Biomimetic Buildings:Understanding & Applying the Lessons of Nature
Can we keep constructing buildings to meet ever-increasing population growth without completely annihilating the natural environment? Rocky Mountain Institute thinks we can.
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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:April 9, 2003
*News and Events DOE Awards $130.6 Million to 32 States for Weatherization Fuel Economy For Light Trucks to Increase 7 Percent by 2007 California’s Small, Clean Power Generators Avoid Extra Fees Connecticut Clean Energy Fund Picks Seven Solar Projects Michigan Energy Center to Combine Fuel Cell, Solar, and More Nevada PUC Approves Solar Thermal Power Plant Contract*Site NewsOklahoma Wind Power Initiative———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-DOE Awards $130.6 Million to 32 States for WeatherizationDOE announced on April 4th its award of $130.6 million to 32 states for energy efficiency improvements to the homes of low-income families. Low-income families spend an average of 14 percent of their income on energy, compared with 3.5 percent for the average American. Weatherization reduces an average home’s energy costs by $224 a year. The program gives a priority to low-income families that include children, the elderly, or people with disabilities. The Congressional appropriation for the Weatherization Assistance Program is $223.5 million in fiscal year (FY) 2003 — enough to weatherize about 93,750 homes. The FY 2003 funding is down slightly from $230 million in FY 2002, but President Bush has requested an increase of nearly 30 percent for FY 2004. The program performs energy audits to identify the […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:April 2, 2003
*News and Events Iowa Utility to Build a 310-Megawatt Wind Power Plant Rosebud Sioux Tribe Installs a 750-Kilowatt Wind Turbine Solar Power Installations Continue Apace in California European Wave and Tidal Energy Projects Face Setbacks University of Idaho Sweeps SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge*Site News Energy Trust of Oregon———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-Iowa Utility to Build a 310-Megawatt Wind Power PlantMidAmerican Energy Company, Iowa’s largest utility, announced last week its intention to construct a 310-megawatt wind power facility in northwest or north-central Iowa. The project will consist of up to 200 wind turbines and will rival in capacity the largest existing U.S. wind power plant: the 300-megawatt Stateline Wind Energy Center, located along the border of Oregon and Washington. Although MidAmerican expects the first turbines to come online in 2004, and the entire project to be complete by 2006, the company has not yet selected a location for the project. [sorry this link is no longer available]Rosebud Sioux Tribe Installs a 750-Kilowatt Wind TurbineThe Rosebud Sioux Indian Tribe installed a 750-kilowatt wind turbine on its reservation last week, completing a project that began eight years ago with wind resource monitoring. With half of the project funded by a DOE Cooperative Grant, the Rosebud […]
SolarSummary: March 25-31, 2003
by Kirsten Elder Companies in the news Duke Solar: www.dukesolar.com Evergreen Solar: www.evergreensolar.com Mitsubishi Heavy Industries: www.mhi.co.jp Phoenix SonnenStrom: www.sonnenstromag.de Photowatt International: www.photowatt.com Solar Grade Silicon LLC: www.asimi.com WorldWater Corp: www.worldwater.com New Products Duke Solar Energy, LLC and TopEcology (K.K. and International) announced that they will jointly design, build and distribute advanced solar-thermal desalination and water purification systems. Initially, the two companies plan to integrate TopEcology’s revolutionary Aqua Kids desalination technology and water purification technology with Duke Solar’s highly efficient solar thermal technologies. (CNN Money, 27/03/03)Applications The world’s only solar-powered 50 horsepower irrigation pump has been installed at a Californian farm. The 36kW solar irrigation pump system, designed and built by WorldWater Corporation using Shell Solar panels, can convert solar DC current to AC, which powers the pump from either the solar array or from the electrical grid, or from both sources if necessary. (Solarbuzz.com, 27/03/03) The Sustainable Energy Solutions group at Northern Arizona University has been developing business plans for renewable energy resources like wind and solar power and are working on sustainable energy outlets to bring power to more than 10,000 structures on the Navajo Nation. The group is a part of the colleges of Business Administration and […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:March 26, 2003
