While in South India last month I had the chance to visit the charming offices of the Centre for Wind Energy Technology, the Indian government’s brain trust on wind power. [...]
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BP axes Tony Hayward, McDonald’s cooks up some localwashing, NASA gives us a pop quiz…. and more of the latest sustainability news. [...] Terrafugia Flying Car This is David’s summary of the week’s news for the Matter Network. To see the original, or post your comments, go here. Solar’s Sugar Daddy: During his Saturday address, President Obama lavished an astonishing $2 billion in loan guarantees upon two solar companies. This upended the administration’s seedling strategy with renewables [...] From this week’s summary: Our Gulf of knowledge about the oil spill, Indonesia’s rainforests held for ransom, big news from Nissan and Zipcar, and some welcome news for the food movement. [...] I am coming to the conclusion that the wind turbines of today — hundreds of feet tall, sporting three blades, clustered in the cornfields like rotary clubs — will soon go the way of the Model T. Good for their day, but we’ve moved on. I explored alternative designs in wind power for my latest “Innovate” column in Sierra magazine, and can report that 31 flavors of turbines are poised to engulf the plain ol’ vanilla version we know so well. It isn’t that anything’s so wrong with Old Reliable; it’s more that there’s categories of wind that a giant whirligig just can’t use. [...] News and insights of the week from the world of cleantech and sustainability. [...] This week: Are oil rigs a threatened species? Also, rain falls on the electric-car parade, and Google makes a curious investment. [...] Two Tales of Ocean Energy: Major events in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico laid out the U.S.’s energy choices in stark contrast. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill made landfall in Louisiana, a week after the offshore rig caught fire and sank. Oyster beds and wildlife are at risk, and the spill may grow to be one of the largest in U.S. history. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar gave the green light to the Cape Wind installation, the first offshore wind farm to be approved in U.S. waters. Its 130 turbines, projected to be up and running by 2012, will provide 75 percent of the electricity needed on Cape Cod and the islands of Nantucket Sound. [...] At the southernmost tip of India lies the Muppandal Wind Farm, the biggest source of wind energy in India and one of the largest in Asia. I drove through it by accident a few days ago and and can report that Muppandal is as curious and multilayered as India itself. [...] The most visible class of finalists were those with ambitious plans for “kite power” — harnessing the powerful and consistent winds that blow high off the Earth’s deck. [...] |
 David Ferris is a journalist who writes about eco-business and eco-technology for publications like Popular Mechanics, Sierra magazine and Forbes. Learn more. |
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Copyright © 2012 The Ferris Files - All Rights Reserved |
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