MP Says Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe Has Been Freed And Is "At The Airport In Tehran And On Her Way Home"

(Alamy)

Eleanor Langford

The MP for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has said the British citizen, who has been detained in Iran since April 2016, is returning to the UK after having her British passport returned.

Labour MP Tulip Siddiq claimed on Tuesday that a British negotiating team had travelled to Iran, and that Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been given her British passport back.

The British-Iranian dual national was arrested at Imam Kohmeini airport and sentenced to a five-year term in prison for the charge of spying, an an allegation she strongly denies.

Earlier on Wednesday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed that talks over the release of Zaghari-Ratcliffe and other British citizens detained in Iran were "moving forward".

"I shouldn't really say much more right now just because those negotiations continue to be under way and we're going right up to the wire," he claimed earlier.

Talks to free British-Iranian woman Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe ‘going up to the wire’

Hopes have been raised after an MP revealed yesterday that the 43-year-old’s British passport had been returned to her.


Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested in April 2016 as she prepared to fly back to the UK.

NEGOTIATIONS WITH TEHRAN to free British-Iranian mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe are “moving forward” and are “going right up to the wire”, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said.

The Prime Minister raised hopes today that the six-year ordeal could come to a close after suggestions the mother of one has had her passport returned.

But Johnson, during a trip to the Middle East, was cautious not to elaborate further on the state of negotiations with Tehran “because those negotiations continue to be under way”.

A glimmer of optimism for the 43-year-old came a day earlier when her constituency MP in Hampstead and Kilburn, Tulip Siddiq, said she had been returned her British passport.

‘Moving forward’

Johnson confirmed a British negotiating team was working in Tehran to secure the release of dual nationals, while Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe remains at her family home in the Iranian capital.

“I really don’t think I should say much more, I’m sorry, although things are moving forward,” he told broadcasters at the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi.

“I shouldn’t really say much more right now just because those negotiations continue to be under way and we’re going right up to the wire.”

Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested in April 2016 as she prepared to fly back to the UK, having taken her daughter Gabriella – then not even two years old – to see relatives.

She was accused of plotting to overthrow the Iranian government and sentenced to five years in jail, spending four years in Tehran’s Evin Prison and one under house arrest.

Both the British government and Zaghari-Ratcliffe have always denied the allegations.

While the details of the negotiations remain unclear, it is possible they are linked to a £400 million (€475m) debt dating back to the 1970s owned to Iran by the UK.

The government accepts it should pay the “legitimate debt” for an order of 1,500 Chieftain tanks that was not fulfilled after the shah was deposed and replace by a revolutionary regime.

Tehran remains under strict sanctions, however, which have been linked to the failure to clear the debt.

Explainer
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe: Could deal over £400m tank debt secure British-Iranian mother's freedom?

Boris Johnson confirms that "conversations are still going on" to secure the release of British-Iranian mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who was first arrested by Iranian authorities six years ago.


Tom Rayner
Digital politics editor @RaynerSkyNews
Wednesday 16 March 2022 07:07, UK

Boris Johnson has said he does not want to "tempt fate" by commenting on negotiations currently taking place to secure the freedom of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

The prime minister confirmed on Tuesday that "conversations are still going on" to secure the release of the British-Iranian mother.

She was first arrested by Iranian authorities six years ago on accusations she had been conspiring against the country's government - charges she has always denied.

Hopes are now growing that her release could be imminent after Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe's MP - Tulip Siddiq - claimed in a social media post that her passport had been returned and that a British negotiating team were in Tehran.


What is being negotiated?

There has not been any official account of the nature of negotiations taking place, which are understood to also relate to other consular cases involving dual British-Iranian nationals.

However, earlier this year, the PM did not deny there were efforts to strike a deal that would see the UK government settle an historical debt dispute with Iran.

During PMQs on 9 February, Ms Siddiq said she understood a deal signed between the UK government and the Iranian authorities in the summer of 2021 "that would have resulted in the payment of the £400m that we owe Iran and the release of my constituent Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe" had fallen through.

Former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt says this move is the 'most significant chink of light for many years.'

She urged the PM to personally meet her and Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband, Richard Ratcliffe, to explain why the agreement had broken down.

Mr Johnson responded: "The International Military Services, or IMS, debt is difficult to settle and square away for all sorts of reasons to do with sanctions.

"But we will continue to work on it and I will certainly make sure that we have another meeting with Richard Ratcliffe in due course."

What is the IMS debt?

Following the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, the British government cancelled an order for 1,500 Chieftain tanks and armoured vehicles.

The order was being handled by what was then the Ministry of Defence's arms-trading subsidiary - International Military Services.

The order had already been paid for when it was cancelled. The debt owed following the non-delivery of the tanks is estimated at £400m.

