-
-
related tags:
- Solar Power
- Solar
- Solar Panels
- Solar Panel
- Renewable Energy
- solar cells
- Sun
- photovoltaic
- Wind Energy
- Photovoltaics
- Sustainable Solutions
- Bill Brown
- grid parity
- Energy
- Sustainable Investment
- Al Gore's 10-Year Challenge
- One Earth
- We Can Solve It
- Green
- racks
- concentrated solar power
- Current Environmental News
- Energy Crisis
- Solar Tower
- Environment
- Green Energy
- Alternative Energy
- Sustainable Energy
- Touchart
- Forum of Tools to Change the World
- Solar System
- Vision
- Energy Policy
- Innovations
- Clean Energy
- Earth and Science
- Bureau of Land Management
- Photosynthesis
- Current Earth Day
- cooling
- Roofing
- Sustainability
- Current Radio News
- Off grid
- Climate Change
- Current Earth Day 2008
- Wave Energy
- Wind Power
- Innovation
- Green Tech
tagged w/ Solar Energy
-
Solar panels from grass clippings-biophotovoltaics
It’s chore day. You’ve raked the leaves, taken out the recycling, and emptied out the old junk in your garage. But wait — don’t toss it all out! You have all the ingredients for your very own homemade solar system.
If new advances in “biophotovoltaics” research are any indication, you may someday be able to create your own solar “goo” from plant matter and apply it to metal or glass.
A group of researchers has found a way to break down plant matter, isolate photosynthetic molecules, and then spread those molecules on a metal or glass substrate. So theoretically, you could take a bag full of leaves and grass, pour in a mixture of chemicals to break them down, and then finish your chores by painting the liquid on your windows to produce electricity. Not bad for a day’s work.
Researchers have been working on biophotovoltaics for many years, only to be hindered by low efficiencies, rapid degradation, and difficulties in spreading the photovoltaic “goo” onto a substrate. But nine scientists have just published research on new advances that boost performance and may allow for inexpensive substrates like recycled glass and metal to be used:
To improve photovoltaic performance we increased the light absorption cross-section without changing the footprint by departing from the traditional flat electrode geometry in favor of mesoscopic, high-surface area semiconducting electrodes (TiO2 nanocrystals and ZnO nanowires). Finally, we showed how high affinity peptide motifs10 bioengineered to promote selective adsorption to specific substrates can enhance photovoltaic performance. These materials, geometries and design resulted in simple, robust biophotovoltaic devices of unprecedented performance.
In short, the researchers have created a method to stabilize the photosynthetic molecules. And by coating a substrate with titanium dioxide and zinc oxide nanowires, they can now turn any sort of glass or metal material into a working solar cell with efficiencies better than ever before.
It’s a fascinating discovery. But don’t get too excited yet. Efficiencies are still extraordinarily low — only at .01%. They’d need to be about 10 times that in order to power a light or charge a cell phone. So for the foreseeable future, don’t expect to be painting your house with a bag of grass clippings.
However, as research advances and performance continues to improve, MIT physicist Andreas Mershin says it could be perfect for remote applications in developing countries. In the video below, Mershin explains the significance of the findings:
More at the linkIt’s chore day. You’ve raked the leaves, taken out the recycling, and... more-
- JanforGore
- added this
- 6 days ago
- |
- 12 comments
-
-
A Look at Green Technology Predictions for 2012
By Mike Seifert, president, Ecotech Institute
Where will green technology take us in 2012? Ecotech Institute is keeping a close eye on that very big question. We are constantly monitoring cleantech industry growth and innovation, and looking for ways to align our environmental sustainability curriculum with employer and marketplace demands. Every day we read up on the latest research regarding solar power, wind energy, smart grid and other relevant industries. We want to make sure our students are up to speed when they graduate so their employers truly get the best, most knowledgeable employees.
In 2011, cleantech venture investment had an incredible year. As a result of financial backing, we saw an infusion of green start-up companies, new jobs and a growing belief in the future of cleantech industries. However, the challenges of this relatively new space also came to light as some companies met very public criticism.
As the president of Ecotech Institute, it’s my job to take a hard look at opportunities in cleantech now and into the future. Our career services team needs to accurately predict where Ecotech graduates will be able to make a living and make a difference in the world. Frankly, there is a lot of enthusiasm as we enter 2012 with a promising outlook about environmental sustainability’s growing role in the world.
This is a very exciting year for Ecotech because we will graduate our first group of students in June. As we continue to prepare them for the workforce this year, we are collectively interested in what industry leaders are predicting.
Here are some predictions of note:
1. According to a December 28, 2011 article by Michael Kanellos on www.greenbiz.com, “Renewables will start to win over the jobs argument.”
He states, “The 2012 Presidential election will be only about one thing: jobs. In the energy and sustainability context, the debate boils down to whether you think more jobs can be created through pipelines and offshore drilling or through erecting solar farms and retrofitting buildings.”
“But here is where renewables win: they don't take years….Many fossil projects, meanwhile, are bogged down in land use hearings….If renewables get results quicker, they become the better solution.”
