#hydro power developers

[kundangreenenergy]

Hydro power is key to solving India’s energy challenges. With clean, reliable electricity and rural development, companies like Kundan Green Energy are leading the way. Discover how hydro power developers in India are building a greener, sustainable future.

[nepalenergyforum]

Future of Nepal-Bangladesh Power Trade Uncertain as India Corridor Raises Concerns

The fate of importing 500 megawatts (MW) of electricity from Nepal’s 900MW Upper Karnali Hydropower project is hanging in the balance as government is set to scrap the accord as it has decided to suspend all agreements under the Special Powers Act. Bangladesh also raised the geopolitical concerns as India had proposed using its 117-kilometre-long, 765kV high-voltage transmission corridor to…

[hope-for-the-planet]

From the article:

Uruguay used to rely heavily on oil & gas-based power. But as the economy grew and electricity demand threatened to overtake supply from the early 2010s, it needed to add additional generating capacity, and fast. New hydro wasn’t an option as it had already made the most of that resource. To chart the way forward, the president appointed Ramón Méndez Galain, a particle physicist from the private sector, as the country’s director of energy — a position he held until 2015. In a podcast discussion with the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy, Méndez Galain said one of his primary goals was to make Uruguay less reliant on volatile imported oil & gas. The quest for energy independence made him rule out nuclear power, which would’ve require uranium imports. A decision was ultimately made to better exploit the country’s ample solar, wind, water and biomass waste resources. Because the state couldn’t fund a massive energy programme alone, it ran a series of clean power auctions, where it offered project developers 20-year contracts to sell electricity into the national grid at guaranteed rates. In just five years, $6 billion was invested in renewable energy — the equivalent of 12% of Uruguay’s GDP.

[lexsssu]

Nature (Neuvillette)

TAGS: Neuvillette/Dragoness!reader, introspection, fluff, parenthood, whipped!Neuvi, oneshot Ao3 ver. | Ko-fi | Commissions (OPEN)

As Fontaine’s Chief Justice, Neuvillette is all too used to waking up as soon as the first rays of dawn filter through the floor-to-ceiling windows in his bedroom. 

He’s all too used to waking up to an empty bed. 

And for even longer, an empty nest.

Despite being one, if not the last hydro dragon left in Teyvat, he’d never raised hatchlings nor even taken a mate of his own. 

While he could have taken a mortal lover throughout the years, his already suppressed draconic instincts never allowed him even a hint of attraction toward humans. It’s as if what was left of his dragonhood refused to ‘taint’ the dragonsblood that flowed through his veins by taking anything other than a fellow dragon.

After five hundred years of serving as Fontaine’s ludex , he had all but given up ever being able to settle down. 

How could he when his species had all but died off? 

What’s more, the few other survivors were more or less located at the farthest corners of Teyvat.

He must simply content himself with protecting and guiding his people to the best of his ability, especially as he’d reclaimed both his powers and Authority as the Hydro Dragon Sovereign.

If someone told Neuvillette that all his worries were for naught barely a year after he’d become Fontaine’s chief justice and ruler, he’d have thought them mad.

But when the first sight that meets his eyes is your sleeping visage illuminated by the soft morning rays that slid through the tiny gaps in between the curtains, the dragonheart within that had all but given up any hope practically roared to life. He is rendered immobile by your beauty, even as a hint of saliva dripped from your slightly open mouth to reveal a pearly-white fang.

Your own pearlescent scales that decorated the sides of your face and continued below before disappearing below the neckline of your nightgown seemed to shimmer against the light. 

It hits him again that behind closed doors, there is no need for any sort of pretense. Not when you too, were a dragon, a different element for sure, but there is no denying the purity of your blood. He need not hide any part of himself when, for once in his life, there is no need for judgment.

And it is that very same blood that flowed through the veins of your children who chirped from within their large bassinet. 

Your three hatchlings still retained their draconic forms at such an early stage of their life and won’t develop their human forms until they mature into the equivalent of human toddlers.

Like clockwork, Neuvillette rose from the bed and scooped up the three hatchlings who sported a mix of dark blue and silvery-white scales. Dominique, the eldest, was coiled around his right arm, while his second child and only daughter, Odette, draped herself on his neck like an accessory. The youngest, Raphiel, clutched the soft hairs atop his head with his tiny claws and looked around in wonder from such a high vantage point.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Good morning, my dearest. I apologize for interrupting your sleep, but it seems our children are in need of nourishment. If it were only possible for me to provide it for them, I wouldn’t have had to cut your slumber short…”

Your sweet laughter is like a balm to his soul, but it’s the peck you press against the corner of his lips that has his inner dragon roaring at him to get started on another batch of hatchlings and the tips of his ears burning a bright red.

Neuvillette hugged Raphiel to his chest, letting his son snooze a bit more while you fed Dominique and Odette from your own.

With your own tail curled around his the whole time, the dragon of water allowed a single tear to slip from his eyes.

[cosmica-galaxy]

So when the human first arrived to Earthbread did they brought anything that can be useful like a purse or mini backpack, at least something in their pockets? Would’ve been great to have some minor stuff to help them out like bandaids, chapstick, lotion, etc! Even human currency could be helpful, they could auction a penny or a dollar bill as some kind of rare artifact in exchange for cookie currency. Also the human could even modify their bag into a mobile home for the cookies to use when they go out for an adventure. Plus I think the cookies would be pretty fascinated to see how big the human’s stuff is compared to their size.

