Wind power service firm expanding in New Berlin

A Danish firm's expansion is giving Wisconsin another player in the manufacturing sector geared toward alternative energy.

Avanti Wind has been in operation here for several years, making service lifts used by technicians who inspect and repair wind turbines and need to scale the turbines' tall towers.

Now the company has moved to expand here by moving production of aluminum ladders to Wisconsin from China and Germany, said Kent Pedersen, the company's U.S. general manager.

The pace of wind development across the country has slowed considerably this year - with the second quarter installations of wind power down 71% amid the slow economy and developers having a hard time getting financing.

"But we have done quite well in expanding our customer base in North America, and we've continued to grow in 2010 compared to 2009 and we expect that to continue next year," said Pedersen, whose privately held parent company, based near Copenhagen, has been in the ladder business in Denmark for more than 100 years.

The Avanti local expansion is a small example - creating just a few jobs - of what local economic development officials hope will be a growth sector for Wisconsin, among the biggest manufacturing states in the country.

"It's a market we look at and we see growth, we see jobs and we see capital investment," said Jim Paetsch, business development specialist with the Milwaukee 7 regional economic development group, during the Wisconsin Solar Decade conference Wednesday.

"We've got a lot of companies here that are set up in way such that their traditional strengths service those markets really well," Paetsch said. "And in a really bad economy that is one of the sectors that's growing."

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How promising is algae biofuel?

Algae biofuel is something that is currently receiving lot of attention and many consider this as one of the most promising biofuel technologies that should in years to come significantly reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.It is not very difficult to spot the advantages of using algae biofuel. Algae biofuel can decrease the need for fossil fuels, and expensive foreign oil, it can reduce our

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The $54 question: Is rail worth it?

From a commentary by Steve Hiniker, executive director of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin, in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

With anti-rail activists whipped into a frenzy over threats that passenger rail services pose to Wisconsin and the state's finances, it's time to step back and take a closer look. Are rail opponents onto something, or are they on something?

Rail opponents rail against the cost of rail. They would like to have the money for rail either returned to Washington or spent on highways. Dream on. The $810 million is a part of a larger plan to restore intercity passenger rail across the United States. This is a federal project that won't be derailed by Wisconsin politics. Restoring rail is expensive, but transportation projects are expensive. The Zoo Interchange will cost more than $2 billion to reconstruct. The Marquette Interchange was close to $1 billion. Where's the outrage over that spending?

In any case, the money can't be spent on highways, and even if it was sent back to Washington, it would be reallocated to another state to build their rail system - leaving Wisconsin in the dust. (We also would be sending millions of our tax dollars to another state to build rail instead of us getting the hundreds of millions from other states.)

The core of rail opponents' argument seems to focus on the $54 question: Can we afford the annual operations costs of the added service? Those annual costs will amount to around $6 million a year. That amounts to one-fifth of one cent of our gas tax. So when a driver fills up with 20 gallons of gasoline at $2.70 per gallon, the bill will comes to $54. Just .04 (yes, 4 cents) out of that $54 will go to pay for intercity rail.

Their argument also assumes that there are absolutely no benefits associated with the 4-cent investment that comes with a $54 purchase. It assumes that no one will benefit from jobs created to build the service. That no one will benefit from the development that occurs around rail stations. And that no one will benefit from being able to relax rather than fight traffic on the interstate.

Opponents also like to say that the train fares will be unaffordable. According to the state Department of Transportation, one-way fares will be between $20 and $30 for the ride from Madison to Milwaukee. Compare that to the cost of driving. Using federal reimbursement rates for mileage, driving the 78 miles between Madison and Milwaukee costs $39. That means taking rail saves between $9 and $19 each trip. It saves a lot more for someone in Madison taking the train to Mitchell International Airport to catch a flight due to the saved costs of parking. And it will boost traffic at Mitchell.

It seems like there's a lot of rage over just 4 cents out of every $54.

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Eco-Justice Center
7133 Michna Road
Racine, WI

Phone: 262-681-8527

Email: eco-justice@racinedominicans.org

Addition/rennovations to 1912 Dutch Colonial house include: foam insulation, replacemnt windows, energy star appliances, durisol foundation blocks, eco-shake shingles, recycled red oak & red cedar flooring, marmoleum flooring, FSC pine trim, recycled marble, dual flush toilets, low-flow faucets, non-toxic paint & wood finishes, reclaimed brick & stone, composite decking.


System Components
Solar Electric (55 GE - 200 watt)
Passive Solar Design
Wind Electric (Bergey Excel-S)
Geothermal
Solar Domestic Hot Water (4 panel; 180 gal.)
Architect: Bruce Zahn

Builder: Pragmatic Construction

Installer: Full Spectrum

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Conference highlights solar energy progress

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

It was five years ago that renewable energy proponents dubbed this Wisconsin's Solar Decade - the 10 years that would move solar energy from the fringe to the mainstream.

In 2010, solar remains a fraction of the state's energy mix, but it's growing. And with it, interest is intensifying in manufacturing products for the solar industry.

As solar advocates prepare to host industry conferences this week, the solar industry is installing larger projects, and the cost per project is shrinking.

"It's not getting sunnier in Wisconsin, but prices are coming down and rates are going up," said Niels Wolter, solar electric program manager at Focus on Energy, the statewide energy efficiency initiative that provides incentives for renewable energy installations.

So far this year, the typical cost of a solar-electric system installed at a business with the help of Focus on Energy incentives has fallen 13% from a year ago. The price of these same systems installed on homes has fallen by 7%.

"We're seeing that it may cost $6,000 to $9,000 to install a solar hot water system on a home, and the payback may be around 12 to 14 years," said Amy Heart, Milwaukee solar coach and head of Midwest Renewable Energy Association's Milwaukee office.

A solar-electric, or photovoltaic, system may cost $15,000, but it has a payback of about 10 years, she said.

The main hurdle to broader deployment of solar remains the high upfront cost, as well as the complexity of the incentives available to bring down the cost, Wolter said.

In recent months, though, attention to solar has intensified in the area:

• Construction started this summer on the state's first solar panel factory, Helios USA, in Milwaukee's Menomonee Valley. Helios expects to employ 50 people by next summer.

"That's a good sign for Wisconsin, that there are going to be some jobs here on the manufacturing side in addition to the installation side of things," said Carl Siegrist, senior renewable energy strategist at Milwaukee utility company We Energies.

• The largest solar project to date in the state opened in Milwaukee. It's the Milwaukee Area Technical College PV Educational Laboratory, generating more than 500 kilowatts of power, all with the aim of training students for careers in renewable energy.

• The number of businesses engaged in solar is increasing. Two years ago, seven companies were installing solar in a 20-mile radius of Milwaukee. This year, that number has more than tripled, to 24.

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MMSD ready to fire up methane deal to power Jones Island

From an article by Marie Rohde in The Daily Reporter:

The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District is poised to enter into a 20-year contract to buy methane gas to run the Jones Island Wastewater Treatment Plant, a move district officials say will save taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.

But the project will cost $94.7 million in infrastructure improvements.

“We will be able to purchase methane gas at 48 percent of the cost of natural gas,” said Kevin Shafer, MMSD’s executive director.

The district could begin using methane as early as January 2013, but the system would not be fully functional for several years after that.

While methane gas is increasingly used as a fuel to produce electricity, this plan is unusual in that it requires piping the gas 17 miles from the Emerald Park Landfill on the eastern edge of Muskego.

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Milwaukee ready to shine during Solar Week, Sept. 28 - Oct. 2

From a column by Gregg Hoffman on WisBusiness.com:

Contrary to stereotypes of the gloomy, cloudy Midwest, Milwaukee, and Wisconsin in general, are very conducive to effective use of solar energy, and in fact have developed into leaders in the country in that field.

That fact will be highlighted during Milwaukee Solar Week, Sept. 28-Oct. 2. Milwaukee Shines, the city of Milwaukee's solar program, will team with the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) and other organizations and businesses to showcase renewable energy successes and opportunities during the week.

We Energies and Focus on Energy also are hosting solar events during the week. Milwaukee Shines is coordinating the week.

“The city is fortunate to be hosting two premier professional solar conferences, which will highlight all Milwaukee has to offer a growing solar market,” said Matt Howard, director of Milwaukee’s Office of Environmental Sustainability.

Professionals and the general public will both find things of interest during the week.

“Milwaukee Solar Week has something for everyone,” said Amy Heart, Milwaukee’s Solar Coach and MREA’s Milwaukee Director. “This is a perfect chance to get information on installing solar on your home, find out how to get in the solar business or establish business connections in this growing industry.”

Heart emphasized that Milwaukee and Wisconsin do get an average of 4 ½ hours of sunlight per day. “That’s more than Germany, and Germany is an energy exporter,” she added.

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