Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Shell Announces CE10 Cellulosic Ethanol Available NOW at Ottawa Station

Shell Announces CE10 Cellulosic Ethanol Available NOW at Ottawa Station

Written by Clayton B. Cornell

Published on June 10th, 2009
12 Comments
Posted in cellulosic ethanol

Today at Noon, a Shell service station in Ottawa, Ontario will quietly begin selling cellulosic ethanol blended into regular gasoline. The biofuel is made locally from wheat straw, and as far as we know is the first time cellulosic ethanol has been made publicly available.

The new fuel will only be available for one month, starting on June 10th, but it’s a major step forward for the production of advanced biofuels. All gasoline purchased at the Ottawa station will be a blend of 10% cellulosic ethanol and 90% gasoline (CE10).

E10 ethanol-gasoline blends are sold widely in the United States, but the ethanol component is made from corn. Advanced non-food biofuels offer dramatic reductions in CO2 emissions when compared to gasoline, up to 90%, and are the only realistic short-term direct substitute for traditional fuel.

Shell’s strategic investment partner Iogen Energy Corp. will produce the fuel at their demonstration plant, which is currently producing 40,000 liters (about 10,500 gallons) of fuel per month. The company has working to produce cellulosic ethanol there since 2004, and also develops and markets enzymes used to process natural fibers.

“I am excited we are leading the pack in cellulosic ethanol production technology and, with this event, showing what is possible in the future. While it will be some time before general customers can buy this product at local service stations, we are working with governments to make large-scale production economic.”

-Dr. Graeme Sweeney, Shell Executive Vice President Future Fuels and CO2.

“We’re proud of this world-first. Building a demo plant is one thing but you then need to go through the process of operating the new technology at scale, learning, modifying and lowering costs. With the volumes we’re producing today, we’re confident about the future.”

-Brian Foody, Chief Executive Officer of Iogen Corporation.

“This one small retail station in Ottawa is one big step forward for advanced biofuels globally. This is a great day for Canadian technology and proof that Canada’s commitment to developing low CO2 fuels is starting to pay dividends for the environment, farmers, and consumers.”

-John Baird, Canada’s Transport and Infrastructure Minister

A broken or missing gas cap can reduce your fuel efficiency by 2%.

Your Broken or Missing Gas Cap May Be Costing You Money
A broken or missing gas cap can reduce your fuel efficiency by 2%.
By Josh Peterson
Los Angeles, CA, USA | Tue Jun 16 14:30:00 EDT 2009

There are a lot of lids in this fast-paced, modern world. There are lids for ketchup bottles. There are lids on Tupperware and lids on manholes. This one guy that I know has a big container with nothing but lids inside and the lid-filled container has its own lid. There is even a store at the mall called Lids that sells hats, but I don't go there. I'm not a hat person. I'm a lid person.

Today, I want to talk about a very special lid, a lid that we hate to see but know all too well. That lid is the gas cap. It is like a little, round doorway for petrol on the side of our car.

The gas cap is one of the few pieces of the car that can be completely removed and left behind without being immediately noticed. If you left the passenger door or the rear axle on the roof of the car, you would probably notice almost immediately.

Gas caps become orphans every day. There are some who believe that lidlessness is no big deal. But those some are wrong. A broken or missing gas cap can reduce your fuel efficiency by 1% to 2%. You see, the gas cap keeps evaporates and --believe it or not--gas in its proper place. Those evaporates will get used by your car, but if there is no cap, the evaporates will pollute the air with no benefit to you or anyone really.

Listen for the Hiss

A missing gas cap is an easy mystery to solve, but trying to figure out if you have a loose or poorly fitting cap can be a tad more difficult. Car Junky suggests a simple listening test. While unscrewing the cap, listen for a hiss. The hiss means that your gas cap fits well.

What is a Gas Cap good For?

The gas cap also keeps dirt and other contaminates out of your gasoline. Gunk in your gas can reduce fuel efficiency and hurt your car.

The Tipping Point China Takes Major Steps Toward Electric Vehicles

The Tipping Point: China Takes Major Steps Toward Electric Vehicles

Written by Ruedigar Matthes

Published on June 16th, 2009 Posted in Electric Cars (EVs), International issues

With over 1.3 billion people, it is no wonder that China is the “tipping point” when it comes to electric vehicles (EV). At least that’s what Better Place CEO Shai Agassi says.

Better Place, a venture-backed company that aims to reduce global dependency on oil, doesn’t sell cars but infrastructure. The company recently unveiled a battery swap system in Tokyo that makes refueling an EV easier than filling up at the pump. The $500,000 station allows drivers to travel long distances without having to stop to charge their battery, eliminating EV’s ever present “range anxiety.” Batteries are quickly and easily swapped out so drivers can get back on the road.

But infrastructure is just part of the picture, and Agassi says that China is taking steps toward green-lighting electric cars in a big way. “Once China does it, you don’t have a choice,” Agassi said.

» See also: The Benefits of Smart Home Charging for Electric Vehicles and Plug-in Hybrids
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China’s BYD Auto has recently struck a deal with Volkswagon to develop EV batteries, and Hafei Auto is working on an electric car that California’s sprouting Coda Automotive promises to put on the road by 2010. If China throws its full weight behind electric car manufacturing, then the global picture changes dramatically.

“We’ve done the crazy thing of raising a ton of capital to put the network in place before the product exists,” said Agassi. Better Place wants to help countries overcome their dependency on oil by helping them keep a step ahead of the market.

Better Place provides countries with a framework to replace gas stations with battery charging stations that draw from sustainable energy sources as well.

Developing this kind of network will get people into electric cars faster than focusing on specific pieces like cars or batteries. By creating infrastructure which make refueling EVs convenient, Better Place hopes to bring the saying that “if you build it, they will come” to fruition.

“Our goal is not to build a car company,” Agassi says. “Our goal is to end oil.” The existing auto-makers must step into the future of auto making, being the source of future EVs. Let other companies work on refueling them.

Better Place is currently working with the Danish government to create wind-powered battery changing stations as well as the Israeli government to create a solar grid. Israel is owner of an ambitious goal to be free from oil by 2020.

But China is the kicker. The field is set and the light is green for China and the world. With the progress of other countries, the EV world’s eyes turn to the world’s most populated country. And China isn’t disappointing, according to Agassi.

Israel and Denmark are pilot programs to show proof of concept. China will be the difference maker if they decide to go with electric cars.

10 Reasons to Quit Bagging Grass Clippings

10 Reasons to Quit Bagging Grass Clippings
Yard waste accounts for 20% of our landfills.

By Josh Peterson
Los Angeles, CA, USA | Tue Jun 16 14:00:00 EDT 2009

People are just so gosh-darn proud of their lawns. Lawn-lovers are often seen cavorting about on their grass, mowing it, weeding it, measuring it. That's cool. A lawn is the public face of the home. Therefore, those who would like to impress their neighbors may do it via their immaculate and super-kempt lawn.

There is nothing wrong with yearning for lawn-perfection. However, those who long for impeccable lawns may take to bagging up their grass clippings and sending them off to the old landfill. That is not cool.

Here are ten reasons why:

10 Reasons to Quit Bagging Grass Clippings

Grass clippings lock in moisture, a good thing for your lawn and hence a good reason to leave grass clippings on your lawn.

Bagging grass clippings is banned in many states. You may be breaking the law.

Grass clippings can provide the lawn with 25% of its fertilizer needs in the form of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.

Yard waste accounts for 20% of local landfill size.

Bagging grass clippings takes time, a lot of it. Quit it, and you'll have 38% percent more time to read blogs.

Grass clippings reduce erosion.

You'll save money by not buying bags. You'll save money by reducing the amount of fertilizer you'll need. You will also save money on water and waste pick-up.

Most agricultural experts agree that leaving the clippings on the lawn is better for the grass than bagging it.

Grass clippings are made of 90% moisture. They break apart rather quickly and do not lead to thatch build-up.

Grass clippings can be used as fertilizer in your garden. The guy who cuts my grass (at my request) uses a mulching mower that has two sets of blades that double-cut the clippings and allow the tiny clippings to fall back into my lawn. I do use my neighbors bagged lawn clippings, leaves, etc., tho, in my compost heap.

White House Releases Dire Environmental Report

WASHINGTON — Rising sea levels, sweltering temperatures, deeper droughts, and heavier downpours _ global warming's serious effects are already here and getting worse, the Obama administration warned on Tuesday in the grimmest, most urgent language on climate change ever to come out of any White House.

But amid the warnings, scientists and government officials seemed to go out of their way to soften the message. It is still not too late to prevent some of the worst consequences, they said, by acting aggressively to reduce world emissions of heat-trapping gases, primarily carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels.

The new report differs from a similar draft issued with little fanfare or context by George W. Bush's administration last year. It is paradoxically more dire about what's happening and more optimistic about what can be done.

The Obama administration is backing a bill in Congress that would limit heat-trapping pollution from power plants, refineries and factories. A key player on a climate bill in the Senate, California Democrat Barbara Boxer, said the report adds "urgency to the growing momentum in Congress" for passing a law.

"It's not too late to act," said Jane Lubchenco, one of several agency officials at a White House briefing. "Decisions made now will determine whether we get big changes or small ones." But what has happened already is not good, she said: "It's happening in our own backyards and it affects the kind of things people care about."

Lubchenco, a marine biologist, heads the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

In one of its key findings, the report warned: "Thresholds will be crossed, leading to large changes in climate and ecosystems." The survival of some species could be affected, it said.

The document, a climate status report required periodically by Congress, was a collaboration by about three dozen academic, government and institute scientists. It contains no new research, but it paints a fuller and darker picture of global warming in the United States than previous studies.

