked the soil from absorbing water. Last week’s rainfall was the largest amount of precipitation recorded since the country began keeping tabs in 1949.

“We have natural drain places that bring water directly to the aquifers and then inside our water stocks,” said architect Ana Arsky, CEO of environmental startup 4 Habitos Para Mudar o Mundo, one of several climate experts interviewed by CNBC about Dubai at last week’s Web Summit Rio. “When we pave, it’s not there anymore.”

The rapid rise of populations tied to global urbanization trends adds to waste, and while trash isn’t visible on Dubai’s streets, it has to go somewhere, often ending up in less than ideal locations. Plastic products don’t absorb water well, and when they end up in landfills around the world, massive piles of trash contribute to a global backup of natural drainage systems.

Even older cities with established drainage systems are facing similar issues, as residents of New York City discovered last fall, with flooded schools, roads and homes, and subway and railroad service halted after a single day’s rainfall reached between 5 and 8 inches in some places. Without proper preparations, manmade drains full of debris and pollution can’t absorb the increased water, leading to backups and flooding.

“Rainwater drainage systems, they are not adapted for the flows that we are seeing currently with climate change and with extremely concentrated rainfall,” said Tiago Marques, co-founder and CEO of Greenmetrics.AI. “You get a saturation of the drainage system that doesn’t have any way of draining the amounts water that have been falling recently. This ends up coming to the surface and causing urban flooding, whether you’re talking about tunnels, highways or the lowest parts of the city.”

Greenmetrics.AI installs sensors and uses data analytics to predict rainfall impact and help advise communities on water consumption, and is currently working with civil authorities in six cities in Portugal.

Marques said that citizens tends to blame municipal officials when flooding occurs for not properly cleaning drainage systems, but in Porto, Portugal, there was serious flooding in several parts of the city last year and the drainage systems had been cleaned. “The amount of water was so high and so unusual that it basically swept all the branches and even trash into the drainage systems that were previously clean, and blocked them,” Marques said. “When all this water starts to pile up, it’s very hard for the authorities to know exactly what’s happening everywhere at the same time.”

Cars are stranded on a flooded street in Dubai following heavy rains on April 18, 2024.

Giuseppe Cacace | AFP | Getty Images

Greenmetrics places smart sensors with LIDAR – the same technology that is used to direct self-driving cars – in areas that are vulnerable to flooding to warn if levels are getting too high to manage. Coupled with better understanding weather patterns, authorities can clear drains and debris before flooding hits. In cases where flooding is inevitable, the technology can give people time to evacuate or for leaders to shut down locations to minimize casualties.

“What you used to have every 100 years ... starts to happen every 10 years,” Marques said. “Then the floods that have been happening once every 10 years now are starting to happen every couple of years. Climate change adaptation means building resilience technologies.”

Vapar, a startup that builds sewer drain and pipe-inspecting robots to find issues before major storms hit, has partnered with governments in Australia and the U.K.

Arsky’s 4 Habitos Para Mudar o Mundo, helps companies, including AB-InBev and bank Banco Itaú in Brazil, as well as consumers categorize waste with the help of artificial intelligence so it can be disposed in appropriate areas to minimize impact on drainage. It is also working on developing building materials strong enough for structures, but porous enough to allow water to still be absorbed by the area’s natural soils.

More frequent flooding in more of the world’s most-densely populated environments is another reminder, Arsky says, of the underlying message being sent to the world in events like the Dubai flooding: “Climate change has no specific address.”

Oregon’s Rural Power Utility Has Become a Big Polluter

Elias Shiffman — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 13:09:31 -0500

Oregon’s Rural Power Utility Has Become a Big Polluter

Umatilla Electric Cooperative is responsible for 1.8 million tons of carbon emissions annually despite having just 16,000 customers. One of those customers is Amazon, which has data centers in areas where renewable energy access is limited.

Feb. 20, 2024

Mike Rogoway, oregonlive.com

The rolling hills along the Columbia River in northeastern Oregon boast golden fields and farms, quiet valleys and rippling creeks — and very few people.

Yet the region also bears an enormous, and growing, carbon footprint.

