The EPA is reviewing rules in the Clean Air Act governing the air pollution associated with oil and gas drilling.

In light of the BP oil spill in the Gulf, the media has increased its focus on U.S. oil and gas drilling pursuits. However, that is not say the media is tipping the scales in its coverage. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is so concerned about ramped-up drilling efforts in recent years that they are revisiting pollution rules associated with drilling under the Clean Air Act. Though the best way of reducing emissions is complete transition to solar and wind, this is certainly a positive step in the right direction.

Current rules regulating the industry have a number of loopholes that have allowed thousands of drilling operations to run without permits (i.e., thousands of sources of air pollution operating “under the radar.”)

As reported by the Associated Press, groups advocating this review of current drilling rules hope the EPA will:

• Increase monitoring of air pollution associated with drilling
• Require studies of the cumulative effects of toxins emitted from drilling pollution
• Limit the use of open-waste pits in favor of closed-loop systems
• Require the incorporation of advanced technologies that will help limit air pollution

“We want to make sure to reduce emissions from oil and gas production,”says Kathleen Sgamma, the Western Energy Alliance’s director of government affairs. “A lot of variables go into deciding what controls and technologies can be used.”

Beyond its own review, the EPA is asking for public input at a meeting in Arlington, Texas, on August 2 and a meeting in Denver, Colorado, on August 3. With all information gathered, the EPA is expected to make changes to three sets of rules in the Clean Air Act by November 30, 2011.

Meredith Simonds Natural Gas, Oil air pollution, Clean Air Act, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, gas drilling, oil drilling

In the wake of the BP oil spill, the EPA is taking a closer look at the drilling industry, not only limited to oil but natural gas too.

Closer scrutiny of the oil industry isn’t the only thing to come of the BP spill. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is launching a study of natural gas drilling practices as well. If the drilling industry isn’t responsible enough to regulate themselves on oil – cutting corners to inflate profits – it stands to reason they could be doing the same with natural gas. Though complete conversion to renewable energy sources like solar and wind is ideal, cleaning up the fossil fuel industry is a welcome change too.

The main source of concern regarding natural gas drilling is the fracturing or “fracking” process used to extract the gas.

In its comprehensive coverage of this story, The Huffington Post explains the fracking process like this:

“Water mixed with chemicals and sand is injected at high pressure to fracture shale, the sand holding fractures open so gas can flow up the well.

“Each frack job uses an average of 4 million gallons of water, delivered to a well site by hundreds of tanker trucks. Some of the “produced” wastewater remains in the well – estimates range from 20 percent to 90 percent. What comes back up the well – briny, chemical-laden and possibly radioactive from exposure to naturally existing radon underground – is usually stored in open pits until it’s trucked to treatment plants or underground injection wells.”

Just 6 years ago, the EPA conducted a study of the natural gas industry. The agency reported that fracking posed no safety threat to underground water reserves. In response, Congress ruled federal regulation of the natural gas drilling industry was unnecessary. However, the EPA report has been criticized as scientifically flawed, and the EPA of allowing politics to taint its decision.

The timing of this closer scrutiny of the fracking process is coming at a pivotal point. Natural gas companies are flocking to the East Coat’s Marcellus Shale Region where natural gas is in such abundance that experts say it could power the East Coast for the next 50 years.

Of course, the drilling industry says fracking is a perfectly safe process. But in wake of the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history, the drilling industry has lost its credibility, and rightly so.

Meredith Simonds Natural Gas BP, drilling, Environmental Protrection Agency, EPA, fracking, fracturing, Natural Gas, oil spill

After months of trying to put sweeping clean energy legislation centerstage, Democrats have given up as they have not a single vote of Republican support.

After months of back-and-forth debate over what a climate bill should look like, Congress has apparently given up. Democrats failed to get a single vote behind what was watered-down legislation anyway. So as announced yesterday by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Democrats are forfeiting the fight. Though an energy bill with a narrower focus is expected to be presented next week, it in no way resembles the sweeping legislation necessary to effectively transition our country to a future dependent on clean solar and wind instead of dirty coal and oil.

As you may recall, there was tremendous momentum behind the Kerry-Graham-Lieberman Climate Bill Proposal just a few short months ago. Yet in April, on news from Senator Reid that Congress may give immigration reform priority over energy, Republican Senator Lindsay Graham essentially pulled his support of the bill he helped create.

