QUICK NEWS, 5-10: CALIF CLIMATE LAW A STATE BENEFIT; SOLAR IQ TEST; CAPE WIND PRE-SELLS ITS OUTPUT; GEOTHERMAL TELLS IT TO CITY HALL

CALIF CLIMATE LAW A STATE BENEFIT
Opinion: Getting the facts straight on California's energy policy
Editorial, May 8, 2010 (San Jose Mercury News)

[James Sweeney, Professor of Management Science and Engineering/ Director of the Precourt Energy Efficiency Center, Stanford University:] “California's Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32) is due to take effect early next year…Critics claim AB 32 is inflexible and would seriously harm California's economy. The reality is quite different…A central element of AB 32 is an emission trading system similar to the cap-and-trade program for acid rain enacted in 1990 during President George H.W. Bush's administration…California sets the level of emission reductions but gives companies the flexibility to find low-cost ways to achieve reductions…[and] companies can trade emissions permits…Numerous studies show that this approach allows overall emissions-reduction goals to be achieved at significantly lower cost than under conventional command and control.

"AB 32 and other California climate efforts also include…a low-carbon fuel standard, a 33 percent renewable energy portfolio standard, utility-based energy efficiency programs, "smart growth" incentives for counties and cities, and automotive fuel efficiency standards. Critics claim these measures are costly…[but they are] likely to reduce costs of AB 32 compared with a policy that includes only cap-and-trade…[because such complimentary policies] address important market failures that cap-and-trade cannot."

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[James Sweeney, Professor of Management Science and Engineering/ Director of the Precourt Energy Efficiency Center, Stanford University:] "Critics claim AB 32 will harm California's economy…yet the [most pessimistic] impacts predicted are small…[and show that with] AB 32, California's economy will grow an average of 2.3 percent annually to 2020, compared with 2.4 percent annually in the absence of AB 32…[the] California Air Resources Board [CARB] shows smaller or approximately neutral impacts. University of California studies and a Brattle Group study show a neutral or minimal impact on the state's economy.

"…The assumption that California's economy is operating perfectly (except for the generation of greenhouse gas emissions) assures a conclusion that complementary policies have no useful role… In contrast, the CARB report assumes that market failures exist and therefore, cost-reductions through complementary policies are possible…[Either way, studies of AB 32] show only very small overall economic impacts…[and omit] possible gains from technical progress or new business formation associated with investment in green tech…"

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[James Sweeney, Professor of Management Science and Engineering/ Director of the Precourt Energy Efficiency Center, Stanford University:] "…California businesses that have curbed emissions [in anticipation of the implementation of AB 32] are factoring in costs of these improvements and seeing financial savings. Although California is experiencing hard economic times, the difficulties are the result of the global financial meltdown and subprime mortgage crisis, not AB 32.

"California's effort not only yields climate benefits, but also may trigger further benefits by providing a model that helps catalyze similar efforts in other states or at the federal level. It is reasonable for California to undertake these small costs, given the large climate change problem and the benefits from addressing emissions."


SOLAR IQ TEST
Test Your Solar-Power IQ ; Everybody's talking about solar power. But do you know what they're talking about?
Yuliya Chernova, May 10, 2010 (Wall Street Journal)

"1. Which of these locations gets the most electricity from solar power?…Arizona…Denmark… Germany…Spain…New Jersey…Answer…more electricity is generated by solar panels in Germany than anywhere else, even though it's not exactly a sunny place. In 2009…about three gigawatts…more than half of the total capacity installed world-wide last year. In the U.S., California leads, with New Jersey second.

"2. Which of these U.S. presidents installed solar panels at the White House?…Richard Nixon…Jimmy Carter…Ronald Reagan…Bill Clinton…George W. Bush…Answer…In 1979, President Carter's White House installed solar panels on the roof of the West Wing to heat water. They were removed in 1986 during the Reagan administration when the roof was being repaired, and were never replaced. In 2002, new solar panels were placed on the White House grounds [during the G.W. Bush first term] to heat water and generate electricity."

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"3. How much electricity would a solar panel rated at 100 watts produce on a sunny day in Washington, D.C.? …100 watts…85 watts…60 watts…50 watts…Answer…A solar panel should produce about 85% of its rated wattage [85 watts] in strong sunlight in the Washington area, with the rest lost to various inefficiencies…The total will differ…[by] location…

"4. Which famous scientist received a Nobel Prize for his work in solar energy?…Thomas Edison…Albert Einstein…Nikola Tesla…Georg Ohm…Answer…In 1921 the Nobel Prize in physics went to Albert Einstein for his explanation of the photoelectric effect—the ejection of electrons from the surface of a metal in response to light. In a solar photovoltaic panel, sunlight hitting the surface causes electrons to flow, which creates an electrical current.

