UK: Government Confirms 2020 Renewable Fuels Target

15.09.2017

Održivi razvoj, Zelena energija — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

The government has this week confirmed it will raise the target for renewable fuel use in the UK transport sector to 9.75 per cent, a move hailed by the industry as a vote of confidence in the carbon cutting benefits of biofuels.

Under the new targets, fuels made from crops and waste-based ingredients are set to play an increasing role in cutting carbon emissions from UK road transport, rising from a 4.75 per cent share today to 9.75 per cent by 2020 and 12.4 per cent in 2032.

The standard is expected to result in around six per cent renewable energy in the overall transport fuel mix, up from around three per cent today, as the RTFO does not cover the entire transport sector.

But while the new targets, set out in a consultation response this week, are in line with ambitions set out by the government when the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) was established in 2007, they fall short of advice given by the government’s climate watchdog, the Committee on Climate Change (CCC).

In advice published in June the CCC said sustainable biofuels should represent around eight per cent of transport energy by 2020 to keep the UK on the most cost-effective decarbonisation pathway.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has also angered producers of crop-based biofuels by introducing a descending limit on the volume of biofuels that can be made from crops – a strategy the government hopes will drive the use of waste-based biofuels instead.

“Our strategy is to provide a positive investment environment beyond 2020 to further encourage the development of waste-based and advanced fuels, while limiting the use of fuels made from crops,” Transport Minister John Hayes said in a foreword to the consultation outcome. “This should provide a firm platform for the development of sustainable advanced fuels, whilst ensuring costs are tightly controlled in line with developments in the market.”

The crop cap will be set at four per cent in 2018, reducing in increments from 2021 to hit three per cent in 2026 and two per cent in 2032.

Waste-based biofuels promise to deliver a much higher carbon benefit than crop-based ones, because they do not run the risk of driving negative land use changes. Common waste products include restaurant oil and food, although new technology is coming to the fore that could even turn sewer ‘fatbergs’ into valuable fuel.

But crop-based biofuel producers argue they can still play a valuable role in helping cut transport emissions and meeting EU and domestic targets.

Industry gave the consultation outcome a cautious welcome. “The REA is pleased that the amount of renewable fuel will now be increased, which gives biofuels producers, especially those using waste as feedstock a bigger market to go for,” said Dr Nina Skorupska, chief executive of the Renewable Energy Association (REA), which represents biofuel producers. “However, the decision to decrease the use of sustainable crops in renewable fuel production to two per cent raises the question whether fuel suppliers will supply an increasing amount of renewable bioethanol.”

However, green NGO WWF said the measures to cap crop-based fuels did not go far enough.

“The UK government is right to cap crop-based biofuels well below the EU limit, but this four per cent cap still means that UK fuel tanks are at risk from unsustainable biofuel imports,” said James Beard, WWF’s biofuels and energy campaigner. “The overall signal is clear though – crop based biofuels are on their way out and rightly have no place in our future energy mix.”

Source: businessgreen.com

Bottoms Up: EU Drinks Carton Recycling Rate Pushes Past 45 Per Cent Mark

15.09.2017

Boy drinking, Tetra Brik Aseptic Edge carton package — Foto: TetraPak

Europe is now recycling almost half its cardboard drinks cartons as progressing on cutting waste within the trading bloc continues.

The recycling rate for cardboard drinks cartons hit 47 per cent in 2016 – up from 44 per cent the previous year – according to the latest figures released this week.

According to the Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment (ACE) trade body, approximately 430,000 tonnes of cardboard drinks cartons were recycled at in 2016 at 20 paper mills across Europe.

It marks an upwards trend for carton recycling across the continent that remains unbroken since 2005, when the rate was below 30 per cent.

The total rate including both recycling and energy recovery of cartons, meanwhile, hit 76 per cent last year, said ACE.

Director general of ACE, Annick Carpentier, welcomed the figures. “Separate collection is a key element in any type of recycling, and the continued increase in the beverage carton recycling rate across Europe indicates that beverage cartons are increasingly being collected, allowing them to be recycled,” she said.

Richard Hands, chief executive of ACE UK – which represents UK carton manufacturers Tetra Pak, Elopak and SIG Combibloc – said significant progress had been made since the early 1990s, when the trade body first began tracking the recycling rate.

“In the UK our focus has been on building access to recycling facilities for all,” said Hands. “This year we hit our milestone of two out of every three or 66 per cent of UK local authorities collecting beverage cartons at kerbside for recycling. And when recycling banks are included, 92 per cent of local authorities now collect beverage cartons for recycling, ensuring that the vast majority of households in the UK have access to a carton collection system.”

The announcement came as the UK Parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee of MPs relaunched its inquiry into the billions of coffee cups and plastic bottles that are thrown to waste in the UK each year. The select committee was unable to complete its inquiry earlier in the year due to the General Election being called.

Source: businessgreen.com

Western Australia To Ban Single-Use Plastic Bags, Effective July 1, 2018

14.09.2017

The Premier of Western Australia, Mark McGowan, announced yesterday that single-use plastic bags would be banned in the territory, effective July 1, 2018. This follows on bans in South Australia, the Australian Capital Territory, and Northern Territory that went into effect in 2009, 2011, and 2011, respectively.

So, while no national level ban on single-use plastic bags has gone into effect yet, they are now effectively banned in much of the country.

