Science and Technology:
¶ Teams of scientists are testing ways to get rid of nuclear waste. One approach is an American design being tested in the UK, to combine fusion with fission. Another is a Belgian test of Carlos Rubbia’s Energy Amplifier, an Accelerator-Driven System. [IEEE Spectrum]
¶ At the Ecobuild event in London, on March 5-7, Mitsubishi Electric will highlight projects using existing renewable technologies to improve energy performance and decrease carbon emissions, while often decreasing energy bills as well. [IBTimes.co.uk]
World:
¶ The International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) conference is putting emphasis on low-carbon economy, giving investors the understanding that there is great potential for growth in low-carbon technology. [UPI.com]
¶ A panel of experts at Irena are calling for distributed power from renewable resources because current models of energy generation and distribution are more expensive and less sustainable. [gulfnews.com]
¶ The portion of our energy that is renewable has to double by 2030, according to an Irena announcement. We need to accelerate the move to renewables to achieve that. [News24]
¶ The headquarters for Irena will be in Abu Dhabi, the first such agency to have its headquarters in the Middle East. [gulfnews.com]
¶ Promoters of an 80-acre energy park in Cornwall are offering residents within 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) of the park a 20% discount on electricity. The park will consist of 75 acres of solar PVs and 14 wind turbines. [This is Cornwall]
US:
¶ Duke Energy added 800 MW of windpower in 2012. [Power Engineering Magazine]
¶ The new US approach to storage of nuclear waste will begin with getting consent from the community hosting the waste. Waste will go to interim storage first, and then to long-term storage. [World Nuclear News]
¶ A panel of three judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals have heard arguments on whether the Vermont Senate can prevent Vermont Yankee’s continued operation by preventing issuance of a certificate of public good. [vtdigger.org]
… Nine states, New York, Connecticut, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire and Utah filed a court document supporting Vermont. [The Saratogian]
¶ The State of New York has made the area of the Hudson River on which Indian Point sits into a critical wildlife area. Entergy is claiming the designation was illegally applied and will interfere with operation of the power plant. [The Journal News | LoHud.com]
¶ What appears to be one of the new reactors for Vogtle got stuck in port when a rail car broke down on December 15. The car distinctive and could hardly be mistaken. It sits today by the side of a road, without any protection against sabotage, which would be a violation of NRC regulations. [The Aiken Leader]
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