Solar Power

Eye-Fi Update Will Share Photos From Camera to Phone

2011-01-05T16:34:00.000-08:00

Eye-Fi's claim to fame so far has been its Wi-Fi-enabled SD cards that let digital cameras interact with a variety of Web services like Flickr and Facebook, as well as wirelessly transferring your photos to your Mac. On Tuesday, the company announced that it will soon add smartphones and tablets into the mix.

Eye-Fi, which dubs these upcoming features "Direct Mode," says the capability will arrive later in 2011 as a free update to its SD cards and iPhone app. Instead of uploading your photos to social media sites or the company's recently released Eye-Fi View service, Direct Mode will let you send your photos from your digital camera to your iPhone or iPod touch. The company's announcement also cites "tablet" a couple of times, suggesting that the update might bring its iPhone app to the iPad as well.

By adding the option of sending your photos to an iPhone or iPad instead of directly to social networks, your iOS device may be able to become a sort of on-the-go backup for your photography, or an intermediary for touching up photos before sharing them.

When it arrives, the update will be free for the Eye-Fi X2 card line, as well as the company's iOS app.

Causes Of Land Pollution And Recycling Facts

2009-11-25T18:20:00.002-08:00

Current info about the causes of land pollution is not
always the easiest thing to locate. Fortunately, this report
includes the latest facts about solar energy available.

Solar energy is energy from the sun. When the sun is shining
solar energy is being produced as it sends the heat
radiating to the earth. Solar energy is as plentiful as
daylight, as limitless as organic life itself, a fuel that
comes free of charge and replenishes itself every time the
earth rotates on its axis. Almost all energy, after all, is
ultimately stored solar power: Oil, gas, and coal were born
of the ancient sunlight that fed prehistoric animals and
plants, the wind is set howling by the sun's unequal heating
of the atmosphere, and even a campfire draws its warmth from
solar power trapped long ago through photosynthesis.

Wind and water have been used to power mills for centuries.
Wind power is a totally renewable energy source with no
greenhouse gas emissions, but due to its unpredictability,
has problems integrating with national grids. Combined
together, wind and hydrogen can cancel out their inherent
defects and be an effective tool in the battle against
carbon dioxide and global warming. Winds are rated in seven
classes; higher class numbers indicate stronger winds.

It seems like new information is discovered about something
every day. And the topic of solar energy is no exception.
Keep reading to get more fresh news about the causes of land
pollution.

Wind forecasting played a significant role in enabling
large-scale wind power penetration and we believe that
forecasting PV production is less complex and will have
similar results for enabling industry growth. Wind energy in
Spain has now entered a dynamic phase where the serious
challenges that arise when wind energy becomes one of the
main energy supply technologies need to be met. Current
policy direction signals how an intermittent power source
can be integrated into the electricity market in significant
quantities.

Solar energy research is expanding rapidly, with many new
ideas being explored - some using exotic nano-materials
combined with ingenious engineering approaches. PVs look set
to contribute significantly to future power generation.
Solar energy use accounted for 129 kilo tons of oil
equivalent (ktoe) in 2000 and is projected to be 431 ktoe
and 828 ktoe in 2010 and 2020, respectively.

Renewable energy provides more jobs per unit of output and
per dollar spent than conventional energies do. Economic
woes and high unemployment rates influenced Spain's 94
decision to invest in renewable energy. Renewable energy is
no less reliable than energy generated from more traditional
sources and using it does not mean that you have to change
your lifestyle or your appliances. Using renewable energy
can be as simple as using the sun for drying clothes or can
mean taking advantage of more sophisticated renewable
technologies, such as photovoltaic cell systems, which
use the sun's heat and light to generate energy, wind
turbines or ground source heat pumps which extract energy
from underground. Renewable energy is important for the
environment as it produces little or no greenhouse gases.
The exception is biomass which is considered as being
'carbon neutral'.

Now you can be a confident expert on the causes of land
pollution. OK, maybe not an expert. But you should have
something to bring to the table next time you join a
discussion on the facts about solar energy.

About the author: EnergySavingSite.info brings you
information on
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Can I Really Heat My Pool From Solar Panels?

2009-11-25T18:20:00.001-08:00

Would you like to heat your pool with solar energy? Because, there’s good news! Installing solar panels to heat your pool won’t cost you much. You can even construct them yourself for under 0 in materials and less than a weekend’s worth of your time. An added benefit is that, after the initial installation cost, you won’t be paying an ongoing fuel bill.

Why Not Discover the Advantages of Building Solar Energy Here?

But before you go forward, you’ll need to take some things into consideration. First, would the system receive ample sunlight throughout the day? The solar panels best for heating pools are simple passive collectors. They usually consist of plastic, water-filled coils encased in shatter-resistant glass. As water collects in the coils, it becomes heated by the sun, then pumped into the pool.

If your property has a lot of shade trees, there might not be sufficient sunlight for a passive solar water heater. However, an unshaded south- or west-facing rooftop is an ideal spot for solar panels to get the full benefit of sunlight.

Building Solar Panel is Much More Simple

Next, think about the difference between how warm you want your pool to be and the temperature outside. For example, if you’re thinking about heating an outdoor pool in Minnesota to 80 degrees during a freezing winter, stay with pool covers and a powerful gas heating system. On the other hand, if you want to heat your outdoor pool in Texas to 80 degrees in 50-degree weather, then a solar heating system would be ideal.

When you do install a solar heater, you’ll still want to cover your pool for such times when the air is cooler than your pool’s water temperature. Any time you notice steam rising from the pool’s surface, it’s best to use the pool cover to retain the heat.

An Informative Instruction on How To Join Solar Cells Cheaply

Here’s a word of caution if you’re just learning about solar heating systems. Some people think they may be able to save even more money by using their pool’s solar heater for hot water in their house. But unfortunately, the two systems don’t mix well. The water in your pool is being conditioned with chlorine and muriatic acid. It won’t do any harm to swim in it or to swallow a little, but you really don’t want to mix it with your home’s drinking water system. Installing a solar water heating system for your home is an entirely separate project.

Suniva solar cell technology powers India’s first large-scale solar project

2009-11-25T18:19:00.000-08:00

Suniva®, Inc., a U.S. manufacturer of high-efficiency monocrystalline silicon solar cells and supplier of Suniva-branded solar modules, today announced the completion of its collaborative project with Titan Energy Systems Ltd. to create India’s first large-scale project in Jamuria, West Bengal. Suniva’s cells power the 1MW solar electric power plant which is expected to expand an additional 250kW early next year.

“High-efficiency solar technology presents significant advantages in terms of land use and balance of system costs, and Suniva is our key partner for delivering the high power and volumes needed to keep projects reliably moving forward,” said Sankar Chodagam, Managing Director of Titan Energy Systems Ltd.

The Indian government recently approved a National Solar Mission, which includes a target of deploying at least 20GW of solar projects by 2020, as part of its national strategy to provide power to millions of citizens and combat climate change. Over the next five years, Titan plans to develop a series of large-scale projects and installations in Andhra Pradesh, India. Suniva fully supports and looks forward to continuing its collaboration with the fast-growing Indian market.