This news follows on the relatively recent announcement of bans in France of all plastic cups, plates, and silverware — but that law doesn’t go into effect until 2020. A number of US states and cities as well as African countries have also banned single-use plastic bags in recent years, including Kenya, which we just mentioned in an article earlier today. As reported by Bloomberg, “the East African country banned almost everything about them: making them, importing them, selling them, using them, with penalties of up to four years in jail or fines up to $38,000.”

These bans all followed quite a while after Bangladesh’s pioneering ban of plastic bags back in 2002 and China’s ban of free plastic bags in 2008.

Mashable provides more: “Single-use plastic bags will be banned from Queensland by 2018, and Tasmania is set to become the first state in Australia to phase out single-use, petroleum-based plastic containers and utensils by 2020.

“New South Wales and Victoria are yet to join the party, although the Victorian government is open to ‘going it alone’ if a national ban doesn’t come into effect.”

Good news for all of the sea animals and birds living in and around the region. Though, not nearly enough to deal with the growing micro plastics pollution problem that we reported on twice a few days ago. To deal with that effectively, the production and use of synthetic fibers such as polyester and nylon would have to be vastly reduced from current levels.

Or, at the very least, some sort of expensive filters would have to be placed on all of the dryer vents of the world. … Air drying synthetics rather than using a machine to do so could possibly reduce associated micro plastics pollution somewhat (I can’t say for sure on that matter as no research has been done, as far as I’m aware).

Source: cleantechnica.com

U.S. Solar Industry Sees Phenomenal Growth

14.09.2017

The U.S. solar market continued its years-long expansion in the second quarter of 2017 as the industry installed 2,387 megawatts (MW) of solar photovoltaics (PV), the largest total in a second quarter to date. This tops Q1’s total and represents an 8 percent year-over-year gain, GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) said in the latest U.S. Solar Market Insight Report.

“This report shows once again that solar is on the rise and will continue to add to its share of electricity generation,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, SEIA’s president and CEO. “Last year, solar companies added jobs 17 times faster than the rest of the economy and increased our GDP by billions of dollars. We are going to continue to fight for policies that allow the industry to continue this phenomenal growth.”

All three U.S. solar market segments—commercial, residential and utility-scale—experienced quarter-over-quarter growth in Q2. The U.S. installed 2,044 MW of capacity in Q1. The non-residential and utility-scale market segments also posted year-over-year growth.

The non-residential market grew a robust 31 percent year-over-year, with 437 MW installed. That was driven in large part by favorable time-of-use rates in California, expiring incentives in Massachusetts, and a record-breaking quarter in New York, where a number of remote, net metered projects were completed.

Joining those states in the top 10 for additions in Q2 were long-time solar leaders such as Arizona, Nevada and North Carolina, as well as surprises like Minnesota and Mississippi, which had the 5th and 9th largest markets in the quarter, respectively. Texas, which is projected to be the second largest state solar market over the next five years, had its strongest quarter ever, adding 378 MW in Q2, placing it 2nd among states this quarter.

The utility-scale segment represented 58 percent of the PV capacity installed in the quarter. In fact, Q2 marked the seventh straight quarter in which the U.S. added more than a gigawatt (GW) of utility-scale solar.

According to the report, 563 MW of residential solar PV was installed in the U.S. in the second quarter of the year. While this is a slight uptick over the first quarter, it represents a 17 percent decline year-over-year.

“Slowdown in residential solar is largely a function of national installers scaling back operations in major state markets as they prioritize profitability over growth,” explained GTM Research Solar Analyst Austin Perea. “While California was the first major market to exhibit signs of slow-down in Q1, many major Northeast markets began to feel the impact of national installer pull-back in Q2 despite a stable policy environment and strong market fundamentals.”

The report forecast that the solar industry will add 12.4 GW of new capacity this year, down slightly from GTM Research’s previous forecast of 12.6 GW.

The report did not change its forecast that the American solar industry would triple cumulative capacity over the next five years.

However, trade relief, which is being considered by the U.S. International Trade Commission, could radically affect the solar outlook and “would result in a substantial downside revision to our forecast for all three segments,” the analysis said.

In a June report, GTM Research said that the requested floor price, if approved, would cut cumulative demand in half over the next five years. SEIA says the petition could cause the solar industry to shed 88,000 jobs just in 2018. Last year, U.S. solar companies added 51,000 workers.

In Q2 2017, the U.S. market installed 2,387 MWdc of solar PV, an 8 percent increase year-over-year and the largest second quarter ever.

Through the first half of 2017, 22 percent of all new electric capacity brought online in the U.S. has come from solar, ranking second over that time period to natural gas.

Suniva’s filing of a Section 201 petition to impose trade remedies on foreign-manufactured cells and modules threatens to significantly reduce PV installations across all segments if accepted in its current form.

The residential sector grew 1percent quarter-over-quarter. The slow growth rate is caused by relative weakness in the California market and a slowdown in Northeast markets, which are feeling the impact of the pull-back from national providers.

In contrast to residential PV, the non-residential sector grew 31 percent year-over-year primarily driven by regulatory demand pull-in from policy deadlines in California and Massachusetts.

Voluntary procurement has emerged as the primary driver of new utility PV procurement, accounting for 59 percent of new procurement through H1 2017.

Installed system prices remain low across all market segments, with fixed-tilt utility-scale systems remaining under the $1/watt barrier for the second consecutive quarter.

GTM Research forecasts that 12.4 GWdc of new PV installations will come on-line in 2017.

