Climate scientist will deliver warning on warming

From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Organizers of the annual Renewable Energy Summit next month in Milwaukee have landed a high-profile keynote speaker – outspoken climate scientist James Hansen.

Hansen, director of the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, an arm of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, was among the first climate scientists to speak out about global warming, warning about the problem in testimony to Congress in 1988.

In recent years, he has become more outspoken about the need to address global warming. In 2006, he criticized his superiors in the Bush administration for efforts to limit his comments to the media about climate change.

Hansen agreed to address the Wisconsin energy event on March 25 after receiving an invitation from George Stone, an instructor of physical science at Milwaukee Area Technical College. Stone introduced Hansen at a Geological Society of America conference last fall.

The involvement of Hansen in the event comes as the Obama and Doyle administrations are considering legislation to limit emissions of greenhouse gases. Organizers of the energy summit say Hansen's involvement will help raise the profile of an event that has doubled in attendance every year for five years. At least 2,500 people are expected to attend this this year.

Said Stone: “It just elevates the stature of the conference because we have a leading world figure in the field of climate change and he has changed his attention now in the last couple of years from trying to simply convince people of the science of global warming and the inevitability of the climate change that is coming to focusing on mitigation: What we must do and how soon.”

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LEDway and We Energies demonstrate Unique Street Smart Technology

From a news release posted on Yahoo! Finance:

STURTEVANT, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BetaLED is testing two leading forms of lighting control systems with its LEDway streetlights. Eleven LEDway streetlights installed along 92nd Street in Sturtevant, Wis., were recently outfitted with either a power line communication system or wireless radio frequency (RF) system as part of a side-by-side demonstration of lighting control technologies available for LED streetlights. Both lighting control systems are designed to manage each fixture to ultimately reduce operating and energy expenses.

Milwaukee based We Energies is taking part in the evaluation, testing the remote access and monitoring capabilities of each system as well as calculating reduced energy and maintenance costs presented by LED technology compared to existing streetlighting options.

“We look forward to evaluating these promising streetlight technologies will further improve the level of service we provide to our customers,” said Chris Balliet, We Energies program manager/outdoor lighting. “The ultimate goal of the test is to determine if these technologies could be valuable tools in controlling costs and reducing unnecessary light.”

Although the two independent lighting control systems are designed primarily to lower operating costs, they use different technology to realize results.

The power line system communicates over the same wires that deliver power to each fixture to monitor and control streetlights equipped with specially designed hardware and software.

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Green jobs ready to bloom as spring nears; job fair March 27

From an article by Jessica Steinhoff in The Shepard Express:

The time to green your resume is now.

The federal Green Jobs Act got a $500 million boost from the economic stimulus package and is expected to train 70,000 workers in renewable-energy and energy-efficiency jobs. Plus, a floundering economy is nudging companies to hire employees to design and implement energy-savings plans and other cost-saving measures.

Wisconsin Environment Director Dan Kohler is pleased with the strategy for building a greener workforce—particularly on the state and local levels. “The federal recovery plan includes significant funding to help states design educational programs to get workers moving ahead in the green economy,” he says.

In Wisconsin, universities, technical colleges and government and community workforce-development agencies will all play a role in the training effort. Gov. Jim Doyle’s global-warming task force has been helping these institutions team up with the private sector to develop a comprehensive training strategy that will address job seekers with a variety of different skill sets. Meanwhile, local colleges are rushing to design courses and curricula in a wide variety of green disciplines, from sustainable operations management to water technology.

Though a full graduate-level program is still in the works, UW-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences is offering courses in freshwater ecosystem health and a variety of other topics.

At Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC), there’s a comprehensive selection of green career paths, including new programs in environmental and water technology, sustainable operations, and energy engineering. There are also numerous opportunities for people to add green credentials to their existing skill set at Lakeshore Technical College, Gateway Technical College and MATC.

The Wisconsin Renewable Energy Summit at the Midwest Airline Center includes a career/jobs day on March 27. Schools and other training organizations, as well as employers, will be set up in the exhibition hall.

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Landfill gas may fuel dryers at Jones Island

From an article by Don Behm in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Building a 17-mile pipeline to carry landfill gas from Muskego to the Jones Island sewage treatment plant on Lake Michigan will save the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, its customers and property-tax payers at least $148 million in the next two decades, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and sewerage district officials said Monday.

The bulk of the savings will come from buying landfill gas at just 48% of the price of natural gas, under terms of an agreement negotiated with Veolia ES, owner of the Emerald Park landfill in Muskego.

