Climate & Resilience: Page 20
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Cooling cities while reducing emissions: 3 takeaways from UN report
Increasing air conditioning and refrigeration needs threaten to drive up greenhouse gas emissions, pushing experts to recommend more passive solutions in a Dec. 5 report.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Dec. 6, 2023 -
3 communities turning to the dark side with dark-sky retrofits
Reducing light pollution has tourism, sustainability, safety and health benefits, proponents say.
By Kalena Thomhave • Dec. 4, 2023 -
Explore the Trendline➔
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TrendlineTop 5 stories from Smart Cities Dive
From worsening climate change to a shifting transportation landscape and the housing affordability crisis, cities have their work cut out for them.
By Smart Cities Dive staff -
Detroit joins growing cohort in adopting energy, water benchmarking policy
The ordinance, which requires large buildings to annually report their energy and water use starting in 2024, is a key component of the city’s climate strategy.
By Nish Amarnath • Dec. 4, 2023 -
‘COP28 must be the COP of cities’: Local leaders want fossil fuel phaseout, collaboration
Financing for local climate action is top of mind for some city leaders at the summit. C40 Cities’ cochairs demanded in a letter that nations redirect fossil fuel subsidies toward the clean energy transition.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Dec. 1, 2023 -
Opinion
The US could still get to net-zero
The country could reduce nearly 90% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 without any Hail Mary innovations.
By Michael Jung and Adam Agalloco • Dec. 1, 2023 -
White House unveils national greenhouse gas monitoring strategy ahead of COP28
The plan looks to combine scattered emissions measurement, monitoring and data capabilities across federal and nonfederal entities into a streamlined resource to better support climate action.
By Zoya Mirza • Nov. 30, 2023 -
Demand for sustainable buildings outstripping supply, JLL says
Rising demand has led to an over 7% rental premium on green-certified office buildings across major U.S. and Canadian markets, with significant variations from city to city.
By Nish Amarnath • Nov. 30, 2023 -
As building performance standards gain steam, noncompliant owners face business risks
Some cities respond to policy violations with financial penalties, but green lease clauses and submetering provide other levers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, says real estate firm CBRE.
By Joe Burns • Updated Dec. 11, 2023 -
DOE releases $31M+ in grants for retrofits, infrastructure upgrades
Some cities will use the funds for resilience hubs, while others plan to conduct energy audits and upgrade facilities. Local governments can continue applying for the grants through April 2024.
By Nish Amarnath • Nov. 28, 2023 -
4 US cities pledge to combat water woes driven by climate change
They committed to specific actions to address flood and drought risk, joining 12 other global cities in signing onto C40 Cities' new "accelerator" program.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Nov. 28, 2023 -
Without significant interventions, US building emissions will continue to increase
Federal, regional and local government bodies must collaborate to create “consistent and stringent building standards,” a new report says.
By Nish Amarnath • Nov. 27, 2023 -
EPA announces $2B for local environmental justice projects
Federal climate funding has been criticized as difficult for less-resourced communities to access. The new grant program includes key elements to counter such challenges.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Nov. 22, 2023 -
$176B plan unveiled to rebuild Northeast rail corridor
Amtrak, states, regional commuter railroads and the U.S. Department of Transportation laid out an ambitious 15-year plan to ready the Northeast Corridor for future growth.
By Dan Zukowski • Nov. 22, 2023 -
Office-to-residential conversion costs can be 30% lower than new construction: Gensler
However, only 25% of the office buildings the firm assessed for adaptive reuse were deemed suitable for conversion, according to the analysis.
By Nish Amarnath • Nov. 21, 2023 -
Retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
Plans to get an entire block off the natural gas system take shape in one California city
Albany, California, wants to lay the groundwork for widescale adoption of this emerging building decarbonization approach.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Nov. 20, 2023 -
2 years in, infrastructure law has funded 40,000 projects
The largest portion of 2021 infrastructure law money is flowing to road and bridge construction, according to White House data analyzed by CNBC.
By Julie Strupp • Nov. 17, 2023 -
What is recycling, anyway?
The definition of recycling is different depending on who you ask. Trade groups, government agencies and industry pros weigh in on what it really means in 2023.
By Megan Quinn • Nov. 17, 2023 -
Biden touts recycling’s ‘critical role’ in fighting climate change, awards $93M in EPA grants
In an America Recycles Day proclamation, President Biden called on businesses and the public to make recycling a priority. He acknowledged the disproportionate impacts of pollution on low-income communities.
By Megan Quinn • Nov. 16, 2023 -
Electric buses: Boom times and bumpy roads
Manufacturers are struggling to meet the demand spurred by federal funding and programs that encourage transit agencies to shift to zero-emission buses.
By Dan Zukowski • Nov. 16, 2023 -
Boston ends efforts to ban fossil fuels in new buildings through state program
Massachusetts’ largest city pursued inclusion in the state climate pilot program, but the mayor reported she got “clear indications” that Boston would not be selected for the last of 10 spots.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Nov. 15, 2023 -
[Photograph]. Retrieved from Austin Resource Recovery.
Austin, Texas, releases zero waste plan as population booms
The city’s goal of achieving a 90% diversion rate by 2040 remains ambitious, but Austin Resource Recovery is planning new infrastructure and expanded collections to help bridge the gap.
By Jacob Wallace • Nov. 14, 2023 -
Biden announces $6B for climate resilience as report warns of ‘insufficient’ adaptation
Most U.S. climate adaptation actions are “incremental” rather than “transformative,” the nation’s preeminent report on climate change says.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Nov. 14, 2023 -
Sponsored by Rubicon
Understanding Kansas City’s innovative approach to winter readiness
As winter approaches, cities across the United States are gearing up for snow and ice challenges.
By Rubicon • Nov. 13, 2023 -
Meet Houston’s first emergency preparedness manager for vulnerable communities
Houstonians with disabilities have previously been unable to access emergency shelters and evacuation plans due to limited emergency preparedness outreach, a city official said.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Nov. 10, 2023 -
Lack of funding still stands in the way of California’s local climate policy
This finding in a report released Thursday is “very surprising” considering recent historic federal and state investments, said a co-author at the University of California Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy and the Environment.
By Ysabelle Kempe • Nov. 9, 2023