Antinuclear

Australian news, and some related international items

Exciting forecast for Europe’s renewable energy jobs

by 2020 more than 2.7 million people would be employed in the renewable energy sector, culminating in more than 6 million jobs by 2050.

Europe’s Pathway to 100% Renewable Energy CALFINDER 28 April 2010, The European Renewable Energy Council (EREC) just released RE-thinking 2050, a report outlining a pathway that would lead the European Union to 100-percent renewable energy by 2050. Continue reading

April 28, 2010 Posted by | energy, solar, wind | , , , , | 1 Comment

Need to redraft Report of International Commission on Nuclear Proliferation and Disarmament.

Paragraph 15 and the remainder of the document would need to be re-worded to require phasing out nuclear power. Support for the following  points  might help to influence next month’s NPT New York conference.

by Peter Ravine, 26 April 2010, With due respect to Dr Gareth Evans, I am not impressed by the Commission’s December 2009 report as indicated by the following extract: Continue reading

April 26, 2010 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, energy, weapons and war | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Postponement of U.S. Climate Bill raises doubt that nuclear will be included

Graham’s withdrawal of support for the climate bill actually removes pressure on Sen. John Kerry and California Sen. Barbara Boxer, who come from the two most anti-nuclear states in the country. They’ve had to swallow hard to support the climate bill and its support for nuclear energy

Climate bill postponed, Idaho Samizdat ~ http://djysrv.blogspot.com, Dan Yurman. 25 April 2010, A top priority for President Obama suffered a severe setback over the weekend as Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham withdrew his support for climate change legislation which was to be introduced in the Senate this week. Continue reading

April 26, 2010 Posted by | climate change - global warming, energy | , , , , | Leave a comment

At last, Australian solar projects to be announced

Shortlisted solar projects to see the light of day * Giles Parksinson , The Australian,  April 26, 2010 IT could be a big fortnight for the Australian solar industry. The shortlist for the first two projects in the $1.5 billion Solar Flagships program is expected to be announced soon, and so will the much awaited but long-delayed winners of the solar component of the Renewable Energy Demonstration Program. Continue reading

April 26, 2010 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, climate change - global warming, energy, solar | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

UK election: Climate Change and Nuclear Power in the spotlight

Labour & Lib Dems Put Spotlight on Conservative Climate Sceptics The Energy Collective, by Vicky Portwain on 04/25/2010 Labour and Liberal Democrat energy representatives Ed Miliband and Simon Hughes joined forces to put Tory climate change sceptics in the spotlight this week.TThe ‘green hustings’ event organised by the Guardian featured a debate on climate change and energy between the 3 biggest political parties. The debate can be heard online via the Guardian website……Nuclear Power The Lib Dems do not believe nuclear power stations can be delivered in time before the energy crisis hits and that the nuclear programme undermines the building out of renewable energy……Labour & Lib Dems Put Spotlight on Conservative Climate Sceptics

April 26, 2010 Posted by | climate change - global warming, energy | , , , , , | Leave a comment

USA Climate Change Bill: nuclear lobby bought politicians

Coal, nuclear, big oil defy the odds, Politico, 22 April 2010,  By LISA LERER “….coal companies, the nuclear industry and Big Oil — have not only elbowed their way into seats at the table; they are poised to reap windfalls from climate proposals working their way through the Senate. .. Continue reading

April 24, 2010 Posted by | climate change - global warming, energy | , , , , | Leave a comment

Finland increasing renewable energy sources

“This addition of renewable energy is equivalent in scale to three big nuclear power plants.

Finland Announces Plans to Use More Renewable Energy Greenfudge.org,  by Arkisaeo, 23 Apr 2010 Finland announced plans to step up and meet EU requirements on cutting greenhouse gas emissions this week.

The EU requirement is to raise the share of renewable energy to 38% of energy consumption by 2020. In order to meet this goal, Finland must raise renewable energy production by 38 terawatt hours. How do they plan to reach this goal? …. Finland also plans on adding wood-based and wind energy systems, plus increasing the use of biofuels and heat pumps. Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen, stated:

“This addition of renewable energy is equivalent in scale to three big nuclear power plants.” … “In terms of scale, this is a massive solution.”

If all of these energy forms are put into action, it will cut Finland’s annual CO2 emissions by 7 million tons. Reducing coal use on top of that would cut an extra 2 million tons off their emissions….

April 24, 2010 Posted by | wind | , , | Leave a comment

Record Growth for Wind Power in USA

U.S. Wind Energy Industry Reports Growth in 2009 , An Annual Report from the AWEA Reports Record Growth Green Chip Stocks, By Hilary Stingley , April 23rd, 2010Amidst a slowly improving economy, the wind energy industry saw a lot of growth and movement in 2009.An annual report released in early April by the American Wind Energy Association showed the addition of more than 10,000 MW of new wind power across the U.S.-bringing the total to more than 35,000 MW overall.Wind continues to be the leader among renewable energy resources, accounting for more than 39 percent of new power sources added to the grid.Denise Bode, CEO of AWEA, said in a statement that the wind energy industry is “on the verge of explosive growth if the right policies-including a national Renewable Electricity Standard-are put in place.”….

