Australia

Australian Town to be 100% Solar

- Adam Clare 1 Comment

The blistering sun that shines down on the people down under will be lighting more than jsut heir sky. A small town in Australia’s north is going to make a 10-megawatt solar power plant that uses the power of the sun, and not in any regular way. Indeed, to make themselves unique, the town will be using solar energy by reflecting 8,000 mirrors at some graphite, then pour water on the stone, thus making steam. The steam will then power turbines; as a result, the power plant can run all day and night.

The Queensland state government said on Sunday it would build the A$7 million ($6.5 million), 10-megawatt power station as part of a push to make Cloncurry one of the first towns to rely on solar power alone.

“The town of Cloncurry has long claimed the title of having recorded Australia’s hottest day — 53 degrees (Celsius) in the shade in 1889, so I reckon we’re on a winner,” Queensland Premier Anna Bligh was quoted as saying by Australian Associated Press.

Solar thermal power differs from photovoltaic panels that make power directly.

Designing for a Sustainable Future

- Adam Clare 1 Comment

An Australian industrial designer, Paul Charlwood, has decided that disposable design is a waste. We’ve talked about consumerism here before and how it has a negative effect on the environment, but Charlwood wants to change our mind on that matter by encouraging consumerism to be something that can last.

Once Charlwood turned his mind to sustainability it meant reassessing his design philosophies. He decided he no longer wanted to design throwaway products, which led to him embracing “classic design” – products that you don’t need to, or want to, discard.

Charlwood’s conversion to environmentalism has coincided with what he sees as a “second wave” of environmentalism.

Old World Ways for New World Bays

- Adam Clare

boat I have to admit that whenever I read about “new” ideas that are really improved old ideas that we forgot in this modern age I can’t help but think there is a wealth of historical knowledge we have yet to improve upon. We are learning from the past and combining it with the future though! Take for example the ingenious idea of using a sail on a boat, or a “new” approach to gathering energy (wind). Indeed these new approaches do improve on the original idea and do so while being cheaper than the current finite resource-based approach to energy. They also tend to combine different sources of renewable energy.

A true triumphant of old world techniques like sailing and new technology is floating on the coast of Australia. A boat that has sails that also function as solar panels.

The concept is the brainchild of Robert Dane, an Australian doctor from the small fishing town of Ulladulla in New South Wales. A keen sailor and rower, Dane was watching a solar-powered boat race in Canberra in 1996 and noted that the winning boat used a solar panel inclined towards the sun. The only problem was that as the wind grew stronger the panel became a hazard and had to be pulled down.

“It intrigued me, and I started wondering how one could combine sun and wind to power a modern, seaworthy boat,” Dane says. “And then one day six months later, I woke up one morning and realized that I could use a wing sail that was at the same time a solar collector.

Australia Looking to Protect Environment

- Adam Clare

Two pieces of good news from down under! Oddly (but goodly), Prime Minister Howard, who dosen’t like the Kyoto Accord, appears to realize the environment is important:

1. His government has announced that households that use solar power will get $1000 in rebates. This is to encourage less energy consumption.

2. At the same time Howard also announce that schools will be rewarded if they improve water and energy efficiency.

Air Shower Uses Less Water

- Adam Clare

Some Australians have invented a shower head that adds some air to water to get some super O in the H2O. The article points out that Australians are becoming more concerned about their water usage, yeah for environmental awareness.

“The scientists have developed a simple ‘air shower’ device which, when fitted into existing showerheads, fills the water droplets with a tiny bubble of air. The result is the shower feels just as wet and just as strong as before, but now uses much less water.”

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