Opinion:
¶ 6 Reasons Al Gore Believes ‘We Will Prevail’ in Climate Fight • Al Gore admitted to the TED2016 audience in Vancouver on Wednesday, “every night on the news is like a nature hike through the Book of Revelation.” But he maintained, “I am extremely optimistic. We are going to win this. We will prevail.” [EcoWatch]
Al Gore struck a note of optimism during his TED2016 talk in Vancouver. “Change can happen faster than we think,” he argued.
Science and Technology:
¶ Smart microgrids provide higher reliability and more efficient operation of distributed generation assets than conventional systems. Siemens is participating in a community energy resiliency grant program in New York State and optimizing electrical generation at a Native American reservation in California. [Justmeans]
¶ Researchers at Germany’s Karlsruhe Institute of Technology have found an energy storage solution that could use of waste from processing apples. They discovered that leftover apple waste has “excellent” electrochemical properties for use in sodium-ion batteries, when reduced to a carbon material. [CleanTechnica]
¶ After record heat in 2015, January 2016 is continuing the trend. It was the hottest January on record and Arctic sea ice extent was at a record low level for the third time this year. El Niño has certainly played a role in this latest record, but scientists have concluded that this effect was fairly minor overall. [The Weather Network]
NASA’s plot of global temperature anomalies for January 2016. Credit: NASA GISS
World:
¶ Last year, 6 million tons of wood pellets harvested from forests in the southern US were shipped across the Atlantic. Half of those pellets were for Britain’s Drax power station, which is converting from coal to biomass to reduce carbon emissions and claim valuable Renewable Obligation certificates. [Science 2.0]
¶ A 3-MWp sun2live solar installation including more than 12,000 PV panels was developed and constructed by the UK-based clean energy provider PV Energy Limited. The plant was recently completed at the VC Bird International Airport of Antigua and represents a pioneer project for the whole Caribbean. [PennEnergy]
¶ Despite earlier moves towards the large-scale use of wood-fired (biomass) power plants, it looks as though lawmakers in the Netherlands are beginning to have doubts about the approach. Dutch parliamentarians have recently moved to suspend plans for wood energy subsidies over environmental concerns. [CleanTechnica]
Photo by Marcel Oosterwijk via Flickr (some rights reserved)
¶ Tasmania’s Minister for Resources said that due to recent unprecedented events, including the failure of the world’s second longest undersea electricity cable and low rainfall, the government is now considering the use of biomass residues from value-added forest operations to generate energy. [Bioenergy Insight Magazine]
¶ Sweden’s Unit 1 at the Oskarhamn nuclear power plant will be closed in June 2017, the plant’s operator OKG AB said. The closure date is on the early side of the parameters of last year’s announcement. In October 2015, OKG said the plant would close between 2017 and 2019 due a negative market environment. [Nuclear Street]
¶ A study projects green building around the globe to double by 2018. According to the results of the study, the percentage of companies expected to have more than 60% of their building projects certified as “green” is anticipated to more than double by 2018, growing from 18% to approximately 37%. [CleanTechnica]
Dallas skyline via Shutterstock
US:
¶ Kansas is one of the states suing the EPA to stop the Clean Power Plan. Some lawmakers are even moving to freeze work on compliance planning. Meanwhile, utility companies and electric power grid operators serving the state continue to expand wind power, regardless of what happens to the rules. [Kansas City Star]
¶ A media report says Tesla Energy batteries will be used for a SolarCity solar farm and energy storage system for Kauai Island Utility Cooperative in Hawaiʻi. The Tesla Energy batteries will supply a 52 MWh utility-scale energy storage system for evening peak demand, typically between 5:00 pm and 10:00 pm. [CleanTechnica]
Artist’s impression of Tesla’s utility-scale storage systems. Image via Tesla Motors.
¶ The Massachusetts Solar Carve-Out II Program may have been reached full capacity for projects larger than 25 kW DC. Applications have been received for over 854 MW DC, exceeding the limit of 660.6 MW. New commercial solar projects in the state are already suffering under a net metering cap. [Digital Journal]
¶ Wind power in the Texas grid set a new record on Thursday evening when it generated 14,023 MW. The previous record was 13,883 MW. Wind turbines accounted for more than 45% of the grid’s overall load at certain points late on Thursday as Texas increasingly relies more on renewable power. [mySanAntonio.com]
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