This week’s ten biggest climate innovation stories — 22 March

Posts 22 Mar 2018

Is it possible to enjoy your fast food favourites without compromising on environment? How might energy be stored in cold air? And, which city plans to reach carbon neutrality by 2035?

This, and more, in the week’s ten biggest climate innovation stories.

1.

The companies storing energy in cold air

Renewable sources of energy are getting more efficient by the day—yet energy storage remains an obstacle standing in the way of wide adoption. To fill this gap, some companies are thinking outside the box and investing in developing energy storage that relies on cold air.

Read more on Inhabitat.

2.

Superfast charging heats up in Poland—GreenWay lands locations for stations

GreenWay has announced it’s signed an agreement with the Gdańsk Transport Company S.A. to place ultra-fast electric vehicle charging stations (up to 350 kW) at multiple locations along the A1 highway in Poland.

Read more on CleanTechnica.

3.

Helsinki unveils plan to reach carbon neutrality by 2035

Finland’s capital city has unveiled a new plan to reach carbon neutrality by 2035, accelerating the goal by 15 years. The plan, called Carbon Neutral Helsinki 2035, outlines 143 specific actions that will result in reduced energy consumption and a greater share of renewable energy sources.

Read more on Inhabitat.

4.

Vattenfall awarded two subsidy-free 350 megawatt offshore wind farms in Netherlands

Swedish power company Vattenfall has been awarded the contract to build two 350 megawatt offshore wind farms in the Netherlands which, upon completion in 2022, will be the first offshore wind farms to be built without subsidies.

Read more on CleanTechnica.

5.

SOM’s net-zero Paris skyscraper will be one of the most sustainable buildings in Europe

Prolific firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) just unveiled plans for Charenton-Bercy, a net-zero Paris skyscraper that’s designed to be one of the most sustainable buildings in Europe. The 180-meter tower would include multiple green features, including rainwater harvesting, greywater recycling, green roofs, and waste-to-energy conversion systems. As part of its “garden in the sky” design, the project would also feature a band of vegetation running the length of the tower’s facade, leading into a tree-filled plaza at the tower’s base.

Read more on Inhabitat.

6.

Plastic eating microbes to the rescue: Evolution may be finding a solution to the problem of plastic waste

Scientists have reported the most recent advances in study of a microbe that eats polyethylene terephthalate (PET): They have succeeded to describe the 3-D structure of the enzymes used by the microbe, which can help in understanding how the enzyme approaches “docking” to the large PET molecules in a manner that allows them to break down the material.

Read more on Tree Hugger.

7.

Vincent Callebaut’s Arboricole tower brings vertical agriculture to the city

Vincent Callebaut Architectures, known for green projects that combine smart building with advanced renewable energy solutions, has officially unveiled Arboricole—a new “biophilic” building that brings agriculture to the urban landscape. Residents of the building can grow food on their own terraces thanks to permaculture, with the building’s curved, sinuous design acting to reduce turbulence and maximise comfort in these elevated gardens.

Read more on Inhabitat.

8.

Space10 is taking on fast food with bug-based burgers and meatballs

Space10 is re-inventing our favorite fast food dishes in a delicious and sustainable way. Thanks to Space10’s Bug Burger, not-Dog, Microgreen Ice Cream and Neatball, you’ll be able to enjoy your fast food favorites while also considering the environment.

Read more on Inhabitat.

https://twitter.com/space10_journal/status/972891216235978752

9.

Microbes, drones, and AI may be keys to farms of the future

The United Nations predicts the world’s population will increase to nearly 10 million souls by the middle of this century. If so, the farming community will need to grow 70 per cent more food than it does today. Researchers are attempting to find solutions which include molecular biology, bio-geochemistry, environmental sensing technologies, and machine learning; that combination has the potential to revolutionise agriculture.

Read more on Clean Technica.

10.

Energy execs: ‘The market for demand-response is only going to grow’

Demand-response services are still fairly new in the electricity market, but their importance is only expected to grow as power grids come under increasing strain from intermittent renewable energy sources. Andreas Flamm and Frauke Thies explain the “fundamental shift” that needs to happen in the policy landscape.

Read more on Euractiv.

https://twitter.com/EURACTIVUK/status/974185043982798848

 
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