Lake Michigan Gets Look from Wind Researchers

From an article in the Journal Sentinel, read the whole article here.

Study seeks data on mid-water winds

The notion is intoxicating: Capture the wind that has buffeted boaters on the Great Lakes for centuries and convert it into clean, renewable energy. But one important piece of data has been missing: We don't know exactly how windy it is out there.

Soon, we will.

A floating research platform launched to collect data on wind speeds high above the water in the middle of Lake Michigan has begun feeding the information to researchers involved in a $3 million project.

"We're capturing some of the very first data," said Arnold "Arn" Boezaart, director of the Michigan Alternative & Renewable Energy Center at Grand Valley State University in Muskegon, which is leading the research. "The wind data that we're bringing on shore - when I brought the first data cards on shore, I felt like I was bringing gold bullion."

The WindSentinel research platform, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the State of Michigan, We Energies and the Sierra Club, uses laser-pulse radar technology to gather information about wind speeds at heights in excess of 500 feet above water.

A partnership of Axys Technologies in Vancouver, British Columbia, and a Virginia company called Catch the Wind incorporated the laser and radar technology into a wind-measuring platform that is powered with renewable energy sources - primarily wind and solar, but also biodiesel. The platform was the first one deployed in North America and the only one on the Great Lakes. Another was deployed recently in the Atlantic Ocean off New Jersey.

Previous Great Lakes studies have indicated there are strong winds midlake, but wind monitors in the lake today measure wind speeds at only 10 to 12 feet off the water, well below the height that would be used to generate electricity from wind. There has been no hard data documenting wind speeds at the height where a turbine's blades would turn.

Preliminary results from the new project look promising: Data from June showed an average wind speed of 22 mph 410 feet above the water.

"Based on our early assessments of the average data that we're gathering, there clearly is a very robust wind resource out over Lake Michigan," Boezaart said. Wind speeds over 15 to 20 mph are considered commercially viable for wind generation, he said.

Read more...

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Good report from Clean Technica

We've reported a lot on EV's, we are very big proponents of moving to domestically produced energy for our cars, and we'd like to follow that today with this excellent story from  Clean Technica which drives home the overall savings you can enjoy by driving an EV.   There's a link for the whole story, but we've reproduced part of it:

EV Low Operating Costs Make EVs Cheaper Over Time, Especially Useful for Fleet Operators

Sticker shock gets even the best of us, but a report from Pike Research says the low cost of electric vehicle charging, compared to traditional fuel, brings the total cost of ownership of electric vehicles below that of internal combustion engine vehicles!

Senior research analyst Lisa Jerram said electric battery vehicles have seen a resurgence recently, especially from fleet operations. One concern for fleet managers, though, is the cost of charging equipment.

Check out the full report here.

Source: Business Wire
Image: Ford Focus Electric via Ford 

Clean Technica (http://s.tt/1m5bv)

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Let's push to get this passed soon

This week, another good report from the Better World Club.  This article brings light to legislation, good legislation, held up in Congress as they fight over spending.  You'd hate to a positive change like this sidelined by a lack of cohesiveness on spending.

Our greatest return on investment, as a homeowner, consumer and business owner is money put into efficiency--reducing our energy and waste production.  We need a national policy and standard on efficiency.  Let's get vocal in asking our Senators to pass this into law:

BETTER WORLD CLUB NEWS

Lack of Agreement on Federal Spending Stalls Energy Efficiency Bill

Even Though It Would Create 80,000 Jobs and Reduce Emissions by Millions of Tons

It's Like That Time You Couldn't Go On The School Trip Because Your Parents Were Fighting Over Who Maxed Out the Credit Cards

A bill currently stalled in the Senate could establish the first national energy efficiency policy. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rob Portman (R-OH) co-authored the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act of 2011, which passed the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources by an 18-3 vote in July 2012. It is supported by members of both parties, most notably Senate Chair Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska). The Shaheen-Portman bill also has a companion: the Implementation of National Consensus Appliance Agreement Act of 2011 (or INCAAA). As described by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy: 

“The Shaheen-Portman bill contains a variety of provisions designed to increase energy efficiency in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors of the economy, such as establishing centers to train building engineers and technicians in energy-efficient methods, and a loan program to support industrial energy efficiency. INCAAA establishes new and revised efficiency standards for a variety of common household and commercial appliances based on consensus agreements between product manufacturers and energy efficiency advocates.” 

