Energy Week #321: 6/6/2019

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.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.

Energy Week #321: 6/6/2019

Thursday, May 30

Flaring natural gas (David McNew, Getty Images)

• “US Energy Officials Hail ‘Freedom Gas,’ ‘Molecules Of Freedom” • Two DOE officials referred to natural gas produced in the US as “freedom gas” and “molecules of US freedom” in a press release announcing the expansion of a natural gas facility in Texas. The expansion could double the output of the facility by 2020. [CNN]
• “China Gears Up To Use Rare Earths As A Weapon In Trade War As Summit Approaches” • Chinese media reports, including an editorial in the flagship newspaper of the Communist Party, raised the prospect of Beijing cutting exports of the commodities that are critical in the US defense, energy, electronics, and automobile sectors. [Los Angeles Times]

Pleasant Prairie plant (We Energies | MCT | Newscom)

• “‘Stranded Costs’ Mount As Coal Vanishes From The Grid” • Milwaukee-based We Energies announced in 2017 that it would close the 1,210-MW Pleasant Prairie coal-fired plant to save both itself and its customers money. And so it will, despite the fact that the plant has not yet been paid down and will not be for another twenty years. [E&E News]

Friday, May 31

• “After 46 Years, Pilgrim Nuclear Station Shutting Down” • The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, which weathered over four decades of nor’easters, protests, and lawsuits, in the end could not withstand energy market forces and the costs of operating an aging plant. It is undergoing its final shutdown today, May 31, 2019. [Cape Cod Times]

Salt Lake City

• “Utah Aims To Shatter Records With 1,000-MW Energy Storage Plant” • A one-of-a-kind facility in Utah would combine compressed air storage in salt caverns with hydrogen storage, large flow batteries and solid-oxide fuel cells. Utah’s electricity was 87% generated from coal in 2017, but its renewable energy sector is growing. [Greentech Media]
• “IEA Predicts 250 Million EVs On The Road By 2030” • Last year, the International Energy Agency predicted there would be 125 million EVs on the road worldwide by 2030. This year, it has doubled that prediction to 250 million EVs by 2030, assuming the 25 nations that are part of the EV30@30 program honor their commitments. [CleanTechnica]

Saturday, June 1

Wind turbines (Louis Moncouyoux, Unsplash)

• “A Huge Energy Storage Deal Raises Major Doubts” • After a Japanese maker of gas turbines and a US owner of salt caverns teamed up to develop a massive energy storage project, based on hydrogen and compressed air, doubts have come up. Neither technology has a track record. Neither customers nor funding have been identified. [MIT Technology Review]
• “Ohio’s Nuclear Bailout Plan Balloons To Embrace Coal” • While other states embrace renewable energy, Ohio is heading backward. A bill passed this week by the Ohio House would subsidize nuclear and coal power while cutting state support for renewable energy and energy efficiency. And utility customers will foot the bill. [InsideClimate News]

Wheat field (Photo: Rubbish computer, Wikimedia Commons)

• “Climate Change Is Already Affecting Global Food Production – Unequally” • The world’s top 10 crops – barley, cassava, maize, oil palm, rapeseed, rice, sorghum, soybean, sugarcane, and wheat – supply in total 83% of all calories grown on cropland. Research shows climate change is affecting production of these key resources. [Science Daily]

Sunday, June 2

• “Coal Industry’s Survival In Question As Companies Go Green” • In May, at the Virginia Coal and Energy Alliance’s 40th Annual Conference, a lobbyist for Dominion Energy, the industry’s best local customer, gave the keynote speech. In it, he highlighted the company’s agreement with Smithfield Foods to use hog waste to generate electricity. [Voice of America]

Cows on an island (Photo: werner22brigitte)

• “Rising Temperatures Cause Epic Flood” • Storms have become much stronger than they ever were and the people who live in the central US have recently experienced one of those fierce storms that were currently in the news. The storms break the record of the wettest 12 months in the US since they began recording rain in 1895. [Science Times]
• “El Niño Is Back. Is It To Blame For Our Severe Weather Woes?” • After a spring that soaked parts of California and saw destructive tornadoes rip through towns stretching from Texas to Pennsylvania, scientists are paying close attention to how much of the country’s recent severe weather is due to the return of El Niño. [NBCNews.com]

Monday, June 3

Trees in Pennsylvania (Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry)

