MORE NEWS, 12-24: EARTH KEEPERS; NEW ENERGY, OLD CONTROVERSY; NEW ENERGY’S RISING WATERS; STUDY SKEWS EV COSTS

EARTH KEEPERS
Stewards of the Earth: Congregations reduce carbon footprint
Mark Collins, December 22, 2009 (Daily Camera)

"…Boulder Mennonnite Church in South Boulder had vegetables growing on church property as part of a neighborhood farm…Congregation Bonai Shalom in Boulder celebrated Hanukkah…using energy from wind turbines…[and served] a Shabbat meal using compostable cutlery and plates…Unity Church of Boulder will be celebrating Christmas 2010 in a solar-powered building [if funding works out].

"All three groups are among a growing number of local religious organizations that believe lowering carbon footprints is part of walking a spiritual path…"

click to enlarge

"…[After hearing Rabbi Marc Soloway’s Rosh Hashanah] green sermon… Debbie Garelick… organized the Bonai Shalom Green Team. In recent years, Garelick has taken input from congregants, and spearheaded several eco-friendly initiatives at the synagogue…In addition, the synagogue uses energy-efficient lighting, gets all its electricity through Xcel Energy`s wind-energy program and worshippers employ zero-waste practices during weekly meals…

"…Unity is in the midst of a fund-raising campaign to fund a $130,000 solar-panel project. Pastor Jack Groverland said he believes the campaign goals will be met in the spring, and the church will run on solar energy sometime in 2010…Unity is trying to meet the financial burden of purchasing and installing a solar-energy system by collecting used cellphones and inkjet cartridges [for recycling, for a fee]…The church also encourages recycling and composting…[and] has an ongoing campaign where people can donate used goods…that are taken to an Indian reservation at Pine Ridge in South Dakota…"

click to enlarge

"Garelick said her faith calls her to find ways to live sustainably…Likewise, pointing to verses in Genesis and in the Gospel of Luke, Groverland said there is Biblical support for humankind to take care of the environment…Phil Metzler, a trustee at Boulder Mennonite, says the small church has looked for ways to green its facility…

"Metzler approached Kipp Nash, the farmer who founded Community Roots…St. Andrew Presbyterian also allows Nash to use a plot in its community garden, where he donates 10 percent of the harvest, as do other gardeners who use it. Nash says church land can be a good resource for producing food…Metzler of Boulder Mennonite says the partnership has worked well. Church members feel that the land is going to a useful, community enterprise. And the garden works as an outreach effort, too…"


NEW ENERGY, OLD CONTROVERSY
World's largest solar project prompts environmental debate
Paul Rogers, December 22, 2009 (San Jose Mercury News)

"…[Solargen Energy of Silicon Valley] is proposing to build [in the Panoche Valley in rural California] what would be the world's largest solar farm — 1.2 million solar panels [at a cost of $1.8 billion] spread across an area roughly the size of 3,500 football fields…

"…In a refrain being heard increasingly across California, [critics — including some environmentalists — say] the plan to cover this ranch land with a huge solar project would harm a unique landscape and its wildlife…[while] green energy supporters are frustrated that a state that wants to lead the green revolution is facing roadblocks…[T]he Panoche Valley…20 miles from the nearest town…has 90 percent of the solar intensity of the Mojave Desert. Five willing sellers…have signed options to sell [Solargen] 18,000 acres. And huge transmission lines run through the site, negating the need to build the kind of costly and controversial new power lines that have stalled similar projects…The project would produce 420 megawatts of electricity, roughly the same as a medium-sized natural gas power plant, and enough to power 315,000 homes…"

click to enlarge

"But in recent weeks, the Santa Clara Valley, Monterey Peninsula and Fresno chapters of the Audubon Society have opposed the project…Among their primary concerns: Panoche Valley is home to several endangered species, including the San Joaquin kit fox, the blunt-nosed leopard lizard and the giant kangaroo rat. Additionally, an estimated 130 species of birds have been observed in the valley, including the bald eagle, golden eagle and prairie falcon…[Many in the groups support] renewable energy. But not here…

"Several nearby residents also are fighting the project…[saying] vast solar arrays would alter the character of the area…[Some say] Solargen, founded in 2006, has never built a solar farm, and is pursuing the project primarily for the huge federal subsidies now flowing to renewable energy…Two large solar proposals in San Luis Obispo County near the Carrizo Plain — a 250-megawatt project proposed by SunPower of San Jose, and a 550-megawatt proposal from First Solar of Arizona — also are facing environmental opposition…"

Where sheep can graze, these guys should thrive. (click to enlarge)

"…U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., …introduced a bill to establish two new national monuments on federal land in the Mojave Desert. If approved, the measure would all but kill 19 large solar and wind farms proposed for the area…[Senator Feinstein] wants no large-scale solar or wind energy on former railroad lands that the federal government acquired a decade ago and that are prime habitat for bighorn sheep, desert tortoises and other wildlife…[though] she supports solar energy, and her bill requires the Bureau of Land Management and other agencies to identify other desert areas suitable for solar.

