Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman has announced his support for a plan to increase oil drilling as a means of paying for increased investment in alternative energy. Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Coleman announced his intention to join the “gang of 16,” a group of bipartisan senators seeking a compromise energy bill that would approve $20 billion over ten years towards the plan. The New Energy Reform Act of 2008 focuses on three overarching principles:

• Increased domestic production of energy resources, including oil and nuclear. This would include a go-ahead to open new areas for oil drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf off America’s Atlantic and Pacific Coasts;
• Transitioning vehicles to non-petroleum based fuels;
• A robust federal commitment to conservation and energy efficiency.

Speaking about the plan on Monday, Coleman said, “Nothing is more urgent, or of greater significance to the American people, than solving our energy crisis. The good news is this bipartisan group truly understands that folks around this country are suffering under high gas prices and are bringing forth real, common-sense solutions.”

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That’s because both Denver and Minneapolis/St. Paul plan to use their respective conventions to kick off a new bike-sharing program called “Freewheelin.” Created by the health benefits company Humana Inc. and the not-for-profit Bikes Belong, Freewheelin will bring 1,000 bikes to each city during the convention. Convention-goers will be able to use the bicycles free of charge to get around town without the need for cars.

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Calling all sustainability hounds: EcoTuesday, the sustainable business leaders networking forum, is launching its highly anticipated Ambassador Program. Through the program, people can produce EcoTuesday events in their city and generate income from event sponsorships. Ambassadors are responsible for organizing events, securing venues and speakers each month, and developing relationships with companies that want to sponsor EcoTuesday events.

EcoTuesday is currently held on the 4th Tuesday of every month in San Francisco, Marin/North Bay, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Minneapolis. The event features opportunities for sustainable business leaders to network and learn about green issues from visiting speakers. Don’t be shy about attending; participants come from areas as varied as real estate, organic food, and climate change policy, just to name a few.

For more information on getting started with EcoTuesday, check out their website.

Photo Credit: EcoTuesday

Special waste manager Jeff Gloyd created the program in which LaCrosse County began collecting old over-the-counter drugs and prescription medications to keep them out of the regular waste stream. Pharmaceuticals thrown out that way have increasingly seeped into natural waterways and, eventually, human drinking water supplies, raising concerns about environmental and health dangers.

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Whatever the cause (and there’s good reason to blame all three to some degree), most so-called experts these days aren’t expecting oil prices to drop anytime soon. In fact, Newsweek this week features a sobering article titled, “The Coming Energy Wars,” that predicts we’ll soon see oil prices top $200 a barrel. When that happens, the authors warn, we can expect everything about our daily lives to change.

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The Great Lakes Water Resources Compact aims to protect the water rights of the eight states bordering the lakes: Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Michigan’s approval of the agreement brings the number of states signed on so far to five: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota and New York.

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About one-fourth of all corn grown in the U.S. is now cultivated for fuel rather than for food. Meanwhile, the growing demand for both food and fuel is driving commodity prices for crops like corn to record highs. That means, even with the federal government’s generous subsidies for ethanol production, today’s biofuel profits aren’t what they used to be.

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But I’m forever reformed and now proudly flaunt my Midwest roots after bonding with The Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook: Local Food, Local Restaurants, Local Recipes. A new release from Renewing the Countryside, a Minnesota-based non-profit organization that champions the positive stories of rural revitalization, this photography rich book is a love song for local food. Through narrating the stories of 31 of Minnesota’s chefs and restaurants, the Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook offers 100 recipes that celebrate locally grown, organic and sustainable cookery.

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Alan Doering of AURI says agricultural residues and co-products aren’t waste, they’re potential new revenue streams to power the future.

AURI, or Agricultural Utilization Research Institute of Waseca, Minnesota, is a nonprofit organization that develops new uses for agricultural products and ag-processing co-products.

Alan Doering, an Associate Scientist with AURI, filled me in on steps being taken to utilize every bit of what used to be considered products of the waste stream.

Turkey droppings are fueling a power plant that serves 40,000 homes. Syrup derived from the making of ethanol is being used to power the plant that makes the ethanol. And there’s more on this amazing work in my interview with Alan.

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Texas wind turbines generated 4,446 megawatts of energy in 2007 — enough to power nearly 1.2 million homes. The state added 1,618 megawatts of new wind power capacity last year, more than double the amount of second-place Colorado.

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“Our first farmers’ market of the season is like an anticipated family reunion for me,” Dietz says with a smile. “To reconnect with the folks who regularly buy our produce every week and watch them act like kids in a candy store when they see our fresh kale for the first time this year confirms that farming is where my heart and passion lie. To contribute to the local food system by taking things from seed to community, that’s priceless to me.”

Dietz’s path to farming represents current trends in small-scale agriculture. While she grew up in a small town setting, she and her husband, Lonny, had no growing experience. After years in traditional office settings, the Dietz duo started their five-acre market garden in 1996. Like many new farmers in training, they met seasoned Obi Wan Kenobi mentors to help them get established. “The strong network of organic farmers helped us get started and keeps us connected today,” Dietz adds. Dietz also represents the changing face of women in agriculture, as increasing numbers of women (particularly those under 55) are purchasing new farms and operating organic and sustainably-managed farms.

