2017-02-02 Energy Week

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.wordpress.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Thursday, January 26:

• The Trump administration is examining the EPA’s website to determine what information will be allowed to remain. This underscores concerns that climate change and other scientific data might be removed. EPA employees have been instructed not to release press releases, publish blog posts, or post anything on social media. [CNN]

Scientists at rally (Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP / File)

• The first tweets appeared quietly, mid-Tuesday afternoon, with a 21st-century declaration of defiance. “Mr Trump, you may have taken us down officially. But with scientific evidence & the Internet our message will get out.” Get out it did. One day later, the post had been retweeted by 22,000 people and liked by nearly 42,000. [Christian Science Monitor]
• ExxonMobil has named environmentalist Susan Avery to its board. Avery belongs to the Scientific Advisory Board of the United Nations Secretary General; the National Research Council Global Change Research Program Advisory Committee; and advisory committees with NASA, NOAA, among other positions. [Seeking Alpha]

Friday, January 27:

• Eos Energy Storage announced a partnership with Siemens on storage solutions. The Eos Aurora 1000│4000, a 1-MW|4-MWh DC battery system, is being sold at $160 per usable kWh for the full DC system with performance guarantees that support up to 20 years of continuous operation with low maintenance. [Windpower Engineering] (Website says the LCOE is in the range of 12¢/kWh to 17¢/kWh.)
• 2016 was the hottest year in 137 years of record keeping and the third year in a row to take the number one slot, a mark of how much the world has warmed over the last century because of human activities, NASA and NOAA announced. They made the joint announcement as Cabinet confirmations of climate skeptics continue. [CleanTechnica]

Solar construction (Pixabay image)

• According to the latest figures released by the Department of Energy, solar energy employed 374,000 people over the year 2015-2016. That’s 43% of the Electric Power Generation sector’s workforce, much more than the 187,117 (22%) that organizations that burn fossil fuels like oil, gas, and coal for electricity employ. [ZME Science]
• Republican governors of states in the Midwest are prioritizing economic growth and job creation by accelerating investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy. Since the November election, leaders in Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan have adopted new policies that help tackle climate change and grow the clean energy economy. [Environmental Defense Fund]

Saturday, January 28:

MHI Vestas V164 (Courtesy of MHI Vestas Offshore Wind)

• MHI Vestas Offshore Wind unveiled a prototype wind turbine. It is the world’s most powerful and can reach 9 MW at specific site conditions. The prototype installed at Østerild broke the energy generation record for a commercially available offshore wind turbine, producing 216,000 kWh over a 24 hour period. [Oil and Gas Industry Latest News]
• After the US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention abruptly canceled its climate conference, former Vice President Al Gore announced that he would host a similar conference focusing on climate change and its effects on public health. He will do this in partnership a former director of CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health. [PerfScience]

Sunday, January 29:

Riverside California (Photo: Tony Webster / Flickr)

• Jobs in solar power are currently growing at about 20% per year, a rate 12 times faster than the rest of the US economy, a report from Environmental Defense Fund says. It adds that jobs in wind power are growing at roughly the same rate, and wind-turbine technician is now the fastest-growing profession in the country overall. [Mother Nature Network]
• Ireland just took a big step toward cutting coal and oil out of the picture. Its Parliament has passed a bill that would stop the country from investing in fossil fuels as part of an €8 billion ($8.6 billion) government fund. If the measure becomes law, it would make Ireland the first country to eliminate public funding for fossil fuel sources completely. [Engadget]

Recovering sediment cores for study (Erik Lundberg)

• Rising temperatures could boost mercury levels in fish by up to seven times what they currently are, Swedish researchers say. A study suggests that climate change could be driving up levels of methylmercury, through a mechanism that has not previously been recognized. The study was published in the journal, Science Advances. [BBC]

Monday, January 30:

• The US solar industry employed nearly 374,000 people in 2015 to 2016, a report from the DOE says. This is double the number of jobs in oil, coal and gas combined. There are about 769,000 renewable energy jobs, growing at an annual rate of nearly 6% since 2012. Jobs in fossil fuel extraction and support services saw annual declines. [The Climate Group]
• The two dozen nonprofit groups and Senate committee members defending Scott Pruitt, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the EPA, have two things in common. Like Pruitt, they’re climate science deniers. And, like Pruitt, most are funded by Charles and David Koch, who own the coal, oil, and gas conglomerate Koch Industries. [Triple Pundit]
• Toshiba Corp will cease taking orders related to building nuclear power stations, sources said, in a move that would effectively mark its withdrawal from the business of nuclear plant construction. The company said it will review its nuclear operations as it expects an expected asset impairment of up to ¥700 billion ($6.08 billion). [The Japan Times]

