What to know about Scott Turner, Trump's pick for housing secretaryMore than 900 people claimed to be sleeping rough in the city this year. During Thursday’s full council meeting, councillor Allan Casey advised members that officers had been working with housing associations on proposals to repurpose small offices as social rented homes and old tenements. Questions had been raised by Baillie Soryia Siddique over how many empty office and heritage buildings had been considered for conversion to homelessness accommodation, particularly since 929 people claimed to have slept rough in Glasgow between January 1 and November 1, 2024. Councillor Allan Casey advised that the Scottish Government had allocated £11.5 million through the affordable housing supply programme to Glasgow in 2024/25 to help bring empty social and rented properties back into use. Councillor Casey said: “Officers are working with housing associations on proposals for bringing small offices into use as social rented homes which will directly assist with the homeless pressures. “By their nature, these projects can be complex and take additional time and funding resources to deliver, and therefore, the focus of the 24/25 funding allocation has been on acquisitions in bringing the existing property back into use. “A number of these homes will, of course, be our pre-1919 tenement blocks. As part of the wider affordable housing supply programme – a number of heritage buildings have been converted into housing. “In terms of the conversion of office accommodation, a building in St Enoch is being taken forward this year with another office conversion at the point of being submitted for planning in Anniesland also. “Conversion of such buildings provides an attractive way of reusing them and often providing unique homes; however, such developments are technically and financially challenging.” Councillor Casey also pointed out that the number of people who claimed to have slept rough in Glasgow was much higher than the figures held by the homeless charity Simon Community Scotland. He continued: “The data quoted in the rough sleeper numbers, where 929 people claimed to sleep rough between January 1, 2024, and November 2024, is taken from self-reported questions that are asked to homeless households when an application is made. “Homeless staff meet with the Simon Community on a weekly basis along with staff from our complex needs for individuals who are sleeping rough and to offer accommodation and support where possible. “The weekly data by Simon Community shows that the number of people who are rough sleeping is significantly lower than those who are self-reporting. Those numbers fluctuate between 25 and 30 people at any one time.” Get all the latest news from around the country Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
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SKMU non-teaching staff strengthen protest over payFormer Halifax mayor Mike Savage installed as Nova Scotia’s lieutenant-governor
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TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Bucky Irving isn’t choosy. The rookie running back relishes any opportunity he gets to contribute to the success of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who have to climb back into a tie for first place in the NFC South. Irving leads NFL rookies in rushing with 732 yards, averaging 5.5 yards per carry while sharing the workload with starter Rachaad White and third-stringer Sean Tucker, who have combined to ease some of the burden on quarterback Baker Mayfield. A fourth-round draft pick out of Oregon, Irving is coming off rushing for a season-best 152 yards and a touchdown in last week’s 26-23 overtime win over the Carolina Panthers. He had another 33 yards receiving, giving him a rookie-leading 1,017 total yards from scrimmage through 12 games. The Bucs (6-6) on Sunday host the Las Vegas Raiders (2-10), who have an outstanding newcomer of their own with Brock Bowers on the verge of breaking the league’s record for catches by a rookie tight end. Bowers leads all players, regardless of position, with 84 receptions. He’s fourth with 884 yards receiving and second behind Irving among rookies with 895 total yards from scrimmage. “I don’t really like taking all the credit. It’s those guys up front,” Irving said, deferring to Tampa Bay’s improved offensive line. “I think I have to do something special for those guys for Christmas because they’re getting the job done.” The Bucs are eighth in the NFL in rushing at 137.2 yards per game. They’ve gained 100-plus yards on the ground in nine of 12 games after only doing it nine times in 34 games over the past two seasons. Irving, whose ability to make defenders miss and accelerate in the open field, has provided a spark to an offense that sputtered without injured wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin during a four-game losing streak. It doesn’t seem to bother the rookie that he still sits behind White on the depth chart. The starter had a 38-yard run in overtime to set up the winning field goal last week. Coach Todd Bowles continues to stress that the Bucs, tied with Atlanta for the NFC South lead, need both Irving and White to be successful. “In our room, all our success is one,” said Irving, who in the past two weeks became the first rookie since Miles Sanders in 2019 to string together consecutive games with 150-plus yards from scrimmage. “If I’m having success,’’ Irving added, “everybody in the room is having success.” Bracing for a challenge Tampa Bay’s porous secondary figures to be tested by Bowers, the first tight end to lead the league in catches after Week 13 since Todd Christenson in 1986. The first-round draft pick out of Georgia needs three receptions to break Sam LaPorta’s season record (86 in 2023) for catches by a tight end. He’s 116 yards away from joining Mike Ditka (1,076 in 1961) and Kyle Pitts (1,026 in 2021) as the only rookie tight