Green Options » Google

Internet Cartographers, Not Terrorists, Use Google Maps to Hit British Landmarks

Sam Aola Ooko — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 13:56:57 +0000

Being sticklers for detail, the British are crying foul that internet cartographers are making unmarked ruins of UK historical sites that landmarks such as Stonehenge have taken direct hits from internet and satellite navigation systems.

Their beefs is that they cannot be found on online maps.

Apart from the fact, as stated by Mary Spence, president of the British Cartographic Society, that online maps missed out on important or key points of interest such as centuries old cathedrals, royal castles and other stately homes, they were also effectively diminishing from national consciousness the British sense of nationhood.

You see, monuments that describe the British pride like Stonehenge, a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about 3.2 kilometers west of Amesbury and 13 kilometers north of Salisbury, should be found on any serious map. But it is not referenced on Google Map for instance.

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ZapRoot: Canada’s Chicken, China’s Air

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 17:09:26 +0000

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

This week on ZapRoot: KFC Canada tries to do chickens right with their new animal welfare plan. China’s air control results. Check out new Alternative Autos: Chevy Volt, Shelby Supercars, Prius, and more.

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Google Investing Over $10 Million in Geothermal Energy

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:04:47 +0000

Geothermal energy has finally hit the big time. Google.org, the philanthropic arm of Google, announced today that it is investing $10.25 million in an energy technology called Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS). The funding will also go towards geothermal resource mapping, information tools, and a geothermal energy policy agenda.

And it looks like Google made a wise investment choice. According to an MIT report on EGS, only 2% of the heat beneath the continental US between 3 and 10 kilometers (depths we can reach with current technology) is more than 2,500 the annual energy use of the United States.

While traditional geothermal energy relies on finding natural pockets of hot water and steam, EGS fractures the hot rock, circulates water in its system, and uses the steam created from the process to create electricity in a turbine.

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Aptera Electric Car Closer to Production After Cash Infusion

Nick Chambers — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 18:36:49 +0000

In its latest round of funding, Aptera has raised more than $24 million to begin production of both its Typ-1 electric car and Typ-1 plug-in hybrid. Major venture partners include Google and Idealab.

Aptera also plans to use the new funds to construct a manufacturing facility in Vista, CA, close to the company’s present headquarters in Carlsbad.

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San Francisco Fryer Oil Skirmish

Keith Rockmael — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 19:09:35 +0000

Originally posted in Gas 2.0

As if there isn’t enough bio-diesel controversy over the food for fuel debate now we have a little skirmish arising here in San Francisco. When we walk by any San Francisco restaurant (particularly the ones that have that delish yet oh so bad for you fried cuisine) we can smell where this fuss originated – the fryers. Yes, it’s that oh so wonderful french fry grease that companies like Blue Sky Bio-fuels and Got Grease work with to create biofuel. To us this method makes much more sense to reuse old oil and grease than to the create fuel directly from real food.

In this case the grease skirmish remains between the City of San Francisco and the private sector. Both Got Grease and Blue Sky pick up grease (usually for free) from small restaurants, but now the City jumped into the fryer and collects it as well. The fact that the City collects the oil isn’t a problem but the fact that the City has been using health inspectors to secure oil from the restaurants smells like burnt oil to us. Apparently a letter from the City exists that says something to the effect of “The City has been so busy collecting restaurant oil that we haven’t had time to write up violations.” Should we call this mess “Greasefellas”?

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San Francisco Fryer Oil Skirmish

Keith Rockmael — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 16:48:56 +0000

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Bicycle-Powered Water Pumps and Filtration Systems

Nayelli Gonzalez — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 23:52:34 +0000

Note: this article is part of this week’s EcoWorldly cycling series: Cycling and its importance in countries around the world.

As a writer on global writer issues, I wasn’t quite sure what to do when my writing colleagues at EcoWorldly suggested that we all contribute to a series on bicycling.