Bush was ultimately forced by a lawsuit to issue a draft report last year, and that document was the basis for this one. Obama science adviser John Holdren called the report nonpartisan, started by a Republican administration and finished by a Democratic one.

"The observed climate changes that we report are not opinions to be debated. They are facts to be dealt with," said one of the report's chief authors, Jerry Melillo of Marine Biological Lab in Woods Hole, Mass. "We can act now to avoid the worst impacts."

Among the things Melillo said he would like to avoid are more flooding disasters in New Orleans and an upheaval of the world's food supply.

The scientists softened the report from an earlier draft that said "tipping points have already been reached and have led to large changes." Melillo said that is because some of the changes seen so far are still reversible.

Even so, Tom Karl of the National Climatic Data Center said that at least one tipping point _ irreversible sea level rise _ has been passed.

A point of emphasis of the report, which is just under 200 pages, is what has already happened in the United States. That includes rapidly retreating glaciers in the American West and Alaska, altered stream flows, trouble with the water supply, health problems, changes in agriculture, and energy and transportation worries.

"There are in some cases already serious consequences," report co-author Anthony Janetos of the University of Maryland told The Associated Press. "This is not a theoretical thing that will happen 50 years from now. Things are happening now."

For example, winters in parts of the Midwest have warmed by 7 degrees in just 30 years and the frost-free period has grown a week, the report said.

Shorter winters have some benefits, such as longer growing seasons, but those are changes that require adjustments just the same, the authors note.

The "major disruptions" already taking place will only increase as warming continues, the authors wrote. The world's average temperature may rise by as much as 11.5 degrees by the end of the century, the report said. And the U.S. average temperature could go even higher than that, Karl said.

Environmental groups praised the report as a call for action, with the Union of Concerned Scientists calling it what "America needs to effectively respond to climate change."

Scott Segal, a Washington lobbyist for the coal industry, was more cautious: "Fast action without sufficient planning is a route to potential economic catastrophe with little environmental gain."

Associated Press Writer Dina Cappiello in Washington contributed to this report.

Open-Source Hydrogen Car Takes to the Road in UK

Open-Source Hydrogen Car Takes to the Road

Written by The Guardian Environment Network

Published on June 16th, 20091 CommentPosted in Hydrogen, Technology


A new hydrogen-powered car, whose designs will be “open source” and posted for free use on the web, was unveiled today in London. The company behind the Riversimple urban car claim the new model proves hydrogen automotive technology is ready for roll-out now rather than in 10 years’ time.

The open-source approach means entrepreneurs around the world could download the designs and manufacture the two-seater prototype locally for free.

The car, which drove in to the launch event, is capable of a 50mph top speed, 0-30mph acceleration in 5.5 seconds, and has a 240 mile range. The car’s backers say it has greenhouse gas emissions of 30g/km CO2, less than a third of the latest hybrid petrol cars such as the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight.

The lightweight Smart car-size vehicle uses hydrogen in a modest 6kW fuel cell, and –in the case of this prototype – uses hydrogen converted from natural gas. Hydrogen can also be created from water using electrolysis and potentially even from bio-fuels.


» See also: Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid: Mazda’s stepping stone to Hydrogen vehicles
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The open-source decision was made to speed the car’s commercialization, with the company hoping entrepreneurs globally will adapt it to local conditions. Hugo Spowers, a motorsport engineer and the founder of Riversimple, said: “We want competitors, even if they’re in the UK. We believe that open source is commercially the best thing for us to do, as it will help grow the market for hydrogen technology, from parts to repairs and the refueling infrastructure.”

Sebastian PiĆ«ch, the financial backer for Riversimple, added: “Now that we have the basic vehicle in place with practical technology, the challenge is to begin the development of a fueling infrastructure to accompany it.”

The car, which cost nearly £500,000 to develop in partnership with Oxford University and Cranfield University, is expected to cost £200 a month to lease when it is launched as a production vehicle. The date for UK availability is yet to be announced, but Riversimple is in talks with UK cities including Oxford and Worcester for pilots.

Hydrogen cars have so far enjoyed little real-world success, due in part to a lack of charging infrastructure, cost and – more recently – a political swing towards electric cars.

Gordon Brown has publicly backed electric cars as a way to reduce UK carbon emissions, and in April the government announced plans to offer £5,000 grants towards anyone buying an electric car in 2011.

In the US, the Obama administration recently cut research budgets for hydrogen vehicles. Steven Chu, the US energy secretary, last month said: “We asked ourselves: ‘Is it likely in the next 10 or 15, 20 years that we will convert to a hydrogen car economy?’ The answer, we felt, was ‘no’.”

Spowers disputed the notion that widespread hydrogen technology was a long way off. “I agree the passion is swinging away from hydrogen, but the reason is people are skeptical of the near-term possibilities of hydrogen vehicles – people are still clear that hydrogen is the end-game.”

The Riversimple urban car, he said, proved the technology was available now.

Designs for the Riversimple urban car, capable of a 50mph top speed and a 240 mile range, will be freely available online in a bid to help grow the hydrogen market.

Monday, June 15, 2009

The Year in Wind: Boom Followed by Gloom

Jeff St. John December 22, 2008
2 Comments

The Year in Wind: Boom Followed by Gloom

A record-setting pace in wind farm development in 2008 helped spur effort to store power in batteries. Texas wind farmers paid people to take power. But 2009 may not be nearly as fun. .

Wind power is the largest and fastest-growing renewable energy source worldwide, and 2008 saw that growth continue. The United States, after years of playing catch-up, took the top spot of wind power producing country from Germany in 2008. Big utility investments and power purchase agreements drove the increase, and the reauthorization by Congress of production tax credits for wind farms as part of an $18 billion energy tax credits helped wind power continue its march.

But the economic downturn and drying up of investment capital from Wall Street is likely to stall that record-setting growth. As the year wound to a close, big wind power projects were scaled back. Still, that could help the industry catch up with itself, as new wind turbine equipment manufacturing facilities catch up.

At the same time, some of the key drawbacks to wind power – a lack of transmission capacity to bring it from where it's generated to where it's most needed, and the fact that the lion's share of wind power is generated at night when electricity demand is lowest – led to a renewed interest in energy storage systems and increased transmission capacity to better integrate the energy resource.

Batteries for the Grid (Feb. 29)
Wind power's key drawback is its intermittency – that is, because the wind doesn't blow all the time, wind power can't be relied on to provide baseline power. The fact that wind blows strongest at night, when electricity demand is at its lowest, is also a problem.

That's a drawback that utilities are hoping that new battery technologies can solve. Minneapolis-based Xcel Energy, American Electric Power and Tokyo Electric Power Co. announced they were testing sodium-sulfur batteries from NGK Insulators. Other potential energy storage solutions include flywheels and compressed air storage.

Duke Energy Buys More Wind Power (June 26)
Duke Energy's $320 million purchase of wind farm developer Catamount Energy underscored the interest that utilities have in wind power as a large-scale source of renewable energy. The purchase put the Charlotte, N.C.-based utility on the path to have 500 megawatts of wind power farms in operation by the end of the year, with an additional 5 gigawatts of projects under development. Other utilities making wind plans included Florida Power & Light Co., with hopes to spend $688 million building 110 megawatts of solar power plants in the state.

Wind Power Waiting on Transmission-Line Boom (July 25)
Beyond wind power's intermittent nature, the biggest barrier to its wider adoption is the electricity grid to deliver it from the regions with the best wind power potential – such as U.S. Midwest – to population centers. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that reaching 20 percent wind power will cost $60 billion in new wind-power transmission by 2030. T. Boone Pickens, the Texan oil tycoon who plans to build the largest wind farm in the country, expects to need major new transmission. The Texas Public Utility Commission in July approved a plan for $4.83 billion in new transmission lines.

U.S. Wind Power Doubles in Two Years (Sept. 3)
The wind power building spree in the United States helped it pass Germany as the world's biggest wind-energy generator (see The Week: Plugging Into Renewable Energy). The scale of that growth was summed up by the American Wind Energy Association in September, when it reported that the nation had doubled the amount of wind power it generate to more than 20 gigawatts in the last two years. While Germany still wears the crown for having the most installed wind-power capacity, the United States generated more wind power due to stronger winds – another indication of the industry's potential.

Blowing Offshore Power Into Oregon (Oct. 8)
Building wind farms at sea has proven difficult in the United States, where companies likeCape Wind have faced opposition from coastal residents and environmentalists. Renewable-project developer Principle Power said in October that it had $20 million to try to build the country's first offshore wind park off the Oregon coast, which it hopes to grow to an eventual 150 megawatts.

Other offshore wind-farm developers include Bluewater Wind, which announced in June that it had signed a contract to sell Delmarva Power up to 200 megawatts of power from a project off the Delaware coast (see Can Bluewater Blow Offshore Wind Into U.S.?) And the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities has selected Garden State Offshore Energy, a joint venture between PSEG Renewable Generation and Deepwater Wind, to build a 350-megawatt wind farm off its coast.

Masdar Bets on Massive Offshore Wind Park (Oct. 16)
While offshore wind farms face battles in the United States, they're a bigger part of wind power development in Europe. In October, Abu Dhabi's alternative-energy investment fund, Masdar, said has taken a 20 percent stake in the London Array, a 1-gigawatt offshore wind farm project to be built in Thames River estuary. Masdar's stake helped ease worried about the project, expected to cost as much as £1.5 billion ($2 billion), that rose in April when Shell Oil said it was pulling out of it.