Tuesday, January 31:

Wind turbines in Kodiak (AP Photo / Kodiak Daily Mirror, James Brooks)

• The effects of climate change are being felt in Alaska, and isn’t an arbitrary threat but one that already has a huge price tag. But there is another, more immediate reason to turn to renewable energy soon. Its cost is quickly becoming lower than traditional energy-producing methods, and in a number of places in Alaska, it already is. [Alaska Dispatch News]
• Expansion of renewable energy cannot stave off catastrophic climate change by itself, scientists warned. Even if solar and wind capacity continues to grow at breakneck speed, it will not be fast enough to cap global warming under 2° C (3.6° F), the target set in the 2015 Paris climate treaty, said their report in the journal Nature Climate Change. [Phys.Org]
• The US solar industry employed nearly 374,000 people in 2015 to 2016, a report from the DOE says. This is double the number of jobs in oil, coal and gas combined. There are about 769,000 renewable energy jobs, growing at an annual rate of nearly 6% since 2012. Jobs in fossil fuel extraction and support services saw annual declines. [The Climate Group]
• The two dozen nonprofit groups and Senate committee members defending Scott Pruitt, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the EPA, have two things in common. Like Pruitt, they’re climate science deniers. And, like Pruitt, most are funded by Charles and David Koch, who own the coal, oil, and gas conglomerate Koch Industries. [Triple Pundit]

Wednesday, February 1:

Tesla battery packs at the Mira Loma substation (Tesla image)

• In Southern California, 396 refrigerator-size stacks of Tesla batteries have been hastily erected to supply power for peak demand periods. The installation, capable of powering roughly 15,000 homes over four hours, is part of an emergency response to projected energy shortages stemming from a huge leak at a natural gas storage facility. [Las Vegas Sun]
• The largest solar project in New Hampshire may be headed for Hinsdale. Selectmen approved a payment in lieu of taxes for the $50 million project. It is tentatively scheduled to be completed by the end of 2019. The firm proposing it claims the project would offset more than 500,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions over 20 years. [The Keene Sentinel]

Dakota Access Pipeline section in Iowa (Carl Wycoff, Wikimedia Commons)

• The Army Corps of Engineers has been directed to allow the completion of the Dakota Access Pipeline, according to North Dakota Senator John Hoeven. He said he was told the Acting Secretary of the Army “directed the Army Corps of Engineers to proceed with the easement needed to complete the Dakota Access Pipeline.” [CNN]

2017-1-26 Energy Week

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.wordpress.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Thursday, 19:

Kitty Hawk (Photo: US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management)

• The US Interior Department and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management are planning to offer 122,405 acres off Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in a commercial wind lease sale in March 2017. Nine companies have been qualified to bid in the lease sale for development of approximately 1.5 GW of offshore wind capacity. [Energy Business Review]
• According to several reports translating an announcement from the Chinese National Energy Administration, China connected 34.24 GW of new solar PV capacity to the country’s grid in 2016, an increase of 126% on the installations of the previous year. This brings China’s cumulative solar capacity up to 77.42 GW. [CleanTechnica]
• No new nuclear power projects were approved by China in 2016. Just one nuclear power unit launched operations in 2016. As of September 2016, 33 operating nuclear power units had generated little more than 3% of the country’s total electricity production, well below the global average of 10%, a Chinese website reports. [gbtimes]

Wind turbine in Wyoming (Image: Power Company of Wyoming)

• The Federal Bureau of Land Management has given the green light to the Power Company of Wyoming’s 1.5-GW Chokecherry Sierra Madre wind farm, the first of the 3-GW project’s two phases. The bureau has issued environmental approval for the construction of 500 turbines and associated facilities in Carbon County, Wyoming. [reNews]

Friday, 20:

Norwich-based Solaflect solar project (Solaflect photo)

