Organizations that help provide clean water

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The Biden administration has reinstated restrictive policies under the guise of environmental protections that impact the construction of major infrastructure projects in the United States, including pipelines and highways. The timing could not be worse. Federal government regulatory intervention is on the rise. The new rule will require federal agencies to examine the climate impact of infrastructure projects under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), a 1970 law that requires the government to assess the environmental outcomes. Critics say that the Biden administration took these measures to reverse his predecessor’s policy liberalization, leading to an unprecedented increase in America’s hydrocarbon production. This move has come under scrutiny amid the skyrocketing prices for oil and natural gas domestically and internationally and the need for the US to ramp up liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to … [Read more...] about How Biden’s New Energy Restrictions Defeat His Goals For Helping Ukraine

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin In a competitive labor market, retirement benefits are a substantial perk to offer your employees. Potential and existing talent may view the presence or absence of a 401(k) option as a key factor when deciding whether or not to join or stay with your company. Providing retirement benefits also shows employees you care about them and their future endeavors. If you’ve never offered retirement benefits to your employees, you may be wondering where to begin the process and what the best practices are. Below, 14 members of Forbes Finance Council share the advice they’d give a business client contemplating offering a 401(k) option to their employees for the first time. 1. Ask Yourself Why It’s An Essential Benefit Ask yourself about the “why”—what are you looking to accomplish? Improved retention and recruitment is a great answer if your industry demands or expects the benefit. Maximize the benefit for the company and … [Read more...] about Starting A New 401(k) Program? 14 Helpful Tips From Finance Experts

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The context is transitioning from fossil energy to renewables. One key aspect of this is transport via gasoline or diesel vehicles and its transition to electric motors driven by batteries or hydrogen. The fossil fuel industry should be concerned about the efficiency and cost of sustainable transport, because that will determine the speed of the transition which will likely affect the decline of oil production and perhaps the oil and gas industry itself. Elon Musk knows batteries. He builds them: to propel cars and trucks, at one bookend, to grid-scale behemoths that store and stabilize electrical power for hundreds of homes and commercial enterprises, at the other bookend. Last week, May 12, 2022, Musk said hydrogen “is the most dumb thing I could possibly imagine for energy storage.” This is not the first time, as Musk has made similar negative comments in past years. A few years ago, Musk told reporters that hydrogen … [Read more...] about Is Elon Musk Right Or Wrong To Dismiss Hydrogen Use For Low-Carbon Energy Storage?

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin While the food of Emilia-Romagna, centered by Bologna, is considered some of the most sumptuous in Italy, its reputation as a wine region has lagged well behind others like Piedmont, Tuscany and Campania. Known primarily for its sparkling Lambruscos, which can be as cloyingly sweet as Hawaiian Punch, Emilia-Romagna’s only other familiar wine is Albana di Romagna. One winery, however, located in Piacenza, has been as forward-looking as any in Italy. Over dinner in New York I interviewed Lucio Salamini, owner of Luretta-Castello di Momeliano, which was only founded as of 1988, which now make a wide variety of non-traditional DOP wines. Your estate is nearly half a century old, located in Piacenza in Emilia-Romagna, which has not had a reputation for fine wines. How have you worked to overcome the image that was set by cheap Lambrusco? Piacenza is still an uncharted territory for many. It is part of Emilia Romagna … [Read more...] about Luretta Winery Goes Its Own Way In Tradition-Bound Emilia-Romagna

After 13 grueling years of political debate, Congress passed a bill that enabled some of the largest infrastructure spending in U.S. history—an almost 20% increase over the annual federal public works budget. advertisement The spending created clean energy, jobs, addressed environmental issues (while creating others), and ultimately, while backstopped by Congress, paid for itself. If this sounds too good to be true—it isn’t—because this happened in 1928. The spending was for the Hoover Dam. And while there were other projects part of the “infrastructure stimulus” of that era, this iconic project is a great representation of the good and bad of a meaningful infrastructure spend. Over the past 10 years, infrastructure has become an outsized and unrequited topic—it has featured prominently in presidential campaigns, has been the subject of many (mostly unpassed) bills and hundreds of conferences, and marketed in at least a dozen “Infrastructure Weeks.” Will it be said … [Read more...] about Infrastructure 2021: Delivering more sustainable and equitable infrastructure

