The Few The Proud The Brave Go Solar

Posted on July 27, 2011 by quest

Independent Energy Solutions, (IES), a leading solar energy development and construction firm, today announced completion and “powering-up” of a 213 kW (dc) solar electric (photovoltaic) carport / shade structure installation at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in 29 Palms, California. The large-scale system is capable of generating about 312,000 kilowatt-hours of clean, green electricity annually while providing shade and cover for parked cars.

Designed and built by IES for the US Navy and GKK Works, the project consists of 868 Solarworld solar modules, two PV Powered inverters and an integrated mounting system for an existing carport structure. It produces the equivalent electricity to power 28 average single-family homes and will offset about 405,000 pounds of greenhouse gases annually – the environmental equivalent of taking 52 cars off the road.

According to IES Vice President of Business Development, George Gisel, “This project was uniquely challenging due to the advanced logistics and coordination required for construction at an active Air Ground Combat Center. IES was chosen by GKK Works in large part because of our extensive military project experience and ability to deliver systems on-time and on-budget.” Founded in 1998, Independent Energy Solutions is a certified women-owned business and a leading provider of renewable energy and solar electric (photovoltaic) systems. IES provides design, build, procurement and maintenance services to a broad spectrum of clients throughout the commercial, military, public agencies, nonprofit and education markets.

A Few Good Men

Avatar Sequels Will Be Filmed Using Solar Energy

Leonardo DiCaprio joins Zayed Future Energy Prize Jury

Posted on July 27, 2011 by quest

Leonardo DiCaprio joins distinguished group of international leaders in government, business, academia and renowned Green activists has been selected to join the Jury for the Zayed Future Energy Prize. The Zayed Future Energy Prize is recognized as the world’s preeminent award -driving innovation, leadership, long-term vision and impact in renewable energy and sustainability.

“The Zayed Future Energy Prize serves as a catalyst to sustainable development. For us, going carbon neutral is not just the right thing to do; we believe it is in our economic self-interest. Countries that have the foresight to green their economies today, will be the winners of tomorrow” We welcome to the Prize highly accomplished individuals who bring together a multi-faceted set of experiences in the industry along with a shared passion and commitment to advancing renewable energy and sustainability around the world,” said Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Director General of the Zayed Future Energy Prize. “We will greatly benefit by each of their specific areas of expertise and participation.”Newly-selected members of the Zayed Future Energy Prize Jury are: HE Mohammed Nasheed, President of the Republic of the Maldives, Elizabeth Dipuo Peters, Minister of Energy for South Africa, Hon. Timothy Wirth, President of the UN Foundation and Better World Fund, Andre Agassi, Founder of the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education and Grand Slam Tennis Champion and Hon. Cherie Blair, Founder of the Cherie Blair Foundation.The new Jury members will join continuing members: HE Olafur Ragnar Grímsson, President of Iceland; HE Ahmed Al Sayegh, Chairman of Masdar; and Dr. Susan Hockfield, President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

“Our appreciation is also extended to the exiting jury members whose efforts have laid the foundation and created the momentum for the prize in its inception phase. We recognize their efforts and are confident that they will continue to support the prize as its ambassadors.” he added. The Zayed Future Energy Prize aims to incentivize, encourage and become a catalyst for the ongoing development of renewable energy and clean technology.The Jury will convene later this year as the final judging panel in a four-tiered open process that selects the prize winners and finalists who will be honoured in an Awards Ceremony in Abu Dhabi on 17 January 2012. The annual Zayed Future Energy Prize is open to individuals, large companies, entrepreneurs, small- to medium-size enterprises (SMEs) and NGOs in the field of renewable energy and sustainability.The prize organization has developed a multi-tiered evaluation procedure to ensure consistency throughout the judging process. Participants can win up to $1.5 million.

