May 2013 Archives
Natural gas:
"Families in surrounding neighborhoods of proposed power plants and cities alike have been frustrated for years by the lack of judicial review of Energy Commission siting and permitting decisions. When communities are denied their day in court, democracy unravels and pollution ensues."
Transportation:
Tesla Motors announces that it will triple its available public charging stations by the end of June, with a coast-to-coast network in place by the end of the year.
Commentary:
The paper this week covered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decision to allow a wind facility to kill a condor, and among other problems the story contained a howler of a misstatement about wind development in the Mojave.
Solar:
A week after construction at the Antelope Valley Solar Ranch 1 had resumed, a major dust storm downwind of the construction site forced the closure of the Antelope Valley Freeway and injured at least six people.
Nuclear :
It looks like Senator Barbara Boxer's shot at Southern California Edison over San Onofre may have missed the mark.
Wind:
Between May 23 and 26, California broke three records for renewable energy feeding into the grid: two for solar, and one for wind.
Nuclear :
Senator Barbara Boxer has asked the Justice Department to look into whether plant operator Southern California Edison deliberately misled regulators as the utility replaced aging steam generators at the plant's two remaining units.
Wind:
The Bureau of Land Management has given the thumbs-up to a Kern County wind project that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says is likely to kill at least one California condor.
Wind:
Shortly after a blade came loose at the Ocotillo Express Wind facility in Imperial County earlier this month, facility operator Pattern Energy deftly handed the matter off to turbine builder Siemens Energy. With a muted press statement issued Friday, it looks as though Siemens is now trying to pass the buck as well.
Utilities:
Representatives say the Southern California utility should be able to meet demand for power even without the San Onofre nuclear power plant, as long as Fortune throws a few breaks its way -- and with the help of its customers.
News and analysis about renewable energy in California. Blog host Chris Clarke is an environmental writer of two decades standing. He currently lives in Joshua Tree and can be contacted at: rewire@kcet.org.
- Wind Power
- PV and Solar Thermal
- Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROEI)
- Watts and Watt-Hours, Kilo and Mega
- 'Enough To Power X Thousand Homes'
- The Grid
- Distributed Generation
- Conservation and 'Negawatts'
- Grid Storage
- PACE Loans, Feed In Tariffs and Net Metering
- Base Load and Peaking Power
- Capacity Factor
- Renewable Portfolio Standards
- Biomass
- Transportation and Renewable Energy
- Geothermal