I like to think that the human at least has their phone, keys, wallet, or a few little pocket items that they keep with them. Like lotion or lip gloss. Maybe even ear buds if they have those with them too. Their smartphone is easily the most interesting thing they have on their person, as it holds all the information about the human and maybe even their world. Depending on how you view it, the phone can stay powered by unnatural means or it will slowly run out of battery until it becomes useless. Plus, the human has to make sure that it stays dry and that cookies don't abscond with it. I also like to think that the human at least has a backpack with certain items in it. It can be books, seeds, toys, trinkets, or anything else you can find in a backpack (like a journal or scrapbook for example). It can also carry a laptop if the human was attending school/college, which would be an even stronger version of their phone...and yes, the cookies want to steal it as well...or at least have an opportunity to research it. While it's not overly out of pocket for cookies to have some forms of developed technology, I don't think they have quite reached the level of technological advancement that humans have. (if you don't count the space colony from one of the cookie run games) I mean, can you imagine if the human that winds up in Earthbread is an engineer or scientist by profession?

There would be so many things that they know how to do just by using physics or some other form of science to help educate the cookies, as well as them getting taught the ways of magic in return. Imagine if they began to make mechs or robots, give rise to a new "kingdom" that looks like a human city (with skyscrapers and such), and they also develop a new way of governance for cookies to use. It would probably inspire a lot of cookies to revive some technologies, or broaden upon existing technology, like the cars from the Golden Cheese Kingdom or the bikes/vehicles that certain entities utilize.

The human would invent bigger airplanes, jets, rockets, and defensive turrets to help protect the new city that hails the human as the ruler (despite them mostly just inventing things and utilizing their college learned skills to improve the life of the cookies). Imagine even more improvements as well! Instead of typical candy trains, the human constructs bullet trains, trams, and other various types of transportation. Including inventing navy-grade battleships, sonar technology, computerized functions, and newer technologies that enable a better lives for their cookie subjects. I like to think that the city that the human builds to mirror their own world would become known as the "City of Innovation", as the cookies that live there have optimized how life can be in cities. Such as public transportation, numerous parks, rooftop gardens, water (or soda) filtering plants, electricity, vehicles, airports, sea ports, optimized trains, solar/hydro powerplants, and a unique political system that is primarily overseen by the human's selected overseers, whom they choose based on positive merits. However, the resident cookies rarely see the human, as they only reserve an appearance for important matters. Such as a visiting monarch from a neighboring kingdom or a political concern of great importance. Otherwise, they mostly reside in the large building that serves as the center of their city. All this becomes possible because the human either takes initiative to expand the technology in the cookie world with a degree they have, or they work with cookies to help reverse engineer their technology so that cookiekind can benefit from the technology they have on them at the time they visit Earthbread.

If the human builds up their city from scratch, I like to think it looks like this. A very solarpunk and futuristic vibe to it. The city of innovation.

[batboyblog]

Things Biden and the Democrats did, this week #7

Feb 23-March 1 2024

The White House announced $1.7 Billion in new commitments from local governments, health care systems, charities, business and non-profits as part of the White House Challenge to End Hunger and Build Healthy Communities. The Challenge was launched with 8 billion dollars in 2022 with the goal of ending hunger in America by 2030. The Challenge also seeks to drastically reduce diet-related diseases (like type 2 diabetes). As part of the new commitments 16 city pledged to make plans to end hunger by 2030, the largest insurance company in North Carolina made nutrition coaching and a healthy food delivery program a standard benefit for members, and since the challenge launched the USDA's Summer EBT program has allowed 37 states to feed children over the summer, its expected 21 million low income kids will use the program this summer.

The US House passed a bill on Nuclear energy representing the first update in US nuclear energy policy in decades, it expands the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and reduces reducing licensing fees. Nuclear power represents America's single largest source of clean energy, with almost half of carbon-free electricity coming from it. This bill will boost the industry and make it easier to build new plants

Vice President Harris announced key changes to the Child Care & Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program. The CCDBG supports the families of a million American children every month to help afford child care. The new changes include capping the co-pay families pay to no more than 7% of their income. Studies show that high income families pay 6-8% of their income in childcare while low income families pay 31%. The cap will reduce or eliminate fees for 100,000 families saving them an average of over $200 a month. The changes also strength payments to childcare providers insuring prompt payment.

The House passed a bill making changes to the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) program. The 8(a) is an intensive 9 year program that offers wide ranging training and support to small business owners who are socially and economically disadvantaged, predominantly native owned businesses. Under the current structure once a business reaches over 6.8 million in assets they're kicked off the program, even though the SBA counts anything under $10 million as a small business, many companies try to limit growth to stay on the program. The House also passed a bill to create an Office of Native American Affairs at the SBA, in order to support Native-owned small businesses.

The White House and HUD announced steps to boost the housing supply and lower costs plans include making permanent the Federal Financing Bank Risk Sharing program, the program has created 12,000 affordable housing units since 2021 with $2 billion and plans 38,000 additional units over ten years. As well as support for HUD's HOME program which has spent $4.35 billion since 2021 to build affordable rental homes and make home ownership a reality for Americans. For the first time an administration is making funds available specifically for investments in manufactured housing, $225 million. 20 million Americans live in manufactured housing, the largest form of unsubsidized affordable housing in the country, particularly the rural poor and people in tribal communities.

The Department of Energy announced $336 million in investments in rural and remote communities to lower energy costs and improve reliability. The projects represent communities in 20 states and across 30 Native tribes. 21% of Navajo Nation homes and 35% of Hopi Indian Tribe homes remain unelectrified, one of the projects hopes to bring that number to 0. Another project supports replacing a hydroelectric dam in Alaska replacing all the Chignik Bay Tribal Council's diesel power with clear hydro power. The DoE also announced $18 million for Transformative Energy projects lead by tribal or local governments and $25 million for Tribal clean energy projects, this comes on top of $75 million in Tribal clean energy projects in 2023

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg put forward new rules to ensure airline passengers who use wheelchairs can travel safely and with dignity. Under the planned rules mishandling a wheelchair would be a violation of the ACAA, airlines would be required to immediately notify the passenger of their rights. Airlines would be required to repair or replace the wheelchair at the preferred vendor of the passenger's choice as well as provide a loaner wheelchair that fits the passenger's needs/requirements

The EPA launched a $3 Billion dollar program to help ports become zero-emission. This investment in green tech and zero-emission will help important transportation hubs fight climate change and replace some of the largest concentrations of diesel powered heavy equipment in America.

the EPA announced $1 Billion dollars to help clean up toxic Superfund sites. This is the last of $3.5 billion the Biden administration has invested in cleaning up toxic waste sites known as Superfund sites. This investment will help finish clean up at 85 sites across the country as well as start clean up at 25 new sites. Many Superfund sites are contained and then left not cleaned for years even decades. Thanks to the Biden-Harris team's investment the EPA has been able to do more clean up of Superfund sites in the last 2 years than the 5 years before it. More than 25% of America's black and hispanic population live with-in 5 miles of a Superfund site.

