Opinion:
¶ “The Actual Problem with Airplane Contrails” • Conspiracy theories around airplane contrails have been around for years, saying nefarious hidden forces are spraying slow-killing poison on us via “chemtrails.” Unfortunately, aviation contrails add to climate change, significantly. It’s just not the conspiracy theory some would like to believe. [CleanTechnica]
Contrail (Fr Daniel Ciucci, Unsplash)
Science and Technology:
¶ “3D Nanotech Blankets Offer New Path To Clean Drinking Water” • Researchers developed a material that can use sunlight to clear water of dangerous pollutants. Created by combining soft chemistry gels and electrospinning the team constructed thin fiber-like strips of titanium dioxide (TiO₂), which is often used for self-cleaning technologies. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “BESS + Solar Farm + Blueberries = Energy Resilience In New Zealand” • Meridian Energy announced that it is about to begin construction of the 130-MW Ruakākā Solar Farm, to the south of Whangārei. This will be the company’s first solar farm in New Zealand. Whangarei is the northernmost city in the country, situated on the North Island. [CleanTechnica]
Ruakākā (Courtesy of Meridian Energy)
¶ “Trump Says Countries That Buy Venezuelan Oil Will Face 25% Tariff” • President Donald Trump said he would be placing a 25% tariff on all imports from any country that buys oil or gas from Venezuela as well as imposing new tariffs on the South American country itself. In a Truth Social post, he said said Venezuela has been “very hostile” to the US. [ABC News]
¶ “Kent Wins Contract To Aid UK Energy Transition” • Kent, an engineering and project services company, has won a framework contract to support the UK government’s energy transition. Kent was awarded a place on the UK’s Department for Energy Security & Net Zero ENZPS framework to provide strategic expertise and management advice. [reNews]
Offshore infrastructure (Kent image)
¶ “Copperbelt To Invest $500 Million In Solar Power And Transmission Line Upgrades” • Zambia-based Copperbelt Energy Corporation plans to invest $500 million up to 2026 to boost solar power generation and increase the capacity of its power transmission line link to the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to Reuters. [Yahoo Finance]
¶ “Offshore Substation Installed For Changhua 2b&4” • The offshore substation for Ørsted’s 920-MW Greater Changhua 2b and 4 wind farms in Taiwan has been installed. The company hailed the installation as a “landmark milestone” for the construction of the offshore wind project. Ørsted also did the first export cable selection for the project. [reNews]
Substation (Ørsted via LinkedIn)
¶ “Research Shows Germany’s Investments In Renewables Are ‘Paying Back’” • In a recently published study, researchers at the Brandenburg University of Technology in Germany reported that the “majority of subsidies” required to reach the costs associated with the Renewable Energy Sources Act have already been covered. [pv magazine International]
¶ “Nexans Secures €1 Billion Framework Deal With RTE” • Cable manufacturer Nexans secured a framework agreement with RTE, the French transmission system operator, to help connect three offshore wind farms to the grid. The agreement covers supply, installation, and commissioning of 450 km of HVDC subsea cables and 280 km of HVDC onshore cables. [reNews]
Nexans ship (Nexans image)
¶ “Climate-Related Heatwaves Pushed Up The Energy Sector’s Emissions In 2024, Despite Record Wind And Solar” • Climate change-created heat waves were behind a rise in energy-related carbon emissions last year, according to an International Energy Agency report. The need for cooling was one of the key drivers of final energy demand in 2024. [RenewEconomy]
US:
¶ “Texas Senate Votes To Shred Renewable Energy Rules” • The Texas senate, obeying the demands of the fossil fuel industries, passed SB 388, which sets a target for 50% of new power plant capacity to be “sourced from dispatchable generation other than battery energy storage.” Companies that invest their money any other way will have to buy credits. [CleanTechnica]
Wind turbines (Octopus Energy image)
¶ “Deep Geothermal Energy Production Progress in Utah” • The University of Utah, with support of the US DOE, is conducting the FORGE (Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy) experiment in Utah. For the project, wells are drilled deep into the Earth so geothermal energy can be extracted. This can be done nearly anywhere. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Trump Dumps On Heat Pumps, But They’re Coming” • Pres Trump withdrew heat pumps from federal support through the Defense Production Act. It is intended to stimulate key domestic manufacturing sectors vital to the national interest. So, will the DPA revocation stop the heat pump revolution? Probably not (note the emphasis). [CleanTechnica]
Please click on the image to enlarge it. (US DOE image)
¶ “Washington DC’s Iconic Cherry Blossoms Are Days Away From Peak Bloom” • Extreme warm or cool temperatures have caused the DC blooms to occur as early as March 15 and as late as April 18, the NPS said. In 2024, peak bloom occurred on March 17, the second-earliest peak bloom on record, due to climate change and warmer temperatures. [ABC News]
¶ “Environmental Groups Urge Governor Polis To Veto Bill That Would Define Nuclear Energy As ‘Clean’” • Environmental groups are asking Colorado Governor Jared Polis to veto a bill approved by the state legislature to classify nuclear power as a clean energy source. It is the third attempt in three years by lawmakers to pass such a bill. [AspenTimes.com]
Have an honestly ideal day.
geoharvey 