Will Voters Cast Climate Change Votes?

Are candidates ready to face climate change? Voters are; A recent forum suggests that climate change will be a factor in the next election

Daniel Cohan, January 29, 2018 (Houston Chronicle)

“…[Unimaginably, seven Democrats are vying to challenge nine-term Congressman John Culberson for the seat long held by Republicans in the Seventh Congressional District of Texas and the Cook Political Report rates the race] a "toss-up."…[A climate forum held by the Houston chapter of 350.org,] Pantsuit Republic Houston — Climate and Environmental Racism Committee, Indivisible To Flip TX7, and Texans for Climate Change Action…[discussed the fact that] recent surveys debunk the misperceptions of voter apathy on climate. A survey by Harvard and Politico showed that Democrats rank climate change neck-and-neck with healthcare and Trump-Russia allegations as the top issues motivating their vote in 2018. Another survey showed that even most Republicans wanted President Trump to remain in the Paris Climate Agreement…

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On a national level, the Trump administration has pushed for "red team, blue team" debates of whether to accept climate science…The discussion revealed a lot of common ground, but also distinctions…But the true value of the event might come less from what the voters learned about the candidates than from what the candidates learned from the voters. Simply put: We care…When voters care, candidates respond…Whoever is elected to Congress this November, they'll know there's a motivated contingent of voters eager to see a more vigorous federal response to climate…” click here for more

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Making American Workers Losers Again

President Trump Slaps Tariffs on Solar Panels in Major Blow to Renewable Energy

Brian Eckhouse, Ari Natter, and Christopher Martin, January 22, 2018 (Time Magazine)

“…In the biggest blow he’s dealt to the renewable energy industry yet, [the president imposed] duties of as much as 30 percent on solar equipment made abroad…[This] threatens to handicap a $28 billion industry that relies on parts made abroad for 80 percent of its supply…The Solar Energy Industries Association has projected tens of thousands of job losses in a sector that employed 260,000…The tariffs are just the latest action Trump has taken that undermine the economics of renewable energy…The import taxes, however, will prove to be the most targeted strike on the industry yet…The first 2.5 gigawatts of imported solar cells will be exempt from the tariffs…[and the four years of tariffs that start at 30 percent in the first year will] gradually drop to 15 percent…[T]hey may represent a step toward making good on a campaign promise to get tough on the country that produces the most panels — China…[The solar industry may] attempt a long-shot appeal to Congress…” click here for more

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Smart Siting Crucial For California Ocean Wind

Will the Navy sink plans for wind farms off Morro Bay?

John Lindt, January 26, 2018 (The Tribune)

“In response to growing interest in developing wind farms off California, the Navy in August published a map that shows where [floating] wind-energy projects and Navy and Marine Corps operations would overlap…The Navy had been asked to weigh in on the wind-power idea by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). The agency serves as a gatekeeper for energy development 3 miles offshore and beyond and had received [competitive requests from an Trident Winds for a 650-to 1,000-megawatt floating wind farm, and Statoil Wind US]…[BOEM] is working with the state of California on planning…[The Navy map designated about 36,000 square miles of Southern and Central California, from the Mexico border to just shy of Monterey Bay,] as a red zone, meaning the construction of wind farms in those sectors was ‘not compatible’ with Navy operations…

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The California coastline offers 112 gigawatts of technical offshore wind resource potential, much of it from floating turbines, according to Trident. That is more than 50 Diablo Canyons — about 1.5 times the state’s electric energy consumption…If the Navy sticks to its guns and blocks wind-energy projects off the coast of both Southern and Central California, the winner may be Humboldt Bay, where BOEM has also studied potential wind projects, colored green on the Navy map…The global offshore wind energy market was valued at $20.3 billion in 2016 and is expected to reach $57.2 billion in 2022, growing 16.2 percent from 2017 and 2022…UC Berkeley policy analyst Rob Collier says that because of supply chain needs for floating wind technology, the industry will be a huge boon to wherever the staging area is for the mammoth 700-foot-tall turbines that could and should be built nearby, not imported from China or elsewhere…” click here for more

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Time To Save The Trees

Should We Plant Forests to Tackle Climate Change?

