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Clean energy and jobs

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America’s clean energy industry is unquestionably under attack by the Trump administration.  The administration is blocking renewable energy projects on federal lands, slashing clean tech tax credits, and putting in place new regulatory hurdles for solar and wind power and electric vehicles.  During the first half of the year, businesses cancelled $22 billion worth of clean energy projects, which would have created more than 16,000 jobs, ironically mostly in Republican areas.  Federal clean energy tax credits have generated billions of dollars in economic value annually, providing a strong return on investment for every federal dollar spent.

Last year, clean energy jobs grew three times faster than the rest of the economy.  The U.S. added nearly 100,000 jobs in solar, wind, batteries, energy efficiency, grid upgrades, biofuels, and electric cars.  In total, more than 3.5 million Americans hold jobs related to clean energy. 

Clean energy investments create substantial economic growth.  The clean energy transition creates opportunities in manufacturing, engineering, installation, and maintenance.  These new jobs far outweigh job losses in the fossil fuel sector.  Investments in clean energy had been projected to create massive numbers of new jobs and significantly boost the U.S. GDP by 2030, often providing new opportunities for rural communities.

Overall, clean energy has been one of the hottest and most promising job sectors in the country.  Now that clean energy job growth is at serious risk, so is the health of the overall economy.

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More Americans Working in Clean Energy Than as Servers or Cashiers

Photo, posted July 28, 2025, courtesy of Bronx Community College via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Wave energy in the U.S.

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A company called Eco Wave Power has launched the first U.S. wave energy project in the Port of Los Angeles.  The system captures the motion of ocean waves to generate renewable electricity.

The Eco Wave Power system harnesses hydraulic energy with floaters installed near the shore on existing structures like breakwaters, piers, and jetties.   The floaters bob up and down with wave movement, which creates pressure that drives a hydraulic motor and a generator.  Only the system’s floaters are actually in the water, and they aren’t connected to any electrical lines.  These hydraulic cylinders then send pressurized fluid to a land-based energy conversion unit.  Thus, there are no underwater transmission lines as is the case for offshore wind generation. 

The hydraulic motor and generator are housed inside a standard shipping container.  The electricity generated by the system is then connected to the grid.  Breakwaters and piers are often owned by ports, and ports are large consumers of electricity, which means that there is likely to be an electric substation nearby.

This demonstration project has several goals.  Foremost, it is a showcase for Eco Wave Power’s patented onshore wave energy technology in U.S. marine conditions.  It will serve as an educational hub for potential industry partners, regulators, and potential customers.  It will also support environmental monitoring and other regulatory requirements that can inform local stakeholders and authorities that will be involved in any future deployments.

Wave energy has great potential.  The National Renewable Energy Laboratory estimates that wave energy has the potential to provide electricity for 130 million homes.

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Eco Wave Power launches its first U.S. wave energy project

Photo, posted October 17, 2022, courtesy of Andrew Meldrum via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Global solar power on the rise

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The current administration has essentially declared war on renewable energy.  President Trump stated recently that his administration will not approve solar or wind power projects.  Renewable companies are unlikely to receive permits that were once a normal course of business. Now, the United States is likely to struggle to meet its growing demand for electricity while the world moves ahead with solar power.

Solar power is the fastest-growing source of electricity worldwide.  Installations are up 64% in the first half of this year.  During that period, countries installed 380 gigawatts of solar power, compared with 232 gigawatts in 2024.

China is the main source of the growth.  It installed more than twice as much solar in the first half of the year as it did in the first half of 2024.  Under tremendous administration pressure, the U.S. saw solar installations rise by just 4% year over year.

China’s exporting of low-cost solar panels is driving growth of solar elsewhere, including India and much of Africa. 

China is at a crossroads with energy technology.  For the first time, solar power is not just supplementing coal power, but replacing it.  As a result, Chinese policymakers need to choose between propping up coal – which is an important industry in many cities – and doubling down on renewables, which are a major driver of the country’s economic growth.