ends to finish with 1,000-plus yards receiving. “I thought he was one of the best tight ends coming out in a long time – not just this draft, but in a long time,” Bowles said. “He’s living up to expectations. He can play wideout, he can play tight end, he can do some fullback, he can run jet sweeps,” the Bucs coach added. “They do a lot of things with him and he’s a very talented guy.” Getting ready for Baker The last time the Raiders went against Mayfield was two seasons ago when he came off a plane to play for the Los Angeles Rams. Despite having minimal time with the playbook and just one brief practice, Mayfield rallied the Rams to a 17-16 victory on a 23-yard touchdown pass with 10 seconds left. Raiders coach Antonio Pierce was the team’s linebackers coach at the time. “He plays the game kind of like Brett Favre, who I played against in (the) league,” Pierce said. “He’s very fiery. He’ll do whatever it takes to make a play. The play’s never dead with him. You’ve got to keep your eyes on him and then stay in coverage, so that’ll be a challenge.” Return to action Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell didn’t look as though he had missed nearly six weeks because of a broken thumb when he almost led Las Vegas to a victory at Kansas City last week. He completed 23 of 35 passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns in the Raiders’ 19-17 loss to the Chiefs. But O’Connell had a hard time looking at the positives given how close the Raiders came to beating the two-time defending Super Bowl champions. “Definitely some good plays, but it just stinks more than anything,” O’Connell said. “It was just a really hard loss. Even sometimes when you have a game right after, it’s easier to move on. But we had a longer week this week and so kind of really got to sit in it and it’s no fun.” ___ AP Sports Writer Mark Anderson in Las Vegas contributed to this report. ___ NFL:
Physically, Felix Kossaras already looks the part of a more than capable Big 12 guard. But as all freshmen learn, getting up to speed at the power conference level involves far more than physical skills, which Kossaras has aplenty. As his freshman campaign draws closer to the start of conference play, Kossaras is one of the young Buffaloes who might find his early spot in the rotation in flux as Colorado men’s basketball coach Tad Boyle attempts to streamline the mix. Still, Kossaras has played in all nine games out of the gate and hopes to be called upon again when the Buffaloes host South Dakota State in the penultimate game of the nonconference schedule on Friday night (7 p.m., ESPN+). “One thing I want our players to understand is it’s going to be hard to play 11,” Boyle said. “Some nights it might be Felix, and some nights it might be somebody else. Felix, he’s going to be a great player at Colorado. Not a good player. He’s going to be a great player. I really believe that. Because he’s got the physicality. He’s got the mentality. He’s got the ability to defend in the Big 12. His body’s ready. But like most freshmen, the inconsistencies are still there.” While Kossaras has appeared in every game, averaging 8.6 minutes off the bench, Saturday’s win against Colorado State marked the first time the 6-foot-5 guard wasn’t called upon in the first half. In spot duty, Kossaras hasn’t forced shots but has gone just 3-for-12. He has six assists with six turnovers. Fourth-year guards Julian Hammond III and Javon Ruffin will be entrenched in the rotation as long as they are healthy. At this point, the same likely can be said of RJ Smith, whose impressive start led to the first staring assignment of his career against CSU. Kossaras and fellow freshman Sebastian Rancik might be in a similar boat as Big 12 play approaches — critical components of the future of the program, who nonetheless will be behind older and more experienced players. “Honestly, just stay ready,” Kossaras said. “I know as a freshman, I might not get a lot of minutes. But I’m going to still keep working and try to climb my way up. I’ve just got to stay ready for my number when it’s called. If I get two minutes, five minutes, 10 minutes, I just need to be ready for it. I’ll take what we can get. “It’s basketball. It’s going to be a long season. We’ll have ups and downs. Some guys will be in foul trouble. Some guys might bet hurt. I just need to let the coaches know they can trust me to be in those positions when they need me.” As the Buffs learned last season, injuries can alter the complexion of the rotation at any time. And while Hammond, Ruffin and Smith all are off to healthy starts, all have battled injuries in recent seasons (Ruffin currently is battling through an ankle issue). It’s a challenge for any freshman, typically months removed from being the most dominant player on any court they set foot on, to remain ready for bench opportunities that may or may not arrive. But it’s a challenge Kossaras says he’s trying to conquer. “It’s difficult, because he’s never been in that position before in his career,” Boyle said. “He’s used to playing and starting and being one of the best players on his team. It’s understanding that becoming a great player is a process. You’ve got to embrace that. Understand it. But yet try to work through the things you need to work through to get better.”Richland Parish, an idyllic rural area in northeast Louisiana, USA, is set to host a gigantic new Meta datacenter. But instead of being powered by one of the on-site nuclear power plants Zuckercorp has previously advocated for, the facility is opting to drive its AI computing workload by burning more fossil fuels. The 4 million square foot, $10 billion facility, hailed by Louisiana governor Jeff Landry as "a game changer," is one of the largest private capital investments in the history of the bayou state and will be Meta's largest-ever datacenter, the Facebook parent said . As the governor's announcement noted, construction on the facility will "continue through 