The rural area’s power utility became one of the state’s big polluters beginning in 2018. By 2020 its carbon emissions had doubled. In 2021, it doubled again.
The Umatilla Electric Cooperative is responsible for 1.8 million tons of carbon emissions annually, according to newly released state data, even though it has just 16,000 customers. It’s now the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases among all Oregon utilities because of one of those customers: Amazon.

The soaring greenhouse gases are a byproduct of Oregon tax policy and represent a profound setback for the state’s energy aspirations. Amazon has capitalized on hundreds of millions of dollars in local tax breaks to subsidize a constellation of enormous, power-hungry data centers around the cities of Boardman and Hermiston, areas where the regional power grid has little access to renewable energy.

Data centers’ power demands have upended Oregon’s fight against global warming, exposing the limitations of the state’s electrical grid and the state’s hope to move toward clean power.

Oregon is many years away from meaningfully expanding its transmission capacity, and with Amazon planning at least 10 more data centers in the region, eastern Oregon’s carbon footprint is poised to continue soaring.

“It is really concerning and emblematic of the broader issue that we’re seeing in terms of Oregon’s ability to achieve its climate goals,” said Nora Apter, climate program director for the Oregon Environmental Council. She said Oregon regulators and lawmakers haven’t created policies and incentives that encourage economic growth powered by renewable energy.

Both Amazon and Umatilla Electric say they’re committed to fighting climate change and to finding clean energy to power the data centers. Just this month, Amazon announced a deal to start buying renewable power from a wind farm in neighboring Gilliam County.

While that purchase will meet as little as 4 percent of Amazon’s existing electricity needs, climate advocates say the data centers might ultimately become powerful forces in the drive to upgrade Oregon’s transmission networks for renewable energy.

If data center operators are truly committed to renewable energy, some environmental advocates say, they could lobby for an upgraded energy grid, and their large loads could serve as a powerful economic incentive for generating new clean power and the transmission lines to carry it to major customers like Amazon.

“They’re willing to pay the price for clean energy and the access to power to make sure that happens,” said Nicole Hughes, the executive director of Renewable Northwest, a Portland organization backed by clean-energy producers. “These are the anchor tenants that we want because they’re willing to make that investment. So we should figure out how to work with them on this.”

Big Data, Big Tax Breaks

Online shoppers think of Amazon as the “everything store,” the place to buy books, laundry detergent, furniture and fashion. But data centers are the Seattle-based company’s most profitable and fastest-growing business.

The company hosts data for podcasts and video streamers, corporate bookkeepers and government agencies. It’s all housed in enormous digital warehouses like those in eastern Oregon, with thousands of high-end computers humming steadily around the clock as they process information and stream it to Amazon’s clients.

Umatilla Electric used to rely on renewable hydropower from federal dams to meet the modest energy needs of its clients, which were mostly families, farms and food processors. Amazon’s arrival transformed the landscape over the past decade.

Amazon clustered in eastern Oregon because local governments there offered it some of the most valuable tax breaks in the world. Amazon saved nearly $100 million in property taxes alone in Morrow and Umatilla counties last year, and local officials have promised incentives worth more than $1 billion to keep Amazon growing.

Hulking, windowless, concrete data centers stretch along the highways and fields around Boardman and Hermiston. Their computers rely on tremendous amounts of electricity to operate and to keep cool.

Federal hydropower had already been largely allocated to Umatilla Electric’s existing customers. So the rural cooperative must buy on the open market to meet Amazon’s needs — and nearly all the available power is generated by fossil fuels like natural gas.

That’s made the utility’s power much dirtier. Its emissions per megawatt hour are 2,000 percent more carbon-intensive than a decade ago, according to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

The issue of Oregon data centers’ growing carbon cost is not limited to Amazon.

Apple, Facebook, Google and Elon Musk’s X social media company operate large data centers in Prineville, The Dalles and Hillsboro, creating enormous new power demands. They buy energy from large utilities and power authorities that have many other customers, so it’s hard to discern how much power those companies use.

Last summer, though, Portland General Electric and two regional power agencies issued reports dramatically increasing their forecasts for data center power demand. The Bonneville Power Administration estimates that data centers’ electricity use in Oregon and Washington will more than double by 2041, requiring power equivalent to a third of all the homes in the two states.

Transmission Squeeze

While data centers have huge energy loads, they don’t employ nearly as many people as other major Northwest industries, like aircraft manufacturing and semiconductor production. But the server farms do have a big economic impact in small communities.