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The uptown eatery, which was recently featured on CNNMoney.com, goes to exceptional lengths to be eco-friendly. When the Minnesota weather cooperates, for instance, Galactic Pizza employees (costumed as unique superheroes) will deliver your order by electric car. The restaurant also gets its power from wind energy, sends some of its food waste to local pig farms and prints its menus on hemp.

The pizzas, too, are created with a green philosophy: many of the ingredients come from farms in Minnesota or Wisconsin, other ingredients are organic and the mozzarella comes from non-rGBH cows. Even vegans can find a menu item to their tastes, with choices including vegan mozzarella, vegan chicken and mock duck.

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The Minnesota Climate Change Advisory Group just announced 50 recommendations they’re sending to the governor and the legislature. The recommendations did not have to be approved unanimously. Here are a few:

• A Regional cap-and-trade system was strongly endorsed. It would cover electric utilities, industry, large agriculture operations and producers and importers of gas, diesel and heating fuels. The advisory group said it needed to do more study before recommending whether the carbon allowances should be given away or auctioned off.
• Replace one-third of gasoline use with biofuels
• Recommend that the legislature consider pricing that includes a fuel tax or registration fees based on how much CO2 a vehicle emits
• Adopt California’s clean car standards
• Lower the speed limit to 55mph
• Set a carbon limit for new coal-fired power plants, which will likely stop any new coal plants from being proposed unless they have carbon capture and storage technology
  • There were two exceptions to this: The proposed Big Stone II coal plant (an old-fashioned, pulverized plant planned for South Dakota, with the power going to MN) and the Mesaba coal-gasification plant (another expensive, controversial plant proposed for the state’s Iron Range)

These are all just ideas and recommendations right now. We’ll have to wait for the more detailed action plan to come out in the next few weeks and then watch what the governor and legislature does with them.

Minnesota Public Radio

“We believe that forming an independent company to manage collective electronic recycling programs is the best way to achieve the economies of scale and efficiencies to create a sustainable recycling system for used electronics products.” Said David Thompson, MRM president.  

One very important thing the new company is striving for is to provide convenient recycling opportunities for consumers. There’s no question most people have an old TV or computer lying around that they would like to throw away but are too conscious to just toss in a landfill or dumpster. So with the work of MRM, that conundrum is solved. It already seems MRM is making some waves. According to Brad Moore, the commissioner of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency:

“In the first five months since Minnesota’s new electronic recycling law took effect, MRM collected approximately 750 tons of used products - a significant amount.”

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2008/01/08/panasonic-sharp-and-toshiba-form-llc-for-electronics-recycling/feed/ http://sustainablog.org/2007/12/10/governors-form-wind-power-coalition/ http://sustainablog.org/2007/12/10/governors-form-wind-power-coalition/#comments Mon, 10 Dec 2007 13:05:22 +0000 Maria Surma Manka http://sustainablog.org/2007/12/10/governors-form-wind-power-coalition/ Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota (R) and Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico (D) have joined forces to promote a “Governors Windpower Coalition” to increase the use of wind energy across the United States.

The objectives of the coalition include interstate collaboration (on issues like transmission), exchanging information on policy and technology, commissioning research on wind power policy issues, and identifying recommendations for federal and regional policies. It will not receive any funding from industry sources.

Governor Pawlenty explained why he and Richardson decided to collaborate:

“America is at a tipping point. Our country is too dependent on imported sources of energy and greenhouse gas emissions continue to grow too quickly. Governors and states have a tremendous opportunity to lead the country towards a cleaner, more independent, more secure energy future.”

The nonprofit community is excited about the collaboration as well. Beth Soholt, executive director of the Midwest organization Wind on the Wires, said: “We are ready to roll up our sleeves and actively work with the Governors Windpower Coalition to achieve our mutual wind power goals.”

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2007/12/10/governors-form-wind-power-coalition/feed/ http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/10/29/minneapolis-mayor-first-to-use-plug-in-hybrid-as-official-car/ http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/10/29/minneapolis-mayor-first-to-use-plug-in-hybrid-as-official-car/#comments Mon, 29 Oct 2007 11:21:36 +0000 Maria Surma Manka http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/10/29/minneapolis-mayor-first-to-use-plug-in-hybrid-as-official-car/

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak may be the first mayor in the nation to drive a plug-in hybrid vehicle as his official city car.

Since he was first elected in 2002, Mayor Rybak’s official car has been a Toyota Prius. But the dramatically superior gas mileage of a plug-in hybrid vehicle prompted him to make the switch: he had his hybrid converted to a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, from which he expects to get about 70 miles per gallon (mpg) compared to his average 40 mpg with the Prius.

A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) is like a regular hybrid with a cord. That is, its battery can be recharged by plugging it into a regular 120-volt outlet.

Typical of many PHEVs, Mayor Rybak’s car can travel about 30 miles solely on battery power if the speeds are 30 mph or less. If he drives further or needs to go faster, the car automatically switches over to using the gas engine. But for local city driving — when speeds are low and distances are shorter — he could go days without using any gasoline to power the engine.

