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We use window treatments to help insulate the room against extreme heat and cold. We may use them to block light or direct light to one part of the room only.

The work of a landfill gas plant operator involves correctly using and handling power plants, such as those that are built around reciprocating engines that are used for converting methane gas.

Will support energy efficiency efforts nationwide that will create 87,000 jobs and cut energy bills for families Washington DC -- Vice President Joe Biden and Energy Secretary Chu today detailed an investment of nearly $8 billion in state and local weatherization and energy efficiency efforts as part of the President's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. With an investment of about $5 billion through the Weatherization Assistance Program and about $3 billion for the State Energy Program, the Department of Energy will partner with state and local governments to put 87,000 Americans to work and save families hundreds of dollars per year on their energy bills. To jump-start job creation and weatherization work, the Department of Energy is releasing the first installment of the funding - about $780 million -- in the next few days. The Department will release additional funding over time as states demonstrate that they are using the funding effectively and responsibly to create jobs and cut energy use.

The (UK) Telegraph has an article on the Vivace tidal / current power device I mentioned recently - Ocean currents can power the world, say scientists The technology can generate electricity in water flowing at a rate of less than one knot - about one mile an hour - meaning it could operate on most waterways and sea beds around the globe. Existing technologies which use water power, relying on the action of waves, tides or faster currents created by dams, are far more limited in where they can be used, and also cause greater obstructions when they are built in rivers or the sea. Turbines and water mills need an average current of five or six knots to operate efficiently, while most of the earth's currents are slower than three knots.

The IHT has a report on a plan by Matt Simmons and George Hart to build the world's largest wind farm in the gulf of Maine - Plans for the world's biggest wind farm. It is not the usual green suspect. But it hopes to build a 5-gigawatt, deep-water wind farm - the largest in the world, equal to the output from five nuclear plants. "It" is the Ocean Energy Institute, a tiny research organization founded by Matthew Simmons. An energy investment banker who specializes in oil and gas, Simmons was an energy adviser to President George W. Bush. His main partner, George Hart, is a physicist who consults for the Pentagon on the Strategic Defense Initiative, where he uses supercomputers for the mathematical modeling of complex systems. He also co-invented a laser used for eye surgery and semiconductor manufacturing.

Scientists have found that a polymer material is an excellent catalyst in a process to produce hydrogen fuel using sunlight and water. The material meets the basic requirements for an ideal catalyst -- including being abundant, easy to work with, and non-toxic -- and could help this "green" alternative-energy production method become mainstream. Creating hydrogen gas by splitting water (H2O) molecules with solar energy is a promising way of generating hydrogen fuel, which, by either being burned directly or used in fuel cells, can power many types of vehicles, including automobiles, buses, and even airplanes. The study's corresponding scientist is Xinchen Wang, a chemist affiliated with the Max-Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam, Germany, and Fouzhou University in Fouzhou, China.

The technology can generate electricity in water flowing at a rate of less than one knot - about one mile an hour - meaning it could operate on most waterways and sea beds around the globe. Existing technologies which use water power, relying on the action of waves, tides or faster currents created by dams, are far more limited in where they can be used, and also cause greater obstructions when they are built in rivers or the sea. Turbines and water mills need an average current of five or six knots to operate efficiently, while most of the earth's currents are slower than three knots.

Olive stones can be turned into bioethanol, a renewable fuel that can be produced from plant matter and used as an alternative to petrol or diesel. This gives the olive processing industry an opportunity to make valuable use of 4 million tonnes of waste in olive stones it generates every year and sets a precedent for the recycling of waste products as fuels. Researchers from the Universities of Jaén and Granada in Spain show how this can be achieved in a study published in the latest edition of the Society of Chemical Industry's (SCI) Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology.

Technology Review has an article on a new system from Ener-G-Rotors which harvests energy from low temperature waste heat - Electricity from Waste Heat. Factories, data centers, power plants--even your clothes dryer--throw off waste heat that could be a useful source of energy. But most existing heat-harvesting technologies are efficient only at temperatures above 150 °C, and much waste heat just isn't that hot. Now Ener-G-Rotors, based in Schenectady, NY, is developing technology that can use heat between 65 and 150 °C.

Is it Possible to Increase Your Vehicle Gas Mileage Today, To Convert Your Car To Run On Water And Save Over 40% Of Fuel Cost Every Month? The real Truth: Water can be used as a supplement to gasoline that will extend your gas millage 40% or more. In fact, using water and gas together can not only increase your vehicle's fuel efficiently it can improve emissions quality, and save you money. Check out the video below to see how you can run your car on water.