Bonus: Sweden cleared the final major barrier to become NATO's 32nd member. The Swedish Foreign Minster is expected to fly to Washington to deposit the articles of accession at the US State Department. NATO membership for Sweden and its neighbor Finland (joined last year) has been a major foreign policy goal of President Biden in the face of Russian aggressive against Ukraine. Former President Trump has repeatedly attacked NATO and declared he wants to leave the 75 year old Alliance, even going so far as to tell Russia to "do whatever the hell they want" with European NATO allies

[yuesya]

“Any new developments?”

Menogias shakes his head, frowning. His eyes, however, do not stray from where they are trained on the flitting form of the large avian in the distance. A nine-headed bird who is one of the few remaining feng in these lands, a proud individual who had stubbornly refused to join the newly-formed Guili Assembly.

There’s a reason for his pride; even aside from his vaunted bloodline, Zhurong was a young adeptus who was highly skilled for his age. If the rumors were true, then he had even survived a hostile encounter with the Mistress of Dreams before. Though the Mistress of Dreams was no god skilled in the art of combat, a god was still a god, and to weather a god’s ire is no easy task.

But Zhurong had refused Lady Guizhong’s offer to join them. Instead the hotheaded young adeptus had announced that he would strike out on his own, and brazenly declared that he would one day claim for himself a seat of godhood by his own merit.

It was good that Lady Guizhong’s new ally had not been present at the time. If the prideful young adeptus had stated these words in front of the Groundbreaker, Menogias isn’t sure if Zhurong would’ve been able to walk out of the Guili Assembly in one piece.

Where any other god would’ve punished the boy for his hubris, Lady Guizhong had not taken any offense. Menogias would not presume to understand his god’s mind, but he hadn’t exactly been surprised when Lady Guizhong had tasked him with keeping an eye on Zhurong even after he departed from their territory.

“He has potential,” Lady Guizhong had said. “It would be a pity if his arrogance saw him killed before he had a chance to realize that potential, don’t you think?”

Menogias thinks that Zhurong is an overconfident fool, but if Lady Guizhong sees potential in him… well, that must count for something, right?

Beside him, Bonanus leans forward and peers curiously. “What’s Zhurong doing in the Lord of the Vortex’s territory?”

“Technically, this isn’t quite the Lord of the Vortex’s territory, exactly,” Menogias corrects. “It’s one of the disputed areas. Zhurong must be trying to claim these shores for himself since the Lord of the Vortex’s main authority lies beneath the waves.”

“Yeah, but he’s got to be insane to try and pick a fight with the Lord of the Vortex. Not even the Groundbreaker would do something like this!”

Insane, or clever? If this tiny piece of territory wasn’t something that the Lord of the Vortex cared about to begin with, then would he even notice a young upstart striking a claim for himself? And if Zhurong could successfully establish himself as one of the Lord of the Vortex’s neighbors, then others would also need to be wary when attacking Zhurong, for fear of disturbing the powerful Hydro god.

Menogias had observed Zhurong descending upon the few coastal human settlements these past few days, boasting of his own strength and promising them protection in exchange for worship. Though the humans had been understandably wary in the beginning, quite a number who had immediately fallen to their knees and prostrated themselves the moment that Zhurong revealed the splendor of his true form. If he could continue this momentum and convert all of these humans into his worshipers, then there really was a nonzero chance that he would achieve–

A ripple in the waves.

The nine-headed bird screeches another loud, challenging cry over the waters –and this one proves to be his last.

One moment, Menogias is still watching Zhurong circle overhead with loud bird calls to establish his claim on his new territory, and in the next something suddenly bursts out from the lapping waves.

It’s hard to say what it even is. Menogias only registers a glimpse of glittering white scales that shine brilliantly beneath the sun and the vague outline of some oddly-shaped serpentine body-

And then Zhurong is dragged down into the depths of the sea below, leaving only abrupt silence in his wake.

“… What in the world just happened?!” Bonanus immediately grabs his shoulder, shaking him as her voice quivers uneasily. “Menogias, did you see–”

What… what was that? What in the world had he just watched transpire before his very eyes?

Zhurong was arrogant, but he was also a powerful adeptus! Yet judging by the way that he’d just disappeared into the waves like a stone sinking in a lake, he had been no match for whatever sea monster had finally decided that enough was enough.

Was that one of the Lord of the Vortex’s generals, perhaps? It had to be, if Zhurong had been taken down so easily. And if the Lord of the Vortex was this proactive in defending even the farthest reaches of his land-based territory, then… did that mean that he had plans to expand his territory towards the inland?

One thing is certain: Lady Guizhong must learn of this.

Menogias, being a yaksha of the Geo element, has no delusions about being able to fight one of the Lord of the Vortex’s generals in the sea, even with Bonanus’ assistance. There’s no help that he can offer Zhurong, who had refused to become part of the Guili Assembly.

But even so, the implications of what Menogias learned from his death will prove to be quite useful to the god that Menogias serves, and he supposes that he should be thankful to Zhurong’s sacrifice for that.

[meowdei]

GENSHIN IMPACT MASTERLIST.

main masterlist ; please read all warnings on fics!

