Thailand’s solar queen paves the way for photovoltaics in Southeast Asia
The photovoltaic revolution in Thailand was sparked by a woman, named the solar queen. And now the country is the Southeast leader in the field.
China will shut down 1,000 coal mines
Entro quest’anno uno dei maggiori produttori e consumatori di carbone inizierà a chiudere le proprie miniere. Per ripulire l’aria e puntare sulle rinnovabili.
Brazil does a U-turn on fracking. Indigenous lands protected from oil and gas exploration
A judge has recognized the right to land of uncontacted indigenous peoples in the Amazon‘s Juruá Valley. The Brazilian government sold off protected areas adjacent to their ancestral territories at an auction, in order for oil and gas companies to conduct resource exploration including for fracking. In December last year a court decided to revoke
Russia, coal mine disaster in the Arctic kills 36
Tre esplosioni hanno causato il crollo della miniera russa di Severnaia. L’incidente si aggiunge al vasto elenco di catastrofi minerarie russe, provocate da vecchie strutture e da controlli inadeguati.
Peru declares an emergency as oil spill contaminates the Amazon
Nell’oleodotto della compagnia petrolifera Petroperu si sono aperte due falle e il greggio sta contaminando il fiume Marañon, uno dei principali affluenti del Rio delle Amazzoni.
World’s largest floating solar plant is being built in Japan
Due to the lack of soil for the construction of PV plants, the Japanese company Kyocera has thought to build one on a water reservoir. This is the result.
Wind power leapfrogs hydropower. Europe adds 13 GW of new wind installations
2015 was a record year for wind, which confirmed to be a promising source of power. 12% of Europe’s electricity needs was covered.
Morocco’s King opens world’s largest concentrating solar power plant
King Mohammed VI opens what will become the largest concentrating solar power plant in the world when completed. Three projects that, combined with the photovoltaic phase (Noor IV), will make Noor Ouarzazate, Morocco, world’s largest multi-technology solar production site.
Smog. MEPs voted for doubling maximum emission limits for diesel cars
When levels of pollutants cannot be lowered, limits are relaxed. This is what happened at the European Parliament on 3 February. MEPs voted for implementing emission tests on cars’ Real Driving Emissions (RDE) that will lead to the cut down of cars’ maximum emission values. However, it’s all about giving car manufacturers
France to build 1000 kilometres of solar roads. But not everybody thinks this is a good idea
A thousand kilometres of roads will be paved with solar panels that will produce energy for millions of French people. But costs could be prohibitive.