Last updates from AltEnergyShift Forums http://www.altenergyshift.com Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:15:53 +0000 30 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/2001-cincinnati-exploring-100-renewables/

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/blog/2012/02/cincinnati-exploring-100-renewable.html?ana=RSS&s=article_search&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bizj_cincinnati+%28Business+Courier+of+Cincinnati%29&utm_content=Google+Reader&page=2]]> Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:15:53 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/2001-cincinnati-exploring-100-renewables/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/2000-how-solar-pv-works-in-uk/
Solar Energy involves harnessing the power of the sun and converting this into electricity for use around the home (and export back to the "Grid")

• Multiple Solar Panels are linked and connected to an inverter in your loft
  
• Generation Meters link from the inverter to your incoming electricity supply/meter
  
• Solar energy produced in daylight hours is used for household appliances with surplus fed back to the Grid
  
• If your domestic energy requirements exceed that generated through your solar panels, you automatically "top up" from your normal electricity supply as required
  
• During night-time, your electricity use comes as normal from the Grid

Here in the UK we have a (FIT) Feed-in Tarrif, Under the FITs Scheme you will need an additional electric meter (a "total generation meter") which will measure the amount of electricity that your Solar Panel system is generating and feeding back into the grid. You will also need to provide your energy supplier with these meter readings every quarter in order to receive payment from them under the scheme.]]> Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:39:46 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/2000-how-solar-pv-works-in-uk/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1999-is-buying-cans-like-this-really-eco-friendly/
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B002RD7A38/

On one hand, I want to say "hey great, that's convenient/handy/awesome and keeps the bags from slipping down." On the other hand, though, it feels like by buying one of these, aren't you automatically contributing to more material waste? You can use those grocery bags on any trashcan really and unless something is truly wrong with your previous can, I'm not sure it'd be worthwhile.]]> Wed, 08 Feb 2012 04:34:07 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1999-is-buying-cans-like-this-really-eco-friendly/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1997-damaging-budget-cuts-lead-poisoning/ -- a 94 percent cut in funds for lead-poisoning prevention.
Once a child is poisoned by toxic lead, permanent brain damage reduces I.Q., lowers grades in school, and diminishes self-control.
This, in turn, can lead to frustration, a sense of failure, impulsiveness, aggression, and, for some, potentially even violence, crime, and prison.
With a peculiar mix of frugality and cruelty, Congress's $1 trillion spending bill for 2012 shrank
a small ($30 million per year) federal lead-poisoning-prevention program to a minuscule $2 million annual effort, a 94 percent cut.
And it's no surprise to anyone that the children harmed by this grinch move are mostly city kids,
which means they're mostly African-American and Hispanic.
The nation's medical establishment has been reporting excessive lead in urban children
(75 percent of them of color) since 1952 --
so we have 59 years of studies, all showing the same thing.
Therefore, in this rare instance, Congress relied on the best available science and knew exactly what it was doing.
It was saddling hundreds of thousands of urban children with persistent cognitive damage and elevated blood pressure for life.
Many studies confirm that any amount of lead reduces a child's I.Q. to some degree. (For more confirmation on this see the following studies: Binns, 2007; Bellinger, 2008b; Canfield, 2003; CDC 2004; Chiodo, 2004; Needleman, 2004; Rogan, 2003; Schwartz, 1994.)"


http://www.alternet.org/environment/154005/one_of_congress's_most_damaging_(and_racist)_budget_cuts_that_flew_under_the_radar/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzRss&utm_campaign=alternet_environment
]]> Wed, 08 Feb 2012 01:33:09 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1997-damaging-budget-cuts-lead-poisoning/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1995-power-and-water-at-risk/
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/technology_and_impacts/impacts/power-and-water-at-risk.html

The Energy-Water Collision

Across the United States, our demand for electricity is colliding with our need for healthy and abundant freshwater. Our electricity system’s dependence on water runs deep.
Water’s role in hydropower—and the risks to hydroelectric generation when water is unavailable—are clear.

But large steam-generating power plants (particularly the fossil-fuel- and nuclear-powered plants that produce the lion’s share of our electricity) also rely—often heavily—on water for cooling purposes.
Water resources, however, are under increasing pressure and in some instances have been unable to meet power plant cooling needs.

The Connections Between Our Energy and Water

As our demand for electricity continues to rise, the water dependence of many power plants puts the electricity sector, water resources, and other water users at growing risk.

Power plant water dependence threatens the availability and quality of our water.

Cooling power plants requires the single largest share of U.S. freshwater withdrawals: 41 percent. This water dependence threatens both the availability and the quality of our water resources.
Power plant water withdrawals and related water consumption can have significant impacts on local water availability for other users and for aquatic ecosystems.

Withdrawals can also harm wildlife such as fish, turtles, and other aquatic species that are sucked into or trapped by intake mechanisms.

