tagged w/ We Need Alternate Energies Now
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I cannot believe President Obama would not condemn the Alberta tar sands and continues to talk about carbon sequestration. Perhaps he should go visit there instead of Parliament.I cannot believe President Obama would not condemn the Alberta tar sands and continues... more
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As a citizen of America but also as a citizen of the world and someone who loves this planet I am so grateful that we have Mr. Gore as such a staunch and dedicated ally for this planet to speak out with vision and reason on a crisis that needs our undivided attention this year.
The unprecedented rapidity of climate change is not waiting for politicians to work on their clock. Mother Earth is speaking to us and telling us that we must look for new and better ways to sustain ourselves or the old ways will forever change our lives in ways that we will not be able to sustain our ability to live here. The warning signs are now stark and undeniable. The solutions are within reach and already upon us. What we lack now is the will and investment to implement them and the mechanisms to put them in place.
In laying out his plan for the future Mr. Gore paints a picture of opportunity and hope. While recognizing the very real dangers we face if we continue the status quo he also outlines a scenario that helps us in securing more time to avoid the tipping points scientists are warning us are coming upon us. A report just recently released states that even if we stopped all carbon emissions today the effects of the last 100 plus years would linger for at least 1000 years as we have for sure put this into motion by our former procrastination, apathy, denial, and political partisanship. And while I am hoping that "clean coal" is not part of this stimulus plan, I am in full agreement with a national grid, with investment in renewable (truly renewable) energy sources, and the creation of jobs that we need desperately in this country to jump start our economy.
The slides Mr. Gore showed at this hearing lay out in no uncertain terms that we must now move from a carbon based economy to a renewable economy. It is now the only way to preserve not only our ability to sustain our species but to preserve our very economic and democratic systems of government.
Full video of the hearing can be found here:
http://www.senate.gov/fplayers/CommPlayer/commFlashPlayer.cfm?fn=foreign012809&st=435?As a citizen of America but also as a citizen of the world and someone who loves this... more
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This "ruling" is being shoved through before Bush leaves, and now it is unsure with the Obama administration cheerleading for "clean coal" if this will even be reversed.
So, this question then goes out to the Current community:
Just what are you prepared to do this coming year to finally stand up for this planet and your future?
This ruling is a TRAVESTY and it should incense anyone with a conscience. It shows a direct disdain for the health of the people and the well being of this planet. So what says the Current community about this?
I tell you what:
How about we just continue with the celebrity news distractions and other fluff bs and allow them to build their toxic Earth killing monstrosities any damn place they want. And then we can continue to also cover this world in garbage and toxic waste until we are knee high in it. We can then continue to pollute our water until it is all black and thick with the beautiful bitumen and coal that gives us our electricity to run our distractionary gadgets that keep us happy, because it is CLEAN afterall and we really don't need food and water to live. We can then continue to run our SUVS and live excessively, eating tons of plastic fast food grown with genetically modified food crap as we get fatter and fatter and sicker and sicker, and watching hours of brain numbing tv while teaching our children that to actually get up off their asses to FIGHT for what is right is just not worth the time because that celebrity and fluff bs news is so much more important. Sound good to you? I would hope not.
Drowning in toxic waste, climate change pollution that wrecks the climate balance of this planet, and knee deep in garbage while killing ourselves and other species in the process for a false choice while going merrily to our demise because we actually think all of the "stuff" we have makes it all better? I have never seen such a species as we humans, and I hope to never see one again. We as a species truly then have become a caricature of ourselves if the above is actually to continue to be our fate.
So will you continue as usual, or will you fight?This "ruling" is being shoved through before Bush leaves, and now it is unsure with... more
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The Arctic is the climate regulator for the rest of the world. If the ice goes, so goes our climate balance. We are precariously close to a tipping point in the Arctic now with some scientists stating that we have already reached it. So what do we do now? Do we continue to sit and wait for politicians to take the next step? Can politicians actually take the pervasive and urgent steps necessary to meet this crisis as it must be met? Those steps do not include 80% reductions in greenhouse gases in another 42 years.
