When you get the reports coming out of the Gulf of Mexico regarding the fact the BP has capped off the ruptured undersea oil well; It’s easy to get the impression that everything is just fine now. Nothing to see here, move along, move along. But that’s not the reality of what’s happening. Rev. Jennifer Kottler is the Director of Policy and Advocacy at Sojourners. A long-time advocate for justice, Jennifer has served in advocacy ministry for more than seven years through her work at Protestants for the Common Good (Chicago, IL), the Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign, and the Chicago Jobs Council. She writes: Attention Must Be Paid: The Gulf Oil Spill Is Not Over. Mother Jones is reporting that BP is firing 10,000 workers. New BP CEO Bob Dudley wasn’t kidding when he announced last week that it was time for the company to scale back oil-spill cleanup operations. In fact, by the time he’d said that, the responder force had been drawn down by about 25 percent.
Riki Ott, also a community activist, a former commercial salmon “fisherm’am,” and has a degree in marine toxicology with a specialty in oil pollution. She is the author of Sound Truth and Corporate Myth$: The Legacy of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill and Not One Drop: Promises, Betrayal, and Courage in the Wake of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (Chelsea Green, 2008). She is also the founder of three nonprofit organizations that deal with lingering harm from man-made environmental disaster. Ashealth, economic, and environmental related problems begin to surface she talks and writes about the similarities in the Gulf to those of the Exxon Valdezoil spill in Alaska twenty years ago. If history has taught us anything this is far from over.
The BP oil rig explosion is not a wake up call, it is Americas’ stone age energy policy literally washed ashore. The fire department is at the door screaming get out now your house is on fire. Over 70% of the oil consumption in the United States is for automobile transportation. That is why the announcement from a UK company called GENeco is so interesting. Genoco has introduced the BIO-BUG. A Volkswagen that runs off do,do. That’s right do,do, human excrement, the stinky, stinky stuff you flush down the toliet everyday. Geneco is a waste treatment company the has transformed a Volkswagen Bug to run off human waste. A truly remarkable example of recycling. In Canada a 14 year old has converted his grandfather’s gas powered Volkswagen into an electric vehicle. Now the big players in the automobile business Tesla/Toyota, Nissan and Porsche and others are moving into the electric vehicle business and electric recharging stations are popping up around the country. In Santa Rosa California ZAP has been on the forefront of electric vehicle manufacturing for years. You can hear ZAP consultant Ginny Medeiros interview with QuestPoint N the Mix discussing the field. From solar powered homes to poo powered vehicles the options for alternative sources of energy are coming into focus. And think of it…converting that gas guzzling SUV into an electric vehicle you can recharge at your solar powered home can be what you do to get off drugs, ah I mean oil.
Watch out solar and electric vehicles. A British company, GENeco uses human poop as car fuel for the Bio-Bug. The Bio-Bug runs on methane gas generated during the sewage treatment process.Waste flushed down the toilets of just 70 homes in Bristol is enough to power the Bio-Bug for a year, based on an annual mileage of 10,000 miles. With support from the South West Regional Development Agency, GENeco, a Wessex Water-owned company, imported specialist equipment to treat gas generated at Bristol sewage treatment works in Avonmouth to power the VW Beetle in a way that doesn’t affect its performance.
Mohammed Saddiq, GENeco’s general manager, said he was confident that methane from sewage sludge could be used as an alternative energy source and was an innovative way of powering company vehicles. He said: “Our site at Avonmouth has been producing biogas for many years which we use to generate electricity to power the site and export to the National Grid.“With the surplus gas we had available we wanted to put it to good use in a sustainable and efficient way.
“We decided to power a vehicle on the gas offering a sustainable alternative to using fossil fuels which we so heavily rely on in the UK. “If you were to drive the car you wouldn’t know it was powered by biogas as it performs just like any conventional car. It is probably the most sustainable car around.”