• “Some Of Pennsylvania’s Iconic Tree Species Might Not Survive Climate Change” • Thousands of acres of the mountain maple, American beech, balsam fir, paper birch, and quaking aspen that produce some of Pennsylvania’s most vibrant spring, summer, and fall scenes are at risk because of climate change, a state agency said. [The Philadelphia Inquirer]
• “Energy Prices Drop In Europe As Cheaper Renewable Energy Fights For Market Share” • Gas and coal prices are plunging in Europe, hurt by the relentless threat of ever-cheaper clean energy that’s gaining market share and pushing out the fossil fuels in the process. [The National]

Building the Block Island wind farm

• “Massachusetts Officials Recommend Another 1.6 GW of Offshore Wind” • Massachusetts officials have recommended that the state double down on its offshore wind program and sign contracts for another 1,600 MW of capacity in two solicitations to be held in the early 2020s. They were encouraged by low bids in recent auctions. [Greentech Media]

Tuesday, June 4

• “Joe Biden Unveils ‘Middle-Ground’ Climate Plan With 2050 Target, Room For Fossil Fuels” • Joe Biden promised to reverse the Trump administration’s deregulatory effort and set the US on course to hit net-zero emissions by 2050 with a plan he released as an alternative to the Green New Deal. His plan is short on details, however. [HuffPost]

Storm

• “Environment Insurance Risk Assessment In The Face Of Climate Change” • The last few years have seen increases in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. Adverse atmospheric events are poignant reminders of how vulnerable our society is across a broad range of threats posed by extreme environmental events. [Advanced Science News]
• “Germany Goes 47% Renewable So Far This Year” • So far this year, renewables have produced 47% of all electricity supplied to the public grid in Germany, according the Fraunhofer Institute’s Head of Department New Devices and Technologies. This is significantly above last year’s clean energy’s share, which was 40.6% of generation. [Energy Live News]

Wednesday, June 5

Hydrogen plant

• “Renewable Hydrogen Getting Cheaper, Australia Could Lead Global Market” • Some of Australia’s leading energy experts say that renewable hydrogen is beginning to reach cost parity with some fossil fuel equivalents. Hydrogen could emerge as a high potential export industry for Australia, worth tens of billions of dollars. [RenewEconomy]
• “Wall Street Issues ‘Peak Car’ Warning” • A number of Wall Street cognoscenti have begun warning that the world has reached the “peak car” point. Last week, John Murphy, managing director of Bank of America, told a conference, “The industry is right now staring down the barrel of what we think is going to be a significant downturn.” [CleanTechnica]

Lead plaintiff Kelsey Juliana greeting supporters outside the courthouse in Portland, Ore (Andrew Selsky | Associated Press)

• “Judges Give Both Sides A Grilling In Youth Climate Case Against The Government” • In the case of Juliana v United States, three federal judges heard arguments about whether young people have a constitutional right to be protected from climate change. They pushed skeptically on the arguments of both sides of the issue. [The New York Times]

Energy Week #321: 6/6/2019

 

Energy, renewable energy, wind power, Solar, batteries, Nuclear, coal, oil, gas, Climate Change

Energy Week #320: 5/30/2019

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.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.

Energy Week #320: 5/30/2019

Thursday, May 23:

Wind turbines and horses in Wyoming (AWEA image)

• “US Wind Industry’s Response To Solar’s Rise: Embrace It” • Amid the changes going on in the renewable power industries, the American Wind Energy Association trade group announced that its flagship annual Windpower conference and exhibition will expand to include solar and storage, starting next year in Denver. [Greentech Media]
• “Ohio House Lawmakers Amend Nuclear Plant Bailout Bill” • The Ohio House has dramatically changed the energy bill that would bailout the state’s nuclear power plants and repeal renewable energy standards. Under the changes neither wind nor solar power can qualify for “Clean Air Credits.” It seems the bill benefits only nuclear plants. [WCBE 90.5 FM]

Endangered Mandarin duck (Yuri Smityuk | TASS)

• “Republicans Aren’t Just Climate Deniers. They Deny The Extinction Crisis, Too” • In King Lear there is a famous line: “‘Tis the time’s plague when madmen lead the blind.” The words comment on the deadly consequences of greed, delusion, and folly, but they could serve just as well as a comment on today’s Republican Party. [The Guardian]

Friday, May 24:

• “$4,000 Used Plug-in Hybrid And EV Buyer Incentive Offered By Peninsula Clean Energy” • In San Mateo County, California, just south of San Francisco, Peninsula Clean Energy is offering a $4,000 incentive for qualifying residents who buy used plug-in hybrids and EVs. The incentive is part of a collaboration with Peninsula Family Service. [CleanTechnica]

May Mobiity shuttle (May Mobility image)

