(by Trey Granger of Earth 911) – Over the past three weeks, we have spoken with waste officials in more than 40 states while compiling Earth911’s Christmas tree recycling directory, and we noticed some reoccurring trends.
As you get ready to “undeck” the halls, here are a few helpful tips to guarantee your Christmas tree doesn’t end up in a landfill. Considering the EPA estimates 20 percent of our municipal solid waste is already organic, it’s worth the time to properly dispose of your tree.
http://earth911.com/blog/2009/12/21/5-step-treecycling-guide/
(From Michigan Green) – Energy’s future may have come to light with Exxon Mobil Corp.’s proposed purchase of XTO Energy. If ExxonMobil’s predictions are right, unconventional formations such as shale would provide significantly more of this country’s generation and transportation fuels.
Texas-based XTO, which has the resource equivalent of 45 trillion cubic feet of shale gas, shale oil and coal-bed methane, might be the perfect fit for ExxonMobil — or any deep-pocketed oil partner, for that matter. Indeed, Big Oil has made huge profits from high-priced gasoline in recent years and that money must get reinvested. By betting on natural gas, ExxonMobil is saying that fossil fuels will remain paramount but that tighter air quality restrictions are coming; natural gas emits far fewer emissions than either oil or coal.
“This is not a near-term decision; this is about the next 10, 20, 30 years,” says Rex W. Tillerson, Exxon Mobil Corp.’s chief executive, in a conference call. “We think there will be significant demand for natural gas in the future.”
The $31 billion deal that also includes the acquisition of $10 billion in XTO debt is expected to conclude in the second quarter of 2010. ExxonMobil’s venture comes atop earlier estimates this year from the Potential Gas Committee that said the country’s natural gas reserves are 35 percent greater than two years ago. Reserve levels now stand at more than 2,000 trillion cubic feet, it says, which is the most they have been in 44 years.
The increase is because of shale, which is a sedimentary rock that is less porous than sandstone where traditional natural gas is found. While explorers have always known that such formations are filled with gas, it has only been in recent years that retrieving those resources has been technologically feasible. With horizontal drilling, producers can move laterally beneath cities and neighborhoods to extract the product.
http://www.michigangreen.org/article690.html
Those last minute Christmas presents you’re thinking about aren’t like this one. A team of Michiganders is manufacturing and selling a solar powered lantern. It can also function as a flashlight. It costs $50 and lasts 10 years. Michigan Now’s Chris McCarus has their story.
They’re green and clear plastic, about 8 inches long. They come with a thin solar panel, about 6 inches long. Herman Moffett is packing them in boxes. They’re called K-lights.
“This lantern is changing lives. That’s a good thing. This lantern is changing my life as well. It’s allowed me to be employed. It works out nice on both ends.”
The two ends are the basement of an old furniture warehouse in Grand Rapids where Moffett is working. And the other is East Africa. The K-Light lantern is made and sold there as well as here. Just 1 out of 4 homes in Sub-Saharan Africa has electricity. People walk miles to chop down fragile forests so they can cook and heat and light their homes.
Product pictures and more info can be seen by clicking on the link below.
http:/
/www.michigannow.org/2009/12/23/michigan-made-solar-lamp-sold-here-and-abroad/
(by Scott Minos of the EERE) – Want to know where you can buy E85? There’s an app for that now.
The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) has launched a new application for Garmin and TomTom GPS units that that maps out the location of E85 (85% ethanol/15% gasoline) for users with flex-fuel vehicles (FFVs).
FFV’s are vehicles that are able to use either gasoline (which has up to 10% ethanol by content) or E-85 ethanol, which is a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. There are over 7 to 8 million FFVs on the road today. This new feature will eliminate the frustration many FFV owners have of not knowing where they can fill up with higher level ethanol blends, like E85, by showing the exact location of the nearest E85 pumps.
Using the Garmin navigation system, FFV owners can download station locations and program their device to direct them to nearby E85 stations. The Garmin application is available for download on ChooseEthanol.com. There, consumers can download individual state data, a combination of states, or national data directly to their computer and then to their Garmin devices. Directions for installing this data are available on the site. TomTom users can search for E85 stations through a national database.
The data comes directly from the United States Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles Data Center (AFDC), which has information on where to find all different types of transportation fuel across the country. The station location data will be updated quarterly to keep up with the expansion of E-85 pumps throughout the country.
While the program is currently only available for Garmin and TomTom GPS units, work is underway to bring this data to other navigation systems.
Consumers and fleets may also find alternative fueling locations by using mobile devices such as cell phones, iPhone’s, Blackberrys, or other personal handheld devices to access AFDC’s Alternative Fuel Station Locator mobile site at http://www.afdc.energy.gov/stations/m. This site will find the 5 closest alternative fueling stations to your location, will provide a map and directions to fueling stations, and will allow GIS-enabled Blackberrys to automatically find stations near you.
