Environmentalist and author Bill McKibben sat down with David Letterman on the Late Show to discuss climate change and the actions desperately needed to confront it.
McKibben says that the dire environmental problems we face aren’t entirely unmanageable, and we have the capabilities to provide some solutions, but there are certain groups — like the oil and gas industry — that don’t want that kind of progress to be made. “Until we build a movement big enough to challenge them, we won’t solve it,” McKibben tells Letterman.
McKibben describes the environmental grassroots organization he started last year with 7 colleges kids, 350.org, and how it exploded into a worldwide movement when their “International Day Of Climate Action” succeeded with 5,200 demonstrations in 181 countries.
This year, they expect to make an even larger impact on 10/10/10 for what McKibben describes as a “global work party.” The organization is putting pressure on President Obama to restore solar panels to the roof of the White House, and is calling on people across the world do their part in addressing climate change in their local communities. “If I can go to work and do something, then I damn well expect my political leaders to do something,” McKibben says.
HOUSTON
Waste Management, the nation’s largest trash hauler, said Wednesday that it purchased a majority stake in organic lawn and products maker Garick LLC in order to expand its organic recycling business.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Garick’s operations will add over one million tons of processing capacity as well as commercial and consumer organic products to Waste Management’s organics recycling business.
Waste Management Inc., based in Houston, has been working on boosting its organic efforts since last year when it made an investment in Terrabon. The company also made an investment in Harvest Power in January.
A fire on an offshore oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico has been extinguished, and officials say oil does not appear to be leaking from the facility. The US Coast Guard is at the platform roughly 80 miles south of Vermillion Bay in Louisiana, and will continue to monitor the facility for signs of a leak, a Coast Guard official said on Thursday.
The announcement was welcome news along the beleaguered Gulf coast – a region that is still working to overcome the effects of the summer-long oil spill from the Deepwater Horizon rig. US Coast Guard Capt. Peter Troedsson told reporters in New Orleans that officials near the rig have not been able to confirm an earlier report of a mile-long sheen of oil. No oil has been spotted in the water by Coast Guard officials, he said.
“The boats and aircraft on scene cannot see a sheen,” he said. “We remain ready to respond if any sheen becomes visible.”
The fire broke out Thursday morning, forcing all 13 crew members off the rig and into the water. They were later picked up by an oil services boat. No injuries were reported.
The offshore oil production facility, known as Vermillion Block 380, is in 340 feet of water. In contrast, the sea at the Deepwater Horizon rig is a mile deep.
If a leak is detected at the Vermillion rig, the relative shallow water would make response and repair efforts significantly easier than were experienced at the Deepwater Horizon rig. The facility is owned by Mariner Energy Inc., an independent oil and gas exploration and production company based in Houston. The platform collected production from seven wells producing about 1,400 barrels of oil per day and 9 million cubic feet of gas. Production was shut down, the company said, before the crew evacuated. “Automated shutoff equipment on the platform safely turned off the flow of oil and gas from the platform’s seven producing wells before the fire occurred and the crew evacuated,” a statement from Mariner said. There is no indication how the fire started. Officials say there will be an investigation.
Congress, Don’t Send the U.S. Solar Industry on an Extended Vacation by Rhone Resch President & CEO, Solar Energy Industries Association
It’s that time of year when many Americans are just returning from a summer vacation. During their travels, most of those vacationers probably passed by some of the many solar projects, large and small, being installed across the country. However, they probably didn’t know that while they were on holiday, smart policies were at work speeding up deployment of solar projects. From PV farms to solar water heating systems, solar is having a record growth year and is creating stable, well-paying American jobs.
One of the main drivers of solar’s robust growth has been the Treasury Grant Program (TGP), an initiative created in the Recovery Act which provides a cash grant in lieu of the 30 percent solar investment tax credit for companies that lack access to private tax equity financing due to the poor economy. Research by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found the TGP “has provided significant economic value” and more than 40 states have solar projects that were stimulated by the TGP. Vacationers who hit the beaches of Southeast Florida were sunbathing near the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center, a 25-megawatt solar power plant that is the largest photovoltaic plant in the country. It provides clean, safe, reliable electricity to about 3,000 homes and created around 400 construction jobs. Almost 900 other solar projects nationwide have been built because of the TGP.
