Thursday, December 31, 2009

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts  
Sent: Thursday, December 31, 2009 5:39 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

Wired News

Formula 1 Once Again Told to Go Green(er)
Wired News
Today, it's all about hydrogen and renewable energies, not how faster you can waste rubber and pollute the air with gasoline byproducts… you have to pick a ...
See all stories on this topic

Top Ten Energy Storage of 2009
Greentech Media
Technologies to convert hydrogen into electricity and water are clean, but they also require a massive infrastructure to deliver hydrogen - which is mostly ...
See all stories on this topic

Santa Cruz County wind turbine presents conundrum for state regulators
Santa Cruz Sentinel
The regulatory agency has told a Santa Cruz County couple that a wind turbine planned for their new home in the Pleasure Point neighborhood is too tall. ...
See all stories on this topic

Mitsubishi i-MiEV: Commuting with electric
ConsumerReports.org (blog)
The ability to recharge at work would make a big difference--and it's probably easier to wire a parking lot than to create a hydrogen infrastructure. ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Hoping All Of You Had A Wonderful Holiday Season And A Fantastic New Year Coming...

...and just remember, if it gets THAT bad, there are still ways to get around:



Happy Holidays!

Dan

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/  - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Wednesday, December 30, 2009 5:17 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

2011 Mercedes-Benz B-class F-Cell - First Drive Review
Car and Driver
The cleanest of these use renewable energy, like wind, to power the collectors. Hydrogen is also a byproduct of some biomass manufacturing processes. ...
See all stories on this topic

Green start-ups in the need of a charge
Financial Times
One small wind turbine can generate 500kW per hour. Threatening to channel that charge through politicians' trouser seats would have concentrated their ...
See all stories on this topic

Top Ten Stories of the Decade
MyWestTexas.com
Am I surprised he'd wind up in some kind of trouble? No. As far as the sexual thing, yes. If he did the things he's convicted of, I feel like he got a just ...
See all stories on this topic

Ten Emerging Technology Trends of the Next Ten years
Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies
They allow centralized power stations to be augmented with – and even replaced by – distributed sources such as small-scale wind farms and domestic solar ...
See all stories on this topic

The 2010 Quiz: What Next?
mi2g
The rise of electric, hybrid, solar, hydrogen, wind, geo-thermal, hydro and tidal power as well as alternative clean fuels is inevitable and necessary to ...
See all stories on this topic

 

China mandates renewable energy while US dithers

trueslant.com
As often as socialism and communism are evoked to discredit the Obama Administration's agenda, it can be illustrative to observe how communist governments actually behave. China's National People's Congress convened on Dec. ...
 

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Tuesday, December 29, 2009 5:36 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

Editorial: Climate conference in Copenhagen unsurprisingly falls short
Contra Costa Times
Solar and wind power can help cut emissions, but are far from able to make a major difference anytime soon. A renewed commitment to building nuclear power ...
See all stories on this topic

Power plant back online
Seacoastonline.com
FPL owns the largest utility in Florida and ranks as the biggest producer of wind power in the United States. Seabrook underwent a planned refueling outage ...
See all stories on this topic

Hamilton: Venture capitalists make business case for going green
Toronto Star
This province now has some of the largest solar farms on the continent, is Canada's leader in wind energy and smart-meter deployment, has embraced the move ...
See all stories on this topic

Houston's choice
SmartPlanet.com (blog)
Houston's oil executives must become convinced to put at least as much capital to work in solar, wind, tidal, and hydrogen technologies as they do on oil ...
See all stories on this topic

All in the Family
Cabot Wealth Advisory
When I was younger, my father bought me some shares of Ballard Power (BLDP), a company that makes hydrogen fuel cells. The stock trades under $2 today, ...
See all stories on this topic

Photovoltaics World Conference Program Finalized
ElectroQ
... the wind, solar, biomass, hydro, geothermal, ocean/tidal/wave, bio-power, bio-fuels hydrogen and energy sectors. Nearly 4000 renewable energy power ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Friday, December 25, 2009 5:18 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

