(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Renewable Tuesday: An Action Plan on AI [1] ['Chitown Kev', 'Thom Hartmann', 'Belinda Ridgewood', 'Bill In Portland Maine'] Date: 2026-06-02 I repeat: We need a national law requiring builders of data centers to build out enough renewable energy to cover all of their needs before the first computer blade is turned on, and mandating massive industrial heat pumps for cooling. Among other things. And as always, #NoNewNukes. Also #NoArtificialStupidity. We have enough trouble with the real thing. Now here are some people who know a thing or two about the facts of the case, and are putting them together to assist the rest of us to cope. Jim Hightower recommended them in an e-mail under the rubric “A.I. Billionaires to Grassroots People: Shut Up!” He always used to say, in opposition to earlier Financial Typhoons, “Free markets are wonderful. We should try them.” AI Now Institute An independent research institute providing expert analysis on AI in the public interest. Artificial Power: 2025 Landscape Report Artificial Power, our 2025 Landscape Report, puts forward an actionable strategy for the public to reclaim agency over the future of AI. In the aftermath of the “AI boom,” the report examines how the push to integrate AI products everywhere grants AI companies – and the tech oligarchs that run them – power that goes far beyond their deep pockets. We need to reckon with the ways in which today’s AI isn’t just being used by us, it’s being used on us. The report moves from diagnosis to action: offering concrete strategies for community organizers, policymakers, and the public to change this trajectory. Meetings Join Heatmap on June 3 in Washington, D.C., for our second annual Energy Entrepreneurship event. We’re bringing together founders, investors, manufacturers, and policymakers to discuss the technologies that are poised to define the next chapter of American energy. Register here. The Good News Big #batteries scoop the pool and sideline gas in “firming tender” designed to secure supply at times of #system stress as state moves to 100 per cent net #renewables.. https://reneweconomy.com.au/big-batteries-scoop-the-pool-in-key-long-duration-storage-tender-that-was-open-to-gas-peakers/ — Renew Economy (@reneweconomy.com.au) 2026-05-29T05:56:02.034267248Z ⚡ SSEN Transmission cuts grid costs while supporting cleaner energy growth📰 via energylivenews#PowerGrid #Energy — Megawatt News (@megawattnews.bsky.social) 2026-05-27T16:02:05.739Z Can anyone guess which country will dominate the global auto industry going forward? — Justin Mikulka (@justinmikulka.bsky.social) 2026-04-28T11:27:26.515Z As ever, nuclear is disqualified for cost, corruption, and cleanup. Clean energy is the future. And by that I am mean real clean energy, so that automatically disqualifies LNG which emits 100 to 160 more greenhouse gas per energy unit than solar, wind and nuclear. #CleanEnergy — Anton van Walraven (@avwraven.bsky.social) 2026-03-13T17:10:48.964Z Big solar and batteries lead march to the grid, but new plans for wind are piling up reneweconomy.com.au/big-solar-an… — Dr Alex Wodak AM (@alexwodak.bsky.social) 2026-02-27T11:11:55.446Z I have no beef with real AI, but this is just a stopgap. What these fleets really need is Chinese fast charging technology, or maybe Formula E racing’s instant battery swaps. Heatmap e-mail: London’s Police Cars Are Going Electric With the Help of AI Police officers can’t be stuck waiting for their black-and-whites to recharge when an emergency call comes in. That urgency makes it especially tricky to transition their fleets away from fossil fuels and the lightning-fast gas fill-ups that get cars back on the road. But some cities and departments have begun to make the move, aided by artificial intelligence models to manage their many vehicles and ensure electric cars can do not just the next job, but every job. Around the world, trucking companies, buses, municipal vehicles, and other huge fleets want to go electric to save money on fuel and maintenance, and they’re looking to AI to give them the confidence to take the plunge. China now requiring traceability on e-bike parts and batteries under new safety reform — Electrek (@electrek.co) 2026-02-27T12:12:37.751Z Iran “The price of [UK] household staples such as bread, pasta, frozen vegetables, chocolate, eggs, beef, and olive oil are very likely to remain high following price shocks driven by climate change and the Iran war, fresh analysis today has warned.” buff.ly/2EvAzOf — Covering Climate Now (@coveringclimatenow.org) 2026-05-26T19:34:01.153Z Global Warming Catastrophes Bloomberg Green Daily e-mail: Europe and India bake in May heat The first major heat wave of the season has broken temperature records across northwest Europe, triggered water shortages in the UK and has been linked to several deaths in France. In India, dangerously torrid daily heat has long