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The U.S. can follow Denmark’s lead and get 20% of its electricity from wind by 2030, the Department of Energy said today. The only obstacles, according to the DOE report, are building the wind turbines, improving them, getting them in place, and getting their electricity to where it’s used. Piece of cake.

Some researchers are looking beyond our planet to the night sky. It turns out, there's a way that we can generate electricity from the moon -- thanks to the tides created by the gravitational pull the moon exerts on Earth's oceans. The Earth is tugged by the sun and moon. The sun dwarfs the moon in size, but the moon is much closer to Earth -- around 239,000 miles away, compared to the distance of 93 million miles between the sun and the Earth. Proximity trumps size when it comes to tidal movement here on Earth: The moon exerts more than twice as much gravitational force on Earth than the sun does

It does not happen often that I agree with the American Enterprise Institute but Steven Hayward’s analysis of the “real cost of tackling climate change” in the Wall Street Journal of 28 April is spot on: an 80% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 will have dramatic implications for our way of life. Hayward has at least the courage (which cannot be said for our politicians) to tell the public what this 80% cut will mean for citizens’ daily lives. In not one political document have I ever seen a serious impact assessment of the 80% target. The fear of being the bearer of bad news is one which characterises all policymakers (even the ones who know that the climate crisis will hit hard).

While the draft directive , made available by Friends of the Earth Europe (FoEE), does not specify the precise percentage figures by which each member state will be required to increase its share of renewable energies, the following criteria are put forward: By 2014, each member state's share of renewables must be at least the amount it used in 2005 plus 51% of the 2020 target;  by 2016, the figure must increase to 66% of the 2020 target; and; by 2018, member states should have achieved 83% of their 2020 target (compared to the 2005 level as usual).

An early draft of an upcoming Commission proposal to increase the use of renewables in final EU energy consumption includes guidelines for establishing individual national targets, provisions for mandatory use of certificates for renewables trading and sustainability criteria for biofuels production.

20% of their energy needs from renewables

Germany is looking to integrate wind, solar, and biofuel natural gas to supply 100% of its power generation needs by 2050 (40% by 2020). Germany plans to phase out both Nuclear and Coal-fired power generation.

A new magnetic alloy from DOE Ames may meet one car company criterion for a more cost-effective and energy-efficient electric drive. Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory appear to have developed a permanent magnet alloy that meets car manufacturer high-temperature performance requirements.

An aggressive pursuit of energy efficiency in the United States over the next 18 years could cut the nation's growth in energy use by 50% or more, according to a new report. The report, "Vision for 2025: Developing a Framework for Change," was prepared by the National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency Leadership Group, which comprises more than 60 leading organizations, with DOE and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acting as facilitators. The report sets a goal of achieving all cost-effective energy efficiency improvements throughout the United States by 2025. If that goal is achieved, the nation will spend $100 billion less for energy in 2025 than it would otherwise and will avoid emitting 500 million metric tons of carbon dioxide per year. The nation will also achieve $500 billion in net savings from its energy efficiency investments.

DOE increased the federal energy efficiency standards for residential furnaces and boilers on November 19th. The new standards apply to the residential versions of gas- and oil-fired boilers; non-weatherized and weatherized gas furnaces; oil-fired furnaces; and gas furnaces for mobile homes.

The Guardian reports this morning on a private report to Gordon Brown that suggests that Britain should oppose binding target for renewable energies in Europe (20% of all energy by 2020, as agreed earlier this year at this spring's EU Summit). The Guardian flags the juicy political bits ("work with Poland and other governments sceptical about climate change to "help persuade" German chancellor Angela Merkel and others to set lower renewable targets", "a potentially significant cost in terms of reduced climate change leadership"), but also provides some of the apparent underlying reasons provided, which are worth commenting upon: it undermines the carbon-trading scheme which "allows wealthy governments to pay others to reduce emissions"; it costs too much money (£4 billion a year to get to 9% by 2020); it does not help push for new nuclear plants as it "reduces the incentives to invest in other carbon technologies like nuclear power"; Let's say it plainly: each of these arguments is stupid, short-sighted and, quite simply, false. Let me take you through them in turn (under the fold).

Under Brussels' plan, if a country does not fulfil its quotas - i.e. produce enough renewable energy - then they would buy it elsewhere. Berlin fears that this market situation this will lead to a rise in prices for bio-energy, above the current fixed price in Germany.

The rule specifically applies to liquid-immersed transformers and medium-voltage, dry-type transformers. Utility transformers are already extremely efficient at delivering energy with minimal losses, but because they handle large amounts of electricity, small gains in efficiency can yield large energy savings. According to the published rule, the new rule could raise the cost of liquid-immersed transformers by up to 12%, but should decrease electrical losses by as much as 23%. It could also raise the cost of medium-voltage, dry-type transformers by up to 13%, but should decrease electrical losses by as much as 26%.

What does a off-grid energy system look like for a beach side cabin in the Caribbean?

But does planting trees reduce global warming? Not in most places on the earth. The Carnegie Institution's Ken Caldeira summarized the result of a major 2005 study (PDF) this way: "To plant forests to mitigate climate change outside of the tropics is a waste of time."

Molten salt is already used in some applications in the chemical industry to dampen temperature fluctuations in reactors.

The Green Grid is a consortium of information technology companies seeking to lower power consumption of data centers around the world. Data centers last year used an estimated 61 billion kilowatt-hours, or 1.5% of electricity in the United States. Energy use in data centers is project to grow 12% per year through 2011.

Most of the time, even resident Kim Charles does not notice the solar panels on her roof, the whisper of her SEER 17 heat pump water heater, the airtight, moisture-managed construction of structural insulated panels, the integrated design that allows most of the home's plumbing to reside within one wall, saving precious energy.