QUICK NEWS, July 31: Climate Change Out At EPA Museum; labama Is Starting To Like Solar; Oklahoma Building Nation's Biggest Wind

Climate Change Out At EPA Museum At EPA museum, climate-change displays are out and coal may be on the way in

Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis, July 30, 2017 (Chicago Tribune)

“…In an obscure corner of the Ronald Reagan International Trade Building, a debate is underway about how to tell the story of the EPA's history and mission…A miniature museum that began as a pet project of former EPA administrator Gina McCarthy has come under scrutiny. It features the agency's work over four and a half decades, with exhibits on topics such as regulating carbon dioxide emissions and the Paris climate accord…Now the museum, which opened just days before President Barack Obama left office, is being reworked to reflect the priorities of the Trump administration, an effort that probably will mean erasing part of the agency's history...[A] career official said that these climate displays are slated to be removed, adding that the agency may add a display of coal to the museum…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Alabama Is Starting To Like Solar Solar energy growing in popularity

Jennifer Edwards, July 30, 2017 (Times Daily)

“...[The conversation about solar in Alabama is now more often about how consumers can use solar energy than about how it works, according to Energy Alabama CEO Daniel...He said the shift in consumer questions indicates solar energy has a stronger foothold than it did two years ago…The technology is familiar, and people are buying in, he said…TVA, the area's power supplier, has incorporated various forms of renewable energy into its power portfolio…Private installations tie into the TVA system through TVA's Green Power Providers program with municipal electricity departments…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet

Oklahoma Building Nation's Biggest Wind Invenergy and GE Renewable Energy Announce America's Largest Wind Farm…The 2,000-megawatt Wind Catcher facility will be world's second-largest wind farm, once operational in 2020.

July 26, 2017 (Invenergy via PRNewswire)

“…[Invenergy and GE Renewable Energy will partner on] a 2,000-megawatt wind farm that will be the largest in the U.S. and second-largest in the world, once operational. The Wind Catcher facility is currently under construction in the Oklahoma panhandle and will generate wind electricity from 800 state-of-the-art GE 2.5 megawatt turbines…The wind facility is part of the $4.5 billion Wind Catcher Energy Connection…[The approximately 350-mile dedicated, extra-high voltage power line proposed by American Electric Power (AEP) utility subsidiaries Public Service Co. of Oklahoma (PSO) and Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO)…is expected to save SWEPCO and PSO customers more than $7 billion, net of cost, over 25 years. AEP estimates that the project will support approximately 4,000 direct and 4,400 indirect jobs annually during construction and 80 permanent jobs once operational. It also will contribute approximately $300 million in property taxes over the life of the project…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet