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Hydrogen Highway Plan Moves Forward

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will advocate that California invest $54 million in public money to help build a network of up to 100 hydrogen fueling stations statewide within five years, according to new details of his “Hydrogen Highway” plan. A team of more than 200 scientists, automakers and environmentalists spent a year drafting the 144-page document, which the governor requested last year, calling hydrogen-powered cars a way to reduce smog, slow global warming and wean the nation from oil. The “California Hydrogen Highway Blueprint” is set to be formally unveiled Thursday in Sacramento. If state lawmakers approve funding, California would move ahead of the 13 other states pursuing hydrogen initiatives. The plan concludes that California can help speed a national transition from gasoline vehicles to environmentally friendly hydrogen fuel cell cars — whose tailpipes emit only water vapor. The money would provide matching funds to industry to build up to 100 hydrogen fueling stations in the Bay Area, Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Diego. Because 39 already exist or are planned soon, 61 new stations, at a cost of about $1 million each, would need to be built by 2010, the report says. Funding also would provide state grants to automakers […]

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Water and Wastewater Plants Join Energy Star

U.S. drinking water and wastewater plants are joining a new EPA initiative to increase their energy efficiency and reduce municipalities’ electric bills. Over the next year, with participation by more than 20 organizations, the new Energy Star Industrial Water and Wastewater Focus will develop an energy performance rating system, a guide to assessing energy efficiency opportunities, strategies for superior energy management, and innovative approaches to financing energy efficiency projects. This new Energy Star program for water systems is part of a series of efforts to improve the energy efficiency of selected industries. Drinking water and wastewater systems spend about $4 billion a year on energy to pump, treat, deliver, collect, and clean water — with much of this cost borne by ratepayers and municipalities. The energy costs to run drinking water and wastewater systems can represent as much as one-third of a municipality’s energy bill. If drinking water and wastewater systems reduce energy use by just 10 percent through cost-effective investments in energy efficiency, collectively they would save about $400 million and 5 billion kWh annually. Currently, the Energy Star Water and Wastewater Focus includes the American Council for An Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA), […]

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Historic Coalition of Ag, Consumer, Auto, Environmental, Union, Renewable Fuel Producers

A coalition of agriculture, consumer, auto, union, and renewable fuel producers today sent a letter to members of the U.S. Senate Energy Committee urging them to adopt an 8 billion gallon renewable fuels standard (RFS) as part of their comprehensive energy legislation. Senators Jim Talent (R-MO), Tim Johnson (D-SD) and Byron Dorgan (D-ND) plan to offer an amendment to establish an 8 billion gallon RFS during markup of the energy bill. The letter stated: “The undersigned organizations believe a robust RFS is a vital and necessary component of any comprehensive energy bill and we urge you to vote in favor of this amendment when it is brought up in committee? “The Talent, Johnson, and Dorgan RFS amendment represents a historic opportunity to put the nation on a path of greater energy independence and national security. Increasing the amount of domestically produced biofuels is supported by more than 25 national security leaders as a vital component of any strategy to reduce our foreign oil dependence. In a recent letter to the President, these leaders urged him to ‘launch a major new initiative to curtail U.S. consumption through improved efficiency and the rapid development and deployment of advanced biomass, alcohol and other […]

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