Total installed U.S. solar PV capacity is expected to nearly triple over the next five years. By 2022, 31 states will have more than 100 MW annual solar markets—with 25 states being home to more than 1 GW of capacity—and more than 16 GW of solar PV capacity will be installed annually.

Source: ecowatch.com

Scotland Breaks Another Wind Power Record

14.09.2017

Scotland is celebrating yet another record-breaking month for wind power, new figures show.

Scottish wind turbines provided 846,942 megawatt hours of electricity to the National Grid, enough to supply the power needs of 2.25 million, or 93 percent of, Scottish households, according to WWF Scotland. That’s 33 percent more homes than the same time last year, when wind energy provided 629,603 MWh, the environmental group noted.

Impressively, on Aug. 19 alone, wind power provided the equivalent of 158 percent of Scotland’s total electricity demand.

“Scotland’s had another fantastic month for renewable electricity. With more turbines having come online, this trend looks set to continue,” Karen Robinson of WeatherEnergy said in a statement. “Already this year millions of tonnes of damaging carbon emissions have been avoided thanks to investment and forward-thinking policies.”

The country’s total electricity consumption for homes, business and industry in August was 1,776,118 MWh, meaning that wind power supplied nearly half (48 percent) of Scotland’s entire electricity needs for the month.

WWF Scotland’s acting head of policy Gina Hanrahan praised the country’s “huge strides forward” on clean energy and pushed for the same efforts to apply across all energy sectors, including heating, building efficiency and transportation.

“Renewables are working, creating jobs and investment and cutting carbon and thanks to clear policy ambition we are now a leading global player,” Hanrahan said.

The Scottish government is actively working towards a low-carbon future. Last week, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced plans to end the sale of new gas and diesel-powered cars by 2032 and fast-track the development of a country-wide charging network for electric vehicles.

“We live in a time of unprecedented global challenge and change,” Sturgeon said on Tuesday. “We face rapid advances in technology; a moral obligation to tackle climate change … These challenges are considerable, but in each of them we will find opportunity. It is our job to seize it.”

The BBC reported that two Scottish renewable energy projects—the Moray East Offshore wind farm and a Grangemouth biomass heat and power plant—have been awarded 15-year contracts after a UK government auction.

Source: ecowatch.com

NEW UNCCD REPORT: Governments Tackle Interlinked Challenges of Land Loss and Climate Change

14.09.2017

Land-degtradation — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

A new UN report says that mismanagement of land coupled with the impacts of a changing climate are key factors responsible for the loss of valuable agricultural land.

Current management practices in the land-use sector contributes to about 25 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Globally, 169 countries are affected by desertification, with China accounting for the largest population and area affected.

The Global Land Outlook published by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) at a major conference in Ordos, China, also highlights the fact that degradation, biodiversity loss, and climate change are intertwined threats to human security, as explained in this infographic:

The authors say that the current pressure on land continues to grow unabated due to increasing population, soaring levels of consumption and rising competition for scarce resources.

At the UN meeting in China (UNCCD COP13), Ministers are expected to announce their targets for land restoration, to agree on measures to address the related emerging threats of forced migration, sand and dust storms, and to agree on actions to strengthen the resilience of communities to droughts.

In a significant development, over 110 countries joined a global campaign to make the Sustainable Development Goal target of achieving land degradation neutrality by 2030 a national target for action.

Such efforts are aimed at saving productive land and helping more than a billion people regain food, water, energy and job security, and resilience to climate change.

Source: newsroom.unfccc.int

Upper Merion Township Receives ‘SolSmart Bronze’ Award for Advancing Solar Energy Growth

14.09.2017

Upper Merion Township was recently awarded a bronze designation for taking important first steps to encourage solar energy growth by SolSmart, a program funded by the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative.

As a bronze designee, Upper Merion is receiving national recognition for adopting programs and practices that make it easier to go solar.

“Alternative energy programs are crucial to building a resilient and sustainable community,” said Board of Supervisors Vice Chairperson Greg Philips. “Solar energy will help our residents and businesses by lowering their energy costs, while also providing the community with clean energy that meets our sustainability goals. We are thrilled to receive this designation from SolSmart and look forward to being able to help our community achieve solar energy growth.”

The township is looking to attract solar industry development by taking steps to reduce solar “soft costs,” which are non-hardware costs that can increase the time and resources it takes to install a solar energy system. These costs include planning and zoning, permitting, financing, customer acquisition and installation labor. Reducing these costs leads to savings that are then passed on to consumers.

In order to achieve this, Upper Merion streamlined its solar permitting process, made additional informational resources available on the township website and committed to including considerations for solar and other alternative energy sources in all of its planning activities.

Upper Merion continues to explore how it can best support alternative energies like solar, particularly through zoning code amendments that are more conducive to these improving and growing technologies.

Source: timesherald.com

WRAP plans to take bite out of food waste with new youth-focused campaign

13.09.2017

UK waste body WRAP has today unpacked a new strategy to encourage behaviour change among young adults in an attempt to address the UK’s flatlining progress on household food waste.

Speaking at the RWM Conference today in Birmingham, WRAP CEO Marcus Gover set out a strategy that puts younger adults aged 18-34 at the core of a new food waste action plan from the charity.

The move is part of a new approach to target specific demographics and behaviours in an attempt to bring down food waste levels among households, which have stayed stubbornly at around seven million tonnes per year since 2012 despite ongoing campaign efforts.