Still, despite the fact that offshore wind farms can rely on stronger and steadier winds than their land-based counterparts, the costs and technical challenges of building at sea have limited development. Offshore wind power made up only 1.1 gigawatts of the more than 94 gigawatts of wind-generating capacity that was in operation at the end of 2007, the American Wind Energy Association reports.

Energy Financing Gone With the Wind (Oct. 22)

While Congress' one-year renewal of production tax credits in October satisfied the wind power industry's desire for reliable incentives, the financial crisis that fell upon Wall Street in late 2008 may have a more powerful negative impact on wind power's continued development. With no debt financing available from Wall Street banks, fewer companies would be able to develop the kind of "mega projects" needed to feed the growing demand for energy, Reyad Fezzani, CEO of BP's wind and solar operation, said in October.

Wind Turbine Shortage Over? (Oct. 23)
The turmoil on Wall Street may have a silver lining for the wind power industry – with demand slowing down, a long-running shortage of equipment and parts for wind turbines was easing in October, Brad Johnson, director of business development at John Deere Renewables, said in October.

The huge growth in wind power led to backlogs at turbine makers like Vestas Wind Systems in Denmark, as well as a big boost in the building and expansion of turbine component manufacturing capacity. Those new and expanded factories will be supplying a slower-growing industry, perhaps helping to bring lower prices to wind farm developments.

FPL Cuts Wind Power Plans (Oct. 27)
As the economic downturn cut out the legs of debt financing for wind power projects, developers looked to utilities to pick up the slack. But the October announcement from FPL Group (NYSE: FPL), which owns utility Florida Power and Light Co., that it would build less wind-power capacity than previously expected – 1.1 megawatts, down from 1.5 megawatts – worried some looking to utilities to pick up the slack.

The news came soon after Gamesa, a Spanish wind-turbine manufacturer, said it had temporarily halted production and would wait for customers to confirm their purchase plans before providing sales or production guidance for next year. Still, analysts said the long-term prospects for wind power remained bright, given its established ability to deliver clean, renewable electricity.

Knocking the Wind Out of Pickens (Oct. 29)
Texas oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens made news in July when he announced he was building a $12 billion, 4-gigawatt wind farm expected to open in 2011 as part of an energy plan he said could wean the United States from dependence on foreign oil. Pickens had spent $2 billion on the project by the time the economic crisis put a crimp in his plans, leading Pickens to say he may have to delay the project after his hedge fund, BP Capital, lost $2 billion because of falling oil and natural gas prices.

Texas Wind Farms Paying People to Take Power (Dec. 10)
Wind power's limitations in providing electricity when and where it is needed was highlighted by a December report that some wind power farms in Texas were paying the state's main grid operator to take their power. For the first half of 2008, power producers, mostly wind farms, paid the grid operator to take electricity nearly 20 percent of the time, said Mike Giberson, an energy business instructor at the Texas Tech University. Because wind power developers receive tax credits for the power they produce, paying groups like the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) to take it can make financial sense. The lack of transmission lines from wind power farms in West Texas to population centers of Dallas and Austin also played a part.

Small Wind Spreading Its Wings (Dec. 11)
While the vast majority of wind power comes from huge turbines made by companies like GE and Vestas, a small but growing group of companies building smaller wind turbines of 100 kilowatts or less also got to their feet in 2008. Southwest Windpower said in December that its 2009 shipments of small wind turbines for commercial buildings would nearly double from 2008 thanks to international expansion and tax credits in the U.S. Earlier in the year, Mariah Power announced it had closed $500,000 in financing to bring its total capital to $1.25 million, and Marquiss Wind Power raised $1.3 million in its first round of funding in January (see Small Wind Hits an Updraft).
..Comments [2]

fred c 12/23/08 11:26 AM
“The fact that wind blows strongest at night, when electricity demand is at its lowest, is also a problem.”
This is second time I have seen this assertion as fact, maybe by the same writer. I don’t believe the the first part that the wind blows hardest at night- can a meterologist confirm this or a experienced wind sailor. I think the sun drives the weather more than the moon. Anyway the second part is true that the utility can satisfy demand with its base load capacity and so doesnt need night time production.

Reply

Jeff Anthony 12/23/08 4:17 PM
To say that “the lion’s share of wind power is generated at night” is an overly-simplistic statement. The profile of wind output varies considerably from location to location at various places in the U.S., and varies from season to season. Different wind projects in different location will see dramatically different wind resource profiles at a given moment in time, and over a given period of time. So statements like the one above are not particularly helpful or accurate.

As a result, statement like that invariably lead to erronerous conclusions such as “Wind power’s key drawback is its intermittency – that is, because the wind doesn’t blow all the time, wind power can’t be relied on to provide baseline power”. This statement contains at least false assumptions:

1) Wind power output is not “intermittent”, it is “variable”, and this is not a drawback. “Intermittent” implies that the output of wind projects changes rapdily and unpredictably. This is not the case, wind plant output changes relatively slowly, over a matter of hours (as opposed to large fossil or nuclear plants, which can trip off-line in seconds, and thus are truly “intermittent”). Wind plant output can be predicted using state-of-the-art wind forecasting technologies, making wind output VERY predictable…

2) ...and thus very reliable. Wind plant output can be managed very effectively and the costs of integrating wind power into a robust, well-managed power grid are thus very reasonable. Learn more at: http://www.awea.org/utility/wind_integration.html

3) Wind Power is an ENERGY resource and is not required to be a “baseline” (“baseload”) resource. Wind energy does not provide capacity primarily, but rather provide energy.

And thus, Energy Storage such as batteries are NOT needed to “firm up” or “back-up” wind power—this is a major misunderstanding and myth as well: http://www.awea.org/utility/reliability.html

Jeffrey E. Anthony, American Wind Energy Association

IEA Paints Dire Picture of Energy Supply and Demand

IEA Paints Dire Picture of Energy Supply and Demand
The world will need to invest $26.3 trillion over the next 22 years in order to boost energy supplies to meet an expected 45 percent increase in demand, reports the agency. .
The International Energy Agency (IEA) released its annual report today, and it predicts we're in a heap of trouble, people.

The world will need to invest $26.3 trillion between now and 2030 to boost energy supplies to meet an expected 45 percent increase in energy demand in that year from today's level. That's over $1 trillion a year and lags in investment could cause crunches in supply and price spikes (see IEA report).

Greenhouse gases are going to be difficult to contain. To stabilize CO2 concentrations at 550 million parts per billion, far higher than today's 380 ppm-ish level, will require an additional $4.1 trillion invested in solar, wind, nuclear and other clean sources of electricity, the report said. That rise in CO2 concentrations, however, will lead to a 3 degree Celsius rise in average global temperatures. Coal will be the fastest growing fuel in absolute terms during the same period, and gas will remain the staple fuel for transportation. Fossil fuels will still likely account for 80 percent of the world's energy, only slightly down from earlier projections.

To keep greenhouse gases down to 450 ppm, which would only cause a 2 degree Celsius hike in average temperature, will require $9.1 million in investment.

On the positive side, increased energy efficiency could also save $7 trillion in fuel costs. A slower economy and move to alternative fuels is also crimping the rising demand for petroleum. The IEA now expects worldwide demand for oil to come in at 106 million barrels per day in 2030, 10 million less than last year. Currently, the world consumes about 85 million barrels a day.

Nonetheless, we're on a collision course with ourselves.

"Current trends in energy supply and consumption are patently unsustainable –environmentally, economically and socially – they can and must be altered," said Nobuo Tanaka, Executive Director of the International Energy in a prepared statement. "Rising imports of oil and gas into OECD (Organization of Economic Development) regions and developing Asia, together with the growing concentration of production in a small number of countries, would increase our susceptibility to supply disruptions and sharp price hikes. At the same time, greenhouse-gas emissions would be driven up inexorably, putting the world on track for an eventual global temperature increase of up to 6 [degrees] centigrade."

Most of the increase in demand for fossil fuels over the next few decades will come from China, India, the Middle East and developing regions. China and India, in fact, will account for over half of the incremental demand. Cities will also gobble up more fuel, rising from two-thirds of total consumption today to three-quarters of consumption by 2030.

OPEC will also become more powerful. The national oil companies, which are generally members of NATO, will account for 80 percent of the increase in petroleum. As a result, much of the investment will occur in those countries. Nonetheless, it is uncertain if even they will be able to pay for the plants and other facilities that will be required.

"Expanding production in the lowest-cost countries – most of them in OPEC – will be central to meeting the world's oil needs at reasonable cost," the report stated. "The prospect of accelerating declines in production at individual oilfields is adding to these uncertainties. The findings of an unprecedented field-by-field analysis of the historical production trends of 800 oilfields indicate that decline rates are likely to rise significantly in the long term, from an average of 6.7 percent today to 8.6 percent in 2030.

"Despite all the attention that is given to demand growth, decline rates are actually a far more important determinant of investment needs. Even if oil demand was to remain flat to 2030, 45 million barrels a day of gross capacity – roughly four times the current capacity of Saudi Arabia – would need to be built by 2030 just to offset the effect of oilfield decline."

Financing Renewables in the Global Credit Crisis

Finance and VC
Shayle Kann June 15, 2009

Financing Renewables in the Global Credit Crisis
While the credit crisis and regulatory uncertainty hurt project finance for renewable energy, look for utility ownership, corporate finance and turnkey development to take a larger role, says GTM Research analyst Shayle Kann.
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The financial crisis has dealt a serious blow to utility-scale renewable energy project financing. Large-scale wind and solar assets have always been distinguished by their capital-intensiveness and lack of resource costs, but now that the world's financial resources have constricted, those factors define the assets. Financing a $500 million wind farm with a 20-year IRR of 11 percent may be an appealing proposition in boom times, but it appears less attractive when investors are on the brink of insolvency.

