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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

What’s not to like about a $1.5 billion wind project covering 36,000-acre and generating the power for 180,000 homes in western Texas? For one, it rubs our nose in the fact that China is one of many countries that out-invests the US when it comes to renewables. The project is a joint venture that includes China’s Shenyang Power Group, which points out how much China’s own wind industry has grown, and reminds us of what Energy Secretary Steven Chu told Congress earlier this week: The U.S. is falling behind China and others in alternative energy investment.

But how shocking is the idea that China should aspire to be a world player in wind? “This is a natural progression,” says Harvard-educated Lou Schwartz, president of Pittsburgh-based China Strategies. “We need to avoid looking at this narrowly and saying ‘China’s up and we’re down.’ We have to welcome each other.”

Thus the reality we all need to face: the source of the renewable energy may be local, but the equipment to harvest it most certainly is not. I’m reminded of what Ray Lane, partner in venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins, told the audience in the “Business of Plugging In” conference a few weeks ago: The United States needs to cut the rhetoric and make real investments if it is to be a real player on the world renewables stage.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

A reader suggested that I review the innovative product offered by a German company called IAV in electric vehicle charging, which I did. See this fascinating idea on inductive charging.

To be honest, I had never heard of this. So I asked a few colleagues: May I have some comments on this, please?

Here is the dialog:

From Bill Moore, EV World: The issue here is COST. This will work if it’s incorporated into a dedicated toll-road like the bypass around Denver or from DC out to Dulles. Feds, states and cities just won’t have the money to tear up streets and roads and embed this technology. I see a tough road ahead in the US. It’s more likely to make sense in China and India where they are building new roads. America is just too broke.

My response: Yes, I’m sure it’s pricey to install; I wonder how much per mile, and what the efficiency of the charging is. I would think another issue would be billing the energy to the consumer. And aren’t there safety and other feasibility issues with electromagnetic fields that powerful? Having said all this, one such lane in each of a city’s major freeways would be a huge step in the direction of charging ubiquity.

From Bill Moore: Exactly…. you pretty much hit them all. I am going to comment on this idea in Currents (on the EV World home page)

From: Douglas S. Wilson of ECO-Holland: Stationary induction systems will be feasible before roadways are built or retrofitted with such systems. I could see consumers’ garages and specific parking spaces at businesses or city parking lots could have induction systems embedded. A matching induction pickup coil could be built in or installed aftermarket to any electric vehicle. I think it’s a great idea. (Asks another colleague) Gary, How much power can be transferred with standard household voltages. How does the distance between the active and passive elements affect rate of energy transfer?

More on this later.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

Eco-Trans Alliance in Sarasota Florida is a low-speed electric vehicle (LSEV) manufacturing company with a distinctly sunny disposition. The five year-old company sports a line of cars with solar panels on the roof — adding approximately 10% of the range provided by the battery pack.  Eco-Trans is working hard to deliver high-quality green vehicles for all the places in which they are best and most safely used: college campuses, military bases, resort communities, etc.

Thriving through a tough economy hasn’t been easy, but the company’s Sustainability Leader, Mary Anne Bowie, appears unfazed. “We’re selling cars all over the world – most recently in Tahiti and Cairo,” she told me. “Want to see the pyramids at Giza? More than likely, you’ll be riding on one of our 14-passenger EVs.”

“We’re committed to providing customers with a full array of eco-friendly transportation products,” Mary Anne continued, briefly discussing her zip (rapid) chargers, and her “solar sheds” that charge the cars and put energy back onto the grid.

What I found most interesting about the discussion was the urban planning perspective that Ms. Bowie brings to the table. “I’d really like to see a forward-thinking city issue an ordinance allowing large (more than six-passenger) electric vehicles on the streets, and follow through with LSV lanes and proper signage. The time for talk is past; now we need to deliver.”

Good stuff, Mary Ann. Thanks. I’m dying to see the Great Pyramids, and when I get there, I’ll be on the lookout for your products, to be sure.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

PhotobucketI’d like to introduce readers to Mike Austin, an extremely active proponent of eco-friendliness whom I met through a friend recently. In a phone call the other day, Mike explained how outrageous he finds the United States’ approach to the COP-15 summit in Copenhagen commencing in a few weeks. In particular, he points out that, given the fact that we live in an ostensible representative democracy, it’s strange (to use a charitable term) that there is no publically available information on our delegation, the players and their strategies. He writes, “Given our world’s precarious future, in a model democracy which is meant to be transparent, I find it especially curious that no one I’ve found in the last few days really knows what’s going on. I’d prefer to think it’s not business as usual for America but I’ve now my doubts.”

For those of you who may not have come across it, Mike’s Blue Planet Almanac is a wonderful resource. The first thing I notice about the site, of course, is the incredible breadth of content and the way it’s so thoughtfully presented. But I’m really taken by the technology too. Mike: that’s quite an array of audio, video and social media. It would take me about 50 years to learn how to do that myself. Keep up the good work.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

In marketing, the idea of “positioning” is rooted in the notion that we have space in our minds for precious few ideas, and we tend to associate the people, the products, and the companies in our lives with single concepts. And so it is with Audubon. When I spoke with Delta Willis, the organization’s bright and passionate Senior Communications Manager just now, we both lamented that people think only of birds when they think of Audubon — yet the group is involved in the protection of so much more.

A current project, for instance – one that will require decades to complete, is the rebuilding of the wetlands around New Orleans – and then working all the way north up the Mississippi River to its source.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of our conversation dealt with the delicate issue of the environmental impact of renewable energy plants. Of course, this is highly ironic, considering the incalculable damage that the mining and consumption of fossil fuels have wreaked. It really is paradoxical to consider that efforts to stop poisoning our skies and oceans sometimes meet resistance from environmentalists.

Yet there truly are important issues to be considered. Take, for instance, the location of wind farms in northern Wyoming. It is true that Wyoming has already been badly damaged by oil and gas exploration and that establishing wind farms and the power lines necessary to transport the electricity will do even more harm to the sage grasslands where the animals in Yellowstone spend their winters. And it’s true that there are areas in which the human footprint is already much larger in which these wind farms would do less ecological damage.

But surely we need flexibility.  I pointed out the obvious:  “If we all dig our heels in about making zero impact with our solar thermal and wind farms, we’re playing right into the hands of big coal and oil.” Well, I’m happy to report that Audubon agrees. I ask readers to go through some of the really thoughtful articles and position statements on their website.  I was gratified to see that the people at Audubon speak the language of compromise.

And let me point out that they do more than talk: they study. Using Google Earth, they’ve focused intense amounts of research on the subject, and offer maps where wind farms are most recommended.

Folks, on behalf of all the animals — on land and in the air — whose habitat you help protect — thank you.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

PhotobucketThe mission of the World Wildlife Fund is to “Speak up for those who can’t speak for themselves.” And certainly that’s the idea — standing up for biodiversity — that most of us conjure when we call the WWF to mind.

What most of us probably do not think of, however, is the passion with which this wonderful group embraces the issue of climate change. And I’m not sure of the reason for this gap in understanding. Perhaps it’s that when most of us think of the glaciers melting, the ocean levels rising, and storms rising to new record levels of destruction, we think of the human misery, and neglect the thousands of species whose habitat – and thus whose entire populations – will be wiped out in fairly short order.

To change this perception, the WWF’s Joe Pouliot, a hearty and dedicated young man, called upon me to urge readers to check out “Act For Our Future,” a robust section of the organization’s website that is focused on getting people by the thousands involved with climate change legislation. When you visit the site, you’ll notice that the intro video is warm and inviting. Any intimidation or fear of calling one’s senators and petitioning them for action is gently but effectively removed. And every aspect of social media from Twitter to FaceBook to blogging is addressed in an easy, engaging way.

Ironically, I was considering asking my web-guru partner at 2GreenEnergy what he thought about building all this functionality on our site (and I still may entertain the idea). But I really don’t know how we can top the WWF in terms of calling for action. Great job.

by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Nuclear

PhotobucketA colleague sent me an article that starts: “A nuclear renaissance needs government funding to move ahead,” and then goes on to extol the virtues of this horrifically dangerous and expensive technology.  (If you’re interested in reading it, you’ll have to find it with a search engine; I don’t want to empower it with backlinks.) I responded:

How utterly nauseating.  As Paul Scott (VP at Plug-In America) said in response to a question I asked him during the panel discussion I moderated at the AltCarExpo a few weeks ago, “Prepare yourself for a steady onslaught of lies from the nuclear and fossil fuel people.  If you thought it was bad in the 1990s with the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate, you ain’t seen nothing compared to what they’re about to throw against EVs and renewable energy in the next couple of years.”

Of course, this is an excellent example.  “Needs government funding?”  You bet your sweet $%^ is does.  Help will come only from people who have been paid off handsomely; the idea certainly will receive identically zero support from a fair-minded and informed citizenry.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Science

PhotobucketGuest Blogger Mike Brace comments on an article called “A nuclear renaissance needs government funding to move ahead.”

This is full-on garbage, written in a deliberate attempt to mislead readers. If you want to find it, use Google, as I don’t want to empower this evil cause by linking to it.

Principally, there are two things in this article that defy logic; one is plain as day: the author lists the cost as $10 billion for a 5,400 MW plant. That’s $1,800/kw. Not even coal is that cheap anymore. The last and best estimates by the DoE has nuclear at about $10K/kW.

The other lie here — this one a bit better hidden — is that large scale power generation no longer enjoys the economy of scale that it once did. In today’s economy it is seldom cheaper to go bigger unless you are at the lines in McDonalds. Large power plants lose that argument every time they stack up against localized power distribution. (This, btw, is what killed T. Boone Pickens’ plan, too).

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

In my mind, one of the most important chapters in my upcoming book on renewable energy is what I refer to as the Watchdog. There is so much pressure brought to bear on public policy by the big oil and coal companies that we’re very lucky to have advocacy groups that fight hard on behalf of the public interest.

For instance, what happened behind the scenes leading up to the Bureau of Land Management’s opening up a chuck of land for oil drilling? Was there an effort to circumvent the legal, democratic process? In many cases, the answer, sadly, is yes.

So then what happens? The answer is that the Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC) goes after them with its own lawyers.

In this chapter, an NRDC spokesperson will speak candidly about this brave organization’s victories, its defeats, and the greatest challenges it faces in the coming years.

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by Craig ShieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

Last week, President Obama, as part of the Recovery Act, announced the dedication of $3.4 billion to further advancing smart grid development. This, of course, is good news for renewables in many different ways.

Smart grid technology facilitates integrated renewables into the mix, enabling solar, wind, etc. to replace a larger overall portion of our energy needs.

All grid improvements bring us closer to the day when high-voltage direct current (HVDC) removes the importance of the geographic location of the source of the power. Considering that we have solar thermal on the southwest, wind in the plains, geothermal in the mountains, and hydrokinetics mainly in the east, this is critical to our cause.

I’m happy to see the degree that the stimulus package is aimed at cleantech, and hope that millions of jobs will be created in this sector in the coming few years. I would like to think that the decision-making process re: the exact allocation of grants is as clean as the projects themselves – but that’s another matter.

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