In April I wrote of the climate bill debacle:

Senator Graham resented Reid’s position, suggesting it is merely a political ploy intended to capitalize on the country’s sensitivity to immigration issues right now….

[However] Some suggest the Republican Graham has been wavering on the climate issue for some time anyway, feeling the heat from Republicans for supporting a bi-partisan climate bill with the Democratic Kerry and Independent Lieberman. In other words, the suggestion is that Graham is using Reid’s position as a scapegoat of sorts.

Senators John Kerry and Joe Lieberman never wavered in their support of the bill, but it wasn’t enough. Republicans continued to object over what they viewed as a national energy tax.

What Democrats wanted the bill to do was encourage industry to incorporate more renewable energy into their power supplies. The plan? To charge fees to power plants, manufacturers and other large polluters for their dirty energy output.

Republicans countered that the industry would simply pass the additional cost of dirty energy onto the customer, hiking up electricity bills and the cost of fuel. They also argued that manufacturers would simply set up shop overseas where they can use all the dirty energy they want for free.

To appease Republicans and get something passed, Democrats limited the bill to the electricity sector only. Still a no go, this bare-bones version failed to get support from a single Republican in the Senate.

Now the Senate is set to vote on a narrower energy bill next week — one limited to issues surrounding the Gulf Coast oil spill and the generic-sounding “improvement of energy efficiency.”

Meredith Simonds Climate Change clean energy, climate bill, energy bill, Harry Reid, Joe Lieberman, John Kerry, Lindsay Graham, Solar, Wind

Thousands of electric vehicle charging stations throughout the country are being funded through the federal ChargePoint America program.

One of the challenges most often cited regarding mainstream use of electric vehicles is the lack of infrastructure necessary to charge them. For these alternative fuel vehicles to replace gas-guzzlers as the vehicle of choice, like gas stations now, woudn’t we need charging stations on every corner too? Well, thanks to a new government program, we could see just that real soon.

ChargePoint America is a $37 million federally-funded government program that is allocating the funds necessary to provide thousands of electric vehicle charging stations for selected cities across the country.

Based on consumer interest in electric vehicles by geographic location, the following cities have been selected for the ChargePoint Program:

• Austin, TX
• Bellevue-Redmond, WA
• Detroit, MI
• Los Angeles, CA
• New York City, NY
• Sacramento, CA
• San Jose-San Francisco Bay area, CA
• Washington, D.C.

And we’re not talking about a program with a start date months or years down the road. On July 15, New York City received its first electric vehicle charging station – the first of hundreds more planned throughout the city.

As reported by Earth911:

“ChargePoint will provide Level II (220-240 volts) charging stations only, meaning that a vehicle can charge within four to six hours, deemed optimal for overnight or long-length charging. Lowenthal says that the stations accept credit cards just as a gas pump does.

“The charging systems are provided at no cost to the recipient through the DOE program, although the cost of installation is the recipient’s responsibility. These costs range between $1,000 and $10,000, with home charging stations being less expensive and public curbside charging stations being more expensive.”

Meredith Simonds Electric Vehicles alternative fuel, ChargePoint America, electric vehicles, New York City

If you've got the smartest "smart grid" idea, GE will reward you handsomely for it.

If you’re tired of government and big biz missing the most obvious solutions to our biggest problems, this is your chance to enlighten them – at least when it comes to GE’s approach to the smart grid system. They’re looking to more effectively incorporate and deliver clean energy, from solar to wind, and regardless of your educational or professional background, they want your ideas on the best way of doing it. 

Between now and September 30, GE and four venture capital companies are sponsoring the $200 million ”Ecomagination Challenge: Powering the Grid.” Anyone can submit ideas for consideration, with six cash prizes and the potential to enter into a partnership with GE for the commercial development of the idea.

THE CATEGORIES

GE poses three questions for your consideration in three areas of smart grid development:

1) Renewables. Making the best use of the energy created by renewable resources is critical to a reliable supply of affordable energy. What kinds of technologies or processes do you think will maximize the penetration of renewables into the grid?

2) Grid efficiency. In terms of technology, processes and policy, what do you think are the best means to help us realize greater gains in grid efficiency and outage management?

3) EcoHomes/EcoBuildings. What new technologies, processes or business models can help consumers use energy more wisely and improve our energy balance?