“As India pursues its significant goals for solar power, innovative solar cell technology will be just as crucial as new system designs and deployment strategies,” said John Baumstark, CEO of Suniva. “We maintain a close and open dialogue with Titan in order to provide them with the best possible technology solutions and look forward to partnering with them in the recently announced 1 GW project in Andhra Pradesh. Our collaborative projects in India, the United States and throughout the world will help shape the future of renewable energy.”

Worldwide interest in solar technology made in the United States continues to grow. Suniva’s technology is currently being integrated into a variety of installations throughout the United States, including a 550kW solar farm in North Carolina and a 10MW development in Georgia.

Solar Power 50% Cheaper By Year End

2009-11-25T18:18:00.000-08:00

By the end of 2009, there will have been a 50% drop in the levelized cost--i.e. the lifetime cost per kWh before subsidies--of solar power, and a 10% reduction in the levelized cost of other sources of renewable energy sectors compared to the end of 2008, according to new analysis by New Energy Finance.

“So far this year, the steady decline in the cost of equipment in sectors like solar and wind has been largely offset by the increasing costs of financing,” said Michael Liebreich, chairman and CEO of New Energy Finance. “By the end of this year, however, as capital markets loosen up and equipment prices continue their decline, we will see the levelized costs decline, finishing the year 10% below the end of last year across the board and far more than that in solar.”

Photovoltaic (PV) module prices across the board have continued their downward trend, although the rate of decline has tapered. Thin-film remains the low-cost leader in solar with projects as cheap as $3/W, making thin-film projects 25% less expensive than crystalline silicon systems on a levelized basis.

PV projects with tracking systems have seen the least reduction in costs due to the fact that costs for single- and double-axis trackers have remained buoyant relative to panel prices.

Although new transactions have been few, turbine prices have fallen to their lowest levels in several years at 18-20% below early 2008 levels. To date, this drop in equipment prices has mostly been offset by higher costs of financing.

In the offshore market, costs continue to rise with projects moving into deeper waters, facing increasingly complex construction and capital costs. As capital markets begin to recover, both onshore and offshore projects should begin to see falling levelized costs.

Levelized geothermal costs are particularly sensitive to fluctuations in capital markets and drilling stage debt and equity has been in scarce supply through this year. Drilling costs fell by nearly 50% as drilling rigs flew into excess with a falling oil price, but these have recovered in the last quarter in step with oil. In the past quarter levelized costs have risen by 8-10% but should remain flat at year end.

Reprinted with permission from SustainableBusiness.com

Castle Drogo wins award for biomass boiler

2009-11-25T18:17:00.000-08:00

Castle Drogo on Dartmoor has won an award for being one of the best examples of sustainable energy in the South West with its new biomass boiler.

One of eight winners, England’s last castle took home a highly-sought after Green Energy Award for its biomass boiler, in the category of ‘Best Renewable Energy Scheme’.

The new biomass boiler has reduced the Castle's annual carbon emissions by 150 tonnes and generated 1,000,000 kilowatt hours of renewable heat per year. It is easily accessible to 125,000+ visitors a year, and is included in visitor tours that further promote renewable energy. The fuel for the installation is supplied by a local woodchip supplier, with 50 per cent coming from the estate itself with 100 per cent by June 2010. Many members of the local community, other businesses and charities have also visited Drogo to have a look at the new boiler to see if our success can be replicated elsewhere.

The winners were chosen from a high-quality shortlist of entrants from across the region by an independent panel of judges who have expert knowledge in sustainable energy.

David Bailey, Castle Drogo Property Manager said: “We are thrilled at receiving this award; it’s a real credit to everyone who has been involved on this project. Our aim is to be free from fossil fuels by 2016 through using hydro and solar power and by reducing our energy requirements. Our new solar boiler has already reduced our fossil fuel needs by 50 percent. We not only want to be the last castle built in England but also the greenest!”

DIY-Solar-Air-Heater

2009-11-14T12:03:00.001-08:00

Make a DIY solar air heater from soda cans for next to nothing.

Pictured below is a simple small passive solar heater made from recycled aluminium drinks cans and used to heat a room.

If the building to be heated is well insultated, a solar heater such as this can lift the temperature by a significant number of degrees. A larger heater or a number of similar heaters can be used to heat larger spaces, or to heat smaller spaces to a higher temperature.Offcuts of 2 x 4 and a sheet of plywood were used to build a box to tightly hold 5 rows of 10 black-painted aluminium drinks cans.

The inside of the box was then sealed using silicone to prevent hot air from escaping.

Cold air is drawn in from a hole at the bottom of the box, and the heated air emerges from the top passing through a pipe into the room to be heated. A perspex sheet was glued to the box to let sunlight in but not let the hot air escape.

Cloud Over India's Solar Power Plans

2009-11-14T12:02:00.001-08:00

India is betting big on abundant sunshine to feed its growing power needs, but funding costs and feeble solar panel manufacturing capacity are clouding its ambitions to harness the non-fossil fuel.

In July 2009, India unveiled a $19 billion plan to produce 20 GW of solar power by 2020, with this increasing to 100 GW by 2030 and 200 GW by 2050.

It's a hugely ambitious project--solar now accounts for only a tiny proportion of India's energy mix. The need for more capacity is clear--apart from environmental imperatives, India's inability to meet power demand now has for long crimped its economic growth.

Rules governing the sale of solar power to India's national and state grid companies are vague, solar equipment makers don't yet produce enough to benefit from economies of scale and bring down prices, and financing costs make it difficult to expand output rapidly.
Of India's installed generating capacity of 152.36 gigawatts, there are just two megawatts of solar capacity connected to the grid. There is no data available for off-grid generation.
However, things are moving. On Saturday the government is to unveil a roadmap on how India can achieve its target, which includes provision for surplus solar power made in the domestic sector to be fed into the grid for a fee.

It will also include the role of the federal and provincial governments, funding issues and what sort of financial supports will be made available.

Grid companies aren't obliged to buy solar power but the "Solar Mission" announcement may change this.

Solar power in India costs 15 rupees ($0.32) per kilowatt hour, compared to 3.5 rupees per kilowatt hour power drawn from the national grid, government officials say.
Other parts of the roadmap may call for government buildings to be fitted with solar panels by 2012, and for the promotion of microfinancing to encourage nearly 20 million households to start using solar power by 2020.

"The solar push will not come easy. After all, we are talking about the world's second most populous nation transitioning from fossil-fuel energy, which accounts for nearly 60 per cent of our electricity generation, to solar power becoming a substantial part of the country's energy mix," Rajiv Arya, chief executive officer of Moser-Baer (India) Ltd.'s photovoltaic business.
Photovoltaic cells, are usually made of silicon, collect solar energy and convert it to electricity.
Moser-Baer will invest $5 billion over 10 years to build new photovoltaic cell manufacturing capacity, in plants in Hyderabad, Chennai and Delhi, Chairman Deepak Puri said Tuesday.
Only two other local companies--Tata BP Solar and Webel-SL Energy Systems Ltd. -- make solar panels.

The government recently invited bids from companies to set up photovoltaic cell making plants, and offered a range of supports for this.

