USA Today Reports

Two stories in the USA Today caught our attention yesterday.  The first one:  Future of federal solar programs in doubt"WASHINGTON — The solar power industry is facing a double threat from a Congress that may turn off the flow of federal subsidies and take a pass on mandating renewable-energy standards that would increase demand.The Republican-led House, focused on cutting spending and philosophically opposed to subsidizing solar power and clean energy, has targeted federal grant and loan guarantee programs to reduce or eliminate.One is a U.S. Treasury grant program, set to expire at the end of this year, that solar companies say has kept them alive through the recession. The other is an Energy Department loan guarantee program, part...

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EcoFair360 highlights eco-friendly practices and technologies

From an article by Darryl Enriquez on GazetteXtra.com:ELKHORN — Electric vehicles, wind turbines, local food preparation and eco-friendly cleaning products will be displayed at the second annual EcoFair360.EcoFair360 will have more than 200 exhibits, presentations and demonstrations that touch a variety of environmental interests and green and eco-friendly technologies.The fair will be Friday, July 8, through Sunday, July 10, at the Walworth County Fairgrounds.Founders of the fair, Fritz Kreiss and Catherine McQueen, pursue sustainable lifestyles and communities. The couple are planning The Green Leaf Inn, a low-energy hotel that will house EcoVision Sustainable Learning Center south of Delavan.Here are five things to know about the fair:1. Local food. The virtues of buying and cooking locally...

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Small businesses hit hard by energy program cuts and changes

From an article by Judy Newman in the Wisconsin State Journal:Focus on Energy, a statewide program that promotes energy efficiency, is in the midst of big changes: new management by an out-of-state corporation, suspension of a popular rebate program, and sharp funding cuts in the pending state budget. Nearly 20 people already have lost their jobs, mostly in Madison, as a result of the management change. Meanwhile, dozens of small Wisconsin businesses that specialize in setting up solar panels and wind turbines fear for their futures because of the slashed allocation and rebate removal. “It’s a lot of economic activity and jobs in Wisconsin. It’s a lot of energy efficiency, as well,” said Keith Reopelle, policy director for Clean Wisconsin. Focus on Energy was created in 2001 to provide education,...

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Interesting news in RI from National Grid

Our show this week with Nat from Newport Biodiesel will talk a lot about alternative fuels.  Good timing.  This just in from The Providence Journal:   National Grid agrees to buy power from biogas facility planned for R.I. Central LandfillHere is the link:  http://www.projo.com/news/environment/content/ORBIT_BIOGAS_06-27-11_JVOQ15K_v28.43c8e.htmlSome of the story:   "A developer is on the verge of tapping into a new source of renewable energy in Rhode Island with a plan to build a facility at the Central Landfill that would generate electricity using gas from decomposing food. National Grid has agreed to buy power from Orbit Energy’s biogas facility for 9.5 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2013, the first year of operation. The price would increase 2 percent...

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Bike-sharing program bends the ear of local execs

From an article by Corrine Hess in the Business Journal of Milwaukee:Finding a parking spot downtown will no longer be an issue for people willing to pedal.At least, not if a group of local business leaders backing the bicycle rental initiative have any say in it.The Discovery World museum hosted B-Cycle Thursday, the group responsible for setting up bike rental stations at 11 cities across the country, including Madison. Joel Brennan, president and CEO of Discovery World, invited the B-Cycle team to present their proposal to the museum’s board of directors. “This is an innovative idea and we are the center of innovation so we thought it was a good fit,” Brennan said.Lee Jones, director of sales for B-Cycle, said he hoped the event would spark interest in sponsorships for the program in Milwaukee.The...