Although many of the newer financing options have now vanished, the financial crisis and ensuing changes to incentive structures have opened up some new windows for developers. Here's a brief analysis of some of the major trends in renewable energy project financing, pre- and post-crisis.

Prior to the Recession

Increasing availability of project-level debt: As large lenders became more comfortable with renewable technologies and standardized debt-financing structures, more developers were able to attain limited-recourse debt to develop projects. This generally produced the lower average LCOEs than pure equity projects, and enabled smaller developers to build larger projects.

Importance of tax appetites of project investors: Prior to the financial crisis and ensuing recession, many projects were built on the back of Tax Investors, who would reap the benefits of the federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) and Production Tax Credit (PTC) for renewable energy facilities, in addition to retaining some equity stake in the project. Developers found Tax Investors critical sources of project capital, and as confidence in federal tax incentives increased, developers were able to secure financing from Tax Investors at lower rates. According to a 2007 report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, in 2006 only five of the 13 leading wind developers in the U.S. had the tax appetite to retain ownership of their projects. The remaining eight partnered with tax investors, often large investment banks.

Increasing corporate financing: Over the past few years, many of the largest developers of wind and solar installations had begun to develop projects as sole owners, utilizing only internal equity financing. Large developers were growing in size as market consolidation proceeded, and the emerging corporations had increasing internal capital availability.

Since the Recession

Absence of project-level debt: The financial crisis has restricted the total capital available for large projects, and what capital remains is being channeled towards less risky projects. In addition, uncertainty regarding the future of renewable energy incentives makes potential lenders hesitant to part with their limited remaining funds. (Will there be a national Renewable Energy Standard? How much will a cap-and-trade program impact fossil-fuel electricity prices?) Developers now find it difficult to secure project-level debt, and many smaller developers that depended on such financing structures for their projects will struggle to stay afloat.

Institutional investors replacing Tax Investors: For a time, the financial crisis eliminated the value of the ITC and PTC. If former Tax Investors no longer earn enough to be seeking the value of tax credits, there is no value to the incentives. Luckily, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the stimulus package) allowed taxpayers who were eligible for the ITC or PTC to take a grant from the U.S. Treasury in lieu of the tax credits. This opens up the market to investors without heavy tax appetites, and we can expect to see more institutional investors, rather than tax investors. These may be some of the same entities that would have invested for tax purposes, but they are no longer constrained by the magnitude of their tax burden in order to take advantage of the ITC and PTC.

Increasing utility development: Even prior to the recession, utilities were increasingly considering development and ownership of renewable assets rather than purchasing the power and associated environmental attributes through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). Utilities could often receive lower prices for their energy through ownership, and integrated resource planning often made the ownership of renewable energy more inviting. Now, utilities will be forced to take a closer look at project ownership as the number of available independent projects decreases. In addition, utilities' rate-regulated status keeps them somewhat sheltered from the worst of the financial crisis, leaving them more room to develop and finance projects on their balance sheet.

It's a brave new world for renewable energy developers. The long-term future is bright, and financing will return as capital markets open up. But in the meantime, the name of the game is survival.

I have heard that T Boone Pickens, a Texas billionaire, couldnt get funding for his proposed HUGE wind farm project in Texas. If the banks wont lend money to billionaires, who WILL they loan money to?

Green Market Overview - page 2

2. Building Materials

Building materials comprise bricks, cement, drywall, carpets, furniture, wood flooring, windows, insulation, etc. Approximately 12 percent of the energy in the U.S. gets consumed in construction and preparing building materials, according to the DOE. The idea here is to produce products, like thermal windows, that reduce energy consumption, or cut the energy and natural resources used in manufacturing them.

Serious Materials – which specializes in drywall and windows – essentially kicked off what has become an expanding pool for startups. Some names to watch: Timber Holdings (wood); Integrity Block, Serious Materials and Arrx (concrete forms); Microposite (siding); Aspen Aerogels (insulation); Icynene (spray-foam insulation); Ecore and Lehigh Technologies (rubber); Sage Electrochromics and Photosolar (windows); and Enocean (creates kinetic power to replace wires). Element Partners, Navitas Capital and Foundation Capital have some of the more interesting portfolios.

Despite the interest, however, these companies face a daunting, uphill challenge. Contractors are notoriously conservative and cheap. If green building materials cost more, they won't adopt them.

Another challenge: getting out of development. Hycrete has incorporated its material into structures but many companies remain in the lab.

3. Hardware and Software

When asked at a recent event what his favorite green company was, Wired.com's Alexis Madrigal said it was Autodesk. Unusual, yes, but it makes sense the more you think about it. To reduce energy consumption or the fossil-fuel based materials in a product, you have to start with design. Simulation tools from Autodesk, Bentley Systems and others can examine a building's performance under various environmental conditions as well as gauge the effect of putting the ovens in a kitchen close to lobby air conditioning vents. A few companies in stealth mode are expected to soon unveil design applications for net zero energy homes.

The other big hardware and software market lay in tools for managing heater/air conditioner HVAC, lighting systems, landscape sprinklers and other internal systems. Although heating/air conditioning systems have been linked to remote management systems produced by Johnson Controls and Honeywell for years, a new generation of tools from companies like Cimetrics and Tririga claim they can control thermostats more dynamically. Optimum Energy and EPS, meanwhile, specialize in controlling air conditioner chillers and industrial equipment, respectively.

Lighting is almost completely ignorant -- only around ten percent of lights are controlled on IT networks. Watch out for companies such as Adura Technologies, HID Laboratories and Lumenergi.

4. Appliances

Appliances are otherwise known as HVAC and lights. Lighting has been perhaps the most active market in terms of VC activity and for good reason: Light bulbs are the last major vestige of the vacuum tube era. The incandescent bulb celebrates its 130th anniversary this year. VCs put $86.5 million into lighting in 2007 and $185 million in 2008. Some notable companies: Renaissance Lighting BridgeLux, NiLA, Kaai, Soraa, Luminus Devices, Nuventix and D.Light (LED lamps and components); Eden Park Illumination, Novaled and Ceelight (flat architectural lights); Luxim and Topanga (plasma lights); Vu1 (cathode lights); Lumiette (thin florescent); Energy Focus (interior fiber optics); and Sunlight Direct (piped sunlight).

There are also low-tech solutions. Kawneer, the architectural products group at Alcoa, sells windows with integrated light shelves. A light shelf is a white board that reflects sunlight inside. It can cut light power bills by 12 percent.

In HVAC, look at Chromasun (solar air conditioners), Ice Energy and Calmac (ice cooling), Groundsource Geothermal AC Research (pre-cooling air) and Octus Energy (condensation cooling).

Source: U.S. Department of Energy

5. Energy Generation

Solar and small wind have been around for a number of years. The next big trend will to make these more unobtrusive. Several CIGS vendors promise to come out with building-integrated photovoltaics. Armageddon Energy, meanwhile, has come up with easy-to-assemble photovoltaic systems for homes.


Join industry leaders and influencers at Greentech Media's Green Building Summit in Menlo Park, Calif., June 11.

A Green Building Market Overview

Green Building
Michael Kanellos June 8, 2009
4 Comments

A Green Building Market Overview
Green building is going to be a massive market, but it’s not as easy to understand as other markets.
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If you want to get a sense of the scale of the opportunity in green building, look around.

If you're reading this while inside a U.S. office building, there is an 85 percent chance you're under or near a florescent tube bulb. General Electric and Westinghouse began selling them in 1938. They were a big hit, along with the television and an IBM typewriter, at the World's Fair a year later.

Modern drywall? 1916. Joseph Aspdin invented Portland Cement, which is still the world standard today, in 1824. It's made by crushing rock and cooking it to 2,700 Fahrenheit. With the right tools, the Flintstones could have figured that one out. Electric air conditioning? Willis Carrier invented it in 1902. And you can thank Albert Butz for the devising the thermostat in 1885.

And if you think about it, you could probably take care of your cooling and lighting needs if you could only open your office window.

It's that handsome combination of IOU (inefficient, old and ubiquitous) technology, the potential for inexpensive solutions and the "wow" factor that green design techniques lend buildings like the California Academy of Sciences that lay at the heart of the market. Building hasn't been as popular with VCs as solar or biofuels -- but many believe we are on the verge of a two-decade boom in retrofits and new types of construction. (It's why we are holding our Green Building Summit next week on June 11.)

Besides, if the economics won't drive it, legislation will. In California, new homes will likely have to meet net-zero energy standards by 2020 and commercial buildings will have to hit it by 2030. An estimated $21.65 billion is baked into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. And to get grants in other parts of the program, applicants have to show they are "shovel ready."

But it's also a more complex market with more moving parts than solar or biofuels. We've broken it down into five segments.

1. Construction and Design

If you talk to contractors and architects, they claim that most energy savings can be accomplished through proper design and construction. While that point can be debated, green construction has clearly become commercially attractive. Various studies report that LEED-certified or LEED-like buildings generate higher rentals and property values. Employers claim environmental construction reduces sick days and serves as a recruiting tool. A much-touted retrofit of the Empire State Building dropped energy consumption by 38 percent.

In China, A skyscraper being erected in Shanghai will have municipal parks on most floors while buildings by upscale developer Shui On Land can rent for 1.5 times that of competing properties, according to sources. Retrofitting or building green also does not necessarily add costs.