Unnatural gas
Energy Collective (blog)
By abandoning the problematic integration into the electrical grid in favor of electrolysis and hydrogen production, wind and solar farms would be ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/  - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Saturday, December 26, 2009 5:15 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

Our World — 26 December 2009
Voice of America
Proposals to reduce climate-changing carbon emissions has focused on renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar. But another alternative that has been ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Sunday, December 27, 2009 5:23 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

Electric Vehicles: A Case for Electricity
REVE
Hydrogen will require hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure development, will be generated with fossil fuels for the foreseeable future, ...
See all stories on this topic

The past and future decade in business at a glance
Forbes
That business has consolidated further, leaving more power in the hands of a few players such as Macy's and JC Penney. THE NEXT DECADE: Consumers' hard ...
See all stories on this topic

Sunday Leader (registration)

Copenhagen May Have Failed But We Can't Afford To
Sunday Leader (registration)
Alternative fuels have made rapid advances with solar, wind, geothermal, tidal, and hydrogen based energy generation systems presenting an increasingly ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Monday, December 28, 2009

Trouble-Free Winter Biodiesel Use: University of New Hampshire, St. Louis Airport, Ski Resorts and More


Grassroots Enterprise Action Alert
Biodiesel--National Biodiesel Board

University of New Hampshire Enters Third Year of Using Biodiesel Blends

 

Dear Daniel,

The University of New Hampshire (Durham) is entering its third winter using biodiesel blends -- trouble free. Garage Supervisor Ray Myatt says they have had "zero problems" with biodiesel blends in the winter months. Myatt uses a cold weather additive to treat the fuel from late fall through early spring and says its "been a win, win." As the coldest months approach, Myatt says he doesn’t plan to change a thing and expects "no problems at all."

Vehicles and equipment running on biodiesel blends have operated problem-free in some of the nation's coldest locations, including: Colorado; New Hampshire; Massachusetts; Minnesota; Michigan and Wyoming. Good fuel management and high quality fuel can help ensure that biodiesel blends operate smoothly in cold climates, throughout the winter months.

Lambert St. Louis International Airport powers its entire diesel fleet with B20, including snow removal equipment. They have used biodiesel blends since the mid-1990s. "Thousands of passengers each day count on this equipment to clear runways in a timely manner during snowstorms," said Lambert Airport Fleet Manager Mike Bernich. "If I had any doubt about the reliability of biodiesel in cold weather, we wouldn't be using it. It's that important."

According to SkiNH (http://www.skinh.com/index.cfm), biodiesel blends have become popular with many New Hampshire ski resorts. Cranmore Mountain became the first ski area in the state to run its grooming and other equipment on biodiesel in 2003. Now, Bretton Woods, King Pine, Loon Mountain, Mount Sunapee, Ragged Mountain, Jackson XC, Mount Washington Valley Ski Touring and Waterville Valley have all made the move to biodiesel fuel for their grooming fleets, heavy equipment and/or facility heating sources. In addition, several other NH ski areas are actively researching making the switch.

NBB's website includes a number of resources about the operability of biodiesel blends in cold climates -- www.biodiesel.org/cold. In addition, biodiesel blends are reaching beyond transportation fuel as an increasing number of people rely on Bioheat ® heating oil to keep their homes and offices warm this winter. For more information on Bioheat ® heating oil visit: www.biodiesel.org/markets/hom/default.asp.

Click here to Forward this Information to a friend.

We want to hear your results with biodiesel in the cold. Click here to tell us your story.


  For more details on biodiesel, visit www.biodiesel.org.

 


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Earth Policy Release - Stabilizing Climate: Beyond International Agreements


Plan B 4.0 Book Byte
Earth Policy Institute

BOOK BYTE
December 21, 2009

Stabilizing Climate: Beyond International Agreements

http://www.earthpolicy.org/index.php?/book_bytes/2009/pb4ch0_pref

Lester R. Brown

Note: the following was written in July 2009, before the Copenhagen climate change conference.