Countries including India and China use compressed natural gas (CNG) to power vehicles and a number of companies in the UK are now using CNG mainly to fuel buses and commercial vehicles. In Sweden, more than 11,500 vehicles already run on biomethane produced from sewage plants. But using biogas from sewage sludge is yet to take off in the UK despite a significant amount being produced everyday at sewage plants around the country.
To use biogas as vehicle fuel without affecting vehicle performance or reliability the gas needs to be treated – a process called biogas upgrading. It involves carbon dioxide being separated from the biogas using specialist equipment. If all the biogas produced at Avonmouth was converted to run cars it would avoid around 19,000 tonnes of CO2.
“Biomethane cars could be just as important as electric cars, and the water regulator Ofwat should promote the generation of as much biogas as possible through sewage works in the fight against climate change.”GENeco believes that more gas will be produced at its Avonmouth site when the company embarks on its latest green venture to recycle food waste. Mr Saddiq said: “Waste flushed down the toilets in homes in the city provides power for the Bio-Bug, but it won’t be long before further energy is produced when food waste is recycled at our sewage works.
“It will mean that both human waste and food waste will be put to good use in a sustainable way that diverts waste from going to landfill.”Bath-based Greenfuel Company converted the Beetle so it could run on biogas while bosses from GENeco ran a workshop at a University of Bath event for teenagers from schools in Bath and North East Somerset to come up with ideas for the car’s design.
Mr Saddiq added: “The choice of car was inspired by students who took part in a workshop. They thought it would be appropriate that the poo-powered car should be the classic VW Beetle Bug because bugs naturally breakdown waste at sewage works to start the treatment process which goes on to produce the energy.”
A California Energy Commission siting committee is recommending the approval of the planned Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System Project in San Bernardino County. In its presiding member’s proposed decision (PMPD) released Tuesday, the committee said the approximately 370-megawatt facility as mitigated, will have remaining significant impacts on the environment, but found that the benefits the project would provide overrides those impacts. The committee determined the project complies with applicable laws, ordinances, regulations, and standards (LORS). The proposed decision was based solely on the record of facts, which were established during the facility’s certification proceeding. The PMPD is not a final decision on the project. The committee released the document for 30 days of public comment and will consider input before bringing the proposed decision to the full five-member Commission. The entire document can be found on the Commission’s website at: http://www.energy.ca.gov/sitingcases/ivanpah/documents/index.html.
BrightSource Energy, Inc. would develop three solar thermal power plants and shared facilities near Ivanpah Dry Lake in San Bernardino County, California on public land managed by the federal Bureau of Land Management in the Mojave Desert. The proposed project would be constructed in three phases: one 120-megawatt (MW) phase and two 125-MW phases and is based on distributed power tower and heliostat mirror technology, in which heliostat (mirror) fields focus solar energy on power tower receivers near the center of each heliostat array to generate steam-driven electricity. If approved by the Commission, the project would start construction in the fall of 2010.
The federal government and the State of California have established the need for the nation and state to increase the development and use of renewable energy in order to enhance the nation’s energy independence, meet environmental goals, and create new economic growth opportunities.
If you are looking for ways to put a little green in your wallet by putting some green in your portfolio, you might be surprised at the wide range of offerings available for your consideration. Let’s take a look at 10 interesting areas, which are highlighted below. Top Green Industry investing.
OREGON GETS GO AHEAD FOR THE COUNTRYs’ 1st WAVE ENERGY FARM
The Surfrider Foundation today joined over a dozen government agencies, ocean stakeholder groups, and environmental organizations in signing a historic settlement agreement with Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) in support of the construction and operation of the Reedsport OPT Wave Park.
The Reedsport OPT Wave Park is expected to be the first commercial-scale wave energy project in the United States, pending licensing from the Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission (FERC). Phases I and II of the project will consist of ten PowerBuoys installed 2.5 miles off the coast of Reedsport, OR.