January 28, 2018 (Environmental Technology)

“…[C]limate change is having a serious impact on the world’s forests. It’s estimated to cause 8 million acres of deforestation annually…[F]orests are a massive aid in the fight against climate change. They can store vast amounts of carbon extracted from the air and remove large amounts of greenhouse gases found in the earth’s atmosphere – as well as releasing oxygen. As a result, countries around the world are beginning to recognise the importance of reforestation and how it can help combat air pollution…At the beginning of 2018, [China announced plans to reforest an area] the size of Ireland…[It intends] to cover 23% of China’s landmass with forests by 2020…[It will also] start an ‘ecological red line…to end construction near rivers, forests, and national parks. Between 3.5 – 7 billion trees are cut down a year…[O]ne tree has the capability of producing almost 260 pounds of oxygen…” click here for more

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The Solar Tariff Imposed By Dirty Old Men

The Economics of Dirty Old Men

Paul Krugman, January 25, 2018 (NY Times)

“…[The just-imposed tariff on imported solar panels and cells] fits in with an important part of this administration’s general vision…[T]his is very much an administration of dirty old men…[and the solar tariff] will surely destroy many more jobs than it will create…[The U.S. is largely out of the solar panel-producing business…[and this tariff] won’t change it…[It is temporary and] won’t induce any long-term investments, and therefore won’t bring the U.S. solar panel industry back. What it will do, however, is put a crimp in one of the U.S. economy’s big success stories, the rapid growth of renewable energy…[It is clear that] hurting renewables is actually a good thing from [this administration’s] point of view…

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Over the past decade or so there has been a remarkable technological revolution in energy production…[driven by cheap and abundant natural gas and] stunning reductions in the cost of solar and wind power…[They have] become cost-competitive with conventional energy, and their cost is still falling fast. And they also employ…around five times as many people…Why do Trump and company love dirty energy? Partly it’s about the money…[I]t’s good for G.O.P. campaign finance…Partly it’s about blue-collar voters, who still imagine that Trump can bring back coal jobs…[Maybe] it’s also about a kind of machismo, a sense that real men don’t soak up solar energy; they burn stuff…” click here for more

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New York Reveals Big Ocean Wind Plans

NYS offshore wind energy plan envisions $6 billion industry by 2028; The state says the industry could employ up to 5,000 people and the turbines aren’t expected to be visible from Long Island’s shore.

Mark Harrington, January 28, 2018 ((NewsDay)

“…New York’s exhaustive master plan for] offshore wind energy foresees up to 5,000 people employed in and around a $6 billion industry by 2028, with annual health benefits from reduced emissions valued at up to $400 million…The Cuomo administration plan also makes clear that while offshore wind representing 2,400 megawatts and hundreds of turbines will be in the waters south of Long Island, none is expected to be visible from shore. The state expects more than 1.2 million homes could be powered by offshore wind…

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[The 60-page report’s] studies examine everything from viable ports to turbine manufacturing and wind-farm construction and staging to the need for cables, pipelines and other infrastructure, as well as the impact on birds, bats and fish…The state determined that an area encompassing just over 1 million acres can accommodate wind turbines at least 21 miles from land…The area sits directly below a 79,000-acre wind farm already planned by Statoil called Empire Wind, which is expected to be operational by 2024…The state this year plans to offer the first procurement for at least 400 megawatts of offshore wind, with another 400 megawatts set for procurement in 2019, with a total 2,400 megawatts expected by 2030…” click here for more

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Do You Know What The Climate Change Monster Looks Like?

Help Us Design a Climate Change Monster; What fictional beasts will our shifting environments bring?

Natasha Frost, January 22, 2018 (Atlas Obscura)

“…Our changing world will doubtless inspire fictional monsters—but what will they look like?...[It looks like] what happens when ecosystems are allowed to run rampant...[Maybe it] lives in the sea…[and is] huge and primordial…[Maybe it has a post-nuclear kick with] two tails, and far more eyes than anything really needs…[Atlas Obscura wants help imagining] climate change monsters…Where will the climate monster come from? Where does it live? What will it do? Use your imagination…[S]end all ideas to Natasha Frost by Thursday, January 25, 2018…” click here for more

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Arizona Looks At Big Wind Buy

Tuscon Electric seeking bids for up to 150 MW of wind energy

Michelle Froese, January 16, 2018 (Windpower Engineering & Development)