Proponents of the Shaheen-Portman bill say it will lower consumers’ net energy costs, add 80,000 jobs in the next 8 years, and lower carbon dioxide emissions by 29 million metric tons per year by 2020. 

Opponents see the bills as an unwanted expansion of federal power and a distraction from natural resource extraction. However, the main obstacle to both bills is congressional delays. “Until we get a clear architecture built dealing with taxes, revenues, entitlements and federal spending, I think any broad policy initiative is not going to move,” said Senator Mark Udall. Udall is a member of the same Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources that passed the Shaheen-Portman bill in 2011. He remains hopeful that the two energy efficiency bills are targeted enough to circumvent the current lack of bipartisan agreement on government spending and tax policies. 

 In the meantime, Senator Shaheen has taken matters into her own hands. She has vowed to add an amendment to every bill introduced in the Senate.

“This [Sen. Joe Lieberman's Cybersecurity Act] is the fourth bill that we’ve filed an amendment on, and we’re going to keep doing that to try and raise attention to the fact that this is legislation that has bipartisan support that we think should come to the floor because we think it could make a difference,” Shaheen said. 

Contact your senators to voice your opinion on the Shaheen-Portman and INCAAA bills.

-August 2012

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Everyone should take a bow and feel good

We share the enthusiasm expressed below by Environment RI, and there's plenty of praise for the 12 other states who led the charge to the new clean-air standards we have today.  Enjoy and breath deep.  We are headed for a healthier world:

"If you haven’t heard the news, today is a very big day.

Decades from now, the clean car standards finalized today by the Obama administration will be highlighted as a monumental turning point in America’s quest to get off oil and tackle global warming.

That’s how big a deal these clean car standards really are.  By doubling the fuel efficiency of the cars on the road today by 2025, the standards will cut as much global warming pollution in Rhode Island alone in 2030 as is emitted by 132,000 of today’s vehicles.  And nationally they’ll cut our annual oil use by an amount equivalent to what we currently import from Saudi Arabia.[1]

Help spread the great news by saying a quick “I’m excited about the new clean car standards from the Obama administration!” onFacebook or Twitter to celebrate this historic victory for our environment.  Or you can send an email to the White House letting them know how you feel!  

Will these standards alone solve global warming and get us off oil?  Of course not.  But the U.S. has never taken a bigger step in that direction than we did today.  And while Environment Rhode Island played a key role in getting these standards across the finish line, my staff couldn’t have done the work they did without your support.  So thank you and congratulations!  

One last thought: just as important as this victory and its environmental benefits is the story of the state leadership that made it all possible.  Long before the Obama administration took office, California and 13 other states—including ours, thanks in part to the work of Environment Rhode Island—were developing and implementing their own state-level clean car standards.  Beyond charting a path for pollution reductions for these states, the standards also pushed automakers to begin developing the cleaner cars we see on the road today.  And that paved the way for the Obama administration to set these new federal standards.

Today’s news goes to show how state-level victories for our environment eventually snowball into national victories, and that’s a critical reason why Environment Rhode Island works as hard as we do.

Thanks again for making victories like this possible!"

Yours,

John Rumpler
Senior Environmental Attorney
Environment Rhode Island

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Good report from Better World Club

On Goodyear Tire's quest to build better performing and improved earth-friendly tires.  Here's the story:

Goodyear Tire and Rubber is working on a new technology that can help make its tires less expensive to produce and last longer and it involves something that the U.S. has plenty of – soybeans.

Goodyear researchers have found that using soybean oil in the manufacturing process can extend the tread life of tires and significantly reduce the amount of petroleum required, "up to seven million gallons each year" for the company as a whole. Adding soy to rubber compounds in tire production, the company says, has proven to improve the mixing process, and creates a better rubber compound. The soy helps the rubber blend easier with the silica, a basic component of ordinary beach sand and an integral tire ingredient.

