Study: Planting urban tree reduces utility bills

A case study on Sacramento, CA. The study's methods could be replicated easily in other parts of the world.

Perfect project for a high school student in Boston!

New windmill design

Check out this funky new windmill. Talk about thinking outside of the box. This device uses a vertical axis, as opposed to the conventional horizontal axis (think of the giants of Don Quijote).

Easy to install and fit into existing structures. Look for a commercially available product within the next two years. Check out a photo of the devices at the end of this document.

Renewable Energy News - May 26

Cheaper solar power, more difficulties with wind, and the EU talks about how to increase the use of biofuels without increasing the emission of greenhouse gases (from the Energy Bulletin).

Biofuels article in April issue of Ecological Applications

A comparison of different biofuel crops is in the latest issue of Ecological Applications. A nice introduction to the results is in the link (via SAF).

University students take on sustainability

Report from the Boston Globe on actions university students and faculty are taking to reduce carbon emissions, support renewable energy, and energy efficient design.

UEI Director, Charlie Lord, is quoted.

Fossil Fuel Alternatives 101

Great summary of fossil fuels and energy alternatives from the Energy Bulletin.

House passes bill to cut Ship Pollution

Ships produce more sulfur dioxide emissions that all of the world's cars, truck, and buses combined (via EPA)

Bush and Automakers talk fuels

Ethanol is the fuel of choice and debate.

New Biofuels Process

"The new approach modifies conventional methods for producing liquid fuels from biomass by adding hydrogen from a 'carbon-free' energy source, such as solar or nuclear power, during a step called gasification. Adding hydrogen during this step suppresses the formation of carbon dioxide and increases the efficiency of the process, making it possible to produce three times the volume of biofuels from the same quantity of biomass, said Rakesh Agrawal, Purdue's Winthrop E. Stone Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering." (Emphasis added).

Now, is this too good to be true? (via SAF)

Why don't we have an elite, Manhattan Project-like team working on this so that we can solve this energy problem faster?

Decision making in solar energy: A lesson from financial analysis

The scientific method is only one of many tools that people use to make decisions. Increasingly, environmental managers are also turning to financial analysis in addition to hard sciences and social sciences.

This article looks at payback analysis and internal rate of return (IRR) to examine whether or not to by solar water heaters for a home. The question now is which is more reliable? Payback analysis or IRR? It is difficult to tell from this article without having access to the data that the author was working with.

Advances in biomass to biofuels conversion process

The U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory has completed the genetic sequencing of the yeast, Pichia stipitis, which ferments xylose (a main component of plant lignocellulose). What does this mean? The yeast converts plant biomass into biofuels, such as ethanol, with great efficiency. Who knows, maybe someday biomass powerplants will offer options for the disposal of diseased urban trees and invasive plants by turning them into usable fuels (via SAF).

Urban Ecology Center installs Wisonsin's largest solar power system

The Urban Ecology Center of Milwaukee, Wisconsin (not to be confused with the other UEC) has just installed a 44.4 kilowatt solar system. It is even connected to the grid, allowing the Urban Ecology Center to sell surplus energy back to the grid. Brilliant.

Making L.A. into the biggest green city in the U.S.

Mayor Villaraigosa has made it his mission to make L.A. into the greenest big city in the U.S. Read about L.A.'s strategies! (via the Energy Bulletin).

ALTERNATIVE, RENEWABLE, & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY LINKS

Alternative Energy Blog

Alternative & Renewable Energy Blog

Home Power Magazine
"Home-scale renewable energy and sustainable living solutions."

Alternative Energy News @ Topix.net

Groovy Green
Renewable energy and sustainable living news.

Biodiesel Blog

US Department of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Newsletter
"EERE's newsletter, the EERE Network News, covers national and international energy efficiency and renewable energy news and events, as well as new EERE Web sites and energy facts."