My takeaway: Green jobs will continue to grow and companies need educated people to fill them.
2. The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) says this year is going to be a big year for wind power, both in the field and in policy. The association notes that unlike the volatile prices of fossil fuels, wind power has a fixed fuel cost of zero, making it a very appealing form of energy. However, Congress needs to act quickly to protect the future of wind energy in the U.S. If lawmakers do not extend the Production Tax Credit that is due to expire at the end of this year, taxes on wind will go up and jobs could go overseas.
My takeaway: Wind energy will continue to grow this year, however Congress needs to take action to make sure that growth continues in 2013 and beyond. Please contact your lawmakers to let them know the importance of extending the Production Tax Credit.
3. According to predictions from www.EnvironmentalLeader.com, solar innovation will serve as a perennial driver.
“Investment into good old solar innovation and projects is still strong, and has remained so for years, while other clean technologies have risen and fallen in and out of investment fashion.”
My takeaway: As money continues to be filtered into solar power innovation, we must keep a close eye on how these technologies will be built and maintained.
4. Jesse Berst with gigaom.com listed top predictions based on his takeaways from a webinar offered by renowned research firm IDC. He stated the following, “Smart buildings will become important to utilities. 25 states have energy efficiency standards or targets. Smart buildings can help meet such goals. The building energy analytics market will double between 2012 and 2015, jumping from $193 billion to $402 billion.”
My takeaway: The growth of smart buildings requires savvy energy efficiency experts.
5. In “10 solar trends to watch for in 2012,” Ucilia Wang, another contributor to gigaom.com, discusses solar energy’s impact on the grid. The article states that, “The increase in solar energy generation has nudged utilities and electric grid regulators to give more thought and investment to the impact of solar in their mission to deliver electricity reliably.”
“Since solar production can ebb and surge depending on the time of the day and the weather, new technologies and policies are cropping up to monitor solar energy production and minimize interruptions of power delivery.”
My takeaway: The marketplace needs educated professionals who understand the interplay between solar technology and the current energy grid system.
The green landscape will continue to shift and it is important to watch, learn and prepare future leaders. The excitement of clean technology innovation in 2012 and beyond ought to be celebrated by everyone who has a stake in making our world a better place to work, play and live.By Mike Seifert, president, Ecotech Institute Where will green technology take us... more-
- CTCSGPR
- added this
- 18 days ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
-
Solar energy: flower power
In matters of clever design, nature has often got there first
SOLAR-POWER stations take up a lot of room. They need either vast arrays of photovoltaic panels, which convert sunlight directly into electricity, or of mirrors, which direct it towards a boiler, in order to raise steam and drive a generator. The space these arrays occupy could often be used for other purposes.
Two researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have now devised a better and more compact way of laying out arrays of mirrors. Slightly to their chagrin, however, and somehow appropriately, they found when they had done the calculations that sunflowers had got there first.
Alexander Mitsos and Corey Noone started with the observation that existing concentrated solar-power plants, as those which drive boilers are known, usually have their mirrors arranged in a way that resembles the seating in a cinema. The mirrors are placed in concentric semicircles facing a tower, on top of which the boiler and the turbine sit. That arrangement, however, sometimes results in the mirrors shading each other as the sun’s position in the sky changes, even though the mirrors are usually attached to robotic arms that track the sun as it moves.
According to their report in Solar Energy, Dr Mitsos and Mr Noone found that they could do better. They divided each of the mirrors in a real power plant, PS10, in southern Spain into about 100 pieces. (Or, rather, they divided a computer representation of each mirror.) They then plugged each of those pieces into a computer model that calculated all of the energy losses by noting points where mirrors were not optimally oriented to the sun and places where they hindered one another by blocking incoming or reflected rays. It then rejigged them into a better arrangement.
Fermat’s conjecture
Previous efforts have been directed mainly at stopping the mirrors shading each other, which tends to mean spreading them out. Dr Mitsos and Mr Noone also wanted to save space. In trying to do so they stumbled on an unusual arrangement that had the desired effect. When they showed this layout to a third researcher, Manuel Torrilhon of Aachen University in Germany, he recognised the spiral patterns within it, and this prompted the trio to test a design specifically modelled on nature.
That design was a pattern known as a Fermat spiral, in which each element is set at a constant angle of 137° to the previous one. It is most familiar as the arrangement of the florets that make up a sunflower head. When the three researchers programmed their model to arrange PS10’s mirrors in front of the tower in a segment from such a spiral, they both improved the efficiency of the collection process and saved space. The improvement in efficiency was, admittedly, quite small (about half a percent), but the space saving was significant—almost 16%.
If solar power is to make up much of the world’s electricity output in future, as supporters of alternative energy hope it will, a lot of land will be needed for the power stations. Reducing that requirement by a sixth, as this discovery promises, would be a big gain. It would also show that if you look hard enough, there really is nothing new under the sun.
