GREENBUILD-- Tubular daylighting devices were on display by a few vendors at Greenbuild 2009. Solatube International gave Denis Du Bois a demo of their flagship product, the 750DS. It has features that gather sunlight very efficiently, and give commercial building occupants the ability to control how much of it is delivered. (continued at http://energypriorities.com/) November 19, 2009
Selected by energy
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Energy Priorities
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Need Daylight Deep in Buildings? Tube It In
19 Nov 2009 | 8:07 am -
And the CTO winner is... EcoFactor
17 Nov 2009 | 9:22 pmThe Cleantech Open held its first ever national awards gala tonight, incorporating finalists from two new regional pageants in Seattle and Boulder along with the larger pool of entrants from the original California competition. Here's a quick recap of the contestants and national award winners. (continued at http://energypriorities.com/) November 18, 2009 -
Commercial LED Lighting in a Nutshell
16 Nov 2009 | 4:39 pmLight-emitting diodes (LEDs) are the next major step in energy-efficient lighting technology. (continued at http://energypriorities.com/) November 17, 2009 -
"Our Choice" by Al Gore
16 Nov 2009 | 8:28 amFormer Vice President Al Gore's new book, "Our Choice," exceeded my expectations. It should be required readng for new Chief Sustainability Officers, corporate green team members, and anyone else who has decided to place sustainability closer to the center of what they do. (continued at http://energypriorities.com/) November 16, 2009 -
Al Gore: Political Will is a Renewable Resource
14 Nov 2009 | 7:22 pmGREENBUILD-- Al Gore's speech in Phoenix on Wednesday underscored the context in which the green building movement is gaining traction. He called on Americans to find the political will to "pull the common thread" and unravel three crises at once. (continued at http://energypriorities.com/) November 15, 2009
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Forbes: Energy News
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Daimler's Curious Love Affair With Tesla Motors
19 Nov 2009 | 11:21 amThe mighty Daimler is falling for tiny Tesla's battery technology. -
The Preferred Play On FPL
19 Nov 2009 | 8:00 amIf you think that FPL is a good stock to own down the road, get paid while you wait to own it. -
Slimmer Devon Could Set Exxon Salivating
16 Nov 2009 | 12:07 pmWith the business environment worsening overseas, U.S.-focused Devon could be a tasty prize for the energy giant. -
China's Energy Priorities
16 Nov 2009 | 8:39 amConsiderable investment is being pledged to renewable energy projects. -
How Carbon Bill Would Hit Valero Energy
5 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pmValero Energy's Bill Klesse says a carbon permit system will hasten the demise of America's oil refiners. It sure won't help any.
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Green Building Law Update
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Energy Reductions in the Navy
20 Nov 2009 | 11:41 amMy colleague Steve McBrady and I recently presented “Green Building in the 21st Century” at the national conference of the Construction Users Roundtable. Our slideshow is available below. Our primary message was that the federal government's investment of $25 billion in green building projects, through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will prop up the green building industry for the next few years. Other presentations by government officials regarding federal construction projects further highlighted this message. For example, during the first day, Vice Admiral… -
Starbucks Announces LEED Initiative
16 Nov 2009 | 3:13 am[Ed. Note: written by Steve McBrady] Starbucks coffee has always been an integral part of what we do here at Green Building Law Update. Until now, it was primarily a means of keeping our readers awake while we write endlessly on Green building and sustainable development in government contracts and in commercial construction, or discuss emerging Green regulatory issues. Today, however, Starbucks has moved front-and-center for another reason – the announcement, on November 12, 2009, that as of 2010 all new Starbucks stores will be LEED certified: Over the next six months, Starbucks will… -
Green Building Litigation All But Certain
13 Nov 2009 | 5:57 amThe primary theme of Green Building Law Update is green building litigation will develop. To date, one of the rare examples of green building litigation is Shaw Development v. Southern Builders, a case that involved a project's failure to achieve LEED certification in a timely matter. Other examples of green building disputes are sparse. But I am confident the litigation will develop. A recent article, "'Green' projects create new exposures", suggests others agree: “There is certainly going to be litigation coming out soon around (green buildings) and… -
"Super Star" Green Label Proposed
11 Nov 2009 | 7:04 amA major overhaul to the Energy Star program, which currently certifies and labels products that are energy efficient, is imminent. How this overhaul occurs remains to be seen. On the one hand, the two current agencies responsible for the Energy Star program- the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) - are trying to revise the program internally. But it's not clear if the agencies' actions will be enough: "In response to complaints, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources included provisions in its American Clean Energy Leadership Act of… -
Can Green Building Regulations Keep Up?
