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1. Vilde (27) wants to make fast food out of salad
New research shows that the climate benefits of reducing meat consumption could be twice as large as previously thought. The study, published in the journal Nature and discussed by The Guardian, shows that huge amounts of CO₂ could be sucked out of the air, allowing areas currently used as pastures to become pristine nature again.
While Nordea sustainability analyst Thina Saltvedt predicts that food production will be one of the biggest issues in 2022, EAT founder Gunhild Stordalen has repeatedly referred to the food we eat as a climate issue.
This idea is also shared by Vilde Regine Tellnes in the startup company Healthy Eats, which makes it easier to eat healthy and sustainable food in a busy everyday life. Over the past year, the company has grown at a record pace. Tellnes also points to the fact that 70 percent of Norwegians are overweight, which costs the country NOK 68 billion a year.
Green ambitions: Healthy Eats has had 15 salad machines in its first year of operation in 2021. During 2022, they have ambitions to open 65 new locations in Oslo and Bergen. Among other things, the vending machines are built from scrap planks and the cups are made from recycled material. Red meat has never been on the menu, and leftover salad is delivered to Bergen’s Strax House and the Salvation Army in Oslo.
2. The US must reduce emissions by using nuclear power
Much of the US is banking on nuclear power to achieve the ambitious climate goals set by Joe Biden’s administration. More nuclear power is planned in New Hampshire and smaller so-called modular nuclear reactors in both Alaska and Maryland, NTB reports.
But politicians are far from united on nuclear power, and this has led to a split in the Democratic Party.
On one side: Supporters say reactors make it easy to turn production up and down as needed. They argue that it can compensate for the loss of wind and solar power when there is no wind and little sun.
On the other side: Opponents, on the other hand, fear accidents and radioactive emissions. They also suggest the need for very long-term storage of radioactive waste that can be used in nuclear weapons if they go astray.
The split may resemble the situation in Europe. While France is a strong supporter, Germany is in the process of shutting down its last nuclear power plants. The European Commission wants to classify nuclear power as green energy, but member state Austria has already threatened legal action if the proposal is accepted. Even here at home, it is now being discussed whether nuclear energy can be a solution to the growing energy consumption in Norway.
3. Solar energy companies benefit from high electricity prices
Demonstrations against high electricity prices were organized in several big cities on Thursday. Last year, the price of electricity in southern Norway was almost eight times higher than in 2020, reports the industry website Europower Energi.
For solar company Otovo, high prices have led to a “tsunami” of new projects. According to the quarterly report, the company has increased revenues by 173 percent to NOK 109 million in the fourth quarter.
The energy price crisis in Europe has led to the fact that more and more consumers are interested in alternative energy. Otovo itself reports that they sold as many projects in the last quarter of 2021 as they did in all of 2020. They installed 1,209 solar projects in the quarter, up 96 percent from the same time last year.
Get smarter: The post-coronavirus reopening has led to a sharp increase in energy demand. Prices skyrocketed in Europe, Asia and the US. The global energy crisis is simply explained here.
4. A giant crane lifts offshore wind turbines
Over the Christmas and New Year weekend, one of the world’s largest cranes was erected in Sløvåg, Gülen. The installation of eleven Equinor floating offshore wind turbines to Hywind Tampen will soon be commissioned.
The huge concrete foundations that Aker has poured in Stord and Dommersnes are first towed to Gülen. As soon as they are docked, the four-piece Spanish steel tower will also be in place. A turbine from Germany, as big as a housing bank building, will be placed on top of it. Then the rotor blades from Denmark need to be attached.
What now? The first floating turbine will be towed into the North Sea in the spring, and all eleven will be in place in the field during the fall. Managers at Wergelandgruppen, the company that owns the crane, say they are confident that this is just the beginning of a new industrial adventure.
That’s why we write about the green shift
In order for Norway to achieve the goal of becoming a low-emission society, where economic growth and development must take place within the tolerance limits of nature, the entire society must undergo a huge transformation. Entrepreneurship is an important driving force of this development, which according to all assumptions will accelerate in the future.
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