Author Archives: quest

Oh no you didn’t

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slide 7300 96533 large 300x120 Oh no you didntI don’t think most people get pleasure out of seeing photos of oil drenched sea birds, dolphins and miles of once beautiful beaches blackened by BP’s undersea hell hole poking. The environmental impact is just starting to be seen despite BP’s best efforts to restrict images coming out of the Gulf of Mexico. But for some it’s not about the principle of the thing, it’s about the money. And surely the economic impact will be felt for years… tourism, fishing the entire economy of the region has been poisoned and  is going to take an incredible hit.

Solar power & electric vehicle synergy

But what can we do? Electric vehicles, solar, wind, wave and a myriad of sustainable ventures offer a renewable and far less dangerous solution to what is currently going on. In fact take a look at the video of a Berkeley California family that’s been driving an electric vehicle for years now and uses solar panels to provide energy for their home. Toyota and Tesla Motors have just teamed up to start churning out a new line of electric cars. And Santa Rosa based ZAP recently won a contract with the US Post office to begin transitioning some of their fleet to electric. Others in EV business include Nissan LEAP, Mini – E, Volt and Coda. Even though the 2006 film Who Killed the Electric Car (see the trailer here) highlighted GM’s role destroying electric transportation. Electric vehicles have been around for at least 100 years.  ZAP also owns Thomas Edison’s  “electromobile” from 1910  and the Detroit Electric brand.

v8l2srja Oh no you didnt

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MIKE PAPANTONIO – RING OF FIRE

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Robert Kuttner

images 1 Oh no you didnt

Co-founder and co-editor of The American Prospect

BP and the Bankers

Question of the Day: What do the oil catastrophe and the Wall Street collapse have in common?
Three big things, I’d say.
In both cases, a powerful, politically protected industry invented something that could not easily be repaired when it broke. We seem to be entering an age when complex technologies, whether financial or physical, sometimes literally have no solutions when they go haywire in unanticipated ways. We thought this might happen with nuclear power (and it still could); but for now deepwater drilling is the bigger menace.

Read more here

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SolFocus and Victor Valley College Complete the Largest Solar Power Plant of its Kind in North America

052610 completed plant Oh no you didnt

Victorville, Calif.– Victor Valley College and SolFocus held a grand opening ceremony today for the largest solar power plant in North America using concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) systems. After two months of construction, the one megawatt solar power plant is now providing clean power to Victor Valley College in Victorville, California.

About the Solar Power Plant:
•    The Victor Valley College solar micro-generating facility is now connected to the regional electrical grid operated by Southern California Edison and will produce approximately 2.6 million kilowatt-hours annually, which is roughly 30 percent of the College’s electricity demand.
•    Construction of the six acre plant was completed in two months.
•    The plant is located on the college’s main campus and consists of 122 SolFocus SF-1100S CPV arrays.
Green Jobs Training:
•    The college will be developing curriculum within its existing academic and technical programs around this innovative solar technology, including installation, operations, and maintenance.
•    SolFocus will be supporting the college in its curriculum development around advanced solar energy technology including materials, training, and instruction.
Quotes from Grand Opening Participants:
•    “As we open this facility today, Victor Valley College boasts one of the largest and most innovative on-campus solar plants in North America. In addition to providing energy cost savings and a new revenue stream, these 122 arrays will provide the ideal testing ground for our students to build green careers that support the nation’s new energy economy.” – Dr. Christopher O’Hearn, Superintendant and President, Victor Valley College
•    “The beauty of this project is that we can provide one megawatt of clean power in the desert with minimal land and water impact. At the same time, we can train the next generation of solar professionals with innovative technology. SolFocus believes such distributed generation projects will mobilize other colleges, communities, and organizations across the U.S. to incorporate renewable energy into their power supply on the path toward even larger utility-scale projects. When you add it all up, you have a clear vision for the new energy economy.” – Mark Crowley, President and CEO, SolFocus (technology provider)

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A wet baby and change

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g 080522 hlt crying baby 11awidec A wet baby and changeWe are a nation of cliches. Here are a few…A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. A stitch in time saves nine (?) ….and the only person that likes change is a wet baby.This last one may very well be true most of the time, yet I can’t help but recall my sister’s reaction upon smelling the pungent scent of her toddler son’s pants and asking…”sweetheart do you need to change your diaper?” He very properly replied…no thank you. He had gotten used to mushing around in those stinky diapers. She changed them anyway, but it proves a point…people can get used to anything…even when the need for change is so apparent.