More at the linkIn matters of clever design, nature has often got there first SOLAR-POWER stations... more-
- JanforGore
- added this
- 18 days ago
- |
- 9 comments
-
-
Solar Power from the Moon
http://ieet.org/index.php/IEET/more/tucker20120121
A Japanese company is pitching an alternative energy plan that’s out of this world—and potentially the largest public infrastructure project in human history.http://ieet.org/index.php/IEET/more/tucker20120121 A Japanese company is pitching... more-
- googygood
- added this
- 22 days ago
- |
- 4 comments
-
-
One Third of World’s Energy Could Be Solar by 2060, Predicts Historically Conservative IEA
The International Energy Agency is notoriously conservative on projections for renewable energy. The agency has embraced the need for more clean electricity and fuels to address climate change and peak oil, but its outlook for the future is usually far more conservative than how reality plays out.
So when an official at the IEA says we could get up to one third of our global energy supply from solar photovoltaics, concentrating solar power, and solar hot water by 2060, that’s a fairly big piece of news. But even that projection may be conservative.
Speaking to Bloomberg News, the head of IEA’s renewable energy unit explained said he thought the target is feasible:
“The strength of solar is the incredible variety and flexibility of applications, from small scale to big scale,” Paolo Frankl, the agency’s head of renewable energy, said in a telephone interview yesterday.
Economic activity will shift toward the sunnier zones around the equator by 2050, making solar energy a viable power source for most of the global economy, the report said. Those regions will be home to almost 80 percent of the human race by the middle of the century, compared with about 70 percent today, and their energy needs will be higher as living standards in countries such as Brazil and India approach those of the U.S. and Europe.
The IEA is clearly responding to the fast-changing world of solar energy. It has released a new publication, Solar Energy Perspectives, that mirrors one of its flagship research products, Energy Technology Perspectives.
But in its recent World Energy Outlook, IEA barely gave solar much attention. The organization predicted fairly modest growth in the solar PV and CSP sector through 2035, with a projection that it would only make up 4.5% of electricity supply.
While solar only makes up a fraction of the global electricity supply today, the downward cost curve of technologies is pushing it toward a breaking point. By sometime in 2012, the installed cost of a crystalline-silicon solar PV system over 1 MW in the U.S. could dip to around $2.50 a watt. At around 2$ a watt we could cost-competitively meet around 30% of global electricity supply, says solar expert and Carbon War Room CEO Jigar Shah.
Shah believes solar can reach a 5% penetration level in the U.S. by 2020, with cost reductions coming mostly from innovations in hardware and installation, not dramatic improvements in the lab.
While the IEA is far less ambitious in its projections, the agency seems to agree that a “systems-based approach” to manufacturing and installation will be the key driver to reaching high penetration levels of different solar technologies. And rather than focus on specific subsidies for solar in the long-term, IEA says the most important incentive will be a price on carbon.
Solar is clearly proving itself without a price on carbon. With an effective pricing regime in place, a 30% penetration would almost certainly be low.
More at the linkThe International Energy Agency is notoriously conservative on projections for... more-
- JanforGore
- added this
- 2 months ago
- |
- 40 comments
-
-
World's Most Famous Street Goes Green for the Holidays
SmartPlanet...
.
World’s most famous street goes green for the holidays
By Bryan Pirolli | November 27, 2011, 11:00 PM PST
PARIS – The most famous avenue in the world lights up for the holidays with energy coming entirely from the sun. The Champs-Elysées, known for its luminous makeover during the holiday season, now features solar powered lights to reduce environmentally unfriendly electricity consumption to zero during December’s festivities.
This past Wednesday, alongside the mayor, French actress Audrey Tatou helped to inaugurate the holiday season by switching on the avenue’s decorative lights. The Champs-Elysées, Paris’s famed shopping street, has always been a place to see and be seen. Between 500,000 and 600,000 people walk along the avenue during the holiday season to experience the large Christmas market lining both sides of the street.
This year, the lights shining along the broad sidewalks of the historical promenade will come directly from the sun.
Semiconductor agency Soitec has routed electricity from 26 trackers in the Pyrenees mountains in France directly to the Champs-Elysées. The solar panels are prepared to furnish the 31,000 KWh used by the lights this year from November 23 through January 11. This is the first time that the holiday lights will be entirely solar powered.
André-Jacques Auberton-Hervé, Soitec’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said that Soitec is proud to be participating in the first ever “zero consumption” holiday lighting in Paris. “Our partnership fits perfectly with our commitment to sustainable development and our support for the French solar energy industry,” he said.
The city chose from among 27 projects for this year’s display. Companies ACT Lighting Design and ASP Blue Square have teamed up to redesign the decorations, adding rings around the 200 trees lining the avenue.
Eco-friendly LED lights are consuming 60% of the energy used in 2010 and a mere 7% of the energy consumed in 2006, showing greater strides towards greener practices. This year’s electricity is comparable to the energy used by eight families of four in a Parisian apartment. The decorations cost a total of one million euros, a fifth of which was paid for by the city and the rest by the Champs-Elysées partnerships.