In forty two years there will be no Bangladesh and many outlying islands and nations with many people will be gone. Florida may well at that point be experiencing sea level rise as well which drowns their coastline, as well as the Northeast United States if current behavior persists or we do not meet this challenge as it must be met now. We need a bold plan to stop GHG emissions now as the Arctic melting is also releasing methane which is 25 times stronger than CO2 in our atmopshere.
There is one truth to all of this regardless of what you believe or how you believe it is occuring.The future of the sustainability of this planet as we now know it is as stake, and as such so is our continued ability to live here. And neither the melting in the Arctic nor the consequences of it distinquish between political party, sex, race, financial disposition, sexual orientation, religion, or whether you even believe in religion. It effects us all. Our planet is speaking to us. It is time for us to answer.The Arctic is the climate regulator for the rest of the world. If the ice goes, so... more
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Next year is the year. Next year we must make our voices loud, strong, and resolute. We must say to the governments of this world especially our own that we will no longer tolerate the snails pace at which action to mitigate and adapt to climate change is happening. We can no longer afford to pump 70 million plus tons of climate change pollution into our atmosphere daily. We can no longer afford to deforest thousands of acres a year of rainforest to feed a rapacious consumptive lifestyle that threatens our childrens' future. We can no longer afford to continue to waste and pollute our most precious resource, water, and expect that there will be enough to sustain ours and other species. We can no longer afford to blow up and destroy the pristine mountains of this country that give us a spiritual and historical significance that could now provide us with natural wind power instead of being reduced to ash and rubble.
We are reaching critical mass with the climate and water crisis (which is being exacerbated by the climate crisis) and coal is one of the chief causes of the excerbation of the climate change, toxic pollution, and water waste that is now affecting all corners of our world from the immoral mountaintop removal to its burning which will NEVER BE CLEAN. Two trillion tons of ice do not melt in the Arctic in the small space of time it has without the intervention of human behavior!
If you then have a chance to attend this rally in DC next March, please do. I am seriously considering doing this and being a part of the peaceful coal plant protest. This is now the only way to let our government know how important it is that we preserve our species and our planet. Nothing else of substance for society has been accomplished without a vocal grassroots movement. This is the essence of Democracy. The success of the Civil Rights and Women's Suffrage movements hinged on the action taken by people like you and me who were willing to cast aside doubt and fear and stand up for what was moral and right. This is our time again, and this time the prize is the most important one of all. Our Earth!Next year is the year. Next year we must make our voices loud, strong, and resolute.... more
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It is inevitable. Clean energy is coming more into demand not only because of the effects of climate change, but because of the economy and because clean energy will keep us from the Middle East sand. A change is coming because people are tired of the old ways that produce the same results with pollution, disease, war, and economic upheaval.
Reports state that because of the financial downturn climate change is not important? Well, I think they are wrong. I think the financial downturn will make more people see that to move towards clean alternate energy sources will improve our economy by providing more jobs as we move towards a sustainable future. It really is a no-brainer.
To have 100% renewable energy in a decade is a definite goal that can be accomplished. I believe it will be through a mass grassroots movement pushing political will that has already begun. I believe it will do much to bring America back into the world and bring the world back from the brink of catastrophic climate change because it is simply a moral imperative and failure is not an option.
Our planet is already nearing a 2.5 degree increase. Three degrees or above will see this world drastically changed and our relationship to it much harsher and more dangerous than we ever imagined. Now is not the time to delay and use a financial downturn as an excuse to push climate change onto the backburner. It is time to bail out our Earth!
It is the right time to embrace a clean energy future to infuse our economy and to come full circle to our moral purpose on this planet and to bring health to our people. You want a healthcare plan that works? This is part of it too. It will be the greatest gift we could give our children. It is something I look forward to with great anticipation because it has been a long time coming.It is inevitable. Clean energy is coming more into demand not only because of the... more
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They say music is the universal language. If so, perhaps music is the one way to get across the urgency of what this planet and the species that inhabit it face if we do not pull together to take urgent action on climate change and pollution now.
Just a side comment: i really wish Current would work out the kinks here that keep pictures from showing on posts.They say music is the universal language. If so, perhaps music is the one way to get... more
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This is the growth we need to see across America. Solar energy will become more competitive, cheaper, and in demand as more and more people see the futitlity of the toxic dirty energies that have done nothing but bring us war, disease, pollution, and climate change. There is so much innovation today in the solar field and the more investment we see in it the sooner it will be competitive and perhaps even pass up other energy sources. I would gladly pay a bit more for my electricity to know the benefits of a more sustainable world for my child and his children.
