geoharvey

World:

¶   The California Solar Initiative, intended to encourage solar electric generation, has been so successful that a record-breaking 391 MW of solar panels was installed in California in 2012, 26% more than 2011. [Green Building Elements]

¶   Wind power capacity must grow exponentially if the UK is to hit its 2020 renewables target, according to National Grid models. Gary Dolphin, market outlook manager at National Grid, maintained that meeting all the UK’s green targets was “challenging but achievable”. [Utility Week]

¶   According to a new report from Navigant Research, installed capacity of storage systems for solar and wind power integration will total 21.8 GW from 2013 to 2023. During that time, more than 1,300 GW of wind and solar power generation capacity are expected to come online. [Windpower Engineering]

¶   The U.K. government will require electricity suppliers to buy power from independent renewable generators, an effort to help them compete in an electricity market dominated by three large utilities. [Bloomberg]

¶   WWF Scotland director Lang Banks has said that the number of wind farms in the UK could increase following the successful testing of new safety equipment designed to eliminate concerns over installing turbines near airports. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   Diverting cash used to subsidise fossil fuel production and consumption could raise up to $600 billion a year to fund cuts in greenhouse gas emissions and help poor countries adapt to the effect of a warmer planet, delegates at U.N. talks were told in the Philippines this week. [Reuters AlertNet]

¶   The total electricity production from renewable sources hit record levels in Portugal in June, reaching 72%, according to NGO Quercus, based on figures from the national grid company REN. This is almost double the 38% seen just 12 months earlier. [The Portugal News]

¶   TEPCO says that 1,973 workers at its disaster-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant have estimated thyroid radiation doses exceeding 100 millisieverts and are therefore at higher risk of suffering from thyroid cancer. [The Japan Times]

¶   In a new poll of 1200 Japanese aged 15 to 79, approximately 23%  said that a nuclear disaster like the one in Fukushima “will occur” if ever the idled reactors are restarted, and nearly 57% are of the opinion that a disaster will “probably occur.” [The Japan Daily Press]

US:

¶   The US DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory has received the Biomass Thermal Energy Council’s recognition for the wood chip heating systems that provide the lab’s heat. [Watch List News]

¶   Right-wing efforts to overturn state-level renewable-energy mandates have been failing across the nation. Here’s one big reason why: Many conservatives actually like the mandates. [Grist]

¶   According to the annual U.S. energy charts released by Lawrence Livermore, wind production, in quadrillion BTU (quads), went from 1.17  in 2011 to 1.36 in 2012. Solar power jumped from 0.158 in 2011 to roughly 0.235 in 2012. [Buildings] (Increases of 16% and 49%, respectively)

¶   Two energy companies are pulling out of northeastern Pennsylvania, where a three-year moratorium on gas drilling has infuriated landowners who say it is now cost them a windfall of more than $187 million. [Akron Beacon Journal]

¶   Southern California Edison (SCE) announced the inevitable: it is filing a lawsuit against Mitsubishi, the Japanese company that made the faulty replacement steam generators which led to the downfall of SCE’s San Onofre nuclear plant. [OC Weekly]

¶   The Pilgrim nuclear power plant has been forced to reduce its power output after this week’s heat wave made Cape Cod Bay water too warm to use for cooling the reactor. [The Patriot Ledger]

World:

¶   The Centre for Alternative Technology, released an update of its Zero Carbon Britain report saying solar and wind energy sources can be backed up by using carbon-neutral synthetic gas for a rapid shift to a carbon-neutral Britain. [theenergycollective.com]

¶   Saudi Arabia aims to become the world’s foremost market for renewable energy with an aggressive investment budget of $109 billion. By 2032, the country strives to generate as much as a third of the Kingdom’s energy demands using renewable energy (54 GW). [Arab News]

¶   The World Bank has decided that it will halt the financing of coal-fired power plants and will allow it only under rare circumstances where there are no other feasible alternatives to coal. [The Green Optimistic]

¶   Wind integration studies suggest that European grid operators could cope with more renewable power without adding big back-up plants, so governments need not intervene in power markets. This could be done by having grids increase cooperation across regions. [Business Recorder]

¶   The UK’s government has introduced tax-payer funded benefit packages for people living in the vicinity of future nuclear reactors. Some £128m will be awarded to the area around Hinkley Point. The plans have encountered criticism. [E&T magazine]

¶   The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2013 was published last Thursday and revealed a measly growth of over 1.2 GW during 2012 globally, compared to 32 GW of solar growth in the same time. The decline results from Fukushima and renewable power. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Another day brings another mishap at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Tokyo Electric Power Company said on Thursday that steam has been spotted coming out near the pool storing machinery on the fifth floor of the reactor 3 building. [The Japan Daily Press]

US:

¶   The Vermont Energy Partnership recently published its latest study, “The Three-Legged Race: Vermont’s Pursuit of 90% Renewables by 2050,” an overview of progress towards reaching the Vermont Department of Public Service goal of using 90% renewable energy by 2050. [Mountaintimes]

¶   US power producers must reduce their dependence on water or they may be forced to lower output as drought and other extreme weather events curtail their access to water supplies, researchers said today. Coal and nuclear plants are affected most. [FuelFix]

¶   Michigan’s Palisades nuclear plant has had two leaks since shutting down in May to repair a leaking water tank.  One was in a pipe in the service water system. The other had a small amount of water dripping from the control room ceiling onto a panel. [The San Luis Obispo Tribune]

¶   Arizona utilities can’t use electricity generated by burning trash to meet their renewable energy requirements, a judge ruled Wednesday. A chapter of the Sierra Club had filed a suit to stop a trash-burning plant near Phoenix from being counted as renewable. [Arizona Daily Star]

¶   America’s fleet of aging nuclear power plants is rapidly becoming uneconomical to operate, according to a new report, “Renaissance in Reverse,” by Mark Cooper of the Vermont Law School. [Plain Dealer]

¶   Construction on the first 65 miles of California’s high-speed rail project is about to begin, and according to a report from the California’s High Speed Rail Authority, the project will produce zero net greenhouse gas emissions. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Xcel has lifted the secrecy about cost overruns at its Monticello nuclear power plant, revealing that recently completed upgrades, originally budgeted at $320 million, were actually costing $640 million. [MENAFN.COM]

Science and Technology:

¶   Replacing old power plants with renewable energy could help ease both the carbon and water footprint, according to a study released Tuesday morning by the Union of Concerned Scientists. [FuelFix]

World:

¶   After a lackluster first quarter, second quarter investment in global clean energy was up, reaching $53.1 billion, according to figures gathered by Bloomberg New Energy Finance. [RenewEconomy]

¶   German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she will fight in Brussels for a disputed clause within Germany’s renewable energy law that exempts energy-intensive industries from charges which other consumers must pay. [Reuters]

¶   Solar power output goes up during the day, and down to zero at night. Remarkably, Germany’s electricity imports and exports now follow an identical cycle. [theenergycollective.com]

¶   277 new offshore wind turbines, totalling 1,045 MW, were fully grid connected in Europe during the first six months of 2013. This is double compared to the same period in 2012 when 523.2 MW were installed. [Balkans.com Business News]

¶   New Brunswick’s energy minister says it comes as no surprise that there was a $638-million cost overrun, more than doubling the bill, during its refurbishment of the Point Lepreau nuclear plant. [Victoria Times Colonist]

US:

¶   Dakota Power says they are hoping to build as many as 500 wind turbines in southern Lincoln County in the coming years and double South Dakota’s wind output. [KDLT News]

¶   There has been a sharp increase in small earthquakes in some areas of the US. Clearly, s scientists believe this is associated with fracking. [theenergycollective]

¶   Opponents of nuclear power are to blame for much of the cost overruns at Plant Vogtle, Gov. Nathan Deal said Tuesday even as the utility overseeing its construction cites other reasons. [Florida Times-Union]

Disturbing:

¶   A Korean website assembled this image collection of produce from towns and villages surrounding the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. And they are NOT pretty pictures. [msnNOW]

World:

¶   China will multiply its solar capacity fivefold to more than 35 GW installed by 2015. Added demand will help alleviate industry oversupply that contributed to a 20% plunge in the average price of solar panels last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. [eco-business.com]

¶   German power utilities E.ON and EnBW have both announced plans to mothball fossil-fuel power plants in Europe that can no longer compete with renewables in electricity markets. [Recharge]

