We held a press conference yesterday in San Antonio at the Pearl Brewery, which is currently being renovated and, upon its completion, will have the largest solar array panel in the state of Texas. Installed by Austin’s own Meridian Solar, the new system is expected to generate 25% of the energy needs for the new building, which will hold condos, an Aveda hair salon, and an art gallery.
San Antonio is not the first to take on a solar power “experiment” — Houston turned a parking lot into an eco-park that has topped all of its park buildings with solar paneling, and is attempting pull all of its energy usage from solar panels.
With all the advancements of the solar industry, it is a wonder why everyone isn’t just as excited about all the possibilities solar energy systems can offer.
Our past concerns about the reliability of solar energy—“But what will we do if it’s raining?”—now seem archaic. Over the past decade leading companies have been making sweeping advancements, and now solar technology is more reliable, affordable, and efficient than ever.
What we have developed now is far from the sea of reflective solar panels in that unforgettable scene from Gattaca. New technology consists of a flexible sheet-like material that can simply be laid on top of already existing structures, such as the roofs of buildings. This particular type of solar technology is a branch of material called Photovoltaics (“PV”) that was actually first used to power satellites back in the 1950’s. The thin-film PV works the same way to convert energy derived from light into electricity, is only a few millionths of a meter thick, and now can be readily and easily installed onto almost any building.
A more familiar type of PV is silicon-based, which can also be made into flexible rolls that can top any surface. And as technology keeps getting better, the production costs keep on dropping. It is now even possible for solar conductors to be constructed directly into building materials, called Building Integrated Solar. Consider this: Thin-Film PV could cover all eastern and western facing windows, or on your car windshield, providing clean, beautiful energy with no visible interference.
In response to “rainy day concerns,” our new solar report, Texas Solar Roadmap, demonstrates that it isn’t as big of a concern as we think. Continue Reading »
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged aveda hair salon, concentrating solar power, discovery green, entech solar, gattaca, heliovolt, meridian solar, pearl brewery, photovoltaics, San Antonio, solar energy, solar panels, Texas, texas solar roadmap, thin film pv, wildcatting the sun |
We have known for a long time that CO2 emissions are absorbed by the ocean. This is actually a very, very good thing, or else we’d have warmed at least 5 or 6 times as much as we have.
The problem is basic chemistry. When you add CO2 to a water solution (or a salt water solution), you create carbonic acid. Though a weak acid, increased carbonic acid has already affected the ability of coral to reproduce and lowered the ocean’s pH by .1 points. Under a business as usual strategy, this could increase to .4 or .5. While this may not sound like much, that’s about the same as going from fresh water to the pH of soda. Anyone remember the elementary school science fair project where you dissolved a tooth or a penny in Coca-Cola?
And now scientists have found that increased acidity harms other forms of marine life, specifically, THE CLOWNFISH. A report from the National Academy of Sciences has shown that acid levels disrupt the clownfish’s olfactory sense (smell) which could leave them lost at sea. Nemo!! No!!!!
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged carbonic acid, chemistry, CO2 emissions, coca-cola, finding nemo, National Academy of Sciences, Nemo, ocean acidity, olfactory sense, Texas |
Texas faces the possibility of real reform on how we draw our districts next time around, hopefully preventing the repeat of the debacle from last time around when a partisan agenda prompted a walkout by members of the Legislature. So, while doing some research about redistricting reform this morning I stumbled upon a “gem” of a “video game.”
Get Your Gerrymander On!
In Redistricting: The Game, you’re taken through the pitfalls of partisan gerrymandering. You get to draw your own districts, put voters in districts based on whether they’re Republican, Democrat, White, Black, Hispanic, etc, bribe people– you know, just like the real process.
It’s not really that spectacular in terms of graphics, gameplay, etc, but it gives you a fair amount of idea what it would be like to have the power to draw the lines for your own purposes.
