2nd Green Revolution

Dovetailing with the “cradle to cradle” concept, in a statement today GE has announced the establishment of an Ecoassessment Center of Excellence to research a product’s environmental footprint throughout its life cycle. According to the press release:

Life cycle assessment evaluates products for their environmental impact from the raw materials used in early stage research to the end of a product’s useful life, and every step in between. GE has engaged a dedicated, multi-disciplinary team of scientists and engineers to systematically develop better, more energy efficient ways to design and manage products.

Bill Flanagan, who has been tapped to lead GE’s Ecoassessment Center of Excellence, remarks that “Environmental impact is more than just the end-product. It’s about measuring a product’s environmental footprint throughout its entire life cycle. Read the rest of this entry »

Part 3: The Obama Administration plans to add solar and wind power to the grid, aiming for upward of 20% by 2020. However, the existing electric grid needs additional transmission lines with $11 billion (US) of the stimulus bill set aside to increase capacity. A majority of solar energy production comes from the southwest and wind power is spread across the Great Plains. Some plans include redistributing this power across the country. However, critics argue against the long distance transmission in favor of conservation. One of the arguments against more transmission lines is that in times of increased demand, utilities are required to provide the cheapest source of energy, which is more often than not the dirtiest energy sources, namely coal. Another argument is that in times of increased demand, utilities are required to provide the cheapest source of energy, which is more often than not the dirtiest energy sources, namely coal. Ian Bowles (mentioned here in an eariler post), Massachusetts Secretary of Energy, claims that subsidized national power lines reduces the incentive for local clean energy. President Obama has tapped Jon Wellinghoff, the new chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), to help resolve some of these disputes. Department of Energy Secretary Stephen Chu argues for a coordinated national grid. He estimates that the cost to green the grid, and to make it smarter, will be more than $100 billion (US) over the next several decades. Others see the cost as exceeding these figures, with no current plans to pay for the project in its entirety.

Part 4: The electric meter found outside nearly all homes in the United States stands in the way of progressing toward a clean energy future. Part of President Obama’s plan entails swapping out these devices for smart meters, which provide instant feedback on customers energy usage. To that end, the stimulus bill passed last February contains funding for 40 million smart meters. PPL Electric, formerly known as Pennsylvania Power and Light, has installed them in a number Allentown, Pennsylvania area homes. One customer interviewed has reduced her electrical bill by 20%. The customer portal (similar to the picture shown in this post) is a crucial component in helping people save energy and money. However, customers must make a habit of checking the site to learn about their consumption. Currently only 5% of the population have smart meters. Experts estimate that it will be 5-10 years until half of Americans have access to this technology. Read the rest of this entry »

Last Saturday’s edition of the New York Times had an op-ed by Bjorn Lomborg, Director of the Copenhagen Consensus Center at Copenhagen Business School, that raised a good argument. In regards to climate change, his main point was that the focus should be making clean energy cheaper in order to “make low-carbon alternatives like solar and wind energy competitive with old carbon sources.”

There is a lot of talk about tackling global warming but the reality is that it falls at the bottom of Americans’ priority list, as a recent Pew survey has shown. What’s more, there is no consensus as to the best way to tackle what most people see as the real and serious threat of climate change. Mr. Lomborg argues that countries at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15) in Copenhagen, Denmark in December should not focus on how to cut emissions. Instead, he proposes an agreement that calls for “every country to spend one-twentieth of a percent of its gross domestic product on low-carbon energy research and development.” This would make green energy sources fall in cost, eventually becoming competitive with traditional energy sources. The question is whether this would provide enough incentive for quick and broad development of alternative energy. Or is it necessary to have emission cuts backed by a cap and trade system that rewards those who reduce emissions in order to truly invigorate the private sector? Would such government action lead the private sector to experiment and mass produce clean technology more than a policy of allocating one-twentieth of a percent towards R&D? Thomas Friedman espouses that “he’d settle for any carbon price mechanism — cap and trade, fee-bates, carbon tax and/or gasoline tax — as long as it is real and provides consumers and investors a long-term incentive to shift to clean cars, appliances and buildings.” The battle is on not only for whether there will be climate change legislation but also over what shape that legislation will take. Read the rest of this entry »

Last week’s post on BYD motors out of China detailed the company’s attempt to produce electric cars using cheap Chinese labor and batteries that aim to be 100% recyclable. Another recent post looked at the effect of the massive Chinese labor force’s impact on the clean energy economy. According to an NPR story from last week’s Shanghai Auto Show, Chinese automaker Geely unveiled “The Ig, a new concept car . . .  a three-seater microcar that has a single door and is powered by electricity and solar panels. It will cost $3,000 to $4,000 and is expected to go on sale within three years.” The auxiliary rooftop solar panel charges the storage battery. Wei Xiaobo, Geely’s prototyping division director, states that the concept car will be the company’s cheapest car and will go on sale in two to three years. Read the rest of this entry »

Green Festivals, a joint project of Global Exchange and Green America, will be holding its second festival of the year this weekend in Denver, Colorado. The festivals feature speakers, events, and exhibitors which include “everything from organic body care products and great-looking eco-fashion to Fair Trade gifts and healthy home and garden products made from renewable resources.” According to a flier promoting the events, there will be more than 400 socially and environmentally responsible enterprises, more than 150 visionary speakers, how-to-workshops, a green film festival, information on green careers, organic cuisine, beer, and wine, as well live music.” Festivals will be held in Chicago (May 16th and 17th), Washington DC (October 10th and 11th), and San Francisco (November 13-15), while Seattle hosted a Green Festival earlier this year (March 28th and 29th).