Amazon has become a major force in Morrow and Umatilla counties. Though the company won’t say how many people work for Amazon in the region, local employment has grown by 14 percent over the past decade amid Amazon’s rapid expansion.

It’s not clear how much of that growth is directly tied to the data centers, but the company has surely created hundreds of local jobs, and probably a few thousand.

Amazon has paid more than $73 million in local taxes since the middle of 2020. It’s the largest taxpayer in both counties, though its tax exemptions are worth at least triple what it actually paid during that time.

The company says it’s committed to “net-zero carbon emissions” across its operations by 2040. But when Oregon lawmakers considered a bill last year to make data centers subject to the state’s clean energy rules, Amazon mounted a furious lobbying campaign to kill it.

Amazon and Umatilla Electric were among the biggest lobbyists in Salem last year, collectively spending more than $500,000 during 2023. The data center clean energy bill died in committee.

Across the Columbia River in Washington, lawmakers quietly passed a similar bill last year without vocal opposition from anyone. Amazon doesn’t have major data centers in its home state.

Oregon lawmakers have opted not to try again this year. Instead, Rep. Pam Marsh, who led last year’s unsuccessful clean-energy campaign, said she’s now committed to working with Amazon. She hailed the company’s wind power purchase this month.

“It’s great news that Amazon is actively pursuing renewable energy for its data centers — and these projects need to be followed by more,” Marsh said in an email. “The company will need to look for clean energy in every corner and from every source. As a legislator, I’ll be watching closely, and looking for ways for us to support Amazon’s efforts.”

Amazon, like most other large technology businesses, accepts the scientific consensus that human activity is changing the climate in potentially catastrophic ways. The company says it is financing clean power projects in other parts of the western U.S. to compensate for its growing impact in Oregon and says it’s among the world’s largest corporate buyers of renewable electricity.

Amazon says it would like to build more renewable power supply in Oregon, too, and is backing legislation during the state’s current legislative session to support offshore wind power, battery storage and clean energy incentives.

But the company says the regional power grid doesn’t have the capacity to carry that electricity from wind farms and solar arrays to its data centers near Boardman and Hermiston.

“It’s a growing pipeline and we need more transmission infrastructure. We’ve been talking about that for some time to policymakers,” said Shannon Kellogg, an Amazon vice president for public policy.

Amazon has identified a genuine problem with the transmission bottlenecks, said Aseem Prakash, a political science professor at the University of Washington and director of the UW Center for Environmental Politics.

“The big problem is these transmission lines. How do you move a larger volume of electricity through the transmission lines?” Prakash said.

It can take a decade or more to win approval for major new power lines and longer still to build them. That renders many proposed renewable energy projects useless, because there’s no way to get wind or solar power to the customers like Amazon who want the electricity.

However, Prakash said these bottlenecks don’t let Amazon off the hook on clean power. He said the company ought to take a more proactive role in developing the transmission capacity so it has access to the renewable energy Amazon says it wants.

Instead, Prakash said Amazon is pointing to renewable energy certificates – a controversial measure of accounting for clean energy purchases elsewhere – to mask its carbon impact.

“They want to go to green,” Prakash said. “But there are obviously some perverse things happening where they are resorting to these shenanigans.”

Missing Targets

Amazon, which has been operating server farms in Oregon for well over a decade, is only now beginning to buy some clean power directly for its local data centers.

The company announced this month that it will purchase 200,000 megawatt-hours of electricity from a wind farm in Gilliam County, one county over from its data centers near Boardman. Amazon will pay the wind farm’s owner, Avangrid, to replace blades on aging turbines with more efficient ones.

“Those are the acts of a modest corporation acting modestly,” chided Angus Duncan, former chair of the Oregon Global Warming Commission.

Umatilla Electric’s power sales have increased by 5 million megawatt-hours annually during Amazon’s data center buildout over the past decade, so Amazon’s wind power deal represents a tiny fraction of total power demand. And Duncan noted Amazon is buying power from an existing wind farm, rather than financing new power generation as it prepares to build several more data centers in the area.

While Amazon is correct that the Northwest lacks enough transmission capacity to meet the region’s renewable power goals, Duncan said the company is asking too much from others to overcome the problem.