“…[Arizona’s second biggest investor-owned utility, Tucson Electric Power (TEP), wants] proposals] for the design and construction of new wind energy resources that could power up to 31,000 homes annually…TEP plans to seek cost-competitive bids for 100-150 MW of wind energy from resources that interconnect with TEP’s system or deliver power through a third-party firm transmission service. The energy will help TEP work toward its goal of delivering at least 30% of its power from renewable resources by 2030, doubling the state’s 2025 goal…[TEP would] contract with the successful bidder in 2018 and begin receiving power from the new wind resource in 2021…[The utility is moving to capitalize on market conditions and tax credits to contract with projects for energy, as well as] ancillary services and supporting energy storage systems…[New Energy presently provides nearly 11% of TEP] power…” click here for more

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Trump's Solar Tariff Makes America A Loser Again

President’s Decision on Solar Tariffs is a Loss for America

January 22, 2018 (Solar Energy Industries Association)

“…[The decision by President Trump to impose 30 percent tariffs on imported solar cells and panels will likely] cause the loss of roughly 23,000 American jobs this year, including many in manufacturing, and it will result in the delay or cancellation of billions of dollars in solar investments…[These tariffs] will not create adequate cell or module manufacturing to meet U.S. demand, or keep foreign-owned Suniva and SolarWorld afloat…[but] will create a crisis in a part of our economy that has been thriving, which will ultimately cost tens of thousands of hard-working, blue-collar Americans their jobs [according to Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) President/CEO Abigail Ross Hopper]…SEIA estimates that a tariff at this level will eliminate, not add to, American manufacturing jobs. There were 38,000 jobs in solar manufacturing in the U.S. at the end of 2016, and all but 2,000 made something other than cells and panels, [including] metal racking systems, high-tech inverters, machines that improved solar panel output by tracking the sun and other electrical products…” click here for more

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Lloyd’s Of London Declares Coal A Bad Bet

Lloyd's of London to divest from coal over climate change; Firm follows other big UK and European insurers by excluding coal companies from 1 April

Julia Kollewe, January 21, 2018 (UK Guardian)

“Lloyd’s of London, the world’s oldest insurance market, has become the latest financial firm to announce that it plans to stop investing in coal companies…Lloyd’s will start to exclude coal from its investment strategy from 1 April. The definition of what is a coal company and the criteria for divestment will be set over the coming months…The firm has long been vocal about the need to battle climate change, with insurance one of the worst affected industries by hurricanes, wildfires and flooding in recent years…The insurance market decided last month to implement a coal exclusion policy as part of a responsible investment strategy for the central mutual fund that sits behind every insurance policy written by the Lloyd’s market…Lloyd’s has been slower to take action than others. Other big UK and European insurance companies, including Aviva, Allianz, Axa, Legal & General, SCOR, Swiss Re and Zurich, have been shifting away from coal and other fossil fuels due to concerns about climate risks. About £15bn has been divested by insurers in the past two years… click here for more

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Solar’s Peak Demand Power Knocks Out Old Energy

Fossil Fuels Face a $1.4 Billion Solar Problem in Texas

Chris Martin, January 17, 2018 (Bloomberg News)

“A boom in solar power is threatening to wipe out $1.4 billion a year of summertime revenue for fossil-fuel generators in Texas…Almost 15 gigawatts of solar power may crop up in the Lone Star state in the coming years, and every gigawatt stands to shave about $2.76 a megawatt-hour from wholesale electricity prices there when demand peaks in the summer…This could end up dealing a major blow to fossil fuel-burning generators that rely on those peak prices to weather the lulls in demand through the rest of the year…The Texas market is ‘especially vulnerable’ to the impact of solar penetration because…[it offers very high prices for generation during a handful of high-priced peak demand hours each year that] align with solar production…The looming threat to natural gas- and coal-fired plants in Texas mirrors the shifts that renewable energy has brought on in other markets…” click here for more

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U.S. Wind Energy Push Praised By Global Wind Leader

U.S. Working Hard to Boost Wind Energy, Adviser Says in Denmark

Peter Levring, January 16, 2018 (Bloomberg News)