THE PRIZES

All ideas are posted live to the Ecomagination website where readers can vote on their favorites. The winner of the popularity contest will receive $50,000. In addition, the competition’s judges (reps from GE and the venture capital firms involved) will choose five other winners, each one of whom will receive $500,000.

Though GE makes no promises, any one of these ideas may be backed by the $200 million allocated for this project.

Speaking of allocated funds, last year President Obama designated $11 billion for upgrades to the nation’s electric grid. Currently it is largely run on an analog system, whereas a “smart” grid relies on digital technology.

As of this blogging, there are 221 ideas and 603 votes cast for the Ecomagination Challenge, and that’s less than a week into the competition with more than 2 months to go. To enter, learn more and register at the Ecomagination Challenge site. You have until September 30 to submit as many smart ideas as you like!

Meredith Simonds Renewable Energy clean energy, Ecomagination, Ecomagination Challenge, GE, smart grid, Solar, Wind

In the first Solar Decathlon Europe, the team from Virginia Tech took home the top honors for its design of a consumer-friendly home.

I’ve grown so accustomed to news of the U.S. lagging behind other countries in clean energy that I’m pleased and proud to share news of an American victory in an international solar competition.

As reported by Earth911, the team from Virginia Tech took home first place in the Solar Decathlon Europe!

The Solar Decathlon started in the U.S. in 2002. It’s a challenge posed to colleges worldwide, asking teams to build solar-powered homes that are judged on the same standards required of LEED-certified homes:

1) Sustainable site development

2) Water savings

3) Energy efficiency

4) Materials selection

5) Indoor environmental quality

But, the Solar Decathlon goes one BIG step further: Entries must produce as much or more energy than they consume. Beyond that, “the winner of the competition is the team that best blends affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency.”

Since the mission of the Solar Decathlon is to make solar homes more appealing to consumers, entries built on participating college campuses are disassembled and rebuilt at the National Mall in Washington D.C. There they are not only judged for the competition, but open to tours for the public.

Virginia Tech has participated in the U.S. competition from the beginning, with entries in the 2002, 2005 and 2009 Solar Decathlons. So it should come as no surprise that the school took top honors at the first Solar Decathlon Europe.

There were 191,000 visitors to the Solar Villa in Madrid, Spain, where the University of Florida placed 8th in the competition.

Meredith Simonds Solar Solar, Solar Decathlon, Solar Decathlon Europe, University of Florida, Virginia Tech

On June 8, 2010, the Solar Impulse solar-powered plane completed a record-setting voyage - a non-stop 26-hour flight at a maximum height of more than 28,000 feet.

Yesterday a solar-powered plane completed its record-setting flight in Switzerland — a non-stop 26-hour flight at more than 28,000 feet above the sea level, at its height. Veteran pilot Andre Borshberg piloted the journey. As reported by The New York Times, the pilot’s thoughts upon landing reflect a sense of awe at the possibilities of the solar-powered future of clean energy flight:

“I’ve been a pilot for 40 years now, but this flight has been the most incredible one of my flying career…. Just sitting there and watching the battery charge level rise and rise, thanks to the sun.”

Constructed of carbon fiber materials, the Solar Impulse:

• Weighs 3,500 pounds
• Runs on batteries charged by 12,000 solar panels to power 4 small engines
• Rivals commercial jets for its wingspan, at a width of more than 200 feet
• Travels at an average speed of 26 miles per hour
• Reached a maximum speed of 78 miles per hour and a height of 28,543 feet during its record-setting flight

Seven years ago, the Solar Impulse project was born, the brainchild of project co-founder Bertrand Piccard, the same visionary who, in1999, was the first to fly a hot air balloon non-stop around the world – a journey planned for the Solar Impulse one day.

The Solar Impulse made its maiden voyage last year, traveling a distance of 1,000 feet, several feet off the ground. USA Today reported then that the Solar Impulse project founders plan an Atlantic voyage next, then a trip around the world by 2011 or 2012.

That said, theoretically, the Solar Impulse could make multiple loops around the world. Running on solar power that is stored during the day for use at night, the Solar Impulse could very well fly indefinitely.

