Environment

By Derek Girling

HelioPower Solar Energy Consultant

Like most of my colleagues at HelioPower, I joined the solar industry because of my concern for our environment.  As a recreational outdoorsman, I appreciate the need to escape the city and spend time in our undeveloped wilderness areas as often as possible. The more I understood the detrimental effects on both our environment and our health from conventional energy production, the more I wanted to be a part of the solution! With it’s proven technology, helping homeowners and businesses go solar is one of the fastest and best ways to make an impact.

Although the environment is what attracted me to solar, I find myself spending most of my time discussing money. While almost everyone would agree that we should be environmentally responsible, our own budgets usually are a big determinant in our ability to commit. Fortunately over the last few years, solar electricity generation has become affordable and an extremely attractive investment. Investment in the form of government tax credits and stakeholder subsidies has driven this cost reduction and prices are now the same or lower as utility rates in many parts of the country.

Economics aside, we must never forget the environment.

By almost every measure, the energy source that causes the greatestdestruction of our environment and degradation of our health is coal. Burning coal generates 54% of the electricity consumed in the U.S. (and 70% in China!) and virtually every step of the process including mining, transporting, burning, and disposing of the remnants represents an environmental as well as human catastrophe.

To start, the most economical method of getting to the coal is by using explosives to literally blow away the surface of earth covering the veins of coal. In 2006, 1.72 million metric tons of explosives were used for coal removal. The remaining contaminated earth is then pushed into adjacent areas destroying life and fouling nearby watersheds.

Next the coal must be broken up and transported via trucks to be burned at the power plants. This uses a tremendous amount of fossil fuel. The trucks also require new roads and introduce tons of exhaust fumes into the mountains of the mostly rural coal-rich areas. Burning the coal to generate electricity then releases millions of more tons of pollutants into the atmosphere. In fact, burning coal is the number one source of air-pollution in the US.

The coal industry, sensing a turning tide, markets the term “Clean Coal.” This is an oxymoron. Their theory is that scrubbers will remove many of the solid particulates that become airborne during combustion. These particulates are then collected into toxic slurry, which is then transported, again via truck to be buried underground further threatening groundwater supplies. Remarkably, some of this by-product called fly ash is used as a soil amendment!

Two recent events underscore the dangers of coal –  the billion ton sludge spill in Harriman, Tennessee in  20o8 and the West Virginia mine explosion that killed 29 miners in April of this year. These events drive home the fact that coal is devastating to the environment and puts human life at risk. As James Hansen, director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Sciences, concludes phasing out emissions from coal “is 80% of the solution to the global warming crisis.”

By contrast, solar panels, once assembled and installed, passively sit in the sun producing electricity for decades and emit nothing!

Installing a solar power system today will not eliminate coal-generated

HelioPower solar installation team!

electricity. But millions of homes and businesses installing solar panels as well as other energy efficiency measures over the next decade will reduce our coal dependency significantly!

My mid-life career change into solar was motivated by my desire to positively effect our environment. Every system HelioPower brings online represents a step in the right direction.

We don’t have to drop what we’re doing and go back to the stone age; I’m a firm believer in the possibility of a future of sustainable energy and food sources, one that creates a future where our children enjoy an even higher quality of life than ours! However, to realize this future, we must assume responsibility and become part of the solution. Relatively small steps like eliminating bottled water, buying sustainable foods, and backyard composting, or more substantial commitments like installing solar panels on your home repeated hundreds of thousands and soon millions of times by concerned consumers will start this process. Don’t wait for your utility company or grocer to change their ways – you can help get this green ball rolling in the right direction right now!

Contact Derek at DGirling@HelioPower.com

Today from the Contra Costa Times, reporter HEATHER HACKING

The world is poised for the third industrial revolution, said economist Woodrow Clark, a keynote speaker at Butte College's third annual Sustainability Conference, which continues today.

Clark was among members of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with former Vice President Al Gore.

That effort, which included members from 130 countries, created greater understanding of man-made climate change and shared information about what remedies are needed.

Before the report to the United Nations, there was not consensus that climate change was due to human activity, and the United States (then under the Clinton Administration) provided the most vocal opposition to that idea.

With the report and stronger consensus among leaders across the globe, those protests have waned.

The second industrial revolution relied on fossil fuels and has lasted 100 years, Clark said during an afternoon presentation.