“Does it think that the world owes it a transmission system that will deliver the power from the resource to the load?” Duncan asked.

While he acknowledged Amazon could be a powerful ally in pushing for an expanded power grid, he said Amazon has failed to lay out how it plans to achieve its pathway to renewable power in Oregon and the resources it will use to accomplish that.

“Folks like Amazon will set a goal, a decarbonization goal, but frequently their intermediate actions seem to operate contrary to that goal,” Duncan said.

Oregon Rep. Mark Gamba, D- Milwaukie, is working with Amazon, state regulators and environmental and industry groups on legislation to accelerate the expansion of the regional power grid. He said transmission constraints will make it impossible for private Oregon utilities to transition off of fossil fuels by 2040.

“We have what I would call mediocre climate goals in this state around energy, and we’re not going to hit any of them,” Gamba said, “because of transmission.”

New transmission lines require coordination among utilities, private landowners, state regulators and the Bonneville Power Administration, among many others. The result, Gamba said, is a torturous process that lags far behind the state’s climate goals and new energy demands from data centers and other industrial customers.

“It’s basically a 20-year process at this point to get new transmission sited,” Gamba said.

Next year, Gamba hopes to introduce legislation that would begin the process of creating a regional transmission authority that could accelerate the work of expanding the electric grid. Amazon has been helpful in the process, Gamba said, but he said there’s an overarching lack of urgency among utilities, power authorities and lawmakers.

Climate change is a ticking clock, and Gamba said the current pace of change is woefully inadequate.

“The physics of climate change don’t really care about our scurrying along,” he said. “It is happening at its own pace, and it is up to us to meet that.”

Wild Idea Buffalo Co.: A sustainable approach to bison farming and grassland regeneration

Elias Shiffman — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 12:46:07 -0500

In South Dakota, a remarkable endeavor is taking place, one that merges sustainability, humane practices and environmental restoration. The Wild Idea Buffalo Co., founded by Dan O'Brien, stands as a testament to the possibilities of a new approach to buffalo ranching.

The Birth of Wild Idea

Wild Idea Buffalo Co. isn't just another meat company; it's a reflection of a profound commitment to ethical ranching and the revitalization of our ecosystems. The story began when Dan O'Brien, the founder of Wild Idea Buffalo, introduced 100% grass-fed, grass-finished buffalo meat to a local restaurant.

The aim was clear: create a product that not only satisfied the taste buds but also upheld the principles of sustainability, humane treatment and overall environmental well-being.

A Unique Approach to Buffalo Ranching

Wild Idea Buffalo Co. isn't your typical commercial meat production facility. It's a place where the well-being of the buffalo takes center stage.

The innovative "field harvest" process allows buffalo to be humanely and respectfully harvested directly in their native habitat. This approach ensures that the animals don't experience the stress and fear associated with traditional slaughter methods, leading to better-quality meat and a more humane process.

Certified Humane and Regenerative Agriculture

One of the core values at Wild Idea Buffalo Co. is to be different – and they've certainly succeeded. The ranch holds certifications in humane treatment, organic practices and regenerative agriculture.

These distinctions showcase a commitment to responsible animal husbandry and the restoration of our environment.

A Focus on Soil Health

Wild Idea Buffalo Co.'s primary emphasis is on soil health. They understand that healthy soil is the foundation for a flourishing ecosystem.

By practicing large landscape grazing and maintaining a hands-off approach, Wild Idea Buffalo Co. ensures the vitality of the soil, which, in turn, promotes the growth of diverse grasses essential for both buffalo and the environment.

Mobile Harvesting Unit

A key innovation at Wild Idea Buffalo Co. is the mobile harvesting unit, a concept that's been in place for over 30 years. This 53-foot semi-trailer with a tractor is the heart of the operation, allowing for humane, in-field harvesting.

The mobile unit sets Wild Idea Buffalo Co. apart and is at the core of their commitment to a less stressful, more ethical approach to buffalo ranching.

Sustainable Availability

Wild Idea Buffalo Co.'s products are available online, making them accessible to a broader audience. Additionally, their presence in health food stores and local markets allows consumers to support sustainable practices and enjoy high-quality buffalo meat without compromising their values.

