Meet the Bloggers with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid »
on DeSmogBlog - Clearing the PR Pollution that Clouds Climate ScienceI had the privilege of participating in a panel discussion on a new online show called Meet the Bloggers. Here's the introduction post I did yesterday all about Meet the Bloggers. Also on the show was Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV), someone who has been trying very hard to tackle .. read full article »
Green Gap: Why High Energy Prices Could Hurt the Environment »
on WSJ.com: Environmental Capital - WSJ.comAre greenbacks finally trumping greens? Money talks (AP) The cost of energy, especially the “cost of gas,” has zoomed to the top of voters’ economic concerns, according to the latest NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. Overall, energy costs are second only to general fears about the economy, .. read full article »
Green Ink: Energize the Vote »
on WSJ.com: Environmental Capital - WSJ.comA weaker dollar and renewed fears over Iran and Nigeria pushed oil back over $126, Bloomberg reports. The heat is still on speculators—more details emerge about wrong-way bets oil trader SemGroup made on oil, while U.S. officials investigate a Dutch oil trader accused of market manipulation, .. read full article »
Deserts of Gold - The Remake »
on Peak EnergyThe Guardian had a good article a couple of years ago about CSP in North Africa supplying power to Europe which I dubbed "Deserts of Gold". Obviously this institutional knowledge hasn't been passed down as the latest version of this story is far weaker and confuses solar thermal power with solar .. read full article »
Mr. Pickens’ Half-Right Plan »
on Solve Climate: Daily Climate News and OpinionIt does our heart good to see an oil tycoon spend his money to tell the truth. There’s too little of that today. But T. Boone Pickens, the Texas oil billionaire, is investing $58 billion on a television ad campaign (Youtube) to explain that we can’t drill our way out of the current energy .. read full article »
Ho Hum: Are Consumers Getting Used to Sky-High Energy Prices? »
on WSJ.com: Environmental Capital - WSJ.comAmericans appear to be concluding high energy prices are here to stay. The latest evidence: They view $4 gasoline as good news. The latest consumer-confidence survey from the University of Michigan showed a “surprising” rise in confidence across the country, at all age and income levels. .. read full article »
Torrefaction gives biomass a 20% energy boost, makes logistics far more efficient »
on biopactTorrefaction, a process traditionally used to roast coffee beans, could give biomass a power boost, increasing the energy content of some leading energy crops and agricultural residues by up to 20 per cent, a study by engineers from the University of Leeds shows. Meanwhile, researchers in the .. read full article »
3Degrees and Verde PR & Consulting Announce Strategic Partnership »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comVerde, a boutique public relations, communications and corporate social responsibility consulting agency, and 3Degrees, the premier renewable energy and carbon offset provider for the U.S. market, announce a strategic partnership effective today. read full article »
Genasun Releases Solar Controller for Small Solar Panels »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comThe most efficient solar charge controller ever made available for small solar panels is released this month by Genasun LLC. The GV-3, developed by MIT graduates in Boston, Massachusetts, is specially engineered for remote solar-powered devices connected to batteries, such as parking .. read full article »
VIDEO: Interview with Xantrex Technology CEO John Wallace »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comRenewableEnergyWorld.com talked with John Wallace, CEO of Xantrex Technology last week at Intersolar North America in San Francisco California. read full article »
Largest PV Plant in Greece Grid Connected »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comThis week the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in Greece, which was built by Phoenix Solar AG, was connected to the grid in Pontoiraklia, near Thessaloniki. Phoenix Solar was responsible for planning and construction of the plant as general contractor. The owner of the power plant with a .. read full article »
E.ON Opens 10-MW Biomethane Plant »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comA joint bioethanol project by Schmack Biogas and E.ON has been officially inaugurated. Europe's largest and most advanced biomethane plant is located in Schwandorf in the Upper Palatinate region of Bavaria. The facility has a rated biogas output of approximately 10 megawatts (MW), which is fed .. read full article »
DuPont Danisco & UT To Build Cellulosic Ethanol Pilot Plant »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comDuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol LLC (DDCE) and the University of Tennessee (UT) Research Foundation announced a partnership to construct an innovative pilot-scale biorefinery and state-of-the-art research and development facility for cellulosic ethanol in Vonore, Tennessee. read full article »
OIT Offers Renewable Energy Systems Degree »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comIn June of this year, the Oregon Institute of Technology (OIT) graduated its first student with a Bachelor of Science in Renewable Energy Systems, the first such degree in North America. The school set up the program to keep up with the industry's growth in the state. read full article »
Gold Miner's Son Seeks Energy Refuge in Solar »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comMaterial May Help Autos Turn Heat into Electricity »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comResearchers have invented a new material that could potentially make cars more efficient, by converting heat wasted through engine exhaust into electricity. The researchers say that the material has twice the efficiency of anything currently on the market. read full article »
Senate GOP Prevents EPA Document Subpoena; Contents Discussed »
on Hill HeatA vote on the issuance of a subpoena for the draft endangerment finding on global warming emissions rejected at the highest levels in the White House was stymied when Republican members boycotted the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works business meeting, preventing a .. read full article »