Bikes and water: could the two really be related? To my pleasant surprise, they are indeed!

I learned about several organizations dedicated to providing people in developing nations with the means to get clean water through the use of bicycles.

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Big Money Bets Solar Cheaper than Coal by 2020

Carol Gulyas — Wed, 28 May 2008 15:25:27 +0000

The planets may be aligned to finally make solar competitive with coal, according to an article in Bloomberg.com by Greg Chang. Rising natural gas prices, the extension of tax credits for solar investment, and the near-certainty that carbon emissions caps will be imposed by the next U.S. administration, will make it happen. A concentrated solar thermal plant in California’s Mojave Desert, run by FPL, Inc., uses 550,000 mirrors to concentrate solar power.

“At noon on a typical workday, technicians in a two-story control room monitor a dozen screens showing the heat generated by each array of mirrors. As temperatures creep past 700 degrees, icons blink to red from green, indicating the center is ready to feed electricity to the California grid.”

The resulting steam turns turbines that generate electricity — enough to power 112,55 L.A.-area homes. Concentrated solar thermal’s potential has not escaped the attention of forward-thinking investors with big money:

“Chevron, Goldman Sachs, FPL, PG&E and other companies have filed more than 50 applications with the Bureau of Land Management to lease government-owned desert property for solar power systems. Google’s philantropic division put $10 million into eSolar, a start-up in Pasadena, California.” –Greg Chang, Bloomberg.com

Google Banned by Myanmar Govt., Still Donates $1 Million to Cyclone Relief

Gavin Hudson — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:14:18 +0000

Despite being banned by the government of Burma (also Myanmar), Google has said that it will donate up to $1 million USD to assist victims of Cyclone Nargis.

Google has offered to match donations made to UNICEF and Direct Relief International for all donations made at Google’s Support disaster relief in Myanmar page, up to one million dollars.

Internet users in Burma reported that access to Google and Gmail had been blocked by the strict military junta governing the country in the summer of 2006. By this time, Yahoo and Hotmail had already made the censored IT blacklist.

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10 Top Environmental Headlines of the Week

Gavin Hudson — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 20:20:43 +0000

The top 10 headlines in international environmental news for the week of March 24 - 30.

1. World — Earth Hour 2008

As the clock struck eight in the evening, people across each time zone turned off their lights on March 29. It’s activism en mass and it’s called Earth Hour. The purpose: to inspire people to take action on climate change and to demonstrate that massive and immediate action is possible.

Earth Hour began as a city-wide voluntary blackout in Sydney, Australia, in 2007. This year, they’ve moved the date ahead two days and invited the world to join in. Even Google’s joined in. People from roughly 35 countries participated in this global event, which has become a yearly call to action. Read more: EcoWorldy, CNN.

2. Asia — Japanese Man Crosses Pacific with Wave-Powered Boat

A Japanese man named Kenichi Horie is attempting to be environmentally friendly by boating across the Pacific without sails and without fossil fuels.

How does he do it? With a wave-powered boat. Wave power has been discussed quite a bit recently, with a lot of applications including traditional grid energy generation. However, Kenichi is taking things to the next level by powering his ocean going vehicle with the very thing it bobs atop. Read more: Gas 2.0.

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Earth Hour: Tooth fairy delusion or one hour vigil?

Olga Orda — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 19:21:55 +0000

Image source: http://timblair.net | Lights out for Sydney, Australia 2007

An http://greenprinteronline.com dispatch.

Earth Hour is tonight, March 29th from 8 to 9 pm. The idea is to turn off the lights as a symbolic gesture that us citizens, business owners, uber-corporations (hello, Google’s black screen, hello McDonalds in Toronto saving 10 000 kilowatt hours) local governments and non-profit groups are taking climate change seriously.

Despite gripes that Earth Hour falls on the NCAA basketball regional, it’s lights out for over 23 major cities worldwide like Toronto and Bangkok.