The third industrial revolution will involve renewable resources and "leveraging resources in a way that doesn't keep violating our environment," he said.

"We live in a world where what we do here impacts other parts of the world," and vice versa, he said.

And the way that developed countries use resources is affecting the world climate.

But things can change.

He used the example of Mongolia. The area is rich in coal, a resource used throughout the world for energy production. Clark said that current discussions are about "clean coal," which he said is an oxymoron.
Mongolia is intriguing because the area does not need to transition from coal to fossil fuels, he said.

Mongolia, with natural resources including wind, geothermal and sun, has the opportunity to leap-frog past the fossil fuel era and go right into what Clark envisions as the third industrial revolution.

He cited Germany, which most Americans do not realize is the leader in solar energy.

The country is cold and rainy, but the nation's willpower to use solar has put it at the top of the solar list.

He said the rest of the world should not wait to shift over to renewable resources merely because existing energy sources are cheaper right now.

The hybrid car is nothing new, Clark continued. However, as the use of automobiles grew there was a decision that fossil fuels would be the route taken.

"We have now reached the peak of oil and gas" supplies, Clark said, showing charts of current dwindling supplies.

Some people argue that nuclear power generation is the next step, but there, too, known supplies are dwindling. Clark's slides stated that uranium supplies would only last another 61 years.

The current state of resources "allows us to all have a paradigm change," he continued.

Recent history has shown us that supply-side economics does not work, Clark said. If it did, the current economic recession would not have hit world leaders by surprise.

Another recent economic disaster was California's energy reform, which was, in theory, to increase competition and lower prices. Instead, profits for energy suppliers skyrocketed, Clark noted.

He lauded the community colleges, including Butte, that have invested in renewable energy and have not waited for the rest of the world to lead the way.

Businesses, such as the car industry, have failed to capitalize on new innovations. As an example, Clark pointed to technology used in the Toyota Prius. The car has a regenerative braking system, developed by the U.S. Department of Energy, which allows the battery to be recharged through the vehicle's braking system.

The U.S. auto industry was given first right of refusal on the technology, he said.

Now, Japan is selling the Prius to consumers in the United States.

"We have to stop this," he said.

He predicted China will soon become the biggest producer of electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.

Clark also said that the current energy grid system, with central production and mass distribution, should become history.

For renewable energy, different technologies should not be isolated, but can be considered as a whole, he said. Each building can be considered for how it can be self-sustaining — solar panels on roofs, wind generators along freeways.

Other options, not yet fully developed, could include anaerobic digesters that create fuel from waste products.

He also said in California, water districts could be working with the energy sector on how to move water while generating power.

Clark also criticized the state government leadership. Four years ago, the state had Proposition 98 on the ballot, which narrowly failed in a state vote. The measure would have taxed oil and gasoline in ways similar to what is done in Texas and Oklahoma.

If that had been done, the state would have an estimated $4 billion to $6 billion in tax revenue, he said.

Instead, the state is now bankrupt, Clark continued. "Chevron funded the opposition."

He also was critical of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's actions to lower automobile licensing fees, which would have generated billions in revenue.

For a national approach to a new energy path, Clark said he would like to see the president create a new department of sustainability. This would take an overall look at things such as energy, agriculture, transportation, defense, economics and the environment, so that these issues do not overlap, and all have a sustainable goal.

Clark's book "Qualitative Economics: Toward a Science of Economics," was published in 2008. His next work "Sustainable Communities" will be published in November.

Reporting from Environmental Leader and Bloomberg, "$500B Plan for U.S. Green Building Retrofits Touted."

The United States can build a low-carbon economy by retrofitting existing homes and businesses for energy efficiency, which would reduce waste and pollution, jumpstart an economic recovery, create good jobs and deliver energy cost savings, while reducing global warming, according to a new report. The report is calling on Congress and the Obama administration to ensure that investments will be made in weatherization and energy efficiency as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The $500-billion plan with public and private investment would retrofit 40 percent of the nation’s buildings within the next ten years, create about 625,000 full-time jobs, generate $32 billion to $64 billion in annual consumer energy cost savings, and reduce global warming pollution by 20 to 40 percent for 50 million homes and small businesses, according to a proposal released by the Center for American Progress and the Energy Future Coalition.

