Heatwaves in US and EU ‘caused by global warming’

Temperature imbalances due to greenhouse gases affecting air systems

Scientists have stated that events such as the 2011 American drought and the 2003 European heatwave were the result of global warming.

The study found that air systems that bring warm air from the tropics and cold air from the Arctic at certain times are slowing down, meaning warm air is staying in areas for longer, causing extreme heatwaves.

Scenes like this are becoming normal during summertime in America because of the impact of global warming

(Image source - National Geographic)

‘During several recent extreme weather events these planetary waves almost freeze in their tracks for weeks’, said Vladimir Petoukhov, lead author of the study at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany. ‘So instead of bringing in cool air after having brought warm air in before, the heat just stays’.

Global warming has been blamed for disrupting the air flow because the build-up of greenhouse gases is warming the Arctic at a faster rate than other regions, causing the slow-down of air flow as the temperature difference between the Arctic and southern hemisphere areas is what regulates the air flow system.

Whilst this study only focused on the northern hemisphere in the summer time, the scientists believe that a similar study done during winter would find out that extreme cold weather events, such as the one that has affected the UK recently, were caused by the slowing down of air systems, this time trapping cold air over areas instead of warm air.

Consumer backlash over British Gas profits

Parent company set to announce £2.8bn profit increase

The parent company of British Gas has risked fierce consumer backlash following reports that it is set to announce a 15% increase in profits.

Centrica plans to reveal the figures this week, which show the company has made a profits increase of £2.8bn following the British Gas price hike in October 2011. Centrica have tried to justify their profits by releasing a study that shows the company have had a beneficial impact on the UK economy in terms of jobs and tax payments, but that is unlikely to appease consumers who have been hit with rising prices.

Centrica has argued that its practices are good for the country, but that won't wash with consumers

(Image source - Metro)

Richard Lloyd, executive director at consumer champion, Which?, said, ‘At a time when spiralling energy bills are consumers’ top financial worry, people are bound to question whether they’re paying a fair price for their energy when they see big profits announcements from the energy giants. Centrica’s analysis won’t change that view as record-high bills land on millions of doormats in the coming weeks'.

The news will bring the pricing of energy bills into question again, as well the Government’s plans to reduce them. PM David Cameron announced earlier this year that all energy providers will have to simplify their tariffs and make sure consumers are on the cheapest one possible. However, many critics have argued these measures won’t go far enough and consumers will be confused as to which is the cheapest option.

The future of solar power?

Improved 3D printing can ‘revolutionise’ industry

Following the news that a company has been given £2m funding to develop ‘solar glass’, technology that allows buildings to produce their own low-carbon electricity through their windows, the future of the solar industry looks even brighter thanks to the potential of 3D printing.

Printing 3D solar cells has an advantage over the standard method of PV models because they are less complex to create, weight less and do not need direct overhead sunlight to absorb the UV energy. Studies have also shown that 3D cells can be 20% more efficient than standard flat solar panels, according to researchers at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

With 3D printing, solar panels like this would just be one way of using solar cells

(Image source - Wired.co.uk)

Another benefit of 3D solar cells is cost. It has been estimated that production of 3D cells would be 50% cheaper than traditional panels because it would eliminate inefficiencies associated with wasting materials. Also, as 3D printing can take place anywhere, shipping costs will be reduced considerably. 

On top of this, 3D printing of solar cell is not limited to one form. Solar cells can be added to things ranging from glass, paper and even fabric, meaning that solar cells creating by 3D printing can be used in more advanced ways compared to traditional methods of creating solar panels.

With the potential of 3D printing starting to gain momentum within technology circles, it seems that solar power, something that has stuttered somewhat in recent years, could finally have a way of becoming a major player in the renewable energy industry.

EU’s emissions trading scheme ‘back on track’

Reforms aim to 'reiterate support' for scheme

The European Union’s system for helping countries reduce their carbon emissions is back on track despite criticism from Conservative MPs and business lobbyists.

The emission trading scheme (ETS) has been reformed to make it more effective and will be debated in the European Parliament sometime in April. However, there has been criticism from Conservative MEPs, two of whom defied David Cameron and voted against the reforms. There has been speculation that the reforms could end up being ‘watered down’ by the time they make it to the parliament vote.