There could be additional savings to property-tax payers in the district if federal stimulus money is used to pay even part of the estimated $22 million in pipeline construction costs, sewerage district Executive Director Kevin Shafer said.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett was in Washington on Friday to learn more about stimulus programs, and he said Monday that this project should be a good fit: It could be started quickly and it is environmentally friendly.

"We're going to be pitching this thing as hard as we can" to federal and state agencies, Barrett said in an interview. . . .

The landfill gas at Muskego is between 50% and 55% methane and will replace natural gas as the fuel for 12 sewage sludge dryers inside the Milorganite fertilizer production facility at Jones Island, under the proposal. Cost of converting the dryers to burn landfill gas is included in the $22 million construction estimate, Shafer said.

Pipeline work is scheduled to begin in July of this year, with a goal of completing the work by Jan. 1, 2011. Three possible pipeline routes being studied would use existing state Department of Transportation easements adjacent to highways and freeways.

Burning landfill gas in the dryers will save at least $113 million in the first 20 years, Shafer said. And there is an estimated 40-year supply at the landfill.

In 2009, the district has budgeted spending $13.2 million for natural gas.

"This project will bring big savings to MMSD customers," Barrett said. The Miller-Coors brewery alone should pay $5.9 million less in user charges - an 11.5% drop - during that period.

"This will help retain and grow businesses," Barrett said.

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Greening of Wisconsin: Boost renewable use

An editorial from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

The economic stimulus package approved last week gives Wisconsin and other states an opportunity to ease the financial crisis by doing more than just making ends meet. Money in the package aimed at energy projects provides an opportunity to move from an economy too reliant on fossil fuels and toward an economy based on sustainable green energy.

As the Journal Sentinel's Thomas Content detailed in an article last week:

Wisconsin businesses and governments should receive at least $276 million, and possibly more, in energy-related funds from the economic stimulus bill, according to the state agency in charge of the recovery. Energy provisions in the stimulus package include funding for efforts to make buildings more efficient and to boost the use of renewable energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels.

Also included are tax credits for manufacturers of energy technologies and for consumers who improve the energy efficiency of their homes or buy plug-in hybrid cars. For instance, homeowners will get credits of up to $1,500 for energy upgrades, such as purchases of qualified furnaces and insulation.

Wisconsin is likely to receive $146 million to weatherize some of the most inefficient buildings in the state. An additional $130 million or so is expected under two kinds of grants for energy-efficiency and other projects.

And Johnson Controls, the state's largest company, is in a great position to take advantage of the stimulus money for its own work in energy efficiency.

There are opportunities here, too, for governments and their taxpayers. Making school buildings more energy efficient, for example, would reduce energy bills, allowing districts to spend money on textbooks or teachers or to reduce taxes, and put people to work retrofitting buildings. That kind of spending is a real win-win.

Times are hard. But using the stimulus money to help foster a greener economy could position Wisconsin for a healthier and more prosperous future.

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Stimulus bright spot: renewable energy

From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Johnson Controls has begun generating electricity from the largest solar power system in the state - nearly 1,500 panels erected on the northeast corner of the company's headquarters campus in Glendale.

The solar power system is part of the $73 million renovation and rehabilitation of the headquarters campus and power solutions businesses for the state's largest company - and will be a showpiece for Johnson Controls as it tries to persuade customers to incorporate renewable energy into their buildings.

Power began generating this month after We Energies commissioned the solar system, said Don Albinger, vice president of renewable energy solutions at Johnson Controls.

The expansion of solar power is timely, coming as the stimulus package was signed into law. Energy experts are marveling at the array of tax benefits aimed at bringing more renewable energy online quickly, such as provisions that provide federal loan guarantees and accelerated depreciation for renewable projects.

"In these dismal times, we've got to look for some bright spots, and to me a great bright spot is the stuff that's involved with renewable energy in that stimulus bill," said Art Harrington, an energy lawyer with Godfrey & Kahn in Milwaukee.

Godfrey hosted three meetings across the state this week that drew about 500 businesspeople looking to learn more about economic opportunities created by the stimulus law, Harrington said.

"My advice to clients is to get knowledgeable on this stimulus bill," he said. "Get knowledgeable quickly and then follow the money."

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State Fair Park to install solar panels

An article from The Business Journal:

The Wisconsin State Fair Park has received state approval to install a solar panel system on the roof of the Wisconsin Products Pavilion.

State Fair Park will use the $306,000 demonstration project to promote renewable energy. The 30-kilowatt solar panel system is expected to be in place for the 2009 Wisconsin State Fair Aug. 6-16. The project received the approval of the State of Wisconsin Building Commission.