Concrete that sucks -- CO2, that is »
on Clean BreakThere's a story in Technology Review about a Halifax, Nova Scotia-based company called Carbon Sense Solutions that has found a way to make precast concrete products CO2-sucking vacuums. The interesting thing about concrete is that over hundreds of years they absorb CO2, a natural process called .. read full article »
What do DeSmogBlog and Senator Harry Reid have in common? »
on DeSmogBlog - Clearing the PR Pollution that Clouds Climate ScienceWell, besides good looks and charm, both the Senate Majority House leader, Harry Reid and yours truly will be panel guests on a new show tomorrow called Meet the Bloggers. The show is a production of the legendary onliner, Robert Greenwald of Brave New Films fame and the host is none other .. read full article »
What do DeSmogBlog and Senator Harry Reid have in common? »
on DeSmogBlog - Clearing the PR Pollution that Clouds Climate ScienceWell, besides good looks and charm, both the Senate Majority House leader, Harry Reid and yours truly will be panel guests on a new show tomorrow called Meet the Bloggers. The show is a production of the legendary onliner, Robert Greenwald of Brave New Films fame and the host is none other .. read full article »
Public Service Announcement »
on Clean BreakJust letting readers know that over the next couple (few?) months I'll be transitioning over from the Blogware platform to Wordpress. Tucows, the Toronto-based software company that owned Blogware, has decided to stop supporting it and is letting it die a slow death. To be fair, they're not .. read full article »
The Island in the Wind goes Climate Positive »
on Conscious ConsumingElizabeth Kolbert wrote a great (long) article in The New Yorker this month about the island of Samso in Denmark, called The Island in the Wind. Samso is Denmark's climate positive energy experiment; the island not only produces all of its own energy using renewable sources, but it produces .. read full article »
Former Intel Chief to America: Convert 10 Million SUVs to Plug-Ins by 2012 »
on Solve Climate: Daily Climate News and OpinionCan Andy Grove light a fire under America’s sleepy electric car effort? At the first annual Plug-In 2008 Conference, the former Intel chief called on America to convert ten million of its clunkiest, most gas-hungry SUVs, pickups and minivans into plug-in electric hybrid vehicles .. read full article »
Green Planet Energy to invest $228 million in 14 biomass projects in Punjab »
on biopactGreen Planet Energy Private Limited announced today it will invest a sum of 9.6 billion rupees (US$228/€145 million) on setting up 14 biomass power projects in the Indian state of Punjab. The plan would add 147MW of renewable power to the state's portfolio. The investment is part of the .. read full article »
BlueFire Ethanol to build in California »
on BIOconversion BlogBlueFire Ethanol Fuels Inc. received a conditional use permit from the County of Los Angeles, Department of Regional Planning, for the operation of a new biorefinery it will build on a 10 acre lot near a Lancaster, CA landfill. For anyone aware of the slow rate of permitting new facilities for .. read full article »
Climate Change and Communities of Color »
on Hill HeatSpeakers Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (D-NY) Congressman Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) Congresswoman Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI), Chair, Congressional Black Caucus [tentative] Congressman Edward Markey (D-MA), Chair, Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming Congresswoman Hilda .. read full article »
Ice Breaker: Will There Be an Arctic Oil Gusher? »
on WSJ.com: Environmental Capital - WSJ.comPlenty of politicians are chuffed by the potential in Alaska and off U.S. coasts to boost oil production. Should they be looking even further north—to the Arctic Circle itself? Break it up (AP) The long-awaited study by the U.S. Geological Survey, released yesterday, says there’s probably .. read full article »
"Is that a banana in your pocket...?" Yes - my new journal! »
on Cleantech BlogMy favorite green product of the week:Organic Tree Free Banana Paper Journal What is it? Using agro-industrial waste (tree scraps, left over fruits like bananas, lemons, and mangoes) and post-consumer paper fiber, the ingenious folks at Costa Rica Natural Paper create beautiful .. read full article »
Study: biogas from manure could generate energy for millions in the U.S. »
on biopactConverting livestock manure into a domestic renewable fuel source could generate enough electricity to meet up to three per cent of North America's entire consumption needs and lead to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs), according to a paper published today by researchers .. read full article »
Current policy related to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve »
on Hill HeatWitnesses Kathy Fredriksen, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Policy and International Affairs, U.S. Department of Energy Didier Houssin, Director of the Office of Oil Markets and Emergency Preparedness, International Energy Agency Dr. David Victor, Director of the Program .. read full article »
Carbon Sequestration: Risks, Opportunities, and Protection of Drinking Water »
on Hill HeatE&E News: A new U.S. EPA proposal that would govern the underground injection of carbon dioxide by power plants and other industrial pollution sources will be the subject of a House Environment and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee hearing Thursday. EPA’s proposed rule is aimed at protecting .. read full article »
Green Ink: Congressional Catfights »
on WSJ.com: Environmental Capital - WSJ.comCrude rebounded from a seven-week low on Israeli saber-rattling, Bloomberg reports, but high prices and falling demand may signal a permanent shift in the market. Meanwhile, there’s more supply—at the north pole. A U.S. government report says 20% of the world’s reserves are in the Arctic, .. read full article »
Putting Some Concrete Boots On Global Warming »
