Energy Week #344: 11/7/2019

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 #343 was a special for 350Vermont)

Energy Week #344: 11/7/2019

Thursday, October 31

Renewable energy (Tony Webster | Flickr)

• “Renewable Energy Could Save Us Trillions In Health Costs” • If you’re worried about getting “windmill cancer,” we have some good news for you. According to a new study published this week in the journal Environmental Research Letters, installing more renewable energy could save the US trillions of dollars in health costs. [Inverse]
• “Mayflower To Deliver Second Massachusetts Offshore Wind Farm” • The state of Massachusetts has chosen Mayflower Wind to develop an 804-MW offshore wind farm, following bid submissions filed in August. The project, located more than 20 miles south of Nantucket, is expected to start operations in 2025, according to the developer. [reNEWS]

Greenland ice melt (Eric Rignot)

• “Rising Sea Levels Threaten Hundreds Of Millions – And It’s Much Worse Than We Thought” • Hundreds of millions of people worldwide, nearly three times the number previously thought, are at risk of losing their homes as entire cities sink under rising seas over the next three decades, a paper published in the journal Nature Communications says. [CNN]

Friday, November 1

• “California Fires: Goats Help Save Ronald Reagan Presidential Library” • A hungry herd of 500 goats helped save the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library from the California wildfires. In May, the library hired the goats to clear flammable scrub surrounding the complex as a preventative measure. The goats ate the brush, creating a fire break. [BBC]

• “Keystone Pipeline Leaks 383,000 Gallons Of Oil In North Dakota” • Part of the Keystone 1 Pipeline in North Dakota was shut down after a leak of about 9,120 barrels (383,040 gallons) of oil was discovered, TC Energy company said in a statement. A drop in pressure was detected, and the pipeline was immediately shut down, the company said. [CNN]
• “Coal Power Is Bleeding Cold, Hard Cash (Thank You, Captain Obvious)” • Carbon Tracker looked the viability of the EU’s coal fleet in a report it called Apocalypse Now. It says 79% of the EU’s coal power plants are losing money. Carbon Tracker concludes that without significant subsidies, there will be no hard coal or lignite power in the EU by 2030. [CleanTechnica]

Saturday, November 2

Heerema crane vessels (Heerema image)

• “Wind Powers Heerema Crane Vessels” • Heerema is involved in a project in the Dutch port of Rotterdam to use electricity generated by wind turbines in place of diesel generators for the power needs of its moored crane vessels. The aim of the project is to establish the feasibility of supplying shore-based clean electricity to large seagoing vessels. [reNEWS]
• “Penn State Researchers Say A 10-Minute EV Recharge Is Possible With New Battery Technology” • Researchers at Penn State claim they found a way to recharge an EV in ten minutes and are targeting five minute recharging times in the near future. The trick is to heat the battery rapidly and then cool it back down quickly. [CleanTechnica]

Ice-hardened wind farm in Finland (@Hyotytuuli, Facebook)

• “Great Lakes Offshore Wind: Possibility Or Pipe Dream?” • The end of a regulatory odyssey to get approval for what would be the first US freshwater offshore wind farm is now within sight for developers. Final approval is needed from the Ohio Power Siting Board for the 20.7-MW Icebreaker project, about 8 miles from downtown Cleveland in Lake Erie. [E&E News]

Sunday, November 3

• “Cranberry Farmers See Solar Promise” • Falling cranberry prices and ongoing trade wars have America’s cranberry industry eyeing a possible new savior: solar power. Some of the cranberry farmers in Massachusetts, the nation’s second-largest grower after Wisconsin, propose to install solar PVs above the bogs they harvest each fall. [Arkansas Online]

Joe Cheung Ho-yi, conservation education manager at The Nature Conservancy (Photo: Jonathan Wong)

• “Hong Kong Oysters Served Up As Natural Defence Against Flooding Caused By Climate Change” • Environmentalists believe oysters could play a key role in protecting Hong Kong’s coastlines from the effects of climate change, including the rise in sea levels and increasingly damaging flooding brought about by extreme storms. [Yahoo Singapore News]
• “UK Halts All Fracking Operations In The Country” • The UK government issued an order halting all fracking operations in the country effective immediately. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland already had measures against fracking. UK Government ministers also warned shale gas companies that it will not support future fracking projects. [CleanTechnica]

Monday, November 4

Scylax airplane (Credit: Scylax)