Photo: Paris City Hall
.SmartPlanet... . World’s most famous street goes green for the holidays... more-
- EthicalVegan
- added this
- 3 months ago
- |
- 8 comments
-
-
Over 60 New York Companies Say They Can Help Bill O’Reilly Go Solar -- Will He Live Up to His Word?
Fox News pundit Bill O’Reilly likes to say he operates in a “no spin zone.” So when O’Reilly proclaimed recently that he wanted to install solar on his Long Island home, dozens of solar companies in New York took him at his word.
Speaking on his show to Alan Colmes last week, O’Reilly said he was ready to buy a solar system, but that he couldn’t find anyone in the area to do it: “There’s nowhere, no one,” he exclaimed.
Well, today, his predicament is solved. A group of 60 New York-based solar companies have signed an open letter to Mr. O’Reilly explaining that they’d be more than willing to help him make an investment in solar:
Dear Mr. O’Reilly,
We hear you are ready to go solar pending your ability to locate a solar provider. We represent some of the hundreds of solar companies currently operating in New York State. We would be happy to help you get started with your investment in solar so you can join the many New Yorkers who are already saving money on their monthly utility bills by generating their own power.
Signed,
Clean Power Finance
Community Energy
EcoOutfitters.net
Energy by Choice
ETM Solar Works
Innovated Energy Solutions
KPS Solar
Mercury Solar Systems
One Block Off the Grid
RH Innovation Inc
SolarCity
Sungevity
Sunrise Energy Concepts
SunRun
Suntech America
Trinity Solar
Alliance for Clean Energy New York (ACE NY) – representing 20 companies with solar operations in New York.
Long Island Solar Energy Industries Association (LIPA) – representing 25 solar electric contractors on Long Island.
Dave Llorens, CEO fast-growing solar company One Block Off the Grid, says he could draft a quote for O’Reilly in minutes:
“There are tons of solar installers that work on Long Island. We can show him the economics of solar (and they are strong there) by whipping up a quote for his house in 10 minutes. If Bill is serious about actually installing solar, we’d be delighted to help him understand the investment.”
So there you have it: Can we take Bill O’Reilly, the self-proclaimed master of “no spin,” at his word? With the cost of solar continuing to fall and dozens of companies to choose from, this is the perfect opportunity for him to invest in a system.
If you want to see O’Reilly back up his word, we suggest sending him this tweet:
Over 60 NY #solar companies can help Bill O’Reilly of the @oreillyfactor install a system. Will he live up to his word? http://bit.ly/tjdR1B
By Stephen Lacey | Nov 21, 2011
http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/21/373773/new-york-solar-companies-bill-oreilly-solar/Fox News pundit Bill O’Reilly likes to say he operates in a “no spin... more-
- coolplanet
- added this
- 3 months ago
- |
- 3 comments
-
-
Utility CEO on Solar: In “3 to 5 Years You’ll Be Able to Get Power Cheaper from the Roof of Your House Than From the Grid”
David Crane, the CEO of one of the nation’s largest electric companies, has become a leading proponent of renewable energy. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, he explains how, in the face of government paralysis, the private sector can help lead the shift away from fossil fuels.
David Crane, president and CEO of NRG Energy, is not your typical power company executive, as becomes clear when he calls climate change a “slow-moving catastrophe” and “the fundamental issue of our day.” As head of a Fortune 500 company that produces electricity for up to 20 million U.S. households, he is still neck-deep in hydrocarbons, with more than 90 percent of NRG’s electricity production coming from natural gas, coal, and oil. But the future, vows Crane, will look radically different.
NRG EnergyDavid Crane In an interview with Yale Environment 360 senior editor Fen Montaigne, Crane said he believes the U.S. electricity-generating market is on the verge of a profound transformation, not unlike the era two decades ago when the antiquated world of land-line telephones and “Ma Bell” companies was about to give way to cell phones and mobile communications. The electricity future, says Crane, will be transformed by the widespread adoption of three innovations: solar panels on residential and commercial roofs, electric cars in garages, and truly “smart meters” that will seamlessly transfer power to and from homes, electric vehicles, and the grid.
His long-term goal? To see the U.S. transportation sector kick the habit of imported oil and run on electricity generated primarily from renewable sources, especially solar power. Lamenting the political gridlock in Washington, Crane said, “We’re really putting our hopes in the free market system and the American consumer embracing technological innovation.”
Yale Environment 360: What’s your assessment of the energy politics in the U.S. now and what does it mean for a power generator like yourself, who is interested in moving the country in the direction of renewables?
David Crane: In the last four to five years, energy and the environment have become completely politicized along the same red/blue lines that divide every other major issue in Washington. I think that is extremely unfortunate because if you look at the history of energy and environmental policy — well, the last big energy bill, which was passed in 2005, was passed with bipartisan support. The Clean Air Act of 1990 was signed by George [H.W.] Bush. So the fall into partisanship is definitely a step backwards.