Last November, Foreign Office minister James Cleverley told MPs the government accepts liability for the debt, but said settling the matter was "not easy" due to sanctions imposed on Iran.

"The UK government recognise that we have a duty to legally repay this debt and we continue to explore all legal options to resolve this 40-year-old case," he said in the House of Commons.

But he added: "We do not accept British dual nationals being used as diplomatic leverage."

A High Court hearing on the question of the IMS debt repayment had been scheduled for April 2021 but was adjourned at the request of the Iranian defence ministry. A new hearing date has yet to be set.

Mr Ratcliffe has previously accused the government of being "too timid" in its negotiations with Iran, and recently went on hunger strike to put pressure on ministers to go further to secure his wife's release.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe and her daughter Gabriella, pictured in 2016

Is there any connection to the Iran nuclear deal negotiations?

Since his election, US President Joe Biden has been working to re-establish the Iran nuclear deal, which his predecessor Donald Trump abandoned in 2018.

Those talks have increased in intensity in recent months, with reports the US could be close to rejoining the agreement - despite complications caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), aims to ease sanctions on Iran in return for limits being put on Tehran's nuclear programme.

It was signed by the US, UK, China, France, Germany, Russia, the EU and Iran in 2015.

Last summer, Iran's main negotiator accused Western countries of delaying talks around prisoners to force Iran into JCPOA negotiations before a new government was in place.

Both the US administration and UK government have repeatedly insisted there is no connection between the efforts to negotiate the release of dual national prisoners and the nuclear talks.

However, following the JCPOA's initial implementation in 2016, Barack Obama's administration did secure the release of four American prisoners from Iran.

Woman who protested Ukraine war on Russian state TV news was Kremlin propaganda machine insider

Marina Ovsyannikova went from a well-paid trusted employee to now facing the prospect of spending a decade in prison on charges of treason

Author of the article:

The Telegraph

Nataliya Vasilyeva

Publishing date:

Mar 15, 2022  •  7 hours ago  •  3 minute read  •   Join the conversation

Marina Ovsyannikova, the editor at the state broadcaster Channel One who protested against Russian military action in Ukraine during the evening news broadcast at the station, leaves a Moscow court on March 15, 2022. PHOTO BY AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

Article content

A tenacious journalist and a highly trusted professional. That was how colleagues described the long-time Russian state TV producer who burst onto the set of a flagship news show with an anti-war banner in a stunning protest against Kremlin censorship.

Advertisement 

After her five seconds on Channel One’s 9 p.m. news program, Marina Ovsyannikova, who has worked for state television for most of her life, was detained by onsite guards and taken to a police station next to Moscow’s sprawling TV headquarters where she was kept overnight. Yesterday afternoon a court fined her 30,000 roubles ($300 Cdn.) for an anti-war video statement which she had recorded before stepping on the set.

Ovsyannikova, 44, could still face a decade in prison on charges of treason, stemming from a new draconian law that restricts reporting of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The woman was not a random intruder angry at Russian state TV’s news coverage but the flesh and blood of the Kremlin’s propaganda machine, a trusted employee.

Advertisement 3

“I have spent many, years producing Kremlin propaganda, and I’m very much ashamed of it now,” she said in a pre-recorded video message posted on her Instagram account, sporting a necklace comprised of the colours of the Ukrainian and Russian flags.

“I’m very much ashamed of putting lies on TV screens, for allowing to brainwash Russian people.”

Ovsyannikova has been described as an industry insider who rose from provincial obscurity to become a producer of Russia’s major night news TV shows hosted by the presenter whom Vladimir Putin once called his favourite anchor

Ovsyannikova, nee Tkachuk, was born in Odesa, a Ukrainian Black Sea port that is braced for a Russian attack. She said in her video statement that the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine was particularly painful to her due to her mixed Russian and Ukrainian heritage.

She grew up in southern Russia where she attended the Kuban State University’s journalism school with Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of Russia’s RT channel.

Simonyan, often described as one of Russia’s most notorious propagandists, denied that the two were classmates but confirmed they were at the same journalism school and had worked together at Kuban, the state-owned TV channel in the regional capital Krasnodar.

Simonyan claimed that Ovsyannikova was a protegee of Vladimir Runov, who was then Kuban’s director general, who lobbied for Ovsyannikova to become special correspondent in Krasnodar for Kuban’s parent TV company.

Advertisement 5

In comments to local media yesterday Runov denied suggestions of having a special relationship with Ovsyannikova but said he had recommended her for a place on a management training course at a state-owned university as a “go-getting” employee.

Ovsyannikova was a popular TV presenter in southern Russia in the late 1990s before moving to Moscow.