Source: Department of Energy

Limbach Energy Solutions, a large HVAC contractor in Pittsburgh, has begun to take a program developed in Ohio for cash-flow neutral energy retrofits. In the commercial market, large builders like Webcor and Weitz already gain substantial portions of their revenue from LEED. A few startups like Project Frog, which builds energy efficient schools, have also emerged.

The consumer space has moved slower than commercial or government. Prior to the economic downturn, mass home builders such as Lennar reported fairly strong sales of homes equipped with solar panels. Since then, it's been tough to sell homes. Michelle Kaufmann Designs, one of the early modular homebuilders, recently went under while others such as Living Homes and Zeta Communities are in startup mode.
.Page12Next ›.Comments [4]

EMerge Alliance 06/8/09 4:24 PM
With opportunity comes innovation. The EMerge Alliance, an open industry association, is invested in developing a standard that facilitates the direct connection and use of native DC power from solar, wind, or other alternative energy sources and improved efficiency through integrated load and source management. The EMerge standard will promote advanced lighting control in commercial interiors by promoting more flexible use of daylighting and occupancy sensors, and wireless approaches in both power distribution and control. We promote sustainability with simpler system devices that have less materials and reduce energy consumption, providing savings like never before.

Learn more and join us at http://emergealliance.org

Reply

Wanda 06/9/09 2:25 PM
This is great information. Thank you for sharing. http://www.geothermalcontractor.net

Reply

Tracy Callender 06/13/09 10:41 PM
Michael:
Great bldg seminar on Thurs. 6/11! Great info and presentations! Loved the rub-on tattoo remark in the late after noon.
Tracy


Scott Boutwell 06/15/09 1:55 PM
Green building design has been greatly facilitated by advances in building modeling in the AEC sector. Modeling (or BIM: Building Information Modeling) allows designers and all parties in the construction lifecycle to view, collaborate on, construct, and ultimately operate ‘intelligent’ buildings. The use of a building model also allows for incorporation of green modeling: changes in design, ventilation, heating, etc with associated changes / improvements in energy use, occupant health & safety, and capital investment.

I have written a number of articles on market trends and strategies in this sector; please go to my blog “AEC and Cleantech Trends” (http://www.scottboutwell.blogspot.com) for more information and lists of articles

A wake-up call on water use

A wake-up call on water use
A long-running resource issue finally trickles down to more consumers.

By Gloria Goodale | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor/ June 10, 2009 Santa Monica, Calif.

Move over, carbon, the next shoe to drop in the popular awareness of eco-issues is the “water footprint.”

That’s the word in environmental circles these days. Just as the image of a heavy carbon foot made it possible for the masses to grasp the power of carbon-dioxide emissions, water footprint is the phrase now drawing attention to the impact of human behavior regarding water.

“H2O is the next CO2,” says Nicholas Eisenberger, managing principal of GreenOrder, a consulting firm that specializes in sustainable business. As a phrase, water footprint “will probably move more quickly through the public mind as it catches on,” he says, because water is more tangible than carbon.

Measuring how much water an individual, business, or government uses is a concept everyone can viscerally relate to, he adds, “because they put their hands on it every day, which is not the case, necessarily, with carbon.”

Why is “water footprint” coming to the fore now? And why does what is arguably humanity’s most vital resource need what some call a gimmick to connect people with its importance?

“You can’t control what you don’t measure,” says Laura Shenkar, principal of the Artemis Project, a water consulting firm. People take water for granted, she says, but the growing talk about climate change inevitably includes water. And recent droughts in the usually verdant southeastern United States have helped bring the issue to public attention.

But causing people to take action on this issue isn’t necessarily going to be easy. One simple “wake-up” tool is the calculator at the website of the Water Footprint Network. It asks questions about your diet and lifestyle and then churns out eye-popping “prints,” or water consumption estimates in the hundreds of gallons.

These figures include both direct use and indirect, or what’s known as “virtual water,” meaning how much H2O your Big Mac or Toyota Prius required all the way through the production chain – including growing the alfalfa that fed the cow that made the beef patty.

But calculators that return such large numbers that they convince people they’d never be able to live a comfortable lifestyle, “aren’t really helpful,’ says activist Alexandra Cousteau, who adds that she prefers to pursue projects that will “inspire and empower people.”

On June 8, the granddaughter of undersea explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau will complete a 100-day global journey to expand awareness of the “interconnectedness of our hydrosphere.”

She and her team are chronicling critical water sites on five continents. “Expedition: Blue Planet” delves into crises such as the dwindling River Ganges in India and solutions such as a state-of-the-art Coca-Cola bottling plant in the Palestinian city of Ramallah (It’s the only multinational corporation in the West Bank.)

According to Greg Koch, director of the company’s Global Water Stewardship program, Coca-Cola (whose water brand, Dasani, is a sponsor of Ms. Costeau’s tour) eventually hopes to achieve “water neutrality” at its plants worldwide. (Water neutrality compares the amount of groundwater used with how much is returned to the earth through conservation measures.)

Agriculture uses about 70 percent of the global water footprint, while industry clocks in at around 20 percent.
But individual awareness and behavior is an important starting point in reducing one’s impact on the environment, says Alex Mayer, director of the Center for Water and Society at Michigan Technological University in Houghton.

Even small steps can make a difference. “Maybe even a calculator meter magnet on your fridge, so that every time you open the door or run the faucet, you’re faced with your own behavior,” he says with a laugh.

Nobody has to tell California officials about growing water crises. The state, now in its third year of drought, declared a water emergency in February. Two days after Easter, southern California water agencies announced mandatory cuts for the summer and September rate hikes for the 19 million residents of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura counties.

“We’re always looking for ways to encourage people to change their ways with water,” says Bob Hayward, general manager of Lincoln Avenue Water Co. in Altadena, a water district of 16,000 users in the heart of Los Angeles. His customers were asked to voluntarily cut their water use by 10 percent last year, which most were able to do.

But now the district is asking customers to cut back an additional 20 percent. “They’re not taking that very well,” Mr. Hayward says with a sigh. Officials are hoping to inspire residents to switch from water-hungry gardens and lawns to plants that are more suited for arid locales.

What many people may not realize, notes Mr. Hayward, is that nearly 75 percent of residential water use in California goes to outdoor purposes, mostly landscaping.

Across southern California, water districts maintain demonstration gardens that illustrate how to have plants and conserve water at the same time. At one on the edge of the grounds of Santa Monica College, Andrew Villegas, a local high school senior, says he knows about the carbon footprint but hasn’t heard about the water footprint. He likes the alternative garden, which is full of drought-tolerant grasses and water-wise options to shrubs.

Adjacent to the “good” garden, a traditional one grows the thirsty roses and pansies favored by many homeowners in the region. Brochures show the differences in waste, water, and maintenance between the two gardens.

Sitting nearby with her 2-year-old daughter Lucy, Annie Bloom says she likes the water footprint idea and tries hard to keep hers down. When she bathes Lucy, she rarely fills the tub anymore, and sometimes, she adds with a laugh, she’ll even give her a bath in the kitchen sink. “That takes much less water.”

Even as the water-footprint concept is catching on, some think it’s just a start. “What’s good for water conservation may not be good for energy efficiency, for example,” says Cameron Wilson, a research analyst of environmental and building technologies with Frost & Sullivan, a consulting firm in Toronto.

Ultimately, he would like to see the discussion move beyond individual components in the ecosphere. If it has to be a catchy line, he says, “let’s try an ‘ecological footprint.’ ” 

( More stories )

Comments
1. SCHMENDRIC | 06.10.09

We may ultimately go back to water pitchers with wash basins, before advanced
plumbing replaced having to bring water in from the well. As water resources continue to shrink, that may well bring the past into the future.


2. Christopher | 06.10.09

I live in Orange County, California where development is rampant. Hundreds of homes were built on the land that was once a Marine Corps base in Tustin. In Tustin and Irvine, there are several new mega-malls. New office buildings and apartment complexes have been built. In my opinion, given the energy and water situation, this development is unjustifiable and outrageous.


3. cliff west | 06.10.09

Only until human society curtails and decreases its propogation will scarcity be resolved. Hopefully this goal can be acheived voluntarily. Thankfully, Mao imposed this on his countrymen. The philosphical, cultural, and religious arrogance the assumes humans are supreme, are a causative factor in this unrestrained population growth.


4. Leonard | 06.10.09

cliff west; Would you have been so thankful if Mao’s policies included you as one of the many that had to go? That kind of backwards thinking is how millions died, usually in the most horrendous ways possible. Unfortunately, water footprint seems like another path to government control. Do you people really want to give more power to the government that has so far crippled just about every service and industry it can get it’s hands on? We need a plan that is comprehensive and smart, not a dumb down blanket proposal that deprives us of our individualism.


5. dave slusser | 06.11.09

When you see major seasonal flooding practically every year in some area of the midwest and droughts predominantly in the west, water problems in both areas might be solved if some kind of mega plumbing system could alleviate the devastation in flood areas by pumping it to areas that need the water. Major hurdles include: 1. the climb over the Rockies, 2 a place to store the water in the west, 3 cost to build and maintain the plumbing, 4 transport of invasive organisms. Solutions:Use the Green The San Juan, or the Colorado river to transport water to Nevada. Chlorinate the water en route. a worthy government project. put engineers to work on something practical and grand.


6. BeWaterWise Rep | 06.11.09

Thank you for this very informative post! Today when fresh water levels in Southern California have dropped alarmingly, the need to be water wise is gaining more importance. We all have to make a conscious effort to conserve water at home and work. In fact BeWaterWise.com has a very good section on how to conserve water - http://tr.im/o9qh . Check out these easy to implement and inexpensive tips. They can save gallons of water every day. Hope the info is useful!


