Visual of the US energy grid, and the renewables vs habitat debate
A recent well done interactive graphic by NPR shows the sources of power and areas of transmission lines within the US energy grid at present, and also the renewables proposed for the future.
With a push for California to generate one-third of its energy from renewable sources (solar, wind, geothermal) by 2020, applications for new solar facilities are pouring in.
Conservation groups in the state are also trying to make sure that habitat protection is a consideration before permits to build are issued. This waiting process is proving controversial, as delays in siting renewables by conservations can seem hypocritical and costly.
Most conservationists aren’t anti-desert renewables (wind and solar), though. Many [...]
Green Gadgets for your home
This is a guest post by Danielle Brycz from Verde Lifestyles, an online eco-friendly home décor store.
When I think of green technology for the home, my mind jumps to energy saving devices and appliances. But there’s so much more!
Most of the products we use have eco-friendly alternatives. Take your daily routine. You wake up, hit your alarm clock, turn on your bedside lamp. Then you shower with a low-flow showerhead, blow-dry your hair, eat breakfast, and are out the door with your backpack or briefcase.
Besides conserving water and turning off your lights when not using them, did you consider greener options the last time you made a purchase? It’s just [...]
Winds of change
South Carolina and Clemson University are now to be a force of change in wind energy production. See the following article for more details about the Department of Energy’s grant to develop new wind technologies and jobs.
http://www.independentmail.com/news/2009/nov/23/big-grant-puts-clemson-wind-turbine-business/
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It’s a green Halloween.
This is my favorite time of year: cool mornings and leaves turning warm shades of ochre, red and rust. It is also time for my favorite holiday, when all the spooky and creepy things are afoot. This year I vowed to have an eco-friendly Halloween party. I looked into what was on the market for eco-friendly items and found there is not many option at the local mega mart. Being the creative type, I decided to recycle some items I have to create a sustainable Halloween.
One of my family’s favorite Halloween traditions is carving pumpkins. There are not many options for lighting a masterpiece jack-o-lantern other than tea-light candles or [...]
Volvo to utilize a cleaner green fuel
Volvo announced plans to test Dimethyl ether (DME), a cleaner burning fuel sourced from renewable materials, in some of their trucks.
DME isn’t new, but its impact on the environment is impressive. This colorless, clean-burning gas has the potential to be 95 percent carbon neutral, with zero particulate emissions According to Wikipedia, as a fuel source DME shows promise for diesel, standard gasoline and gas turbine engines.
The DME for the Volvo project will be an energy-rich, highly viscous by-product of the paper pulp industry. Volvo plans to have selected customers test 14 of their trucks at four locations in different parts of Sweden between 2010 and 2012 at four Preem oil company stations.
To learn more, check out the video.
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Wind Pipe prototype.
I read an article on Green Energy News about a new wind energy prototype. It looks like one if the old storm warning horns and is turbine free. Read more about the “Windpipe” here. -http://www.green-energy-news.com/arch/nrgs2009/20090064.html
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EPA ranks San Jose-Santa Clara in top 20 for green power
The U.S. EPA has recognized San Jose-Santa Clara among the top 20 partners across the country in their Green Power Partnership for generating the most green electricity onsite.
The San Jose-Santa Clara Pollution Control Plant – one of 8 California organizations to be recognized by the EPA - generates 56 percent green power from biogas.
Green power - from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, biogas, and low-impact hydropower - generates less pollution than conventional power and produces no net increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The EPA’s Green Power Partnership works with over 1,100 partner organizations - Fortune 500 companies, local, state and federal governments, and a growing number of colleges and universities – to voluntarily purchase green power to reduce the environmental impacts of conventional [...]
New Bill would create $250 million in Waste to Energy Grants
One of my earliest posts focused on innovative ways of creating energy.
Waste-to-Energy is one of the most energy efficient ways to do this. WTE plants convert municipal trash into steam and electricity, providing one of the most renewable environmentally beneficial energy options in the world, generating clean, renewable energy for local communities.
Now U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is proposing new legislation to create a $250 million grant program that would provide up to $5 million to individual projects.
The “Rubbish to Renewables Act of 2009” would have this new program be overseen by the US Department of Energy.
Speaking at an existing landfill gas project at the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio on May 28, Brown said “One man´s trash can be [...]
Innovation and Creative Thinking Part 2
Universities are exploring different energy solutions. Common algae is being synthesized to create oil for biofuel. According to the National Algae Association, algae’s “a promising source of renewable oil that can be used for a variety of fuels (biofuel, hydrogen, jet fuel, bio gasoline).”
According to Pure Energy Systems’ Wiki, neutral algae biofuel is non-toxic, biodegrades quickly” and is capable of producing 30 times more oil per acre than crops used for biofuels! Though still too expensive for commercial viability, in 2006 megacorporation Chevron began a five-year biofuel research alliance with U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory to explore algae’s use. Called the “crop of the future”, UC Berkeley is working with International Energy [...]