A woman, later identified as Marina Ovsyannikova, interrupted a live newscast on Russian state TV to protest the invasion of Ukraine. PHOTO BY AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

In a Facebook post, she reminisced about her early years in regional television in Krasnodar, saying she worked “day and night, no time off or holidays: work was our life.”

A media manager in Krasnodar recalled her being an intrepid reporter. Zhdan Tikhonov, who produced news packages with her at Kuban in the late 1990s, told the 93.ru website that she was “good to work with. She was tenacious and was up for any work.”

Advertisement 6

An unnamed colleague said that Ovsyannikova grew up in Chechnya’s capital Grozny but moved out shortly before the war that started in 1994.

The Telegraph could not corroborate the reports.

Ovsyannikova was known in Krasnodar under the name of Tkachuk before she married Igor Ovsyannikov, a long-time director at RT.

The RT chief said he still worked for her channel: “They got divorced a long time ago and live separate lives: very different lives, clearly.”

Ovsyannikova’s social media revealed a glamorous life of a well-paid state TV employee with a penchant for selfies in expensive jewellery, fur coats and overseas holidays. On Instagram, she describes herself as a “happy mum” of two children who is into fitness and open-water swimming.

Space Junk Crashed Into the Far Side of the Moon at 5,800 MPH

By EVAN GOUGH, UNIVERSE TODAY MARCH 8, 2022

Artist’s animation of a rocket booster crashing into the moon.

Observers have been tracking a chunk of space junk, waiting for it to strike the Moon. It should’ve hit the far side of the Moon, and hopefully, orbiters will have images of the impact site, though that might take a while.

The origins of the junk are in dispute. Some say it’s a spent booster from a Chinese rocket. Others say it’s from a SpaceX rocket. So far, nobody is claiming it.

Bill Gray was the first one to spot the object. Gray writes the Project Pluto software that tracks Near-Earth Objects (NEOs.) Initially, Gray said the object was the second stage from NASA’s DISCOVR spacecraft launched in 2015. That was a SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage. Then he retracted that after talking with JPL. Now Gray says that it’s a Chang’e 5-T1 rocket booster from 2014. China denies it, which isn’t surprising.

But whatever it is, Gray said on his website, “If this were a rock, I’d be 100% certain. (And I am 100% certain it will hit close to the above point at that time.) But space junk can be a little tricky.”

Bill Gray from Project Pluto calculated that the space junk would hit at or near the green x in this image. Hertzsprung crater is an enormous impact crater on the lunar far side, and it’s about 570 km (350 miles) in diameter. Credit: Bill Gray/Project Pluto

The hunk of junk has been traveling through space for seven years and impacted the Moon at about 9300 kph (5800 mph.) It should’ve struck the Moon on March 4th, and it should’ve left a crater about 20 meters (65 feet) in diameter. No observers, human or technological, were in a position to watch the impact.

But NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) will try to find it. That could take weeks or even months, though.

“NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will use its cameras to attempt to identify the impact site and determine any potential changes to the lunar environment resulting from this object’s impact,” an agency spokesman told The Wall Street Journal. “The search for the impact crater will be challenging and might take weeks to months.”

NASA’s LRO carries a suite of scientific instruments, including a camera system called the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC). LROC captures high-resolution images of the lunar surface. It’s spotted equipment left behind by the Apollo missions, so it should be able to find the impact site and what’s left of the space junk. (Moon junk?)

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter captured images of the Apollo 15 landing site, including some of the debris left behind. Hopefully, it’ll have no problem finding the space junk impact site from March 2022. PSE is the Passive Seismometer Experiment. LRRR is the Lunar Ranging Retroreflector. They were both parts of the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP.) Credit: NASA/ASU/LRO

This is more than just a tale of a wayward piece of space debris with unacknowledged origins; there’s some science involved.

There’s a lot that scientists don’t know about impact craters. Impact craters are everywhere, and they’ve been imaged and studied in depth. But this is a chance to see a newly-formed crater. And in this case, we know the mass of the impactor, and we know its velocity. Scientists can also tell the object’s orientation at the time of impact from the crater shape and the ejecta. The impact will also reveal data about the impact site itself.

Paul Hayne is Assistant Professor of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He’s the author and co-author of many papers on the Moon and other planetary science topics. He wrote an article at “The Conversation” about the impact called “A rocket crashes into the Moon – the accidental experiment will shed light on the physics of impacts in space.”

“Without knowing the specifics of what created a crater, there is only so much scientists can learn by studying one,” Hayne writes. “As a planetary scientist who studies the Moon, I view this unplanned impact as an exciting opportunity.”