Tourists sending postcards from the National Cherry Festival in Michigan may have noticed a revival in America’s manufacturing sector. The Upper Midwest is one of the regions hardest hit by the recession. In Michigan, where unemployment hovers around 10 percent, the TGP has supported thousands of jobs in the manufacturing plants producing solar products. American-made solar components from these plants will be sold across the U.S. and exported around the world.
Elvis fans making the pilgrimage to Graceland may have been all shook up to see how the TGP is creating jobs for local solar installers, contractors and distributors. Memphis, Tennessee-based Unistar-Sparco was able to cut their energy costs by one-third by going solar with the help of the TGP. Read on
CYPRESS, Calif. Using solar energy, Butte College in Oroville, Calif., plans to be one of the first colleges in the U.S. to produce more energy than it consumes. While the college has been using solar energy for three years, the board of trustees approved its Phase III solar project which is expected to be completed by May 2011. Butte College will install more than 14,000 Mitsubishi Electric solar modules capable of producing 3,481,920 kWh of clean energy per year. This 2.7 MW DC installation is an addition to the 10,000 solar panels the college already has, making the total system size 4.55 MW DC.
“We congratulate Butte College for setting an example for its students, its community and other colleges in the nation by choosing solar energy as its energy source”
“Once this solar project is completed, Butte College will provide enough clean renewable energy to cover all of our electricity needs and generate slightly more than we use—which will be a source of additional revenue for the college,” said Diana Van Der Ploeg, president of Butte College.
The solar panels will be installed by a joint venture between Chico Electric and DPR Energy which designs and installs commercial and residential solar systems in California.“We have worked with Butte College for years and are proud to facilitate this cutting-edge project for such a forward-thinking institution,” says Norm Nielsen, president of Chico Electric. The modules will be installed on the ground and on rooftops that will create covered parking areas and walkways. Mitsubishi Electric modules were used for a previous installation at the college and were chosen again due to their high-reliability and use of 100% lead-free solder. “We congratulate Butte College for setting an example for its students, its community and other colleges in the nation by choosing solar energy as its energy source,” says Gina Heng, general manager of Mitsubishi Electric & Electronics USA’s Photovoltaic Division.
The total funding for the project is $17 million with $12.65 million of this amount funded by federal Clean Renewable Energy Bonds (CREBs). The remainder, up to $4.35 million, will be funded by the college from its annual budget allocated to purchasing electricity from the grid. The college will receive almost $1 million in rebates from Pacific Gas & Electric, the California Solar Initiative and benefits from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act/CREBs allocations. The CREBs for the project were arranged and funded by Bank of America as part of its 10-year, $20 billion business initiative to address climate change.
By Brita Belli, Kathryn Gutlebar, Julia Hirsch, Jesica Knoblauch, Shawn Query
Everything’s coming up green. Across every industry, new job possibilities are emerging for those with the skills to bridge the divide between the old, fossil-fuel-based economy and the new, energy-efficient one. Corporations once demonized for their role in creating pollution and exploiting workers are being held accountable; they are partnering with nonprofits and hiring corporate social responsibility managers. They are finding that reducing their impact is as good for future profits as for the planet at large. There’s no secret to getting a job in the new green economy. It’s as basic as applying the job skills you’ve already developed (web design, sales, management) to a nonprofit or sustainable industry, or coordinating sustainable practices from within a corporate entity. Sometimes, as in green building or solar panel installing, these green jobs require a specific set of skills—and classes are organizing to fill the growing need. Other times, as in the organic food industry, ecotourism or sales and marketing of energy-efficient technology, anyone with a good work ethic can get in and create a great green career.Read on here
SunPower Corp. today announced that SunPower world-leading solar technology has been selected for installation at several U.S. government properties, including for the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL), the General Services Administration (GSA), the Navy and the Air Force. SunPower expects to create more than 1000 local jobs during the construction of these projects. These contracts represent a minimum of 20 megawatts (MW) of new solar projects for SunPower.