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IBM Shows what is possible in saving money

We focus on the business side of green.  IBM, if you can believe this, saved 30m in one year on energy savings.  Here's the link:  http://www.environmentalleader.com/2011/06/27/ibm-saves-30m-in-energy-costs-in-one-year/.First part of the story:  "IBM saved $29.7 million in energy expenses and conserved 272,000 MWh of electricity in 2010, according to the company’s 2010 Corporate Responsibility Report.The report says that in 2010, IBM’s energy conservation projects saved an amount equal to 5.7 percent of its total energy use, beating a corporate goal of 3.5 percent. Besides saving electricity costs and consumption, these projects avoided 352,000 million BTUs of fuel oil and natural gas and more than 139,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions.Since 2008 IBM has saved over $50 million...

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Weekend Edition/Welcome to our newest guest blogger--Patrick Beck

Watching a blog grow in audience and stature is very rewarding.  Renewable Now did 830 views in its first month, May, and is on target to be seen 3000 times this month.  Our show is setting a record weekly for viewers, and has views in these countries (these stats are coming right off the data collection systems of the companies hosting our blog and show, Google (Blogger) and Bright Cove):United States178United Kingdom14Myanmar [Burma]5India4Germany3Canada2Malaysia2Netherlands2Romania2Australia1We'll keep updating as we go forward.  Exciting times.Also, welcome to Patrick Beck of http://www.rifarmsandfood.com/ as our newest guest blogger, and future guest on the show.  Take a look at the site which is described...

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Legislators are exporting wind energy jobs and torpedoing all other renewables

From a commentary by Jeff Anthony, American Wind Energy Association, on BizTimes.com:The Wisconsin Assembly recently passed a bill that would enable hydroelectric power from Manitoba, Canada, to be shipped to Wisconsin to meet the state’s 2006 renewable energy law requiring 10 percent of the state’s electricity to come from renewable energy by the year 2015.If enacted into law, the effect of the Manitoba Hydro Bill will be to ship jobs to Canada and reduce Wisconsin’s ability to meet its clean energy requirement by building more homegrown Wisconsin energy projects.One of the bill’s sponsors, State Sen. Frank Lasee (R-De Pere), was quoted saying, “This new law will keep electric bills from going up by making it more affordable for utilities to meet green energy mandates.” Unfortunately, he...

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Chevy Volt Update

Here's interesting feedback from GM on the early success/feedback on the Electric Volt:Thursday, 23 June 2011 08:19 Cristi Landy, Chevrolet Volt Marketing DirectorWhen we launched the Volt at the end of 2010, we started in seven launch markets - California, Texas, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Washington DC. By starting in these markets, we could ensure a better customer experience for our Volt owners and pave the way for electrification of the automotive industry. Along the way, we’ve been constantly gathering feedback with our owners, learning what they like about their cars and how we can make them better.66 percent are completely satisfied with their vehicles – for comparison, the average for compact cars is around 45 percent. 86 percent of Volt buyers replaced a vehicle...

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State’s Hostility Toward Renewables Escalates; “Leaders” Lag Citizenry on Wind Support

Two articles from Catching Wind, a newsletter published by RENEW Wisconsin with funding from a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy:State’s Hostility Toward Renewables EscalatesAt the urging of Wisconsin utilities, several lawmakers have introduced a bill to allow a renewable energy credit (REC) to be banked indefinitely. If adopted, this measure (AB146) would constitute the most devastating legislative assault yet on the state’s renewable energy marketplace, which is already reeling from the suspension of the statewide wind siting rule this March and the loosening of renewable energy definitions to allow Wisconsin utilities to count electricity generated from large Canadian hydro projects toward their renewable energy requirements.“Leaders” Lag Citizenry on Wind SupportPublic support...

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Record audience yesterday/Solar laptop

Thank you to everyone who tuned in to our live stream of the premier of our newest show (which we do every Wed's at 10a and 4p, EST).  We set an audience record and expect that to continue each week.Also, we should have announcements soon on new distribution channels (TV, radio, large Internet video channels, print partners).  We hope you enjoyed the show, and are catching up with past episodes on Arpin Broadcast Network as well.Good news from Samsung:  Samsung to Sell USA’s First Solar LaptopHere's a link to the article:  http://www.environmentalleader.com/2011/06/22/samsung-to-sell-usas-first-solar-laptop/.  Here's part of the story:  "The Samsung NC215S will have a 10.1 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display, 1GB of...

