I have nothing pithy to say. I'm in somewhat of a slump right now, anyone who follows me on twitter (@marknadratowski) will agree. At least Coco will be back on the TV this year, although we do have to wait until November. Anyway, on to the energy.
NASA has teamed up w/Florida Power and Light on a new solar energy project:
FPL's Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center is located on NASA property at Kennedy Space Center and is producing an estimated 10 megawatts of clean, emissions-free power, which is enough energy to serve approximately 1,100 homes.
FPL's Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 227,000 tons over the life of the project, which according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is equivalent to removing 1,800 cars from the road each year. It will also save approximately 122,000 barrels of oil and 2.8 billion cubic feet of natural gas over its lifetime.
2009 was a good year for wind energy in America:
The wind-energy industry last year installed about 5,700 turbines with more than 10,000 megawatts of generating capacity - enough to serve more than 2.4 million homes - according to the American Wind Energy Association.
Texas leads with more than 9000 megawatts of wind generation capacity, though Iowa leads in relying on wind-generated electricity. 14.2 percent of the state's electrical power came from wind, compared with 1.8 percent nationwide.
A new advanced biodiesel production system has arrived in California. ARIES is a highly automated, transportable biodiesel production unit that can be controlled from a remote location. It uses a variety local, non-food feedstocks and is able to remotely operate hundreds of scalable facilities that can produce as much as 3-10 million gallons a year. Along with this, a rugged 100,000 Mini-MPU has been developed for use by the military, which makes ARIES deployable around the world.
Another possible source for biofuel:
Evogene Ltd. (TASE: EVGN) today announced the results of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of biodiesel produced from castor bean varieties being developed by the Company. The assessment shows that such biodiesel reduces Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions by 90% compared to petroleum diesel in the U.S. The results are based on Evogene's objectives for castor bean varieties, aimed at increasing crop yields to 4-5 ton/ha on semi-arid lands -- at present focusing on Texas and Brazil -- and therefore providing the additional benefit of not competing with food use of arable land.
Georgia Power is adding more solar, although they don't really want to. And the reason for the solar expansion is quite novel:
"Our customers have told us that they want more renewables in the state of Georgia," Wallace said. "We have had a lot of solar developers come into the state; we have [large] commercial customers that want to have renewables in their portfolios."
Americans want more clean energy? Who knew?
Rhode Island is funing a wide array of renewable projects thanks to funding from the stimulus.
150 clean energy jobs are coming to Massachusetts.
In the not to distant future, applying solar technology to your home might be as simple as applying a new coat of paint.
New Mexico could soon have a new nickname: solar valley.
Of course, if we are to build a new green energy economy, our workers will need extensive training to build the systems and infrastructure necessary. To that end, the Department of Energy & Department of Labor are trying to help.
And the state of New York is embarking on a similar plan.
An improbable Senate alliance could further the cause of American renewable energy:
Freshman Democratic Senators Mark Begich (D-AK) and Jean Shaheen (D-NH) have been joined by Republican Senators Mike Crapo(D-ID) and Lisa Murkowski (D-K) in announcing breakthrough bipartisan support for a little-utilized form of renewable energy, with major implications for greenhouse gas reductions in the US in the American Renewable Biomass Heating Act.
Their legislation would expand the use of waste biomass in high-efficiency heating systems in commercial and industrial buildings, Brighter Energy reports, by expansion of 30% tax credits to exceed the $1,500 limit, and to extend past the current expiration date of 2013.
And, last but not least, shit happens:
Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk has recognized manure’s resource capabilities, so has championed a novel manure solution. The Dane County Cow Power project, a community digester in the town of Vienna, will take the manure from 2,500 cows and produce electricity. In the process, manure is broken down by bacteria, releasing gases that can be burned in an electric-producing generator. The project will power more than 2,500 homes, and special technology in the digester will remove much of the phosphorus — the nutrient that stimulates lake algae.
The project has three winners — dairy farmers who need better solutions to manage their manure, utilities that can buy electricity produced from cows rather than coal, and people who want clean water to drink and clean lakes to swim and fish in.
The United States has 140 biogas digesters while the European Union has nearly 10,000. Wisconsin leads the nation with 32 digesters counting Dane County’s Cow Power project. Germany, about twice the size of Wisconsin, is the world leader in biogas production and has 5,300 digesters, mostly from small farms. They employ more than 10,000 people in the biogas industry.