QUICK NEWS, 6-7: SCRUB SCRUB SCRUB; THE OIL SPILL – CHENEY’S KATRINA; POWERDISH & CPV TESTED; WIND & WHAT EVERYBODY TALKS ABOUT IT

SCRUB SCRUB SCRUB
Bird washers hard at work as Gulf spill toll grows
Anna Driver (w/Sarah Irwin, Ros Krasny and Paul Simao), June 5, 2010 (Reuters)

"…The number of birds brought to the Fort Jackson Bird Rehabilitation Center in Venice, Louisiana, where workers hired by BP wash the birds, has jumped…as a huge oil slick edges closer to vital nesting and breeding grounds.

"A total of 157 birds found in state waters have been treated at the center, where they receive a vigorous scrubbing, since the oil started leaking…But 66 birds, mostly brown pelicans, arrived [June 4 and 5], raising alarm bells. The brown pelican is Louisiana's state bird and only was taken off the endangered species list just last year amid attempts to restore its population…"

From GreenpeaceMagazine via YouTube

"The birds brought to the center are plucked from oil soaked waters that now ring Louisiana's fragile barrier islands and marshes. The feathers of oiled birds become matted and separate, leaving them vulnerable to heat or cold…They also try to preen, or clean their feathers with their beak or bill, risking a sickening or fatal ingestion of oil.

"The marshy areas around the rehabilitation center are so far untouched by the slick, and are teeming with birds. Snowy-white egrets peck at the ground or scan shallow waters for food, while gulls and terns fly overhead…But on [June 5], brisk winds pushed oil over some of the containment booms meant to keep the crude away from the coast, ringing a nearby brown pelican rookery and leaving the birds standing in a watery crude oil soup…"

click thru to the NY Times for the interactive map

"Once brought to the center, the birds are treated for dehydration and other conditions and fed before the difficult clean-up operation begins…Because the crude that clings to the pelicans' feathers is so sticky, they are first bathed in warmed vegetable oil…In the next step, workers armed with toothbrushes and dishwashing liquid scrub the birds for about 45 minutes. The brown pelicans, which have wingspans as wide as 8 feet (2.44 meters) typically struggle during the process...After the birds are dried and receive a health check, they are banded for identification purposes and flown to Florida by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service...

"The spill's toll on the Gulf coast bird population will not be known for some time...[S]ome rehabilitated birds may survive but might not breed again…According to the [June 5] report issued by the U.S. government…547 birds across the Gulf coast have been collected dead, but not all of those animals showed signs of contact with oil…But the government's numbers tell only part of the story…[because some birds sink into the water and are never counted]…"


THE OIL SPILL – CHENEY’S KATRINA
BP Disaster Is Cheney’s Katrina; Bush Administration Actions Created Unsafe Circumstances
Rebecca Lefton, June 2, 2010 (Center for American Progress)

"BP’s oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico is without a doubt former Vice President Dick Cheney’s Katrina. President George W. Bush and Cheney consistently catered to Big Oil and other special interests to undercut renewable energy and energy efficiency initiatives that would set the United States on a more secure clean energy path.

"Oil companies raked in record profits while benefitting from policies they wrote for themselves. These energy policies did nothing for our national security and left consumers to pay the price at the pump and on their energy bills, which rose more than $1,100 during the Bush administration…"

From the Center for American Progress (click to enlarge)

"2001…The Bush administration released the National Energy Policy Report on May 16…[It] was based on recommendations provided to Cheney from coal, oil, and nuclear companies and related trade groups…[which] secretly met with the Cheney and his staff as part of a task force to develop the country’s energy policy…Only 7 of the 105 recommendations in the plan involved renewable energy… [T]the fiscal year 2002 budget… included steep cuts for clean energy research and development…[The]
House energy bill [had] $33.5 billion in tax breaks for dirty energy…2002…[The] Senate clean energy bill…[passed] but was not reconciled with the House bill that closely followed the Cheney dirty energy task force proposal…[There were further renewable] energy budget cuts…