Revitalizing the Ecosystem

The unique approach to buffalo ranching at Wild Idea Buffalo Co. isn't just about producing delicious meat; it's also about restoring and maintaining the natural balance of the land. By running buffalo, rather than cattle, they're working towards replicating the historical role that these majestic creatures played in the ecosystem.

The First Chinese Edited Babies: A Leap of Faith in Science

Elias Shiffman — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 12:32:54 -0500

In November 2018, media from all over the world reported that two twin girls had been born with modified genes to make them HIV immune. Their birth was the result of an ‘experiment' (presently it can only be called that) conducted by He Jiankui with couples in which the males were HIV carriers. Using CRISPR technology to immunise the babies against the HIV virus, He Jiankui managed to disable the CCR5 gene that enables the HIV infection (although he still did not present complete evidence of this achievement). However, Chinese existing regulation, thought not very detailed, does not provide legal basis for the experiment carried out by He Jiankui and his team (Nie, 2018; Nie & Cheung, 2019). In particular, the 2003 “Ethical Guiding Principles for Research on Embryonic Stem Cell” issued by China's Ministry of Science and Technology and then Ministry of Health (now National Health Commission), very clearly bans research to be performed on human in vitro embryos after the 14^th day of existence, and its subsequent implantation into a human uterus. Furthermore, in spite of the alleged reason for the genetic intervention related with the prevention of HIV, the scientific community also knows that the CCR5 gene is related with major brain functions. He Jiankui might have done some kind of human enhancement by created two especially intelligent human beings, with better memory and higher IQ (Joy et al., 2016).

This event has subsequently fuelled debate over CRISPR-Cas9, the most recent gene editing technique.

Genetic engineering has been around from some time. Pretty much every argument for and against it has already been presented, and national and international regulations tried to provide a legal and ethical answer to it, even if dubious and incomplete. Nonetheless, CRISPR-Cas9 has changed the way genetic engineering is done and this revolution might transform the entire perception on gene editing.

CRISPR-Cas9 is much simpler, cheaper and more precise than the previous methods of handling genes (Gyngell et al., 2017). On the other hand, while the previous methods have only allowed new elements to be added to the human genome, CRISPR-Cas9 has made it possible to add, delete or replace genes, thereby opening the door to new types of genetic interventions. One of its most promising achievements might be the possibility of reversing the effects of faulty procedures, to deal with eventual errors.

The technical improvements reached by CRISPR-Cas9 are far from irrelevant. The higher the level of precision and efficiency of CRISPR-Cas9, the greater the change in the general perception of genetic modification. Thus, in the future CRISPR-Cas9 might be considered as any other medical procedure.

Up until now, however, the objections raised against it have been multiple and diverse. Some are associated to the technical aspects of the procedure. Despite its increased precision, safety has continued to be a pressing concern. The risk of unexpected and undesired changes to a gene that is able to carry unpredictable consequences cannot be controlled. For instance, interventions with CCR5 genes, as in the case of the Chinese twins, carry a higher risk of infection from the West Nile virus and severe flu (Glass et al., 2006). Additionally, according to the scientists that analysed Jiankui's materials, gene editing was incomplete in at least one of the babies. Therefore, some issues for the children's future health may resulted from the outcomes of this procedure. Alternatively, even when the procedure is successful, it can only handle genetic disorders caused by a single gene and the fact is that most of the existing disorders are multigenetic. Nonetheless, one cannot rule out that further development of this technique will enable it to deal with several genes, even thousands of genes, at the same time. More importantly, it is expected that further research will make the procedure much more reliable, efficient and, therefore, safe.

The Chinese episode has also generated other issues. Several notes demonstrate that this was an experiment and not a therapeutic intervention (even He Jiankui called it a 'clinical trial'). The babies were not at risk of being born with HIV, given that sperm washing had been used so that only non-infected genetic material was used. Further, even though one of the parents (or both) was infected, it did not mean the children were more prone to becoming infected. The risk of becoming infected by the parents' virus was very low (Cowgill et al., 2008). In sum, there was no curative purpose, nor even the intention to prevent a pressing risk. Finally, the interventions were different for each twin. In one case, the two copies of CCR5 were modified, whereas in the other only one copy was modified. This meant that one twin could still become infected, although the evolution of the disease would probably be slower. The purpose of the scientific team was apparently to monitor the evolution of both babies and the differences in how they reacted to their different genetic modifications. This note also raised the issue of parents' informed consent regarding human experimentation, which follows a much stricter regimen than consent for therapeutic procedures.