The parties to the settlement agreement participated in a three-year process to develop consensus on aspects of project design, required monitoring, and contingencies for adaptive management. The Surfrider Foundation has served as a formal representative of recreational and environmental interests throughout the process.
“We believe this represents a really good approach for the development of wave energy technology,” said Pete Stauffer, Surfrider Foundation’s Ocean Ecosystem Program Manager. “Incorporating good science and meaningful stakeholder involvement in the planning and management of wave energy projects is in the best interests of nearshore ecosystems and coastal communities.”
The Reedsport settlement agreement defines a precautionary approach to development of the Wave Park that is intended to minimize impacts to the nearshore environment and existing ocean uses such as recreation and fishing. An adaptive management program that includes monitoring of ecological and socioeconomic effects will inform the management and further build-out of the project.
The Surfrider Foundation recognizes that technologies utilizing ocean waves, tides, currents and wind may offer important benefits as renewable sources of energy that will reduce emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. They may also help to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and the dangerous practice of offshore oil drilling.
The Surfrider Foundation has developed a policy statement on renewable ocean energy, which includes a set of principles to consider during the planning or evaluation of any proposed project. Employing these principles may help reduce impacts to ocean recreation, nearshore ecology, coastal processes, public safety, aesthetics, and fishing access
process discovered by Stanford engineers could revamp production.
Stanford Report
New solar energy process found by Stanford engineers could revamp production.A new process that simultaneously combines the light and heat of solar radiation to generate electricity could offer more than double the efficiency of existing solar cell technology, say the Stanford engineers who discovered it and proved that it works. The process, called “photon enhanced thermionic emission,” or PETE, could reduce the costs of solar energy production enough for it to compete with oil as an energy source.
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AVANCIS solar installers at work
The solar module manufacturer AVANCIS has recorded a new international efficiency record.
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GREEN FOR ALL ANNOUNCES
Green jobs are a reality, and now is the time to honor the innovative companies that are creating them. With support from the Citi Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, SJF Advisory Services and Green For All have partnered to launch a Green Jobs Award Program, which seeks to identify, recognize, and promote private companies that are leaders in quality green job creation.
Everyday free natural organic energy greets us. It whisks and glistens through the trees, colors the morning sky and casts shadows everywhere we go. Scientist tell us in some regions of the world such as the Sahara desert, there’s enough sunlight falling within one hour to supply the energy needs of the entire planet for one year. In fact North African and European interest are gathering
together in a project known asDesertec Foundation to supply renewable solar energy in North Africa, the Mediterranean and Europe. This is a massive Pyramid scale project and yet there are solar projects that are already satellite bound to orbit the earth. From satellite space stations solar photovoltaic panels will beam energy back to earth.
This is some pretty mind boggling stuff. But what can we do to live a more organic lifestyle right here, right now while utilizing the best technology can offer? Large scale solutions will not be right for everyone. In fact I’ve been communicating with people that have been involved with solar power and battery storage systems for more than 30 years. Home installed systems or portable systems could be used to power small irrigation systems. More on this later; however some answers may rest in vertical farming and urban farming where more people are gaining an incredible sense of creativity and empowerment in growing their own food or buying from local growers. In Berkeley you can go to the BeeHive Market, a green lifestyle market operating on Saturdays from 10am to 2pm in the parking lot at the Berkeley Adult School – 1701 San Pablo Avenue.
Organic living seeks to incorporate the obvious advantages of solar, energy efficiency and other renewable sources. Creative thinkers are taking a more holistic and organic approach to food, wine, water usage, health care, beauty, fashion, music, recycling and, and, and…well you can just go on. In San Francisco one place you can check out is the Environmental Action Center located in the Crocker Galleria at 55 Post Street. They provide a wealth of information and fun events to help you connect with a more organic lifestyle. You can also check out an interview QuestPoint n The Mixhad with Ann Vollen Co-founder of Green Zebra, operators of The Environmental Action Center. A more organic lifestyle is not only possible, but it’s available now.
