Opinion:
¶ “Electrification And Energy Reduction Go Hand-In-Hand To Reduce Household Impacts” • The status quo of getting energy from natural gas, water service, and even sewer service is baked into many if not most homes, and it’s hard for the owner (and harder for a renter) to get out of that rut. Here, I explore some of the solutions I’ve come across. [CleanTechnica]
Aptera EV (Aptera image)
¶ “Congress Must Not Ignore Residential Solar Tax Credit Inequities” • In low-income households, the portion of income spent on energy costs is three times what it is in high-income households. Rooftop solar is one of many solutions available to reduce this burden. The reconciliation bill before Congress could be used to help on the issue. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “World’s Shift To Renewable Energy Could Pay The Price For Fuel Crisis” • Prices of fossil fuels are rising sharply, and most of the world is responding by trying to get those prices back down again. Voters might end up bitterly opposed to ever seeing more expensive energy again. That poses a problem for the adoption of renewable energy. [Business Standard]
Coal-burning power plant (Sam LaRussa, Unsplash)
¶ “Look Before You Leap On Nuclear” • Wyoming, the Cowboy State, is weighing plans to host a “demonstration” nuclear power plant worth billions of dollars – TerraPower’s Natrium reactor. The long history of similar nuclear reactors, dating back to 1951, indicates that Wyoming is likely to be left with a nuclear lemon on its hands. [Casper Star-Tribune]
Science and Technology:
¶ “Silicon Anodes Muscle In On Battery Technology” • Silicon, the plentiful cheap material widely used in industry, is becoming a serious candidate for a big role in the growing battery business. It’s especially attractive because it’s able to hold 10 times as much energy in an important part of a battery, the anode, than widely used graphite. [CleanTechnica]
Researcher using an electron microscope (Andrea Starr, PNNL)
¶ “Electric Vehicles Are Greener And Safer, But Still Much Room For Improvement On Both” • About a third of the weight of an EV is its battery pack, so there is a great need for better methods of storing electrical energy. As EV weight is reduced through battery innovations, the “urgent ticking clock” of clean energy and climate change can be muted. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “China To Help Boost Pakistan’s Renewable Energy Sector” • JinkoSolar, along with its local partner Hadron Solar, will provide 775 pieces of Tiger Pro modules with over 500 W capacity for a solar array on the rooftop of a pharmaceutical factory of the Regency Group in Pakistan. It will take only three years to recover costs. [Daily Times]
Rooftop solar array (Nuno Marques, Unsplash)
¶ “Bangladesh Can Significantly Expand Renewable Energy” • COP26 Regional Ambassador Ken O’Flaherty said it is possible for countries like Bangladesh to expand their renewable energy sectors significantly as it has been the cheapest option for new energy in Asia. Countries that want to grow faster will need to harness renewable energy. [Dhaka Tribune]
¶ “Eight Years, Twenty Policies: How Australia’s Leaders Have Fumbled And Dithered On Climate” • In eight years of Coalition rule, over twenty different climate and energy policies have been announced with fanfare. Then they fizzed into the background or were trashed altogether. Here’s a short rundown of what the last eight years looked like. [The Guardian]
Wind turbines (Dan Meyers, Unsplash)
US:
¶ “Hanover Unveils New Hampshire’s Largest Municipal Solar Array” • New solar arrays in Hanover are expected to generate enough electricity to meet nearly 100% of the town’s municipal electricity needs. The two arrays are adjacent, and Enfield-based ReVision Energy said the combined array is the largest municipal project at one site in New Hampshire. [WMUR]
¶ “College Formally Announces Plan To Divest From Fossil Fuels” • The Dartmouth College endowment will no longer be directly invested in fossil fuels, and the Dartmouth Investment Office intends to allow its remaining public holdings in the sector to expire, an announcement said. The investments will transition to renewables. [The Dartmouth] (Thanks to Tad Montgomery)
Tuck School of Business (No author given, CC-BY-SA 3.0)
¶ “Lafayette-Area Leaders Head Protest Against Duke Energy” • A rally demanded Duke Energy, Indiana’s largest electric company utility, transition from fossil fuels to 100% affordable, renewable energy. The event was sponsored by the Hoosier chapter of the Sierra Club, one of the country’s largest and oldest grassroots environmental organizations. [Purdue Exponent]
¶ “LG&E, KU Make Plans For Solar Power From Paducah” • Two power providers in Kentucky have filed with the state’s Public Service Commission, to provide renewable energy to five major organizations in their respective service territories. Louisville Gas & Electric and Kentucky Utilities have contracts for solar energy from a 125-MW facility. [WKDZ]
Have an excellently developing day.
geoharvey 