There was a fair degree of optimism on what I think is the fundamental issue of our day — climate change. That optimism peaked when President Obama was elected in 2008. Throughout that campaign he listed climate change as one of his three highest priorities. I would say that effort was entirely unsuccessful. Now we have shifted to a situation where the best you can hope from the government is to do no harm. And maybe help along the edges of facilitating things by eliminating red tape. So we’re really putting our hopes in the free market system and the American consumer embracing technological innovation, which will have the impact of promoting sustainability.
e360: What can you do as a major power generator to nudge the country toward a renewable energy future?
Crane:I think the most important thing is to make the American public aware that now they have energy choices in a way that they never really did. You don’t just have to settle for using electricity in your house that is supplied by coal-fired power plants on the grid. And you don’t just have to put oil that comes from the Middle East in your gas tank. You can buy an By far the biggest opportunity for those of us on the electricity side is transportation energy.”electric car. You can put solar panels on your roof. You have choices now.
I mean the people who were opposed to climate change legislation used one of two tactics. They either said, “Well, we don’t believe it’s happening.” Which, of course, is just a bald-faced lie. Or the second part of the one/two punch is, “We can’t afford to do anything about it because a synonym for the word “green” is “expensive.” But looking forward, electric vehicles will be far cheaper to operate than internal combustion engine vehicles. And solar panels on the roof will provide power more cheaply than taking power from the grid.
e360: Can you explain why a power generator who is making nice profits producing power from coal and natural gas would want to begin pushing his company in the direction of renewables?
Crane: It’s about energy market share. Historically, when the country and the world were growing, the energy industry was always in a struggle to provide enough energy in various forms for people to use it. It’s almost unheard of for an energy company to truly market its energy, because it didn’t need to. But the global recession of 2008, combined with some technological innovation that was playing off the high energy prices of the years before the global recession, have come together at the same time. So we now have these vast energy resources available to us, like natural gas as a result of hydraulic fracturing, and the demand [in the U.S.] for energy products is less. So various forms of energy have to compete with each other.
And by far the biggest opportunity for those of us on the electricity side is transportation energy, because the U.S. spends a lot more on moving cars on American roads than lighting houses.
The electricity side of the energy sector is 50 percent coal and 20 percent natural gas and 20 percent nuclear. The transportation side is almost all oil. And it doesn’t matter whether you’re on the left or the right of the political spectrum, no American wants to keep importing 3 million barrels of oil a day from the Middle East. So there’s huge public policy benefit to shifting the transportation sector to something other than oil.
e360: Could you talk about NRG’s move into utility-scale solar, and also your vision long-term of large-scale solar, versus distributed [smaller-scale] solar power?
Crane:So far most of our business has been utility-scale solar — gigantic plants in the desert. The biggest solar [project] we have is 295 megawatts. That’s something like 6 million solar panels. Those projects are really dependent on two things, because they cost over a billion dollars: the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program and California’s You put an electric car in your garage and you really have a mini power plant.”33 percent Renewable Portfolio Standard, and the fact that the two largest California utilities have been willing to sign long-term agreements in order to meet their requirements [to obtain 33 percent of their electricity from renewables by 2020] under the Renewable Portfolio Standards. We have over 800 megawatts of projects out there, which is a huge number for solar. But our view is that because the DOE Loan Guarantee Program is going away and the California utilities are coming close to putting themselves in a position to satisfy the requirement, there will be fewer of those projects in the future.
We expect to continue to pursue that business and to do well, but that’s not going to be the explosive-growth part of the industry. The explosive-growth part will be between distributed solar power, which is like 1 to 10 megawatt size, and then residential, which is measured in kilowatts. We have so many parking lots and warehouse rooftops and residential locations where people want to reduce their monthly electric bills and that is just an enormous area of growth.
More at the linkDavid Crane, the CEO of one of the nation’s largest electric companies, has... more-
- JanforGore
- added this
- 3 months ago
- |
- 33 comments
-
-
Himalayas could become the Saudi Arabia of solar energy
Think of solar arrays and you'll probably picture panels under blistering desert heat – but we may be able to get more energy from solar panels on snow-capped mountains.
Kotaro Kawajiri at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology mapped solar irradiance across the globe in collaboration with colleagues in Japan. They found that some of the highest levels of sunlight can be found in the Himalayas and the Andes: at altitude, less light is lost to the atmosphere.
There's another reason why high-altitude solar power makes sense. At temperatures of around 40 °C, 13 per cent of the energy solar panels would normally produce is lost to heat. The cold air at high-altitude keeps the panels cool and efficient, says Kawajiri.
Keith Barnham, a photovoltaics researcher at Imperial College London, says cold climates may be the new frontier in solar. "There are a lot of underdeveloped regions and communities living high up in the foothills of the Himalayas that could benefit from solar energy," he says.
More at the linkThink of solar arrays and you'll probably picture panels under blistering desert... more-
- JanforGore
- added this
- 4 months ago
- |
- 4 comments
-
-
TV media hypes Solyndra while ignoring Keystone XL scandal
The Solyndra bankruptcy and emails are the royal wedding of energy stories for many in TV media. Just from August 31 to September 23, there were 190 mentions and 10 hours of coverage — 8 on Murdoch’s Fox News. But, as Media Matters reports, TV news outlets have entirely ignored the scandalous emails showing bias for the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline within the State Department.
