Published on May 17th, 2008
Aesthetic. Original. Functional. Who knew solar panels could make a statement?
Apparently Peter Richardson knew when he submitted a winning solar design to the International Design Awards. His idea is to turn disused water ways into functional space by populating them with solar panels shaped like water lilies. Aiming to increase quality of life, while generating energy, the lilies so impressed the Glasgow City Council that they expressed interest in developing a pilot project.
The technology itself is easily within reach:
“They can be moved and dismantled and are simply tethered to the river bed, integrated motors can rotate the discs so their orientation to the sun is maximised throughout the day.” (Project Description)
In other words, no new technology required, just some clever design. My concern would be recreational or commercial river traffic (how “disused”must the waterway be?). Would waves from wake disrupt the solar lilies? What about an impact on wildlife or wildlife’s impact on the panels? What if the river ices over in the winter? One hopes a pilot project would figure out the kinks.
What do readers think – would a product like this in your local water way make an impact on your community? (More images here) Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 16th, 2008
For those of you who are bettin’ folks, traders on the Chicago Climate Exchange view the Democrats as more bullish on cap-and-trade systems. So if you’re betting on a Democratic victory, you’ll want to buy those contracts now, in anticipation of a price spike on Nov. 5 (Politico).
Toyota Prius sales have topped 1 million and dealers in most markets simply can’t keep them on the shelves. Toyota says domestic inventory is limited by production capacity in Japan, which is shared by the Asian and European markets. The U.S. supply is at its lowest level in two years (Wired).
Imagine a high-speed train that could get you from San Francisco to Los Angeles in two hours forty minutes. Well, that dream is now one step closer to reality as the California High Speed Rail Authority has cleared environmental impact assessments and is beginning construction of what will be the most substantial high-speed rail network in the U.S. But don’t make travel arrangements just yet. The project is not scheduled to be completed until 2030 (gas 2.0).
A joint biofuel effort was announced Thursday involving Air Bus, JetBlue, Honeywell, and Aero Engines that plans to study ways to make commercial aviation fuels out of second-generation feedstocks such as algae (Green Tech Blog).
A new wave of nuclear power plants in the U.S. is likely to cost $5 billion to $12 billion a plant, two to four times previous estimates, driving up electricity bills for consumers and inevitably reigniting public concerns about the costs and benefits of nuclear power (The Wall St. Journal).
Photo credits:
Karl Gunnarrsson via flickr Creative Commons License
compicpie via flickr Creative Commons License
Bistrosavage via flickr Creative Comons License
Published on May 15th, 2008
Truck stop electrification is boosting fuel efficiency and minimizing dependence on foreign oil from idling trucks
There are 1.3 million long-haul diesel trucks with sleeper cabs in the United States, with most drivers averaging over 100,000 miles annually. These trucks are highly affected by skyrocketing fuel prices and are dependent on foreign oil. As the value of the dollar diminishes, transportation costs are partly to blame.
Idling Trucks Waste Fuel
Truck drivers are required to rest for 10 hours for every 11 hours of driving. A large amount of fuel is consumed when drivers leave trucks idling to maintain comfort. 85% of the energy is wasted sleeper cabs are heated by an idling truck. It is even more inefficient to cool the sleeper cab, wasting 94% of the fuel’s energy.
Published on May 15th, 2008
I am a nuke. There, I got that out into the open. I am also an environmentalist in the sense that I care very deeply about the planet that we all share, want to use it resources wisely so that many future generations can also enjoy it and believe that humans have the power to make the world essentially uninhabitable. I do not have faith in humans, but I do understand that they can be incredibly good, incredibly bad and are generally somewhere in between on the spectrum.
“Belief” and faith are also not words that I apply to our inventions or creations. Some of them are good and beautiful and some that share many of the same basic building blocks are ugly or useful only for evil purposes. Our job as people who want to live on a clean planet and to share the joy in doing so is to think, evaluate and choose, not to “believe”. We should not accept other people’s lists of dogmas at face value; there are many people in the world who are not particularly upfront about their agendas when they suggest that we make certain important choice.
Whenever I hear someone tell me that I need to spend my money a certain way, I am immediately suspicious. In my 48 years on the planet, I have often found that those people have sales or marketing jobs and are looking for a way to “close a deal” even if they have to resort to scaring their potential customers. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 14th, 2008
My home is definitely my refuge.
Until recently, I thought I did a pretty nice job of doing my part for the environment when it came to my home: using eco-friendly cleaning supplies, buying CFL’s, setting the timer to regulate heat and air, but the more I read, the more I find that I can do. There are also a ton of companies emerging that are trying to make an impact while reducing their footprint.
Below are a few of my favorite online destinations for cool products and information for the home and home office.
Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 14th, 2008
New trends spotted at the American Solar Energy Society conference last week in San Diego (courtesy of Illinois Solar Energy Association President Mark Burger, who attended):
- From Bosch, a new generation of solar flat plate collectors (used in solar thermal water heating applications) that can be mounted on the roof at a lower angle, addressing some peoples’ aesthetic concerns. The panels are also lighter-weight and easier to mount even on high roofs. Low-profile collectors were also unveiled by Schuco, Viessman, and Velux. Perhaps next year, one of the innovative solar companies will be from the U.S.?
