The Waggle
Issue 77 85% of New Electricity is Renewable
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Wind farm between Warstein-Belecke and Anröchte Erwitte, Germany.
Hans Blossey / Alamy Stock Photo
85% of New Electricity from Renewables • Tobias Schmitz
In a landmark year for renewable energy, 85% of new electricity generation capacity added globally in 2023 came from clean energy sources. This surge in clean energy adoption puts the world on track to meet the ambitious target of 16.4% annual growth in renewable energy capacity by 2030. Germany is well within reach of its goal of 80% renewable electricity by 2030, while Brazil is leading the G20 nations with an impressive 89% of its electricity coming from renewable sources. Even in traditionally coal-dependent China, clean energy is making waves. In May 2024, coal's share of power generation hit a record low, driven by the country's push for clean energy. Yet regulatory hurdles remain a significant challenge to the clean energy transition– streamlining permitting processes and addressing grid connection issues are crucial to maintaining this momentum.
"Cool Roofs" • Claire Inciong Krummenacher
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This edition of Energy 101 takes a look at how switching to a cool roof can save you money and benefit the environment (2 mins.).
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As the urban heat island effect sends summer temperatures skyrocketing in cities worldwide, urban planners have been turning to the simple design of “cool roofs”– roofs that bounce solar energy back into space using protective coatings or reflective shingles–as a key tool to mitigate its effects. By swapping out dark shingles for lighter-colored materials or simply painting roofs white, cities can substantially reduce their reliance on air conditioning units, which further warm the air in dense city centers. A recent study also found that cool roofs have a stronger impact on lowering temperatures than street-level vegetation or rooftop solar panels and are even more effective than green roofs, which release accumulated heat at night. Los Angeles is paving the way for a cool roof transition by becoming the first major city to require cool roofs as the default for all new residential buildings and offering homeowners reimbursement to replace their existing roofs. However, to ensure widespread implementation, cities must further alter municipal codes to make cool roofs the industry standard. To learn more, see our Buildings Nexus.
The Multifamily Home • George Biesmans
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Single and multifamily homes at Double Peak Park in San Marcos, California.
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As city-dwelling populations grow, how do we ensure access to affordable housing while averting climate and ecological collapse? A recent Canadian government policy offers us one potential solution: incentivizing the construction of multifamily homes. They’re offering provinces billions of dollars in exchange for removing antiquated single-family zoning rules, which are rooted in segregation and inequality. While the primary goal of the policy is to increase the housing stock, it also has the potential to substantially cut emissions. In Ontario, for example, the policy could reduce future embodied construction-related emissions by 46%. Why? Multifamily homes use materials and energy more efficiently. High urban density also often means people are closer to public transit and other amenities, reducing emissions from driving cars. Integrating urban design ideas like the Fifteen-Minute City into these policies could further boost their climate mitigation potential - and much more. Cutting emissions is, however, only one part of the solution. As our cities grow, it’s critical that they do so in a way that fundamentally incorporates nature. This means ensuring new construction doesn’t lead to the loss of ecosystems and guaranteeing everyone’s right to access natural spaces. Benefits of nature-centric urban design include mitigating extreme heat, purifying the air and water, and boosting health and overall quality of life. If you want to dive deeper, check out our Nature of Cities Nexus or the Fifteen-Minute City Nexus.
Community Energy Crosses the Aisle • Juliana Birnbaum
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Rockford, Illinois, where Trajectory Energy has built one of its many community solar projects (1 min).
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I was happy to read that environmental activist Bill McKibben was shaken out of election anxiety doldrums by a recent visit to an unlikely community solar success story in America’s heartland. My Swedish ancestors made their home in Rockford, Illinois, in the late 1800s, and my mom grew up there towards the end of its heyday as a prosperous industrial center. The second half of the 20th century saw the city struggle to maintain itself, along with many in the Rust Belt, and over the past few decades, it has been redefining itself. McKibben’s story highlights a cultural shift occurring there, where low-income residents can cut their energy bills by subscribing to community solar projects, and locals are trading in their gasoline-powered Ford pickups for the electric-powered version. The benefits of home electrification and solar farms are winning over the hearts and minds of conservative communities. In an era of extreme division, it is essential to find solutions that cross the aisle, showing the potential for cities like Rockford to be part of curbing “the rapid rise in temperature, but also the rapid rise in inequality.”
Advancing Solar Panel Recycling • Scott Hannan
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Undecided with Matt Ferrel discusses what really happens to solar panels at the end of their life (13 mins.).
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Industry pioneer SolarPanelRecycling.com opened a new, state-of-the-art solar panel recycling facility in Texas last week, leading the sector in its capacity to reuse and repurpose outdated solar panels. The 300-megawatt facility, built on the abandoned site of an old industrial complex, can recycle or responsibly dispose of photovoltaic panels in addition to inverters, cables, and batteries. Their new technology can recover up to 95% of the silicon from solar cells, a marked improvement from the current industry standard. The entire operation is powered by solar and wind and reuses 98% of the water needed in the recycling process. The facility brings the company’s recycling capability up to approximately three million solar panels annually. The United States recycles a mere ten percent of its solar panels every year. Globally, solar panel installations are expected to triple by 2030. The Texas facility sets a solid example of how to meet the industry’s needs with innovation. To learn more, check out our Solar Nexus.
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Photo Credits
1. Hans Blossey / Alamy Stock Photo
2. Jason Finn / Shutterstock
3. Cheri Alguire / Shutterstock
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