The Chinese government has recently launched a series of "eco-friendly" communities in a number of cities with the intention of promoting a more sustainable culture among the people. The communities feature green spaces, solar panels and other alternative energy sources and encourage inhabitants to develop sustainable habits. China is building more eco-cities designed to be low-carbon and energy-saving than any other country, according to a survey by the University of Westminster in London, USA Today reported. America came second in the study. One of the biggest ecologically friendly cities will be Tianjin Eco-City, a joint development between the Chinese and Singaporean governments that will cover almost 30 square kilometer of wasteland and salt pans near Tianjin, a major port city southeast of Beijing. More than thousand people will move in this year, joining 100 residents and it is expected to reach a population of 350 thousand people within the next ten years. According to Inhabitat, designed by Surbana Urban Planning Group, the city is being built just 10 minutes away from the business parks at the Tianjin Economic-Development Area, making for a commute that should be a breeze with the development's advanced light rail transit system. Eco-City will make use of the latest sustainable technologies such as solar power, wind power, rainwater recycling, and wastewater treatment/desalination of sea water. In order to reduce the city's carbon emissions, residents will be encouraged to use an advanced light rail system, and China has also pledged that 90 percent of traffic within the city will be public transport. The development also features some beautiful public green spaces. As reported USA Today, in recent years, more than 200 Chinese cities have announced they will build large housing developments that seek to reduce energy use and motor vehicle use and thus the amount of carbon put out by power plants and tailpipes. Some projects have stalled, while others appear to be promotional gimmicks by commercial developers. Some innovations fizzled, such as the roof gardens suggested by Singapore. They died in the district's polluted soil and windy, dry climate. Some partnerships are going nowhere. The Shanghai government and British design firm Arup have failed to complete a promised eco-city in Dongtan. The project near Shanghai appears stalled as does Wanzhuang, another Arup eco-city near Beijing.

Singapore's latest development will finally blossom later this month, with an imposing canopy of artificial trees up to 50 meters high towering over a vast urban oasis, reported The CNN. The colossal solar-powered supertrees are found in the Bay South garden, which opens to the public on June 29. It is part of a 250-acre landscaping project -- Gardens by the Bay -- that is an initiative from Singapore's National Parks Board that will see the cultivation of flora and fauna from foreign lands. The man-made mechanical forest consists of 18 supertrees that act as vertical gardens, generating solar power, acting as air venting ducts for nearby conservatories, and collecting rainwater. To generate electricity, 11 of the supertrees are fitted with solar photovoltaic systems that convert sunlight into energy, which provides lighting and aids water technology within the conservatories below. Varying in height between 25 and 50 meters, each supertree features tropical flowers and various ferns climbing across its steel framework. The large canopies also operate as temperature moderators, absorbing and dispersing heat, as well as providing shelter from the hot temperatures of Singapore's climate to visitors walking beneath. Bridges dubbed "skywalks" have been erected connecting several of the higher 50-meter supertrees, letting visitors stroll between them and view the gardens from dizzying heights. The horticultural heaven also boasts two green conservatories in close proximity -- the Cloud Forest and Flower Dome -- climate-controlled biomes inspired by the shape of an orchid flower, which project organizers hope will become the park's main attractions. The biomes are the equivalent size of four football fields and will become the new home for 220 thousand plants from almost every continent. Designed by Grant Associates, the project is part of a redevelopment scheme to create a new downtown district in the Marina Bay area, on Singapore's south side. Project organizers hope the completed Gardens by the Bay will become an eco-tourist destination showcasing sustainable practices and plants from across the globe. Launched seven years ago by Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the horticultural oasis will be a contrast to the country's extremely dense urban environment, forming part of the government's overall strategy to transform Singapore into a "city in a garden."

