Renewables – June 26
Hey kids! It’s a DIY solar thermal panel! / SF mayor: Catch a wave to make power / UK homeowners get green light for ‘eyesore’ wind turbines / Large-scale, cheap solar electricity
Renewable Energy
Feds deflate Midwestern wind farms
The federal government has stopped work on more than a dozen wind farms planned across the Midwest, saying research is needed on whether the giant turbines could interfere with military radar. But backers of wind power say the action has little to do with national security. The real issue, they say, is a group of wealthy vacationers who think a proposed wind farm off the coast of Cape Cod would spoil the view at their summer homes. (Several articles)
Solutions & sustainability – June 25
Neighbourhood green spaces turned into affordable ‘edible’ landscapes / Greenpeace launch new film on decentralised energy / Bryant Terry, food-justice activist, answers readers’ questions /
“EcoCities: Rebuilding Cities in Balance with Nature” – new edition / “Gardening When It Counts: Growing Food in Hard Times” – new book
Ethanol questioned – Jun 25
Ethanol Boom Reshapes Economy of Heartland /
A Range of Estimates on Ethanol’s Benefits (EROEI) /
Grain drain /
Fill ‘er Up — With Food /
Add Biobutanol To Your Vocab Of Alternative Fuels
Other energy – June 24
California highlights U.S. oil import dependence / Carnegie Mellon researchers like switchgrass /
EU in doubt over alternatives to oil / IEA: clean technology could cut world energy consumption in half / IEA: world not on course for sustainable energy / Coal in China / Age taking its toll on interstates
Other energy – Jun 22
The New Ethanol Future Demands a New Public Policy /
Elusive cornucopia: why it will be hard to reap the benefit of biofuel /
California sets “clean energy” oil tax on ballot /
Ship It, Ship It Good /
Club of Rome wants deserts to become source of renewable energy /
Nuclear Power: A Leap into the Dark Energy Chasm
A Torrent of Darkness
In the not-too-distant future, the big leadership of the world is going to awaken to the seriousness of what I have just told you about global warming in the previous few paragraphs. What do I mean when I say “big leadership”? I mean all of it, the top honchos, whether U.S. or Chinese or Russian or European, or whomever.
Nonrenewable renewables: The hidden life of biofuels
Biofuels produced the way we are producing them today are not even close to sustainable. In truth, the current production methods for biofuels are more like mining operations than farming operations.
Biofuels, cars, highways – June 19
Researchers look beyond biofuels as substitutes for fossil fuels / Ethanol’s water demands a concern / A car guy who wants you to drive less / The interstate highway system at 50 / Bush administration quietly plans NAFTA super highway
National Energy Symposium: online resources
Leaders from government, business and the media from throughout the nation participated in the National Energy Symposium June 15 at the University of Southern California. Faculty and panels included some of the nation’s leading experts, who discussed America’s and California’s energy future. (Many resources are available online.)
Other Energy – Jun 17
UK Private Sector Raises Doubts on Nuclear Support /
Floating atomic plant for Russia /
Sweet or sour? In oil, that’s a big deal /
Use of coal surges as firms seek alternative /
CERA: Global products to remain tight through 2007 /
US: As Natural Gas Glut Looms, Producers Eye the Weather /
BP To Invest $550 Million in Biofuels Research Centre
Energy Payback of Roof Mounted Photovoltaic Cells
The energy payback time of photovoltaic (PV) cells has been a contentious issue for more than a decade. Is solar PV really an ‘energy sink’? Bankier and Gale review the research.
