$550 billion in new infrastructure spending is coming to projects nationwide—and a big slice is bound for Texas. From new electric buses to rail projects to improved power infrastructure to lead water service line removal and more, Texas’ environment may … Continue reading
October 16, 2020 Update: America’s Largest Solar Panel-Maker Leads the World in Panel Recycling–Recovering 95% of Materials Solar panel recycling is important for the future of solar. Solar panels have a lifetime of about 30 years. With the increasing number … Continue reading
A curious thing recently happened in Southern California. One of the largest utilities in the country scrapped a proposal to build a new peaker plant, opting instead to build a battery system that could store excess electricity from solar and … Continue reading
Scientists have developed a pioneering new technique that could generate enough electricity to power an entire home – all by using solar panels that are much smaller than current models.
A team of experts from the University of Exeter has discovered an innovative way for generating photovoltaic (PV) energy – or ways in which to convert light into power.
The new technique relies on ‘funneling’ the sun’s energy more efficiently directly into power cells, such as solar panels or batteries.
While current solar cells are able to convert around 20% of the energy received from the sun, the new technique has the potential to convert around 60% of it by funneling the energy more efficiently.
Continue readingTexas, home to the world’s largest oil reserve and America’s biggest source of coal-fired power, is on the verge of a clean-energy boom. Wind already supplies about 15 percent of Texas’s electricity, and now developers are about to quadruple the … Continue reading
The US Army is not particularly shy about adopting the latest high-tech gadgets, and renewable energy is a case in point. Despite all the fossil friendly rhetoric emanating from the White House, the Army is still pursuing microgrids with renewable … Continue reading
Solar panels are manufactured at 2,000˚C, a temperature so high it requires fossil-fuel power. They are also made using rare earth elements, the supply of which has both capacity and political issues. A new and global project is using artificial … Continue reading
In rural communities struggling with limited job growth and a roughly 40 percent net decline in farm incomes since 2011, wind and solar royalties have dramatically boosted economic development. In 2017 alone, farmers and ranchers received $267 million in wind … Continue reading
A deal announced Monday could mean a $100 million towards solar projects in Texas. Austin-based solar power company PowerFin Partners will develop and build the projects and Toronto-based real estate investors Fengate will finance the deals as part of today’s … Continue reading
The San Antonio chapters of the Citizens Climate Lobby, the Environmental Defense Fund, and the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance held a panel discussion on June 9, 2018 about how fossil fuel dependence affects national security — and how the military … Continue reading
The Alamo City — which was in eighth place last year — now has 161 megawatts of direct current solar power installed, according to the latest Shining Cities report from Environment America. The numbers are through the end of 2017. … Continue reading
The wings of a butterfly have inspired a new type of solar cell that can harvest light twice as efficiently as before and could one day improve our solar panels. Solar panels are usually made of thick solar cells, and … Continue reading
On June 12th, Jae Yang was appointed President of Mission Solar Energy. This new endeavor has become a source of passion and excitement for him. We sat down with Jae and chatted about the job, his expectations and his plans … Continue reading
San Antonio is the state's leader in solar energy capacity, according to a recent report assessing local "smart" policies across America. Within the last decade, growth in the solar energy industry has brought numerous businesses and new initiatives to San … Continue reading
Starting yesterday, the 2017 eLab Accelerator teams has convened at the Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah to accelerate their initiatives with the support of nationally renowned expert faculty and eLab’s specially trained facilitators. At Accelerator and beyond, projects from across … Continue reading
More than a year ago, RMI announced it would focus on community-scale solar. Now, as we enable power purchase agreements (PPAs) at prices 40 percent below median bids, we are seeing increasing interest in community-scale solar, and we are expanding … Continue reading
President Trump signed another executive order on Friday aimed at eliminating regulations. The Washington Post has reported that the Trump administration may announce a number of executive orders in the coming days. The rumored targets—the Clean Power Plan, the Clean Water Rule and the federal coal … Continue reading
What took so long for solar power to return to the White House? In 1979, President Jimmy Carter installed 32 solar panels on the roof of the White House. Long before many Americans even knew what solar power was, Carter’s … Continue reading
CPS Energy is renewing its rooftop solar rebate program with another $15 million in funding. CPS Chief Operating Officer Cris Eugster announced the program's renewal Monday afternoon during the city-owned utility company's board meeting. Under the new plan, CPS has … Continue reading
Grassroots organizations in coal states have been reaching out to people in coal communities — and seeking financial support from local, state, and federal governments — with initiatives to help ea… Conversation should be what's the best way to transition to renewable energy, not … Continue reading