It’s called many different things, green travel, adventure travel, sustainable travel and eco travel but ultimately this type of travel can be life changing. Both for those traveling and those visited. This kind of travel experience doesn’t include time in the tanning both or getting your nails done. In fact you actually get your hands dirty. Yet sustainable travel is one of the few segments within the travel industry that continues to grow. With the rise of social media we are also seeing a rise in socially responsible marketing; and businesses that while still motivated by the almighty dollar truly do want to make a positive impact on people and the planet. customers with whom they interact.
Today marketers are disparate to find new ways to reach their audiences. The old forms of media advertising just aren’t as effective anymore. Television, radio and print media are on a decline as consumers are simply overwhelmed by the constant 24/7 drum beat of buy it now, but wait there’s more message. It is within this climate that sustainable travel thrives. One of the innovators in this area and the are many others is GAP ADVENTURES. Through their non profit organization, Planeterra they have orchestrated projects throughout the world where their traveling guests have worked alongside rural villagers to install solar thermal stoves, paint schools and help fund weaving projects. Planeterra also purchased a permanent home for the street children of Cusco, Peru & their families. One person who’s been active around the world in establishing these projects is Danielle Weiss. Danielle is Planeterra’s Director of projects she lives and works in South America. You can hear an interview she had with QuestPoint N The Mix before she returned to Peru last fall.
Want to pack your bags and get going? But OMG you say you don’t have the funds to travel to Galapagos, Mount Kilimanjaro or Nepal right now. In the Bay Area Marissa LaMagna has established Bay Area Green Tourswhich does An Eco Tour of the San Francisco Bay’s Green Corridor and beyond. You can make a difference in your own local community. However if you can travel or can make plans to travel Mark Twain has said it best, “travel is enemy of prejudjice and bigotry.”
OREGON GETS GO AHEAD FOR THE COUNTRYs’ 1st WAVE ENERGY FARM
The Surfrider Foundation today joined over a dozen government agencies, ocean stakeholder groups, and environmental organizations in signing a historic settlement agreement with Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) in support of the construction and operation of the Reedsport OPT Wave Park.
The Reedsport OPT Wave Park is expected to be the first commercial-scale wave energy project in the United States, pending licensing from the Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission (FERC). Phases I and II of the project will consist of ten PowerBuoys installed 2.5 miles off the coast of Reedsport, OR.
The parties to the settlement agreement participated in a three-year process to develop consensus on aspects of project design, required monitoring, and contingencies for adaptive management. The Surfrider Foundation has served as a formal representative of recreational and environmental interests throughout the process.
“We believe this represents a really good approach for the development of wave energy technology,” said Pete Stauffer, Surfrider Foundation’s Ocean Ecosystem Program Manager. “Incorporating good science and meaningful stakeholder involvement in the planning and management of wave energy projects is in the best interests of nearshore ecosystems and coastal communities.”
The Reedsport settlement agreement defines a precautionary approach to development of the Wave Park that is intended to minimize impacts to the nearshore environment and existing ocean uses such as recreation and fishing. An adaptive management program that includes monitoring of ecological and socioeconomic effects will inform the management and further build-out of the project.
The Surfrider Foundation recognizes that technologies utilizing ocean waves, tides, currents and wind may offer important benefits as renewable sources of energy that will reduce emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. They may also help to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and the dangerous practice of offshore oil drilling.
The Surfrider Foundation has developed a policy statement on renewable ocean energy, which includes a set of principles to consider during the planning or evaluation of any proposed project. Employing these principles may help reduce impacts to ocean recreation, nearshore ecology, coastal processes, public safety, aesthetics, and fishing access
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Sustainability meets fishy fashion
Junly 27 – Designer Oskar Metsavaht, a favorite of celebrities such as Madonna and Sting, has started producing a new line of environmentally-friendly leather from the skins of salmon and tilapia. Ben Gruber reports. (02:15)
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10 Energy Saving Tips for Travelers Courtesy of International Ecotourism Society
With summer vacations in full swing, travelling without the guilt is a plus.