2030" despite groundbreaking planned for this month - in other words, right in line with Meta's plans to ramp up nuclear power for its next generation of AI datacenters as shared in a request for proposals (RFP) yesterday. Meta has decided to jump the atomic gun with this project by partnering with Entergy instead. The power generation company plans to construct three combined-cycle combustion turbine (CCCT) plants with a total energy generation capacity of 2,262 megawatts. CCCT plants burn natural gas, but are configured (and marketed) as less pollutive than traditional natural gas power plants. Along with burning natural gas to spin a gas turbine, combined cycle plants use waste heat to spin a secondary steam turbine, thus creating more watts for their carbon buck. They're still burning natural gas to do so, of course, thus releasing more of the greenhouse gases - an issue Meta has pledged to address (with the purchase of offsets, naturally) by the end of the decade. According to Entergy, the three CCCT plants being constructed for the project, two of which will be housed on-site at the Franklin Farm mega site with one located elsewhere, are being built with the ability to be 30 percent hydrogen co-fired to reduce emissions. Entergy said that the plants will also be able to someday transition to 100 percent hydrogen fired "through future upgrades," though the company didn't answer questions from The Register about the timeline or feasibility of improvements to make that transition. SREA is concerned about the large amount of greenhouse gas emissions these three new gas plants will produce, and the unproven nature of the technology Entergy is proposing to install 'in the future' to mitigate the greenhouse gas emissions that will be produced by these gas power plants Per a US Energy Information Administration report on hydrogen co-firing from September, only a handful of natural gas plants in the US have "taken early steps to integrate hydrogen into their fuel streams," with a few of those just reaching the point of testing co-firing. "Natural gas is the single-largest source of energy used to generate electricity in the United States, making up 43% of electricity generation in 2023, but hydrogen use is not currently widespread or used regularly in the plants where it has been tested," The EIA said. Additionally, as Southern Renewable Energy Association (SREA) regulatory director Whit Cox said in a statement [PDF] his association put out about the project before it was clear that Meta was behind the matter, 2,262 MW of energy from natural gas is a lot. The power that'll be generated at the Richland Parish datacenter is more than three times the power of a plant Entergy is building for a new Amazon datacenter in Mississippi, and more than 20 times the size of Entergy's Bayou Power Station, which was recently canceled due to cost concerns. "SREA is concerned about the large amount of greenhouse gas emissions these three new gas plants will produce, and the unproven nature of the technology Entergy is proposing to install 'in the future' to mitigate the greenhouse gas emissions that will be produced by these gas power plants," Cox said. Andy Kowalczyk, SREA's transmission director, further explained that hydrogen power isn't necessarily emissions free: Sure, burning it doesn't emit greenhouse gases, but there's the matter of its creation that isn't addressed in Entergy's or Meta's statements on the project. "Another question on hydrogen is where it comes from, and if it's grey hydrogen , or even blue hydrogen from gas, what is the point," Kowalczyk told us. Both grey and blue hydrogen production involve the use of natural gas processed using steam methane reformation, which releases greenhouse gasses as a byproduct. Blue hydrogen is only different in that it utilizes carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology to mitigate CO2 emissions. Both, otherwise, are a source of pollution. "I just don't think it's meaningful to tack on 'hydrogen co-fired' without a performance or fuel standard attached to it," Kowalczyk added. Beyond the uncertainty of fuel sources and the capability of Entergy to fulfill its co-firing promises, Union of Concerned Scientists energy analyst Paul Arbaje told us in an email that the co-firing percentage at the Richland Parish datacenter won't actually translate into that much greenhouse gas reduction. "The proposed turbines are designed to be able to co-fire up to 30 percent hydrogen before requiring upgrades, which even with low-carbon hydrogen would only yield about an 11 percent reduction in combustion-related carbon dioxide emissions," Arbaje said. "Burning hydrogen can also increase the level of NOx emissions from the plant smokestack, resulting in greater public health harms." Meta and Entergy's statements about its evaluation of deploying greener power at the site didn't pass the sniff test for SREA either, with Cox telling us the pair didn't seem to comprehensively evaluate options beyond the gas power they decided on. Per Entergy's own testimony [PDF] to the Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC) on the proposal to build the gas-fired plants, "they only evaluated solar and (very expensive) 18 hour batteries as a 'hypothetical' alternative," Cox said, "rather than considering any wind plus storage option to serve the customer's load at night." Cox said that the discussion of storage-only battery solutions is likely just an attempt at deflection "given no utility is currently modeling 18 hour batteries in [integrated resource plans]" for new energy projects. We've asked both Meta and Entergy for additional details about its co-firing plans, hydrogen sourcing for energy at the datacenter, and renewable energy considerations, and Entergy didn't respond to those questions. Meta, on the other hand, only told us it's "working with Entergy now to identify potential clean and renewable energy projects." It's worth pointing out that the CCCT