9 Nov 2009 | 11:15 amThe Energy Star program, responsible for certifying energy efficient products, is about to undergo some major changes. Recently, the program, run by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE), has come under fire from a number of groups: "Various stakeholder groups, such as manufacturers, utilities and even Consumer Reports , the monthly magazine published by the Consumers Union, have complained in recent years that Energy Star . . . is too inclusive. An internal audit of the program by the Department of Energy found that there is inadequate tracking of…
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Dot Earth
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Private Climate Conversations on Display
20 Nov 2009 | 3:32 pmMore than a decade of climatologists' private chatter gets a Web airing. -
Japan's Fleet Departs to Hunt 900 Whales
19 Nov 2009 | 5:08 pmJapan's whaling fleet heads to sea, and a marine conservationist and scientist decries the impending kill. -
A Dim View of U.S.-China Electric Car Plan
19 Nov 2009 | 4:57 amA specialist in energy and transportation says China needs efficient cities more than efficient cars. -
Innovative Countries, Energized Campuses
18 Nov 2009 | 11:05 amReports examine countries and campuses for innovations focused on building a better world. -
No Free (CO2) Lunch for Frequent Fliers?
18 Nov 2009 | 8:05 amA company promoting responsible travel cancels sales of "carbon offsets" to compensate for greenhouse gases from flying.
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Renewable Energy News - RenewableEnergyWorld.com
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Etrion & SunPower To Build 4-MW of Solar Italy
19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmEtrion Corporation and SunPower Corp. announced an agreement to build four solar power plants, totaling 4 megawatts, in the Puglia region of southern Italy. SunPower will design and construct the plants, and provide operations and maintenance services. -
Solar Power Optimizers Gaining Market Share
19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmDemand for solar energy could be down as much as 17% on the year for 2009. This is the stark reality the industry is facing as it slowly emerges from the recession that has caused demand for energy across the world to drop for the first time in a half-century. While this may put a damper on power industry growth in the short-term, long-term energy demand worldwide is expected to double by 2050 and with concerns about climate change on the rise, the prospects for the solar power industry remain bright. -
OPA Agrees to Buy Power From 16 Hydroelectric Plants
19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmThe Ontario Power Authority has agreed to buy all of the output from 16 hydroelectric plants operated and owned by Brookfield Renewable Power Inc. -
SunEdison Uses Enphase Microinverters
19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmSunEdison has completed the installation and commissioning of a solar energy system using the Enphase Microinverter System at one of their New Jersey power plants. This site represents the first Enphase installation with SunEdison and the latest commercial installation using the Enphase Microinverter System. -
BC Hydro Advances 36 Hydroelectric Projects in Clean Power Call
19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pmBC Hydro announced a total of 47 British Columbia renewable energy projects, including 36 hydro projects, remain under consideration for power purchases under its 2008 Clean Power Call.
