As part of the Obama Administration’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, the Energy Department today recognized the nation’s first commercial enhanced geothermal system (EGS) project to supply electricity to the grid. Based in Churchill County, Nevada, Ormat Technologies’ Desert Peak 2 EGS project has increased power output of its nearby operating geothermal field by nearly 38%—providing an additional 1.7 megawatts of power to the grid and validating this emerging clean energy technology.
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Developing Sustainable and Resilient Energy Systems
Developing Sustainable and Resilient Energy Systems
As the largest global consumer of energy, there is a critical need for the United States to identify and develop sustainable sources of energy and materials. A critical aspect of building sustainable energy systems is to also to ensure that they are resilient. Resilient energy systems are those that are designed to withstand perturbations, including those related to climatic, economic, technological, and social causes. As the number of worldwide natural disasters has increased dramatically in the past several decades, the need to develop such resilient energy systems has never been more evident. For example, the vulnerability of the energy infrastructure has been evidenced by the impact of natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami on the energy supplies for those communities. Developing resilient and sustainable energy systems will be a critical issue for the next decade. In December 2012 the Roundtable on Science and Technology for Sustainability convened a meeting of technical experts in private industry and representatives from government and academia to discuss sustainable and resilient energy systems. This meeting summary discusses some of themes that emerged from the speakers’ presentations and discussion at the meeting.
SolarCity Expands to Nevada
Source: Energy Manager Today.com by Linda Hardesty
SolarCity plans to open a new location in Nevada, and expects to create hundreds of jobs in the state in the next several years.
SolarCity says its expansion is due in large part to the efforts of Governor Brian Sandoval and the Nevada Office of Economic Development.
The new location will initially house new expansions of key administrative divisions, including portions of the company’s sales, asset management and customer care groups. SolarCity’s first solar projects in the state are also underway. The company is building more than 100 solar projects in Nevada housing communities in partnership with Shea Homes.
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A Significant Drop in Energy Use and Intensity for Manufacturing Sector
Source: Environmental Protection Online.com
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the total energy consumption in the manufacturing industry has decreased by 17 percent since 2002. Energy output for manufacturing decreased by 3 percent in the same amount of time.
Seeing such a large decline in energy use and intensity shows how the manufacturing sector is becoming more energy efficient, especially when fuel consumption of fuel has also declined for the industry.
Energy for manufacturing can be consumed as a fuel or as a feedstock (material input to a final product). Energy consumed as a fuel includes all energy used for heat and power. Energy used as feedstock is the use of energy sources for raw material input or for any purpose other than the production of heat or power.
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How Climate Change is Destroying the Earth
Source: Learn Stuff.com
Climate Change is Real
Thanks to extensive research and noticeable changes in weather and storm prevalence, it’s getting harder to turn a blind eye to the reality of climate change. Since the Industrial Age spurred the increasing usage of fossil fuels for energy production, the weather has been warming slowly. In fact, since 1880, the temperature of the earth has increased by 1 degree Celsius.
Although 72% of media outlets report on global warming with a skeptical air, the overwhelming majority of scientists believe that the extreme weather of the last decade is at least partially caused by global warming. Some examples of climate calamities caused partly by global warming include:
- Hurricane Katrina
- Drought in desert countries
- Hurricane Sandy
- Tornadoes in the Midwest
These storms, droughts, and floods are causing death and economic issues for people all over the world – many of whom cannot afford to rebuild their lives from the ground up after being wiped out by a tsunami or other disaster.
Check out this infographic to see what else the changing climate is affecting!
How To Design a Benchmarking Plan
Source: Energy Manager Today.com
The US Department of Energy Technical Assistance Program (TAP) has published a resource with tools and tips for public sector organizations to use in developing a benchmarking plan.
Benchmarking — comparing a metered building’s current energy performance with its energy baseline — can help building managers compare performance over time or between similar types of building, or document savings from conservation measures. Whether benchmarking as a part of an energy management plan or to meet requirements of a policy or program, having a benchmarking plan helps organizations implement their efforts.
Designing a Benchmarking Plan provides an 11-step outline through the planning process with resources to help organizations at each step. Continue reading How To Design a Benchmarking Plan
30 MW Solar Project Goes Up Near Las Vegas
Source: Energy Manager Today.com by Linda Hardesty
A new 30 MW AC/37.5 MW DC solar installation – the Spectrum Nevada Solar Project in Clark County, Nev. – will be owned by Southern Power Company and its partner Turner Renewable Energy.
Signal Energy is responsible for the engineering, procurement and construction activities associated with the 311-acre solar farm located just outside of Las Vegas. Signal Energy’s scope of work includes all engineering, civil infrastructure, mechanical assembly and electrical work, along with the associated substation and transmission line.
About 2,000 tracker rows with 130,000 photovoltaic solar modules will make up the solar array. The trackers have the ability to increase electricity production at the solar farm by more than 20 percent.
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New Tool for Environmental Compliance in Construction
Source: Environmental Protection Online.com
A team of graduate students from Concordia University have developed a new tool that rates the level of compliance between environmental impact and the urban planning goals of development projects, which will also help increase the potential for long-term sustainability.
In the new study, researchers used this tool to evaluate early proposals for the redevelopment of the Turcot highway interchange. They found that the proposal adopted in 2009 was inadequate for long-term sustainability.
Undiné-Celeste Thompson, lead author of the study said, “Government agencies often produce statements about their plans, policies, and programs to protect the environment and promote sustainable development. So we began by examining such statements to create a list of environmental goals that were relevant to the Turcot redevelopment.”
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