EPA rescinds 2009 Greenhouse Gas finding
The US Environmental Protection Agency on February 12 announced that it has repealed the 2009 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Endangerment Finding, a landmark ruling that was the foundation of the US government's efforts to curb greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and slow the pace of climate change.
If the action survives court challenges, it would invalidate existing GHG reduction mandates for the US energy sector and oil producers. It would also make it harder for future administrations to regulate climate-warming emissions. The EPA also said it is rescinding all GHG reduction mandates for vehicles — the largest US source of climate-warming emissions.
The 2009 endangerment finding determined that carbon dioxide and five other GHGs threaten public health and safety. The agency made its finding after the US Supreme Court determined that these emissions are pollutants under the Clean Air Act. The EPA's current position is that now regulating GHGs exceeds its authority unless Congress passes specific legislation stating it should do so.
This decision is the latest of a number of actions taken by the Trump administration designed to rollback environmental rules.
Several states consider banning all new solar and wind projects
Legislation designed to restrict renewable energy projects has traveled from Utah to Louisiana and is now being considered by lawmakers in New Hampshire, Arizona and Ohio.
The proposed legislation is part of a push by fossil-fuel-aligned groups to promote natural gas and hurt renewable energy power sources. Based on model legislation written by the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, it has been introduced into a number of state legislatures.
Recently introduced in Ohio, Senate Bill 294, amounts to a ban on utility-scale wind and solar by adopting a new definition of "reliable energy source" that would require new power plants to be able to operate at any time of day or night.
In addition, power plants must have "a minimum capacity factor" of 50 percent. A plant's capacity factor is a measure of how its actual output compares to the maximum that is technically possible if it operated at full capacity 24/7. If a plant runs at full capacity around the clock for a year, its capacity factor would be 100 percent.
Wind and solar plants have lower capacity factors because they depend on the availability of the sun and wind.
But industry insiders argue that a 50 percent capacity requirement in state law is absurd and unworkable. Almost no power technologies would qualify.
Of all the generation alternatives, only two would likely make the cut. A nuclear power plant, which takes many days to turn on or off, historically ranks at the top, with a 90.8 percent capacity factor. The only other qualifying power plant that consistently qualifies would be combined-cycle natural gas, which generally operates at a 60 percent capacity factor.
Wood-burning power plants are next, with 55.8 percent. After that, every other power source is below the 50 percent benchmark. These include renewables, such as wind and solar, which have capacity factors of 34.3 percent and 23.2 percent, respectively. And Hydropower, another leading renewable energy source, which averages 34.6 percent. Similar restrictions were included in bills recently passed in Utah and Louisiana.
Another key component of these bills is that they define natural gas as a "green energy source" or a "clean energy source."
At least two other active bills, House Bill 2331 in Arizona and House Bill 1455 in New Hampshire, have language or ideas that overlap with the model legislation. However, they will likely not become law due to opposition from each state's governor.
Colored solar panels
A German company, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), has announced its MorphoColor Technology product line that suggests that people are no longer merely interested in high efficiency when it comes to choosing solar technology, but also value aesthetics.
The MorphoColor panels incorporate a vacuum coating method that fixes a number of color options to the back of the panels glass cover. They contend that the process produces 95% of the power of a similar uncoated panel.
The process, which has been licensed in a number of countries including the US, is said to be low-cost, can be integrated into existing solar technologies and can be customized to fit the visual aesthetics of specific sites.
Free Level 2 EV chargers and vehicles available in Appalachian Ohio
If you live within the central Appalachian region you may be eligible to borrow an electric vehicle or receive a free Level 2 EV charger courtesy of Rural Reimagined, a DOE-funded project which aims to establish a sustainable EV ecosystem within the region.
This project hopes to bring electric vehicles, and EV education to the rural Appalachian region including portions of Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and all of West Virginia. Residents within this region may be eligible to borrow an EV for 2-6 weeks at no cost.
Those who wish to participate must:
- provide a valid driver's license
- have a clean driving record
- provide proof of vehicle insurance
- and be a resident of the targeted counties
The program also can provide Level 2 charging stations to public entities, small businesses or community organizations in the Appalachian counties of Ohio.
Those interested in these programs should visit their website at https://rural-reimagined.com/
GM announces program to charge your home with your EV
And in other EV news - GM Energy plans to offer a leasing program for its home energy management system to make it easier for EV owners to power their house with their car.
GM sold more than 246,000 EVs with bidirectional charging capability in 2025. But in order to allow these vehicles to serve as an energy backup to the home, additional equipment designed specifically to work with GM vehicles is required.
This includes:
- a compatible charger, with a price of about $2,000
- an inverter to convert the DC power from the vehicle to AC power that can be used in the home, priced at $6,300
- as well as installation costs of the system
Many homeowners are hesitant to pay these costs upfront, so GM plans to offer a monthly lease of the charging equipment in hopes of encouraging homeowners to opt into the program. Significantly, GM offered no indication as to what the monthly lease payment will be.