Also for California this is the right energy source as it is not water intensive. With the drought of the Southwest predicted to become worse, any energy source such as nuclear or coal that is water intensive and wasteful is just not feasible. Way to go, California. So should go the nation.
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From the article:
Solar energy is surging in popularity across California, where Sonoma County is in the vanguard as homeowners and businesses increasingly tap the sun for power.
Spurred by state and federal rebates and concern over global warming, installations of solar energy systems are growing 30 to 40 percent annually across the state, according to a new study.
The Bay Area accounts for a third of all growth over the past decade. Much of that occurred in Sonoma County, which ranks second across the 10-county region in solar power megawatts added during the period, reported the Northern California Solar Energy Association, an East Bay nonprofit educational group.
The people in Sonoma County are aware of the advantages of solar energy and are very willing to bear the expense, said Marvin Hamon, the group-s vice president.
Solar energy-s growth is notable because the cost for installing systems has not declined despite rising demand in parts of the United States and overseas, led by Germany and Spain, industry officials said.
System costs haven-t had time to go down yet. That-s going to change and it-s going to change soon, said Gary Gerber, president of the California Solar Industries Association.
The solar industry, from manufacturers to system installers, is growing as companies respond to signals that the latest wave of demand might have lasting power.
More states and nations offer financial incentives to convert to solar and lessen dependence on energy generated by fossil fuel power plants.
The typical solar system costs $35,000 in the Bay Area, but homeowners can use state rebates and federal tax credits to cut about $15,000 from the price tag. Buyers can recoup their costs in 10 to 12 years based on lower electricity bills, Hamon said.
California has provided financial incentives for property owners to convert to solar and wind power going back to 1998.
The state gets less than 1 percent of its power from solar today. But that would grow to 5 to 6 percent if the state meets its goal of adding 3,000 megawatts of solar energy -- enough power for 2.25 million homes -- under a 10-year initiative launched last year.
Solar power generation has more than doubled in California over the past decade.
It really is a nice growth curve, Hamon said.
Sonoma County has been a leader in the Bay Area-s growth, ranking among counties with far larger populations.
The county has 14.6 megawatts of solar generation, ranking second to Alameda County-s 18.2 megawatts, with Santa Clara County third at 12.9 megawatts, according to the study.
Based on the number of solar systems installed, Sonoma County was third in the Bay Area, with 1,611 units, trailing Santa Clara with 2,462 and Alameda with 1,699.
Nearly 30 percent of the Bay Area-s solar power went in during 2007, reflecting the industry-s surging growth, according to the study.This is the growth we need to see across America. Solar energy will become more... more
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T. Boone Pickens has a plan alright... a plan to keep putting money in his pocket. He foresaw the price of oil and the dynamics of peak oil so he went to the next best thing to fill his pockets... natural gas. Only, natural gas needs a lot of freshwater to complete the extraction process (and though much of that water can be recovered, it then includes gas and chemicals) and is still more expensive than electric cars. Especially when you take into account his plan to also buy up water rights in the Ogallala aquifer (during a drought) which is the largest aquifer in America. In my view, besides moving away from the fossil fuels that have toxified our planet and use great quantities of a resource becoming scarcer (freshwater) we need to move away from the same old money makers and their PR schemes to keep us beholding to those fossil fuels to distract us from the cleaner cheaper energies we should now have.T. Boone Pickens has a plan alright... a plan to keep putting money in his pocket. He... more
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The Union of Concerned Scientists has released a report today outlining the considerable risks associated with so-called "clean coal" and carbon capture and storage technology (pdf.)
Clean coal has been a persistent theme throughout the US election, with presidential candidates on both sides of the political ledger touting the message that coal is somehow clean. As coal industry commentator and author Jeff Goodell puts it best:
"Clean coal" is not an actual invention, a physical thing – it is an advertising slogan. Like "fat-free donuts" or "interest-free loans."
