Green Options » energy use

Smart Plugs (TalkingPlugs) for Your Home

Zachary Shahan — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:54:46 +0000

Zerofootprint has created a new “TalkingPlug” that will help you to better monitor the energy usage of different appliances and electronics. How? By making your electrical sockets smarter.

Zerofootprint already helps corporations and governments in evaluating and reducing their carbon emissions through various methods. It also helps households through innovative technologies such as this one. This new TalkingPlug is for corporations or households (or anyone with electrical sockets) and will have an initial price tag of about $50. The price may go down considerably if it can make the product on a larger scale.

How does it work? What are its advantages compared to Google’s PowerMeter and other similar up and coming technologies?

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10 Global Cities & Their Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Zachary Shahan — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 09:36:04 +0000

A new report ranks ten leading world cities on their greenhouse gas emissions. It also examines how and why the emissions differ.

As the report says, over 50% of the world’s population lives in urban areas. Leading cities of the world, global cities, are the places where greenhouse gas emissions really need to be cut. The greenest city from the study is Barcelona and the worst is Denver.

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Are You Giving This Green Industry Its Due?

Heidi Tolliver-Nigro — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:08:03 +0000

Three days ago, I blogged about the EPA’s Green Power Partners site, which lists the top green power users in the country. That post got more traffic in a day than my posts normally get in a month. That was very exciting for me. People clearly care about this issue. At least for me, when all things are equal a company’s commitment to environmental sustainability can make the difference between one product choice and another. I hope it does for others, too.

Let me build on that by saying that there is even more good news than this. Did you notice that the Green Power Partners site also has Top 20 lists by category? These include college & university, local government, retail, on-site, and printers.

What’s interesting here is printers. This is a highly unglamorous category. Why would the EPA care about commercial printing and packaging companies? For the same reasons that anyone interested in environmental sustainability should care about them.

1. Printing is the third largest manufacturing industry in the country

2. Printing is a very aggressive with environmental sustainability, including its use of green power.

Put these together and you have the third largest manufacturing industry making a major move to sustainability. When not just individual companies but an entire industry embraces green technologies and processes, it makes a real difference. That’s exciting!

Yet, where’s all the buzz? E-media! With its 24-hour-a day, 7-days-a-week power usage, its ubiquitous energy-using devices from desktop computers to laptops to servers to cellphones, PDAs, and every other mobile device that now blanket the planet and drain the power grid. Meanwhile, because printing uses — dare I say the word — paper, it’s the bad guy?

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Earth Day Round-Up (the Non-Toxic Kind)

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 18:53:56 +0000

Even after doing this for years, I still get a little flustered with the requisite Earth Day post. No, it’s not a matter of saying “Screw Earth Day” (though I get that…); rather, it’s a recognition that there’s so much content out there that I’m unsure what I can add. So, rather than taking a feeble stab at something, I’ll make my contribution by sharing some of the good stuff I’ve seen around the web and blogosphere today.

Green Living Ideas points to a couple of new films that may be worth checking out: Disney’s Earth, and A Sea Change.
Cleantechnica profiles a family that’s tweeting its energy use today. Triplepundit covers this one, also.
Speaking of “Screw Earth Day,” Grist wishes all a “Happy F’ing Earth Day!”

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Spam Wasted 33 Billion Kilowatt-Hours of Electricity in 2008

Timothy B. Hurst — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 02:18:54 +0000

Conservationists have long been uncomfortable with the environmental impact of the mountains of catalogs, credit card offers, coupons, and other direct mailings that accumulate daily in their mailbox, or on the floor near the front door.

Sure, we can recycle all that junk mail, but that process creates an additional layer of energy inputs from collection, sorting, processing and repurposing, to say nothing of the energy and resources needed to make the mail in the first place. Fortunately—in the United States at least—there are several new services that allow people to take back their mailboxes by blocking catalogs and other junk mail from being delivered.

But when it comes to junk mail in your email inbox, even the best “spam” filters will let a few slip by on occasion. But not everyone uses a spam filter and the environmental impact of all that virtual junk mail is now rivaling that of its papery cousin, according to a new study by McAfee (pdf).