In honor of our 42nd year printing the news and raising hell, the Guardian imagines a sustainable future for San Francisco, with visions for energy, land use, food, transportation, culture, and the economy. A city transformed:Fighting the power structure, and building a sustainable community, for 42 amazing years People's power:A sustainable energy system is well within San Francisco's reach First, do no harm:A sustainable land use plan is about what we don't allow as well as what we do Beyond the automobile:The road to sustainability has lanes for more than just cars Just Food Nation:Transforming how we eat will address poverty, public health, and environmental sustainability Culture isn't convenient:Sustaining entertainment and nightlife in San Francisco requires awareness and a policy shift The money at home:A sustainable local economy starts with small business - and the public sector

It is a sad commentary on the culture we live in that so many of us are afraid to exercise our right to use the public roads in a non-polluting manner. Believe me, I know how you feel. I went from not riding my bicycle for many, many years and have since become a 4-season rider in the northern midwest. Here are some things that have helped me make the transition.

With fossil fuel prices escalating and countries searching for ways to reduce oil dependence and greenhouse gas emissions, capturing the earth's heat for power generation is garnering new attention. First begun in Larderello, Italy, in 1904, electricity generation using geothermal energy is now taking place in 24 countries, 5 of which use it to produce 15 percent or more of their total electricity. In the first half of 2008, total world installed geothermal power capacity passed 10,000 megawatts and now produces enough electricity to meet the needs of 60 million people, roughly the population of the United Kingdom. In 2010, capacity could increase to 13,500 megawatts across 46 countries-equivalent to 27 coal-fired power plants.

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (Reuters) - A U.S. scientist has developed a new way of powering fuel cells that could make it practical for home owners to store solar energy and produce electricity to run lights and appliances at night. A new catalyst produces the oxygen and hydrogen that fuel cells use to generate electricity, while using far less energy than current methods.

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency David Rodgers today announced the launch of DOE's Zero-Net Energy Commercial Building Initiative (CBI) with establishment of the National Laboratory Collaborative on Building Technologies Collaborative (NLCBT). These two efforts both focus on DOE's ongoing efforts to develop marketable Zero-Net Energy Commercial Buildings, buildings that use cutting-edge efficiency technologies and on-site renewable energy generation to offset their energy use from the electricity grid by 2025.

New South Wales, Australia is the site of a pilot project where solar thermal technology reduces the use of fossil fuels. Coal and solar generate electricity using the same turbines. Coal power plants can utilize solar to produce 15%-60% of the electricity. A higher quantity is possible, but requires significantly more modifications to be made to the coal boilers.

British inventors have designed a washing machine that takes eco-friendliness to a new level: it uses just a single cup of water to wash a load of clothes. Instead of water the Xeros machine uses thousands of special plastic chips (about 44 pounds' worth) in each wash, and when that single cup of water is heated, these chips absorb the dirt-including tricky stuff like coffee and lipstick. The chips are removed when the wash ends, and can be reused up to 100 times. Though it's still in prototyping, the inventors are intending to commercialize their machine, and it may even hit the shops next year for a price similar to conventional machines.

We also believe that people make better choices when they have information to help them, especially if the information is easy to understand and easy to find. Determining the greenness of a product can be a complex task; to form an accurate picture, the following kinds of questions must be answered: * The materials within the product: Are they harmful to the environment? Where were they sourced, and at what environmental cost? Are they renewable resources? Are the materials recycled? How much transportation is involved in getting the materials to the manufacturer? * The manufacturing process: How much energy was consumed in creating the product? What kind and how much waste is created in making the product? Is this waste reused in any way? If not, how is it disposed? * Product usage: Does using the product release any pollutants into the environment? How much energy is consumed while using the product? What is the average life expectancy of the product? * Product disposal: Can the product be recycled? Does the manufacturer have a recycling program? Is the product bio-degradable? Considering all these factors is enough to make anyone's head spin! That's why Greener One created a way for people to compare products on an environmental basis and to share product information with one another. A variety of factors for each product are converted into a simple "green index" score that can be easily understood by anyone. How Green Index is Calculated Greener One was created by a group of technology veterans committed to the idea that people who are empowered with information can change the world. We put the tools in your hands to make the right decisions, to share your knowledge and to open conversations with companies about the products that they produce. Everything you consume has an impact; Greener One gives you the knowledge to determine the size of your environmental footprint.

VW has been talking for a long time about its L1 concept, so called because it uses a measly 1 liter of gasoline to go 100 km. For us Americans, that translates to about 230 miles per gallon.