Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Efficiency’ Category

Energy Efficiency Stimulates, but Nuclear Pork Fizzles

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Nuclear, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 11, 2009 |

A message from our director, Tom “Smitty” Smith:

efficient-homeToday the House and Senate are working to reconcile their different versions of the long-awaited economic stimulus package. The stakes are now higher than ever for Texans, who stand to gain from billions that could go toward developing renewable energy and efficiency in the state, reducing pollution from diesel engines, and cleaning up abandoned nuclear waste sites.

But as much as the state needs that massive investment in our energy future, there is a troubling side to the senate version of the stimulus package: Senators amended the stimulus bill to include $50 billion in loan guarantees for new nuclear plants in Texas and elsewhere in the nation.

If Congress needs a reminder why this is a bad deal, it should just ask Wall Street why it doesn’t loan money for nuclear reactors. According to the Congressional Budget Office, nuclear loans default at a rate of 50%. Banks learned long ago that these plants simply can’t be built on budget and aren’t viable without massive taxpayer subsidies. Texans are still paying for the last generation of over-budget nuclear plants each month in a hidden charge on their electric bills. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Stimulating Facts on the Green Stimulus

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 30, 2009 |

greenmoneyThis 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!

Read Full Post »

Deadline Today!

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 28, 2009 |

urgentCongress 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!

Read Full Post »

Come out and be heard: Austin Energy wants public input, yall!

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, tagged , , , , on January 27, 2009 |

towncrier3asWant 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

Read Full Post »

Don’t Let Energy Costs Put the Stranglehold on You!

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 26, 2009 |

strangleholdAmerican 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.

Read Full Post »

News Roundup – Scary Yuletide Ghost of Christmas Future edition

Posted in Coal, Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, Toxics, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 23, 2008 |

The real question is, will we at Texas Vox run out of holiday references before tomorrow or not?

christmas-future-1

Some scary, scary stuff out there in the past few days we wanted to show you, plus some extra holiday snark for all of you.

  • The EPA also released their list of Sooty Cities (and you thought soot was stuff from only back in the days of Charles Dickens!), and, of course, Houston made the list.  Merry Christmas, Houston!  You got… soot!  Also ending up on the list were my old home towns of Salt Lake City and Provo, Utah.
  • And finally, California is buying our cow gas.  Seriously.  Pacific Gas and Electric plans to buy a methane-based substitute for natural gas created right here in Texas from, of all things, cow manure.  Just shows you that one man’s treasure is another man’s… never mind.

~~Citizen Andy

Read Full Post »

Efficient Cities Roundup

Posted in Efficiency, tagged , , , , , , , , , on December 17, 2008 |

santaTexas cities are working extra hard this holiday season on efficiency measures of all shapes and sizes. Do you think they’re looking for energy and resource savings, or could this just be a last minute push to make Santa’s “nice” list? In keeping with the holiday spirit, I’ll applaud these cities for good behavior, motives aside.

HOUSTON

The Houston City Council approved a $16.4 million contract last week to replace city traffic signals with energy efficient LED lights. The new lights will save the city more than $4 million a year on electricity bills.

Said city mayor Bill White,

“We want to use energy-efficient lighting and make energy-efficient improvements for the same reason that Wal-Mart does, and that is to reduce costs and save money over the long run and to give Houston a competitive advantage.”

The city has several other green initiatives in the works, such as stepping up recycling programs, installing solar panels, buying renewable energy and hybrid vehicles, and establishing new building energy codes.

tree

Houston decided to festoon its official holiday tree with LED lights as well, meaning that this year’s tree will use one-tenth the energy of last year’s spruce.

And last but not least, city officials announced the winners of Houston’s “Recycle Ike!” contest to determine the best way to recycle tree debris from September’s disastrous hurricane. A team of Rice students and scientists won first place for their plan to turn the waste into biomass charcoal (“biochar”) in a pilot bioreactor to be built on campus.

AUSTIN

Austinites need not turn green with envy, because our city has recently rolled out some great new initiatives as well.

My favorite is the Pecan Street Project, a new smart-grid project. Says Brewster McCracken, the mayor pro-tem,

“The goal of the Pecan Street Project is to provide one power plant’s worth of clean, renewable energy, and to produce it within the city of Austin.”

A smart grid would allow utilities to deliver energy more efficiently and provide customers with the information to make more efficient energy choices.

For more information on smart grids, check out Kate Galbraith’s post on Green, Inc., the New York Times’ energy and environment blog.

The Austin City Council has also been discussing a new “zero-waste” plan to keep 90% of the city’s waste out of landfills by2040. The Council is slated to vote on the plan this Thursday. I hope they remember that Santa’s watching!

irrigation

ROUND ROCK

The city of Round Rock is also looking into an ordinance to get customers to consume less water. The ordinance would jack up the cost of water for excessive users during dry summer months, educate people on the need for conservation, and step up conservation efforts citywide.