Goodyear is the the best-selling tire-manufacturer in North America. Adding soy, Goodyear says, could enhance its already strong reputation for quality. Goodyear has consistently been a top pick in ConsumerReports' tire ratings. Therefore, a 10-percent increase to tread life could play well with consumers looking to get more miles for their tire bucks.

"Consumers benefit through improved tread life, Goodyear gains with increased efficiency and energy savings and we all win whenever there is a positive impact on the environment." said Jean-Claude Kihn, Goodyear's chief technical officer, in a statement.

If testing continues to produce the results Goodyear has gotten thus far, the tires could be on sale by 2015. For more on tires, check out the AOL Autos Techsplanation series on Tire Tread Technology.

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Solar cell facts

A solar cell is an electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect. A solar cell is also called photovoltaic cell or photoelectric cell.

Photoelectric effect was first observed 1839 by Edmond Becquerel, a physicist from France. In year 1876 Adams and Day observed the photovoltaic effect in solid selenium.  Modern solar cell was discovered

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Our most recent radio show on WARL 1320 and Blog Talk Radio

We recorded this show, as we broadcast live, this Weds.  Show is terrific.  Our thanks to our excellent guests, as described on this post on Blog Talk (where you can listen to the show, and all shows, 24/7:

On this program of ReNewable Now, we’ll be exploring the locally grown food market. Join us as we interview Dan Horan, President and CEO, of Five Acre Farms. We’ll also hear about what’s going on at Hope & Main pertaining to this topic. Don’t forget to tune in! ReNewable Now…educating you on the business side of green

Here's the link to this show:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/renewable-now/2012/08/22/the-locally-grown-food-market

Enjoy.

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Enjoy the show and tour 21012

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From ABC News

Alpha coal project gets green light

Not very promising news:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-08-23/the-giant-alpha-coal-project-gets-the-green-light/4218856?section=business

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Great radio show today on WARL 1320 and Blog Talk Radio

Thanks to our guests, Dan from 5-Acre Farm and Lisa from Hope and Main in Warren.  Both great stories and we look forward to following them in the future.

This show will be posted to our Blog Talk network by tomorrow, but in the meantime, feel free to use this link to listen to previous shows:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/renewable-now

After you listen to some of the shows, or watch on renewablenow.tv.com, let us know which ones you liked best and why.

We are, of course, the business side of green.  Stay tuned.

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Great post from Seth Handy

On seeing terrific growth in MA of clean energy jobs.  This is a very promising beginning to a new and diverse economy.  The balance of economic growth with environmental protection is our sweet spot.  We love seeing progress like what is being experienced in MA.

The story: Massachusetts Sees Big Growth In Clean Energy Jobs 

n News Departments > FYI by NAW Staff on Thursday 16 August 2012    Massachusetts' clean energy economy grew by 11.2% from July 2011 to July 2012 and now employs 71,523 people at 4,995 clean energy firms across the commonwealth, finds a new report released by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC). According to the report, which was prepared by BW Research Partnership on behalf of MassCEC, this growth outpaced that of the overall economy nearly 10 times over, and the trend is expected to continue. The survey found that employers are optimistic about the coming year and expect to hire more workers in 2013. Clean energy continues to maintain its place as one of the commonwealth’s major industries, representing 1.7% of the total Massachusetts workforce, the report adds. The survey found a large number of firms in varied industries - ranging from construction and manufacturing to research and development - reporting activity and employment in the clean energy sector. Additionally, the report identified a large number of companies that do not necessarily identify themselves as clean energy companies first, but directly engage in activities related to the clean energy cluster. For the purposes of the report, a clean energy firm is defined as an employer engaged in whole or in part in providing goods and services related to renewable energy, energy efficiency, alternative transportation and carbon management. Clean energy workers are defined as spending at least a portion of their time supporting the clean energy aspects of their businesses. Don't miss the latest wind energy news -- register to receive NAW's news headlines.

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Great news from AP and Bloomberg

This is a terrific trend if we can keep it going.  Here's the headline: AP IMPACT: CO2 emissions in US drop to 20-year low

Chart shows carbon dioxide emissions from burning coal. Graphic is fixed. Unit for chart is changed from "trillion" to "billion"

What follows is even more interesting:   "In a surprising turnaround, the amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere in the U.S. has fallen dramatically to its lowest level in 20 years, and government officials say the biggest reason is that cheap and plentiful natural gas has led many power plant operators to switch from dirtier-burning coal.

