Anything that promotes offshore wind is a positive development, but I’m not sure how much practical import it carries.  The reason the East Coast is getting into offshore wind (and the West Coast isn’t) is ocean depth.  You can be 25 miles off the coast of New Jersey and still be in 80 feet off water, but just a few miles into the Pacific the ocean floor is thousands of feet below.

Thus we’re talking about floating (rather than moored) turbines, which , while they’re making some headway in Europe, are significantly more expensive to install.

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This is great; it’s perfect for short-haul and highly predictable routes. Who wouldn’t love to see this happen in the major ports around the globe?

Here in Southern California we have the Port of Los Angeles, transferring over $1 billion in cargo every day to trucks and trains that deliver products all over the United States; it’s the busiest port in the Western Hemisphere….but….the air pollution is generates is horrific.

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The levels of carbon emissions generated from power consumption in the U.K. fell by almost two-thirds in the last decade – the fastest rate of decarbonisation in the world, according to a new report by researchers at the Imperial College of London.  This derived from a 50% reduction in fossil fuel consumption, and a 860% increase in solar, wind, hydro and biomass. Huzzah!

 

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It is with great sadness that I note the passing of Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, who, for 13 years, chaired the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, an organization widely recognized for its work on global warming. A colleague said that Pachauri “laid the ground for climate change conversations today.”

My third book (Renewable Energy—Following the Money)  featured an interview with Dr. Pachauri.  As I wrote at the time: (more…)

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It’s so sad that all these brave Russian intellectuals, each one courageously challenging their leader, all dying by suicide.

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If you’re puzzled by this, ask yourself:

Does Trump want smart, cultured people who think critically?

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Here’s a bit of discussion regarding this guy’s claim that a drop of water could produce 140 volts, sufficient to light up 100 LEDs.

Joel Schilling Truly an amazing idea. (more…)
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This article begins: A week ago, men and women went to work at airports around the United States as they always do. They showered, got dressed, ate breakfast, perhaps dropped off their kids at school. Then they reported to their jobs as federal government employees, where, according to news reports, one of them handcuffed a 5-year-old child, separated him from his mother and detained him alone for several hours at Dulles airport. (more…)

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What a proud moment for all these guys!  They’ll be able to go home and tell their children, “I was standing in the same room that the President of the United States made it legal for my company to dump our toxic waste directly into the water we drink.”

 

 

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Today’s fast charging stations deliver about 150 kW.  A solar panel in the form of a tarp of dimensions 3 X 5 meters, depending on the season, the location on the globe, the weather, and the time of day, may deliver an additional 2.  Not sure this is going to be a seller.

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