���𝜚 — ALHAITHAM:

𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐒.

nsfw : the delicate line between friends and lovers 14.0k words — in which the akademiya’s scribe and the bimarstan’s head nurse develop some serious feelings for each other in between hook ups. evidently, neither are very good at communicating these feelings, though

nsfw : for you, i’d do it all again 6.2k words — the story of how you replace the acting grand sage as the permanent one. alternatively: three times alhaitham wanted to say i love you and one time he finally does

nsfw : like a lotus in spring, you are mine to bloom 7.7k words — at twenty one, you’re just a girl he meets as he trains for the role of scribe. at twenty four, you’ve become everything he loves in this world. after three years of knowing you and nearly two and a half decades of life, alhaitham finally realizes why his father left letters for his mother instead of just saying the words out loud

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : the theory of soulmates

sfw : the acting grand sage and the teacher

𝜗𝜚 — AYATO:

𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐒.

nsfw : dear wife, dear husband 3.1k words — your husband is doting, regardless of whether your marriage is one of duty or of love. but unbeknownst to you, ayato craves you more than you had initially believed him to

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : how to tame a fox

sfw : the hydro archon’s justice

sfw : post partum

nsfw : two sides of the same coin

nsfw : me and my (darling) husband

nsfw : you more than me

nsfw : in my past life (you were mine too)

nsfw : rumors

nsfw : dutiful, devoted

nsfw : jealousy, jealousy

𝜗𝜚 — CHILDE (TARTAGLIA):

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : pretty lady

𝜗𝜚 — DILUC:

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : hero’s compensation

sfw : the anemo archon’s favor

𝜗𝜚 — IL CAPITANO:

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : untitled no. 1

𝜗𝜚 — KINICH:

𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐒.

nsfw : a little death 4.4k words — sometimes, he comes back to you with a beating heart. other times, his body is cold and limp until he reemerges from the flames. you never get used to kinich falling during the pilgrimage, but you’re certainly used to the feeling of his body

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : asking price

sfw : post-commission

nsfw : you say i’m strong (but you make me feel weak)

𝜗𝜚 — NEUVILLETTE:

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : the fontainian weather forecast

sfw : untitled no. 1

𝜗𝜚 — WRIOTHESLEY:

𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐒.

nsfw : it always ends with i love you 20.3k words — in which you, a small floral shop owner, meet the duke of meropide by a chance encounter—and then you meet a bunch more too…but not so much by chance anymore

nsfw : surprise compensation 3.2k words — wriothesley is a hard worker. sometimes, when days are particularly long and rough, you have a surprise or two that makes things worth the troubles

nsfw : lumidouce season 3.5k words — it was supposed to just be a picnic. if there’s still some form of divine power that’s presiding over fontaine, it must really have it out for wriothesley. it was not just a picnic

nsfw : you want to change my mind (and maybe you already have) 8.7k words — november 23rd comes and goes just like every year. wriothesley looks at you in his bed, curled under his sheets—pretty. soft. kind. a gateway to a cushy sort of life he never envisioned for himself. this birthday, he finally realizes that neuvillette sending you down for weekly compliance checks at the fortress was the first time celestia had ever favored him

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : redemption for the suffering

sfw : loving is easy (it didn’t use to be)

sfw : we’ll have a ball

sfw : help me forget (until my only memories are you)

sfw : flu season (aka wrio’s nightmare)

sfw : untitled no. 1

sfw : untitled no. 2

sfw : untitled no. 3

sfw : second chances

sfw : boyfriend zoomies

sfw : greens

nsfw : hidden corners

𝜗𝜚 — MULTIPLE:

𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐒.

sfw : we’re just friends, but… — ft. wriothesley, neuvillette, alhaitham, and kamisato ayato the moment they realize the word friend may not be enough of a term to describe your relationship

sfw : i wanna ruin our friendship! — ft. wriothesley, neuvillette, alhaitham, and kamisato ayato the moment they finally confess that being friends is not enough (pt 2 of “we’re just friends but…”)

sfw : you should’ve seen the other guy! — ft. childe, wriothesley, alhaitham, and cyno your boyfriend and his tendencies to get into fights. it’s a good thing he has you to patch him up

property of meowdei — all rights reserved. do not redistribute, recommend or translate to any other platforms

[probablyasocialecologist]

The United States solar energy boom is finally taking off - in the worst way. In the Mojave desert and other federal lands across the West, utility-scale installations are putting gigawatt-hours of energy on the board and powering millions of homes. But the designs are sloppy, the labor conditions are horrific, and the environmental damage is incalculable. Ancient joshua trees are being clear cut, endangered desert tortoises are being left for dead, the vast biotic carbon stores of Mojave soils are being upturned, and the reflectivity of enormous expanses of desert are being altered, affecting the planetary climate. ​But it doesn't have to be this way. There's a type of energy that requires no fuel and no land. It hardly even needs transmission lines, as it can be built at the site of use: rooftop solar. Every hour of the day, rooftops across the United States soak up enough sun to generate petawatts of power. Estimates for their potential to offset US energy demand range from 13 percent to over 100. Yet at present, only around 2 percent of US energy is generated by rooftop. ​And then there's land area that's already been developed. Just by building solar on degraded lands, focusing on superfund sites, reservoirs, and farmland, researchers estimate we could generate more than enough to offset today's national energy demand. While there are points of dispute concerning some projections, the conclusion is clear: between the potential of degraded lands, rooftops, wind, and storage - plus existing hydro, nuclear, and other zero carbon energy sources, there's really no need to tear up the rare and fragile ecosystems of our deserts.

[taogura]

as many others i also cannot help but be weak towards the thought of neuvillette developing more “beast-like” (dragon-like) traits with the return of his primordial powers. he’s still the firm, gentle, righteous iudex his country has known him for these past 400 years, but people close to him notice some subtle changes — it has gotten easier to notice an irked expression, or how his fingers curl around his cane a bit tighter during a particularly hard trial, or the fact that sometimes when it rains, it pours.

he seems to be especially invested with matters concerning furina. it started right during his meeting with focalors, when she sacrificed herself right in front of his helpless eyes. and what remains, what has always been by his side— furina, is human. mortal. fragile in a way he never expected her to be. so it doesn’t come as a surprise when he gets spotted quite a few times near her apartment, or in her company, drinking some tea (water for him) and eating expensive cakes he knows she adores. and if his hand starts itching when it’s close enough for her to touch it, or if his heart squeezes inside of his chest when he can finally hear her laugh again, or if he learns how anger tastes in his mouth when he hears ignorant citizens bash the former hydro archon… then it should just be a normal display of his renewed powers, shouldn’t it?

