Congresswoman Johnson Backs Renewable Energy Bill

Posted on May 2, 2012 by quest

Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas has backed legislation that will make significant new investments in renewable energy sources, create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, help end our dependence on foreign oil and slash taxpayer funded subsidies to oil companies. The Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2008 was approved by a vote of 236-182 on February 27th.“With oil prices reaching another record high of $102 per barrel today and families paying $3.15 a gallon for gasoline, the time for action on renewable energy and American energy independence is now. This bill is good for our environment, good for our economy and good for our national security,” said Congresswoman Johnson. “Ending our dependence on foreign oil and using renewable energy to help fight global warming will make our nation stronger. And at a time when our economy is struggling, these investments will help create hundreds of thousands of new jobs. ”

The Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act extends and expands tax incentives for renewable electricity, energy and fuel, as well as for plug-in hybrid cars, and energy efficient homes, buildings, and appliances. Additionally, the bill includes solar energy tax credits that could reduce carbon dioxide pollution by 240 million tons.The new investments in wind, solar, geothermal and fuel cell technology will also create hundreds of thousands of new jobs and help strengthen the American economy. The Geothermal Energy Association estimates that the geothermal provisions alone could create tens of thousands of new jobs and stimulate tens of billions of dollars of new investment in geothermal energy production.

Additionally, the legislation approved today repeals $18 billion in unnecessary tax subsidies for big, multinational oil and gas companies. The vote comes shortly after the big five oil companies recently reported record profits for 2007. While oil companies have profited, consumers have felt the pinch. The average cost of a gallon of gasoline in Dallas is $3.058. A year ago it was $2.61 a gallon. H.R. 5351 includes more than $8 billion in long-term clean renewable energy tax incentives for electricity produced from renewable resources, including wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, hydropower, ocean tides, and landfill gas and $2 billion in new clean renewable energy bonds for electric cooperatives and public power providers to finance facilities that generate electricity from these renewable resources.

Recovery Depends On Good, Green Jobs

Labor Department Awards Aid to SolarWorld

Posted on April 30, 2012 by quest

The U.S. Department of Labor has determined that all manufacturing employees laid off from SolarWorld Industries America Inc. as a result of the company’s shutdown of its 35-year-old solar-panel production plant in Camarillo, Calif., in September are eligible for federal trade-adjustment assistance, including grants for education to retrain them for new work.“How many more U.S. manufacturing jobs must the United States lose in this most promising renewable-energy industry, which Americans pioneered, before adequate remedies are put in place to offset the illegal practices of Big China Solar,? said company president Gordon Brinser.

The determination that Chinese imports helped cause the shutdown resulted from an investigation earlier this year by the department’s Office of Trade Adjustment Assistance, which announced the decision Friday in the Federal Register. The decision means that many of the 186 laid-off SolarWorld employees can tap federal assistance with job placement; expenses for job searches, relocation and retraining; income support during full-time retraining; and a tax credit on health-insurance premiums.

According to U.S. law, the Labor Department may certify workers for trade-adjustment assistance only if it finds that an increase in competing imports “contributed importantly” to the decline in sales or production of a firm and to the cause for worker layoffs. Though SolarWorld invested tens of millions of dollars automating the Camarillo plant after purchasing it in 2006, the company determined it needed to consolidate its U.S. manufacturing in Hillsboro, Ore., where it operates the Western Hemisphere’s largest solar plant. Consolidation was required, according to SolarWorld, to contend with the illegally subsidized and dumped solar products of China’s government-backed export drive. U.S. Department of Energy researchers have concluded that without state sponsorship, Chinese manufacturers would face a 5 percent cost disadvantage in producing and delivering solar products into the U.S. market. Read the full article: U.S. Labor Department Awards Aid to SolarWorld Workers Laid off Because of Chinese Solar Imports

EPA Awards For Innovative Environmental Solutions

Social Entrepreneurs Bringing Solar Solutions To Africa

Posted on April 27, 2012 by quest

Students from NYU Abu Dhabi were among the Hult Global Case Challenge winners. NYU Abu Dhabi’s solution focuses on creating a network of entrepreneurs and technicians who will sell and fix solar lamps in a sustainable way. Many Africans still rely on kerosene lamps for light. Hult International Business School (formerly known as the Arthur D. Little School of Management) is the first global business school with campuses in Boston, San Francisco, London, Dubai, and Shanghai. The other two wiining teams are Carnegie Mellon and Hult International Business School . The winning teams were honored for their commitment to eradicating poverty at the Hult Global Case Challenge in New York City, hosted by Hult International Business and the Clinton Global Initiative. The three winning teams beat thousands of students from the world’s best business schools for a US$1 million cash grant and were honored by President Bill Clinton.

Started three years ago by Hult graduate Ahmad Ashkar, the Hult Global Case Challenge is the largest and most respected initiative of its kind. Harnessing the power of crowd sourcing, the Hult Global Case Challenge attracted students from 350 colleges and universities to provide solutions to the real challenges facing three NGOs. These are Habitat for Humanity, which builds affordable housing; SolarAid, which brings renewable energy to impoverished communities; and One Laptop Per Child, which provides low-cost computers to children.

