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On the Delaware, A Promising New Era in Cleanup of an Urban River

Jon Hurdle

August 20, 2020 |

Yale Environment 360 |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Camden, New Jersey

Once known for being dirty, the Delaware River is being cleaned up by nonprofits and government entities to the point where they’re encouraging people to swim in it again. The Camden County Municipal Utilities Authority diverted the flow of sewage at 52 municipal plants to a new treatment plant, which has kept 15 million gallons of sewage out of the river each day. While overflows have not been completely eliminated, a national advocacy group even named the Delaware its River of the Year because of its improvements in water quality.

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How Montana Is Cleaning Up Abandoned Oil Wells

Ray Levy Uyeda

August 13, 2020 |

Yes! Magazine |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Montana

Abandoned oil wells in Montana leak thousands of metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions every year, so the Well Done Foundation is working to plug up those wells. In about a year, the foundation plugged its first three wells and expanded their program to other states. The data on the state of abandoned wells and its emissions isn’t complete, which makes it difficult to know the full extent of the problem. But, “what’s exciting about this is that we can make an impact one well at a time,” says Curtis Shuck, founder of the foundation.

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How Reedsburg Got Broadband

Kate Archer Kent

August 05, 2020 |

Wisconsin Public Radio |

Radio |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Reedsburg, Wisconsin

Along with electricity, water, and phone, the Reedsburg Utility Commission provides internet access in rural Wisconsin. The fiber network was built almost two decades ago and provides affordable internet access at high speeds. The project started for internal needs and grew to accommodate the school and then eventually the whole region. Current municipal legislation inhibits the type of private-public partnerships that allowed Reedsburg Utility to once build what is now considered an essential service.

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The ‘solar canals' making smart use of India's space

Kalpana Sunder

August 03, 2020 |

BBC |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: India, Gujarat

Covering canals with solar panels has allowed Indian communities to save land, water and carbon emissions, and even bring electricity to rural villages. The solar panels are suspended on metal structures over the canal, which can generate electricity for farmers and be fed into the state grid or sold to public utilities. While these canal-top solar power plants can be expensive to build, so far, eight Indian states have commissioned canal solar projects.

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Waiting for water: On the Navajo Nation, long lines, scarce resources, a cry for solutions

Ian James

July 22, 2020 |

AZ Central (The Arizona Republic) |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Monument Valley, Utah

As the coronavirus spreads throughout the Navajo Nation, many people don’t have access to water to even wash their hands. For generations, the Navajo people have suffered with this lack of water infrastructure, but some solutions have been implemented. For example, the Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health has built about 100 hand-washing stations and delivered them to homes in need. Many people are hopeful they will receive more funding to build a more robust water system, but the scale of the problem and the cost of building it are big challenges to overcome.

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Tackling a notorious waste problem in Africa's largest informal community

Shi En Kim

July 16, 2020 |

Ensia |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Kenya, Nairobi

Kibra Green, a grassroots organization in Kenya, mobilizes the young people in the community to clean up their neighborhood. At times, the group has as many as 500 participants for a community-wide clean up. Yet, a lack of steady funding and socioeconomic barriers for volunteers to regularly contribute to the group has made it difficult to scale the organization.

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Blockchain technology to boost power access in rural areas

Faustine Ngila

July 14, 2020 |

Nation Africa |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya

A micro-grid system has been paired with blockchain technology to easily sell and buy affordable and clean energy in rural Kenya. Residents living in the countryside don't generally have access to reliable and affordable electricity but this new technology allows rural Kenyans to install solar panels on their homes and easily sell surplus electricity to neighbors. The pilot program is a result of a collaboration between an NGO and a local tech company.

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A New Weapon Against Climate Change May Float

Stanley Reed

June 04, 2020 |

The New York Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Portugal, Viana do Castelo

Floating wind turbines off the coast of Portugal is one of the latest experiments to convert wind energy into electric power. These machines can generate electricity for a city of up to 60,000 people. While it will take more financing and time to scale the project, investors are impressed with the results and see it as a viable financial return to combat climate change.

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How Big Tech is Reshaping the Power Grid

Jake Bullinger

May 22, 2020 |

Bitterroot |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Lunas, New Mexico

As part of a deal with Facebook to build a data center in New Mexico, an electric utility is investing in renewable energy to power the center. Through power purchase agreements, which are contracts to buy renewable energy, the social media company is accelerating the state’s transition away from fossil fuels. These contracts often come with large tax breaks for companies, but Facebook will help finance $800 million worth of wind and solar installations that can generate 396 megawatts of power. These agreements can also be implemented in other states who are hardest-hit by the decline of coal consumption.

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Terrapin Powers Brewery With the Sun, Thanks to Georgia Bill

Stephen Barr Yash Bhika Janani Rammohan Victoria Swyers

May 04, 2020 |

Grady Newsource |

Multi-Media |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Athens, Georgia

Terrapin Beer Co. is powering their brewery with solar power, approximately 30 percent of the business’ total energy. The brewery partnered with Cherry Street Energy, a third-party solar ownership company, which allows them to rent the solar panels for little upfront cost. However, this arrangement doesn’t allow the brewery to store solar power for future use. These efforts allow the business to rely more on renewable energy to reduce their carbon footprint.

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