The environmental group Friends of the Earth released e-mails this week revealing a cozy and collaborative relationship between TransCanada Corporation lobbyist Paul Elliott and an employee at the U.S. State Department, the agency currently weighing approval of TransCanada’s permit application for the controversial Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.
A New York Times report notes that the emails show the State Department official providing “subtle coaching and cheerleading” for TransCanada:
A State Department official provided Fourth of July party invitations, subtle coaching and cheerleading, and inside information about Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton’s meetings to a Washington lobbyist for a Canadian company seeking permission from the department to build a pipeline that would carry crude from the oil sands of Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.
The emails also suggest the State Department understood that after securing approval of the pipeline, TransCanada would reverse the concessions it made in respose to safety concerns. From the Times report:
TransCanada lobbyists exchanged e-mails with State Department officials in July about their intention to drop their request to operate the Keystone XL pipeline at higher pressures than normally allowed in the United States to win political support, but then suggested they would reapply for the exception once the project had been cleared.
So far, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, ABC, CBS and NBC have ignored the story.
Environmental groups say the e-mails fit into a pattern of behavior indicating that the State Department is not objectively or rigorously evaluating the project. Almost a year before the Environmental Impact Statement was completed, Secretary Clinton said that her office was “inclined” to sign off on the pipeline. The State Department’s Environmental Impact Statement was prepared with the help of Cardno ENTRIX, a consulting firm that works for TransCanada. The draft EIS, which said the pipeline would have “limited adverse environmental impacts,” was deemed “inadequate” by EPA reviewers. Cardno ENTRIX is also running the public hearings on the pipeline and maintaining the State Department’s website about the Keystone XL project.
In an earlier batch of e-mails released by Friends of the Earth, TransCanada’s Elliott said then-energy envoy for the State Department David Goldwyn had provided “insight on what he’d like to see by way of on the record comment during this public comment period of this Keystone KXL draft environmental impact statement.” Elliot added: “We are working with our stakeholders, shippers and vendors to deliver on the insight David shared with us and to do so by the June 15 deadline.” In another e-mail, Elliott, who previously worked on Secretary Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, again wrote that State Department officials had advised TransCanada on how to respond to environmental arguments against the pipeline.
An October 2009 cable obtained by Wikileaks previously showed that Goldwyn had instructed Canadian officials on how to improve “messaging” about tar sands by “increasing visibility and accessibility of more positive news stories.” Goldwyn left the State Department in 2011 and testified this year in support of Keystone XL.
Friends of the Earth concludes that “the State Department no longer has credibility on the Keystone XL question” and calls for authority over the pipeline to be taken away from the agency.
More at the linkThe Solyndra bankruptcy and emails are the royal wedding of energy stories for many in... more-
- JanforGore
- added this
- 4 months ago
- |
- 22 comments
-
-
Russ' Filtered Stew: Solyndra Was Bush's Baby and Top Topics
"Solyndra was cleared to participate in this loan-guarantee program by President George W. Bush’s administration. He [McConnell] also did not mention that the legislation creating the loan-guarantee program, approved by the Republican-controlled Congress in 2005, received yes votes from — wait for it — DeMint, Hatch and McConnell."
http://veracitystew.com/2011/09/29/russ-filtered-stew-solyndra-was-bushs-baby-and-top-topics/"Solyndra was cleared to participate in this loan-guarantee program by President... more-
- StewSteve
- added this
- 5 months ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
-
Crony Capitalism?: 'SolyndraGatePocalypse' (VIDEO)
While a federal investigation gets under way, it's important to realize that Solyndra was probably doomed from the start because of China's ability to fix prices and manipulate the global marketplace. With all that in mind, political animator Mark Fiore examines what TeaPublicans are attempting to label as "SolyndraGatePocalypse."
http://veracitystew.com/2011/09/26/crony-capitalism-solyndragatepocalypse-video/While a federal investigation gets under way, it's important to realize that... more-
- StewSteve
- added this
- 5 months ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
-
What are the biggest design challenges facing urban areas?
With 1 billion cars worldwide and traffic congestion set to double in 20 years innovative, new vehicle designs are important to staying ahead of population growth. Most urban centers today have been designed around cars; however, design group Terreform1 designs concept vehicles specifically to fit within cityscapes.
Which of the vehicle designs in the Terreform segment do you think would best fit into your city and why?
Be sure to check out current.com/urbanmobility for more news, community discussions and upcoming videos about Urban Mobility.With 1 billion cars worldwide and traffic congestion set to double in 20 years... more-
- DominicBlackwellCooper
- added this
- 7 months ago
- |
- 30 comments
-
-
Solar Power Company Plans Giant Arizona Tower, Second Tallest Structure on Earth
In the desert of western Arizona, a power company proposes to build the world's tallest chimney -- a tower, 2,600 feet tall, that would be the centerpiece of a giant non-polluting power plant, making electricity from the heat of the sun.
The project has been started by an Australian company called EnviroMission, which says it hopes, by the time it is finished construction in early 2015, to provide enough electricity to power the equivalent of 200,000 homes. It would burn no fuel. Nothing quite like it has ever been tried in America before.