• “Electric Aviation Company Scylax Forms Joint Venture With German Regional Airline” • Scylax GmbH, based in Munich, has entered into a joint venture with the East Frisian FLN airline for electric aircraft. The idea is to replace the airline’s current fleet of gas-powered BN-2 Norman Britten Islanders with the all-electric Scylax E10s. [CleanTechnica]
• “US Renewable Energy Generating Capacity To Grow By 47 GW – FERC Data” • According to a review by the SUN DAY Campaign of data just released by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, we are to see net decreases in generating capacities of fossil fuels and nuclear in the next three years. Renewables are expected to grow by 47 GW, however. [pvbuzz media]

Fire in California (AFP)

• “California Fires: Trump Threatens To Pull Federal Aid” • President Donald Trump has threatened to cut federal funding for the wildfires sweeping California, in a Twitter spat with the state’s governor. Nearly 100,000 acres have been destroyed by wildfires in recent weeks, and thousands have been forced from their homes. [BBC]

Tuesday, November 5

• “Southern Florida Among Spots At Greater Risk Due To Sea Level Rise, Finds New Machine Learning Study” • We have a very high confidence that we’ll see 8-12 inches of sea level rise by 2050. But elevations along coast lines were not really well understood, a study shows. And some places, such as southern Florida, are facing problems. [CleanTechnica]

Tesla battery at the Hornsdale wind farm

• “South Australia’s Stunning Renewable Energy Transition, And What Comes Next” • South Australia dumped coal and sources more than half its generation from wind and solar. It is now a net exporter rather than an importer of electricity. It plans to have “net 100%” renewable energy in a decade, and a multiple of that in the future. [RenewEconomy]
• “US Begins Formal Withdrawal From Paris Climate Accord” • The Trump administration announced that it will begin formally withdrawing the US from the Paris climate accord, the first step in a year-long process to back out of the agreement to reduce emissions of planet-warming gases. Trump is working to reduce federal regulations on pollution. [CNN]

Wednesday, November 6

• “Trouble Ahead for Natural Gas?” • FERC’s figures for proposed new capacity indicates a decrease of about 20% per year during August 2017 to August 2019. Extrapolating the data suggests that proposed new additions could drop to the point that they no longer exceed retirements by 2025. And market pressure could make this happen. [Green Energy Times]

Warm October in New York (Spencer Platt | Getty Images)

• “Last Month Was The Warmest October On Record Globally. Here’s What It Means For Climate Change” • The Copernicus Climate Change Service, which analyzes temperature data from around the planet, said October 2019 was 0.69°C (1.24°F) warmer globally than the average of all the Octobers in the 30-year span from 1981-2010. [CNN]
• “11,000 Scientists Warn Of ‘Untold Suffering’ Caused By Climate Change” • More than 11,000 researchers from around the world issued a grim warning of the “untold suffering” that will be caused by climate change if humanity doesn’t change its ways. The group said that as scientists, they have the “moral obligation to tell it like it is.” [CNN]

Energy Week #344: 11/7/2019

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

Energy Week #342: 10/31/2019

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 #342: 10/31/2019

Thursday, October 24

Offshore wind farm (Ørsted image)

• “Ørsted And Equinor ink New York offshore power pacts” • Ørsted and Equinor have signed power purchase agreements with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority for the 880-MW Sunrise Wind and 816-MW Empire Wind projects, respectively. Siemens Gamesa 8-MW turbines are set to be used at the wind farms. [reNEWS]
• “Justice Department Sues California Over Air Pollution Agreement With Canada” • The US Justice Department sued California, claiming that an environmental agreement the state entered with the Canadian province of Quebec to combat air pollution was illegal because it amounted to a treaty or compact between a US state and a foreign power. [CNN]

• “Air Quality In The US Is Getting Worse And Could Be Killing Thousands, Study Finds” • After improving for the better part of a decade, air quality in the US is getting worse again. And it could be associated with nearly 10,000 premature deaths and billions of dollars in damages, according to a working paper with new analysis of EPA data. [CNN]

Friday, October 25

• “Wheels Of Fortune? A New Age For Electric Motors” • Motors are about to get much more attention from the media, according to the head of technology trends at the Advanced Propulsion Centre, a joint venture of the automotive industry and the UK government, said. That is because they are key components of EVs and they are changing fast. [BBC]

Polarstern (Credit: Sebastian Grote | AWI)

• “The Problem Of Thinning Arctic Sea Ice” • After spending considerable time finding Arctic ice thick enough to be safe to work on, at 85° north latitude, Polarstern has finally moored to an ice flow. Over the coming days the team will begin setting up an ice camp around Polarstern, carefully putting out equipment that the ice can support. [BBC]
• “eHang Is About To Make Aviation History, With First eVTOL Service Coming In December” • eHang is readying the launch of the very first eVTOL urban air mobility service in Guangzhou, China, this December. eHang wants to become a full-stack UAM solution and will most likely be the first eVTOL aircraft operator in service. [CleanTechnica]