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Green Building : Jetson Green
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Caulkers Cash, Smaller Homes, Green Building Benefits, + Energy Monitors
21 Nov 2009 | 6:14 amSmaller homes are in the ascendant. How to choose energy-efficient windows. Hohm vs. PowerMeter: a side-by-side rundown. A stimulus that could save money: cash for caulkers. Green buildings reduce energy use, lower financial risk. Green buildings: fewer sick days, higher rents. Green building practices expand globally. Also, follow @jetsongreen on Twitter for more news, links, and commentary. -
LEED Platinum Ross Street House
20 Nov 2009 | 9:27 amThis is the Ross Street House in Madison, Wisconsin. It's located just a mile from the University of Wisconsin campus and the first LEED Platinum home in the entire state! I first noticed the home in an article on Cadalyst, where author Kenneth Wong discussed the use of ArchiCad software to model the home and neighboring properties for context. Owner Carol Richard, partner in the Atlanta firm of Richard Wittschiebe Hand, also used modeling to optimize the amount of natural light brought into the home. The front of the house faces south and was designed to capture as much winter sun as… -
SMU Bush Library Goes for Platinum
19 Nov 2009 | 10:09 pmYesterday, First Lady Laura Bush, architect Robert A. M. Stern, and landscape architect Matthew Urbanski unveiled the design of the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas. Located on the east side of SMU's campus, the design will complement the consistent Georgian architecture of the rest of the university. And when complete, the $250 million building will be LEED Platinum certified. Green features of the George W. Bush Presidential Center include locally sourced materials, recycled materials, solar hot water panels, solar photovoltaics, native landscaping, minimal use of… -
Five Unique and Green Home Designs
19 Nov 2009 | 7:28 amArchitect and interior designer Johnna Barrett, Barrett Design, Inc., recently launched a set of five modern green home designs ranging in size from 1,800 to 2,500 square feet. Offered for sale on Sustain House, the designs are contemporary and provide for energy savings of 20-30% above a home built to code. The plans also include a LEED checklist designed to facilitate the earning of a LEED Gold or Platinum level certification, assuming an optimal site selection. Check out these five homes in the Modern Forest Series ... do you have a favorite design? Nishiki House (click for… -
Green Clayton i-House Set in Kentucky
18 Nov 2009 | 7:47 amThere's been a lot of talk of the i-House ever since Clayton Homes announced its launch in about January of this year. The home is contemporary, affordable, and energy efficient. Landowners Bob and Melinda bought a 37-acre swath of land in 2006, hoping to someday build a home on it and live the good country life. They're 95 miles from Louisville in western Kentucky and had an i-House delivered just about a month ago. I was able to get in touch with Bob by email and he tells me they're putting the finishing touches on the green, factory-built home. He should have final interior and…
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GreenBiz.com Green Business News
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Kraft Trims Millions of Shipping Miles Through Smarter Logistics
20 Nov 2009 | 1:50 pmA focused effort on making its distribution network more efficient has allowed Kraft Foods to save more than 50 million miles since 2005. -
How Silver Can Bring a New Element to Green Chemistry
20 Nov 2009 | 11:54 amA number of innovative bio-technologies are on the market today that offer highly effective alternatives to traditional chemical formulas, proving that products don't need to be toxic to be effective. Case in point are silver-based technologies. -
Wells Fargo Expands Green Financing with Cleantech Practice
20 Nov 2009 | 10:37 amThe banking giant's new commercial banking group focused on clean technology firms will add to the $600 million the company has already dedicated to the market. -
Climate Counts and the Green Race to the Top
20 Nov 2009 | 9:17 amIf climate regulation will burden businesses or increase costs, then why are so many companies strengthening their voluntary response to the climate crisis in the midst of an economic downturn? -
New, Green 'Safe Spoon' Goes Where Normal Utensils Can't
20 Nov 2009 | 9:12 amSpoonLidz has developed a new, paperboard spoon touted as an alternative to plastic or bio-based spoons and which cannot be used to cause harm.
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EE/RE Investing: Tom Konrad
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Is There a Tradeoff Between Economics and the Environment?