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Guest Blog by Mark Learn

Mark, thanks so much for sending this fantastic article in:  http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/15/electric-vehicle-owners-to-get-cash-back-for-selling-power-to-the-electric-grid-in-denmark-10000/Here's the start of the article:  Denmark is going to be the first test market for Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technology, it was announced yesterday. Electric Vehicle owners will be able sell back power from their EV batteries to the grid, with estimated compensation for EV owners of about $10,000 over the lifespan of the car.Denmark has been chosen by the US company holding the V2G license because of the country’s smart grid advancements, especially the Danish grid’s ability to handle intermittent sources of energy such as wind (Denmark has nearly twice the amount of renewable energy on the...

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Weekend Update/Terra Pass

Great reminder from Terra Pass: "The Five R's of Event SustainabilityThe following tips are provided by TerraPass partner Meet Green, which helps organizations improve their events by integrating sustainable decisions through the planning process.Re-think: When was the last time you stood back and took a hard look at your event model? Rethinking is about taking stock of your event, the format you use and how participant needs are evolving. Could you improve services, expand your reach and cut carbon by exploring hybrid formats? One technology event has reduced their overall carbon emissions by 10,000 metric tons by segmenting their audiences for virtual or in-person participation. Sales and C-level attendees are invited to participate in person while technical experts receive session...

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Building Owners Expect Energy Price Spike, Target 12% Energy Reduction

Are you a building owner?  Do you own a home?  If so, take a look at this expected increase in energy costs you will face heating and cooling your facilities:  http://www.environmentalleader.com/2011/06/16/building-owners-expect-energy-price-spike-target-12-energy-reduction/."Eighty percent of building owners expect double-digit energy price increases over the next year, which has prompted an average energy reduction target of 12 percent, according to Johnson Controls annual global energy efficiency indicator survey of nearly 4,000 building owners and operators around the world. Lighting and heating, ventilation, air conditioning and controls improvements are the most popular energy efficiency improvements.The primary motivation...

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Wonderful News on the local front

Great news in RI:  Subject: RI Senate Approves Renewable Energy Bills PackageThis from Chris Kearns, Manager, Govt Relations here in the state:  "The RI Senate unanimously passed tonight the renewable energy package (net metering, interconnection standards, and distributed generation contracts legislation) that we have been working on for the last couple of months. There was no opposition to any of the bills on the Senate floor. The DG bill vote was 35-0. There are still a couple of minor procedural votes in the House, but the bottom line is that the bills have passed in both chambers. I’ll be providing a summary of the bills passed over the next couple of days, but at the moment we should be happy that we got the following legislation...

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Southeastern Wisconsin leaders ask state to restore mass transit funding

From an article in BizTimes Daily:A coalition of southeastern Wisconsin civic, educational and business leaders is asking the state Legislature to restore state funding for mass transit in the region. The coalition sent a letter to state senators and Assembly members Monday, calling on legislators to refrain from making the cuts outlined in Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill. The letter said mass transit is vital to the economic future of southeastern Wisconsin economy. The letter was co-signed by Kenosha Mayor Keith Bosman; Cudahy Mayor Anthony Day; St. Francis Mayor Al Richards; South Milwaukee Mayor Tom Zepecki; Racine Mayor John Dickert; Oak Creek Mayor Richard Bolander; Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele; Greater Milwaukee Committee President Julia Taylor; Racine Area Chamber...