The EST in its current form has failed due to low permit prices

(Image source - ABC)

In their current form, the reforms will hold back some of the EST carbon trading permits until 2019 in an attempt to stop the over-supply of permits and raise the cost of carbon emissions. The original scheme was designed to reduce the carbon emissions of countries by making them buy permits to allow them to release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, with the view that the cost of permits would make countries want to lower their emissions and invest in renewable energy technologies. However, the scheme has been seen as a failure because of the low cost of these permits, along with the fact that many of them were given away for free. 

The reforms would introduce a system of ‘backloading’, which would hold back permits from auction for several years. Rob Elsworth, policy officer at the campaign group Sandbag, said: "The road to structural reform of the ETS starts with backloading. Today's vote puts us firmly on that road. What's more it reiterates support for the EU's flagship climate policy, the ETS. Abandoning it at this point would have left the EU with an even more politically charged debate around alternatives."

Government home energy ‘dithering’ could damage UK housing industry

Plans were supposed to be launched in April but have been delayed until the autumn

Experts have warned that delays to schemes to make new homes in the UK more energy efficient could damage the housing industry in the long run.

A timetable was drawn up to make sure all new homes were ‘zero-carbon’ by 2016, with an ‘uplift’ to current energy efficient was due to be introduced in April. However, those proposals have been delayed until the autumn, leaving workers in the construction industry in the dark over new housing projects. Many companies fear that money used to purchase new equipment and training will be wasted if the government doesn’t confirm its intentions and stick to its home energy efficiency targets.

Housing experts fear Government delays in home energy proposals are damaging the industry

(Image source - Telegraph)

Andrew Warren, director of the Association for the Conservation of Energy said companies and investors were growing increasingly concerned about the silence from government. "Companies have been going to the City to get investment, to enable them to meet the targets, do the training they need and create jobs, and they were doing so based on the timetable set out. If it doesn't happen on time, companies are vulnerable," he said. "This is the real world and I'm getting bored of explaining this to ministers. Business will waste time and money unless government delivers."

This lack of clarity and silence from the Government over the 2016 target, despite still official being dedicated to achieving it, is preventing the construction of new homes, as well as putting off new potential investors in the UK housing industry. A spokesman for the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) said the government's timetable had always been to publish the regulations in spring and introduce them in the autumn, but industry experts said the original timetable had been an April introduction.

Obama left with climate headache following another Keystone protest

White House protest led by celebrity environmental campaigners

The fierce debate over the development of an oil pipeline in America has escalated following the arrest of 50 protesters who had handcuffed themselves to the gates of the White House.

The group, which was made up of environmentalists and celebrities including Kill Bill actress Daryl Hannah, staged their demonstration outside the building to directly call on President Barack Obama to oppose the development of the Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry crude oil from tar sands in Canada to refineries in Texas. 

Daryl Hannah has been very vocal about her views regarding climate change

(Image source - New York Times)

Climate campaigners have made their feelings known to Obama for some time, with the President still apparently undecided on the issue. Many politicians believe the pipeline will be beneficial to the country in terms of creating energy and jobs, but campaigners believe the President should be investing more money into renewable energy schemes, sticking to the promises he made to tackle climate change following his re-election.

The protest came the day after Obama made his state of the union speech and, whilst the Keystone XL pipeline wasn’t mentioned during that speech, it has become one of the most contentious issues in America, with climate campaigners seeing it as a defining symbol of Obama’s pledge of deal with climate change. ‘The Keystone pipeline project is the purest test of whether the president is serious about doing something about climate change or not’, Bill McKibben told the few hundred protesters outside the White House. McKibben is the founder of the 350.org group, who have led the protests over the pipeline.

What started as a small protest led by a few students has turned into a mainstream movement within environmental circles. The issue has become a major headache for the President, who it seems will be judged no matter what his final decision over the Keystone XL pipeline will be.

'Solar glass' lets buildings generate own power

New invention adds solar cells to glass panels that can produce low-carbon electricity

An energy company has been given a £2m funding boost after developing a form of glass that can absorb solar energy.