Many of the world's leading climate scientists didn't see the drop coming, in large part because it happened as a result of market forces rather than direct government action against carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere.

Michael Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at Penn State University, said the shift away from coal is reason for "cautious optimism" about potential ways to deal with climate change. He said it demonstrates that "ultimately people follow their wallets" on global warming.

"There's a very clear lesson here. What it shows is that if you make a cleaner energy source cheaper, you will displace dirtier sources," said Roger Pielke Jr., a climate expert at the University of Colorado.

In a little-noticed technical report, the U.S. Energy Information Agency, a part of the Energy Department, said this month that energy related U.S. CO2 emissions for the first four months of this year fell to about 1992 levels. Energy emissions make up about 98 percent of the total. The Associated Press contacted environmental experts, scientists and utility companies and learned that virtually everyone believes the shift could have major long-term implications for U.S. energy policy.

While conservation efforts, the lagging economy and greater use of renewable energy are factors in the CO2 decline, the drop-off is due mainly to low-priced natural gas, the agency said..."

The most critical part of this finding is the reduction came in reaction to "market conditions"; in essence, there's a great financial reason for operators to switch plants over to natural gas.

As we've been saying for 18 months, the secret elixir for positive economic/environmental changes is the ROI becomes compelling on investments in waste and energy reduction.  That day has come...for us all.  The investments you make in remodeling your homes and businesses will return positive cash flow to you--while helping restore our ecological balance.

When will you invest?

Here's the link for the balance of the story:  http://www.laramieboomerang.com/articles/2012/08/18/ap/science/us_gas_drilling_co2_drop.txt

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Disturbing news from the Gazette-Journal in VA

Here's the headlines from this story which looks positive:  

More businesses sought for Gloucester green initiative

That, on the surface, looks fine.  Yet, read the story below:  

"BILL NACHMAN | POSTED ON AUG 15, 2012 - 11:18 AM

 PRINTER FRIENDLY VIEW

Through the Gloucester Green Office Challenge, county businesses learn how to put simple environmental strategies into action to reduce avoidable waste and pollution, while saving energy and costs, says Clean Community coordinator Bill Bell.

However, few businesses have expressed an interest in the program since it received a major push early this year, Bell said. The "challenge" assists participating businesses in implementing environmentally-friendly initiatives that will help to improve the environment and reduce the county’s carbon footprint.

Bell said he would like to present certificates to more local businesses for completing the self-directed challenge that both identifies environmentally-friendly practices in the workplace and encourages employees to make energy-saving steps at home as well. Only one business has received a certificate since the Clean Community Office began promoting the program early this year.

Businesses seeking recognition must indicate they are taking many pro-environment steps, such as energy conservation and recycling materials. "It is important for businesses to reduce, reuse and recycle," Bell said"

How sad that "few businesses have expressed interest" in a program that will both save them money and help the environment.  Why?  What other motivation do company owners need to invest in efficiency?

The fact is, the ROI on investments in efficiency and clean energy is, in our opinion and experience, the best available today.  Our internal rate of return on our reduced energy use at our global headquarters, and use of solar, eclipses 25%...pretty phenomenal.

We'd like to hear from you on this, and would like to see those companies in Glouster, VA jump into this worthy program and benefit themselves and the air quality in the area. 

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Continuing our post from yesterday from Wall ST Report

Helping to create new, green jobs is a big part of our mission.  To help make this happen, our show seeded a clean energy fund (and efficiency fund) in New England which is in the process of raising 14m of debt and equity to launch, by year 3, 25m a year in solar, wind, hydro and fuel cell projects.

We also just invested money into RI's best know accelerator as they give birth to new, innovative, companies here and throughout the region.  We also applied to National Grid for permission to build a 3meg solar site close to the solar system we installed on our rooftop (175kw system).

All of which stirs clean, economic development.  We hope, even on a very small scale, you are doing the same.

