WHY BRITS LIKE NEW ENERGY

New UKERC research defines values which determine public acceptance of energy system change

17 July 2013 (UK Research Centre)

“…[The study reveals] that people in Britain are fully supportive of the idea of energy system change...[and highlights] key factors that influence public assessment of proposed changes…[T]he research shows that the public favours changes that are: energy efficient rather than wasteful; protect the environment and nature; are reliable, accessible and safe; allow consumers a certain amount of autonomy and power; are socially just and fair; improve on what has gone before; score well in terms of quality and performance; and, fit with a long-term, sustainable trajectory, rather than being just a short-term fix…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Read More

WORLD INVESTORS HAVE $14TRIL FOR CLIMATE CHANGE

Green policy failures are choking off billions in private investment; Fund managers are concerned that governments are not doing enough to mitigate effects of global warming

Tom Bawden, August 6, 2013 (UK Independent)

“…With global warming set to wreak accelerating devastation on the global economy, the world’s biggest fund managers – who between them control $14trillion of investments in everything from wind turbines and agriculture to property and manufacturing – say they are considerably more worried about the issue than they were a year ago. They point to extreme weather events such as last year’s Superstorm Sandy in the US as evidence that climate change is already upon us and are concerned that governments, including Britain’s, are not doing nearly enough to mitigate the effects.” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Read More

BUILDING-INTEGRATED PV GETS BOOST

Austin’s Heliovolt to expand; Solar product producer raises another $9.5 million, laying groundwork for global expansion.

Brian Gaar, August 6, 2013 (Austin American-Statesman)

“…[S]olar energy company HelioVolt Corp. is continuing to lay the groundwork for a commercial expansion…SK Group, whose holdings include South Korea’s largest refiner, has invested another $9.5 million in HelioVolt, bringing its total recent investment in the company to $19 million…The money will fund a global expansion for Helio-Volt, which makes thin-film solar products that can be incorporated into building materials…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Read More

CELLULOSIC BIOFUELS GO COMMERCIAL SCALE

DOE Announces Biofuel Milestone

August 2, 2013 (SmartMeters)

“The United States Department of Energy has recognized America’s first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol production at INEOS Bio’s Indian River BioEnergy Center in Vero Beach, Florida. The project uses a hybrid of gasification and fermentation technology to convert wood scraps, grass clippings, and other waste materials into transportation fuels as well as energy for heat and power…The Indian River County BioEnergy Center (Center) will have an annual output of eight million gallons of cellulosic ethanol per year from vegetative, yard, and municipal solid waste as well as six megawatts of clean, renewable power annually—enough to run the entire facility and provide excess power to the local community…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Read More

COMMUNITY WIND GETS GO IN MAINE

First Wind Gets Green Light for Hancock County Wind Farm

July 25, 2013 (Maine Public Broadcasting Network)

“…The Department of Environmental Protection has given First Wind the green light to build an 18-turbine wind farm on two ridge tops in Hancock County…The company plans to construct the $110-million project on commercial forestland…not far from the company's existing Bull Hill wind farm…[The department concluded] the wind farm would not have an ‘unreasonable adverse effect’ on…scenic character…The Hancock project is expected to be tied into First Wind's 19-turbine Bull Hill farm, which went online in 2012.” click here for more

Tweet

Read More

SOLAR LAND PLANNING CRITIQUED

NREL Report Highlights Land Use Requirements For Solar Plants

Michael Puttre, 31 July 2013 (Solar Industry)

“A new [NREL] report…on the land use requirements of solar power plants suggests planners and developers tend to underestimate the acreage required for their projects…[D]ata from 72% of the solar power plants installed or under construction in the U.S…found a wide range of total land use requirements for solar power plants across technologies. Generation-weighted averages for total area requirements range from about 3 acres per GWh per year (GWh/yr) for concentrating solar power towers and concentrated photovoltaic installations to 5.5 acres per GWh/yr for small two-axis flat panel PV power plants…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Read More

REPUBLICAN LEADERS BACK OBAMA CLIMATE ACTION

A Republican Case for Climate Action

William D. Ruckelshaus, Lee M. Thomas, William K. Reilly, and Christine Todd Whitman, August 1, 2013 (NY Times)

"Each of us took turns over the past 43 years running the Environmental Protection Agency. We served Republican presidents, but we have a message that transcends political affiliation: the United States must move now on substantive steps to curb climate change, at home and internationally…The costs of inaction are undeniable. The lines of scientific evidence grow only stronger and more numerous. And the window of time remaining to act is growing smaller: delay could mean that warming becomes “locked in.”…A market-based approach, like a carbon tax, would be the best path to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, but that is unachievable in the current political gridlock in Washington. Dealing with this political reality, President Obama’s June climate action plan lays out achievable actions that would deliver real progress…Rather than argue against his proposals, our leaders in Congress should endorse them and start the overdue debate about what bigger steps are needed and how to achieve them…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Read More