• Representatives of Vermont’s solar industry are for the most part looking to the future with cautious optimism, hoping that the established nature of the no-longer-novel industry will serve as a bulwark against policies that the administration of President Donald Trump, with its skeptical view of renewable energy, might impose. [Vermont Biz]
• Emerging energy markets are expected to add nearly 81 GW of stationary energy storage capacity by 2025 to today’s 1.9 GW of non-hydro energy storage installations, according to Navigant Research. An amount coming to 52.3 GW, about 65% of the new energy storage capacity, will be deployed in East Asia and the Pacific. [SeeNews Renewables]

(Source: US EIA, Monthly Energy Review)

• The US transport sector is emitting more carbon dioxide than power generation for the first time since the 1970s, according to data from the Energy Information Administration. A shift away from burning coal to cleaner natural gas and renewable sources has seen power sector emissions trend downwards since 2007. [Climate Home]

Saturday, 21:

Hawaii

• Hawaii has the most aggressive renewable energy targets in the nation, aiming for its utilities to get 100% of their electricity from renewable sources by 2045. Now advocates want to extend that goal to the transportation sector to urge all forms of ground transportation to fuel up using renewable sources by 2045. [Electric Light & Power]
• Gains in the renewable energy sector helped boost fourth quarter GE’s profits substantially. GE said its earnings during the fourth quarter increased to about $3.5 billion, against the $2.6 billion reported during the same period last year. The company’s renewable energy sector saw total revenues increase 29% to $2.5 billion. [Gephardt Daily]

Sunday, 22:

A rising sea

• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration just reported that the sea level is rising faster than expected in the northeastern United States and other specific regions. As climate change worsens, the global sea level could rise eight feet before the year 2100. This is driven by melting ice and warming oceans. [Natural Science News]
• According to Phys.org, a new study published this week in the journal Science suggests that today’s ocean surface temperatures are at similar levels to what they were about 125,000 years ago, an era that marked our planet’s last “warm period.” But sea levels were about 20 to 30 feet higher in those times, and that seems to be where they are headed. [Morochos.net]
• Even though California Governor Jerry Brown may be most pro-climate governor, he surprised people with a response to Trump’s threats to end NASA climate research. “If Trump turns off the satellites, California will launch its own damn satellite,” he said. “We’ve got the scientists, we’ve got the lawyers, and we’re ready to fight.” [Grist]

Monday, 23:

Road temporarily closed (Photo courtesy of Ready Wisconsin)

• In a report posted online, Wisconsin’s Division of Emergency Management devoted extensive attention to climate change and natural disasters it will cause, such as floods, drought and forest fires. The Public Service Commission and the Department of Natural Resources had removed all mentions of climate change from their websites. [The Sheboygan Press]

Renewables are now the cheapest option. (Data by Lazard, Chart by CleanTechnica | Zachary Shahan.)

• Renewable energy is now the cheapest option, on average, for new electricity capacity around the world, and this is true for developed countries like the US as well as developing countries like India, Nigeria, and Mexico. One of the biggest problems for dealing with climate change is just getting people to understand that fact. [CleanTechnica]
• Australia won’t be following Donald Trump’s lead on renewable energy policies, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce says. His statement comes after calls from within the Coalition to scrap Australia’s renewable energy targets if the US President attempts to withdraw from the Paris climate change agreement of 2015. [Northern Rivers Echo]

Tuesday, 24:

• The Scottish Government published a draft climate change plan which aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 66% by 2032. Scotland exceeded an interim target of delivering a 42% emissions reduction in 2014 – six years early. At the start of 2013, only 13% of the country’s total final energy consumption had come from renewable sources. [Energy Voice]

Offshore wind power (Photo: Simon Dawson / Bloomberg)

• The levelized cost of offshore wind energy dropped in the UK because of larger, more efficient turbines, competitive auctions, and cheaper capital, according to a report. The levelized costs dropped 32% last year, to £97/MWh, beating a goal to pass the £100/MWh threshold by 2020, and making offshore wind cheaper than nuclear power. [Bloomberg]
• As President Donald Trump prepares to boost fossil fuel production, a Pew Research Center poll finds that nearly two-thirds of Americans would rather the US focus on developing clean energy. The new poll shows that 27% said fossil fuels should be a priority, compared with 65% who favored renewable energy. [Huffington Post]

Wednesday, 25:

• “Trump has a great opportunity to save our environment” • Donald Trump is rolling back EPA rules. But the nonpartisan federal Office of Management and Budget calculated that the rules imposed by the EPA over the decade ending 2012 yielded benefits 10 times their costs, the best ratio of all federal agencies they reviewed. [Huffington Post]