The 11th Hour

Solar Satellites Key To Green Energy

Habitat for Humanity and PG&E Build Solar Homes

Posted on July 26, 2011 by quest

Habitat for Humanity International and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) have renewed their partnership for a fifth year to help provide solar power to Habitat homes built in Northern and Central California. Since its inception in 2007, the PG&E Solar Habitat program has assisted in the construction of 250 solar-powered Habitat homes and is on track to build another 83 homes in 2011. The announcement was made July 22 at a Habitat for Humanity for San Luis Obispo County build site in San Luis Obispo, Calif. Habitat for Humanity is dedicated to the cause of eliminating poverty housing. Since its founding in 1976, Habitat has built, rehabilitated, repaired or improved more than 400,000 houses worldwide, providing simple, decent and affordable shelter for more than 2 million people

With this year’s contribution of nearly $1.2 million, PG&E has donated more than $5.7 million to Habitat for Humanity International to help respond to the housing needs of California families. The contribution is further supported by thousands of hours of educational instruction, skill development and hundreds of volunteer hours that PG&E employees have provided at local Habitat builds across the state.

“The PG&E Solar Habitat project extends the accessibility of affordable solar energy to more Californians,” said Chris Johns, president of Pacific Gas and Electric Company and board member of the PG&E Corporation Foundation. “The money from solar energy, along with the positive environmental impacts, helps contribute to a healthier environment for us all.” “PG&E shares in our passion to help low-income families,” said Larry Gluth, senior vice president of U.S. and Canada for Habitat for Humanity International. “This partnership translates into real savings for Habitat homeowners by lowering energy costs and providing more stable and affordable housing options.” The PG&E Solar Habitat program lowers the electricity bill of an average household by $500 per year. Each solar panel generates nearly 300 kilowatt-hours of clean, renewable energy from sunlight per month, avoiding the release of more than 132,000 pounds of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere over the 30-year life of the system. This year’s donation is the equivalent of taking 950 cars off the road for an entire year.

Van Jones Kicks off American Dream Movement

CLEAN LA Solar Investing $2 Billion In Rooftop Solar

Posted on July 25, 2011 by quest

LABC President Mary Leslie, a former LADWP commissioner, joined hundreds of solar industry leaders and public officials at a major conference today at UCLA, where she thanked Governor Brown for his leadership in seeking to make California the clean-energy leader. Leslie also said the nation’s largest municipal utility has the wherewithal to implement the CLEAN LA program now, after more than two years of evaluation of CLEAN LA and other sustainable energy plans.With solar industry leaders and public officials working to meet Governor Edmund G. Brown’s ambitious state-wide goals for local, renewable power, the Los Angeles Business Council and a broad coalition of supporters today called on the LADWP to implement the CLEAN LA Solar Plan, which would produce 600 MW of locally generated rooftop solar power, create thousands of local jobs and spur as much as $2 billion of private investment. The plan enjoys huge support among the public, with an opinion survey showing that more than eight in 10 local voters are in favor.

“Governor Brown’s vision enables communities across the state to create renewable energy programs that meet local needs. Here in Los Angeles, we’ve designed the CLEAN LA solar plan to create jobs, foster private investment and take advantage of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal tax credits,” Leslie said. “We call on the LADWP to deliver on the promise of a meaningful local rooftop solar program that is great public policy and a terrific economic development initiative.”The CLEAN LA plan meets important city needs at a reasonable cost, especially when considering federal tax credits available to offset the costs for business owners, the lack of meaningful solar production in the city to date, and the looming state requirements for clean energy. Further, newly released figures show that the solar proposal actually produces cost-savings for the utility’s ratepayers over the course of its 30-year life. LABC, in conjunction with top researchers at UCLA and USC, has conducted several in-depth studies showing that the plan would create as many as 18,000 job-years, while spurring private investment of as much as $2 billion. One job-year is economic investment sufficient to employ one person for one year. Important to the success of the program is taking advantage of federal tax credits, set to expire at the end of 2016, which could finance as much as $300 million of the program.