The electricity created by the solar panel system will be integrated into the Fair Park’s power grid to help reduce energy consumption. The new system will reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere by more than 31 tons per year, according to the State Fair Park board.

The state Building Commission approved $128,400 of state funding from Conserve Wisconsin for the project at its meeting Wednesday. State Fair Park is applying for up to $100,000 in funds from the We Energies Nonprofit Renewable Energy Grant Program, in addition to applying for a $50,000 grant from Focus on Energy.

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State, cities, schools, businesses await energy dollars

From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Wisconsin businesses and governments should receive at least $276 million, and possibly much more, in energy-related funds from the economic stimulus bill that President Barack Obama signed Tuesday, according to the state agency in charge of the recovery.

Energy provisions in the stimulus package include funding for efforts to make buildings more efficient and to boost the use of renewable energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels.

Also included are tax credits for manufacturers of energy technologies and for consumers who improve the energy efficiency of their homes or buy plug-in hybrid cars. For instance, homeowners will get credits of up to $1,500 for energy upgrades, such as purchases of qualified furnaces and insulation.

Wisconsin is likely to receive $146 million to weatherize some of the most inefficient buildings in the state. An additional $130 million or so is expected under two kinds of grants for energy-efficiency and other projects, said David Jenkins, who is handling energy projects for the state Office of Recovery and Reinvestment.

"In addition to that money, there are 11 different energy- and energy-science-related competitive grant programs, some of which hold promise for Wisconsin," he said. "Our companies and universities and technical colleges are going to do a good job of competing for that money."

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We Energies seeks proposals for renewable energy R&D grants

From the solicitation announcement from We Energies:

We Energies offers grants under its Renewable Energy Research and Development (R&D) Grant Program to its business and not-for-profit electric customers as well as to organizations teamed with We Energies business and not-for-profit electric customers. This program offers financial assistance in the form of a grant to conduct research on renewable energy technologies, or to help demonstrate a renewable energy product or technology. Areas of research that will receive the highest funding priority include work in the following areas:

1. Improving existing renewable energy technologies such as wind, solar, and biomass.
2. Expanding renewable distributed-generation technologies and related technologies, such as energy storage and smart grid technologies that directly benefit the integration and distribution of renewable energy onto the grid.
3. Developing renewable energy technologies, products and services that provide more affordable electricity and improved reliability.
4. Conducting longer-term research on advanced renewable technologies that will help meet tomorrow's electricity needs and contribute positively to the renewable energy industry.

A proposed research project must be located within We Energies electric service territory, or if not located within the service territory it must clearly provide local benefits to the electric service territory. Grants are not intended to offset the cost of purchasing small renewable systems such as a residential photovoltaic installations and/or a small wind turbine on a farm, but rather are intended for research and development endeavors that will clearly advance a technology or product, and will clearly contribute positively to the renewable energy industry. . . .

We Energies offers grant funds up to a maximum grant of $200,000 per project. Although matching funds are not required for this grant program, any additional funding that can be added to the proposal is considered a favorable element of the project and increases the chances for a successful grant. In addition, as noted above, We Energies grant funds may potentially be used as matching funds toward a larger state or federal grant program, provided project activities meet this program’s requirements and intent. Only one R&D grant will be awarded per applicant per program year. Exceptions will be made for Universities and similar type organizations where separate project applications may be received from different departments within the organization in one calendar year. In those cases, only one successful grant will be awarded to a specific department in a calendar year. . . .

How do I apply for a grant?
Complete and submit the application. The application requires a scope of work that describes the goals of your study, the tasks or deliverables that will be accomplished, a timeline and budget for each task/deliverable, and your qualifications (and those of your team, if applicable). If a consultant or outside entity will perform all or a portion of the work, a scope of work and associated materials must be received on their letterhead and signed by the person(s) committing to complete the study. If you’re an organization teaming with a We Energies electric customer, a letter of commitment from all parties, describing the
relationship and roles of each party, also must be included in your application. . . .

More information:
Amy Flom
amy.flom@we-energies.com
262-893-6162

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"Green" means business survival

From an article by Tom Content on JSOnline.com:

About 175 people gathered this morning in the auditorium at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center to talk about ways to green their company’s environmental footprint and save some money at the same time.

Companies are looking to reduce their energy and water bill costs by taking steps to make their processes more efficient.