[reasonsforhope]

"The amount of electricity generated by the UK’s gas and coal power plants fell by 20% last year, with consumption of fossil fuels at its lowest level since 1957.

Not since Harold Macmillan was the UK prime minister and the Beatles’ John Lennon and Paul McCartney met for the first time has the UK used less coal and gas.

The UK’s gas power plants last year generated 31% of the UK’s electricity, or 98 terawatt hours (TWh), according to a report by the industry journal Carbon Brief, while the UK’s last remaining coal plant produced enough electricity to meet just 1% of the UK’s power demand or 4TWh.

Fossil fuels were squeezed out of the electricity system by a surge in renewable energy generation combined with higher electricity imports from France and Norway and a long-term trend of falling demand.

Higher power imports last year were driven by an increase in nuclear power from France and hydropower from Norway in 2023. This marked a reversal from 2022 when a string of nuclear outages in France helped make the UK a net exporter of electricity for the first time.

Carbon Brief found that gas and coal power plants made up just over a third of the UK’s electricity supplies in 2023, while renewable energy provided the single largest source of power to the grid at a record 42%.

It was the third year this decade that renewable energy sources, including wind, solar, hydro and biomass power, outperformed fossil fuels [in the UK], according to the analysis. Renewables and Britain’s nuclear reactors, which generated 13% of electricity supplies last year, helped low-carbon electricity make up 55% of the UK’s electricity in 2023.

[Note: "Third year this decade" refers to the UK specifically, not global; there are several countries that already run on 100% renewable energy, and more above 90% renewable. Also, though, there have only been four years this decade so far! So three out of four is pretty good!]

Dan McGrail, the chief executive of RenewableUK, said the data shows “the central role that wind, solar and other clean power sources are consistently playing in Britain’s energy transition”.

“We’re working closely with the government to accelerate the pace at which we build new projects and new supply chains in the face of intense global competition, as everyone is trying to replicate our success,” McGrail said.

Electricity from fossil fuels was two-thirds lower in 2023 compared with its peak in 2008, according to Carbon Brief. It found that coal has dropped by 97% and gas by 43% in the last 15 years.

Coal power is expected to fall further in 2024 after the planned shutdown of Britain’s last remaining coal plant in September. The Ratcliffe on Soar coal plant, owned by the German utility Uniper, is scheduled to shut before next winter after generating power for over 55 years.

Renewable energy has increased sixfold since 2008 as the UK has constructed more wind and solar farms, and the large Drax coal plant has converted some of its generating units to burn biomass pellets.

Electricity demand has tumbled by 22% since its peak in 2005, according to the data, as part of a long-term trend driven by more energy efficient homes and appliances as well as a decline in the UK’s manufacturing sector.

Demand for electricity is expected to double as the UK aims to cut emissions to net zero by 2050 because the plan relies heavily on replacing fossil fuel transport and heating with electric alternatives.

In recent weeks [aka at the end of 2023], offshore wind developers have given the green light to another four large windfarms in UK waters, including the world’s largest offshore windfarm at Hornsea 3, which will be built off the North Yorkshire coast by Denmark’s Ørsted."

-via The Guardian, January 2, 2024

[kundangreenenergy]

Kundan Green Energy is a leading renewable energy company in India, offering advanced solutions in solar power, hydro power, and waste-to-energy. Our mission is to provide clean, reliable, and sustainable energy that powers progress while protecting the environment for future generations.

[nepalenergyforum]

Nepal Embraces Public-Private Partnership for Power Transmission

Previously, transmission line projects were solely constructed by the state-owned Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA). The agreement follows new policy arrangements enabling private sector involvement in the development of transmission infrastructure. KATHMANDU, Dec 17: The government has partnered with the private sector to build electricity transmission lines. The Ministry of Energy, Water…

[kamisatomay018]

It’s called being in love, Silly!

Neuvillette x fem!reader

angst with lots of comfort, very fluff, our poor hydro dragon struggling to understand his feelings. I hope you enjoy<3

It had been raining in Fontaine for 4 days straight now. No one knew why, yet the citizens were so used to the unstable weather conditions that all they could do was grumble about it and continue with their day. The cause of this endless rain happened to be sitting all alone in his huge office, staring blankly on the papers sitting on his desk, too lost in thought to do anything.

Neuvillette had a hard time understanding human emotions, despite being among them for over 400 years now. And just when he thought he was beginning to understand emotions like joy, sorrow, guilt, surprise and what not, a new emotion unlike any other came crashing down on him, that too unexpectedly: Love.

Sure, he had seen many, many people in love over these years. He had witnessed the love between couples, between families, friends and had read about it too, but he had never experienced it, until that one fateful day when his eyes landed on you, crouching down to examine a rainbow rose that had been crushed and withered, only to fix it using your dendro powers. He couldn’t help but be captivated by you instantly. While most humans would simply ignore the flower or throw it away, here you were, fixing it and giving it another chance to bloom again. He had also noticed how breathtakingly beautiful you were, and for the first time in his long life, he felt such weird feelings within him- his heartbeat accelerating, his stomach feeling uneasy. Only he knew how many glasses of water it had taken for him to return back to normal. And as if it was written in the stars, he kept encountering you often, and in the blink of an eye he developed..strange feelings for you. He loved being in your company, he shared his worries with you, your presence felt serene and your words would calm down the crashing waves in his heart.