"…2003…[The] House energy bill [had] $23.5 billion in tax breaks for dirty energy…[There were further] renewable energy budget cuts…2004…[The] House [passed a] bill allowing companies to build oil refineries in minority communities…"

click to enlarge

"…2005…[There were further] renewable energy budget cuts…[The] Energy Policy Act of 2005…closely resembled Cheney’s 2001 plan and gave $27 billion to coal, oil and gas, and nuclear, and only $6.4 billion for renewable energy… Regulations [were put in place permiting] oil and gas industry to regulate itself… 2006…President Bush [stated] in the State of the Union Address…that, “America is addicted to oil.” …A House-passed bill [allowed] drilling in Arctic Refuge…[but] Arctic Refuge development was once again blocked in the Senate because drilling proponents were unable to muster the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster…[There were further] budget cuts for renewable energy…"

"2007…Investigators from the Interior Department…found that the Minerals Management Service [were informed of but failed to collect $865 million owed in oil and gas royalties due to a legal mistake]…[There were further] cuts for renewable energy… President Bush [blocked] the Energy Independence and Security Act because it included a renewable electricity standard and renewable energy tax credits funded by the elimination of many tax subsidies for major oil companies…2008…President Bush [proposed] a 27 percent cut for Department of Energy efficiency and renewable energy programs…opposed House passage of [a strong energy bill and]…lifted the executive moratorium on offshore drilling…Minerals Management Service officials [were found to have] accepted gifts, engaged in drug use and illicit sex with employees from energy firms, and showed favoritism in handling contracts…Gasoline prices soared to more than $4.00 per gallon, and oil set an all-time record high price of $147 per barrel…"


POWERDISH & CPV TESTED
SDG&E Unveils New Solar Power Demonstration Projects; Projects Concentrate Solar Heat/Light to Boost Power Efficiency
June 2, 2010 (Marketwire via MarketWatch)

"San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E)…[placed] two new solar power demonstration installations that concentrate the light and heat from the sun to generate power in two distinctively different ways.

"…The PowerDish(TM), built by Infinia of Kennewick, Wash., a mirrored disc 15 feet in diameter that concentrates and focuses the sun's energy onto a compact Stirling engine that converts that energy into electricity. Each PowerDish produces up to 3,000 watts of electricity, enough to power a typical home…"

From ThePowerDish via YouTube

"…Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) Technology, built by SolFocus of Mountain View, Calif., uses a reflective optical system to concentrate sunlight 650 times onto very high-efficiency photovoltaic cells up to twice as efficient as traditional silicon PV cells. The rectangular system is 24 feet wide, 18 feet tall and is capable of generating 8,400 watts, enough to power three homes…

"The total cost for both projects is $80,000 and will be funded by SDG&E's research and development group…"

From WMSMedia via YouTube

"The demonstrations are expected to continue for 12 to 18 months, after which SDG&E will share the results with the manufacturers.

"…[The projects support] SDG&E's plan to develop green technologies, meet its renewable energy goals and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. The company has voluntarily agreed to obtain 33 percent of its electricity portfolio from renewables by 2020…"


WIND & WHAT EVERYBODY TALKS ABOUT IT
Learning Curve Continues in Use of Wind Forecasting Technologies: NREL-Funded Paper
Carl Levesque, June 4, 2010 (Wind Energy Weekly)

"As utilities and RTOs put wind forecasting through its paces and become more familiar with how to use it, they continue to rely on it primarily for ensuring grid reliability, according to a recently released paper…

"…Status of Centralized Wind Power Forecasting in North America, was produced by Kevin Porter and Jennifer Rogers of Columbia, Md.-based Exeter Associates with funding from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and U.S. Department of Energy…[It] explains how different regions use wind power forecasting."

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"In addition to reviewing the advantages and disadvantages of wind power forecasting, the paper explores each program individually, noting when they came into operation, or expect to do so, and which wind power forecast vendor and model the organizations chose to provide the service. The tools and techniques used by the vendor to procure the forecasts are detailed in the paper, along with what data wind projects are required to submit in each region.

"… [O]ne conclusion reached…is that there is increasing interest in using centralized forecasting systems. But perhaps the most salient point…is that the wind forecasting space remains at a stage of cautious experimentation, with day-ahead forecasts still used first and foremost for reliability planning but not in the area believed to have the greatest impact on power prices—that is, for market decisions, such as when to bring online gas-fired plants and when to ramp them down. Such uses, assert an ever-growing catalogue of wind integration studies, can be the source for significant cost benefits through easing of pressure on natural gas and power prices…"