Archive for solar power
Top 10 Green Power Purchasers Ranked by the EPA
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(Image Credit: newsusa24.com)
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a green power partnership program that promotes green energy solutions and highlights leading organizations. Green power purchases “help reduce the environmental impacts of electricity use and support the development of new renewable generation capacity nationwide. The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that supports the organizational procurement of green power by offering expert advice, technical support, tools and resources. Partnering with EPA can help [an] organization lower the transaction costs of buying green power, reduce its carbon footprint, and communicate its leadership to key stakeholders. Green power is electricity produced from a subset of renewable resources, such as solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, and low-impact hydro.”
The following Top 10 EPA Green Power Partner rankings showcases the annual green power purchases of leading organizations across the United States:
1. Intel Corporation – 88% green power
2. Kohl’s Department Stores – 100% green power
3. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. / California and Texas Facilities – 28% green power
4. Whole Foods Market – 106% green power
5. Johnson & Johnson – 52% green power
6. City of Houston, TX – 35% green power
7. Starbucks – 52% green power
8. City of Austin, TX – 100% green power
9. Staples – 52% green power
10. Hilton Worldwide – 94% green power
The percentage reflects the amount of green power out of total electricity consumption, so larger operations will have a higher overall impact. These rankings from the EPA are published quarterly and you can review the complete list of statistics which includes the top 50 green power purchasers on the EPA website. Leaders Intel and Kohl’s favour solar and wind green power resources through suppliers like 3Degrees°, Nexant, and Sterling Planet. Whole Foods Market actually exceeds 100 percent because their green power purchases exceed their electricity consumption.
Walmart has taken a huge leap from 15th place to 3rd as a result of improving overall power generated from renewable energy resources from 8 percent (in October 2011) to 28 percent (in January 2012). In a press release, Kim Saylors-Laster, Walmart vice president of energy said “investing in renewable energy spurs innovation, provides jobs, helps protect the environment and reduces costs. The green power achievements of our facilities in California and Texas support our long-term goal of being supplied by 100 percent renewable energy, and we will use our success in these regions as a model to expand our commitment to renewable energy throughout our operations.” Blaine Collison, Director of EPA’s Green Power Partnership responded: “Walmart is demonstrating their commitment to reducing their environmental impacts by greatly increasing their purchase of renewable energy. With these purchases, Walmart is helping to grow the nation’s green power market and showing what a difference businesses can make in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.” Imagine the impact if Walmart followed through with green power purchases nationally.
I hope this inspires a lot of competition for the top spot, since the true winner over the long-term is the environment and a sustainable future for the planet. Go green power!
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Planet Forward is an online retailer of ethically-made, earth-friendly products designed for everyday use with a distinctly urban feel. Products include reusable stainless steel bottles, stainless steel thermal travel mugs, waste-free lunch bags, reusable shopping bags, Make-it-Yourself toxin-free Green Cleaning kits, organic fashions and other accessories. SALE 50% OFF ALL PRODUCTS – SHOP NOW !
Top 10 Green Trends of 2011 from TIME Magazine
Posted by: | CommentsWelcome back to the Planet Forward blog, we’re a couple of weeks into the New Year and we thought we’d take a look back at the top 10 green trends in 2011. TIME Magazine published a list of their top 10 green trends of 2011 and you’ll be surprised by some of them. The topics are diverse ranging from electric vehicles to increased nuclear fears to fracking.
TIME Magazine’s top 10 green trends in 2011:
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant after earthquake and tsunami March 14, 2011 (photo credit: reuters.com)
1. The Return of Nuclear Fears
On March 11, a colossal earthquake and tsunami hit northern Japan. In the worst atomic meltdown since Chernobyl, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex was severely damaged by the disaster which eventually caused a meltdown. There’s still research underway to determine the long-term effects of the Fukushima disaster, but reaction in the nuclear industry was quick as Germany and Japan announced drastic reductions in atomic power.
2. Climate-Change Skepticism
Back in 2008, Republican presidential candidate John McCain believed in global warming and had a plan to reduce carbon emissions and increase renewable energy. “Today it’s easier to find an iceberg in the Sahara than it is to find a major Republican candidate who believes in climate science. As a result, climate change has become one more politically polarized issue — which means any national action from the U.S. has become virtually impossible.”
3. Fighting Old-Fashioned Air Pollution
The fight against air pollution continues and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has implemented mandated change. The EPA established “new rules for power plants and industrial facilities that will reduce smog and air pollution and improve public health.”
4. Going Local
It’s not just about shopping locally sourced foods and products; it’s about local government’s taking action to combat climate change while recognizing that federal governments move at a snail’s pace. For example, “California enacted an ambitious cap-and-trade program that will mandate greenhouse-gas reductions, despite political opposition. Cities like New York and Portland, Ore., continued to press on with plans to increase energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions.”
5. NIMBYism
NIMBYism which means “not in my backyard,” includes greens fighting against development. The biggest victory came for NIMBYism when they pushed Obama to postpone the Keystone XL pipeline. The Keystone XL pipeline was planned across the Midwest US and would have brought crude from Canadian oil-sands. Most activists and environmentalists honed in on the carbon risk of the oil sands, but it was the ordinary folks in Nebraska who were concerned about the risk of a local oil spill where the pipeline was planned to cross. I’m sure everyone saw the media coverage on the numerous protests that occurred.
