Green Daily

University of Kentucky Uses Innovative Recycled Plastic Decking at the Solar Decathlon from Plastics Make it Possible on Vimeo.

Last month students from around the world gathered on the National Mall in Washington D.C. to compete in the Solar Decathlon, hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Twenty teams designed, built and operated solar-powered homes, which were then opened to the public, both to get votes, and to educate people about the latest uses of energy-efficient building practices and materials.

The first, and hardest, part of the competition actually happens before they get to D.C., when the teams design their structures, raise money to build them, and supervise contractors to actually raise them. Then they take them apart -- very carefully! -- and transport them to the National Mall, where they are reassembled on site. The final phase includes the judging, where they are evaluated on 10 different areas:

Back in the 70s, I remember nuclear energy being discussed in the same breath as geothermal and solar power. But then the partial core meltdown happened at Three Mile Island in 1979, giving the American public a huge scare about the safety of nuclear reactors.

It didn't help matters when the film "Silkwood", starring Meryl Streep, came out in 1983, showing how workers who were exposed to plutonium had to be literally scrubbed raw -- those decontamination showers are burned into the brains of a generation!

But the climate crisis has created the urgent need for a power source that doesn't produce CO2. There are already several nuclear power-plants online in the U.S. In 31 states there are 104 reactors, which provide about 20% of our energy -- and 70% of our emission-free energy.

If you're into cars that run on alternative fuels, then this is your lucky week. The Global Green Challenge is a 3,000 kilometer race through the center of Australia that starts in Darwin in the north, finishes in Adelaide in the south, and takes the participants through desert, rainforest and coastal plains.

The race, which began as the World Solar Challenge in 1987, is held every two years. Teams come from around the world to race their kooky looking solar-powered cars that resemble space ships. Most of the teams are made up of engineering students, and the competition is quite earnest.

This year, in addition to the solar concept car competition, there will be a second race called The Eco Challenge, which will include alternative fuel cars that are actually in production around the world.

Photo by Alex Wong, Getty Images

Will the inclusion of nuclear energy in the climate bill score it enough votes to actually pass?

In the debate over the current "cap and trade" legislation (or 'Cap'n Trade' as Jon Stewart calls it) that's currently getting kicked around in the Senate chambers, one particular compromise just keeps rearing its controversial little head: Nuclear Energy.

In fact, reports are coming in that Republicans like Lindsay Graham are angling to add language to the climate bill that puts nuclear energy on par with wind or solar power. So, the question now becomes: Are lobbyists, lawmakers and their constituents really ready to play "Let's Make a Deal?"

Up until this point in the debate, it's been easy to avoid that critical nuclear gut check. Now, environmentally aware readers, is the time to decide whether Cap and Trade legislation is worth the compromises it might require to pass.

(Photo by Geoff Burke, Getty Images)

There's a new eco-friendly beer on tap in The Great Lakes State, and the brewmeister is none other than terminally shirtless rap/rock/country crooner Kid Rock. Apparently, Mr. Rock has been carefully perfecting this beer's flavor for the past year and now it's ready for mass consumption. Here's how Kid Rock describes the beer to the Detroit Free Press:

""American-style lager ... easy to drink without an aftertaste... I'm American, that's what I like to drink, and from looking around the parking lot before my shows, I know that's what my fans drink,"

Thoughtfully dubbed "American Badass Beer," the brew was unveiled at two of Kid Rock's concerts in Detroit last week and is now available statewide in Michigan. American Badass Beer (I'm already getting really annoyed with that title) will be available nationwide over the next year.

If you were getting excited about the prospect that Kid Rock might hang up the microphone and work full time at the brewery, sorry, no such luck. The Michigan Brewing Company is undertaking the production duties, which is also the reason it qualifies as a green beer. The Michigan Brewing Company, like a few other major green breweries, produces its own power from biodiesel generators.

In fact, nearby MSU students are unwittingly aiding Kid Rock's efforts to market his poorly-named green brew. Fryer grease from their cafeterias is powering the aforementioned generators. If the food at Michigan State's cafeterias is anything like the ones at my school, there should be grease aplenty. There was probably enough grease pumping out of our cafeterias to power the entire campus.

I'd warn other green brewers like New Belgium and Sierra Nevada to watch out, but I don't think American Badass Beer is really targeting their demographic. Something about the name and the beer's celebrity spokesman leads me to think that ABB will not be a favorite among the Prius-driving public.

