Biden cements climate manufacturing deal

Presented by Chevron: Your guide to the political forces shaping the energy transformation

Oct 21, 2022 View in browser   By Arianna Skibell Presented by Chevron Illustration by Claudine Hellmuth/E&E News One of the great climate ironies is that more extreme weather necessitates more resilient infrastructure. More resilient infrastructure requires more concrete, and concrete releases a lot of planet-warming carbon into the atmosphere. That means one of the most resilient and cost-effective ways to adapt developed areas to extreme weather and rising seas is actually making climate change worse. The Biden administration says it has found a way to disrupt this vicious cycle. At the president's urging, General Motors, Starbucks and other major corporations are pledging to use more climate-friendly materials for construction and manufacturing, which, thanks to major federal infrastructure investments, are going to be in hot demand. "We are the United States of America. There is nothing beyond our capacity if we work together," President Joe Biden said at an event Thursday touting his infrastructure law. Biden spoke in Pittsburgh at the Fern Hollow Bridge, which collapsed earlier this year and became a symbol of the country's crumbling roads and bridges. POLITICO's E&E News reporter Kelsey Brugger writes that the concrete industry alone makes up 8 percent of global planet-warming pollution and, advocates say, has lagged behind other carbon-intensive sectors in going green. Here's the rub: Concrete is virtually indestructible. It doesn't rot, rust or burn, and it can be molded into virtually any form for building. But the cement used to bind concrete and make it strong generates a significant amount of heat-trapping carbon dioxide. For every ton of cement manufactured, a ton or so of CO2 is released. But there are ways to curb emissions associated with cement production, and technological advances have produced cement alternatives used to bind concrete. Supplementing concrete with other materials when appropriate, like for paving highways, is also becoming more popular. Earlier this year, the procurement arm of the federal government imposed new limitations on high carbon-emitting building materials for all its major projects. The move is catalyzing a shift in the construction industry. The General Services Administration oversees $75 billion in annual contracts, and its real estate portfolio comprises more than 370 million square feet. The administration now plans to use its vast purchasing power to spur the advancement of low-carbon materials. The Department of Transportation has said 25 states will receive the first highway "climate challenge grants" to support sustainable pavement, for example.   Thank goodness it's Friday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host,  Arianna Skibell.  Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to  askibell@eenews.net. Listen to today's POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy's podcast: Josh Siegel breaks down Democrats' campaign trail strategy of blasting Big Oil for high gasoline prices and why it may be somewhat misguided.   A message from Chevron: The fuels of the future can come from unexpected places. Find out how Chevron is working with partners to convert the methane from cow waste into renewable natural gas. Learn more.   electric future A Tesla Model S that suffered a battery fire. | North Collier Fire Control & Rescue District in Naples, FL Six flooded EVs burst into flames in the days after Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida, writes Andres Picon . It was a first. The hurricane's storm surge flooded thousands of vehicles with salt water, and the surprising fires added a challenge to a fire department that was already overwhelmed by search and rescue operations in the wake of the deadly storm. The fires also put a political target on electric vehicles. Power Centers Part of the Wind River Indian Reservation. | USFWS Mountain-Prairie/Wikipedia Water wars A Dallas-based oil and gas company is asking EPA to allow it to inject millions of barrels of wastewater from thousands of planned wells into a deep water aquifer in Wyoming, writes Heather Richards . State regulators approved the proposal in 2020, despite concerns it would jeopardize drinking water supplies by contaminating a viable aquifer. The proposal now heads to EPA. Winter is coming The nation's top energy regulators are warning that consumers are going to "suffer" this winter as energy costs continue to climb, writes Miranda Willson . Driving the spike in energy costs are high fuel prices worldwide and relatively low growth in natural gas production in the U.S., among other factors, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Treaty exodus French President Emmanuel Macron announced that France will leave an embattled EU energy treaty, making it the largest economy to announce its departure, writes Karl Mathiesen . The pact, which allows international companies and investors to sue governments over interventions that hit the profits of energy projects, is increasingly seen as a threat to national climate plans. in other news People stranded due to floods following several days of downpours in Nigeria. | Fatai Campbell/AP Photo First blood, now floods: These farmers are battling bandits and climate change. Russia's war: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked residents to reduce their power usage in the wake of Russian infrastructure attacks.   A message from Chevron:   Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. Mountain lions are coming into contact with people more often because of wildfires. | National Park Service. California wildfires caused Los Angeles' mountain lions to behave in a more risky fashion to skirt their burning habitat. A federal court rejected a lawsuit brought by a dozen Republican-controlled states seeking to block President Biden's social cost of carbon. The Biden administration is proposing a massive offshore oil sale next year to comply with the Democrats' climate law. That's it for today, folks. Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!   A message from Chevron: Energy demand is growing. Meeting that demand calls for innovation. That's why at Chevron, we're working with partners to convert the methane from cow waste into renewable natural gas. Through our partnerships, we expect to increase our RNG production 10x by 2025. Learn more.     Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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