Usually, when a human-made object strikes a Solar System body, it’s by design. So this impact is like an unplanned experiment. What can researchers learn?

When we look at planets like Mercury and Earth’s Moon, we see surfaces that have been battered by impacts for billions of years. There’s a lot scientists still don’t know about the impact process and the physics behind it. “A deeper understanding of impact physics will go a long way in helping researchers interpret the barren landscape of the Moon and also the effects impacts have on Earth and other planets,” Hayne writes.

This is an image of the Hertzsprung crater from Lunar Orbiter 5. Credit: NASA/Lunar and Planetary Institute

We don’t know whose rocket stage it is, but we know the approximate size and mass. It’s about 12 meters (40 ft) long and weighs about 4,500 kg (10,000 lbs.) When the object strikes the Moon, a shockwave will travel the object’s length, and the back end will be destroyed, sending metal debris in all directions. We know this because of NASA’s Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission.

NASA launched LCROSS at the same time as the LRO. Its mission was to determine the nature of the hydrogen that India’s Chandrayaan-1 probed sensed at the Moon’s polar regions. LCROSS successfully detected water, but it did something else important, too. It collected and relayed data from the spent Centaur upper stage as it crashed into the Moon on October 9th, 2009.

Scientists also performed impact experiments at the NASA Ames Vertical Gun Range designed to recreate the impact and study it further. They were able to explore the impact plume and the ejecta and to determine how much volatiles can be released by such an impact. The combined effort shed light on how impacts could’ve delivered liquid water and other materials.

“By studying the composition of the dust plume lofted into the sunlight, scientists were able to find signs of a few hundred pounds of water ice that had been liberated from the Moon’s surface by the impact. This was a crucial piece of evidence to support the idea that for billions of years, comets have been delivering water and organic compounds to the Moon when they crash on its surface,” Haynes writes.

Steady impacts over billions of years have shaped the Moon’s surface, creating a layer of loose, pulverized rock that covers most airless worlds. This process is widespread but not well-understood. “However, the overall physics of this process is poorly understood despite how common it is,” Hayne writes.

Unfortunately, the LCROSS crater is hidden in perpetual shadows and has resisted further study.

LCROSS crashed into the Cabeus crater, only 100 km (62 miles) from the lunar south pole. At that location, the impact crater is in almost perpetual shadow. Image Credit: USGS

But this time, it’s different. Though this impact is unintentional, it’s another opportunity to learn more about the Moon, impacts, and the transportation of water and other materials around the Solar System. We just have to wait for the LRO to get in a position where its powerful cameras can get to work.

Scientists will then have access to before and after images of the impact site, and they’ll be able to identify changes in the surface, which can extend for hundreds of meters.

This impact and its lessons are essential when we look to the future. There are a bunch of missions to the Moon planned by multiple agencies, even private companies. The more we learn now, the better prepared these missions will be.

As for Bill Gray, the man who first spotted the rocket debris, he maintains that it’s a Chinese booster. Gray pointed out that there are some quirks in the object’s path. On his website, he says, “I’d have expected the perigee to be near the earth’s surface. The perigee seemed quite high.” He attributed that to fuel that remained in the booster after separation. “However, rocket hardware often does strange things in its early days in space, with leftover fuel leaking out and pushing it around. That causes changes in the orbit so that when you try to figure out where the junk came from, you get a wrong (or at least altered) answer.”

Haynes doesn’t seem as concerned with the object’s origins as Gray is, and he sees it as inadvertent, though welcome, science. “Regardless of this wayward rocket’s identity, this rare impact event will provide new insights that may prove critical to the success of future missions to the Moon and beyond,” Haynes writes.

When it comes to the object itself, we may never know who sent it into space. But that doesn’t matter. The party responsible might not want to admit it’s their rocket, but they’re the unwitting funders of a serendipitous science experiment that might’ve cost millions to perform on purpose.

Originally published on Universe Today.

EMPLOYEE OWNED PETRO COMPANY
Varcoe: Confident in oilsands growth, Waterous Energy Fund closes two deals

'There is growth in the future of the oilsands,' Adam Waterous said in an interview

Author of the article: Chris Varcoe • Calgary Herald
Publishing date:Mar 15, 2022 • 

Adam Waterous, CEO of Waterous Energy Fund. 

PHOTO BY POSTMEDIA FILE


Some onlookers still discount the oilsands as a high-cost, high-carbon source of energy facing a no-growth future, even with the return of higher oil prices — but don’t tell Adam Waterous that.

Advertisement 2

“I am not buying it,” Waterous said in an interview Monday.

“What I am buying is that it’s the most economic (oil), it is reducing its carbon intensity the fastest, and it has the world’s leading social and governance (standards).”

