James Burger, Bakersfield Californian

The wind turbines that first started appearing on ridges of the Tehachapi Mountains in the early 1980s have been just a footnote in the energy story of power-hungry California.

Yes, the 783 megawatts of electricity those pinwheels produce can energize hundreds of thousands of homes.

But their impact is small compared to that of the state's two nuclear power plants, which churn out 4,400 megawatts, and by the energy generated from burning coal and natural gas.

Blythe, Central Valley Business Times

What's described by its owners as the largest photovoltaic solar power plant yet in California has been turned on and is sending electricity to customers of Southern California Edison.

John Lorinc, New York Times Green Inc. Blog

A detailed literature review published on Tuesday by the American and Canadian wind industry associations found no medical basis for the health complaints that often arise near large wind-farm projects.

Kate Galbraith, New York Times

As I wrote in Sunday's Week in Review section, California and Texas have both emerged as leaders in renewable energy - but in completely different ways. Texans despise regulations, an attitude that has helped wind farms to flourish; California, by contrast, requires hefty environmental assessments for large projects - which helps explain why rooftop solar panels and energy efficiency have done so well (they do not need painstaking reviews).

Melanie Turner, Sacramento Business Journal

The Sacramento Municipal Utility District has been awarded $4 million in federal grant funding to expand Sacramento's use of solar energy, and the California Community Colleges Board of Governors has won a $3.5 million grant for job-training in the solar industry.

Rep. Doris Matsui announced the awards on Friday, saying they will bolster Sacramento-based solar energy research and educational programs. The awards come through the U.S. Department of Energy.

Central Valley Business Times

Verdegaal Brothers Inc. says the Sun is replacing the electric company when it comes to providing power for its fertilizer and soil amendment company in Hanford.

The plant recently switched on its 188-kilowatt solar power system that includes ground mounted thin-film photovoltaic panels on a one-acre site.

Tiffany Hsu, Los Angeles Times

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has approved two major initiatives that will require utilities to pay consumers for generating extra power and will boost the payoff for certain solar facilities.

Homes, businesses and schools that have solar panels or wind turbines previously had no financial incentive to use less electricity than they generated. But AB 920, written by Assemblyman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael), will encourage efficiency, supporters say.

Staff Reports, Central Valley Business Times

 Got an idea for a solar energy project? Or one to improve energy efficiency in a home or building? There might be federal funding available.

More than $156 million in federal stimulus money is being made available for solar and energy efficiency projects in California.

Now the state wants applications for the funds.

Central Valley Business Times

The use of alternative energy sources by farmers and ranchers in the U.S. doubled to 11 percent since the last survey was released in April, according to Rabobank N.A.

Anne Eisneberg, New York Times

THE main way for homes to harness solar power today is through bulky panels added to the rooftop or mounted on the ground.

But companies are now offering alternatives to these fixed installations, in the less conspicuous form of shingles, tiles and other building materials that have photovoltaic cells sealed within them.

Central Valley Business Times

Chowchilla-based Minturn Huller, an almond huller and sheller for over 260 almond growers in the Central Valley, has started construction on a 540 kilowatt solar power system.

Cenergy Power, a division of BAP Power Corp. of Carlsbad, is building the plant, which will power Huller's primary hulling facility.

Central Valley Business Times

What is being billed as the world's first conference dedicated specifically to addressing the challenges faced in the high altitude wind power industry has been scheduled for Nov. 5-6 in Oroville.

The conference will serve as a major platform for high altitude wind power professionals, academics, inventors and entrepreneurs from all over the world, predict its sponsors, California State University Chico, the BayTEC Alliance and the Cleantech Innovation Center at Oroville.

Todd Woody, New York Times

AMARGOSA VALLEY, Nev. - In a rural corner of Nevada reeling from the recession, a bit of salvation seemed to arrive last year. A German developer, Solar Millennium, announced plans to build two large solar farms here that would harness the sun to generate electricity, creating hundreds of jobs.

But then things got messy. The company revealed that its preferred method of cooling the power plants would consume 1.3 billion gallons of water a year, about 20 percent of this desert valley's available water.

Garth Stapely, Modesto Bee

Someday, someone could harvest sunshine as well as almonds near the Fink Road Landfill in west Stanislaus County.

County supervisors on Tuesday unanimously agreed to explore converting part of a 1,040-acre farm on county-owned property next to the landfill into a solar field.

Also Tuesday, leaders without discussion postponed weighing the future of farmland tax breaks because a majority of supervisors own such property.

Todd Woody, The New York Times

Regulators have a message for companies seeking to build solar power plants in the California desert: Don't use much water, take good care of endangered species and make sure you have signed a deal with a utility before you submit an application to regulators.