Rapidly improving the efficiency of existing buildings is essential to meeting clean energy and climate legislation recently passed by the House of Representatives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from 2005 levels by 17 percent by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050, according to the report.

The report also identifies five key areas where focused national policy leadership is required immediately to launch a nationwide energy efficiency retrofit industry. These include technical assistance and capacity building, retrofit financing and cost recovery mechanisms, retrofit performance standards and quality assurance, smart codes and regulations and workforce development programs and job quality standards.

The plan to retrofit buildings, which consume 70 percent of all U.S. electricity and emit 40 percent of the nation’s greenhouse gases, will be discussed at an energy conference in Las Vegas, which is co-sponsored by Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and the Center for American Progress, reports Bloomberg.

Writer Richard Crume, of Solar Today Magazine, brings us this excellent review of home energy upgrades that pay in their March 2009 issue.  Solar Today is the publication of the American Solar Energy Association. Here is an excerpt, click here for the full article.

Are homeowners making good choices when it comes to reducing home energy consumption? Do they make decisions about improving energy efficiency based on the best advice of experts, or are decisions driven by popular trends and the latest advertising campaigns? If our nation is to make progress toward the goal of energy independence, we need to understand whether homeowners are making rational decisions about conserving energy when remodeling their homes, upgrading their appliances or simply replacing light bulbs.

President Obama’s New Energy for America plan makes efficient use of energy a national priority. Calling energy efficiency the “cheapest, cleanest and fastest energy source,” the president wants to cut electricity demand by 15 percent from projected levels by 2020, saving consumers an estimated $130 billion in utility costs while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Under the president’s plan, more efficient energy use will be required across all segments of American society — in our factories and businesses, on our roads and in our homes.

Energy efficiency in the residential segment is particularly important because houses consume so much energy — nearly 21 percent of total U.S. energy production. Many homes are old and poorly insulated, and their owners cannot afford to make necessary improvements. Acknowledging this problem, the president’s energy plan sets forth a national commitment to weatherize at least 1 million low-income homes each year for the next decade. With simple improvements like sealing around windows and doors, fixing leaky ducts and installing insulation, the energy plan estimates home energy bill reductions of at least 20 to 40 percent. And by upgrading the furnace and adding energy-efficient lighting and appliances, a homeowner can achieve even greater savings.

Wise Decisions for Home Energy Upgrades
What are homeowners doing right now about energy efficiency? A recent survey by building products manufacturer Johns Manville (jm.com) helps answer that question. When homeowners were asked about energy upgrades made in the past year, 54 percent reported taking some action in their homes to conserve energy. The most popular action was putting in energy-efficient lighting, followed by caulking and sealing and then by installing energy-efficient appliances. Just 16 percent of respondents invested in attic insulation, a suprising outcome given that this may be the single most effective means for conserving energy in many older homes. (According to the U.S. Department of Energy, roughly 80 percent of older homes are poorly insulated.)

An interesting survey outcome concerns what motivates homeowners to conserve energy. Asked about the best reasons to increase home energy efficiency, homeowners gave these responses:
• Reducing home heating and cooling costs — 64 percent
• Reducing home contribution to global climate change — 19 percent
• Home comfort — 11 percent
• Increased resale value — 5 percent

This April 22 is the 39^th anniversary of Earth Day.  HelioPower, founded in 2001 with a dedication to bring solar to as many rooftops as possible, will participate in several CA and Nevada events. The HelioPower energy consultants will help homeowners and commercial property owners understand how solar power can help put more “green” in their pockets and do their part for the planet.

A bit of Earth Day history…

“First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day was spearheaded by a grassroots movement to shake up the political establishment and raise environmental awareness. Although planners had neither time nor resources to effectively organize the event, it took place across the nation with amazing results. An estimated 20 million demonstrators and thousand of schools and local communities participated.  The Earth Day founder, former U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, remembers, ‘That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself.’ That first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Act.

The amazing energy associated with Earth Day propelled the movement forward, and in 1990 Earth Day went global, reminding us of our interconnectedness and mobilizing 200 million people in 41 countries, lifting environmental issues onto the world stage.  Today, huge climate changes impact everyone; the opportunity to raise awareness seems more important than ever.  Earth Day celebrations have a huge potential to impact change as more than a billion people participate in Earth Day each year.”