If you've ever spent time in the Lone Star State, it quickly becomes obvious -- sometimes painfully so -- that Texas enjoys an abundance of burning, scorching sunshine. While not everyone views these rays as a resource yet, lobbyists, policymakers and politicians (the three most dreaded groups in the state) are working on an incentive package to make Texas a leader in solar energy.

Thus far, 69 renewable energy bills have been introduce in this Texas legislative session, and 50 of them focus on boosting the state's solar resources. Some representatives have even taken to calling this the "solar session." According to representative Mark Strama:

"There are senators and representatives that are talking about solar that have never mentioned the word probably in their lives. We've actually heard the term 'global warming,' and two years ago that was called 'the G word' - you didn't talk about it."

Considering the state's success with promoting wind energy, it's easy to imagine that much of the momentum will start to spill over into becoming the preeminent force solar energy as well. Austin Energy just gave the green light to the largest solar farm in the nation, so that's a start.

[via Earth2Tech]

Like any other piece of machinery, every so often, a wind turbine will fail and pieces will break off. The problem: the pieces are freakin big ... and that's freakin scary. Earlier this month, a wind turbine mysteriously collapsed in the northern New York community of Altona and the shock waves are still being felt.

A 13 turbine windfarm in neighboring Beekmantown fell prey to safety concerns this week, as it was killed by the city council by a vote of 3-2. Unsurprisingly, the March 17th town hall meeting to discuss the Beekmantown wind farm was dominated by talk about the collapse at Altona -- and council members were among those leading the charge. Says councilman Samuel Dyer: "Excuse my language, but that thing in Altona scared the s-- out of me."

Unfortunately, this is a pretty clear example of how costly mishaps like this one can be for an emerging energy technology. With the collapse in Altona, and the mysterious falling blade in England, there's got to be some concern that turbines could earn the stigma of being unsafe -- a tough thing to get over.

[via CleanTechnica]

Sure, homeowner's associations can be a good vehicle for enforcing neatness and keeping property values up -- in theory anyway. You won't find me paying a group of amateur lawn police a monthly fee to tell me what color solar panels I can put up on my own house. No thanks.

That's what happened to three homeowners in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, when the HOA's illustrious Art Jury (no joke) denied their plans to put up photovoltaic solar panels based on their appearance. The US-made panels cost 30% less than the dark black panels preferred by the HOA, but they have a dreadful blue tint. Oh no! How will they possible match the neighborhood's uniform appearance?

Fighting back against the HOA, residents went to City Hall, to see if any of its occupants had a lick of common sense. Surprisingly enough, they did. Citing California's 1978 Solar Rights Act, the City of Palos Verdes declared a city override of the Art Jury's ruling. Oddly enough, it was the same Solar Rights Act that allowed one neighbor to force another to chop down his 10 year old redwoods because they were blocking his rays.

[via Treehugger]

There are so many good things going on with small-scale wind turbines -- they're a beacon of good intentions, affordable, and now super easy to install -- it's a shame that in practice, micro wind's benefits are infamously dubious. Potential counter-productiveness aside, the Jellyfish Wind Appliance is bar none the coolest and weirdest-looking micro turbine to draw major league attention -- and that's saying something.

2008 may have been the year that solar power started popping up in more places than your calculator.

The Solar Energy Industries Association announced in a report today that solar energy capacity increased by 17 percent last year. Government stimulus programs have helped get that growth rate and this year's stimulus package has a bunch of provisions for getting solar power closer to the main stream.

And the not-so-good news? While the survey said that 2008 was a great year, 2009 may be a different story. The global meltdown hit the industry pretty hard in the first quarter. The financial crisis has dried up a lot of financing for an industry that requires a lot of cash (getting power from photovoltaic panels costs three times as much as wind-generated energy).

So, what's going to boost the solar industry? The solar folks are looking for federal policies that would mandate a percentage of US energy come from renewable power. They also want a "solar carve-out" policy that would ensure a certain percentage of renewable energy come from sun power. Similar requirements have already been implemented in a dozen individual states but the industry is looking for federal policies to really get solar going.

Will the green glow of America's carbon-conscious energy future be tinted with a radioactive overtones? The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission is currently sitting on requests to build 26 new reactors, and they expects to receive applications for seven more by the year's end. With public sentiment for nuclear energy in relatively positive territory, you and a nuclear reactor could soon be neighbors.

