The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy & Hydrogen Journal

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There are 3 messages in this issue.

Topics in this digest:

1. EERE Network News -- 08/27/03
From: Tom Gray
2. Home Geothermal (Ground Source Heat Pump)
From: Green Bean
3. Wind Power Can Help Prevent the Next Blackout
From: Green Bean


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Message: 1
Date: Wed, 27 Aug 2003 09:33:31 -0400
From: Tom Gray
Subject: EERE Network News -- 08/27/03

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EERE NETWORK NEWS -- August 27, 2003
A weekly newsletter from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE)
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).
http://www.eere.energy.gov
======================================================================

Featuring:
*News and Events
Hydropower and Conservation Contributed to Blackout Recovery
San Francisco Approves $16 Million Energy Efficiency Program
New Jersey Awards $2.7 Million to Renewable Energy Companies
Companies Unveil New Building-Integrated Solar Panels
Automakers Drop Lawsuits Over California ZEV Rules
Organizations, Consumers Still Pursuing Electric Vehicles

*Site News
DOE Updates Its Weatherization Assistance Program Web Site

*Energy Connections
After Blackout, Groups Envision Future Power System Options

*About this Newsletter


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NEWS AND EVENTS
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Hydropower and Conservation Contributed to Blackout Recovery

New York State may draw on a wide number of energy sources for its
electricity, but when it needed to recover from the August 14th
blackout, it turned to hydropower. Hydroelectric power plants have the
ability to "blackstart" -- start generating power without help from
any external power source -- and to produce power immediately. In
contrast, nuclear and fossil-fuel power plants require significant
startup times, and nuclear power plants are not permitted to operate
while the power grid is not energized. According to the National
Hydropower Association (NHA), hydropower facilities were the first to
be placed in operation in order to establish a stable power grid, the
critical first step in restoring power to the region. See the press
release on the NHA Web site at: http://www.hydro.org.

Energy conservation also played an important role during the recovery,
as power supplies remained tight for several days after the blackout.
See, for example, the press releases from two utilities that serve New
York State, Niagara Mohawk and Consolidated Edison:
http://www.niagaramohawk.com/nimotod/newsindx/newsindx.asp and
http://www.coned.com/about/about.asp?pr=20030816.


San Francisco Approves $16 Million Energy Efficiency Program

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved a $16.3 million energy
efficiency pilot project for the city in late July. The city's
environment department will work with the Pacific Gas and Electric
Company (PG&E) to run the program, which aims to reduce peak
electricity demand for both homes and businesses. The program will
include nine elements aimed at reducing peak power use by 16 megawatts
in the city by January 2005. The nine program elements include
installing energy efficiency measures in the homes of low-income
families, providing energy audits and other technical support to
businesses, and offering rebates to multifamily housing units and
businesses. See the PG&E press release at:
http://www.pge.com/006_news/006a_news_rel/030723.shtml.


New Jersey Awards $2.7 Million to Renewable Energy Companies

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) announced in early
August its award of $2.7 million to 10 renewable energy businesses.
The awards are part of the state's Renewable Energy and Economic
Development Program, which promotes renewable energy business
development in the state. The firms will use the grants to explore
wave energy, develop a variety of solar energy technologies,
investigate means of producing hydrogen from renewable energy sources,
and produce power from that hydrogen using fuel cells. The grants will
also go toward efforts to assist local government officials in buying
green power and to assist energy service companies in providing
renewable energy services. See the New Jersey BPU press release at:
http://www.bpu.state.nj.us/home/news.shtml?46-03.


Companies Unveil New Building-Integrated Solar Panels

Two companies in recent weeks have announced new solar power products
that will allow solar power to be integrated into buildings. Solar
panels are expensive, and one approach to alleviating that expense is
to make the panels serve a dual purpose, producing power while acting
as a functional part of the building -- an approach called building-
integrated photovoltaics, or BIPV.

United Solar Ovonic LLC -- Ovonic Solar, for short -- has teamed up
with GenFlex Roofing Systems to offer a photovoltaic roofing product
for flat or low-slope commercial roofs. The result, according to the
two companies, is a durable, weather-resistant roofing material that
also generates power. See the Ovonic Solar press release, in PDF
format only, at:
http://www.uni-solar.com/PDF%20Files/GenFlex_final%20draft.pdf.

Spire Solar Chicago has introduced a translucent solar module that can
be used for skylights or awnings. The solar modules, which feature a
clear back sheet to allow light to pass through, recently passed
environmental and safety testing by Underwriters Laboratory. The
modules will be used for awnings in a new condominium project and for
cornices in a new commercial building, both located in Chicago. See
the Spire Solar Chicago press release at:
http://www.spiresolarchicago.com/solar/News/403SSC.htm.


