With pipeline infrastructure lagging the rapid increase in US crude oil production, railroads have been the preferred option for moving product to market, but a number of high-profile accidents involving crude oil tank cars are raising concerns. [New York Times] The recent UN Investor Summit on Climate Risk highlights the growth in sustainable investing and… Keep reading →
Many of the largest US pension fund managers gathered at the United Nations last week to discuss the risks and opportunities climate change poses to their investment portfolios. Institutional investment fund managers, like those in charge of pension resources, are in the difficult position of finding opportunities that provide returns needed to support beneficiaries for… Keep reading →
European governments and businesses are discussing the next round of carbon emissions targets once existing greenhouse gas reduction goals expire in 2020. The Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change says binding targets are needed to make investors confident in putting money into upgrading power generation infrastructure. “Setting out an ambitious 2030 emissions reduction target of… Keep reading →
The Energy Information Administration released a statement Monday projecting 2013’s CO2 emission’s rates to be 2% higher than the emissions in 2012. This comes on the heels of a decrease in emissions in 2012. The EIA attributes this increase to renewed coal consumption in the electricity power sector in 2013. The Obama administration retains the… Keep reading →
Corporate social responsibility and ESG – environment, social and governance – issues are playing a more prominent role in corporate strategies as investors push the agenda through shareholder resolutions and other means. It’s no longer enough for companies to simply publish glossy sustainability reports, while continuing to chart a business as usual course. First Energy,… Keep reading →
Rising energy costs are increasingly dominating political agendas in many countries around the world both developed and developing. The U.S. shale revolution with domestic cheap natural gas has started to bite into coal’s U.S. power generation market share, which can be attributed to the coal-to-gas switch of power utilities. Note, that any change in U.S.… Keep reading →
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published its proposed standards of performance for greenhouse gases emitted from new electric utility steam generating units and stationary combustion turbines on January 8, 2014, opening up a 60-day public comment period. The publication puts to rest rumors that the EPA was reconsidering the pre-publication version of the rule signed… Keep reading →
The review will serve as a roadmap to address the country’s most pressing energy challenges. The first installment, scheduled for January 2015, will focus on US energy infrastructure. This is part of the administration’s effort to formulate a comprehensive national energy policy or set of policies, which is something the nation has lacked, due in… Keep reading →
A lawyer that represents utilities argues in an editorial the EPA’s Cross-state Air Pollution Rule enacted in 2011 causes lesser polluting states to subsidize some of the pollution reduction in states that emit greater volumes of harmful pollutants. The lesser polluting states also tend to have higher electricity costs and would thus be unfairly impacted… Keep reading →
The value placed on sustainable business practices and investments made in companies that embrace environmentally-friendly sustainable operating procedures has truly become de rigueur. You can’t watch TV, walk through the supermarket or read a corporate website without getting bombarded by green, carbon-neutral, organic, energy-efficient messaging. But how much of this is green-washed hype and how… Keep reading →
