Browsing: Sustainability & Green Tech

The start of a new year: a time for optimism, ambitious plans to improve the world, and the grim suspicion…

在特朗普（Donald Trump）开始第二个美国总统任期之际，中美再次打响贸易战几乎已成定局，而对能源转型至关重要的矿物可能会陷入这场交锋的漩涡。 特朗普已威胁要对来自中国、以及通过其他国家输往美国的中国商品加征关税。 与此同时，中国正在制定一套“多样化”的政策工具包，以应对日益加剧的贸易紧张局势。最近一个值得注意的例子是中国对锗、镓、石墨和锑等四种矿物实行出口管制。 所有这些矿物都在低碳技术中发挥着重要作用，但同时也具有军事等其他用途。 Carbon Brief等机构的分析表明，中国于2023年夏季首次实施的出口管制并未对关键矿物供应链产生持续影响。 然而，2024年12月初宣布的更严格的管控措施，特别是对美出口的限制，引发了关于这些措施可能产生多大影响的辩论。 在本文中，Carbon Brief探讨了美中之间围绕关键矿物的紧张关系，可能对供应链稳定性以及清洁能源转型产生的影响。 哪些矿物对清洁能源转型至关重要？ 矿物对多种低碳技术的发展至关重要。 例如，铟和镓用于太阳能电池板的涂层，铜和“稀土”金属用于风力发电机的导体和永磁体，而从锂到锰的各种矿物则广泛应用于不同类型的电池。 中国在许多矿物的供应链中占据重要地位，尤其是在加工环节。如下表所示，全球超过一半的石墨、稀土元素（REEs）和钒的开采，以及大部分铝、钴、石墨、铟、锂、稀土元素和硅的加工均集中在中国。 然而，并非所有这些材料都被视为“关键矿物”。“关键矿物”是一个政治术语，用于描述那些在重要战略领域中发挥作用的矿物。 美国将50种矿物列为关键矿物，欧盟确定了34种关键矿物和另外16种“战略原材料”，而日本的清单上列出了35种矿物。 尽管中国自2016年以来没有更新其官方的关键矿物清单，但2023年11月，中国国家安全部官方公众号发布的一篇文章透露，中国至少将31种矿物视为关键矿物。 该文章比较了中国（橙色）、欧盟（绿色）和美国（蓝色）关键矿物清单中的重叠与差异部分。 大宗商品咨询公司CRU集团中国办事处特别顾问、前首席执行官约翰·约翰逊（John Johnson）告诉Carbon…

PORT LAVACA, Texas—Few men still fish for a living on the Gulf Coast of Texas. The work is hard and…

Buildings along Sunny Isles Beach, Florida on Feb. 16, 2022 Joe Raedle / Getty Images Why you can trust us…

The New South Wales Environment Protection Authority is prosecuting three companies and one individual in response to its investigation into…

This year we investigated governments, corporations and NGOs in the climate space, and brought you on-the-ground reporting from Africa, Asia…

With coal ash, one date stands out: Dec. 22, 2008. Before then, relatively few people in the United States knew…

On the second weekend after Hurricane Helene, Swannanoa Christian Church held its first Sunday service since the storm battered western…

The crowd sways like starlings in murmuration as we wait for the show to start. The relaxed vibe belies the…

For the past decade, the Barcelona-based visual artist Xavi Bou has devoted his work to revealing “the hidden beauty of…

This story was originally published by The Guardian and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. The Biden administration has released a long-awaited analysis…

BOSTON—Three climate activists and three gas utility executives walk into a room. It may sound like the start of a…

Regrowth of bracken ferns after a fire in Okefenokee Swamp in southeastern Georgia. Wild Horizons / Universal Images Group via…

Researchers in northwest Peru’s Alto Mayo region have discovered 27 new animal species, including a semi-aquatic mouse, a salamander that…

WASHINGTON D.C. – Newburgh Clean Water Project, Sierra Club, and NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) today moved to intervene to defend the Biden…

Oil and gas companies operating in Colorado have submitted hundreds of environmental impact reports with “falsified” laboratory data since 2021,…

Locals and experts say France should have done more to protect residents of its poor island territory from extreme weather…

Welcome to Carbon Brief’s DeBriefed. An essential guide to the week’s key developments relating to climate change. Cyclone Chido ravages south-east…

  News updates from CIWM’s commercial partners. Keenan Recycling | Sustainable alliance: Falkirk Council and Keenan Recycling reduce carbon footprint…

The Beatrice Offshore Wind Farm in Scotland. dapec / iStock / Getty Images Plus Why you can trust us Founded…

This story was originally published by National Parks Traveler. The National Park System could close this weekend if Congress can’t…

Exclusive: Shell used rice-farming offsets for “carbon neutral” LNG campaign – but farmers and local authorities said no project activities…

The outgoing administration said the target to cut emissions by 61-66% by 2035 can be reached even if Trump rolls…

One of Louisiana’s top public universities has prompted concerns about “corporate capture” over its expanding relationship with the liquefied natural…

With just a month left in office, the Biden administration is setting a bold new target for U.S. climate action.…

  The UK Government has announced the members of the new Circular Economy Taskforce, which will support them in creating…

Leicestershire farmer given a suspended sentence after pleading guilty to charges related to spreading contaminated compost containing plastics, metals, and…

The number of new coal plants under development in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) region has reached…

The bottom of the range reflects a larger rollback of policy at the federal level over the next four years,…

Elevate Energy (home energy efficiency grantee) A highlight of our trip was visiting three Peoria households that had received free…

Welcome to Carbon Brief’s Cropped. We handpick and explain the most important stories at the intersection of climate, land, food and…

Developing states and labour activists say a fair global shift away from fossil fuels requires a firm UN plan for…

As global temperatures rise from the burning of fossil fuels, researchers and policymakers have proposed solutions like installing renewable energy,…

Counties across the southern half of the U.S., especially those with large and socially vulnerable populations, will be much more…

City of Lincoln Council awards new £50 million waste/recycling and street cleansing contract to Biffa. The contract is set to…

Setana Osato wind farms on seaside cliffs in Setana town, Hokkaido, Japan, on July 31, 2024. Noriko Hayashi / for…

The American auto industry has historically been the epitome of American innovation, literally driving the country forward. But given a…

Road safety campaigners in east London have lost a high court challenge against the mayor of Tower Hamlets over his…

“Fragmented governance” between biodiversity, climate change, food, water and health is putting all of those systems at risk, according to…

In the waiting room of doctor Iván Silva’s medical centre, Nadia Saavedra and her husband Claudio sit quietly as their…

Midwest grid operator Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) just approved the largest investment in transmission in U.S. history, beating its own…

What government function do we rely upon multiple times every day from the moment we wake up until you hit…

When we have an audience, it can affect how well we perform. New research has found that the performance of…

South Carolina’s upstate residents are still recovering from Hurricane Helene, the storm that devastated areas of the southeast far inland,…

Julian Aguon wore a dark blue suit and garland made of white coconut fronds, brown hibiscus tree bark, and brown…

Unite the Union has promised more bin strikes in Sheffield after they say Veolia pulled out of a recognition agreement…

Eight hours shovelling snow in -20C might not sound like the ideal day out, but a committed team of volunteers…

Gaslighting: Fourth in a series about opposition to a wave of new natural gas pipelines, power plants and storage facilities…

Are Virginia’s lights about to go out, her clean air and climate laws about to be dismantled, and our household…

This story was originally published by Mother Jones and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Over the years, Donald Trump…