US Attorney General, Eric Holder has begun a criminal probe into the undersea oil volcano gusher created by BP in the Gulf of Mexico. This story just  underscores the need for a sensible and enlightened energy policy that doesn’t depend on digging up dead dinosaur bones. It was over thirty years ago during the energy crises of the 70′s that President Jimmy Carter got a whiff of what was going on and laid out a plan  to change our nations’  dirty energy diapers.

President Jimmy Carter

But here we are now and are our fellow citizens in Louisiana are crying for change. Things may very well get worst, if we don’t have leaders who are willing to make the changes we need – even if  we’ve gotten too comfortable and aren’t sure what to do it. Electric vehicles, solar, wind, wave and a myriad of sustainable ventures offer a renewable and far less dangerous solution to what is currently going on.

Many of the oil/energy companies do have solar divisions and wisely so; including BP which did have a solar manufacturing  facility in Maryland. It closed it down in late March 2010 citing increased costs even though it posted a 26% sales increase  over last  year and industry trade associations predicting positive growth in the years ahead.

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Electric Vehicles

Telsa Toyota Team

See video here

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Transforming ourselves – Transforming our Energy
Listen Here

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Author, National Talk Show Host

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Thom Hartmann

Was the Gulf Oil Disaster a Result of a BP BigWhig Party?

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The Hub Soma Opens

Hub 300x167 A wet baby and change

Hub SoMa Launch Celebration

On Thursday May 27th, 2010 Hub SoMa had an opening celebration. Focused around the concept of “radical collaboration,” the event  featured vignettes by Valerie Casey of the Designers Accord , Tim Freundlich and Alex Michel from Hub Bay Area, and Alexa Arena of Forest City .- each  discussed local and global forms of collaboration for social and environmental impact.

Events like this one just keep exposing why San Francisco and the Bay Area is on the forefront of trend setting movements. The people in attendance were thrilled to be there and learn about Hub Bay Area. The space has a unique design and located in the San Francisco Chronicle  Building. The Hub is a coworking space, event series, and professional toolset for changemakers! Now located in San Francisco and Berkeley, and 22 international locations across 5 continents. To learn more go to: http://bayarea.the-hub.net/public/

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A Power Play in Marin County

MT Tam 150x150 A wet baby and changeVote coming up read here

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A hole poked into hell…23,000 feet below the ocean

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r GULF OIL SATELLITE huge A hole poked into hell...23,000 feet below the ocean

One thing that’s consistent about humankind is our attraction to the sea. Since a large part of the human body is composed mostly of water and more than 70% of the world is covered by ocean…this may be natural.

The world’s water ways are key resources to our existence. It is not  without some irony that with respect to energy; it was only within the last two hundred years that man was hunting and killing whales and using their blubber to light the western world. That activity practically drove whales to the brink of extinction.

Today if we still did that it be considered primitive, barbaric! Yet there we were out in the world’s seas exterminating whales for their energy. Today here we are with our ingenious selves. I mean just the idea of  an oil rig sitting 5000 feet above the ocean floor and than drilling another 18,000 feet once you reach the ocean floor is a remarkable technological accomplishment…even if totally misdirected and deadly. Yet it clearly demonstrates the depths man will go to get what we want even if it leads to the environmental and economic catastrophe we now have on our hands.

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL

We have poked a hole into the earth under the ocean and now we are all seeing the hellish result. What on earth makes us think we couldt1main.underwater.bp 150x150 A hole poked into hell...23,000 feet below the ocean ever control something like this? How many times does mother nature have to check us and let us know who’s running the show? Scientist are now discovering undersea plumes of oil clouds that are 10 and 20 miles long headed for shorelines, underwater canyons and gulf streams that circulate around the world. Once and if this shows up on Miami Beach than maybe everyone will start to get it. In the new version of the Day the Earth Stood Still the scientist played by John Cleese pleads with alien, Klaatu played by Keanu Reeves to please give humans a second chance because as he argues, only when man is at the precipice of destruction can he change.

The evolution of technology in solar, wind, wave and other sustainable ventures now gives us smarter less toxic  ways to create a world where  we don’t do ourselves in through greed and arrogance.

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Philippe Cousteau Jr, CEO of Green Eco

grandson of famed oceanographer Jacques Cousteau interviewed on Real Time with Bill Maher about what’s in store for the Gulf of Mexico.
See the video here.

bill maher 150x150 A hole poked into hell...23,000 feet below the ocean
To get a perspective of what it looks like underneath the water in the

Gulf of Mexico see

Philippe’s dive click here.

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The Hub Soma Opens

Hub 300x167 A hole poked into hell...23,000 feet below the oceanHub SoMa Launch Celebration

On Thursday May 27th, 2010 Hub SoMa had an opening celebration. Focused around the concept of “radical collaboration,” the event  featured vignettes by Valerie Casey of the Designers Accord , Tim Freundlich and Alex Michel from Hub Bay Area, and Alexa Arena of Forest City .- each  discussed local and global forms of collaboration for social and environmental impact.

