Consultant Dan
06 May 2011
What to read today: renewable energy, climate politics, ephemera
On most work days I invest 2 hours in research across a diverse range of sources, including conversations with experts.
Usually I Tweet several articles from the media and specialty websites. Feedback on Twitter and IRL (in real life, ie in person) tells me that the links I send are useful to my clients.
Today I am trying out a new approach, which is to list the links here and then Tweet this post around. I would appreciate your feedback – is this more useful than Twitter?
Nuclear disaster on ice :The Taymyr, a Russian nuclear-powered icebreaker, has a reactor malfunction but the situation has apparently remained manageable (it has not elevated from SNAFU to FUBAR).
Renewable energy is Australia’s future: Greens Senator Christine Milne told the Clean Energy Week conference in Melbourne yesterday that Australia could be powered by 100% renewable energy
100% renewable energy in the Herald Sun: It is good to see a Murdoch tabloid publish this opinion piece by Patrick Hearps, the excellent, young energy boffin behind the Zero Carbon Australia project.
Gravel super batteries: A UK startup has proposed a new technology for storing intermittent solar and wind energy so it can be dispatched into the grid when needed, or at the most profitable time of the day.
The Union of Concerned Scientists has published its 7 week update on the Fukushima nuclear reactor disaster.
While details of the damage to the nuclear fuel at the site are not known, it appears that more total fuel damage has occurred during this accident than all previous reactor accidents combined.
Labor’s left future: Senator Doug Cameron is a proud trade unionist and one of the Labor Party’s few left, true believers. In this speech he talks about the future for his party.
Budget narrative: The Age’s Michelle Grattan leads Press Gallery opinion in the centre-progressive zone of politics. She writes about the importance this next Federal Budget has for the survivability of the Government of PM Julia Gillard, “A budget..must pull together some coherent ‘'story’‘ showing the government knows what it is doing.”
And for light and/or tragic relief from serious journalism, something from the Australian. In this article the paper attempts to link Al-Jezeera with support for Osama Bin Laden, blaming the network for using the “basest form of moral equivalence” in its journalism.
Happy reading!
Thanks Scarlett.
Do you know where to find good data on the potential for ground source heat pumps in Australia? I know someone who is installing one at their farm in Victoria.
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I like the heat pump batteries. Good. Suburban community ground source heat pumps for heating and cooling (hydronic house to house infrastructure) sounds like a brilliant way to go I reckon. Could integrate with this idea.