Source:  Claudia Abbott, “lastword,” a column in SOM Magazine

Dedicated HelioPower solar consultants will be at the following events.  Please join us in celebrating this 39^th Earth Day – 2009!

Tahoe / Reno

Tahoe Truckee Earth Day, Saturday, April 18, The Village at Squaw Valley

20/20 Earth Vision: Reno Earth Day Celebration, April 19, Idlewild Park,

Orange County, CA

Eco Fair 09, April 22, Cypress, CA

Earth Day Celebration at The Ecology Center, April 25, San Juan Capistrano

Coachella Valley, CA

Party for the Planet, April 25, The Living Desert

San Fernando Valley, CA

Earthfest Carnival 2009, April 25, St. Cyril of Jerusalem School

On Thursday, March 19, Porsche Cars North America, Inc. hosted a dedication ceremony to celebrate the installation of a new solar panel system at the Porsche Logistics Center in Ontario, CA. The solar power system was designed and installed by HelioPower at 5100 E. Ontario Mills Parkway, using 372 solar modules from Sharp and will produce 135,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) of renewable electricity per year.

Following is a recap of what our esteemed speakers had to say about this landmark achievement.

“At Porsche we a have an employee program called Green Choice. It basically says let’s think before we act and make environmentally responsible choices. That’s exactly what we’ve done here with the installation of our new solar panel system.”

Tim Quinn, Vice President of Aftersales, PCNA

Rob Nemchik, General Manager, Porsche Logistics Services

“This is another important milestone in Porsche’s long-term strategy for environmentally friendly and sustainability projects that also makes sound business sense.” 

Paul Leon, Mayor, City of Ontario, CA

 “We hope many more companies in the area will catch the green initiative they have demonstrated here today.”

Jess C. Vizcaino, Jr., Senior Congressional Representative to Congressman Joe Baca, 43rd District

 “California is in the forefront of green technology investment. The new solar power system here in Ontario is an investment that will pay huge dividends for our future.”

Bonnie Montoya-May, Chair, U.S. Green Building Council-Inland Empire

 “I didn’t realize how much Porsche had done to support sustainability until a couple of days ago. I hope you will continue to bring that initiative forward so that other companies will follow your example.”

Steve LoRusso, Vice President of Sales, HelioPower

"The world is on fire and it is companies like Porsche who are doing something about it." 

Deniene Husted, Communications Director, Green Valley Initiative

“Porsche is saying it’s sexy to go solar. I hope people are hearing that message loud and clear.”

Photography:

Marie Bunke

http://www.photoartbymarie.com

This commercial-scale solar power system will avoid the emission of more than 50,000 pounds of carbon dioxide annually. It represents one of the more significant solar installs in the Ontario metro area.

HelioPower joins other environmentally oriented companies to support the city of Palm Desert's Bright Ideas Expo, this Saturday, March 14, from 11am to 3pm. The focus of this family oriented & kid-friendly Expo is: Ideas to save money on your energy bills, and living “green.”

The Expo will be held in the Palm Desert Civic Center Park, located at Fred Waring Drive and San Pablo Avenue. HelioPower local solar energy experts, Matt Rifkin and Matt McPherson, will be at Booth 29!  Talk to our Palm Desert team about how we can help you reduce or eliminate your electric bill and use the city's Energy Independence Program to finance the purchase. 

For more information about the Palm Desert Energy Independence Program, click here.

HelioPower residential solar panel system in Palm Desert, CA

Fast Company Magazine brings us an excellent resource to review the projects, including energy, in the Stimulus bill and how the list was generated.  View writer, Chris Dannen, full artile here, "Breaking Down the "Energy" Projects in the Stimulus."

Commercial Solar Power Installation in Poway, CA by HelioPower

Here is an excerpt:

Most of the projects in the the President's $900 billion stimulus package are the kind of public works the government has executed for decades: trains, bridges, and so on. But the "Energy" projects that will be eligible for funding are full of new technologies that have never before been implemented on a large scale. What exactly are they?

According to the House Committee on Appropriations, the House version of the bill reserves "energy" monies for the following project categories.