The U.S. is currently headed in the direction of trying to prop up the fossil fuel industry and gut the renewable energy industry, with little or no regard for either the economic or environmental consequences.

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Global Solar Installations Up 64 Percent So Far This Year

Photo, posted April 6, 2025, courtesy of Pencils for Kids via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

More floating solar

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Floating solar power is starting to gain some traction in the United States.  Installing solar panels on rafts so that they float on water instead of sitting on land allows them to not take up land that can be used for other purposes.  There are other benefits as well.

The world’s largest floating solar farm is one in Shandong, China, and produces 320 MW of power.  Floating solar has been common in Asia for years.  To date, floating solar only makes up a tiny fraction of the installed solar power in the U.S. and is mostly limited to small-scale projects.  The largest in the U.S. is the 8.0 MW Canoe Brook Water Treatment Plant in Millburn, NJ.  A floating solar array in the water reservoir at the Cohoes Water Filtration Plant in New York’s Capital Region is currently under construction.  A 6-MW floating solar system is now being built in the Village of Monroeville, Ohio.

Floating solar systems have the advantage that covering the surface of reservoirs dramatically reduces the amount of evaporation that occurs, which is a real benefit in drought-stricken regions like California.  In addition, proximity to the large body of water keeps solar panels cool, which allows them to generate more electricity than their land-based counterparts.

Estimates are that federally controlled reservoirs alone have the potential to host roughly 1,000 GW of floating solar capacity.  It is more expensive to install them than conventional land-based solar and floating solar competes with recreational use of bodies of water.  Nonetheless, the floating solar market is expected to grow significantly in the coming years.

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Ohio’s largest floating solar array is now under construction

Photo, posted May 28, 2025, courtesy of Mike Popp / University of Arkansas via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

AI and energy

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MIT recently hosted a symposium on the subject of artificial intelligence being both a problem and a solution for the clean energy transition.

AI-powered computing centers are expanding rapidly, creating an unprecedented surge in electricity demand.  Electricity demand in the US had been relatively flat for decades but now these computing centers consume about 4% of the nation’s electricity.  Some projections say that this demand could rise to 12-15% in the next five years. 

The power required for sustaining some of the AI large-language models is doubling every three months.  The amount of electricity used by a single ChatGPT conversation is as much as it takes to charge a phone and consumes the equivalent of a bottle of water for cooling. 

The MIT symposium focused on the challenges of meeting these growing energy needs but also on the potential for AI to dramatically improve power systems and reduce carbon emissions. 

Research shows regional variations in the cost of powering computing centers with clean electricity.  The central United States offers lower costs due to complementary solar and wind resources but would require massive battery deployments to provide uninterrupted power.

Because of data center demand, there is renewed interest in nuclear power, often in the form of small modular reactors, as well as efforts in long-duration storage technologies, geothermal power, or hybrid approaches.

Artificial intelligence offers both great promise and great peril.  It will take real intelligence to steer it in the right direction.

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Confronting the AI/energy conundrum

Photo, posted August 31, 2024, courtesy of Jefferson Lab via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

It’s only getting warmer

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Climate science is not popular with the current administration.  Phrases like “climate crisis”, “clean energy”, and “climate science” itself are prohibited from websites, reports, regulations, and other communications by government employees and federal funding recipients.  Once again, the United States is turning away from climate mitigation efforts and will have a drastically reduced ability to forecast disasters and head off their worst consequences.

Meanwhile, global warming continues, and the planet can’t withdraw from its consequences.

The hottest year in nearly two centuries was recorded in 2024.  According to a new report by the World Meteorological Organization, there is an 80% chance that at least one year over the next four will surpass 2024 as the warmest year on record. 

The consequences of warming will probably vary widely across the world.  But likely occurrences include rapid thawing of Arctic Sea ice, drier seasons in the Amazon, excess rain in places like Alaska, northern Europe, and the Sahel in north-central Africa.  Hotter temperatures lead to more evaporation of water from plants and soil, leading to droughts and failed crop seasons.  The warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, which increases the chance of flooding from downpours and stronger hurricanes.