- Solar thin film technology is exceeding expectations, with market share estimated at 3%, vs. 1-2%. Thin film is the new solar kid on the block, celebrated because of its lower cost, higher efficiency and more flexible applications.
- SolarBuzz reported a 62% increase in world PV production. “Germany’s PV market reached 1,328 MW in 2007 and now accounts for 47% of the world market. Spain soared by over 480% to 640 MW, while the U.S. increased by 57% to 220 MW, [making it] the world’s largest market behind Japan, once the world leader.”
- ASES (American Solar Energy Society), the conference’s sponsor, announced a push to establish more student chapters, in order to enlist solar energy’s future leaders. (Photo from VELUX image gallery.)
Related Posts:
Solar Power Goes to Extremes
Solar System Leases: Taking the Industry by Storm
Solar Thermal Electricity: Can it Replace Coal, Gas and Oil?
Published on May 12th, 2008
A few thoughts and a cartoon popped into my head last week while reading an article in Grist on oil companies having to clean up contaminated groundwater. The article stated that
“Some of the nation’s largest oil companies will over the next 30 years have to pay to clean up groundwater befouled with gasoline additive MTBE. In settling a suit brought by 153 public water providers in 17 states, a dozen companies — including BP, Shell, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron — will also have to pay a total $423 million cash.”
Thought #1: Finally!
Thought #2: 30 years! How about 3? And how about shipping clean water to homes in the affected areas in the mean time?
The article goes on to state that the estimated cost of the cleanup is $30 billion…
Thought #3: Why $423 million then?! I’m taking that same logic with me next time I fill up my car. “What, the cost is $4 a gallon? I’ll pay $1.50.”
It also mentioned that Exxon Mobile (among others) did not agree to settle…
Cartoon #1: Big Oil’s Mess? It MTBE, It Could Be, It Is!
And,
Thought #4: How can 17 states worth of contaminated groundwater even be cleaned up?
That’s when discovered that a few University of Aberdeen researchers have found that a whiskey bi-product may just do the trick.
Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 11th, 2008
The Internet is so big, it’s easy to miss shopping resources, especially if you’re environmentally conscientious. Here’s an easy guide to green shopping online:
The Internet has revolutionized how we shop. Shopping has become an interesting intersection between society, economy, and technology. Its also an excellent place to find great deals. It used to be true that many green products were more expensive. Free trade? Organic? Recyclable? Post-Consumer? Get out the credit card and take a deep breath! But nowadays that’s not always true; in fact many green products are less expensive, or can save you a lot of money. That fact helps drive their popularity; so much so that even large corporations are taking efforts – or even pains – to go green. But with the mainstreaming green hype, we must beware greenwashing – misleading marketing or practices that lure consumers. On the flip side, buying stuff for the sake of stuff is not environmentally friendly either.
Green Companies:
It’s easy to know which companies are really making an effort.
National Green Pages: Co-op America provides the National Green Pages, which works like a phone book. Major brands include Patagonia, Seventh Generation, and Clif Bar; also features local stores.
LinksOrganic: an international guide to finding organic or environmentally-friendly businesses.
EcoMall: A 90s flash-back site with lots of great links for anything your heart desires.
Climate Counts: this site covers large corporations. It judges their carbon foot print and efforts to reduce it. It covers major brands in all product categories, but it does not cover individual products.
Green Peace Electronics Guide: similar to Climate Counts, covers large electronics corporations. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 11th, 2008
AWS TrueWind has completed the first high-resolution wind map for the United States. This is more than a graphic arts story because, in a variation of “if a tree falls in the forest”, if wind energy isn’t measured, it isn’t captured. In fact, for years states like Illinois, where I live, were ignored because available wind maps showed that it had only Class 2 winds — not strong enough winds to attract big investors.
This is one key reason why Illinois, my home state, came late to the table in wind energy development behind Texas, which ranks first among the fifty states. (Another big reason why Texas is first is because it had already created a statewide, uniform system of taxing oil production, which was easily transferred to the wind industry; but that’s another topic for another blog post.) The AWS Truewind map covers a land area of over 9 million square kilometers, and is sure to be an asset for companies and entrepreneurs wishing to identify and develop wind energy.
“With more than an order of magnitude growth potential and an expansion in wind capacity of 45% in 2007 alone (16,818 MW installed currently), the US represents one of the largest markets for wind energy development worldwide.… being the first developer on the ground at an attractive site prospect is mission critical for many.”
Published on May 10th, 2008
Having spent a lot of time in the wireless industry and being hopelessly addicted to my Blackberry and my Helio Ocean, I wanted to take a look at how manufacturers and carriers stand up when it comes to enviro-friendly action.
Nokia: Remaking Mobile
Nokia is one of my favorite handset manufacturers. Not only do they have some amazing concept devices, such as the Nokia Remade, a handset made entirely of pre-used parts from old tires to aluminum cans, they also currently have working devices on the market that are reducing impact. With covers made of recycled material and chargers that are Energy Star compliant and then some, Nokia is making bold strides in the right direction.
The 3110 Evolve’s biocover is made with 50% renewable material, and the packaging has been reduced by 60% for the handset. Along the a charger that uses 94% less energy that Energy Star compliance requires. Read the rest of this entry »
Aesthetic. Original. Functional. Who knew solar panels could make a statement?