>From my pre-Copenhagen vantage point, internationally negotiated climate agreements are fast becoming obsolete for two reasons. First, since no government wants to concede too much compared with other governments, the negotiated goals for cutting carbon emissions will almost certainly be minimalist, not remotely approaching the bold cuts that are needed.

And second, since it takes years to negotiate and ratify these agreements, we may simply run out of time. This is not to say that we should not participate in the negotiations and work hard to get the best possible result. But we should not rely on these agreements to save civilization.

Some of the most impressive climate stabilization advances, such as the powerful U.S. grassroots movement that has led to a de facto moratorium on new coal-fired power plants, had little to do with international negotiations. At no point did the leaders of this movement say that they wanted to ban new coal-fired power plants only if Europe does, if China does, or if the rest of the world does. They moved ahead unilaterally knowing that if the United States does not quickly cut carbon emissions, the world will be in trouble.

We are in a race between political tipping points and natural tipping points. Can we cut carbon emissions fast enough to save the Greenland ice sheet and avoid the resulting rise in sea level? Can we close coal-fired power plants fast enough to save the glaciers in the Himalayas and on the Tibetan Plateau, the ice melt of which sustains the major rivers and irrigation systems of Asia during the dry season? Can we stabilize population by reducing fertility before nature takes over and stabilizes our numbers by raising mortality?

On the climate front, everything seems to be moving faster. Only a few years ago summer sea ice in the Arctic Ocean was shrinking, but it was projected to last for several decades. The most recent reports indicate that it could disappear in a matter of years.

Only a few years have passed since the most recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), but already the rise in carbon dioxide emissions, the rise in temperature, and the rise in sea level are all moving faster than even the IPCC’s worst-case scenario.

The good news is that the shift to renewable energy is occurring at a rate and on a scale that we could not imagine even two years ago. Consider what is happening in Texas, in the heart of oil country. The over 8,000 megawatts of wind generating capacity in operation, the 1,000 megawatts under construction, and a huge amount in development will give it over 50,000 megawatts of wind generating capacity (think 50 coal-fired power plants). This will more than satisfy the residential needs of the state’s 24 million people.

China, with its Wind Base program, is working on seven wind farm mega-complexes with a total generating capacity of 110,000 megawatts. And this is in addition to the many smaller wind farms already in operation and under construction. A recent report in Science on an inventory of China’s wind resources concludes that the country can increase its current electricity generation sevenfold from wind alone.

Most recently, a consortium of European corporations and investment banks has announced a proposal to develop a massive amount of solar thermal generating capacity in North Africa, much of it for export to Europe. In total, it could easily exceed 300,000 megawatts—roughly three times the electrical generating capacity of France.

And we could cite many more examples. The energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy is moving much faster than most people realize. In the United States, for example, while coal use has dropped 11 percent over the last two years, an estimated 190 new wind farms with over 16,000 megawatts of generating capacity have come online.

The question we face is not what we need to do, because that seems rather clear to those who are analyzing the global situation. The challenge is how to do it in the time available. Unfortunately we don’t know how much time remains. Nature is the timekeeper but we cannot see the clock.

In my recent book, Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization, I lay out a strategy to stabilize climate, curb population growth, eradicate poverty, and restore the earth’s damaged ecosystems. The climate component of that plan calls for reducing net carbon emissions worldwide 80 percent by 2020. The 2020 goal looks at what is needed to avert dangerous climate change, not just what is politically convenient. Plan B is ambitious simply because this is what it is going to take to turn things around. Will it be difficult? No question. Are the stakes high? No question.

The thinking that got us into this mess is not likely to get us out. We need a new mindset. Let me paraphrase a comment by environmentalist Paul Hawken in a 2009 college commencement address. In recognizing the enormity of the challenge facing us, he said: First we need to decide what needs to be done. Then we do it. And then we ask if it is possible.