Although most of Minnesota’s electricity comes from coal power, powering a vehicle with the electric grid is still cleaner than gasoline. But the Mayor and other city officials want to make it even cleaner: Minneapolis has applied for a state grant to install solar panels on some city buildings so that future plug-in cars could charge up using solar power instead of fossil fuels. Rybak told the Minnesota Daily:

It became clear to me that the two big things we had to do were convert to plug-in hybrids and find a way to have them use electricity from non-coal sources … I become very frustrated with people saying we need to do years of research on all these issues. Research is great, but the technology is there right now.

Last year, Minnesota became the first state in the nation to pass legislation promoting plug-in hybrids. The law instructs the state to buy plug-in hybrids on a preferred basis when they become available and encourages Minnesota State University - Mankato to develop flex-fuel plug-in hybrid vehicles (plug-ins that can run on an ethanol blend).

Minneapolis has about 100 government vehicles that are either hybrids or use E-85 fuel (an 85 percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline blend). Leadership from the city and supportive government policies could make plug-in hybrids a more common occurrence on Twin Cities roads.

BIOconversion Blog
Cal Cars
City of Minneapolis
Minnesota Daily

Photo Source: City of Minneapolis

]]> http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/10/29/minneapolis-mayor-first-to-use-plug-in-hybrid-as-official-car/feed/ http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/06/19/minnesota-wraps-up-landmark-legislative-session-on-energy/ http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/06/19/minnesota-wraps-up-landmark-legislative-session-on-energy/#comments Tue, 19 Jun 2007 12:34:00 +0000 Maria Surma Manka http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/06/19/minnesota-wraps-up-landmark-legislative-session-on-energy/ Last week, Minnesota’s Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty signed into law landmark global warming and energy efficiency legislation.

The bills include a requirement for an economy-wide climate change action plan to be submitted to the state legislature by February 1, 2008. The plan must provide a roadmap to cut emissions 80 percent below 2005 levels by 2050. A Minnesota Climate Change Advisory Group was recently created by Pawlenty and charged with developing and presenting this plan to lawmakers.

In addition, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission is directed to estimate and factor in the costs of future federal CO2 regulation (for example, a carbon tax) when it examines proposals for a new power supply.

Energy efficiency – the cheapest, fastest, easiest way to cut emissions – finally got its due with a law that calls for increasing efficiency 25 percent by 2025. Pilot projects are planned that encourage energy savings without loss of revenues for utilities (i.e. a “decoupling” strategy that aims to make a utility indifferent to selling less energy because of restructured rates). In a news release from Clean Energy Minnesota, Sheldon Strom of the Center for Energy and Environment pointed out:

“We’ll reach Minnesota’s global warming goals in large part through saving, rather than consuming, those kilowatts of electricity or therms of natural gas…It is the most consumer-friendly way to fight global warming.”

Michael Noble, Executive Director of the nonprofit energy policy organization Fresh Energy, explained to me why it’s important for states to take action on a global problem:

“With the U.S. on the sidelines, global action on the climate warming problem is stalled. To get the U.S. government moving, innovation must percolate up from the states. State action on global warming is reaching a tipping point, and major changes seem increasingly inevitable. Minnesota is the latest example of states setting the bar higher.”

This global warming and efficiency legislation wraps up a banner year for Minnesotans. Earlier this spring, lawmakers also passed and Governor Pawlenty signed a Renewable Energy Standard requiring 25 percent of the state’s energy to come from renewables sources by 2020.

Clean Energy Minnesota
Minnesota Climate Change Advisory Group
Wikipedia

]]> http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/06/19/minnesota-wraps-up-landmark-legislative-session-on-energy/feed/ http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/02/20/minnesota-passes-uss-strongest-renewable-energy-standard/ http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/02/20/minnesota-passes-uss-strongest-renewable-energy-standard/#comments Tue, 20 Feb 2007 15:16:03 +0000 Maria Surma Manka http://mariasurmamanka.greenoptions.com/2007/02/20/minnesota-passes-uss-strongest-renewable-energy-standard/ In a landslide vote of 123-10, the Minnesota House of Representatives passed the strongest Renewable Energy Standard in the United States. The bill has the support of Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty, as well as energy and environmental groups, businesses, and utilities. Earlier this month, the Senate passed the measure overwhelmingly 61-4.

The Renewable Energy Standard (S.F. 4) requires Minnesota's largest utility, Xcel Energy, to secure 30 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020, while other utilities’ target is 20 percent by 2025. The state average of 25 percent renewable energy by 2020 is the most aggressive in the nation.

Representative Aaron Peterson (D-Appleton) is the House author. "If you provide the standard, jobs will follow. If you provide the megawatts, businesses will come," he said on the House floor.

This is personally thrilling for me not only because I call Minnesota home, but because I have been working on the Renewable Energy Standard for the past three years at Fresh Energy. Watching this vision unfold into meaningful legislation supported by Democrats, Republicans, businesses, energy and environmental organizations, and utilities has been energizing and rejuvenating, and I am hopeful that we all really can come together to create a clean and efficient energy future.

Photo credit: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Cross posted at Maria Energia

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