Several corporations serve as event sponsors. Organic Valley, Planet Green, Clif Bar, Kimpton Hotels, Dr. Bronner’s, Gaiam, Credo, Numi Tea, Calvert, Better World Books and Care2 are among Greenfest’s partners. Read the rest of this entry »

Part 1: In the first part of a ten part series, NPR provided some background information on the nation’s electric grid. It is largely unchanged since the days of Thomas Edison, contains 5.5 million miles of wires (130 million meters) connecting houses and business to the grid)and generates 950GW of electricity at peak usage (more than 50 times the energy produced by the Three Gorges Dam in China, the world’s largest hydroelectric project). One of the major problems facing the grid is the fact that electricity cannot be stored. The amount generated must always equal the amount used. Coal, gas and nuclear provide a consistent, reliable source of energy to generate electricity. The smart grid will allow for seamless integration of electricity from intermittent renewable sources. Xcel Energy’s $100 million (US) smart grid pilot program (SmartGridCity in Boulder, Colorado) includes batteries in people’s residences to store the energy produced by wind and solar. These batteries can store energy until needed at peak usage, reducing the utilities’ need for “firing up an expensive generator.” The batteries are provided by Xcel Energy and Grid Point, whose mission is “to make the Smart Grid a reality by aligning the interests of electric utilities, consumers and the environment.”

Click on the map above for an interactive tour of the electric grid

Part 2: In the second part of the series, NPR reporter Christopher Joyce looked at solutions for the influx of renewable energy. Read the rest of this entry »

Testimony:Former Vice President Al Gore

At a House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing last Friday, Mr. Gore testified to the urgent nature and prime importance of the clean energy and security bill being debated in Congress. Mr. Gore focused on three main areas in calling on representatives to pass “one of the most important pieces of legislation ever introduced in Congress.” Security concerns stemming from dependence on foreign oil, a push to restart the economic growth by laying infrastructure for a modern energy economy, and the real threat of major implications of climate change are all coming together to make addressing energy policy a priority. There are three main provisions in the bill that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and position the U.S. to lead in the next energy revolution.

1)     Promoting the rapid introduction of clean technology

2)     Efficient use of energy through a revamped and modernized digital smart grid

3)     Significant investment into continued research and development into technologies such as carbon capture and sequestration (CCS).

During the question and answer session, Mr. Gore was asked by Texas Representative Joe Barton (R) about the costs of implementing the bill, specifically with regards to a cap and trade system. Even if Congress gave away half of the allowances and the tax on emissions were the $20 per ton that the EPA estimates (considered conservative), the 7 billion metric tons of man made CO2  emissions the U.S. produces annually would amount to a $70 billion fee for the American economy. Mr. Barton explained this and then asked Mr. Gore what the U.S. can do to avoid or minimize the impact of this expense on businesses and families.  Mr. Gore did not provide a response to the congressman’s question or to his more direct follow-up. Mr. Barton, on the other hand, didn’t acknowledge several of Mr. Gore’s points. This little vignette speaks to the contentiousness of the issue. Read the rest of this entry »

As the economic downturn hits municipal budgets, towns are looking for ways to cut back on their expenditures. One easy to achieve step is referred to as “low hanging fruit.” An earlier post discussed President Obama’s plan to help insulate older homes, a quick and effective way to inexpensively reduce heating and cooling costs. In an article last year, Wall Street Journal Columnist Jim Carlton highlighted a number of cities both domestic and abroad that are attempting to curb energy consumption. Among the projects he detailed was Chicago’s rooftop garden program. Begun in 2001, the initiative has added 4 million square feet of green roofs as of 2008. The century old City Hall was one of the first buildings to have a garden added to its roof. Before the installation, rooftop temperatures reached 160^oF (70^oC). According to the City of Chicago’s Department of Environment, the planted version of the City Hall Roof ranges from 91 – 119°F (33-48°C). “The savings were felt immediately, with the annual power bill for the building falling by 11%, or almost $10,000.”

In an interview on NPR, Mr. Carlton cited changes underway in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The city has replaced the old light bulbs in its streetlamps to light emitting diodes (LEDs) which are 50% more efficient than incandescent bulbs. Read the rest of this entry »

National Public Radio (NPR) will air a series of reports on electricity and the grid in America over the coming week. The series, “Power Hungry: Reinventing the U.S. Electric Grid”,  will “examine the costs, the politics and other challenges of upgrading the country’s electricity grid.” Stories will air Monday, April 27th through Friday, May 1st on both Morning Edition and All Things Considered (NPR’s afternoon program). According to the article, the “stimulus bill signed in February includes $11 billion for improvements. But that’s just a drop in the bucket. It will take hundreds of billions more (total estimates are impossible to find), years of work, and new technologies to turn the current grid into the smart grid of the future.”

Each day will have a different focus. “Starting Monday, April 27, NPR reporters will more closely examine the costs, the politics and other challenges of upgrading the country’s electricity grid.” For a summary of topics, read the daily abstracts:

On Monday, we’ll take stock of the grid as it exists now and look ahead to the future. We’ll also learn about the challenge of storing power. Most forms of renewable energy are intermittent, so scientists and utilities are hard at work on new ways to store electricity, to capture and save it for when it is needed. Read the rest of this entry »

One of our favorite parts of working at 2nd Green Revolution is periodically visiting the sites where exciting new technologies and ideas are being implemented and talking to the people behind the scenes. We’ve started collecting these tours and interviews on  a new page called “Site Visits.” It can be found in the upper right-hand side bar under 2nd Green Revolution or can be accessed by clicking here.

If you have any suggestions for future site visits, please let us know by writing a comment or emailing us at info@2ndgreenrevolution.com.

- 2nd Green Revolution