#     #     #

Adapted from the preface of Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization by Lester R. Brown (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2009), available on-line at www.earthpolicy.org/index.php?/books/pb4

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American Wind Energy Association 2009 Wrap-Up

Tom Gray, Director of Communications wrote:
American Wind Energy Association 2009 Wrap-Up

Power of Wind Banner
 
Dear Daniel,
 
Although not without its triumphs, 2009 has been a challenging year for Americans, and for the wind energy industry as well.  President Obama took the reins in January, inspiring the country with hope for better times ahead, encouraging us to muster the strength to "brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come."  While the country has seen another year of economic instability and sky-high unemployment numbers, the wind energy industry has also experienced a year of ups and downs, and looks to 2010 with optimism, tempered by a business outlook that remains bleak.
 
Thankfully, the legislative year began with the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which provided a desperately-needed lifeline for our industry.  The wind industry is expected to install nearly 7,000 MW in 2009, thanks in part to $1.5 billion in U.S. Treasury grants that helped finance 33 wind projects across the country.  The Recovery Act helped keep the industry afloat and enabled it to preserve many newly-created American jobs.
 
Congress also made some progress this year in the national energy and climate dialogue, though not nearly enough to provide the foundation for long-term investment and job growth the American wind industry needs to stay competitive with global markets.  While the House passed a national Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) of 20% by 2020, energy legislation has yet to come to the Senate floor.  Meanwhile, wind manufacturers are seeing few new orders, and layoffs are already beginning.  We'll need your support in January to push the RES across the finish line and help our industry create thousands of new clean, renewable energy jobs.
 
Amidst the holiday season have been flowing headlines about the 15th annual United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.  The American Wind Energy Association sent a delegation to highlight the advantages of wind power within the climate change discussion, including its ability to be deployed immediately and help reduce carbon emissions, while fostering economic development.  (Check out our blog to see pictures and video from the events at COP15.)  The Christian Science Monitor got it right, reporting last week that on AWEA CEO Denise Bode's "list this Christmas is a strong statement or agreement coming out of both the climate summit and Capitol Hill committing the U.S. and the rest of the world to shift away from fossil fuels and put in place clear requirements - a mandate - to build renewable energy."
 
We at AWEA wish you and yours the very best for this holiday season and a healthy and prosperous New Year.  Thank you for your continued support and we look forward to hearing from you in 2010.
 
Cheers,
 
Tom Gray
Director of Communications, Public Affairs

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Non-profit Hopenhagen?

Alternate climate summit in Bolivia?
Earth Day meeting of public organizations hopes to surpass Copenhagen.

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Thursday, December 24, 2009 5:12 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

National Solar Mission puts Renewable Energy Sector on the move during 2009
Press Information Bureau (press release)
The major contribution came from Wind Power (649 MW), Biomass Power (113 MW), Small Hydro Power (91 MW) and Bagasse based Cogeneration Power (192 MW). v ...
See all stories on this topic

Automakers work to improve fuel economy
Telegraph-Journal
Studies indicate some 13 million hybrid, electric and hydrogen-fuel-cell-electric vehicles will be in use worldwide by 2020. And let's not forget alternate ...
See all stories on this topic

2009 Year In Review Green Edition: Long Island's Environmental Milestones
LongIslandPress.com
June 3—Oneworld Energy Inc. of Canada, an emerging leader in wind and solar power installations, announces plans to open a US headquarters on Route 110 in ...
See all stories on this topic

Treehugger

Notes From Antarctica: It's Not Too Cold to Embrace Renewable Power
Treehugger
He's not the only one in the Antarctic trying to make a point about renewable power. Australia has a wind-generated hydrogen-powered demonstration station ...
See all stories on this topic

