Remove 2005 Remove Electricity Remove Renewable Energy
article thumbnail

Renewable Energy: A Timeline

Legal Planet

The first efforts to use of wind to generate electricity was 134 years ago, and the photoelectric effect was discovered six decades earlier. Scientists discover the selenium produces electricity when exposed to light. La Cour builds windmill in Denmark to generate electricity. PV production exceeds 500 KW. generation.

article thumbnail

What’s Stalling the Transition to a Modern Electricity Grid?

Union of Concerned Scientists

Much of our electricity system is 50 to 70 years old, yet current plans for domestic manufacturing, electric vehicle fleets, community solar gardens and more clean energy all depend on a modern grid. New demands for electricity and the need to reduce climate-changing emissions are driving new grid planning efforts.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Building a Better Power Grid for Minnesota

Union of Concerned Scientists

Minnesotans are facing concurrent crises of climate change, high energy prices and inflation, and the inequitable public health impacts of fossil fuel air pollution. Renewable energy will help with all of that—but we need a grid that is designed for wind and solar instead of having to rely on expensive coal and gas plants.

article thumbnail

What’s Been Killing U.S. Coal?

Legal Planet

From 1960 to 2005, coal use grew more or less steadily by 18 million tons per year. electricity to about one-fifth today. In fact, there was a surge in construction of new coal plants after 1970 due to high electricity demand. electricity use hit a ceiling , and it has risen only slightly since then. In 2010, U.S.

2012 278
article thumbnail

The EIA Just Released a 30 Year Energy Outlook. It’s… Not Great

Union of Concerned Scientists

The Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) is one of the go-to sources for reliable information about the US power sector. They just released their 2022 “Annual Energy Outlook” (AEO), which is a big deal: it tells us where electricity is headed over the next 30 years. Carbon emissions remain high.

article thumbnail

Grid Investments are Critical to Our Clean Energy Future

Union of Concerned Scientists

Last November, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released an interdisciplinary study exploring the various pathways to meeting US goals to cut heat-trapping emissions economywide 50 to 52 percent below 2005 levels by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions no later than 2050. The good news? How are we doing on that?

article thumbnail

Reevaluating the Role of Fossil Gas in a Decarbonizing Grid

Union of Concerned Scientists

Fossil gas power plants currently provide the largest source of electricity generation and capacity in the United States. To meet our climate goals and reach net zero emissions by 2050, most studies show that we need to dramatically reduce gas use for generating electricity, heating homes and businesses, and running industrial processes.