Despite receiving far less public funding than fossil fuels or nuclear power, the renewable energy sector has had some major breakthroughs in the past years. Here are two examples of these advances I’ve come across recently, The first is the Gemasolar power plant. In Southern Spain, a concentrated solar thermal power plant managed to produce [...]
Archive for the ‘renewables’ Category
Great news on renewable energy
Posted in renewables on August 14, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
How noisy is a wind farm?
Posted in renewables on August 3, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The Telegraph decided to make an experiment and record it on video (link). As this is one of the main (bogus) arguments given against wind farms, the video is quite instructive.
Renewables can supply 80% of energy demand by 2050, concludes the IPCC
Posted in renewables on May 24, 2011 | 2 Comments »
The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has as a central objective to present a summary of scientific findings on the subject of climate change. All of its conclusions have to be approved by unanimity. This mode of functioning leads it to be over-conservative in its estimates but this is not necessarily a bad thing, [...]
How to achieve 100% renewable energy in Australia
Posted in renewables on August 15, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
A report by the University of Melbourne with Beyond Zero Emissions shows how Australia could change its electric system in order to make it 100% dependent on renewable energy (link). It won’t be cheap but it is feasible. Now all Australia needs is strong social movements to make the government turn this projection into reality.
A blast from the past on solar power
Posted in renewables on February 15, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
“A generation from now,this solar heater can either be a curiosity, a museum piece, an example of a road not taken, or it can be a small part of one of the greatest and most exciting adventures ever undertaken by the American people, harnessing the power of the sun to enrich our lives as we [...]
Solar power stalled by US Air Force
Posted in renewables on July 24, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
In Nevada, USA, there is a plan to build a solar tower in the mid of the desert. The plant would provide 100 MW of clean energy and has the advantage of running 24h-a-day. Also, it places no risk for wildlife. Still, it probably won’t be built. The problem? Military. (Washington Post) The solar plant [...]
Wind power… gone with the wind?
Posted in renewables on July 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The only wind power plant in the UK, Vestas Blade, is facing closure. This means 600 jobs at risk and a complete mockery of the renewable energy targets for the UK. The workers have reacted by occupying the factory and demanding that the government nationalizes it (Save Vestas blog). But the government chose to send [...]
Can wind power the world?
Posted in renewables on June 26, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Answer: yes. A study published on the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences estimates that wind turbines could produce 40 times more electricity than the world currently consumes. And that’s considering that they operate on 20% of their capacity! So, what are we waiting for? (Scientific American)
100% renewables in Wales in 20 years
Posted in energy, renewables on May 23, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
That would be great. The Welsh government set a target to reduce by 80-90% the use of carbon-based energy and reduce emissions by 3% annually from 2011. The ambicious environmental plan also predicts an increase in recycling to 70% until 2025, eliminating waste until 2050 and a massive investment in energy efficiency and micro-generation in [...]
