A billion people, nearly one-quarter of the globe’s urban population, now live in a city with a renewable energy target, a report issued Thursday by the green energy policy network REN21 said. More than 1,300 cities worldwide now have a renewable energy target and/or policy, and the number of cities enforcing complete or partial bans on fossil fuels increased fivefold to 43. Most of those are in the U.S., with California alone boasting at least 35 cities with some degree of fossil fuel ban at the end of last year. The surge in American municipalities reflects the efforts by subnational actors during the previous administration to signal American commitment to the Paris agreement, as well as the drumbeat of municipalities across the country taking steps to electrify new construction. (Thomson Reuters Foundation, Earther, Business Green)
