Latest Articles
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Solar cheaper than fossil fuels in a decade, says Steven Chu
Solar power will be cheaper than fossil fuels at some point between the end of this decade and 2026*, said U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu at the Washington Post's Smart Energy conference this morning. (For more on what Chu said, check out Guardian reporter Suzanne Goldenberg's tweets from the conference.) The date at which […]
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Investors throw money at cleantech companies
The financial turmoil of the past few years has made venture capital financing hard to come by, but clean technology is still raking it in. In this past quarter, cleantech companies raised more than $1.1 billion, according to Ernst & Young. That's a huge jump — 73 percent — from last year. Most of the […]
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Republicans are taking real vote on imaginary dust regulations
A House subcommittee is voting today on a bill that would bar the EPA from regulating farm dust. Of course, the EPA isn't trying to regulate farm dust, but voting on legislation that has anything to do with reality is so pre-midterms. Republicans like John Boehner, Eric Cantor, and Herman Cain have been citing the […]
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This bridge is made from recycled plastic
This 90-foot bridge in Wales Scotland (whoops, the company is Welsh, not the bridge) is Europe's first to be made entirely out of recycled plastic, not to mention the longest plastic bridge ever built. More than 50 tons of plastic went into making the bridge, which can carry vehicles up to 44 metric tons (heavier than […]
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Fracking causing earthquakes in England and Oklahoma
Natural gas fracking caused an earthquake in England. And a spate of quakes in Oklahoma. And while the idea that fracking for natural gas causes earthquakes has been floating around, these quakes offer stronger proof that fracking seriously messes with the environment. And while these quakes, peaking in intensity around the high 2s on the […]
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Critical List: Fox News is already trying to discredit the IPCC; an asteroid’s passing Earth
Cute. Fox News is trying to discredit the IPCC before its latest report’s even out. This wind turbine, which looks kind of like a kitchen strainer, has 30 blades, makes less noise than the three-blade models, and is more energy efficient. As climate change sets in, some animals will get smaller, but some will grow. […]
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Occupied Oakland [SLIDESHOW]
Check out more photos from Wednesday’s gathering and march in Oakland, Calif.
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The Greenie Pig gets religion on global warming
Forgive me, Earth, for I have sinned. You see, a dear childhood friend of my boyfriend’s got married last Saturday. Our attendance was a foregone conclusion — there was no way Ted could miss his bro’s big day. Problem was, we live in Seattle, and this wedding was in Marfa, Texas, a tiny town a […]
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Jon Huntsman’s energy plan shoots blanks
Jon Huntsman.Photo: Gage SkidmoreCross-posted from Climate Progress. Presidential candidate, former ambassador to China, and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman received attention for his willingness to accept scientists’ verdict that carbon dioxide and other pollutants generated by humans are responsible for climate change. While 98 of 100 climate scientists agree that global warming is real, he […]
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Learning from history: Why natural gas prices will rise
Here’s the standard story about the U.S. power grid: It gets baseload supply from hydro, nuclear, and coal (in that order), using natural gas (and the occasional oil plant) as a swing producer to meet peak demands. Renewables play on the margin, but are neither big nor reliable enough to matter from a grid planning […]
