List of Top Wind Power States
According to the American Wind Energy Association, as of today, the top five states for wind energy generation are:
1. Texas, 7,116 MW
2. Iowa, 2,790 MW
3. California, 2,517 MW
4. Minnesota, 1,752 MW
5. Washington, 1,375 MW
Report: 2008 Was a Big Year for Wind Energy Growth
The American Wind Energy Association, an industry trade group, released a report this week indicating a record growth in wind energy in 2008, with more than 8,000 MW of new generating capacity having been installed. This increase grew the nation’s total wind power capacity by 50% and actually accounted for about 42% of all new power capacity added to the national grid last year. However, despite this good news, the report also warned that 2009 is set to see a halt in that growth due to the poor economy and credit crisis.
Gore Testifies on Climate Change Before Senate Committee
Al Gore testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday about climate change. (Link to full video list.) Gore noted that we are in a dire situation and fundamental change needs to occur as soon as possible. Gore repeated his warning that “clean” coal may not be a feasible solution in the near-term, noting “We must avoid becoming vulnerable to the illusion that this is near at hand. It is not.”
Gore said that the most promising sources of clean energy are wind and solar, and that while he is not against nuclear power, the costs are just too unpredictably high.
“Our home – Earth – is in grave danger,” Gore noted. “What is at risk of being destroyed is not the planet itself, of course, but the conditions that have made it hospitable for human beings.” READ MORE
Study: Emperor Penguins Could Face Extinction
Researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts have released a study warning that climate change could cause a major emperor penguin colony to approach extinction by the end of this century. The study applied mathematical models to climate data from the IPCC to predict how much climate change and melting sea ice would affect a specific colony of emperor penguins in Terre Adelie, Antarctica.
The models predict, on average, that this colony’s current size of 3,000 breeding pairs would most likely shrink by 87% to 400 pairs by the end of the century. However, the data indicated that there is a very real probability of a “drastic” population decline (of 95% or more) that would put the population at risk of extinction.
Emperor penguins, which were featured in the Oscar winning documentary, March of the Penguins, are the largest of all penguin species and breed and feed from the Antarctic sea ice. In December, the Fish and Wildlife Service issued a preliminary ruling declining to list the emperor penguin as an endangered species, however this ruling is still being evaluated and researcher Hal Caswell said the research presented in this study should be considered.
Recovery Plan’s Renewable Energy Tax Credits and Incentives Debated in Senate Committee
The Senate Finance Committee began debating on Tuesday the alternative energy portion of the recovery plan. The House version of the package cleared the Ways and Means Committee last week. This portion of the plan is expected to have around $30 billion in tax credits and incentives to increase energy efficiency and renewable energy production.
Both versions of the bill would extend wind energy credits through 2012, and extend similar credits for biomass, geothermal, small irrigation, hydropower, landfill gas and tidal energy power would be extended through 2013. READ MORE
Detroit Should Support Obama’s Efficiency and Emissions Laws (But They Won’t)
Not surprisingly, automotive industry groups expressed opposition on Monday to President Obama’s plan to increase vehicle efficiency laws at both the state and federal levels. The opposition was generally expressed in the standard “this is too costly” language, with a dose of “in these harsh economic times” thrown in for good measure.
But we’ve heard this a thousand times before. Of course it is costly to meet new efficiency standards, and of course times are especially difficult right now. But given that automakers always warn that regulations will put them out of business and cost jobs, they have questionable credibility in this debate. READ MORE
Obama: America will not be held hostage to dwindling resources, hostile regimes and a warming planet
President Obama delivered his expected remarks on energy and climate change today at the White House. As expected, he announced that his administration will grant California a waiver to more strictly regulate vehicle emissions, will have federal agencies increase energy efficiency in federal buildings, and will increase federal fuel efficiency rules. But most importantly, Obama articulated the reasons why we must address these issues and why his strategy will work.
Reviewing the transcript of the speech, here are some of the highlights: READ MORE
Obama: Will Grant California a Waiver to Increase Emissions Regulations
President Obama will announced on Monday that he will be directing the EPA to grant California its long sought after waiver to more strictly regulate vehicle emissions than current federal standards.
Former President Bush had previously sided with automakers and refused to grant this waiver, leading to a conflict between the state and federal government. Once the EPA grants California this waiver under the Clean Air Act, the state will implement a more stringent emissions regime. Thirteen other states have also adopted the California rules, and will similarly be permitted to follow suit under the waiver.
It was also reported that Obama will announce that he is directing federal agencies to substantially increase the energy efficiency of their buildings. These measures are aimed at saving as much as $2 billion a year in energy costs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Finally, Obama will also direct the Department of Transportation to begin drafting increased fuel efficiency regulations in order to comply with a law passed in December 2007. Bush had delayed implementing these regulations until the expiration of his term.
