Energy News for week ending March 23, 2018

19 times over | Carbon Bomb | US location doesn’t matter – it’s cleaner

Happy Friday afternoon.

Here are a few quick hits for you before we all break for the weekend.

From SouthCoastToday.com we have news that “Winds off the Massachusetts coast have the potential to generate more energy than in any other state — enough to power the state’s electricity needs 19 times over, according to a new report from the advocacy group Environment Massachusetts. But that’s no assurance the state will dominate the industry over the long haul. The report details major efforts in other states, especially New Jersey and New York, where state governments have committed to larger offshore wind projects than Massachusetts.”

Chris Mooney writing for The Washington Post reports that “For some time, scientists fearing the mass release of greenhouse gases from the carbon-rich, frozen soils of the Arctic have had at least one morsel of good news in their forecasts: They predicted most of the gas released would be carbon dioxide, which, though a greenhouse gas, drives warming more slowly than some other gases. Scientists obviously weren’t excited about more carbon dioxide emissions, but it was better than the alternative: methane, a shorter-lived but far harder-hitting gas that could cause faster bursts of warming. Now even that silver lining is in doubt. Research released Monday suggests that methane releases could be considerably more prevalent as Arctic permafrost thaws. The research finds that in waterlogged wetland soils, where oxygen is not prevalent, tiny microorganisms will produce a considerable volume of methane, a gas that doesn’t last in the air much more than a decade but has a warming effect many times that of carbon dioxide over a period of 100 years.”

On the positive news side, The Energy Collective tells us that “New data shows that in every corner of the United States, driving an EV produces significantly fewer greenhouse gas emissions than cars powered only by gasoline, regardless of the local power mix. Today, an average EV on the road in the U.S. has the same greenhouse-gas emissions as a car getting 80 miles per gallon (MPG). That’s up from 73 MPG in 2017, and far greater than the average gas-powered car available for sale in the U.S., which hit a record 24.7 MPG in 2016.”

As always you can find energy events at Northeast Energy News. Have a great weekend.

Natural Gas/Oil/Pipeline/Drilling

AG: Offshore drilling a ‘grave’ risk to Bay State, Boston Herald

Pipeline protester refuses state deal — won’t admit he shoved trooper, Berkshire Eagle

State’s top executives push for more natural gas, CommonWealth Magazine

Backers of stalled pipeline keep pilot light lit, Boston Globe

Council tables resolution to rescind opposition to Burrillville power plant, Valley Breeze

Region’s Power Grid Manager Gets OK For Renewable-Fossil Fuel Exchange Auction, New Hampshire Public Radio

Proposed Norwalk fracking ban moves to public hearing, Thehour.com

United States: Natural Gas Act Preempts Local Efforts To Preclude Construction Of Compressor Station, Mondaq News Alerts

Nearly 1/3 of planned gas peakers at risk from energy storage, GTM finds, Utility Dive

Biz group: Increase natural gas supply, Lowell Sun