Stephen Johnson

Last year I saw an electric excavator operate at the IFAT conference in Munich. Truly game changing. Once cities realize what eliminating all that noise is like, it will be 100% mandated.

Electrification is clearly and unquestionably the future. I am designing the recycling plants I am developing with full electrification of the fleet in mind so we can defossilize as much of the operation as possible.

Norway. But China isn’t far behind.

An early season wildfire just torched 57 houses a few miles from where I live. At dinner last night a couple of folks were complaining that they got dropped and could only find one insurer…

It’s a “right now” problem.

Seeing this from the IEA of all places is remarkable. I would expect that to strongly miss the mark and underestimate just how fast electrification is happening.

Great chart from the @iea.org: EVs and excellent rail transportation are bringing about the peak and decline of oil product consumption in China. If anything, I think this is too conservative on the electrification of heavy duty vehicles (diesel) where there's a lot of headroom.

El Gobierno reparte culpas entre Red Eléctrica y las empresas por el gran apagón El Ejecutivo descarta el ciberataque y apunta a la mala planificación del operador del sistema y la actuación “indebida” de las eléctricas. El informe ve la luz 49 días después del primer cero energét...

Spanish government report on the causes of the unprecedented blackout of the Iberian peninsula points to failure of thermal power plants to respond as required, and a possible planning failure by the grid operator, as the causes.

elpais.com/economia/202...

Methane leaks from dormant oil and gas wells in Canada are seven times worse than thought, study suggests Methane emissions from Canada's non-producing oil and gas wells appear to be seven times higher than government estimates, according to a new study led by researchers at McGill University. The finding...

Sigh @molszyns.bsky.social phys.org/news/2025-06...

US court blocks Trump from imposing the bulk of his tariffs | CNN Business A three-judge panel at the US Court of International Trade, a relatively low-profile court in Manhattan, ruled Wednesday to halt Trump’s global tariffs that he imposed citing emergency economic powers...

www.cnn.com/2025/05/28/b...

Well that's something

As soon as cities find that EV construction equipment and light trucks are a thing, I think it will quickly be mandated because of the noise. My friends that visit China say that the difference in places with high EV use is remarkable.

🚀 WORLD'S LARGEST BATTERY: Switzerland breaks new ground. 1.6 GWh / 800 MW redox flow battery in Laufenburg (2x China’s record).

⚡ Why it matters:

Safety: Non-flammable | Water-based | No lithium/cobalt
Grid: Stabilizes Europe’s grid + trades energy
AI: Powers AI data center | Recycles waste heat

Bluesly friends irl

@sfjsynfuels.bsky.social !!

Amazing how often our housing crisis turns out to be at the root of our other problems -- in this case, the air traffic control problems at Newark's airport.

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/12/b...

Shift Key podcast special edition: The Fight Over the Inflation Reduction Act Has Arrived

The fight over the future of the Inflation Reduction Act is here. This week on a special SHIFT KEY, we guide you through the budget reconciliation process & break down the biggest provisions in the House budget bill with former Senate & Treasury advisor Luke Bassett heatmap.news/podcast/shif... 🔌💡

We don't need to subsidize wind and solar because they are immature industries (though they are very much still evolving).

We need to subsidize wind and solar because we don't tax pollution, and businesses and households like cheap energy.

pv-magazine-usa.com/2025/04/11/c...

Congestion pricing has improved life in New York City by: reducing cars on the street, speeding traffic (especially at peak hours), speeding buses and making them more reliable, expanding transit ridership, reducing car crashes, reducing noise complaints, and increasing the number of visitors.

Fire response times fell in the NYC congestion zone, even as they increased in the rest of the city.

Car crashes with injuries fell citywide, but they fell especially dramatically in the congestion pricing zone from 2024 to 2025

Local buses have sped up dramatically in the congestion pricing zone.