Saturday, October 26

Farming the desert (Image credit: Stefan Botha via YouTube)

• “UN Scientists Say There Is A Way To Delay Climate Change For 20 Years For Pocket Change” • Rene Castro Salazar, of at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, told Time that almost half of the 5 billion acres of land around the world that have been degraded could be restored for $300 billion, about two months of worldwide military spending. [CleanTechnica]
• “Stanford Study Casts Doubt On Carbon Capture” • Research by Mark Z Jacobson at Stanford University, published in Energy and Environmental Science, suggests that carbon capture can cause more harm than good. Jacobson said carbon capture only reduces “a small fraction of carbon emissions, and it usually increases air pollution.” [Stanford University News]

Renewable energy (Pixabay image)

• “Australia’s Pipeline Of Renewable Energy Projects Swells Over 130 GW” • Australia’s pipeline of grid-scale solar, wind and battery projects is growing at an unprecedented pace in 2019. According to Rystad Energy, a consulting company based in Norway, it now stands at 133 GW, up from 94 GW at the start of the year. [pv magazine Australia]

Sunday, October 27

• “Rising Waters Bring Tough Choice: Fight Or Flight” • Fight or flight. That’s the dilemma people living at water’s edge face as a hotter climate pushes Puget Sound and nearby rivers higher. Fleeing to higher, drier ground can be wrenching, while digging in and trying to hold the waters back can be costly, or even dangerous. [KUOW News and Information]

Wildfire in California (AFP)

• “Kincade Fire: Mass Blackout Begins Amid California Wildfires” • In California, power cuts expected to affect more than two million people have begun as fires in that state continue to grow. Pacific Gas & Electric initiated the precautionary blackout due to forecasts of extreme winds. it is expected to be the largest in state’s history. [nbnews24]
• “Chuck Schumer Has A Plan To Boost Electric Car Sales: Massive Rebates” • Chuck Schumer has a plan to offer consumers large rebates if they switch from a gasoline powered car to an electric car. The catch is that the cars purchased have to be assembled in the US by American workers using predominantly US-made parts. [CleanTechnica]

Monday, October 28

Driving on sunshine (CleanTechnica)

• “Why Is Tesla Now The Most Valuable American Automaker?” • I cannot speak for the rest of the $58.78 billion market cap of Tesla, but from my perspective as a tiny shareholder who has covered Tesla professionally for several years, I’ve got a few thoughts on why it is Tesla has become the most valuable American automaker. [CleanTechnica]
• “Up To 27 Coal-Burning Power Plants To Suspend Operation To Reduce Fine Dust” • The South Korean government decided to suspend operations of up to 27 coal-fired power plants during the period of December to March, when high-density fine dust usually blankets the country. The plan is also to ban old cars from the streets during the period. [NewsworldKorea]

Home destroyed by Superstorm Sandy (Ben Fractenberg | DNAinfo)

• “Flirting With Disaster: Flood Zones Still Uninsured Years After Sandy” • Seven years after Superstorm Sandy deluged New York City, more than eight out of 10 properties in coastal areas the federal government deems extremely vulnerable to the next disaster are without flood insurance, an investigation by THE CITY found. [THE CITY]

Tuesday, October 29

• “World’s Largest Storage Battery – 2.5 GWh – To Replace Gas Peaker Plants In Queens” • A site in Queens, New York, once was home to sixteen gas powered peaker plants. Only two remain in operation today. Soon, all of them will be demolished to make room for a 316-MW/2528-MWh storage battery that will be the largest in the world. [CleanTechnica]

Offshore wind support vessel (reNEWS image)

• “Offshore Wind Costs ‘Drop 32%'” • Offshore wind costs have fallen 32% from just a year ago and 12% compared with the first half of 2019, according to new research from BloombergNEF. In its latest Levelized Cost of Electricity Update, BloombergNEF said its current global benchmark LCOE estimate for offshore wind is $78/MWh. [reNEWS]
• “California Faces Huge Power Cuts As Wildfires Rage” • An estimated 1.5 million more people in California are set to lose power on Tuesday as Pacific Gas & Electric tries to stop damaged cables triggering wildfires. Earlier, PG&E had cut supplies to 970,000 customers. It has just added another 650,000 to that figure due to high winds. [BBC]

Solar plus batteries (Getty Images)

“Huge Battery Investments Drop Energy-Storage Costs Faster Than Expected, Threatening Natural Gas” • The global energy transition is happening faster than the models predicted, according to a report released today by the Rocky Mountain Institute, thanks to massive investments in the advanced-battery technology ecosystem. [Forbes]