Automakers Drop Lawsuits Over California ZEV Rules

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) announced on August 12th
that it has reached an agreement with automakers and car dealers that
will end litigation over the state's Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV)
regulation. The litigation involved three lawsuits -- filed by
DaimlerChrysler Corporation, General Motors Corporation, Isuzu Motors
Limited, and several car dealers -- challenging CARB's authority to
promulgate the regulation. The agreement calls for the plaintiffs to
dismiss their lawsuits once the new 2003 ZEV regulation is finalized.
See the CARB press release, in PDF format only, at:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/zevprog/zevlitigation/exhibitc.pdf.

As reported in the April 30th edition of this newsletter, the new 2003
ZEV regulation gives automakers greater flexibility, allowing
automakers to earn credits by selling clean hybrid-electric or
natural-gas vehicles, extremely clean conventional vehicles, or
vehicles powered by fuel cells. See the April 30th story at:
http://www.eere.energy.gov/news/news_detail.cfm?news_id=584.


Organizations, Consumers Still Pursuing Electric Vehicles

Despite the changes in the ZEV regulations, which greatly reduce the
requirement to sell all-electric vehicles in California, a number of
programs are underway throughout the country to promote electric
vehicles. In mid-July, the State of Hawaii and Hyundai Motor Company
announced a two-year extension of a program that is testing 15
electric sport utility vehicles in local fleets. Enova Systems
provided a 90-kilowatt electric drive for the vehicles. In late July,
the New York Power Authority (NYPA) and Global Electric Motorcars
(GEM), a DaimlerChrysler subsidiary, donated 300 small electric
vehicles for use in 40 locations around the state. Called neighborhood
electric vehicles, or NEVs, the low-speed vehicles are mainly being
used on campuses. GEM has reached a number of milestones recently,
including sales of 10,000 NEVs in California, 1,000 NEVs in New York,
and introductions of the vehicles in New Hampshire and Maine. And
according to a study by the Green Car Institute, California owners of
NEVs are using them for 65 percent of their daily short-distance
trips, driving a total of 12.6 million zero-emissions miles each year.
See the press releases from Enova Systems, NYPA, GEM, and the Green
Car Institute at:
http://www.enovasystems.com/investor/pressContent/07142003.asp,
http://www.nypa.gov/press/2003/030729b.htm,
http://www.gemcar.com/htmls/GemPressRel.asp, and
http://www.greencars.org/newsrelease_aug12.htm.


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SITE NEWS
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DOE Updates Its Weatherization Assistance Program Web Site
http://www.eere.energy.gov/weatherization

The Web site for DOE's Weatherization Assistance Program now has an
updated look and feel that reflects the look of the EERE Web site.
The revised site includes a greatly expanded section on each state's
weatherization activities: Click on "State Activities" to see the
wealth of information provided there. The site also takes on a new
Web address -- www.eere.energy.gov/weatherization/ -- so for those of
you whose Web sites link to the Weatherization Assistance Program,
please update your links to the new address.


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ENERGY CONNECTIONS
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After Blackout, Groups Envision Future Power System Options

In the wake of the August 14th blackout, energy groups are already
trying to answer the most crucial question: How can we prevent this
from happening again? The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
thinks it already has the answer. A new EPRI report articulates a
vision of a unified, digitally controlled power grid that can move
power precisely and reliably throughout North America, a concept first
articulated by EPRI in its 1999 Electricity Technology Roadmap. The
new report also calls for advanced meter technologies and increased
use of distributed energy resources. See the 1999 roadmap and the
August 25th press release at:
http://www.epri.com/corporate/discover_epri/roadmap/index.html
and http://www.epri.com/highlights.asp?objid=292711.

The Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), an energy think tank, agrees with
EPRI on at least one point: the enhanced use of distributed energy
resources -- including relatively small, modular power devices such as
fuel cells, solar panels, microturbines, and combined heat and power
systems -- would boost the reliability of our nation's electrical
supply. RMI also suggests establishing small office parks that can be
isolated from the grid. See the RMI press release, in PDF format only,
at: http://www.rmi.org/images/other/MR_PR_NEPwrOutage14Aug03.pdf.

