Solar project planned for Mojave Desert will destroy thousands of Joshua trees and endangered tortoise habitat & more environmental news.

[View this email in your browser]( Tuesday, June 4, 2024 “It’s the first time that we know what we know and it’s maybe the last best chance we’ll ever have to make peace with nature.” – Sylvia Earle [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [X]( Solar Project Planned for Mojave Desert Will Destroy Thousands of Joshua Trees and Endangered Tortoise Habitat A new solar power project that will break ground in the Mojave Desert, near two Kern County towns in California, will require thousands of Joshua trees (Yucca brevifolia) to be removed. The project is also expected to destroy a habitat for desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii), California’s state reptile and a threatened species. [Read More]( Related: [California’s York Fire Sweeps Across Mojave Desert, Threatening Wildlife and Joshua Trees]( U.S. Electric Bills Could Increase 8% This Summer Amid Rising Temperatures A new report from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA) and the Center for Energy Poverty and Climate (CEPC) anticipates that households in the U.S. will see about a 7.9% increase in their electric bills this summer as temperatures increase. This summer also follows the [record-hot summer of 2023](. [Read More]( Related: [Climate Change Added 26 More Days of Extreme Heat in the Past 12 Months, Report Finds]( Value of Carbon Offsets Market Has Dropped 61% Since 2022, Report Finds Following multiple scientific studies that have revealed that carbon offsets are not as reliable as once thought, the market value of [carbon offsets]( has dropped by around 61% when compared to its near-peak value in 2022, a new report has found. [Read More]( Related: [Carbon Offsets 101: Why We Can’t Offset Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis]( Improved Refrigeration Could Reduce Global Food Waste by 41%, Study Finds A new [study]( by researchers at University of Michigan (UMichigan) has concluded that almost half of [food waste]( globally — roughly 620 million metric tons — could be saved by food supply chains being fully refrigerated. [Read More]( Related: [Food Waste 101: The Facts and Solutions]( Power Plants to Parklands Is Turning Michigan’s Retired Coal Plants Into Community Hubs of Solace, Wildlife and Solar Energy There are currently more than 200 [coal-fired power plants]( in operation in the United States, but the country has been scaling back since reaching its [coal generation]( peak in 2011. By the end of 2026, the U.S. is projected to have retired half of its [coal capacity](. But what happens to coal plants after they shut down? Michigan’s [Environmental Law & Policy Center]( (ELPC) sees retiring coal plants — once viewed as industrial scars on the landscape — as “canvases for the creation of new greenways, parklands, [wildlife habitat]( and [clean energy]( development,” a press release from ELPC said. [Read More]( Related: [Increasing Renewable Energy Use in the U.S. Brings Billions in Benefits, Study Finds]( Do you get this newsletter daily? If not, [sign up here]( or forward to a friend. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Website]( [Instagram]( Copyright © 2024 EcoWatch, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up for EcoWatch Top News of The Day Our mailing address is: EcoWatch 1122 Oberlin RoadRaleigh, NC 27605 [Add us to your address book]( Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](. [Mailchimp Email Marketing](