Within the last year, Iowa became the first state to get more than 10 percent of its electricity from wind.Neighboring states North Dakota and Minnesota were close to the 10 percent mark, while Texas remains the leader in wind farms…..The AWEA’s report called for a national Renewable Electric Standard and infrastructure updates to connect nearly 300,000 MW of proposed wind projects that await interconnection to the electric grid. U.S. Wind Energy Industry Reports Growth in 2009

April 24, 2010 Posted by | energy, wind | , , | Leave a comment

In uranium-producing Australia, beware of governments bearing gifts

Could it be that the Australian and South Australian governments are getting just a little bit rattled, about their slavish devotion to the uranium/nuclear industry?

Goodness knows, the mainstream media are doing everything they can to help them. Nary a word about the scandalous betrayal of Labor policies and promises on nuclear waste dumping in the Northern territory.

Nary a word about the crumbling uranium price, the stalled Olympic Dam mining. and very little on BHP Billiton’s alleged involvement in corruption.

Meanwhile the South Australian government seems to be aiming at enhancing its green credentials, with environmental grants.  Or could it be that they would like the organisations receiving those grants to just shut up about the environmental degradation caused by uranium mining?

April 23, 2010 Posted by | Christina reviews, energy, uranium | , , , , | Leave a comment

Big uranium promoter South Australian govt seeks environmental credibility

South Australian government announces Community Sustainability Grants. Premier, the Hon Mike Rann said, “The Government of South Australia is pleased to be partnering with Conservation SA to help communities become more resilient so that they can readily respond to climate change.

“Climate change is a real issue that affects everyone, and programs like this  will give South Australians the opportunity to be part of the local solution.”

Community groups and non-government organisations are invited to apply for small (up to $3,000) or medium (up to $10,000) grants

April 23, 2010 Posted by | energy, solar, South Australia, spinbuster, water | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Earth Day – we need local, national, and global action

This Earth Day: Recommit to Think Globally and Act Locally, THE HUFFINGTON POST, David Gordon, 22 April 2010, “…… We need to make some tough choices. We need to transform our electricity systems by multiplying energy efficiency measures and to invest only in renewable energy, not in more fossil fuels. Continue reading

April 23, 2010 Posted by | 1, energy, solar | , , , | Leave a comment

Canadian researchers show the power of solar power

if they can mount solar panels on the rooftops and on those areas that are economically unproductive they can produce enormous amount of solar power
Ontario Solar Power could match US Nuclear Power, Alternative Energy April 20th, 2010 –Queen’s University Applied Sustainability Research Group located in Kingston, Canada comes out with two studies that claim solar power in southeastern Ontario can be created in abundance. The natural question is how much abundance?. The answer is mind-boggling. Southeastern Ontario has the potential to produce almost as much power as all the nuclear reactors in the United States! Continue reading

April 21, 2010 Posted by | 1, climate change - global warming, energy, solar | , , , , , | Leave a comment

On Renewable Energy: False Claims by Switkowski Report and the Nuclear Lobby

The promoters of nuclear power claim that we have to choose between coal and nuclear, that there is no alternative. This is a false choice, between BHP-Billiton and … BHP-Billiton.

Nuclear power: no solution to climate change, Green Left, quoting Mark Diesendorf , 17 April 2010 “………The 2006 Uranium Mining, Processing and Nuclear Energy Review, chaired by Dr Switkowski..  claimed that “nuclear power is the least-cost low-emission technology that can provide baseload power”. However, there was no basis in the report for such a gratuitous statement, which was outside the terms of reference of the report. Continue reading

April 19, 2010 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, energy, solar, spinbuster, uranium | , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

University of Queensland leads the way with solar panels

UQ powers up with Australia’s ‘largest’ solar panel system – Industry News – Queensland Business Review, April 16, 2010 The largest roof top solar power panel installation in Australia will be built at the University of Queensland (UQ) St Lucia Campus in Brisbane.Premier Anna Bligh says the Queensland Government is investing $1.5 million to support the development of a $7.75 million 1.2 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) project at UQ……The system will form part of a larger micro-grid strategy to use renewable energy across the University’s other campuses over the next decade. UQ powers up with Australia’s ‘largest’ solar panel system – Industry News – Queensland Business Review

April 16, 2010 Posted by | energy, Queensland, solar | , , , | Leave a comment

Reports show that renewable energy could provide majority of world’s electricity needs

A World Run On Low Carbon Energy No Pipe Dream : Renewable Energy News, 15 APRIL, 2010 |The myth of low carbon and renewable energy sources not being able to supply the majority, if not all, the developed world’s electricity requirements in the near future is being busted almost weekly in recent months. Continue reading

April 16, 2010 Posted by | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, energy, solar, wind | , , , , | Leave a comment