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BBC NEWS | Science & Environment | UK opposes green aviation target
The UK government is lobbying for aviation to be excluded from an EU target to increase renewable energy.
Documents passed to BBC News reveal that Whitehall wants the industry exempted from a general target of 20% renewable energy by 2020.
It also wants interim targets leading up to 2020, and targets on clean energy in new homes, to be optional.
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Technology Review: New Route to Hydrocarbon Biofuels
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have developed a simple, two-step chemical process to convert plant sugars into hydrocarbon fuels. The compounds created during the process could also be used to make other industrial chemicals and plastics.
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Curbing coal emissions alone might avert climate danger, say researchers
An ongoing rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide from burning of fossil fuels might be kept below harmful levels if emissions from coal are phased out within the next few decades, say researchers. They say that less plentiful oil and gas should be used sparingly as well, but that far greater supplies of coal mean that it must be the main target of reductions. Their study appears in the journal Global Biogeochemical Cycles.
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Why the Oil Crisis Will Persist [Extended Version]: Scientific American
According to recent statistics, U.S. motorists have responded to record-high prices at the pump by driving less. Any hope that this cutback will significantly restrain global oil prices is misplaced, however: fundamental factors of supply and demand in the world economy will keep oil costly for years to come.
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Smart grid company GridPoint heaps on $120M and buys electric vehicle startup V2Green » VentureBeat
GridPoint, one of the largest of the smart grid startups, who aim to more intelligently distribute energy across the electrical grid, has more than doubled up on its prior funding with $120 million. Along with the new money, it has bought out V2Green, which makes software for electric vehicles to efficiently plug into the grid.
This latest move shows a company trying to get a leg up on a bevy of well-funded competitors, who include Silver Spring Networks, SmartSynch, Trilliant and a number of others. All of them offer variations on a communication platform that hooks up home and business electrical connections to utilities, allowing a two-way flow of information.
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British technology powers revolutionary wave power project in Portugal – Telegraph
Technology developed in the UK is to be used as part of a revolutionary renewable energy project in Portugal.
The scheme, which will generate clean electricity for more than 1,000 family homes in its first phase, marks the latest step in the country’s moves to become a leader in developing renewable energy sources.
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UK Met office: Global warming goes on, deniers are deluded
The UK’s Met Office issued a blunt statement yesterday, “Global warming goes on,” that begins:
Anyone who thinks global warming has stopped has their head in the sand.
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Greenland’s ice cap melting faster than expected: experts
Greenland’s ice cap, which covers more than 80 percent of the island, is melting faster than expected because of global warming, a Danish researcher said on Monday.
The 1.8-million-square-kilometre (695,000-square-mile) ice cap, which accounts for 10 percent of the planet’s fresh water, is losing about 257 cubic kilometres (62 cubic miles) of ice per year. -
NYC Successfully Installs Tidal-Power Turbine in East River : CleanTechnica
New York City has installed a new-and-improved aluminum alloy turbine in the East River, the only of its kind in the United States.
The turbine is the first of 300 which the city hopes to install in the waterway. Unlike the typical river which flows in a constant direction, the East River is a tidal straight with strong, fluctuating currents which allow for more efficient power generation. Once in place, the system could provide electricity to 10,000 households.
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European Parliament backs car CO2 laws in dramatic U-turn – Summary : Environment
A key European Parliament committee on Thursday gave its backing to strong European Union limits on the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) new cars should emit in a dramatic turnaround from the expected result.
But it was met with dismay by auto lobbies and politicians, with the association of European car manufacturers, ACEA, saying that the committee had “given the wrong signal” and “missed the opportunity to shape a realistic framework” for development.
The committee decided that car makers selling their vehicles in the EU should ensure that the average CO2 emissions of the cars they sell are no more than 120 grams per kilometre (g/km) in 2012.
Penalties for non-compliance should start at 20 euros (29.3 dollars) per car sold and per g/km over the limit in 2012, and rise to 95 euros per g/km in 2015, they said.
And the EU should bring in a further target of 95 g/km by 2020, they decided.
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The Energy Roadmap – Detroit to World: Nobody has Killed the Electric Car
The recent string of announcements coming from Detroit, Japan, China and the rest of the automotive sector suggest big changes ahead. Yes, it will take years to unfold, but the shift toward the electrification of the world’s transportation sector has begun.
Between 2010-12 consumers can expect to see first generation all-electric vehicles from nearly every major automobile manufacturer. The monopoly era of liquid fuels and the combustion engine has started its descent. By 2025 the industry might be in a position abandon this 19th century propulsion platform and begin a new era of electric propulsion with the help of batteries, hydrogen fuel cells and capacitors.
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VOA News – Oil Man T. Boone Pickens Pressures Presidential Candidates on Energy
Oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens spoke at the National Press Club in Washington Monday and called on both presidential candidates to come up with a plan to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil.
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Technology Review: Efficient, Cheap Solar Cells
A cheap new way to attach mirrors to silicon yields very efficient solar cells that don’t cost much to manufacture. The technique could lead to solar panels that produce electricity for the average price of electricity in the United States.
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Green industry: Tackling climate change will boost, not destroy, jobs | Environment | guardian.co.uk
Far from destroying jobs, tackling climate change will boost employment, claims a major new report published today by the UN and the international labour movement.
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Green economy projected to double by 2020: UN- ET Cetera-News By Industry-News-The Economic Times
The so-called green economy is booming across the globe and the market for environmental products and services is likely to double by 2020, according to a UN study.
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