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Renewables Archive
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Ecocity Challenges
Freiburg is known as an ecocity. The newly built neighbourhoods of Vauban and Rieselfeld were developed and built according to the idea of sustainability. The citizens of Freiburg are known in Germany for their love of cycling and recycling.
This past December, as climate talks in Copenhagen commenced, I sat in talks in Istanbul listening [...]
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Smart Metering and Net Metering in Singapore and the U.S.
In an ideal smart grid system, energy users have a “smart meter” that tracks their energy consumption (and how much it’s costing them) in real time and allows them to make adjustments accordingly. In addition, ample renewable power is available on the grid, and renewable power producers can sell their excess power back to the [...]
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“Rising Tigers” Out-invest U.S. in Clean Energy Tech
A new study finds that Asia’s rising “clean technology tigers” – China, Japan, and South Korea – have already passed the U.S. in the production of virtually all clean energy technologies
Local economies that wish to harvest tax revenues from the burgeoning clean energy sector must turn to federal governments to support policies that encourage investments [...]
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Incentives and Financing for Renewables Spawn Growth
The Solar Expansion Project is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. In March, the Forest was given $400,000 to add 250 additional solar panels to a facility that already had 50 previously installed. D.J. Group from Beverly, Ohio was awarded the contract. Photo by Alex Snyder
According to the New York [...]
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Vancouver Aims to be Greenest City in the World
Vancouver is already known for savvy city planning.
Vancouver’s Mayor Gregor Robertson recently announced an ambitious 10-year plan to make Vancouver the world’s greenest city by 2020. Robertson presented the plan to the “Gaining Ground-Resilient Cities” conference at the Vancouver Convention Center. Robertson says that Vancouver is still far too reliant on cars and on [...]
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Berkeley Solar Finance Plan will be National Model
The program is expected to greatly boost solar installations.
According to Vice President Joe Biden, the solar financing plan that sprouted in Berkeley in 2007 will become a national model. The program, called Recovery Through Retrofit, creates a framework for cities, counties and states to set up tax districts that allow residential and business property [...]
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Water Conservation and Drought-Tolerant Power
A solar thermal power plant that uses a tower.
Recent disputes over water use in deserts that are well suited for solar thermal power plants have illustrated the need for a holistic approach to urban needs. Solar thermal plants use cheaper technology than photovoltaics (solar panels), but require substantial water because mirrors heat a liquid to [...]
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Reverse Auction Market Could Spawn Renewables
Solar developers expect a reverse auction market to spur a large volume of PV projects in the state.
As California looks for strategies to meet its greenhouse gas reduction goals, finding ways to cost-effectively install renewable energy systems could be key. One creative approach recently proposed by the California Public Utilities Commission involves [...]
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India-US Partnerships for Energy Efficiency and Solar Power
The US Department of Energy and the All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG) have launched a joint training program on energy efficient and green cities in Goa, which will train Indian experts, universities, local governments and civic bodies on helping cities to move to solar powered energy.
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The Union of Concerned Scientists Climate 2030 Blueprint for the U.S.
The Union of Concerned Scientists recently released Climate 2030 Blueprint analyzes the economic and technological feasibility of meeting stringent targets for reducing global warming emissions, with a cap set at 26% below 2005 levels by 2020, and 56% below 2005 levels by 2030