1. Fly Wisely:
Air travel is often the most energy consuming aspect of your travel. Plan your trip so that you minimize air travel, and choose, whenever possible, to stay longer in a destination instead of making many short trips.
2. Travel Light:
Pack only what you need, and don’t bring things that will become waste. By reducing the weight of luggage travelers can significantly cut green house gas emissions.
3. Book Responsibly:
When choosing your hotel, tour operator, or other service providers, select ones that have good sustainability practices. Look for information on the company’s environmental initiatives; strategies, save energy and minimize waste; involvement in sustainable tourism certification program. A good place to start your search is Ecotourism Explorer.
4. Before You Leave:
Turn off lights and unplug household appliances that can be left unplugged while you are away.
5. While You Are There: Turn off all the lights and air conditioner/heater when you leave your room, and unplug unnecessary appliances.
6. Greener Way To Get Around:
Utilize public transportation (bus, train, city car, etc.) and alternative modes of transportation (walking, bicycle, non-motorized vehicles, horse, camel) as much as possible. It’s a more sustainable way to get around, and also a healthier and more enjoyable way to get to know the place you are visiting.
7. Eat Local:
Reduce your ‘food miles’ by choosing local. Visit a local farmer’s market, shop at a locally owned grocery store and choose locally owned restaurants that buy local. Locally produced foods are a tastier and more sustainable option.
8. Save Water:
Use the minimum amount of water needed for a shower/bath, don’t let water run while shaving, brushing or washing, and check if the hotel has a linen reuse program – if so, reuse your towels and bed sheets by placing the card to indicate you don’t wish to have them washed every day, if not, request hospitality staff not to change them every day.
9. Charge Your Trip Sustainably:
Whenever possible, utilize options that do not require batteries. Buy rechargeable batteries for your essential travel items such as cameras, razors, and flash lights.
10. Offset the Unavoidable Footprint:
Contribute to a credible carbon offsetting program to support
New solar energy process discovered by Stanford engineers could revamp production.
Stanford Report, August 2, 2010
New solar energy process found by Stanford engineers could revamp production.A new process that simultaneously combines the light and heat of solar radiation to generate electricity could offer more than double the efficiency of existing solar cell technology, say the Stanford engineers who discovered it and proved that it works. The process, called “photon enhanced thermionic emission,” or PETE, could reduce the costs of solar energy production enough for it to compete with oil as an energy source.
___________________
AVANCIS solar installers at work
The solar module manufacturer AVANCIS has recorded a new international efficiency record.
____
GREEN FOR ALL ANNOUNCES
Green jobs are a reality, and now is the time to honor the innovative companies that are creating them. With support from the Citi Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, SJF Advisory Services and Green For All have partnered to launch a Green Jobs Award Program, which seeks to identify, recognize, and promote private companies that are leaders in quality green job creation.
Like George Washington crossing the Delaware the solar industry is at a crossroad. The Solar Bill of Rights is a set of principles designed to establish the power of the individual and stakeholders in the solar field in a world dominated by oil and coal. First introduced at Solar Power International 2009 by Rhone Resch of the Solar Energy Industries Association, it set out a declaration of rights that seem more relevant now than ever before. The latest news from the BP oil explosion that left 11 dead and gushed over 200,000,000 million gallons of toxic oil in the Gulf is that the well has been sealed. This catastrophe has been describe as the worst enviromental disaster in U S history. Its economic shock wave will continue to reverberate throughout the globe. Yet in its wake America still has no energy bill the reflects global competition in solar and renewable energy, nor the stark deadly corruptive nature of deepwater drilling and oil in general.
