QUICK NEWS, 4-12: MONTCOAL DISASTER ENDS GRAVESIDE; WIND RISING IN THE HEARTLANDS; SUN-POWERED WATER RECYCLING; MICROSOFT TO SMART CHARGE FORD EV

MONTCOAL DISASTER ENDS GRAVESIDE
In coalfields, days of prayer end in sorrow
Allen G. Breed (w/Greg Bluestein, Lawrence Messina, Dena Potter and Vicki Smith), April 11, 2010, (AP via San Jose Mercury News)

"…In this narrow, river-bound valley, the 125-year-old Jarrell General Merchandise store is the closest thing to a community center. Jarrell normally closes up around 5:30 p.m., but the steady stream of people stopping by to offer or ask for news continued until 3 the next morning…[T[he news trickling in grew grimmer and grimmer. Seven dead. Twelve dead. Twenty-five. Perhaps more…The community needed the store, this gathering place, more than ever. And Jarrell knew that there would be a need for the other service he provides the valley…Graves would need digging.

"At 3:02 p.m. last Monday, computers on the surface detected a major seismic event deep inside the mine. It came from about a mile and a half inside the mountain, near an area known as the "Glory Hole." …[C]oal car operator Melvin Lynch, 50, of Mount Hope, felt his ears pop. Suddenly, the mine went dark…Lynch and the other men on his crew made their way to the surface. It was only when another crew emerged and reported that they'd been showered with debris that Lynch knew that something was wrong…By 4 p.m., the first word of fatalities reached the surface. Lynch's older brother, Roosevelt, 59, was among them."

Rescuers emerging empty-handed. (click to enlarge)

"…Gov. Joe Manchin was in South Florida, enjoying a visit with friends. The legislative session had just ended, a budget had been approved, so Manchin and his wife, Gayle, jumped on a plane…Manchin was chatting when a member of his security detail came in and said there'd been an accident…Manchin's mind instantly reeled back to a frigid January morning in 2006…when word came of a methane explosion at the Sago Mine in Upshur County…The 12 resulting deaths inspired state and federal safety legislation requiring coal operators to improve underground communications, and to equip their mines with airtight chambers stocked with enough food, water and oxygen to last several days…As Manchin—whose own uncle was among 78 killed in a 1968 mine explosion—rushed to catch a plane home, he found some comfort in the thought that if any of the Montcoal miners had survived the initial blast, they had somewhere to hunker down and await rescue…

"At 4:58 p.m., Massey Energy Co., the parent company of mine operator Performance Coal, sent out its first press release about the explosion. A little over three hours later, the company announced the first casualties—seven dead, 19 unaccounted for…Kevin Stricklin of the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration announced that the known death toll had risen to 12. But he also offered what he considered a hopeful sign: Rescue crews had found a cache of self-contained breathing devices from which several appeared to be missing, perhaps taken by the miners…Not long after, company officials informed the families that two miners had been taken to area hospitals alive, but that there were now 25 confirmed casualties…That still left four men unaccounted for. But at 1:42 a.m. Tuesday, a Massey press release announced that rescue crews had been pulled from the mine "due to conditions underground"—smoke and, worse, high concentrations of carbon-monoxide and explosive methane gas…"

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"Manchin arrived on the scene before dawn Tuesday. After getting the latest briefing, he went to visit with the families…He was speaking with Linda Davis—whose son, Timmy Davis Sr. and grandsons, Cory Davis, 20, and Napper were unaccounted for—when an aide walked up and handed him a piece of paper with the four latest confirmed fatalities...Manchin was horrified to see the three men's names were on it. The governor quickly ushered the family into a private room…"Linda," he said. "They didn't make it." …"Were they together?" she asked quietly… Amazed at the woman's strength, Manchin replied, "Yes. They were all together." …By then, the Quarles children had also learned that their father would not be coming home. At 9:36 a.m., Trevor Quarles logged onto MySpace and wrote simply: "R.I.P. Dad ILY." …[Finally, the announcement that the last four had been found]...Death appears to have come instantaneously [for all]…

"When Jarrell started digging graves two decades ago, all the work was done by hand, with shovels. Nowadays, he uses his Mustang backhoe on some jobs, but most of Raleigh County's family cemeteries are perched on hillsides too steep, in hollows too narrow and isolated for heavy machinery…Despite torrential rains Thursday that turned the hillside into a muddy soup, Jarrell and a cousin stabbed at the rocky earth with their spades for 5 1/2 hours, quitting only when the sun set. On Friday morning, the two men, accompanied by Jarrell's nephew, a Marine home on leave, returned with a jackhammer to break through the last few inches of sandstone and shale…"


WIND RISING IN THE HEARTLANDS
Midwest turns to wind turbines
Jennifer Dlouhy, April 8, 2010 (Houston Chronicle)

"The wind-energy industry last year installed 5,700 new turbines with more than 10,000 megawatts of generating capacity…enough to serve more than 2.4 million homes…Texas leads the nation with more than 9,000 megawatts of wind generation capacity, including 2,292 megawatts added last year. But Iowa is the leader in relying on wind-generated electricity. Last year, 14.2 percent of the state's electrical power came from wind — compared to 1.8 percent nationwide.