Speaking in support of the winning team’s solution, SolarAid CEO Steve Andrews said: “Our goal is to eradicate the kerosene lamp from Africa by the end of this decade. That’s simply a huge challenge, which will only be possible with massive innovation. Having the top students from around the world competing to come up with great ideas for how we will do this is an extraordinary boost. It’s already changing the way we think and work.”Ahmad Ashkar, the founder and CEO of the Hult Global Case Challenge, said: “This initiative aims to revolutionize how we think about the world’s most pressing social challenges. With US$1 million in seed capital, students from all over the world have a chance to establish social enterprises that achieve real results.”

Washington, D.C. Gets Top Environmental City Ranking

SunRun Invests $150 Million In Home Solar Systems

Posted on April 26, 2012 by quest

A subsidiary of U.S. Bancorp today announced the creation of a new renewable energy tax equity fund with Sunrun to support the purchase and installation of more than $150 million in residential solar systems across the United States. Sunrun is a market leader in home solar and this is the company’s sixth renewable energy tax equity commitment from U.S. Bancorp.“U.S. Bancorp has been our trusted partner for years and is instrumental to Sunrun’s continued success as one of the largest providers of clean, affordable solar energy for American families,” said Sunrun co-Founder and CEO Edward Fenster.Through its substantial tax equity commitments, U.S. Bancorp has helped Sunrun bring affordable solar to thousands of homes across the country.

Sunrun came into the market in 2007 as a way for homeowners to go solar without high upfront costs. Sunrun owns, insures, monitors and maintains the solar panels on a homeowner’s roof, while families pay a low rate for clean energy and fix their electric costs for 20 years. Typical Sunrun customers pay a lower rate for solar energy than what they pay for electricity from their utility companies. Sunrun installs over $1.5 million in solar every day and has more than 20,000 customers in ten states.

A recent report from Sunrun and PV Solar Report, an authority on solar market data, shows solar power service is becoming the preferred way for homeowners to go solar. For example, solar power service grew 174 percent in California in the first two months of 2012 compared to the first two months of 2011. It has generated over $100 million in growth for the California economy so far in 2012. One in every three California homeowners who installs solar does so with Sunrun.

Think Like A Man Thinking Green

Solar And Electric Cars Key To Cleaning California Air

Posted on April 25, 2012 by quest

The American Lung Association released the State of the Air 2012 today, an annual report on air quality which lists both the cleanest and most polluted areas in the country. This year’s report shows that although California still has some of the worst air in the nation, continuous progress in reducing ozone and particulate pollution has resulted in the state’s air quality at its cleanest since the Lung Association’s annual report began 13 years ago. The findings reinforce the effectiveness of California’s progressive clean air laws and investments and the importance of the Clean Air Act. California must continue to demonstrate leadership by stepping up efforts to achieve clean and healthy air for all residents,” said Lung Association CEO Jane Warner. “This can be done by supporting implementation of state clean car, clean fuel and diesel regulations, redesigning our communities to reduce vehicle trips, and bringing more renewable energy to the state such as solar and wind power. We also urge all Californians to show strong support for the Clean Air Act and to make an effort to reduce air pollution in their communities by driving less, using cleaner transportation options like hybrid and electric vehicles, recycling, avoiding wood burning, and using energy efficient appliances.”

“This report shows that air pollution remains a serious health threat to too many Californians,” said Warner of the American Lung Association in California. “State of the Air 2012 shows that we’re making real and steady progress in the fight for clean air, but unhealthy levels of air pollution still exist, putting the health of millions Californians at risk. Much still needs to be done, and now is not the time to stop progress.”

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that cutting air pollution through the Clean Air Act will prevent at least 230,000 deaths and save $2 trillion annually by 2020. The Lung Association is fighting Congressional attacks that would undermine the Clean Air Act and strip California of its authority to adopt stronger regulations.”Ozone and particle pollution contribute to thousands of hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and deaths every year,” said Kari Nadeau, MD, PHD, associated professor of immunology and allergy at Stanford Medical School and an American Lung Association researcher.” Read the article

Go Drive Electric Vehicle Day In LA

Posted on April 23, 2012 by quest

The public is invited to participate in the most extensive Ride, Drive & Charge event ever assembled, featuring a wide variety of electric vehicles, and learn about electric drive technologies during the 26th International Electric Vehicle Symposium at the Los Angeles Convention Center from May 6 – 8, 2012. On Sunday, May 6, the public will also have an opportunity to tour more than 160 exhibits on the show floor at the Symposium.

“We welcome local residents to test drive electric vehicles during EVS26,” said Brian Wynne, president of the Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA), the U.S. association dedicated to advancing electric drive technologies and hosting organization for the symposium. “These events will provide consumers and local businesses with opportunities to learn more about how these vehicles and charging stations operate, as well as the environmental and cost-savings benefits of driving electric instead of a conventional gas-powered vehicle.”

A “Ride, Drive, & Charge” event will be open to the public on Sunday, May 6 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday, May 7 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Tuesday, May 8 from 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Participants can gain hands-on experience with electric vehicles, including riding, driving and learning how to use different types of electric vehicle chargers. More than 160 global companies will display electric vehicle technologies on the show floor, including: Coda Automotive, Coulomb Technologies, GM, Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan, Siemens, Southern California Edison, and Toyota. Several educational sessions and presentations will be held for consumers to learn about electric vehicles and charging.

Hydroponics Leaders Merge To Serve Urban Farming

Reflections on Earth Day 2012 – by Al Gore