To his utter surprise, one day he found himself standing in front of you, hearing your honeyed voice shyly confessing your love for him, and ever since that day, you both had decided to take a chance at being together. Neuvillette was very inexperienced when it came to love and he had told you that very honestly, but you were ready to teach him, to be patient with him. 8 months had passed by since, and it’s safe to say that he had been very happy in your company. Sure, he was still awkward and stiff, not initiating physical contact or romantic gestures because he just couldn’t understand them, but he was also a great lover. Always calm and gentle, taking care of your every necessity, taking note of your likes and dislikes. He had even opened up to you about being the hydro dragon sovereign, about his past and his hobbies. To his delight, you always tried to indulge in his hobby of water tasting, even listening to his intricate explanations about the taste of the water from each land. If things were going so well, then what could’ve possibly happened that made the hydro dragon so upset?

Well, two months ago you had moved into his apartment upon his request, and you both had developed a morning routine soon enough. Your love language was physical touch, but you always made sure to respect Neuvillette’s space. You both had not even shared a kiss yet, and the only skin ship, aka hugs and holding hands, had been initiated by you always. But of course, you didn’t mind because Neuvillette wasn’t a bad lover, he just needed time. After moving in with him, you had requested him to let you do his hair, for you absolutely loved caressing his long locks. His draconic features were so fascinating for you, and doing his hair would give you the excuse of admiring them up close. He had agreed, and ever since then, every morning you’d help him get ready, making sure the Iudex looked dapper and proper for his job.

However, a week ago, while brushing his hair, you had very softly caressed his horns, an action that had made his body stiffen and his breath hitch. Various insane emotions had emerged that very moment, emotions like his heart literally skipping a few beats, his stomach feeling all uneasy again and chills running down his spine. He hadn’t complained however, so you thought that he was okay with it. You continued doing that for the next three days, until the following morning, to your surprise and agony, Neuvillette had very stiffly asked you to not touch his horns.

You apologised immediately, trying to control the ache in your heart, blinking away the tears burning in your eyes. There was an awkwardness in the air that morning, and you hadn’t even hugged him goodbye as he left. How could you? Insecurities stirred in your heart, as you felt that your touch made him uncomfortable, because his tone wasn’t soft, it was stiff and hurried, which made your heart sink in hurt. That day you sat alone on the couch, overthinking about your relationship with neuvillette. Had he ever told you that he loved you? …No, he had not..he had told you that he liked you, liked being around you on the day you confessed your love for him, and had accepted your feelings. Was it out of pity? You had never told him how you longed for his warmth, for him to just hold you close, for him to at least kiss your forehead, or hold your hand. It was always you, and now he had asked you to not touch him. Tears rolled down your cheeks, and from that day, you had stopped initiating physical contact with him. Yes, you still did his hair, but you never hugged him anymore, you never held his hand, never touched his horns.

Neuvillette on the other hand, felt yet another wave of emotions crash down on him because of your distance. Why were these feelings so complicated? Ever since then, rain had been pouring down on Fontaine. Now he felt himself miss your embrace, the feeling of your smaller hand holding his. He had noticed the sadness looming in your beautiful eyes, how you had been more silent, how there was a heaviness between you both that neither of you spoke about. He truly hadn’t meant to hurt your feelings, in fact, all of this was a huge misunderstanding.

The reason why neuvillette asked you to not touch his horns was because he was shy! When you caressed his draconic features with so much love and care, it made his heart jump, his ears turn slightly red while he bit the inside of his cheek to not burst into his biggest smile. It felt weird- but in a way that was too good for him to handle! He just couldn’t understand what was going on with him. Is this what love is like? And why is it so darn difficult? There were so many things he wanted to say to you, but he held himself back. He wanted to hug you so tight, smother you with kisses and cling onto you, after all he was a dragon who was touch starved. But his mind told him that these thoughts were inappropriate, which caused him to come off as rude and cause that dreaded incident, which had now ruined everything. Just why couldn’t he improve, and be a good lover? Surely, he didn’t deserve an angel like you.

Today morning, he had invited Furina to visit him in his office to discuss this issue with her. She may not be an archon anymore, but she was still his dearest friend in whom he placed great trust. When he told her about all of this, to his shock, she burst out laughing! “Hahaha, oh my goodness Neuvillette!” He looked at her, absolutely baffled. “Miss Furina, I do not understand how any of this is funny.” After what seemed like ages, she calmed down her laughter, looking at him with an expression which indicated that everything was so obvious. “All the feelings you’re experiencing is called being in love silly! You’re in love with her, and such things happen! The uneasiness in your stomach is what humans like to call butterflies in their stomach, and is good! It is not wrong to crave her touch, to want to hold her close! In fact, I’m sure she must be dying to feel your affection in these 8 months!”

Neuvillette processed each word carefully, guilt seeping into his heart slowly. “So..you mean to say that..” Furina looked at him with a soft smile, nodding. “Yes, you have hurt her feelings, yes, you might have made her feel insecure. But! It’s not too late! Go talk to her, be honest about your feelings. Tell her that you love her.” Neuvillette looked down in remorse, realisation about many things settling in his mind. “I…have been a terrible partner to her..Will she even forgive me?” Furina placed a hand on his shoulder, smiling assuringly. “She loves you, and she understands you. But unless and until you’re honest with her, she can’t help you right? I’m sure she’ll forgive you, but you will have to make sure to not let her down.” “I cannot lose her, I’ll be sure to be a better partner..” Furina smiled happily, getting up. “Well then it’s settled! Good luck Neuvillette!” He smiled fondly, thanking her dearly. His mind was made up; tonight he would apologise for his behaviour and be completely honest with you.

Looking outside the window, you sighed softly seeing the rain. You weren’t a fool, you knew that something about you was bothering him. But what had you done now? You both had been so distant, so awkward since that incident that it was tearing you apart now. But if this is what he wanted, you could do nothing but respect his wishes. Sighing softly you heard the door to your apartment open, going like usual to greet him. However, today, for the first time you saw Neuvillette standing in front of you, a bouquet of fresh and glowing rainbow roses in his hand along with your favourite desserts. “Neuvi..?”

