How much CO2 and other pollution comes from burning coal?
How much CO2 and other kinds of pollution would be released if we powered a 100-watt lightbulb for a year using electricity from a coal plant? Let’s dig in.
Hurricane Ida and another major grid outage in 2021
Hurricane Ida in New Orleans brought about the second region-wide power outage in the US this year.
It’s time for a more resilient grid.
Rooftop solar can actually be cheaper than utility-scale solar farms
One of the most overused and misunderstood arguments among clean energy supporters is the notion that large scale utility solar is cheaper to build than smaller, rooftop systems. The truth is that they compete in entirely different markets.
Podcast 055: Steve LeVine – Batteries were invented 220 years ago. Why are they suddenly critical to our grid?
Batteries are not a new idea but plummeting costs have positioned them to disrupt two of the world’s biggest industries: automobiles and the electric grid. Listen in as battery guru Steve LeVine helps us understand how this will all unfold.
Podcast 054: Abigail Ross Hopper – What are the top policy priorities shaping the future of the solar industry?
What should the new administration focus on? How do we balance domestic manufacturing with low cost imports? Abby shares her insights on this and much more.
Natural gas was the biggest contributor to the Texas grid outage of 2021
The real cause of the Texas grid outage of 2021 have been lost amidst misguided political bickering. This graph, which is based on undisputed publicly available data, makes it clear what happened.
Making ethanol from corn is the least efficient use of farmland
Corn is the #1 crop grown on US farms. Most of it is used to make gasoline-additive ethanol. Solar is the much smarter option.
Podcast 053: Bernadette Del Chiaro — Could a change in California’s net metering policy cripple residential solar?
California is considering whether to change its pioneering net metering program. The future of local energy is at stake. Bernadette explains the issues behind this make-or-break policy in 2021.
Are solar panels really full of toxic materials like cadmium and lead?
The truth is that solar panels are made almost entirely with abundant, earth-friendly materials like glass, aluminum, copper, and silicon. However, as the market for solar continues to expand, concerns have emerged about trace toxic compounds used in panels. The first, lead, is widely used for soldering electronic components together. Each standard solar panel contains […]
Podcast 052: Yann Brandt and Mike Casey – Is creating a surge in solar jobs easier than we think?
Host Bill Nussey takes a walking tour of an amazing solar project being built on the Emory University campus by Cherry Street Energy and its CEO Michael Chanin.