Live Near a Waterway? HydroVolts Can Power Your Home
Posted by Amie Vaccaro November 20th, 2009 
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Hydrovolts develops modular hydrikinetic turbines for use in canals & other waterways
At Tuesday’s Academy Awards of Cleantech (The Cleantech Open), attendees were all abuzz about Seattle-based HydroVolts, winner of the $20,000 Cleantech Open sustainability prize. HydroVolts has created a floating in-stream hydrokinetic turbine that generates distributed renewable energy anywhere around the world. Hydrovolts’ vision is to provide renewable energy to millions of people around the world who live near water. The turbines are designed to drop into moving water, such as irrigation canals, spillways, tidal currents, wastewater flows, streams, rivers and other waterways. Energy is collected from the force of moving water rather than pressure, operating like an underwater paddlewheel, so the turbine is safe for fish, unobtrusive, non-polluting and of course, renewable. Each turbine can power 1 to 10 homes along the waterway and is about the size and cost of a small car. The technology is modular, scalable and simple to deploy. Check out this video to learn more.
As Asia Outpaces America in Cleantech, US and China Agree to Cooperation
Posted by BC Upham November 19th, 2009 1 Comment
Obama’s recent trip to China felt like a bit of a bummer, with the Times pointedly portraying the President as a solitary figure, wandering alone on the Great Wall — and getting stone-walled by the PRC’s leadership.
But behind the scenes, hard-working diplomats hammered out agreements on what could be the basis for an important partnership between the world’s two largest polluters on clean technology, ranging from carbon capture to electric cars and more.
And it couldn’t come soon enough, as a new study calculates China, Japan and South Korea will spend $502 billion on clean technology over the next five years, $337 billion more than the US, which the authors warn is in grave danger of being left behind.
Careers in Wind Farm Development: GIS Specialist
Posted by Sarah Lozanova November 19th, 2009 0 Comments
This is the second article in a seven part series on careers in wind farm development. The first part can be viewed here.
The creation of a wind farm requires a wealth of geographic information for effective planning. A Geographic Information Systems (GIS) specialist provides much of this material through maps of site characteristics, such as land parcels boundaries, transmission lines, infrastructure, environmentally sensitive areas, land cover, wind resources, turbine micrositing, and topography. These maps are used in every step of planning from energy analysis through construction.
The information provided by a GIS specialist is the foundation for determining the wind resource. “We receive digital elevation maps from our GIS department,” says Diane Reinebach, Senior Energy Specialist for RMT, Inc. “That is loaded into the software, which knows the wind direction. It can then predict how the terrain impacts the wind over the site, and whether there are speed-ups, slow-downs, or turns in the wind.”
Organized Crime Mixed Up in Environmental Initiatives — Again
Posted by BC Upham November 18th, 2009 0 Comments
As goes the financial markets, so go the renewable energy markets. If there’s an opportunity to make a buck, or in this case, a euro, by ripping people off, rest assured, someone will do it.
In the latest case, two Italian businessmen are accused of involvement in a scheme to collect public subsidies for wind power by building sham wind farms. A two year investigation, dubbed “Gone With the Wind” by Italian anti-fraud police, culminated Tuesday with the arrest of Oreste Vigorito, head of the IVPC energy company and president of Italy’s National Association of Wind Energy, and Vito Nicastri, a Sicilian business associate on allegations of defrauding the government of millions in subsidies, according to the Financial Times.
Anti-mafia investigators in Sicily, where some of the wind farms are located, have launched a parallel investigation.
EV Tech Center Abuzz Over an Electrified Future
Posted by Mary Catherine O'Connor November 17th, 2009 0 Comments
Photo courtesy Southern California Edison
Electric vehicles and the changes they promise to bring to our transportation infrastructure are making lots of headlines these days, but to Ed Kjaer, the director of Electric Vehicle Tech Center, EVs are old hat.
Kjaer drives an electric Toyota RAV-4 every day. He’s logged 83,000 miles on the rig, which he drives to Southern California Edison’s Pomona facility, home of the EV Tech Center. And when he gets to work, it’s all EV, all the time. It’s clear from talking to Kjaer that he’s an EV advocate. But EV technology is about more than just zero-emission vehicles. It’s about a new approach to energy management and storage.