Let's finish this story and post:

...24/7 Wall St. examined the BLS report to identify the 10 states with the greatest number of green jobs as a percentage of total jobs in the state. Green jobs are those found “in businesses that produce goods and provide services that benefit the environment or conserve natural resources.” Data on green job growth by state from 2003 to 2010 were taken from the Brookings Institution’s “Sizing the Clean Economy: A National and Regional Green Jobs Assessment.”

These are the states where green jobs thrive.

1. Vermont

•  Green jobs as percentage of total: 4.4 percent
•  Green jobs in private sector as percentage of total: 3.9 percent
•  Unemployment rate: 5.0 percent

Vermont is the country’s largest center for green job employment relative to its entire workforce by a substantial margin. Additionally, of the nearly 13,000 green jobs in the state, more than 9,000 are in the private sector. The state’s primary sectors of employment are organic food production and farming and, to a lesser extent, green building materials. It is not clear whether Vermont will maintain its position as the nation’s green leader. Job growth in the clean economy has increased at a slower rate than the national level between 2003 and 2010.

24/7 Wall St.: Fast-food chains with the most unhealthy customers

2. Idaho

•  Green jobs as percentage of total: 3.7 percent
•  Green jobs in private sector as percentage of total: 2.8 percent
•  Unemployment rate: 8.1 percent

Advertise | AdChoices

Idaho is another state with a large amount of land -- nearly 67 percent -- owned by either the state or federal government. The largest segment of the state’s clean economy is conservation, followed by the production of energy-saving building materials and hydropower. A few of the state’s major green companies are Boise Cascade, Power Engineers and Windsor Window.

3. Alaska

•  Green jobs as percentage of total: 3.6 percent
•  Green jobs in private sector as percentage of total: 2.8 percent
•  Unemployment rate: 7.2 percent

More than 89 percent of Alaska is owned by federal and state governments. Not only does the state’s clean economy account for a particularly large share of total employment, but its job growth rate from 2003 to 2010 has been significantly greater than the national average. The largest segment in the state’s green economy is by far conservation, as it employs more than five times the people as the second-largest segment. Major employers include the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

4. Maryland

•  Green jobs as percentage of total: 3.6 percent
•  Green jobs in private sector as percentage of total: 2.8 percent
•  Unemployment rate: 6.5 percent

Clean economy job growth in Maryland has largely mirrored that of the U.S. between 2003 and 2010. Waste management and treatment and conservation are the state’s largest green sectors. The fastest growing segment is solar energy, which has had a job growth rate of nearly 64 percent from 2003 to 2010. Some of the state’s major clean economy employers are environmental services companies Century Engineering, Kci Holdings and Johnson, Mirmiran & Thompson.

24/7 Wall St.: The highest-paid hosts on late-night TV

5. Montana

•  Green jobs as percentage of total: 3.5 percent
•  Green jobs in private sector as percentage of total: 2.4 percent
•  Unemployment rate: 6.5 percent

Montana has among the largest share of green jobs in the public sector. The state has a particularly large amount of public lands, such as state parks, which allow for a large amount of jobs in solar PV, or photovoltaic systems and hydropower. The largest clean economy sector, however, is conservation. Two of the state’s largest employers are the National Park Service and Forest Service.

Click here to read the rest of of the 10 states where green jobs thrive

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Natural Gas: Wrestling With Reality

August 10, 2012
A commentary by Michael Vickerman, RENEW Wisconsin, Director, Policy and Programs:

After skidding below $2.00/MMBtu this winter, wholesale natural gas prices are now creeping toward the $3.00 mark. This upward movement is the result of below-normal volumes of natural gas going into storage for the winter heating season. The latest report, released August 16th, marks the 16th straight week where injection volumes lagged significantly behind the five-year average.

Notwithstanding this mild rebound, everyone in the energy industry, including the traders themselves, knows that $3.00/MMBtu is well below the cost of producing natural gas, and cannot deliver a return that can support future drilling efforts. This is particularly true with shale gas, the so-called “game-changer” that industry flacks contended would topple King Coal’s reign over the electricity sector.

High-profile shale gas producers like Chesapeake Energy are now running out of ways of concealing their financial distress. Consider the following developments that occurred over the last fortnight.

