As the world reels from the financial blow of COVID-19, local governments in the United States are under huge pressure as cities and counties face severe budget shortfalls. This is forcing cuts to crucial spending on education and infrastructure as well as layoffs, furloughs and hiring freezes. Losing critical funds could have seriously hindered U.S. local governments’ continued progress […]
Despite the difficulties associated with the Covid-19 pandemic, the world added a record amount of new renewable energy capacity in 2020, according to data released Monday by the International Renewable Energy Agency. By Kenny Stancil Common Dreams IRENA’s annual Renewable Capacity Statistics 2021 shows that global renewable energy capacity grew by more than 260 gigawatts (GW) last […]
The nation’s transition from dirty to renewable energy is “nearing exponential growth”—a shift set to usher in “transformative” impacts within a handful of years. So declares the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) in its “U.S. Power Sector Outlook 2021” report released Wednesday. By Andrea Germanos Common Dreams Among the key findings (pdf) are that […]
The United States’ offshore wind industry is tiny, with just seven wind turbines operating off Rhode Island and Virginia. The few attempts to build large-scale wind farms like Europe’s have run into long delays, but that may be about to change. By Erin Baker, University of Massachusetts Amherst and Matthew Lackner, University of Massachusetts Amherst […]
Climate action groups and ocean defenders issued strong praise Monday after the Biden administration announced its intention to boost the nation’s offshore wind capacity with a number of steps including preparing forfede leases in an area off the coasts of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. By Andrea Germanos Common Dreams “Today’s announcement marks a […]
Thanks in part to the pandemic-induced economic slowdown and the collapse of coal and triumph of wind power over the last decade, a new analysis suggests the UK is halfway to meeting its net zero greenhouse gas emissions target. The ultimate goal of a fully renewable grid will depend on technology that can store clean […]
Winter is supposed to be the best season for wind power – the winds are stronger, and since air density increases as the temperature drops, more force is pushing on the blades. But winter also comes with a problem: freezing weather. Even light icing can produce enough surface roughness on wind turbine blades to reduce […]
Pundits and politicians have been quick to point fingers over the debacle in Texas that left millions without power or clean water during February’s deep freeze. Many have blamed the state’s deregulated electricity market, arguing that Texas prioritized cheap power over reliability. By Roshanak (Roshi) Nateghi, Purdue University The Conversation But climate extremes are wreaking […]
I’ve been thinking a lot about water. And power. And Texas. You know from the news they’ve been grappling with a crisis there brought on by unexpectedly wicked winter weather. And made worse by an incompetent, ill-prepared Republican state government that, as LBJ used to say, couldn’t pour sand out of a boot, even if […]
The cornerstone of every social structure is its belief system, and those who control and benefit the most from the system have one primary job: Keep its myths and scapegoats viable. That explains the emergence, in recent weeks, among right-wing politic By Robert C. Koehler Common Dreams In the wake of the winter storm that […]
While the U.S. economy plunged into recession last year, with at least 25 million Americans now unemployed, furloughed, or working for less pay than before the coronavirus struck in February 2020, there were record-breaking new installations of renewable energy sources. By Meteor Blades Installations already operating generated 20% of all electricity produced in the U.S. in 2020, according to Bloomberg New […]
Even as people are suffering through the harshest winter storm Texas has seen in decades, the reasons for the state’s devastating power grid failure have become a political battleground. While vulnerable people freeze in their homes, pundits snipe about whether wind turbines are to blame. By Jennifer Layke, Karl Hausker and Lori Bird World Resources […]
More than two dozen Texans have died as a result of Winter Storm Uri—and thousands remain without heat, water, and food—but widespread evidence of human suffering didn’t stop one dirty energy executive from boasting about profiting from the crisis. “Obviously, this week is like hitting the jackpot.” That’s what Roland Burns, president and chief financial officer of Comstock Resources, […]
This week, a blast of Arctic air has engulfed much of the central US, bringing freezing conditions and record low temperatures to many states. Texas, in particular, has been badly affected, with grid operators hit by power outages and struggling to provide electricity to millions of residents. The events have triggered a wave of media reaction […]
As legitimate media has struggled to catch up with the professional liars who blamed wind for gas and coal’s failure to perform to expectations in Texas, those committed to the party line will keep on lying, as evidenced by a second Wall Street Journal editorial on the topic, just as false as the first. When the Republican […]