It’s all about applying the quality-improvement techniques that companies are by now long familiar with – lean manufacturing, Six Sigma – and adapting them to their use of resources such as energy and water, said Joseph Jacobsen, associate dean at Milwaukee Area Technical College.

What’s causing the shift to thinking green? Business owners can sense that carbon regulations are coming and want to get ready, while others are realizing that saving energy and water helps save -- or stem the rise – in utility bills.

“Green is not just environmental sustainability. Green is business sustainability too,” said Jon Dommissee, director of new product development and marketing at Bradley Corp.

Bradley, a local maker of plumbing fixtures, and the state Focus on Energy were sponsors of this morning's Green Manufacturing Summit, and the Journal Sentinel was media sponsor.

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More companies going green in effort to save on utility bills

From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

More companies are looking to reduce their energy and water utility bills by taking steps to make their processes more efficient.

It's all about adapting the quality-improvement techniques that many companies are already using, said Joseph Jacobsen, associate dean at Milwaukee Area Technical College.

What's making people turn to green? Businesses know that carbon regulations are coming and want to get ready, and they are realizing that saving energy and water helps save - or stem the rise - in utility bills.

"Green is not just environmental sustainability. Green is business sustainability too," said Jon Dommissee, director of new product development and marketing at Bradley Corp.

Jacobsen and Dommissee spoke during a Green Manufacturing Summit held Thursday at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center in Bayside. Bradley, a local maker of plumbing fixtures, and the state Focus on Energy sponsored the event, along with the Journal Sentinel.

Despite the slowing economy, companies continue to seek grants from Focus on Energy to help them pay for energy-saving projects, said Nate Altfeather of Focus.

Focus provides grants that help shorten the payback time on projects that boost energy efficiency. With companies holding the line on spending, the types of incentives sought from Focus may shift.

"We're going to see a lot more interest in low and no-cost maintenance incentives," Altfeather said. "People aren't going to be able to cut checks for $100,000 for new equipment."

Focus is developing new incentives designed to help companies with energy-saving upgrades that have a payback of one year or less. The Focus program, funded through charges on utility bills, will pay nearly 100% of an energy audit for those firms, Altfeather said.

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Racine County board delays vote on transit authority

From an article by David Steinkraus in The Journal Times (Racine):

YORKVILLE — The County Board decided Tuesday to delay its vote on a regional transit authority until its next meeting on Feb. 24, but many citizens showed up in the board chambers to voice their opinions.

Although Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee commuter rail has been the focus of most comments, the proposal sent to Gov. Jim Doyle is broader than that.

It suggests that the state create a permanent regional transit authority which could be joined by municipalities in southeastern Wisconsin. This permanent RTA would oversee not only a commuter rail project but also integration of the various bus systems, and it would have the authority to replace local property tax support of mass transit with a sales tax of up to 0.5 percent.

The board resolution does not express specific support for the tax but it does ask that any board with taxing authority be elected rather than appointed and that each municipality be allowed to approve or disapprove a transit tax.

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Wisconsin Electric freezes hiring, executive pay

From an article by in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Anticipating a decline in electricity sales in 2009, Wisconsin Energy Corp. has frozen the salaries of top executives and implemented a limited hiring freeze.

"We have frozen hiring, except for critical operating positions," Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Gale Klappa said.

The cost-containment moves were made at the end of the year and announced Tuesday, after the Milwaukee energy holding company reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat expectations of Wall Street analysts.

Colder-than-projected weather that drove higher use of natural gas and electricity; declining fuel prices; and income from the new Port Washington natural gas-fired power plant helped the company report better-than-expected earnings in the quarter, Chief Financial Officer Allen Leverett said.

We Energies, the main utility subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy, has projected that electricity sales to factories and other large customers will fall 6% in 2009.

In the fourth quarter, sales to those large customers fell 9% from the fourth quarter of 2007. Hardest hit, Klappa said, are paper mills, auto parts suppliers and basic metal companies such as foundries and specialty steel companies.

"Just having talked to a few of our largest customers over the last couple of weeks, my sense is we're not at the bottom yet in terms of the impact of the recession," he said.

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WisDOT slaps Obama

From a post on Milwaukee Rising:

It’s hard to figure: a governor who endorsed Barack Obama for president when it was a semi-risky thing to do is letting his transportation department show total disrespect for the man now that he holds the highest office in the land.

President Obama had made a few priorities absolutely clear: this country must reduce both greenhouse gases and dependency on foreign oil.

Gov. Jim Doyle’s WisDOT, in planning for a new Zoo Interchange, is taking a real slap at the president by totally ignoring those priorities. There will be no planning for any transit to be incorporated into the new design, nor will there be a freeway / transit alternatives analysis done, despite the city’s request.