"5. Which country or region leads in manufacturing solar panels?… China …Europe…Japan…North America…Answer…In 2009 China produced about 36% of all solar panels made world-wide…Europe… had an 18% share. Japan was third at 16% and North America, primarily the U.S., fourth at 8%."

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"6. In the U.S., solar power is most commonly used to do what?… Provide electricity in the home…Power large retail centers…Deliver electricity to the grid…Heat water for swimming pools…Heat water for household use…Answer…As of the end of 2008, about 7,000 megawatts of solar power was installed for heating pools, compared with 1,100 megawatts for all other uses.

"7. What is the approximate cost to produce electricity from solar power in the U.S.?… Five cents per kilowatt-hour…10 cents per kilowatt-hour…25 cents per kilowatt-hour…35 cents per kilowatt-hour…Answer…25 cents per kilowatt-hour…more than twice the [below 10 cents per kilowatt-hour] cost of power generated by [wind,] coal and natural gas…[although the] price of solar power depends largely on where it is produced."


CAPE WIND PRE-SELLS ITS OUTPUT

Cape Wind has its 1st buyer; National Grid signs deal to buy power
Hiawatha Bray and Erin Allworth, May 8, 2010 (Boston Globe)

"Cape Wind, the controversial wind farm proposed for Nantucket Sound, has signed its first deal to sell power: a 15-year contract with local utility National Grid, at a price that will add $1.59 a month to the average customer’s bill in its first year. The contract, which includes a 3.5 percent annual price increase, will be submitted…to the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities for approval…

"The Cape Wind project is planned to begin generating power in 2013, although it still faces strong opposition. National Grid has agreed to buy 50 percent of the power it generates at a price of 20.7 cents per kilowatt hour — substantially more than the cost of electricity from conventional power plants."

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"Massachusetts consumers pay some of the highest rates for electricity in the nation. The price for the electricity alone is about 9 cents per kilowatt hour, and customers also pay a number of other charges. State law requires utilities to purchase a percentage of their power from renewable sources…The utilities must also pay an extra 6.1 cents per kilowatt hour for such power, in effect subsidizing renewable energy providers. The price agreed to by National Grid includes the extra fee. In addition, National Grid agreed to the 3.5 percent annual increase for the life of the contract to adjust for inflation.

"Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Secretary Ian Bowles said that the price of wind energy promises to be more stable than the cost of power generated by natural gas. He said rising natural gas prices prompted a tripling of electricity prices in the state over the past decade…But Audra Parker, president of the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound in Hyannis, disputed that. Parker said, the Cape Wind contract will cost National Grid customers $442 million in higher electric bills over the 15-year life of the contract…"

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"The deal makes National Grid the first utility to sign a contract with Cape Wind, an important step. The wind farm will cost an estimated $1 billion to build, and a paying customer in hand will help lock down the financing. [The contract with National Grid accounts for only half of Cape Wind’s power output. Cape Wind spokesman Mark Rodgers said the company is in talks with other potential customers, including other electric utilities]…

"Cape Wind plans to generate up to 468 megawatts of electricity from 130 wind turbines. First proposed nine years ago, the Cape Wind project has been delayed by intense opposition from residents of Nantucket and Cape Cod, who say the giant windmills will ruin the natural beauty of the region…But last week, US Interior Secretary Kenneth Salazar gave final federal approval for the plan to proceed…"


GEOTHERMAL TELLS IT TO CITY HALL
New, green City Hall designed for a century; It features geothermal heating system, other touches
Mary Divine, May 9, 2010 (St. Paul Pioneer Press)

"There are hardly any light switches in the new Oak Park Heights City Hall…Energy-saving LED lights turn on only if a sensor detects motion, heat and sound; photometric sensors adjust indoor lighting to compensate for daylight.

"The new $6.5 million municipal building, which opens May 17, also features a state-of-the-art geothermal heating and cooling system, rain gardens and a heat-recovery system that reclaims energy from the air before it is discharged outside…City officials pushed for green, sustainable construction techniques to save money and help the environment…"

Lowering heating costs (click to enlarge)

"In addition, the new City Hall, just north and west of the old one, is more customer-friendly…The building's signature design item is its soaring rotunda, which is warmed by in-floor radiant heat…Architect Randy Engel said the 32,000-square-foot building — built of brick and limestone — is designed to last 50 to 100 years…

"Engel said the building's design includes only green features that made economic sense. A green roof, for instance, didn't make sense in Minnesota…[Estimates showed] it would have cost about the same to remodel the old City Hall as to build a new, energy-efficient structure…[even including] energy-efficient measures, such as the geothermal heating and cooling system…"

Lowering cooling costs (click to enlarge)

"The geothermal system will save the city about $25,000 a year…[Its cost was] an additional $300,000…but it will take only 12 years to pay back…

"In keeping with the city's green theme, most of the items from the old building are being recycled…"