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin More than eighty percent of eligible voters turned out for the Philippines Presidential Election, and it looks a landslide victory for Ferdinand (Bongbong) Marcos Jr. While they are finishing the vote count, several media critics are already trying to punch holes in Bongbong’s stunning landslide victory. Some have pointed to the excesses of his father’s regime (of 36 years ago), while others have targeted his 92-year-old mother (Imelda). Some allege a closer friendship to China, but few have spent time examining the erosion of Philippine love for America – an important analysis for a former USA colony - where the average citizens really do love America. In bygone days, Capitol Hill pushed for closer ties with Manila but, sadly, the former pro-Philippine hawks have long since vacated the building. With Bongbong now on the rise, the U.S. Government is taking a fresh look at ways to improve the relationship. As everyone … [Read more...] about Retail’s Worry: As Philippines Trade Ramps Up – Will Bongbong Marcos Question America’s Love?

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Last month, House Bill 4, called the Hydrogen Hub Development Act, was voted down by the committee on House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources. There were various reasons for this. The bill would contain tax incentives to start a new industry that would be part of the transition to renewable energies but would link to the booming oil and gas industry. The oil and gas industry would provide the natural gas to produce the hydrogen, and then sequester or bury the carbon-dioxide (CO2) bi-product underground – a process called carbon capture and storage (CCS). Hydrogen generated in this way from methane is called blue hydrogen. Additionally, the bill is amongst the first in the United States to include specific incentives for the production of hydrogen from renewable natural gas, which can yield “carbon-negative” hydrogen. Such pathways do not implicate the oil and gas industry, but are a unique feature that … [Read more...] about Headwinds And Tailwinds Clash In Derailed New Mexico Hydrogen Bill

FILE PHOTO: Teachers unpack Enhanced Nutribun bread at a school in Caloocan City. The latest version of the 1970s’ Nutribun was developed by the Department of Science and Technology—Food and Nutrition Research Institute. INQUIRER PHOTO/GRIG MONTEGRANDE MANILA, Philippines—Throughout the campaign period, the achievements and programs of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr.—whether based on historical records or mere claims by die-hard supporters—seemed to have become the shadow of presumptive president Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. The so-called legacies of the late Marcos have resurfaced amid the younger Marcos’ presidential bid. Stories glorifying and lauding what Marcos Sr. has done as president have spread online through various platforms—boosting the son’s campaign. Many of these stories, however, have been fact-checked and found to be myths or false claims. READ: Debunking Marcos myths on social media Among the myths swirling around the Marcoses, which have been … [Read more...] about The muddled past of Nutribun

Christie Pitney is a certified nurse midwife who was working at a federally funded health center in California’s Central Valley when the pandemic struck. In those early months, several of her patients struggled to get abortions. Under normal circumstances, the closest abortion clinic is 45 minutes away, but during the pandemic, clinics around the country suffered staff shortages and canceled services. Patients were having trouble getting to clinics even when they were open. advertisement advertisement This is part of a series of articles on the business case for abortion access. See the full package here. “My patients and the population in that area, they don’t have reliable transportation. They are working six to seven days a week,” she says. “They have childcare needs and don’t have reliable income. Most of them are either working in a packing house or in the fields.” And that’s in California, one of the most accessible states to get an … [Read more...] about In a post-‘Roe’ world, abortion pills won’t be enough

Erika Christensen was in her third trimester in May 2016, when doctors told her the fetus wasn’t swallowing, and her baby would likely not be able to breathe outside her body. advertisement advertisement They were also concerned for her health. Christensen had had brain surgery a year before, and going into natural labor was already a risk. The doctors agreed that the best course of care was to terminate the pregnancy. This is part of a series of articles on the business case for abortion access. See the full package here. Despite the risks, Christensen was past the point where abortion was legal in New York, as she was more than 24 weeks pregnant. She would have to travel to Colorado for a $10,000 procedure. On top of that, she discovered that—while she had “very good private insurance”—abortion care wasn’t covered out-of-network. “I didn’t know to ask for pre-authorization to reimburse myself,” she says. “And I am not sure it would have … [Read more...] about Insurance is one of the major barriers to abortion care in the U.S. That’s intentional