Moreover, if indeed the genetic intervention in place enhanced the twins this opens the door to an all new discussion: can we use gene editing to create "better" (whatever that may be...) human beings, maybe even a super race of humans? The scenario, when presented like that, seems terrifying, but actually the story of mankind is nothing more than one of enhancement, so probably in the future we won't look at human amelioration with such suspicion (Raposo, 2019).

Ethical concerns have long been asserted against genetic interventions. However, most of the objections have been based more on prejudice than substantive arguments. Critics have invoked the sanctity of the human genome, as if changing it would equate to playing God (Habermas, 2003). However, protecting the human genome should not prevent genetic interventions that can improve our lives. What brings real value to our lives is having a genetic code that allows us to live free of severe diseases, not to have an unmodified but unhealthy genetic code. Some have argued the perils of genetic discrimination (Mehlman & Botkin, 1998) and eugenics (Habermas, 2003), but if that were truth no medical treatment would be allowed under the suspicion of discriminating the ones not that are not treated and of aspiring to create a “superior” society of healthy people. The risk of undermining the human genetic pool (Committee on Science, Technology, and Law, 2016) is also a recurrent concern, but “there are more than six billion humans on the planet. Absent some kind of magic wand, it is initially difficult to see how any given genetic intervention could change human nature” (McConnell, 2010). The eventual loss of our human nature (Habermas, 2003) has been also invoked, but changing our genes does not change our human nature. Humanity does not reside in a specific genetic code, but in a certain perception of the world and our role in it. That role adds to the story of how we overcome the surrounding environment and ourselves.

Until now, the scientific community has been quite critical of this procedure. What is in place right now is a precautionary principle (Committee on Science, Technology, and Law, 2016). Research has not been completely banned. It has been allowed when its aim has been to obtain additional data on the procedure's safety. Likewise, somatic gene editing (that is, genetic interventions that will not pass to offspring) has been allowed in humans, and germinal gene editing (genetic interventions that will be transmitted to progeny) has been allowed in non-humans. In sum, there has been a restriction on the kind of research permitted, and for the latter the requisites have been quite demanding (Guttinger, 2018). Most likely, it could not have been any other way. If not for the restrictions, the chances are that CRISPR-Cas9 would have been totally banned. Accordingly, the precautionary principle has been the alternative to absolute prohibition (Ellis, 2006; Guttinger, 2018).

I believe it is still too early to perform germinal gene editing (even resorting to CRISPR-Cas9) as a regular therapeutic procedure (Thrasher et al., 2016; Committee on Science, Technology, and Law, 2016; Friedmann et al., 2015; Kang et al., 2016). We still need to decode the amazing mysteries of genomics to understand how to safely use this procedure in human beings. The problem with the Chinese episode is not so much the use of gene editing, but its untimely use, without scientific evidence supporting the safety of CRISPR-Cas9. According with analysis done to Jiankui's work, “neither Lulu nor Nana possessed the 32-base pair deletion desired in the CCR5 gene, and each embryo instead expressed variants of various lengths. These novel mutations have not been previously shown to prevent HIV infection and may even be harmful. Some of He's data also suggest the presence of both edited and unedited cells, leading to a phenomenon called mosaicism, as well as off-target effects of the edit that could cause other unanticipated changes in the genome” (Nie & Cheung, 2019).

It is a fact that the technique has already been used in somatic therapeutic interventions with success, reaching goals that regular medical treatments cannot achieve (Cyranoski, 2016). Nonetheless, somatic interventions and the risk of passing genetic modifications, including genetic errors, to offspring raise several technical and ethical issues that must be addressed.

The Chinese experience was even more daunting, because in addition to being a somatic intervention it was not ‘necessary' to the embryos' well-being, i.e., the embryos were healthy and the experiment merely performed a health enhancement and eventually also a non-health related enhancement.

In the future, when they are properly developed, CRISPR-Cas9 and gene editing in general can become very useful tools to deal with health-related issues. This not only includes purely therapeutic (curative) interventions, but also health-related enhancements, such as immunising a person against certain viruses (similarly to what currently happens with vaccines), just like in the Chinese experiment. If or when CRISPR-Cas9 is properly developed, it can be used as a regular medical treatment (in broad terms, including preventive measures).