A University  of Oxford spin-off, Oxford Photovoltaics, believe the funding will help them take the remarkable product to the commercial market. The ‘solar glass’ works by adding a very thin layer of transparent, solid-state solar cells to glass, which can then turn up to 12% of solar energy into low-carbon electricity. This means that a new building can use this glass for all of their windows and run a large portion of the building’s electricity needs from it. 

The 'solar glass' can be dyed with numerous colours, giving building designs countless design options

(Image source - The Guardian)

This is why Kevin Arthur, the company’s founder and CEO, believes the product can be a commercial success. ‘What we say here is rather than attach photovoltaics to the building, why not make the building the photovoltaics? If you decide to build a building out of glass, then you've already decided to pay for the glass. If you add this, you're adding a very small extra cost, no more than 10%’.

Glass panels for buildings usually cost about £600 to £1000 per square metre, and adding the solar glass would only cost about £60 to £100 extra. This would only be a small additional cost, as the glass would then generate electricity for the new building. The company is mostly targeting customers creating new buildings throughout 2013, but can also retrofit existing buildings with their technology.

Can Scotland reach their energy targets if they gain independence?

Target of 100% renewable energy may fail without UK help

If Scotland votes to become independent it may result in plans to become totally reliable on renewable energy being scrapped.

This warning comes from academics from four UK universities, who believe that the country won’t be able to fund Alex Salmond’s ambitious plans for 100% of Scotland’s electricity to be generated from renewable energy sources by 2020 if they break away from the UK. Scotland would have to spend billions to fund projects such as offshore wind farms and tidal devices on their own, as they would lose all financial support from the UK government. 

Alex Salmond's plans for a 100% renewable-powered Scotland may have to be put on hold

(Image source - Telegraph)

Academics from universities in Cardiff, Birmingham, Robert Gordan and Queens in Belfast, who worked on the report, titled ‘Delivering Renewable Energy Under Devolution’, believe that this increased cost will result in the target either being postponed to a later date or being scrapped completely. ‘Gaining greater control over energy policy is likely to be an inferior option as far as getting renewables funded is concerned, in comparison with the prospect of achieving a scheme organised by Westminster in which the costs are shared across the UK’, states their report, to be published this week in the journal Political Quarterly. ‘This is because, in practice, funding a significant expansion of Scottish-based off-shore renewables under independence would lead to considerable increases in Scottish electricity prices, something that a Scottish government would find hard to sustain politically’.

For Scotland to meet their energy target requirements, they would have to replace the amount of energy generated from fossil fuels and nuclear power, which is currently 50% of the country’s total energy output. They will also have to deal with the higher costs of developing off-shore wind farms in Scotland, as seas are rougher and deeper, making it harder to build, as well as the fact that off-shore wind farms in England and Wales are cheaper and already more advanced. Also, Scotland will likely lose business from the UK, as the UK will be unlikely to continue to support Scotland’s renewable energy projects with subsidies if they gain independence, as there are cheaper energy alternatives in Ireland.

Sellafield faces prosecution for dumping radioactive waste

Group claim computer error resulted was cause

Nuclear energy company Sellafield has pleaded guilty to charges of dumping radioactive waste in a landfill.

In April 2010, the group disposed of four bags containing contaminated materials including tissues and clothing in the Lillyhall landfill site in Workington, Cumbria, when they should have been sent to the low level waste repository at Drigg. Sellafield Ltd claim this error occurred due to a computer fault, which accidently labelled the bags as general waste. All four bags were retrieved as soon as the error was discovered and disposed of correctly, and no contamination was discovered in the landfill afterwards.

Sellafield Ltd blames the error on a new computer monitor

(Image source - The Guardian)

Ian Parker, nuclear regulation manager for the Environment Agency, said, ‘Our overriding aim in regulating the nuclear industry is to protect people and the environment from the release of radioactive wastes into the environment. We have carried out a thorough investigation in partnership with the Office for Nuclear Regulation and have already required Sellafield Ltd to take action to ensure this does not happen again’.

Sellafield will discover its fate on 8th March, when sentencing will take place at Carlisle Crown Court.

Britain exporting gas cheaper than it is importing it

Ofgem warns of UK energy security being 'undermined'

There are fears that household bills may continue to be inflated because of the fact that Britain is exporting gas that is fetching lower prices abroad and is importing gas from Qatar that is more expensive.

