Energy Storage, Regulation, Regulation  -  October 22, 2016

Weekend reads: Beer batteries; the nation's 1st carbon tax; a comeback for big oil & more

Every Saturday, we'll bring you five most interesting — or quirky; it is the weekend after all — energy stories from the prior week that you may have missed from around the web. This weekend's reads:

Beer batteries: Colorado researchers use brewery wastewater to produce electrodes (Utility Dive): Beer and science don't always go together, but researchers at the University of Colorado-Boulder have come up with a way to use the wastewater from beer to improve the cultivation of chemicals used in making lithium-ion battery components. It takes about seven barrels of water to produce one barrel of beer, and brewers have to spend money to filter the wastewater before disposing it.

After Lean Years, Big Oil May Emerge Stronger Than Ever (The New York Times): Big Oil is clawing its way back. After a heart-stopping plunge in the price of crude over the last two years, along with slashed dividends and the elimination of tens of thousands of jobs, the biggest oil companies are proving surprisingly adept at again pumping profits, as well as oil, out of the ground.

It could be the nation's first carbon tax. And environmentalists are fighting over it (The Washington Post): A new initiative slated for the ballot in Washington state next month would create the first-ever carbon tax to be implemented in the United States. But while the initiative promises to fight climate change by making it more expensive to emit greenhouse gases, it's caused an unexpected controversy among environmentalists.

Leaked Recording Reveals Plan to Confuse Florida Voters About Solar Amendment  (Greentech Media): Florida's upcoming vote on a solar-related constitutional amendment is confusing. And supporters hope it stays that way. As national election day nears, media outlets in the state are trying to help people understand what it means to vote "yes" or "no" on Amendment 1, a proposed change to the state's constitution backed by nearly $20 million from large energy companies.

The WikiLeaks emails reveal why Hillary Clinton wouldn't support a carbon tax (Vox): During the Democratic primary, one of the major climate policy differences between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton was a carbon tax. He supported one. She didn't. Now we have a little insight into why, via WikiLeaks’ recent release of thousands of hacked personal emails from Clinton campaign manager John Podesta

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