QUICK NEWS, September 26: Organic Farming’s Role In The Climate Fight; New Update Tracks U.S. Solar; Battery Storage Needs Rules That Allow Stacking

Organic Farming’s Role In The Climate Fight Organic Farms Could Help Fight Climate Change

Shaun Chavis, September 25, 2017 (HowStuffWorks)

“Agriculture is one of the more significant contributors to global warming. Nitrogen-based fertilizers and farm animals generate greenhouse gases, including methane and nitrous oxide. Conventional farming depletes soil of carbon, while planting and managing forests can help offset carbon emissions…[and] organic farming fights climate change by trapping temperature-raising carbon in soil, keeping it from contributing to the greenhouse effect [according to a new study]. Organic farming can also help offset carbon by storing it in soil…[Over 650 topsoil samples from organic farmers in 39 U.S. states were compared with] more than 725 conventional soil samples from the continental U.S. The results showed soil from organic farms is 26 percent better at retaining carbon — and retaining it for longer periods of time — than soil that's farmed with conventional methods and synthetic fertilizers…[It is because the] matter that organic farmers use, such as compost, green manure, animal matter and others — as well as the living things in healthy soil, such as microorganisms, earthworms and other components — gives soil humic acids…” click here for more

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New Update Tracks U.S. Solar Berkeley Lab Releases Tracking the Sun 10

September 25, 2017 (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)

“…National median installed prices [of photovoltaic solar systems] in 2016 fell year-over-year by 2% to 8%, depending on customer segment [according to Tracking the Sun 10 The Installed Price of Residential and Non-Residential Photovoltaic Systems in the United States]. These were the smallest annual declines in recent years. However, data for the first half of 2017 suggest that installed prices for the current year are on pace to fall by at least 10% for each customer segment, similar to long-term average rates of decline…Over the long-term, both hardware and non-hardware (i.e., soft) costs have fallen substantially, contributing in almost equal measure…More recently, however, hardware costs have been the dominant driver…Among residential systems installed in 2016, 20% were priced below $3.2 per watt (W)-the 20th percentile value- while 20% were above the 80th percentile at $5.0/W. Non-residential systems exhibit similar spreads…The potential causes for this variability are numerous, including differences in project characteristics, installers, and local market or regulatory conditions. These wide pricing distributions serve to demonstrate the potential for low-cost installations...” click here for more

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Battery Storage Needs Rules That Allow Stacking California’s energy storage value ‘significantly’ boosted by stacking benefits, study says Andy Colthorpe, 13 September 2017 (Energy Storage Association)

“…The value of a front-of-meter battery energy storage system in California could be doubled or even trebled, by adding more than one revenue stream to the project…[According to Stacked Benefits: Comprehensively Valuing Battery Storage in California, it could cost between US$200 and US$500/kW-year to deploy a 1kW / 4kWh battery…[But] the benefits, when stacked, could be around US$280 annually…[B]ig variations exist between technology types and system configuration. At the uppermost level modelled, this could be around US$328/kW-year. The biggest values are to be found in three areas: avoided capacity cost, frequency regulation and in energy price arbitrage…[The report stresses that there are] different ‘depths’ of opportunity to these applications…” click here for more

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