Wednesday, October 30

• “America’s Largest Private Coal Miner Files For Bankruptcy” • The slow death of the coal industry has forced Murray Energy, the country’s largest private coal miner, to file for bankruptcy protection. Murray Energy and its subsidiaries operate 17 active mines in Alabama, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, Utah, and West Virginia. They employ 7,000 workers. [CNN]

Harbour Air ePlane1 (Harbour Air image)

• “Seaplanes Get Electric With Magnix And Harbour Air” • Harbour Air, based in Vancouver, says it is on schedule in the conversion of the world’s first seaplane to e-plane. It is installing a 750 hp magniX motor and connecting it to the internal systems in preparation for its first flight. Harbour Air expects to complete the test by the end of the year. [CleanTechnica]

Energy Week #342: 10/31/2019

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

Energy Week #341: 10/24/2019

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 #341: 10/24/2019

Thursday, October 17

GE Haliade-X turbine (GE Renewables image)

• “Haliade-X Prototype Stands Tall In Rotterdam” • A 12-MW Haliade X wind turbine prototype has been installed in the Dutch Port of Rotterdam by GE Renewables. The 260-meter tall test turbine, which is next to Sif’s Maasvlakte yard, will be energised shortly. GE expects to complete type testing new platform by the end of next year. [reNEWS]
• “Another Insurer To Withdraw Coverage From Oil Sands” • Starting next year, Axis Capital Holdings Ltd will stop writing new insurance and facultative reinsurance for oil sands extraction and pipeline projects. The insurance industry has been warning for years about the consequences of global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions. [Canadian Underwriter]

Solar arrays (Community Energy Solar)

• “Philadelphia Launches Regional Collaborative To Tackle Climate Change, Recycling, Renewable Energy” • The Climate Collaborative of Greater Philadelphia was to be a way for local organizations to coordinate efforts on climate change, energy, and recycling. The number of sign-ups was nearly double what was expected. [The Philadelphia Inquirer]

Friday, October 18

• “Climate Crisis Will Not Be Discussed At G7 Next Year, Says Trump Official” • The climate crisis will not be formally discussed at the G7 summit in June next year, Donald Trump’s acting White House chief of staff told reporters. He announced that the G7 summit would take place at a golf resort owned by Donald Trump. [The Guardian]

Savanna in Bolivia (JW Veldman, Texas A&M)

• “Planting A Trillion Trees Will Not Halt Climate Change” • A group of 46 scientists from around the world, led by Dr Joseph Veldman, urge caution about plans to address climate change through massive tree planting. They published a message of concern in the journal Science, urging that care be used not to plant trees in the wrong areas. [Newswise]
• “US Energy Secretary Quits Amid Trump Inquiry” • Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, who has been drawn into the Trump impeachment inquiry, will resign. President Trump confirmed the former Texas governor’s departure. Mr Perry’s exit had been rumored for months even before he became entangled in a controversy over Ukraine. [BBC]

Saturday, October 19

Croissant (Public Domain Pictures)

• “Croissant-Making Method Leads To Breakthrough In Sustainable Energy Storage” • Inspired by croissant-making techniques, researchers came up with improved energy storage, according to a study. Having pressed and folded a capacitor covered with a plastic film, researchers were able to increase energy storage by a factor of thirty. [iNews]
• “Commonwealth of VA Announces Largest Renewable Energy Contract in Nation” • The Commonwealth of Virginia announced a landmark agreement. It is the largest contract that any state has negotiated to buy renewable energy to power state government. Dominion Energy will supply the state with 420 MW of wind and solar power. [The Roanoke Star]

Wind farm (Enel image)

• “South Africa Plans 22-GW Renewables Surge” • South Africa plans to build more than 22 GW of new wind, solar and storage capacity up to 2030, the government’s 2019 integrated resource plan says. The plan, which maps out the energy mix for the next 10 years, envisages 14.4 GW of new wind, 6 GW of new solar and 2,088 MW of storage. [reNEWS]

Sunday, October 20

• “New Jersey Reaches Renewable Energy Milestone With 3 GW Of Solar Installed In-State” • The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities announced that the state has surpassed 3 GW of solar power and 116,000 solar installations statewide. New Jersey ranks in the top ten in the number of residential and business solar installations among all states. [STL.News]

Tornado (NOAA image, Wikimedia Commons)

• “New NOAA Weather Prediction System Improves Severe Weather Forecasts” • The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration updated its weather prediction system this June with a climate model that will include data from updated oceanic science, allowing for more accurate climate-change-related severe weather forecasting. [Medill Reports: Chicago]
• “Decarbonizing Economy Requires Lot More Electricity” • With broad consensus that we must decarbonize our economy, the question is how. A Brattle Group report found that cutting emissions by 80% of 1990 levels by 2050 means demand for electricity will actually need to grow to roughly twice its current levels. [CommonWealth magazine]

Monday, October 21

Isle of May, Scotland (Mike Powles | FLPA | Rex | Shutterstock)

• “Renewable Energy To Expand By 50% In Next Five Years – Report” • Renewable electricity is growing faster globally than expected and could expand by 50% in the next five years, powered by solar energy. The International Energy Agency found that solar, wind, and hydropower projects are growing at their fastest rate in four years. [The Guardian]
• “Trading Coal For Clean Energy, BHP Takes $1 Billion Hit At Chilean Mines” • Australia’s biggest miner, BHP, is replacing coal-fired power supplying its two copper-mining operations in Chile with renewables, cutting costs 20%. BHP said it would take a $780 million (A$1.14 billion) charge for the cancellation of its coal contracts. [The Sydney Morning Herald]

Porsche Taycan 4S

• “Thanks, Tesla – Porsche Taycan EV Outperforms Fossil Panamera Sibling” • The Porsche Taycan offers much higher performance, compared to its gas-powered Panamera sedan sibling, and is less expensive. This applies for other Porsche models as well. Surely some mistake by Porsche? Perhaps not; it has to compete with Tesla. [CleanTechnica]

Tuesday, October 22

Cryogenic battery plant (Highview Power image)

• “UK Set For First Cryogenic Storage” • Highview Power is to construct the UK’s first commercial cryogenic energy storage facility at the site of a decommissioned thermal power station in England. The 50-MW plant uses liquid air as the storage medium and will be the first of a portfolio of projects that the company is planning in the UK. [reNEWS]
• “PG&E Head Says To Expect Rolling Blackouts For The Next 10 Years” • Pacific Gas & Electric is shutting parts of the California grid down to prevent wildfires during periods of dry, windy weather. The CEO of PG&E told the California Public Utilities Commission that the state will likely see blackouts for another 10 years, NPR reported. [CleanTechnica]

New York skyline (FreePhotos image)

• “New York Advances 316-MW Battery Charge” • The New York Public Service Commission has given approval to LS Power’s 316-MW Ravenswood energy storage project proposed for New York City. A Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity has been awarded to the project for the plant, which will be built at Long Island City. [reNEWS]

Wednesday, October 23 (2,700th post)

Rendering of plant (Kore Power image)

“Storage Player Unveils US Battery Plant Plan” • US company Kore Power is planning to build a lithium-ion battery plant in its home country to support global growth efforts for its energy storage system. The 305,000-square-meter plant is expected to support up to 2000 jobs by providing batteries for the Mark 1TM storage system. [reNEWS]

“Historic Congressional Hearing Targets Big Oil’s Climate Denial” • The first ever congressional hearing on Big Oil’s history of climate denial aims to show that more than 40 years ago, oil industry research proved that burning fossil fuels harms the environment, but that oil companies misled the public about it to keep profits up. [Public News Service]

Fish and healthy coral (Donald Miralle | Getty Images)

• “Tiny Shell Fossils Reveal How Ocean Acidification Can Cause Mass Extinction” • Ocean acidification caused a mass extinction of marine life a little less than 66 million years ago, research into tiny shell fossils has shown. This could have implications for the current climate crisis, which is also making the oceans more acidic. [CNN]

Energy Week #341: 10/24/2019

 

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

Energy Week #340: 10/17/2019

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 #340: 10/17/2019

Thursday, October 10

Elizabeth Warren (Wikipedia)

• “Elizabeth Warren Unveils Environmental Justice Plan” • Sen Elizabeth Warren detailed a new environmental justice plan aimed at bolstering and protecting vulnerable communities on the front lines of the climate crisis. As president, she would use the powers of the office for a “just transition” toward a green energy economy. [CNN]
• “How Climate Change Primed California’s Power Shutdown” • Since the 1980s, the size and ferocity of the fires in California have trended upward: Fifteen of the 20 largest fires in California history have occurred since 2000. And since the 1970s, the amount of area burned in the state has increased by a factor of five. [National Geographic]

Colorado Green wind farm (Allen Best)

• “Wind Will Speed Holy Cross Energy To 70% Renewable Goal” • A year ago, Holy Cross Energy, which serves areas in western Colorado, announced a goal to have 70% of its electricity be carbon-free by 2030. Holy Cross recently announced that its 2030 goal would be met for sure by 2021. Now, it is considering a more ambitious goal. [Mountain Town News]

