Friday, July 19, 2013

Alternative Clean Energy Roundup: 19 July 2013

Wave Energy Projects Often Battle Public Opposition
08 July 2013 - Wave power is being talked about more and more recently, as a way to harness energy from the ocean’s waves by using a large buoy like structure below and above the water’s surface. This renewable energy tactic has been opposed by different environmental groups, community leaders, and the general public for various reasons.

Even though it is a tremendous new way to produce energy, it has not had a fair chance yet to show its full capabilities, because of the opposition.

One opposition group that will need to be battled against when it comes to a new wave energy project are local fisherman. read more>>>

Cape plans to green economic hub
July 15 2013 - The provincial government wants to turn the Western Cape into the leading green economic hub of Africa.

Unveiling the province’s Green Economy Strategy Framework last week, Finance and Economic Development MEC Alan Winde said this was likely to create 12 000 jobs by 2015, 16 000 by 2020 and 20 000 by 2025.

He said most job opportunities would be in the renewable energy sector, through the manufacturing of components. read more>>>

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REC installs three new farms in ‘solar power hotspot’
15 July 2013 - REC, the largest European supplier of solar panels globally, has installed three new utility scale installations in North Carolina, regarded as the solar power hotspot of the USA.

The projects, developed, engineered and constructed by Strata Solar LLC, are Rock Farm, which produces 6.65 MW, Mt. Olive Farm, 6.65 MW, and AM Best Farm, 6.4 MW. Collectively, the farms are powered by 81,000 high-performing REC 250 Peak Energy solar panels and generate 31,320 MWhs of solar energy annually, providing electricity to 2,400 homes. read more>>>

Sandia's SWiFT facility researching transformative wind technology
July 15, 2013 - After three years in development, Sandia National Laboratories has commissioned the U.S. Department of Energy/Sandia Scaled Wind Farm Technology (SWiFT) facility at the Reese Technology Center in Lubbock, Texas.

The SWiFT facility is the first moderate-scale public facility to use multiple wind turbines -- up to 10 at a time -- to measure how wind turbines interact with one another in a wind farm.

"The project was a complete green-field construction so there was tremendous complexity in scheduling and managing all of the agreements and contracts to access to the facility, verify there wouldn't be an adverse environmental impact, procure the equipment, and contract numerous specialized labor resources," said Jon White, Sandia's technical lead for the project. read more>>>

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True powerhouse: PPL Montana shows off $245 million Rainbow Dam project
Jul. 11, 2013 - The new Rainbow Dam powerhouse took 3½ years to complete and increased generating capacity by 70 percent at the hydroelectric facility, but Jeremy Clotfelter, PPL Montana’s manager of hydro operations and maintenance, called the public dedication of the $245 million facility Wednesday morning bittersweet.

“Over there you see 1910,” he said pointing toward the date on the original, now dormant, brick Rainbow Dam powerhouse. “She’s given us more than a century of service and 18 million megawatt hours of energy.

“The new powerhouse truly is a state-of-the-art plant,” he said. read more>>>

California Increases Solar Power Installations by 26 Percent in 2012
07/15/13 - California is pushing to increase its investment in solar power, setting a lofty goal of 3,000 megawatts of power by 2017. Last year, the state boosted its solar installations 26 percent over 2011. That’s an additional 391 mW of power. All told, that brings the state’s total solar capacity to 1,629 mW, which is enough to power 150,000 homes.

The increase is due in part to a well-funded rebate program in the state, the largest of its kind in the US, and the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, which helps ease the cost of investment. The program also makes it easier for single-family homes to get in on the solar power investment with a low-income initiative. This alone accounts for 8.5 mW of capacity. read more>>>

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U-M social entrepreneurship partnership in Detroit creates jobs
July 16, 2013 - Whomever invented the term social entrepreneurship probably wasn't thinking of the partnership between the University of Michigan and Cass Community Social Services, but it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to think something similar inspired it.

U-M's Integrated Product Development class has been working with Cass Community Social Services' Green Industries program to come up with new businesses that are both sustainable (financially and environmentally) and create jobs in the Motor City. read more>>>

Green Alliance report urges government to take resource risk seriously
July 16th, 2013 - The report, titled Resource resilient UK, sets out what the government and businesses must do in order to effectively manage resource risk. It analyses the ways in which a circular economy can minimise risk, reduce waste and benefit consumers, the environment and businesses.

The Green Alliance says, “The UK needs to act now or risks falling behind.” It states that other countries have already begun implementing measures to secure resources to support their economic activities. read more>>>

Nature Power 40401 Solar Home

US can't afford to give up green energy industry to other nations
July 15, 2013 - The clean energy industry is as American as fireworks on the Fourth of July. It invented the solar cell. It designed and perfected the electric wind turbine. The sector has largely defied the economic recession, with worldwide investments soaring 600 percent between 2004 and 2011. The result? Texas now has more solar workers than ranchers. California now has more solar workers than actors. And the United States now has more solar workers than coal miners or steel workers. But we’re losing our edge.

Last year, for the first time, China surpassed the US in terms of total dollar investments in clean energy. America now ranks an unimpressive 10 on a list of countries ranked by clean energy capacity installed since 2006. It doesn't even make the top 10 lists for clean energy investment growth in the past five years. read more>>>

Peru to Provide Free Solar Power to its 2 Million Poorest Citizens
07/16/13 - The country of Peru is looking to provide free electricity to over 2 million of its poorest citizens by harvesting energy from the sun. Energy and Mining Minister Jorge Merino said that the National Photovoltaic Household Electrification Program will provide electricity to poor households through the installation of photovoltaic panels.

The first part of the program aims to provide solar systems to 500,000 extremely poor households in areas that lack even basic access to the power grid. Unsurprisingly, it is a massive opportunity for domestic solar installers, and Merino has said that bidding for the contract will open later this year to fix the rest of the panels. read more>>>


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