Therefore, we cannot impose a ban on research in this domain, even in spite of this episode. If scientific accuracy is the goal, and indeed, it is, this goal can only be achieved by investing in more research. I do understand that some caution is required, not only to prevent genetic mistakes that we may be unable to undo, but also to allow enough time to find better answers to the legal and ethical dilemmas involved. Nonetheless, we need to continue. Stopping here would mean to waste decades of investigation and lose a brilliant opportunity to provide greater well-being for humankind. People now and in the future could be spared the pain and suffering caused by the many diseases for which we still do not have a cure. The answer may well be in the genes.

Colorado School of Mines and Carbon America awarded $32.6M from U.S. Department of Energy CarbonSAFE Initiative

Elias Shiffman — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 12:21:43 -0500

Colorado School of Mines and Carbon America awarded $32.6M

from U.S. Department of Energy CarbonSAFE Initiative

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding will support the development of a regional CO₂ storage hub in concert with local stakeholders in Pueblo, Colorado area

May 19, 2023

GOLDEN, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Colorado School of Mines, Carbon America and Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) have been awarded $32.6 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy's Carbon Storage Assurance Facility Enterprise (CarbonSAFE) initiative to advance the development of a potential carbon storage hub for the Pueblo, Colorado area.

“We want to set a new high bar for industry-community compatibility and for this project to become the model for successful community relations for potential CCS projects on a national scale”

CarbonSAFE Eos was one of nine projects selected by DOE as part of a $242 million nationwide investment to accelerate the development of large-scale, commercial carbon storage projects with capacities to securely store 50 or more million metric tons of carbon dioxide deep underground.

The goal of CarbonSAFE Eos, named after the Greek goddess of the dawn and new beginnings, is to reduce industrial emissions from cement, hydrogen and power plant operations and at the same time, create a model for responsible, community-centric carbon capture and storage (CCS) from the ground up, inclusive of community feedback in support of sustainable economic and social development goals. Mines, Carbon America and LANL officially announced the funding today during the Carbon Management Symposium hosted by the Mines Global Energy Future Initiative.

“Given the urgency and scale of our climate challenge, we have to accelerate the buildout of CO₂ storage hubs region-by-region across the country,” said Brad Crabtree, Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy and Carbon Management at the U.S. Department of Energy. “The Colorado School of Mines project represents an important step toward that goal, and we look forward to working with them in this critical effort.”

“This is a positive plan for our higher education system, for students in Golden and Pueblo, and for our air, climate, and planet. I was proud to sign new laws in partnership with the legislature to save people money on energy and reduce carbon emissions and pollution,” said Colorado Governor Jared Polis.

The DOE funding will cover data collection, detailed site characterization, planning, permitting and significant community and stakeholder engagement for the project, as well as training for the next generation of CCS professionals. The project will be co-led by Manika Prasad, director of the Mines Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) Innovation Center, and Carbon America Senior Geologist Chris Cassle.

“To meet our global climate goals, we need to do so much more than we’re currently doing,” Prasad said. “Large-scale carbon sequestration sites, like the one we hope to build with the community of Pueblo, are an important piece of the puzzle, capable of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by millions of metric tons, and enabling communities to transition toward zero-emissions energy generation.”

“This grant represents a significant milestone in our commitment to mitigating climate change and developing sustainable energy solutions,” said Brent Lewis, CEO of Carbon America. “By collaborating with the exceptional researchers at Colorado School of Mines and Los Alamos National Lab, we aim to unlock new possibilities for carbon capture and storage, helping to build a cleaner and more resilient future.”

The Eos project aims to be an exemplar of community-centered carbon capture and storage, focused on how CCS in Pueblo can advance quality jobs, enable further business investment, and promote environmental justice and community partnership. The CarbonSAFE initiative falls under the DOE’s Justice 40 goals of ensuring that 40 percent of the benefits of federal clean energy investments flow to disadvantaged communities and help enhance energy equity. Should the project proceed to operations, it will also help fund education in Colorado.

