Latest Energy Policy & Technology News: i360 Gov

Global CO2 emissions hit record in 2011: IEA

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:36:46 -0400

Reuters: Global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) from fossil-fuel combustion rose by 3.2 percent last year to a record high of 31.6 gigatonnes, the IEA said in preliminary estimates released on Thursday.

Natural Gas Smothering 'Clean Coal' and Carbon Capture

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:36:11 -0400

Forbes: Natural gas is dominating the headlines. But five years ago it rested firmly on the back pages. The budding issue back then had been how new technologies would keep coal at the top of the energy hierarchy and how its associated emissions could be minimized and its carbon releases buried. What happened?

The energy business is supposed to move at a snail’s pace. And while no one had heard of shale gas 10 years ago, it is now the hot topic. At the same time, the price of such unconventional natural gas has declined precipitously, making it an economic bargain compared to coal. Meantime, the coal sector has been given a number of one-two punches by environmental regulators with the most recent coming in March that nullified any future plants that can’t sequester carbon.

Survey: Feds see short-term goals as barrier to sustainability efforts

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:35:32 -0400

Federal Times: The biggest barrier to agency sustainability efforts is a focus on short-term objectives over longer-term goals, according to 51 percent of federal employees interviewed in a survey released Wednesday

More than 36 percent also said they don’t have enough resources for sustainability programs at their agency, according to LMI, a nonprofit organization that helped develop greenhouse gas reporting protocols.

Shell Arctic Ocean Drilling Stands to Open New Oil Frontier

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:34:55 -0400

The New York Times: WASHINGTON — Shortly before Thanksgiving in 2010, the leaders of the commission President Obama had appointed to investigate the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico sat down in the Oval Office to brief him.

After listening to their findings about the BP accident and the safety of deepwater drilling, the president abruptly changed the subject.

“Where are you coming out on the offshore Arctic?” he asked.

NRC chair mindful of safety

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:34:11 -0400

Charlotte Observer: The chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Wednesday gave a tentative thumbs-up to construction remedies applied to a S.C. nuclear plant whose license he opposed.

Gregory Jaczko appeared on the final day of the Nuclear Energy Assembly, an industry conference, in Charlotte. He spoke two days after submitting his resignation as NRC chairman.

Senate panel is asked to reject biofuel restrictions

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:33:37 -0400

The Detroit News: Washington — Advocates of ethanol urged the Senate Armed Services Committee to reject efforts to restrict the Defense Department's use of biofuels.

Their efforts come on the heels of the House approval of a $642 billion annual defense authorization bill that would cut $70 million from a public-private partnership to develop a commercial supply of advanced biofuels for the Pentagon and airlines.

Foreign Dominance of U.S. Clean Energy Market Spells Trouble for America

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:36:26 -0400

Renewable Energy World: New Hampshire, USA -- If you are a small player in the U.S. clean energy market, you are having a harder and harder time finding capital to continue to fund your business, despite that fact that your domestic market is seen as the one with the largest potential for growth. So what do you do? According to Third Way, a political think tank, you look to foreign investors.

CA: Has blazing a trail in solar energy cost California too much?

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:35:03 -0400

Los Angeles Times: That ray of light you see peeking through all the clouds darkening California's future? That's the sun. More specifically, solar power, in which California is the hands-down national leader.

The state's installed solar generating capacity of about 1.2 gigawatts — the equivalent of two big conventional power plants and enough to fill the electrical demand from nearly 200,000 homes for a year — easily outstrips the next 10 highest-ranked states. It's also the fastest-growing solar market in the country.

Lawmakers Expand First-in-nation Solar Registration

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:34:28 -0400

Renewable Energy World: Vermont’s pioneering solar registration program, which caught the attention of the national solar industry and policymakers last year, has been expanded.

The program is providing a national model for reducing costly and time-consuming local solar permitting. A year after Vermont lawmakers initiated the program, Act 125 doubles the size of projects — from 5 kilowatts (kW) to 10 kW — allowed under the registration program.

