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Renewables & Efficiency
Energy will be at the forefront of the political scene over the next six weeks. Bush is expected to emphasize the importance of passing his national energy policy in the State of the Union Address January 29. Majority Leader Tom Daschle plans to bring a Senate energy bill to the floor the week of February 11. The White House will likely release the federal budget in February, revealing the Bush Administration spending priorities. Regardless of the new Freedom CAR Initiative, increasing gas mileage standards for cars, SUVs and other light trucks is the best way to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, increase our energy security, and cut transportation emissions. Ask your senators to support a strong increase in auto fuel economy standards. Energy legislation emphasizing renewable fuels could boost the U.S. economy by $300 billion and create as many as 300,000 new jobs by 2016, a study sponsored by the National Biodiesel Board concludes. It finds that increased use of American made fuels such as biodiesel and ethanol would generate an additional $71 billion over the next 15 years. [sorry this link is no longer available]Do we detect a murmur of citizen activism to cut energy use? Greenpeace asks […]
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Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) announced that the Energy Policy Act of 2002 (S.1766) will be taken up by the Senate around February 11, 2002. He committed to a comprehensive energy plan that would place greater emphasis on energy efficiency than the House-passed bill, H.R. 4., which continues our fossil-fuel and nuclear dependency. The Senate bill contains important energy efficiency provisions, such as a legislatively mandated SEER 13 air conditioner standard. The sponsors announced their commitment to add provisions to significantly improve vehicle fuel efficiency and to include tax incentives for highly efficient homes, cars and other products. Until these provisions are added, the bill is promising, but incomplete, say leading NGOs Alliance to Save Energy, ACEEE and the Sustainable Energy Coalition. Greenpeace calls it “Bush Lite.” The bill would avoid opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling, but includes nuclear and coal industry subsidies. Says Deb Callahan, president of the League of Conservation Voters, “The debate over a national energy policy is at last moving in the right direction. “After months of negative haggling over old, tired ways to meet our energy needs, voters will finally hear a positive debate about what’s next for America’s energy […]
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The Solar Sailor – the world’s largest solar vessel and the first to be totally powered by the wind and the sun – sailed for the first time into Sydney Harbor, Australia in June 2000. This revolutionary new ferry has been in service for over a year as a tourist ferry there. It has demonstrated the technical feasibility and commercial viability of this new hybrid power technology. Solar Sailer is the brainchild of Dr. Robert Dane, formerly a country physician practicing about three hours from Sydney. A $1 million grant from the Australian Greenhouse Office’s Renewable Energy Commercialization Program funded its development. Its ground breaking solar wing technology makes renewable energy transport a reality. The mounted wings harness the sun and wind and can be adjusted to adapt to prevailing weather conditions. It uses four power sources: solar, wind, battery and a backup LPG gas generator. They can be used individually or in combination. When fully loaded with 100 passengers it reaches speeds of 5-7 knots on solar power alone, and 10-12 knots sailing in trade winds. Solar Sailor won the gold medal at the 1999 Asian Innovation Awards and the 2001 Australian Design Awards for engineering. With many waterways […]
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Want help in accessing the financial aspects of a renewable energy project? RET Finance (Renewable Energy Technology Financial Model) is an online calculator that simulates a 30-year nominal dollar cash flow for a variety of renewable energy projects. You can calculate project earnings, detailed cash flows and debt payments, based on your assumptions. It also computes the cost of electricity for a project, after-tax rate of return, and debt service coverage ratio. You an create several scenarios and save or send them. http://nrel.communityzero.com/retfinanceThe new version of RETScreen International – used to evaluate energy production, lifecycle costs and greenhouse gas emissions – is online. It can be used for off-grid, grid-connected and water pumping projects. [sorry this link is no longer available]Whether you’re a solar do-it-yourselfer or want to get into the profession, S??nergy provides an on-line course for you. Online offerings include PV, Passive Solar Design, Environmental Building Design, Wind & Water Power, Solar Hot Water, Solar Cooking and Drying & Water Purification. [sorry this link is no longer available]A new report, Solar Generation, concludes that solar power could provide energy for more than 1 billion people, creating over 2 million jobs by 2020, and 26% of global energy needs […]
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How do you know solar is going mainstream? When you can buy it at Home Depot! Lots of other energy highlights here.