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Google To Spend $10 Million on Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Project

Clayton B. Cornell — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 22:36:15 +0000

As usual, Google is at the forefront of, well, everything. But this one is a little surprising: their philanthropic branch, Google.org, is putting $10 million into plug-in electric hybrid research and real-world testing. If you’ve been reading Gas 2.0 lately, you already know that’s as much as will be rewarded to the winners of the 2010 Automotive X Prize for revolutionary green car technology.

Last September, Google offered up the $10 million in a formal Request For Proposals (RFP), saying they wanted to invest in any company that would “accelerate the commercialization of alternative transportation that reduces vehicle fossil fuel use and climate emissions.” In other words, getting plug-in hybrids, fully electric vehicles, vehicle-to-grid capabilities, and batteries and other storage technologies on the market.

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Renewables to Boom or Bust?

Michelle Bennett — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 13:15:06 +0000

Timothy Hurst recently wrote an article about U.S. Investors and renewable energy. This post is designed as a complement to that news story.

Renewable energy has attracted a lot of attention lately as the world looks for cleaner ways to power our world. Wind and solar stand as the most recognizable clean, green dynamos, but they still struggle to compete with traditional and entrenched power producers. True to conventional economic values, competition is everything. Yet, in the U.S.A. these technologies have survived in the dog-eat-dog industry for decades mostly without the aid of government subsidies (unlike coal and oil), and many claim that renewables could take off with just a little help from Uncle Sam. What are the obstacles? Are government subsidies the only saving grace for renewables? This post hopes to shed some light on the topic and burn through the conflicting noise that surrounds this fundamental and controversial industry.

It seems like I’m always reading articles about improvements, investments, and the promise of renewable energy. For a more practical perspective, I recently asked a successful businessman, who sometimes works with solar panels, for his opinion. Did he think that solar was going to boom in the next few years? His opinion was that the industry would need more government subsidies to really take off. Even with high oil prices, it was still simply too expensive to invest on a small scale. You might regain your initial investment in 15+ years in ideal conditions. Even in states with incentives to support renewable energy, it’s expensive. His view echoed my cousin’s frustration. Yet despite the initial cost, renewables are still an attractive option. As expensive as it may be to buy and install solar panels, it’s also very expensive ($1.8-billion and rising) to build a new coal-fired power plant with “clean coal” technologies. Hidden costs also plague coal power plants: the cost to clean up mercury emissions, the water required to operate, and in some places, the cost of carbon credits. Finally, the bottom line: how much does it cost to generate each kilowatt hour? Compare two graphs, one for coal and one for solar, and you may be surprised.

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Microsoft-Yahoo Merger, Greener Than Google?

Mark Seall — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 23:12:41 +0000

Just how green is the Internet? Going virtual has the potential to save significant amounts of energy, with a recent study predicting that Internet services could reduce carbon emissions by staggering 1 billion tons.

But look beyond the green hype, and the web has a dark secret - at the other end of your Internet cable, humming away, and hidden from sight, are thousands of energy hungry datacenters, running 24/7 and estimated to be using energy equivalent to all of the color televisions in the US. Worldwide datacenter energy usage has doubled since 2001 and is set to double again by 2011.

Google is today’s biggest datacenter operator, having more than twice the server capacity of any other firm in the world, but this could be set to change. The proposed merger of Microsoft and Yahoo would create a rival Internet giant with similarly huge capacity, creating new competition at many different levels.

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Green Building Sketch-Up Models Presented in Google Earth

Elizabeth Redmond — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 21:59:39 +0000

This is another of our Guest Posts through our parent Green Options network. Elizabeth Redmond is a product designer currently based in Chicago. She writes about a range of design issues for Sustainablog.

With the portfolio of commercial and urban green building projects happening across the globe right now, how is it possible to see them all? For those of us who are construction fanatics we like to see them in person but flying to location is definitely not the most or even a sustainable way to do things. Well, as with so most everything these days, there is a solution. To increase our remote access to ongoing and completed green building projects nationwide, Building Green Inc. has teamed up with Google and the Department of Energy to bring us an interactive way to view these projects.