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The First Electric Motor Plant Owned by a Major U.S. Automaker

Great news on the EV side:  We will soon have our first EV plant producing clean-burning, electric cars.  What a milestone in the new, industrial revolution.Here's the link on Environmental Leader:  http://www.environmentalleader.com/2011/06/13/the-first-electric-motor-plant-owned-by-a-major-u-s-automaker/.Part of the story:  "General Motors has begun construction on its new $269.5 million electric motor manufacturing plant, which is the first for a major U.S. automaker. The plant is located in the GM Baltimore Operations Complex and scheduled to open in 2013. The new factory will produce 190 jobs, working to produce the next generation of electric and hybrid vehicles. The new facility will manufacturer components needed for vehicle electrification, in a complex that...

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More good news

Three great stories from EcoGeek.  We'll give you the highlights, and follow up with more on future shows:1.http://www.ecogeek.org/solar-power/3518  "Researchers at Empa (the Swiss national research laboratory) have achieved a new record in thin-film solar cell efficiency. The flexible solar cells are made from copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS), and these cells have achieved an energy conversion efficiency of 18.7 percent.The previous record of 17.6 percent was achieved only a year previously (and by the same research group, too). This represents more than 6% improvement in the course of only a year. While that's not indicative of a larger trend, it is still a positive development."2.   http://www.ecogeek.org/efficiency/3519:...

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Ford announces tripling electrified vehicle production/Weekend Edition

Great News from Ford:  "Ford announced yesterday it would raise its annual U.S. production capacity for “electrified” vehicles from 35,000 to over 100,000 by 2013."This is exactly what we need in our fight to move to EV's and off of imported oils.  Here's a link to the story:  http://gm-volt.com/2011/06/10/ford-announces-new-hybrids-triple-u-s-electrified-vehicle-production/.This is, in my opinion, one of the greatest challenges, but greatest potential, in the business side of green.  Our ability to move away from fossil fuel, with so much of coming from overseas, and use domestically produced, much cleaner energy to power our cars will dramatically, as in the new industrial revolution, bring money, jobs and prosperity...

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Green jobs growing fast, Wisconsin falling behind

From a blog entry by Sam Weis, media specialist for Clean Wisconsin:Green jobs represent some of the nation’s fastest growing industries with no reason to believe they will slow down anytime soon, according to a recent report released by Ibisworld. The report, “Top ten fastest growing industries,” lists the fastest growing sectors in the United States by percentage of revenue and includes wind power (#3), environmental consulting (#7) and solar power (#10). These industries are growing fast and will likely continue to grow for years: the solar industry can expect to grow another 7.9 percent by 2016, and wind can expect to grow 11.2 percent, according to the report. Green jobs represent a bright spot in today’s troubled economic times. With forecasts of solid growth on the horizon, it would...

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Green Manufacturing Practices help profits and planet.

This is a great article:  Green Manufacturing Practices in America can Help Profits, will Help Planet:It is very long, I will not copy and paste it all, but there's some fantastic information here;  http://news.thomasnet.com/companystory/Green-Manufacturing-Practices-help-profits-and-planet-597279."Here's a couple of excerpts:  More U.S. Firms Going Green, Yet Effort Must GrowBy Gerald Shankel, President and CEOFabricators & Manufacturers Association, InternationalIt's a perfect storm - but a positive one. Two strong forces today are converging in the U.S. manufacturing sector that can deliver a whirlwind of benefits for those companies - and the environment. First, at long last, American industrial executives are recognizing the importance of preserving and enhancing...

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The grand tour: How bike tourism helps local economies/Part 2

I will finish this today, but I'd like to hear from an expert in the bike tourism side of the economy, and look at doing a show together.  I do know bike sales are booming, and it is an increasing part of the health/recreation industries.  However, I'd like to explore more of the financial side of the business.  Please contact us.Part 2:  "Then there's unsupported touring. It's the same thing you might do with a car -- strap some basics to your rear rack and take off down the road to meet people, see sights, and gaze contemplatively at the road ahead.You can take a bike trip for next to no money by camping and picnicking your way down scenic country roads, picking up supplies and souvenirs at the same places locals...

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