• $11 billion for R&D devoted to the Smart Grid Investment Program and various energy pilot projects
• $8 billion for loans for renewable energy plants
• $6.9 billion for loans to state and local governments, to help them make general "investments" that will increase their energy efficiency
• $8.7 billion to weatherize HUD-sponsored and moderate income housing
• $2 billion in loans and grants for battery technology
• $1.5 billion for increasing the efficiency of schools and colleges
• $300 million in rebates for consumers who buy Energy Star-rated appliances
• $1 billion to buy alternative fuel cars for federal, state and local government
• $200 million in grants towards electric vehicle research
• $2.4 billion for carbon-capture technology to cleanse fossil fuel energy
• $350 for the Department of Defense to figure out how to power bases and weapons with renewable energy
• $500 million for energy-efficient manufacturing projects
• $300 for reducing diesel emissions.

You can read the House's summary of the bill here.

We know a little bit about the so-called "smart grid" that President Obama is advocating. The smart grid is an energy transmission system that can handle variable energy levels, and can pull energy from homes and businesses as easily as it can send energy there. That makes inconsistent generators like wind turbines and solar panels feasible energy sources, and opens the possibility for hybrid cars and houses to sell back some of their energy to the utility company.

But the details of the other projects are discussed largely in catch phrases and metonyms. To figure out where this money will actually go, you have to dig into the pages of the Main Street Economic Recovery Report, which is a list of potential stimulus projects compiled by the US Conference of Mayors. As I explained in an earlier post, the mayors of America's cities will be the ones sending stimulus ideas to the state-level government, who, in turn, will apply for funding from the Department of Commerce once the stimulus–aka the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act–is signed into law at the end of this week.

But if you want a more Web 2.0 way to explore the mayors' project suggestions, you can check out Stimulus Watch, which has ported the mayors' list, and allows people to vote and comment on the projects.

The mayors' report lists over 1300 "energy" and related project ideas in all 50 states. This is the meat and potatoes of the stimulus package, right here; each idea is summarized with job-creation predictions and cost estimates. It's also the most exciting part of the act, because many of these suggested projects will, if enacted, bring thousands of talked-about "green" ideas to immediate popular use.

Marc Gunther, Senior Writer at Fortune Magazine, logged today's media article, "Why clean energy is still a good bet."

Despite falling oil prices and the credit crunch, green technology investors remain bullish.

Here is an excerpt from his excellent article, for the full piece click here.

Chico, CA retail building installation by HelioPower

(Fortune) — Some people are saying that the clean energy revolution is over, before it has even begun. "Alternative energy suddenly faces headwinds," declared The New York Times. "Winds shift for renewable energy as oil price sinks, money gets tight," reports The Wall Street Journal. "Will the Economic Crash Take Down Our Hopes for Clean Energy?" asks Alternet.

There's no doubt that recent developments cast a cloud over the renewable energy business. The capital markets have turned risk-averse, making financing for alternative energy hard to come by. Declining oil prices make it harder for cleaner transportation fuels to compete with gasoline. In a slumping economy, the government will be reluctant to pass climate change legislation that will raise gas and electricity rates.

Never mind – there are compelling reasons, even now, to believe that the U.S. is on the verge of a dramatic shift, away from a economy dependent on cheap fossil fuels and towards cleaner, greener, more efficient ways of doing business.

Recently, I spoke with three leading venture capitalists who focus on clean tech: William E. "Wilber" James of Rockport Capital, Alan Salzman of VantagePoint Venture Partners, and Paul Maeder of Highland Capital Partners. Needless to say, they are biased – they are invested, personally and professionally, in renewable energy and other clean technologies.

But they all see powerful forces driving the U.S. economy towards a more sustainable way of doing business in the long run. Those drivers include the science of climate change, rising global demand for a limited supply of fossil fuels, and growing political support for clean energy.

Breaking news, Wednesday, September 24, 2008 from RenewableEnergyWorld.com: "US Senate Passes Renewable Energy Tax Credits, House Could Pass Bill This Week:"

HelioPower commercial installation for Dos Molson in Poway, CA

The United States Senate on Tuesday voted by an overwhelming majority to extend the Production (PTC) and Investment Tax Credits (ITC). The tax measure was passed by a vote of 93-2. Now it goes back to the U.S. House of Representatives where it could be approved later this week.

Under the legislation, the PTC will be extended for one year and the ITC will be extended for eight years. The extensions would be at least partially paid for by a change in the tax code for the oil and gas industry. The bill also contains removal of the US $2,000 cap for residential solar installations. The US $18 billion package is part of a larger tax bill worth approximately US $148 billion.