According to a recent survey, 73% of Americans say that it would be "acceptable to build a new reactor within 100 miles of their home." Of course, build it closer, and support erodes rather quickly. Still, with a pro-nuke Energy Secretary, and a growing realization that renewable energy is going to struggle in today's energy market. "Aspirations for lower-carbon, or zero-carbon electricity, are unattainable without nuclear in the mix," says global generation expert Daniel Kruger. Right now, there are 104 nuclear power plants in the US, which pump out about 20% of the nation's electricity. Obviously, adding another 33 could make huge gains in terms of greenhouse emissions, but are we really ready to confront the disposal of radioactive waste?

If you're in the market for a new car, you've probably noticed that the number of hybrids parked on dealer lots higher than ever -- even as the market for cars in general has collapsed. Much of the reason for this is the intense tongue-lashing the auto industry has received for focusing on SUVs and not the smaller, fuel-efficient cars of tomorrow. The trouble is, now that a glut of hybrids are being pumped into the market, the demand for hybrids seems to be vanishing like a mirage.

This month, Toyota celebrated the sale of its 1,000,000th hybrid -- and while execs were reveling in their hybrid domination, they were also digesting the news that Prius sales were down 33% since last February. Hybrid sales across the board are down almost 2/3rds since last April. "When gas prices came down, the priority of buying a hybrid fell off quite quickly," says Wes Brown of LA-based Iceology. In some places, car buyers are trending back towards SUVs and trucks. Still, the slate for most automakers, especially the ones who took bailout money (ahem, GM and Chrysler), is loaded to the brim with hybrids and fuel-sippers. Has the demand for hybrids really collapsed, or is it just the ailing economy? Is our fuel consciousness truly only engaged when energy prices rise?

[via AutoblogGreen]

Big Oil haters, you're not going to like this news. At a press conference Tuesday, the head of Royal Dutch Shell's gas and power unit announced that they will be making a grand total of zero major investments into renewable energy in the forseable future. According to Shell's Linda Cook,

"We do not expect material amounts of investment in those areas going forward... They continue to struggle to compete with the other investment opportunities we have in our portfolio."

Wow, how quickly things can change. Last year, Big Oil was busy describing their mind-blowing plans for a clean energy future, and this year ... nothing? Well, technically it's not nothing -- Shell plans to pursue some involvement with biofuels, many of which have been called out as 'worse than gasoline.' Sure, I expected some of the enthusiasm over solar and wind to die down as oil prices plummeted $100 per barrel, but I can't say I expected a total 180. Sheesh. To be fair, Shell never did go into full greenwashing mode, but they do own 550MW of wind capacity. Guess it just can't compete with $47/barrel oil.

Have a screwdriver and an electrical outlet? Then you can become a solar panel installation expert. Solar Start-up Veranda Solar has been showing off new photovoltaic designs that are making condo-dwelling DIY solar enthusiasts lick their chops. Aside from looking kinda cool, Veranda's panels are super easy to install and are designed to live in all types of cramped spaces like windowsill, gutters, or balconies. All you've got to do is bolt them on and plug them in.

Oh yeah, did I mention that they're also fairly cheap? Though they're not available just yet, a 70 watt system -- inverter and all -- would cost about $600. That, along with the fact that they're about as easy to install as a small satellite dish makes me think these things are going to be hugely popular. The prototype -- developed in conjunction with Stanford University and SunPower Corp. -- won Veranda a €100,000 prize in the PICNIC Green Challenge, which is helping speed up the marketing process. They're also developing smaller add-on panels that snap on if 70W isn't enough for you.

[via Treehugger]

Outside of a major oil company's heavily greenwashed marketing campaign, you won't hear very many people use the words green and motor oil in the same sentence. Yet, if you walk down the lubricants aisle at your local auto part store, you may soon see both terms on the same bottle. That's because Green Earth Technologies has just become the first bio-oil to get the API seal of approval on their totally biodegradable, fat-based G Oil.

Green Earth Technologies' model is made entirely out of fat from American-bred livestock, and as the company likes to brag: "it takes three barrels of crude oil to make one barrel of motor oil, but it only takes one barrel of animal fat to produce one barrel of G-Oil." Getting the American Petroleum Institute's Service Symbol stamped on a quart of your 5W-30 is pretty much the equivalent of getting the "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval on an oven or dishwasher." Basically, it's shorthand for telling people 'hey, this stuff actually works.' Now, the real question: does it?

To be fair, traditional motor oil comes from animal fat -- it's just that the animals have been dead for billions of years. Who wants to be the first to test it out in their engine?

[via AutoblogGreen]