plants have yet to be approved, per the LPSC's docket for the project. Entergy said the facilities are expected to come online between 2028 and 2029 - just before when Meta said it wanted to start deploying all those new nuclear reactors. Great investment, guys. "Building with sustainability in mind is important to us," Meta said in its statement about the project. "Together with our energy partner, Entergy, we are adding enough clean and renewable energy to the grid to cover 100% of the electricity use of our Richland Parish Data Center." That renewable energy will come in the form of at least 1,500 megawatts of new solar generation and storage, but specifics weren't provided, either in statement form or in response to our questions. Along with the unspecified solar project, Entergy noted that Meta has also committed to helping it install CCS technology at one of its power plants in Lake Charles, Louisiana, near the state's southern coast, and the pair have "committed to exploring nuclear energy as a future power supply option alongside renewable sources like solar and wind." "We are committed to matching our global operations with 100 percent clean and renewable energy," Meta told us when asked about why it's rushing to install natural gas at the site instead of waiting for more nuclear power. "Our nuclear RFP announcement earlier this week and our partnership with Entergy to explore nuclear options is part of that." Aside from that, no specific plans were provided. Datacenters in rural communities tend to attract lots of detractors. Out east in Virginia, where datacenter construction is reaching a fever pitch , projects have spilled into rural areas where residents were none too happy about the noise, mess and environmental damage such projects inevitably cause, leading to some messy local politics . We reached out to a number of local sources to get more information about what Richland Parish residents think about the project, but weren't able to get a response. That said, you don't need to go any further than Meta's own press release on the matter to get a taste for what Richland County residents think: There was some optimism in comments on Meta's announcement, but worry was expressed, too. A Facebook user identified as Josh Smith on Meta's press release commented to express concerns about the project, citing loss of cropland, stress on local resources as thousands of temporary construction workers pour in to build the facility, and plain-old worry about whether the community would end up being taken advantage of. "Seems to be a lot of interest from outside cities and parishes that have never cared about anything in Richland parish before this," Smith said, noting that while the project could do a lot of good for the community, as Meta and Entergy have promised, that's far from certain. "There has been a lot of loss for some individuals for the opportunity of growth ... at the end of the day it will all be for nothing if Richland Parish and the residents here are not put first," Smith added. We sent those concerns to Meta, which told us it is "deeply committed to our datacenter communities, and that includes Richland Parish." "We're excited to partner with schools and local organizations in Richland Parish on programs and resources that help build skills and increase the use of technology," Meta spokesperson Stacey Yip told us. "On the environmental side ... we plan to restore over 1,000 acres of prairie, forest, wetlands, and streams at the Richland Parish Data Center. "And on the resources side, we are working together with the community to help support the area's growth," Yip added. She also noted that Meta was working on projects in the area to improve water quality and support restoration of cattle grazing fields near a bayou on the other side of the state, which doesn't exactly support the Richland Parish community. Beyond the environmental issues, there's yet another concern that locals had raised before Meta's involvement in the project was even known: That they could end up being stuck with the bill for new gas-fired power plants and the cost to run them. "The region is already very overly reliant on gas plants, which has not only hit consumers' wallets due to gas price spikes, but has also weakened power grid reliability due to severe plant performance issues during extreme weather events," the UCS' Arbaje said. In addition, Arbaje explained that, according [PDF] to yet more Entergy testimony to the LPSC, Meta would only be paying for a substantial portion of the plants' costs if it signed a second 15-year electricity supply deal. Given Meta's professed plans to go all-in on nuclear energy, that might not happen. "We're wary about the very real risk of Meta not re-signing, or even possibly terminating the initial 15-year contract early," Arbaje said. "That would leave Louisianans on the hook for three large and costly power plants, which could quickly become burdensome stranded assets in a future market environment where they will face significant competition from more affordable renewable power." You might not realize those concerns exist given the fanfare and positive messaging from the Louisiana government, naturally. "Meta's investment establishes the region as an anchor in Louisiana's rapidly expanding tech sector, revitalizes one of our state's beautiful rural areas, and creates opportunities for Louisiana workers to fill high-paying jobs of the future," Governor Landry said. It'll take a few years to see if those hopes come to fruition, but this is looking suspiciously like a rush job to take advantage of new tax incentives signed into law by Landry in June that provide state and local sales and use tax rebates on the purchase or leasing of datacenter equipment. After all, building your largest-ever datacenter in the humid, hot Louisiana countryside isn't exactly a natural choice - especially with Canada beckoning . ®
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