In fact, nothing quite like it has been tried anywhere else in the world, aside from a small test project in Spain. The finished tower would be the second-tallest structure on the planet, just a hundred feet shorter than the Burj Khalifa luxury skyscraper in Dubai. It would be twice as tall as New York's Empire State Building.
"It would be conceited to say we have the solution," said Chris Davey, the president of EnviroMission's U.S. operations in Phoenix, "but it's a reasonable energy alternative."
When one mentions solar power, most people probably think of so-called photovoltaics -- those big, flat panels that have been used to power spacecraft, but so far have been considered too expensive for large-scale commercial use. EnviroMission plans something very different.
Its design consists of a giant, round greenhouse-like structure, under which air would become trapped and get very hot -- around 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
Hot air naturally tries to rise, so it would rush toward the tall tower in the center. On the way, it would pass through any of 32 turbines, whose turning blades would run generators and create electricity. The plant would burn no fuel, emitting no greenhouse gases.
"It's a very favorable operation," said John Drum, a member of the local county board of supervisors. "It'll bring quite a few jobs to our county, and when it's done there will be 40 to 50 people to run it."
It would also draw attention to this isolated place, off state route 95 north of Quartzsite, Ariz. Supporters say the view from the top on a clear day would be stupendous.
Clean Solar Energy, Even at Night
EnviroMission says the beauty of its design is that the plant doesn't only work in blazing sunlight. All it needs is for there to be some solar heating. The company says it has checked out possible sites in Kansas, Pennsylvania and rural New Jersey -- cooler, cloudier places than Arizona. Davey says the company's calculations show the chimney would even generate power at night. The air in the canopy would be warmed by the sand beneath it, which would have absorbed excess heat during the day.
"It's incredibly benign," Davey said. "No water, no dangerously high temperatures, no 'death rays' from mirrors, very few moving parts."
More at the linkIn the desert of western Arizona, a power company proposes to build the world's... more-
- JanforGore
- added this
- 7 months ago
- |
- 66 comments
-
-
Sacramento City Hall +three other sites to get solar panels
As part of its years-long effort to build a reputation as one of the nation's greenest cities, Sacramento is installing more than 8,000 solar panels on City Hall and other city properties.
The city is partnering with SolarCity of San Mateo to place the solar panels at four municipal locations, including the Richards Police Facility and the city's corporate yards in south Sacramento.
The solar systems will produce enough electricity to light 250 homes.
"It's our goal to become a greener city, and generating clean energy on our facilities is (in) keeping with that commitment," said Mayor Kevin Johnson.
He said the solar panels "will save taxpayers money by lowering the city's energy costs, reduce pollution by generating renewable power and create more local jobs to install the panels."
SolarCity will install the panels, maintain them and finance their construction.
The city, in turn, will pay for the power produced by the panels at prices anticipated to be lower than current rates.
Dennis Cox, regional director for SolarCity, said the company plans to add about 20 local jobs, partly as a result of the city project. The company currently employs about 81 people in its Sacramento office.
The solar project, which was approved by the City Council earlier this week, is the latest undertaken by the city.
The city also is holding talks with German solar energy provider Conergy Projects Inc. to develop a solar farm at the city's 28th Street landfill.
The project eventually could provide enough electricity to power up to 16,000 homes and would complement the city's development of Sutter's Landing Regional Park at the 172-acre property.
Founded in 2006, SolarCity is a national, full-service solar provider for residential customers, businesses and government agencies.
In the Sacramento area, the company has about 700 solar projects, which include retail outlets and large manufacturing facilities such as Intel Corp.'s Folsom campus.
SolarCity also has a large number of local residential customers who lease solar systems.
Since last year, when Sacramento Municipal Utility District and PG&E Corp. began offering incentives to ease the upfront cost of leasing, demand for residential leases has increased sharply, the company has said.
http://www.sacbee.com/2011/04/02/3522129/sacramento-city-hall-three-other.htmlAs part of its years-long effort to build a reputation as one of the nation's... more-
- lordsbassman
- added this
- 7 months ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
-
Amazing! NASA Spacecraft Offers Detailed View of Saturn's Great White Spot
Los Angeles Times...
NASA spacecraft offers detailed views of Saturn's Great White Spot
The Great White Spot, which occurs about once every 30 Earth years, is a windy, towering cloud of ammonia and water spewing out super jolts of thunder and lightning. The storm is about 10,000 times stronger than those on Earth.
PHOTO: An image of Saturn taken by NASA spacecraft Cassini shows the Great White Spot in the planet's northern hemisphere. (NASA / July 7, 2011)
.
By Daniela Hernandez, Los Angeles Times
July 6, 2011, 6:27 p.m.
Saturn's Great White Spot, a recurring storm on that planet that has intrigued scientists since it was first observed in 1876, is a windy, towering cloud of ammonia and water spewing out super jolts of thunder and lightning. Now astronomers and NASA's Cassini spacecraft, which has been orbiting Saturn since 2004, have captured the most detailed views to date of the phenomenon.