The information is presented in Google Earth (must be downloaded) through a layer called the High Performance Building Layer, which is something that you have to download as well. Once you have both of them, you can choose from the 96 different projects they have highlighted thus far through the collaboration. Most of the projects selected reside in the United States, but there are a couple others around the globe. The models are created in Sketch-up and are completed with a full project description. Each building in the High Performance Building Layer also provides links to detailed case studies on the buildings performance. These studies are located on the web through different databases- AIA, USGBC, Building Green…

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Green Building Sketch-Up Models Presented in Google Earth

Elizabeth Redmond — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 21:36:10 +0000

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Google Going Green(er)

Joshua S Hill — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 14:19:08 +0000

It’s true. I’m in love with Google, and everything they do! From the rumored GPhone, which is apparently to be announced soon, to the simplicity and reliability of their search engine. But, most importantly, and relevant to my role here at Green Options, is their role in leading businesses towards a greener tomorrow.

Boston, Massachusetts, hosted the 3rd annual Conference on Clean Energy this past Monday and Tuesday. Panel discussions by clean energy investors, entrepreneurs developing emerging clean energy technologies for startups and more were on the agenda, along with Robyn Beavers, Director of Environmental Programs at Google.

Google, who already has the largest corporate installation of solar-powered electricity, is apparently not satisfied… and well it shouldn’t be. According to Beavers, Google intends to generate a total of 50 megawatts of electricity from renewable sources, for all its operations, by the year 2012.

Beavers outlined a number of steps that Google is taking towards those goals. A 1.6 megawatt solar installation at its corporate headquarters in Mountain View, Calif, and solar panels on building roofs are just the beginning. Not to mention the solar-panel-roofed carports, under which their plug-in hybrids are charged.

"Wind, solar, geothermal, fuel cells — you name it, we’re looking into it," Beavers said.

You may wonder though, why it is that Google are so invested in going green. Well, run by youngin’s Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the company consumes a massive amount of power. Consider just how much you see Google online, and then trace that back to what is powering all that online presence. The power requirements for their operations and data centers are not small.

But the investments that Google has put in to these green initiatives will pay themselves off in 7 years — not that they need too, with shares selling for just under $700, and stockpiles of cash in back rooms. They have already managed to reduce their consumption from the power grid by 30%, and a subsequent reduction of 30% on their bills.

Why go green? Because it’s cheaper! Why else? Because someone has to lead the charge, and I’ve said all along it has to be big business. We know it won’t be governments! We’ve seen that time and time again. The big moves will only come when the big businesses make the move, and with Google and, more recently retailing giant Wal-Mart, investing in green and renewable initiatives, that leap forward is coming soon.

News.com — Google’s love for solar may extend to other renewables

Conference on Clean Energy

Tech Industry Goes Greener and Greener

Joshua S Hill — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 14:12:14 +0000

Each of us who are hoping for a greener future often take a particular interest in our own career path’s move towards a greener future. Automotive engineers push for greener workplaces and cleaner cars (both inside and out), politicians for… oh, bad example, and nerds like myself hope for our industry giants to take further steps towards that green, clean future.

Thankfully, I’ve picked the right team, as two of the giants of the technology world that are making great green steps in to the future.

First off is my personal favorite, Google, who seems to have a backroom that is just chock-full of hundred dollar bills. They’re dishing them our left, right and center to pay for lawsuits, acquisitions, and, as this latest story explains, green initiatives.

The nonprofit arm of the internet giant, Google.org, announced on Wednesday a $10 million request for proposal (RFP) from companies involved in commercial plug-in hybrid electric cars, as well as other sustainable forms of transportation (can you imagine how many bikes that would buy?).

The RFP process, which will take place entirely on the internet, hopes to accelerate the development of cleaner forms of transportation on a very large scale. According to Google.org, it is all in an attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by investing anywhere between $500,000 and $2 million in such companies.