On Our Radar: An Energy Challenge for Gamers

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:32:49 -0400

The New York Times: The Navy introduces a new version of its Mmowgli online gaming project, asking players around the world to figure out how the military can best meet its energy demands while reducing its dependency on fossil fuels. Meanwhile, Senator James Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican, has been denouncing efforts by the Pentagon to improve the military’s energy efficiency and address climate change. [TPM, WND]

Saving Money, Gaining Energy Independence: ESPCs with the U.S. Government

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:32:05 -0400

Renewable Energy World: New Hampshire, USA -- The U.S. federal government uses a lot of energy. In fact, it is the world's largest single consumer of energy. According to a recent government memo, the organization incurred approximately $20 billion in energy costs in FY 2010 alone. Of that, $7 billion was for energy consumption in federal buildings.

The government is under a mandate to lead by example by “employing strategies to improve energy management,” consistent with Executive Order 13514, which was issued on Oct 9, 2009. The executive order stated, “upgrading the energy performance of federal buildings can be one of the fastest and most cost-effective ways to reduce energy costs, combat pollution, and create local jobs.”

GSA Targets the Energy Hogs of Federal Buildings

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:35:04 -0400

Government Technology: The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has entered into a contract with IBM, the company announced Monday, May 21, to roll out smart building technology via a cloud platform for 50 federal government buildings that have been identified as high consumers of energy.

The effort that is expected to save $15 million annually in energy costs.

GEA brings together leading federal agencies to co-host International Geothermal Showcase

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:34:38 -0400

Renewable Energy World: Next week, the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) will co-host the International Geothermal Energy Showcase with influential U.S. Government agencies including the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM). In addition to supporting the event as co-hosts, all three agencies will also participate in discussions during the day's event.

Interior Advances Offshore Atlantic Transmission Line

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:34:10 -0400

EERE News: The U.S. Department of the Interior and its Bureau of Ocean n Energy Management (BOEM) announced on May 14 a finding of "no competitive interest" for the proposed Mid-Atlantic offshore wind energy transmission line. The decision clears the way for the project to move forward with the environmental review necessary to grant the company, Atlantic Grid Holdings, LLC, a right-of-way for the proposal to build a "backbone" transmission line that would enable up to 7,000 megawatts of wind turbine capacity to be delivered to the grid.

Analyst: US unconventional liquids production could mean zero net oil imports

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:33:42 -0400

Oil & Gas Journal: Production from unconventional liquids plays could result in the US becoming independent from oil imports before 2020, an analyst told attendees at an International Association of Drilling Contractors conference on onshore drilling.

Marshall Adkins, managing director of energy research for Raymond James & Associates, told conference participants, “You guys have gotten too good at getting oil out of the ground, and we are going to see some issues.”

Gregory Jaczko, chief of Nuclear Regulatory Commission, resigns

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:27:01 -0400

The Washington Post: The nation’s chief of nuclear safety announced his resignation Monday after a three-year tenure marked by debates over regulatory guidelines, praise for the U.S. response to the Japanese nuclear disaster and complaints that he had verbally abused women in the workplace.

The departure of Gregory B. Jaczko, an advocate of tough safety standards at nuclear reactor sites during eight years on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, caps almost a year of concerns about his leadership of the NRC, which he has chaired since 2009.

US DoD Takes Aggressive Lead as Early Adopters of Solar Energy

Mon, 21 May 2012 06:50:09 -0400

Solar Daily: Principal Solar has announced the release of its White Paper, "Navigating by the Sun: U.S. Department of Defense Takes Aggressive Lead as Early Adopters of Solar Energy." Authored by Michael Gorton, chief executive officer and chairman of PSI, and Rebecca "Becky" Halstead, Brigadier General (retired), the paper explores the leadership role the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is playing as early adopters of solar energy technologies.