In other words, coal remains more in the realm of illusion than reality and the UCS report highlights the major outstanding questions around the holy grail of the coal industry - carbon capture and storage technology (CCS).
The report found that carbon-capture-and-storage technology, while promising, is saddled with many unanswered questions about scale, safety and cost:
SCALE: For the technology to make a meaningful contribution to reducing global warming pollution, it would require an enormous processing and transportation infrastructure that could handle a volume of liquefied carbon dioxide rivaling that of the oil consumed in the United States today. Put another way, the Department of Energy estimates that the annual storage space needed for a typical 600-megawatt plant's emissions would be approximately four times the volume of the Empire State Building.
SAFETY: Demonstration projects will have to determine if carbon dioxide can be stored indefinitely and in what type of underground geologic formations. Slow carbon leaks could undermine the technology's effectiveness as a global warming solution and contaminate groundwater. Fast leaks from a storage site or a pipeline could threaten local residents.
COST: Current coal plant designs cannot cost-effectively capture carbon dioxide. Studies estimate that adding the technology to a conventional coal plant would dramatically increase cost and reduce energy output. Although there are advanced coal plant designs that are better suited for carbon capture, it still would be extremely expensive to add the technology, particularly as a retrofit.
The Union of Concerned Scientists has released a report today outlining the... more
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Certianly not the only group to do someting like this but its a reall two-fer
T Boone Pickens wants to use natural gas to power cars.
Dary farmers ahd lots of stuff to get rid of and need to buy bedding.
So lets make methane (CH4) gas from cow poo! Besides there are regulations on how cow poo needs to be lagooned so it doesn't contaminate water etc.
If someone can make money at it so much the better http://www.farmpower.com/index.html
It seems like a way to abate the waste and make power or use the methane for other purposes (like even making ferterlizer).
One way to make it better .. using a methane reforming fuel cell instead of the methane powered generator - heat is still produced by the fuel cell.
Producing renewable energy from manure does not reduce food supply. While renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel currently divert carbohydrates and oils from the food chain, anaerobic digesters thrive on a wide range of organic wastes that have no food value
Unlike most other forms of agriculture, dairy farms can be self-sufficient in nutrients. The manure from one cow contains enough nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (the three numbers measured on fertilizer bags) to grow the crops that feed her. Most other crops depend on manufactured nutrients; the natural gas used to make fertilizer for just one acre of Midwestern corn could heat a house for a month.
Just like in Mad Max beyond thunderdome ... there is also a lot of Pig S#!T that could be used in the same process. So as long as there are feed lots that are used to farm meat there's going to be plenty available.
Do I think that this can supply all the energy needs ... Not a chance... can it be part of the solution definitly.
(some other links about this type of thing)
http://www.andgardigester.com/index.cfm?do=page&pageID=3773
Certianly not the only group to do someting like this but its a reall two-fer
T... more
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Energy giant Vattenfall has launched an emissions-free coal-fired test plant near Berlin using a technology touted as a huge potential breakthrough in the fight against global warming. But critics aren't convinced.
Swedish energy utility Vattenfall sees carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a revolutionary answer to global warming which is largely blamed on carbon dioxide released when fossil fuels burn.
"This technology will become more important than offshore wind farms," said Vattenfall boss Lars Josefsson.
"Our project at Schwarze Pumpe puts us at the forefront of this technology in the world," said Tuomo Hatakka, the chief executive of Vattenfall Europe, referring to the the 70-million euro plant in eastern Germany.
Vattenfall, one of Europe's largest energy companies, hopes the project will help provide energy security through plentiful coal supplies while avoiding the CO2 emissions that are blamed for global warming.
Critics aren't convinced
But environmentalists say the technology uses far more energy than existing power generation and warn that there are no secure long-term storage facilities for the gas.
German conservation group BUND on Monday denounced the project as simply a cover allowing Vattenfall to expand its network of conventional coal-fired power stations in Germany.
Some critics say the focus should be on expanding cheaper renewable energy rather than on polluting coal
Thorben Becker of BUND said it was still uncertain if CCS worked on a large scale. CCS power stations would obtain 10 per cent less power from the coal than conventional plants did, and it was not clear if there were enough suitable sites to dump the CO2.