Google.org is seeking companies with technologies, products and services that will accelerate widespread commercialization in the following fields:

• Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs)
• Electric vehicles (EVs)
• Vehicle-to-grid solutions (V2G)

"While $10 million is a fraction of the total investment needed to transform our transportation sector, we hope this RFP will help catalyze a broader response. We need the automakers to bring these cars to market, but plug-in vehicles also need an entire ecosystem of companies (to) flourish," Google said in a statement.

This isn’t Google’s only step in to the world of green technology. In fact, Google has been one of the corporate pioneers of taking those responsible first steps towards a greener future. In June, Google initiated RechargeIT, a program to convert company cars to plug-in hybrids. This technology not only recharges the car, but also allows the car to feed power back in to the grid at times of high demand.

Google has also installed their own 1.6-megawatt solar array, pledged $1 million to nonprofit groups working to address global warming, and given bikes to employees in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Google isn’t the only company taking green steps, though. Microsoft has added a new element to their portfolio: a regional bus system. Complete with built-in Wi-Fi, the shuttle service is built primarily for Microsoft employees, many of whom are situated in Redmond, Washington. The 14-bus Microsoft "Connector" system, to debut later this month, was announced as Microsoft expanding offices in Seattle’s South Lake Union and Pioneer Square neighborhoods.

Though the bus system will be able to handle no more than 1,000 of its 35,000 employees, it raises the issue, and adds new fuel to the fire, of comprehensive regional transportation reform. "This is something that the county bus system should be doing and they’re not," said Stephen Gerritson, executive director for Commuter Challenge, a Seattle non-profit. "To some extent, Metro is dropping the ball here."

This is a big move for Microsoft, and the right move at that. While undoubtedly expensive (Microsoft’s general counsel Brad Smith refused to name the price attached to this program) this investment will definitely improve Microsoft’s image worldwide.

Microsoft is not the only big name in the tech industry to offer bus rides to its employees, though: Google (again) offers about 150 bus runs daily across the San Francisco Bay Area, to and from its Mountain View, CA, campus, spokeswoman Sunny Gettinger said. "Part of the reason that we do it is because we really want people to have the opportunity to be able to work at Google in Mountain View and not feel like they’re contributing to environmental issues by commuting," she said.

Many companies, especially the big companies with employees numbering well in to the thousands, should be watching these moves by Google and Microsoft. As big as Microsoft and Google are, their influence does not range as widely as companies such as Coca-Cola, McDonalds and General Motors. While all of these companies have taken green steps, let’s hope that the tech giant’s announcements raise the bar for all large corporations.

News.com - Google offers $10 million to ’sustainable transportation’ firms

Google’s RFP

Google.org

Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Microsoft giving workers free ride — with its own bus service

Mongabay - Business has to lead the Clean Up of the Enviroment

Image Courtesy of HugPug.com

Top 15 Charity Search Engines: Donate to Charity for Free

Gavin Hudson — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 20:23:21 +0000

Can your search engine offset your carbon footprint? How about funding breast cancer research, environmental conservation, or pubic schools? Calling all web surfers: don’t miss these easy opportunities for everyday activism.

How it works

In 2006, an estimated $24.4 billion was spent on Internet advertising. (CBS, ZenithMedia) Some of this advertising money is spent placing ads on Internet search engines like Google and Yahoo. Each time we search the web, we see ads that fund the search engines. Advertisers benefit from marketing, search engines earn money, and we get to surf the web. Certain search engines donate their advertising earnings to charity, sometimes to the charity of your choice. All you have to do is to know where to search.

For example, to offset carbon emissions while you search, you can enter "carbon fund" (a carbon offset organization) into the bar on Goodsearch that reads "What do you Goodsearch for?" Now while you search the web, you will be fighting climate change. It’s that simple. I do about 35 searches a day, which adds up to over 22,600 kg (50,000 pounds) of CO2 that I can offset each year by using this search engine combination. Try this in your office or school to make an even bigger impact!

