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Giant Batteries Are Transforming the Way the U.S. Uses Electricity

Brad Plumer Nadja Popovich

May 07, 2024 |

The New York Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, California

California and Texas are among the states in the U.S. installing giant lithium-ion batteries to store renewable energy to use when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing. These batteries are reducing the use of fossil fuels as a backup energy source when demand is high.

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Could a Landfill Power Your Home?

Miranda Lipton

May 02, 2024 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

Landfills in the United States are capturing a potent greenhouse gas, methane, that would otherwise be released into the air and converting it to electricity or natural gas.

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Keeping Food Scraps Out of Landfills Is a Bigger Problem Than You Think

Carl Smith

April 25, 2024 |

Governing |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, California

Orange County, California, is increasing the amount of organic waste it diverts from landfills by encouraging residents to put compostable material in the bins they use for yard waste and composting it.

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'Valuable and largely overlooked': Interest in virtual power plants grows

Robert Zullo

April 07, 2024 |

Utah News Dispatch |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

Utility companies across the United States are using virtual power plants to meet electricity demand, access backup power, and lower the electric bills of participants. To make these power plants work, the utilities use energy from the battery storage systems of customers who have home solar arrays.

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Months after devastating floods, Vermont renews efforts to aid climate-friendly rebuilds

Annie Ropeik

March 20, 2024 |

Energy News Network |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Hardwick, Vermont

After extreme flooding damaged homes, the energy efficiency utility Efficiency Vermont offered emergency flood rebates to those impacted. Recovery teams helped people plan and find funding to repair and replace energy systems and appliances with more efficient models that will help them reach their decarbonization goals. In this circumstance, exceptions were made to include rebates for high-efficiency fossil fuel systems, too.

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Getting off fossil fuels is hard, but this city is doing it — building by building

Jeff Brady

March 04, 2024 |

NPR |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Ithaca, New York

The town of Ithaca is working with its local gas utility and area homeowners to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by removing gas pipes from homes and businesses by switching them over to electricity, primarily from renewable sources. While the transition is a long process, the town expects to achieve about a 30% reduction in emissions in the next year.

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An overlooked climate solution unfolds in Memphis' energy challenges

Ashli Blow

January 23, 2024 |

Tennessee Lookout |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis Gas Light and Water’s weatherization program is helping city residents prepare their homes for increasingly intense storms in ways that also reduce their energy use from fossil-fuel-derived sources and their utility bills. Contractors may install a new air conditioner or repair walls, but the resident is never charged for the services because ratepayers round up their bills to cover the cost.

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Yellowstone Club becomes first ski resort in Montana to turn wastewater into snow

Justin Franz

January 18, 2024 |

Montana Free Press |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Montana

The Yellowstone Club ski resort in Montana is misting treated wastewater into the air with machines to make snow. This keeps its ski runs open during dry winters and produces more runoff in the summers to recharge crucial aquifers.

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In France, zero-waste experiments tackle a tough problem: People's habits

Joseph Winters

December 06, 2023 |

Grist |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: France, Roubaix

Local governments in France are educating residents about waste reduction and finding ways to incentivize the behavior change necessary to meet the country’s ambitious zero-waste goals. Roubaix, for example, teaches residents simple lifestyle changes that will also save them money. Whereas, Smicval transitioned from door-to-door waste collection to a central collection point where residents drop off trash themselves.

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The Surprising Power of Wastewater Wetlands

Bryn Nelson

November 20, 2023 |

Yes! Magazine |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Forest Grove, Oregon

Wastewater treatment plants constructed to mimic natural wetlands — complete with varied topographies, native plants, and logs — are becoming a popular way to prevent pollution while creating environments where wildlife can thrive.

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