The CLEAN LA program has a simple design: residents and building-owners would be paid a set rate of return for power generated by rooftop solar panels. UCLA’s studies have found that building owners can be incentivized to participate by having LADWP pay them a slight premium for the power that is generated. This, in turn, grows the amount of local, clean power in Los Angeles. As a result of the economics of energy costs – falling prices for solar panel installation and natural gas prices that are expected to rise over time – the plan actually saves ratepayers money over its 30-year life. The significant environmental benefits come without the high price tag of some other energy programs. The CLEAN LA solar plan would produce 600 MW of locally generated solar energy – enough to power 137,000 typical Los Angeles homes – while providing a significant step toward meeting the state-mandated requirement that local utilities generate 33 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2020.

Top Artists To Perform For Solar and Renewable Energy

Solar Report Unveils Additional $5 Billion In California

Posted on July 25, 2011 by quest

SunRun, a San Francisco based home solar company, today unveiled a new study from the economic consultancy AECOM showing that simpler solar permitting processes could generate over $5 billion in additional growth for California, an increase in nearly 20 percent relative to the status quo.”These findings are tremendous for local governments because they offer a low-cost way to add billions to the economy,” said SunRun Director of Government Affairs Ethan Sprague. “Solar permitting guidelines already exist and it’s just a matter of putting them to use. Governments that streamline their permitting processes sooner will generate a bigger economic impact in the long run, more permanent local jobs, and allow more families to save money by switching to solar.”

In January SunRun issued a report, “The Impact of Local Permitting on the Cost of Solar Power.” That report showed local solar permitting and inspection processes add an average of over $2,500 per home installation. It also helped inform the Department of Energy’s (DOE) recently-announced SunShot Rooftop Solar Challenge to make solar affordable for more Americans. This new report from AECOM is a follow-on analysis that calculates the economic and fiscal benefits of streamlined permitting for the state of California to help further the goals of the SunShot initiative’s pilot program, as well as the related Senate Bill 1108. The AECOM forecast also indicates that failure to adopt more efficient home solar permitting processes could jeopardize the already expected $30 billion economic gain from natural solar market growth in California.

“A critical aspect of these findings is they apply beyond California,” added Sprague. “Any local government can boost the economic impact of solar through streamlined permitting, and there’s a funding opportunity from the DOE to help make it happen.” “Local solar energy creates jobs and helps America move away from dirty and increasingly expensive coal-fired power,” said Bill Corcoran, western regional director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. “An essential step to giving more Americans access to the benefits of local solar energy is streamlined permitting. We hope the report’s findings will encourage governments across the country to reform permitting processes and accelerate our nation’s necessary transition to reliable renewable energy.”

Kenyan Eco Entrepreneur Turns Trash Into Treasure

Green Boot Camp Instructs Teachers In New Jersey

Posted on July 24, 2011 by quest

Union County and Honeywell last week hosted the third annual Green Boot Camp, an interactive workshop focused on best practice instruction methods for teaching energy, sustainability and environmental concepts. As part of the five-day event, 40 middle school teachers from across North America gathered to explore the roots of green technology, sustainable living and environmental awareness by using the Union County Vocational-Technical Schools (UCVTS) campus in Scotch Plains, N.J., as a living laboratory.

“Our objective is to equip teachers with the tools to get students excited about science and engineering, and enable them to understand sustainable practices that will positively affect their families, schools and communities,” said Paul Orzeske, president of Honeywell Building Solutions. “By teaming with a renowned institution like UCVTS, we are educating the next generation of green workers and building a foundation for environmental stewardship.”

Green Boot Camp participants covered a comprehensive set of topics ranging from green energy and greenhouse gas emissions to electric vehicles and the smart electrical grid. For example, attendees worked on course materials to clearly articulate the principles of renewable energy by designing a solar house, and constructing a wind turbine and bicycle generator. In addition to the on-site instructors, Honeywell and UCVTS also invited a host of special guest speakers who specialize in environmental and energy-related disciplines, such as rainwater conservation and building energy management.

Picking Up Money Recycling in Port Au Prince

Executives Without Borders (ExecWB), in partnership with CSS International Holdings, Inc. and Haiti Recycling, will officially launch Ramase Lajan, a “cash for recyclables” program