"Instead of concentrating on far cheaper renewable energy, Vattenfall is locking itself in for decades to converting climate-damaging brown coal into electricity," he said.
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And reservations that are well warranted. Pumping carbon into the porous rock as a liquid does nothing to dissipate it and may well effect groundwater supplies. Not enough is really known of the effects of continual pumping of CO2 into the ground. And what of the mercury and other toxic gases that are produced by burning and generating coal? And what of how it is extracted? How can any company claim CCS is "emissions free" when it takes emissions to strip the land for the coal in the first place? Not even to mention the environmental devastation coal mining leaves behind.
Also, what happens when you run out of room or places to pump it? Are we now to carbonize every square inch of our land because we are too lazy to actually work to not emit it at all? Whether you spew it into the air or pump it into the ground you are not cutting emissions you are hiding them. This is simply a slight of hand way for coal companies to continue emitting the same CO2 emissions by looking as though they have gone green. It is a way for them to continue the status quo with a new package and the same old ways.
I actually thought Germany was more advanced than this. I thought they would be one of the countries actually leading the way on doing the only thing we really can do to be sure that emissions are cut... actually cut them. Hiding them is not cutting them, it is just one more way humans will find as a short cut to make it easier for themselves (or what they think is easier) rather than looking to the other options right under their noses that do not require so much energy and environmental destruction.
There is no such thing as "clean coal." Energy giant Vattenfall has launched an emissions-free coal-fired test plant near... more
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Want to know how much money your elected representative in Washington, D.C., received from the coal industry? A North Carolina environmental group is pledging to put that information right at your fingertips.
A new Web site tracks and lists the amount of donations that federal politicians receive from coal interests. Follow the Coal Money, at www.followthecoalmoney.org, is the latest salvo in what is turning out to be an increasingly heated battle over the future of coal in the nation's energy policy.
I'm not saying it is a big corporate conspiracy, but what (the money) is being spent for, it is being spent for a good reason, said Matt Wasson, director of programs for Appalachian Voices, which runs the site.
Coal is once again front and center as the nation's top leaders debate energy policy. Both presidential candidates have pledged to take actions to curb global warming, yet at the same time energy use is on the rise, thanks in part to new technology. For example, one Australian study found that a Playstation 3 uses five times the amount of energy as a five-foot high refrigerator.
Coal remains among the cheapest and most abundant energy-producing natural resource. Yet concerns over its environmental impacts have helped stop plans for new coal-burning power plants across the nation.
The coal industry is fighting back by ramping up its public relations efforts. Over the past year it has quadrupled its budget for its primary political campaign, called the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, according to news reports The campaign has run advertisements on TV touting the benefits of coal and maintains its own Web site at www.americaspower.org.
Follow the Coal Money is partly a response to that campaign. Its mission is touted on the front page: As Congress debates how to address two of coal's biggest problems mountaintop removal and global warming you can find out how polluters are influencing lawmakers with their dirty coal money.
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I believe it is simply a given that politicians are too devoid of true moral insight as to understand the amount of damage this form of energy continues to do to the planet and the health and safety of human beings. This is why I have little faith that any sort of comprehensive climate bill will pass in Congress regardless of who sits in the White House. In order for that to happen they would have to have a moral epiphany... or, see that the people have taken it upon themselves to bring the alternate energies we need to sustain ourselves and this planet to market. Solar and wind are booming now, but you won't hear that from the corrupt Congress that continues to collect the money of the coal and nuclear industries while touting how much they are for the environment... even as they work to kill tax incentives for those very alternate energy sources they claim we need.
The site Appalachian Voices put together now allows you to follow the members of Congress who talk out of both sides of their mouths to see how much they are taking from coal and to hold them accountable for it as they are accomplices in the continued erosion of our environment. Hopefully louder voices will be heard on the part of the people knowing they have the power to then tell these representatives that if they continue to side with the destruction of our planet in the form of pollution and it's contribution to climate change that we the people have the power to see to it that they do not serve us any longer. It has to begin with us, because it sure isn't going to begin with them.Want to know how much money your elected representative in Washington, D.C., received... more
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Climate change activists yesterday occupied the proposed site for Britain's first coal-fired power station in 30 years, claiming the development will cause huge damage to the environment if it goes ahead.
