Henry Harrell"s Blog: May 31 Green Energy News

Headline News:

Solar power is affordable for low income Americans. In one predominantly African-American neighborhood in San Diego, nearly half of the 192 homes have rooftop solar panels, and residents talk about what they can now afford. They were paying $200 and $300 a month in electric bills. Now they’re paying zero to $50. [Union of Concerned Scientists]

Broadway Heights, San Diego

The share of US electricity generated by renewables has eclipsed earlier projections by the Energy Information Administration, according to the SUN DAY campaign. EIA projections published in 2012 suggested we would have had renewables generating 19.35% of our electricity in about the year 2057. We achieved that in 2017. [Solar Industry]
The Brayton Point Power Station in Somerset, Massachusetts, is extinguishing its boilers for the final time. When it does, coal will have all but disappeared from this six-state region of New England, with its 14 million people. Two small and seldom-used coal plants in New Hampshire will be all that remains of a once-mighty industry. [E&E News]
Xcel Energy cut carbon emissions 30% in 2016 while expanding its renewable energy portfolio. The company’s corporate responsibility report highlights Xcel’s transitions to cleaner energy sources and other benefits to the communities it serves, including energy efficiency programs, economic development, and energy assistance. [Electric Light & Power]
The Three Mile Island nuclear plant, which experienced a partial reactor meltdown in 1979, spawning nationwide protests, will shut in 2019. Exelon Corp, which owns the facility, said the low cost of natural gas extraction had made nuclear-generated electricity unprofitable. Since 2013, six US nuclear plants have closed before their licences expired. [BBC]

Henry Harrell"s Blog