While decarbonisation of the heat network remains one the toughest challenges, an energy efficient building fabric is needed to be both effective in cost savings and emissions reductions. Patrice Cairns discusses the situation in Northern Ireland in an article on The Irish News website. Overhaul of energy performance in existing housing stock essential Under … Continue reading Northern Ireland’s unique context, particularly in energy, will require further innovation and a strategic joined up approach to improve energy performance of its buildings
Author: Rod Janssen
A team of researchers reconstructed the global average temperature over the Holocene Epoch to show the full impact since the industrial revolution started 150 years ago
In little more than 150 years, humans have reversed a 6,000-year pattern of global cooling, a major study into historic temperatures has found. Harry Cockburn explains the results in an article on The Independent website. Climate change over last 150 years has undone 6,000 years of global cooling, study shows In little more than … Continue reading A team of researchers reconstructed the global average temperature over the Holocene Epoch to show the full impact since the industrial revolution started 150 years ago
Record 53.6 million tonnes of e-waste dumped globally last year, says UN report
A record 54m tonnes of “e-waste” was generated worldwide in 2019, up 21% in five years. Worryingly, just 17.4% of the world's discarded electronics was recycled. Damian Carrington discusses the report in an article on The Guardian website. Surely these trends are not sustainable. What are your views? $10bn of precious metals dumped each … Continue reading Record 53.6 million tonnes of e-waste dumped globally last year, says UN report
Pension funds in UK being urged in a new campaign to invest the nation’s savings to help fight the climate emergency
In an initiative launched by celebrity film director Richard Curtis and ex-Bank of England governor Mark Carney there is a new campaign to get pension funds to support investments in climate change. Tanya Jefferies explains in an article on the Thisismoney website. Are we seeing similar developments in other countries? Mark Carney and Comic … Continue reading Pension funds in UK being urged in a new campaign to invest the nation’s savings to help fight the climate emergency
The challenge for architects to integrate all design requirements including improving energy performance but also coping now with the 100-year viral pandemic
We have developed complex codes, regulations and guidelines to achieve goals such as structural safety, fire safety, adequate ventilation and energy efficiency, and to anticipate extreme scenarios such as 100-year floods. The question for architects now is whether and how the 100-year viral pandemic will change architectural design and building operations. This is the challenge … Continue reading The challenge for architects to integrate all design requirements including improving energy performance but also coping now with the 100-year viral pandemic
New EEA briefing on CO2 emissions from new passenger cars in 2019
According to provisional data, published this week by the European Environment Agency (EEA), average carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from new passenger cars registered in the European Union (EU), Iceland, Norway and the United Kingdom (UK), increased in 2019, for the third consecutive year. The average CO2 emissions from new vans also increased slightly. Zero- and … Continue reading New EEA briefing on CO2 emissions from new passenger cars in 2019
Housing retrofits must be the ‘number one investment priority’ for the UK’s post-Covid-19 recovery, as lockdown confines Britons to overheating homes
Madeleine Cuff writes about the vulnerability of British homes but the same can be said for many countries. What are your views? Lockdown has revealed 'vulnerability' of UK homes to climate threat, government advisers say As the country bakes under a heatwave, the Government’s climate advisers have warned British homes are ill-prepared to cope … Continue reading Housing retrofits must be the ‘number one investment priority’ for the UK’s post-Covid-19 recovery, as lockdown confines Britons to overheating homes
China’s energy transition still dominated by coal
The enormous expansion of coal-fired generation already underway does inevitably mean that, throughout China's regions, there are now more vested interests likely to be distinctly antipathetic to any swift moves to decarbonise the Chinese economy further. Andrew Warren, former special advisor to the House of Commons environment select committee explains in an article on the … Continue reading China’s energy transition still dominated by coal
The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, but this year’s temperatures have still taken scientists by surprise
When we see events such as these temperatures in the far north, it only adds to the argument that we have to significantly accelerate our efforts to mitigate GHG emissions. Madeleine Cuff writes on the inews website about the current situation. Arctic Circle weather: What a record 38C temperature in the far north means … Continue reading The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, but this year’s temperatures have still taken scientists by surprise
A carbon reduction incentive could neutralise the current opposition to carbon taxes while reducing carbon-intensive activities in a much more targeted and fair way
The accomplishments of carbon taxes over the last decade have been underwhelming. What if, instead of making fuel and other commodities and services more expensive, we used a financial incentive to make technologies that help reduce emissions – such as solar, wind and geothermal energy – more affordable? Sumedha Basu, PhD Candidate in Sustainability at … Continue reading A carbon reduction incentive could neutralise the current opposition to carbon taxes while reducing carbon-intensive activities in a much more targeted and fair way
Energy in Demand - Sustainable Energy - Rod Janssen 