Through a series of moves in the past five years, Waterous Energy Fund has grown Strathcona Resources Ltd. into one of the largest private equity-backed petroleum producers in North America.

Strathcona, owned by Waterous Energy Fund and Strathcona employees, is now pumping out about 110,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day, with a sizeable chunk coming from the oilsands.

On Monday, Waterous Energy Fund announced it has closed the amalgamation of Strathcona with Caltex Resources and completed the previously announced acquisition of the Tucker thermal oilsands asset from Cenovus Energy — and has plans for the future.

“There is growth in the future of the oilsands,” Waterous said.

“Its underlying economics remain compelling on a global basis … Sometimes there is this narrative, ‘Oh well, this is high-cost oil and that can’t compete.’ That is not our analysis.”

Waterous, who founded the fund in 2017, also believes the carbon intensity of the oilsands will continue to fall — and at a faster rate than U.S. shale oil, given Alberta’s geology and the ability to capture carbon emissions and store them underground.

Finally, he said the amount of oil in the hands of free-market companies — not state-owned enterprises — will shrink in the coming decade, meaning the oilsands will gain greater importance as a stable source of supply.

These trends will propel Canadian oil production from four million barrels per day to about five million by 2030, he projected.

The expansion by Strathcona comes as the oil and gas industry has shifted into a period of higher prices, rising geopolitical tensions with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and renewed concerns over energy security. Questions about future demand also continue to percolate as the energy transition accelerates.

On Monday, prices for benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell $6.32 to close at US$103.01 a barrel, having surged above $128 a barrel last week.

With the U.S. banning Russian oil imports last week, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm has called on the American petroleum sector to boost output.

Canada is the largest supplier of foreign oil to the United States. Even with high global prices and concerns about the security of energy supply, there is still a perception in some circles about the future of the oilsands to increase output.

“I think non-Canadians would say oilsands are high cost, high carbon and this is going to be the first (barrel) to go,” said Mark Oberstoetter, a director at energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie, noting the Canadian sector did see production curtailment during low prices but also showed resiliency coming back.

“The flip side of the story is no matter what jurisdiction we’re in, we are looking for barrels to replace Russian supply.”

The U.S. imported about 670,000 barrels of oil and other petroleum products per day from Russia last year.

It’s telling that as the U.S. is reportedly eyeing more barrels coming from countries such as Venezuela to fill the gap of Russian oil, the Biden administration hasn’t said much about turning north for more oil.

“I don’t think the views have changed that much, at least from the U.S. perspective, because Biden cancelled Keystone XL’s permit on Day 1 of getting into office,” said analyst Phil Skolnick of Eight Capital in New York.

Skolnick believes attitudes could shift if oilsands operators continue to make progress reducing emissions per barrel, or if major producers proceed with a large carbon capture and storage project as they move to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

From an investment point of view, Skolnick thinks more pipeline capacity will also be required before oilsands companies give the green light to major new developments.

Miles of unused pipe, prepared for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, sit in a lot on October 14, 2014 outside Gascoyne, North Dakota. 

PHOTO BY ANDREW BURTON /Getty Images

Experts and oilsands operators say smaller projects and expansions will deliver future production increases in Canada in the coming years, not massive multi-year projects.

From Strathcona’s perspective, there is growth on the horizon.

In mid-December, it bought the Tucker thermal oilsands asset from Cenovus Energy for $800 million. Tucker produces about 19,000 barrels per day (bpd), while Caltex pumps out about 13,000 bpd of heavy oil in Alberta and Saskatchewan.

In 2019, Strathcona acquired Pengrowth Energy Corp., bought Osum Oil Sands Corp. in 2020, and snapped up assets in the Montney formation last July.

Rafi Tahmazian, a senior portfolio manager at Canoe Financial, said Strathcona has developed the necessary scale to drive costs down and, during a period of inflation, keep a handle on expenses.

It was also willing to buy assets when others were exiting the sector, understanding the world still needs fossil fuels and the oilsands provide a long-life resource base, he said.

“Strathcona has stepped into where there’s a gap, to be a consolidator of smaller and mid-sized assets,” added Oberstoetter.

Strathcona now has about 450 employees. Oilsands production makes up about 50,000 bpd of its output, with another 25,000 bpd coming from heavy oil operations, said company CEO Rob Morgan.

“What we like about the acquisitions we’ve done is they come with established infrastructure so … there are some small investments we can make and basically boost output,” Morgan said.

“We have abut 10,000 barrels per day we might grow across into 2023, and perhaps another 10,000 a day of those similar opportunities we’d grow beyond that.”


