“Seattle tops the list with 226 days of heavy clouds each year, or about 62%. Portland is next with 222 days of heavy clouds.”
“It rarely gets real hot in western Washington (most houses don’t have or need air conditioners, and only one of my neighbors has one). But that reduces the rationale for solar panels further, since they are best at cutting peak power demand by supplying electricity and absorbing heat of the sun on hot afternoons.”
The new Administration is shifting federal energy policies and that concerns companies, employees, and advocates of solar power. “Sunset for solar incentives? Panel installers worry about industry’s outlook,” Seattle Times, July 1, 2017) quotes one solar CEO on what may be a solar apocalypse for Washington state’s solar industry:
… Continue Reading“Solar energy is looking at 2020 as a critical year,” Jeremy Smithson, CEO and founder of Puget Sound Solar, said last week about the scheduled sunset date for state renewable-energy incentive programs designed to make solar more affordable.
Dear Diary,
I just had a wonderful day creating economic development and protecting the people of our good state.
The day started normally with a power company’s chief lobbyist showing up at my office with Starbucks, a bouquet of flowers, and a box of chocolates. He is such a good friend. He says he even thinks of me as a father figure!
The latest stack of consumer complaints was on my desk, and we spent awhile laughing at them. People can be so silly!
Then I got down to business. A man who gave $250 to my election campaign wants electricity for his fishing shack down on the river. He and his drinking buddies spend a few weekends there a year. The power company says it will take more than $50,000 to run power through the swamp, and they want him to pay for it.…
Continue Reading“Based on calculations using the Swedish study’s various battery CO2 emissions estimates, as well as the methodology described by the EPA, I estimate that the carbon emissions sinkhole would equal between three and 5.4 years of driving an ICE car.”
Sweden just released a study that explores the carbon emissions associated with the Life Cycle of electric vehicle (EV) batteries, with a focus on the emissions associated with their manufacture. Its key conclusion: Manufacture of lithium-ion batteries (preferred battery chemistry) emits a significant volume of greenhouse gases, and that volume is directly related to the size of the battery.
A longer term aspect of battery CO2 emissions is how the manufacturing plants are powered – more environmentally friendly power sources would reduce somewhat the emissions from the manufacturing process.…
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