Friday, October 11

• “Nearly 600 Ex-EPA Officials Want Congress To Investigate Agency Over ‘Inappropriate Threat Of Use’ Of Authority” • Nearly 600 former EPA officials are calling on Congress to investigate the Trump administration’s “inappropriate threat of use of EPA authority” against the state of California over recent environmental policies. [CNN]

Carlsberg’s latest paper bottle prototype (Carlsberg image)

• “Carlsberg Is Working On Beer Bottles Made Of Paper” • Carlsberg, the Danish beer company, is getting closer to its goal of selling beer in paper bottles. Fiber bottles are better for the environment than aluminum or glass because they are sourced in a sustainable way, and because paper has a “very low impact on production processes.” [CNN]
• “Trump’s Push To Save Coal Is Failing. Coal Demand To Plunge To 42-Year Low” • President Donald Trump’s mission to revive America’s coal industry is failing. US power plants are expected to consume less coal next year than at any point since President Jimmy Carter was in office, according to forecasts by the DOE’s Energy Information Administration. [CNN]

Saturday, October 12

Energy buoy (Courtesy of Ocean Energy)

• “Vigor Completes Construction Of Massive Wave Energy Buoy” • Vigor Industrial of Portland, Oregon, has completed construction of an 826-ton energy buoy for Ocean Energy, an Irish company. The buoy is being moved to Oahu, Hawaii. It measures 125 x 59 feet with a draft of 31 feet and has capacity of 1.25 MW. [Renewable Energy Magazine]
• “KPMG: Demand For Renewables ‘Insatiable'” • The renewables industry is in excellent health, but more policy work is needed to realize its full potential and avoid the worst effects of climate change, a KPMG study commissioned by Siemens Gamesa said. Debt market demand for sustainable energy increased from $5 billion in 2012 to $247 billion in 2018. [reNEWS]

PV installation in Iowa (Ideal Energy | prnewswire)

• “The Midwest’s Solar Future Will Be Unlike Anything Seen Before” • Fitch Solutions Marco Research released a solar sector report, Midwest US Set To Experience Strong Growth In Solar Sector, which predicts that the Midwest will contribute heavily to a 100-GW increase in solar power capacity in the US over the next 10 years. [pv magazine USA]

Sunday, October 13

• “StreetScooter Plans To Enter US And Chinese Markets With New Electric Delivery Trucks” • Deutsche Post purchased EV startup StreetScooter in 2014. Then it started to replace all 70,000 vehicles in its fleet with electric trucks, and to sell trucks to other companies. Now it is planning to build factories in the US and China. [CleanTechnica]

Loon (David Joles | Star Tribune)

• “Loons Likely To Disappear From Minnesota Due To Climate Change, New Report Warns” • Minnesota could lose its beloved state bird in coming decades if humans don’t stall climate change and prevent the common loon from shifting north, a report by the National Audubon Society, Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink says. [Minneapolis Star Tribune]
• “The Executive Branch Must Stop Suppressing Science” • Our ability to keep the public safe and move the country forward economically rests, in large part, on government science and research. That foundational work is endangered by manipulation for political ends, and the ramifications are vast and should concern all Americans. [Scientific American]

Monday, October 14

• “Great Britain Witnesses Soaring Battery Storage Exports To Distribution Networks” • Battery storage exports to the UK’s distribution networks have jumped to almost 49 GWh in 2018 from 50 MWh in 2014, according to a report released by the Renewable Energy Association and energy market data hub operator ElectraLink. [Renewables Now]
• “Loon, Hermit Thrush Among Vermont Birds Threatened By Climate Change” • Some of Vermont’s most iconic native birds, including the common loon, white-throated sparrow and the hermit thrush – the state bird – are under threat from climate change, according to a new report from the National Audubon Society. [vtdigger.org]

• “For The First Time Renewables Overtake Fossil Fuels In UK Power Generation” • In the UK, renewable sources generated more electricity than fossil fuel power plants over the past three months. This year’s third quarter was the first since 1882 in which renewables outpaced fossil fuels, climate website Carbon Brief said. [The London Economic]

Tuesday, October 15

• “‘I’m Standing Here In The Middle Of Climate Change’: How USDA Is Failing Farmers” • American farmers are being slammed by climate change, but the Agriculture Department is doing practically nothing to help them adapt to it. Experts are predict that this is the new norm: increasingly extreme weather across much of the US. [Politico]