Ignoring what is going on with the climate or thinking that it will only impact other people in other places is nothing short of foolhardy.  The planet does not care about politics.  What is happening to the climate will be in just about everyone’s backyard soon enough.

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‘It’s pretty bleak’: A warming planet is poised to get even hotter, forecasters warn

Photo, posted December 1, 2015, courtesy of Adam Matsumoto via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Renewables dominate new global power

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The current administration in the United States is adversarial towards renewable energy and highly supportive of the use of fossil fuels.  Unquestionably, this will create rough waters for the clean energy industry and, unfortunately, will throw a monkey wrench into the world’s efforts to mitigate climate change.  But it cannot stop what has become a powerful global trend.

In the words of U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres: “Renewable energy is powering down the fossil fuel age.”

According to a new report from the International Renewable Energy Agency, renewables accounted for 92% of new power capacity worldwide last year.  Solar is by far the fastest-growing form of renewable power, accounting for 77% of new capacity.

In the U.S., renewables accounted for about 90% of new installed capacity in 2024.  The country added nearly 40 GW of solar power capacity as well as 5 GW of wind power.  Renewables now make up about 30% of the country’s large-scale power generating capacity.  Adding in all carbon-free electricity sources (which include nuclear power), nearly 44% of the country’s electricity was carbon-free.

Headwinds against the growth of renewable energy are getting stronger in the US, but the global trend driven by both economics and environmental concerns is powerful and will continue.  For one thing, in much of the world, solar power is simply the cheapest way to produce electricity and that is pretty difficult to ignore. Global trade wars and economic turmoil will impact renewable energy much as they will other industries, but the long-term trend is clear.

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Renewables Made Up More Than 90 Percent of New Power Installed Globally Last Year

Photo, posted November 23, 2022, courtesy of John Morton via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Recycling lithium-ion batteries

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Lithium-ion batteries are used to power computers and cellphones and, increasingly, vehicles.  The batteries contain lithium as well as various other valuable metals such as nickel, cobalt, copper, and manganese.  Like other batteries, lithium-ion batteries have a finite lifetime before they can no longer perform their intended function.

Recycling lithium-ion batteries to recover their critical metals is an alternative to mining those metals.  A recent study by Stanford University analyzed the environmental impact of obtaining those metals using lithium-ion battery recycling compared with mining.  They found that the recycling process is associated with less than half of the greenhouse gas emissions of conventional mining.  The process uses about one-fourth of the water and energy of mining new metals.  North America’s largest industrial-scale lithium-ion battery recycling facility is Redwood Materials, located in Nevada, which uses a clean energy mix that includes hydropower, geothermal, and solar power.

These calculated advantages are associated with recycling batteries that have been in use.  The advantages are even greater for recycling scrap:  defective material from battery manufacturers.

The advantages of recycling are dependent on the sources of electricity at the recycling plant and the availability of fresh water. 

At present, the U.S. recycles about half of its available lithium-ion batteries.  By comparison, 99% of lead-acid batteries (like those found in cars and trucks) have been recycled for decades.  As the supply of used lithium-ion batteries continues to increase, it is important for the availability of industrial-scale battery recycling to keep pace. 

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Recycling lithium-ion batteries delivers significant environmental benefits

Photo, posted May 7, 2020, courtesy of Mark Vletter via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

The green grab for land

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Solar and wind farms are spreading rapidly around the world.  Many economists believe that solar power has crossed the threshold where it is generally cheaper than other ways to make electricity and will become the dominant energy source in the next couple of decades.  As a result, both solar and wind farms are gobbling up more and more land around the world.  Estimates are that they will take up around 30,000 square miles by mid-century.

One concern is whether we are entering an era of trading food for energy.  Land conflicts seem inevitable since solar power operates best in unshaded areas with gentle winds and moderate temperatures, which are the same conditions favored by many crops.

China is installing more solar farms than the rest of the world combined.  Many of these are in the Gobi Desert, where there is no competing need for the land.  But some are in eastern China, in densely populated grain-growing areas.