"The investment required to set up a 3000 megawatt manufacturing capacity will be around 180 billion rupees," said Rajiv Jain, associate director at India Semiconductor Association. "It is not the money but the cost of finance that will be critical." Industry players such as K. Subramanya, chief executive at Tata BP Solar, expect the targets can be met and funding won't be a hurdle.

"This is entirely possible and we have in front of us examples of telecom and internet revolutions that have happened in less than a decade," Mr. Subramanya said.

Wrapping Solar Cells around an Optical Fiber

2009-11-10T00:05:00.001-08:00

Dye-sensitized solar cells are flexible and cheap to make, but they tend to be inefficient at converting light into electricity. One way to boost the performance of any solar cell is to increase the surface area available to incoming light. So a group of researchers at Georgia Tech has made dye-sensitized solar cells with a much higher effective surface area by wrapping the cells around optical fibers. These fiber solar cells are six times more efficient than a zinc oxide solar cell with the same surface area, and if they can be built using cheap polymer fibers, they shouldn't be significantly more expensive to make.

The advantage of a fiber-optic solar-cell system over a planar one is that light bounces around inside an optical fiber as it travels along its length, providing more opportunities to interact with the solar cell on its inner surface and producing more current. "For a given real estate, the total area of the cell is higher, and increased surface area means improved light harvesting and more energy," says Max Shtein, an assistant professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Michigan who was not involved with the research.

Fiber-optic solar cells could also be used in ways that aren't possible currently. Zhong Lin Wang, professor of materials science and engineering at Georgia Tech, says fiber solar cells would take up less roof area than planar cells because long lengths of the fibers could be nestled into the walls of a house like electrical wiring.

Dye-sensitized solar cells use dye molecules to absorb light and generate electrons. The Georgia Tech group first removes the cladding from optical fibers and then grows zinc-oxide nanowires along their surface, like bristles on a pipe cleaner. Next, the fibers are treated with dye molecules, which the zinc-oxide structures absorb. The advantage of coating nanowires, rather than a smooth surface, with the dye is that the wires collectively have a very large surface area. The more dye molecules there are over a given area of such a cell, the more light it can absorb, says Wang. The dye-coated fibers are then surrounded by an electrolyte and a metal film that carries electrons off the device.

Cash Incentives for Solar Energy in California

2009-11-10T00:03:00.001-08:00

It seems the California Governor is making an all-out effort to encourage people to switch over the renewable source of energy. Assembly Bill 920, authored by Assemblyman Jared Huffman, D-Marin, and signed by the governor of California, requires utilities to pay solar customers who produce more energy than they use.

Currently homeowners that produce more solar energy than they produce can zero their bills but they’re not paid for the extra energy they feed back into the grid. The payment for producing extra energy is known as “feed-in tariffs” and such an incentive has seen great success in European countries like German and Spain.

Under the new law, the California Public Utilities Commission is required to set the rate for the paybacks by Jan. 1, 2011.

The idea aims to utilize the empty and unused lots like rooftops, water house roofs and parking areas for the purpose of producing solar energy. Aside from these there remain many unused private properties that can be easily converted into solar power generating units, bringing in extra cash for the home owners.

Ausra wins solar steam boiler contract for 100MW Jordan thermal project

2009-11-10T00:02:00.000-08:00

California concentrated solar developer Ausra has been awarded a contract to supply a solar boiler supplier for the JOAN1 100MW concentrated solar project under development in Ma’an, Jordan by German developers MENA Cleantech.

Expected to be operational by 2013, JOAN1 will be the largest concentrated solar power in the world using direct solar steam generation, and will be fitted with a back-up fossil fuel boiler to guarantee 24 hour coverage. Ausra is to install a manufacturing facility in Jordan to supply the plant with solar steam boilers. According to the company, the project is scheduled for financial close at the end of 2010, with construction beginning in 2011.

Samer Zureikat, managing director of MENA Cleantech, said ‘Ausra’s robust and cost-effective solar boiler technology, its team of experienced power industry veterans, as well as its OEM business model make it the most suitable solar steam boiler company to provide equipment for this landmark project.

Regarding the choice of Ma’an as the site for the world’s first large-scale direct steam CSP plant, Zureikat noted that, “Jordan’s modern investment laws and progressive regulatory climate coupled with its unparalleled solar resource make Ma’an one of the best locations in the world to build a Concentrating Solar Power plant.’

In late 2008, the Ausra launched a 5MW solar plant in California, the first in the state for nearly 20 years.

DIY Solar Water Heater

2009-07-08T11:18:00.000-07:00

If you’re looking for a great Do-it-yourself project, a DIY solar water heater is a great place to start. Solar water heater projects have various levels of difficulty depending on what type of project you decide to tackle. Whether you’re a beginner or you’ve been building do-it-yourself projects for a while, you’ll be able to find something that is right for your level of expertise.

diy solar water heater

There are a few different kinds of DIY solar water heaters, and the easiest are batch water heaters. These can be designed to use parts that you can get from any hardware store. There are many different design options, and since the project is so simple at its core, you can easily adapt it to your own needs or design tastes.

The batch water heater consists of a water tank placed somewhere so that it will get heat from the sun. This water heater is connected to your plumbing system. The creativity comes in when you consider how you will get the sun to heat up the water in the batch tank in the most efficient way possible.

First, make sure that you paint the tank a matte black color. This will enable the tank to absorb as much sunlight as possible. The rest is generally up to you. Most people will just encase the batch water heater inside of what is in effect a glass box. This is a good way to trap heat near the water heater.

Other options are more creative. For example, some versions of the DIY solar water heater involved movable mirrors that are located around the hot water heater. These mirrors focus the sun’s light over a much larger area onto the water heater itself. DIY water heater systems with mirrors will be much more effective than the other options, as they are able to collect sunlight over a much larger area.

One thing that you should consider before you invest in the materials for a DIY batch water heater is that this kind of water heater may not be the best for your area if you live in cold climates. If it is likely that your weather will be below freezing for a long period of time during the winter, then you should look into one of the other DIY solar water heater projects. Batch heaters can freeze in the winter and break. If you have a batch water heater in a colder climate, you will need to drain it during the winter.

If you live in an area where the winters are cold, you may want to try one of the other DIY solar water heater options. The most popular method is to use a closed loop system. In this system, the water does not have a chance to freeze inside of the solar energy collectors because the water is in constant motion. These DIY solar water heaters are only recommended for people who have a lot of DIY experience as they require more plumbing knowledge to put together.

The benefits of solar water heaters include cost and reducing your energy-related carbon footprint on the planet. Since most DIY solar water heaters cost less than $1200 to build, you’ll pay off your investment quickly - and have an enjoyable project while you work on your new water heater.

Smart Grid, Solar Panels, and a Big Battery

2009-06-18T21:20:00.000-07:00

This was an interesting news article about how Duke Energy will be doing a solar, battery, smart grid trial in Charolete, North Carolina.

The company is testing what it calls a “virtual power plant” at a substation in Charlotte, N.C., that it hopes will allow it to use electricity more efficiently.
The substation–where electricity is distributed to a local neighborhood–is equipped with a 50-kilowatt solar array, enough to supply at least five homes when operating. The 213 solar panels either feed electricity directly to the grid or to a 500-kilowatt zinc bromide battery.
About 100 households in the McAlpine Creek area have been equipped with a home energy management system that lets consumers view electricity consumption in real time and participate in energy-saving programs.