Chris Varcoe is a Calgary Herald columnist.
cvarcoe@postmedia.com

As the ocean industrial revolution gains pace the need for protection is urgent

With the growth of the ‘blue economy’, the UN must act decisively to protect our shared seas – or industry will decide their fate for us

The New England seamount chain in the north Atlantic Ocean is home to forests of deep-sea corals, such as this spiral coral, and is a migratory route for endangered right whales. 

Photograph: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research/AP

Seascape: the state of our oceans is supported by

Douglas J McCauley
Tue 15 Mar 2022 

The ocean is often seen as the last wild frontier: a vast and empty blue wilderness where waves, whales and albatrosses rule. This is no longer true. Unnoticed by many, a new industrial revolution is unfolding in our seas.

The last several decades have seen exponential growth in new marine industries. This includes expansion of offshore oil and gas, but also exponential growth of offshore renewables, such as wind and tidal energy.

Aquaculture, or farming underwater, is one of the world’s fastest growing food sectors. Fishing occurs across more than half of our ocean. More than 1m km of undersea data cables crisscross the high seas. And our ocean highways carry about 1,600% more cargo on ships than they did in the 1980s.

New industries are also lining up to join this booming ocean economy: companies are jockeying to start ocean mining in the Pacific; new experimental fisheries are targeting deep ocean life previously thought impossible to catch; and geoengineering ventures are looking to operate in the ocean.

The onset of this marine industrial revolution puts into context the urgency of a new UN treaty being finalised this week that will dictate the future of the single biggest piece of our ocean and our planet: the high seas.

Encompassing all waters 200 nautical miles beyond nations’ shorelines, the high seas cover two-thirds of the ocean. Uniquely, this vast expanse belongs to us all.

Unfortunately, sharing hasn’t worked out well. Fishery resources are monopolised by a few wealthy actors. Approximately 97% of the trackable industrial fishing on the high seas is controlled by wealthy nations, with 86% of this fishing attributable to just five countries. Some of our most lucrative and nutritionally important high seas fish populations are in decline.


UN ocean treaty is ‘once in a lifetime’ chance to protect the high seas

Biodiversity on the high seas is ecologically important, diverse, unique – but also fragile and increasingly threatened by the explosion in marine industry. Many great whale species have been driven to the brink of extinction by lethal interactions with the fishing and shipping industries as well as the legacy of whaling. Even ocean snails have been declared endangered due to the risks posed by deep-sea mining.

One high seas region in the Pacific deserving of protection hosts an ancient undersea mountain chain whose peaks rise up from the deep where they are adorned with crowns of golden corals, some more than 4,000 years old, and flanked by schools of jewel-like endemic fish species found nowhere else on Earth. This same area is threatened by bottom trawling and ocean mining.

The UN treaty being negotiated in New York provides hope for creating new tools to more intelligently plan out this explosive growth in the “blue economy” and reverse at least some of these negative trends. One historic element of the treaty would be the opportunity to set up high seas marine protected areas.

Nations from around the world have already joined scientists to back a commitment to protect 30% of our ocean by 2030. Unfortunately, we are terribly behind. At best, 8% of the world’s oceans are protected. To get to 30%, and to make such a system ecologically representative, we will need to establish high seas protected areas.
Inaction means industry will decide the fate of the high seas

The treaty is also an opportunity to promote climate resilience. Networks of high seas protected areas could serve as stepping stones for climate stressed species attempting to escape ocean warming.

Today, a mosaic of more than 20 organisations hold different slivers of responsibility for our increasingly busy high seas. A lot slips through the cracks. In our rapidly and haphazardly developing oceans, it is as if we created departments of sanitation, roadworks and water but never quite got around to electing a mayor to bring it all together.

As the marine industrial revolution advances and our ocean grow busier, solutions for high seas management slip further away. Inaction means industry will decide the fate of the high seas for the world, instead of the other way around.

The ocean provides about half of the world’s oxygen, nutrition for billions or people and trillions of dollars in jobs and revenue – it is our fate, as much as anything else, that is being decided by this treaty.

Douglas J McCauley is a professor of ocean science at the University of California Santa Barbara and the director of the Benioff Ocean Initiative

GREEN CAPITALI$M

New Hydropower Scheme For Electric Trucks: Look Ma, No Dams!

Fleets of electric trucks could be deployed in low impact hydropower systems that deploy existing roads instead of new, habitat-destroying infrastructure.

Fleets of electric trucks could be deployed in low impact hydropower systems that deploy existing roads instead of new infrastructure (image by IIASA via the journal Energy, creative commons license).


CLEAN POWER
By Tina Casey
CLEANTECHNICA
Published 2 days ago

So, this is different. A team of researchers has calculated that the equivalent of 4% of global energy consumption could be generated by low-impact hydropower systems that consist of driving electric trucks down mountains. That’s right, driving trucks down mountains.