Polarstern on thin ice

• “An Arctic Expedition On Thin Ice” • The icebreaker Polarstern and its crew reached 85 degrees north on their Arctic voyage only to make a worrying discovery that threatens the success of the expedition. The problem is that they need to find ice that will support their activities, including a runway for aircraft, and the ice they are finding is not thick enough. [BBC]
• “Did The US Navy Solve Clean Energy With A Compact Fusion Reactor?” • In a patent application, Salvatore Pais, of the US Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, claims to have invented a compact fusion reactor. The patent claims that a device 1 to 6.5 feet in size could generate between a gigawatt and a terawatt of electricity. [CleanTechnica]

Wednesday, October 16

Tongass National Forest

• “Trump Administration Proposes New Logging In Nation’s Largest National Forest” • The Trump administration is proposing opening more than 180,000 acres of the country’s largest national forest for logging. The Agriculture Department proposal would allow road construction to log the huge Tongass National Forest. [CNN]
• “Getting Real Serious About Renewable Hydrogen In Real America” • Renewable energy critics used to complain that wind and solar were unreliable because they were intermittent. Now that very characteristic has created an opportunity for renewable hydrogen production, using excess renewable energy to produce hydrogen, which can be stored. [CleanTechnica]

Swiss glacier (Fabrice Coffrini | AFP | Getty Images)

• “Record Melting Sees Swiss Glaciers Shrink 10% In Five Years” • Glaciers in Switzerland have shrunk 10% in the past five years, a rate that has never been seen before in over a century of observations, according to new research. The summer 2019 heatwave saw glacier melt rates break records, leading to huge losses in ice volume. [CNN]

Energy Week #340: 10/17/2019

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

Energy Week #339: 10/10/2019

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 #339: 10/10/2019

Thursday, October 3

Chevy Bolt in utility FPL wrap (Zach Shahan | CleanTechnica)

• “Big Oil Faces A Formidable Foe In Fight Against EVs” • Electric utilities are keen on EVs, seeing them as a future revenue source. They are developing programs to encourage the buildout of the charging infrastructure needed for this. But millions of dollars are being put into campaigns around the country to try to put a stop EV infrastructure projects. [CleanTechnica]
• “EU Will Provide €530 Million In Funding Towards Irish-French Power Line” • The EU will contribute €530 million to the Celtic Interconnector project, to connect the Irish electric grid to France. The project will cost €1 billion. It will link Ireland’s electricity network to France via an underwater connection. It is to be complete by 2026. [thejournal.ie]

Anheuser-Busch Class 8 truck by BYD

• “Anheuser-Busch And BYD Launch North America’s Largest Electric Class 8 Fleet” • Anheuser-Busch is dipping its toes into electrifying its fleets with the purchase of 21 fully electric Class 8 trucks from BYD. The BYD 8TT Class 8 trucks will be put to use at four of Anheuser-Busch’s Southern California distribution facilities. [CleanTechnica]

Friday, October 4

• “Tesla 3rd Quarter Sales Grew 1664% In 6 Years, 271% In 2 Years” • Many of us who believed that Elon Musk’s aggressive forecasts could come to pass weren’t super confident they would actually would be. We were perhaps more hopeful than convinced. Nevertheless, Tesla is currently on track to nail Elon Musk’s 2014 forecast for 2020 sales. [CleanTechnica]

RV Polarstern frozen in the ice (Stefan Hendricks | AWI)

• “Students, Teachers: Drift Along With An Epic Arctic Climate Expedition” • K-12 students around the world can now be a part of one of the largest Arctic climate research expeditions ever conducted. In September, the RV Polarstern icebreaker set out to freeze itself in Arctic sea ice. For the next year it will drift across the Arctic ocean. [CU Boulder Today]
• “PacifiCorp To Add 7 GW Clean Power By 2025” • PacifiCorp, a untility serving the Northwest, has published a 20-year blueprint setting out a plan to add around 7 GW of new renewables and storage capacity by 2025. The plan includes more than 3.5 GW of new wind capacity, 3 GW of solar, and 600 MW of storage by the middle of the next decade. [reNEWS]

Saturday, October 5

Hydrogen-powered airplane (Credit: ZeroAvia)

• “$3.3 Million Grant For Fuel Cell/Electric Aviation Startup ZeroAvia” • The aviation startup ZeroAvia has received a £2.7 million ($3.3 million) grant from the government of the UK. The funds will be used to support the continued development of fuel cell/electric propulsion technology to reduce aviation carbon dioxide emissions. [CleanTechnica]
• “Dulles Airport Pilot Is One Of The Region’s Largest Solar Project” • Dominion Energy has partnered with Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority for a solar energy pilot project at Washington Dulles Airport. The 100-MW solar PV project is the Airports Authority’s first large scale renewable energy initiative of this kind. [Smart Energy]