They have a video in the article that explains how their idea will work. Not sure what is going on with my local energy companies in Arizona, SRP and APS. SRP has been converting everyone over to smart meters - or at least meters that send in the usage everyday. That is the first step - now to provide customers real time access.

Is It Worth Making Your Own Solar Panels?

2009-06-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

With the high cost of electricity these days every American family should be seriously considering the possibility of generating their own emergency in some manner.

In addition, as a survivalist you may want to have some means of generating power when you are at your retreat. Foremost in popularity are the solar panel that we keep hearing about on our evening newscasts. As we surf the World Wide Web it is not unusual to see advertisements that outwardly state how we can make our own solar cell.

Jay Leno's MagLev Wind Turbine Is Bigger Than Ed Begley's

2009-06-12T11:57:00.000-07:00

Jay Leno may have a ton of old cars that probably get four or five miles to the gallon, but at least he's talking about wind power on television! Or. Hang on. At least he talks about wind power on NBC.com!

In the video below, he's staring at a MagLev wind turbine -- that's a turbine that works well because it's levitating on a magnetic field. Less resistance means more conserved energy and less mechanical wear. Very cool stuff, and it's the kind of toy that a mechanical geek like Leno can get into.

This baby's going on Ed Begley's house, but Leno brags that the one he'll buy is bigger.

The Global Warming International Flight Tax

2009-06-09T15:15:00.000-07:00

As liberal environmentalists and tax-happy politicians scheme over strategies to hike international flight rates to raise funds to address alleged global warming, North Dakotans are celebrating snowfalls in June. Anomalies like snow in June certainly don’t refute that the planet is warming, but there does exist a widening of disconnect between hard evidence indicating global warming and the policy prescriptions designed in its name.

This new levy on international air travel, proposed by a coalition of the world’s 50 least developed nations, intends to raise money from wealthy countries in order to finance anti-climate change campaigns in those too poor to develop and implement such plans of their own. From the Guardian:

Developing countries, backed by the UN, argue that they will need hundreds of billions of dollars a year to adapt themselves to climate-related disasters, loss of crops and water supplies, which they are already experiencing as temperatures around the world rise.”

Apparently, with a little “ingenuity,” the UN climate geniuses have discovered that it’s quite easy to raise money via taxation. This brainstorming on revenue-raising has taken place in full ignorance of potential unintended consequences. Taxes such as those in question may prompt changes in corporate policies surrounding international travel. If air travel costs more, companies may choose to have their representatives instead use videoconferences.

To the extent that companies continue to use air travel internationally, the inevitable result will be cost-shifting onto consumers. Such cost-shifting will result in what is effectively a regressive tax policy, disproportionately affecting lower-income families. And faced with a shortfall in tax revenue, the global warming gurus at the UN will no doubt find themselves devising yet more economically distortionary interventions to finance their agenda.

Leaving aside these problematic considerations, the new proposals carry within them several familiar implicit assumptions. For instance, global warming is not only man-caused, but caused in fact by the past industrialization of the West in particular. Therefore, the West is responsible for the ecological catastrophes wrecked by its legacy of pollution and exploitation.

Never mind the highly arguable nature of such claims, particularly the question of whether the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) recommendations upon which all of these plans are based are as rock-solid as global warming alarmists claim it to be.

The most prominent of these recommendations was a statement in 2007 that human activity is “very likely” causing global warming. But a conference hosted last week by The Heartland Institute and attended by over 250 scholars and analysts from all over the world casts some healthy skepticism on the IPCC’s apparent confidence.

For example, Dr. Roy Spencer, a professor at the University of Alabama-Huntsville, pointed out that the IPCC failed to consider such major factors as the role of cloud cover in affecting climate change. Cloud cover reduces the amount of sunlight that reaches the earth surface and therefore plays a significant role in the affecting global temperature. Needless to say, it is significant factor to consider in any realistic assessment of global warming. Oversights such as this, Spencer contends, draw into question the comprehensiveness of the IPCC’s findings as well as its heavy reliance on computer-based models. He writes:

Even though they never say so, the IPCC has simply assumed that the average cloud cover of the Earth does not change, century after century. This is a totally arbitrary assumption, and given the chaotic variations that the ocean and atmosphere circulations are capable of, it is probably wrong. Little more than a 1% change in cloud cover up or down, and sustained over many decades, could cause events such as the Medieval Warm Period or the Little Ice Age… As far as I know, the IPCC has never discussed their assumption that global average cloud cover always stays the same.”

Patented Method for Improved Solar Cell Efficiency Expected to Lower Solar Energy Costs

2009-06-01T16:35:00.000-07:00

Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Limited (NYSE: YGE) ("Yingli Green Energy"), one of the world's leading vertically integrated photovoltaic ("PV") product manufacturers, the Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands ("ECN"), a leading solar research center in Europe, and Amtech Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASYS) ("Amtech"), a global supplier of production and automation systems and related supplies for the manufacture of solar cells, today announced a three-party research collaboration agreement to develop next generation high efficiency solar cells.

The joint project under the agreement endeavors to develop and implement high efficiency N-type silicon solar cells, named PANDA, at Yingli Green Energy's pilot production line in Baoding, China. The high efficiency cells will utilize the cell design of ECN, the solar diffusion technology and dry PSG removal expertise of Tempress Systems, Inc., Amtech's solar subsidiary ("Tempress"), and Yingli Green Energy's leading cell process technology. The construction of the pilot production line does not require significant capital expense, as it only makes moderate changes on the current production lines.

"Yingli Green Energy always strives to be at the forefront of the latest technological developments in the PV industry," said Mr. Liansheng Miao, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Yingli Green Energy. "To that end, we are very pleased to be entering into a cooperation that combines our strong commercialization capabilities with the strengths of a global research institution and a leading equipment supplier. We look forward to playing a crucial role in the introduction of the next generation of high efficiency solar cells. PANDA aims at significantly raising the efficiency of crystalline silicon solar cells and at commercializing the new technology quickly on our production lines."

"We are very happy that ECN's technology for N-type crystalline silicon solar cells is going to be industrialized in cooperation with these ambitious partners with a long operating history in the PV industry," said Ton Hoff, Chairman of the Board of ECN.

J.S. Whang, President and Chief Executive Officer of Amtech, commented, "We are excited about this joint agreement with leaders in the industry and its potential to contribute to significant improvements in solar cell efficiency and bring solar energy closer to achieving grid parity. PANDA is true validation for our Tempress' in-depth diffusion expertise and our capability for supplying reliable diffusion and automation equipment to the solar industry."

Wind Generation

2009-05-19T16:10:00.000-07:00

Wind generation is finally becoming a strong home owners solution. I recently came across a Canadian company called Windterra that has set up resellers and installers in the US. I began my own search in adding wind power to my own home, but the issue for me was the footprint of the generator. When I think of a wind turbine, I’m assuming it would look like the ones we see in commercial wind farms.

