Why 2015 may be remembered as a transformative year for how we get energy

by Chris Mooney, The Washington Post | Link to article The United States is on track to shut down a record amount of coal-fired power plants in 2015. At the same time, it has installed a record amount of new solar energy capacity. The past year, in other words, hints at a historic transition for […]

Paris pact: Only a first step

by DanJacobson, Capitol Weekly | Link to article As the pixels settle on the agreement reached at COP 21 — the United Nations’ effort to stave off the worst impacts of global warming by getting countries to limit the man made pollution that accelerates — there is a lot to learn and a roadmap of […]

The LA Times and “Sponsored Content”

There’s supposed to be an unbreachable wall between news stories and advertising, but more and more advertising is designed to look like news. The LA Times is among the financially strapped publications that take money to produce articles that promote special interest groups. They’re not written by news reporters, but how’s a reader to know? […]

Solar plant shines at the end of Tonopah’s tunnel

Henry Brean, Las Vegas Review-Journal | Link to article TONOPAH — After four years and almost $1 billion, the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Plant 225 miles northwest of Las Vegas delivered its first megawatts to the grid during a test run on Oct. 11. And when it finally happened, it happened at night. Site manager […]

Crescent Dunes Construction Timelapse October 2015

Time lapse video showing construction of world’s first utility scale molten salt power tower project, located in Nevada. With 10 hours of energy storage, the facility generates solar electricity even after the sun has set! The project is a tremendous success story for U.S. developed technology. The project created over 4,300 direct, indirect and induced […]

Top 10 ways wind energy is a reliable and affordable Clean Power Plan solution

By Tom Vinson, Into the Wind (AWEA Blog) | Link to article Real-world data and recent studies show low-cost wind energy allows states and electric generators to affordably and reliably cut the most carbon. (Link to article)  

By 2020, Toyota plans to sell 30,000 fuel-cell cars a year, reach 94 mpg with Prius

Yesterday, Benjamin Hulac, E&E reporter, posted this news regarding the Toyota environmental objectives released yesterday in Japan. Here is a brief excerpt: Toyota released a new corporate blueprint of environmental objectives yesterday in Japan, establishing lofty objectives to streamline production of its vehicles and at its plants and taper down its energy use by 2050. […]

Brown signs renewable energy bill

By David Siders, Sacramento Bee | Link to article One month after the oil industry and moderate Democrats in the Assembly dealt Gov. Jerry Brown a rare defeat on major climate legislation, the governor on Wednesday signed into law a less sweeping greenhouse gas reduction measure. Though the bill remains significant – requiring California to […]

U.S. and China aim to hit climate goals sooner than expected in some cities

By Christi Parsons and Chris Megerian, LA Times | Link to article U.S. and Chinese officials plan to unveil new, more ambitious carbon-emission rules for several Chinese cities and provinces, embracing a faster timeline than the sweeping targets President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinpeng set last year for reducing greenhouse gases over the next […]