Meanwhile, DOE, the U.S./Canada Joint Task Force, and other groups
continue to investigate the cause of the August 14th blackout. While
the root cause has not been determined, the first failures occurred on
several power lines just south of Cleveland that are operated by
FirstEnergy Corporation. Still unclear is the cause of those failures
and how such apparently minor line failures managed to cascade into
such a widespread outage. According to the North American Electric
Reliability Council (NERC), pinpointing the exact cause of the
blackout will be a challenging task. See the August 15th "Preliminary
Disturbance Report" and subsequent press releases from NERC at:
http://www.nerc.com/~filez/pressreleases.html.

According to FirstEnergy Corporation, the transmission grids
throughout the region were experiencing load swings and unusual
voltage and frequency fluctuations for hours prior to the blackout.
See the FirstEnergy press releases from August 16th and 18th at:
http://www.firstenergycorp.com/fenews.


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ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can subscribe to this newsletter using the online form at:
http://www.eere.energy.gov/news/about.cfm.
This Web page also allows you to update your email address
or unsubscribe to this newsletter.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
home page is located at: http://www.eere.energy.gov

If you have questions or comments about this
newsletter, please contact the editor, Kevin Eber, at
kevin_eber@nrel.gov.



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Message: 2
Date: Wed, 27 Aug 2003 14:55:23 -0700 (PDT)
From: Green Bean
Subject: Home Geothermal (Ground Source Heat Pump)

http://www.canada.com/edmonton/news/story.asp?id=E599E64B-5F6D-4217-9576-2FF93682A4A3

Heating system mines rich vein of Earth's energy

Hanneke Brooymans
The Edmonton Journal

Tuesday, August 12, 2003
CREDIT: Larry Wong, The Journal

Gary Lutz inspects the geothermal heating and cooling system in the basement of his house.

EDMONTON - Geothermal "guinea pigs" are popping up in many Edmonton neighbourhoods as residents literally dig deep in their search for reliably priced energy. "Everyone's hugely curious," said Steve Baker, looking down at a trench in front of the shell of his home-to-be in Crestwood. Peeking out from under the dirt is a length of pipe that will connect a heat pump in his home to pipes that will gather energy from deep in the ground. Baker plans to heat and air condition his 5,500-square-foot home with geothermal energy. It will also help heat water. Neighbours are watching his experiment with great interest, he says with a grin. "Everyone wants someone they know to be the guinea pig. "Let's face it," he adds, "in Alberta things like geothermal heating and cooling are curiosities. In other parts of North America, they're standard. It's not new technology. It's just new here because we're so fossil-fuel rich."

Tired of the uncertainty of natural gas supplies and seeing an opportunity in the construction of a brand new home, Baker said he wanted to give geothermal energy a try. "While I am not a raging environmentalist, I think while we have the opportunity to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels I think it is the responsible thing to do. "He isn't entirely certain his geothermal energy source will save him money or offer an adequate supply of energy. So he made sure a gas furnace can be slid into the spot where the ground source heat pump will stand, if need be. And he has made sure his house has a suitably sloped, south-facing roof in preparation for the day when solar power becomes more feasible. Baker estimates equipping his home for geothermal energy will cost him $10,000 more than he would have paid for traditional furnaces, air conditioning, boiler and in-floor heating. Added to his mortgage, the extra expense is quite bearable, he says.

Don Parsons is a partner in Earth Geothermal, based in Red Deer. He said Edmonton has been the slowest city to adopt the energy source in Western Canada, though he isn't sure why. Right now, his business is seeing hot spots in Rocky Mountain House and Delburne.

Henry Lutz is the owner of Global Geothermal, which also constructs the energy systems. His company is almost a year old and has 30 projects in the works, six of which are in Edmonton. Lutz says the systems tend to cost around $25,000 to $30,000 for a normal house.

People like the idea of being environmentally friendly, but some of them get an even bigger charge out of gaining some independence from utility companies. "Utility companies have been having their way with us for decades," Lutz said. "People have a passion to literally get rid of them." While geothermal energy can't completely free people from the clutches of power companies -- some electricity is needed to run the heat pump -- it can drastically reduce overall dependence, especially on natural gas.

Lutz convinced his brother, Gary, to try geothermal energy, too. Gary Lutz was in the process of completely renovating his home in Highlands when his brother started talking about this wonderful power source. "I said, 'Hmm, this sounds too good to be true.' " Research on the Internet and monitoring of winter gas prices convinced him the expense and effort would be worthwhile.

Gary had just expanded his 800-square-foot home to 1,250 square feet. The house is still in the throes of renovations, a quick tour through the house shows. The basement is like an exposed root system of wires and pipes. Gary proudly points out the spot where his furnace used to be. "Now it's gone, out of my life," he says with relish. Inside the home's new crawl space lies the brand new heat pump, poised for action. It is waiting only for the installation of some larger ducts.