"Indiana added 905 megawatts of capacity in 2009, second only to Texas. Measured by total installed capacity, the top states are Texas, Iowa, California, Washington and Oregon."

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"The data from [the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA)] reveals another year of continued growth for wind power. But industry leaders said they are constrained by the nation's aging electrical transmission system and that sustained growth depends on the continuation of expiring federal tax credits as well as a new national requirement that power companies must get a portion of their electricity from renewable sources…

"Renewable electricity standards [RESs] mandate the use of wind, solar and other easily replenished power sources in 39 countries and 29 states, including Texas and California. There is no similar nationwide mandate, though proposals for a federal requirement are pending in Congress…A national renewable electricity requirement could steer utilities away from some lower-cost energy sources and encourage investment in wind and solar power."

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"Although an increasing number of states are adding wind power to their energy portfolios, turbines remain concentrated in the Great Plains and along the Pacific Coast. The industry has not secured a foothold in the Southeast, where less gusty conditions make the power source less attractive…

"The nation's six largest wind farms are in Texas, with the biggest — the Roscoe Wind Farm near Abilene — boasting 782 megawatts of generating capacity…[And U.S.] wind power projects are spurring domestic manufacturing…[T]he industry supported 85,000 U.S. jobs in 2009…Not everyone is as enthusiastic. Natural gas producers worry that fossil fuel will be displaced if utilities are forced to shift to renewable sources…"


SUN-POWERED WATER RECYCLING
City of San Diego and SunEdison Celebrates the Activation of the 945kW Solar Power Plant at the Otay Mesa Water Treatment Facility; Part of the Mayor's goal to deploy 5MW of Solar Capacity for the City
April 6, 2010 (Business Wire via MarketPlace)

"…SunEdison, North America's largest solar energy services provider and a subsidiary of MEMC Electronic Materials celebrated…the activation of the 945kW solar power plant at San Diego's Otay Mesa water treatment facility.

"The solar power deployment at the Otay Mesa water treatment facility was made possible through a Solar Power Service Agreement (SPSA) between the City of San Diego and SunEdison that required no upfront costs from the city. The city will purchase the energy produced by the solar power system for 20 years to offset their demand from the utility grid."

The 945 kilowatt Otay Mesa solar-powered water recycling plant. (click to enlarge)

"The Otay Mesa solar power plant will generate over 1.5 million kWh of energy in the first year of operation and will produce over 27 million kWh over 20 years. That is enough energy to power more than 2,600 average U.S. homes for one year. The environmental attributes associated with the system will offset over 29 million pounds of carbon dioxide, over the initial 20 years of operation -- the equivalent of taking 2,800 cars off the road."

The 1.1 megawatt Alvarado solar-powered water recycling plant. (click to enlarge)

"This activation marks the second solar power deployment for the City of San Diego by SunEdison and is part of the city's plan to deploy 5MW of solar capacity. SunEdison has already installed and operates a 1.1 MW solar facility at the city's Alvarado water treatment plant which was activated in 2007…

"This [Otay Mesa] site shows SunEdison's continued commitment to provide cities across the country with solar solutions that require no upfront costs, create green jobs, and stimulate local economies…"


MICROSOFT TO SMART CHARGE FORD EV
Ford intends to use Microsoft software to schedule charging
Justin Hyde, April 1, 2010 (Detroit Free Press)

"The CEOs of Ford and Microsoft…[will] work together on software to manage how electric vehicles charge, aiming to shift any extra demand away from peak hours.

"While there won't be very many electric vehicles on the road for a couple of years, automakers, utilities and the Obama administration have expressed concerns about the effects on overtaxed power systems if sales of plug-in hybrids and electric cars take off."

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"Ford CEO Alan Mulally said the automaker was aiming to use an updated version of Microsoft's Hohm software when it launches an electric Ford Focus next year. Hohm is a Web-based program that keeps track of household energy use, and Mulally said it could eventually automatically schedule charging for off-peak hours…

"Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said Hohm would take data from utilities and combine it with the charging demands from an electric vehicle to [most efficiently determine when and how the EV can] recharge."

click thru for more on the Hohm program

"Electric utilities have been generally enthusiastic supporters of automakers' push toward battery-powered vehicles -- as long as they charge overnight, rather than during the day.

"A study…by a group of electric wholesalers covering two-thirds of the U.S. and Canada forecast that plug-in hybrids could boost electric demand by 10% in some areas if all were charging during peak hours. If recharging was spread throughout the day, the study found minimal boosts in energy demand."