QUICK NEWS, 11-4: TEACH EFFICIENCY TO GROW EFFICIENCY; QUESTIONS ABOUT THE EV; MAKING WIND IN SO DAKOTA; OREGON THINKS WEEDS FOR COAL

TEACH EFFICIENCY TO GROW EFFICIENCY
Communicating the Benefits of Efficiency Encourages Saving Energy
November 2, 2010 (American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy)

"Motivating customers and organizations to change their behavior can lead to significant energy savings. A new report from ACEEE, Visible and Concrete Savings: Case Studies of Effective Behavioral Approaches to Improving Customer Energy Efficiency, profiles a variety of programs that spur individuals and organizations to save energy by changing behavior in their homes, businesses, and plants…[C]ase studies illustrate the results possible when applying social science to [a full spectrum of] energy efficiency and conservation programs …

"Social science-based programs that seek to reduce customer energy use are attracting increased interest as governments, industries, and the public expand their energy efficiency efforts…Key factors for success…include making energy use ‘visible’ to customers, setting measurable goals, providing incentives and instructions for action, and providing feedback on progress…"

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"This report…[profiles] 10 large, recent programs that have met a broad range of efficiency targets—from 2 to 20 percent of participants’ energy use—using a variety of approaches…[They] show that behavioral programs can be…[effective and impact] energy use in the transportation and industrial sectors…"

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"…Two of the case studies highlight the ambitious efforts by Alcoa and Dow to reduce their total energy footprint in their companies through management and employee-led initiatives…Case studies from the transportation sector include EPA’s highly successful SmartWay Transport Partnership as well as France’s feebate program.

"The report’s case studies clearly demonstrate that behavioral change by individual consumers can lead to significant energy and cost savings. Applying social science to energy efficiency and conservation programs can effectively guide individuals and organizations towards increased energy efficiency and reduced energy use."


QUESTIONS ABOUT THE EV
Plenty of Hype — and Questions — About Electric Cars
Kate Galbraith, October 31, 2010 (NY Times)

"…The hype is virtually inescapable. Nissan has already received more than 27,000 reservations around the world for the Leaf, its all-electric car, which is to start arriving in the United States and Japan in December and several European markets soon thereafter. General Motors will make 10,000 Volt cars, its plug-in hybrid, next year; they will soon hit the streets of U.S. cities…Tesla, the California-based maker of a plug-in sports car called the Roadster, just opened its first Asian showroom, in Tokyo.

"But for ordinary people willing to swallow the high price tag (nearly $33,000 for the Leaf in the United States), plenty of questions about electric cars remain. Where can the cars be charged? What happens if they need to be fixed? How long will a charge last?"

Nissan does not agree with the NY Times reporter about the price. (click to enlarge)

"The carmakers are eager to make their first customers happy, so they are bending over backwards to help with the charging infrastructure and to allay “range anxiety” — the fear of running out of electricity and getting stranded…Many of the earliest adopters are likely to be urban homeowners with their own garages…So companies like NRG are preparing for a proliferation of home-based charging stations, with associated electricity payment plans…Apartment dwellers are likely to acquire electric cars later…[M]etering systems…[must] make sure the tenant was footing the bill for the electricity.

"Given the range limitations (Nissan’s Leaf is built to go about 100 miles, or 160 kilometers, on one charge), the earliest electric vehicle is also unlikely to be the only car in the family garage…Many cities, from Paris to Houston, are scrambling to install outlets that will allow people to charge (or, most likely, top off their charges) at places like Starbucks or shopping centers. But ultimately, analysts expect that most charging will be done at home, probably at night, with the public infrastructure providing a means to alleviate range anxiety…"

Here's why GM make the Volt capable of going 40 miles on its battery. (click to enlarge)

"Early owners of electric cars can expect plenty of perks. The most important are hefty tax incentives that will reduce the price tags — as much as $7,500 for an electric vehicle from the U.S. government and as much as £5,000, or $8,000, in Britain…Some places may offer carpool-lane privileges…[or] a parking spot close to the door…Electric vehicles should require fewer repairs [and routine service], car companies say, because their engines are less complex…[and electricity] costs far less than that for conventional vehicles — with the environmental benefits that this implies…[but] they will remain a small minority of all vehicles on the roads for the foreseeable future.