Major Push To Clean Up Shale Gas Fracking

Mon, 21 May 2012 06:49:41 -0400

Solar Daily: Major investors are no longer willing to sit by idly as energy companies engaged in shale gas fracking face concerns about industry drilling problems, growing regulatory uncertainty, and increasing opposition from concerned shareholders.

Today, Boston Common Asset Management ("Boston Common"), the Investor Environmental Health Network ("IEHN") and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility ("ICCR") announced that 55 major investment organizations and institutional investors with nearly $1 trillion in assets under management ("AUM") have united to support "best practices" for the fracking of shale gas.

Energy Dept. website helps you find break-even point of hybrid vehicles

Mon, 21 May 2012 06:49:14 -0400

Detroit Free Press: What's the break-even point when you buy a hybrid? How long do you have to own a hybrid, and how far must you drive one, before the money you save on fuel offsets the additional cost?

A new website from the U.S. Department of Energy has some surprising answers to those questions.

Air Force charts its energy-saving progress

Mon, 21 May 2012 06:48:36 -0400

Air Force Times: Two wars. Each a decade long. Each requiring cargo and reconnaissance and medical evacuations and a host of other air missions — 760,000 since Sept. 11, 2001.

Just think of all the fuel.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with the rising fuel costs, have underscored energy use in the Air Force, Kevin Geiss, deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for energy, said in an interview with Air Force Times earlier this year.

Rethinking the Role of Government in Cleantech

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:05:16 -0400

Renewable Energy World: Another year, another wringing of the hands over tax credits and incentives for clean technology.

Lobbyists and vendors in the U.S. are once again singing the blues, calling for continued and expanding government investments in clean technology. At the same time, political challengers continue their Solyndra hootenanny, raking the current administration for how it spent hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.

Apple gets OK for Maiden solar farm

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:04:51 -0400

News and Observer: Apple won state approval Thursday for a 20-megawatt solar farm, the biggest proposed in North Carolina, near its data center in Maiden.

No complaints were filed and the project passed muster under environmental standards, the N.C. Utilities Commission said in approving the certificate of public necessity and convenience. Maiden is about 40 miles northwest of Charlotte.

Mission Critical: A Clean Energy Call to Arms

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:04:26 -0400

Renewble Energy World: They say nothing can get done in Washington, D.C. on the issue of clean energy, which has become a political lightening rod over the last year. With Congress at a high watermark of partisanship, accusations abound on Capitol Hill that American energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and the policies that support them are job killers and a money-wasting hoax on taxpayers. And yet, there's reason for optimism about energy innovation in this country. Why? Because the most powerful force in the world, the U.S. military, is mobilizing on a clean energy mission — and I believe they're going to win this war.

On Our Radar: A Nuclear Snapshot

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:03:55 -0400

The New York Times: The Energy Information Administration presents a new visualization of the global capacity for nuclear power generation. From 1980 to 2010, nuclear capacity in Asia quadrupled, led primarily by Korea, Japan, and India; more recently, growth has been led primarily by China, where capacity has quintupled in the last 10 years. [Energy Information Administration]

Brazil’s president faces growing pressure to veto a law that would open vast protected areas of forests to ranching and farming. Opponents say it could reverse the nation’s gains in slowing Amazon deforestation.

31 Percent Anti-Dumping Tariffs Announced for Chinese Solar Panels

Fri, 18 May 2012 06:47:30 -0400

Renewable Energy World: New Hampshire, U.S.A. -- The U.S. Department of Commerce on Thursday announced stiff anti-dumping tariffs of around 31 percent on crystalline silicon solar panels imported from China, leading to a new round of concerns on how the duties will impact the growing American solar industry.

In its preliminary determination, the DOC set duties at 31.14 percent for Trina, 31.22 percent for Suntech and 31.18 percent for other Chinese solar manufacturers that chose to participate in the investigation. The companies that chose not to participate were hit with a 250 percent tariff. The tariffs will be retroactive and be applied to panels that were shipped from as far back as about the middle of February 2012.