SINGAPORE, March 24 -- The British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office issued the following lecture on March 23, 2021, by High Commissioner to Singapore Kara Owen at the National University of Singapore: * * * As Dr Ramchunder has said, I am the British High Commissioner to Singapore, which is a brilliant job and one which makes me responsible for our whole relationship. It's a very broad relationship, but it's also historic and deep. So it is a challenging job too! But our two Gover  more

BOSTON, Massachusetts, March 23 -- Ceres, a non-profit organization that is mobilizing many of the world's largest companies and investors to take stronger action on climate change, water scarcity and other global sustainability challenges, issued the following news release on March 22, 2021: Climate Action 100+, the world's largest investor engagement initiative on climate change, has released its first-ever benchmark evaluating the corporate ambition and action of the world's largest greenhou  more

FRESNO, California, March 23 -- Earthjustice issued the following news release on March 22, 2021: Conservation groups sued the Bureau of Land Management today over the Trump administration's rushed sale of seven oil and gas leases on public lands in Kern County, California. The December sale, pushed through in the last weeks of the Trump administration, allows oil and gas operators to expand environmentally harmful drilling and fracking in an area of the state already overwhelmed by fossil fue  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Earthjustice issued the following news release on March 23, 2021: Leading environmental justice and national environmental groups today urged Congress to advance a major economic recovery package that addresses climate change, environmental injustice, and air and water pollution while also creating jobs in vulnerable communities hardest hit by Covid-19, racial violence, economic inequality and the climate crisis. In a letter to Congress written by the co-authors of the   more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- The Federal Reserve issued the following white paper (No. 2021-018) by Stephie Fried, Kevin Novan and William B. Peterman, chief of the Fiscal Analysis Section in the Research and Statistics Division entitled "The Macro Effects of Climate Policy Uncertainty": Here are excerpts: Abstract Uncertainty surrounding if and when the U.S. government will implement a federal climate policy introduces risk into the decision to invest in capital used in conjunction with fossil fu  more

TALLAHASSEE, Florida, March 24 -- The Florida Public Service Commission issued the following order granting petition for waiver (DOCKET NO. 20200242-EI; 20210007-EI; ORDER NO. PSC-2021-0115-PAA-EI): In re: Petition for approval of regulatory assets related to the retirements of the coal generation assets at Plant Crist Units 4, 5, 6, and 7, by Gulf Power Company. In re: Environmental Cost Recovery Clause. The following Commissioners participated in the disposition of this matter: GARY F. CL  more

FRANKFORT, Kentucky, March 24 -- Rep. Harold Rogers, R-Kentucky, issued the following news release: Gov. Andy Beshear and U.S. Rep. Harold "Hal" Rogers (KY-05) on Monday announced six economic development projects in five Appalachian counties have been selected for $14.2 million in Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) Pilot Program grants. The projects, in Floyd, Harlan, Laurel, Morgan and Perry counties, range from the construction of water treatment plants to robotic instruction and will revitalize th  more

LONDON, England, March 23 -- Greenpeace UK issued the following news release on March 22, 2021: New oil and gas licences in the UK could see carbon emissions reach the equivalent of 25 Cumbria coal mines, campaigners have warned. If the government goes ahead with plans to issue new oil and gas licenses in UK waters, an estimated 14.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent of oil and gas could be extracted by 2050, which would release up to 5.7 gigatonnes of CO2 emissions when burned. That figure is  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- The House Energy and Commerce Committee issued the following testimony by Ex-Energy Secretary Ernest J. Moniz, president and CEO of Energy Futures Initiatives, as part of a virtual hearing entitled "Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow's America Act: Revitalizing our Nation's Infrastructure and Economy" on March 22, 2021: * * * Thank you for the opportunity to testify today and to discuss the LIFT America Act. Coming on the heels of the disaster in Texas, this hearing a  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands issued the following testimony by Sharon Buccino, senior director at Natural Resources Defense Council's Lands Division, and adjunct professor at the University of Wyoming's College of Law, as part of a video conference hearing entitled "Building Back Better: Examining the Future of America's Public Lands" on March 23, 2021: * * * My name is Sharon Buccino. I teach Public Land Law as a  more