There are a number of strategies that reduce the impact of solar farms on land use.  One approach is to put them on old industrial or brownfield sites that are otherwise unusable.  Another is floatovoltaics:  putting solar panels on the surface of lakes and reservoirs.  And then there is agrivoltaics, where solar panels are installed above crop fields or where livestock graze between or even beneath solar arrays.  China has more than 500 agrivoltaic projects that incorporate crops, livestock, aquafarming, greenhouses, and even tea plantations.

Green energy has both environmental and economic benefits to offer, but it must conserve nature and not excessively grab land needed for people, wildlife, and ecosystems.

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‘Green Grab’: Solar and Wind Boom Sparks Conflicts on Land Use

Photo, posted May 25, 2011, courtesy of Michael Mees via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A record year for solar and batteries

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According to a recent forecast from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, solar panels and batteries will account for more than 80% of new power capacity installed in the U.S. this year.  The record growth of these technologies is hastening the decline of coal power in this country.

Solar power alone will account for more than half of the country’s new power capacity and most of it will be in Texas and California.

Wind power is expected to provide only 12% of new capacity this year.  Wind is facing rising costs, lengthy permitting, public backlash, and clear opposition from the Trump administration which is determined to stifle its growth.

As renewable energy grows, coal power continues to decline.  The U.S. will retire twice as much coal power this year as it did last year, closing about 5% of the country’s capacity.  Not only are older coal plants shutting down; the remaining plants are generating less power.

One of the most significant changes in technology over the last few decades has been the massive drop in the cost of clean energy.  Solar photovoltaic costs have fallen by 90% in the past decade, onshore wind by 70%, and batteries by more than 90%.  The connection between cost reduction and volume has been very strong:  costs of these technologies have fallen by around 20% every time global cumulative capacity doubles.   Over the past 40 years, solar power has transformed from one of the most expensive electricity sources to the cheapest in many countries.  That trend is likely to continue.  Setting politics aside, market forces generally are the strongest driver.

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U.S. Solar and Batteries Headed for Record Year

Photo, posted December 16, 2024, courtesy of Bureau of Land Management California via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

The year in energy

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Last year saw some major trends in the global energy sector. Perhaps the most dramatic was the shift to renewable power, which continued to outpace the projections of both financial analysts and industry experts.  2024 saw new highs in renewable installation, largely due to China, which accounted for more than half of all the solar power installed globally.  Huge solar installations also came online in California and Nevada during the year.  On the other hand, the amount of coal burning for the year also exceeded expert predictions, also largely due to China.

A second trend was increasing sales of electric vehicles, which reached a new high, although short of expectations.  A major driving force in EV sales is the dropping price of lithium-ion batteries, which fell by 20% in 2024.  Again, China was a major factor with roughly half of all its domestic vehicle sales being electric.

Coal’s decline is being slowed by the rising demand for electricity.  The increased use of electric heating and cooling along with the increasing use of EVs are major factors.  But the proliferation of energy-hungry data centers incorporating artificial intelligence capabilities is driving up the demand for power even more. 

Perhaps the clearest indication of the future for global energy comes from investors, who put about $2 trillion into clean energy last year.  That is twice as much as invested in oil, coal, and natural gas.

The history of energy has seen the Age of Coal and the Age of Oil.  By all indications, we are now heading into the Age of Electricity.

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The Year in Energy in Four Charts

Photo, posted November 23, 2024, courtesy of Mussi Katz via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A big year for battery storage

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A decade ago, the ability of utilities to store large amounts of electricity in batteries was basically nonexistent.  In the past several years, growth in battery storage systems has exploded.  As of the end of November, the US had about 24 gigawatt-hours of storage capacity in place.  This is 71% more than just a year ago.  Nearly half of the battery storage in the US is located in California.  Texas, Arizona, and Nevada are also leaders in deploying battery storage.

Battery storage allows solar and wind generating plants to keep operating when there is reduced demand for their output and have the electricity that they produce be available later when demand rises.  Storing this excess electricity essentially extends the hours of the day when clean energy can be used.