¶   Most people in the UK back the idea of a switch to a renewables-based energy system, according to research by academics from the Universities of Cardiff and Nottingham. Of people polled, 85% support solar and 75% support wind. [reNews]

¶   Enel Green Power has connected its first PV plants in Romania to the grid. The two plants have a combined installed capacity of around 19 MW. The operating plants will be able to generate up to an approximate 29 million kWh per year. [Your Renewable News]

¶   Just before Greenpeace activists broke into the Tricastin nuclear plant in France, the International Atomic Energy Agency published a report saying significant progress had been made strengthening nuclear safety, despite the “challenge” posed by ageing reactors. [Carbonated.tv]

¶   On the 700th day of their protest against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project, villagers of Idinthakarai in Tamil Nadu”dropped dead” on the roads in a symbolic gesture, an anti-plant activist said Monday. [Business Standard]

US:

¶   The oil industry’s top lobby group in Washington has launched an aggressive new ad campaign urging the repeal of the Renewable Fuel Standard, a 2007 law mandating the blending of gasoline with increasing volumes of ethanol. [Economic Times]

¶   Dominion Virginia Power’s Altavista power station is now running on renewable biomass as part of a plan to convert three of its coal-fired power plants in the state to burn mostly waste wood left from regional timbering operations as fuel. [CBS Local]

¶   Providing capital and technology to farm the wind in America’s heartland with global renewable energy company Enel Green Power, GE is investing common equity and supplying turbines for the 250-MW Buffalo Dunes Wind Project in Kansas. [Windpower Engineering]

¶   An Xcel Energy subsidiary expects to save $590 million in fuel costs over the next 20 years as a result of long-term power purchase agreements with three wind power farms in New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. [Triple Pundit]

¶   Temperatures reached 116 degrees in some urban parts of California early this month, but there were no rolling blackouts, no brownouts, no problems. That happened with the San Onofre Nuclear Power Station producing not even one watt of electricity. [San Gabriel Valley Tribune]

¶   Panels of alarms designed to warn personnel of operational failures at the Pilgrim nuclear plant in Massachusetts mysteriously shut down at 12:30 AM Monday and just as mysteriously restarted at 2:05 AM. [Capecodonline]

Science and Technology:

¶   A new study led by researchers at Columbia University and published Friday in the journal Science suggests a strong quake that strikes halfway around the globe can set off small to mid-size quakes near injection wells in the U.S. heartland. [Dalles Chronicle]

¶   A new Silicon Valley developer of thin film solar PV modules has claimed an engineering breakthrough that could cut the manufacturing costs of PV modules by one third, to less than 40¢ per watt. [CleanTechnica]

Economics and Finance:

¶   Research done a London-based non-governmental organisation concludes that when stricter regulations on carbon come into play, the market value of fossil fuel companies could drop dramatically, as extraction becomes uneconomic. [Investment Europe]

World:

¶   After over two years of delays, the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change has published tariff levels for residential installations. The Solar Trade Association called the announcement a “breakthrough”. [solarserver.com]

¶   Wind energy is now cost competitive with new-build coal capacity in India, and solar is likely to follow suit sometime between 2016-18, despite the fact that subsidies for wind are up to 15% lower than those for new coal capacity. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Germany could face a probe into whether it has breached EU competition rules by letting consumers partly foot the bill as it switches to renewable energy, Der Spiegel reported Sunday. [GlobalPost]

¶   Nine years after residents of the small German village of Jühnde got together to build a bioenergy plant fueled with plants and manure,  the plant supplies all of their heat and allows them to sell surplus electricity to the national grid. [Wall Street Journal]

¶   Scientists have discovered cesium 137 in sediment under a Swiss lake used for drinking water and situated near a nuclear plant. Lake Biel is about 20 kilometres (12 miles) downstream from the plant, which may have discharged waste in 2000. [Business Standard]

¶   Dozens of Greenpeace activists entered an EDF nuclear power plant in Tricastin, southern France early on Monday morning, demanding the government shut it down, the environmental campaign group said. [FRANCE 24]

US:

¶   Heliae’s first commercial-scale algae production facility has raised $28.4 million of investment capital to support and expand the operations of its first commercial production facility in its hometown of Gilbert, Arizona.[CleanTechnica]

¶   The troubled Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant has missed another target date for restarting, so the Omaha Public Power District might spend another summer buying electricity to help meet peak demand. [Greenwich Time]

¶   The Monticello nuclear plant will restart after getting a 12% uprate and other maintenance, but it is over budget. Expected to cost $320 million, the four-month job wound up costing more than $587 million. How much more is not known. [MENAFN.COM]

Opinion:

¶   “Clean, green can mean all sorts of jobs” Most people think renewable power means solar or wind power, and are fuzzy on the implications. One implication is all sorts of jobs for all sorts of people. [USA TODAY]

World:

¶   The Financial Times reports that Queen Elizabeth employs renewable electricity, smart meters, and other green measures at Windsor Castle, including smart meters, conservation, and two Archimedes screw water turbines on the Thames. [SmartMeters]

¶   Africa’s oldest nuclear reactor has been shut since 2004, after it overheated and the bottom plate that held the nuclear fuel cylinders warped. Now the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo wants to start it again. [The Sunday Times]

¶   The first unit of the Kudankulam nuclear plant has attained criticality. In the first stage, the plant will be synchronized with India’s southern grid with about 400 megawatts power expected within 30 to 45 days. [Indian Express]

US:

¶   Following its efforts in fuel cell technology, GM announced it has started working on a project with TimberRock Energy Solutions that would allow energy from electric vehicles to be added back into the local power grid. [Wall St. Cheat Sheet]

¶   As the University of Maine prepares its bid for a long-term contract for an offshore wind energy farm, the school announced that it will extend its test deployment of its floating wind turbine will stay in Castine Harbor to a year. [Lewiston Sun Journal]

¶   California has had a surge in people interested in investing in solar energy systems for their homes over the past couple years. They not being moved because it’s chic to be green, but because it makes good financial sense. [Valley News]

¶   As a war brews between goliath investor-owned utilities and distributed solar energy supporters, solar advocates say they think the utilities have already lost – they just don’t know it yet. [Clean Energy Authority]

Science and Technology:

¶   Extreme weather brought about by climate change could make the nation’s critical energy infrastructure vulnerable, according to a US DOE report. Thermal plants, including nuclear, coal, and natural gas, are most threatened. [Houston Business Journal]

¶   Japan’s Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry will build a large-scale experimental facility to reduce nuclear waste by transmuting it into other elements by bombarding it with neutrons from an accelerator. [The Japan News]

World:

¶   Plans to build the world’s largest offshore wind farm equipped with 288 turbines have been approved for the Triton Knoll site off the coast of Lincolnshire near Skegness. The £3.6 billion project will generate 1.2 GW of electricity. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   Parts of a Japan’s largest floating wind farm are being moved towards waters off Fukushima. A 2 megawatt wind turbine, 30 stories high, left Tokyo, followed by the massive floating substation. Power generation is due to start in October. [New Tang Dynasty Television]

¶   Spain’s government plans to slash subsidies for renewable-energy providers and raise electricity bills to reduce pressure on public coffers. The move is expected to produces defaults by solar-power firms and pressure banks. [NASDAQ]

¶   Kyushu Electric Power Co. filed Friday for government safety assessments on two reactors, raising to 12 the number of units for which restarts are being sought in the wake of the introduction earlier this week of new safety requirements. [The Japan Times]

¶   Since the Fukushima Disaster, public attitudes worldwide remain hardened against nuclear power. One major exception is the UK, but Germany, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland and even France are moving away from it. [The Conversation]

¶   A day after Atomic Energy Regulatory Board gave the green signal for commissioning of Unit 1 of the controversial Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant , authorities set in motion work on taking it to First Approach to Criticality. [The New Indian Express]

¶   One day after a rare public protest, Chinese authorities say they were abandoning plans to construct a uranium processing plant in southeastern China, where residents raised concerns about its safety and potential environmental impact. [New York Times]

US:

¶   Georgia Power must purchase more solar power for its energy system under a plan approved by state utility regulators, a move sought by renewable energy proponents but denounced by a commissioner who argued it could raise costs. [Marietta Daily Journal]

¶   The nuclear renaissance lies in ruins, say authors of an industry report, because the economics don’t work. [MINING.com]

¶   The government has confirmed that, based on the latest estimates, the Uranium Processing Facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, won’t become operational until 2025 — and that’s just the first phase of what’s now become a three-phase project. [Knoxville News Sentinel]

