Ask the Expert: Smart Panels

Mark D’Antonio, Zondits staff, 3/1/2023 Zondits spoke with Mark D’Antonio, an industry expert in clean technology approaches to decarbonizing the built environment. I’m in the process of designing a net zero home with solar, battery storage, electric appliances, and heat pumps for heating and hot water. I will also have an EV charger system. I … Read more

Smart Panels. How Smart Are They?

Mark D’Antonio, Zondits staff, 2/28/2023 There is a growing mantra amongst climate change advocates to “electrify everything”; predicated on the assumption that the power generation mix will increasingly become cleaner as fossil fuel use declines and is replaced with low-carbon sources. The residential sector is one segment targeted to be “electrified” with burgeoning technologies such … Read more

“With today’s proposals, we’re building on a decades-long effort with industry to ensure tomorrow’s appliances work more efficiently and save Americans money.”

Energy Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm said, “With today’s proposals, we’re building on a decades-long effort with industry to ensure tomorrow’s appliances work more efficiently and save Americans money. Over the last 40 years, at the direction of Congress, DOE has worked to promote innovation, improve consumers’ options, and raise efficiency standards for household appliances without … Read more

Heat Pumps – The Market in the Northeast Heats Up in Two Ways

Brian McCowan, Zondits staff, 2/21/2023 “The battle has just begun. Stay tuned.” What’s that about? The 2024 election? Spy balloons? Vaccines? Heck no, it’s about how we choose to heat our homes. That statement comes from a consultant with the National Oilheat Research Alliance. There is a battle brewing over the growing heat pump market … Read more

Nature-Based Solutions Series: Collecting Carbon, Supporting Communities, and Cooling the Planet

Lucy Neiman, Zondits guest, 2/16/2023 Zondits and many other outlets have focused primarily on the transition to clean energy as the central path for addressing the challenges faced. Yet there is clear evidence that the transition away from fossil fuels alone cannot meet even the most conservative global climate goals that have been set. There … Read more

“We cannot afford to continue thrashing a path through the fragile web of nature and biodiversity to clear the way for human development. Species, ecosystems and the benefits that they provide, upon which we all depend, are degrading and slowly dying.”

Inger Andersen, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme, said in her opening remarks to COP15 Biodiversity Conference in Montreal: “We cannot afford to continue thrashing a path through the fragile web of nature and biodiversity to clear the way for human development. Species, ecosystems and the benefits that … Read more

Annual Global Clean Energy Investments Surpass $1 Trillion, Equaling Investments in Fossil Fuels for the First Time

Matt Montalbano, Zondits guest, 2/8/2023 Global investments in low-carbon energy technology topped $1 trillion for the first time in 2022 and equaled global investments in fossil fuels. A recently published report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BloombergNEF) calculates the total investment in clean energy in 2022 to be a record-breaking $1.1 trillion.   “Our findings put … Read more

“We know that when the Los Angeles Olympics get underway in 2028, air taxis will be in high demand. We may see some of them in the years leading up, but nowhere near the scale in 2028.”

Originally mentioned at the Federal Aviation Administration Luncheon, Billy Nolen noted the agency would have an implementation plan for air taxis, also known as eVTOL aircraft, by next May that will keep up with the rapidly-growing urban air mobility industry. Read more here: FAA to lay out air taxi plans by May | Smart Cities … Read more

U.S. Production of Solar PV Panels Get a Booster Shot

Brian McCowan, Zondits staff, 1/26/2023 The recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is helping to expand the production of photovoltaic (PV) panels in the U.S. and ease the tariff-related tensions regarding the growth of solar electric energy worldwide. The South Korean PV manufacturer Qcells has announced a $2.5 billion expansion of their facility in Georgia … Read more

“Cutting methane emissions is the fastest opportunity we have to immediately slow the rate of global warming, even as we decarbonize our energy systems.”

Originally posted on edf.org, methane experts stated “Cutting methane emissions is the fastest opportunity we have to immediately slow the rate of global warming, even as we decarbonize our energy systems. It’s an opportunity we can’t afford to miss.” Read more here: Methane: A crucial opportunity in the climate fight – Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org)