Equally important, the existence of battery storage reduces the need for peaker plants, the fossil-fueled power plants that only turn on at times of peak demand, such as during hot afternoons.

There are 1,000 peaker plants in the US and they are generally heavily polluting, inefficient, and expensive to operate.  Some 63 million people live within a three-mile radius of one of them and are exposed to harmful pollutants like nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide.  Peaker plants also release more greenhouse gases than other power plants do for every unit of electricity they generate.

Many battery storage facilities are co-located with, or otherwise support, solar energy plants.  The amount of solar energy in the US is growing rapidly and surpassed the 100-gigawatt mark in 2024.  As solar power continues to expand, so will battery energy storage.

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Battery projects soared again in 2024

Photo, posted August 3, 2024, courtesy of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

The race for fusion power

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The sun is powered by fusion energy.  Hydrogen atoms fuse together into helium atoms, liberating vast amounts of energy in the process.  Our understanding of this process emerged early in the 20th century and by the 1950s, research efforts were underway trying to replicate the process on Earth.  If it could be done, fusion would be a source of almost unlimited clean energy.  But there has been a cynical saying going around for half a century:  fusion power is the energy source of the future, and it always will be.

However, in recent years, there has been progress in developing fusion power.  Extraordinarily expensive and colossal machines have produced fusion energy albeit consuming more energy than they make.  However, for a brief moment in 2022, a fusion reactor at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory did produce more energy than it took to run the machine.

Despite the less than encouraging history, there are now multiple start-up companies dedicated to developing fusion energy and they are optimistic that there will be significant progress over the next few years.

One such company, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, located 40 miles northwest of Boston, is building a fusion reactor called SPARC, that they claim will be producing net energy in 2027.  They say that their next machine, called ARC, will generate electricity for paying customers in the early 2030s.

A handful of other companies, including Type One Energy, Thea Energy, Realta Fusion, Zap Energy, General Fusion, and Helion Energy are also pursuing fusion reactor designs and also expect to have machines running over the next 5 to 10 years.

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The Quest to Build a Star on Earth

Photo, posted April 21, 2015, courtesy of John Spiri via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A giant solar project for Google

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One of the largest solar projects in the US has recently come online in Texas.  Three solar farms built side-by-side in Buckholts, Texas by SB Energy can provide 875 megawatts of electricity, nearly the size of a typical nuclear power plant.  The project will supply the largest solar energy purchase ever made by Google and the electricity generated will be used to power its new operations in the area.  Google will use about 85% of the project’s solar power for data centers in Ellis County and for cloud computing in the Dallas Region.

In total, Google has contracted with clean energy developers to bring more than 2,800 megawatts of new wind and solar projects to Texas.  Google expects to spend $16 billion through 2040 to purchase clean energy for its global operations.

According to the International Energy Agency, data centers’ total electricity consumption could reach more than 1,000 terawatt-hours in 2026, which is more than double the amount used in 2022.  One terawatt-hour is enough energy to power 70,000 homes for a year.  So, it is not surprising that large technology companies are investing heavily in energy technologies.

Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have all recently announced investments in nuclear energy to power data centers.  These companies all have made commitments to seek sources of carbon-free electricity to power their data centers and their increasing efforts in artificial intelligence.  Because of the rise of artificial intelligence, the large companies are not meeting their commitments to reduce their carbon emissions and are needing to greatly increase their efforts to obtain clean power.

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One of the largest solar projects in the US opens in Texas, backed by Google

Photo, posted March 27, 2016, courtesy of Ben Nuttall via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Renewables progress

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According to a new report by the International Energy Agency, the world is on track to produce nearly half of the electricity it uses from renewable sources by the end of this decade.  The report also finds that in nearly every country, large wind and solar plants are the cheapest forms of new power.

Between now and 2030, countries will add more than 5,500 gigawatts of new renewable capacity.   That is as much as China, India, the U.S., and the EU combined have at present.  Most of the new capacity will come from solar power.