Gary's enormous garage boasts a heat pump, too. At current gas and electricity prices, he calculated his investment will be paid off in 20 years. Like Baker, he admits it's all a big experiment. "What's the worst that can happen?" Baker asks. "If we're not happy with it, we'll install a gas furnace."

hbrooymans@thejournal.canwest.com



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Message: 3
Date: Wed, 27 Aug 2003 15:00:36 -0700 (PDT)
From: Green Bean
Subject: Wind Power Can Help Prevent the Next Blackout

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/08-21-2003/0002004769&EDATE=

Wind Power Can Help Prevent the Next Blackout

Wind Power Developers Convene in Wyoming, Discuss Wind's Long-term Benefits to the Environment, the Economy and the Grid

DOUGLAS, Wyo., Aug. 21 /PRNewswire/ --

As more than 50 million Americans and Canadians recover from the Blackout of 2003, conversations turn to the future and how to avoid this kind of disaster from happening again. At the Renewable Energy for Wyoming Conference beginning today in Douglas, Wyoming, discussions will undoubtedly focus on how wind power and other sustainable energy sources can play a larger role in the prevention of future catastrophic blackouts.

According to New York-based developer Arcadia Windpower, Ltd. and its Wyoming partner, HTH Wind Energy, Inc., a featured conference participant, wind power can help solve some of the problems that contributed to the blackout and can help reduce the likelihood of future blackouts.

"This first ever renewable energy conference in the state of Wyoming comes at a time of rising fossil fuel prices and concern about grid reliability. Wyoming Governor Dave Freudenthal deserves credit for his focus on renewables and their benefits to his state," said Dan Leach, CEO of HTH Wind Energy, Inc. "With 140 megawatts of wind electricity generators spinning, wind in Wyoming will stimulate economic development, help stabilize electricity prices, and provide fuel diversity in the state's generation mix."

According to Peter D. Mandelstam, founder and president of Arcadia Windpower, "Wind power, which is naturally clean, safe, and renewable, is also perfectly suited to strengthening the grid, which is what's important after a blackout like the one we had last week. Wind power needs to be part of the short-term solution and long-term reliability of the grid." Grid stability can be achieved through distributed generation -- placing generating facilities throughout the region's grid so that when one section of the grid goes down, the distribution facilities are able to keep the rest of the grid in operation. Wind farms are particularly suitable for this strategy because they are scalable in nature and therefore can be sized according to local energy needs. Fossil fuel plants, on the other hand, can work only as large-scale power plants. Additionally, wind farms, which can be plugged directly into a metropolitan area like New York City or a local pocket such as Long Island, can also ease transmission bottlenecks. The transmission bottlenecks north of New York City that likely contributed to the Blackout of 2003 could have been reduced had a wind farm in close proximity been in place and operating -- such as the off-shore project currently proposed for the south shore of Long Island.

"One of the most attractive features of wind power and off-shore wind, in particular, is the ability to site a plant close to where the electricity will be used," said Tom Gray, Deputy Executive Director of the American Wind Energy Association. "The recent blackout makes a compelling case for a wind plant
off of Long Island that can deliver electricity directly to neighboring communities and the region." Another benefit of wind power in a blackout situation is that as long as the grid is operating, a wind power facility can begin generating electricity almost immediately. In contrast, nuclear and fossil fuel plants must go through long restart and warm-up procedures of up to 48 hours. Time is also reduced in the development of wind power generating facilities, which can be built in just six to nine months. A conventional power plant generally cannot be completed from design to operation in less than two years.

About the Renewable Energy for Wyoming Conference

The Converse County Area New Development Organization (CANDO) is hosting a renewable energy conference Thursday and Friday August 21 and 22 at the Best Western Conference Center in Douglas. It is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Wyoming Business Council, CANDO, and Arcadia HTH. The tentative speaker list includes David Garman, assistant secretary of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Wyoming Governor Dave
Freudenthal, and representatives from several companies involved in wind and solar power.

About Arcadia Windpower, Ltd.

Arcadia Windpower develops and finances utility-scale wind electricity generation projects. Arcadia was established in 1997 and is privately held.

About HTH Wind Energy, Inc.

HTH scouts and develops wind electricity projects in seven Rocky Mountain and Great Plains states. HTH was founded in 2000 and is privately held.




SOURCE Arcadia HTH Windpower


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