“…[The president’s] administration is working ‘quite aggressively’ to increase the use of renewable energy in the U.S. as part of the president’s plans to boost American energy independence, a senior adviser [visiting Denmark to study wind power] said…Denmark is home to the world’s biggest turbine maker, Vestas Wind Systems A/S, and Orsted A/S, the world’s biggest operator of offshore wind parks. The Nordic country set a record last year by obtaining 43.4 percent of its electricity from wind. Its government now wants renewables to cover 50 percent of the country’s total energy consumption by 2030 and to abandon fossil fuels completely by 2050…[The presidential adviser said the] administration was expanding the amount of federal funds available for offshore wind investments and that its choice of energy sources would be dictated by market considerations alone [despite the president’s promise] to bail out U.S. coal producers…[Current U.S. off-shore wind capacity] totals about 30 megawatts. Denmark’s totals 1.3 gigawatts…” click here for more

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The Big Apple Takes Big Oil To Court

United States District Court Southern District Of New York…Complaint Case No. 18 cv 182 City Of New York, Plaintiff…Against BP…Chevron…ConocoPhillips…Exxon Mobil…and Royal Dutch Shell…

January 9, 2018 (Attorney for the City of New York)

“Plaintiff the City of New York…brings this action sounding in public nuisance, private nuisance, and trespass against Defendants…This lawsuit is based upon the fundamental principle that a corporation that makes a product causing severe harm when used exactly as intended should shoulder the costs of abating that harm. Defendants here produced, marketed, and sold massive quantities of fossil fuels—primarily oil and natural gas—despite knowing that the combustion and use of fossil fuels emit greenhouse gases [GHG]…primarily carbon dioxide…Defendants have also known for decades that GHG pollution accumulates and remains in the atmosphere for up to hundreds of years, where it traps heat, a process commonly referred to as ‘climate change’ or ‘global warming,’ and that this process would cause grave harm…WHEREFORE, the City respectfully requests a judgment against all Defendants awarding the city…Compensatory damages in an amount according to proof, for the costs already incurred…[and] the costs of actions the City is currently taking and needs to take to protect City infrastructure and property, and to protect the public health, safety, and property…” click here for more

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Solar Power 24/7 Gets Affordable

24-Hour Solar Energy: Molten Salt Makes It Possible, and Prices Are Falling Fast Molten salt storage in concentrated solar power plants could meet the electricity-on-demand role of coal and gas, allowing more old, fossil fuel plants to retire.

Robert Dieterich, January 16, 2018 (Inside Climate News)

“…[The 110-megawatt concentrated solar power (CSP) plant, built and operated by SolarReserve in Northern Nevada desert is proving] the technology that drives Crescent Dunes can make solar power an affordable, carbon-free, day-and-night energy source, dispatched on the electric grid like any fossil fuel plant…[C]oncentrated sunlight heats molten salt to 1,050 degrees Fahrenheit in [a] shimmering tower; then the salt gets stored in a giant insulated tank and can be tapped [anytime] to make steam to run a turbine…

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If this plant and several similar facilities under construction, or soon to be, prove reliable, the technology is poised to take off. Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels can displace fossil fuels during the day, and wind turbines can do the same as long as it's windy. But molten salt towers may be able to meet the challenge of electricity on demand, and push more older, dirtier fossil-fuel plants into retirement…The price of the power generated at SolarReserve's second plant, to be built near Port Augusta, Australia, will be less than half that of the electricity produced by Crescent Dunes…just over $0.06/kWh…” click here for more

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Demand For New Energy Raises Demand For New Wires

GM’s Expansion, Energy Goals Hinge on Renewables’ Power Lines

Bobby Magill, January 16, 2018 (Bloomberg News)

“…General Motors is calling for greater access to wind and solar power through expanded transmission lines to feed growing demand for clean electricity by its future factories and customers…Electric power lines delivering wind and solar power are not a constraint on growth today, but, between 2018 and 2050, new transmission connecting wind and solar farms…[will be critical for the success of companies that have committed to obtaining 100 percent of their electricity from New Energy]…Available renewable power transmission and transmission planning might not meet growing corporate demand for renewable power…Companies that are part of…the Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance, which includes GM, Walmart, and more than 100 other companies, plan to buy more than 60 gigawatts of renewable power by 2025. Only 9 gigawatts have been procured so far…[I]f 90 percent of renewables transmission projects currently in development are built, they would meet 70 percent of the expected demand…” click here for more

