Sustainability

Solar PV module manufacturers have been put on notice with Environment Minister Sussan Ley warning they need to formulate a recycling strategy as the growing number of decommissioned panels threatens a waste management nightmare.

The international organisation has pledged to deploy clean energy generation equipment wherever possible in its global operations, with the help of the International Renewable Energy Agency.

In the world of renewable energy, the past carries charge. It can be an anchor, a learning curve, a hurdle. In Bundaberg, it’s quite literally the fuel for the future. And that green future is being energised by an unusual crew: its local government.

Alliances with Germany and Japan to develop and commercialise emissions-reducing technologies would be a coup for Australia, if there were any concerted efforts at home to reduce emissions in line with international initiatives, and transition Australian industries to be competitive in a carbon-pricing world.

Telecommunications giant Telstra has continued it transition to renewable energy, signing a long-term agreement to purchase electricity from the Crookwell 3 Wind Farm being built near Goulburn in New South Wales.

Italian energy giant Enel will implement an experimental agrisolar program at its 34 MW Cohuna Solar Farm in Victoria with data from the research project to be used to help formulate a “best practice” template for utility scale solar PV sites in other countries.

It’s one thing to set a target for net zero, another to chart a course that will get you there in competitive form. Services are emerging to bridge the gap.

Private sector fossil fuel spending on exploration is drying up just as modest rises in clean energy investments are being observed. With stock market investors increasingly embracing renewables, the IEA has observed positive signals in its latest energy investment report, but warned we are still doing far too little to keep global heating at bay.

Reclaim PV is pushing ahead with plans to expand its solar PV module recycling operations, the South Australian-based company confirming it has received the tick of approval from government departments to establish a second operation in Queensland.

The New South Wales government has today launched a renewable Renewable Gas Certification Pilot, with the aim of sparking a new energy market for clean gas in Australia.