• Chesapeake Energy announced plans to reduce domestic gas production in 2013 by 8%; 
• BHP Billiton wrote down $2.84 billion on the value of Fayetteville shale gas assets it had acquired in 2011; and 
• The most recent count of rigs drilling for natural gas in the United States is 495, down 70% from the record-setting levels seen in September 2008.

“Write down” is a fairly bloodless way to describe the loss of $3 billion; “carnage” is better at conveying the pain that now grips the natural gas sector. This begs the question: why are wholesale natural gas prices still under the $3.00/MMBtu level?



I believe that there are two reasons for this phenomenon. The first is that energy traders, like virtually everyone else in this country, are truly convinced that the United States is awash in shale gas, thanks to a brilliant industry-led public relations campaign. Lower prices help reinforce the popular belief that cheap gas will be with us for another century. Unfortunately, federal energy agencies and universities have also bought into this view of the supply picture big-time, leaving little room for skeptics and agnostics to influence public perceptions.

This overarching belief has been unintentionally reinforced by local and regional controversies over the practice of hydraulic fracturing solid rock to obtain the shale gas trapped inside. Virtually unheard of four years ago, “fracking” has vaulted into the public consciousness, and in doing so, sustains the society-wide belief that natural gas can be accessed almost anywhere in the United States.

Ironically, the myth of abundance that E&P companies so carefully cultivated--and bankrolled--is now clearly working against their short-term interests.

The other factor that keeps prices so low is the traders’ fear of large demand swings. For example, the phantom winter of 2011-2012, which cut demand for heating fuel by more than 25%, creating a colossal oversupply that sent wholesale prices crashing. The supply pendulum is now swinging the other way, and more than half of the bulge has melted away. Assuming a continuation of smaller-than normal injections, natural gas inventories should be in line with the five-year average by mid-December.

Traders attribute the ongoing reduction in inventories to a hotter than normal summer, prompting utilities to switch on more gas generators to meet system peaks. But weather isn’t the only thing that influences the storage picture; output does as well. But as long as traders and speculators subscribe to the myth of nearly limitless supply, they will discount the possibility that declining output is also responsible for lagging storage volumes.

The paradigm shift ushered in by the fracking phenomenon won’t go away easily. But in the not-very-distant future, the reality of reduced drilling activity and capital spending, along with rapid decline rates in shale gas plays, will bite deeply into natural gas supplies and cause yet another overturning of expectations in this sector. For electric utilities as well as end-users, the results will not be pretty.

Michael Vickerman is program and policy director of RENEW Wisconsin, a sustainable energy advocacy organization. For more information on the global and national petroleum and natural gas supply picture, visit "The End of Cheap Oil" section in RENEW Wisconsin's web site: www.renewwisconsin.org. These commentaries also posted on RENEW’s blog: http://renewwisconsinblog.org and Madison Peak Oil Group’s blog: http://www.madisonpeakoil-blog.blogspot.com

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Good article from Wall ST Report

On states where green job are booming.  Is yours one?

We will finish this tomorrow.

By Charles B. Stockdale, 24/7 Wall St.

"The green economy often is cited as a key driver of the national economic recovery. At the very least, it is creating jobs. The total number of jobs related to green products and services in 2010 was 3.13 million, according to the first-ever green jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, to put things in perspective, these jobs accounted for only 2.4 percent of the country’s total employment that year.

In many states, jobs associated with the production of green goods and services represented a slightly larger share of employment. In 11 states, green jobs accounted for 3 percent or more of total jobs. Vermont had the highest proportion of clean economy jobs at 4.4 percent. Green jobs in these states are represented in many sectors, including manufacturing and construction.

Although the states with the greatest numbers of green jobs relative to total employment vary in many ways, they share several characteristics. Many of these states have among the highest rates of public land -- land owned by federal and state governments. Colorado, Idaho and Alaska have among the highest rates of public land in the country, which allows for conservation and conservation-related jobs to flourish.

The states with the highest proportion of green jobs also tend to have below-average unemployment rates. As of January 2012, the national unemployment rate stood at 8.3 percent. Only one of the states with the most green jobs had a higher unemployment rate; two states had the same rate; and the remaining seven states had lower unemployment rates than the national average. Vermont had an unemployment rate of just 5 percent -- among the lowest in the country.