been a climate warning and a concern. Now the country is increasingly dealing with sweltering nights too, as global warming and poor urban planning put millions at risk. For eight of the past 10 years, average minimum temperatures during March to May — a proxy for nighttime heat over the pre-monsoon season — have been higher than the long-term average, according to data from the India Meteorological Department. Only 2020 and 2023 bucked the trend. Earlier this month, the IMD warned this summer would again see above-normal minimum temperatures across India. Yale Climate Connections e-mail: New study: Extreme heat is catching Americans off guard Many U.S. residents underestimate how dangerous extreme heat is, according to a new study led by several of my Yale colleagues. The facts: Extreme heat kills more people in the United States than any other form of weather. And the danger is growing as the climate changes. As the study authors wrote, “People rely on past weather and lived experience, but climate change is pushing heat risk beyond what many communities recognize.” Many of the people who underestimate their risk live in places that used to be reliably cool, such as the Pacific Northwest, Appalachia, and parts of Michigan and Maine. Oftentimes, they don’t have air conditioning because they’ve never needed it before. So when temperatures spike, as they did during the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat wave, hundreds of people can die. Bloomberg Green Daily e-mail: Life in the Swiss Alps as glaciers collapse A nearby slope shows just how perilous it can be. A year ago, on May 28, 2025, an entire section of the mountain and the Birch glacier that lay on it collapsed. Within minutes, the village of Blatten, where Lukas and generations of Kalbermattens before him were born, was obliterated, along with his Edelweiss Hotel. A few of the Blatten’s houses are still standing, flooded by a new lake that formed in the valley. Photographer: Jose Cendon/Bloomberg Between 1973 and 2016, more than 1,000 glaciers vanished in Switzerland. Twenty major Swiss glaciers have lost one quarter of their volume since 2015, according to a 2025 report led by Matthias Huss, a senior scientist at ETH Zürich and the head of Switzerland’s glacier monitoring network Glamos. Three of England’s worst harvests on record have happened in the past five years. How should farmers & government respond to deliver food security? — Mike Galsworthy (@mikegalsworthy.bsky.social) 2026-05-26T18:19:27.782Z How to Fix the Fastest-Rising Electricity Prices in the U.S. Washington, D.C. has earned an unwelcome distinction: the largest one-year electricity price increase of any state (or equivalent geographic distinction) in the U.S. Prices there are up 87% over the past five years and 26% in the past year alone, according to new data from MIT and Heatmap News’ Electricity Price Hub. The average D.C. household is now paying $55 more for power each month than it did five years ago. Capacity market prices in the Pepco region, which are set through a regional auction scheme designed to ensure the grid can reliably deliver power when demand peaks, increased more than fivefold in 2025. Those costs are passing through to retail bills. As capacity has come under increasing strain, generation charges in Pepco’s standard supply service have gone up 119% — 33% in the past year alone, with yet another rate increase set to kick in on June 1. A D.C. court recently struck down the commission’s most recent rate-hike approval, finding that it had failed to sufficiently scrutinize Pepco’s request. When a regulator is doing such a poor job that judges have to step in, that is a five-alarm signal. Yet there is a workable action plan for the Council and the PSC to rein in costs and ease the burden on D.C. households. Scrutinize distribution charges aggressively. Force transparency into how Pepco procures power. Attack demand by making it easier for customers to generate their own supply. Data Centers Climate Action Now e-mail: The Deal with Data Centers Every AI-powered tool requires tons of computing power—and the data centers that provide it rely on massive amounts of water and electricity to operate. As a result, several communities are already navigating higher utility costs, pressure on their water supplies and power grids, and the threat of steep ecological and environmental impacts. If build-out continues in this fashion, even communities that aren’t feeling the strain now will start to feel it soon. You may have seen BloombergNEF’s latest report, which found that solar is on track to be the dominant power source by 2035. While this is great news, it’s dampened by the fact that data centers are actively keeping fossil fuels relevant—and in some cases, giving them a new lease on life. Currently, natural gas and coal provide over 50% of the electricity that U.S. data centers use, and utilities continue to