Eco20/20

Create a unique laptop case using old items from around the house. Here's How!

In order to start on your path in the green field you will need to get trained. The schooling involved could be a little longer for an electrical engineer.

This year at the 2009 International Auto Show featured many electric cars. To all the auto companies it is really a kind of electric car race.

Having almost been run off the road by Iowa's gusty winds, I'm not surprised to hear about the state's interest in wind energy. But the scale of its current project- a one billion dollar wind farm- is truly impressive. The proposed Trade Wind Energy farm will feature 335 wind generators that can produce up to 500 MW of energy. Each generator will be able to power 500 to 1,000 homes. The generators will each be at least 1,000 feet apart, and property owners in the vicinity will receive rent for use of wind rights. Project details haven't been finalized, however, and the number of wind generators will ultimately depend on success in leasing property rights. But Trade Wind Energy representatives are confident that the project will go ahead as planned since some leases have already been signed and area farmers seem receptive.

An aide to Obama said Friday that the administration plans to add 20 gigawatts (GW) or more of wind power and 4 GW of geothermal and solar power by 2012 through loan guarantees and fast tracked national renewable energy requirements, like the Renewable Portfolio Standard. Last May the U.S. Energy Department estimated wind power could provide almost a quarter of U.S. electricity. Trade groups from the U.S. wind and solar industries were happy with the news, considering that the current economic environment for commercial credit has lowered all boats as it were, with all investment now endangered - not just investment in risky financial instruments, but even those investments in renewable energy that are essential to growing a stable economy. 4 votesBuzz up! No other country, in any single year, has added the volume of wind capacity that was added to the US electrical grid in 2007 with both wind and solar growing well over 40%, but with the credit crunch affecting all sectors of the economy, new projects could drop by as much as 50%, without help from the Federal government.

2009 brings some new incentives for homeowners to adopt energy efficiency from both state and federal sources. The Wall Street Journal reported last week on several of these, including new provisions for tax credits in solar, small wind, and biomass stoves (those burning wood pellets or corn). In addition, this year, both solar and wind residential tax credits can be claimed against the alternative minimum tax. Improvements to weatherize your home could also qualify for an energy efficiency tax credit of up to $500. There are also new credits for upgrading your furnace, boilers, heat pumps, and water heaters. Read more at WSJ.com: http://tinyurl.com/93n535 Link to original post

The US Department of Energy (DOE) issued a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for up to $6 million over two years (FY09-FY10), subject to annual appropriations, to address wind development technical challenges and market acceptance barriers as outlined in the "20% Wind Energy by 2030" report published in July 2008. The announcement will address six topic areas: (1) turbine research, development and testing; (2) distributed wind technologies; (3) market acceptance efforts; (4) environmental research and sitting strategies; (5) transmission analysis, planning and assessments; and (6) workforce development.

Energy Matters has a post on a new solar PV farm in Portugal - Portugal's Largest Solar Farm Opens. Portugal's Acciona Energy recently opened the country's largest solar power farm, executing the construction of the project in a record time of 13 months. The solar farm covers an area of 250 hectares in the municipality of Moura (Alentejo region), near the border with Spain. The AUD$571 million 48 MW facility will provide power to over 30,000 Portugese households; producing 93 million kWh of electricity annually and avoiding over 89,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions compared to a similar output via coal fired power generation.

The Business Spectator has an interesting column on India's growing energy needs and their renewable energy potential - India's will to power. Though blessed with an abundance of non-depleting renewable energy resources, India's record in tapping them has been dismal. Mercifully, of late, renewable sources are getting greater attention. But there is still a long way to go from the 4.9 per cent that renewable energy contributes to total energy generated. The official target is to increase this share to 10 per cent by 2012 and further in subsequent years. ... Among renewable sources, geothermal energy which is derived from natural heat stored in the deep interior of the earth promises to be a key source. Except for a few half-hearted attempts, the government has done practically nothing to exploit this vast reserve.