Of course, this is not to suggest that green jobs are improving the unemployment situation in these areas. Instead, these states may simply do a good job of promoting job growth in general -- including green jobs..."

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From Inspire Green Newsletter

Great story on what the London Olympics just accomplished over the last 2 weeks.  We applaud their efforts, and look forward to an even better performance in Brazil:

"London Olympics 2012: Going Green is the new Gold

With 10,500 Olympic athletes and 4200 Paralympic athletes competing, and estimated 11million visitors, 21,000 journalists and around 200,000 staff members, there will be a lot of mouths to feed at the games, which in turn, means tons of packaging will be required.

With the eyes of the world set on London, the London Organizing committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) made a bold move:  Zero Waste

Instead of accepting almost certainty of PET bottles filling up trash cans and Styrofoam containers littering the land, London 2012 became the first Olympic and Paralympic Games to commit to a zero-waste-to-landfill target.

“While a handful of events and venues have achieved recycling performance of up to 50%, recycling rates are generally much lower (approximately 15%) and a significant amount of material either ends up in landfill or is sent for energy recovery,” LOCOG said.

Some of the environment-friendly schemes the organizers have planned include:
At the Olympic village, carbon emissions will be cut down by 50% and the entire project will be 25% more energy-efficient compared to current building regulations.
20% of the required energy for the Olympic Village and Park will be provided by renewable energy.
20% of the construction materials and around 90% of the demolished buildings will be recycled and/or reused."

Water used at the Olympic Village will be 20$ less than average.
30 km of new routes for walking and 50 km of new cycling tracks will be built.

The Olympic Games are meant to be a grand celebration of sportsmanship and human achievement by the international community, but they also give the host nation an opportunity to display their vision and organizational skills. This time, the organizers want the London 2012 Olympics to be the greenest in history.

For more info: 

http://www.packagingdigest.com/article/522256-London_Olympics_2012_Going_green_is_the_new_gold.php
http://www.olympicgames2012london.org/london2012olympicsgoinggreen.html

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India's Blackout Lesson: Coal Failed, Small Solar = Big Results

From a story by Justin Guay, Sierra Club International Program:

Of course they still have to face the problems they have inherited from trying to copy/paste a centralized grid from the West. So what can they do to solve peak problems with the grid they already have in place? Deploy lots and lots of distributed solar and efficiency.

That's because, unlike coal, solar for the most part is available when you need it - during peak hours. Which is why it's great to see States like Gujarat taking the lead in roof top solar programs with the support of the IFC. And efficiency makes the peaks smaller so you need less power in the first place.

The irony here of course is that distributed generation has always been ignored as trivial compared to the real need for a large scale 'modern grid.' That’s because policymakers and commentators lack the imagination to understand the fact that when aggregated, small can be very, very big.

Take the hidden truth behind India's modern grid (as my colleague Jigar Shah points out): it is actually already a distributed system that is largely powered by filthy, costly diesel gen sets. That’s because power outages are so frequent that businesses and wealthy individuals have been forced to pay for this backup generation to ensure power. This is a tremendous opportunity for companies seeking targeted diesel replacement strategies to save people and companies tremendous amounts of money, while providing reliable power.

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Enjoy the show and tour

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Town of Sherman wind farm good for community

A letter to the editor of the Sheboygan Press written by Maureen Faller, a member of the board of directors of RENEW and co-owner of Kettle View Renewable Energy:

It is not surprising that the proposed Windy Acres Wind Farm project in the Town of Sherman has become a highly emotional debate. However, as a citizen, tax payer and small business owner in the Town of Sherman, I am concerned about the vast amount of misleading information that is being circulated throughout our community.

We’ve been barraged with flyers of burning wind turbines, yet the likelihood of this occurring is less than .001% based on 165,000 wind turbines installed worldwide. By comparison, our local fire department was dispatched to two car fires this month alone.