Dakota Access Pipeline (Photo: Tony Webster, Wikimedia Commons)

• President Donald Trump signed executive actions to advance approval of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines. The decision to advance the pipelines cast aside efforts by the Obama administration to block construction of the pipelines, while making good on one of the campaign promises Trump had made. [CNN]
• “Renewables = Over 50% New Electricity Capacity But 16% Of Energy Investment” • The wide gap in investment figures versus new capacity figures is striking. Cheap renewables dominate new power plant installations, but polluting fossil fuels dominate the energy investments. Why? Partly because of the cost to transport fossil fuels. [CleanTechnica]

 

2017-01-19 Energy Week

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.wordpress.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Thursday, January 12:

EIA Annual Energy Outlook Table

• The Energy Information Administration’s Annual Energy Outlook provides projections of domestic energy markets until 2050, and includes cases with different assumptions of macroeconomic growth, world oil prices, technological progress, and energy policies. It shows the US becoming a net exporter of fossil fuels. [Windpower Engineering]
  (This shows information being provided to congress, but before you believe it, please compare it with the graph below, which was linked at the December 12 Energy News post, and which shows how bad EIA projections have been historically.)

EIA projections and reality

• A “groundbreaking study” from by the US Retail Industry Leaders Association and the Information Technology Industry Council ranked all 50 US states based on the ease with which some of America’s “most recognizable brands” are able to buy domestic renewable energy. It connects that ability with economic growth. [CleanTechnica]

Solar collectors in Hawaii (Photo: Xklaim, Wikimedia Commons)

• The Hawaiian Electric Company, Hawaii’s dominant public utility, has a plan in place to achieve 100% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2050. But recently, the company said it foresees getting to that goal five years earlier than expected. In fact, HECO expects to provide 48% renewable power by 2020. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, January 13:

Energy Observer (Image: Energy Observer)

• In 2017, a high-tech ocean vessel powered by the sun, wind and sea water will start a 6 year journey, visiting 50 countries. The vessel is powered by 130 square meters of solar panels, two vertical axis wind turbines, two electric motors and equipment for electrolysis, which will use sea water to create hydrogen fuel. [Energy Matters]
• According to the climate models used by researchers at UMass Amherst, the 48 contiguous US states are projected to cross the 2° C warming threshold about 10 to 20 years earlier than the global mean annual temperature. The Northeast is projected to warm by 3° C (5.2° F) by the time global warming reaches 2° C (3.6° F). [Fusion]
• New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s call for wind farms in Long Island waters earned rave reviews from environmental activists. Leaders from the regional energy and ecology sectors are cheering Cuomo’s call for the Long Island Power Authority to approve what would be the nation’s largest offshore wind farm. [Innovate Long Island]

Saturday, January 14:

Wind farm (Photo: Jürgen from Sandesneben, Germany, Creative Commons – Attribution-NoDerivs)

• While it may be hard to believe, nine Wyoming lawmakers introduced a bill to forbid utilities from providing any electricity to the state that comes from large-scale wind or solar energy projects by 2019. Allowed resources would be coal, natural gas, hydroelectric, nuclear power, oil, and net-metered individual resources. [Digital Journal]
• Ticks are devastating the moose populations in Maine and New Hampshire. They attach themselves to a single moose by the tens of thousands. The adult females can expand to the size of a grape and engorge themselves with up to four milliliters of blood. With warmer winter temperatures, they kill 70% of the states’ moose calves. [The Boston Globe]

Sunday, January 15:

• Representatives of over 150 countries gathered in Abu Dhabi at the 7th Assembly of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). “Plummeting costs and rapid innovation have spurred investments that are positioning renewable energy solutions at the centre of energy discussion today,” said IRENA’s Director-General. [gulfnews.com]

• Opinion: “The Totally Insane Carbon Bubble” • Natural gas and the hydrogen made from it are the fossil industry’s last gasp. The industry is begging for a lifeline in order to live in gold-plated castles another generation or so. The US housing bubble? Child’s play. The carbon bubble? This is big, and scary, and ready to take a lot of casualties with it. [CleanTechnica]
• For international experts stationed at a base in Antarctica, the frozen southern continent is a good gauge of climate change. “When I used to come to Antarctica in the 1990s, it never used to rain,” said Rodolfo Sanchez, director of the Argentine Antarctic Institute. “Now it rains regularly – instead of snowing.” [The Guardian]
• According to the EIA, in October 2016 residential electricity prices in Hawaii were 27.54¢/kWh, and on the island of Kaua’i, rates are 32.78¢/kWh, starting this year. Hawaii is the first state in the US where rooftop solar has become an almost standard item on homes. They are even put in places unthinkable elsewhere, facing north or in shady areas. [nwitimes.com]