Events like this one just keep exposing why San Francisco and the Bay Area is on the forefront of trend setting movements. The people in attendance were thrilled to be there and learn about Hub Bay Area. The space has a unique design and located in the San Francisco Chronicle  Building. The Hub is a coworking space, event series, and professional toolset for changemakers! Now located in San Francisco and Berkeley, and 22 international locations across 5 continents. To learn more go to: http://bayarea.the-hub.net/public/

_____________PTMmbz*wZTk*NGU3ZDQ4MmI*NDcwYTE5NjVmMTVlOWMzMzZmYyZvZj*w A hole poked into hell...23,000 feet below the ocean

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A GREEN DOOR – social & eco

GREEN NEWS WALL – news on the green

GREEN TRANSPORTATION- moving green

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POSITIONS - connect

RESOURCES - well

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Obama Visits Bay Area Solar Company

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hero solyndra LJ 0114 Obama Visits Bay Area Solar Company Text: PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Everybody please have a seat.  (Applause.)  It is wonderful to be here and to see all of you here today.  And I would be remiss if I did not note the presence of your governor, give him a big round of applause, Arnold Schwarzenegger.  (Applause.)  I’m just going to go ahead and mention our district attorney, Kamala Harris, who’s here.  (Applause.)

It is great to be in Fremont, good to be back in Northern California.  I was reminiscing a little bit — Michelle and I took our honeymoon in Napa Valley.  That was almost 17 years ago when we drove down the Pacific Coast Highway, and so I was — I was fantasizing about going and renting a car.  (Laughter.)  But I was told that would cause a stir, so next time.

But it’s wonderful to be here in Northern California.  It is always nice to get out of Washington a little bit.  Now, don’t get me wrong, the capital is a beautiful place, nice monuments.  I have no commute — (laughter) — which very few people in California can say is true for them.

But the truth of the matter is, is that when you’re in Washington a lot of times all you’re thinking about or all that’s being talked about is politics — who’s up, who’s down, the contest between the parties, instead of people remembering why it is that they aspired to go into politics in the first place.  We end up getting caught up in the moment instead of what is important for the future.

So I try to visit places like this about once a week, hear from folks as often as possible who are actually doing the extraordinary work of building up America.  And I appreciated the chance to tour your plant and to see the incredible, cutting-edge solar panels that you’re manufacturing, but also the process that goes into the manufacturing of these solar panels.  And it is just a testament to American ingenuity and dynamism and the fact that we continue to have the best universities in the world, the best technology in the world, and most importantly the best workers in the world.  And you guys all represent that.  So thank you very much for that.  (Applause.)

And while I’m at it, I also want to give some credit to those guys in the back who have been building this facility so that we can put more people back to work and build more solar panels to send all across the country.  Thank you for the great work that you guys are doing.  (Applause.)

Now, it’s fitting that this technology is being pioneered here in California.  Where else, right?  For generations, this part of the country has embodied the entrepreneurial spirit that has always defined America’s success.  People heading West.

Read more here

PTMmbz*wZTk*NGU3ZDQ4MmI*NDcwYTE5NjVmMTVlOWMzMzZmYyZvZj*w Obama Visits Bay Area Solar Company

Visit these sections below

EVENTS – what’s happening

A GREEN DOOR – social & eco

GREEN NEWS WALL – news on the green

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More solar power…more jobs

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Roger Efird rogerefirdsuntech 150x150 More solar power...more jobs

Tax policies could add jobs, MWs of new solar

* Industry group wants grant program, tax credits extended

* Says policies would create 200,000 new jobs

* Changes could result in 10 GW of new solar installations

By Dana Ford – Tax credits and a two-year extension to a federal grant program for U.S. solar projects would add roughly 200,000 jobs and almost 10,000 megawatts of new solar installations, an industry group said on Wednesday.

Citing research done by EuPD Research, a private research group, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) urged the U.S. government to extend a grant program, set to expire this year, through 2012.

The program, established in 2009 under the U.S. Recovery Act, was meant to help fill the financing void left by shrinking tax equity markets.

Historically, banks have used tax equity markets to fund solar projects by buying government tax credits from the project owners. Those owners use that money from the banks to cover the costs of development.

But as the credit crisis hit the financial markets, banks’ appetite for those tax credits disappeared.

“The market dynamics have not substantially changed from when the Recovery Act was put in place until today, and that says the need to continue these programs is critical,” Rhone Resch, president and chief executive at SEIA, told Reuters.

