Energy

The Sierra Club said Georgia Power’s plans to close its toxic coal ash ponds will dump heavy metal-laden wastewater into the state’s rivers and lakes and violate the federal clean water law. Georgia Power is planning to shut down 29 ponds that hold coal ash, a waste product of burning coal that can contain toxic metals such as mercury, lead, arsenic and other toxins, according to the environmental group.Some environmental groups initially praised Georgia Power’s plans. The utility expects to spend roughly $2 billion closing the sites by recycling or treating water from the ponds. [node:read-more:link]

A leaked draft study of the electric grid requested by Energy Secretary Rick Perry found that federal energy efficiency policies are in the process of saving U.S. consumers and businesses more than a half trillion dollars. [node:read-more:link]

New proposals for biofuel requirements in 2019 have ethanol folks in Nebraska and Iowa asking what the regulators in Washington are thinking. This month the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released proposed requirements for biofuels in coming years, an annual figure known as the Renewable Fuel Standard. The proposal would allow for 15 billion gallons of conventional corn-based ethanol — unchanged from the previous standard — to be blended into the nation’s fuel supply and dispersed at neighborhood gas pumps as a clear gas/ethanol blend. [node:read-more:link]

A new report from the University of Minnesota's Energy Transition Lab shows adding energy storage is becoming a cost effective way to meet electricity demand in the state. The report looked at several scenarios, including a common one in the summer: A hot day when electricity demand is much higher than usual because of air conditioning."What would be more cost effective: to build a conventional plant or to put in a big battery? Or, alternatively, to put in a big battery and a big solar array at the same time? [node:read-more:link]

The Aragi family's dairy farm — the largest in the state — is special because it still exists and it isn't losing money.
Pine Island Farm is actually making money, not just by selling milk, but by selling power it generates from methane thrown off by cow manure. Nary a penny lands on the farm's electric bill, and the Aragis' sell the excess power to some local off-takers — like Ward's Nursery — at a discount through a state program called net metering.
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Two key players in the Republican and Democratic parties in Nevada are teaming up to host a clean-energy talk as the White House abandons a worldwide agreement to curb climate change and states are moving to the forefront of the fight.  Former Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Wednesday that he's bringing back a summit last headlined by President Barack Obama in 2015. This time, the co-host is a Republican — Gov. [node:read-more:link]

In Washington, the U.S. Department of Energy, through the Bioenergy Technologies Office, announced the selection of three projects to receive up to $8 million, aimed at reducing the costs of producing algal biofuels and bioproducts. These projects will deliver high-impact tools and techniques for increasing the productivity of algae organisms and cultures. They will also deliver biology-focused breakthroughs while enabling accelerated future innovations through data sharing within the research and development community. [node:read-more:link]

The Land of Lincoln drama over operating for over two years without a budget ended on July 6, with legislative approval over a gubernatorial veto. Among the many programs threatened in Illinois were the solar programs in the Future Energy Jobs Act (FEJA, also known as SB 2814), which was signed into law last December and technically took effect on June 1.  While the funding under FEJA was immune from being raided or “swept” for general revenue purposes (a popular Illinois political pastime), funding critical to the start up of FEJA programs, such as Illinois Solar For All, was not. [node:read-more:link]

Russian government hackers were behind recent cyber-intrusions into the business systems of U.S. nuclear power and other energy companies in what appears to be an effort to assess their networks, according to U.S. government officials.  The U.S. officials said there is no evidence the hackers breached or disrupted the core systems controlling operations at the plants, so the public was not at risk. [node:read-more:link]

Lennie Moreno believes customer empowerment is key to unlocking the next phase of growth in residential solar, which is why he created Draw My Roof.  “I strongly believe the companies...that will win over the market in the long term will succeed because customers have full transparency,” said Moreno, CEO of the emerging solar software company Sofdesk and a former solar installer. [node:read-more:link]