19 Nov 2009 | 3:48 pmTom Konrad Ph.D. California’s RETI process lends insight into the near-term prospects of Solar, Wind, Geothermal, and Biomass. In September, California’s Renewable Energy Transmission Initiative (RETI) released their Phase 2A report, which outlined potential transmission corridors to collect renewable energy from Competitive Renewable Energy Zones (CREZ) that had been identified in previous phases. As part of Phase 2A, they also screened each CREZ for environmental impact, and the potential difficulty of obtaining land for renewable energy… -
“Heretic” Battles Straw Man
17 Nov 2009 | 8:56 amEnergy Self-Reliant States [pdf], a flawed study on local Renewable Energy availability from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ISLR) found that 18 of the 50 states could not meet their electricity needs with local renewables. In fact, no state can meet its electricity demand through local renewables without expensive electricity storage. On a national basis, such storage would cost an estimated $13 Trillion, or over 65 times the cost of the transmission investments they oppose. by Tom Konrad, Ph.D. Straw Man: "Transmission is Only for Utility Scale Renewables"… -
Cheap and Free Ways to Promote Energy Efficiency
16 Nov 2009 | 9:40 pmby Tom Konrad, Ph.D. Big spending Demand-Side Management programs are not the only way to promote Energy Efficiency. The Sierra Club’s Rocky Mountain chapter has decided that one of their priorities for 2010 is promoting Energy Efficiency. Since that decision was, at least in part, due to my suggestions as part of their Energy Committee, I volunteered to chair the effort for at least as long as I’m still in Colorado. (I’m planning a move to Connecticut with my wife, but we are waiting for our house to sell first.) In normal times, we might consider lobbying the state… -
A Little More On IRR and EIRR
16 Nov 2009 | 7:56 pmFor non-financial readers looking to understand Internal Rate of Return (IRR), which I used as the foundation for Energy Internal Rate of Return (EIRR) in my article Managing the Peak Fossil Fuel Transition, you can find a good discussion of IRR on Wikipedia. In practical terms, IRR is nearly always calculated in a spreadsheet from a column of numbers indicating the directional cash flows (negative for investment, positive for returns.) The Excel spreadsheet I used to estimate the IRRs of various generation technologies is available here. Tom Konrad -
Managing the Peak Fossil Fuel Transition
16 Nov 2009 | 7:38 pmEROI and EIRR by Tom Konrad, Ph.D. Current renewable energy technologies must be adopted in conjunction with aggressive Smart Growth and Efficiency if we hope to continue our current standard of living and complex society with diminished reliance on fossil fuels. These strategies have the additional advantage that they can work without large technological breakthroughs. Energy Return on Investment Energy keeps our economy running. Energy is also what we use to obtain more energy. The more energy we use to obtain more energy, the less we have for the rest of the…
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GreenerBuildings
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Wells Fargo Expands Green Financing with Cleantech Practice
20 Nov 2009 | 10:37 amThe banking giant's new commercial banking group focused on clean technology firms will add to the $600 million the company has already dedicated to the market. -
US Uses Less Water Than It Did a Generation Ago As Global Concern Grows Over Scarcity
20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 amThe United States is using less water than it did 35 years ago, which is a good thing given the rising concern about water issues among investors and stakeholders worldwide, new information released this week shows. -
AU Optronics Helps Create a Frisbee-Shaped Solar Roof at Taipei Playground
19 Nov 2009 | 6:15 amAU Optronics Corp., Taiwan's largest manufacturer of thin film transistor liquid crystal display panels, has helped craft a “Solar Frisbee Roof” to canopy playground equipment at a Taipei schoolyard. -
'Super Star' Green Label Proposed
19 Nov 2009 | 4:22 amA major overhaul to the Energy Star program, which currently certifies and labels products that are energy efficient, is imminent. But how this overhaul occurs remains to be seen. -
US Army's Pacific HQ Cuts the Ribbon on National Green Building Pilot
19 Nov 2009 | 3:39 amLocal and federal dignitaries celebrated the opening of a development at Fort Shafter, the U.S. Army Pacific Headquarters, that's being hailed as the greenest neighborhood on a military installation and the largest project of its kind for the Army.
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RSS Feed for Sustainable Industries
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Green affordable housing made to order
Green Light cooperative turns development model upside down. -
Urban Flight
Green building experts bring EcoDistricts to the West Coast. -
Paul Hawken responds
Paul Hawken answers audience questions from our Economic Forums. -
Bellingham joins list of energy retrofit programs
A $2.8 million grant will train contractors and assist property owners in retrofits. -
NASA embarks on Sustainability Base
NASA hoping to create a test bed of cleantech and green building innovation.