prioritize fossil fuels in their scramble to meet rapidly rising demand. PJM Interconnection has canceled or postponed 60% of its planned fossil fuel plant closures, utilities committed to 100% renewable energy have shifted their focus to natural gas, and whether through public statements or impact reporting, it’s become clear that data center growth is jeopardizing the climate commitments of utilities, states, and tech companies. Local Moratoria Against Data Center Construction: Considerations for Municipal Governments Rapid data center development is challenging local governments’ ability to manage the environmental challenges these facilities raise. Cities, towns, and counties are facing both uncertainty about the scope of those impacts and growing opposition to data centers from residents. In response, many are turning to temporary moratoria to pause data center development. Community Benefits Agreements and Data Center Development No New Nukes Funding Friday: Of Stellarators and SPACs Nuclear is once again a dominant theme this week, with fusion startup Thea Energy landing a $100 million Series B that will help it expand its magnet manufacturing capabilities. While $100 million is nothing to scoff at, it somehow sounds modest alongside some of this year’s other deals, which include a $450 million Series A for Inertia Enterprises and $240 million for Shine Technologies. This week also brought the news that small modular reactor startup Newcleo plans to go public via SPAC later this year, bringing to mind the exuberance of the 2021 SPAC boom, in a deal expected to net a cool $429 million. Denial and Obstruction vs. Resistance and $$Real Money$$™ Heatmap Daily e-mail: New York’s Climate Backslide After Trump won a second term in the White House and set about tearing up the nation’s climate policy, climate advocates turned to the states, where progress was still possible. But states aren’t picking up the mantle as readily as they did during Trump’s first term. Concerns about affordability — exacerbated by Trump’s policies — are getting in the way. Now, one state has actually weakened its climate ambition, rather than strengthened it. How New York Is Weakening Its Climate Law The state is the first to backtrack on binding emissions legislation. A wave of climate action swept the country’s statehouses in the early 2020s, with nearly two dozen states setting targets to slash their emissions. New York was ahead of the pack and among the most ambitious, passing the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, or CLCPA, in the summer of 2019 to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Now, however, the Empire State will distinguish itself as the first of the bunch to walk back its landmark climate law in the wake of Trump’s re-election. The New York legislature released the text of the deal it reached with Governor Kathy Hochul to reform the state’s climate law on Tuesday. The deal includes two consequential changes: delaying a plan to regulate carbon from 2024 (it was already behind schedule) until 2028, and modifying how the state accounts for the powerful greenhouse gas methane in a way that will look like the state has accomplished deeper reductions than under the current method. The governor has been signaling her intent to weaken the CLCPA for months, arguing that as written, it would have imposed untenable costs on New Yorkers. “Reality has been harsh,” she said during a press conference about the budget agreement in early May, before the text was released. “We cannot meet the current timelines without driving energy costs higher.” Local environmental groups were widely critical of the deal. Hochul is in over her head on the issue, and the technologies, and especially on what actually costs less, and she is clearly listening to industry lobbyists over those who do know. outtstandingBrazil's Supreme Court just delivered a monumental win for Indigenous communities and the future of the Amazon rainforest.For years, a controversial legal theory called the 'Marco Temporal' (or 'time-limit') doctrine threatened Indigenous land rights across Brazil. — Zoli Aswad Osaze (@zaswadosaze.bsky.social) 2026-04-27T18:13:17.682Z Climate litigation cases have more than tripled since 2017.Yet Wells Fargo is completely ignoring this threat. Instead, it dropped its climate goals last year while pouring billions of dollars into fossil fuels. #GreenSky — Stand.earth (@stand.earth) 2026-04-28T17:49:01.578Z A Different Level of Idiocy Clean energy promises lower bills and more reliable power. But what happens when solar panels won’t fit on crumbling roofs? Or when old wiring can’t support new heat pumps? — Floodlight (@floodlightnews.org) 2026-04-28T17:41:01.482Z Resources 🎩 GoodNewsRoundup Want to focus on the ENVIRONMENT: [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/6/2/800047604/community/renewable-tuesday/ Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/