Windterra, at windterra.com, makes a small horizontal unit that has a low impact foot print. Something that should easily by pass a communities zoning requirements. The cost is similar to installing solar panels, and the energy generated is also equal to a panels. Each unit can generate 2400 to 3200 KWH per year depending on an average wind speed of 14- 16 mph.

The average home uses around 7000-12,000 KWH per year. The cost of the unit with installation is similar to a solar panel system installation. The average life span of this unit runs 10 years, which is a less than a panels life cycle. If your looking to get off the grid this would be a good addition to to your arsenal of alternative energy solutions.

Solar Air Heater

2009-05-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

The sun’s power makes life possible. It builds trees and flowers. We have harnessed it to make electricity in Photovoltaics. There is a much simpler and less expensive way to harness that energy.

Solar water heaters and solar air heaters use a series of tubes painted black that in the sun’s rays heat water or air contained within them. In the case of the air heaters, this air then cycles through the house. Hot air in, cold air out to the heater to warm up.

I’ve seen some really clever designs. The one I like the most uses old soda cans as the tubes. Used cans destined for the garbage or recycling now repurposed into a solar air heater.

These air heaters can cycle air passively with the hot air venting out the top, and the cool air getting pulled in through a bottom vent. Most of them use a fan. The fan uses only a small amount of energy, much less than that of a conventional heater. The fan uses so little energy, it can be powered by a small PV solar panel. Now you’re heating the house using NO fossil feuls.

The best part is that these can be constructed yourself, although if you look online you can find many varieties. The Soda Pop Can heater comes from the very professional and upscale design priced just under $2700 to the homemade which run online for about $100. I’d consider building one yourself, or save yourself dozens of hours of work and check them out online.

Heating costs account for a great proportion of your energy bill.

Couple a solar air heater with a solar water heater, and you’ll remarkably reduce your energy bills and save a bundle.

Pennywise Solar Power

2009-04-01T09:56:00.000-07:00

No matter whether you felt that Earth Hour was a terrific conservation tactic or an overhyped PR stunt, energy on our planet is in peril. Our daily juice (be it electric, gasoline combustion, atomic, or carbon-based), has become a precious commodity with at least one guaranteed effect: to elicit an instantaneous hot-button opinion from just about everybody.

What can you do about it? Well, one great proactive demonstration would be to stop your regular consumption of dry-cell batteries. Yes, there are numerous substitutes, ranging from rechargeable varieties to alternative energy replacements, but each of these substitutions has a debit that few of us are willing to pay. You know, "costs" like always hunting for an outlet to power a battery recharging station, or getting rid of a clean, slim-line AA battery for a gargantuan solar-driven bat-winged monstrosity.

Hidden on a page of a recent DigiKey catalog, I found a glimmer of hope for beating this battery dependency. A small SOIC-16 SMD clear IC that is capable of generating electricity when placed in sunlight or strong artificial lighting. The CPC1832 from Clare is an 8V solar cell that is capable of powering CMOS ICs while sitting on top of a penny (U.S. monetary unit = one red cent).

The specifications for this diminutive wonder chip are impressive: 8VDC with a current of 50 µA. Even better, the CPC1832 has a built-in switching circuit that triggers the solar cell's output when it is stimulated by light. Sorta like a switch that also provides power. Likewise, with such a small footprint, several cells can be joined together for increased voltage and/or current supplies, without creating a freakish Frankenstein battery replacement circuit.

Although there are 16 pins on the CPC1832, only two are used for supplying voltage/current at its output. Pin 16 is the positive (+) output pin and the negative (-) output terminal is pin 9. While the remaining 14 pins don't have to be soldered, establishing a connection with these unnecessary pins will help ensure a mechanically stronger solar-powered design.

Oh, your designs aren't the SMD type. No matter. If you have a through-hole circuit design, you can still adapt the CPC1832 to your project. For example, Bellin Dynamic Systems makes a series of SOIC-to-DIP boards that can easily convert the CPC1832 to a 16-pin DIP IC platform. Even SMD soldering rookies can firmly attach a SOIC solar cell to a Bellin board.

Here are a few pointers for the inexperienced SMD worker that will help to guarantee successful professional-looking soldering:

1. Hold the solar cell SOIC package in place on the Bellin board and attach a small piece of masking tape to the chip for keeping it in contact with the board.

2. Apply a small amount of liquid flux to each pad of the Bellin board.

3. Touch the soldering iron to one of the board's pads, not the solar cell's pins. Carefully, apply solder to the point between the soldering iron tip and the solar cell's pin. As the solder liquefies, slide the iron's tip towards the SOIC pin. Remove the iron and examine your solder joint. When the solder is solid, test for a strong connection, by tweaking the pin with a wooden tooth pick.

4. Solder all of the solar cell's non-output pins (i.e., pins 1-8) first. When these pins are all solidly connected, remove the masking tape and solder the remaining pins (i.e., pins 9-16).

Can Concentrating Solar Power Outshine Fossil Fuels?

2009-04-01T09:54:00.000-07:00

The evolution of industrial power has been largely a story of utility. Societies adopted the most productive means of producing power, irrespective of all other concerns. Wind and water power may have been cheaper and cleaner, but with available technology were far less productive ways of making stuff. Hence, they were abandoned in favor of fossil fuels.

This is why, even after the energy trials and tribulations of the 1970s and the spikes in prices since, FFs still hold sway. Renewables just never quite had the reliable and sustained punch of the power we could generate by setting things on fire.

Yet present-day advances in solar promise to turn that model on its head. This time, we start with one of the cleanest fuels available – sunlight – and learn how to use it as productively as possible.

Keep an eye on concentrating solar power (CSP), which has the potential to give fossil fueled power plants a run for their (and our) money in the near future.

This solar technology has the audacity, the unmitigated gall, to produce electricity long after the sun has gone down. What, you may ask, are these upstarts trying to do? Compete with coal and natural gas?

BP axes 620 jobs from solar business

2009-04-01T09:51:00.000-07:00

BP is to axe 620 jobs from its solar power business – more than a quarter of that workforce – in a move it said was part of the long-term strategy to "reduce the cost of solar power to that of conventional electricity."

Two cell manufacture and module assembly plants near Madrid, will be shut with the loss of 480 posts while module assembly will also be phased out at its Frederick facility in Maryland, US, with a further 140 redundancies.

BP blamed the cutbacks on the credit crunch and lower-cost competition saying its global manufacturing capacity would still increase during this year and next via a series of strategic alliances with other companies.

"We deeply regret the impact of this business decision on our employees and the local communities," said Reyad Fezzani, chief executive of BP Solar. "We have a long history at both the Madrid and Frederick sites. Competitive hi-tech manufacturing of ingots, wafers and cells will continue at Frederick. Engineering, technology product development, sales and marketing and other business support functions will also remain at both Frederick and Madrid."

He said solar markets had been "unsettled by the impact of the global economic environment", adding that the market had been over-supplied as competition increased and prices had fallen.

Fezzani said the cuts would lead to lower prices for solar power: "The decision is part of the long term strategy to reduce the cost of solar power to that of conventional electricity."