Step inside the EV Tech Center and the first thing you’ll notice, aside from shiny new electric concept cars from the likes of Ford and other carmakers, is an electrical buzz—similar to the buzz you’ll hear walking past power lines in a rain storm. Must be all those power and battery systems that researchers in the lab are putting through their paces. Of particular focus, not surprisingly, are banks of automotive grade lithium-ion batteries.
Careers in Wind Farm Development: Project Developer
Posted by Sarah Lozanova November 17th, 2009 7 Comments
Wind energy capacity in the U.S. grew by 8,358 MW last year, an impressive 50 percent jump in total capacity. This trend was accompanied by a 35 percent increase in jobs in the industry. Unlike trends in many industries, career opportunities are expected to expand, as wind power plays a key role in President Obama’s goal of doubling renewable energy production within three years, renewable portfolio standards are met, and stimulus funding is utilized.
Currently about 7 million households are powered by wind energy and 85,000 people were employed by the wind energy industry, up from 50,000 the previous year, according to the American Wind Energy Association. These jobs are very diverse, and include turbine manufacturing, wind farm development, wind farm construction, and turbine maintenance.
Developing an industrial-scale wind farm requires a team of people with a variety of abilities. This seven part series will examine the skills needed achieve this feat. The first job we will explore in this series is project developer.
SolarCity CEO Says Solar Installation Biz Splitting into Big Guys and Little Guys
Posted by BC Upham November 17th, 2009 0 Comments
Solarcity CEO Lyndon Rive said in an interview Friday that he is seeing a growing market schism between the thousands of small, local solar panel installers and a “half a dozen or so” national players that can provide “a trusted brand focusing on scale and services.”
Rise of the Brand Names
Solarcity, which the 32-year old Rive co-founded in 2006, has grown to be one of the leading solar panel installers in California, and perhaps the most recognizable solar installation company in the country.
The solar panel industry is still one where success is measured in the thousands of customers, not millions or billions, however, and despite its high-profile status in the news media, solar installers are still in a very niche business.
Spacing Out on Solar Energy
Posted by Bill DiBenedetto November 17th, 2009 2 Comments
Solar power satellites are the yin to the yang of Ronald Reagan’s 1980s Star Wars fantasy, and almost as old. Scientists for decades have explored the potential of using space-based solar cells to beam power to the Earth.
It’s an idea with very long legs, as they say, but now the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has gone beyond whimsy by actually signing up several major collaborators to launch a giant one-gigawatt space solar power satellite into space. The players are huge – Fujitsu, Mitsubishi Electric and Sharp – and the bucks that JAXA has indicated it will invest in the project are also huge, $21 billion worth of huge.
The plan, according to various recent news reports including London’s Telegraph, is to have the test version of the Space Solar Power System launched in 2020. The final system would go operational in 2030. The station would send down power by laser or microwave.
Landmark “Electrification Coalition” Plays Down Environmental Benefits of EVs, Plays Up Oil Dependence
Posted by BC Upham November 17th, 2009 1 Comment
More than a dozen top executives ranging from Nissan’s Carlos Ghosn to David W. Crane of NRG Energy and Frederick W. Smith of FedEx Corporation jointly announced Monday the launch of the Electrification Coalition, a serious and rigorous industry-backed non-profit with the goal of having 75 percent of all miles driven in this country in 2040 powered by electricity.
The non-profit, non-partisan Coalition’s first act was to release the Electrification Roadmap, a 91-page report “detailing the dangers of oil dependence, explaining the benefits of electrification, describing the challenges facing electric cars, and providing specific policy proposals to overcome those challenges.” The Roadmap is available from the organization’s website. For anyone the slightest bit interested in the challenges and promise of electric cars, it’s required reading.
Why Solar Rebates Are Becoming Extinct
Posted by Gina-Marie Cheeseman November 17th, 2009 0 Comments
Solar rebate programs are winding down. Austin Energy cut solar rebates for homeowners by a third. Xcel Energy will cut its rebate program by about 50 percent. The Long Island Power Authority made an immediate cut in its rebate program, and one scheduled for January. New York reduced its solar incentive by 50 cents per watt in October. Massachusetts closed its rebate program, and California is gradually decreasing its incentives. Australia also stopped its rebate program. However, a 30 percent federal tax credit still exists.