Wednesday Readers' Forum
Marin Independent-Journal
A recently departed CEO of Shell, Jeroen van der Veer, said of wind solar and hydrogen, "I don't expect them to grow much at Shell from here. ...
See all stories on this topic

Under The Hood With Duncan Williams - GE Hitachi – ESBWR
Nuclear Street - Nuclear Power Portal (blog)
For example, so far in December the NRC and GE Hitachi have exchanged communications relating to: (1) operations during high-wind conditions; (2) hydrogen ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

How China Wrecked Copenhagen, Then Blamed It On The West:


http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/dec/22/copenhagen-climate-change-mark-lynas

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Wednesday, December 23, 2009 5:35 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

BMW Halts 7 Series Hydrogen Vehicle Real World Testing Program
All Cars Electric (blog)
But as Buchko said, "We are still very much working on hydrogen power and hydrogen internal combustion engines." Source: Edmunds.com photo credit: Nick ...
See all stories on this topic

CBS News (blog)

Energy 2.0: What Comes From After Oil
CBS News (blog)
Livermore National Labs showed off a system in which 192 high powered lasers focused on tiny capsule of hydrogen could generate fusion power. ...
See all stories on this topic

Top 10 most widely read stories of 2009
Cleantech Group
The Honeywell Wind Turbine starts generating power at wind speeds as low as 2 miles per hour, and EarthTronics got the added benefit of the Honeywell brand ...
See all stories on this topic

Toward Freedom

The Dangers of Nuclear Energy and the Need to Close Vermont Yankee
Toward Freedom
There is also the monitoring of the air and water in order to prevent radiolysis (the dissociation of molecules) so that hydrogen gas will not escape, ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts  
Sent: Tuesday, December 22, 2009 5:15 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

S. Korean manufacturing firms to commit $3.4B to cleantech in 2010
Cleantech Group
The funds are expected to be used for research and development and manufacturing facilities related to solar cells, wind power, and hydrogen fuel cells. ...
See all stories on this topic

Design and Power
Canadian Architect
Renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, have already witnessed marked increases in production capacity and efficiency over recent years. ...
See all stories on this topic

New deflector cuts in-car wind
The Gazette (Montreal)
... CO2 emissions than the equivalent gasoline-powered model when its hydrogen fuel is produced using a renewable resource such as wind or solar power. ...
See all stories on this topic

Edwards Air Force Base

Robins home to Southeast's first-of-its-kind solar technology
Edwards Air Force Base
Although the power that it generates will go directly to the base power grid, it is intended to offset that power used by a newly-installed hydrogen fuel ...
See all stories on this topic

Investing in CleanTech, Post Copenhagen
Wall Street Pit (blog)
A microcosm of the wind market is the Bonneville Power Authority, which runs hydro on the mighty Columbia River and wind in the breezy Columbia Gorge. ...
See all stories on this topic

CNET News

First Solar opens utility-scale power plant
CNET News
Every watt-hour from solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass, etc. is another watt-hour that does not involve the burning of fossil carbon and hydrogen. ...
See all stories on this topic

 

New Growth From The Bottom-Up - The Most Massive Human Mission Ever Attempted Goes Un-Recognized

There is something wonderful stirring in the collective Soul of Humanity - and it is gathering power every day. It is tenuous and nebulous like mist, like a very thin mist nearly invisible, yet it is extremely pervasive, the largest movement in Human history, and yet it is leaderless, free of direct organization. Its form is un-paralelled and unknown in all past Human endeavors - there is no name for it yet. Still, when the mist condenses, it becomes fog, and changes our view of the world. If it condenses further, it becomes rain, and changes our world. In time, rivers flow, oceans form, and the world is alive again. Like a forest of cloud seeds, this Spirit is arising in Humanity, and make no mistake, it will prevail in time.

http://www.takepart.com/news/2009/12/14/paul-hawken-the-solutions-we-need-now-from-ode-magazine

I stand amazed.