Scott Minos is a 22 year employee of the Department of Energy and works for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). He works on special education and outreach projects and manages both EERE’s Information Center and EERE’s Online Publication and Product Library.
(AWEA Press Release) – A multidisciplinary panel has concluded that the sounds generated by wind turbines are not harmful to human health, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) announced today.
Comprised of medical doctors, audiologists, and acoustical professionals from the United States, Canada, Denmark, and the United Kingdom, the panel undertook extensive review, analysis, and discussion of the large body of peer-reviewed literature, specifically with regard to sound produced by wind turbines. The expert panel was established by AWEA and the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) to review all current literature available on the issue of perceived health effects of wind turbines.
“The panel’s multidisciplinary approach helped to fully explore the many published scientific reports related to the potential impact of wind turbines on people’s health,” said Dr. Robert J. McCunney, one of the authors of the study and an occupational/environmental medicine physician and research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). “There is no evidence that the sounds, nor the sub-audible vibrations, emitted by wind turbines have any direct adverse physiological effects on humans.”
“The objective of the panel was to provide an authoritative, scientific reference document for those making legislative and regulatory decisions about wind turbine developments,” said AWEA CEO Denise Bode. “This study is another indication that wind is one of the most environmentally benign sources of electricity available.”
Top findings include:
-
- “The sounds emitted by wind turbines are not unique. There is no reason to believe, based on the levels and frequencies of the sounds, that they could plausibly have direct adverse physiological effects.”
- If sound levels from wind turbines were harmful, it would be impossible to live in a city given the sound levels normally present in urban environments.
- “Sub-audible, low frequency sound and infrasound from wind turbines do not present a risk to human health.”
- “Some people may be annoyed at the presence of sound from wind turbines. Annoyance is not a pathological entity.”
For more than thirty years, people have been living near the more than 50,000 wind turbines operating in Europe and the more than 30,000 in North America. The vast majority of people have had a positive experience living near wind turbines, with no ill effects.
An executive summary of the report can be accessed here (PDF, 81KB).
The full report can be accessed here (PDF, 440KB).
(U.S. DOE Press Release) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on December 15 an agreement with U.S. dairy producers to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2020 while turning manure into electricity using anaerobic digesters. Under a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy , the USDA, and dairy producers, the groups agreed to work together to reach the target. USDA will contribute by undertaking research initiatives, allowing implementation flexibility, and enhancing efforts to market anaerobic digesters to dairy producers.
Anaerobic digester technology is a proven method of converting waste products, such as manure, into electricity. The technology utilizes generators that are fueled by methane captured from the animal manure. Currently, only about 2% of U.S. dairies that are candidates for a profitable digester are using the technology, even though dairy operations with anaerobic digesters routinely generate enough electricity to power 200 homes. Through the agreement, USDA and the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy will increase the number of anaerobic digesters supported by USDA programs. Beyond promoting the digesters, the agreement will encourage the research and development of new technologies to help dairies reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. See the USDA press release and the description of anaerobic digesters on DOE’s Energy Savers Web site.
(From UCS Greentips) – In the November issue of Greentips we told you about the $1,500 federal tax credit for improving your home’s energy efficiency. To complement your energy conservation efforts you can tap into renewable energy to provide heat, hot water, and electricity—and save money in the process.
As part of the federal stimulus package, the government is offering a 30 percent tax credit for the cost and installation of eligible products “placed in service,” or put into use, in existing, new, or non-primary residences between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2016. Unlike the energy efficiency tax credit, there is no upper limit to the renewable energy credit you can receive (unless otherwise noted below) and you can carry forward any unclaimed portion of the tax credit to future years through 2016. And best of all, the two tax credits are separate so you can be eligible for both at the same time.
Here is a brief summary of basic eligibility requirements; the Energy Star website (see the Related Resources) provides more detailed information as well as resources to help you choose the right products for your home.
- Geothermal heat pumps. These highly efficient systems use the ground’s thermal energy (instead of fossil fuels) to heat and cool your home. All Energy Star-rated units qualify (including closed loop, open loop, and direct expansion systems), and water-to-water geothermal heat pumps purchased after December 1, 2009, are eligible as well.
- Solar panels. All solar photovoltaic systems are eligible as long as they provide electricity to your home and meet applicable fire and electrical codes.
- Solar water heaters. All Energy Star-rated units are eligible. However, qualifying systems must be certified by the Solar Rating Certification Corporation, a third-party performance-rating system. (For a list of eligible products, see the Related Resources.) They must also provide hot water only for use inside your house (not for swimming pools or hot tubs), and at least half of the energy used by the system to heat the water must be solar-generated.
- Residential small wind turbines. Eligible systems require a maximum energy output no higher than 100 kilowatts.
- Fuel cells. Fuel cells generate electricity from the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen, with water as the sole byproduct. Eligible systems must have an efficiency of at least 30 percent and a capacity of at least 0.5 kilowatt. The 30 percent tax credit is capped at $500 per 0.5 kilowatt of power capacity, and only systems installed in primary residences qualify.
