QUICK NEWS, May 10: Climate Change Could Decide Trump Vs. Clinton; SunEdison Won’t Stop Solar; Why Wind Remains A Best Bet

Climate Change Could Decide Trump Vs. Clinton Why this could finally be the election where climate change matters

Chris Mooney, May 9, 2016 (Washington Post)

“…Now that the race appears to have narrowed to [Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton], it sets up a situation that many environmentalists have long hoped for — one in which a sharp contrast on climate change between the two candidates means that it might not only come up prominently in an election, but moreover, actually make a difference. (And if Bernie Sanders somehow racks up hard-to-imagine delegate totals in coming races…that contrast would only be heightened further.)...That would be pretty different from other recent elections. In 2012, President Obama and the media alike were widely faulted for rarely talking about climate change. In the 2014 midterms, meanwhile, billionaire Tom Steyer’s super PAC NextGen Climate Action spent $ 74 million, but saw candidates it was opposing win nonetheless in key Senate races…[T]he issue appears to have grown in public salience since then, and new polling data, in combination with the very clear difference between Trump and Clinton on the issue, suggests at least a chance that things might actually be different this time…” click here for more

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SunEdison Won’t Stop Solar Solar Energy Will Thrive

David Sandalow, May 3, 2016 (NY Times)

“Solar power is booming…[I]nstallations grew at least 28 percent last year…[The industry now employs more than 200,000 workers – roughly three times as many as the coal mining industry…SunEdison’s troubles were mainly the result of rapid growth and excessive debt. Many solar companies with better managed growth and modest leverage will prosper in the years ahead…The growth of solar energy will be driven by three factors….[First and most important, costs] have fallen roughly 80 percent since 2007 and are projected to keep falling…Second, governments around the world strongly support solar power…[because it] produces neither local air pollutants nor heat-trapping gases…Third, integrating solar and wind power into electric grids is proving easier than many thought…[But the SunEdison bankruptcy is a reminder that because] the solar industry has high capital expenses and low operating expenses, low-cost capital will be especially important to its long-term success…” click here for more

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Why Wind Remains A Best Bet Wind Energy Still a Promising Investment Despite Uncertainty

May 3, 2016 (Transmission & Distribution World)

“…[T]he decreasing costs and increasing efficiencies of wind energy still make it an attractive energy source for investment…[Downward trending prices mean that even after taking into account historically low prices of natural gas] onshore wind energy can be competitive with other conventional sources [according to Sure as the wind blows: the potential of wind energy in the U.S. from BBVA Reseach]…Prices of turbines have gone down 30 percent since their peak in 2008-2009…[T]echnological advances and fiscal incentives helped lead to a big uptick in wind-generation capacity…[T]he U.S. is still lagging behind countries like Denmark, Spain, Germany and China, which the economists say have a better mix of manufacturing, regulations and adoption rates…” click here for more

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