Image: NREL/Dennis Schroeder
Australia, the Land Down Under, is a very interesting and exciting place for renewable energy. The high levels of irradiance it receives makes it a great place for solar power to flourish. Australia has also seen its fair share of natural disasters caused at least in part by a warming planet. A transition to clean energy can help fight against climate change and it makes sense financially. As Australia continues on its journey to a clean energy economy, the rest of the world can observe what works and what causes challenges.
On Friday, March 26th, Governor Charlie Baker signed a new climate bill into law. The official name of the law is “An Act Creating A Next Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate Policy”. Kind of a mouthful. This new law aims to tackle a wide range of challenges and sets goals for the state to reach. It continues the trend of Massachusetts being one of the most progressive states when it comes to climate action.
On Wednesday, March 24th Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) held a webinar titled "Search for Resilience: Texas Blackouts, Policy Fallout, and How Advanced Energy Can Help”. It has been about one month since the disastrous winter weather caused blackouts all across ERCOT, Texas’s electric grid. It was enlightening to hear from industry and policy experts about what has happened in the wake of the blackouts, and what the future of ERCOT and other electric grids across the United States will look like.
The combination of PV and agriculture could have benefits for both industries, while also cutting down on land use. Researchers are working to ensure that projects and systems are designed in ways that offer positive outcomes for both sides.
