Tag Archives: hydropower
Solar on Breweries Across the U.S
What can solar do for our tastebuds? Some brewers are posing this question as they offset their energy costs and integrate solar into the meticulous beer making process. Anyone who has tried to home brew knows there is a definite art to brewing, yet more brewers are trusting solar technology to produce thousands of barrels [...]
Big Business: Embracing Clean Energy
Power Forward, a report commissioned by Calvert Investments, Ceres, and WWF, claims that 59% of the Fortune 100 and nearly 2/3rds of the Global 100 have invested in setting GHG reduction commitments, renewable commitments, or both. And of those companies, two-dozen have set open renewable energy commitments to be critically watched and accounted for by [...]
Clean Energy and Job Growth
Sunny Florida has sufficient sunshine to power 20 million homes. Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) when campaigning vowed to create 700,000 jobs. Upon election, he axed programs that centered on renewable energy. The Sunshine State now ranks dead last in creating green jobs. That’s right, it ranks 50th. (Vermont is #1). Former Pres. Bill Clinton [...]
The 2012 National Solar Tour
Once a year solar owners across the US come together and allow the public to tour their homes, businesses and solar and energy efficient buildings. That time is now. And this year there’s an added bonus, a sweepstakes with nearly $4,000 in prizes! While officially the National Solar Tour takes place on Oct. 6, 2012, [...]
U.S Transmission Lines Need Upgrading for Renewable Energy Projects
The Telegraph Herald highlighted an issue that many people may not consider when advocating renewable energy projects: a lack of an adequate transmission system to move clean energy generated in remote desert areas to more populated regions around the country. Developers–and the government–believe that the vast expanse of sun-drenched desert in the American Southwest could [...]
Bill Clinton Thinks Solar is the Future
He has only 308 solar panels on the roof of his presidential library, former President Bill Clinton announced at the opening of his Solar Power International 2012 keynote, and he is taking bids to drastically expand. “So if anybody wants in, send me an email.” He then picked up the subject of creative cooperation he [...]
Will California Reach It’s Renewable Energy Goals?
California has the most ambitious renewable portfolio standard (RPS) in the nation, requiring that 33 percent of the state’s energy mix come from renewables by 2020. There are 29 states (and the District of Columbia) with RPS goals in effect, but the average amount of renewable energy required in those states is much less than [...]
1 Gigawatt of Solar to the Americas
What is a gigawatt? One billion (109) watts. That’s the total capacity of all the solar panels Suntech has now delivered to customers throughout North and South America. That’s no small amount of energy: One gigawatt of solar panels is enough to power about 113,000 U.S. homes a year! We passed the 1 GW milestone [...]
Feed-in Tariffs: Coming to Poland in 2013?
While many Eastern Europe countries have embraced feed-in tariffs (FiTs) for renewable energy, Poland has been a holdout. That stance is about to change with the country preparing to add FiTs for wind, solar, geothermal, small hydro, biogas, biomass, wave and tidal power possibly by early 2013, reports RenewableEnergyWorld. The proposed tariffs range from $0.138 [...]
The Philippines Passes Renewable Energy FiT
In a historic day for renewable energy in The Philippines, the country approved a feed-in tariff (FiT) that convers small hydro, biomass, wind, and solar. It postponed including ocean energy for further study. The government previously announced the FiT for geothermal separately, in what it calls a “geothermal crash program.” It raised the rates to provide incentives to [...]
China’s Domestic Solar Capacity
The Chinese administration is ratcheting up incentives for the domestic solar market in a big way at the state and federal level in order to absorb some of the world’s excess solar panel capacity. China’s PV manufacturing facilities are vastly underutilized. A few Chinese firms might be allowed to fail by the government or encouraged [...]
Paul Ryan’s Threat to Renewable Energy
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney announced his running mate this weekend, Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan. Romney supporters are thrilled with the candidate’s choice for vice president, particularly his background as Chairman of the House Budget Committee with a long-standing record of solid “fiscal disciple and accountability to the federal government.” The announcement was not good [...]