“A new approach is required, and we’ve developed a more targeted phase in our strategy for specific behaviours and foods through more precise understanding of the subtleties at play,” Gover told delegates.

Younger adults aged 18-34 will be the first demographic under the spotlight, as this age group has the highest rates of food waste in the country, wasting double that of the over 65s.

WRAP believes this is partly down to “trigger points” such as moving away from home, starting a first job or having a family – large lifestyle changes that can spark an uptick in food waste due to a time-poor lifestyle or a lack of food management skills.

Speaking to BusinessGreen ahead of the speech, Gover said the campaign will focus initially on two food-wasting behaviours: buying too much food and storing it incorrectly. It will also hone in on the most-wasted foods in the UK: bread, potatoes, chicken, fruit and vegetables.

However, Gover stressed that while in the past WRAP has devised and led food waste campaigns itself, this time around it is aiming for a more “open sourced” approach that will allow food retailers, campaigners and other organisations to use WRAP data and advice in conjunction with their own ideas.

“What we have got is the knowledge – we know who wastes the most food, we know what food that is,” Gover said. “We know why they waste it. So we will share that information. We will produce playbooks which have the information and some of the messaging we are developing and just make those available for others to use.”

The announcement marks the “start of the process” Gover added, explaining that over the next three to six months WRAP will be recruiting partners to work on the as-yet-unnamed campaign.

Under the industry agreement Courtauld 2025, retailers have set a target to cut per capita food waste by 20 per cent by 2025, or 23kg per person.

“It’s about trying lots of things, and the ones we see working pushing them further until we get more of a network or movement of things going on,” Gover said. “It’s really more about others and less about us going forward.”

Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s welcomed the news, with head of sustainability Paul Crewe adding that it believes successful food waste action will require cross-industry collaboration. “Sainsbury’s has been leading with our Waste less, Save more campaign since 2016, as we know food waste is an important issue to our customers,” he said. “The only way we’re going to solve the problem of food waste is for all aspects of society to join forces and work together.”

In related news, resource efficiency service provider Ecosurety announced today it has teamed up with environmental charity Hubbub to support a series of campaigns to improve the quality recycling materials in the UK.

The campaigns will be designed to generate improved evidence for the system of Packaging Recovery Notes, which proves materials have been recycled, and ultimately reduce costs for recyclers. They are expected to build on Hubbub’s recent campaigns to collect disposable coffee cups for recycling in Manchester and London.

Ecosurety said the first campaign through the new partnership would focus on encouraging more households to recycle domestic batteries, after the UK fell short of its 2016 battery recycling target.

“As recycling and compliance specialists, Ecosurety has seen first-hand just how easy it can be for waste to be rejected because it is contaminated, mixed with other materials, or does not make it into the recycle system at all,” said James Piper, managing director at Ecosurety. “We strongly feel that if UK consumers were better informed and therefore better able to care about recycling best practice, our recycling rates would increase even further.”

Source: businessgreen.com

Veolia Unveils ‘Cupcycling’ Scheme to Turn Coffee Cups into Shopping Bags

13.09.2017

From today shoppers in Selfridges will be able to give their green credentials a polish thanks to a new partnership between the department store, waste giant Veolia and papermaker James Cropper, which together have launched a new initiative to turn the store’s old coffee cups into its iconic yellow shopping bags.

The ‘cupcycling’ programme will collect disposable coffee cups from Selfridges’ Oxford Street headquarters and retail store and ship them to Cropper’s recycling plant in Cumbria where they will be turned into paper for the shopping bags.

The closed loop system is an example of how coffee cups can become part of a circular economy system, according to Gavin Graveson, chief operating officer of public and commercial at Veolia.

Currently the UK uses around 2.5 billion paper cups every year, but the vast majority of these are not recycled.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to further encourage a mass collaboration between designers, manufacturers, vendors and consumers as we all have a part to play in making all of our packaging more environmentally friendly and ensuring our resources are kept in the loop for longer,” Graveson said in a statement.

Used coffee cups are difficult to recycle due to their mix of paper and plastic materials, as well as left over coffee. However, the cupcycling plant uses specially developed technology to separate the cardboard from the polyethylene lining. The paper fibre is then rescued and turned into luxury papers and the polyethylene is recycled into products such as plastic tubing and cable wraps. According to Cropper, one large Selfridges bag will contain the equivalent paper found in one 8oz cup.

“The fibre used to create paper cups is very high quality as only ‘virgin’ pulp is used to satisfy food contact requirements,” Steve Adams, managing director of James Cropper, explained. “Seeing this go to waste on such a huge scale is what inspired us to develop the technology to separate the two components. What we’re left with is material that’s virtually indistinguishable from fresh fibre and can therefore be used to create paper products of the highest quality, such as Selfridges’ bags.”

The news comes as coffee shops across the UK are facing increasing pressure to address the issue of waste cups, with Costa becoming one of the first brands to launch a nationwide coffee cup recycling scheme in February.

Source: businessgreen.com

Massachusetts Solar Marketplace Changing

13.09.2017

photovoltaic-solar — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Solar power continues to grow in Massachusetts and around the country, but new data shows the source of new installations is changing.

Nationally, the industry installed 2,387 megawatts of solar capacity in the second quarter of this year, up 8 percent from that quarter last year. But, residential solar accounted for just 563 megawatts, down 17 percent year-over-year, according to a new report from GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association.