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“Stupendously” Expensive Climate Change

Unchecked climate change is going to be stupendously expensive

Ryan Cooper, January 15, 2018 (The Week)

“Climate change is first and foremost a threat to human society…[and one way that threat] is going to be expressed is through economic damage…[U]nchecked climate change is going to be terrifically expensive…[though] economic projections tend to be wildly inaccurate…[T]he amount of damage will depend greatly on what humans do in the future, and there have been few studies on what damage would be like under higher warming scenarios of 3 degrees or above…But we can say the damage is going to be very large — indeed, it's already quite bad. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information estimates that 2017 was America's most expensive year for climate disasters of all time, with 16 disasters costing over $1 billion (more than three times the 1980-2017 average, after accounting for inflation) and a total cost of over $300 billion. That's about 1.5 percent of total GDP — or enough to pay for a $300 per month child allowance for every parent in America, with some left over…[And this] year is already off to a bad climate start…[T]he faster we move on climate policy, the cheaper it will be…[E]very year of delay adds $500 billion to the world total of necessary investment…” click here for more

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New Energy Almost half Of 2017’s New U.S. Generation

Nearly half of utility-scale capacity installed in 2017 came from renewables

January 10, 2018 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)

“…EIA expects about 25 gigawatts (GW) of new utility-scale electric generating capacity to have been added to the power grid during 2017, nearly half of which use renewable technologies, especially wind and solar. Another 3.5 GW of small-scale solar net capacity additions are estimated to have come online in 2017…Of the renewable capacity additions in 2017, more than half came online during the fourth quarter…[largely] because of timing qualifications for federal, state, or local tax incentives…Monthly U.S. renewable electricity generation peaked in March at 67.5 billion kilowatthours, or 21% of total utility-scale electricity generation. In late spring, the melting snowpack from a winter characterized by higher-than-average levels of precipitation increased hydroelectric generation, while strong wind resources in March also produced a peak in monthly wind generation for the year…Most renewable generation in 2017 came from the Western census division…” click here for more

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Record Competitive Prices For New Energy

This is how coal dies — super cheap renewables plus battery storage; New Colorado wind farms with batteries are now cheaper than running old coal plants

Joe Romm, January 10, 2018 (ThinkProgress)

“Solar, wind, and battery prices are dropping so fast that, in Colorado, building new renewable power plus battery storage is now cheaper than running old coal plants. This increasingly renders existing coal plants obsolete…Xcel Energy [just] reported dozens of shockingly low bids it had received for building new solar and wind farms, many with battery storage…The median bid price in 2017 for wind plus battery storage was $21 per megawatt-hour, which is 2.1 cents per kilowatt-hour…[which is thought] to be lower than the operating cost of all coal plants currently in Colorado…The median bid price for solar plus battery storage was $36/MWh (3.6 cents/kwh), which may be lower than about three-fourths of operating coal capacity…[T]he average U.S. residential price for electricity is 12 cents/kWh…[B]y definition, half of the bids are below the median price…[There were] 87 bids for solar plus storage…There were 96 bids for wind power alone — at a median price of 1.8 cents/kwh…What XCel Energy has shown us is that the price for battery storage is dropping so fast, adding it to a solar or wind project increases the total price only modestly. And that’s a game-changer…” click here for more

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Interior Dept. Trades Public Lands For Profits

The Interior Department Has Cleared the Way for Energy Developers to Destroy Natural Habitats; And opened the door for lots of lawsuits.

Elizabeth Shogren, January 6, 2018 (Mother Jones)

“…[The Interior Department has] quietly rescinded an array of policies designed to elevate climate change and conservation in decisions on managing public lands, waters and wildlife…[Order 3360] explains that the policies were rescinded because they were ‘potential burdens’ to energy development…[It prioritizes energy development and de-emphasizes] climate change and conservation…[in] a department that manages a fifth of the nation’s land, 19 percent of U.S. energy supplies and most of the water in the 12 Western states. It fulfills a high-profile executive order by Trump and a secretarial order from [Interior Secty. Ryan] Zinke…[and the Bureau of Land Management just announced] a related policy change that makes it easier for companies to develop oil and gas [on 67 million acres of prime sage grouse habitat across 10 Western states] that were protected in 2015 as part of an unprecedented conservation initiative…[and there are] dozens of policy changes in the works to remove barriers to energy development…” click here for more

