Perhaps no U.S. state faces more acute challenges to sustainability than Hawaii. The unique biodiversity and ecology that make the Hawaiian Islands so compelling to outside visitors also make their sustainability fragile, and particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of over-development and climate change. During several weeks in Hawaii this spring, I frequently encountered the theme [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Clean Energy’
The Case for Hawaii as a Clean Energy Test Bed
June 17th, 2013 
Sean Connell 
Posted in Local Energy/Food, Renewable Energy, Smart Grid, Sustainability 
Tags: Clean Energy, Hawaii 
No Comments »IEA: Despite Renewable Energy, Carbon Dioxide Emissions Still at Same Level
April 17th, 2013 Eric Wilson 
The International Energy Agency (IEA) reports today that despite the impressive increase in renewable energy – energy produced by wind is up 42% and solar 19% from 2011 to 2012 alone – carbon emissions have not abated worldwide. As relayed on Marketplace Morning Report today, rapidly industrializing economies, as well as Europe which has resorted [...]
Posted in Behavior, Economics, Eric Wilson, News, Policy, Renewable Energy, Sustainability Tags: Alternative Energy, Carbon Dioxide, Clean Energy, Coal, Environment, IEA, Natural Gas No Comments »ExxonMobil’s Economic Outlook & Implications for Developing Countries
March 21st, 2013 Chris DeArmond 
ExxonMobil might not be the best source of unbiased energy projections, but its 2013 Energy Outlook to 2040 gauges the progress of several inevitable trends that will develop as the world becomes more populated, industrialized, and energy hungry.
Hagel’s Defense Department Can Find a More Agile Military, Even With Sequestration
February 19th, 2013 Nick Grue Though the filibuster of Chuck Hagel has created temporary drama in the Senate, in all likelihood he will become the Secretary of Defense. With this, Hagel stands to continue former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta’s focus on leveraging renewable energy to power the US military. The Defense Department has a lot to gain by switching to [...]
President Obama’s 2013 State of the Union
February 16th, 2013 Eric Wilson 
As part of the annual State of the Union, President Obama touched on energy as he has in past addresses to the nation. In 2011 he highlighted clean energy, while in 2012 he laid out his goal of 80% of electricity generation from “clean” sources. Below is the excerpt from his speech that dealt with [...]
Posted in China, Energy Efficiency, Eric Wilson, Featured Posts, News, Policy, President Obama Tags: Clean Energy, Climate Change, Congress, Energy, Grid, Holy Grail, Jobs, Natural Gas, Pollution, Science, Solar Energy, Wind Power No Comments »Europe’s Dirty Affair with American Coal
February 14th, 2013 Chris DeArmond 
As you’re probably aware, natural gas prices in the United States have plummeted in recent times with the development of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.” The controversial, but very effective drilling technique has freed a glut of natural gas from shale rock formations, reducing domestic natural gas prices substantially. Between 2009 and 2011, the wellhead price [...]
China Unveils Big Renewables Investment Plan for 2013
January 29th, 2013 Justin Manger 
Perhaps it is the “can’t see 200 yards in front of you” air pollution, or possible political backlash from unaddressed environmental problems, but China just unveiled a major plan to push further into developing renewable energy. It wants to add 49GW of capacity this year, composed of as much as 18GW of new wind power [...]
U.S. Electricity Consumption Flattens Out
January 9th, 2013 Justin Manger 
The once all but certain trend of rising electricity use may now be coming to an end. This may not be good news for electricity companies tied to a business model that depends on growth in electricity consumption (and therefore the need to produce more and get more revenue) but it is good news for [...]
Posted in Behavior, Energy Efficiency, Green Economy, Justin Manger, News, Policy, Smart Grid Tags: Clean Energy, Energy Conservation No Comments »Public Favorability of Energy And Environmental Concepts
January 8th, 2013 Nick Grue The path to bringing more renewable energy and sustainable technologies into our infrastructure is by making the political environment more friendly towards these technologies. Public opinion shapes the way politicians vote or which politicians enter into office in the first place, meaning that the people have the power to influence how quickly and at what [...]
Posted in Clean Technology, Polls, Sustainability Tags: Cap and Trade, Clean Energy, LEED, Nick Grue, Offsets, Survey, sustainability No Comments »Production Tax Credit Spared from Fiscal Cliff
January 4th, 2013 Eric Wilson 
It appears that I misspoke in the calendar post from earlier this month. The Production Tax Credit for renewable energy, namely wind, which expired on December 31, 2012 after 20 years, was spared in the deal to avert the fiscal cliff. According to the White House’s blog, “Tax credits that encourage the production of clean [...]