In addition to encouraging policies that give individual homeowners the right to participate in the profit produced by solar energy, it also lays out a structure for the solar industry to be given the same incentives provided to big oil and coal. Also introduced at that show was the Solar Manifesto that was being moved forward by Barry Cinnamon of Akeena Solar. Barry Cinnamon has been a strong advocate for stream lining the solar installation process through municipal permit departments. Barry Cinnamon is a pioneer in the solar industry. This year the Solar Power International 2010, the largest solar conference in the US will be held in October 12-14, 2010 at the LA Convention Center.
The opportunities in solar, renwable energy and sustianibilty are all part of an overall social, business and ecological shift: they are not isolated. San Francisco Green Drinks (SFGD) just yesterday invited the Bay Area green community to the second annual Green Generations event, a fundraising event for SF Nature Education, Pie Ranch Youth Advocacy, and Exploring New Horizons Outdoor School, three deserving non-profits that provide environmental education to under-served children. The German city of Freiburg, referred to as the worlds’ greenest city has been an early advocate of this type of outreach.
From solar powered electric cars, cameras, phones, ecotourism, organic living, urban farming, eco-fashion and more; the world as we have known it is indeed changing….you’ve got more power than you realize.
Junly 27 – Designer Oskar Metsavaht, a favorite of celebrities such as Madonna and Sting, has started producing a new line of environmentally-friendly leather from the skins of salmon and tilapia. Ben Gruber reports. (02:15)
____________
10 Energy Saving Tips for Travelers Courtesy of International Ecotourism Society
With summer vacations in full swing, travelling without the guilt is a plus.
1. Fly Wisely:
Air travel is often the most energy consuming aspect of your travel. Plan your trip so that you minimize air travel, and choose, whenever possible, to stay longer in a destination instead of making many short trips.
2. Travel Light:
Pack only what you need, and don’t bring things that will become waste. By reducing the weight of luggage travelers can significantly cut green house gas emissions.
3. Book Responsibly:
When choosing your hotel, tour operator, or other service providers, select ones that have good sustainability practices. Look for information on the company’s environmental initiatives; strategies, save energy and minimize waste; involvement in sustainable tourism certification program. A good place to start your search is Ecotourism Explorer.
4. Before You Leave:
Turn off lights and unplug household appliances that can be left unplugged while you are away.
5. While You Are There: Turn off all the lights and air conditioner/heater when you leave your room, and unplug unnecessary appliances.
6. Greener Way To Get Around:
Utilize public transportation (bus, train, city car, etc.) and alternative modes of transportation (walking, bicycle, non-motorized vehicles, horse, camel) as much as possible. It’s a more sustainable way to get around, and also a healthier and more enjoyable way to get to know the place you are visiting.
7. Eat Local:
Reduce your ‘food miles’ by choosing local. Visit a local farmer’s market, shop at a locally owned grocery store and choose locally owned restaurants that buy local. Locally produced foods are a tastier and more sustainable option.
8. Save Water:
Use the minimum amount of water needed for a shower/bath, don’t let water run while shaving, brushing or washing, and check if the hotel has a linen reuse program – if so, reuse your towels and bed sheets by placing the card to indicate you don’t wish to have them washed every day, if not, request hospitality staff not to change them every day.
9. Charge Your Trip Sustainably:
Whenever possible, utilize options that do not require batteries. Buy rechargeable batteries for your essential travel items such as cameras, razors, and flash lights.
10. Offset the Unavoidable Footprint:
Contribute to a credible carbon offsetting program to support
New solar energy process discovered by Stanford engineers could revamp production.
Stanford Report, August 2, 2010
New solar energy process found by Stanford engineers could revamp production.A new process that simultaneously combines the light and heat of solar radiation to generate electricity could offer more than double the efficiency of existing solar cell technology, say the Stanford engineers who discovered it and proved that it works. The process, called “photon enhanced thermionic emission,” or PETE, could reduce the costs of solar energy production enough for it to compete with oil as an energy source.
___________________
AVANCIS solar installers at work
The solar module manufacturer AVANCIS has recorded a new international efficiency record.
