Our energy future is a topic of constant discussion and the recent issues with the nuclear reactor in Fukushima, Japan have further heightened the debate. The cost of oil will continue to rise as we approach peak oil (although the current U.S. average of $3.69 per gallon is still much cheaper than most other countries), [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Electricity in America’
Energy Autonomy- Freeing Ourselves From the Threats of Oil, Coal, and Nuclear Power
May 4th, 2011 
Phil Sauve 
Posted in Business, Clean Technology, Economics, Op-Ed, Policy, Smart Grid, Sustainable Development 
Tags: Clean Energy, Coal, Electricity in America, Nuclear, Phil Sauve 
No Comments »Pew Trusts’ Study Highlights Clean Energy Economy
September 14th, 2009 Eric Wilson The Pew Charitable Trusts, based in Washington DC, released a study earlier this summer highlighting the growth of the clean energy economy in the United States over the past decade. According to the study, “Between 1998 and 2007, jobs in the clean energy economy grew at a national rate of 9.1 percent while traditional jobs [...]
Five Friday Facts
August 28th, 2009 Justin Manger National trends this year show the biggest spike in gardening among Americans in 30 years. Only $50 in supplies can yield over $1,200 in produce. Only two percent of the world’s population produced all of the food. Half of them are over the age of 65. San Francisco recycles 66% of its waste. Composting can [...]
Posted in 2nd Green, Five Friday Facts, Recylcing Tags: Agriculture, Composting, Electricity in America, Food No Comments »Google Chooses Eight Utilities to Begin Rolling Out “PowerMeter” Home Energy Software
May 20th, 2009 Justin Manger Google.org announced today that it has partnered with six U.S. utilities as well as one Canadian and one Indian company to begin a large scale roll out of their energy information software. All the chosen companies have installed or are installing smart meters in their customers’ homes. Getting their data from the meters, Google’s software [...]
Recap of Friday’s Electricity in America Series from NPR
May 4th, 2009 Eric Wilson Part 9: One of the main reasons to update the grid is to integrate more renewable energy. However, some wonder if the investment in clean energy will lead to a “green bubble” like the housing and internet bubbles. Eric Janszen, founder of the financial advisory company iTulip, says that “bubbles start with a kernel of [...]
Recap of Thursday’s Electricity in America Series from NPR
May 3rd, 2009 Eric Wilson Part 7: Utilities may stand in the way of quick adoption of smart meters across the country. Both rate payers and utilities will foot the bill for an increase in transmission lines and smart meters. The current system is 99.97% reliable, leading power companies to defend the status quo. However, some fear that plans to [...]
Posted in Clean Technology, Eric Wilson, Smart Grid Tags: Electricity in America, Renewable Energy, Xcel Energy 1 Comment »Recap of Wednesday’s Electricity in America Series from NPR
May 1st, 2009 Eric Wilson Part 5: Several challenges face integrating renewable energy into the grid. For many of the places where wind blows consistently – specifically over open ocean and in the Dakotas – transmission lines are lacking. Wind developers have options on much of the land in and around Winner, in south central South Dakota, for future development. [...]
Recap of Tuesday’s Electricity in America Series from NPR
April 30th, 2009 Eric Wilson 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 [...]
Recap of Monday’s Electricity in America Series from NPR
April 28th, 2009 Eric Wilson 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 [...]
NPR Starts New Series: Electricity in America
April 26th, 2009 Eric Wilson 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 [...]