Opinion:

¶   “Nuclear Renaissance was just a Fairy Tale” Peter Bradford of the Vermont Law School tells us the gap between nuclear rhetoric and nuclear reality has been a fundamental impediment to wise energy policy decisions for half a century now. [The Guardian]

¶   “It may not pay to be green, but you lose money being brown.” Financial analysis makes a case for divesting of fossil fuels entirely for reasons of market economy. [Financial News]

Book Review:

¶   Discussing Mark Lynas’ “Nuclear 2.0: Why a Green Future Needs Nuclear Power” Spoiler: The book does have a few errors in it. [Lenz Blog]

Economics and Finance:

¶   Solar power panel prices may stabilize this year and the market is expected to grow past $134 billion annually by 2020, according to a new report from Boulder-based Navigant Research. [Denver Business Journal]

World:

¶   Germany has 1.3 million renewable energy producers. Small farm villages are increasingly becoming equipped with solar panels and wind turbines, while the big cities like Berlin, are developing new ways to take advantage of the incentives. [The Green Optimistic]

¶   A new nuclear deal on the Hinkley nuclear plant is imminent, the UK’s government continues to promise. But beneath the contractual wrangling is another potential stumbling block: whether or not the deal is legal. [Carbon Brief]

¶   The UK’s new nuclear program is taking so long to complete that it is in danger of becoming a “museum” piece by the time it is due to come on line in 2020, according to a leading Labour MP. [Utility Week]

¶   It looks like Japan Atomic Power Co. is set to contest Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority findings that the fault line that lies under one of its nuclear reactors at the Tsuruga nuclear power facility is active. [The Japan Daily Press]

US:

¶   A study published Thursday in the journal Science has linked geothermal energy production in the Salton Sea area with an increase in local earthquakes. [KCET]

¶   The  Browns Ferry whistleblower made a surprise appearance Thursday during a three-hour U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission public meeting Calhoun Community College, and said that safety records had been altered.  [News Courier]

¶   An NRC report on a problem that shut down the Harris nuclear plant for three weeks suggests that the nuclear industry tolerates punishing work schedules, creating conditions in which overworked technicians can make serious mistakes. [News & Observer]

¶   The US NRC is advising power plant operators to inspect steam generators more closely after finding evidence of developing cracks on the equipment at Seabrook Station. The tubes were removed from service. [Foster’s Daily Democrat]

World:

¶   Germany is to halt the subsidising of solar energy by 2018 at the latest, its Environment Minister said. He said the 52 GW limit would be reached by 2017 or 2018. The current solar capacity in Germany stands at 34 GW. [NewNet]

¶   The North Rhine-Westphalia region in Germany has begun daily operation of its first wind power electrolysis plant, which supplies the h2herten application center with renewable energy in the form of hydrogen for generating electricity. [Renewable Energy Focus]

¶   From 2012 to 2018, wind generation is expected to more than double globally, from 519 TWh to 1220 TWh. Generation from solar PV will more than triple from 100 TWh to 358 TWh. [Greentech Media]

¶   Australia’s electricity market shrank by $4 billion in four years, down 40%, sparking warnings of effects on the reliability and stability of power supplies. Lower wholesale prices were caused by an increased supply of renewable energy. [The Australian]

¶   A joint venture including Mainstream Renewable Power will submit a planning application this month to erect 1,000 megawatts of wind turbines off the coast of Yorkshire. [Irish Independent]

¶   The cost of refurbishing New Brunswick’s Point Lepreau nuclear power plant could be as high as $3.3 billion, nearly $1 billion more than previously estimated, a memo for the Prime Minister’s Office suggests. [MetroNews Canada]

¶   Fukushima Daiichi has probably been leaking contaminated water into the ocean for two years, ever since an earthquake and tsunami badly damaged the plant, Japan’s chief nuclear regulator said on Wednesday. [New York Times]

US:

¶   Government spending on renewables and other green energy programs would be halved and incandescent light bulbs dropped from federal regulation under the Energy-Water Development appropriations bill passed today in the House. [Businessweek]

¶   The U.S. now has more than 10 gigawatts (GW) of installed solar PV capacity, joining Germany, Italy, and China — and it’s just getting warmed up, according to new calculations from NPD SolarBuzz. [RenewableEnergyWorld.com]

World:

¶   Germany set a new record for solar power with an output of 23.9 GW. The previous record, 22 GW was set in May. About 8.5 million people live in buildings in Germany that use their own solar power systems to generate electricity or heat. [Responding to Climate Change]

¶   All four export cables are in place at the UK’s 576 MW Gwynt y Mor offshore wind farm, representing another milestone for the €2 billion ($2.6 billion) project off the coast of North Wales. [Recharge]

¶   Severe pollution has slashed an average of five and half years from life expectancy in northern China, as toxic air has led to higher rates of stroke, heart disease and cancer. The main pollution source is coal. [CNN Money]

¶   A major Dutch bank has decided to cease lending money to unconventional fossil fuel projects – shale gas and tar sands – because of the environmental and social implications. [Business Spectator]

¶   Japan’s atomic regulator urged TEPCO to speed up completion of a seawall to protect the ocean from rising levels of contamination detected in the Fukushima nuclear plant’s groundwater. [Businessweek]

¶   Ontario is to host Canada’s first nuclear emergency response support centre to house critical equipment in the event an extreme, Fukushima-like disaster cripples on-site safety systems at a nuclear reactor. [Ottawa Citizen]

¶   Russia will begin to operate the world’s first floating nuclear power plant in three years. The specially made ship with a nuclear power plant on-board will provide energy, heat and drinking water to relatively inaccessible areas of the vast country. [Daily Mail]

US:

¶   More than 30 states considered legislation this year to change their renewable energy standards. Of the 121 bills considered that would change standards, 16 bills passed, including 8 that increased renewable standards and none that reduced them. [Northern Colorado Business Report]

¶   The federal agency managing public lands issued a 20-year ban on mining on nearly 304,000 acres in six western states to promote solar energy development. The ban is in 17 areas in California, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. [Press-Enterprise]

¶   President Obama has nominated Vice Adm. Dennis V. McGinn (Ret.) as the Navy’s assistant secretary for energy, installations and environment. McGinn comes over from the American Council on Renewable Energy. [The Hill]

¶   Through more than $1 billion in investments and large contracts for renewable power, Google has become the most significant player in the energy business outside of actual energy companies and financial institutions. [The Advocate]

¶   Federal officials are considering routing nuclear waste through downtown Las Vegas and heavily populated areas around the city. Federal analysis found going through populated areas would produce no significant environmental differences. [Las Vegas Sun]

Science and Technology:

¶   Spanish researchers have developed a new renewable energy system to produce electrical energy from ocean currents. The system is smaller, less expensive to produce, can operate in relatively deep waters, and can be controlled by a remote. [Hydrogen Fuel News]

World:

¶   A runaway train carrying crude oil in Quebec derailed, causing explosions, fire, and a number of deaths. Resilience.org compiled a list of headlines. [resilience.org]

¶   According to the IPA in South Australia, where wind energy accounts for around 25 per cent of both capacity and demand, coal-fired generation has fallen dramatically, and there has been no need for new peaking power stations. [RenewEconomy]

¶   Clenergy, a solar park solution provider, and its strategic partner CGN Solar Energy, signed an investment and development agreement with the city of Lijiang to provide the city with 100 MW of photovoltaic capacity. [EcoSeed]

¶   The 42-year-old Santa Maria de Garoña nuclear power in Spain has been shut down. The power plant continues to be the target of criticism from the opposition and non-governmental organizations, such as Greenpeace. [Energy Tribune]

¶   Radioactive cesium levels in one of the observation wells at Fukushima Daiichi have jumped up 90 times over the past 3 days. TEPCO experts have been unable so far to determine the cause or assess the impact on the nearby ocean. [www.worldbulletin.net]

¶   Masao Yoshida, the plant manager of TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant at the time of the 2011 nuclear disaster, has died of esophageal cancer. He was 58. [Businessweek]

US:

¶   The San Diego County Water Authority and the City of San Diego are mulling building a 500 MW hydroelectric power plant to compensate for the power deficit caused by the shutdown of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. [Energy Business Review]

¶   Oregon Institute of Technology has broken ground on renewable energy projects designed to make the campus almost 100% carbon neutral, and it’s being done at virtually no cost to the university. [Herald and News]