"…J.D. Power and Associates, a market research group based in California, said that combined sales of hybrid vehicles and all-electric ones would total just 7.3 percent of the nearly 71 million passenger vehicles sold worldwide in 2020…Consumers will balk at concerns about the cars’ range and power and the speed of recharging, as well as the high price tags, the report said…Nissan has said that by 2020, 10 percent of vehicles sold globally will be electric…For those who can get past the high price tags and the range limitations, Mr. Smaha, the Tesla owner, points out another advantage of electric vehicles, especially sporty ones: driving can again become a joy…"


MAKING WIND IN SO DAKOTA
Construction Begins On South Dakota Wind Project; The Crow Lake Wind Project will consist of 108 turbines located throughout Aurora, Brule and Jerauld Counties just east of Chamberlain in the south-central part of the state.
October 21, 2010 (Basin Electric Power Cooperative)

"On Oct. 5, 2010…construction began on the $363-million Crow Lake Wind Project in south-central South Dakota…[and] U.S. Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin…reported that a $1.167 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration had been approved for the Mitchell Technical Institute (MTI), Mitchell, S.D., to purchase one of the wind towers for use in its wind technician degree program…

"The Crow Lake Wind Project will consist of 108 turbines located throughout Aurora, Brule and Jerauld Counties just east of Chamberlain in the south-central part of the state. A subsidiary of Basin Electric Power Cooperative, PrairieWinds SD 1 Inc., will own and operate 101 turbines; however, turbine “101” will be used by MTI…"

South Dakota's wind could provide...(click to enlarge)

"Another seven turbines will be owned by South Dakota Wind Partners. PrairieWinds will construct the seven turbines for the Wind Partners and operate them. Through PrairieWinds, Basin Electric will purchase the electricity that’s produced from those turbines. The Wind Partners announced in late September they had raised the $16.8 million required from South Dakota investors for their part of the project…"

...ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIVE TIMES as much power as the state needs! (click to enlarge)

"When completed in early 2011, the Crow Lake Wind Project will have a generating capacity of 151.5 megawatts, the Wind Partners project will have a capacity of 10.5 megawatts. The Crow Lake Wind Project will be the largest wind project in the United States owned solely by a cooperative…[T]he project represents two community ownership models, through its cooperative owners and through the Wind Partners…

"In 2001, Basin Electric developed its first wind project – two turbines just north of Chamberlain, followed by another two turbines south of Minot, N.D…[It] has developed more than 450 megawatts of wind power in the Dakotas, including several projects with NextEra Energy Resources. In 2009, Basin Electric subsidiary PrairieWinds ND 1, Inc. completed the largest wind project in North Dakota. That project has a capacity of 120 megawatts. When the South Dakota project is completed, Basin Electric will have more than 700 megawatts of wind generation…"


OREGON THINKS WEEDS FOR COAL
Giant Reed May Replace Coal As Boardman Plant Fuel
Simon Boas,. November 1, 2010 (Oregon Public Broadcasting News)

"Portland General Electric is looking into biomass crops that might provide an alternative to coal…One of the crops it’s looking at is giant reed. But…not everybody believes it's desirable to grow this plant in Oregon.

"…[A] plant called giant reed grass, also known as giant cane or by its Latin name Arundo Donax…grows 16 feet in one year…[It is used] as ornamental grass for gardens…[but] doesn’t grow much in Oregon…[but can be seen] when it’s already cut into reeds for woodwind instruments…Portland General Electric wants to plant up to 300 acres of giant reed in Morrow and Umatilla counties to see if it’s a viable biomass crop for its power plant near Boardman."

Giant reed grass can grow 16 feet in a season. (click to enlarge)

"Boardman produces 15 percent of the power that PGE sells. But the plant is one of the biggest polluters in the Northwest…[T]he Department of Environmental Quality is reviewing PGE’s proposals for shuttering the plant by 2020…[B]iomass would be one of the alternatives [PGE] would consider…And growing giant reed for biomass looks promising…[I]t produces a lot of biomass since the whole plant can be burned as fuel…

"But giant reed does have its risks. In the right climate the plant can be an aggressive noxious weed…Problems with it spreading uncontrollably in California prompted the Oregon Department of Agriculture to study the weed in 2007…Noxious Weed Control Program Supervisor Tim Butler says the plant would not be a problem in Oregon, because it doesn’t flower this far north. Without flowers, it can only spread by root fragments…Researchers at Washington State University say the plant did not spread when they grew a test crop in Prosser, Washington, just across the Columbia River from Boardman."

Oregon's biomass resources (click to enlarge)

"But not everyone is convinced that giant reed would be safe to grow on a large scale in Oregon…[Some think] the plant’s roots still make it dangerous…Even though the state doesn’t see giant reed as a problem, the counties still have the authority to decide which plants they will allow…If the giant reed crop is grown more than 50 miles away from the power plant, PGE says the cost of and pollution caused by transporting the biomass would undercut the crop’s benefits…

"County commissioners will make the final decision…later this fall…PGE officials say they will explore other renewable energy options for the Boardman power plant if they if they can’t grow giant reed…"