Monday, January 16:

Northland hydro (Image: The Canadian Press)

• Northland has been developing a 400-MW pumped storage project that takes the form of an old flooded mine, sitting on a plateau just outside of Marmora, Ontario. The roughly $900-million project pumps water up into the mine pit when there is extra energy, and then lets it run out through a turbine when more energy is needed. [Huddle Today]
• The US EPA issued a notice of violation to auto manufacturer Fiat Chrysler Automobiles over alleged violations of the Clean Air Act pertaining to the installation, use, and failure to disclose of engine management software in a large number of vehicles sold in the US, according to a press release issued by the EPA. [CleanTechnica]
• Florida Power & Light has completed three 74.5-MW solar parks in that state. FPL’s total solar installed capacity is now 335 MW. FPL plans to install four more 74.5-MW solar parks in Florida this year, at permitted sites in Alachua, Putnam and DeSoto counties. Construction is expected to start as early as
  the first quarter of 2017. [reNews]

Tuesday, January 17:

A migrant worker steps out of his accommodation in an area next to a coal power plant in Beijing on a smog-free day. (Reuters / Damir Sagolj)

• As China is weaned off coal, its energy regulator has ordered eleven provinces to stop developing over 100 coal-fired power projects, including some that are under construction, Caixin reported. Their a total installed capacity is over 100 GW, and about ¥430 billion ($62.30 billion) has been invested in them. [Thomson Reuters Foundation]
• Saudi Arabia will start soliciting bids in the next few weeks for the first phase of a “massive” renewable-energy program costing $30 billion to $50 billion, the Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said. OPEC’s biggest oil producer plans to generate close to 10 GW from renewables, primarily solar and wind power, by 2023. [Bloomberg]
• Employment in the US wind energy industry is higher than that at nuclear, natural gas, coal, or hydroelectric power plants according to the DOE. The report also says more growth in the industry is possible, with the potential to create 380,000 jobs by 2030. The DOE report validates job figures from the AWEA. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

Wednesday, January 18:

Navya Shuttle Las Vegas

• The city of Las Vegas is now home to the first self-driving, all-electric shuttle service on public roads in the US, according to recent reports. The new electric, autonomous shuttle service is the result of a collaboration between the shuttle manufacturer Navya, the fleet logistics provider Keolis, and the city of Las Vegas. [CleanTechnica]
• The Vermont Technology Council and the Burlington Electric Department announced the formation of an exploratory team to assess the potential for a Vermont energy startup accelerator – PowerUp Vermont – to help businesses focused on innovating in the power industry and driving the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. [vtdigger.org]

 

 

2017-01-12 Energy Week

Visitors Please Note: This blog is maintained to assist in developing a TV show, Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell. The post is put up in incomplete form, and is updated with news until it is completed, usually on Wednesday. The source is geoharvey.wordpress.com.

Within a few days of the last update, the show may be seen, along with older shows, at this link on the BCTV website: Energy Week Series.

Thursday, January 5:

Though caused by global warming, a collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation system would make the Northern Atlantic Ocean much colder. (Credit: © Mats / Fotolia)

• One of the world’s largest ocean circulation systems may not be as stable as believed, according to a study in the journal Science Advances. In fact, changes in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation – the same deep-water ocean current featured in the movie “The Day After Tomorrow” – could occur quite abruptly. [Science Daily]
• Evidence the earth experienced a slowdown in global warming over the past couple of decades has been further eroded with a new US study confirming climate change continues unabated. NOAA found the oceans had warmed at the rate of 0.12° per decade since 2000, or nearly twice the previous estimate. [The Sydney Morning Herald]
• Tesla has begun mass production of battery cells at the Gigafactory. The company said the cost of battery cells will significantly decline due to a number of inherent optimizations and economies of scale. These will enhance yield, lowering the capital investment per Wh of production. The Gigafactory is 35% complete. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, January 6:

Coast of Louisiana (Photo: Dr Terry McTigue, NOAA, public domain, Wikimedia Commons)

• Many Louisianans may have been shocked by the grimmer forecasts in the latest edition of the state’s 50-year plan to protect its coast: There is no longer any hope that more land can be built than the Gulf takes each year. Even if the plan works perfectly, the state could lose another 2,800 square miles of its land along the Gulf Coast. [The Lens]
• As the president-elect puts together an administration focused on fossil fuels, the investment community is moving full speed in the opposite direction, instead putting their bets on emissions reductions and support for clean energy. Investors holding trillions of dollars in assets dropping fossil fuels in favor of renewables. [Environmental Defense Fund]

Saturday, January 7:

Sun setting on oil field (Photo by Arne Hückelheim, Wikimedia Commons)

• Grafton Asset Management Inc, which had brought foreign investment into Canada’s oil and gas industry, is looking to add alternative energy to its portfolio for the first time, as it positions itself for the decline of fossil fuels. The company’s CEO worries about the industry’s future, saying, “I do look at it as a sun-setting business.” [Financial Post]
• The DOE says that the US electricity system “faces imminent danger” from cyber-attacks and warned that a widespread power outage could be caused by a cyber-attack, undermining “critical defense infrastructure” as well as much of the economy and the health of its people. Grid operators say they are already on top of the problem. [Tyler Morning Telegraph]
• The aging Indian Point nuclear power plant just north of New York City would close within four years under a deal being made with Governor Andrew Cuomo. Plant owner Entergy Corp would shut both reactors at the Westchester County facility by April 2021, according to a source familiar with the deal’s details. [Albany Times Union]

Sunday, January 8:

Dutch train (Image by Sludge G, some rights reserved)

• Dutch railway companies teamed up with energy company Eneco in 2015 to cut train ride emissions. Originally, 2018 was set as the target for changing to 100% renewable power sources. The 100% transition was completed one year ahead of schedule, however, and all Dutch trains are now powered by wind energy. [CleanTechnica]

The Akanyaru Watershed Protection Project, building terraces and planting trees to prevent soil erosion and landslides (File photo)

• Rwanda’s Green Fund expects to reach a milestone of creating 100,000 green jobs this year, according to its program manager. He told Sunday Times that in the next 12 months Rwanda’s Green Fund, a ground-breaking environmental and climate change investment fund, is particularly looking forward to boosting Rwanda’s climate resilience. [The New Times]

Monday, January 9:

Two new wind power records for Scotland

• Scotland set two wind power records at the end of December, according to figures from WWF Scotland. The group said that for the first time, wind turbines generated enough power for all the nation’s electricity needs for four straight days, on December 23 through 26. December 24 saw a record of 74,042 MWh from wind. [Herald Scotland]
• With the renewable energy plan, by 2020 China expects to see a reduction in 120 million tons of coal used for heating. China’s newly released 13th five-year plan has provisions for renewable energy development calling for promoting use of geothermal energy, wind power and solar energy for winter heating in north China. [teleSUR English]

Kaheawa Wind Farm (Ryan Oelke, Wikimedia Commons)

• Maui Electric Co produced 35.4% of its power from renewable energy in 2015, up slightly from the previous year. Wind farms provided 23.2%, solar’s share was 8.5%, biomass and bagasse produced 2.7%, and 1% was from biofuel. But Maui’s renewable generation was behind that of the Big Island’s, which stood at 48.7%. [Maui News]
• Innovative Solar Systems, of Asheville, North Carolina, is once again dominating the solar energy market by having the largest pipeline of projects in development in the Texas market. ISS representatives report that the company has over 50 Utility Scale projects in development that range size from 35 MW to over 200 MW. [Your Renewable News]

Tuesday, January 10:

Renewables cost reductions (Source: US DOE)

• After eight years with Barack Obama in the White House, over a million US rooftops have solar panels installed. Utility scale solar powers more than 2 million homes. Generating low-carbon electricity employs 600,000 people in the United States, and 1.9 million Americans are employed in energy efficiency. [Energy Matters]
• Governor Andrew Cuomo made it official, saying that the 2,000-MW Indian Point nuclear power plant will close by April 2021. His office said the closure will have “little to no effect on New Yorkers’ electricity bills.” It indicated the plant can be replaced by 1,000 MW of hydropower because demand has declined. [Times Herald-Record]
• Vermont’s new Republican governor said Monday he would stick with his Democratic predecessor’s long-term goal of getting 90% of the energy needed in the state from renewable sources by 2050. For several years, Vermont has been working toward some of the most aggressive renewable energy goals in the country. [BurlingtonFreePress.com]

