power plants

Coal mine via Shutterstock

The historic shift from coal to natural gas in the U.S. electric power sector may be stalling out, according to the latest forecasts from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.[read more]

Today the EPA issued its first-ever regulation on carbon dioxide emissions from new power plants, limiting emissions to 1000 pounds of CO2 per megawatt-hour of electricity produced. Given the fact that the average coal plant vastly exceeds this limit (weighing in around 1,768 lbs CO2 per megawatt-hour), the implications of the move seem...[read more]

I saw in Tuesday's Washington Post that the EPA was ready to issue its proposed rules for CO2 emissions from new power plants. When finalized, these rules would apply to facilities larger than 25 MW that begin construction more than a year hence. As the Post notes, the chosen CO2 emissions limit of 1,000 lb. per gross Megawatt-hour (MWh...[read more]

Ask an expert on clean tech what the largest barriers to a low carbon energy future are, and chances are they will list higher technology costs, policy barriers, or the need for new infrastructure to accommodate novel energy sources.[read more]

Over the past decade, plans for 160 new coal fired power plants in the United States have been scrapped, largely due to rising costs and an inability to compete in today’s energy markets. That’s because the cost of once-“expensive” clean energy has fallen dramatically.[read more]

Also by Alex Trembath. Two new federal air pollution regulations are expected to spur the closure of up to 67 aging, inefficient, coal-fired power plants, reducing both harmful air pollutants and emissions of the climate destabilizing greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide (CO2), according to an AP survey of US power plant operators and a...[read more]

The reactor is reported to be in no danger as the Missouri River hits flood stage The Missouri River flooding is bringing waves of concern nationwide about the safety of the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Power Plant. Business Insider, a news aggregator, has a story and a video predicting all manner of nuclear catastrophe at the Ft. Calhoun...[read more]

As the President and Senators consider their options on energy and climate legislation, it’s important to be clear about what will move the country forward and what will move it backward.  Will our leaders put us on the road towards the carbon pollution cuts desperately needed to take back control of our economic, environmental, and...[read more]

I have just returned from a unique ecotourism experience. Instead of visiting a wild place with a protected and isolated habitat, I spent a week in France touring industrial facilities that are actively producing emission-free fuels and power for a large, prosperous, and well-developed country. My trip was hosted by Areva, the...[read more]

Businessweek has published a fascinating article by Eric Pooley titled The Smooth Talking King of Coal - And Climate Change that should be required reading for anyone who is interested in understanding how business leaders, establishment Environmental group leaders, and ambitious politicians can come together to concoct a scheme to skew...[read more]

Podcast – Download Audio File Here This is a follow up to the podcast titled “Water Wars in New York” on May 27, 2010 in which I discussed how NY State is using their authority to issue Water Quality Certificates to wage war against the Indian Point Nuclear Plant.  In case you missed that show, New York is holding the plant’s 20...[read more]

Many of the most virulent anti-nuclear activists have begun focusing almost exclusively on spreading the assumption that nuclear energy means expensive energy. They have been helped in this effort by statements from the established nuclear industry who claim that new plants are so expensive that they require government assistance and...[read more]

Photo: Golub Corporation In The New York Times on Wednesday, I write about a New York grocery store chain that has installed a low-emission fuel cell to power one of its supermarkets: A supermarket in Albany is among the first grocery stores in the country to install a fuel cell to supply cleaner, greener electricity along with heat...[read more]

The World’s 200 Dirtiest Power Plants Forbes.com has an interactive map of the dirtiest coal power plants. Click on the graphic below and you’ll be sent directly to the map. Writer Jon Bruner introduces the map: “Sixty percent of the world’s electricity comes from plants burning fossil fuels and releasing carbon. Many of the highest...[read more]

In parts of the United States (and worldwide), limited availability of water is limiting the ability to build new power plants. While the water-energy connection has been of interest for some time, particularly in more arid areas, the issue has seemed to be more in the news of late. (I.e., this news article on the water requirements of...[read more]