"But others argue that prohibiting solar developments in vast portions of California doesn't make sense…[with Governor Schwarzenegger’s new] executive order requiring 33 percent of California's electricity to come from renewable sources such as solar and wind…[and] President Barack Obama's stimulus plan…It would pay for 30 percent of Solargen's project…if ground can be broken by Dec. 1, 2010…Julia Levin, a member of the California Energy Commission and former Audubon California policy director, said large solar projects are needed because residential rooftop solar, while important, costs more and takes longer to ramp up than big commercial installations…If work started by next December, [the Panoche Valley solar project] would be finished by 2016…[The] solar panels would be on racks, 3 feet off the ground, so sheep could graze underneath, and wildlife could move under them…[And the project] would create jobs and tax revenue for the tiny county…"


NEW ENERGY’S RISING WATERS
Wave and tidal power growing slowly, steadily
December 2009 (Electric Light and Power via HydroWorld)

"Proponents of wave and tidal power have compared the state of this area of the renewable energy sector with the early days of wind power. The technology has great potential but still must prove itself…

"Wave energy technology uses the movement of ocean waves to generate electricity from turbines…[T]idal power…is based on extracting energy from tidal movements and the water currents that accompany their rise and fall…[T]idal energy’s advantage lies in its predictability. Wave energy could be more abundant than tidal energy while still being less intermittent than wind or solar power…Conditions along coastlines or on the ocean surface, however, can be hard on wave and tidal installations…"

click to enlarge

"…The extent to which this will prove practical to harness [wave energy] will depend upon the successful development of near-shore and deep-water technologies…The most energetic wave resources are along the coasts of the Americas, Europe, Southern Africa, Australia and New Zealand…The [European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) at Scotland’s Orkney Islands] is one of the world’s foremost proving grounds for wave and tidal technologies and has collected more than 100 wave energy concepts, with many still at the research and development stage…[They] can be three to four times more expensive than wind power per megawatt…The United Kingdom remains one of the largest state sponsors of wave and tidal power…

"Scottish firm Pelamis Wave Power…launched a project in Portugal called the Agucadoura wave farm. The project consisted of three of the company’s P1-A Marine Energy Converters…In September 2008, the company installed the energy converters 3 miles off the coast of northern Portugal. In mid-November 2008, all units were removed from the ocean when leaks were discovered…By March 2009, Agucadoura was taken offline indefinitely with about $13 million spent on the project [but]…In February, Pelamis won an order from British renewable company E.ON for the next generation of Pelamis Marine Energy Converters…"

click to enlarge

"Despite the cancelation and scaling back of some projects following the economic crisis, there are still wave and tidal projects taking shape…In November, Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) won a $61 million grant from the Australian government for a utility-scale project…[T]he 19-MW project is expected to begin by the second quarter of 2010…OPT’s PowerBuoy floats freely with the rising and falling of offshore waves. The resulting motion is converted with a power take-off to drive a generator. The generated power is transmitted ashore via an underwater power cable…A 10-MW OPT power station would occupy about 30 acres of ocean space. The technology is scalable up to 100 MW…

"Irish tidal energy company OpenHydro won…[is developing] a 16-meter [1 MW] Open Center Turbine, Subsea Base and Installation Barge…[to be] on the seabed below the ocean waves. Invisible from the surface and silent, the turbines generate up to 1 MW of electricity… Oyster Wave Energy Converter [from Aquamarine Power] has been tested and deployed at the New and Renewable Energy Centre near Newcastle, England…to capture the energy found in near-shore waves…Wavegen…produces [an oscillating water column] shoreline wave energy conversion unit called Limpet…connected to Scotland’s power grid since 2000…The 18.5-kW modules are meant for use in breakwaters, coastal defenses, land reclamation schemes and harbor walls…"


STUDY SKEWS EV COSTS
Finding flaws in hybrid-car study
Reader letter, December 23, 2009 (Washington Post)

[Robbie Diamond, president and chief executive, Electrification Coalition:] “The Dec. 18 editorial "Cash for clunkers" referred to -- and relied heavily on -- a recent study by the National Research Council. Unfortunately, several of the assumptions that drove that study's conclusions were flawed. The NRC report assumes battery costs that are far higher than current industry estimates. The coming GM Volt, for example, has reported battery costs of $500 and $625 per kilowatt-hour, significantly less than the NRC's estimate of $875 per kilowatt-hour.”

An independent study suggests battery sales will quickly be high enough to drive economies of scale and create much lower costs than the NRC study found. NewEnergyNews did not report on the NRC study because it seemed skewed in several ways. (click to enlarge)

[Robbie Diamond, president and chief executive, Electrification Coalition:] “Perhaps worse, the report underestimated expected reductions in cost as battery technology continues to improve and economies of scale come into play. The Energy Department reports that a plant capable of producing 100,000 battery packs per year will have costs that are 38 to 44 percent less than a 10,000-unit plant. Yet the NRC seems to ignore these economies of scale. The NRC has done much important work over the years. In this case, however, its assumptions are badly out of line with industry and government estimates, and its conclusions -- and unfortunately, those of the Post editorial that relied on them -- suffer as well.”