Despite global struggles with the economy, investments in renewable energy technologies have continued to grow in 2011. New investments in renewable power and fuels (excluding large hydropower and solar hot water) reached $257 billion, and increase $37 billion from 2010. This according to research conducted by the WorldWatch Institute’s Climate and Energy program. In addition, during 2011, investments in renewable …
Clean Currents Hosts Wind Powered Baltimore Week
Clean Currents, based in Maryland, is hosting Wind Powered Baltimore Week October 15 – 21, 2012 to celebrate Baltimore’s growing community of businesses, non-profits, and homes powered by wind. During the week there will be a series of events and promotions and the official kick-off of the Green Neighborhood Challenge will take place, a program that gives community groups an opportunity …
New Option to Lower Wind Farm Maintenance Costs
With concern over the loss of the Production Tax Credit (PTC), many wind farms are looking for ways to improve efficiency. Mass Megawatts Wind Power says it’s new wind augmentation system allows customers to avoid excessive maintenance issues related to mechanical equipment not having several years of an operational history. The aftermarket accessory, according to the company, utilizes a less …
Bloomberg U.S. Awarded WindMade Label
The first news organization in the world, Bloomberg, has been awarded the WindMade certification label for its U.S. operations. WindMade is a global consumer label that identifies companies that use wind energy and other renewables that are certified by UN Global Compact and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). To be considered, a company must obtain at least 25 percent of …
ContourGlobal to Build Largest Wind Farm in Peru
Countour Global Latam S.A. will be constructing two wind farms in Peru that the company acquired from Energia Eolica S.A. (“EESA”). The wind farms, Cupisnique and Talara, were under development by EESA and when complete, will have an installed capacity of 114 megawatts and be the first large scale wind farms built and operational in the Peru. They will also be …
Virginia Tech to Explore Wind & Solar in India
A new Virginia Tech research center is set to open in Tamil Nadu in southeast India with the hope of refining and adapting windmills and solar panels for use in rural India households. With more than a billion people worldwide living in rural communities in extreme poverty, how energy production proceeds will have global impact. Windmills are being designed to …
Renewable Energy in the Debate
Increasing America’s energy independence came up quickly in the presidential debate last night and it showed some similarities and some clear differences between the candidates. “I think it’s important for us to develop new sources of energy here in America,” President Obama said in his opening remarks. Governor Romney followed up by putting energy first in his five part plan …
Undecided Voters Favor Clean Air & Energy
According to a poll of undecided voters in eight swing states including Florida, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, the favored candidates for president and Congress are ones that support clean air and clean energy policies over candidates who don’t. The survey was conducted by the Public Policy Polling (PPP) on behalf of the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Action …
EU Surpasses 100 Gigawatts of Wind Power
Wind power in the European Union (EU) has surpassed 100 gigawatts according to the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA). This is enough electricity generated per year to meet the total needs of 57 million households. The installation of wind power is accelerating: it took 20 years to install the first 10 gigawatts; 13 years to add another 90 gigawatts. “It …
Texas A&M Showcases Vertical Axis Wind Turbines
Three 20-kilowatt vertical axis wind turbines are now generating energy for Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi. The turbine trio is the largest vertical axis wind turbine installation of its kind in the United States as well as the largest of their kind. The main campus also installed a 4-kilowatt wind turbine that can be horizontally lowered and opened for …