Wednesday, January 11:

• Volkswagen has agreed to a draft $4.3 billion settlement with US authorities over the emissions-rigging scandal. The German car maker also said it would plead guilty to breaking certain US laws. VW said it was in advanced discussions with authorities. The agreement has yet to be approved by VW’s management and supervisory board. [BBC]

Wind farm in Idaho (Author: Blatant Views, CC BY-SA)

• The Energy Information Administration expects 24 GW of new utility-scale power generation capacity additions for 2016, with renewables accounting for about 63% or 15 GW. Nearly 60% of the new renewables plants were scheduled to come online in the fourth quarter (Q4), including roughly 8.5 GW of wind and solar PVs. [SeeNews Renewables]
• Residents of Vermont’s capital city still have time to vote on what they feel would be the best way for their community to go “net zero.” There are five finalists for designs that would enable Montpelier to reduce its energy use through savings and the increased use of renewable sources of power. Voting ends Thursday. [SFGate]

Senvion 6.2M126 turbines (Source: Senvion SE 2014, all rights reserved)

• At the 2017 State of the State Address, New York governor Andrew Cuomo proposed a commitment to develop up to 2.4 GW of offshore wind power in the Atlantic Ocean by 2030. He said this will prove critical to achieving the goal of meeting 50% of New York’s electricity needs with renewable sources by 2030. [SeeNews Renewables]

2016 Year in Review

 

Equipment on a ridge in Southern California Gas Company’s vast Aliso Canyon facility, site of the gas leak. Photo by Scott L from Los Angeles, USA. CC BY-SA 2.0. Wikimedia Commons.

• January 12 – The methane and other pollutants spewing from a gas well in California is invisible to the naked eye, making it hard to comprehend just how large the leak is. Fortunately, the California Air Resources Board has been taking periodic measurements, which we can use to make some comparisons. [BBC]

Signing the Paris Agreement is a critical step toward saving the environment. Mokhammad Edliadi CIFOR

• April 23 – More than 170 nations attended the signing ceremony of the Paris Climate Agreement at the UN. For the Agreement to enter into full force, at least 55 nations comprising 55% of man-made greenhouse gas emissions must ratify it. [Forests News, Center for International Forestry Research]
• June 14 – The Supreme Court on Monday left intact a key Obama administration environmental regulation, refusing to hear an appeal from 20 states seeking to block rules that limit the emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from the nation’s power plants. [Washington Post]
• June 25 – Volkswagen has reportedly reached a $15 billion settlement with US car owners after admitting it cheated emission tests. The deal would offer to repair or buy back the affected diesel vehicles and pay owners compensation. The US settlement is still pending approval by a judge. [BBC]
  ($15 billion is about 23% of VW’s market capitalization.)

Protesters gather outside Exxon’s shareholders meeting in Dallas. Ben Torres/Redux

• July 6 “Did Exxon Lie About Global Warming?” • In the case against Exxon, the plaintiffs do not have to show that the company injured a specific victim or conspired to hide what it knew about climate science, just that Exxon did not tell its own investors the truth about the investment risks of climate change. [RollingStone.com]

A view from the cockpit of Solar Impulse II

• July 26 – More than a year after it first took to the skies, Solar Impulse 2 has completed an epic around-the-world journey without burning a single drop of fuel. The revolutionary single-seat solar-powered plane touched down Tuesday morning in Abu Dhabi, at the same airport from which it took off back in March 2015. [Huffington Post]
• August 5 “Nuclear Power Is Losing Money At An Astonishing Rate” • Half of the existing nuclear power plants are no longer profitable. The New York Times and others have tried to blame renewable energy, but the admittedly astounding price drops of renewables aren’t the primary cause of the industry’s woes. [ThinkProgress]
• August 13 – Scotland is pledging to reach 100% renewable sustainability for energy production by the year 2020, a reasonable goal after meeting 100% of the energy demand through wind power alone for a day. Scotland is believed to have the largest oil reserves in Europe, but has proven they largely do not need it. [Interesting Engineering]

Road closed due to weather. FEMA photo, after Hurricane Katrina. Public domain. Wikimedia Commons.

