The practice of harnessing clean, renewable energy from the sun to power homes and businesses is gaining popularity as improved technology and business models are reaching consumers. Solar energy is harnessed using photovoltaic (PV) panel systems that convert sunlight directly into electrical energy that can be used to power your home’s heating, cooling, lighting and appliances. PV panels are easily …

Today, the Sierra Club, along with Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), and a diverse coalition of public interest groups, automakers, labor unions, and representatives of community choice aggregators and electric vehicle (EV) charging, submitted a proposed settlement to the California Public Utilities Commission to accelerate the deployment of EV charging stations across Northern California. The new “Charge Smart and Save” …

NRDC’s Noah Horowitz explains new light bulb energy efficiency standards in California that are expected to cut the state’s annual electricity bill by more than $400 million. The California Energy Commission (CEC) made history again today when it set minimum energy efficiency standards for small diameter directional light bulbs used for accent, spot and track lighting that will be the …

Yesterday, the Antelope Valley Transit Agency, A Los Angeles County transportation agency, yesterday pledged to convert to an all-electric fleet of buses. There are 85 buses in this fleet, so this announcement represents one of the largest zero emission bus commitments in the US to date. Right now, oil leads to about 40% of the carbon pollution in the US. …

California Public Utilities Commission approves San Diego Gas & Electric’s innovative “Vehicle-Grid Integration” program San Francisco — Yesterday, the California Public Utilities Commission voted to approve San Diego Gas & Electric’s innovative “Vehicle-Grid Integration” program. Under the program, SDG&E will deploy 3,500 charging stations in the San Diego area, and, through special “dynamic pricing,” encourage charging during off-peak hours or …

The book ‘Solar Power Demystified: The Beginners Guide To Solar Power, Energy Independence And Lower Bills’ introduces you to the world of solar electric panels and systems. It reveals you the reasons why photovoltaic solar panels are continuing to gain worldwide popularity and are becoming more important as a source of renewable energy. You can see the question “To go …

This post originally appeared on Modernize.com where you can find comprehensive solar information from industry experts.   America’s energy policy has been the subject of much recent debate: From the Pope’s public advocacy of environmental stewardship to the EPA’s toughened regulations on pollution from petroleum refineries, the sources that power our society have rarely been so widely scrutinized. Once regarded as a subject …

Owens Corning and Constellation Celebrate Completion of 2.4-MeGAWATT Solar Project Parking canopy solar installation at Owens Corning headquarters supports company’s new 50 percent target for greenhouse gas reduction Owens Corning (NYSE: OC) and Constellation, a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation, today celebrated the completion of a 2.4-megawatt (DC) solar generation project at Owens Corning’s headquarters in Toledo. Located above 935 parking …

Denmark’s cumulative installed capacity is expected to expand from 13.5 Gigawatts (GW) in 2014 to reach 16.1 GW by 2025, rising at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 1.7%, says research and consulting firm GlobalData. The company’s latest report* states that more than half of the total power generation will come from renewables (excluding hydropower) by 2020, as Denmark …

Britain’s First Low-Cost Energy Positive Home is an “I was there moment” The question of how we will power our homes in a carbon-free future is, in many ways, the defining challenge of the 21st century. While climate scientists are in unanimous agreement that fossil fuels must be left in the ground if we are to avert dangerous levels of …

Wave energy solutions to creating more power from the motion of the ocean are coming online all over the world as talented designers find creative solutions to harnessing wave energy.Check out these videos of some of these new technologies. Ocean Energy – Wave Power Station Functionality of wave power station developed by Voith Hydro (www.voith.com). Animation produced by Kral GmbH …

Innovative partnership is celebrated on Earth Day for turning waste to watts, saving tax dollars GRESHAM, Ore. – The City of Gresham today celebrated the ingenuity and collaborative spirit that made possible an environmental achievement – engineering the Pacific Northwest’s first energy net zero wastewater treatment plant. Achieving net zero status means that the plant makes about the same amount of electricity as …

Found this great article to share about a German inventor. Check out this snippet and then click over to get the full scoop. He’s electrified his bicycle. He’s electrified his Porsche. When he introduces his dog, Paula, you almost expect him to tell you that he’s electrified her, too. Not yet, but you never know. The engineer from a small …

MADISON, Wis. — In a study published March 9 in Nature Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison chemistry Professor Kyoung-Shin Choi presents a new approach to combine solar energy conversion and biomass conversion, two important research areas for renewable energy. For decades, scientists have been working to harness the energy from sunlight to drive chemical reactions to form fuels such as hydrogen, …

Campus-wide deployments result in an average of 80 percent efficiency gains while supporting universities’ commitment to sustainability and providing a green campus life for students  Bigbelly, Inc., the leading provider of enterprise waste management solutions, announces broad adoption of Bigbelly Smart Waste & Recycling solutions by universities and colleges across the United States seeking efficient and environmentally friendly ways to …

  Scrap wood to create 100% of the steam needed to run one of P&G’s largest paper manufacturing facilities The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) and Constellation, a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC), today announced the development of an up to 50-megawatt biomass plant that will help run one of P&G’s largest U.S. facilities. The plant will significantly increase P&G’s use of …

By Robert Sanders, Media Relations | February 9, 2015 BERKELEY —Generating electricity from biomass, such as urban waste and sustainably-sourced forest and crop residues, is one strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, because it is carbon-neutral: it produces as much carbon as the plants suck out of the atmosphere. A carbon dioxide injection well in Australia. (Photo courtesy of CO2CRC) …

An innovative new book from Routledge explores the rise of wind power as a global industry and examines the challenges it faces in today’s unpredictable energy climate.   Wind Power: The Struggle for Control of a New Global Industry, written by Ben Backwell and published by Routledge, looks at the nations, companies and people fighting for control of one of the world’s …

Retail residential electricity prices across the U.S. rose in the first half of this year, averaging 12.3 per kilowatt hour, a 3.2 percent price hike from the same period last year. This is the largest six-month rise since 2009, the U.S Energy Information Administration has reported. Factors that affect your electricity bill There are two main components that contribute to …

A funny thing happened to Urban Green Energy (UGE) on the way to becoming a small wind turbine manufacturer. The New York company discovered that demand was limited for its product on a stand-alone basis. But combine small wind turbines with solar, storage and some intelligence – into a remote microgrid – and the market is vast. This is especially true …