• “Providence, Rhode Island Trials Autonomous Shuttle From May Mobility” • Financed in part by money from the VW diesel cheating settlement, a fleet of 6 passenger autonomous shuttles supplied by May Mobility began operating this week on a 5.3-mile fixed route that connects downtown Providence with Olneyville Square. [CleanTechnica]
• “School Students Walk Out In Global Climate Strike” • In New Zealand and Australia, students went on strike again, starting off a worldwide day of climate change protests. Organizers expect more than a million young people will participate in at least 110 countries, calling for politicians and businesses to take action to fight climate change. [BBC]

Saturday, May 25:

Konzept einer Agrophotovoltaik-Anlage.© Fraunhofer ISE

• “Somebody Needs To Tell Ohio Farmers About Agro-photovoltaics” • Farmers in Ohio believe they are being forced to choose between the life style they know and the economic rewards of renewable energy. But the combination of farming and solar energy has been tested repeatedly. It works, and it creates greater opportunities. [CleanTechnica]
• “The Bus Wars Are Over. Electricity – And China – Won.” • The bus wars are over and electricity has won, thanks to a big boost from China. With China’s massive investment in and support for electric buses, electrics are now racing past a 50% share of new bus sales worldwide, according to a recent analysis by Bloomberg NEF. [ThinkProgress]

GRACE satellite system (Credit: JPL | NASA)

• “For Nearly 20 Years, GRACE Has Helped Us Understand Climate Change” • In 2002, two satellites designed to take detailed measurements of the Earth were put into space. They provided detailed daily information on climate change for 15 years. Now, the GRACE Follow-On mission has been launched successfully to take their place. [CleanTechnica]

Sunday, May 26:

• “Skyrocketing Tesla Sales Force Mercedes Dealer In Norway To Face A Kodak Moment” • With the Tesla Model 3 available in Norway since February, sales of competing brands have suffered. Mercedes dealer Bertel O Steen has seen its passenger car sales drop a full 33% in the first four months of the year, compared to the same period last year. [CleanTechnica]

Two girls charging an EV (Credit: Zach Shahan | CleanTechnica)

• “ChargePoint And Chevron Partner To Bring More Fast Charging To More Gas Stations” • ChargePoint and Chevron partnered on DC Fast Charging stations along Interstate 5 in California to fill in key gaps in universal fast charging coverage. A California Energy Commission program will see 70 ChargePoint charging stations installed. [CleanTechnica]
• “Coal’s US Slide To Continue As Renewables, Gas Fill The Gap” • Demand for coal to generate electricity will continue its slide in coming months, despite Trump administration efforts to shore up the industry, the EIA said. Renewable energy, including wind, solar, and hydropower, are expected to fill much of the gap left by coal’s decline. [Mayfield Recorder]

Monday, May 27:

Nickel Ride cars (Courtesy of Nickel Ride)

• “Nickel Ride Finds EVs Are So Affordable … They Can Give Rides For Free” • Nickel Ride, which operates in some Florida cities, found a way to use the advantages of electric vehicles for a competitive edge. Customers can download a Nickel Ride app to request free rides. The company uses advertising revenue to pay for the drivers and cars. [CleanTechnica]
• “Greens surge as parties make strongest ever showing across Europe” • Green parties have swept to their strongest ever showing in European elections, boosting their tally of MEPs to a projected 71 compared with 52 last time. The result gives them every chance of becoming kingmakers in a newly fragmented parliament. [The Guardian]

Pump jack

• “Oil And Gas Majors Could Lead Australian Renewables Development By 2020” • Analysis is by independent oil and gas consultancy Rystad Energy says renewable energy investment in Australasia will overtake spending on upstream oil and gas projects as early as next year, in a shift led by the oil and gas industry itself. [RenewEconomy]

Tuesday, May 28:

• “This Swedish Cleantech Company Wants To Mass Produce Printable Organic Solar Cells” • Epishine, a Swedish cleantech company, has a solar technology that would make it possible to manufacture PVs on machines the size of newspaper presses, each printing solar cells at a rate equivalent to one nuclear reactor per month. [Forbes]

Greta Thunberg speaking in 2018

• “As Young People Lead On Climate Change, Adults Must Step Up!” • On Friday, May 24, over a million young people gathered in some 1,600 locations in 125 countries to plead for effective action on climate change. Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old who inspired them, made an appeal, “We ask you adults, give us a future!” [CleanTechnica]
• “DHL And StreetScooter Trial Hydrogen Fuel Cell Powered Delivery Vans” • DHL and StreetScooter have been pioneers in zero emissions delivery vans. Originally intended for DHL’s own use, the StreetScooter concept has proven so popular, a second factory is under construction to service the demands of third party customers. [CleanTechnica]