In Massachusetts, the industry installed 115.3 megawatts in the second quarter of 2017, up from 99 megawatts installed that quarter in 2016. Residential solar accounted for 43.2 megawatts in the second quarter of 2016 and only 17.3 megawatts in 2017, a drop of about 60 percent. Non-residential installed capacity increased from 55.8 to 98 megawatts, a 76 percent increase.

“Slowdown in residential solar is largely a function of national installers scaling back operations in major state markets as they prioritize profitability over growth,” GTM Research Solar Analyst Austin Perea said in statement about the national data.

That explanation holds true in Massachusetts, where non-residential projects are making up for the residential market’s performance and taking advantage of state incentives, said David Gahl, the Solar Energy Industries Association’s director of state affairs, northeast.

“We see the overall continued expansion of the market,” said Gahl, adding that Massachusetts remains a leader in solar power. “Obviously, there’s a lot of momentum.”

Marlborough-based Brightstar Solar, which completes residential and small commercial installations, saw about 50 percent growth from 2015 to 2016.

“Maybe it was too easy,” Jon Reese, an owner of the company.

Reese, whose company has cut prices this year to keep up volume, suspects national companies may be scaling back because of less demand from homeowners.

Bad weather in the second quarter led to some lost construction days. And, people may be hesitant to make major financial investments given the uncertainty of the Trump administration, Reese said.

Reese and Michael Kelley, owner of Mass Renewables in Bellingham, said they see more competition from mid-sized or small companies, like theirs, as larger companies pull back.

“I don’t see a drop-off in residential (solar installations) locally,” Kelley said. “We’re just as busy as we always have been.”

Upcoming changes to state incentives for residential and other systems may spur people to install systems before the changeover. The transition needs to go smoothly, company representatives said.

“The commonwealth continues to be a national leader in solar energy, with 1,800 megawatts and 74,000 projects in operation to date,” Kevin O’Shea, a spokesman for the state Department of Energy Resources, said in a statement. “Massachusetts’ next solar incentive program, SMART, will double the amount of solar in the state at half the ratepayer cost compared to the existing program.”

Newly installed solar capacity has increased every year since 2002, a trend expected to continue in 2017, according to the state.

Meanwhile, the Solarize program that takes advantage of the collective buying power in participating communities to lower installation prices and a solar loan program remain popular, said Andrew Belden, a senior director at the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, which is involved in both initiatives.

Wayland, Lincoln and Sudbury are participating in a Solarize program where residents and businesses can purchase solar photovoltaic and hot water systems. The towns ran a different Solarize program in 2012.

The market is still ripe.

Solarize is attractive to people who don’t want to do the homework to compare and pick an installer, said Kaat Vander Straeten, a Wayland resident involved in running the Wayland, Lincoln and Sudbury Solarize program.

People used to think solar panels looked ugly, but that attitude has changed. Homeowners worried about climate change want to make a difference, Vander Straeten said.

Solarize programs have helped generate business for SolarFlair Energy, which is an installer for the Wayland, Sudbury and Lincoln program. The company tries to diversify, sad Dan Greenwood, vice president of business development, for the Ashland company.

“We are not a huge company,” Greenwood said. “We’ve got a pretty good baseline for residential projects and some commercial projects mixed in.”

Source: bellingham.wickedlocal.com

Co-ops In Florida Make Rooftop Solar Possible For More People

13.09.2017

Solarni paneli, krovovi — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

How does a co-op make rooftop solar systems more affordable? Ten people who band together to buy something usually get a better price than ten people acting individually. That’s the idea behind the St. Pete Solar Co-op, which began in 2016 when the local League of Women Voters partnered with Florida Solar United Neighborhoods, whose mission statement says it seeks to expand “access to solar by educating Floridians about the benefits of distributed solar energy, helping them organize group solar installations, and strengthening Florida’s solar policies and its community of solar supporters.”

Getting a rooftop solar system for your home is still a daunting task. Even though the cost of solar panels is falling, there are still a welter of questions facing homeowners. Which installers are reliable? Who has the best warranties? Who will service the system after it is installed? Who takes care of permitting and coordinating with the local utility company?

Not only does the St. Pete Solar Cooperative help customers save up to 20% on their rooftop solar systems, it also serves as a place where interested homeowners can learn more about solar power, find answers to their questions, and benefit from the moral support that comes with acting in concert with others rather than alone. As interest in solar energy grows in the state of Florida, more resident-driven co-ops are forming. FL SUN will launch co-ops in North Pinellas and Hillsborough counties Sept. 25, joining the dozen running across the state and others in formation.

FL SUN Coordinator Dave Sillman says now is the time for both residential and commercial solar energy to boom. “We’re trying to push it along to that tipping point. That’s the key to the co-ops,” he explains. “Not only is solar much more affordable now — it is the best investment you can make. Solar systems on average pay for themselves in about eight and a half years, warranty for 25 years and should last 35 to 40 years, so they pay back two to three times what you invest in them,” Sillman claims.

About 240 people joined the St. Pete solar co-op last year, and about 50 of those homeowners installed solar, according to St. Petersburg area League of Women Voters president Julie Kessel. There’s no cost to join and no obligation to go through with installation. Many people participate in the co-op just to get information and learn about the industry, she says.

At co-op meetings, residents learn about the cost savings of solar, the environmental benefits, and the logistics of installation. The co-op groups issue a competitive bid to installers and hire one together as a group. The League is also working to bring alternative financing options to the area that will offer low- and middle-income families with good credit lower cost financing for their solar panel systems.

