Billionaire Bezos Hands Out Money –Climate Crisis AM Edition 4/17/24

EV sales leader BYD continues to be a long term threat to the US and EU EV markets. It continues to expand its model line, although most of these are only available in China. Reuters reports “China’s BYD unveils three new models for its off-road Fangchengbao lineup.” This includes the new off-road “Leopard 8” SUV, a “Super 3″ SUV which is mostly for urban areas and a “Super 9” sports car. Climatecrisis247 believes that BYD will make its way into Western markets, despite current tariffs which basically block it from sales in the regions. For example, the car company may build a plant in Mexico to export cars to the US. BYD vehicles are priced as low as $10,000, although these new SUVs will carry higher price tags. With a large model lineup and low prices, BYD represents a challenge to Tesla, and could ruin sales of weaker EV companies which include Ford. 

Climate News –The End Of The Great Salt Lake?

Heat News –Worse In Miami

It is raining in the desert, and in some places raining heavily. According to Bloomberg, Oman, to the south and west of Saudi Arabia. “Eighteen people are dead and more are missing as more than a year’s worth of rain fell on Oman in just days, causing widespread flash flooding.” Nearby Dubai also had the most rain in almost eight decades. Climatecrisis247 believes this is another of the unexpected weather events caused by climate change. This includes, recently, the destruction of coral reefs by ocean temperature as high as 100 degree F.  a sharp warming of the north Atlantic which is likely to cause huge hurricanes, and sweltering temperatures in Australia which are well above the typical levels. These events will increase and worsen as little is done to reverse climate change and its effects. 

Is The Weather Getting Hotter Or Colder?

El Niño has ended but the effects of this on the climate are uncertain. According to the BBC, “Scientists say that the months after the end of El Niño will give a strong indication as to whether the recent high temperatures are due to accelerated climate change or not.” Climatecrisis247 believes that is a rare example of whether a huge weather event has been changed by global warming or is, rather,  a normal climate phenomenon. In many cases, global warming has been caused by human-created greenhouse gasses. This may be one of the few exceptions. 

Bezos $100 Million Climate Investment

Billionaire Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos has a nonprofit aimed at attacking climate change. His “Earth Fund” will spend $100 million for a “AI Solutions to Tackle Climate Change and Nature Loss.” Bezos said as he launched the project, “Can modern AI help counter climate change and nature loss, and, if so, how? That’s the question we hope to answer. By bringing together brilliant minds across fields, we may be able to invent new ways forward.” The initial focus will be sustainable proteins, biodiversity conservation, and power grid optimization. The program will give grants to a number of companies over time. Climatecrisi247 believes this is one in a long list of billionaire projects to address climate change. However, even $100 billion barely makes a dent in the problem. It will require much larger public–private partnerships to have any significant effect.