*News and Events Austin Energy Tops Green Power Sales HP Smart Cooling to Reduce Data Center Energy Use Hotel Demonstrates Energy-Efficient Lighting Conferences on Residential Energy Efficiency Begin San Diego’s $3.6 Million Energy-Efficiency Project*Site NewsBetterBricks ———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-Austin Energy Tops Green Power SalesAustin Energy sold 251,520,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power last year, more than any other utility in the nation. The utility’s GreenChoice program offers electricity from wind, solar, methane gas from landfills, and hydropower plants to more than 6,500 residents, 165 small businesses, and 31 large companies and organizations in Austin, TX. Sacramento Municipal Utility District was the second largest green power producer last year at 104,344,000 kWh, and Xcel Energy was third with 103,739000 kWh. See Austin Energy’s press release at: [sorry this link is no longer available].HP Smart Cooling to Reduce Data Center Energy UseWhile clean energy technologies are often at the forefront of energy news when it comes to reducing air pollution and conserving fossil fuels, advances in energy efficiency are also capable of tremendous cost and emissions reductions. For example, HP announced this week that it is now using a “smart” cooling modeling system to design data centers, which the company claims could dramatically […]
SolarSummary: March 18-24, 2003
by Kirsten Elder Companies in the news ATS Automation: http://www.atsautomation.com BP Solar: www.bpsolar.com Carmanah Technologies: www.carmanah.com Duke Solar: www.dukesolar.com Evergreen Solar: www.evergreensolar.com Photowatt (ATS Automation): www.photowatt.com Shell Solar: www.shell.com/solar SunWize Technologies: www.sunwize.com Xantrex Technologies: www.xantrex.com Emerging Technologies BP Solar has announced it has achieved a world record in solar cell efficiency for a 125mm size cell. The 18.3 percent efficiency was verified by the Fraunhofer Institut Solare Energiesysteme in Germany. The 18.3 percent efficiency represents an 11 percent improvement over the 16.5 percent efficiency currently available with Saturn solar cells. The new premium solar cell technology will form the basis for the new BP Solar Tres Cantos facility in Madrid, Spain, as well as underpinning efficiency improvements at the existing Alcobendas facility near Madrid. (Solarbuzz.com, 24/03/03)New Products Xantrex Technology Inc. has completed its first financing deal in collaboration with Vermont Solar Engineering, a certified Xantrex dealer. Xantrex’ Renewable Energy Financing Program will make it possible for Vermont Solar Engineering’s customers to purchase a solar electric system for their new rural home. Administered through Thalman Financial, the program enables a customised payment schedule of monthly installments for customers at very competitive rates. (SolarAccess.com, 21/03/03) Applications The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada […]
Investing in the Booming Wind Industry
Wind companies are profitable today. Investing in them is a positive action to take against the war.
Home Energy Revolution
A great protest to this war would be if we all converted our home energy sources to renewables ... NOW!
Kinko's Rises Closer to the Top
The Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has hailed Kinko’s new forest-based product procurement policy as one of the most effective and meaningful company policies to protect endangered forests and end old growth destruction. Kinko’s developed the new policy – which establishes stringent vendor requirements and recycled content standards – with input from prominent environmental groups and suppliers, including RAN and International Paper. Six years ago, Kinko’s announced it would not knowingly purchase paper or wood products derived from old-growth, endangered or high-conservation value forests. Their new policy expands on this initiative. Kinko’s new vendor requirements are believed to be the first time a company has: * incorporated firm guidelines for the forest management practices of its suppliers and * engaged its vendors and the environmental community to ensure the company does not align with suppliers that log or distribute products from old growth or endangered forests, convert native forests to tree plantations, or use genetically modified organisms. Suppliers must also guarantee and document that none of their supply sources or operations result in the logging of old growth or endangered forests. Kinko’s long-term goal is to increase the average percentage of post-consumer recycled content paper it uses to 30% with goals […]
Beantrends: Helping Coffee Become Sustainable
When Beantrends approached SustainableBusiness.com as a sponsor we learned about this young, sustainable business and thought you might like to know more too. Beantrends is dedicated to fostering sustainability in the coffee industry by educating people about the crises in the industry and by selling a variety of sustainable, gourmet coffees to the growing number of people interested in supporting organic and fair trade coffee. The web site, Beantrends.com, carries industry related news, a great selection of coffee, and a program that donates a percentage of coffee sales to Coffee Kids. Before starting Beantrends, founder and president Catherine Benevides owned two specialty coffee stores for many years. During that time she learned of a nonprofit called Coffee Kids that donates money to families who grow coffee. She learned about “the kids out in the fields picking beans” and that small coffee farmers only receive 12 -25 for every pound of gourmet coffee sold. She put a coin box on the counter to encourage her customers to donate to them. Then she learned about Fair Trade issues, organic issues, and shade grown issues. She recently moved to Canada and decided it was time for a change. “Once I saw all the […]
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