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In Aspen and Pitkin County, Colorado, a new home over 5000 square feet (465 m) either has to include a renewable energy system, or its builder/ owner has to pay a $5000 mitigation fee. This component of a new Renewable Energy Mitigation Program (REMP) is, perhaps, the most unique and innovative addition to an energy code in the last 10 years. It started with big energy hogs – spas, heated pools, and snowmelt systems – that fell outside the residential energy code. When the local building code was tightened to include these energy uses, there was no way to improve the structure’s performance enough to offset the massive amounts of energy that pools, driveway heaters or very large homes use.According to Stephen Kanipe, the county and city building inspector, about $1.2 million has been collected in the last year, with mitigation fees as high as $80,000 from a single residence! How is the fee calculated? A system’s energy use over a 20 year period is multiplied by twice the marginal cost of locally available windpower.The Community Office for Resource Efficiency (CORE), a local nonprofit, administers the funds. CORE has used the funds for projects such as PV panels for a […]
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For sustainable energy technologies to find their rightful place in emerging energy policies and regulatory structures, advocates must be active and informed. Jane Weissman, a board member of the American Solar Energy Society summarizes the key issues.
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Many people are betting that Agriculture is the bridge to an economy fueled by Renewable resources. BioEnergy, BioFuels, Energy from SuperEnzymes, BioPlastics - essential words for the coming vocabulary.
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Manure, restaurant grease, tree trimmings, rice straw are all great examples of “one person’s garbage is another person’s treasure. Once thought of as intractable, problematic wastes, they are suddenly the basis for huge new markets as raw materials for electricity and fuel. Soybeans, rapeseed oil, and other crops suddenly are much more than food – they can run cars and buses. They are called “Biofuels” – electricity and fuel that is generated from plant matter. The two most common types in the U.S. are bioethanol and biodiesel. Biodiesel is a clean burning fuel made from domestically produced renewable fats and oils – most commonly soybean oil. It has similar fuel economy and performance as conventional petroleum diesel. Ethanol is now the third-largest use for corn after animal feed and exports.Tests show its use results in a 90% reduction in air toxins, according to the National Biodiesel Board. Rather than contributing to the waste stream and pollution, energy crops open a new market for agriculture, conserve soil, and reduce global warming.Bioenergy is less expensive than other renewable energy sources and can be delivered through the present energy infrastructure. You can pump liquid bioenergy into your car at the “gas” station as […]
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DOE Unveils EnergyPlusThe Department of Energy (DOE) has improved on its widely used DOE-2 software with its new release, EnergyPlus. The computer program allows architects, engineers, building owners and managers to dramatically lower energy use in buildings while optimizing building performance. The earlier version saved a total of $20 billion, according to DOE.EnergyPlus improves the simulation of whole building approaches in design, planning and construction. Like DOE-2, users can calculate the impact of different heating, cooling and ventilating equipment, and various types of lighting and windows to maximize building energy efficiency and occupant comfort. Now, users can also simulate the effect of window blinds, electrochromic window glazings and complex daylighting systems. Some of the buildings that have benefited from the program are the Pentagon, Monterey Bay Aquarium, San Francisco Airport, Intel and American Express corporate headquarters, and the Frank Lloyd Wright Museum in Wisconsin. Download EnergyPlus: [sorry this link is no longer available]After you’ve used EnergyPlus to optimize energy performance, you can turn to Atlantic Energy System’s Clean Power Estimator to do the same for solar systems.Enter your zip code and get an estimate of the net annual cost of a PV system (residential or commercial) in your location. The […]
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