EGEB: 1959 folks, that Sweet Texas Wind, corporate leadership went green in ’17, more

Electrek Green Energy Brief: A daily technical, financial, and political review/analysis of important green energy news. Featured Image Source.

In West Texas Where Wind Power Means Jobs, Climate Talk Is Beside the Point – If Texas were a nation, it would be the sixth-largest wind energy producer in the world. The bulk of that power is coming from the Nolan County region. And so the reddest parts of Texas are responsible for supplying upwards of 12 percent of the state’s energy needs every month with clean, green kilowatts. By the end of last year, there were more than 100,000 jobs related to the wind industry nationwide, at least one-fifth of them in Texas. In Western Texas, born and raised, building wind turbines is how I spent most of my days. And I changed the way the world was powered.

Ice Loss and the Polar Vortex: How a Warming Arctic Fuels Cold Snaps – The scientists think that the ocean energy that is being released (as a result of sea ice melting) is causing a weakening of the polar vortex winds over the Arctic, which normally keep cold air centered over the polar region. That weakening is then allowing cold polar air to slip southward more often. Just in case some fool you know makes a statement about weather and needs a bit of education about the complexities of reality. This is like saying, since the sun is up – there’s no reason for ever buying lights! Nighttime is a CHINESE HOAX to steal your warm, pure incandescent light bulbs. Reality is tough folks – just like dealing with a human being is complex, so is dealing with energy systems on a sphere that has a circumference of 24,000 miles and billions and billions of individuals (humans, machines, trees, etc) generating and consuming various airborne chemicals.

Poverty Alleviation Will Be Highlight of China’s 2018 PV Power Policy – Poverty-alleviation projects will enjoy even stronger policy support, as standard rates for such PV power stations, for both centralized and distributed ones, will remain unchanged. Such projects will become a major source of demand, should more provinces engage in the development of poverty-alleviation PV power stations with open “enclaves economic model.” Maybe its time we, America, take some lessons from this old country. It is honorable to admit that you have much to learn in the world – because it shows honesty. I’ve seen other projections suggesting that China will install more than the 50GW of solar power this year than it installed in 2017, which was half of the global 100GW of solar installed in 2017.

How Corporations ‘Bypassed the Politics’ to Lead on Clean Energy in 2017 – As part of their climate action plans, 119 companies have committed to sourcing renewable energy for 100 percent of their operations through the RE100 initiative. That’s up from 56 members a year and a half ago. This article is full of data points talking about corprate responsibility associated with clean energy. Some of them are doing it for PR, but you know who isn’t – Jeff Bezos and his $100 billion. Bezos doesn’t care what you think of him – its his company and his money, and when it comes to making his company more efficient – he’s chosen green. In 2016, we saw the price of clean energy collapse. In 2017, we saw the volume install explode. In 2018 – those who fear tomorrow, will see it stand in front of them today – right now – with a force they cannot comprehend.

1959 folks – twenty years before I was born. More than two generations of Americans. You’ve been lied to. You’ve been manipulated. You’ve been robbed. And they’re not going to stop unless you do something about it. #exxonknew

“When you burn conventional fuel, you create carbon dioxide. [….] Its presence in the atmosphere causes a greenhouse effect […] A 10% increase in CO2 will melt the icecap and submerge New York”

– Edward Teller, 1959, at centennial of American oil industry #climate #ExxonKnew

— Assaad Razzouk (@AssaadRazzouk) January 2, 2018

$30/ton carbon tax – let’s watch folks, let’s see how we react. My gut says the Western world has too much money for a carbon tax alone to change us, but people smarter and more educated than I disagree…I look forward to being wrong.

On Jan 1, Alberta's carbon tax will increase to $30 per tonne. In my latest @GlobeDebate, I explore the effect on households and the economy. #ableg https://t.co/coHwY1Jib4

— Trevor Tombe (@trevortombe) December 30, 2017

Three tweets because this one spoke a bit deeper to me, and because I spent some great time with family this holiday –

"#Wyoming ranch benefits from partnership with #wind energy"
“It’s preserved the environment, it’s brought family back to the ranch, and it’s brought stability to our economic situation,” he said. #windworks @AWEA https://t.co/C2aw1bPDFO

— Power Co of Wyoming (@welovewind) December 29, 2017

Featured image is from the Department of Energy SunShot program and covered in snow since I spent the New Years in Syracuse with my brother’s family and sub-0F weather. A community solar farm in coastal Maine. Photo by William Byers.

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