States and utilities may offer additional incentives for the products listed above or those excluded from the federal tax program, allowing you to save even more money. To learn more about these incentives, or to read last month’s Greentips on the energy efficiency tax credit, see the Related Resources.
(From Globe-Net) – A prototype solar-powered airplane completed several important tests last Thursday and Friday.
Solar Impulse’s HB-SIA, which was finished this past summer, taxied down a runway using power from the 11,000 solar cells covering its wings and did a series of acceleration and braking tests. The next test will be revving up the plane to its 35km/hour take-off speed.
Founder of Solar Impulse, Bertrand Piccard, a former astronaut and the first man to circle the world nonstop in a balloon, hopes to perform the same feet in a solar-powered plane derived from on the HB-SIA design. Solar Impulse aims to test the prototype in flight next year and to achieve a 36-hour flight without fuel shortly after that. Results from these tests will be used to build a solar-powered plane to will attempt a transcontinental flight sometime after 2012.
A photo of the plane can be seen here http://www.globe-net.com/articles/2009/november/30/solar-airplane-a-step-closer.aspx
(by Eric Barendsen of EERE) – Most of the time, I feel like I’m doing my part to save energy, and I’m getting better all the time. But sometimes I feel like what I do to try to offset the unfathomable amount of energy that’s consumed around me, and around the country, is so tiny that my actions won’t make a ripple of difference. I wonder how the few hundred kilowatt hours per month I shave off through my conscientious behavior and my use of energy-efficient products and appliances means something in the face of the American economic juggernaut.
Think about the incredible amount of fuel used by the cars and trucks in the American fleet or the electricity used in powering the factories, schools, hospitals and offices that make our world go round. It’s hard to wrap your head around it.
But one of the most exciting things I learned about the Department of Energy when I came to work here was that I wasn’t alone—that experts have been working for many years in the Industrial Technologies Program and the Building Technologies Program (to name two of my favorites) to tackle the very important project of making America’s economy more energy efficient.
For example, did you know that the U.S. chemical industry is the world’s largest, accounting for almost 30% of all U.S. industrial energy consumption. Well, the Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) is working hard to find ways to make that huge chunk of American energy use considerably smaller. The program’s goal is to help the chemical industry reduce energy use, water use, and toxic and pollutant dispersion per unit of output by 30% by 2020. By supporting cost-shared R&D projects—often those too risky for industry to fund alone—and by encouraging the development of collaborative partnerships, ITP helps achieve national goals for wiser energy use and environmental sustainability.
Similarly, ITP promotes partnerships and raises the energy-efficiency bar across many other American industries including aluminum manufacturing, glass-making, mining, steel production and petroleum refining. Not only does ITP help industry conserve energy for later uses, but it makes companies more profitable by saving them money. How cool is that?
ITP also partners with 26 universities across the U.S. in a unique program that trains students for careers making businesses more energy efficient. You can learn more about it here or read a feature story about a guy who started his own energy consulting firm after graduating from one of these university Industrial Assessment Centers on EERE’s new Energy Empowers Web site.
Then there’s the Building Technologies Program (BTP). These guys and gals are taking on another epic challenge. In 2006, American residences accounted for 21% of primary energy consumption in the U.S. and 20% of carbon dioxide emissions. Commercial buildings represented 18% of primary energy consumption in the U.S. and used 36% of the nation’s electricity in 2006. Combining residential and commercial buildings’ energy use, that’s almost 40% of the nationwide energy pie. The BTP works to make buildings across the spectrum more energy efficient through its sponsorship of technology development and promotion of whole-building design.
Additionally, BTP strives to bring the lofty concept of net-zero building to an affordable, everyday reality. A net-zero energy building is a residential or commercial building with greatly reduced needs for energy—roughly 60%–70% less than conventional practice. Onsite renewable energy systems, such as solar photovoltaic panels or wind turbines, supply the rest and can actually make a net-zero building an energy producer.
BTP’s goal is to create technologies and design approaches that lead to marketable zero-energy homes by 2020 and zero-energy commercial buildings by 2025. Many green builders these days are building extremely energy-efficient homes, often with renewable energy installations as optional upgrades, such as this company based in New Mexico, also featured on Energy Empowers.
Knowing that so much effort and brain power gets exerted everyday—sometimes to find ingenious solutions, sometimes to spread simple, common-sense ideas—to help ensure a better future for our country and our kids, makes me feel better about the small part that I play. It keeps me coming back to work each day inspired.
Eric Barendsen is a communications specialist and Presidential Management Fellow with EERE’s Technology Advancement & Outreach office.
Pure Eco’s CEO, Paul Hulsey, recently spoke on WJR’s “Environmentally Sound with Larry Burns” about reducing your Carbon footprint at home and your business. The interview can be heard here http://journals.utoledo.edu/environmentallysound/
