World's largest solar plant switches on in California

[mick silver]

http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/13/5408686/ivanpah-solar-plant-begins-commercial-operation A massive solar plant in the Mojave Desert officially began operation today after years of construction, testing, and development. Co-owned by NRG Energy, BrightSource Energy, and Google, the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System is said to be ready to generate nearly 30 percent of all solar thermal energy produced in the United States. The plant consists of three 459-foot tall towers each with tens of thousands of robotic, garage-door sized mirrors that angle sunlight toward a water boiler sitting atop them.NRG says that the nearly 5.5-square-mile plant is the largest solar project of its type in the world, and that it will be able to provide clean energy to 140,000 neighboring California homes. But though its owners see Ivanpah as a beacon for clean energy sources, the plant has not been without its controversies. The Wall Street Journal reports (http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304703804579379230641329484) that its more than 300,000 mirrors have been scorching birds that fly through their path, and the Associated Press reports (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/13/ivanpah-solar-plant-opens_n_4781558.html?utm_hp_ref=green) that local protected tortoises had to be relocated during the plant's construction.
While regulators are continuing to look into the plant's environmental impact, it's still a big moment for clean energy in California. "At Google we invest in innovative renewable energy projects that have the potential to transform the energy landscape and help provide more clean power to businesses and homes around the world," Rick Needham, Google's director of energy and sustainability, says in a statement. "Ivanpah is a shining example of such a project and we're delighted to be a part of it." theirs some pic at the site of the place it hugh

[mamboni]

How much silver was used to make those mirrors? I'll bet a ton or more.

http://cdn2.sbnation.com/entry_photo_images/9833785/3886_ivanpah_mingasson_verge_super_wide.jpg

[gunDriller]

amazing how little silver is needed to create a reflective surface.

in that part of the mining community that focuses on e-scrap and similar industrial recycling, e.g.

http://goldrefiningforum.com/

you hardly ever hear people talk about recycling the silver from mirrors.

[Horn]

you hardly ever hear people talk about recycling the silver from mirrors.

Well if it were priced accordingly...

Who is going to pay for all the Windex needed?

6031

[mick silver]

you and me by force ......... https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSqCB0dntpAZXZUhcyAixuSHx0xrdB7G p_Grl9e9ANwRVFKyZZYXg

[Hitch]

Folks, this is a step in the right direction.

Also, if it bumps up the price of silver a little bit, I don't think we should complain about that, either. Cheers.

[Cebu_4_2]

Not going to work that good with all that shit they spray in the sky.

[Spectrism]

Looks like a nice science experiment but alot can go wrong. The amount of energy at the focal point will make this a high maintenance operation.

[osoab]

Looks like a nice science experiment but alot can go wrong. The amount of energy at the focal point will make this a high maintenance operation.

It's other peoples money. They don't care.

[Horn]

Looks like a nice science experiment but alot can go wrong. The amount of energy at the focal point will make this a high maintenance operation.

They can supplement the maintenance costs by selling it as the ultimate in tanning solution.

No more 20 minute trips to the tanning salon, get it all done within seconds.

[ShortJohnSilver]

Note that they had the money to do anything, but at scale, they decided on using water boilers as the setup, and not photovoltaic panels. That is significant.

Also significant, if you or I tried to do such a thing on our own land, we would get nailed with permits and fees... the whole green energy thing should be decentralized and encouraging people to be off grid. But instead it will be used by big corps to evade taxes, increase fees, get carbon credits, etc.

[mick silver]

it kills birds , just how long would they let us do that .... that its more than 300,000 mirrors have been scorching birds that fly through their path,

[Spectrism]

it kills birds , just how long would they let us do that .... that its more than 300,000 mirrors have been scorching birds that fly through their path,

I was wondering about that. A bird in the right place would be vaporized into a puff of smoke.