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A Negawatt is Always Cheaper than a Megawatt

Derek Markham — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 20:05:46 +0000

I’m all for clean energy. I think solar panels are sweet, and wind turbines are über cool. The problem for me is the cost.

While it may make sense for some people to add these to their house, for most of us, they’re simply out of the question. Our budget doesn’t include ten or twenty thousand dollars for future energy costs.

The easiest way to go green with our energy use is to simply reduce our consumption. Instead of adding megawatts, let’s focus on “negawatts” - cutting our usage through conscious energy management. Most houses were not built with energy efficiency in mind, but there are some easy, low-cost hacks for the home that will help you to cut costs and lower your energy footprint. Some municipalities even offer rebates to cover some of the costs.

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Fabulous Fabrics: Marcus Fabrics

Kelly Rand — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:30:40 +0000

Printed fabric can be fun for most any projects. But sometimes having a nice solid really helps put your design over the top. Marcus Fabrics offers a small line of organic cotton solids perfect for home decor projects. The line is 100% certified organic cotton and is dyed with eco-friendly dyes.

Oasis Canvas comes in 21 bright colors. Each color bound to be perfect for any quilting or sewing work in progress. The jewel tones seem to really pop.

Understanding that environmental stewardship is not only good for your craft projects, Marcus Fabrics is also turning their sites on they way they do business.

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Reports Show Less Water Used In Organic Farming

Nayelli Gonzalez — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:52:11 +0000

Note: This article is part of EcoWorldly’s series on food and agriculture around the world. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, this week EcoWorldly writers are exploring environmental issues related to bringing food from the farm to your dinner plate.

Sellers of organic products all say the same thing: their products are better for our health and for the environment. So if you’re planning on chowing on organic cranberries, yams and free-range turkeys this Thanksgiving, rest assured that your meal is good for you and Mother Earth on a different level. Organic farming also uses less water than commercial farming methods.

Large quantities of water are used for farming around the world, and some environmentalists argue this has contributed to the global water crisis. According to PeopleandPlanet.net, over two-thirds of the freshwater used by humans annually around the world is used for crop irrigation. In Africa, for example, the Nile River loses 90 percent of its water for irrigation purposes before it reaches the Mediterranean Sea. In Asia, which contains two-thirds of the world’s irrigated land, 85 percent of available water is used for irrigation. And in California, 80 percent of the water withdrawn for state water projects is used for agriculture. The remaining 20 percent is used for residential, commercial, institutional and industrial use, according to a report released by the environmental research and advocacy group Pacific Institute.

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Should President Bush Be Telling Americans to Conserve Gas?

Timothy B. Hurst — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 09:47:39 +0000

At a Tuesday White House press conference that focused mostly on the current economic downturn, President Bush indicated that he has no intention of calling on Americans to conserve gasoline, according to a report at Politico.

President Bush said, “They’re smart enough to figure out whether they’re going to drive less or not…the consumer’s plenty bright.”

The President explained the justification for his position by saying, “It’s a little presumptuous on my part to dictate how consumers live their own lives.”

But past examples show that President Bush has had no problem dictating how “consumers live their own lives,” at least when it syncs with his own political agenda. Surely you remember December of 2006, when teetering on the brink of a national economic recession, the President implored Americans to shop more:

“As we work with Congress in the coming year to chart a new course in Iraq and strengthen our military to meet the challenges of the 21st century, we must also work together to achieve important goals for the American people here at home. This work begins with keeping our economy growing. … And I encourage you all to go shopping more.”

Of course, there was also the notorious Bush call to go shopping in the time after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, when President Bush insisted:

“Americans must get back to work, to go shopping, going to the theatre [sic], to help get the country back on a sounder financial footing.”

I am not arguing that it is necessarily the President’s job to recommend that consumers drive less, nor urge us to find other ways to conserve gasoline (though that would be nice). I am not looking for my government to become a so-called “nanny state” that micromanages all the details of my daily economic life.

I am arguing that the President of the United States is supposed to be a leader - sort of a ‘first citizen,’ if you will - that has the ability to send signals (both subtle and overt) that can have an appreciable impact on what we do and how we do it. Even a Lame Duck President with a 28 percent public approval rating has the ability to influence someone, right? Yes, the American people are smart, but economically determined aggregations of individual rational choices do not always work out to be the “best” ones at the collective level.