Dan

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts  
Sent: Friday, December 18, 2009 5:18 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

Bloom Energy, India-Based VNL Named WEF Tech Pioneers
San Leandro India West
When hooked up to a renewable power source, a wind turbine or a solar panel, for example, the refrigerator-size unit makes and stores hydrogen and oxygen. ...
See all stories on this topic

Emera invests in greener energy
TheChronicleHerald.ca
Emera president and CEO Huskilson said another Emera company, Atlantic Hydrogen Inc. in Fredericton, is working on creating hydrogen-enriched natural gas, ...
See all stories on this topic

You Say Potato, I Say Potahto; You Say Fossil Fuels, I Say Future Fuels
Benzinga
I applaud private industry's continuing research into wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, hydrogen, et al, but doesn't seem as if the public funds from Big ...
See all stories on this topic

New deflector cuts in-car wind
National Post
The electric motor sits under the hood, the fuel cell stack resides in the forward section of the floor pan and the hydrogen fuel tanks are mounted aft of ...
See all stories on this topic

Japan Focus

Clean Coal and The Two Faces of China's Coal Industry
Japan Focus
Or is it new green technologies such as wind and solar power that will spearhead the next industrial revolution and transform the prospects for industry and ...
See all stories on this topic

EnerSys' Investment in Altergy Systems Expands Collaboration to Bring Green ...
PR Newswire (press release)
The Extended Run Time Solution combines EnerSys' PowerSafe(®) batteries and Altergy's proprietary Freedom Power(®) hydrogen fuel-cells. ...
See all stories on this topic

Our Stock Picks for today (www.hypergrowthstock.com)
BigNews.biz (press release)
Atlantic Wind & Solar Inc(AWSL)- Atlantic Wind and Solar Inc.announced on Tuesday that its 47.5%-owned Canadian affiliate, Hybridyne Power Systems Canada ...
See all stories on this topic

Trulite, Inc. - Alternative Energy - Deals and Alliances Profile--Aarkstore ...
PRMinds (press release)
The company is principally engaged in developing hydrogen fuel sources, off-grid solar and wind products. The Trulite KH4 is a generator utilizing hydrogen ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts  
Sent: Sunday, December 20, 2009 5:11 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

Hornblower Hybrid ushers in quiet technology at Embarcadero
SDNN: San Diego News Network
Unger said the firm plans to convert the San Diego-based Adventure Hornblower to green power, whether hybrid, hydrogen fuel cell or a more advanced ...
See all stories on this topic

US Senate OKs bill that benefits some Michigan companies, jobless
The Detroit News
$6.4 million to continue the Vehicle Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Logistics Program. This Defense Logistics Agency-managed competitive program continues the ...
See all stories on this topic

Put the Stimulus Money to Work for You
Daily Green
Another way businesses can make use of tax credits is to install on-site wind or solar power systems. The federal government will pay up to 30% of the ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

http://gl-zephyr.blogspot.com/ - Great Lakes area Wind Power & Hydrogen, renewable energy news.

From: Google Alerts
Sent: Monday, December 21, 2009 5:25 AM
Subject: Google Alert - hydrogen, wind, power

 

Google News Alert for: hydrogen, wind, power

IBM forecasts the next 5 big ideas for the next 5 years
Gizmag
Also smart grids in cities will allow vehicles to be charged in public places using renewable energy, such as wind power, for charging so they no longer ...
See all stories on this topic

EWEB funds science projects | The public agency gives schools grants for hands ...
The Register-Guard
... classes to help middle school students build wind turbines and solar cars, and classes for high school students to build hydrogen fuel cells, ...
See all stories on this topic

Coalition Says MN Climate Solution Includes Nukes
PlanetSave.com (blog)
The law defines renewable sources as solar, wind, small hydro, hydrogen and biomass. But nuclear power advocates want to add nuclear energy to the mix. ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

