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Biden's latest climate change actions expand offshore wind farms
President Biden has unveiled a slew of actions to deal with climate change, including offshore wind energy in the Gulf of Mexico.
Wind and solar could meet 85 percent of current US electricity needs
Renewable sources may meet most power demands in 'advanced, industrialized nations,' according to a study.
Biden administration approves first large offshore wind power farm in the US
The Biden administration has approved the Vineyard Wind project, the first large offshore wind farm in the US.
Denmark will build a wind-generating artificial island in the North Sea
The long-rumored island is expected to begin operations in 2033.
The UK wants to power all homes with offshore wind by 2030
The UK government has promised once again to make a massive investment in offshore wind energy. Speaking at the Conservative party conference, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the renewable would power every home in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland by 2030. To meet that goal, the UK will need to generate at least 40GW of energy from offshore wind.
Alphabet quits work on its energy-generating kites
Alphabet's years-long involvement with energy-making kites is no more. The Google parent is ending its work on Makani's wind power technology, with X's Moonshot lead Astro Teller warning that the path to a viable business was "much longer and riskier" than expected. Alphabet liked Makani's environmental focus, but felt that it was important to pour effort into those areas where it believed it could "have the greatest impact."
The UK likely got more power from renewables than fossil fuels last quarter
The UK generated more power from renewable sources than from fossil fuels in the third quarter of 2019. This is the first time that's happened since the UK opened its first public electricity-generating station in 1882. The findings, revealed in an analysis by Carbon Brief, speak to progress the country has made in transforming its electricity system over the past decade.
Honda will offset 60 percent of its US electricity use with wind and solar
Honda plans to cover 60 percent of the electricity used at its North American manufacturing plants with renewable energy. Beginning next fall, Honda will purchase 530,000 MWh per year from the Boiling Spring Wind Farm in Oklahoma. In fall 2021, it will begin receiving 482,000 MWh per year from a Texas solar facility. According to Honda, this deal is the largest single purchase of solar and wind power by any automaker.
Amazon plans new solar and wind farms in Ireland and Virginia
Months after Amazon shareholders turned down a plea by employees to do more about climate change, the company announced two new renewable energy projects. Today, Amazon shared plans for a wind farm in Ireland and a solar farm in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. When completed sometime in 2020, these projects are expected to generate a combined 168,000 MWh of clean energy annually, helping Amazon reach its goal to power 100 percent of its operations with renewable power.
Scotland generated enough wind energy to power its homes twice
It's no secret Scotland has a lot of wind farms, but it's now clear just how much electricity those turbines can produce. Data from WeatherEnergy shows that Scottish wind turbines generated just over 9.8 million megawatt-hours of electricity between January and June, or enough to power roughly 4.47 million homes -- nearly twice as many homes as there are in Scotland. The operators theoretically have enough excess wind energy to power a large chunk of northern England.
Nissan's zero-emission ice cream truck uses recycled EV batteries
For some, chasing the neighborhood ice cream truck is a favorite summer tradition. But many ice cream trucks have diesel engines, and older models keep those engines running to power the freezers. That means you get a hefty side of CO2 emissions with your cone. Nissan thinks it can change that. To celebrate the UK's Clean Air Day, Nissan unveiled a zero-emission ice cream van concept, called "Sky to Scoop."
Scotland will build a massive battery to store excess wind power
UK energy supplier Scottish Power plans to launch a massive battery-storage system to capture renewable power from its 214 wind turbines. The 50 megawatt lithium-ion battery will allow Scottish Power to store energy when wind speeds are high and release it when they're low. According to The Guardian, this is the UK's most ambitious energy storage project to-date, and it will take the UK one step closer to reaching a net zero carbon economy.
GE helps old wind turbines increase power production by lengthening their rotor blades
Building new fleets of windmills isn't the only way to meet increasing demand for breeze-based energy, it seems. General Electric plans to get more renewable energy out of some of its existing turbines by lengthening their blades. You see, shorter rotors need a stronger wind to turn them, so GE figured out how to make existing blades longer -- without reducing their strength -- to increase their electrical production by over twenty percent.
Google data center in Oklahoma to get 48MW of wind power, boost renewable energy in the Sooner state
Google has made a point of relying on renewable resources for its data centers whenever possible, even down to the cooling. It hasn't had quite as unique an arrangement as what it's planning for its data center in Oklahoma, though. The search firm wants to supply its Mayes County location with 48MW of wind energy from Apex's Canadian Hills Wind Project, but it isn't buying power directly from the source. Instead, it's making a deal with the Grand River Dam Authority, a utility, to purchase the clean power on top of what's already supplied from the GRDA at present. The deal should keep the data center on the environmentally friendly side while giving it room to grow. Wind power will come online at Google's facility once the Canadian Hills effort is up and running later in 2012; hopefully, that gives us enough time to better understand why there's a Canadian River and Canadian Hills to be found in the southern United States.