Flooding has become an issue (Rico Löb | Adobe Stock)

• “PA To Join Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative” • Pennsylvania is taking a major step forward in its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Gov Tom Wolf has set the wheels in motion for the Keystone State to join nine other northeastern states in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Announcing the plan, he spoke of climate change. [Public News Service]

Sunday, October 6

• “‘Sunny Day Flooding’ And 90-Degree Days During South’s Endless Summer” • Atlanta has broken a record for 90-degree days this year; there have been 91 of them, wildly surpassing the average of 37 per year. Charleston has had 58 coastal flood events so far in 2019. These are effects of global warming, and this September was another record month. [CNN]

Protest in Iowa (Credit: Greta Thunberg via Twitter)

• “Greta Thunberg Leads Iowa Students In Pop-Up Climate Strike” • In Iowa City, home to the University of Iowa, 14-year-old high school student Massimo Biggers was planning the protest he has done every Friday since last spring, when he got a message from Greta Thunberg saying she would join him. Over 3,000 people showed up for that. [CleanTechnica]
• “Water Resources Minister ‘Totally’ Accepts Drought Linked To Climate Change” • David Littleproud, Australia’s drought and water resources minister, said he “totally” accepts that worsening droughts are linked to climate change. He signaled more support for regional communities was coming as Australia’s big dry “escalates.” [The Guardian]

Monday, October 7

Thor Trucks cab (Kyle Field | CleanTechnica)

• “California’s Clean Truck Rule: First Of Its Kind And Long Overdue” • California officials are gearing up to launch a momentous new rule to tackle one of the largest sources of pollution in the state: medium- and heavy-duty commercial trucks. After years of deliberation and public input, the rule is the first of its kind and long overdue. [CleanTechnica]
• “Tesla Model 3 Has 24% of Small And Midsize Luxury Car Sales in USA” • The Tesla Model 3 has taken the US luxury car market by storm, with an estimated market share of 24% for the first three quarters of this year. The Model 3 was by far the best selling luxury car in the country in Q4 of last year, but sales have increased since then. [CleanTechnica]

Colorado farmland (Jutta Strohmaier)

• “In The Mountains, Climate Change Is Disrupting Everything, From How Water Flows To When Plants Flower” • Mountain snowpack is shrinking and melting earlier in the spring. Warmer and longer summers increase the threat of wildfires, and the fire season has lengthened by at least a month since 1979. The list of problems just goes on. [InsideClimate News]

Tuesday, October 8

Wind farm for Western Australia

• “Australia Could Aim For 700% Renewables, ARENA Boss” • Australia’s energy minister thinks having 20% of electricity come from solar and wind is too much. Labor wants to get to 50% by 2030. But Australia’s chief scientist, Alan Finkel is suggesting a figure of 700%, a goal supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. [RenewEconomy]
• “Are Mortgage-Backed Securities Storm Proof?” • According to some investors, hurricanes and flooding pose a far larger threat than is being priced into mortgage securities. A key culprit may be outdated flood maps, meaning far fewer people are required to have flood insurance than are at risk, the investors and researchers say. [DSNews.com]

• “Coal Finished As Renewable Costs Crash” • Bloomberg just published another stark reminder of the shifting landscape for energy generation. Fossil fuels have a limited time as viable sources of energy, because of economics. Solar+Batteries are the “killer app,” extremely scalable once they reach an acceptable cost, and we are reaching it. [MacroBusiness]

Wednesday, October 9

Wildfire in France (Bonsai-ka, Wikimedia Commons)

• “Hundreds Of Temperature Records Broken Over Summer” • Almost 400 all-time high temperatures were set in the northern hemisphere over the summer, analysis indicates. According to Dr Robert Rohde, Lead Scientist at Berkeley Earth, the increasing number of record high temperatures is a part of the long-term trend of global warming. [BBC]
• “Buildings Account For 11% Of Global Emissions. Here Are Two Ways To Slash That Number” • The steel and concrete used in new buildings come with a high price, in terms of CO₂ emissions. There are ways to reduce those emissions, however. One is to use wood instead of steel, and the other is to use new methods for making cement. [CleanTechnica]

Paradise, California, after last year’s wildfire (Getty Images)

• “Northern California Braced For Mega Power Cut” • Pacific Gas and Electric is cutting electricity to around 800,000 customers in Northern California, in an attempt to prevent wildfires. Large swathes of the San Francisco Bay Area outside the city are expected to be affected. PG&E warned the shut down could last several days. [BBC]

Energy Week #339: 10/10/2019

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