“Pueblo has remarkable potential to demonstrate a new energy future. We are excited to create a community decarbonization solution anchored in vibrant community engagement and input for long-term social and economic success,” said Ashleigh Ross, Vice President of Strategic Engagements and Policy at Carbon America.

In the coming weeks, in addition to technical work, the project team will start early pre-planning outreach activities to support community engagement for the project. Community workshops will be held in the region to engage in two-way dialogue about the project and what community-centric CCS could look like in the area.

“We want to set a new high bar for industry-community compatibility and for this project to become the model for successful community relations for potential CCS projects on a national scale,” said Jessica Smith, professor of engineering, design and society at Mines and key member of the project team. “We will be developing the engagement strategy with key stakeholders in Pueblo to make sure it's done in a way that's locally responsive.”

About Colorado School of Mines

Colorado School of Mines is a public university focused on science and engineering, dedicated to educating and inspiring students, advancing knowledge, and innovating to address the great challenges society faces today—particularly those related to earth, energy and the environment. Founded in 1874 with specialties in mining and metallurgy, Mines’ scope and mission have expanded to meet the needs of industry and society, producing distinctive graduates and revolutionary innovations, and becoming a world leader in advancing sustainable use of the Earth’s resources. Learn more at mines.edu.

About Carbon America

Carbon America is a vertically integrated carbon capture and storage (CCS) developer, owner, and operator with a mission to quickly and safely capture and store as much carbon dioxide as possible. The company’s team of world-class experts cover the entire CCS value chain, including capture processes; geology, geoscience, reservoir engineering; project development; commercial, finance, and tax equity structuring; regulatory and advocacy engagement; and acquisition of necessary land and sequestration site management for CO₂ storage. The company is currently developing CCS projects at three ethanol plants that combined would reduce CO₂ emissions by 525,000 metric tons annually. For more information, visit carbonamerica.com.

About Los Alamos National Laboratory

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is a senior laboratory in the U.S. Department of Energy’s national laboratory complex and executes work in all of DOE’s mission areas: national security, science, energy, and environmental management. The Laboratory has a long history of leveraging its core science and technology capabilities to support the nation’s energy security mission—a symbiotic relationship that enables an agile response to some of the nation’s toughest energy challenges. Today, the Laboratory leads and collaborates on R&D initiatives across DOE programs, including hydrogen and fuel cells, geothermal, fossil energy and carbon management, grid modernization, and biomanufacturing, to develop technology solutions that will help the nation transition to a clean energy system.

Aircela Gets Funding From Maersk Growth To Start Field Testing

Elias Shiffman — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 12:02:09 -0500

Aircela Gets Funding From Maersk Growth To Start Field

Testing

Aircela, a CO2-neutral e-fuels company, has closed a funding round with investment from Maersk Growth, which is the Venture capital arm of Danish shipping company A.P. Moller-Maersk.

Aircela was established in 2019 by husband and wife Eric and Mia Dahlgren to mass-produce fuels made from renewable sources. The direct air capture company aims to make its technology cost-efficient and available to everyone, and turn carbon dioxide into a replacement for fossil fuels.

Maersk Growth’s investment will support Aircela’s 2023 plan of field testing and initial manufacturing of refrigerator-sized machines that produce 6kg a day of carbon-neutral methanol, using only air, water, and renewable power as inputs. Many thousands of mass-produced Aircela systems will operate together as ‘server farms for green fuel’.

The funding coming from Maersk Growth will support Aircela’s goal for 2023 to field test and start the initial manufacturing of refrigerator-sized machines that produce 6 kilograms of CO2-neutral methanol daily using air, water, and renewable power as the only inputs. The mass-produced Aircela systems will operate as “server farms for green fuel,” the company said in a press release.

“We have no time to wait in replacing fossil fuels, and if needed, we will do it engine by engine,” said COO and Co-founder Mia Dahlgren. “We have been inspired by Maersk’s brave commitment to fuelling some of the biggest engines in the world with green methanol, and we are excited to welcome them to Aircela”.

“Maersk has taken several bold and significant steps towards decarbonization, and we are proud to be teaming up with such a serious player so early in our journey. We look forward to developing the market for green fuels together,” said CEO and Co-founder Eric Dahlgren.

The Manhattan-based start-up takes its approach to clean fuels from the work of board member Prof. Klaus Lackner.