“The demand is there,” Kessel says. “We know people call us all the time asking ‘Do you have the co-op up?’ and ‘When is the co-op coming back?’ We are on the front lines for sea level rise in St. Pete and the surrounding beach communities. There are very practical reasons to adopt solar.” Especially now when half of Florida residents are without electrical power following the drubbing the state took from Hurricane Irma.

One beneficiary of the St. Pete Solar Co-op is Brenda Probasco of Gulfport. With the 30% federal tax credit and the discount she got as a co-op member, she was able to get a 15 panel rooftop solar system installed on the roof of her 1,260 square foot, 3 bedroom home for $6,800. In August, her electric bill was just $5.49 — in AC-dependent Florida.

“I’ve always been an environmentally conscious person, and I know climate change is real,” says Probasco. “I think we’re getting to a point in Florida where when you do a checklist of things you need to have in your house like a refrigerator, solar panels are just going to be a part of that.” With the advent of more solar co-ops, her prediction could well become a reality.

Source: cleantechnica.com

Investors: Food Firms Must Embrace Smarter Water Practices

13.09.2017

desert-2165985__340 — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

Corporations from across the food industry are taking steps to improve their water management, but many remain exposed to high levels of water-related risks that could leave investors exposed in the future.

That is the conclusion of a major new report from the investor-backed Ceres think tank, which today ranks the world’s largest food and drink companies based on their response to water risks, such as water security, droughts, and flood risks.

The report, entitled Feeding Ourselves Thirsty: Tracking Food Company Progress Toward a Water-Smart Future, provides 42 of the world’s largest food and drink firms with a score out of 100 based on the quality of their water risk disclosures and risk management efforts.

It found that overall the food sector’s performance has improved by 10 per cent since the first edition of the report was published in 2015. However, the average score for the 42 companies benchmarked was still only 31 points and despite improvements, the meat and agricultural products industries continue to lag far behind the packaged food and beverage industries.

The top scoring companies included Nestle with a score of 82, Coca-Cola with a score of 72 and Unilever with a score of 70. However, there were signs some parts of the food supply chain are lagging far behind in the quality of their water risk management. For example, Smithfield Foods was the top scorer in the meat category with a score of just 33 and Bunge topped the table of agricultural product companies with a score of just 29.

Brooke Barton, senior director of water and food at Ceres, who co-authored the report, said it was critical for the industry as a whole to step up its response to water-related risks, especially as climate impacts escalate.

“Smart water management is a business imperative for food companies, as the impacts of climate change and water scarcity and pollution accelerate around the world,” she said. “Some corporate leaders are making strong progress, but the majority must do more to water-proof their businesses to protect and sustain our water supplies.”

Anne Sheehan, director of corporate governance at giant US pension provider CalSTRS, predicted the new report would be used by institutional investors to step up pressure on firms that fail to adequately address water risks.

“This updated analysis can be used by large institutional investors to reassess their environmental risk engagements, especially with the low-scoring companies held in their portfolios,” she said. “It also provides investors a clearer perspective on how well – or not – food companies are responding to water risk in order to sustain a competitive advantage in their market sector.”

Source: businessgreen.com

RAMBO AMADEUS: Every Gram of CO2 You Drop into the Air, Your Grandchildren Will Inhale No Matter How Much Money You Leave on Their Bank Accounts

12.09.2017

We are definitely sure that there is no person in this region who hasn’t heard of Rambo Amadeus, a great musician, poet and a “media manipulator” as he describes himself. In the interview for Energy portal, he revealed to us how far did he come with his project “Solar Retro Sailboat”, why hybrid vehicles are the best choice for each driver at the moment, but also why it is important to preserve the cleanness of the sea, land and air for future generations.

EP: You, Rambo, are a great fighter for renewable energy sources and energy efficiency. What do you think why such view of the world is not something that is benevolent in the Balkans? Is it because people here are occupied with mere survival, is it media’s fault for insufficient reporting on the benefits of “green approach” or is it politicians’ fault? How can we change that?

Rambo Amadeus: Well, I definitely have a different perspective of the surroundings. Majority of common people are crying for reducing senselessly high energy costs. Rich Denmark consumes 5 times less energy per household on average, than we do.

On the other hand, owners and resellers of energy resources – the chosen number of people, that every reduction in energy costs directly strikes on their wallet, have a huge impact on government and that is the reason why the things go slowly or are not happening at all.

Common people understand that energy efficiency is good, but it is wrong to expect that the state or large energy systems will deal with that. Ordinary working people should do that by themselves for one simple reason because it pays off. You won’t see the commercials on TV for loans for energy efficiency, although the interest rates are much lower than for cash loans and even though all banks need to have them in their offers by the law. An individual must be persistent, he must make inquiries and find out what his rights and possibilities are. Google is an excellent advisor there.

EP: We know that your IndieGoGo campaign for modernization of solar sailboat is successfully finished and the targeted sum was collected. But, do you need more money? Has anybody else out of public figures or institutions supported you?

Rambo Amadeus: No, we do not need more money. UNDP Montenegro has allocated funds that are sufficient for finishing the boat. UNDP finances the boat until it is launched. We will probably need some funds to give salary to a young and capable skipper and he would be on duty on the boat. But we will think about that when we finish the boat.

