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Permitting bill pits clean energy industry against climate activists — This Week in Cleantech

Permitting bill pits clean energy industry against climate activists — This Week in Cleantech
Transmission lines near Los Angeles, California (Courtesy: Robert Thiemann/Unsplash)

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less. Produced by Renewable Energy World and Tigercomm, This Week in Cleantech will air every Friday in the Factor This! podcast feed wherever you get your podcasts.

This week’s episode features Jael Holzman, a senior reporter at Heatmap, who reported on how the clean energy industry is colliding with climate activists over a long-awaited energy permitting bill.

1. The Rush to Shore Up the Power Grid Against Hurricanes, Heat and Hail — The Wall Street Journal

This year, the power grid’s reliability has been severely impacted by floods, hurricanes, and extreme heat. Utilities like New York’s Con Edison are adding switches to underground networks to limit failure spread. Companies in hot areas like Arizona are requiring new components to operate at an average temperature of 122°F instead of the current 104°F. To prevent hail damage at solar farms, tracker companies are adding stowing capabilities to tilt panels at a steep angle so that hailstones miss panels. The industry is developing innovative technologies to better handle extreme weather events.

2. How to Avoid A Climate Backlash — TIME

Right now, there is a political backlash to the energy transition. European farmers are protesting environmental regulations, autoworkers are resisting the transition to EVs, and only 24% of Europeans are satisfied with their climate program. Many officials presumed that the economic benefits of combating climate change would universally garner support. However, climate policies can also lead to economic challenges. Reporter Justin Worland makes the point that these challenges must be addressed and communicated to secure more support for the energy transition.

3. Energy Companies Turn to Robots to Install Solar Panels — The New York Times

Some predictions say the country will need nearly double today’s number of solar worker’s to meet solar demand, but 44% of solar companies already say it is “very difficult” to find qualified workers. Now, energy companies are turning to machines to address this issue. This week, the AES Corporation introduced a robot that can install panels on a utility-scale solar plant twice as fast as humans and at half the cost. 

After months of testing, this robot will install panels at the nation’s largest solar-plus-battery project later this year. So far, it has installed about 10 MW of solar panels, enough to power 2,000 homes.

Watch the full episode on YouTube

4. Applied Carbon’s farm robot turns plant waste into biochar to capture CO2 — TechCrunch

Earth science and robotics experts at Applied Carbon turned to a centuries-old practice to potentially put away 2 billion metric tons of carbon annually, all while helping to boost crop yield. They discovered a way to transform waste biomass into biochar that can store carbon for decades. Finding the plant waste, getting it to a biochar facility, and then transporting it back to the farms is costly and energy-intensive. Instead of following this process, Applied Carbon would bring the facility to the farm.

5. The Climate Case Against the Permitting Deal — Heatmap News

Senator Joe Manchin’s new permitting deal aims to speed up permitting, approvals, and planning for transmission and renewable energy, which is beneficial for decarbonization. However, many climate activists oppose the bill because it includes provisions that could extend fossil fuel leasing onshore and offshore, limit the Energy Department’s ability to restrict LNG export terminals, and reduce federal oversight over oil and gas drilling on private lands.