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Energy Dept Plan To Boost Coal And Nukes Bloocked

Energy regulator rejects Perry's plan to boost coal

Darius Dixon and Eric Wolff, January 8, 2018 (Politico)

“…[The the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission] rejected Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s proposal to prop up struggling coal and nuclear power plants, a major defeat for the former Texas governor and the coal companies…[Perry wanted approval for an order] to guarantee financial payments to the plants that could be facing retirement because of the rise of natural gas and renewable energy, a strategy that many critics said would undermine the power markets the regulator has spent decades building…[But the 5-0 FERC decision] axed Perry’s proposal and instead ordered the nation’s regional grid operators to submit information about ‘naturally occurring and man-made threats’ to their systems within 60 days…Perry said he was pleased his proposal had sparked a national debate [about ‘marketplace distortions’ of the nation’s power system]…But FERC Commissioner Cheryl LaFleur criticized Perry's effort for failing to show the grid was in danger…The effort to support coal power plants has been a central theme for Perry in his first year at DOE…” click here for more

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Southeast Utility Giant Misguided on New Energy

Clean Line: A TVA Failure of Clean Energy and Environmental Leadership

Stephen A. Smith, Janaury 8, 2018 (CleanEnergy.Org)

“It has become increasingly clear that the Tennessee Valley Authority is taking a hostile position towards renewable energy. TVA’s recent decision to ignore, or flat out reject, renewable energy from the Plains and Eastern Clean Line project is the latest in a string of anti-renewable energy positions…[It is woefully behind peer utilities like Duke Energy North Carolina, Georgia Power, and FPL in Florida]…The Plains and Eastern Clean Line project was the largest renewable energy project proposed for the Southeast…[and] would have delivered 3,500 megawatts of exceptionally low-cost, high capacity factor wind energy from the Oklahoma panhandle to a converter station in TVA territory…TVA could have netted carbon-free energy for about two cents per kilowatt hour…a locked-in price, lower than the fuel prices of natural gas…[But it needed] utility power purchase agreements to financially anchor it…[TVA President Bill Johnson’s] track record at Progress Energy and now at TVA is one of building large natural gas projects and supporting troubled nuclear projects; he does not understand renewable technologies, thinks they are a threat to the traditional utility business model, and brings this narrow thinking to his leadership position at TVA…” click here for more

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Hottest-Ever Earth In Cold Winter

2017 was second hottest year on record, after sizzling 2016: report

Alister Doyle, January 4, 2018 (Reuters)

“…[2017] was the second hottest worldwide on record, just behind a sweltering 2016, with signs of climate change ranging from wildfires to a thaw of Arctic ice…[T]emperatures averaged 14.7 degrees Celsius (58.46 Fahrenheit) at the Earth’s surface - 1.2C (2.2F) above pre-industrial times…[16 of the 17 warmest years in recorded history have been in the 21st century and there is overwhelming scientific consensus that man-made emissions are stoking the warming trend, according to the just-released Copernicus study, which] is in line with a projection by the U.N. World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in November…In 2016, an extra dose of heat came from El Nino, a natural event that releases heat from the Pacific Ocean every few years…But last year was the hottest year without an El Nino…[January 2018 analysis] showed temperatures in the eastern United States, Greenland and parts of central Asia were indeed colder than usual, while most of the rest of the world was warmer…” click here for more

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Strengths And Weaknesses Of Solar

Why we should invest in solar energy

January 7, 2018 (The Nation)

“Everything has its advantages and disadvantages…There are many solar power advantages worth noting…[It] helps to slow/stop global warming…[and] saves society billions or trillions of dollars…[It improved energy reliability because it is predictable and it improves energy security because] no one can go and buy the sun or turn sunlight into a monopoly…[Buying a solar system improves energy independence because the sun is] an essentially independent source of electricity…[for individuals,] cities, counties, states, countries, and even companies…[It] is a job-creating powerhouse. Money invested in solar power creates two to three times more jobs than money invested in coal or natural gas…[The only real] disadvantage is that the sun does not shine 24 hours a day…[but batteries can] store electricity produced by solar panels for use sometime later…[W]ith storage, solar power could theoretically supply the world with all of its electricity needs…” click here for more

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