The latest energy news from Clean Skies
- The Energy Report - 3/9/10: Morning Edition
- What's Happening Today on Clean Skies News - 3/9/10
- Chu: U.S. Lags in Clean Tech Race
- Elliott Gue Reacts To Jobs Report And Oil Markets
- China, India Offer Qualified Support for Copenhagen Accord
Kansas: The ‘Sweet Spot’ for Wind Power
Posted Mar. 7, 2010 in News.
Is Kansas the new Texas? Not physically, and nothing to do with big hats or hubris, but in energy? The answer right now is a big “maybe” that has state officials and industry insiders salivating. And it’s a maybe that should have legislators and other leaders pushing forward.
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Is It Just Coincidence That States With Anti-Climate Action Resolutions Are Dependent on Coal?
Posted Mar. 5, 2010 in News.
As Grist pointed out yesterday, the US now has 15 states with resolutions attempting to prevent limits on greenhouse gas pollution. Add to that West Virginia Senator John Rockefeller's bill, just introduced, which would bar the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating stationary sources of pollution for effectively four years. Is it any surprise that the fossil fuel industries, in one way or another, dominate these states?
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Coal-Plant Bill in Alignment With Other Air Pollution Regulations — EPA Air Chief
Posted Mar. 5, 2010 in News.
U.S. EPA air chief Gina McCarthy said today that proposed Senate legislation aimed at curbing harmful air pollution from coal-fired power plants can "align very well" with pending EPA regulations. Speaking at a joint hearing of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the Clean Air Subcommittee, McCarthy weighed in on a draft bill (pdf) from Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) that seeks steep cuts in electric utilities' emissions.
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Co-op Members Ask for Federal Review of Power Plant Financing
Posted Mar. 4, 2010 in News.
Ratepayers from 11 rural electric cooperatives in Kentucky recently asked the Inspector General's office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to formally review the agency's decision to approve up to $900 million in liens to East Kentucky Power Cooperative, which generates the electricity their co-ops buy.
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Study: Wind Energy Keeps Iowa Power Costs Down
Posted Mar. 4, 2010 in News.
Wind energy accounts for up to 20 percent of Iowa's total electricity production, and is helping to keep the state's power costs among the lowest in the nation, a study released Wednesday showed.
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From Utah: Sevier Power Plant May Burn Natural Gas Instead of Coal
Posted Mar. 3, 2010 in News.
A company that wants to build a power plant in Sevier County is now considering using natural gas instead of coal, a switch that opponents contend will eliminate some but not all opposition to the project. Bruce Taylor, a top executive with Sevier Power and its corporate parent, NEVCO LLC, said the company is "crunching the numbers" to determine if changing the fuel for the proposed 270-megawatt power plant makes economic sense.
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Oklahoma Legislature Beating Kansas to Renewable Energy Economy
Posted Mar. 3, 2010 in News.
Legislation pending in the Oklahoma House of Representatives could be a boon to the state’s economic development efforts, an official said. Energy Secretary Robert Wegener said the Oklahoma Energy Security Act could result in a renewable energy portfolio standard for Oklahoma.
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From Nevada: Coal-fired Plant May Be Out of Steam Before It’s Up
Posted Mar. 1, 2010 in News.
A controversial coal-fired power plant was supposed to be under construction near Mesquite by now. Sithe Global Power planned to have the Toquop Energy Project generating relatively cheap electricity by 2013 so it could sell the power wholesale to Nevada and other Southwest states. But the site remains empty, and many Mesquite officials, who haven’t heard from Sithe in months, figure the coal plant is not going to happen, Mayor Susan Holecheck says.
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A Natural Choice
Posted Mar. 1, 2010 in News.
The rumor this month was that such arguments had swayed the White House and that President Obama would back policy aimed at discouraging coal and encouraging natural gas at a speech he delivered to the Business Roundtable on Wednesday. The rumors didn't bear out. That's too bad. With climate-change legislation still stalled in Congress, nudging gas forward is something that the government can do quickly and relatively cheaply to meet its medium-term emissions goals if current trends persist.
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Winning the Energy Wars
Posted Feb. 25, 2010 in News.
Most Americans expect their country to be a world leader in the use and manufacture of renewable energy like solar and wind. They just don't agree on how to make that happen. The view from Beijing and Shanghai is different: They don't believe we can get there at all.
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