7. Dr. Paul | 06.11.09

It is one of the flaws in human nature to want to concoct new ways to control other people under the guise of the good of society. Those that don’t want to be controllers become the controlled.

We should be careful not to accept news stories on a topic, e.g. water management as necessarily good for society. What seems like a good idea can grow to be the monster under the bed. Who oversees centralized control of water conservation? Again, human nature may link it to population control, eugenics, etc. Regulations get shifted to agency or governmental bureaucrats for decisions. Do we really want other people telling us how to live or die?

In an era of more and more government control and regulation, perhaps we (the people) need to demonstrate our ability to govern ourselves. We need to take more personal responsibility, be more honest, get rid of greedy motives, let our actions reflect what is also good for our fellow, and live lives that deserve the freedom our marvelous country and Constitution provide.

8. deborah dunne | 06.11.09

why does it have to be chlorinated?? water in Colorado is not allowed to be collected and stored in that State (perhaps the East, I dont know) because the rights to the water are owned by Kansas!!!…go figure. perhaps some of these old laws need to be revisited


9. ProfRaze | 06.11.09

Fresh water isn’t the new carbon, it’s the new oil. It’s a valuable resource that is disappearing everywhere. The Darfur conflict started from a drought. We’re going to see a lot more such conflicts in the future.

Humans have historically dealt with overpopulation and scarce resources through one mechanism: War.


10. Pops | 06.11.09

If you want water freedom get a bucket and go to the river. Dig a well. Use rainfall collectors. It’s amazing how people argue against government regulation on government distribution. Seems like most people are for socialism when they profit, but against if they have to sacrifice.

Face it, you have already agreed to being controlled. Until you get your own power, your own water, make your own roads, etc….

There is a finite amount of usable water, quit the waste, quit the whining and find solutions.


11. ElephantInTheRoom | 06.11.09

I find it amazing that articles and conservation efforts for water always focus on individuals, when the statistics (given in this article) make it clear that agriculture and industry use 90% of the water. Even if everyone in the huge body of individuals began to employ draconian conservation in their own lives, it wouldn’t make a dent in the water shortage problem. Where are the efforts to persuade agriculture and industry to be water wise?


12. James | 06.11.09

I conceded to Dr. Paul the point he makes regarding our desire to want to control others. I think it comes from the part of the mind that says, ‘I am, me, mine’…the ego.

Ironically, the conclusion he draws is based on that same premise. ‘Do you really want other people telling us how to live or die,’ is a non-practical, egotistical question. We are in this together. If your neighbors run out of water, you won’t have any either. I think this is a more immediate threat than eugenics.

Dr. Paul is right when he recommends that we be more honest and try to govern ourselves. The facts are always neutral. Try reading an article about something you strongly agree with or strongly disagree with as just facts.
Let’s dispassionately study the issue of water scarcity and solve it with innovation. That is the American way.


13. IMHO | 06.11.09

Potable fresh water is THE ultimate constrained resource for humans, and conservation is frankly critical. As a sixth-generation Northern Nevadan (yes, our water in Reno comes naturally downriver from Lake Tahoe, fed by snowmelt over millenia - which provides natural limits on growth/usage in the area), I have never understood the rationale for the existence of a huge, sparkling Las Vegas with countless swimming pools located in the middle of the desert. Such man-made ‘grand’ projects as the Hoover Dam made it possible - but also destroyed downstream flow of the Colorado River & drew huge new populations to an area that simply cannot sustain them naturally. Now, increasingly desperate reaction to ongoing growth is likely to politically force much of the existing water in rural northeastern Nevada into Vegas’ plumbing, just as much of the southeastern Sierra Nevada watershed has been drained on behalf of greater Los Angeles over the last 50 years - all so (as stated above) ‘ignorich’ SoCal residents can have prettier gardens??? Why is so much capital WASTED building unsustainable communities in the middle of arid deserts? In my mind, massive alteration of natural flows often simply wastes prohibitive quantities of capital on ecologically unsustainable human ego. Moving water from the flood-prone Mississippi watershed to the arid southwest sounds good on paper from a massive government spending point of view, but the reality is that we ALL simply need to alter our habits & use our water more wisely. Let’s put our human capital to work devising better ways to use each drop on an individual basis rather than creating massive new ‘mechanificial’ systems funded by future generations who already bear the burden of massive public debt. Because, by the way, Keynes is long dead.


14. MOJO | 06.11.09

Water is not dissapearing!!! All of the water in this world is recycled one way or another. Even our waste water is treated and eventually ends up back in our potable water supply. If you live in a dessert and are worried about water, then move to where it is more plentiful. Or stay where it is scarce. The choice is up to the individual of where to settle in this nation. If you hate the cold, then move down south. If you are worried about earthquakes move to the midwest. If you are worried about hurricanes then move away from the gulf coast,,, etc, etc. etc.!!! Again, all the water in the world is here now and it always was and it alway will be.


15. Mike W | 06.11.09

I agree with “ElephantInTheRoom” in that the focus of water conservation should also include agricultural water use. Here is a little factoid to consider: 1 percent of the water used on California agriculture is equivalent to 10 times the amount used by the Las Vegas Strip Casinos in a year.

In other words, a small gain in water efficiency in ag water use will yeild huge gains. Whereas, turning the water off while brushing your teeth is relativley meaningless.


16. David Malcolm | 06.11.09

Many of the innovations in water efficient products for consumers were originally developed for ag and industry. For example, a new 1.5 gpm showerhead made by HighSierra Showerheads works better than typical low flow showerheads while using 40% less water. The patented devise that produces the spray was orginally developed for golf course irrigation.

A sprinkler that has done more to save water for residential and commercial landscaping (known as the MP Rotator) than any other recent invention was being used successfully for agricultural irrigation for at least 15 years before it evolved into an efficient retrofit for water wasting sprayheads.

Drip irrigation is another example of a water savings product originally designed for ag. The list goes on and on.


17. Cary Elcome | 06.12.09

Please remember that water is increasingly used in plastic bottles. This too causes serious environmental damage! (Added to which, the plastic of which the bottles are made releases toxins when heated, e.g. left in a warm car or in direct sunlight.)


18. Robin | 06.14.09

I’m pleased to see the conversation growing around water use. While it’s true that the amount of water on the planet is not changing, what is changing is where that water is and how much of it is clean enough to use. On top of that is the fact that climate change is making wet places dry and visa versa.

And yes, we can all do something in our own little ways: turn off the tap when brushing our teeth, taking shorter showers, flush only when you really need to. But the fact is that agriculture and industry use 90 percent of the water. So, what we must do is insist farms grow crops that their climate can support, minimize the use of pesticides (which pollute our water), and buy only from companies who are eliminating excess water (and energy) wherever possible. Buy local and organic produce when possible (http://farmersmarket.com/). Or grow your own! And when it’s time to clothe your family or buy new drapes, demand the company use waterless technologies (http://www.airdye.com). These are changes that will make a difference.

19. Sue Frugal | 06.15.09

Zoning laws are one more thing to add. Solar panels are banned in certain neighborhoods, because they are non-traditional, and look “different” In other places they are the new cool. It’s the same with mowed (English) lawns. Only some neighborhoods will allow natural growth in the front yard. We have two water catchment tanks, with 3 filters, and a UV light. Sometimes we drink the water, other times we don’t. Sometimes we add a little chlorine, or baking soda, as needed. Sometimes one tank is sufficient. Other times we borrow water from the larger water tank, originally used for young crops, now not needed. Would your city allow you to have a water catchment tank in your backyard for irrigating your garden, or lawn? I doubt it, and yet the water does fall out of the sky, pure and free. Does it have to go down the drains unused?

U.S. demand for residential solar rising in '09

U.S. demand for residential solar rising in '09
Tue Jun 9, 2009 5:34pm EDT

By Jon Hurdle
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - U.S. demand for residential solar power installations is surging despite an economic recession, thanks to government financial incentives, some easing in credit availability, and increasing public recognition of its environmental benefits, industry executives said on Tuesday.

Companies represented at the PV America solar conference in Philadelphia said the volume of their installations as much as tripled in 2008 and they see further gains this year as more people recognize that they can cut their electricity bills by at least 15 percent with an array of solar panels installed on the roof of their homes.

Geogenix LLC, a New Jersey-based residential solar company with 20 employees, installed about 150 systems in the first six years of its existence until 2008, and expects to do about that number this year alone, said managing member Gaurav Naik. He predicted the company would install at least 300 systems in 2010 when it plans to expand into Pennsylvania and some surrounding states.

"There is unprecedented demand for residential solar systems," he said.

Faced with a cost of about $50,000 for installation of a 7-kilowatt system on a typical 2,500-square-foot house, a New Jersey homeowner can defray the expense with a $12,500 rebate from the state and a federal tax credit of $11,000, Naik said.

After the first year, the homeowner can also expect a refund check for about $3,200 from the local utility in return for installing the solar panels, Naik said. The owner can expect to save about $1,700 a year in electricity bills, and should recoup the initial investment within five to eight years, he said.

According to industry trade group the Solar Energy Industries Association, there was an overall 16 percent increase in solar capacity, including commercial installations, in 2008.

Jeffrey Wolfe, chief executive of Vermont-based installer groSolar, said the market has also been boosted by lower prices for solar panels due in part to an increase in the supply of the polysilicon, the raw material used for their construction.

Wolfe argued the industry is benefiting from a cultural change that is more accepting of the need to find alternatives to fossil fuels, in part because of last year's surge in gasoline prices to more than $4 a gallon.

"People have seen what energy prices can do, and they have come to the end of their rope in denying climate change," Wolfe said.

