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Reality Checks
Distinguishing fact from fiction and setting the record straight on some of the misconceptions hindering climate action.
Misconceptions about renewable energy, electric vehicles, batteries, the electricity grid, and the clean energy transition abound. From the merely misinformed to the outright misleading, dubious information can fuel doubts about the economic, health, and climate benefits of clean energy solutions, and worse, can slow action on climate change.
Debunking these myths is critical to accelerating the clean energy transition. That is why RMI is developing a growing catalog of “Reality Check” articles that distinguish fact from fiction and set the record straight on some of the misconceptions hindering climate action.
To learn more about the fundamentals of the energy transition, also check out our library of “Clean Energy 101” explainers.
Explore Our Reality Checks
Reality Check: We Have What’s Needed to Reliably Power the Data Center Boom, and It’s Not Coal Plants
Reality Check: Dispatchability and Reliability Are Not the Same Thing
Reality Check: Electricity Load Growth Does Not Have to Undermine Climate Goals
Reality Check: Generator-Centric Disaster Response Is Out of Gas
Reality Check: US Natural Gas Is Not a “Cleaner” Alternative Fuel
Reality Check: Keeping the Lights on in Extreme Winter Weather
Reality Check: Demystifying the Need for Carbon Dioxide Removal
Reality Check: This Decade Is Make-or-Break for Direct Air Capture
Reality Check: The IEA Busts 10 Myths about the Energy Transition
Five Hydrogen Myths – Busted
Reality Check: Natural Gas’s True Climate Risk
Reality Check: The Missing Pieces of New York’s “Climate Math” Debate
Reality Check: Silicon Valley Bank Placed Some Risky Bets, but Climate Tech Wasn’t One of Them
Reality Check: Gas Stoves Are a Health and Climate Problem
Reality Check: The United States Has the Only Major Power Grid without a Plan
Reality Check: Green Hydrogen Can Scale This Decade
Hydrogen Reality Check: All “Clean Hydrogen” Is Not Equally Clean
Hydrogen Reality Check: We Need Hydrogen — But Not for Everything
Reality Check: Electric Trucks Are Viable Today
Hydrogen Reality Check #1: Hydrogen Is Not a Significant Warming Risk
Reality Check: More EVs Can Mean Fewer Emissions
Reality Check: Europe Must Go Renewable to Escape Energy and Climate Crisis
Reality Check: Red-State Voters Want Clean Energy Too. Just Ask Nebraska
Reality Check: The Green Inflation Myth
Reality Check: US Renewable Energy Portfolios Can Outcompete New Gas Plants
Reality Check: COVID, Not Clean Energy, Drove Rise in Electricity Burden
Reality Check: Greener, Friendlier Alternatives Exist for Rare Minerals in Batteries
Reality Check: The Myth of Stable and Affordable Natural Gas Prices
Reality Check: Appalachia Poised to Become Clean Energy Country
The Truth About Hydrogen
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