The problem is that President Bush cannot reconcile our need to cut carbon emissions with his belief that we cannot do so without “crippling the economy.” And remember we are talking about a (former) Texas oilman. Perhaps President Bush’s affinity for “product,” as he sometimes refers to it, creates an internal conflict that prevents him from suggesting that we somehow use less of it, when all he wants to do is drill for more of it.

The fact that Mr. Bush can’t recognize Americans may need some political leadership to help stabilize energy consumption and rein-in carbon emissions has stood in the way of any substantive action on climate change in the seven and a half years President Bush’s tenure.

Photo: © Patricia Marroquin | Dreamstime.com

EIA Predicts 50% Increase in World Energy Consumption by 2030

Timothy B. Hurst — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 09:12:52 +0000

World marketed energy consumption is projected to increase by 50 percent from 2005 to 2030, according to a new report from the United States Energy Information Agency. Total energy demand in non-OECD countries is projected to increase by 95 percent, while OECD countries are expected to increase consumption by 24 percent.

According to the annual report, International Energy Outlook, the robust growth in demand among the non-OECD nations is largely the result of strong projected economic growth.

In all the non-OECD regions combined, economic activity is predicted to increase by 5.2 percent per year, as compared with an average of 2.3 percent per year for the OECD countries.

I’ve gleaned some of the notable highlights from the report and digested/paraphrased so you wouldn’t have to. The full report will be out in July.

Carbon dioxide emissions

World carbon dioxide emissions will continue to increase steadily in the IEO2008 reference case, from 28.1 billion metric tons in 2005 to 34.3 billion metric tons in 2015 and 42.3 billion metric tons in 2030—an increase of 51 percent over the projection period. With strong economic growth and continued heavy reliance on fossil fuels expected for most of the non-OECD economies, much of the increase in carbon dioxide emissions is projected to occur among the developing, non-OECD nations. In 2005, non-OECD emissions exceeded OECD emissions by 7 percent. In 2030, however, non-OECD emissions are projected to exceed OECD emissions by 72 percent.

Coal and carbon

In the absence of national policies and/or binding international agreements that would limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions, world coal consumption is projected to increase from 123 quadrillion Btu in 2005 to 202 quadrillion Btu in 2030, at an average annual rate of 2.0 percent. Coal’s share of world energy use has increased sharply over the past few years, largely because of strong increases in coal use in China, which has nearly doubled since 2000 and is poised to increase strongly in the future. China alone accounts for 71 percent of the increase in world coal consumption in the IEO2008 reference case. The United States and India—both of which also have extensive domestic coal resources—each account for 9 percent of the world increase.

The outlook for fossil-fuel-fired generation could be altered substantially by international agreements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The electric power sector offers some of the most cost-effective opportunities for reducing carbon dioxide emissions in many countries. Coal—the world’s most widely used source of energy for power generation—is also the most carbon-intensive. If a cost, either implicit or explicit, were applied to emitters of carbon dioxide, there are several alternative no- or low-emission technologies that currently are commercially proven or under development, which could be used to replace some coal-fired generation. Implementing the technologies would not require expensive, large-scale changes in the power distribution infrastructure or in electricity-using equipment. It could be more difficult, however, to achieve similar results in end-use sectors like transportation.

Renewable energy

Worldwide, the consumption of hydroelectricity and other renewable energy sources will increase by 2.1 percent per year in the IEO2008 reference case, from 35 quadrillion Btu in 2005 to 59 quadrillion Btu in 2030. In the non-OECD nations, much of the growth in renewable energy consumption is projected to come from mid- to large-scale hydroelectric facilities in Asia and in Central and South America, where several countries have hydropower facilities either planned or under construction. Among the OECD nations, hydroelectricity is fairly well established, and with the exception of Canada and Turkey there are few plans to undertake major hydroelectric power projects in the future.

Increases in OECD renewable energy consumption are expected to be in the form of non-hydroelectric renewables, especially wind and biomass. Many individual OECD countries have incentives in place to increase the penetration of non-hydroelectric renewable electricity sources, both to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to promote energy security, and in the IEO2008 projections OECD renewable generation grows by 1.6 percent per year from 2005 to 2030, faster than all the other sources of electricity of generation except natural gas.