More than 150 protesters descended on the site near the village of Kingsnorth in Kent ahead of next week's Camp for Climate Action, which is expected to attract thousands of environmentalists.
Activist Connor O'Brien said: "The purpose of the climate change camp is to target those businesses and companies who are involved in bringing about destructive climate change. This is the first of six coal-fired power stations being planned in the UK and if they go ahead the impact on the environment will be catastrophic."
The protest started on Sunday when environmentalists gathered at Heathrow airport - the scene of last year's camp - before travelling across London in a "green caravan", stopping off each night to highlight their objections to the proposed power station. The caravan is expected to arrive at Kingsnorth on Sunday along with hundreds of other protesters.
O'Brien said: "We want to make the issue of coal-fired power stations so big and so toxic that they will be widely opposed by the public and it will be impossible for them to go ahead. What we need is properly sustainable solutions."
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Amen. As long as no one gets hurt in these protests, I back them 100%. It is time to fight big coal and its destruction of our environment and humans and other species. If this is the only way to get that noticed, I'm for it. Too bad people in the US on the whole are more distracted by tabloid news than actually getting up and doing something to save this planet and ourselves. I hope we see more of these.Climate change activists yesterday occupied the proposed site for Britain's first... more
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A momentous challenge awaits us as a species. Not unlike birthing this nation, discovering cures for diseases, and overcoming threats to the principles that guide humanity. This will be no small task, and it will be hard... but for me being hard is what makes it worth the journey to accomplish.
A carbon free energy policy in ten years with a national grid is not pie in the sky. Only to those without vision is it so. Only to those who put down ideas out of political spite is it so. Only to those who see it as a threat to their comfortable way of life is it so. Only to the same gatekeepers of the status quo is it so.
To those who do not see limits to what the spirit and imagination can accomplish... it is time.
Our Earth is crying out for help. We are making our own planet uninhabitable by our own actions. It is our moral duty to make amends for it, and by doing so we will not only save her but ourselves.
The future is here and it is us. We're all we've got, and if we do not heed the warnings now we do a great disservice to those coming after us and those here now.
Ten years is not a long time to secure a lifetime of sustainability.
If we can find money for wars, we can find money for peace.
The Arctic won't wait.
And neither can we.
http://www.wecansolveit.org
A momentous challenge awaits us as a species. Not unlike birthing this nation,... more
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Greg Murray has always loved his turbo-charged Subaru WRX. But carbon guilt got the better of him.
So now, not only has he stopped driving it, the electric convert's going into business selling battery-powered vehicles. "I've always loved gas cars. But it stopped being fun, because I knew what I was doing to the environment," says the Vancouverite. "You love it -- but there's so much evil attached."
As the demand for green cars rise, entrepreneurs throughout B.C. are seeing fresh opportunities to do business in an industry long dominated by major corporations.
While the big automakers rush to roll out affordable low-carbon cars by 2010, small startups are finding their own niche.
Jay Giraud is the founder of seven-month-old Envia Solarmotion Inc., which specializes in converting Ford vehicles to run on batteries. "Corporations are desperate to reduce fuel costs," said Giraud.
Murray, meanwhile, is now the marketing director of E-SUV Inc., the Canadian dealer for E-Ride Industries, a Minnesota company that manufactures low-speed electric utility vehicles.
The Vancouver dealership, just six months old, has five confirmed orders, said Murray.
But the business of selling low-speed electric cars is still a gamble in Canada, with federal and provincial regulations limiting wider use. To succeed, small companies both here and abroad are banking on a new breed of driver willing to go the distance to save on gas -- and the environment.
Greg Murray has always loved his turbo-charged Subaru WRX. But carbon guilt got the... more
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Who is throttling use of solar energy.
We have to find out as there are many vested interests who Are out to throttle solar power usage for their petty gains. But in the end they also know they will loose.
Use solar. If even if 100 persons a day convery and adapt to solar we can bring down carbon emmission and crude price to $60 a Barrel in one year.
Who is throttling use of solar energy.
We have to find out as there are many vested... more
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Former Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore will outline his bold vision for the future of America’s energy needs at D.A.R. Constitution Hall this Thursday, July 17. The speech will be hosted by the “We” Campaign, a fast-growing organization focused on solutions to the climate crisis.