Popularity and the impact on budgets are the reasons why rebates are being reduced according to New York Times’ Green Inc blog. Barry Cinnamon, chief executive of installer, Akeena Solar, said, “I do not believe that the more the merrier is the right approach. Instead, I believe that incentives should decline as costs decline — that way ratepayer dollars are used most efficiently.”
SoCal Edison: On Teaming with Titan Automakers, and Sharing Customers
Posted by Mary Catherine O'Connor November 16th, 2009 0 Comments
Photo courtesy Southern California Edison
The smart grid is coming! And so are (again, finally) electric cars! Want to know how this makes Ted Craver, the president and CEO of electric power generator and distributor Edition International, feel? Excited. And scared.
“We’re looking at the confluence of public policy, environmental issues writ large, and enabling technologies that are really going to change our industry, and our company, dramatically. We’re going to be dealing with more industries, which means more change and stress on business models,” he told a group of journalists touring Southern California Edison’s Electric Vehicle (EV) Tech Center in Pomona, Calif., on Friday. “It’s exciting, a little scary, and [it's] something that will determine the future of this company for the next 100 years.”
We’ve written before about the growing interdependency between automakers who are developing electric vehicles and the utility providers that will provide the fuel for these cars. And we’ve heard from Ford about its work in developing its electric vehicle program and the partnerships it is forming with utility providers.
But what do utility providers have to say about this new vision for transportation?
Let’s Talk Trash: Knowaste Turns Dirty Diapers into Green ($)
Posted by Jace Shoemaker-Galloway November 9th, 2009 0 Comments
Did you know the average baby goes through 5,000 to 6,000 dirty diapers by the time he or she is potty trained? That accounts for nearly one ton of waste per child. Although disposable diapers are convenient, they also create a burden on our landfills. Disposable diapers can take up to 500 years to decompose. And untreated human waste poses another environmental concern – the potential to contaminate groundwater resources.
So imagine being able to divert thousands of tons of dirty diapers from landfills on an annual basis. That is exactly what Knowaste will soon be doing. Beginning in May 2010, Knowaste Ltd., will open a new recycling facility in the United Kingdom.
It is estimated about 8 million disposable diapers are used on a daily basis in the United Kingdom. Now that’s a lot of dirty diapers! Disposable diapers consist of three parts: wood pulp, gel polymers and mixed plastic. According to the company website, 98 percent of the disposable diaper or incontinence pad can be removed from the waste stream using their patented technology.
SolarReserve: Everything’s Better With a Little Salt
Posted by BC Upham November 6th, 2009 3 Comments
It’s the holy grail of renewable energy: power, even when the sun don’t shine, or the wind don’t blow. Some companies are hoping advances in battery capacity will provide the answer, others are looking to flywheels, or hydrostorage. But SolarReserve, an 18-month old start-up based in Santa Monica, uses a fundamentally simpler technology: hot, hot salt.
SolarReserve’s solar power technology uses thousands of mirrors, called heliostats, to focus the sun’s energy on a tower filled with salt. The solar energy heats the salt over 1000 degrees F., turning it into a liquid, which then boils water to run a steam turbine, generating electricity.
But that’s just the half of it: SolarReserve’s plant can store that molten salt and release it to run the turbine whenever it is most cost-effective to do so — including at night, when traditional solar power is unavailable. They can do this because of the amazing heat-retention qualities of salt: 98% or higher if stored properly.
Climate Change Complacency on Capitol Hill
Posted by Jeff Siegel November 4th, 2009 6 Comments
Well, I can’t say I’m surprised.
Climate Change legislation on the Hill has proven to be exactly what we should have expected all along – a partisan bickering match comparable to playground scuffles I recall from my elementary school days.
On cue, the Republicans moved to boycott this week’s work session on a climate change bill, stating that they want more time to study the EPA’s economic analysis. Interestingly enough, these folks had nothing to say when the Bush Administration used the EPA as a pawn in the game of delaying serious climate change debate. But you know how it is – it’s all politics.
Certainly we saw much of this kind of behavior from the Democrats during the Bush years. It’s really not much different.
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