What he did next completely knocked the air out of your lungs, and took the words right out of your mouth- literally. The next thing you felt were the softest pair of lips against your own, making you freeze for a moment. Neuvillette had kissed you? On his own? But your body reacted faster than your brain, melting in his embrace as you gladly returned his kiss. Oh archons, nothing could feel better than this. Your lips moved together in perfect harmony, crashing together like the waves gently crash against the ocean floor. As you wrapped your arms around his neck, he pulled you closer, losing himself in the feeling of this foreign sensation. Your hearts were beating together in sync, faster than ever.

He then pulled apart ever so softly, opening his beautiful lilac eyes, staring at you with such tenderness that it made your cheeks flush. “Mon amour, I am so terribly sorry..I have been a bad lover..” You frowned at his words, cupping his cheeks softly. “No neuvi, don’t say that..” He shook his head, hugging you close, and you felt his body relax and melt into yours, just like you. “It’s the truth darling..please forgive me, I never meant to hurt your feelings that day, I never felt uncomfortable..I..I wish to be completely honest with you, and what I’m about to say might sound..ridiculous at best..” You smiled softly, glad to finally be able to talk to him, moreover be in his embrace. “Your feelings are never ridiculous..please talk to me, I’m right here to listen.”

He took a deep breath, being completely honest with you. “The truth is..that I want nothing more than to be close to you..I crave your touch, I crave to hold you close, for my draconic instincts make me naturally possessive and clingy towards you..When I am with you, my heart goes insane, I get butterflies in my stomach, I feel…shy, but so happy…However, these feelings are so foreign to me, that my mind makes me think it is..inappropriate. My lack of knowledge about love makes it worse..the truth is that my thoughts have been holding me back from being completely honest with you, and I know it is in no way an excuse that can justify my behaviour..I have made you feel unloved and insecure, and that fact alone is the biggest punishment for me..”

To say that your heart melted in an instant was an understatement. You felt so relieved, so glad that he was finally honest with you. You understood his feelings, you knew love was so complicated, and with him being a dragon, all these emotions were unnatural for him. As humans, fantasising about love and experiencing it is very simple. But neuvillette has been alone all his life, and love is far from what he has ever received. “Oh Neuvi..I understand you, but these feelings aren’t wrong! If your instincts tell you to hold me close, then please do it! I won’t be uncomfortable, in fact I crave your embrace..I feel so comforted and safe in your arms, your touch feels warm and gives me unexplainable joy..”

Neuvillette looked into your eyes, in disbelief that he had found the most kind, understanding and beautiful woman as his lover. “I..cannot thank you enough for how patient and understanding you’ve been with me..I give you my word, I will be better for you Mon Amour.” You gave him that sweet big smile of yours, one that always made his heart skip a beat. “You are the best already! You just need to let go of your formalities and be yourself with me..I promise you, I will not leave you..I love you for who you are Neuvillette..”

“I love you too Mon Amour..”

Your eyes widened, and at that moment you felt joy unlike any other. Finally, he said it. “Say that again, please..” He chuckled softly, placing a sweet kiss on your forehead. “I love you so much..” you laughed out of pure joy, hugging him so tight, feeling ecstatic. Your joy was contagious, for neuvillette felt himself smile wide, caressing your hair softly. “As..for what happened that morning..you touching my horns didn’t make me uncomfortable..On the contrary, it made me..extremely flustered and shy, it felt very soothing but so..unexplainably foreign that I asked you to stop, which I never wanted..I suppose I didn’t expect anyone to admire my draconic features like that..”

You pouted at his words, looking up at him sweetly. “But your features are absolutely beautiful! I love how unique they make you, that is why I wished to admire them…after all I want to love every part of you equally..” Hearing your words, Neuvillette let out a breath of relief “I do not deserve you..” You smiled at him, leaning into his touch. “On the contrary, you are the only one who deserves me..Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable and shy in front of me, it’s all normal! Besides, I love it when you smile, it makes me happy..”

He ends up laughing softly at your words, a sweet pink tint adorning his cheeks “If that’s the case Mon amour, then I’m afraid you’ll have to smile more, for your happiness is contagious in the best ways possible..” Both of you giggled at that, a newfound sense of love blossoming in your hearts. Your bond had strengthened even more, the rain had completely stopped while all the flowers in Fontaine were in full bloom. Perhaps being in love isn’t that complicated, Neuvillette thought. With you by his side, he’s sure he’d learn in no time.

[ladycremecaramel]

My BOTW/TOTK OC Ideas and personal rambles

I'm dumping all of my oc loz ideas here for my sanity because they've been bouncing around in my head for a long while.

My Zora OCs

So, I still can't draw very well, and ZoraMay is over, but I have an idea for two Zora oc's. One is inspired by @gargoylesister 's OC Littol. I never once thought about the possibility of tiny zora and I thought "Omg I wanna make one too!"

Zora OC 1's design is based off of a neon tetra. I always loved neon tetras since I was a little girl. I remember growing up with a freshwater fish tank with many fish and one that was a constant were neon tetras. They didn't always last long, but they were so pretty swimming in a school and how their scales reflected in the light. No name rn

Zora OC 2's design is based on my favorite fish. The red wagtail platy. I dunno what it is about this simple fish but they make me so happy. They were also common in the big fish tank my family had growing up. I vaguely remember always watching one swim up and down in a corner of the tank like it was trying to find a way to escape.

Also no name and might be full size or just as small or bigger than the Tetra Zora.

My Rito OCs

Some of you remember me talking about Rito OCs. I still have 2.

Rito oc 1 is Leela. Obviously I still want to keep the shadow puppeteer idea. And i like the idea of her pairing up with Harth. :>

Same bird design. The Chinese bulbul

Rito oc 2. This one would be my Ritosona. An Atlantic Puffin.

