Earth Day, which fell on April 22, was another chance for the world’s population to consider the state of our planet and the threats that it faces.
As this article states, Earth Day began in 1970 in the US amid concern about lead in petrol, something that caused vehicles to spew lead-containing fumes into the air.
The use of leaded petrol has now been almost completely eliminated, although its phase out was not a rapid process, with the final country where it remained available, Algeria, halting its supply as recently as July 2021.
There are lingering effects from using lead in petrol. Research in London that was published in 2021 – more than two decades after the UK’s ban on leaded petrol came into force – showed that the city’s air still contained elevated levels of the heavy metal.
As with the move away from leaded petrol, the energy transition from fossil fuels to renewables is far from an overnight process.
However, this piece by Salim Essaid highlights the view that the recent conflict in the Middle East should serve as a wake-up call to speed the change-over.
The story notes that renewables are not tied to global commodity markets and that once assets are built, prices become stable and supply is more distributed. When energy is generated locally, global upheavals matter much less.
However, the article notes that aside from being up against political difficulties and entrenched interests, the transition faces technical hurdles, such as the need to invest in energy storage and connect new sources of supply.
Many other issues are highlighted in this fascinating article, which offers plenty of food for thought as the world grapples with a more fraught and complex transition than the one that Earth Day called for more than five decades ago.
UAE-China tie-up will cover small nuclear reactor technology
The energy transition has also come under the spotlight in recent days in this article, which discusses a tie-up between the UAE Ministry of Investment and Jereh Group of China.
Among the areas covered by the agreement are the development of small nuclear reactor technology.
As the article notes, the Ministry of Investment is fostering foreign direct investment and forging partnerships across the UAE economy, with clean energy and the country’s ambition to reach net zero by 2050 playing a key role.
The agreement was signed during a visit to Beijing by the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed.
Young conservationists in the UAE selected in new grant scheme
Young people are being encouraged to take an interest in looking after the planet through an initiative from the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund.
The fund’s Youth Grant for Nature will support artists, authors, influencers, film-makers, photographers and musicians who are under 18 years of age, to use their talent to highlight issues related to conservation.
This article reveals that the first recipients are a young Emirati author and an Indian artist, both of whom are already accomplished in their respective fields.
Also discussed is a new scheme called the UAE Local Leaders Grant, which supports fieldwork projects to safeguard threatened species in the emirates.
The big fact
The United Nations Environment Programme has said that the ban on the sale of leaded fuel across the world should prevent more than 1.2 million premature deaths a year. The organisation has described the use of lead in fuel as “a catastrophe for the environment and public health”.
Jargon buster
Leaded petrol: Tetraethyl lead was added to petrol from 1922 onwards to, for example, increase octane levels and help some engines to run more smoothly.
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