Green Options

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It’s hard to watch television or browse the internet these days without hearing regular stories about how celebrities are “going green.” In the past week alone, I have read or skimmed through stories about how musician Sheryl Crow is launching an Eco Fashion Line, actress Pamela Anderson is building a green hotel, and comedian and actor Will Ferrell will be the first celebrity to drive BMW’s new hydrogen car. According to the story, Will Ferrell has also built a solar-powered environmentally friendly home. Should we care?

College students are demanding sustainability efforts in their schools, and now universities are stepping up to the plate. This past Tuesday, the Oregon Institute of Technology outlined a plan to build a $7.6 million geothermal power plant on campus. The plant will become the sole power source for the school in a few years, making Oregon Tech the only university to be powered completely by geothermal energy.

Since Klamath Falls, the home of Oregon Tech, sits near a fault line, heat and energy can be easily taken out of the earth.

And Oregon Tech isn’t the only institution to take advantage of the abundant geothermal energy in the area.

One of the biggest problems facing the use of solar power as a viable means of replacing fossil fuels is the fact that the sun disappears at night. There have been no efficient or easy ways to store the energy produced for use during the darker hours. This, despite the fact that in the space of one hour, the amount of sunlight that hits the surface of the Earth is enough to power the planet for a year.

However a new discovery by MIT researchers has been made, that will essentially make this problem nonexistent.

Big money is backing wind power, and the number of investors ready to step up to the plate continues to grow. But according to an article in Renewable Energy World, that growth is hampered by a lack of a nationwide “electronic transmission superhighway”.

In the sixties America created the interstate superhighways that now crisscross our nation. Now, our country’s energy security depends on a new interstate initiative. Will the U.S. government step up to the plate?

“Across the country, hundreds of wind projects comprising tens of thousands of wind turbines are on hold because no one wants to step forward and pay for upgrades that will primarily benefit others. The obvious solution to this problem is a policy framework that will allow firms interested in building new transmission to collect the costs of the infrastructure investment from those who will benefit from it.”

Richard Sergel, president and CEO of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), and Kevin Kolevar, DOE’s assistant secretary for electricity delivery and energy reliability, have pointed out in recent testimony before Congress that all low-carbon technologies, from large-scale wind projects to concentrated solar power, and even nuclear and “clean coal” technologies, require an updated electric grid because they are most often located in remote areas. The map above shows the Transmission Superhighway Vision put forth by the American Wind Energy Association and American Electric Power, an investor-owned utility that spans 11 states.

Photo Credit: AWEA

A new machine that pasteurizes milk by using solar energy was recently installed in Nicaragua, thanks to researchers from the Agrarian University of Nicaragua and Spain’s University of Lérida. The primary goal for the machine is to help communities to save money. With its use of clean energy, it will also help to curtail global warming and perhaps will eventually help Nicaraguans to start new businesses.

Right now, the machine is primarily used like a small factory to make cheese as well as other dairy products. It is currently housed in the Agrarian University of Nicaragua’s Department of Animal Sciences. Solar panels contribute the energy for a mechanical system that heats the milk to 185° Fahrenheit (85° Centrigrade). Approximately 240 liters of milk can produced in 6 hours using the prototype.

The machine’s arrival and its probable success is good news for Nicaragua and many other developing countries. The prototype was made from resources found locally, and will hopefully serve as a model for others who might want to make such a machine from easy to find materials. The design plans for the invention will eventually be made public via the internet.

A few weeks ago, I visited Intersolar North America, an exhibition for photovoltaics, solar thermal technology, and solar thermal architecture. The exhibition, which was previously only held in Germany, had an understandably large German presence (including a large beer garden). During my time there, I stopped by the German Energy Agency booth, and was quite impressed with what I found. So, without further ado, here are 4 reasons why we should be paying a whole lot of attention to the Germany renewable energy market.

1. Germany has the world’s largest wind power sector— but had barely any notable wind power at all 16 years ago.

With over 20,600 MW of installed capacity, Germany is the world’s wind power leader. And they accomplished this feat pretty quickly, having had less than 100 MW in 1992. The second place wind leader, Spain, only has approximately 12,000 MW of capacity.

A church more often than not needs to draw its inspiration from the heavens, but San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral has taken that stereotype to the next level, as they announced Thursday that they would be partnering with Pacific Gas and Electric to install a new photovoltaic power system.

The project will see PG&E commit $65,000 for the installation, and designed and implemented by SolarCity of Foster City; it is expected to be completed later this year. And it is all thanks to the hard work of Reverend Canon Sally Bingham, the president of California Interfaith Power and Light, an organization founded upon the idea that the religious aspects of the community must respond to global warming as a moral issue.

The Florida Public Service Commission has “unanimously and enthusiastically” approved a plan to build America’s largest commercial solar-power plant in the state. The committee also gave the green light to a further two facilities, due to go on-line in 2009.

Last week I reported on a story that saw a new bill passed in Hawaii making it mandatory for every new home to have their hot water powered by solar panels. Signed in to law by Governor Linda Lingle, the bill will require all single-family homes built starting 2010 to have a solar panel powering the hot water system.

However Hawaii isn’t the trend setters we may have first thought them to be.

Over at MetaEfficient.com, they have an article pointing to the fact that 90% of Israeli homes already have solar water heaters. It began in the early 1950’s when the Israeli government encountered a fuel supply shortage, and restricted the times when water could be heated. In response, the people decided that they would start heating their own water using solar panels.

Toyota’s next generation Prius, due out as early as next spring, will be outfitted with solar panels to help run the on-board electronics, according to a report from the Nikkei newspaper.

Smaller start-up car companies, such as Th!nk, have plans for solar power augmented cars on the books too, but the incorporation of solar panels on the Prius would mark the first time a major car manufacturer has done such a thing with one of its models.

The Sunshine State is finally beginning to try and live up to its reputation, as it starts moving rapidly toward increased use of solar energy.

The latest advance came with this week’s announcement by Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) that the utility plans to add 110 megawatts of new solar energy capacity in the state.

“Pending regulatory approval, FPL will build 110 megawatts of solar power right here in the Sunshine State, making Florida No. 2 in the nation for solar energy,” said Lewis Hay III, chairman and CEO of FPL Group. Hay made the announcement during the state’s second Serve to Preserve summit on climate change.