I always liked puffins. They're kind of the best of both worlds. They can fly AND swim.

My Hylian OC

My last OC . Besides my Hyliansona, Tabitha (not my real name), I have one other OC that isn't from Hyrule at all. I see her as one that can be easily put in most if not all fandoms.

I've talked about her before on my tumblr page as a potential character for the dragon age fandom and I nicknamed her Puddles.

Let's see...🤔 also I'm word-dumping big time here since she is the only OC that is technically fully developed with a backstory so I'll put this little cut-off for those who aren't interested in her and want to scroll past.

She was made for an original role-play forum that was freeform combat and the story is X-men inspired/superheroes teenagers going to a school in NYC. I think the RP was called Zankoku. This was in 2010

When I was invited to play, I knew next to nothing about how superpowers would work irl or the physics...stuff like that. So they told me to RP with a style I would be most familiar with and I chose water bending from the Last Airbender.

If I had to pick an image for what she would look like, it would be based on the cheerleader from the TV series Heroes, Claire Bennet.

Long curly blonde hair (curlier than the gif), gray eyes, tanned skin, thunder thighs, and was pretty tall for a 15-year-old teen. I think I made her height 5'7''.

Her name is April May Mickadoo and she had the powers to control water and ice (hydro and cyrokinesis). She was my most extroverted and emotional OC I think I ever created. Out of all of the characters that were created for the RP forum, she was one of the more friendly (if not the friendliest) of the Xhuman teens. She was definitely the most extroverted. Especially in the beginning. A lot of the Xteens were loners or generally stuck with one or two other characters to interact. April however, spoke with everyone thus giving everyone a reason to interact with each other in the story.

Compared to the rest of the Xteens, I think she had the most "normal" childhood. By that, I mean divorced parents, mostly raised by a single parent, moved because of their parent's work. That kind of stuff (from her POV at first). Others who discovered their abilities early in their backstory were subject to racism, bullying, being shunned, harassed in public, taken away by the government, and/or killed.

She wasn't consciously aware of her powers until the start of the RP. I was not very good at writing out combat/ fight scenes with my character in a balanced way (either god mode or weak and the RP didn't have stats, it was freeform). So because she learned of her powers much later than others, she was pretty weak with them. Physical fighting was average at the start. She did have power surges when she became distraught. In the beginning, she could only control water until a lucky roll from the mods and a very traumatic event, that she unlocked cyrokinesis. Due to other events during the RP before it suddenly died off, she obtained a 'break the cutie' trope under her belt and depression (or grieving). Depending on how things would've gone, there could've been a sanity slippage episode at some point.

There were perks with her powers. Underwater breathing, can handle the cold very well, and can turn her whole body to water and/or ice (hence the nickname Puddles). Those are the ones I can remember.

Her personality: when I say emotional, I mean she had pretty much all of her emotions on her sleeve. You knew when she was happy, sad, angry, etc. If I had to pick an alignment for her, I would say neutral/lawful good. She LOVES music. She was always ready to dance, sing, or play the piano (later on, she started learning acoustic guitar) when it came to music.

there is more of her backstory and events of the RP I'm not revealing because I want to weave it into whatever story I add her in and it would be post-events after what I could imagine more trauma that the mods had in store. For her, the rp was pretty much a trauma conga line.

[starlit-typewriter]

As a proud Fontainian citizen (lol), I love to see Fontaine's involvement in sagau. However, it's always only the ones with political power so basically Neuvillette, Furina when she's still acting as the Hydro Archon, Arlecchino (+the Fatui) and Wriothesley. I love them all dearly, but I wish to see more about Navia and Clorinde, they were both very present in the AQ and have both their own undeniable influence in Fontaine (one is THE Spina Di Rosula's boss and the other the #1 Champion Duelist in the whole country +Furina's bodyguard) (+they're both my pookies) Idk, it always feels weird not to see them, like the Creator/Impostor is around and you don't even see two of the most important people of Fontaine get involved??

(tbh I really want to see the others too, even if I have no idea what they could bring to the plot but Charlotte trying to uncover the truth and unexpectedly bumping into the Creator or finding out about Neuvillette & cie's plan and either joining in or info-dumping everything in the Steambird???? Why is nobody talking about Charlotte????)

Oooooh that is a very good point.

Honestly considering how new they are as characters I’m not surprised at the lack of content regarding them.

The arc on Fontaine is an interesting one to be sure.

I’ll see what I can do to include these ladies into the story.

I have plans for Navia and Clorinde, I’m unsure whether or not they’d end up as POV characters, but they will be there.

The most interesting thing about Fontaine is that it is very much a land of humans, or more precisely a land without “gods”.

Even during the rule of Furina, she was less of a figure of authority and worship in the same way the other Archons are.

No churches or shrines in her honor unlike Barbados and Raiden Shogun.

No festivals or events like with Kusanali and Rex Lapis.

While there is the Furina film festival, that’s named after her skill as an actress rather than her position as their Archon.

It is so very human.

Of course there are Melusines, but they’re not creatures of legends such as the Adepti, the Youkai, four winds of Mondstadt or the Aranara.

It is truly removed from The Seven.

Which makes sense as it is ruled by the Hydro Sovereign.

But that also means it’s humans are much more removed from the Archons and as a result, Celestia.

What that will mean for this story you’ll just have to wait and see.

There is a theme for who gets blessed. It’s not based off of what characters I have, at least not completely.

Clorinde and Navia are both so intrinsically human and have such vital roles in the community that, well. . .

It will be a very interesting dynamic for character development.

Because there will be character development, believe me.

My only concern is with Charlotte. Since she’s such an Ace reporter, should our lovely Creator bump into them, well I mean it’s a scoop but it will also rock the foundations of Teyvat and might lead to ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ .

But I do have a couple of ideas for an extra featuring her. No promises though!

However since you are a fontainian I do feel the need to warn you of the oncoming weather.

I fear once the Fontaine arc begins you’d best shut your doors and prepare for rain.