The decision by a cash-rich oil group to reduce its direct manufacturing capacity and cut 620 out of 2,200 jobs will raise further questions about whether BP is retreating back to its core hydrocarbon business despite marketing promises to go "beyond petroleum." The London-based company said last year it was going to concentrate its alternative energy business on wind and solar in the US, while rival Shell has also been cutting back.

The moves will also send further shock waves through the wider renewable energy sector which is reeling from a retreat by the banks from higher risk investments such as green power schemes.

Andrew Mill, who sits on the UK government's Renewables Advisory Board, told the Guardian 10 days ago that the renewables sector was heading for crisis and British ministers' climate change targets would not be met. "The government has done a lot in terms of policies and targets, but the reality is that it was always going to take a lot of money to make it happen. And that money is not coming through quickly enough."

The UK is a relatively small solar market and will rely largely on wind to meet its goal of producing 15% of its energy from renewables by 2020.

BP Solar Plans to Hire Others to Make Panels

2009-04-01T09:49:00.000-07:00

The company is closing a panel assembly factory in the United States and one in Spain. BP also plans to outsource panel production to others. This cost-cutting move is becoming trendy.

Outsourcing is becoming vogue in the solar equipment business.

BP Solar is shutting down some of its production lines in the United States and Spain, and it is looking for manufacturers to produce panels using BP's components and bearing BP's brand.

The company announced on Tuesday plans to close its solar panel assembly center in Maryland and said it would lay off 140 people out of a 600-person workforce. It plans to continue to manufacture other solar equipment components at the Maryland complex.

BP is also closing its solar cell and panel-manufacturing complex in Madrid, where it will let go 480 out of 575 employees. Marketing and sale staff will continue to work in the Madrid office.

BP decided to close these plants down in order to cut operational costs during the economic downturn, which as led to softened demand for solar energy equipment, the company said. Yet it expects to bring more BP solar panels to market than before. In fact, the company said it expects to sell up to 320 megawatts of panels in 2009, doubling what it did in 2008.

How? Contracting with manufacturers to make BP-branded solar panels. Some of the materials and parts that go into making the panels will come from BP.

"We are negotiating now with potential global suppliers who can provide us with high volume and high quality module assembly from regional manufacturing centers," said Tom Mueller, a BP Solar spokesman.

Mueller declined to name these contract manufacturers, saying negotiations with the companies are still taking place. Some of these partners could likely be Asian companies that can keep manufacturing costs low. BP canceled a $97 million plan to expand its ingot production center in Maryland last year mainly because of the growing competition from Asian companies (see BP Solar Nixes Factory Expansion).

Although BP is closing the panel assembly plant in Maryland, it plans to continue to make silicon ingots, wafers and solar cells on the same site. It has a joint venture with Tata in India and Sun Oasis in China to make and market its panels.

Besides making its own silicon wafers and solar cells, BP has inked deals to buy those components from other companies. It's buying wafers from China-based ReneSola and solar cells from JA Solar, which is headquartered in China.

Aside from making solar energy equipment, BP also develops solar power projects.

More solar equipment companies could embrace contract manufacturing. Evergreen Solar (NSDQ: ESLR), for example, is in talks with companies to turn its silicon wafers into cells and panels and sell the panels to Evergreen's customers (see Evergreen Considers Contract Manufacturing).

Outsourcing manufacturing would allow solar technology companies to focus on research and development and not worry about raising millions of dollars to build a factory. This approach already made Asia the center of computer manufacturing (see Will the Solar Industry Become Like the PC Industry).

From Oct. 20: FGCU screams green with solar power field

2009-03-30T08:54:00.000-07:00

Florida Gulf Coast University is making a bold statement by installing thousands of photovoltaic solar panels at its main entrance. The futuristic-looking solar farm will be visible to all passers-by, and from airplanes flying over campus.

It's an in-your-face project intended to leave little doubt about FGCU's green tendencies.

"As people drive by, they'll understand our core values," said President Wilson Bradshaw.

Once completed next July, the solar farm will be among the nation's largest for a college, and fulfill 16 to 18 percent of FGCU's annual electricity needs.

Going green, however, comes at a price. The initiative will cost $17 million, half of which the Legislature is providing. The project also means chopping down as much as 19 acres of trees to make room for solar panels, a paradox for a university billing itself as environmentally friendly.

Still, it's full-speed ahead for FGCU, which Tuesday tapped Regenesis Power to build a two-megawatt solar farm on campus. It will be the largest single-site, university-run solar field in the country. For comparison, two megawatts is enough to power up 187 average single-family homes.

At just 11 years old, FGCU is developing its academic programs and a campus identity. Paul Hill, a 30-year-old environmental engineering major, said FGCU might have found its calling with solar energy.

"It's a new engineering program, but if you've got a cutting edge solar project on campus, this is a whole new direction the university could go," said Hill, a sophomore.

FGCU signed a pact last year to move toward climate neutrality, cutting carbon emissions and purchasing energy-efficient appliances. Bradshaw said the solar project will remove 9,000 pounds of nitrogen oxides, 14,000 pounds of sulfur dioxides and 5.1 million pounds of carbon dioxides annually from the environment. By locking in a portion of its energy costs, FGCU estimates a $22 million savings over a 30-year period.

The university also lists a host of recycling, ride-sharing and energy-saving programs among its 35 green initiatives. But few noticed.

Public Utilities board OKs solar power projects

2009-03-30T08:53:00.001-07:00

State regulators on Friday approved two proposals that officials hope will give a boost to New Jersey's solar market.

The state Board of Public Utilities approved plans by Jersey Central Power & Light and Atlantic City Electric. Both projects are meant to help improve the ability to finance solar power projects in the state.

"It will help us build solar energy capacity, improve air quality and continue New Jersey's fight against global warming," BPU President Jeanne M. Fox said in a statement.

JCP&L will enter into agreements to buy Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, which can be used to finance a system.

A so-called SREC, which represents the value of clean energy produced by a solar electricity system, is equal to one megawatt-hour of power generated by a home's or business' solar power. JCP&L, the utility that distributes electricity to most of Monmouth and Ocean counties, would buy the SRECs from project developers and installers who would sell solar electric systems — or finance them — to homeowners or businesses. The utility would, in turn, sell the certificates to energy suppliers.

The company would not enter into agreements with individual homeowners.

Like JCP&L, Atlantic City Electric also would enter into long-term agreements to buy SRECs from customers who invest in systems for homes and businesses.

Regulators have been emphasizing the use of SRECs to finance solar systems, moving away from large rebates to help pay for a portion of a project. At one point, rebates could provide up to 70 percent of a project's cost.

Gov. Jon S. Corzine's energy master plan calls for an expansion of renewable energy in New Jersey. It estimates that by 2020, about 3 percent of electricity used in the state will come from solar power.

Polk Sees Surge in Businesses' Use of Solar Power

2009-03-30T08:50:00.000-07:00

LAKELAND | On a recent morning at Publix Super Markets headquarters, the sun was beating on the roof of a nondescript electrical plant building.

This is good news for Publix, which recently embarked on the latest phase of a solar power experiment.

The plant's roof is covered with 4,000 square feet of thin photovoltaic (solar) laminates. Nearby on the ground, a 15-foot-by-20-foot array of solar panels is soaking up some rays, aided by a tracking system that can turn the panels according to weather patterns.