Continued on page 2

Natural gas

Worldwide natural gas consumption in the IEO2008 reference case increases from 104 trillion cubic feet in 2005 to 158 trillion cubic feet in 2030. Natural gas is expected to replace oil wherever possible. Moreover, because natural gas combustion produces less carbon dioxide than coal or petroleum products, governments may encourage its use to displace the other fossil fuels as national or regional plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions begin to be implemented. Natural gas is expected to remain a key energy source for industrial sector uses and electricity generation throughout the projection period. The industrial sector, which is the world’s largest consumer of natural gas, accounts for 43 percent of projected natural gas use in 2030. In the electric power sector, natural gas is an attractive choice for new generating plants because of its relative fuel efficiency. Electricity generation accounts for 35 percent of the world’s total natural gas consumption in 2030.

Non-OECD countries will account for more than 90 percent of the world’s total growth in production from 2005 to 2030.

Nuclear

Electricity generation from nuclear power is projected to increase from about 2.6 trillion kilowatthours in 2005 to 3.8 trillion kilowatthours in 2030. Higher capacity utilization rates have been reported for many existing nuclear facilities, and it is anticipated that most of the older nuclear power plants in the OECD countries and non-OECD Eurasia will be granted extensions to their operating lives. Still, there is considerable uncertainty associated with nuclear power.

Issues that could slow the expansion of nuclear power in the future include plant safety, radioactive waste disposal, and the proliferation of nuclear weapons, which continue to raise public concerns in many countries and may hinder the development of new nuclear power reactors.

The take home:

It is no surprise that world energy use consumption will continue to grow, but the bulk of the growth will be from less economically developed countries. The key here will to be encourage the development of appropriate technologies and infrastructure.
Liquid fuels will move almost exclusively into the transportation sector and natural gas will replace oil in most of those cases. Natural gas is much cleaner than coal and can be used to throttle systems for peak demands and to smooth the spikes caused by wind-generated electricity.
Coal consumption will continue to grow assuming their is no new major policy action on carbon - though the report does seem to hint that such action is likely…eventually.
The full report will be out in July.

Other posts on global energy consumption

“Popping the Oil Price Bubble”
“Price of Oil Has Dept. of Defense Looking to Save Fuel”
“British Fuel Prices. Situation: Red”

All figures from EIA; Image is CC licensed by flickr user dobrych

Your Carbon Use - In Black Balloons [video]

Timothy B. Hurst — Sun, 18 May 2008 22:30:31 +0000

The accumulation of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere can be a difficult concept to visualize (maybe something to do with the fact that CO2 is invisible). So if you’re a visual learner like me, you’ll want to watch this short from the Energy Saving Campaign [45 seconds].
This story contains additional media. Click here to view the media.

Natural gas

Non-OECD countries will account for more than 90 percent of the world’s total growth in production from 2005 to 2030.

Nuclear

The take home:

It is no surprise that world energy use consumption will continue to grow, but the bulk of the growth will be from less economically developed countries. The key here will to be encourage the development of appropriate technologies and infrastructure.
Liquid fuels will move almost exclusively into the transportation sector and natural gas will replace oil in most of those cases. Natural gas is much cleaner than coal and can be used to throttle systems for peak demands and to smooth the spikes caused by wind-generated electricity.
Coal consumption will continue to grow assuming their is no new major policy action on carbon - though the report does seem to hint that such action is likely…eventually.
The full report will be out in July.

Other posts on global energy consumption

“Popping the Oil Price Bubble”
“Price of Oil Has Dept. of Defense Looking to Save Fuel”
“British Fuel Prices. Situation: Red”

All figures from EIA; Image is CC licensed by flickr user dobrych

Phantom Loads Adding 8% to Your Electric Bill (video)

Timothy B. Hurst — Fri, 02 May 2008 05:48:41 +0000

Did you know that over the course of a year, a microwave operating in standby mode will use about the same amount of electricity as it would if it ran on HIGH for 24 hours? Frightening, isn’t it? In fact, the average American home has 20-40 appliances plugged in at any given time, and in a year those appliances will together use what is equivalent to one month of electricity for the entire household - just sitting there. This great little short from GOOD Magazine called “Vampire Energy,” explains the costs of running your home’s appliances on standby mode, and does so with tangible examples and real numbers. Enjoy.