Wednesday, May 29:

Huntington Canyon coal-fired power plant in Utah (Credit: Brandon Thibodeaux for The New York Times)

• “Trump Administration Hardens Its Attack on Climate Science” • Donald Trump and his political appointees are launching a new assault. Parts of the federal government will no longer fulfill what scientists say is one of the most urgent jobs of climate science studies: reporting on the future effects of a rapidly warming planet. [The New York TImes]
• “Australia On Track To Reach 50% Renewable Energy By 2030: RepuTex” • Australia is on track to achieve a 50% renewable electric energy target by 2030, regardless of federal policy intervention. This is due to the country meeting state renewable energy targets. That’s the finding of new modelling by energy analyst firm RepuTex. [Energy Matters]

TuSimple self-driving truck (Credit: TuSimple)

• “USPS Goes Driverless Between Phoenix And Dallas With TuSimple” • The US Postal Service has entered into a contract with self-driving truck startup TuSimple to haul mail between Dallas and Phoenix. TuSimple will complete five round trips over the next two weeks while a safety engineer and licensed driver ride along in the cab. [CleanTechnica]

Energy Week #320: 5/30/2019

 

Energy Week #319: 5/23/2019

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.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.

Energy Week #319: 5/23/2019

Thursday, May 16:

London Array (reNEWS image)

• “2-GW Offshore Bill Advances In Connecticut” • Connecticut’s House of Representatives voted 134 to 10 in favor of legislation that would see the state buy or develop up to 2 GW of offshore wind power. The proposed legislation now goes to the state’s Senate for consideration. Connecticut Gov Ned Lamont is in favor of the measure. [reNEWS]
• “India’s Largest Power Company Shifts Away From Coal” • Tata Power, India’s largest integrated power company, announced that it will build no new coal-fired plants. In India, over 40 GW of coal-fired power plants are financially stressed, and new additions are coming to a near halt. Peak coal capacity may be closer than anticipated. [Sierra Magazine]

VW Scania truck (Image: Scania)

• “Volkswagen Continues To Ramp Up Its Electric Car Push” • VW’s board of supervisors announced that it is prepared to invest €1 billion in a battery cell factory. The preferred site is Salzgitter in Lower Saxony, where pilot production of battery cells is to begin later this year. The new factory siting is contingent on negotiations with the government. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, May 17:

• “Inslee Releases $3 Trillion Jobs Plan Centered On Clean Energy, Green Infrastructure” • Washington Gov Jay Inslee has unveiled his presidential campaign’s jobs plan, providing details of a proposal that has a laser-like focus on combating climate change. The proposal projects the creation of 8 million jobs over the next 10 years. [CNN]

Hawaii (Credit: James D Morgan | Getty Images)

• “Hawaii Court Halts Biomass Plant Over Climate Concerns” • The Hawaii Supreme Court stopped plans by a biomass company to burn locally grown eucalyptus trees to provide energy to the state’s largest utility. The court ruled that the state Public Utility Commission approved the plant without considering Hawaii’s emissions goals. [Climate Liability News]
• “Canberra Will Be First Australian City To Run On 100% Renewable Energy From October” • Canberra will be effectively powered by renewable energy from October 1, with completion of the third stage of the Hornsdale wind farm. It will be the first Australian jurisdiction to do so, the Australian Capital Territory’s Climate Change Minister said. [ABC News]

Saturday, May 18:

OPT PowerBuoy (Ocean Power Technologies image)

• “OPT PowerBuoy Passes MWh Milestone” • Ocean Power Technologies PB3 PowerBuoy system has delivered more than 1 MWh of electricity since deployment in the Adriatic Sea in November. The company said the wave device has operated “continuously and error-free” while being controlled remotely from its New Jersey facility. [reNEWS]
• “Deadly Flooding Is Rocking Texas. Scientists Say This Is Our Future Under Climate Change.” • Across the US, trends indicate that flooding is becoming the new normal. Climate scientists say it is a challenge to connect isolated events to climate change, but they have linked the wider trend uptick in rain and disasters to global warming. [ThinkProgress]

Nissan LEAF

• “Another Electric Vehicle Benefit: No Carbon Monoxide Poisoning” • Several hundred Americans die each year from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning, and far more are made sick. A number of the deaths occur in gas-powered vehicles where CO can build up without the occupants knowing, because the gas is colorless and odorless. [CleanTechnica]

Sunday, May 19:

As permafrost melts, grave markers tumble. (Mark Ralston | AFP | Getty Images)

