Green Building Trends [Giveaway]
Written by Preston Koerner | September 14, 2009 | read more: Books, Giveaway
Jerry Yudelson is a machine when it comes to publishing new books on cutting-edge green building topics. In his latest book, Green Building Trends: Europe, Yudelson tackles a topic that's popping up in the news more and more. Whether the topic is couched in a discussion of PassivHaus, Swedish prefabrication, or otherwise, it surfaces as a question: Are Europeans more advanced that Americans when it comes to green building design and innovation?
If you're looking for an answer, I suggest grabbing a copy of this book, and I'm not just saying this because Island Press was nice enough to send us a review copy. We're giving this review copy away to one lucky reader below.* I suggest grabbing Green Building Trends because it's thorough, and Yudelson spent a year doing the footwork and research to compile case studies, photographs, and illustrations. It's material you may not find anywhere else ...
Here's the straight truth, though. According to the case studies in the book, European green buildings routinely use 50-90% less energy than comparable certified green projects in the U.S. And that's a problem in need of a solution. Here's what you can expect from Green Building Trends:
Intro: European Green Buildings in Context
Ch. 1: The PassivHaus Concept and European Residential Design
Ch. 2: European Design Innovators
Ch. 3: European Green Buildings: What do They Know that We Don't?
Ch. 4: Green Buildings in the United Kingdom (case studies)
Ch. 5: Sustainable Buildings in Germany (case studies)
Ch. 6: Green Engineering in Europe
Ch. 7: Eco-Towns
Ch. 8: Green Building in the Retail Sector
Ch. 9: Looking to the Future
Ch. 10: The Challenge and Promise of Green Buildings: Lessons from Europe
I've previously read about the 2,000 Watt Society in an article on Samsø in The New Yorker, but in Chapter 9, Yudelson references the concept while making a point about setting stretch goals in absolute terms rather than percentage improvements. That's what the 2,000 Watt Society does. It sets an absolute goal to strive for rather than a percentage improvement.
Without going into too much detail, Yudelson makes some interesting recommendations that industry professionals should all read (for example: we should adopt a labeling system like the EPC/DEC regime in the UK). This is good reading, so make sure to grab a copy at Amazon:
[+] Green Building Trends: Europe by Jerry Yudelson.
[+] Green Building Consulting by Yudelson Associates
Showing posts with label 2. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
World's Biggest Solar Plant will Power 3 Million Homes
World's Biggest Solar Plant will Power 3 Million Homes
by Brian Merchant, Brooklyn, New York on 09. 8.09
Photo of another First Solar plant in Nevada
It seems every few months another 'world's biggest' renewable energy project gets unveiled--but this one's seriously huge. The US company First Solar has just signed a deal with the Chinese government to develop what will be the largest photovoltaic power plant in the world. This behemoth will generate 2,000 megawatts of power when it's built in the Mongolian desert, and it will power 3 million Chinese homes. And this isn't some pie-in-the-sky project that will never come to fruition--this one's coming soon, despite its jaw-dropping price tag.
And the sum of that price tag? Around $5-6 billion dollars, according to projections. But the cost isn't stopping the Chinese government from giving the audacious project the go ahead to break ground next year.
According to Green Inc,
The agreement calls for ground to be broken on the first 30-megawatt phase of the project by June 1, 2010, followed by 100-megawatt and 870-megawatt additions to be completed by the end of 2014. A final 1,000-megawatt phase is scheduled to go online by Dec. 31, 2019.
It's also notable that a US company was able to land such a big deal in China--a country notoriously protective of its fast-emerging renewable energy market. But the move, of course, benefits both parties: it has the potential to open up a huge market for solar power in China, and a plant to produce the solar cells will be opened on Chinese soil.
China is surging ahead with renewable energy projects like this, and it's seeking to become the world leader in the field. It has already staked a claim to the mantle of wind power leader with its gigantic wind farm projects, and now it looks as though it'll soon be home to the most impressive solar array in the world as well. The US is going to have to get moving if it hopes to catch up
by Brian Merchant, Brooklyn, New York on 09. 8.09
Photo of another First Solar plant in Nevada
It seems every few months another 'world's biggest' renewable energy project gets unveiled--but this one's seriously huge. The US company First Solar has just signed a deal with the Chinese government to develop what will be the largest photovoltaic power plant in the world. This behemoth will generate 2,000 megawatts of power when it's built in the Mongolian desert, and it will power 3 million Chinese homes. And this isn't some pie-in-the-sky project that will never come to fruition--this one's coming soon, despite its jaw-dropping price tag.
And the sum of that price tag? Around $5-6 billion dollars, according to projections. But the cost isn't stopping the Chinese government from giving the audacious project the go ahead to break ground next year.
According to Green Inc,
The agreement calls for ground to be broken on the first 30-megawatt phase of the project by June 1, 2010, followed by 100-megawatt and 870-megawatt additions to be completed by the end of 2014. A final 1,000-megawatt phase is scheduled to go online by Dec. 31, 2019.
It's also notable that a US company was able to land such a big deal in China--a country notoriously protective of its fast-emerging renewable energy market. But the move, of course, benefits both parties: it has the potential to open up a huge market for solar power in China, and a plant to produce the solar cells will be opened on Chinese soil.
China is surging ahead with renewable energy projects like this, and it's seeking to become the world leader in the field. It has already staked a claim to the mantle of wind power leader with its gigantic wind farm projects, and now it looks as though it'll soon be home to the most impressive solar array in the world as well. The US is going to have to get moving if it hopes to catch up
Friday, May 22, 2009
Cape Wind Completes State, Local Permitting
Cape Wind Completes State, Local Permitting
SustainableBusiness.com News
Cape Wind completed its state and local permitting process Thursday with a unanimous vote of the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board.
The proposed offshore wind farm will be granted a ‘Certificate of Environmental Impact and Public Interest’ that rolls up all state and local permits and approvals into one ‘composite certificate’.
Completion of the Federal Permitting process for Cape Wind is expected soon when U.S. Secretary Ken Salazar issues a Record of Decision on Cape Wind. The Minerals Management Service of the U.S. Department of Interior issued Cape Wind a favorable Final Environmental Impact Statement in January.
Cape Wind President Jim Gordon welcomed the news, “Today's vote marks not just a successful conclusion to a seven-year state regulatory review of the Cape Wind project but the beginning of a new era of clean energy jobs and renewable power from the endless wind resources off our shore."
The Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board (Siting Board), was created by the Legislature to ensure the siting of needed and least environmental impact energy facilities and was granted the statutory authority to issue a comprehensive approval to an energy facility it has previously approved, where that facility has been denied a permit by any other state or local agency in the Commonwealth. The Siting Board exercised their statutory authority in their vote Thursday, which was necessitated by a procedural denial issued from the Cape Cod Commission in 2007.
In 2005, the Siting Board approved Cape Wind’s electrical interconnection at the conclusion of a 32-month review of unprecedented length that included 2,900 pages of transcripts, 923 exhibits and 50,000 pages of documentary evidence.
The Siting Board found that Cape Wind would meet an identified need for electricity and would provide a reliable energy supply for Massachusetts, with a minimum impact on the environment. The Siting Board’s approval of Cape Wind’s electrical interconnection was upheld by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
Many of Cape Cod's well-known and wealthy residents, including Senator Edward Kennedy, are opposed to development of the wind farm. However, two public opinion polls have found statewide support for the project to be 86%.
As planned the Cape Wind project would included 130 wind turbines, capable of providing power for 400,000 homes at a cost of roughly $1 billion.
The project developer said construction could begin early next year, aiming for completion in 2011 or 2012.
Cape Wind is one of two planned offshore wind projects in the U.S. vying to be first in the water. Deepwater Wind off the coast of Rhode Island could begin construction in 2010
SustainableBusiness.com News
Cape Wind completed its state and local permitting process Thursday with a unanimous vote of the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board.
The proposed offshore wind farm will be granted a ‘Certificate of Environmental Impact and Public Interest’ that rolls up all state and local permits and approvals into one ‘composite certificate’.
Completion of the Federal Permitting process for Cape Wind is expected soon when U.S. Secretary Ken Salazar issues a Record of Decision on Cape Wind. The Minerals Management Service of the U.S. Department of Interior issued Cape Wind a favorable Final Environmental Impact Statement in January.
Cape Wind President Jim Gordon welcomed the news, “Today's vote marks not just a successful conclusion to a seven-year state regulatory review of the Cape Wind project but the beginning of a new era of clean energy jobs and renewable power from the endless wind resources off our shore."
The Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board (Siting Board), was created by the Legislature to ensure the siting of needed and least environmental impact energy facilities and was granted the statutory authority to issue a comprehensive approval to an energy facility it has previously approved, where that facility has been denied a permit by any other state or local agency in the Commonwealth. The Siting Board exercised their statutory authority in their vote Thursday, which was necessitated by a procedural denial issued from the Cape Cod Commission in 2007.
In 2005, the Siting Board approved Cape Wind’s electrical interconnection at the conclusion of a 32-month review of unprecedented length that included 2,900 pages of transcripts, 923 exhibits and 50,000 pages of documentary evidence.
The Siting Board found that Cape Wind would meet an identified need for electricity and would provide a reliable energy supply for Massachusetts, with a minimum impact on the environment. The Siting Board’s approval of Cape Wind’s electrical interconnection was upheld by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
Many of Cape Cod's well-known and wealthy residents, including Senator Edward Kennedy, are opposed to development of the wind farm. However, two public opinion polls have found statewide support for the project to be 86%.
As planned the Cape Wind project would included 130 wind turbines, capable of providing power for 400,000 homes at a cost of roughly $1 billion.
The project developer said construction could begin early next year, aiming for completion in 2011 or 2012.
Cape Wind is one of two planned offshore wind projects in the U.S. vying to be first in the water. Deepwater Wind off the coast of Rhode Island could begin construction in 2010
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