NHK developing hybrid renewable energy-powered video camera for use in disaster areas
You can always count on Japan's NHK to come up with new, exciting and innovative ways to bring us video coverage. The latest project? A wind- and solar-powered robot camera designed for situations such as natural disasters. Loaded with a 1,200 Ah battery, even if the elements don't bless it with sun and air, it can keep filming for two to three days. The combination of wind turbine and solar panels obviously allow it to generate more power than either method on its own, with the turbine reportedly generating 1 kW at 11 m/s wind speeds. A special power-saving mode prevent it draining too fast when full functionality -- such as the built-in wireless, cellular and satellite broadcasting systems aren't needed. Currently the prototype is installed on a rooftop while battery and power-generation are fully tested, but it's hoped that this could lead to further developments for disaster area broadcast equipment. Or -- here's hoping -- power-cut-proof sports coverage.
GE, Urban Green Energy set up first integrated, wind-powered EV charging station (video)
GE and Urban Green Energy might not be the first to install a wind-powered EV charging station, but the two may be the best prepared to take the concept to a grander scale. The partnership just installed the first Sanya Skypump just outside of Barcelona to serve corporate and government drivers with truly clean energy at levels that meet their typically heftier demands. It's billed as one of the first properly integrated wind-powered EV chargers, and it's undoubtedly one of the more elegant: one of UGE's 4K wind turbine towers catches energy from the breeze above, while a GE Durastation tucked neatly at the bottom provides high-voltage charging for EV drivers undoubtedly eager to get moving once again. Don't worry if you don't speak enough Catalan to charge up at the initial location, either, as plans are underway to bring Skypumps to malls and universities across Australia and the US before 2012 is over. The only catch is the frown you'll likely get if you try to plug in a personal car for a top-up -- let's hope the attention swings towards completely green power sources for commuters in the near future.
SeaOrbiter to begin construction by year's end, project price tag clocks in at $52.7 million
Remember that USS Enterprise-esque ocean research vessel we first ran across back in 2005? Yes, the one that was originally slated to hit the open waters in 2008 or 2009. After catching heat for its lofty ambitions for the last 12 years, the SeaOrbiter is finally set to begin construction later this year. The ship is slated to measure 170 feet (51 meters) tall, but to stabilize the vessel over half of the vehicle would stay below the surface, providing all sorts of collection systems and useful tools. Not only does it look like something out of Minority Report, but the SeaOrbiter is 100% sustainable. The ship's power is set to come from solar, wind and wave power with biofuel in case nature doesn't cooperate -- when the vessel isn't adrift via ocean currents. Funding has been obtained for the $52.7 million undertaking, which will produce an endless amount of data on global warming and marine biology around the globe. For a look at some renders of the massive vehicle, click though the gallery below for a quick peek. %Gallery-158595%
Inhabitat's Week in Green: NY Design Week, a hybrid Porsche and recycled sportswear
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. Want a sneak peek into the future of design? This week Inhabitat hit NY Design Week to uncover the best and the brightest in green interior and furniture design. At ICFF we spotted an ethereal series of 3D printed Hyphae lamps and we were wowed by the iTree -- a massive iPod sound system made out of an entire tree trunk! We also saw LED technology take on surprising new forms - like Light and Contrast's tiny flower-shaped lamps and Peteris Zilbers' quirky mood broom lamp (yes, it's shaped like a broom). We'll continue with the New York Design Week coverage throughout next week, so come back to Inhabitat in the coming days for more fresh new design finds, and read on beyond the break for more in the here and now.
University of California, Riverside runs entire building floor off of 1.1-megawatt green battery
We're used to batteries powering a lot of devices, but the University of California, Riverside is upping that a notch by charging up a whole floor's worth. The school's Winston Chung Global Energy Center is walking the eco-friendly walk and has started using a huge bank of rare earth, lithium-ion batteries from Balqon to produce 1.1 megawatts, enough to keep Winston Chung Hall's entire first floor humming along while tapping renewable energy sources like solar and wind power. The batteries bank their energy overnight, keeping the throngs of students happy without having to recharge as much or use the regular power grid as a fallback. While it's considered a testbed, the university's giant battery is considered a blueprint for cellular towers and the green power sources themselves -- the combination of which could keep your smartphone up and running with a lot less of an environmental hit. [Thanks, Justin B]
Sanya Skypump charges your EV, illuminates parking lots using wind and rays (video)
So you're the first person in town to adopt an electric vehicle (EV), even clearing room for that 240v charging station in the garage. But what do you when you venture far from home, edging past the 200 mile mark on your Tesla Roadster? Well, if the Sanya Skypump ever sees the light of day (from its 150-watt solar panel), the hybrid solar / wind turbine-powered charging station will be making its way to parking lots around the world, pairing with a GE WattStation to juice up your EV as you shop at the mall, or browse a certain tech site from the office. The WattStation can theoretically recharge your EV in four to eight hours, though we're not sure how those figures translate with this particular setup. The Skypump system is based on Sanya's Streetlamp, which you can see in all its twirling glory in the B.o.B. music video remix just past the break.