At this writing, Russia seems intent on murdering as many people in Ukraine as it can. Millions are fleeing and in need of assistance. To help refugees from that conflict and others, contact the International Rescue Committee or other reliable aid organizations.

Electric Trucks For Low Impact Hydropower

The idea of deploying a fleet of electric trucks for hydropower might sound a bit like pie in the sky, but it does share similarities with other gravity-based systems and it was meticulously researched by a team at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis.

The team was intrigued by the potential for transforming electric trucks into mobile hydropower systems. The idea would be to leverage existing roads as a new hydropower resource, instead of building new dams and destroying entire ecosystems.

Think of the pumped storage hydropower area and you’re on the right track. Pumped storage hydropower is a large-scale energy storage technology that involves pumping water to an upper reservoir, then letting it flow downhill to a generating station when needed.

After passing through the turbines, the water can be pumped back uphill. This recycling system had limited use in the era of fossil energy. Under a renewable energy scenario, though, pumped storage provides the means to store wind and solar energy in bulk.

Regenerative Braking Gets Its Hydropower Moment

So, how do electric trucks come into the picture? That’s a good question! The IIASA proposal is intended as a way to tap into the untapped energy potential of small streams in mountainous regions, where technology barriers to new hydropower dams are considerable.

No upper reservoir is needed. If electric trucks do all the heavy lifting, they can collect water from multiple streams on the same mountain before ferrying it downhill. The research team explains:

“Electric Truck Hydropower would use the existing road infrastructure to transport water down the mountain in containers, applying the regenerative brakes of the electric truck to turn the potential energy of the water into electricity and charge the truck’s battery. The generated energy could then be sold to the grid or used by the truck itself to transport other goods.”

For those of you new to the topic, regenerative braking recaptures energy that would otherwise go to waste. Regenerative braking is used to recharge the small battery in conventional vehicles, but it really shines when used in tandem with hybrid or all-electric vehicle battery packs.

The Seeds Of An Idea For Electric Trucks

If you’re wondering how the research team came up with this idea, that’s another good question. You can get all the details from the journal Energy, under the title, “Electric Truck Hydropower, a flexible solution to hydropower in mountainous regions,” in which they note that comparable systems are already in use.

“A similar case to ETH happens in the mining industry in Poland, where the extracted minerals are transported down a mountain with electric trucks, and each truck can generate up to 200 kWh per day,” they explain.

The hydropower version of that operation would involve electric trucks with swappable batteries.

“The electric truck enters the discharge site with a container full of water, leaves it to be emptied, collects an empty container, and drives up the mountain. The charged battery is replaced by a discharged battery,” the team explains, cautioning that the replacement battery needs to have enough charge to get the truck back up the mountain.

The team also notes that in the hydropower version, disruption to aquatic systems can — and should — be minimized by regulating the extraction of water from steams and the discharge of water from the containers.

Electric Trucks: Who’s Gonna Pay For All This?

As for the expense of buying a new fleet of electric trucks, the researchers calculate that their Electric Truck Hydropower system is far less expensive than conventional hydropower, at a levelized cost of only $30–100 per megawatt hour compared to the $50–200 range typical of conventional hydropower.

They also point out that the electric truck fleet could be put to use on other duties when needed.

As large mobile energy storage devices, the fully charged electric trucks could also deploy their bi-directional charging capability to serve as emergency generators at various locations.

Hmmm…What About Retrofit Kits For Electric Trucks?

The idea of electric trucks subbing in for hydropower dams also begins to appear more do-able when you consider that EV battery technology is constantly improving and costs are coming down.

Another angle to consider is the potential for retrofitting an existing fleet of diesel trucks with electric drive. Activity in the retrofit area has been kicking up a storm in recent years, and costs have been coming down in that area as well.

One development to watch on that score is the California firm Romeo Power. The company has been suffering through a rough patch since going public on a SPAC in December of 2020, but last week it announced a mashup with the electric powertrain firm Wrightspeed, founded by Tesla co-founder Ian Wright, which makes it of interest to Tesla fans.

The two companies are eyeballing a market of a million or so trucks and buses that are candidates for retrofits. The idea is to hook Romeo Power’s battery packs with Wrightspeed’s “Powertrain in a Crate” kits.

As applied to the IIASA electric truck hydropower plan, a retrofit would need to maximize regenerative braking and accommodate battery-swapping, which could limit the playing field. However, the battery swapping field has also been heating up.

Critics have argued that battery swapping is out of date now that fast-charging and long range batteries are commonplace, but the electric truck hydropower plan suggests that niche markets for swapping can be created.

