Solar Energy

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The US military has been worried deeply for over a decade about the impact of the climate emergency on its bases and operational readiness. The Department of the Army has just released its first Climate Strategy for dealing with what Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin calls an “existential crisis.” The […]

Climate Crisis

Solarpunk: Visions of a just, nature-positive world

China Dialogue

By Joe Coroneo-Seaman | – ( China Dialogue ) – “It is 2050. In most places in the world, the air is moist and fresh, even in cities. It feels a lot like walking through a forest, and very likely this is exactly what you are doing. The air is cleaner than it has been […]

Climate Crisis

Germany’s Solar PV capacity, at 59 Gigs, overtakes its Onshore Wind, as it aims to triple Both

Clean Energy Wire

By Jessica Bateman and Benjamin Wehrmann | – ( Clean Energy Wire ) – The total solar PV capacity in Germany has reached 59 gigawatts (GW) in 2021, overtaking the installed onshore wind power capacity in the country, according to the pv magazine. The cumulative installed wind power capacity reached slightly more than 56 GW […]

Batteries

Climate Hope: Record $920 bn. was invested in Low-Carbon Tech in 2021

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – BloombergNEF reports that in 2021, a record-breaking $920 billion was invested globally in low-carbon technology, just short of $1 trillion. The report says that $755 billion was spent to implement low-carbon technologies, with $366 billion going into renewable energy and $273 billion into electrifying transportation. That $273 billion put into […]

Climate Crisis

Europe is dependent on Russian Gas during Ukraine Crisis because it didn’t Ramp up Renewables Faster

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The growing conflict between the United States and the Russian Federation over the Ukraine has taken an increasingly dark turn, with press reports that US embassy personnel and dependents are being pulled out of Kiev and that President Biden is considering sending US troops to Ukraine’s neighbors. The conflict has […]

Climate Crisis

Biden Still Determined to pass the Blockbuster Green Energy Package in BBB; Here’s how He can Do it

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – I argued last December that since Sen. Joe Manchin’s opposition had tanked the enormous Build Back Better act, President Biden should hive off the green energy portions and try to get them passed on a bipartisan basis. Carol Davenport and Lisa Friedman writing in the New York Times report that […]

Germany

Renewables supplied 46% of net public power in Germany in 2021, 40.9% of Gross

Clean Energy Wire

NB: “In 2020, renewable energy sources (including wind, hydroelectric, solar, biomass, and geothermal energy) generated . . . about 21% of all the electricity generated in the United States.” – EIA [half that of Germany]. – JRC By Kerstine Appunn | – ( Clean Energy Wire ) – The share of renewables in net public […]

Climate Crisis

Raven releases the Sun: First Native American Interior Secretary moves to put in 100 GW Solar on Federal Land

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – As part of a Biden Administration push to put in 27 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy on federal land by 2025, the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management has just approved the third major solar farm in California, announcing that “the Bureau of Land Management has approved the Oberon Solar […]

Agriculture

How Solar energy and Agriculture can benefit from One Another

Sustainability Times

By April Miller | – ( Sustainability Times) – Various industries are searching for emission reduction tactics as eco-consumer rates in the United States rise. The agricultural sector is a significant polluter, requiring technological advancement to enhance sustainability. Environmentalists are exploring the cross benefits of using solar power to support farming. The connection between renewables […]