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Opportunities to Make a Difference

Make your home more energy efficient!

Winter is on the horizon (at least in the Northern Hemisphere) and it's a great time to look at ways to lower your heating costs

Consider making upgrades to your home including better insulation, replacing a gas furnace with an electric heat pump and/or replacing old windows

Start by getting a home energy audit

With the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, generous incentives will be available starting January 1st next year.

Show Notes

This Week's Reason for Hope

U.S. Senate just ratified the Kigali Amendment

Kigali Amendment

  • Calls for global phase out of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)
  • 137 other nations have already signed
  • Could avoid 0.5 °C of warming by 2050

HFCs are a highly potent climate pollutant (over 1000 times more potent than CO2) and are used as a refrigerant in things like air conditioners and refrigerators

U.S. has already committed to cut HFCs 85% over next 15 years

Passage of amendment puts pressure on other countries to accelerate their own HFC phase out

Sources

Senate Ratifies Kigali Amendment, the Global Pact to Curb Hydrofluorocarbons - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

What Are Hydrofluorocarbons? - EIA US

Hydrogen as a Climate Solution

H2 Green Steel

Partnership with members from Germany and Sweden

Building first emission free steel production facility in Sweden

Facility set to come online in 2026

Power grid energy storage solutions

Round trip efficiency

  • Lithium-ion batteries = ~ 90%
  • Pumped hydro storage = ~80%

Sources

Utility-Scale Battery Storage | Electricity | 2022 | ATB | NREL

Pumped-Storage Hydropower | Electricity | 2021 | ATB | NREL

Will Sweden lead the way in hydrogen-powered steelmaking? | Business | Economy and finance news from a German perspective | DW | 20.04.2021

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