Climate Change Hits The Poor -Most Important Climate News 6.18.24

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China will meet its solar energy production goals six years ahead of schedule. According to news service Caixan, reaching the goal also creates a challenge because it strains the nation’s electrical grid. Caixan reports China planned to install facilities that would produce 1,200 gigawatts by 2030. Climatecrisis247 believes that information provided by the Chinese government is often inaccurate. However, if the report is even closer to the truth, China has made a great leap forward, which should show other nations like the US that ambitious green goals can be met.

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The US is falling years behind China when measured by the use of nuclear power. According to the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, China will build 150 new nuclear reactors between 2020 and 2023. Today, 27 are being built, and no other nation can match China’s pace. The think tank adds, “Overall, analysts assess that China likely stands 10 to 15 years ahead of the United States in its ability to deploy fourth-generation nuclear reactors at scale.” Climatecrisis247 believes that the news is terrible for the US. Nuclear reactor use in the US was slowed after a meltdown at Three Mile Island in 1979. A recent study showed that people do not want reactors near their homes. The US Office of Nuclear Energy has pointed out that Advanced Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) could be built quickly nationwide. “The Department has long recognized the transformational value that advanced SMRs can provide to the nation’s economic, energy security, and environmental outlook.” Climatecrisis247 believes that paired with wind and solar energy, the US could more rapidly phase out fossil fuels to create electricity at a time when use will move higher due to Bitcoin mining and AI facilities.

Can Mirrors Combat Global Warming?

Can mirrors be a way to cool some areas where temperatures have soared well above 100 degrees F? The BBC reports that this is possible. An organization called Mirrors for Earth’s Energy Rebalancing has created a product that, the news service reports, builds “The panels, which he said can help reduce internal temperatures by over 6C, involve a highly reflective coating made up of recycled materials.” The product also helps reduce water use and, therefore, helps prevent drought. Climatecrisis247 believes that, although this may work well locally, it can’t scale. This technology is needed in too many places, especially in poor nations, which cannot pay for the technology or the infrastructure to make installations across tens of thousands of houses.

Climate And The Poor

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Climate Justice Alliance describe the summer heat as a health crisis. The organization adds that people of color and the poor are particularly vulnerable. “More people die of heat-related stress than all the other weather-related disasters together, that’s combining hurricanes, tornados, flooding,” according to Alonzo Plough, the Chief Science Officer with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Climatecrisis247 believes that, while the report is accurate, local, state, and federal governments have not marshaled resources to improve the situation. Based on past actions, none is likely to.