With Pressure from Drought, San Diego Looks to Reclaim Wastewater
With water supplies dwindling in the Western United States, more cities are looking to reclaim wastewater for drinking purposes. The city of Escondido in San Diego County has recently decided to explore this option. Similar to the system currently being used by its northern neighbor Orange County, Escondido is looking at a process that would clean the wastewater to irrigation standards, remove the salt via reverse osmosis, and treat the water with ultraviolet light and hydrogen peroxide to kill remaining bacteria. It would then be released into a wetland or basin, where it would percolate through the soil, before being pumped back out of the ground. READ MORE
Obama Freezes Bush’s Late-Term Executive Orders
Eoin O’Carroll at Bright Green Blog has a good outline of Obama’s attempts to freeze some of Bush’s late-term executive orders:
Among the rules that [Obama has] frozen is one that would have made it easier for factories and refineries to expand without applying for new federal pollution permits. Another would have removed federal protection for gray wolves in the Northern Rockies and Great Lakes. Another would have opened areas of Oregon to logging. Another would have opened 2 million acres of public land in Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah for oil-shale drilling. And another would have helped set in motion the commercialization of meat from genetically modified animals.
As for Bush orders that have already taken effect, for recent ones Obama could use the Congressional Review Act of 1996. Under this law, any executive orders Bush issued within that 60 day period can be undone by the now democratic Congress.
Warming Climate Doubling Tree Deaths in Western U.S.
A USGS study to be published on Friday found that tree deaths in the western United States have more than doubled over the last few decades. The study attributes the deaths to a warmer and drier climate in the region. The researchers analyzed old-growth forests with a wide variety of forest types, at all elevations, in trees of all sizes, and in pines, firs, hemlocks, and others, and found consistent results throughout.
The study also ruled out a number of other possible sources of the deaths, including air pollution, effects of fire suppression, and normal forest dynamics.
“Average temperature in the West rose by more than 1° F over the last few decades,” said USGS scientist and co-leader of the research team, Phil van Mantgem. “While this may not sound like much, it has been enough to reduce winter snowpack, cause earlier snowmelt, and lengthen the summer drought.”
This study, coupled with the pine beetle infestation in Colorado and the migration of plants to higher elevations in Southern California mountains, is just another bright red flag that cannot be ignored.
Famed Mountaineer David Breashears Discusses Melting Himalayan Glaciers
SolveClimate produced this video of famed mountaineer David Breashears discussing the dramatic melting of the Himalayan glaciers. SolveClimate notes:
[Breashears] has been combing the musty stacks of libraries and archives for old photographs of the Himalaya, and then going back to the exact locations to make modern pictures. He’s come back with the evidence of the loss of glaciers all over the world, documenting the present and accelerating reality of global warming for all to see.
Last week, he was at the Asia Society in New York for a conference called Meltdown: The Impact of Climate Change on the Tibetan Plateau where he filled a wall with two panoramic images of Mount Everest and its surrounding glaciers. One was taken in 1921; the other, Breashears took in 2008.
Gasoline and Oil Up, Future Price Direction is Murky
The price at the pump is continuing to rise. Numbers released on Wednesday show that the average price per gallon for regular gasoline in the U.S. rose 6.3 cents to $1.85 and the California average rose by 7.6 cents to $2.06.
The price of crude also rose on Wednesday, climbing 6% to $43.55 a barrel for March delivery. The LATimes notes that there is currently a conflict among oil experts regarding the future price direction for oil. READ MORE
Delays Continue for Pickens’ Texas Panhandle Wind Farm
Apparently the delays for T. Boone’s massive wind farm project in the Texas panhandle are not going to end anytime soon. Earth2Tech reports that at the Clean Tech Investor Summit on Wednesday, Pickens said that his wind farm would likely be delayed at least to 2011. But that even then, Pickens warned, “We’ll see what happens in 2-3 years.”
Earth2Tech notes that although the credit crisis has put a damper on Pickens’ own wind farm project, he is still pushing hard for the country to adopt the Pickens Plan, reiterating his argument that with a $28 billion investment, the U.S. could convert 350,000 diesel trucks to natural gas, which would reduce oil imports by 5% and create nearly half a million jobs.
Study: Antarctica is Warming Along With Rest of the Planet
Scientists announced today that despite some past evidence to the contrary, the continent of Antarctica is warming, along with the rest of the planet. The new study took into account satellite measurements and found that between 1957 and 2006, temperatures in Antarctica rose an average of 0.18 degrees Fahrenheit.
These findings deal a blow to climate change skeptics who have used past indications of Antarctic cooling as evidence that anthropogenic climate change is not occurring.
Unfortunately, the consequences of a melting Antarctic could be great since its ice sheets hold enough water to raise sea levels by 187 feet if they were to melt.