• “The heat is on over the climate crisis. Only radical measures will work” • Drowned cities; stagnant seas; intolerable heatwaves; entire nations uninhabitable. A four-degree-warmer world is the stuff of nightmares and yet that’s where we’re heading in just decades. Meeting our emissions targets may seem hard. It will be far harder for our children if we don’t. [The Guardian]
• “Australia Poll Result Divides The Nation” • The result of yesterday’s election in Australia triggered rage and disgust for those hoping for a change of government deemed fairer and kinder to the environment. Many took to social media to express dismay after an election in which climate change was a major issue. [The Straits Times]

CIEL report

• “New Report On Plastics And Climate – The Hidden Costs Of A Plastic Planet” • The Center for International Environmental Law published Plastic & Climate The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet. It says that greenhouse gas emissions associated with plastic “threaten the ability of the global community to keep global temperature rise below 1.5°C.” [CleanTechnica]

Monday, May 20:

• “Unlocking The Economic Potential Of Adapting To Climate Realities – Jay Inslee Gets It” • Among Democrats running for president, Jay Inslee has distinguished himself with a bold zero-carbon climate plan. He says it will create 8 million clean tech jobs at a cost comparable to what has been spent on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. [CleanTechnica]

Ocean life (Office of Ocean Exploration and Research)

• “Scientists Fear Impact Of Deep-Sea Mining On Search For New Medicines” • Scientists who view the deep ocean and its wealth of unique and undocumented species as a prospecting ground for new medicines, fear such potential will be lost in the rush to exploit the deep sea’s equally rich metal and mineral resources. [The Guardian]
• “Maine Solar Bill Would Expand Access And Increase Net Metering Cap” • A bipartisan bill making its way through the Maine Legislature would set the state on a path to develop 400 MW of distributed solar energy. The legislation would allow more people to participate in community solar projects and raise caps for net metering. [Energy News Network]

Tuesday, May 21:

Notre Dame design (Image: Vincent Callebaut Architectures)

• “Could The Notre Dame Be Reborn As An Energy-Positive Eco-Cathedral?” • Could the Notre Dame be reborn as an energy-positive cathedral? Paris-based Vincent Callebaut Architectures says that is exactly how it should be rebuilt. It has released new concept plans to repair the eight-century-old Notre-Dame cathedral after the fire. [Energy Live News]
• “New Hampshire Legislators Quintuple Net Metering Cap By Veto-Proof Margin” • As more states to meet their net metering caps, the legislature in New Hampshire has sought to encourage further adoption by increasing the maximum amount of distributed solar capacity that would receive credit for power sent to the grid. [Utility Dive]

Supply ship at an ice shelf (Jonathan Bamber)

• “Global Sea Level Rise Could Have ‘Profound Consequences'” • Scientists believe that global sea levels could rise far more than predicted, due to accelerating melting in Greenland and Antarctica. A study says the greater melt doubles the estimated maximum sea level rise during the 21st century, from one meter to two meters. [BBC]

Wednesday, May 22:

Lilium

• “Lilium Reveals Long-Awaited New Air Taxi And Celebrates Maiden Flight In The Same Swoop” • Lilium, based in Germany, says it is nearly ready to manufacture and operate the Lilium Jet and offer on-demand air taxi service around the world. It showed a new 5-seat electric air taxi prototype, whose maiden flight was earlier this month. [CleanTechnica]
• “Ausgrid Seeks To Expand Virtual Power Plant To Cut Back On Network Costs” • New South Wales utility Ausgrid is seeking proposals to expand its virtual power plant, following a successful pilot project. It looked to co-ordinate battery storage systems to support network services and help avoid the need for further network investment. [RenewEconomy]

Deepwater Horizon fire (US Coast Guard)

• “Offshore Drilling Has Become A Liability For Republicans” • The issue of offshore drilling has created a schism between Republicans in states where constituents depend on fishing and beach tourism, like Florida and Georgia, and the White House, which wants virtually all US waters to be open for oil industry exploitation. [CleanTechnica]

Energy Week #319: 5/23/2019

Energy Week #318: 5/16/2019

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.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.