I’d say all that deserves a holiday “Huzzah”!

Read Full Post »

Austinites: Got a minute? Take a quick survey on our future energy mix

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Renewables, tagged , , , on December 14, 2008 |

Got a few seconds? Austin Energy has a survey tool on the Austin Smart Energy website to solicit feedback on their current energy mix and where to get new energy.

Public Citizen is a stakeholder in the process.  We will do our best to advocate for lots of renewables and more efficiency.

And coming soon, for the extra nerdy, the site will have a sim game where you can play the role of GM Roger Duncan and simulate different future energy scenarios. I can’t wait! I might make pewter figurines of utility planners and stay up all night drinking Dr. Pepper.

-Matt

Read Full Post »

Support Austin’s Retrofit Ordinance; Ask for More

Posted in Consumers, Efficiency, Energy, tagged , , , , , , , , on October 24, 2008 |

Austin City Council will soon deliberate on the recommendations from the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force: a group of stakeholders charged with coming up with ways to make more homes and businesses in the city more energy efficient.

The central recommendation of the Task Force is to require energy audits to be performed on all commercial and multi-family (think apartment buildings) properties within two years of implementation of the ordinance. Single-family homes would have a similar requirement, but it would take effect when a home is put up for sale.

Energy audits (which cost about $200-$300) are performed by Austin Energy certified professionals and include a visual inspection plus duct testing to analyze a building’s energy efficiency. Building owners or prospective buyers could then take advantage of a voluntary program of energy efficiency upgrades, that are loaded with rebates and incentives provided by Austin Energy.

This is good news for Austin consumers because Austinites have a right to know about the energy efficiency of a home, and ways they can save money. Housing affordability is not just the mortgage. It’s utilities too. For example. if you were a prospective home buyer, which house would you choose if these were the same price and right next to each other?

Which one would you choose if you knew that the first house paid $200 in monthly utilities and the second one paid $100? Energy audits make this information available so consumers can make more informed decisions like the one you just did.

But what about renters? Renters can’t make energy efficiency improvements beyond changing a few lightbulbs because they don’t own the property they live in. Concurrently, apartment building owners, don’t have a great financial incentive to make energy efficiency improvements because they don’t pay the utility bills.

That’s why, if after two years multi-family building owners are not taking advantage of the energy efficiency incentives from Austin Energy, City Council should make efficiency upgrades a requirement for multi-family properties. By strengthening the task force recommendations this way, Austin will be acting in the best interests of ratepayers…

…oh yeah, and reducing greenhouse gases.

-Matt

Read Full Post »

Oil Drilling in the U.S.—-To Change or Not to Change: That is the Question

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, Renewables, tagged , , , , , , on September 11, 2008 |

This is so very cool. GM is “leaking” photos of its new VOLT concept electric vehicle. So the car maker is finally reaching its goals, as stated in the 1980 first edition of The Cousteau Almanac, An Inventory of Life on our Water Planet. To wit: “The great car hope of the future, of course, is the EV. General Motors promises an electric car by the mid-1980s that will reach a speed of 60 miles (97) kilometers per hour and run 80 miles (130 kilometers) before needing a recharge. The company estimates that 10 percent of the cars on U.S. highways will be EVs by 1990.”

Word on the net is the VOLT will reach 120 mph and travel 40 miles before needing a recharge. Although there might possibly be some need for us to lay blame for the delay at the feet of GM (as if there already isn’t mounds of it there for other stuff) , we might as well rejoice and move on. Actually, I only even feel the need to highlight it at all in effort to say let’s not make a similar mistake with this “Drill Here, Drill Now”-let’s-just-drill-for-oil-around-FLORIDA,-THE-ROCKIES-(hey don’t worry it’s S-H-A-L-E) campaign.

Back to Cousteau. The 1980 almanac also says things about energy like, “A 1978 United Nations report concluded that solar cells would become cheaper (more…)

Read Full Post »

Makhijani, San Antonio discuss energy efficiency

Posted in Efficiency, Energy, Nuclear, Renewables, tagged , , , , , , on August 14, 2008 |

On Monday, various people including representatives from City Public Services, various county commissioners including Tommy Adkisson, commissioner candidate Chip Haass, Laurence Doxsey of HUD , Bill Sinkin of Solar San Antonio, and representatives from the Mayor Phil Hardberger’s office gathered to discuss energy efficiency with the Citizen’s Energy Coalition, SEED Coalition and the Alamo Group of the Sierra Club.

Arjun Makhijani, head of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, presented his preliminary findings on energy efficiency potential for San Antonio. I enjoyed the dialogue that came out of his speech. From most people I heard that Dr. Makhijani’s speech hit the right note of pushing CPS to do more while simultaneously congratulating them for their current energy efficiency and renewable goals.

(more…)

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts