Latest news with #PublicNewsService
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Advocates warn of looming vote that could impact millions of Americans: 'It's expected to save the farm about $15,000 in energy costs each year'
A new interactive tool is showing just how effective Inflation Reduction Act investments have been, according to Public News Service. Renewable Energy Success Stories in the Keystone State is an online map that allows visitors to pan across Pennsylvania and learn more about local rollouts of wind and solar power, electric vehicle infrastructure, and other sustainability projects. "The Tulpa Canal Farm, which is a dairy farm in Berks County, received a Clean Energy grant to install about 400 solar panels, which is great," said Flora Cardoni, deputy director of the PennEnvironment Research and Policy Center, per Public News Service. "It's expected to save the farm about $15,000 in energy costs each year." Other companies have been benefiting from improved energy efficiency as well. That includes Hall Industries, which cut 14% of its energy use with upgraded lighting. According to Cardoni, Harley Davidson will be able to build more efficient electric motorcycles and reduce waste thanks to IRA incentives. While it's great to hear the good news, the project's primary goal is to defend against the threat of repeal. PennEnvironment is encouraging locals to write to their representatives in support of the Inflation Reduction Act. Despite the good it is clearly doing, it remains under imminent threat from the Trump administration, which has it wants to repeal the IRA, though that would require an act of Congress. Reducing pollution isn't just a way to stabilize increasingly violent weather patterns. Investments made in mitigation now will protect people against much higher adaptation costs in the future. One study suggests spending $1 now can save $13 later. Spending on sustainability makes perfect sense, even from a purely economic standpoint. While government decisions may impact where tax dollars go, you can still make investments that result in both positive climate impacts and healthy returns. GreenPortfolio can connect people to remote financial advisers to simplify eco-friendly investing. This includes information on building portfolios, investment recommendations, and banks and credit cards that align with your values. Do you think the federal government should give us tax breaks to improve our homes? Definitely Only for certain upgrades Let each state decide instead No way Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Farmers in crisis as staple crops become increasingly difficult to grow: 'It used to be you had guideposts'
Amid rising global temperatures, New Mexico farmers are struggling to produce stable crops. According to reports by Public News Service, farmers are up against extreme weather, making it difficult to plan ahead. Farmers in New Mexico have been facing droughts and wildfires, both of which have disrupted crop yields. According to program co-director for the American Friends Service Committee Sayrah Namaste, extreme weather events in the state have created "really hard odds for farmers to be up against." Namaste discussed some of the extreme weather events with Public News Service, highlighting record-breaking heat for weeks as well as the state's worst wildfires and drought. "It's accelerating so fast that it's hard to even keep up with what they need to do," Namaste told Public News Service. "You know, it used to be you had guideposts, you had dates and it's not anymore. The climate is so chaotic that it's very hard to know, and that's just not happened for generations of farmers." The farming crisis in New Mexico demonstrates the impact of the climate crisis on the nation's food supply and the need for action. As of 2018, there has not been an update to the Farm Bill, per reports by Public News Service. While Congress continues to remain divided on the bill's details, farmers continue to struggle to keep up with unstable weather patterns. While extreme weather has always been a part of Earth's history, more intense droughts, heat waves, and storms are driven by the use of dirty energy. These nonrenewable sources of energy emit harmful, planet-warming gases into the atmosphere, which results in extreme weather events. Scientists point to climate-smart agriculture as the main solution against extreme weather. With sustainable farming practices, farmers can become more resilient against the climate crisis. Namaste also discussed how many farmers in New Mexico have been planting a diversity of crops and sequencing them to ensure they have at least one crop available even if all others fail. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