Energy Week #318: 5/16/2019

Thursday, May 9:

Walney Extension wind farm (Reuters: Phil Noble)

• “Britain Records First Coal-Free Week Since The Victorian Era, Thanks To Gas, Nuclear Power And Renewables” • Britain has now gone seven days without using any electricity generated from coal, for the first time since the Victorian era. Ten years ago, coal produced about a third of the Britain’s electricity. Since May 2, the country has been powered by natural gas and nuclear energy, and renewables. [ABC News]
• “Exelon To Shut Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant” • Exelon Corp says it’s moving forward with plans to close the Three Mile Island nuclear plant in Pennsylvania after a bid to bail out struggling reactors failed to advance in the state legislature. Exelon had hoped to get $500 million per year in subsidies to keep the plant open. [Bloomberg]

Block Island wind farm (Deepwater Wind image)

• “Block Island Offshore Wind Farm Improves Fishing And Tourism” • Researchers at the University of Rhode Island studied the effects the Block Island wind farm had on local fishing and tourism. They found recreational fishing was increased, though feeling were mixed among those who fish commercially, and tourism improved. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, May 10:

• “These Scientists Did More Than Tell Us We Were Doomed” • In the past few days, a series of apocalyptic headlines appeared, telling us that a million species were threatened with extinction, based on an IPBES report. It is important to remember that the report didn’t just talk about doom. The committee also offered solutions. [Sierra Magazine]

 

Re-establishing vegetation on parched land (Getty Images)

• “How Weeds Help Fight Climate Change” • Most people see weeds as a problem. But one farmer has found they can help make dry, damaged land lush again, and they also absorb carbon from the atmosphere. His observations of the flow of water from high to low places inspired what is called natural sequence farming. [BBC]
• “US Residential Solar Installs Hit 2 Million In Q2” • The US now has over 2 million solar systems installed, and forecasts are that the number will double by 2023, according to Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables and the Solar Energy Industries Association. The first million installations took 40 years, but the second took just three. [CleanTechnica]

Saturday, May 11:

Intersolar Europe trade fair

• “The Weekend Read: Drivers Of Energy Convergence” • The risks posed by the energy transition to the stability of electricity networks appear to have been misrepresented. With Germany’s Energiewende, electricity network stability has increased as penetrations of solar PV and wind generation continue to creep higher. [pv magazine International]
• “Ireland Goes 25 Days Without Using Coal To Generate Electricity” • The island of Ireland has gone a record length of time without using coal-fired electricity generation on its power system, according to Eirgrid. The Irish all-island grid operated without coal between April 11th and May 7th, a total of 25 days, Eirgrid confirmed. [Irish Times]
• “Sanders Says Biden’s ‘Middle Ground’ Approach to Climate Crisis Would ‘Doom Future Generations'” • “There is no ‘middle ground’ when it comes to climate policy,” the Vermont senator tweeted, quoting from a Reuters report on Biden’s efforts to develop a climate plan that would leave the door open to so-called “fossil fuel options.” [Common Dreams]

Sunday, May 12:

Threatening extinctions (Yann Kebbi)

• “Life As We Know It” • Species of plants and animals are disappearing faster than at any time in human history. We know who is to blame. Our planet has suffered five mass extinctions, with the last about 66 million years ago, probably because of an asteroid hit the Earth. Now, the sixth extinction is here, and the asteroid is us. [The New York Times]
• “Just Add Water: Salt Battery Could Help Renewable Energy Use” • Vattenfall and Swedish start-up SaltX are working on a thermal battery. When calcium oxide reacts with water to make calcium hydroxide, it releases a lot of heat. When the water is removed, the material changes back into calcium oxide. The thermal battery stores heat. [Japan Today]
• “GOP Candidate Weld Talks Trump At Valley News-Sponsored Forum” • Former Massachusetts Gov Bill Weld, campaigning in the Republican primary against Pres Trump, visited towns in the Upper Valley region of Vermont and New Hampshire. Among the Trump’s positions he attacked were climate change, fossil fuels, and renewable energy. [Valley News]

Monday, May 13:

Renewable energy and river

• “Climate And Energy Goals Can Be Met Without Sacrificing Rivers: WWF” • A report from the WWF and the Nature Conservancy showed that the renewable energy transition can solve the world’s climate and energy challenges without sacrificing its remaining free-flowing rivers and the benefits they provide to people and nature. [Saurenergy]
• “There Is More CO₂ In The Atmosphere Today Than Any Point Since The Evolution Of Humans” • According to data from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii, the concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere is over 415 ppm, far higher than at any point in the last 800,000 years, since before the evolution of the species Homo sapiens. [CNN]
• “UN Chief: Climate Change ‘Running Faster Than We Are'” • UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said “Climate change is running faster than what we are.” He pointed out that Countries are not living up to their commitments under the 2016 Paris Agreement, even though the last four years have been the hottest in history. [Aljazeera.com]

Tuesday, May 14:

Victor Vescovo piloting (Discovery | Five Deeps Expedition)

Submersible, The Limiting Factor (Discovery | Five Deeps Expedition)