“SunPower has worked with federal agencies since 1999, resulting in the installation of more than 20 MW of solar power systems at government facilities,” said Karen Butterfield, SunPower’s director of federal accounts. “As a result, SunPower has the experience and credibility to successfully navigate the federal procurement process and deliver reliable, high performance solar systems that meet agency requirements. With the addition of a U.S.-based panel manufacturing facility this year, we have also bolstered our ability to serve this growing demand.”
Recent government contracts won by SunPower include the following:
SunPower was selected by NREL to design and construct a 2-megawatt solar power system at the Department of Energy’s new Research Support Facility on the NREL campus in Golden, Colo. The project will be installed at three sites, including a new ultra-low energy office complex, an outdoor parking area, and a parking garage. Colorado-based SunPower Premier Dealer Namaste Solar is partnering with SunPower to install the systems. This project is being financed through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, and is expected to be complete by the end of 2011.
The General Services Administration (GSA) and general contractor Shiel Sexton selected SunPower solar technology for the 1.8-MW solar system that is under construction at the General Emmett Bean Federal Building in Indianapolis, Ind. The project uses the SunPower T5 Solar Roof Tile system, which integrates a high-efficiency solar panel, frame and roof-mounting system into a single pre-engineered unit. The T5 Solar Roof Tiles position the solar panels at a 5-degree tilt, for greatest energy production. Scheduled for completion in January 2011, the system will be the largest rooftop solar power system on a GSA facility. This project is being financed through ARRA.
SunPower was one of five solar providers awarded an indefinite delivery-indefinite quantity contract by Naval Facilities Command to deliver solar power systems to Navy and Marine Corps installations throughout the southwestern United States. Under the contract, SunPower will design, build, operate and maintain the systems, and sell the power to the Navy and Marine Corps under power purchase agreements. Projects may range in size from one to 15 MW. The Navy will have up to five years to award up to 40 MW of solar projects under this $200 million contract.
Earlier this month, SunPower announced an agreement with Arizona Public Service (APS) to design and construct a 15-MWac solar photovoltaic power system at Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona. The system will use SunPower solar panels with the SunPower Tracker(R) system, which follows the sun’s movement during the day, increasing sunlight capture by up to 25 percent over conventional fixed-tilt systems, while significantly reducing land use requirements. Scheduled for completion in the summer of 2011, it is expected to be the largest solar power installation at a U.S. government facility and generate the equivalent of 50 percent of the annual energy requirements for Luke Air Force
Westford, MA – Today Green Ray Solar announced the first ever certification for an AC module solar module the SunSine 200 AC, the worlds’ first solar appliance. This is quite a development because AC is safer then DC, micro inverters are build into the solar panels and installation costs will be lower. The SunSine™200 has been certified by Intertek. Intertek performed the comprehensive safety and grid connectivity testing according to the UL 1741 standard; following the testing, the product received the ETL mark for the U.S.
“Having this important certification allows GreenRay to shift its focus and now aggressively build our sales and partner channels and begin production of the SunSine™200 AC Module”, said Miles C. Russell, founder and CEO of GreenRay, Inc. “We expect to have product available for delivery starting in October. This has been a long development path, and we owe thanks to many partners who helped us get this far, including the Department of Energy, the MA Clean Energy Center, and our investors, 21Ventures and The Quercus Trust. ”
The SunSine™200 AC Module is the world’s first solar appliance. It is a fully-integrated plug- and-play PV system, and provides the market with a modular, scalable AC system solution for home and commercial solar installations.
In another industry first, the SunSine™200 AC Module comes with a 20-year warranty, including the integrated micro-inverter. GreenRay’s proprietary inverter is designed to match the useful life expectancy of PV modules by eliminating the weak components found in other inverters, such as electrolytic capacitors and opto-couplers.
You can hear an interview that QuestPoint N The Mix had with founder Miles Russell earlier this year where he talks about why the SunSine is such a breakthrough and the solar industry in general. Listen here
Environmentalist and author Bill McKibben sat down with David Letterman on the Late Show to discuss climate change and the actions desperately needed to confront it.