As for water quality, coal and nuclear plants discharge water in the summer at an average temperature 17°F warmer than when it entered the plant. This warmer water can harm wildlife, as can chemicals such as chlorine, bromine, and biocides that may be introduced into the water during plant operations.

The water use habits of power plants pose risks to water sources, other users, and power plants themselves.

When adequate cooling water is not available to fossil fuel, nuclear, and other steam-generating plants due, for example, to prolonged drought or high water temperatures caused by a heat wave, the plants have to cut back power production or even shut down.

The Southwest and Southeast are particularly at risk for these types of water-energy collisions.
Hydropower facilities face the same fate when water levels drop too low for power production.

Even when power plants get the water they need in times of water stress or scarcity, their continued operation may come at a cost to others who rely on the same water. The potential for this kind of collision between water users will grow wherever the demand for both energy and water increases—and will be exacerbated in some regions by global warming.

This is no futuristic scenario—these risks exist across the country, collisions are happening now, and the impacts are being felt by the power sector, its customers, and other water users.

Power and Water At Risk (PDF) describes characteristic ways in which energy-water collisions occur in each region of the country. We also highlight power companies and energy developers making choices that reduce water dependencies—and thus, water-related risks and impacts.

Smarter energy decisions can greatly reduce the pressure our demand for electricity places on water resources.

The U.S. electric sector’s heavy water dependence represents an opportunity. Smarter energy decisions can greatly reduce the pressure that our demand for electricity places on increasingly stressed water resources, and help us improve the resilience of our electricity infrastructure.

By embracing lower-water technologies such as air cooling for power plants, or no-water options such as wind farms, solar energy and energy efficiency, we can reduce water-related impacts while avoiding or minimizing the risk of costly water-related power disruptions.

Shared by E3Wise]]> Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:08:30 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1995-power-and-water-at-risk/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1994-need-more-efficient-heater/ So anybody know of a really efficient heater I could check out?]]> Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:12:22 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1994-need-more-efficient-heater/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1993-nyc-east-river-windturbines/ strait that connects the Long Island Sound with the Atlantic Ocean in the New York Harbor.
The project, led by Verdant Power, Inc., is the first ever commercially licensed tidal energy project
in the United States.
The turbines are scheduled to be fully installed by 2015 and will use the flow of the river and tides to generate 1,050 kilowatts of electricity -- enough to power 9,500 New York homes.

As advanced marine and hydrokinetic technologies are responsibly deployed and new hydropower opportunities are seized, water resources could deliver 15 percent of our nation’s electricity
supply by 2030."

http://energy.gov/articles/turbines-nyc-east-river-will-create-enough-energy-power-9500-homes]]> Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:41:42 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1993-nyc-east-river-windturbines/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1991-ithaca-goes-100-renewable/ Ithaca Goes 100% Renewable
From: Environmental Leader- Environmental and Energy Management News -12/30/2011
http://www.environmentalleader.com/2011/12/30/ithaca-goes-100-renewable/

The City of Ithaca, N.Y., is to purchase 100 percent of its electricity consumption from renewable energy sources through a contract signed with Integrys Energy Services of New York Inc.

Beginning in January 2012, the city will be purchasing Green-e Energy-certified renewable energy certificates for all its electricity. These RECs will offset about 4,896 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually from conventional electricity production. The environmental benefit can be compared to not driving 12,000,000 miles in a car, or planting 1,460 acres of trees, according to the municipality.

The REC purchase was conducted through Municipal Electric and Gas Alliance Inc., a non-profit power aggregation alliance of which Ithaca is a member. MEGA uses its collective bargaining power to leverage competitive energy prices for its members.

Ithaca has sourced 5 percent of its energy from wind farms since 2006 and is targeting a carbon footprint 20 percent smaller than 2001 levels by 2016, and it is not the only U.S. municipality to go 100 percent renewable.

In October, the City of Austin, Texas, announced it was to power all of its facilities using only renewable energy. The move catapulted the Texan capital into the U.S.’s top ten renewable energy buyers.
Shared by E3Wise]]> Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:48:36 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1991-ithaca-goes-100-renewable/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1988-green-superfood-powders-any-good/
I found one called Green Vibrance that claims to have equivalent to 1/2 lb fresh leafy greens in one scoop of powder. Plus it has probiotics, fiber, and vitamins.

Do you kind folks feel that this would be a good supplement for days when I don't get all of my vegetables on the plate? Life is busy sometimes and it's hard to get a good variety of the green stuff on a daily basis.]]> Mon, 06 Feb 2012 22:54:27 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1988-green-superfood-powders-any-good/ http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1984-hello-from-jay/
I work in the IT department of a renewable energy company called Photon Utilities Ltd. I’m looking to research more into renewable energy and give feedback. If anyone needs to ask any questions I’m sure a member of the team here will be able to answer.

Thanks
Jay

Photon Utilities Ltd]]> Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:42:22 +0000 http://www.altenergyshift.com/topic/1984-hello-from-jay/