Powering rural China with the sun
by Chaser on Sep.03, 2010, under Posts
The extra cost of solar power can sometimes be more acceptable in rural applications than in urban areas because traditional sources of power also cost more to deploy in rural areas. Solar photovoltaic technology places the energy source adjacent to where it is needed, minimizing the need for transmission and distribution lines which are particularly expensive and cost-inefficient to build out to remote locations.
The cost of solar PV also stays relatively constant at varying scales, unlike thermal power plants which are only cost-effective above a certain size. This means that, on a per kilowatt hour basis, a household photovoltaic system doesn’t cost much more to install and operate than a utility-sized system. Also, photovoltaic systems are self-contained, generally needing no inputs and generating no waste, meaning that fuel transportation costs are avoided.
Below are a few solar photovoltaic applications I’ve seen in rural and semi-rural China. Unfortunately, most are just boring street lighting, but they do illustrate China’s push to widely deploy solar photovoltaic technology.
This one shows a road winding up a mountain northwest of Beijing called Feng huang ling (凤凰岭).
How many solar-powered streetlamps can you find? Click on the picture and then click on the image again to see a full-size version. I count…
Drowning in garbage
by Chaser on Aug.23, 2010, under Posts
Taking the train in China is a relatively cheap, convenient, and low-carbon way to travel. One oddly enjoyable part of train travel is shopping for snacks before the trip so you don’t have to buy the expensive and unappetizing train food. This is the one time that I have no qualms about eating instant noodles and processed, packaged snacks. In preparation for the 18-hour (actually, 20-hour due to delays) train ride from Shanghai to Shenzhen, I bought a seemingly harmless package of dried seaweed. When I spotted it in the grocery store, memories of childhood flooded into my mind – the puckering feeling of the salty, dried seaweed as it touched my tongue, the flood of flavor as it melted onto the roof of my mouth, the spiciness that lingered on my lips after the seaweed had disappeared into my belly – and I had to have it:
Bluebird day in Beijing
by Chaser on Aug.07, 2010, under Quickies
Source: http://iphone.bjair.info/
This is the first time I’ve seen a “Good” rating for Beijing’s AQI in awhile – maybe since June. Please refer to this earlier post for more information about AQI and Beijing’s air quality.
The Ride, The Wheels, The Ass Magnet
by Chaser on Aug.05, 2010, under Posts
I’ve been biking in Beijing since May, and let me tell you, it completely changes the city. No more getting stuck in traffic, no more getting molested on the subway. Beijing actually becomes accessible. Before writing about biking in Beijing, I first want to introduce the bike:
That's how I roll
Not my kind of death wish
by Chaser on Jul.29, 2010, under Posts
Note: Please take all of my “calculations” below with a huge grain of salt. I’m not a statistician, a mathematician, an air quality expert, or a public health expert (the truth comes out – I’m not much of anything). As always, comments are welcome!
I’m back! It’s been a hectic few months, but now I’m newly unemployed and back in the driver’s seat. So let’s go.
As you may have heard, the air quality in Beijing is just shy of phenomenal. In March 2009, ECA International, a global human resources service company, ranked Beijing as the city with the second worst air pollution in the world, behind only New Delhi.
Back in 2000, I spent a summer in Beijing and almost forgot that they sky is supposed to be blue. This summer, I’ve seen blue skies twice so far. Despite this anecdotal evidence of improvement, the air quality here is still dismal, a fact that even the mayor of Beijing acknowledged earlier this year. Here’s a picture I took this afternoon:
