Construction has begun on the first phase of Kennedy Energy Park, Australia’s first utility-scale wind, solar, and storage hybrid project which, once all phases are complete, could boast a capacity of up to 1.2 gigawatts.
Bitcoin is very interesting for cleantech for two reasons. One is obvious: the primary currency sucks a lot of electricity, and more electricity demand is good for investment in renewable generation. Of course, a lot of the electricity still comes from carbon-rich fossil fuels too. The second is the underlying technology, blockchain, which has a number of interesting uses emerging in the cleantech space.
We have seen the fall of coal. The Dow Jones Coal Index, which stood at over 723 at its high in 2008, was down over 94% to 41.36 on December 8. Just as telling, all of the companies that were its components in 2008 have disappeared. There is now only one company in the index, and it is new, cobbled together out of the wreckage of those that once were.
A longtime friend of mine with rooftop solar panels took a test drive of my humble 2015 Nissan LEAF the other day. He and his wife drive a nice SUV hybrid and once owned a Jaguar. After some nice comments about the LEAF, he and his wife decided that absolutely his next vehicle will be all electric. I encouraged him to test drive some Tesla options (explaining the value, quality, autonomous safety, minimalistic style, and top-of-the-line technology.) As his hybrid is in very good shape, he did not seem in a hurry. He responded that by the time he made the switch to all-electric, there will be many choices as good as a Tesla and his interest may lie elsewhere. Perhaps this vehicle below might interest him, being a one-time Jaguar owner.
Long Beach City College (LBCC) just received the Community College Energy Award at the Green California Summit, and that is good news considering the political assault on cleaner energy and our health.
America’s Pledge, an initiative launched to compile and quantify actions taken by US non-federal actors to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Paris Agreement, last week published its first report in which it outlines seven ways in which states, cities, and businesses can step up to address climate action.
A new compact system for manufacturing sanitary napkins illustrates how the scalable, transportable solar power model can go to work for women’s health.
Bitcoin fans will have to try harder if they’re serious about a renewable energy solution for the cryptocurrency power problem.
You could retool a Tesla Model X and drive it around on Mars. But it probably wouldn’t end up looking like a Model X. The rover that Mark Watney drove around in the movie based on Andy Weir’s great book “The Martian” is much more likely to be what the hacked vehicle would look like.
Many corporations, focused on the relentless pursuit of profits, make their money at the expense of the people, and the planet. The only proper purpose of any business is to serve the society in which it operates, and to contribute to the protection of the planet we all depend on for our existence. Ecotricity, founded by Dale Vince, is almost unique amongst UK energy companies in aiming to do just that. Although it makes money, that is only a means to achieve its main aim, environmental protection. Its main method of environmental protection is by supplying and developing renewable energy in the UK.