The speech will offer a new way of thinking about our energy production and consumption and a new sense of what is possible when we choose to work together. It will propose a means of tapping America’s innovative skills to build a more secure energy future.
Who: Former Vice President Al Gore
What: A discussion on the future of America’s energy needs
Where: D.A.R. Constitution Hall – 1776 D St., NW, Washington, DC
When: Thursday, July 17 at 12:00 p.m. EDT:
Media should plan to arrive at least an hour before the speech begins.
Additional notes for broadcast media:
Pre-set: 10 a.m.-12 p.m. EDT
Final access: 12 Noon EDT
Press entrance: D Street entrance (between 17th St. and 18th St.)
Throw: 60 feet
Satellite truck parking: Directed on site
Cable run: 350 feet
Power, mult box to be provided on riser
About the “We” Campaign:
The “We” Campaign is a commercial-scale organizing and mobilizing effort using paid advertising, grassroots partnerships and online activation to build strong support for solutions to the climate crisis. The scale of the campaign is unprecedented: it is on track to be the largest public policy advocacy campaign ever and expects to reach 10 million members within three years. “We” is the work of the Alliance for Climate Protection, a nonprofit group founded by Al Gore, who currently serves as the chairman of the bipartisan board of directors. For more information, please visit
http://www.wecansolveit.org.Former Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore will outline his bold... more
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Environmental activists and others are opening a new frontier in their fight against coal-fired power plants by questioning the use of tax-exempt bonds to help fund such projects.
New York City Comptroller William Thompson earlier this month called on the U.S. Treasury Department to investigate tax-free bond use in financing the plants. He cited the potential for expensive regulatory changes aimed at curbing greenhouse gases, the escalating cost of coal and subsequent risks to investors and taxpayers.
The Sierra Club also has been warning about the use of tax-exempt financing for coal plants owned by public or private entities, according to Becki Clayborn, a regional representative for the group.
"To us, it's a huge risk on taxpayers that doesn't need to be there," she said.
Last fall, the Sierra Club sent letters to municipal members of American Municipal Power-Ohio about financial risks attached to the nonprofit power wholesaler's involvement in the Prairie State coal-fired plant Peabody Energy Corp is building in southern Illinois.
"This massive power plant, which has not yet been built, would not only be a large source of water pollution, air pollution and global warming emissions, but will likely put your municipality at financial risk," the letter said. It pointed to escalating cost estimates for the project and legislation in the U.S. Congress that if passed, could raise the cost of power produced by the plant.
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Gee, why don't all those squawking about a carbon tax that would be revenue neutral complain about higher utility bills because of stunts like this? You are already being taxed by big coal.
Environmental activists and others are opening a new frontier in their fight against... more
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Thursday's report from the U.S. Climate Change Science Program is a synthesis of the latest research on extreme weather in the U.S. and comes after nearly six months that saw a record number of tornadoes, unusual winter warmth and record-setting precipitation in many regions.
It comes as the most extreme weather event so far this year, the Midwestern floods, continues to unfold.
The report said there is strong evidence the increasing frequency of extreme rain, heat, drought and tropical storms is caused by global climate change.
Most scientists believe that human activity is causing or accelerating global warming.
"Changes in some weather and climate extremes are attributable to human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases," the study authors concluded.
The report also concluded that:
• Human-caused warming likely has caused much of the increase in average and extreme temperatures observed in the U.S. over the past 50 years.
• Heavy precipitation events have increased over the past 50 years. That's consistent with increases in atmospheric water vapor associated with human-caused increases in greenhouse gases.
• Droughts are becoming more severe in some regions, though there are no clear national trends.
• The power and frequency of Atlantic hurricanes have increased substantially in recent decades, likely driven by human-caused increases in sea-surface temperatures.
However, the number of hurricanes making landfall does not appear to have increased over the past century.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0620WeatherSplit0620.html
For some reason Current is stating this url could not be found. So I'm posting it here.
Edit: The Washington Post printed the same story so I posted that link in the original space.Thursday's report from the U.S. Climate Change Science Program is a synthesis of the... more
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