Climate Change

A project from the University of Maine monitors soil moisture using AI that over time learns to make a sensor network as efficient as possible, creating a low-energy way to track climate change impacts on natural environments.

“The President’s action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security, FEMA, to coordinate all disaster relief efforts which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency."

People who rely on electricity for medical devices, people in flood-risk areas as well as unsheltered homeless people are at the greatest risk of harm, and emergency officials urged Sacramento residents to seek shelter or stay at home.

Enpira is one of a dozen companies selected for the Govtech Accelerator Program by CivStart, to further develop its business model and technology for the government sector markets.

The first real warnings that the climate was changing more rapidly than normal were sounded in the 1950s. Scientists then cautioned that warming would lead to changes in the atmosphere as well as an expanding ocean.

With no end in sight to extreme weather patterns that could have implications for data centers and even cybersecurity, the time is ripe for IT leaders to plan for energy efficiency and resilience.

The Brookville Smart Energy Depot in Silver Spring will be capable of charging 70 buses, setting the stage for not only the transition to a zero-emission transit fleet, but one powered by an on-site microgrid.

Maine also moves into the top five on the annual State Energy Efficiency Scorecard by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, owing successes to new standards governing appliances, buildings and more.

A total of 88 grants were announced for organizations in 29 states and U.S. territories amounting to more than $136 million. In Louisiana, matching money from local sponsors will increase the funding total to $9.3 million.

A new report shows that 90 percent of U.S. counties have experienced a climate-related federal disaster declaration and suggests that a paradigm shift from recovery to resilience is critical.

As extreme heat events continue to test the power grid in parts of the U.S., the large batteries in electric vehicles are being seen as an opportunity to help smooth out consumer demand peaks. 

Thirty-eight states are operating or building networks of weather monitoring stations to provide more precise data than they receive from the National Weather Service. These networks that detect weather events spanning 1 to 150 miles.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration selected companies to help compile and analyze worldwide climate and weather data, using AI and digital twin technology. The first phase will visualize sea surface temperature data.

The Shared-Use Mobility Center is urging public, private and nonprofit groups to sign on to its Shared Mobility 2030 Action Agenda, which sets goals around expanding mobility options and transportation equity.

The Transit Tech Lab, an initiative focused on bolstering transit recovery and sustainability, has selected six technology companies to conduct yearlong pilots across the New York City metro region.

Survivors of natural disasters — especially the hurricanes that have hit the East Coast and the Gulf of Mexico the past two decades — report years of neglect, chaos and mismanagement of emergency response.

Last year, FEMA, which manages the NFIP, took a significant step toward a new rate structure, attempting to more accurately reflect a property's actual flood risk.

Evacuation behavioral studies have found that people who have a plan in place before a storm is forecast are more likely to evacuate when orders are called, said hazard geographer Chris Emrich.