Reno Starts Tracking Carbon Emissions 24/7

Dec 14, 2021

This edition covers how Reno, Nevada is aiming for transparency in achieving climate goals by adopting Ledger8760 to publicly track carbon emissions. Top Stories and Events sections to follow.

You can’t manage what you don’t measure, and the adage is no more valid than for curbing carbon emissions. That’s why the City of Reno has implemented the Ledger8760 24/7 carbon tracking platform to provide an ongoing picture of the city’s carbon footprint — and make the data public.

Not only does the platform measure energy use, emissions and utility information, but the information is also available on a portal that’s accessible to the public and policymakers. The tracker captures emissions from municipal buildings, public utilities, meters, vehicle fleets and other sources to identify ways to improve sustainability.

"Our city-wide sustainability goal in Reno, aligned with the state of Nevada, is to reduce our annual greenhouse gas emissions by 28% from 2008 levels by 2025, and with that date fast approaching, the accuracy of the data provided by Ledger8760 puts us in a position to better understand how to achieve broader goals," said Suzanne Groneman, Sustainability Program Manager at the Reno City Manager's Office. "We have a responsibility to our citizens, and now we are able to ensure we are making the right investments and decisions with those funds to make for a more sustainable Reno that can be enjoyed by all."

The tracker allows for a deeper understanding of usage patterns over a day, month or season, enabling the City to identify ways to cut emissions more aggressively. So far, the tool showed that carbon-free energy usage was higher in the summer compared to the winter. It also found that when the City’s electric vehicles are charged during the day instead of peak energy usage during evening hours, the fleet is more likely to be charged by carbon-free energy.

Following the successful launch of Ledger8760 in Reno, Washoe County and the state of Nevada are also planning to launch similar public carbon tracking platforms in the months ahead. The plans come in the wake of the Nevada state legislature’s passage of Senate Bill 358, ensuring electricity providers meet at least 50% of customers’ renewable energy needs by 2030 and 100% clean energy by 2050.

"Identifying ways to reduce carbon emissions is not only good for the environment, it's good for our economy, and that's why I'm so proud that Washoe County is also working with Ledger8760 to identify areas where we can reduce waste," Washoe County Chair Bob Lucey said. "We will soon join the City of Reno in using this game-changing technology and work toward a healthier economy and community.”

In addition to working with governmental bodies, Ledger8760 also works with the private sector to help companies achieve ESG goals, reduce emissions and save money in the process. For example, Aligned Data Centers, Corscale Data Centers, Ascent and T5 Data Centers recently adopted the Ledger8760 24/7 tracker to help offer customers transparent and accurate data about carbon footprints.

Dec 5 - The Guardian - From Pollutant to Product: The Companies Making Stuff from CO2

Dec 13 - The Conversation - Tornadoes and Climate Change: What a Warming World Means for Deadly Twisters and the Type of Storms that Spawn Them

Dec 14 - CNN - The Arctic Fails its Annual Health Check as Global Warming Brings More Ills to the Region

Dec 13 - Wonderful Engineering - The National Academy Of Sciences Has A New Plan To Geoengineer The Oceans – And Clean Up CO2

Dec 12 - Science Alert - Scientists Find a New Source of a Greenhouse Gas Emissions in The Siberian Permafrost

Dec 6 - Yahoo - Could We Store Carbon in Pools of Brine Underneath the Seabed?

Dec 9 - UPI - Climate Change Impact Apparent in Most Weather-Linked Fluctuations on Earth

Events

Dec 15 - Politico Europe - Facing the Health Consequences of Climate Change: What Path for Europe?

Dec 15 - University of Pittsburgh - Academics, Equity, and Resilience: Building Pitt’s First Climate Action Plan

Dec 16 - UCL - Simon Mundy on Survival, Innovation and Profit of the Climate Crisis

Dec 17 - Public Parapsychology - Exploring Consciousness-Based Applications for Climate Action