Green jobs are a reality, and now is the time to honor the innovative companies that are creating them. With support from the Citi Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, SJF Advisory Services and Green For All have partnered to launch a Green Jobs Award Program, which seeks to identify, recognize, and promote private companies that are leaders in quality green job creation.
The uses for solar energy are becoming more and more apparent as demonstrated by the recent introductions of solar powered mobile phones in Kenya and India. Both countries have large areas where electricity is not available through a grid tied system. Small solar panels and battery systems offer a cleaner energy solution in rural areas where kerosene is often used. Jeff Olshesky and Trevor Knauff are with Beyond Solar, a US based non profit who has worked with South Orissa Voluntary Action (SOVA) and D.light Design, a solar lantern manufacturer based in New Delhi to provide micro loans to the residents of Koraput; district in the eastern Indian state of Orissa a region about 1000 miles northeast of Mumbai. Their worked allowed the villagers to purchase these small systems and literally light up their huts at night. In Nairobi, Kenyan entreprenauer, Murefu Marasa is working to provide affordable small scale solar products to a district of 500,000 people who have no legal access to electricity. From solar powered backpacks to solar powered airplanes; product innovations and developments are happening everyday. There are also many DIY(do it yourselfers) who are installing solar on their own.
Around the globe, solar and other forms of renewable energy are making a positive impact on the environment, climate change and job creation. In Germany for example, in 1998 30,000 people were employed in green related jobs. In 2010 – 300,000 people were employed in green jobs… a growth of ten times.This progress was no accident. Along with many policy changes the German government instituted a number of incentive programs that literally paid homeowners to install solar on their rooftops. America needs to do what the Germans did – create a national renewable energy policy that is sustainable and doesn’t rely on the perpetual use of poisonous oil and coal as our main source of energy.
Today China is the worlds largest manufacturer of solar panels. According to Gary Locke, US Secretary of Commerce, China is investing $9 billion a month into clean energy and efficiency.The US Recovery Act is an $80 billion clean energy investment program designed to double American renewable capacity and create thousands of jobs. The United States is now in fourth position in terms of solar power installed.
Meanwhile if the DeepWater Horizon oil rig explosion and forth coming catastrophic consequences in the Gulf of Mexico hasn’t revealed why we need renewable energy, I’m not sure what will. Maybe pissed off, mutated, fire spitting, Moby Dick sized toxic shrimp rising from the oily deep ravaging the regions coastlines would be persuasive enough. Like Tony Hayward CEO of BP who wanted his life back, It is not without understanding why oil rig workers and politicians want their way of life to continue. They like we, live in an oil based eco system that’s been in place for generations now. But change will come… it always does. Take note,Thomas Edison created an electric car in 1910…that’s right 1910! Are we serious enough now, 100 years later when we recognize that 90% of the oil that America uses is for transportation. We know we’re a nation of oil junkies…question is are we tired of being strung out? Maybe the 3000 or so oil rigs in the Gulf could be transformed as offshore solar, wind, tidal or wave stations. We’re all going to need to participate in this change. We the engineers, scientists, investors, politicians, marketers, artists, thinkers, citizens and inventors have a stake in this.
We choose to do these things
The nations’ call to action is to honestly help create new green opportunities not only for the Gulf fishing industry and oil rig workers, but for all Americans desparately seeking to revitalize their lives in the face of change. When President John F Kennedy spoke of sending a man to the moon he said,” we chose to do these things and the other things, not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard.” The power of the oil industry is legendary and yet they too must recognize the danger of deep water drilling and realize it isn’t sustainable. Solar alone isn’t the answer: it’s part of a diversity of innovations throughout our society including renewable energy options such as hydro, biomass and other opportunities yet to be explored. Together they and we have the potential to lead this country to a new green renaissance of environmental, business and social prosperity.
TIMELESS
___________________
AVANCIS solar installers at work
The solar module manufacturer AVANCIS has recorded a new international efficiency record.