I have to mention Montenegrin Telekom, which has been supporting sailing since last season. It helped me restore some legendary sailing boats which are the icons of Herceg Novi. Thus, UNDP finances us till launching and Telekom has announced that it is willing to help smoothly functioning of the boat in later stages.

EP: Can you tell us something about the history of a sailing boat – cutter? On what drive did it move, apart from wind, when it was originally built?

Rambo Amadeus: It originally used oars and wind. It was used for the training of sailors and sailing officers in rowing and sailing. It was designed at the end of 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century you could find it in more or less all navies of the world.

EP: How far did you come with the project? How much time (and money) did you spend? Do you and Nenad Bošković have a team of collaborators on the project or are you doing everything by yourselves?

Rambo Amadeus: So far we have bought a hull, a boat trough, the original design of naval cutter, but it was made with the best technology – the west system, in the shipyard ENAVIGO Virovitica.

The boat is now in the workshop in Herceg Novi, and the calculations were made by Srđan Đaković, an experienced shipbuilding engineer, specialized in sailing boats. The keel, a completely innovative and original design, was done by Ivan Erdevički, our well-known citizen of Herceg Novi, who has his own office for ships’ designing.

We are currently communicating with the Faculty of Technology in Belgrade, they will help us with the hydrodynamics of the keel’s sheets and the rudder’s sheet, and they will make that out of carbon. We are in parallel communication with the suppliers of the needed elements.

We are making boat cart for the sailing boat, so that we could move it smoothly.

The next stage is “sculpting” of the deck and cockpit. We have to make a model of the boat in a natural size, so that we could have it as I would say “for real”. None of 3D models and drawings can help there since you have a completely different impression when you have a model in a natural size in front of you.

So, now in June we made a model out of hardwood, adhesive tape and Styrofoam. A famous artist and my friend, Darko Vlaović will help us with the visual appearance of the deck, so that it is at the same time classical and retro with modern look and also ergonomic.

Igor Pjacun will take care of the ergonomics, easy accessibility of the commands, ropes, angles and halyards. He is a famous Adriatic skipper and competitor, a good friend of mine and one of the most experienced sailors I know.

EP: As announced, solar retro sailboat should be launched into the sea in spring 2018. You said that it is a good idea to sail around the Bay of Kotor and thus draw attention of other sailors, but also everyone else on the importance of preserving the sea and environmental protection. But, will the tourists have an opportunity to go for a boat ride?

Rambo Amadeus: Definitely. The idea is that after a while, the boat becomes sustainable, commercially used, that it can financially maintain itself and also bring salary for one sailor, skipper.

Read the whole interview in the new issue of the Energy portal Bulletin on Ecomobility.

Interview by: Nevena Đukić and Vera Rakić

Walney Extension World’s First To Use 8.25 Megawatt Wind Turbines

12.09.2017

Wind - Power — Foto - ilustracija: Pixabay

The 330 megawatt Walney Extension West offshore wind farm has begun wind turbine installation and will go down as the world’s first offshore wind project to use wind turbines rated at 8.25 megawatts.

Located in the Irish Sea off the coast of the North West of England, the Walney Extension West offshore wind project recently began the installation of its 40 MHI Vestas’ V164-8.0 MW (megawatt) wind turbines. 8 MW wind turbines were installed at the 258 MW Burbo Bank Extension Offshore Wind Farm earlier this year, the first time an offshore wind farm has used turbines so large. Developed by DONG Energy, Burbo Bank began installation of 32 of Vestas’ 8 MW behemoths.

However, MHI Vestas this week announced that, again in cooperation with DONG Energy, its 8 MW wind turbines will be installed at the 330 MW Walney Extension West offshore wind farm, but they have been optimized and rated to deliver a maximum output of 8.25 MW, making the project the world’s first project to utilize turbines exceeding 8 MW.

“We are very happy to see installation at Walney Extension West starting well,” said MHI Vestas Chief Operations Officer, Flemming Ougaard. “With the first turbine now installed and producing power to the grid, we look forward to a good partnership with DONG Energy over the coming months as we continue installing the remaining 39 turbines.”

“We are delighted to have passed such an important milestone for the project,” added Andrew Cotterell, Walney Extension programme director at DONG Energy. “With the construction focus now off-shore we really appreciate the good progress we are making on the turbine installation of the West phase of Walney Extension together with MHI Vestas.”

MHI Vestas’ V164-8.0 wind turbine is a behemoth of a structure, with 80-meter blades and a swept area of 21,124 square meters. Reaching 187 meters tall at its highest point, the turbine has the potential to generate tremendous amounts of renewable energy — in December of 2016 a single turbine was rated at generating 216 MWh over a 24-hour period.

Source: cleantechnica.com

UK Renewable Energy Competitive Auction Yields Record Lows & In Excess Of 3 Gigawatts

12.09.2017

Energija vetra, trubina, vetro, vetar — Photo: Pixabay

A total of eleven new electricity projects totaling more than 3 gigawatts were awarded contracts by the UK Government today in the country’s latest competitive auction for Contracts for Difference, including three offshore wind farms which included an impressive low strike price of only £57.50 per megawatt-hour.

The UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy announced the results of the competitive auction today, in which eleven new projects worth up to £176 million successfully won Contracts for Difference (CfD) amounting to more than 3 gigawatts (GW) of electricity. The projects — which include three offshore wind farms and two biomass projects — are expected to provide the power equivalent to supply 3.6 million homes.