It’s a road-only study — more greenhouse gases, more dependency on foreign oil. Guess the governor doesn’t like the president all that much. . . .

There is no valid engineering, environmental or geopolitical argument against including transit in the Zoo Interchange project. The opposite is true.

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Businesses with possible products or services for the wind industry could find new opportunities by attending the Wisconsin Wind Energy Supply Chain Seminar, March 31, 2009, Appleton, WI, produced by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA):

The wind energy industry is experiencing unprecedented growth, which is bringing major supply chain challenges to the industry while it aggressively “ramps up” domestic manufacturing of wind turbines and their components. As a result, there is significant opportunity for state and local governments, manufacturers and component suppliers across all industries to help feed the supply chain and grow their business.

This state-level seminar will focus on supply chain challenges and opportunities in the state of Wisconsin for companies looking to get involved in the supply of components and services to the wind energy industry. This state-level event is designed to focus on specific aspects for Wisconsin-based companies and to enable their entrance into the wind industry.

AWEA is presenting this workshop with the support of The New North, RENEW Wisconsin, We Energies, State of Wisconsin-Office of Energy Independence, Wisconsin Department of Commerce.

More details here.

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Online registration opens for Renewable Energy Summit, Milwaukee, March 25-28

The Renewable Energy Summit opened online registration for the event at the Midwest Airlines Center, Milwaukee, March 25 - 28, 2009.

Fifteen program themes highlight bio industry energy; business technologies and practices; curriculum programs and course design; energy efficiency, energy management and renewable, sustainable and green practices; energy policy, legal issues, drivers of the energy revolution, and opportunities for funding; green career pathways; green manufacturing; greening practices for colleges; green transportation; solar electric energy; solar thermal and geothermal energy; utility issues; water technologies; and wind energy.

March 25 and 26 focus on the renewable energy industry with presentations on all sectors of the industry. March 27 features Green Career Day with the focus on educational and job opportunities. March 28 offers workshops and short courses at the MATC Oak Creek Campus. For details see www.renewableenergysummit.org.

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We Energies coal dust silo explosion injures 6 workers

From an article by Tom Kertscher in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Oak Creek - An explosion Tuesday morning inside a We Energies coal dust silo rained flames down on a group of contract employees who were making preparations for repair work to begin.

Four employees were inside the 65-foot-tall structure and two outside when the explosion occurred, said a We Energies spokesman. A doctor said a 43-year-old man pulled his son, 22, and at least one other co-worker to safety.

The 22-year-old was the most severely injured, suffering burns to more than half his body, according to Tom Schneider, medical director of the Columbia St. Mary's Regional Burn Center in Milwaukee.

The cause of the blast, reported at 10:53 a.m., has not been determined. Federal and local authorities will be investigating, officials said.

The six workers are employees of the Milwaukee branch of ThyssenKrupp Safway, a Waukesha-based company that provides scaffolding services, said Michelle Dalton, a company spokeswoman. She would not identify the workers.

ThyssenKrupp was hired as a subcontractor by United States Fire Protection, a New Berlin firm that provides fire protection services, according to We Energies spokesman Brian Manthey.

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Johnson Controls gets Ford hybrid deal

From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Glendale-based Johnson Controls Inc. plans to make batteries for a Ford Motor Co. plug-in hybrid electric vehicle that is to be introduced in 2012.

Ford has selected the hybrid battery joint venture between Johnson Controls, the world's largest battery supplier, and French battery developer Saft to supply lithium-ion batteries for plug-in hybrids.

"This is a great day for the automotive industry in America," Alex Molinaroli, president of Johnson Controls Power Solutions, said in a statement prepared for release at the Washington Auto Show, where the Ford partnership is to be announced today.

"Today, nearly all batteries for hybrid electric vehicles are manufactured offshore. As the United States works to build a manufacturing infrastructure and supply base for hybrid and electric vehicles, this contract signals significant progress for our industry here. . . ."

Cell design, engineering and testing will take place at the joint venture's research hub, the 58,000-square-foot Battery Technology Center in Glendale, the company said.

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Eco Racine sets fair for April 18

From Eco Racine's Fair blog:

4/18/09
Holy Communion Lutheran Church
Fellowship Hall
2000 West Sixth Street
Racine, Wisconsin 53405
10:00 AM to 2:00 PM (maybe longer)
Cost Free!
More info: wclingman@wi.rr.com

Vendors, please contact Eco Racine for information

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