Oil major BP says carbon dioxide emissions from burning
fossil fuels are unsustainable and calls for a global carbon price
to incentivise action, reports the Telegraph. The BP Energy Outlook
2035, published yesterday, sees emissions growing less quickly than
it expected last year. Low-carbon energy sources could generate 38
per cent of power by 2035 in the outlook, reports the
Financial Times. The Guardian
also covers the BP outlook. The Timessays the outlook finds UK
shale gas production will be of “no great
significance”. Business Greenhas a summary of the
outlook’s findings.

The EU is on track with a target to get one fifth of its
energy from renewable sources by 2020, the European Environment
Agency (EEA) says. That’s despite the UK, the Netherlands and
Luxembourg lagging behind, Reuters reports. Coal use would have
been 13 per cent higher without renewables, the EEA says.

Creating biofuels from waste could generate 36,000 jobs in
the UK and save around 37 million tonnes of oil use annually by
2030, according to a report covered by the Guardian. Advanced
biofuels from waste could replace 16 per cent of EU road transport
fuel, the report says.

The success of the UN’s planned climate deal will hinge on
emission reduction pledges made by major economies between now and
October, a senior EU official tells RTCC. Artur Runge Metzger, head
of international climate strategy at the European Commission, says
Intended Nationally Determined Contributions from major economies
including China, should be submitted in the first half of the year.

The closure of Longannet, Scotland’s only coal-fired power
station, could leave the country reliant on imports from England
rather than being a net exporter as at present. Business secretary
Vince Cable says this would not be a
problembut Professor Paul Younger, a
persistent criticof fossil-fired
plant closures in Scotland says a gas fired replacement should be
commissioned.

The Guardian says the environment secretary’s claims that
solar panels harm food security are false, based documents released
under freedom of information rules. The government moved to end
farm subsidies for solar farms last October but had “no hard
evidence” to back its decision, the documents show.

The Guardian has seen a letter from UK fossil fuel industry
organisation Oil and Gas UK to energy and climate secretary Ed
Davey, following his recent suggestion oil assets could lose value
because of global climate action. Davey’s comments “unsettled” the
industry and conflict with government efforts to maximise North sea
oil extraction, the trade group says. Meanwhile billionaire
investor Warren Buffet has solda $3.9 billion stake in oil
major Exxon Mobil and Green MP Caroline Lucas saysthe MPs’
pension fund is at risk from its fossil fuel investments.

The world’s biggest offshore wind scheme has been approved
off the coast of Yorkshire. The Dogger Bank Creyke Beck would
contain up to 200 turbines and a combined peak capacity of 2.4
gigawatts. The government says the scheme could support hundreds of
jobs. The Guardian saysthe scheme would cost £6 to £8
billion to build and cover 430 square miles.

Wildfires in the forests of north America and Eurasia can
reduce the amount of heat in the atmosphere, according to research
covered by the Mail Online. Increased snow cover replacing
previously forested areas reflects sunlight back in to space and
could cause more cooling than aerosols from volcanoes, the study
suggests.

Private firms should not seek to make money from
geoengineering schemes designed to limit the impacts of climate
change, argues Clive Hamilton in the Guardian. If you want to make
money out of global warming invest in energy efficiency and
renewable energy, he says.

A new study examines farmers’ adaptation measures in response
to drought in three Chinese mountain villages, as well as what
motivates communities to adapt. The researchers found the perceived
capacity of households to adapt is the most important driver of
proactive adaptation decisions, highlighting the vital role human
cognition plays in raising risk awareness.

Most research on the environmental impact of natural gas have
focused on the production process, not on emissions resulting from
distribution and end use. A new study finds natural gas emissions
from an urban region of Boston are two to three times higher than
predicted from industry reports, with about 2.7 per cent of the gas
lost to the atmosphere.