NYC’s congestion pricing is a policy miracle: Less traffic, less noise, faster transit, more business sales, more transit revenue. And it hasn’t produced the negative effects outside the cordon zone we were afraid of.

www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Same with loans from the Loan Programs Office. They go in expecting to see fraud and after getting a presentation are flabbergasted about how well the loans were structured and say “we should do more of those”…

I just cannot even… 🫣🫣🫣

RFK Jr. Goes Full Tinfoil, Pledges to Stop Chemtrails in Latest Dr. Phil Interview The Secretary of Health and Human Services appeared to blame the existence of chemtrails on DARPA, saying he would do everything in his power to stop the emissions.

Ummm…

gizmodo.com/rfk-jr-goes-...

"it would require about 31 hectares of corn ethanol to produce the same amount of energy generated by one hectare of land covered in solar panels"
www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-...

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: April Campaign Spotlight: First Do No Harm . After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar. Join us for a very special campaign spotlight celebrating the launch of the First Do No Harm website — a bold new hub for healthcare professionals organizing to get fossil fuels out of their retiremen...

A new effort called "First Do No Harm" is launching tomorrow — a hub for healthcare professionals organizing to get fossil fuels out of their retirement funds. More info:

Francis Issues Urgent Call to Save a Planet Near ‘the Breaking Point’ (Published 2023) Eight years after his landmark letter on humanity’s obligation to protect the environment, Francis warns that there is still a lot to be done, and quickly.

Ten years ago, Pope Francis published “Laudato Si.’” This is a good day to reread it and hear his call to save our planet.
www.nytimes.com/2023/10/04/w...

Interesting point for #climpol. The EU ETS II, set for 2027, introduces a separate cap & trade system for emissions from fuels used in buildings and road transport. The system targets a 42% reduction in CO2 by 2030 re 2005 and places the obligation on fuel suppliers not end-users

Breaking wind again: Lawmakers pass stringent new wind energy restrictions - Arkansas Times The wind industry is in trouble in Arkansas after a stringent regulatory bill just narrowly passed the state Legislature.

“If wind is a bad idea, it will fail on its own. It’s not our job to kill an industry,” Rep. Jack Ladyman (R-Jonesboro) said on the House floor Wednesday. “It’s 20 pages of regulation and it’s government overreach!" Arkansas moves to ban wind farms. arktimes.com/arkansas-blo...

A letter To: Acting Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management From: Secretary Doug Burgum Subject: Empire Wind Project Review Dig ange In his Presidential Memorandum of January 20, 2025, Temporary Withdrawal of All Areas on the Outer Continental Shelf From Offshore Wind Leasing and Review of the Federal Government's Leasing and Permitting Practices for Wind Projects, President Trump ordered me to conduct a "comprehensive assessment and review of Federal wind leasing and permitting practices. " Pursuant to that review, staff of the Department of the Interior has obtained information that raises serious issues with respect to the project approvals for the Empire Wind Project. The matters identified thus far suggest that approval for the project was rushed through by the prior Administration without sufficient analysis or consultation among the relevant agencies as relates to the potential effects from the Project. In light of these revelations and consistent with the President's instructions, I am directing you to exercise your authority to order Empire Wind to cease all construction activities on the Empire Wind Project. This halt is to remain in effect until further review is completed to address these serious deficiencies. This action is to be taken in accordance with applicable law and effective immediately. In addition, I am directing your staff, in coordination with other Departmental offices, to continue your review of Federal wind permitting practices with respect to both existing and pending permits. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

DOI orders Empire Wind to halt construction 🔌💡

Global breakthrough agreement to tackle shipping emissions - BBC News Countries break ten-year deadlock to agree measures to reduce commercial shipping emissions.

"Let us be clear about who has abandoned 1.5°C. Saudi Arabia, the US and fossil fuel allies pushed down the numbers to an untenable level and blocked progress at every turn," said Ralph Regenvanu, minister of energy and climate change for Vanuatu.
www.bbc.com/news/article...

First California solar record of the year, and it’s a pretty big jump from the prior year, suggesting a lot of new solar hitting the ground.

"Yichang in central China's Hubei Province has been promoting the use of shore power, which allows ships to connect to the local electricity grid while at port, instead of turning to diesel engines to generate electricity ... "

Blue state cities step your game up