Companies are also getting creative in bringing the upfront costs of solar power down for customers. groSolar, for one, is providing financing to customers who are unable to front the $40,000-$50,000 price tag for a typical solar installation. Wolfe's company now operates a lease program requiring a down payment of $1,000 and then regular monthly payments for use of the system.

In California, Arizona and Oregon, SolarCity installs systems without any down payment from the customer, who then pays a lease fee which typically ranges from $25 to $60 a month, said David Arfin, vice president of customer financing. The company owns and maintains the system but the homeowner benefits from the reduced utility bills, he said.

Arfin said the company's business tripled in 2008, and it is hiring 100 new installers to help meet "massive" demand.

Naik of Geogenix said financing for solar installations has gotten easier for qualified borrowers since the first quarter of 2009. He cited one client with a high 740 credit score who needed to borrow $38,000 and secured a 10-year loan at prime plus 2 percent by working with a financial institution that had previously done business with the company

The McMansion Days Are Past

The Next Little Thing
As the era of McMansions fades, wee houses promote simpler,
more efficient living

Gregory Paul Johnson comes across as a normal guy, typical of many people you'd find in Iowa City, Iowa, where he lives. But Johnson, 45, is atypical in the extreme: He lives in a 10-foot-by-7-foot house — about the size of a prison cell. With a front porch and a gabled roof, the style is what you might call Lilliputian Victorian. More to the point, the interior design is incredibly efficient. For example, the space features a full-size loft bed accessed via a fold-away ladder, a computer-equipped workstation that converts into a dining area for two, and retractable shelves that fold down over the sink to create counter space."People look at my home and say, 'It's magic! How do you do that? How do you live in a 10-by-7 house?'" says Johnson. "The answer is that I live very simply."

Johnson is a leading figure in the micro-housing movement. He's a co-founder of the Small House Society (SHS) and the Small Living Journal (smalllivingjournal.com), a Web site that launched in March, as well as the author of Put Your Life on a Diet: Lessons Learned from Living in 140 Square Feet. Other co-founders of the SHS include Jay Shafer, owner of Tumbleweed Tiny House Company, which sells plans and materials for dwellings measuring between 65 and 837 square feet, and Shay Salomon and Nigel Valdez, who created the influential book Little House on a Small Planet.

The micro-housing trend, once decidedly on the fringes, has hit the mainstream, in part because of the economic downturn. People are looking for ways to live more efficiently, whether that means lowering their utility bills or spending less time vacuuming - just two of the advantages of living in a smaller house.


How small?

While "How big is too big?" may have been the mantra of home builders and buyers over the past decade, Johnson and his ilk have endeavored to ask, "How small is too small?" They were posing the question long before the housing crunch and the recent stock market slide.
In fact, the current small-house trend first blipped on the cultural radar in 1998, with the publication of architect Sarah Susanka's seminal work, The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live. Susanka's influence has endured: on January 20, she was honored — along with Millard Fuller, founder of Habitat for Humanity — with an Innovator award from Builder Magazine at the International Builders Show in Las Vegas.

Interestingly, the economy also played a key role in earlier, similar trends. According to Daniel Bluestone, associate professor of architectural history and director of the historic preservation program at the University of Virginia, the proliferation in the early 20th century of small, simple, bungalow-style homes resulted in large part from a demand created by a new, burgeoning group of homebuyers in the United States, namely, immigrants with little money to spare. "There was an influx of working- and middle-class people looking for homes," Bluestone says. "The bungalows had incredibly efficient floor plans, and they were affordable."

The same ethos applied with the onset of the Great Depression, when the "minimum house" came into vogue, Bluestone says. In 1936, the Federal Housing Administration published its "Principles of Planning Small Houses," which advocated for small, low-priced houses to provide "shelter within the means of families of very modest income."

After World War II, Bluestone notes, the demand for less expensive — and thus, smaller — housing increased as veterans returned home. It was then that planned communities like Levittown, on New York's Long Island, with houses typically around 800 square feet, took root. In that same era, prominent architect William Wurster, the originator of the suburban ranch house, made a plea to his colleagues to "scale down your demands to your purse and to the temper of the times."



Reduced scale, big variety
The temper of the times may be similar today — but as Bluestone points out, "the energy and green issues weren't part of the earlier advocacy for smaller living spaces. There are many more factors today."

Accordingly, the marketplace is more varied. Johnson's house, which he has occupied since August 2003, may be an extreme example; with no true kitchen — there's a sink but no stove or refrigerator — he orders a lot of take-out food. But a proliferation of firms offer floor plans and materials for small, prefabricated dwellings. And builders and architects are responding to an increasing demand for scaled-down primary residences or vacation homes.

Jeff Dungan of Dungan & Nequette Architects, in Birmingham, Ala., says he welcomes the change. "We've been working on a cottage, a second home, for a client who will probably end up retiring there," Dungan says. "He told us what he wanted, and I started drawing, thinking it would be about 2,500 square feet. But the more I drew, the more I got excited about the efficient use of space. The finished product is 1,500 square feet. We looked at it and said, 'Wow, did we leave anything out? Is there anything wrong with it?' The answer was, 'No, there's a lot right with it.'"

Dungan's downsized design solution is just one example of a historic trend. From 1973 through 2007, the average size of a newly built U.S. house rose from 1,660 to a record high of 2,521 square feet, according to the Census Bureau. But during the first half of 2008, the average declined by about 200 square feet — the single biggest drop since the early 1970s. Also, in January, a survey by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) found that 88 percent of builders nationwide either planned or had already begun to build smaller homes.

"The days of the McMansion are over," says Stephen Melman, the NAHB's director of economic services. "People aren't buying more house than they need."

Alchemy Architects, in St. Paul, Minn., is a leader in the prefab small-house market, with a "weeHouse" portfolio of modern structures starting at 341 square feet. Hospital administrator Mary Griffith, 53, and her husband, Bill, 49, a Spanish teacher, opted for an 1,100-square-foot prefab by Alchemy. They situated the unit on 20 wooded acres in Carlisle, N.Y., and moved out of their two-family Colonial and into their new home in October 2008 — and they've never been happier. "Our current house feels so much more spacious than our old one," says Mary. "The kitchen, dining room, and living room occupy one big space, and with seven floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors, the house gives the appearance of being much larger than it really is."

The Griffiths live comfortably in the small space, along with their son, a senior in high school, as well as a cat and a medium-sized dog. In fact, the efficient design has encouraged the couple to find other ways to economize. Solar power heats their water, and a wood-burning stove generates ambient heat, as do the big glass doors. "The sun streams into the house," Mary says. "We often don't even have to fire up the wood stove."

While she and her family have adapted well to their new, downsized lifestyle, Mary confesses that she was initially unsure about it: "It was difficult to take the leap. But after we made the choice, we never looked back."


— Joe Bargmann

Navien makes the most efficient tankless water heaters in the industry

Navien America, a subsidiary of the South Korean company Kyung Dyong Navien, is now manufacturing the most efficient tankless water heaters in the industry. These Energy Star-rated water heaters achieve energy factors (EFs) as high as 0.98 by using conventional and condensing heat exchangers to capture heat from flue gases as well as latent heat generated when water vapor in these gases condenses into liquid. Adding to the units’ efficiency are dual microprocessors that use data from air and gas pressure sensors to ensure a proper fuel-to-oxygen ratio for optimum combustion, even when there are long vent runs or fluctuating gas pressure.

Hybrid on the Hill Features Diesel-Electric Hybrid Techology

Hybrid on the Hill Features Diesel-Electric Hybrid Techology

Written by Joanna Schroeder

Published on June 15th, 2009

1 CommentPosted in Diesel, Events, Politics

Last week, the Hybrid Truck Users Forum (HTUF) of CALSTART hosted a “Hybrid on the Hill” day where they showcased new truck technologies. Mack Trucks, Inc. participated in the event and gave federal legislators and policymakers a first-hand look at its parallel diesel-electric hybrid technology, known as the MACK® TerraPro™ Cabover, for heavy-duty trucks. Mack is initially introducing these technology in refuse trucks, aka garbage trucks, where hybrid technology seems to have the greatest impact due to the stop-and-go nature of the trash pick-up system.

» See also: New Fuel Made With Wastewater Drastically Reduces Emissions
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On the road again.
I just can’t wait to get on the road again.
With My Diesel-Electric Hybrid Truck that I pick up trash in.
I can’t wait to get on the road again.

The largest benefit of the technology is that it has a 30 percent fuel economy improvement in stop-and-go applications and meets the EPA’10 emission regulations. The truck is currently being tested in New York.

Here is the downlow on the technology:

◦rear loading refuse packer body
◦equipped with a 325 hp MACK MP7 engine and Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) exhaust aftertreatment technology
◦powertrain features an integrated starter, alternator and electric motor
◦the system captures energy from braking, converts the energy to electricity, stores the electricity in lithium ion batteries, and uses it to power the electric motor, which assists the MP7 diesel engine with propulsion of the truck

According to Dennis Slagle, Mack president and CEO, “Our hybrid technology will be commercially viable, yet it will take time to establish a robust hybrid market for heavy vehicles that will enable us to invest in large scale production. Incentives will accelerate the adoption of Class 8 hybrids and bring forward the positive environmental changes.”

Slagle also noted that the technology will be very expensive when it first comes to market and will become more affordable as production increases. In terms of payback, the purchaser will see a return on investment in several years when accounting for the fuel savings and reduced maintenance costs.

The fuel savings would ultimately be a huge bonus for consumers because the high cost of transportation is a major factor in product and food prices and most waste management services have increased monthly rates to offset the high price of diesel. In addition to Mack’s technology, there are more diesel-electric hybrid technologies in the works.