SEIA is also calling on the government to allow solar manufacturing costs to be claimed as an investment tax credit.

Combining a possible grant extension with the ability to apply for tax credits would create some 200,000 jobs and lead to nearly 10,000 MW of new installations in the United States by 2016, the group said.

According to SEIA, one megawatt is enough to power some 250 average U.S. homes.

Installed solar capacity in the United States jumped 37 percent last year as state and federal incentive programs helped to prop up demand during a downturn.

It was the fourth straight year of growth, but without changes to current policy, Resch said the U.S. solar industry could grind to a halt.

Several of the big solar players, including industry heavyweight First Solar Inc (FSLR.O), have plans to develop large-scale projects under the grant program, and have been working to meet the year-end 2010 deadline.

Many projects are at risk of missing the cutoff because of permitting and other scheduling delays.

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What’s your Solar Power?

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Untitled 1 More solar power...more jobs

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Listen to n The Mix with Carol McClelland with

Founder Green Career Central

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SpiritualB 300x192 More solar power...more jobs

Lewis Griggs on HUMAN SPIRIT AT WORK

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Toyota Tesla Team

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Gov. Schwarzenegger Joins Tesla and Toyota Officials to Announce Acquisition of NUMMI Facility

Toyota to Invest $50 Million in Tesla and Partner to Manufacture Electric Vehicles, Create Over 1,000 Green Jobs

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger  joined President and Chief Executive Officer of Toyota Motor Corporation Akio Toyoda, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tesla Motors Elon Musk and Lieutenant Governor Abel Maldonado to announce an historic new partnership between the automotive companies that will benefit California’s economy and environment. Toyota announced it will invest $50 million in Tesla Motors and will partner with Tesla to manufacture electric vehicles (EVs). Additionally, Tesla announced that it will acquire the NUMMI plant in Fremont and begin production of its Model S EV in 2012. Today’s action could create more than 1,000 green jobs in California.

“What we are witnessing today is an historic example of California’s transition to a cleaner, greener and more prosperous future. We challenged auto companies to innovate, and both Tesla and Toyota stepped up in a big way, not only creating vehicles that reduce emissions and appeal to consumers but also boosting economic growth,” said Governor Schwarzenegger. “Tesla, just a start-up company a few years ago, will soon employ Californians in green jobs on a large scale at the former NUMMI plant. In fact, Tesla’s founding and expansion in California is a direct result of our nation-leading policies that support demand for green products and the companies and people who produce them. I am thrilled with today’s announcement and can’t wait to see what this partnership brings next.”

Tesla will use the NUMMI plant to begin production of its second generation vehicle, the Model S EV. This 300-mile range, seven-seat SUV will open Tesla Motors to a whole new market of car buyers. Once it reaches full production mode at the NUMMI plant, Tesla expects to produce 20,000 EVs per year. Tesla is a California company, founded in 2003 in Silicon Valley. Their first vehicle, the Tesla Roadster, was the first production automobile to use lithium-ion battery cells and the first production EV with a range greater than 200 miles per charge that could go from 0-60 in under four seconds.

Governor Schwarzenegger has led the way in implementing policies that encourage auto manufacturers to be bold and innovate, and these policies are not only promoting job creation and influencing national policies, they’re also helping provide a cleaner, greener environment for generations to come. Some of the most significant policies that are allowing innovative green companies to create jobs and thrive in California include:
•    Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32): AB 32 established a first-in-the-world comprehensive program of regulatory and market mechanisms to achieve real, quantifiable, cost-effective reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. The law will reduce carbon emissions in California to 1990 levels by 2020. Mandatory caps will begin in 2012 for significant sources and ratchet down to meet the 2020 goals. The Governor has also called for the state to reduce carbon emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by the year 2050.
•    Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS): California’s LCFS requires fuel providers to reduce the carbon intensity of transportation fuels sold in the state, dramatically expanding the market for alternative fuels. To start, the LCFS will reduce carbon content in all passenger vehicle fuels sold in California by at least 10 percent by 2020 and more thereafter.
•    Automobile Emissions Standards: After years of fighting the federal government for the authority to implement our greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency granted California’s waiver and the Obama Administration adopted it for the country.

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What’s your Solar Power?

Free Solar Evaluation Click Below

Untitled 1 Toyota Tesla Team

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Listen to n The Mix with Carol McClelland with

Founder Green Career Central

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More Oil Than First Reported

bprate 150x150 Toyota Tesla Team

This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite on May 10, 2010 and released by NASA on May 17, shows the oil spill which has remained in the Gulf of Mexico not far from the Mississippi Delta

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SpiritualB 300x192 Toyota Tesla Team

Lewis Griggs on HUMAN SPIRIT AT WORK

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