on Peak EnergyTyler Hamilton has an article at Technology Review on a company that claims to have a new process that stores carbon dioxide in precast concrete - A Concrete Fix to Global Warming.A Canadian company says that it has developed a way for makers of precast concrete products to take all the .. read full article »
Taking Google Maps For A Walk »
on Peak EnergyGoogle Maps has introduced a new feature that will enable you to plot walking routes as well as driving and public transport trip plans - Pound The Pavement. This will no doubt come in handy for people whose iPhone data traffic bills have rendered them unable to afford petrol any more - in fact .. read full article »
Shale oil vs Renewables - The Race Is On »
on Peak EnergyDave Roberts at Grist is having a 1980's flashback as he ponders attempts to revive the great shale oil dream in the US - Shale Mary (see here and here for a few of my long winded explorations of the shale oil question). Also at Grist - Shale We Dance ?.The Bush administration's latest push to .. read full article »
Localising Chinese Wind Turbine Manufacturing »
on Peak EnergyRenewable Energy World has an interesting article on the slow and steady process of creation an indigenous Chinese wind power industry - China's Wind Power Industry: Localizing Equipment Manufacturing. When 2007 ended, China's installed base of wind power totaled just over 6 gigawatts (GW), .. read full article »
DuPont in cellulose ethanol trial in Tennessee »
on The Big Biofuels BlogDuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol LLC (DDCE) and the University of Tennessee (UT) Research Foundation, through its Genera Energy LLC, have announced a partnership to construct an innovative pilot-scale biorefinery and state-of-the-art research and development facility for cellulosic ethanol in .. read full article »
Bella Energy's building integrated solar roofing tiles of 7kW system will offset over 85% of Boulder family's annual electricity use »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comBoulder, CO 2008 - Bella Energy, a solar energy company that designs and installs renewable energy systems in Colorado and the Rocky Mountain region, has installed unique solar roofing tiles on a Boulder family home. The big 7kW solar roofing tile system is a local example of the many building- .. read full article »
First of its Kind: Hybrid SolarWall PV/T System in Olympic Village »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comThe Beijing Olympic Village is now home to cutting-edge solar technology, one of the world's first SolarWall photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) hybrid systems. read full article »
Town of Kent Goes Green »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comSolar PV Builds Momentum Across Europe »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comAfter years of being labeled a German phenomenon, the solar photovoltaic (PV) sector is building momentum across Europe, particularly in Spain. Catalyzed by newly adopted feed-in tariffs, PV development activity in Europe is booming and project size is scaling - causing shifts in competitive .. read full article »
First Solar to Build 10 MW Solar PV Power Plant for Sempra Generation »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comWestLB Closes USD 205 Million Senior Secured Facilities for BioEnergie International, LLC »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comWestLB announced today that it closed a USD 205 million senior secured facility for BioEnergy International, LLC (BioEnergy) for the construction of a 100 million gallon per year state-of-the-art corn-based dry mill ethanol plant located in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania (the Project). read full article »
Texas PUC Approves Wind Transmission Plan »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comThe Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) has selected to pursue a transmission scenario that will eventually transmit a total of 18,456 megawatts (MW) of wind power from West Texas and the Panhandle region to metropolitan areas of the state. read full article »
London Array Now A 50/50 Joint Venture »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comE.ON and Dong Energy are to become 50/50 partners in world's largest offshore wind farm, the 1-gigawatt (GW) London Array project after they agreed to buyout the stake previously owned by Shell, for an undisclosed sum. The move follows Shell's announcement that it is withdrawing from the project .. read full article »
PSE&G's Solar Loan Program Now Available to Residential Customers »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comNew Jersey's Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) announced that it will begin offering its solar loan program to residential customers. The company officially launched the residential program after making a compliance filing with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. The program, .. read full article »
Europe's Largest Onshore Wind Farm Moves Forward »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comScottish and Southern Energy plc (SSE) has been granted consent to develop a 456 MW wind farm in southern Scotland. read full article »
EDF to Develop Tidal Power »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comElectricite de France (EDF) announced that it plans to build a pilot tidal turbine system off the coast of Brittany in Northwest France. By 2011, between three and six turbines with a total capacity of between 4 and 6 megawatts (MW), will be installed. The turbines will be linked to the grid off .. read full article »
Next Generation Dye Sensitive & Organic PV, Part 1 »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comRegistering as just a 'blip' on the renewable energy and solar power radar screens only a few years ago, organic and hybrid dye-sensitized thin-film photovoltaic (PV) cells are attracting growing interest and investment. read full article »
Heat is Power. Let's Stop Throwing it Away! »
on Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.comHigh gasoline prices have forced us to make painful adjustments, which may, unfortunately, be just the beginning. The world's dramatically growing energy demands are affecting all energy prices. Coal, Uranium and natural gas prices have all risen dramatically in the past few years and will .. read full article »