“We’ve placed clean growth at the heart of the Industrial Strategy to unlock opportunities across the country, while cutting carbon emissions,” said UK Minister for Energy and Industry, Richard Harrington. “The offshore wind sector alone will invest £17.5bn in the UK up to 2021 and thousands of new jobs in British businesses will be created by the projects announced today. This government will continue to seize these opportunities as the world moves towards a low carbon future, and will set out ambitious proposals in the upcoming Clean Growth Plan.”

Expectations were high for this particular auction, specifically as they pertained to the offshore wind sector. RenewableUK, the country’s trade body for the offshore wind industry, predicted record low strike prices in the auction. “Monday’s auction results could be a watershed moment for the UK offshore wind sector,” said Emma Pinchbeck, RenewableUK’s Executive Director. “The offshore wind sites that win on Monday will be a catalyst for our future economy and will provide cheap, clean electricity for UK consumers.”

The last Contracts for Difference auction was held back in February of 2015 and the two offshore wind projects that successfully won contracts succeeded at strike prices of £119.89 MW/h and £114.39 MW/h.

This time around, those looking for massive cost reductions were not disappointed, with prices on average dropping 47%. Specifically, DONG Energy’s 1,386 MW Hornsea 2 off the coast of Yorkshire, and EDPR’s 950 MW Moray off the northeast coast of Scotland both won with strike prices of £57.50 MW/h (expected to begin generating in 2022/23), while Innogy and Statkraft’s 860 MW Triton Knoll off the coast of Lincolnshire walked away with a strike price of £74.75 MW/h (expected to begin generating in 2021/22).

“We knew today’s results would be impressive, but these are astounding,” crowed RenewableUK’s Chief Executive Hugh McNeal. “Record-breaking cost reductions like the ones achieved by offshore wind are unprecedented for large energy infrastructure. Offshore wind developers have focused relentlessly on innovation, and the sector is investing £17.5bn into the UK over the next 4 years whilst saving our consumers money.”

Also winning in the auction were two biomass with combined heat & power (CHP) projects, both of which won with strike prices of £74.75 MW/h and expect to begin generating in 2021/22, as well as six advanced conversion technologies projects that included primarily strike prices of £74.75 MW/h to begin generating in 2021/22, but an impressively low £40 MW/h that is expected to begin generating in 2022/23.

“The latest renewables auction show huge price reductions across the board, with offshore wind, energy from waste and biomass clearing at prices from £57.50-£74.75,” added James Court, Head of Policy and External Affairs at the Renewable Energy Association. “These results show that renewables are now the most cost effective form of any energy generation which can future proof both the UK grid and provide sustainable new jobs in the UK.

“Offshore wind’s success shows what can happen with government support, and consider that this auction was for so called ‘less established’ technologies, with the more mature onshore wind and solar blocked to market. Surely now is the time for the government to commit to a low carbon industrial strategy.”

Source: cleantechnica.com

GE Renewable Energy Completes 5,000 Megawatts Worth Of Wind Capacity In Brazil

12.09.2017

GE Renewable Energy announced last month that it had successfully installed 5,000 megawatts worth of wind energy capacity in Brazil, making it the first company to accomplish the milestone.

Announced in Rio de Janeiro at the Brazil Windpower conference at the end of August, American GE Renewable Energy revealed that they had successfully completed the installation of 5,000 megawatts (MW) worth of wind energy capacity in Brazil, the first company to reach the milestone and solidifying the company’s role in the country’s renewable energy expansion.

“Brazil is an important market for GE Renewable Energy,” said Jean-Claude Robert, general manager for Onshore Wind in Latin America. “We believe in the growth potential of wind and renewable energy, and we are committed to providing affordable, reliable, sustainable energy to customers across Brazil. We are confident we can continue to grow by using the combined resources of GE — what we call the GE Store — to meet the needs of the wind power industry.”

All in all, GE Renewable Energy has installed more than 2,700 wind turbines and represents around 33% of all wind energy installed across Brazil. The country currently has 10,740 MW worth of wind energy installed and sits as one of the world’s major markets for future wind energy development — although there are fears that the country may see a slowdown in installation soon. Figures published by MAKE Consulting in May conclude that political and economic instability in the country are expected to hamper wind development. While Brazil installed an impressive 2.5 GW (gigawatts) worth of new wind capacity in 2016, and exceeded 2.4 GW worth of capacity additions three years running, “MAKE predicts an impending cliff from 2019 due to slumping demand for electricity.” Further, there were no new wind Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) signed in 2016, and Brazil’s highly anticipated reserve power auction was cancelled within days of its intended date.

As part of the total 5,000 MW installed are three projects which will reach commissioning (ie, wind turbine installation completion) by the end of September. These projects include:
The Ventos Araripe III wind farm, in partnership with Casa dos Ventos, in Chapada do Araripe (PI), made up of 156 of GE’s 2.3-116/107 turbines.
The Caldeirão I wind farm, developed with customer Queiroz Galvão, also in Chapada do Araripe (PI), consisting of 70 of GE’s 2.7-122 turbines.
The PEC Expansion in Guaranhuns (PE), which will add 22 turbines to the wind farm, increasing the number of operational turbines to 75.

While GE Renewable Energy and other wind energy developers and manufacturers are targeting Brazil for future development expansion, it is not necessarily clear just yet whether the country has the ambition or the political willpower to match.

Source: cleantechnica.com

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