World:

¶   Recent achievements in Sweden show how cities could adopt low-carbon initiatives. Three Swedish cities offer insights into how local government can approach low-carbon policies: through energy and electricity, public transport, and urban planning. [Business Spectator]

¶   The government of Pakistan, aiming to supply part of the national energy requirement through renewable energy technologies, plans to get up to 2,500 MW from wind energy by the end of 2015. The country had a capacity of 50 MW in December 2012. [The Nation]

¶   Genesis Energy has received consents for their Castle Hill wind farm, an 860 megawatt wind power project in New Zealand from the country’s Environment Court. New Zealand has set a target to generate over 90 percent of their electricity from renewables by 2025. [EcoSeed]

¶   The Shanghai Securities News reported that China is proposing restrictions to the solar panels exports to European Union to 10 gigawatts per year in order to avoid anti-dumping tariffs. [PR Carbon]

¶   The 42-year-old Santa Maria de Garoña nuclear power plant in the province of Burgos, one of the eight nuclear reactors operating in Spain, has been shut down. It has been a target of criticism from the opposition and NGOs, such as Greenpeace. [Latin American Herald Tribune]

¶   China’s thinking has shifted increasingly towards renewable energy, which is reaching the market faster than nuclear power, a German environment official says. He says the country understood it could deliver power without air pollution, and create jobs in remote areas. [South China Morning Post]

¶   Energy expert Alan Simpson has rubbished claims that Britain will get a good deal on a new nuclear energy plant as a “complete dishonesty”. The government is desperate for French state energy firm EDF to deliver Somerset’s Hinkley Point plant. [Morning Star Online]

¶   Japanese nuclear operators have applied to restart reactors under new rules drawn up following the Fukushima Disaster, but early approval is unlikely as a more independent regulator strives to show a sceptical public it is serious about safety. [Reuters]

US:

¶   Georgia’s utility regulators are getting ready to vote on Georgia Power’s long-range plans, including whether to require the company to incorporate more solar power. Georgia Power wants to shut down 16 coal- and oil-fired power plants. [GPB]

¶   For more than two years, the largest nuclear plant in Alabama operated without a fully functioning failsafe system. A whistleblower is talking about the plant and a lack of safety culture that earned it a red finding from the NRC. [The Birmingham News – al.com]

Science and Technology:

¶   The experimental Solar Impulse plane, powered by the sun, has completed a transcontinental trip across the United States, touching down in New York despite a rip in the fabric of one wing. [Courier Mail]

World:

¶   The world’s largest biomass plant is being built in Pakistan. It will convert 4,200 tons of cattle waste and 700 tons of food waste per day to bio-gas, which will be used for power generation at a facility with an installed capacity of up to 30 MW. [The Express Tribune]

¶   In India, Ahuja Engineering Services has come up with green energy technology solutions to help the poultry and food processing industry deal with waste management and renewable energy generation. The technology is High Rate Biomethanation. [Postnoon]

¶   In the face of an understanding that nuclear power plants will be turned on again in Japan, renewable power projects are being cut back. In some cases, grid operators will not allow the new projects to be connected to the grid. [Asahi Shimbun]

¶   Japanese and Korean companies are willing to build nuclear reactors in Britain for a level of subsidy lower than France’s EDF has so far accepted, Ed Davey, the energy secretary, has said. [Telegraph.co.uk]

US:

¶   The federal government will auction leases for wind farms off the coast of Rhode Island and Massachusetts on July 31, marking the first time it has sold competitive leases for wind energy on the outer continental shelf, the U.S. Department of Interior said. [Foster’s Daily Democrat]

¶   In a recent interview, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder expressed his support for increasing Michigan’s renewable energy standard and praised the benefits of energy efficiency. Clean energy is creating jobs and building new businesses across the state. [Southgate News Herald]

¶   A 110 MW concentrating solar project is being built in Nevada. It may change the way people think about solar power, as it delivers power to the grid 12 hours each day. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Before they adjourned this week, Rhode Island legislators passed a Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) bill that aims to bolster investment in renewable energy and improve energy efficiency. [The Providence Journal]

World:

¶   In the UK, it is now possible to buy gas from two suppliers that is 100% renewable under the Green Gas Certification Scheme. Most of the gas is generated from anaerobic digestion. [Energy Live News]

¶   Desertec Foundation and the Desertec Industrial Initiative, the two main advocates of driving the European renewable energy revolution with desert solar power, have split. They both say their plans for desert solar power have not changed. [The Guardian]

¶   The Japanese utility still battling leaks of radiated water at the nuclear plant sent into meltdown by the 2011 tsunami thinks it has found the perfect person to oversee its safety campaign — a foreign woman. [Asian Correspondent]

¶   TEPCO is postponing an application for restarting two reactors in Niigata Prefecture due to staunch opposition from the prefectural governor. He refused to approve the plans and criticized TEPCO for failing to consult with the local community. [Asahi Shimbun]

¶   Germany’s boom in green power, coupled with the lowest demand in 10 years, cut production at nuclear reactors and sent the average operating margin at 15 European utilities to the lowest since 2002, company data compiled by Bloomberg show. [Businessweek]

US:

¶   Legislation to expand access to clean and affordable renewable energy to millions of Californians who currently can’t take advantage of the state’s renewable programs has taken another step toward the Governor’s desk. [The Reporter]

¶   The New Mexico State Land Office is seeking lease bids for the El Cabo wind farm, a proposed 1 GW project that would be built on state trust land. According to the office, the project would be located on 33,600 acres and built in several phases. [North American Windpower]

¶   With the completion last month of a solar project at the Charlotte, N.C., IKEA store, the company now has solar on 39 of its 44 U.S. facilities, totaling up to close to 38 MW of generation. [GreenBiz.com]

¶   The Public Service Board last week held its final day of hearings on whether the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant’s continued operation is in the best interest of the public and therefore merits a new license. [vtdigger.org]

Opinion:

¶   There are fundamental factors at work that ultimately will make fossil fuel subsidies unsustainable worldwide, leading to their decline and allowing other forms of energy to compete more easily. [Forbes]

Science and Technology:

¶   The Solar Impulse leaves from Washington on a journey to New York City planned for Saturday, depending on the weather. It will take hours for the journey — top speed is 45 mph (73 kph). It is the last leg of a transcontinental crossing. [Huffington Post]

World:

¶   Plans have been submitted to Marine Scotland for a proposed 213-turbine wind farm in the Firth of Tay. The proposed Inch Cape wind farm development  would have installed capacity of more than 1,000 megawatts (MW). [Business7]

¶   According to a survey by Nottingham Trent University, Forum for the Future and Farmers Weekly, 40% out of 700 responding farmers are now using renewables, compared to 5% in 2010. Of the others, 61% say they are likely to within five years. [Energy and Environmental Management Magazine]

¶   Former French Environment Minister Delphine Batho said her support for a ban on shale drilling and reducing dependence on nuclear power cost her her job. [Businessweek]

¶   China expects to resolve a muli-billion dollar solar trade spat with the European Union by next month, a senior Chinese industry official said on Friday, after a newspaper reported that Beijing has made a new offer with EU to settle the dispute. [WA today]

¶   TEPCO notivied Japan’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) they intend to apply to restart reactors idled after the Fukushima Disaster, and four additional regional utilities also have notified the authority of similar plans. [Bloomberg]
… The mayor of the city that hosts the biggest nuclear power plant in the world had some harsh criticism for TEPCO for announcing it will apply for a government safety assessment of two reactors before informing local authorities. [The Japan Times]
… The NRA says that it will take a “long time” to uphold safety culture, which the it is convinced not to be the current priority in nuclear industry. [The Japan Daily Press]

US:

¶   The Energy Information Administration has released a new infographic on the history of energy in the US, starting in 1776, showing the rise of coal, hydro, oil, nuclear, and now renewables. [EIA.gov]

Science and Technology:

¶   The US DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory has built flexible solar cells out of Corning’s Willow Glass. They are strong enough to function as roofing shingles, significantly shrinking the biggest barrier to mass adoption of solar power: the cost of installation. [ExtremeTech]

¶   New research in Finland indicates that lignocellulosic biomass from forest product residue can be used in the production of high-quality biofuels at moderate cost. The technology is considered ready for commercial-scale production in Europe. [Science Codex]

World:

¶   Prime Minister David Cameron has hailed the 630 MW London Array as a “big win for renewable energy” at the offshore wind farm’s official opening. The project is in the outer Thames Estuary, 20 km from the coasts of Kent and Essex, and has 175 turbines. [reNews]

¶   Advanced biofuels, biomethane and electric vehicles could out-compete conventional transport options like gasoline by 2020 if support policies are enhanced and expanded, said a report released by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Wednesday. [Xinhua]

¶   Solar energy is set to emerge as one of the Gulf region’s main sources of energy by 2017 with approximately 155 billion worth of solar power installation projects in the pipeline to generate more than 84 GW of power. [MENAFN.COM]

¶   The latest forecast from Navigant Research (formerly known as Pike Research) is that 241,000 MW of new wind power capacity will be installed worldwide from 2012 to 2017. [CleanTechnica]

¶   A report by renewable firm Regen SW reveals that the renewable energy capacity in the UK’s South West has grown by almost 50% in the past 12 months. [Blue & Green Tomorrow]

¶   Security analysts present at a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna believe that the Fukushima meltdown in 2011 may inspire terrorists. With actual experience of nuclear disaster, the Atomic Energy Agency of Japan has been scheduled for a presentation. [The Japan Daily Press]

US:

¶   A bill signed into law in Hawaii allows landlords to install renewable energy systems on their property and sell the electricity to their tenants or lessees. It requires the rate charged for the electricity to be lower than that charged by the utility and be part of the lease. [Big Island Now]

¶   New Mexico utility PNM announced a plan to increase the solar PV it owns by 30 percent next year and to increase the wind on its system by 50 percent in 2015. The proposal meets the state’s energy portfolio requirement for 2015, while keeping costs below the state’s 3% cost cap. [Deming Headlight]

¶   The US Environmental Protection Agency has approved two crops to use in a renewable fuel program that environmentalists have warned are invasive species. The crops in question are giant reed and napier grass. The agency is putting restrictions on production to avoid spreading. [The Hill]

¶   The California power grid operator passed its first heat wave test of 2013 without the San Onofre nuclear plant and another reactor at the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant without much trouble. [Reuters]

Opinion:

¶   “Coal’s future dims under Obama’s climate plan” If new EPA standards for existing plants are similar to those that have been proposed for new plants so far, they would likely spell the end of coal-fired generation in the US. [The Age]

World:

¶   GE has opened a new wind energy services center in Bahia, Brazil. Its first facility there will enable it to more quickly and efficiently put local expertise to work in meeting the country’s growing demand for advanced wind energy services. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   Mongolia’s first wind farm, located deep in the Mongolian Steppe, 70 km. from its capital, Ulaanbaatar, was officially opened by the Mongolian Minister of Energy, Mishig Sonompil. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   The U.K. may take “a few months” to agree the price that Electricite de France SA (EDF) will get for power from Britain’s first new nuclear power station in two decades, Energy Secretary Ed Davey suggested. [Bloomberg]

¶   Electricity saving began Monday in large parts of Japan for the high demand season. For the first time, the government had no specific power-saving targets, as people have become accustomed to conserving electricity, ensuring sufficiency. [SteelGuru]

¶   The Nuclear Regulation Authority decided to allow Japan’s only two reactors currently online to continue operating until they shut down for inspection in September. They will need approval under new safety requirements for restart. [GlobalPost]

US:

¶   Already having two 20 MW solar farms in North Carolina, Apple is taking on a big photovoltaic project in Nevada to help power a new Reno-area data center. A 137 acre solar array will produce about 43.5 million kWh per year. [EarthTechling]

¶   June 30th was the latest proposed restart date for the troubled Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station. Now that the day has come and gone, and there are still questions as to when all necessary conditions are to be met. [KVNO News]

Opinion:

¶   “‘Intermittent & unpredictable’: Nuclear reactor fails during heat wave” Nuclear plants have proven unreliable during heat waves, just when power is most needed. In comparison, solar and wind are called “variable and predictable.” [RenewEconomy]

Science and Technology:

¶   In Australia, Algae Tec plans to take carbon dioxide a year from Macquarie Generation’s Bayswater power station in the Upper Hunter, using it to feed algae, which will be used to make biofuel. [ABC Online]

World:

¶   The UK is not meeting its 2020 Renewable Energy Target. Renewable Energy Association data showed that the UK was the only EU member state that did not meet its 2011 renewable energy target, and things just get worse for 2012. [OilPrice.com]

¶   Donald Trump is suing the government of Scotland over eleven wind turbines that will be visible from his resort golf course. Trump argues that wind turbines are ugly and dangerous, kill birds, are made in China, and are too expensive. [Triple Pundit]

¶   Speaking at a meeting in Vienna, Yukiya Amano, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, warned against a “false sense of security” over the danger of nuclear terrorism. [Times LIVE]

US:

¶   Six Sioux tribes, the Cheyenne River Sioux, Crow Creek Sioux, Oglala Sioux, Rosebud Sioux, Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate and Yankton Sioux have united to develop the Sioux Wind Project in South Dakota. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   A new coalition in Massachusetts has formed to advocate for renewable heat policies within the state. It includes biomass-focused organizations and is called the new Massachusetts Renewable Thermal Coalition. [Biomass Magazine]

¶   The city council of Austin, Texas has approved its energy contract. Duke Energy Renewables will build two 200-megawatt wind farms in Texas to provide power for Austin Energy under a 25-year contract that could be worth up to $1 billion. [Charlotte Business Journal]

¶   Legislation before the Pennsylvania state could open treeless land, nominally a state forest but actually an infertile former strip mine, for construction of a wind farm. [MassLive.com]

¶   It has not been a good 2013 for nuclear power in the US. Only six months in, the U.S. nuclear fleet has had one of its worst years ever, arguably worse than 2011, with the impact of the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in Japan. [POWER magazine]

¶   An oppressive heat wave is testing the California grid, and so far it seems to be passing, despite loss of three nuclear reactors. Improved grid technology and better communication of energy use have helped prevent major blackouts so far. [Christian Science Monitor]

Science and Technology:

¶   Though solar panels and wind turbines in the Eastern US do not produce as much electricity as they do in the West, they have far more positive effects on health, because more of the power they are replacing comes from coal. [90.5 WESA]

¶   Australian National University researchers have developed a material that can store large amounts of power rapidly – and with very little energy loss. Based on the mineral rutile, a mineral of titanium dioxide, it may be developed for capacitors for grid electric storage. [Energy Matters]
… The hope is that the new material could open the door to electric cars that can be recharged in minutes, and wind and solar power that can top up the grid as needed. [The Australian]

World:

¶   Tokelau is preparing to move into a second phase of its 100 percent renewable energy project. Last year, Tokelau became the first country in the world to source all its electricity from solar power. Now, it is planning to fuel its emergency backup generators with coconut oil. [Radio New Zealand International]

¶   In Australia, the Greens will push for a 90% renewable energy target by 2030, party leader Senator Christine Milne has announced. [BigPond News]

¶   Wind, sun, tidal, thermal – one legacy of the Fukushima Disaster is a surge in interest in Japan in all things renewable within the energy industry. Prime Minister Age said of this, “The times are changing. We are in the age where consumers themselves produce power.” [Ammon News]

¶   Japanese company Mitsui Ocean Development & Engineering Company, has developed the SKWID, a floating wind and current hybrid power generation system. [Energy Harvesting Journal]

¶   Some 40% of farmers in the UK are now using renewable energy compared with only 5% identified in 2010. The Farm as Power Station project involving Nottingham Trent University, Forum for the Future and Farmers Weekly found 30% of those had opted for wind installations. [reNews]

US:

¶   US Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell has approved a 500 MW wind energy project proposed by BP Wind Energy North America, which will power 175,000 houses and create about 750 jobs. The wind farm will have 243 wind turbines. [NewNet]

¶   Gilchrist Metal Fabrication Company, of Hudson, New Hampshire, has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for powering the company’s facility with 100% renewable energy. The fabrication facility is powered entirely by wind. [PR Web]

¶   About 10% of electricity in the United States is fueled by enriched uranium originally produced in Russia for nuclear warheads, according to the National Nuclear Security Administration. They announced last week that the fuel source will be used up this year. [Forbes]

World:

¶   A new report from the U.S. Center for Naval Analyses and the London-based Royal United Services Institute, two of the NATO alliance’s front-line strategy centers, recommends putting more effort into fighting global warming than securing reliable supplies of fossil fuels. [EV World]