Meredith Simonds Solar Andre Borshberg, Bertrand Piccard, Solar Impulse, solar-powered flight, Switzerland

Feel like hopping into the solar panel arena and don’t have the first clue where to start? We do all the work for you – just open this solar calculator web page and it tells you how many solar panels you will need to install in your area of the country. No need to type in a thing!

As an additional point of interest, the complete math-and-methodology on how the number of panels were estimated are presented so you can verify the numbers on your own.

http://www.altfuelsnow.com/solar-energy/hands-free-solar-calculator.php

Kristy Wesh Solar hands free, methodology, solar calculator, solar power

Obama's recent announcement of $2 billion for solar energy investments increases $13 trillion national debt, which is largely owed to China.

As much as I support solar energy in the U.S., my enthusiasm is always tempered knowing the majority of the solar panels we install are made in China. What’s the point of investing in clean American energy only to inflate our carbon footprint by transporting the necessary parts from thousands of miles away?

With that in mind, my first instinct was one of support for President Obama’s recent announcement that the federal government is investing $2 billion in solar projects dependent on panels and other components made in the U.S.

Obama announced this plan in his radio address on Saturday. The $2 billion will come from federal stimulus funds, investing in:

• Abengoa Solar to build one of the largest solar plants in the world in Arizona, capable of powering 70,000 homes. Reportedly, at least 70 percent of the necessary construction materials will be American-made. This project will create 1,600 construction jobs.




• Abound Solar Manufacturing to build two new plants in Colorado and Indiana, creating 2,000 construction jobs. Abound is a solar panel manufacturer, so it will additionally create 1,500 permanent jobs for the manufacturing process.

On the surface it all sounds good, especially to Obama who is hard pressed to create jobs right now in light of unemployment numbers that don’t add up to economic recovery.

There’s just one big problem, as noted in a response from Republicans. Though the necessary $2 billion funding is coming out of the federal stimulus fund, it’s still coming out of American pockets.

But the fact that we’re carrying a $13 trillion national debt isn’t my biggest objection. It’s who we owe that debt to: China, of course.

In The Wall Street Journal‘s coverage of this story, reporter Shayndi Raice quotes Georgia Sen. Saxby Cambliss who delivered the GOP’s weekly radio address:

“Just as with our energy and food supplies, America is vulnerable when we disproportionately rely on other nations,” he said. “It is a matter of great concern that we are in deep debt to countries that often don’t share our values or positions.”

What a way to usher in Independence Day – increasing our dependence on a country that in no way reflects the values we celebrate on the Fourth of July.

Meredith Simonds Solar

A study by Global Water Intelligence shows that every day 12 billion gallons of water are produced by desalination plants worldwide, a number expected to double by 2016.

Today I was reminded that a great number of people get their drinking water from the ocean. More notably, I learned that the process of desalination — making saltwater fit for human consumption or irrigation — is largely dependent on the fossil fuels that are poisoning our seas. To make desalination a more eco-friendly process, the “ProDes” initiative is pushing for education of officials around the world, as wind, solar and geothermal are viable options too.

“ProDes” stands for Promotion of Renewable Energy for Water Production Through Desalination. The importance of this initiative cannot be overestimated considering the widespread dependence on desalination today, and tomorrow.

As reported by Treehugger, a study by Global Water Intelligence shows that every day 12 billion gallons of water are produced by desalination plants worldwide. The majority of desalination is in coastal regions where there is a water shortage, primarily in Arab countries, as well as Spain, Greece and Italy.

By 2016, this dependence on desalination is expected to double, meaning the world will be producing 24 billion gallons of water daily for human consumption or irrigation.

Fortunately, the majority of these high desalination areas are in zones where sunlight is abundant, meaning solar power is an exceptionally viable option. That said, both wind and geothermal are eco-friendly alternatives. In fact, Australia currently runs a desalination plant that runs on all three of these clean energy sources.

Beyond the issue of energy sources for desalination, Treehugger also points out the threat that desalination may pose to marine ecosystems (beyond what deepshore drilling for oil and natural gas already do, the very fuels that desalination is so dependent on). The additional threat comes not only from removing large amounts of saltwater from marine ecosystems, but also the fact that the brine leftover from the process is deposited back into our oceans.

Learn more about the ProDes initiative.

Meredith Simonds Renewable Energy desalination, geothermal, ProDes, Renewable Energy, Solar, Treehugger, water production, Wind