Eight Minute Climate Fix – Details, episodes & analysis

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With millions of miles of gas distribution pipelines under our feet, the transition away from gas and toward electrification needs to account for that existing infrastructure somehow. And that comes with risks, not only to gas distribution companies but to their customers as well.

Understanding, anticipating and managing these risks is a vital part of a safe, equitable transition. To discuss this topic, Paul is joined by Jan Rosenow of Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP). They really dig into what is needed to decommission an entire industry.

For the full interview with Jan, visit our sister podcast, More Than Eight Minutes.

For further research:

Jan Rosenow

Regulatory Assistance Project

"The elephant in the room: How do we regulate gas transportation infrastructure as gas demand declines?" - Rosenow, Lowes & Kemfert

"Planning and regulating Europe’s gas networks: breaking up with fossil gas" - Regulatory Assistance Project

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In this episode, Paul steps back from the individual technologies and business processes that are driving the energy transition, and looks at the interconnected systems that need to be reimagined as well. For some systems, this may be intuitive, such as in the need to develop the ecosystem of supporting infrastructure for EVs. But other interconnected, dependent systems are more nuanced and reflect the challenges policy makers, utilities, and regulators have to manage a transition that is occurring at a different pace and scale across industries and across the globe.

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In this first of two parts, Paul takes a deeper dive into the climate implications of the conservative policy playbook, Project 2025. Paul unpacks how the document lays out a vision for a smaller federal government, and how doing so may impact not only climate action but America's leadership across emerging economic industries.

For further reference:

"Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise" - Project 2025

"What Project 2025 would do to climate policy in the US" - Yale Climate Connections

"The Endangerment Finding: What Does It Actually Do?" - Resources.org

"2024 Poll: Americans’ Views on Climate Change and Policy in 12 Charts" - Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago

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In this episode, Paul dives into tax credits and the byzantine structures used by the federal government to incentivize renewable energy projects. He also lays out how the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) revises the tax equity market for the better, setting the stage for real growth over the next decade.

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In this episode, Paul explains how some large corporations are tackling the thorny issue of emissions in their supply chains. While many are still trying to grasp how to account for and report on these Scope 3 emissions, others are leading the way with innovative solutions to help suppliers reduce their greenhouse gases.

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In this podcast, our host, Paul Schuster, explores the challenges in decarbonizing commercial buildings, especially those that need to be retrofitted. He discusses how governments are using building performance standards to incentivize landlords toward net zero emissions and what some of the issues are in implementing.

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In this new podcast, Paul Schuster breaks down the complexities of the clean energy transition in brief eight minute segments. The debut episode tackles the existing solar industry, the different ways customers are currently contracting for solar power, the impact of new federal incentives, and the challenges awaiting the industry in the near future. 

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The demand for electricity continues to go up. But instead of relying upon utilities to build more dirtier gas and oil fired power plants, a more novel approach is emerging. These Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) aggregate together a number of residential or commercial buildings and adjust demand in order to keep the grid operating optimally.

Paul talks with Courtney Blodgett, Co-Founder and Director of Strategy at Edo on how VPPs work and how Edo is helping commercial buildings become powerful grid assets.

For further reference:

Courtney Blodgett

"Sector Spotlight: Virtual Power Plants" - Department of Energy

Edo

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In order for the IRA to realize all of the benefits from the subsidies it allocated to renewable energy and advanced manufacturing, the legislation needed to revise how tax credits were going to work. The traditional form of tax equity financing wasn't going to be enough, so the IRA introduced something called tax credit transferability. This new process has opened up the tax credit market to a whole new batch of investors, able to invest in even smaller projects, and at rates that are encouragingly beneficial to the clean energy economy.

Paul outlines how this new structure works and the impact that it is already having on clean energy projects.

For more research:

"Monetizing Energy Tax Credits: A Guide to Transferability and Tax Equity Transactions" - Cherry Bekaert

"Understanding Direct Pay and Transferability for Tax Credits in the Inflation Reduction Act" - Cap 20

"Transferable Tax Credit Market Intelligence Report, 2023" - Crux

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The ocean is already a huge carbon sink - and it could do even more. A burgeoning industry of carbon removal solutions, looking to leverage the enormous potential of our marine system, is starting to emerge.

Paul looks at how our oceans currently help us combat carbon emissions, while also dissecting some of the innovative solutions that are emerging within this space.

For more research:

"CO2 and Ocean Acidification: Causes, Impacts, Solutions" - Union of Concerned Scientists

"Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal: Integrity at a Cheaper Price?" - Cleantech Group

"Leveraging the Ocean's Carbon Removal Potential" - World Resources Institute

"The oceans are absorbing more carbon than previously thought" - World Economic Forum

"The Ocean is the Next Frontier for the Carbon Removal Industry" - Time Magazine

NOTE: Paul references the company Running Tide during this episode as experimenting with ocean based carbon removal. Just prior to this episode being published, Running Tide announced that they would be shutting down.

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