[email protected] Copyright EPI 2015 2015-03-05T13:00:26+00:00 /data_highlights/2015 China, the country that is building more nuclear reactors than any other, continued to get more electricity from the wind than from nuclear power plants in 2014. This came despite below-average wind speeds for the year. The electricity generated by China's wind farms in 2014—16 percent more than the year before—could power more than 110 million Chinese homes. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2015-03-05T12:00:26+00:00 /data_highlights/2014 With the signing of a plastic bag ban in California on September 30, 2014, the number of Americans who will be affected by anti-bag legislation by 2015 climbed to 49 million. California is the first state to ban the bag. Nationwide more than 150 cities and counties are implementing bans or fees in attempts to reduce the estimated 100 billion plastic bags used in the United States each year. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-10-01T13:51:48+00:00 /plan_b_updates/2014/update125 Even master chess players can miss a great move when they have been primed to look for a different one. To explore this phenomenon, researchers tracked master chess players’ eye movements when given chessboards with different layouts. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-09-17T16:30:52+00:00 /data_highlights/2014 In 2013, world geothermal electricity-generating capacity grew 3 percent to top 11,700 megawatts across 24 countries. Although some other renewable energy technologies are seeing much faster growth—wind power has expanded 21 percent per year since 2008, for example, while solar power has grown at a blistering 53 percent annual rate—this was geothermal's best year since the 2007-08 financial crisis. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-08-27T13:52:57+00:00 /data_highlights/2014 China installed a world record amount of solar photovoltaics (PV) capacity in 2013. While this was the first time the country was the number one installer, China has led all countries in making PV for the better part of a decade. China now accounts for 64 percent of global solar panel production—churning out 25,600 megawatts of the nearly 40,000 megawatts of PV made worldwide in 2013—according to data from GTM Research. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-07-08T15:30:14+00:00 /plan_b_updates/2014/update124 The high cost of living and limited economic opportunities in Iran are a boon to birth control, as couples take steps to keep their families small. But the Iranian Parliament has recently debated punishing people who promote contraception. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-06-25T14:25:40+00:00 /indicators/C47/solar_power_2014 In the last two years, countries around the world have added almost as much new solar photovoltaics (PV) capacity as had been added since the invention of the solar cell. Nearly 38,000 megawatts of PV came online in 2013, a new annual record. In all, the world's installed PV generating capacity is now close to 140,000 megawatts—enough to power each home in Germany. Falling costs and effective policies continue to drive tremendous growth in solar power. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-06-18T14:30:11+00:00 /data_highlights/2014 Denmark produced one third of its electricity from the wind in 2013. In no other country has wind's share of annual electricity generation yet topped 30 percent. But the Danes are not stopping there—they are eyeing a goal of 50 percent wind by 2020, with most of the needed expansion coming from offshore wind farms. Recent experience shows that Denmark's grid can accommodate this much wind power and more: wind-generated electricity exceeded 100 percent of demand the evening of November 3, 2013. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-05-27T14:02:16+00:00 /plan_b_updates/2014/update123 Worldwide, a trillion single-use plastic bags are used each year, nearly 2 million each minute. Usage varies widely among countries, from over 400 a year for many East Europeans, to just four a year for people in Denmark and Finland. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-05-01T17:08:02+00:00 /plan_b_updates/2014/update122 Los Angeles rang in the 2014 New Year with a ban on the distribution of plastic bags at the checkout counter of big retailers, making it the largest of the 132 cities and counties around the United States with anti-plastic bag legislation. And a movement that gained momentum in California is going national. More than 20 million Americans live in communities with plastic bag bans or fees. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2014-04-22T17:31:45+00:00