• “Deepest Ever Dive Finds Plastic Bag At Bottom Of Mariana Trench” • An American undersea explorer, Victor Vescovo, has completed what is claimed to be the deepest manned sea dive ever recorded, 10,927 meters (35,853 feet). He returning to the surface with the depressing news that there’s plastic trash down there. [CNN]
• “Scientists Say They Have Created An Environmentally Friendly Alternative To Styrofoam” • From an environmental perspective, styrofoam is a disaster. Scientists at Washington State University say they have developed an environmentally friendly material derived from plants that works better than Styrofoam for insulation. [CleanTechnica]
• “Cement Giant Heidelberg Pledges Carbon Neutral Concrete By 2050” • The world’s fourth largest cement manufacturing company, Heidelberg Cement, pledged to bring its emission reduction targets in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement, in a first for the industry. The cement sector accounts for around 7% of CO₂ emissions. [Climate Home]

Wednesday, May 15:

Glasgow at night (Barnabas Csomor, Wikimedia Commons)

• “Glasgow Aims To Be The UK’s First ‘Net-Zero’ City” • Plans unveiled by Glasgow would make it the first UK city to reduce its greenhouse emissions to net-zero. The city wants to reach the target before 2045, beating the Scotland-wide ambition of the Scottish government. Glasgow’s plan includes mass EV charging stations. [BBC News]
• “Teachers Grapple With Climate Change: ‘A Pretty Scary Topic'” • The Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network reviewed more than 30,000 free online resources and found only 700 acceptable for use in schools. The rest include materials from climate change doubters, the oil industry, and others with misleading information. [NBC 10 Philadelphia]

Student Activists (Eder Campuzano)

• “Students press Portland school board to adopt climate curriculum promised 3 years ago” • Dozens of students packed the auditorium at Portland school district headquarters to demand a science and social studies curriculum that addresses climate change. The school board passed a resolution three years ago promising just that. [OregonLive.com]

Energy Week #318: 5/16/2019

Energy Week #317: 5/9/2019

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.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.

Energy Week #317: 2/9/2019

Thursday, May 2:

Climate protesters reacting to parliament’s declaration (Reuters)

• “UK Parliament Declares Climate Change Emergency”
  Members of Parliament of the UK have approved a motion to declare an environment and climate emergency. This proposal, which demonstrates the will of the Commons on the issue but does not legally compel the government to act, was approved without a vote. [BBC]
• “Keystone State Goes Full Climate Change With New Action Plan”
  In the latest climate action development, Pennsylvania has just cast off the fossil fuel mantle of the past and taken up the sparkling green sword of the future, by signing on to the US Climate Alliance. The alliance now counts 23 states and Puerto Rico among its members. [CleanTechnica]

Tesla Powerwall batteries in a home (GMP image)

• “Green Mountain Power Plans 100% Renewables By 2030 With Help From Tesla”
  Green Mountain Power says it wants to speed up its move to 100% renewable energy and it has developed a plan to get to zero emissions no later than 2030. The plan calls for achieving 100% carbon free energy by 2025 and to be 100% renewable by 2030. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, May 3:

• “100% Clean Energy: The New Normal”
  Nevada and Washington state joined a growing number of states and local jurisdictions taking action to build an equitable 100% clean energy economy, further propelling a national movement of climate and clean energy leadership that has emerged despite Trump Administration policies. [Sierra Magazine]

Coral reef (US Fish and Wildlife Service | Flickr)

• “Six Signs Of Hope For The Ocean”
  It is easy to lose sight of good news amid the barrage of negative stories about the threats facing the ocean. We see everything from growing plastic pollution to dying coral reefs. Increasingly, however, there is a lot to celebrate when you look more closely at ocean-related developments. [CleanTechnica]

Makani’s tethered generating drone (Makani image)

• “Could High-Flying Drones Power Your Home One Day?”
  A growing number of companies believe using tethered kites and drones provide a viable way to harness the stronger and more consistent high-altitude winds that just keep blowing. Could this tech release wind power’s full potential, or will it always remain a niche solution? [BBC News]

Saturday, May 4:

• “Brain-Dead Zuckerberg Hires Daily Caller Group To Fact Check Climate News”
  Thanks to Joe Romm at ThinkProgress, we learned that Facebook has hired CheckYourFact.com to fact check information on climate change. CheckYourFact.com, Romm says, is “an arm of the conservative, anti-science media site The Daily Caller.” [CleanTechnica]

Coal-burning power plant (Photo: Sunrise Coal LLC)