¶   The Worldwatch Institute’s Climate and Energy Director met with the Philippine Climate Change Commission and other high-level representatives of the Philippine governments to work on a plan to shift the country’s current electricity system to 100% renewable energy within a decade. [CleanTechnica]

¶   This week, the effects of Britain’s chronic dithering over energy policy were thrown into sharp relief by the UK’s energy regulator, which issued its starkest warning yet over the risk of blackouts; a one-in-four chance by the winter of 2015-16 unless the country starts using a lot less electricity. [Telegraph.co.uk]

¶   The ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Japan separated itself from the nine parties that participated in a public debate on June 29, being the only one that supports the continued use of nuclear power far into the nation’s future. [Asahi Shimbun]

¶   Japan and the United States have started to jointly research new technologies that could measure the amount of uranium and plutonium contained in melted nuclear fuel at the Fukushima No. 1 plant, officials involved in the project announced Saturday. [The Japan Times]

US:

¶   Massachusetts’ top energy official has announced an initiative to help developers install wind turbines and make it easier for communities to live with them. Increased support for communities could include technical expertise or help in offsetting the expense of meeting noise-level standards. [KRNV My News 4]

¶   New Mexico homeowners can now lease solar electric systems for 25 years with no upfront costs thanks to a new partnership between Albuquerque’s Affordable Solar Group and Texas-based solar leasing company Sunnova Energy Corp. [ABQ Journal]

¶   In an example of the simplest type of solar energy being put into large-scale practice, 2,400 square feet of a south-facing wall on Kingsbury Hall on the UNH Durham campus has been turned into a passive hot air system for the College of Engineering. [Nashua Telegraph]

¶   South Carolina may soon join the ranks of states that have reconsidered the wisdom of imposing restrictive caps on net metering for customer-sited solar power systems. The current 100-kilowatt cap has prevented users, including Furman University, from installing more solar power. [Forbes]

¶   Researchers analyzed 141 drinking water wells in Pennsylvania and New York. Methane was detected in 82% of drinking water samples for homes within a kilometer (0.62 miles or 1,093 yards) of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, wells. [CleanTechnica]

Opinion:

¶   The old top-down utility infrastructure model will increasingly come under pressure as new technologies become a disruptive force in electricity infrastructure. Renewable energy, microgrids, and distributed generation will change the way we manage our electricity. [energybiz]

World:

¶   Former Indian Army chief General V K Singh  will lead the ParmanuVirodhiMorcha, a group of non-government organisations, against the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited for developing a nuclear project at Gorakhpur village of Fatehabad district. [Times of India]

US:

¶   Los Angeles officials inaugurated the nation’s largest rooftop solar Feed-in Tariff program, enabling hundreds of building owners to create solar power plants on their rooftops and sell solar power to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power for grid distribution. [Your Renewable News]

¶   A recent poll of small business owners across the United States says a majority oppose public subsidies for oil, coal, and gas companies; support renewable energy; are concerned about carbon dioxide impacts; and support disclosure of chemicals used in “fracking.” [Sacramento Bee]

¶   An earthquake could collapse the building at Los Alamos National Laboratory, N.M., where plutonium cores of nuclear bombs are produced, releasing deadly doses of radiation, the Department of Energy’s inspector general reported. [Nextgov]

¶   A bipartisan Senate bill introduced today seeks to break gridlock over a permanent nuclear waste repository by establishing a new nuclear waste administration and creating a consent-based process for siting nuclear waste facilities. [POWER magazine]

¶   A test of Three Mile Island nuclear power plant did not go as expected. Officials at the plant say none the 96 sirens in its new emergency notification siren system sounded during a scheduled test Thursday afternoon. In earlier testing, the original siren system worked. [York Dispatch]

Opinion:

¶   “100 Percent Renewable Energy And Beyond” While many countries still discuss whether or not a 100% renewable energy system is even theoretically possible, Germans seem no longer bothered by such unscientific doubts. [Energy Collective]

World:

¶   Wind power is set to lead Australia’s renewable energy growth for the next half-decade, rising by more than 5 GW from 2012-18. Meanwhile, solar PV capacity is also expected to rise by 5 GW from 2012-18, overtaking wind in 2018. [RenewEconomy]

¶   A drought has caused UK hydro power to produce 32% less in the 1st quarter of 2013, from the same quarter in 2012. Output from other renewable power sources increased, more than offsetting the loss of hydro, for an overall increase of 10%. [reNews]

¶   A new report by the IEA finds that worldwide renewable power generation will exceed that from gas and be twice that of nuclear by 2016 and make up almost a quarter of the global power mix by 2018. [pv magazine]

¶   The Niagara Tunnel, a massive 41-foot wide, 6.3-mile long tunnel that’s 460 feet below the City of Niagara Falls, Ontario, made its official debut during opening ceremonies at the Ontario Power Generation (OPG) Visitors’ Centre. [RenewablesBiz]

¶   The Takahama nuclear power station on the Sea of Japan coast in western Japan has received the first shipment of reprocessed reactor fuel to arrive in Japan since the 2011 Fukushima disaster, as the plant prepares to restart. [Victoria Times Colonist]

US:

¶   Wind energy and transmission developers got a boost from a recent court decision, which supports spreading out the costs of large power lines delivering remote renewable energy to population centers. [Electric Co-op Today]

¶   Once again New Hampshire legislators are raiding the state’s renewable energy funds, which are financed by increased electricity rates for green programs like the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and Renewable Portfolio Standards. [The Keene Sentinel]

¶   Exelon, the largest U.S. nuclear power producer, may begin to see a low-emissions strategy, built on nuclear and windpower, pay off — four years after it lost a fight for climate legislation it said would add $1.1 billion in annual earnings. [Bloomberg]

Opinion:

¶   “Obama’s Climate Plan to Ditch Coal Will Be Good for Business. Really.” [Businessweek]

¶   “Redesigning The Electricity Market For Wind And Solar” The world’s energy markets do need to be redesigned, otherwise they cannot cope with the impact of wind and solar. [CleanTechnica]

Science and Technology:

¶   Water is essential to thermoelectric power generation, but drought and growing competition for water from myriad other uses can have major effects inside the power plant, impacting operations and, ultimately, reliability. [POWER magazine]

World:

¶   Farmers in Fukushima Prefecture are turning to “solar sharing,” a process in which they can generate solar power on the same land where they grow crops and sell the power to utilities. [The Japan News]

¶   A massive brawl erupted among lawmakers in the Taiwan Legislature yesterday, as members of different parties fought for control over the rostrum, ahead of a scheduled discussion on the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant referendum. [AsiaOne]

¶   TEPCO shareholders rejected a proposal to look into pursuing claims for compensation against companies that supplied parts for the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant, including General Electric Co. [Businessweek]

US:

¶   President Obama unveiled an aggressive new climate change strategy that would limit pollution from existing coal-fired power plants. He also said the Keystone XL pipeline would not be approved if it raises carbon emissions. [CNN]
… During the speech announcing the plan, he called for more solar and wind power projects to help curb the country’s appetite for fossil fuel and reduce the U.S.’s carbon pollution to 17 percent below 2005 levels. [AltEnergyMag]

¶   The NRC is interested in comments on a draft study examining if faster removal of spent reactor fuel from pools to dry cask storage significantly reduces risks to public health and safety. [Southern Maryland News Net]

¶   Even though Southern California Edison (SCE) decided to shut down the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) earlier this month, customers are still footing the bill for the plant. [89.3 KPCC]

¶   Vermont and New York are joining Friends of the Earth, a national environmental group, in criticizing the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s response to a nuclear plant closing in California. [News 12 Long Island]

¶   A new study released by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on the environmental impact of Indian Point’s nuclear power plant finds the plant is safe and there is no need for a shut down. [YNN Hudson Valley]

Economics and Finance:

¶   “How wind and solar broke the world’s electricity markets” The world’s energy markets do need to be redesigned, otherwise they cannot cope with the impact of wind and solar. [RenewEconomy]

¶   “The Dirty Truth About Coal” Robert Rapier of Investing Daily provides data on coal, natural gas, nuclear, and renewable electric generating. [Investing Daily]

Science and Technology:

¶   ENSO Plastics, a global leader of environmental plastics solutions, has introduced new biodegradable technologies for thermo polymers with a 75% lower carbon footprint than polyethylene. [Azom.com]

World:

¶   Communities across Scotland are now receiving £5 million a year from wind farm operators, industry leaders revealed. The amount paid out could become much higher as new green energy schemes get up and running. [ic Scotland.co.uk]

¶   For almost three decades the trees around Chernobyl have been absorbing  contamination. Now,climate change and lack of management present a troubling predicament: if they catch fire, that contamination would be spread in smoke. [Scientific American]

¶   TEPCO said radioactive water may still be leaking into the sea from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant after enhanced levels of radioactive tritium were detected in the port area in front of the facility. [Asahi Shimbun]

US:

¶    President Obama is preparing to announce new steps to combat climate change, including increased production of renewable energy on public lands and federally assisted housing, and work to regulate carbon emissions from existing power plants. [CapitalGazette.com]

¶   The Supreme Court decided not to hear a challenge to higher ethanol blends of gasoline. The Supreme Court decision comes as fuelmakers struggle to meet federal renewable fuel standards. [Christian Science Monitor]

¶   The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says in a new report that spent fuel pools like the one at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant can withstand severe earthquakes without breaching. [Barre Montpelier Times Argus]
… The report says there may not be a substantial safety benefit to hastening the transport of spent nuclear fuel from pool to dry cask storage, according to an NRC spokesman. [Timesonline.com]

Science and Technology:

¶   A research team at Sharp Corporation has announced that it has created a solar cell capable of converting 44.4% of incoming sunlight into electricity. [CleanTechnica]

World:

¶   The German Society for International Cooperation released a report saying once a Feed-in-Tariff becomes effective, renewable energy can help answer a growing energy demand  in the Philippines, with an affordable impact on household electricity bills. [Rappler]

¶   Six of Japan’s regional electricity monopolies have included plans to restart 20 reactors by September 2015 in applications for rate hikes. Industry observers say the assumptions are ambitious, as the NRA has said review period my be more than three years. [Chicago Tribune]

¶   A “climate bomb” of potent greenhouse gases far more damaging to the climate than carbon dioxide is set to be released by some of the world’s leading producers of refrigerants following a ban on climate credits by the European Emissions Trading Scheme. [CNN]

¶   The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, which oversees dismantling the UK’s atomic power and research stations will reveal on Monday that its estimates for the lifetime cost of the programme has risen by billions of pounds. [The Guardian]

US:

¶   The California Hydrogen Business Council has implemented a program to further the wider market adoption of hydrogen as a form of energy storage and advance  commercialization of hydrogen as fuel. [bestmag]

¶   As Congress considers scaling back or abolishing US rules that mandate the use of renewable fuels, it has full support of most of the petroleum industry. BP, one of the world’s biggest oil companies by revenue wants to continue the rules without change. [Washington Post]

¶   The US Army had a power problem, and the consequence was no small matter: Troops were left more vulnerable to sniper attacks. But now, the Army says, the use of solar and wind systems is keeping the power flowing and, as a result, helping reduce casualties. [EarthTechling]

¶   A new environmental group in Massachusetts will ask voters to be the first in the nation to adopt a carbon tax by imposing new levies on fossil fuels based on the amount of carbon dioxide they produce. The tax could generate $2.5 billion in revenues per year. [Boston Globe]

Science and Technology:

¶   Wind to hydrogen: In Falkenhagen, Germany, a little town about 45 miles east of Berlin, E.On is closing in on putting to work a system that uses power from a nearby wind farm to turn water into hydrogen, which is then shot straight into the area’s natural gas system. [EarthTechling]

World:

¶   Creating jobs a breeze if we use natural resources. Ireland’s resources in onshore, near-shore and offshore wind energy realizable in the coming decades have been calculated at 1,990 GW. The total US and Europe electricity generation capacity in 2010 was 1,971 GW. [Irish Independent]

¶   Mongolia has opened its first wind farm, a landmark $122 million project that aims to shift the country’s reliance on coal and tackle the pollution choking its capital Ulan Bator. A total of 31 turbines are expected to power 5% of electricity needs of the country. [CoalGuru.com]

US:

¶   After spending more than five years pursuing plans for a coal-burning power plant in Texas, Omaha-based Tenaska says it has dropped the plan and will focus on the development of natural gas-fueled and renewable facilities. [LubbockOnline.com]

¶   VW America’s manufacturing facility in Chattanooga embodies the sum total of Think Blue, the latest five-year (2012-2018) iteration of the automaker’s global sustainability initiative. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Large, community solar-power arrays are popping up across Colorado. Spurred by a pilot program by Xcel Energy, the state’s largest electricity provider, 22 “solar gardens” are being built from Aurora to Grand Junction, with more to come. [Denver Post]

¶   With little public notice, managers of the government-controlled landfill at the Nevada National Security Site have changed their rules to accept containers of nuclear waste that are five times more radioactive than now allowed. [Las Vegas Review-Journal]
… Nevada’s governor is telling the federal government the state does not want highly radioactive waste of the type that could be used to build a “dirty bomb” buried in a shallow pit at the former national nuclear proving ground north of Las Vegas. [St. George Daily Spectrum]

Opinion:

¶   “What Solar Impulse’s under-the-radar flight says about the future of solar energy” The plane probably won’t change the way we fly — but it could impact the way we drive, build buildings, and power appliances. [The Week Magazine]

Science and Technology:

¶   A new project at the University of California San Diego is aimed at testing integration of ultracapacitors, “flash” storage for the grid, with concentrating solar power. [Greentech Media]

World:

¶   According to a recent report from Navigant Research, the worldwide market for small wind systems will reach $723 million by 2018, with $3.3 billion in cumulative sales from 2013 through 2018. [PCBDesign007]

¶   Japan is greatly expanding its solar energy capacity in 2013, according to a leading commodities analyst, buoying industrial demand for silver. Solar panels are now a major source of silver demand, accounting for 4.5% of total silver purchases in 2012. [BullionVault]

¶   Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman & Kuwait Targeting More Than 50 GW of Solar Capacity by 2032, as the Gulf Cooperation Council countries move away from carbon-based fuel for their economies. [DigitalJournal.com]

¶   Shareholders of eight of the nine utilities that operate nuclear power plants will present proposals at shareholders’ meetings next week urging the companies to abandon nuclear power. All of Japan’s utilities hold their annual shareholders’ meetings on June 26. [Asahi Shimbun]

US:

¶   A growing number of Vermont towns are taking a look at powering municipal buildings via solar arrays. [Vermont Public Radio]

¶   New York state legislators have given their resounding approval to a solar bill that could see 2,200 MW of new installations by 2023. The bill was passed by the state Assembly by 76 to 16 votes. [PV-Tech]

¶   Hawaiian Electric Company has asked the Public Utilities Commission for permission to negotiate with five proposed projects that could quickly provide low-cost electricity for Oahu. The five projects include a mix of solar and wind capacity totaling 64 MW. [Fierce Energy]

¶   Dominion Virginia Power is accepting applications for a program that allows customers to sell solar power back to the energy provider. The Richmond-based company says participation is on a first-come, first-serve basis and is limited to a total of 3 megawatts. [The Daily Progress]

¶   Rhode Island’s capital city has joined a growing movement to fight climate change with a City Council vote to withdraw all investments in fossil-fuel companies. The council voted 11-1 in favor of the resolution. [The Providence Journal]

¶   A double-shelled tank holding more than 850,000 gallons of highly radioactive wastes may be leaking through both of its protective layers at the Hanford nuclear reservation in Eastern Washington. [The Seattle Times]

¶   The Vermont Public Service Board is allowing critics of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant to examine the plant’s impact on water quality as it considers the plant’s Certificate of Public Good. The ruling was a reversal for Entergy Vermont Yankee. [Vermont Public Radio]

Opinion:

¶   “What’s Going on With Exelon Stock?” Motley Fool’s market analysts explain why Exelon’s slipping stock price is probably not short-term – and the explanation reveals troubles for those too heavily invested in nuclear power. [Motley Fool]

Science and Technology:

¶   Silevo Inc, of Fremont, California, has announced the production of a new 355 watt, 72-cell solar PV module, comprised of 156 mm PV cells based on the company’s novel Triex cell architecture. [solarserver.com]

World:

¶   According to Ernst & Young, which has been keeping up monthly tracking since 2003, the best place to invest in renewable power generation is the US, followed by China, Germany, Australia, and the UK. [Power Engineering International]