"This is just a test for us. We're figuring out how we can best utilize this," says Shannon Patten, a Publix spokeswoman. "We love to learn today about what's going to help us tomorrow."

Publix is among the largest area businesses to adopt solar power in recent years, but this is hardly new to Polk County.

The converts include everything from an apartment complex in north Lakeland to a mini-storage facility in Winter Haven.

Lakeland Electric and Tampa Electric are planning major initiatives as well.

What's spurring the commercial use of solar?

Observers say it's a combination of incentives, falling costs and a growing emphasis on alternative energy.

"The biggest resource we have in Florida is our rooftops, and particularly commercial rooftops, because they're so large and flat and not shaded by trees," said Bob Reedy, director of the solar energy division at the University of Central Florida's Solar Energy Center. "It's really a major power source."

Publix's solar effort began last summer when the company installed panels on the roofs of two stores in South Florida.

Officials estimate the panels generate 4 percent of the total power needs at each store; roughly 2 percent is generated by solar at the corporate offices.

Patten says the results are being monitored for the possibility of future expansion.

Bill Cook, who owns a construction business and mini-storage facility on Dundee Road in Winter Haven, installed 213 solar panels on his roof last summer.

Between the panels and high-efficiency LED lighting, Cook said he has eliminated a $1,500 monthly power bill and racked up credits with Tampa Electric through an energy-sharing incentive program.

"The last four months, TECO owes us money," Cook said. "We couldn't be happier."

Cambridge Cove apartments, off Mall Hill Road in Lakeland, recently flipped the switch on an array of panels mounted atop the complex's carports, supplying power to the main office and common areas.

Cambridge's owner, Winter Park-based Atlantic Housing Partners, has installed solar systems at two other complexes in Central Florida, and has three more in the permitting stage.

"We're designing systems for other communities that haven't come online yet," said Scott Culp, Atlantic's executive vice president. "We want to be out ahead of the technology."

The list goes on. Mulberry-based Community First Credit Union will soon finish work on a new South Lakeland branch that features a roof blanketed with solar panels.

Earlier this month, TECO announced plans for a solar plant near Mulberry that will have the capacity to power more than 3,400 homes.

In addition, Lakeland Electric has signed an agreement with Maryland firm Sun Edison to install more than 80 solar power systems here during the next decade.

Sun Edison will front all installation costs and sell the energy to Lakeland Electric, said Jeff Curry, the utility's alternative-energy coordinator.

Some of the systems could be mounted on the roofs of local businesses, which would receive credits on their power bills.

Yet in many cases solar remains a tough sell, with price tags stretching into tens of thousands, or hundreds of thousands, of dollars.

Cook, the Winter Haven businessman, said he spent about $50,000 on his system, after incentives. Atlantic spent roughly $500,000 total for the carports and panels at Cambridge Cove, Culp said.

But "the capital cost of buying and installing systems is diving exponentially," said Reedy, of UCF's Florida Solar Energy Center.

That's mainly because of a surge in demand and sales of solar technology.

In the United States, shipments of photovoltaic components more than doubled between 2005 and 2007, following a federal tax credit that went into effect in January 2006, according to the government's Energy Information Administration.

A $5 million budget for solar rebates in Florida - earning commercial adopters up to $100,000 apiece - was completely expended last year after it attracted a "large volume" of applications, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection said.

Both Reedy and Curry say they expect solar to be priced competitively with coal power within the next decade, especially as higher sales volumes lead to lower prices. Reedy said that could happen by 2015, if not sooner.

Curry said a Lakeland Electric program that gives credits to solar users had just five participants, both commercial and residential, two years ago, but has nearly tripled since then.

"We all recognize that legislators are breathing heavy when it comes to renewable energy," Curry said. "We know it's becoming a cultural requirement."

Desert damage: the dark side of solar power?

2009-03-30T08:42:00.000-07:00

Thousands of acres of solar panels could spring up across California's Mojave Desert like a crop of crystal mushrooms - a new kind of gold rush meant to bring powerful environmental benefits.

Cutting such a wide swath, however, might also disrupt desert ecosystems and the fragile plants that thrive there.

It's a concern expressed by some policymakers and scientists, including Darren Sandquist, a Cal State Fullerton biologist with a perspective all his own.

For years, Sandquist has studied the subtle changes wrought across the desert surface by railroads.

Such structures divert runoff into culverts and channels, altering the flow of water across the land. That, in turn, changes both the types of plants in the Mojave as well as where they grow. Similar effects can be expected from large solar array or wind power projects.

"It's certainly going to damage some of the ecology," Sandquist said. "I think that's a tradeoff we have to accept. It's part of becoming less reliant on oil, and more reliant on solar and wind power."

Sandquist hopes designers of large solar and wind projects will try to avoid the most harmful effects.

"I think they should take into account how the redistribution of resources in general is going to affect ecosystems," he said.

The railroad he's been studying, near Kelso Depot in the Mojave National Preserve, has existed for about a century; he's been able to track vegetation changes since that time.

Species of plants, plant cover and even the size of plants have been affected. Similar effects can be seen along desert highways.

"Anybody who drives through the desert notices the size of plants," he said. "Right next to the road, the plants are much larger."

Such changes are likely to bring shifts in animal populations as well, although Sandquist said measurements of effects on animals in the area are not yet complete.

Not only the effects of roads, but of dust kicked up when desert plants that hold soil in place are cut down to make way for solar arrays could be harmful to the delicate desert ecology.

"Studies have shown the dust on surfaces of leaves significantly reduces the photosynthetic ability of plants," he said. "Productivity decreases."

One of his big concerns is something few of us even know exists.

"One of the most important living structures on the surface are biotic crusts," he said - commonly networks of cyanobacteria and lichens. They can be disrupted or destroyed simply by walking on them.

"They don't extend more than a few millimeters below the surface," he said. "Just by being there, they hold the dirt and silt in place."

Losing them can lead to massive dust storms.

Even minor changes to desert solar projects could protect the variety of organisms that dwell there, he said. Instead of building roads, for example, operators of arrays that require few visits for maintenance might consider buying larger trucks and just driving over the existing plants.

"I really feel like the ecosystem could handle it if they just drove over it every once in awhile," he said, instead of removing large sections of vegetation to build roads.

GIant solar arrays are a very real possibility in the Mojave. The California Public Utilities Commission estimates that 100,00 to 160,000 desert acres would be needed to meet the state's goal of increasing renewable energy by 33 percent by 2020. Fourteen solar and five wind projects are being proposed on about 42,000 acres within in a 600,000-acre area known as the former Catellus lands, between the Mojave Preserve and Joshua Tree National Park.

Activist groups are angry, especially the Wildlands Conservancy, which provided $40 million to purchase the lands for preservation. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein recently announced a new effort to preserve all or part of the area by declaring it a national monument.

"Some people would argue that desert organisms are as resilient as they come," Sandquist said. "But they are vulnerable and sensitive because they are living on the edge - limited water, very warm temperatures, very cold nights during certain times."

Energy shortage is commonplace in Africa?