The outlines of a massive solar thermal power plant-the largest ever-are starting to appear in the wilderness outside of Las Vegas. The US$ 2.2 billion project, which is being built by NRG Energy, Google, Oakland, California-based BrightSource and Bechtel, the engineering and construction contractor for the project, stretches over 14.5 million square meters near Ivanpah in Mojave Desert, California. When it's finished, it will generate 377 megawatts of electricity on sunny days and it will nearly double the amount of solar thermal electricity produced in the US. The project has been a long time coming. BrightSource first filed an application for the project in the summer of 2007. Approval took three years and official construction started in October 2011. Crews began installing the hundreds of thousands of mirrors in February of this year. Construction was temporarily slowed to accommodate the care and relocation of desert tortoises-a threatened species-found in larger numbers than expected. The project, which will generate electricity by using mirrors to concentrate sunlight to heat up water and drive steam turbines, is now expected to be finished next year in 2013. The Ivanpah solar thermal power plant will generate power the same way as traditional power plants - by creating high temperature steam to turn a turbine. However, instead of using fossil fuels or nuclear power to create the steam, this plant uses the sun's energy. By this way, the plant will reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by more than 400 thousand tons annually, which is equivalent of taking more than 70 thousand cars off the road. Besides this, in order to conserve scarce water resources, the plant employs an air-cooling system to convert the steam back into water in a closed-loop cycle. By using air-cooling, the new technology uses more than 90 percent less water than older technology parabolic through plants with wet cooling. Even as the project nears completion, the future of solar thermal power plants is in doubt. That's in large part because prices for solar panels-which convert sunlight to electricity directly-have dropped quickly in the last few years, causing at least one company to abandon plans to build solar thermal plants in favor of making ones that use solar panels. At least, solar thermal has one great strength compared to many other types of solar power: the heat it produces is easy to store, so electricity can be generated even after the sun goes down, and power can be dispatched to the grid whenever it's most needed. But the picture may change, as according to The CNNMoney, the US Department of Commerce last month announced it would impose punitive tariffs as high as 250 percent on panels imported from China after finding that Chinese companies have been "dumping" them at prices below production costs. As we reported earlier, on May 2011 took place ground breaking ceremony of the world's largest Blythe Solar power plant. Once construction is completed, the site will feature four solar thermal power plants with a total generating capacity of thousand megawatts of electricity. Latest development for Blythe Solar is very much unfavorable. As reported the Forbes, developer companies of the project Solar Trust of America and the Solar Millennium Group filed for bankruptcy, the former in USA and the latter in Germany.

The world's largest solar thermal system for water heating recently opened in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The new one is almost double the size of what was previously the largest solar water heating facility (located in Denmark), and it will generate enough power to heat water for a university of 40 thousand students. The Millennium Energy company was responsible for the design and build of the solar thermal plant and the GREENTecONE, an Austrian solar design company, supplied the solar panels for the project. The 36 thousand square meter rooftop system is the size of five soccer fields and was built at a cost of US$ 14 million. The solar technology is just one of the many features that will make the new US$ 11.5 billion Princess Nora bint Abdul Rahman University for Women in Riyadh a showcase for environmental innovation. The project is also a signal that countries in the Middle East, which have become wealthy thanks to fossil fuels, are now planning for post-oil future. Plentiful sun shines down on Saudi Arabia, and the solar panels that allow this project to run are massive. Each one covers 10 square meters and weighs 170 kilograms. The panels have a transparent coating to enhance their performance, and they also require a special mounting system to keep them bolted to the roofs when Saudi Arabia's notoriously vicious sandstorms hit Riyadh. Watch for similar projects to appear in Saudi Arabia the coming decade. The Kingdom has set a goal for 10 percent of its energy to come from solar power by 2020. Currently oil is plentiful, and over half of Saudi Arabia's electricity comes from the country's black gold. But with oil pricing at over US$ 100 a barrel, it makes economic sense for Saudi Arabia to reduce their dependency at home and export more of it abroad. With the country expected to grow even more in the coming years, Saudi Arabia could become a global leader in solar power generation. The $14 million renewable solar energy development includes a 36,000 square metre rooftop solar energy system that will cater to the hot water needs of the 40,000 students at the city's Princess Noura Bint Abdulrahman University for Women. The 10 square metre solar panels have been provided by Austrian firm GREENTecOne. After a six month trial period, each one of the six solar fields has been uncovered and six tanks of 150m3 have been built to store excess solar heat at 110 C.

After waves of controversy following the destructive tsunami and subsequent failure of the Fukushima nuclear power plant in March of 2011, Japan began ramping down its atomic energy industry and actively pursuing safer, alternative energy sources. As reported Reuters, Electronics firm Kyocera Corporation, heavy machinery maker IHI Corporation and Mizuho Corporate Bank announced about their agreement to launch Japan's biggest solar power project at a cost of US$ 307 million. Mizuho will finance the development, and IHI will lease the land on which Kyocera will provide the solar modules and design of the site. An artist's rendering of the farm shows 290 thousand solar panels arranged on 3.14 million square meters of reclaimed land off of the southern city of Kagoshima. Their 70-megawatt plant will generate about 79 thousand megawatt hours of electricity per year, enough for about 22 thousand households. A special-purpose company (SPC) will be set up to build and run the new plant, with construction starting in July. Further elements of the project, including a start date for commercial operation, will be decided after the government sets prices for a subsidy scheme for renewable energy sources that is also scheduled for launch on July.