¶   In a draft assessment, Japanese nuclear industry regulators say the country’s two operating nuclear reactors have no serious safety problems. If the assessment receives final approval it will mean reactors 3 and 4 at Ohi can remain online through September. [United Press International, Asia]

¶   Two more leaks of radioactive water found at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant suspended desalination operations and will likely further delay the full-scale use of a decontamination system, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said. [Asahi Shimbun]

US:

¶   NRG, the largest electric supplier in the US and largest solar developer, has added a 720 MW gas-fired plant near San Francisco. The turbines have a quick-start technology, can ramp up to full power in 12 minutes, and are considered a good backup to solar power. [Gas to Power Journal]

¶   A new investigation by AP has found that the vast majority of counties where fracking is occurring in seven states are also suffering from drought. The AP found that fracking is presenting new strains on water supplies in some drought-stricken areas of the country. [theenergycollective.com]

¶   The city of Houston signed an agreement with Reliant Energy to purchase more than 140 MW of wind energy output over the next two years. The purchase of renewable credits will account for half of the city’s annual electricity demand. [PennEnergy]

¶   The federal government’s Tax Code has done little overall to cut greenhouse gas emissions, according to a National Research Council report out Thursday, which concludes that a carbon tax or cap-and-trade system would be much more effective. [Politico]

¶   The U.S. House of Representatives has unexpectedly failed to pass its version of the farm bill, dashing the hopes of those pushing for funding for renewable energy programs. The vote was 195-234, with opposition over agriculture subsidies and food stamps. [Solar Industry]

Environmental Spy Thriller:

¶   The Australian Climate Commission released a report urging a slowdown to extraction of fossil fuels due to negative impact on the environment and climate. The response from  the Queensland premier is that a clandestine group is out to kill the state’s coal industry. [International Business Times AU]

Science, Technology, and Finance:

¶   The cost of photovoltaic solar panels is expected to drop to 36 cents per watt by 2017, according to new research by cleantech market research firm GTM Research. [CleanTechnica]

¶   The US DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Alta Devices have jointly demonstrated that Alta’s solar material retains its high efficiency in real-world conditions, particularly on hot days. [Wall Street Journal]

World:

¶   Japan is turning to renewable energy, and especially solar power, in a big way. By the end of 2012, Japan had already installed 7.4 gigawatts of solar power capacity, but that’s set to double this year, according to analysts at Bloomberg New Energy Finance. [The9Billion]

¶   Mainstream Renewable Power has been granted planning consent by East Lothian Council for the onshore cable works to connect its 450 MW Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind farm, set to be located off the Scottish coast, to the National Grid. [NewNet]

¶   Africa is undergoing a renewable energy boom, led by South Africa and Morocco, and renewables are offering the least-cost option to reduce a chronic power shortage and lack of access to electricity across the continent. [RenewEconomy]

¶   Four utilities are planning to apply for permission to restart 12 reactors at six nuclear power plants across Japan as soon as a set of new safety requirements, approved June 19 by the Nuclear Regulation Authority, enter into force on July 8. [Asahi Shimbun]

US:

¶   President Obama will target carbon emissions from power plants as part of a second-term climate change agenda expected to be rolled out in the next few weeks, according to his top energy and climate adviser. [Huffington Post]

¶   For the latest Energy and Water appropriations bill, Republicans have proposed 50% cut to spending on renewable energy. Renewable energy research and development would be cut  by $911 million, and the total cut to $2.81 billion less than the 2013 budget. [OilPrice.com]

Science and Technology:

¶   Samsung Heavy Industries’ next-generation 7 MW offshore wind turbine is to take a major step toward commercialisation with performance trials of its drive-train at the new high-capacity test bench at the UK’s National Renewable Energy Centre. [Recharge]

World:

¶   According to the latest update from the US Energy Information Administration, many countries can meet 100% of their energy need through the use of renewable energy systems. Two countries that are doing so are Norway and Iceland. [Hydrogen Fuel News]

¶   In Australia, a much-hyped anti-wind rally held outside Parliament House in Canberra could only rally 150 people to its cause. By comparison the pro-wind rally hastily organised to provide a counter picture managed between 600 to 700 people. [Business Spectator]

¶   A £3 billion development to build an offshore wind farm in Scotland has won the backing of Highland Council. The 277-turbine development in the Outer Moray Firth could inject £125 million into the region’s economy and bring up to 950 jobs. [Ross-Shire Journal]

¶   GE is supplying UK developer Clarke Energy with two of its Jenbacher J420 biogas engines for a new 2.8 MW agricultural biogas power project at a large vegetable farm near Lake Naivasha in Kenya, the first biogas project in Sub-Saharan Africa. [PennEnergy]

¶   Warsaw may postpone the planned construction of Poland’s first nuclear power plants, the prime minister announced on June 18, claiming that the facilities may not be needed thanks to increased use of gas as an energy source.  [Business New Europe]

¶   Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority finalized safety guidelines for nuclear power plants that reflect the lessons learned from the March 2011 Fukushima disaster. But the watchdog said that any restart of the country’s idled reactors will likely take months. [Wall Street Journal]

¶   Tokyo Electric Power Company said tests of ground water at Fukushima showed Strontium-90 was present at 30 times the legal rate. The radioactive isotope tritium has also been detected at elevated levels. [BBC News]

US:

¶   House Republicans have proposed legislation to push the Government to provide surge protectors and grid-saving devices that would offer protection in case of a massive electromagnetic pulse from either a flare or nuclear weapon. [Daily Mail]

¶   A report released by the EPA faults Washington state for lax oversight at the nation’s most contaminated nuclear site, saying the state employs too few inspectors and gives advance notice of inspections to the federal agency charged with managing the cleanup. [OregonLive.com]

Graph of the day:

¶   “Why the fossil fuel industry hates renewables”  With a series of graphs, REneweconomy shows how solar and wind power are depressing the coal generating industry in Germany. [RenewEconomy]

World:

¶   Around $1.3 trillion have been invested in the renewable energy sector since 2006 and the growth trend is set to continue, according to a new report by Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century. There were 5.7 million people employed in the sector in 2012. [EarthTechling]

¶   Nearly 22% of the world’s electricity is now supplied by renewable energy, and Central America is part of this global transition. The region is a worldwide leader in hydropower and geothermal energy, and most Central American countries are developing wind power. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Hydrogenics Corporation has announced that the largest Power to Gas facility in the world went “live” this week with the first direct injection of hydrogen into a gas pipeline using Hydrogenics technology. [Gasworld.com]

¶   The UK Shadow Energy Minister [energy spokesman for the opposition] has announced that the next Labour Manifesto will deliver a commitment to decarbonize the UK economy by 2030. The party will also drive forward the offshore wind industry. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   At the same time that a rally brought an anti-wind campaign to the grounds before Parliament House, and pro-renewable groups held a rival get-together in the same city, the world’s biggest wind turbine manufacturer has entered the debate with an “Act of Facts”. [RenewEconomy]

US:

¶   The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources has outlined its emergency regulation for applications for the state’s Solar Carve-Out, scrapping the original 400 MW cap. All existing  applications with an Interconnection Service Agreement by June 7, 2013 qualify. [The National Law Review]

¶   Four dozen elected officials, from localities as diverse as Washington DC, Des Moines, Iowa and Santa Barbara County, California, released a one-page plan which laid out actions such as using more renewable energy and making buildings and infrastructure more energy-efficient. [Business Spectator]

¶   Former President Bill Clinton and leaders from six Sioux Indian Tribes announced a new wind power initiative that will harness South Dakota’s greatest natural resource and spur long-term development in the economically depressed region. [Your Renewable News]

¶   Running counter to a trend among US utilities to avoid expenses on nuclear power, Xcel Energy says it’s investing $1.8 billion to extend the life of its 40-year-old Minnesota reactors. [St. Cloud Times]

¶   Florida Governor Rick Scott signed SB 1472 into law. The new law attempts to clamp down on the state’s controversial nuclear cost recovery payment scheme that allows utilities to charge customers in advance for proposed new nuclear power generation. [PR Newswire]

¶   A new government report says it may take six years to start emptying a leaking tank of waste at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, mostly because it will take about six years to secure appropriate tank space to put all that sludge. [Northwest Public Radio]

¶   The Vermont Public Service Board on Monday began what is expected to be the final two weeks of hearings on whether it’s in the public’s best interest for Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant to obtain a new state operating permit. Decommissioning is first on the agenda. [vtdigger.org]