An analysis by the Guardian, conducted jointly with Greenpeace, revealed these figures, which Ofgem, the energy watchdog, believe may be undermining UK energy security because of this distortion in the market. The analysis examined the gas interconnector between the UK and Belgium; a major part of the country’s gas infrastructure, as it has the capacity to carry a fifth of the UK’s gas in winter. However, the report discovered that on over 40% of the days between December 2011 and October 2012, the gas was being exported to the continent despite the wholesale gas price in the UK being higher. Over this period, it is estimated that Britain exported over 15 times more gas than it imported.

Prices may continued to rise if market distortion isn't resolved, warn Ofgem

(Image source - www.offshoreenergytoday.com)

Analysis on monthly government data from Revenue and Customs showed that the UK was importing large amounts of Qatari gas, despite it costing up to 5% more than gas exported to the continent. Ofgem said ‘It is vital that gas on these links flows in line with market signals, to ensure security of supply for customers. However, initial analysis suggests the links are not always being used efficiently. On behalf of consumers, we are looking at all the evidence to establish the facts’. 

This news is the latest in a series of recent reports looking into the ‘dark and murky world’ (as described by Leila Dean of Greenpeace), of the UK’s gas market. In November, there were suggestions that, following the price hikes by the major energy companies, that gas prices were purposely being manipulated.

Nuclear industry in crisis?

Court action follows critical Commons report on plant 

A Commons committee has released a report criticising the management of Sellafield nuclear plant in Cumbria, just days before court action is due to start against the plant for illegal dumping of waste, in a week that could be devastating the reputation of the nuclear industry.

The report claims that Nuclear Management Partners (NMP), the private consortium that manages Sellafield, has failed in its task to reduce the rising costs and delays in dealing with waste and decommissioning facilities. The report points out that, out of the 14 major projects at Sellafield, 12 were behind schedule, five were over-budget and only two were actually running properly, despite the NMP being given £54m to cover fees.

The plant in Cumbria is facing claims of poor management and illegal dumping of waste

(Image source - www.visitcumbria.com)

Margret Hodge MP, chair of the committee, said ‘Taxpayers are not getting a good deal from the arrangement with Nuclear Management Partners. Furthermore, now that Cumbria county council has ruled out West Cumbria as the site of the proposed geological disposal facility, a solution to the problem of long-term storage of the waste is as far away as ever’.

The report, Nuclear Decommissioning Authority: Managing Risk at Sellafield, points out that about £1.6bn is being spent annually at the site, where a variety of hazardous materials, including 82 tonnes of plutonium, are kept. The total lifetime cost of dealing with this has continued to rise each year and has now reached £67.5bn.

The management at Sellafield will face further criticism when it appears in court this week facing nine charges relating to claims that four bags containing radioactive material were dumped in a landfill at Lillyhall without permission.

Carbon emissions fall in US

Lowest level since 1994

Carbon dioxide emissions in America fell to their lowest level since 1994 last year.

A report compiled by Bloomberg New Energy Finance for the Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) shows that emissions fell by 13% over the past five years as a result of investment in new energy-saving technologies and renewable energy.

Despite the widely-held view that Obama is failing in climate change policy, emissions in the US have fallen

(Image source - www.scientificamerican.com)

This fall brings the country more than halfway towards its target of cutting emissions by 17% of 2005 levels over the next decade, despite the fact that many claim that Congress and President Obama have failed to act efficiently on the issue of climate change. Obama can now use these figures to show that America is going in the right direction in terms of dealing with climate change and may improve the country’s standing in global climate negotiations. 

Ethan Zindler, a BCSE analyst said, ‘There have certainly been some solid results on the board in the US as a result of all these changes’. This view is also held by the president of the BCSE, Lisa Jacobsen, who believes the Bloomberg findings prove wrong the Conservative argument that acting on climate change would damage the economy, as GDP continued to rise even as emissions went down.

The report highlighted that the steadily expanding installation of wind, solar, hydro and geothermal energy projects represented the largest single source of new growth last year, reaching $44bn in 2012. The reduction of carbon emissions in America was also helped by 488,000 citizens who opted for a hybrid/plug-in vehicle last year.