This story contains additional media. Click here to view the media.

Natural gas

Non-OECD countries will account for more than 90 percent of the world’s total growth in production from 2005 to 2030.

Nuclear

The take home:

It is no surprise that world energy use consumption will continue to grow, but the bulk of the growth will be from less economically developed countries. The key here will to be encourage the development of appropriate technologies and infrastructure.
Liquid fuels will move almost exclusively into the transportation sector and natural gas will replace oil in most of those cases. Natural gas is much cleaner than coal and can be used to throttle systems for peak demands and to smooth the spikes caused by wind-generated electricity.
Coal consumption will continue to grow assuming their is no new major policy action on carbon - though the report does seem to hint that such action is likely…eventually.
The full report will be out in July.

Other posts on global energy consumption

“Popping the Oil Price Bubble”
“Price of Oil Has Dept. of Defense Looking to Save Fuel”
“British Fuel Prices. Situation: Red”

All figures from EIA; Image is CC licensed by flickr user dobrych

Elements of Building: Energy

Philip Proefrock — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 18:52:27 +0000

Buildings, according to calculations done by Architecture 2030, are responsible for nearly half of the total energy consumption in the United States. And 76 percent of the electricity generated in this country goes to the Building Sector. So while there are a range of steps that need to be taken in moving toward a more sustainable lifestyle, Buildings, and the energy they consume, need to be at the forefront of any considerations when moving toward greater sustainability.

Saving energy in buildings is both one of the easiest things that can be done, as well as one of the hardest. The principles for creating a building that needs less energy and operates more efficiently are well known. Most building technology is fairly basic and easy for even non-experts to understand. This makes it simple. We don’t have to wait for expensive, high tech solutions (though they can contribute greatly and will provide new flexibility and compelling possibilities for building better buildings in the future). Heavily insulated buildings can be easily constructed with readily available and well known technology. Adding more insulation to walls is easy, though there is a cost. Consumers and building owners need to become more aware of the long term costs of operating a building, and give consideration to more than just the initial construction costs. And overcoming economic considerations and taking a long-term view is the hard part.

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Architecture Week 2008 - Is It Sustainable?

Philip Proefrock — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 03:35:26 +0000

Architecture Week was first established one year ago as part of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the American Institute of Architects. This year, for the second Architecture Week, there are three big programs the organization is promoting. But sustainability gets only a passing mention in one of them, and seems not to be part of the focus anywhere in the program.

While the AIA has another program it also began last year titled “Walk the Walk” that offers a good number of resources on sustainability both for architectural clients and the general public, as well as for architects and other building professionals, the topic is not highlighted in the Architecture Week program in any significant way.

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Green Options » energy use

Smart Plugs (TalkingPlugs) for Your Home

10 Global Cities & Their Greenhouse Gas Emissions

A new report ranks ten leading world cities on their greenhouse gas emissions. It also examines how and why the emissions differ.

Are You Giving This Green Industry Its Due?

Earth Day Round-Up (the Non-Toxic Kind)

Spam Wasted 33 Billion Kilowatt-Hours of Electricity in 2008

A Negawatt is Always Cheaper than a Megawatt

I’m all for clean energy. I think solar panels are sweet, and wind turbines are über cool. The problem for me is the cost.

Fabulous Fabrics: Marcus Fabrics

Reports Show Less Water Used In Organic Farming

Should President Bush Be Telling Americans to Conserve Gas?

Related Posts:

EIA Predicts 50% Increase in World Energy Consumption by 2030

Carbon dioxide emissions

Coal and carbon

Renewable energy

Natural gas

Nuclear

The take home:

Your Carbon Use - In Black Balloons [video]

Natural gas

Nuclear

The take home:

Phantom Loads Adding 8% to Your Electric Bill (video)

Natural gas

Nuclear

The take home:

Elements of Building: Energy

Architecture Week 2008 - Is It Sustainable?