• August 24 – As residents of Louisiana this week struggle to recover from a 1,000-year flood, “one of the worst floods in modern history,” there is a chance that federal aid may not be so forthcoming thanks to a trio of Bayou State Republicans, who back in 2013 voted against helping victims of another storm: Hurricane Sandy. [eNews Park Forest]
• September 13 – Opinion: “Meet the mom litigating the ‘biggest case on the planet’” • Julia Olson is litigating what should be considered the most important court case in the United States: She’s helping 21 kids, as young as age 9, sue the Obama administration over its insufficient action on climate change. Olson will attempt to make their case for the future. [CNN]

Huitengxile wind farm, Inner Mongolia (Photo by Steven Buss, CC BY SA, Wikimedia Commons)

• September 21 – As an outcome of the recent G20 meeting in China, both China and the US volunteered to publish peer reviews of their current fossil fuel subsidies. Together, the two countries are annually providing over $20 billion in inefficient fossil fuel subsidies. Of this, $8.1 billion comes from the United States, and $14.5 billion from China. [CleanTechnica]
• September 30 – The UK has signed its £18 billion contract with France and China to build the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station, giving the final go-ahead for construction at the site in Somerset. The deal was finalized at a low-key ceremony in London, just two months after Theresa May put the entire project under review.
  [The Guardian]
• October 5 – Canada will impose a federal price on emissions of carbon dioxide nationwide in 2018, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced. The policy approach could push tougher limits on provinces that already use a carbon tax or a program for cap-and-trade, and could require major new programs for other parts of the country. [Bloomberg BNA]

Wildlife populations down by nearly 60% since 1970 (Photo by Roger Leguen / WWF)

• October 27 – Global wildlife populations have fallen by 58% since 1970, a report by the Zoological Society of London and WWF says. The Living Planet assessment, suggests that if the trend continues that decline could reach two-thirds among vertebrates by 2020. Habitat loss, wildlife trade, pollution, and climate change are among causes. [BBC]
• October 30 – According to a study from the American Lung Association in California, the unaccounted for health and societal costs of burning a gallon of gasoline total $1.30. This means that if these costs were to be accounted for in the price of gasoline, then pricing would be at least $1.30/gallon higher than it currently is. [CleanTechnica]
• November 5 – The Paris Agreement on climate change became international law on Friday, November 4, 2016, after about 20 years of global wrangling. Exactly 30 days ago, it crossed both national and emissions thresholds needed to enter into force. The agreement now has 98 parties representing nearly 70% of global carbon emissions. [CleanTechnica]

Rift in Antarctic glacier, twenty miles from the sea

• December 1 – New research from Ohio State University determined that a calving event creating an enormous iceberg in West Antarctica in 2015 was even more notable than first thought. It was the result of a deep, subsurface rift that formed approximately 20 miles inland. This implies that the glacier is deteriorating faster than thought. [CleanTechnica]
• December 2 – The Canadian province of Alberta, known for its notoriously dirty oil sands, has just made a symbolically significant about-face on energy policy, with potentially major implications for North American wind power. First up is a tender for 5 GW of wind power. Alberta will also pay its coal plants $1 billion to shut down. [CleanTechnica]
• December 5 – “Through climate change denial, we’re ceding global leadership to China” • China was no more prepared for the results of the American election than the US. But it has been quick to size up the environmental implications of a Trump victory, and officials in Beijing are contriving to cast China in a fresh leadership role. [Los Angeles Times]

Block Islands last turbine going up

• December 13 – The Block Island Wind Farm is supplying power to the grid, making it America’s first offshore wind facility. Deepwater Wind and project partners have commissioned the 30-MW installation off the coast of Rhode Island, and it is now delivering power into New England’s electric grid via a 20-mile-long submarine cable. [POWER magazine]
• December 17 – Lazard Ltd’s Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis compares costs of various generation technologies. Its latest, LCOE 10.0, shows that the cost decline of generating electricity from solar PV was steeper than decreases among other forms of renewable energy in 2016, with utility-scale PV technologies down about 11% from last year. [Solar Industry]

• December 20 – We all knew that 2016 was going to be a very good year for the US solar market; however no one could say exactly how good. Now, the DOE’s Energy Information Administration posted some of the first concrete numbers for the year. EIA estimates that the US will have installed 9.5 GW of utility-scale solar installed in 2016. [pv magazine USA]