Daily Climate News - March 14
eDNA; Helium exploration; Solar Games
Environmental DNA (eDNA) for Biodiversity surveys
You can get a human’s DNA sample from a strand of hair or even from the dust they frequent - we continuously shed skin cells in our environment. So do animals, fungi and insects. Environmental DNA (eDNA) is DNA that’s been obtained from samples of air, water, snow. It can be analysed to determined which organisms were present in the area the sample was collected from. This is especially useful for identifying organisms in the deep sea, where getting sufficient imaging data is a challenge.
Unilever has partnered with NatureIntelligence, a UK-based nature intelligence firm, to assess changes in bacterial and fungal diversity in soil using eDNA to design better regenerative agricultural practices.
Helium among critical minerals in Canada
Canada’s list of 31 critical minerals also includes helium gas. Though helium is the second-most abundant element on Earth, it has important use in medicine (MRI scan machines), semiconductor processing, particle accelerators (such as the Large Hadron Collider) and development of rockets. The gas is found in natural gas deposits in the Earth’s crust. Global production is led by United States, Qatar and Algeria. Canada has 5th highest reserves of helium and is now making significant investments to develop these.
New study estimates US methane emissions to be 3x government estimates
Stanford researches have published a study in Nature that estimates methane emissions from oil & gas operations in the US to be more than 6 million tonnes per year.
These emissions, which result from both intentional vents and unintentional leaks, amount to $1 billion in lost commercial value for energy producers. The annual cost rises to $10 billion when researchers account for harm to the economy and human well-being caused by adding this amount of heat-trapping methane to Earth’s atmosphere.
…In terms of types of production facilities most likely to leak, the study noted that midstream infrastructure was responsible for about half of total emissions, which is higher than previous estimates. Midstream infrastructure includes gathering and transmission pipelines, compressor stations, and gas processing plants that shuttle gas from the wells to cities and towns.
ET Energy | Article in Nature | Stanford News
Funding Boost for Hydrogen in USA
The US Department of Energy has announced $750 million in funding for 52 projects in the hydrogen industry. The investment is aimed at
low-cost, high-throughput electrolyzer manufacturing (8 projects, $316 million),
electrolyzer component and supply chain development (10 projects, $81 million),
advanced technology and component development (18 projects, $72 million),
advanced manufacturing of fuel cell assemblies and stacks (5 projects, $150 million),
fuel cell supply chain development (10 projects, $82 million), and
recovery and recycling consortium (1 project, $50 million).
India Electric Mobility Promotion Program 2024
India’s Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) has launched the Electric Mobility Promotion Program 2024 to promote adoption of electric 2 and 3-wheelers through subsidies and incentives for buyers.
Apply to participate in Solar Games
The Solar Games are a (REAL) annual competition held in USA where
teams are tasked with building residential solar + storage systems — including solar modules, racking, inverters, battery storage and other components — live in a stadium setting within the exhibit hall. Their work is scored on a point system for quality, safety, speed and other criteria. The winning team advances until the final-round winner is named Solar Games Champion — and awarded $10,000.
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Best,
Soumya Gupta
Founder, Telborg.com | SummaryWithAI.com