Here are 15 of the top charity search engines.

1. Goodsearch

"GoodSearch is a search engine which donates 50-percent of its revenue to the charities and schools designated by its users. It’s a simple and compelling concept. You use GoodSearch exactly as you would any other search engine. Because it’s powered by Yahoo!, you get proven search results."

2. Everyclick

"Everyclick allocates 50% of its gross revenue to charity each month. Each active charity receives a proportion of that sum equivalent to the proportion in which its supporters use the website relative to the supporters of other active charities. The activity of everyclick website users who do not select a specific charity will benefit all active charities on a pro rata basis."

3. Searchgive

"On average, your searches will generate about $0.01 per search and we will send your chosen charity a check when their account reaches $25.00."

4. Ripple

"Our search sponsor pays a small amount to ripple every time you search from the homepage. Ripple passes 100% of this amount directly onto our charities to help them fight poverty."

5. Magic taxi

"MagicTaxi gives 50% of its advertising revenue to charity. Each day we feature a different charity on our homepage. If you prefer you can support just one of our partners, click here to choose your favourite."

6. Seach Kindly

“100% of the advertising revenue generated from this website is donated to charitable organizations that our volunteers select every month.100% of the advertising revenue generated from this website is donated to charitable organizations that our volunteers select every month." Seach Kindly is powered by Google.

7. GoodTree

"GoodTree is a web homepage that supports charities each time you use the GoodTree web search. 50% of advertising revenue is given to charity. Approximately one-half a cent (U.S.) is generated per web search." GoodTree is also a social networking site. It’s search engine is powered by Google, Yahoo! and MSN.

8. CatchTomorrow

"The search engine that helps fund public schools. CatchTomorrow will donate 50% of its gross revenue to American Schools."

9. Lookie

"LOOKLE was created in Melbourne, Australia, in early to mid 2000. Its name being derived from the words ‘Look Learn Engine.’ This system is designed to donate up to 50% of advertising revenue raised to charity and search point values will be adjusted from time to time to meet that target."

10. rectifi

"We donate 92% of our advertising revenue to charity meaning you could be raising money for those in the developing world every time you search the internet." Rectifi is based in the UK.

11. Clicks4Cancer

"When you use Clicks4Cancer.com as your Home Page, these advertiser’s fees will be shared with us and we, in turn, will collect these commissions and donate 70% of all revenue to various charitable cancer foundations and organizations."

12. Charity Café

"We only cover the tiny costs we incur in running the site - so 100% of net funds are split equally between our listed charities." Charity Café is powered by Ask.com.

13. Oblatoo

"Every time you make a search you can see the amount pledged go up by 1p as we bid to raise £1m for charity."

14. The Green Spider

"TheGreenspider is a search engine that saves energy by using a coloured background. The search results are powered by Google. From the profits we make, we intend to invest in several environmental projects. More details to follow."

15. ClicksCount

"Every search carried out on this special Live search charity site makes a direct donation to the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC)." ClicksCount is a program of MSN in the UK.

References:

14 Charity Search Engines : Searching for Good | searchenginejournal

15 Charity Search Engines that help you give money to charity for free | doshdosh

Google squashes the “Black Google” meme- sites like Blackle use MORE energy

Noelle dEstries — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 17:05:14 +0000

Google has weighed in on the whole Black Google meme (the idea that a black google home page uses less energy than a white page) and the news is not good for sites like Blackle. According to Goggle’s green energy czar, a black screen on flatscreen panels actually use more energy than a white page. Add in the fact that flat screen panels already make up 75% of the market and growing and you have a big ol’ deflated green tech myth.

You should be doing your searching through our Google dealie anyways- we kick a portion of our profits every week to buying wind credits, preserving rain forest, and making micro-loans to third world entrepreneurs. Bookmark that baby!

via Environmental Leader