The Answer is Blowing in the Wind
Renewable Choice finds that 30-35% of the people it approaches sign up for wind power.
Renewables & Efficiency
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:September 10, 2003
*News and Events DOE, USDA Award $23 Million for Biomass Research Projects DOE Funds Nine Energy-Related Inventions and Innovations Study: Renewables, Efficiency Could Cut Natural Gas Prices Renewable Hawaii to Fund Projects on Maui, Molokai, Lanai New York Dedicates New Energy-Efficient Residential Building ACRE Becomes ACORE as Renewable Energy Conferences Approach ———————————————————————- NEWS AND EVENTS ———————————————————————- DOE, USDA Award $23 Million for Biomass Research ProjectsDOE and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced last week their selection of 19 biomass research, development, and demonstration projects that will receive a total of $23 million in joint funding. Biomass is organic matter from plants or animals that is available on a renewable or recurring basis. Several of the new projects are aimed at developing the next-generation of “biorefineries,” industrial complexes that convert a range of biomass materials into biobased products and biofuels. Two of the projects focus on efficient biomass-fired energy systems, including a combined heat and power system and a district energy system that will heat a number of buildings with one biomass energy system. The remaining projects run the gamut of biomass technologies, including pretreatment processes for biomass, catalysts for biomass conversion processes, new bioproducts from biomass,anaerobic digestion (converting biomass […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:September 3, 2003
*News and Events California Utility Exceeds 20 Percent Renewable Energy Use USDA Awards $21 Million for Efficiency and Renewable Energy New York Provides $14.5 Million for Clean Energy Projects Cielo to Build 80-Megawatt Wind Plant in New Mexico First Solar Adds 240 Kilowatts to Arizona Solar Project DOE Project to Use Superconductors to Protect the Power Grid *Energy Connections U.S. Renewable Energy Use Increases 11 Percent in 2002———————————————————————- NEWS AND EVENTS ———————————————————————- California Utility Exceeds 20 Percent Renewable Energy UseSouthern California Edison (SCE) drew on renewable energy resources for 23 percent of its power in June and 22 percent of its power in May, achieving the state’s 20-percent renewable energy requirement 14 years early. Approximately 150 independent power producers now supply the utility with more than 13 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year. But SCE is not stopping there: the utility also released a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking new contracts for up to 20 years of power from renewable energy sources. See the press release from SCE’s parent company, Edison International, at: [sorry this link is no longer available]Responses to SCE’s RFP are due on September 23rd. SCE aims to obtain final approval for any power agreements by the […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:August 26, 2003
*News and Events Hydropower and Conservation Contributed to Blackout Recovery San Francisco Approves $16 Million Energy Efficiency Program New Jersey Awards $2.7 Million to Renewable Energy Companies Companies Unveil New Building-Integrated Solar Panels Automakers Drop Lawsuits Over California ZEV Rules Organizations, Consumers Still Pursuing Electric Vehicles*Energy Connections After Blackout, Groups Envision Future Power System Options———————————————————————- NEWS AND EVENTS ———————————————————————- Hydropower and Conservation Contributed to Blackout RecoveryNew York State may draw on a wide number of energy sources for its electricity, but when it needed to recover from the August 14th blackout, it turned to hydropower. Hydroelectric power plants have the ability to “blackstart” — start generating power without help from any external power source — and to produce power immediately. In contrast, nuclear and fossil-fuel power plants require significant startup times, and nuclear power plants are not permitted to operate while the power grid is not energized. According to the National Hydropower Association (NHA), hydropower facilities were the first to be placed in operation in order to establish a stable power grid, the critical first step in restoring power to the region. See the press release on the NHA Web site at: http://www.hydro.org/Energy conservation also played an important role during […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:August 20, 2003
*News and Events Secretary Abraham Leads Power Outage Investigation DOE Awards $17.3 Million for Renewables & Efficiency DOE Holds Natural Gas Forums DOE Releases 25-Year Strategic Plan *Energy Connections Blackout Spurs Interest in Renewables & Efficiency———————————————————————- NEWS AND EVENTS ———————————————————————-Secretary Leads Power Outage InvestigationSecretary of Energy Spencer Abraham dispatched teams of investigators over the weekend to the Northeast and Upper Midwest to begin onsite investigations into what caused the nation’s worst power outage last week. In an additional effort to uncover possible causes for the outage, Secretary Abraham is scheduled to meet with Canadian Minister of Natural Resources Herb Dhalwal in Detroit today to finalize the United States/Canada Joint Task Force established last Friday by President George Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien. Abraham and Dhalwal will lead the task force set up to identify causes of the power outage and make recommendations to prevent future outages. See the August 18th press release at: [sorry this link is no longer available]DOE Awards $17.3 Million for Renewables and EfficiencySecretary of Energy Spencer Abraham announced last week that DOE will provide $17.3 million for 187 efficiency and renewable energy projects. State energy offices will use these funds to improve the energy […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:August 13, 2003