UW-Madison News Release--Surveying Bird Biodiversity From Space


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 12/16/09  CONTACT: Volker Radeloff, 608-263-4349, radeloff@wisc.edu; Patrick Culbert, 608-628-9647 (cell Dec. 14-18), 608-265-9219, pdculbert@wisc.edu  SURVEYING BIRD BIODIVERSITY FROM SPACE?  MADISON - A fundamental rule of wildlife ecology says that diverse habitats foster greater biodiversity: The Amazon has far more species than Greenland. But how do habitat and biodiversity relate in a state like Wisconsin, with its range of farms, forests, wetlands, cities, suburbs and highways?   In a presentation at the fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union today (Dec. 16), Patrick Culbert, a Ph.D. student in the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Forestry and Wildlife Ecology, reported on a study correlating satellite images with results from an annual survey of breeding birds.  The strongest relationship between satellite imagery and bird biodiversity was found in the Laurentian mixed forest ecoregion province, an area of mixed deciduous and coniferous forests, Culbert says. The region includes the southern halves of Wisconsin and Michigan, southeastern Minnesota, and portions of Indiana, southern Illinois and southern Missouri.  Culbert's survey used Landsat images, taken around the year 2000, covering parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Missouri. The images covered about 585 "routes" of the annual Breeding Bird Survey. During the survey, amateur ornithologists traverse these 25-mile routes and record which species of birds they hear singing.   Culbert compared the number of bird species along the routes with measures of "habitat complexity," which is how wildlife ecologists describe the range of niches within a particular location. A forest with many levels of vegetation or an area with a mixture of wetlands and forest are two examples of complex habitat that, in repeated studies, tend to support higher biodiversity.  To explore the same relationship on a larger scale, Culbert says he focused on variation among the pixels in satellite images. "Some areas have a richer texture in the pattern of pixels than others. In an agricultural field, all the pixels are very similar, but in an old growth forest, we see lots of gaps, with a much more varied texture."  And more species of birds would live in an old-growth forest than in a farm field.   Measures of biodiversity can have a practical significance in land-use decisions, says Volker Radeloff, an associate professor who is Culbert's adviser. Radeloff says the current effort grew from previous studies by graduate students who focused on smaller areas. "A scrub desert in New Mexico had a pretty strong relationship between landscape texture and species diversity. And there was a very strong correlation in grasslands around Fort McCoy, Wis., but these were on much smaller areas. Patrick is studying the Upper Midwest to see if what worked on tens of square miles can be expanded to a broader area."  "We are trying to come up with a quick, easy way to identify areas with high biodiversity," says Culbert, "because we don't have a good handle on where it is and where it's not. Birds are a good indicator of habitat quality, because they are mobile and can quickly respond to changing conditions, and the breeding bird survey provides a wealth of data because it has been performed annually since the 1960s."  Eventually, the goal is to make a "plug-and-play" system that could use remote sensing to support a more realistic and logical approach to planning, says Radeloff. "The habitat changes that ensue from building a new subdivision, highway or mall inevitably affects the mix of the species that live on that land."   Although the need to predict land-use changes is growing along with the expanding human footprint, "The traditional data-gathering approach of wildlife ecology is too slow to advise local governments about land use," Radeloff says. "If somebody says, 'We want to develop this land,' and you ask for five years to do a survey to get the answers, you will no longer be asked. For land managers, this could be a huge step forward."  Scientific results that could help a planning commission or a county board are not useful when sequestered in obscure journals, Radeloff says. "We want biodiversity to be a key measure when people decide on land use. We are learning a lot about the relationship of bird biodiversity to habitat features, and Patrick, by making the data useful, is making a major contribution."  ###    **************************************************** For questions or comments about UW-Madison's email news release system, please send an email to: releases@news.wisc.edu  For more UW-Madison news, please visit:  http://www.news.wisc.edu/  University Communications University of Wisconsin-Madison 27 Bascom Hall 500 Lincoln Drive Madison, WI 53706  Phone: (608) 262-3571 Fax: (608) 262-2331