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ALT Energy Stocks: Cleantech News
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Australian Senate: Peak Oil motion defeated 31:6
(Source: The Oil Drum - References: Peak Energy) Senator Christine Milne: Australia needs to kick the oil addiction before peak oil kicks it for us by driving prices sky high. "We must start planning now to bring on the sustainable alternatives of renewably-powered electric vehicles, both -
Toyota starts discussions on who will get PHEV Priuses
(Source: AutoblogGreen) Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Toyota Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid Concept -- Click above for high-res image gallery Toyota is getting ready to start deploying a fleet of 200 plug-in Prius hybrids in the coming months and the company needs to -
EPA Proposes Stronger Air Quality Standards for SO2; First Proposed Increase Since 1971
(Source: Green Car Congress - References: After Gutenberg) US SO2 emissions by source sector in 2005. Source: EPA. Click to enlarge.For the first time in nearly 40 years, EPA is proposing to strengthen the nation’s sulfur dioxide (SO2) primary air quality standard to protect public health. Power plants -
Al Gore: Our next power grid will be like the Net
(Source: Green Tech blog) The former vice president takes the stage at VentureBeat's GreenBeat conference in San Mateo, Calif. to discuss some of the challenges ahead for moving to the smart grid. Originally posted at Web Crawler -
The Truth About Green Jobs
(Source: Green Chip Stocks - References: Energy and Capital,Energy and Capital) I'm not typically one to debate the merits of green jobs because I see the value of green job creation every single day. Sure, there are a number of studies out there that question the validity of some green jobs or seek to find a
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Clean Break
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Being energy efficient, after you’re dead
18 Nov 2009 | 6:57 amCremation is popular these days for those who have kicked the bucket. In Canada, only 3 per cent of the population got cremated 50 years ago, while today that number has ballooned to more than 55 per cent. But here’s a shocker for the conservation-minded: The amount of natural gas and electricity used to cremate one body is the equivalent of driving a car from coast to coast. When your body goes up in flames, it also emits a lot of nasty stuff: greenhouse gases, smog-causing gases, particulates, and mercury vapour if you’ve got a few of those old tooth fillings. Given this… -
Privacy and the emerging smart grid: lessons from the Internet
17 Nov 2009 | 7:18 pmMy good friend Ann Cavoukian, Ontario’s privacy commissioner, has co-authored a new report that highlights the potential privacy breaches that could result as we move toward a smart grid infrastructure, one that will certainly have dozens of applications layered on top with the capability of capturing information about how and when we use electricity. It might seem like benign information gathering, but Cavoukian says there is room for abuse and efforts must be made during early design of the smart grid to build in privacy protection. “Electric utilities and other providers may… -
Dutch pursue idea of cross-country road pricing
16 Nov 2009 | 6:46 amScrap all road taxes. Scrap all vehicle taxes. Instead, charge people for every kilometre they drive, when the drive, and where they drive. That’s what the Dutch are promising to have in place by 2012. Of course, the idea of road tolling and congestion charging isn’t entirely new. We’ve seen it on a smaller scale in cities such as London and Stockholm, and in smaller countries such as Singapore. But the Netherlands, if it follows through, would be the first nation to develop a system that spread across the entire country. Those of you who regularly read this blog know that… -
In New Mexico, will post again soon
12 Nov 2009 | 6:18 amHi everyone, sorry for being so quiet on the posts. I’m on a fellowship to New Mexico to learn about energy issues here, and time has been short. I’ll be back and posting more on Monday. Cheers. -
The wonders of ionic liquids, and how they can dramatically raise the bar on energy storage
5 Nov 2009 | 7:14 amI have to be honest, up until last week I’d heard a lot about the potential of metal-air batteries — i.e. zinc-air, lithium-air, etc… — but really didn’t know much about the batteries, how they were made, why they are be potentially better, and what challenges need to be overcome for them to unseat the current king of batteries, lithium-ion technology. Then I was put onto an Arizona-based company called Fluidic Energy, which recently received $5.13 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy as part of the recently announced first-phase of ARPA-E…
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California Energy Blog