China is aggressively pursuing renewable power installations with massive solar and wind projects.  By 2030, China will account for nearly half of the world’s renewable power capacity.

This year’s UN Climate Change Conference, held in the United Arab Emirates, established the goal of tripling renewable energy capacity worldwide by 2030. 

The growth in solar power continues to outperform industry expert projections as manufacturing ramps up.  India and the U.S. are both expected to triple their solar manufacturing capacity by the end of this decade.  Manufacturing, largely based in China, is already outstripping demand.

By 2030, solar and wind power are expected to account for about 30% of global electricity generation, hydropower about 13%, and other renewables such as geothermal power about 5%.

These estimates are based on existing policies and market conditions.  Governments could speed up the shift to clean energy by cutting red tape and by making it cheaper for poorer countries to finance solar and wind projects.

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Renewables 2024

Photo, posted November 23, 2023, courtesy of Rick Obst via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Solar energy on federal land

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Officials at the federal Bureau of Land Management announced late in August that they had finalized a plan to add Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Washington, and Wyoming to the Western Solar Plan, which started during the Obama era.   The plan, created in 2012, provides permitting for solar projects on federal land.  The original plan included Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

The Western Solar Plan is a major expansion for clean energy production in the Bureau of Land Management’s land leasing portfolio.  For decades, the BLM has leased tens of millions of acres of federal land to fossil fuel companies for oil, coal, and natural gas exploration and production.

The new addition includes 1.1 million acres of land in Oregon, an area larger than the entire state of Rhode Island.  The land selected is deemed to be of low risk for any adverse environmental effects from solar installation, and the plots of land are all within 15 miles of existing or planned electrical transmission lines.  A little over 50% of Oregon’s land is owned by the federal government and is managed primarily by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service.

The publication of the finalized plan at the end of August initiated a 30-day period for any participants in the initial planning to voice objections.  The governors of the 5 new states are reviewing the plan.  Final approval and adoption are expected later this year.

Western states need to expand solar and other clean energy production to meet their climate goals and federal lands will have to play an important role.

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Plan would make 1 million acres of federal land in Oregon available for solar energy projects

Photo, posted May 20, 2024, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Big Tech and emissions

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Most of the well-known largest technology companies have established ambitious clean energy goals.  They are on record for achieving net-zero emissions for all their operations and supply chains in many cases by 2030.  As a result, they have been investing heavily in renewable energy in various ways.  Despite these lofty goals and sincere efforts, many of them are struggling to reduce emissions.  The reason is simple:  big data.

A good example is Google, which started investing in renewable energy in 2010 and since 2017 has been purchasing renewable energy on an annual basis to match the electricity consumption of its global operations. However, Google’s greenhouse gas emissions have increased nearly 48% since 2019.  This is primarily a result of data center energy consumption.

The expanding use of artificial intelligence technology is consuming large amounts of electricity.  For example, a single ChatGPT query uses nearly 10 times as much electrical energy as a traditional Google search.

Google is by no means unique in having this problem.  Microsoft’s carbon emissions have risen by nearly 30% since 2020.  Amazon is struggling to reach net-zero across its operations by 2040.

All of these companies are entering into large power agreements with renewable energy companies all across the country.  The AI arms race for more and more computational power is driving a race to install more and more large-scale renewable energy.   Power purchase agreements for solar power, wind power, and even geothermal power are becoming a major activity for most of the largest tech companies.

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Can Google gobble up enough renewables?

Photo, posted February 12, 2023, courtesy of Geoff Henson via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Expanding solar and wind in the U.S.

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According to new data from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, solar and wind now make up more than 20% of the total US electrical generating capacity.  Adding up all renewable energy sources – which also include biomass, geothermal, and hydropower – renewable energy is now nearly 30% of the total electrical generating capacity in this country.

During the first five months of 2024, 10.669 gigawatts of solar and 2.095 gigawatts of wind power came online.  There were also 212 megawatts of hydropower and 3 megawatts of biomass added to generating capacity.  All told, renewables constituted 89.91% of new generating capacity added this year.  This does not include 1.1 gigawatts of nuclear power added at the Vogtle-4 reactor in Georgia. 