2009-03-26T09:41:00.000-07:00

Energy shortage is commonplace in Africa, yet the continent benefits from hours of sunshine daily - can the solution lie in solar power?

Scientists are now looking at the potential of a process called Concentrating Solar Power to generate large amounts of energy, that can feed into a grid.
The Science

This technology uses fields of mirrors to reflect sunlight on to a water tank, feeding into a steam-powered turbine.

It is still very expensive to deploy - the biggest prototypes are located in the United States and Spain - and would cost billions of dollars to develop on a continent-wide scale.

To find out more about the potential in Africa for this source of energy, Pete Lewenstein spoke to Dr Gerry Wolff, an engineer and coordinator of Trec-UK, an organisation that supports research into and development of Concentrating Solar Power.

Solar Power: Eco-Friendly or Environmental Blight?

2009-03-26T09:22:00.000-07:00

California wants to run on sunshine. The state is forcing utility companies to provide 20% of their output by way of solar power and other forms of renewable energy by 2010. Last November, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said he wanted the portion to be one-third by 2020. Now the feds are bringing the money to help fund all this sunny energy, with the Obama Administration's stimulus package promising to pay for 30% of solar-power projects that begin by the end of 2010.

But could this politically backed, popularly supported solar surge spiral into eco-disaster? That's what some say is happening to the Carrisa Plains, a sparsely populated swath of arid, sunny and relatively cheap land in eastern San Luis Obispo County, where three of the world's largest solar plants ever proposed are under review. Together, the Topaz Solar Farm, California Valley Solar Ranch (both photovoltaic projects) and the Carrizo Energy Solar Farm (a solar thermal operation) would provide energy to nearly 100,000 Golden State homes, but only by covering roughly 16 sq. mi. (41 sq km) of the ecologically sensitive plains with solar panels and industrial development. All three plants have deals with Pacific gas & Electric (PG&E) (which declined to comment for this story), and all want to start construction by the 2010 deadline for federal funds. And more solar-plant proposals are on the way, in large part because transmission lines with available capacity already run through the region. (See 10 next-generation green technologies.)

"It's peaceful out here. I love the wildlife," says Mike Strobridge, 32, an auto mechanic, explaining why he moved to the Carrisa Plains with his daughter. "But then these solar guys are going to come in, and they're just gonna destroy the area." Strobridge is especially troubled because he will be "surrounded on four sides" by the three projects. What's more, like his neighbors and other concerned parties — including the Environmental Center of San Luis Obispo County — Strobridge is worried about the impact the power plants will have on endangered species such as the San Joaquin kit fox. He is also concerned about the effect on dwindling water supplies as well as the more intangible treasures of the area: the unimpeded views, the stark silence, the rustic natural beauty, the huge wilderness area called the Carrizo Plain National Monument just down the valley — that is, just about everything that led him to buy the property 10 years ago. (Read a story on mapping the best solar-energy sites in the U.S.)

Robin Bell, a museum exhibit designer who built her retirement home on the plains less than half a mile from one of the proposed plants, started the Carrisa Alliance for Responsible Energy to combat the projects. Says Bell: "I personally feel strongly that all of these rules and regulations are in place for a reason and, in the name of being green, these power companies are exploiting them and taking all kinds of liberties with the environment." She says she prefers distributed solar power (by way of roof panels on individual homes) rather than via sprawling power plants and believes technology will come on board within the next few years to make that a more feasible option. "I totally support the development of renewable energy, but at what cost? This is a knee-jerk reaction to stalling global warming. But what kind of costs are we going to do to the environment?" (See where the future of renewable energy lies.)

Katherine Potter, a spokeswoman for Ausra, the company proposing the solar thermal plant, insists that large-scale solar is needed, and soon. "There is certainly a good place for distributed generation, but to ensure the reliability of the grid, you do need large-scale power generation," she says, explaining that solar thermal is the most efficient renewable energy source available in terms of the amount of land used.

But it's not just annoyed neighbors and environmental attack dogs who are worried about these solar plants. John McKenzie is a planner for the County of San Luis Obispo, which is processing the applications for the photovoltaic projects. (The solar thermal project goes through the California Energy Commission.) "There are a couple of pretty serious issues that need to be resolved," he says, pointing specifically to the biological resources, water-supply concerns and agricultural protections that have to be evaluated before the county gives the go-ahead to the applicants. How much experience does he or anyone in the county have with these kinds of processes? "Zero," says McKenzie, a 20-year county-planning employee. "These are the two biggest plants in the world ... This county is getting to be one of the first folks to deal with it." Will any of these projects make it by 2010? "There's a possibility," he says, adding that the county is "making a concerted effort to keep time frames down" but that there could be a "whole slew of stumbling blocks."

This isn't the first time solar has been proposed for the plains, however. Darrell Twisselman — whose family has lived in the area since the 1880s and whose land would host the two photovoltaic plants for a hefty profit — remembers when they built a solar photovoltaic plant there in the mid-1980s. (At 6 megawatts, it was tiny compared with the current proposals, one of which has a 177-megawatt capacity.) The project faced similar gripes then. "Everyone complained about them for two weeks, and then everyone forgot," Twisselman says. "And they were what you might say unsightly. You could see them from everywhere." The technology, however, was worse then, and "the panels cooked," melting in their own heat, says Twisselman. That was just one reason the government pulled funding and the project was dismantled.

Despite the earlier Carrisa solar experiment, the state feels it is still inexperienced in judging the impact of huge solar plants. According to California Energy Commission chairwoman Karen Douglas, "We've got much more experience siting natural-gas plants than siting renewables, both from a staff and commission perspective. So some issues are rising up in the renewables case that are substantively different than what has been the core of the siting work before the solar applications started coming in so quickly."

Schwarzenegger has asked state agencies to streamline the process with an eye on speed (and the federal deadline) as well as the environment. But this process, which included a workshop held last week, is still in the early stages and is focused mainly on the Mojave and Colorado deserts, where other future solar plants would go. As such, it remains unclear how this process will affect the Carrisa Plains, especially with the pressure building for the 2010 deadline.

Back on the plains, Strobridge is just trying to save the place he calls home. "At this point," he explains, "we're very frustrated and doing everything we can to make sure if something does come in, it's put in responsibly."

Solar power group to discuss benefits of hosting generating facilities

2009-03-26T08:55:00.000-07:00

The Arizona Solar Power Society will host a conference Thursday on making money by hosting solar facilities.

A series of experts will discuss the potential for buildings with large roof space or parking lots to house solar units to offset electric costs for owners or as a host for other users.

Organizers say two things are coming into play this year that could help spur commercial demand in this sectors. The first is the $185 million Arizona is using to encourage weatherization and energy efficiency in buildings. The second is $55 million in federal stimulus funds to install renewable energy equipment.

The society also plans to unveil a business plan on Thursday that could create thousands of new jobs, officials said.

Speakers will include Jane Pater, Summit Blue; Tony Tewelis, Arizona Public Service Co.; Robert Hoskins, Arizona Solar Installation Training Program; Scott Young, Sky Engineering; Ryan Hurley, Rose Law Group; Kate Sherwood, Recurrent Energy; and Brian Rasmussen, BrightSource Energy.