3 September 2015, Renew Economy, Graph of the Day: Big carbon cuts will not pull down economy. Australia Prime Minister Tony Abbott insists that the world should protect its one and only planet, but not at the cost of economic growth. Apart from the question of what sort of economic growth could be achieved in a degraded environment – think of the impacts on crops and agriculture, water scarcity, infrastructure and storm damage – here is some good news: setting ambitious targets to cut carbon emissions does not need to impact economic growth. How do we know this? Because the Abbott government’s own modelling tells us so. They commissioned economist Professor Warwick McKibbin to model the impact on various levels of emission reductions out to 2030. The blue bars on the left show us the various modelling of economic growth assuming no emission reductions. The dark bars show the impact with a 26 per cent target by 2030, and a 45 per cent target. Read More here
Category Archives: New Energy Sources
26 August 2015, Climate News Network, Solar power takes giant strides as prices fall. Massive solar power stations are being built in the world’s “sun belts” − with the US and India competing to have the largest in the world. The US Navy is investing in what will be the largest solar farm in the world in order to provide power for 14 of its bases. The climate of Arizona, where the two earlier phases of the Mesquite solar farm are already up and running, provides 300 days of sunshine a year. And the Navy’s deal to extend the farm is the largest purchase of renewable energy ever made by a US federal government agency. The solar farm project is one of a growing number being installed across what is known as the American Sun Belt − the southern states of America, which have expanding populations, plenty of sunshine, but also large areas of arid and unproductive land. The price of solar panels has now fallen so far worldwide that, in sunny climes, they can compete on cost with any other form of energy generation. This new generation of huge solar farms produces as much power as a large coal-fired plant. Read More here
12 August 2015, Australian Renewable Energy Agency, Key milestone passed at Australia’s biggest solar project. The first photovoltaic panels have been installed at Moree Solar Farm (MSF), Australia’s largest solar array currently under construction.The farm, on 280 hectares in northern New South Wales, will supply 140,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) per year – enough electricity to power 15,000 homes and abate 95,000 tons of carbon pollution each year. It will use a single-axis horizontal tracking system, allowing 222,880 solar panels to follow the sun for maximum efficiency. The first panels were installed in June and at last count almost 100,000 had been put in place. Read More here
10 August 2015, Climate Network News, Clouds over China’s solar power industry. China is by far the world’s biggest producer of solar panels, but the industry could become a victim of its own success. The recent turmoil in China’s stock market has sent shockwaves through the country’s corporate sector, including its mighty solar power industry which in recent years has grown to dominate the world market. Harnessing solar energy is considered a key way of cutting back on fossil fuel use and of meeting the challenge posed by climate change. Seven out of the world’s top ten manufacturers of solar panels are China-based companies, together providing about 40% of global solar supplies. But now the industry’s future expansion is under threat as companies try to cope with too much production capacity, very low profit margins and crushing amounts of debt. In 2013 Suntech, a Chinese company which was at one time the world’s biggest manufacturer,went bust. International creditors are still trying to recoup millions lent to the company. Read More here