Solar power is booming.  The amount added this year was more than double the amount added over the same period last year.  Solar has been the largest source of new generating capacity for nine months straight.  Wind was the second largest.

About one-third of US solar capacity is in the form of small-scale – that is, rooftop – solar.  The statistics quoted in this report do not take that into account.  If it was included, solar plus wind would be closer to 25% of the US total.

Predictions are that over the next three years, nearly 90 gigawatts of additional solar power will be added to the grid as well as 23 gigawatts of wind power.  Over that period, coal, natural gas, and oil are projected to shrink by more than 20 gigawatts.

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Solar and wind now make up more than 20% of US electrical generating capacity

Photo, posted October 28, 2016, courtesy of Daxis via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Sunrise Wind construction begins

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In mid-July, construction started on New York’s largest offshore wind project.  Sunrise Wind is a 924-megawatt offshore wind farm located about 30 miles off the coast of Montauk Point on Long Island.  Sunrise Wind is expected to be operating in 2026 and will provide enough clean energy to power nearly 600,000 homes, making it the largest offshore wind farm in the United States.

The ongoing construction project will support more than 800 direct jobs.  It will be built under project labor agreements ensuring local union labor’s participation in all phases of construction.

Power from the wind farm will flow through an undersea cable coming ashore deep under the beach at Smith Point County Park.  From there, the power will travel primarily under roadways via a transmission line terminating at a power converter station in Holbrook, Suffolk County.

Sunrise Wind is being developed by Oersted, the largest energy company in Denmark and the world’s largest developer of offshore wind power by number of built offshore wind farms.

The second large offshore wind farm in New York, Empire Wind I, is being developed by Equinor.  These large wind farms are the result of New York’s fourth offshore wind solicitation.  The two projects, totaling over 1,700 megawatts, will be the largest power generation projects in New York State in more than 35 years once they enter operation in 2026.

New York has also launched a fifth offshore wind solicitation for which final proposals will be due in September.  Offshore wind is a major component of New York’s effort to expand the use of clean energy, grow its green economy, and combat climate change.

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Construction begins on Sunrise Wind, New York’s largest offshore wind project

Photo, posted June 14, 2022, courtesy of Stephen Boutwell/BOEM via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Wind farms and sea farms

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There has been increasing use of agriculture coexisting with solar farms.  This dual use of land is a win-win situation.  Recently, Danish researchers have been investigating the potential for farming marine products at offshore wind farms.

Scandinavia’s largest wind farm, Kriegers Flak, is the site of a four-year-old project in which long lines are stretched between the wind farm’s pylons and are used to grow mussels and seaweed.  With the first harvest that has taken place after 18 months, it is showing signs of early success.

Seaweed and mussels are low trophic aquaculture crops.  That means that that they don’t need to be fed or fertilized.  They take up nutrients from the sea and produce healthy foods.

The 328-foot lines spread between the turbines can be used to grow substantial quantities of the underwater seafood.  According to modeling by Aarhus University – the institution conducting the study – using just a tenth of Denmark’s wind park area could produce tons of seafood annually while using only the naturally-available resources.  This form of aquaculture captures emissions instead of producing them.

Researchers say that it is time to develop guidelines to encourage companies to plan for multiple uses of the ocean because countries are ramping up production of clean energy from offshore wind farms.  Denmark was the first country in the world to install a commercial offshore wind park in 1991.  Over 30 years later, nearly half of the country’s electricity comes from wind turbines.

The benefits of such sea farms combined with offshore wind farms go beyond food production and clean energy production.  They also help improve water quality and capture carbon.  It is another win-win situation.

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Beneath offshore wind turbines, researchers grow seafood and seaweed

Photo, posted August 5, 2007, courtesy of Andreas Klinke Johannsen via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

WAMC Northeast Public Radio

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio is a regional public radio network serving parts of seven northeastern states (more...)