The Guardian has a report on some new tidal power technology from a company in Wales inspired by ship propellers and wind turbines - Tidal power gets a boost from propeller and wind turbine techonology. Propellers on ships have been tried and tested for centuries in the rough and unforgiving environment of the sea: now this long-proven technology will be used in reverse to harness clean energy from the UK's powerful tides. The tides that surge around the UK's coasts could provide up to a quarter of the nation's electricity, without any carbon emissions. But life in the stormy seas is harsh and existing equipment - long-bladed underwater wind turbines - is prone to failure.A Welsh renewable energy company has teamed up with ship propulsion experts to design a new marine turbine which they believe is far more robust.

Will Stewart has a guest post up at The Oil Drum on passive solar design techniques - Passive Solar Design Overview - Part 1. Also, at TOD, a post on the Passivhaus standard from another long-time commenter, marjorian - US Housing and the Passive Home Standard. Passive solar refers to the design and placement of a building to enable solar heating without the need for sensors, actuators, and pumps, in contrast to active solar, which utilizes pumps/blowers, sensors, and logic control units to manage collection, storage, and distribution of heat. The two techniques are not exclusive, however, and can work together effectively. As solar radiation (insolation) is a diffuse energy source, and not at the beck and call of a thermostat, passive solar design techniques are at their best when combined with other related methods, such as energy efficiency (insulation, weatherization, building envelope minimization), daylighting, passive cooling, microclimate landscaping, and a conservation lifestyle (i.e., temperature settings, raising and lowering of insulated shades, etc). Most of these topics will be covered in other articles, though passive cooling will be addressed in this series, which is intended as an overview, as a complete engineering treatment on passive solar design would require several dozens of articles.

In order to start you new green career as an ethanol lab technician, you will need to get some schooling under your belt. If done correctly, you should be in your new job within about two year.

The newest energy tax credits are now available. Have no fear; there may be some help from the United States government.

A solar power station, reportedly the largest in China, will be built up in the Chadam Basin, Qinghai Province in 2009. With total investment of about CNY1 billion for the first phase, the project will use thin film amorphous silicon and crystalline silicon photovoltaic array technology. Its first phase will have a capacity of 30MW and it will be the largest solar power station in China when completed.

Japan has announced plans to build its first new geothermal power stations in nearly two decades in a bid to tap the nation's domestic energy sources. A string of geothermal power plants are to be developed by a number of firms keen to capitalise on the active volcanic landscape that spans the country, while the government is also currently compiling guidelines supporting the development of such energy sources. Home to 108 active volcanoes - ten per cent of the world's active volcanoes - Japan is in a prime position to tap into underground geothermal energy sources. As a nation with few natural resources, Japan has long been dependent on importing substantial quantities of crude oil and natural gas. The country's renewed focus on geothermal energy marks a desired shift away from its dependency on imported energy sources which has made it susceptible to increasingly volatile prices.

How important is it to eat organic? Is it a fad, a craze or is it a warning against chemical fertilizers and GMO crops, which will help protect the next generation? Organic farming is natural farming, that means no chemical fertilisers, no genetic modification for either food crops or feed crops. Commercial farming pushing demand for agricultural produce forced a shift towards chemical fertilisers and farming methods to maximise output, for maximum profit, unaware of the significantly unnatural processes being used can be harmful. At the consumer level organic produce is a relatively new phenomena. On the supermarket shelves we are finding products labelled 'organic', most of us think it means 'natural' or 'cruelty free'. When you buy organic you are buying a green product . That means methods such as green fertilisers, crop rotation and biological pest controls are used instead of toxic chemical fertilisers and genetically modified organisms which are harmful to the land. Organic farming composes about 2% of all farming on the planet.

Turning off the lights is a great habit for the new year

Quitting smoking saves you money on energy!

The Amazon Kindle is one of the more unique and truly eco-friendly products on the market today.

Geothermal installers are in demand. Even in a down economy, companies are making big profits and looking for more installers all the time.