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- The Institute for Energy Research issued the following news release: While the rest of the world is in semi-lockdown and hoping the COVID vaccines will return the world to normalcy, China is growing its economy with skyrocketing electricity demand and massive production and exports. Unlike California, Texas, and Germany, China is not relying on wind and solar power to generate its electricity. Rather, it is building coal plants galore. In areas of China where coal plants  more

RALEIGH, North Carolina, March 24 (TNSJou) -- North Carolina State University issued the following news release: Researchers at North Carolina State University have designed and demonstrated a new system that allows them to remotely monitor the behavior of freshwater mussels. The system could be used to alert researchers to the presence of toxic substances in aquatic ecosystems. "When mussels feed, they open their shells; but if there's something noxious in the water, they may immediately clos  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Rep. John Joyce, R-Pennsylvania, issued the following op-ed to the Harrisburg Patriot-News on March 23, 2021: * * * In the Harrisburg Patriot-News, Congressman John Joyce, M.D. (PA-13) wrote about overcoming partisan divides to find common ground on creating American jobs for American workers. During a recent meeting with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and bipartisan congressional leaders, Dr. Joyce addressed the growing threats posed by the Chinese   more

FRESNO, California, March 24 -- The Sierra Club issued the following news release: Conservation groups sued the Bureau of Land Management today over the Trump administration's rushed sale of seven oil and gas leases on public lands in Kern County, California. The December sale, pushed through in the last weeks of the Trump administration, allows oil and gas operators to expand environmentally harmful drilling and fracking in an area of the state already overwhelmed by fossil fuel production.   more

CHICAGO, Illinois, March 24 (TNSJou) -- The University of Chicago's Energy Policy Institute issued the following news: Grounded in research, the book presents a series of evidence-based recommendations from University of Chicago scholars designed to inform climate policy in the new administration and Congress. No longer a problem for the distant future, the costs of climate change--wildfire, storm and flood damages, disruptions to agriculture, changes to insurance markets, and more--are alread  more

CHAMPAIGN, Illinois, March 23 (TNSRes) -- The University of Illinois System Urbana-Champaign campus issued the following news release: A new book from a team of University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign legal scholars considers the unlikely intersection of environmental law and psychology, which can play a subtle-yet-important role in how laws shape people's interactions with the natural world. Arden Rowell and Kenworthey Bilz are co-authors of "The Psychology of Environmental Law," which explor  more

KATHMANDU, Nepal, March 23 -- The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development issued the following news release: Around 1,349 brick kilns in Nepal consume 504,750 tons of coal annually. The use of coal for brick firing is one of the main causes of black carbon, sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and particulate matter pollution in the atmosphere. With sharp increases in cost price and associated environmental concerns, brick entrepreneurs are showing great interest in alternative fue  more

CHARLESTON, West Virginia, March 24 -- The West Virginia Legislature issued the following news release: Wednesday, March 24, 2021 - 43rd Day of Session The Senate will convene at 11 a.m. UNFINISHED BUSINESS * SCR 5: Urging Congress call Article V convention to impose fiscal restraints on federal government THIRD READING * Eng. Com. Sub. for SB 436: Relating generally to solid waste facilities * Eng. SB 486: Relating to powers and duties of Chief Technology Officer * Eng. Com. Sub. for SB  more

CHARLESTON, West Virginia, March 23 (TNSRes) -- The West Virginia Coal Association issued the following news: A new study on the economic impact of West Virginia's coal industry shows that even when facing the worst regulatory pressures in history, the mining and coal-fired power generation industries still generated nearly $14 billion in economic activity for the Mountain State. "Coal and coal-fired electric power always has been a major driver behind West Virginia's economy, and this study c  more