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FREEDOM TO ROAM
Rick Ridgway
Ecotourism Conference Keynote Speaker Rick Ridgeway to Address Climate Change and Wildlife
Sustainable Tourism Conference Portland, Oregon, USA
September 8-10, 2010
Rick Ridgeway is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, author, photographer and environmentalist. Ridgeway has achieved many adventures in his life including being a member of the first American team to summit K2. His international reputation as one of the world’s foremost mountaineers and adventurers prompted Rolling Stone magazine to call him “the real Indiana Jones.” Ridgeway has also been honored with National Geographic’s “Lifetime Achievement in Adventure” award. Rick Ridgeway, Board Chairman of Freedom to Roam Coalition, and Vice President of Environmental Initiatives and Special Media Projects for Patagonia, Inc.
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14 year old converts VW to electric vehicle
By Patrick McDonough
Argus Observer
Ashton Stark shows off the rear compartment of his grandfather’s 1972 Volkswagen, which he and his father have converted to an electric vehicle. The car is now driven by a single motorized shaft and powered by nine golf cart batteries. The Starks estimate the vehicle can travel up to 45 miles on a single charge which would cost about 10 cents in electricity.
Ontario — After almost a year of building a fully operational electric vehicle, and after all of the study and implementation of electrical and mechanical engineering involved, one important element of the project is still missing for Ashton Stark.
That would be reaching the age where he can drive it.
Stark, who is 14 and will be a sophomore at Ontario High School in the fall, said he will be old enough for a learner’s permit in a few weeks. He said he is excited about getting behind the wheel and showing it to more of his friends.
He conceded that, in the meantime, there still are many points of enjoyment and pride associated with the car.
He said one of the main points of pride is the vehicle’s connection with the past.
“It is my grandpa’s 72 Super Beetle,” he said. “I think he would love it and be incredibly proud of it.” He said the bond with the past did not keep him and his father from designing the vehicle with an eye toward the future. “It is also good for the earth and the community,” he said. Stark pointed out the vehicle does not use oil or gas and is
good for the environment in other ways. The vehicle is driven by a single cylindrical drive shaft connected to the original shaft of the Volkswagens transmission. It is powered by nine separate 8 volt golf cart batteries, with five in the rear and four in the front of the vehicle. “We are running 72 volt through it,” Stark said. “Interstate battery made a deal with us to test their new line of golf cart batteries and collect data on the batteries.” Noel Stark, Ashton’s father, said he has driven the vehicle many times, and he believes it is not only green conscious, it is also inexpensive and practical to operate.
“We have not done a full run on it, but we estimate it can travel somewhere between 45 and 50 miles on a full charge,” Noel Stark said. “You could drive every day to and from work for less than 10 cents a day, and that would be if the batteries were dead when you came home. It would probably be more like two to three cents a day.” Noel Stark said the vehicle has a top speed of 45 miles per hour, and said it runs in complete silence. Noel Stark said the project, which cost around $4,000, is one more drivers should consider. “I think any vehicle can be converted to electricity,” he said. “It is so simple to get one I don’t know why more people don’t own one. It doesn’t have to be a Bug, it can be any light weight vehicle: a Porsche, a Toyota or a Honda. It would be a great neighborhood or commuter vehicle and would save a fortune on gas.” Ashton Stark said he plans to use the vehicle for his senior class project. He said he will collect data through an onboard computer port as to range, efficiency and other elements of performance. He said working on the vehicle with his father has opened the doors of opportunity in other areas, also. He said might consider building electric cars for others. “I think if more people had them, it would help the community a lot,” he said.
Green jobs are a reality, and now is the time to honor the innovative companies that are creating them. With support from the Citi Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, SJF Advisory Services and Green For All have partnered to launch a Green Jobs Award Program, which seeks to identify, recognize, and promote private companies that are leaders in quality green job creation.