• “Scott Pruitt Fails To Stop Indiana’s Move To Renewable Energy”
  Indiana’s third-largest utility analyzed the economics of its power plants and decided to shift from coal-fired power plants to renewable sources. Coal companies hired former EPA chief Scott Pruitt to fight back. Pruitt failed, according to a post at Utility Dive. [Digital Journal]
• “US House Passes First Climate Bill In A Decade”
  The US House of Representatives passed its first climate-change bill in a decade, voting 231-190 to require that Trump administration keep the US as a party to the Paris Climate Agreement. It would require the administration to set climate goals in accord with the agreement. [Reuters]

Sunday, May 5:

Line workers (Amit Dave | Reuters)

• “Can Microgrids Really Bring Power To The Last Billion?”
  After Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico turned to microgrids for resiliency. Puerto Rico’s embrace of microgrids hints at a different energy future. Some of the 1 billion people around the world without electricity may finally get it without ever needing a central power grid. [Quartz]
• “Erie’s Climate Is Changing”
  In recent decades, temperatures in Erie, Pennsylvania have increased between 1.6° and 4.06°, studies show. With higher temperatures there is less winter ice coverage on the Great Lakes, and more moisture can feed lake-effect snowstorms, like the ones that dumped over 156 inches of snow on Erie two winters ago. [GoErie.com]

Renewable energy

• “PG&E Corp Unable To Strike Deal Over Renewable Power Contracts”
  PG&E Corp was unable to reach a deal with NextEra Energy Inc and other companies with which it has billions of dollars in power contracts. The matter will be decided in the next several weeks by the judge overseeing PG&E’s bankruptcy, court documents said. [ETEnergyworld.com]

Monday, May 6:

• “Trump Is Dissing Green Energy But China Is Financing Its Growth With Its Belt And Road Initiative” • With its Belt and Road Initiative, China is seizing on an international opportunity that the Trump administration has forsaken, helping other countries expand their domestic infrastructures, potentially with green power plants. [Forbes]

Soil to sequester carbon

• “How Carbon Farming Can Help Stop Climate Change In Its Tracks” • Photosynthesis produces sugar and atmospheric oxygen. “Everything that grows here starts with sugar. Soil microbes eat sugar.” And feeding these soil microbes builds soil and sequesters atmospheric carbon in the ground “at a rate previously thought impossible.” [The Nation]
• “Climate Change Threatens One Million Species With Extinction: Scientists” • Relentless pursuit of economic growth and the impact of climate change, have put an “unprecedented” one million species at risk of extinction, scientists said in a landmark report on the damage done by modern civilization to the natural world. [Insurance Journal]

Tuesday, May 7:

Wind energy (franckreporter | Getty Images)

• “Renewables Outproduced Coal Power In The US For The First Time Ever” 
  Last month, for the first time, renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and hydro outpaced coal generation, according to data from the Energy Information Administration and an analysis by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. [Popular Mechanics]
• “Rising Coal And Gas Costs Push Australia Electricity Prices To Record Highs” 
  Electricity prices across much of Australia’s main grid rose to record highs in the first quarter of 2019, the Australian Energy Market Operator said. It blames the record heatwave, rising coal and gas costs, and the rising cost of hydro power because of the drought. [RenewEconomy]

Disko Bay (Education images | Getty Images)

• “Arctic Permafrost Is Melting So Fast It’s Damaging The Equipment Scientists Use To Measure It” 
  Permafrost is the Arctic region’s bedrock. A study says it is melting so fast that it’s not just ripping up the landscape; it is wrecking the scientific equipment used to measure it. And it is making climate change even worse for all of us. [CNN]

Wednesday, May 8:

• “1 In 5 Americans Now Live In Places Committed To 100% Clean Power”
  With Washington state, Nevada, New Mexico, California, Hawaii, Washington DC, and Puerto Rico, all committed to goals of 100% renewable energy, one in five Americans lives in places with such a goal. Seven more states have bills to meet the same goal. [Grist] (There are similar bills pending in Illinois, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Florida, and Massachusetts. And see the next item.)
• “Bipartisan Group Of Legislators Reintroduces Bills To Get PA 100% Powered By Renewable Energy”
  A bipartisan group of state legislators is re-introducing a pair of bills aimed at getting Pennsylvania to have 100% renewable energy by 2050. Sen Tom Killion (R-Chester) said “It’s not just about the environment. It’s about jobs.” [WHYY]

Keeping an eye on the polluters (Shutterstock)

• “We’ll Soon Know The Exact Air Pollution From Every Power Plant In The World. That’s Huge.”
  A nonprofit AI firm called WattTime will use satellite imagery to track the air pollution (including carbon emissions) coming out of every single power plant in the world precisely, in real time. And it’s going to make the data public. [Vox]

Energy Week #317: 2/9/2019