U.S. carbon emissions fall by most since ‘82.
| U.S. carbon emissions fall by most since ‘82. U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide related to energy use fell 2.8 percent last year, according to an estimate by the Energy Information Administration, driven down by high oil prices and the sagging economy. |
New Solar Technology from Ancient Diatoms Scientists are constantly working on alternative energy sources to make its use widespread like fossil fuels. They are tirelessly working on the drawbacks of alternative energy sources so that they can be all pervasive like traditional sources of energy. Engineers at Oregon State University have found out a method to use an ancient life [.]Posted in: Inventions, PhotoVoltaics, Solar Power |
WindCube Generates Electricity in Moderate Wind Wind power is the fastest growing industry in the alternative energy sector. Wind turbines generate clean and green power for us but they have certain precondition. One of it is the power unit has to be set up in strong wind area. But Green Energy Technologies has developed a brand new wind power generator [.]Posted in: Inventions, Wind Power, Wind Turbines |
| Climate Legislation Link Round-Up With climate legislation moving to a vote this week in Chairman Henry Waxman’s Energy and Commerce Committee, it’s encouraging to see thoughtful and honest arguments and posts covering the various angles of this historic step forward. Paul Krugman’s The Perfect, the Good, the Planet posits that while imperfect, Waxman-Markey is our best chance at addressing climate [.] |
| Drain rice fields to cut methane, say scientists Global methane emissions from rice paddies could be cut by 30 per cent if fields are drained at least once during the growing season and rice crop waste is applied off-season, according to a study. |
New Concentration Solar Power Modules The alternative sources of energy are constantly evolving. Scientists and manufacturers are trying to come up with better products that are user friendly and economical. Government is drawing policies that encourage use of alternative sources of energy. Researchers, entrepreneurs and common people are devising their own ways to use clean and green sources of [.]Posted in: Inventions, PhotoVoltaics, Solar Power |
| Infographic: How Capping Carbon Creates Jobs We encourage you to re-use and distribute this infographic to spread the word on the benefits of a carbon cap.Select your preferred version from the list of four to the right. |
| Press Release: EDF Touts Market-Based Solutions to Carbon Capture Sequestration Risk Management FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact: Scott Anderson, Environmental Defense Fund, 512.691.3410-w or 512.699.1077-c Media Contact: Chris Smith, Environmental Defense Fund, 512.691.3451-w or 512.659.9264-c or csmith@edf.org(WASHINGTON D.C. – May 14, 2009) – Praising the initiative that a pending Senate bill provides on carbon capture and sequestration risk management and the development of corresponding market-based solutions, Senior Policy Advisor Scott Anderson with Environmental Defense Fund testified today before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources in support of S. 1013.”We are pleased that this bill helps explain the difference between two geologic sequestration issues that are often confused,” Anderson said. The two issues are 1) the need for long-term site maintenance after sequestration sites are successfully closed; and 2) the need for project developers to manage the risk of liability for damages resulting from their activities.Anderson was invited to testify on Senate Bill 1013, the Department of Energy Carbon Capture and Sequestration Program Amendments Act of 2009, and stated that EDF believes the bill offers a “measured response” to barriers faced by some early project movers at a time when private sector insurance options are not fully developed.”In the long run, we believe a market-based solution for risk management should be our goal,” Anderson said. “This model is healthier for taxpayers, parties who may suffer damages, and the industry itself than would be a system where firms routinely depend on the government to absolve them of the consequences of their actions.”While EDF supports CCS development, Anderson also testified, “We aren’t champions of coal, but we are realists. Since the transition away from fossil fuels is likely to take a very long time, we foresee a long-term need to deal with coal-based emissions.”EDF considers CCS to be an important part of reducing the climate impact of coal, the world’s most abundant but most carbon-intensive fossil fuel, and accommodating it to a carbon-constrained future.Full testimony by Scott Anderson is available in PDF format at: http://www.edf.org/documents/9741_CCS-Anderson-Senate-Testimony-2009-May-12.pdf |
| Global cities vow stronger, larger roles on climate change. Mayors of major cities around the world yesterday adopted the “Seoul Declaration,” reaffirming their commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and making collective efforts to combat climate change. |
| Press Release: Historic Climate Vote Signals New Momentum to Pass Carbon Cap in 2009 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact Tony Kreindler, Environmental Defense Fund, (202) 445-8108, tkreindler@edf.org (Washington – May 21, 2009) The House Energy and Commerce Committee today approved landmark climate change legislation with a mandatory cap on global warming pollution, successfully bridging regional differences among its diverse membership to produce a strong bill that can win broad support in the House and serve as a template for quick Senate action.“The committee today put climate legislation on the path to the President’s desk,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund. “Chairmen Waxman and Markey have forged common ground on a common-sense, effective approach to capping carbon pollution.” The Waxman-Markey bill, the American Clean Energy and Security Act, draws on key provisions of a legislative blueprint negotiated by the 25 leading companies from every sector of the U.S. economy and the five non-profit groups in the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, including Environmental Defense Fund. Committee action on the bill also drew support from labor unions like the United Auto Workers and the Steelworkers, faith groups, and state and local officials.“An extraordinarily broad coalition wants to enact a declining emissions cap this year, and this vote is a giant step toward that goal. Congress and the Obama administration are now in position to pass a declining cap that will begin to break our addiction to foreign oil and create new jobs for U.S. manufacturers,” Krupp said. “As the President’s economic advisors said this week, a cap on global warming pollution is essential to our economic recovery and our long-term financial health. The economic benefits of a cap are too big to pass up, and the costs of inaction on climate are too big to ignore,” Krupp added.The centerpiece of the Waxman-Markey bill is mandatory and declining cap to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050. Strong short-term targets help ensure that we avoid dangerous and irreversible climate change, and they kick-start investment in clean energy technologies and new jobs for U.S. manufacturers.The bill also includes a smart plan to protect consumers and keep electricity rates low. The bill makes the majority of the value of emissions permits available to end-use energy consumers through their regulated local utilities. EPA estimates that a well-designed cap that returns permit value to consumers can be achieved for as little as $98 per household per year – about a dime a day per person.“Billions of dollars will flow to new energy projects and technologies when we give certainty to companies for their investment decisions. By passing a bill this year, thousands of jobs will be created in the U.S. next year and for years to come,” Krupp said.###Environmental Defense Fund, a leading national nonprofit organization, represents more than 500,000 members. Since 1967, Environmental Defense Fund has linked science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships to create breakthrough solutions to the most serious environmental problems. For more information, visit www.edf.org. |
| ‘Green’ charcoal gets $1.4m. The Rudd Government today announced $1.4 million for the biggest biochar research project in Australia’s history and one of the biggest in the world. |
| Industries are grappling with new bill on climate. The Waxman-Markey bill, an ambitious effort to re-engineer American social and economic behavior, presents risks and opportunities for an array of businesses from Silicon Valley to the coal fields of the Appalachians. |