Play it online (no download required) at http://www.redistrictinggame.org/
Enjoy, and be sure to comment below on how you think redistricting should be approached.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged independent redistricting commission, redistricting, Texas, Tom Delay, World of Warcraft |
In the dark of the night on January 27, a hefty provision was snuck through the Senate Appropriations Committee. It would expand the current loan guarantee program by providing $50 billion in taxpayer backed loan guarantees for “eligible technologies”.
The handout is likely to be directed at new nuclear reactors and “clean coal”- technologies that undermine the spirit of a bill intended to stimulate a new green economy that boost “shovel-ready” projects and creates jobs within the next two years.
Please call you Senators and tell them to strip the Senate economic stimulus bill of subsidies intended to underwrite nuclear power and “clean coal.” Tell them to remove the $50 billion loan guarantee provision!
We don’t have much time – the Senate will start debating the economic stimulus today. You can find your member of the Senate here.
Please, call your Senators now and demand that unnecessary “pork” be pulled out of the bill. Then fill out this letter to let us know who you called and how it went.
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged Economic Stimulus Package, Loan Guarantees, Nuclear Power, pork spending, senate appropriations committee, Texas |
This week the House passed the $819 billion stimulus package, and even more exciting is that over $100 billion of the package is allocated to green spending. Amazingly, the package passed without a single Republican vote. Only 11 Democrats voted against the bill, with a final vote of 244-188.
Here is a breakdown of the green spending measure as stated in stimulus package:
- $14.6 billion to fund the expansion of public transportation. This number is actually $3 billion more than initially agreed upon, thanks to the efforts of mass transit supporters during debate.
- $37.9 billion towards energy efficiency
- $27.8 billion for renewable energy
- $20 billion in renewable-energy and energy efficiency tax credits and other financial incentives, added by the Ways and Means Committee.
So far, it seems like the House has made significant headway to ensure that green energy and climate change are important issues this session.
But wait, let’s not get our hopes up too high quite yet…we still have the get the package through the Senate. Voting on a specific package should not begin until later next week, and there is some speculation that it might not look as great as the current package. So far, appropriation to mass transit is only up to $8.2 billion. The Republican no-show was certainly intended to make a statement. The New York Times reported Republican Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) to say that he hoped the zero-vote showing would pressure Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to make changes to the bill during negotiations between the House and Senate.
President Obama issued the following statement, touching on the expected dissidence between the House and the Senate:
The plan now moves to the Senate, and I hope that we can continue to strengthen this plan before it gets to my desk. But what we can’t do is drag our feet or allow the same partisan differences to get in our way. We must move swiftly and boldly to put Americans back to work, and that is exactly what this plan begins to do.
So far so good, Mr. President! I just hope that by “strengthen this plan” you mean to keep those green spending measures intact!
Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables | Tagged climate change, Energy Efficiency, green spending measures, house of representatives, mass transit, president obama, public transportation, renewable energy, republican minority whip eric cantor, senate, speaker nancy pelosi, stimulus package, Texas, ways and means committee |
The Texas Governor announced this week that he supports legislation for a $5,000 rebate for plug-in hybrids. As the Wall Street Journal reports, Perry is an outspoken critic of government environmental regulation, saying that the “increasingly activist EPA[‘s]” initiatives to stem greenhouse gas output are “absolutely disastrous” for the Texas economy. The WSJ says this initiative is to sidestep greater regulation from the DC mountaintop…he is throwing the liberals up there a bone so they will get off Texas’ case.
From the governors prepared statement:
Rather than wait for more mandates and punishments for environmental non-attainment, let’s continue encouraging innovation. I support giving Texans in the non-attainment areas of our state a $5,000 incentive towards a purchase of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles, using the funds Texans have already paid to reduce emissions, while providing a unique way to store wind energy.
This is an exciting development for us down here in Texas, long known for being a fossil fuel state. Combining this with the $7,500 tax incentive on the docket in DC for a total of $12,500, Texans might have a fighting chance at purchasing a Chevy Volt, expected to retail for around 40 grand.
Perry would probably never refer to himself as an environmentalist in the same vein as most of the environmental movement, but at least he recognizes change is coming. Moral motives aside, any move in the right direction is welcomed. Thanks, Gov.
Check out the WSJ article here.
Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Renewables | Tagged Air Quality, alternative fuels, clean air, environment, green, green rebate, hybrid, Plug ins, Renewables, Rick Perry, tax incentive, Texas |
January 28, 2009 by Public Citizen Texas
In case you haven’t heard, a scientific study released by NOAA on Monday shows the need for immediate action to curb Global Climate Change. According to this study, “changes in surface temperature, rainfall, and sea level are largely irreversible for more than 1,000 years after carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are completely stopped.” This is truly horrible news.
We as citizens of the world must make great changes if we want to preserve at least part of the world we live in for our children and grandchildren (or for that matter our great-great-grandchildren). The CO2 we are putting into the atmosphere today will still be affecting the earth’s climate in a millennium.
The full text of this developing story is located below via the link:
NOAA’s Findings
This finding should be an indisputable marker to everyone that the time for debate on this issue is over. Great changes are now inescapable and the time to make them is upon us.
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged climate change, Global Climate Change, noaa, Texas |
The Texas Observer just ran an article on the top ten issues the Texas Legislature should address this session. Anybody want to guess what number two was?
If you guessed climate change… you’ve probably been reading this blog. And you’d be right!
The Observer expects for Texas leaders to more amenable to climate change action than they have been in years past. Their reasoning?
Congress and the Obama administration have signaled that major federal climate change legislation is in the works. “The Obama package will give Texas a choice: lead or get left behind,” says state Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso. “Luddites need to move away and let leadership take the day.”
The article continues:
As the nation’s top emitter of carbon dioxide, Texas arguably has the most to lose and the most to gain from federal action, says Bea Moorehead, executive director of Texas Impact, an interfaith advocacy group. States that move sooner to cut their greenhouse-gas emissions will have an easier time adapting to a carbon-restrained world. Advocates like Moorehead want to build on the successes Texas has had with wind power and energy conservation by pushing incentives for the solar industry and expanding efficiency standards. Such measures, they say, will create jobs and cut air pollution while replacing sources of greenhouse gas.
I was particularly excited about this article because we’ve been singing the same tune in informational handouts to all your legislative members.
If you agree that this is the message your legislators need to hear, loud and clear… TELL THEM SO. We can print out brochures and hand them to legislative staffers, and the Observer can print articles on what they think the legislature ought to be doing, but ultimately, politicians respond to what their constituents want.
This is a novel idea, I know. You’re thinking; “But Sarah, I’ve been wanting politicians to pursue a whole host of progressive policies for years, and they haven’t happened.”
Well, have you every straight up asked? Politicians aren’t mind readers, you know. Sometimes we’ve got to count ourselves lucky if they are readers at all. So if you want them to know what you want, you’ve got to tell them. When you contact your legislators, they take it much more seriously than a small record of your personal opinion. As few as five personal letters can key a legislator in that an issue is important. Just ten letters can lead them to think they’ve got “constituent trouble” and cause them to support or vote against a particular bill.
Visit the website Who Represents Me? If you know your address, it will only take about 30 seconds to know who your legislators are as well. Write them a letter. Or pick up the phone and give them a call. You probably won’t get to speak with your rep directly, but you can definitely ask for the staffer that works on energy and give them your two cents. Make your voice be heard!
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged Bea Moorehead, Carbon Dioxide, Citizen Action, climate change, Congress, Eliot Shapleigh, Energy Efficiency, Obama administration, Solar Incentives, Texas, Texas Impact, Texas Legislature, texas observer, The Observer, The Texas Observer, Who Represents Me? |
Congress is voting on Obama’s much anticipated stimulus package today. If you want this package to include measures to promote renewable energy and a public works project to make public buildings more energy-efficient — and if you read this blog, I bet you do — tell your legislator now! It will only take a minute, and could make a HUGE difference for America’s energy future.
Act Now!
Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming | Tagged Congress, Economic Stimulus Package, Energy, Energy Efficiency, Green Stimulus, obama, public works project, renewable energy, stimulus package, Texas |
Want Austin to do think outside the box on energy efficiency?
Think we should invest in storage technology to store all that beautiful wind and solar energy?
Want to see city hall but never had a reason to?
On Wednesday, Jan 28, Austin Energy will host a town hall meeting at city hall (301 W. 2nd Street) to solicit public comments and input on their future energy planning. Here’s the full schedule. If you can’t make one, make the other.
January 28, 2009 (Wednesday) City Hall Council Chambers (301 West 2nd Street); 6-9 PM
February 3, 2009 (Tuesday) Town Lake Center – Assembly Room (721 Barton Springs Road)
February 5, 2009 (Thursday) Carver Branch Library (1161 Angelina)
Public Citizen, in case you were unaware, recommends mega energy efficiency programs (since there’s so much available in Texas), larger investment in renewable power (especially solar), and development of energy storage technologies like compressed air energy storage, thermal storage, advanced batteries, ultracapacitors, and flywheels. Learn more here. Austin Energy’s info is here.
-Matt
Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables | Tagged Austin Energy, Energy Efficiency, energy storage, solar energy, Texas |
This morning President Obama outlined his energy and environmental policy and how it fit into his broader effort to jump start our flailing economy. It was a like taking a breath of fresh air to hear someone actually addressing the environmental problems we face reasonably. Finally!
He focused on the problems we face as an opportunity to secure our interests and security, create jobs, and restore America’s moral standing in the world. Outlining his plan in four pragmatic steps, he stated unequivocally that “it will be the policy of [his] administration to reverse our dependence on foreign oil while building a new energy economy that will create millions of jobs.”
1) The plan aims to create 460,000 jobs that will provide the workforce to double the domestic production capacity of energy. Among the projects he listed were 3000 miles of transmission lines to move this energy and to increase the energy efficiency of government buildings and private residences.
2) It aims to revitalize the American Auto Industry by encouraging energy efficient innovation, hoping the new cars will be produced in the US and meet more stringent emissions standards by model year 2011. He ended by saying that by 2020 all cars would get at least 35 mpg, reducing daily oil consumptions by 2 million barrels a day.
3) Referencing the Bush Era EPA’s rejection of California’s and 13 other state’s waiver requests to increase emissions standards, he said “Washington stood in their way”. California had sued the EPA for inaction…it took them two years to review their application. And they rejected it. He wants the EPA to empower rather than stifle states to make these changes. He said that the EPA will review the California waiver rejection and insinuated that it would be approved.
4) He argued that energy independence was important to secure our interests and safety, as hostile governments maintain power over the US because we depend on them for oil. Dwindling resources, hostile regimes, and unhealthy climate problems are the facts that underpin his plan and it is his intention to use these to guide pragmatic problem solving. He emphasized that facts, not ideology would be used to inform the conversation on these issues. (What a concept!) He said the aim ought to be for America to set the standard and call nations like India and China to greater participation in what needs to be a global effort to clean up our environment.
Mirroring the talking points of Public Citizen, Mr. Obama has taken the first sensible step toward a real remedy for this problem. We are happy to see someone is finally thinking in the Whitehouse. How refreshing…
You can read the president’s full remarks here.
Go to http://www.whitehouse.gov/agenda/energy_and_environment/ to see the Obama/Biden Energy and Environmental Plan.
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged California Waiver, climate change, Energy, environment, Environmental Policy, EPA, Executive order, fuel efficiency, Global Warming, green, obama, Texas |
American homes lose $13 billion in wasted energy every year, averaging a whopping $150 per family. What’s more, the average family spends about $1,900 per year on utility bills.
In these economic times, it’s hard to fork out that kind of money.
What’s even more outrageous is that energy companies are currently lobbying Congress for more handouts and more “pork,” while everyday citizens are feeling the stranglehold of energy costs.
There is a solution – but we need to act fast.
Congress is considering setting aside more than $10 billion ($6 billion in grants, $4 billion in tax credits) for homeowners to weatherize their homes as part of the Obama administration’s economic stimulus package. The “green energy stimulus” also would include measures to promote renewable energy and a public works project to make public buildings more energy-efficient.
Act today and urge lawmakers to include energy-efficiency initiatives for you and other homeowners in the stimulus package. Tell them to resist pleas for “pork” from the nuclear and oil industries, which have gotten plenty over the past few years – at your expense.
Posted in Efficiency, Energy | Tagged economic recession, Economic Stimulus Package, Energy Costs, Energy Efficiency, Green Energy Stimulus, obama, renewable energy, Texas, Weatherization |
CPS committed to spend $60 million more on the proposed expansion of the South Texas Nuclear Project at its Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, which brings the city utility’s total expenditures on units 3 & 4 to $267 million.
The construction and operating license still languishes at the NRC, almost a year and a half after being submitted.
Somewhat lost amid the honorings, approvals, and statements of the Board meeting was the fact that STP 3 & 4 ranking for DoE’s loan guarantees has slipped from #1 to #3 (out of 14). Updated rankings will be out in March. 3rd seems respectable. It’s a bronze medal, right? Well, there’s only $18.5 billion slotted for loan guarantees and each reactor can cost $6-who-knows-how-many-billions.
Gschwartz’s piece on this week’s Board of Trustees meeting sums things up pretty well on SA Current’s Queblog. The Express-News touched on it here and here.
-Matt
Posted in Energy, Nuclear | Tagged Board of Trustees, Board of Trustees meeting, CPS, Department of Energy, Express-News, Greg Harman, Loan Guarantees, San Antonio, south texas nuclear project, South Texas Project, Texas |
Exactly a month ago today, I was distressed and depressed by USA Today’s investigative report on toxic air quality and America’s schools. But this morning, I was cheered by USA Today’s announcement that… Obama’s pick to head the EPA has pledged to address this very issue!
They report,
President-elect Barack Obama’s choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency promised Wednesday that she would deploy federal regulators to check air quality around schools in response to a USA TODAY investigation that identified hundreds of schools that appeared to be in toxic hot spots.
The nominee, Lisa Jackson, told members of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee that she would “send investigators and samplers out to verify the extent of the problem” and “mobilize” agency efforts within 30 days of her confirmation. Parents, she said, “have a right to know their children are safe when they are in school.”
This is an incredibly important issue, and its good to hear that if chosen, Jackson is committed to protecting the lungs of America’s youth. We’ll know for sure if she’s official some time after the inauguration.
Posted in Toxics | Tagged Air Quality, Barack Obama, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Administrator, Lisa Jackson, obama, Schools, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Texas, toxic hot spots, USA Today |
And its off to the races! The state legislative session has officially begun. House representatives and state senators were officially sworn into office in formal ceremonies Tuesday. The biggest news, of course, was the unanimous election of Joe Straus as Speaker of the House.
Highlights from the House ceremonies:
- Hope Andrade, Secretary of State, got choked up as she announced and congratulated Straus’s election. I actually saw her wipe away a tear. I like a little emotion from my politicians, and this just shows how high hopes run at the dome for a bipartisan, productive session.
- Environmental folks got a hat tip from Speaker Straus during remarks. As he listed the work to be done and Texas’ greatest challenges this session, Straus mentioned that “We must be better stewards of our natural resources and protect our environment.” Not too shabby, we’ll certainly take what we can get.
To read more exhaustive, who-said-what-congratulatory-comment type reporting on the Speaker’s election, check out Capitol Annex – Vince Leibowitz did an excellent job of covering the event, and even “live-Twittered” the whole thing. Check it out.
Also, try Greg Harmon’s post to the SA Current blog on how Energy efficiency could get greased with Speaker Straus.
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged 81st Texas Legislative Session, Capitol Annex, Energy Efficiency, Greg Harmon, Hope Andrade, Joe Straus, SA Current, Texas, Texas Speaker's Race, Twitter, Vince Leibowitz |
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