*News and Events Italy to Join DOE’s International Hydrogen Partnership DOE to Award $2.9 Million to 16 Tribal Clean Energy Projects Minnesota Utility to Build a 100-Megawatt Wind Power Plant New Jersey Agencies Buy 11 Megawatts of Wind Power California, DOE to Support Electric Energy Storage Projects Boeing to Lead Fuel-Cell-Powered Airplane Demonstration *Energy Connections Growing U.S. Stores of Natural Gas Show Promise for Winter Italy to Join DOE’s International Hydrogen PartnershipDOE announced on August 5th that Italy intends to join its International Partnership for a Hydrogen Economy. Italy has a well- developed research and development program that addresses hydrogen and fuel cell applications in vehicles and for electric power. The Italian government plans to cooperate with the United States on investigationsof hydrogen production, storage, and transport, as well as end-use technologies and codes and standards. Italy and the United States currently cooperate under a bilateral science and technology agreement and under the implementing agreements of the International Energy Agency (IEA).Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham proposed the new partnership during a speech to the IEA ministers in April, and encouraged the European Commission to participate in June. Italy will be the first country to join the partnership, although several other countries […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:August 6, 2003
*News and Events DOE Provides $200 Million for Hydrogen Technology Projects USDA Funds Rural Renewable Energy Projects in Alaska, Hawaii Spectrolab Concentrating Solar Cell Sets Efficiency Record Reports See Major Growth in Store for Renewable Energy FERC Sets New Rules for Connecting Generators to the Grid Awards Honor Champions of Industrial Energy EfficiencyDOE Provides $200 Million for Hydrogen Technology ProjectsDOE announced the release of two hydrogen technology solicitations on July 31st. The solicitations will provide up to $200 million in funds over four to five years (subject to congressional appropriations) for research and development to support the President’s Hydrogen Fuel Initiative.The first solicitation, for hydrogen production and delivery technologies, covers processes to make hydrogen from biomass, devices to convert fuels into hydrogen, photovoltaic and biological processes to generate hydrogen using solar energy, and other advanced technologies to produce hydrogen by splitting water molecules.The solicitation also covers hydrogen separation and purification technologies, advanced hydrogen delivery technologies, and analyses of hydrogen production infrastructures.The second solicitation, for hydrogen storage technologies, seeks to establish virtual “Centers of Excellence” — led by the DOE national laboratories — for metal hydrides, chemical hydrides, and carbon-based hydrogen storage. Applications are also being requested from universities and industry […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:July 29, 2003
*News and Events University of Missouri-Rolla Wins American Solar Challenge Massive New Wind Power Plants Planned for Texas and Wyoming Ten Northeast States to Cooperate to Lower Carbon Emissions Research Advances Show Promise for Solid-State Lighting AstroPower Accounting Crisis Leads to Delisting from NASDAQ*Energy ConnectionsEIA Maps Out U.S. Household Energy Use by RegionUniversity of Missouri-Rolla Wins American Solar ChallengeThe University of Missouri-Rolla took first place last week in the American Solar Challenge, the 2,300-mile solar car race from Chicago to Los Angeles. Missouri-Rolla took the lead on the fourth day and never let it go, averaging nearly 43.3 miles per hour overall and beating the record time from the 2001 race by more than four hours.The University of Minnesota came in second, nearly five hours behind Missouri-Rolla, while the University of Waterloo took third place. The race is sponsored by DOE, DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory,BP Solar, and EDS. See the July 23rd press release from DOE at:[sorry this link is no longer available]See also the American Solar Challenge Web site:[sorry this link is no longer available]Meanwhile, the Houston Solar Car Team won the Dell-Winston Solar Challenge last week. The high-school team from Houston, Mississippi, logged 689.2 miles on the […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:July 23, 2003
*News and Events DOE Awards $75 Million for Advanced Hydrogen Fuel Cells DOE Promotes Smart Energy Use at Atlanta Forum Missouri-Rolla Leads as American Solar Challenge Nears End DOE to Fund Half of New York Superconductor Cable Project Court Ruling Adds Uncertainty to California Ethanol Market Ford Report: Company to Fall Short of SUV Fuel Economy Goal*Energy Connections2003 Shaping Up as Third-Warmest Year on RecordDOE Awards $75 Million for Advanced Hydrogen Fuel CellsDOE announced on July 17th that it will award a total of $75 million to 13 firms and educational institutions for research in advanced fuel cells for vehicles and buildings. The projects will tackle such technical challenges as fuel reformers (to convert common fuels into hydrogen), more durable fuel cell components that can withstand higher temperatures, methods to manage heat and moisture within fuel cells, recycling of expensive platinum catalysts, and replacement of platinum catalysts with less-expensive metals. DOE also recently awarded $21 million to 11 firms and universities for hydrogen storage, production, and sensor technologies. See the July 17th press release: [sorry this link is no longer available]All together, DOE has awarded $96 million this year in support of the President’s FreedomCAR and Hydrogen Fuel Initiatives, and […]
Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:July 16, 2003
*News and Events DOE Kicks Off New “Smart Energy Campaign” State Energy Collaborative Seeks Energy Efficiency Projects Twenty Solar Cars Now Racing Along Historic Route 66 McKnight Foundation to Provide $8 Million for Renewables U.K. Seeks 6,000 Megawatts of Offshore Wind Power*Site NewsSolar Living InstituteDOE Kicks Off New “Smart Energy Campaign”Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham said on July 9th that all Americans should practice smart energy use, and he launched a new DOE public awareness campaign to educate businesses, homeowners, and consumers on ways they can cut energy bills. The Smart Energy Campaign emphasizes DOE’s new Energysavers.gov Web site and features a series of public service announcements and a four-city Smart Energy Tour led by Secretary Abraham. The tour began on July 9th at Long Island City, New York, and wound through Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Columbus, Ohio; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 10th. The campaign will be supported by electric utilities through announcements inserted into utility bills, and DOE is encouraging state governors and the media to support the campaign. DOE will also hold a series of regional summits on energy use, with the first to take place in Atlanta. See the press releases from July 9th, 10th and 14th on […]
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