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The Darker Side of SmartMeters
20 Nov 2009 | 9:56 amAs if PG&E didn't have enough problems with SmartMeters...David Baker's article in today's San Francicso Chronicle reveals yet another nasty feature to the new technology: they allow PG&E to shut off power to a home remotely. No sending out a technician, just flip a switch.So, in these "brother, can you spare a dime" days, it's a lot easier to cut off someone's electricity for non-payment. Apparently that fact is not lost on PG&E because the number of low-income homes that were cut off grew by more than 27% in the twelve month period ending in August.The obvious question is, "If… -
Ignoring the Real Problems, State Will Now Regulate TV's
19 Nov 2009 | 10:20 amBy now you've probably herd that the TV regulations passed on 5-0 vote. Starting in 2011, some marginally onerous rules kick in governing how much power your TV can draw, then in 2013, the regs go from being marginally onerous to really onerous.Currently about 75 of the California TV market would meet the 2011 standards, but that percentage plummets for the 2013 standards.On the one hand, it is good news that 58-inch TV's and larger are exempt, but on the other hand, you are clearly overcompensating for some definicancy in your life if you own a 58-inch TV.The Consumer Electronics… -
Going In Different Directions
18 Nov 2009 | 8:54 amIf you read the print edition of the Wall Street Journal, there is an interesting juxtaposition of articles that says a lot about energy in this country today.On page B4 is an article by Rebecca Smith about the new trend among traditional power companies (AES, Duke, Progess Energy) to JV with, or seek financing from, China. In AES's case, the company recently sold a 15% stake in the company to the Chinese sovereign wealth fund. Smith notes that, in 2011 and 2012, energy companies have $100 billion in debt coming due that needs to be refinanced and banks may or may not be lending on that… -
PG&E's SmartMeter Woes Spreading North
17 Nov 2009 | 9:51 amFirst it was Bakersfield, now it's the Bay Area. Consumers are not happy with the new PG&E SmartMeters.The San Jose Mercury News reports receiving 30 complaints from consumers after its story about the unrest in Bakersfield. The Merc also notes that TURN is collecting complaints which means the advocacy group is actively engaged on the issue.Trial lawyers are creeping out of their coffins and sharpening their fangs... this issue is not going away.More on the Bay Area developments in the Merc:Complaints Grow About PG&E SmartMeters [San Jose Mercury News] -
Opposition to Ivanpah Comes Out of Its Shell
16 Nov 2009 | 9:35 amLast week we posted about the deal Brightsource (and its contractor Bechtel) cut with the unions to build the massive Ivanpah solar installation in San Bernardino County. At the time it seemed like all of the political prerequisites were in place (alternative energy, union jobs in a high unemployment areas, tax revenue, etc..) and that it would be smooth sailing for the project.Not so fast says San Bernardino County Supervisor Brad Mitzvelt who is seeking to trump all of the aforementioned political assets with a turtle. Tortoise, actually-- lots of them. Desert tortoises.In the latest…
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Greener Computing
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HP Brings the Cloud to Schools, Thin Clients Everywhere
18 Nov 2009 | 5:13 pmThe company has released new thin client and virtualized desktop software to allow organizations easily expand the number of desktops available to students or employees, while new cloud computing software lets applications and data travel across campus or from school to home. -
E-Waste Pops Back Onto the Nation's Radar
18 Nov 2009 | 3:53 amThe past week has been a busy one for electronic waste and its foes, as legislation to require collection and recycling of old electronics takes a hit, even as international experts see the problem growing exponentially. -
The Top 10 Energy-Saving Tips for a Greener Data Center
17 Nov 2009 | 6:08 pmEven in small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs), the power and cooling of data center equipment can easily cost tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. Employ these best practices to boost data center energy efficiency and lower costs. -
Put Your Servers In a Bath to Cut Cooling Costs to Almost Nothing
17 Nov 2009 | 3:43 pmAt the Supercomputing 2009 conferencing this week, Iceotope unveiled a new technology to allow servers to be cooled by immersion in water, a new design that the company estimates could cut energy used to cool data centers by as much as 93 percent. -
Green Plug Makes Strides with Tech, Manufacturer Partnerships
17 Nov 2009 | 1:24 pmIn the past week, the company that aims to eliminate mountains of e-waste and bring energy efficient power supplies to gadget-owners around the world has made several big steps forward.