Company sources also noted that it will take federal incentives to bring the technology to market. While there are currently several short-term federal tax credit programs designated for heavy-duty hybrids, longer-term incentives are needed. The Company is lobbying for Congress to extend the Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit which is part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and expires at the end of this year.

It can be argued that longer-term incentives are need for all-hybrid programs whether for heavy-duty trucks, light trucks or passenger vehicles. And wouldn’t it be great if our garbage was picked up by an electric hybrid truck and then turned into fuel for our passenger cars? This is not a pipe dream - BlueFire Ethanol is doing this very thing in LA County as is CleanTech Biofuels. I’ll be mulling this over when I’m on the road again.

Sounds like a plan to me. It may take the governments, state, local, and federal to get this off the ground with a series of pilot programs. The regenerative braking system is also being used in taxis, no? Their driving entails a lot of stop-and-go too. It WOULD be cool if the garbage trucks use the garbage to make energy too.

World Naked Bike Ride Rolls Thru Chicago

World Naked Bike Ride Rolls Through Chicago (VIDEO, NSFW)
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Posted: 06-15-09 08:03 PM

I Like ItI Don’t Like It Read More: Global Warming, Naked Bike Ride Chicago, Naked Bike Ride Pictures, Naked Bike Ride Video, Video, World Naked Bike Ride, Chicago News

The sixth annual World Naked Bike Ride took place Saturday night, with hundreds of Chicago cyclists, skateboarders and roller skaters streaking through the city in various degrees of undress to raise awareness of global oil dependency.

The three-hour ride started near Oprah's Harpo studios and wove its way east through downtown, north up Michigan Avenue to Belmont, west until Ashland then south again toward the start.

Metromix has a safe-for-work slideshow of the event.

Some racier, not-safe-for-work slideshows here and here

And now, a little levity and fun while we save the world..

Old tires + manure= energy

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Biogas company seeks permit to use 40,000 waste tires for manure digester
by Abby Haight, The Oregonian
Wednesday June 03, 2009, 11:36 AM

Motoya Nakamura/The Oregonian

Dairy production at Threemile Canyon Farms near Boardman.A biogas company wants a permit to produce energy from two banes to the environment -- waste tires and cow manure.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will host an informational meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 9, in Boardman to discuss the waste tire storage permit application of Northwest Biogas, which wants to use 40,000 waste tires as a growing media for micro-organisms in an anaerobic digester.

The digester would be at Threemile Canyon Farms in Boardman, one of the largest dairies in the country, and would use manure from the farm's 17,000 cows.

Late last year, Threemile Canyon Farms entered an agreement with Northwest Natural Gas and the Bonneville Environmental Foundation to install a digester that would clean methane -- one of the worst greenhouse gases -- and produce an alternative to natural gas use.

Northwest Natural and the foundation invested $1 million in the digester project. Northwest Natural, which benefited from state tax credits, would fund the $20,000 yearly operating cost by its 6,300 customers who pay extra for green energy projects.

Northwest Biogas has proposed using the waste tires inside the lined and covered digester. The company has agreed to clean, remove and recycle the tires if the facility ceases operation.

The dairy cows each produce 120 pounds of waste daily, including water used to flush away the manure. The waste is routed into manure lagoons, where it releases methane. The digester would use only a fraction of the manure -- from about 1,000 to 1,400 cows.

But proponents note that the cleaned methane is a renewable alternative to natural gas. Generators also use methane to produce electricity.

Using waste tires eliminates the potential for tire fires and the breeding ground for pests like mosquitoes, they say.

The informational meeting is at the Boardman City Hall conference room, 200 City Center Circle.

-- Abby Haight; abbyhaight@news.oregonian.com

An Motley Fool Investment Idea

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A Little Too Dazzling
By Rich Duprey
June 5, 2009 | Comments (1)

CREE
Cree, Inc.

Rate CREE CAPS Rating 3/5 Stars . $28.53 $-0.21 (-0.73%)


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How many Nobel laureates does it take to screw in a light bulb? We don't know because they're off painting rooftops with whitewash.

U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu, a Nobel prize winner in physics, created a bit of a stir recently when he suggested that if we would all just paint our rooftops white -- and all the roadways and sidewalks, too -- we could eliminate the same amount of greenhouse gases as removing all the world's cars from the roads for 11 years.

Not a bad idea

A more practical idea might be to encourage more homeowners to get rid of their incandescent light bulbs. Compact fluorescents (CFL) could save consumers about $30 over the life of the bulb because they use 75% less energy and last about 10 times as long as standard bulbs. According to the federal government's Energy Star program, if every owner replaced just one bulb in their home, enough energy would be saved to light more than 3 million homes for a year, save more than $600 million in annual energy costs, and prevent the emission of greenhouse gases equivalent to that of more than 800,000 cars.

Not quite on par with Chu's Tom Sawyer trick, but at least it's a workable idea.

At the end of the tunnel

According to research company Nielsen Claritas, 71% of consumers have at least one CFL installed in their home and 64% have two or more. Because Congress mandated that incandescents be eliminated by 2014, CFLs will be far more commonplace soon enough. Yet retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT) and Costco (Nasdaq: COST) started the ball rolling already, and overall about 330 million bulbs are sold every year in the U.S. Even so, the Energy Department says that CFLs dropped to 21% of light bulb sales in 2008, down from 23% in 2007.

But in between the push for ecologically friendly devices and the market penetration of CFLs, there remains another opportunity -- solid-state light-emitting diodes, which are even better at saving energy than CFLs. LEDs, which are essentially tiny semiconductors, are twice as efficient and don't contain any of the mercury that CFLs do, so leaking harmful chemicals into the environment isn't a concern. CFL pollution has become a big-enough concern that Home Depot (NYSE: HD) started a bulb-recycling program last year.

Although you might want to dispose of LEDs in a manner similar to that of other electronic and computer components, their disposal is less of an issue, because they can last for decades.

That computes

The biggest market for LED lighting has been in commercial building applications, but computer backlighting has been gaining traction, and LED-backlit screens are predicted to become 30% to 40% of the notebook market in 2009.

LED chip maker Cree (Nasdaq: CREE) is looking to improve bookings -- specifically in the notebook backlighting area -- leading it to boost its guidance for its fiscal fourth-quarter revenue. And though the turmoil in the automobile market partially offset sales of LED components, the company was still able to increase revenue from that segment by 7% in the latest quarter. Earlier this year, Cree also forestalled similar problems.

Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG), the world's largest lighting manufacturer, also anticipates a better market. It says the LED market has reached a trough, and it forecasts sales at its Lumileds division will increase 20% next quarter. And you can't count out General Electric (NYSE: GE), either. Its Lumination division is using LEDs to brighten supermarket display cases at Wal-Mart, and its officials say eight of the top 10 supermarkets in the U.S. are already using or testing its system.

Don't fight City Hall
Considering that the federal stimulus program includes billions for municipal infrastructure, we should begin to see cities and towns converting to LED lighting. San Jose, Calif., is using some of its $8.8 million in that stimulus spending to convert street lights to LEDs, similar to what Siemens' (NYSE: SI) Osram division is doing in Hamburg, Germany. Similarly, as part of its LED City initiative, Cree has convinced Raleigh, N.C.; Austin, Texas; and other cities to use and evaluate LEDs in street lamps, parking garages, and municipal offices.

If you're looking to profit from the future of lighting, there's really only one option. Cree is the closest thing to a pure play in the field and one of the best of the bunch, but at more than 98 times earnings, its stock looks richly valued now. Of course, I thought it was too high back in January when it traded at "just" 36 times forward estimates and I recommended that investors wait for a dip in the price that never materialized. It has nearly doubled in price since then (ouch!), but that doesn't help me recommend shares now. Any hiccups along the way and it would be lights-out for the stock.

But there are worse things you could be doing than waiting for a better price: Painting your roof, for instance.

For related Foolish articles:

•Cree Sees the Light
•This Stock Is Lights Out
•LEDing the Way to Profits

U.S. Postal Service: RIP

U.S. Postal Service: RIP
Posted Jun 15 2009, 06:05 AM by Douglas McIntyre Rating: Filed under: Internet, Amazon

The U.S. Postal Service, which has been dying for years due to the advent of the fax, e-mail, and overnight delivery, may finally be close to its last act.

The agency lost nearly $2 billion in its last fiscal year and is faced with the serious consideration of cuts of up to 3,100 offices, potentially eliminating thousand of jobs. Media reports say that first class mail volumes are plunging.

What is killing and will probably eventually finish off the Post Office? In a word: “broadband,” the high-speed Internet system that the current Administration plans to build out in the next two years.

According to MarketWatch, the Postal Service is already looking at stopping Saturday delivery. The next moves will probably cut the number of weekdays the mail is dropped off, particularly outside urban areas where the cost of reaching homes and businesses spread over a wide geography is enormous.

Broadband has taken away the need for sending letters and may large documents. Broadband connections allow users to securely download encrypted files, some of which are the equivalent of thousands of pages of paper. The files can be sent and received in a few seconds compared with days to move them by mail.

Payment systems which wire transfer money have nearly eliminated the role of the check in paying bills. This will only increase as e-banking does.

Even the magazine and newspaper industries which relied on physical delivery systems for decades now use the Amazon (AMZN) Kindle as a way to get the printed word over the Internet and downloaded onto the device. Almost every major print product also has an Internet version. Sending magazines via mail is expensive. Cutting back on that form of delivery would be a blessing.

The modern postal system killed the pony express. The USPS could only last so long before it was itself replaced. That time has finally come.

Top Stocks blogger Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.