Energy

This Is Not an Oxymoron: China as the World’s Green Superpower

March 29, 2017

Far from the bustling, and often heavily polluted, coast lies China’s number one weapon in its growing “green” arsenal – the world’s largest solar farm. Located in north-western Qinghai province, Longyangxia Dam Solar Park covers 1- square miles (26 square kilometres). It has the capacity to generate 850 megawatts of electricity, which is enough to supply power to 200,000 households. Built in 2013 at a cost of about 6bn yuan (£721.3m), the solar farm has been on almost constant construction…

Solar Sheep to the Rescue!

August 24, 2016

Many solar farm designers didn’t plan for the high grasses that would grow up and block precious sunlight from solar panels. The solution? Solar sheep! Here’s an eco-business that’s new, different, and in demand.

6 Ways To Make Sure You Are Buying An Energy Efficient House

February 19, 2015

Here are 6 suggestions to help you determine if the property you are considering is truly an energy efficient house.

Wind Tree Project Turns Street Art into Electric Power

January 15, 2015

A new French start-up, NewWind, is making wind power beautiful! Their new Wind Tree offers almost a hundred mini-windmills on an apparatus designed to look like a tree. Due to the light construction of the “leaves,” the Wind Tree generates power at wind speeds as low as 4.4 miles per hour! This translates into sustained operation times (an average of 320 days a year) that are almost double those of standard windmills that need higher wind speeds in order to…

House Fire Repairs Cut Utility Bills in Half

January 7, 2015

When an electrical fire struck their home in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, Keith and Jan Giezentanner never expected the repairs they made afterwards would save them $1000 a year on their heating and electric bills. But with the help of Garfield Clean Energy, they were able to learn about modern, energy efficient windows and doors and state of the art heating and cooling systems. Garfield Clean Energy even showed them how to qualify for (and get!) rebates totaling almost $1500 on the…

Solar Panels Offer Learning Opportunity for Students

October 23, 2014

165 solar panels installed on the roof of the Notre Dame Academy on Staten Island, New York were placed in service October 15. The array is expected to meet most of the electricity needs of the school and will reduce carbon emissions in the Grymes Hill neighborhood where the school is located by 36,00 tons a year. The new solar array will do more than just help meet the energy needs of the school and its 700 students. The system…

Liquid Metal Batteries Promise to Transform the Grid

October 16, 2014

MIT Professor of Materials and Chemistry Donald R. Sadoway believes that a massive shift in the world of energy is coming, and it’s not a new, massive grid. Instead, Sadoway believes that sustainable energy sources like wind and solar can work together with advanced, liquid-metal batteries to reliably, dependably deliver power to local energy grids at a price point that- soon- will be lower than fossil fuels. Made from common-Earth elements (as opposed to rare-Earth elements), Sadoway’s liquid metal batteries…

Hydraulic Fracturing Hypocrisy: Exxon CEO Says No to Fracking

February 22, 2014

The dangerous gas mining process of hydraulic fracturing is threatening the fresh water supply on our planet. And though petrochemical companies still try to feebly claim that fracking is safe, in a most revealing move, Exxon’s CEO is now fighting to stop hydraulic fracturing on his own land.

California’s Crumbling San Onofre Nuclear Plant Finally Closes for Good

June 10, 2013

In a huge victory for both clean energy and environmental advocates, the Edison Power Company announced on Friday that its troubled San Onofre nuclear power plant will be permanently shuttered.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu will Not Deny Love Affair with Solar Panel

February 8, 2013

“I just want everyone to know that my decision not to serve a second term as Energy Secretary has absolutely nothing to do with the allegations made in this week’s edition of the Onion. While I’m not going to confirm or deny the charges specifically, I will say that clean, renewable solar power is a growing source of U.S. jobs and is becoming more and more affordable, so it’s no surprise that lots of Americans are falling in love with solar.”

Shell Tried Moving its Now Grounded Oil Rig During Storm to Avoid Paying Taxes

January 8, 2013

Late last month the Kulluk Shell oil rig was run aground on the pristine shores of Alaska’s Kodiak Island while it was being towed to Seattle during a ferocious storm. Why would anyone even attempt towing something as dangerously precarious as an oil rig in the middle of a massive winter storm? The reason that the mobile offshore drilling unit was being moved out of Alaska at the end of December, in spite of hurricane force winds and treacherous 40 foot waves, was because Shell was trying to avoid paying a few million dollars in taxes.

Gus Van Sant’s Promised Land Movie Explores the Dangers of Fracking

November 23, 2012

Hollywood is finally tackling the deadly drilling process known as fracking in the upcoming drama, “Promised Land”. Gus Van Sant’s latest film highlights a small rural community that is struggling economically, as they fight back against a large corporate gas company intent on poisoning their local farmland with hydraulic fracturing. The timely story not only illustrates the destructive environmental impact of fracking, but also explores our nation at the crossroads where big business and the powerful strength of small-town community converge.

Martian Microbes, Wind Energy & the Great Pacific Garbage Patch: Link Party

June 13, 2012

Ecolocalizer is a member of an interconnected blog cooperative known as Important Media, a community of websites dedicated to news that matters. Each week we highlight a list of featured articles from different sites across our diverse network, including some compelling posts from Crafting a Green World, Eat Drink Better, sustainablog, Planetsave, CleanTechnica and Blue Living Ideas. Please take a moment to read some of this week’s headlines, and you might learn something new.

Corn Sugar, Seagrass Meadows & Car-Free Streets: Important Media Link Party

June 5, 2012

Each week Important Media highlights a list of featured articles from across our diverse network, including compelling posts from Crafting a Green World, Eat Drink Better, sustainablog, Green Business Owner, Planetsave, Inspired Economist and CleanTechnica. Please take a moment to read some of this week’s headlines, and you might learn something new.