We’ve heard about the wind turbines affecting our property values, however an independent study conducted by the firm Poletti and Associates recently concluded otherwise. In Kewaunee County, which hosts two of the oldest commercial wind projects in the United States, their report suggests no statistically significant effect on the sale of homes or construction of new homes. Furthermore, there is no credible evidence that existing wind development in Wisconsin has depressed property values statewide. In fact, according to data compiled by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance on property values and levies, in Fond du Lac County, equalized valuation actually increased by 1.2% during that time, while Dodge and Kewaunee counties managed smaller declines than the statewide average during that period.

We’ve been told of the ensuing health effects that will plague our families and animals. However, thorough studies by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the Australian Government National Health & Medical Research Council, the Chief Medical Officer of Health of Ontario, Canada and the United Kingdom have each concluded that wind turbines do not pose a health threat. More recently, Kitty Rhoades, the Deputy Secretary of the State of Wisconsin Department of Health Services and Governor Walker appointee, could not have been more clear when she affirmed Wisconsin’s stance that the “levels of noise, flicker and infrasound measured from wind turbines at current setback distances do not reach those that have been associated with objective physical health effects.”

Senator Grothman recently insinuated that a wind farm was not welcome in the Town of Sherman. Considering that the July 24 town meeting was attended by more people from Brown County, Manitowoc County and other areas outside our township, I find the senator’s assessment quite presumptive. He may be interested in knowing that recent polling shows that 85% of his fellow Wisconsinites support an increased use of wind power to meet our energy needs, because wind power provides safe, homegrown energy and creates family-supporting jobs across the state.

It is important that we recognize the benefits of the proposed wind farm in the Town of Sherman and do not allow a vocal minority to control this important debate. This is precisely what the anti-wind groups hope to achieve. Deceptive propaganda is their only weapon, because the benefits of sustainable, clean energy and local job creation are irrefutable. Questioning their allegations, asking them for independent third-party data and educating ourselves is our greatest defense. There is truth in education. As quoted by the Dalai Lama “Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace.”

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Sorry for the change yesterday on the radio side

We had a great live show set up for yesterday on WARL 1320AM and Blog Talk, but our major guests cancelled late and we had no choice but to run the audio from a recent TV show.  We apologize for that.  We'll be back live promoting Green Fest in Boston next week.

In the meantime, here's some good reading on success stories within the green economy from the UN:

ou are: www.unep.org > Green Economy > Success Stories

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Success Stories

Collection of 8 stories

The economic analysis in the Green Economy Report builds in part on the encouraging signs and results of many initiatives around the world. A number of these come from developing countries, including emerging economies, and illustrate the positive benefits from specific green investments and policies, that if scaled up and integrated into a comprehensive strategy, could offer an alternative development path, one that is pro-growth, pro-jobs and pro-poor. A limited selection from a growing range of experiences in different sectors, are summarized below, highlighting their economic, social and environmental benefits. While some represent established broad-based policies and investment programmes, others are newly initiated pilot projects. In this sense the collection underlines that a green economy strategy has established and proven examples on which to build. At the same time, some recent developments also illustrate the growing interest in seizing opportunities to move to a green economy.

We are interested in your own experience with success. Contact us if you have a story to tell.

	Organic Agriculture in Cuba Cuba’s transition to organic agriculture emerged as a necessary response to the food crisis that gripped the nation in the early 1990s. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union and a longstanding trade embargo that severely constrained industrialised agricultural practices on the island, Cuban producers turned the declining availability of pesticides, fertilisers and petroleum into an opportunity to shift towards organic production with numerous environmental, social and economic gains.
	Solar Energy in Barbados Barbados’ overreliance on imported fossil fuels has become one of the island’s major environmental concerns. The Barbadian government’s National Strategic Plan of Barbados for 2006-25 is designed to rectify this dependency by increasing the country’s renewable energy supply, with a particular focus on raising the number of household solar water heaters by 50 per cent by 2025. Solar water heaters are now a widely used renewable energy technology in Barbados, with installations in nearly half of the island’s dwelling units.
	Waste Management in Republic of Korea Waste management and recycling in the Republic of Korea’s has not reduced waste generation, but has also encouraged reusing waste as an energy resource. Over the past years, targeted policies have significantly increased the recycling rate while creating thousands of jobs in an endeavour to build a Resource Recirculation Society.

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