The smartphone revolution is spreading to every corner of the globe and, in 2011, an astounding 450 million smartphones were shipped. But what is the environmental cost of all these phones? A piece from OPower looked into this and found some surprising facts. The first is that the iPhone 5 only uses $0.41/year of energy, …
Tag Archives: energy
Third Industrial Revolution – led by renewable energy and the internet
Jeremy Rifkin is a renowned economist on the environment, author, and advisor to the European Union. And he has a theory about the next great movement of the world – The Third Industrial Revolution. From Omega: The great economic revolutions in history occur when new communication technologies converge with new energy systems. New energy revolutions …
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IKEA makes the switch to LED bulbs – but Americans still don’t know about them
This week IKEA announced they plan to sell only LED bulbs by 2016, becoming the first furniture retailer in the United States to do so. A round-up of the stories covering this: The total annual cost saving (including purchase price and energy consumption cost) of switching one incandescent 40W bulb to a corresponding LED bulb, …
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San Onofre nuclear plant update – one unit to turn on, another to stay off permanently
Yesterday Southern California Edison submitted plans to restart one of its two nuclear generators at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS). The other generator is being shut down permanently. Both units showed radioactive damage and required repairs. Unit 2, the generator that will be turned on, had six tubes showing extreme decay, and 1,600 …
European Union leads the world in renewable energy – achieves 100 GW of wind power
Renewable energy continues to surge in the European Union (EU). The latest achievement is 100 GW of wind power, the equivalent of 62 coal power plants. The growth has been fast, “it took twenty years to get the first 10 GW grid connected…only 13 years to add 90 GW.” And half of that was added in …
Global solar power surged in 2011 – 73% growth
2011 was a great year for solar power with an increase of 73.3% in generating power – the fastest growth since reporting began. Germany and Italy led that charge by installing 57.1% of the new power. Worldwide there is now 63.4 gigwatts (GW) of solar power – of which 29.3 GW were brought online in 2011. …
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Massive wind farm comes online in Oregon – 845 megawatts of clean wind energy
The world’s third largest wind farm just started spinning its turbines in Oregon. Covering more than a thousand acres the 338 wind turbines will create 845 megawatts of clean energy. All of that will be sent down to California for 20 years as part of an agreement with Southern California Edison – who is in need …
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The wirelessly charged electric bus line
From Charged: The city of Milton Keynes will replace the diesel buses on one route with eight electric buses that will use wireless charging. The route currently transports more than 775,000 passengers a year over a total of 450,000 miles. Electrification is expected to remove about 500 tons of tailpipe CO2 emissions per year, and cut …
Federal government builds a net-zero energy McMansion
I know what you’re thinking, how can a McMansion be green – especially with tiny homes becoming popular – and when you see the photo below you’ll be even more skeptical. Add in the $2.5 million price tag and it sounds like a bridge-to-nowhere disaster. But before you pass judgement let’s learn more about the …
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Facebook app allows you to compare energy use with your neighbors
From Cyprus Mail (the island in the Mediterranean): Find out how much electricity you consume compared to your friends, those in your neighbourhood, or even your district with Facebook application ‘Social Electricity’, which uses data from the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) to help people save energy. I love this idea. I’ve always wanted to know …
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