The luminous storm, which may be the gaseous planet's main mechanism for dissipating heat, occurs about once every Saturnian year, the equivalent of about 30 Earth years. The storms, however, do not follow a precise schedule. The latest round, the most intense on record, was first noticed by ground-based professional and amateur astronomers as a bright speck on Saturn's northern hemisphere on Dec. 5, about nine years before schedule. The previous storm occurred in 1990.
Their observations coincided with Cassini's detection of a deluge of radio waves emitted by Saturn. These radio waves are a signature of lightning and can be used as a measure of its strength.
During the days that followed, that small blemish, moving westward about 65 mph, grew to a size nearly equal to the diameter of the Earth. Two months later, the behemoth had blanketed the entire planet, spanning more than 180,000 miles.
"It turned into a very spectacular storm, with so many [lightning flashes] we couldn't resolve individual ones," said Donald Gurnett, a physicist at the University of Iowa and a contributing author of one of two reports published Wednesday in the journal Nature.
This massive eruption of lightning is caused when heat and water vapor rise from deep within Saturn's atmosphere up to its troposphere, the region of the atmosphere where weather occurs. When that water vapor cools and condenses, it releases heat and, under the right conditions, produces lightning.
The lightning on Saturn originates deep inside the planet's atmosphere, where vapors are at higher pressure. That makes the lightning very intense.
The images and measurements gave scientists new insight into the shape of the current Great White Spot. As water vapor and ammonia were pushed to the troposphere by vertical currents, some of the materials were dragged by eastern winds, creating the storm's characteristic "head" and straggling "tail," both of which are visible from Earth.
First author Agustin Sanchez-Lavega, a planetary scientist at the University of the Basque Country in Bilbao, Spain, and his colleagues were able to estimate that the storm's head, where most of the lightning was concentrated, extended about 160 miles below the cloud tops. Because the sun doesn't shine there, this suggests that the planet's internal heat helps the storms to form, the scientists wrote.
Great White Spots are 10 times larger than normal storms on Saturn and are about 10,000 times stronger than those on Earth. They occur seasonally due to changes in how much sunlight reaches Saturn. Scientists still don't fully understand the interplay between solar energy and Saturn's internal stores in generating these storms.Los Angeles Times... NASA spacecraft offers detailed views of Saturn's Great... more-
- EthicalVegan
- added this
- 7 months ago
- |
- 11 comments
-
-
Nuclear seems the LEAST deadly of all power sources...
According to these numbers, even rooftop solar is more dangerous!
On a per TWh basis at least.
The writer suggests that integrating solar into roof-tiles, or requiring professional installation would address those dangers.
http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/03/deaths-per-twh-by-energy-source.htmlAccording to these numbers, even rooftop solar is more dangerous! On a per TWh basis... more-
- JoFerg
- added this
- 8 months ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
-
HISTORY in making: BUTTE COLLEGE First School in nation to go Grid Positive.
BUTTE VALLEY — Eight years ago, Lou Cecchi, a Butte College trustee, asked the question "Have we ever thought about solar?"
Now, the college has 25,000 solar panels, and on Wednesday it claimed the title of "the first college in United States history to become 'grid positive.'"
"Grid positive," in Butte College's case, means the college now generates electricity worth 102 percent of the cost of the power it gets from PG&E, said Mike Miller, the college's director of facilities, planning and management.
So, instead of paying an electric bill, Butte College now gets paid by PG&E.
Cecchi, a member of the Butte College Board of Trustees, asked his question at a 2003 meeting of the board.
After that, trustees and other college officials began looking into the possibility of installing solar panels on the campus to produce electric power.
On Wednesday, a ceremony was held on the main campus to mark the completion of the college's solar-power project.
"We never set out to make history," said college President Diana Van Der Ploeg. "We just knew it made sense."
Jack Scott, Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, spoke at the event.
"I really congratulate Butte College," he said, adding that at a time when higher education in the state feels an intense financial squeeze, "This is a terrific way to cut costs."
The college's arrays of solar panels will generate more than 6.5 million kilowatt hours of electricity per year — enough to power more than 9,200 homes, officials said.
http://tinyurl.com/3hz5zzzBUTTE VALLEY — Eight years ago, Lou Cecchi, a Butte College trustee, asked the... more-
- LOrion
- added this
- 8 months ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
-
Let the sun do the roasting for COFFEE
What a unique way to save energy-
- GoodGodGuy
- added this
- 8 months ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
-
A Stunning Eco-Friendly Laptop
Andrea Ponti's Luce Laptop may be the greatest and the most fascinating environmental-friendly product that uses the Sun as it source of energy.
Throughout the innumerable attempts to make the solar energy fascinating, Andrea Ponti’s Luce Laptop might be the one that tops it all. As the the first computer that uses the sun rays as a source of energy, it may sound very interesting for a lot of people.Andrea Ponti's Luce Laptop may be the greatest and the most fascinating... more-
- vinnieadler
- added this
- 8 months ago
- |
- 0 comments
-