Meanwhile, when talk of pumped storage hydropower comes up, the topic naturally turns to long duration energy storage in general, meaning systems that can provide electricity for multiple days and not just a few hours.

In common with the electric truck proposal, some of the new systems under development in the bulk energy storage field leverage renewable energy and gravity to replace the massive infrastructure required of pumped storage hydropower systems, so stay tuned for more on that.

Follow me on Twitter @TinaMCasey.

Image credit: Electric trucks for low impact hydropower by IIASA via the journal Energy under Creative Commons license.

SUSTAINABLE CAPITALI$M

Driscoll’s and Plenty Commit to Build Their First Commercial Strawberry Indoor Vertical Farm


The Global Market Leader in Premium Berries and Innovative Indoor Vertical Farming Company Collaborate to Drive Category Growth in Top Berry Loving Cities in the Northeast

March 15, 2022 

WATSONVILLE & SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--One year after announcing their joint research and development work to grow strawberries indoors, Driscoll’s, the leading consumer brand in fresh premium berries, and Plenty Unlimited Inc. are expanding their relationship to build a new indoor vertical farm dedicated exclusively to strawberries. After exceeding the goals set forward for the initial stages of the partnership, the two companies are accelerating efforts to grow Driscoll’s proprietary, best-in-class flavorful berries using Plenty’s unique vertical growing platform. This new farm, to serve consumers in the Northeastern United States, will provide fresh, consistent, high-flavor strawberries closer to berry-loving consumers who live in highly dense urban regions. This strategy will provide the fastest category growth to a mature market that has demonstrated appreciation for a high-flavor product offering.

“Over the last year Plenty has demonstrated its technological leadership in indoor vertical farming by growing our proprietary strawberries to meet the rigorous flavor and quality required of a Driscoll’s berry”

“The Northeast is the largest berry consumption region in the US, with a dense population of berry-loving consumers,” said Arama Kukutai, CEO at Plenty. “Our partnership with Driscoll’s, coupled with Plenty’s optimized technology platform, ensures we can consistently grow premium berries closer to where these consumers live, providing fresh, consistent quality. We’ve successfully leveraged the expertise of the world’s largest strawberry breeding program within Plenty’s own controlled growing environment, maximizing the flavor of each berry and optimizing for both texture and size. We’re excited to bring our first indoor vertical farm dedicated to strawberries to life with the undisputed leader in the space.”

Driscoll’s 100 years of farming heritage and focus on delivering Only the Finest Berries™ has proven an ideal partner for Plenty's industry-leading, sustainable, indoor farming technology. Together, the two companies are able to grow consistent, high-quality berries closer to where the consumer lives.

“Over the last year Plenty has demonstrated its technological leadership in indoor vertical farming by growing our proprietary strawberries to meet the rigorous flavor and quality required of a Driscoll’s berry,” said J. Miles Reiter, Driscoll’s Chairman and CEO. “We are excited to see the initial success of our collaboration and look forward to expanding our relationship with a new farm that will drive category growth to the Northeastern part of the US.”

Plenty utilizes Driscoll’s proprietary genetics and berry expertise alongside its own advanced, indoor farming technology and plant science expertise to grow Driscoll’s beloved berries. Leveraging the massive amounts of growing data generated by its platform, Plenty uses proprietary data analytics, machine learning and customized lighting to consistently deliver yields 150-350 times greater per acre than the field.

As part of the partnership, Driscoll’s strawberries were initially grown in Plenty’s Laramie, Wyoming farm, the largest indoor plant science research facility of its kind.

About Driscoll’s

Driscoll’s is the global market leader of fresh strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. With more than 100 years of farming heritage, Driscoll’s is a pioneer of berry flavor innovation and the trusted consumer brand of Only the Finest Berries™. With more than 900 independent growers around the world, Driscoll’s develops exclusive patented berry varieties using only natural breeding methods that focus on growing great tasting berries. A dedicated team of agronomists, breeders, sensory analysts, plant pathologists and entomologists help grow baby seedlings that are then grown on local family farms. Driscoll’s now serves consumers year-round across North America, Australia, Europe and China in over twenty-two countries.

About Plenty

Plenty is rewriting the rules of agriculture through its technology platform that can grow clean produce anywhere in the world, year round, with unprecedented yield and peak season quality. Plenty’s proprietary approach preserves the world’s natural resources, makes nutritious produce available to all communities and creates resilience in our food systems against weather, location, pests and climate. Plenty's headquarters are in South San Francisco, and the company operates the largest of its kind indoor plant science research facility in Laramie, Wyoming. Plenty is currently building the world's highest-output, vertical, indoor farm in Compton, California. For more information, follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn, or visit www.plenty.ag.