It has long been an irony that Germany instals more solar panels than any other country, yet it receives only a fraction of the solar irradiation of a country like Australia or Spain. “At the moment, Germany dominates the solar market in Europe with a 90 percent share. But strong growth in other European countries, especially in southern Europe, will see Germany’s share fall to about 50 percent in the next few years,” Christoph Wolfsegger of EPIA told RenewableEnergyAccess.com.

Looking for news of info on renewable energy but don’t know where to look? Try searching AEoogle, the alternative energy search engine put together by Alternative Energy News and powered by Google. However there is no Australian search option, unlike Google. (more…)

The September winds are still blowing, but it’s already October! Cosequently I have been asked the same question by people from Bullaburra to Brunswick and from Fitzroy to Wentworth Falls. And I have some answers, some very funky answers!

The question: How can I use all that wind energy by putting a turbine on my roof? 

The Viability of Domestic Wind Turbines for Urban Melbourne is a report just released by the Alternative Technology Association with Sustainability Victoria which addresses this question describing the  technology, physics, planning, grid connection and economics of small scale wind turbines, and it is applicable to most urban centres in Australia.

The turbine technology looks great and keeps getting better. Take the QuietRevolution vertical axis turbine, shown above. Designed for urban parks it looks like modern sculpture. Or the Hush turbine made in Melbourne.  It’s quiet, robust and operates in low wind speeds. The WindWall is designed to be mounted on the edge of buildings to capture the updraft. And the Motorwave looks like a wall of Pacmen, with dozens of small platic rotors like toy helicopter blades. (more…)