Energy Switch

Twenty years ago, wind, solar, grid-scale batteries, and the powerlines to connect them were rare. Now they’re mainstream. Our two guests have been there since the beginning. We’ll hear how they’ve led alternative energy development and investment companies with great success. With Hunter Armistead, CEO of Pattern Energy, and Michael Harrington, Chief Investment Officer for Actis.

The Clean Air Act has reduced particulate matter pollution, ground-level ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxides, ushering in capture technologies that have improved air quality and health. Further improvements, however, may be difficult to achieve. With Dr. Tracey Holloway, from the University of Wisconsin and NASA, and Emily Schilling, a law partner at Holland & Hart.

Air conditioning has changed the world, allowing hot regions to develop, with increased comfort, health, and productivity. But these benefits come with challenges -- greater electricity demand and emissions. There are new ideas that could bring cooling to more people, with less impact. With Dr. Daniel Betts, CEO of Blue Frontier, and Dr. Chiara Delmastro from the International Energy Agency.

We often hear that climate change is driving extreme weather. To understand the trends, our guests dug into the IPCC data for heat waves and cold spells. Historic rainfall and current patterns. Storm frequency and intensity. What they reveal will surprise you. With Dr. Patrick Brown, climate scientist from Breakthrough Institute, and acclaimed environmental journalist Andrew Revkin.

Our guests argue against conventional wisdom, that oil companies must be part of decarbonization. That solar and wind will never replace them. And that we don’t value our environment enough to take meaningful action anyway. You may not agree, but you’ll still want to hear from Dr. Nate Hagens, of the Institute for the Study of Energy and Our Future, and Tisha Schuller, CEO of Adamantine Energy.

Large-scale batteries on our power grid could balance the intermittency of wind and solar, along with the normal irregularities of the grid. And they’re becoming ever more affordable. I’ll discuss the potential benefits and challenges with John Zahurancik, President of the Americas for Fluence, a battery storage company, and Paul Denholm, a Senior Energy Analyst at National Renewable Energy Lab.

Using water to generate power has been a staple in our electricity system for a century. We look at conventional reservoir dams and pumped hydro storage; the state of hydropower in the US, Canada and internationally; and challenges that hydro faces. With expert guests Malcolm Woolf from the US National Hydropower Association, and Debbie Gray of the International Hydropower Association.

Carbon markets were created to try to reduce CO2 emissions. There’s a compliance market, in which governments set emission limits and companies comply, often by trading credits. And a voluntary market, where companies and consumers voluntarily buy credits. We’ll explore both with Jamie Keech, Executive Chairman of Vida Carbon, and Kaya Axelsson from University of Oxford Net Zero.

The common narrative about human population -- that it will grow forever -- is dead wrong. Demographic experts now agree that population will peak soon and begin to decline, with profound impacts on every aspect of global society, including energy and the environment. Explore these surprising revelations with Darrell Bricker, author of Empty Planet, and Dean Spears, author of After the Spike.

There are more wildfires in some areas, though globally they’re down. Climate change contributes, but there are other factors which have made forests and cities more fire prone and fires more damaging -- while millions of Americans now live in fire areas. We explore with Lori Moore-Merrell, the US Fire Administrator, and Brian Buma, Senior Climate Scientist at Environmental Defense Fund.

The US natural gas pipeline network carries gas from where it’s produced to the many places it's used: power plants, factories and millions of homes. Proponents want more pipelines, to replace more coal here and abroad. Opponents worry about methane leakage and local environmental impacts. We discuss with former Congressman Tim Ryan and Gillian Giannetti from Natural Resources Defense Council.

In part 1, we talked about the size of planned offshore wind farms, and potential impacts to fisheries, marine mammals and property values. Now we discuss the cost to build offshore wind farms, the role of subsidies to do so, and how much these projects may or may not reduce US CO2 emissions. Our guests again are Peder Hansen from PH Consulting and Lisa Linowes of Industrial Wind Action.