6. Electric Vehicles Go Commercial
In 2011, the Nissan Leaf and GM’s Volt began selling their electric vehicles to eco-conscious drivers. The number of drivers is still small at less than 10,000 of each model and the Volt has come under fire (literally) for safety as a result of battery fires that can occur during collision. However, we certainly hope that the trend will continue towards more electric vehicle options from car manufacturers so they become the norm on the road, not the exception. Drivers at large have to recognize that to help combat climate change, we have to reduce our dependency on oil and fossil fuels.
7. The Fight over Fracking
What the frack? “Environmentalists have serious concerns about the risk of water pollution associated with hydrofracking — and many of the people who’ve leased their land for drilling are having second thoughts. As a result, fracking has become the hottest environmental issue in the U.S. — much more so than climate change — and there’s a real possibility that the expansion of gas drilling could be blocked in states like New York. The U.S. could be entering a golden age of gas, but only if it can figure out the environmental challenges.”
8. Greens Sour on Obama
Obama’s recent moves to postpone the Keystone XL pipeline and improve gas mileage have helped, but environmentalists are still disappointed with his progress over the past 4 years. “After eight years of the climate skeptic George W. Bush, Obama represented himself as someone who believed in science, who was willing to make the U.S. a leader in the battle against global warming. He promised cap and trade and drafted the greenest Cabinet in U.S. history, with luminaries like Energy Secretary (and Nobel Prize–winning physicist) Steven Chu. But less than a year before the 2012 election, many greens have soured on Obama. He’s blamed for not putting enough energy behind the push for cap and trade, which finally died in the Senate last year. He’s accused of kowtowing to polluters, watering down regulations on smog and other air pollutants.” I don’t think this bodes well for green support for Obama in the 2012 election.
9. The Solyndra Mess
It’s not uncommon for companies to go bankrupt especially with the current state of the economy, but all hell broke loose when solar panel manufacturer Solyndra declared bankruptcy in September 2011. Why? Well, not only were there 1,000 employees now out of work but Solyndra received $500 million in government loan guarantees. Did Solyndra waste they money? “Not exactly. The loan-guarantee program was going to be risky — support for insurgent technologies always is. And recent reviews of the Department of Energy’s loan programs have shown little waste. But Republicans seized on Solyndra as evidence that renewable energy wasn’t worth government support — and they’ve kept the issue in the headlines ever since. Expect to hear about the “Solyndra scandal” a lot between now and November.”
10. The Billion-Dollar Disasters
With 14 separate natural disasters costing $1 billion-plus, the US hit an all-time record in 2011. Although scientists continue to struggle with the connection between climate change and extreme weather, there’s no question that the hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, floods and droughts suffered were warning signs. What does the future hold and how many billion-dollar disasters will the public have to cope with in the future?
And that’s it for TIME’s list of the top 10 green trends in 2011. Quite frankly, a little depressing. What do you think the green trends will be in 2012?
January 18, 2012
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Planet Forward is an online retailer of ethically-made, earth-friendly products designed for everyday use with a distinctly urban feel. Products include reusable stainless steel bottles, stainless steel thermal travel mugs, waste-free lunch bags, reusable shopping bags, Make-it-Yourself toxin-free Green Cleaning kits, organic fashions and other accessories. SALE 50% OFF ALL PRODUCTS – SHOP NOW !
Green News Weekly – Hybrid Sharks, Solar ATMs and Habitat for Humanity Building Green
Posted by: | CommentsWelcome back for another edition of our weekly green news highlights. This week: hybrid sharks were discovered swimming in the waters off Australia’s east coast; solar ATMs provide service to rural India; and Habitat for Humanity is building energy efficient homes and helping low income homeowners with reduced monthly utility costs.
Hybrid black tip shark containing both common and Australian black tip DNA (Image credit: uq.edu.au)
Ready for new hybrids? Australia’s hybrid shark reveals evolution in action. Is climate change causing different species of sharks to mate and create hybrids? MSNBC reports that Hybrid sharks have been discovered in the waters off the east coast of Australia. According to a research team, the hybrids may be driven by climate change and more hybrids could become common discoveries in the future. The hybridization is between the Australian black tip shark which prefers tropical waters and the larger, Common black tip shark, which favours sub-tropical and temperate waters. “To actually find something like this and prove it genetically is unprecedented,” said Bob Hueter, director of the Center for Shark Research at the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida.
Solar ATMs Bring Change(s) to Rural India. Vortex Engineering has developed an ATM (Automated Teller Machine) that provides services to rural areas using solar power. The machine uses about as much electricity as a 70-watt lightbulb. “The initial lot of 400 solar ATMs, aptly called Gramateller (‘gram’ means village), the world’s largest order, placed by the State Bank of India ( SBI), has been winning accolades for performance and substantial energy savings. The ATMs were installed in 2010-11 across several states, usually within 20-50 km of the district headquarters, Vijay Babu, CEO of Vortex Engineering, which makes these units, told IANS from Chennai. Following SBI’s success with solar ATMs, the Catholic Syrian Bank also placed an order for 50 Gramatellers and Indian Bank for 20, while 10 more have been ordered by other banks, he added.” A solar-powered ATM saves over 90% of annual expenses in comparison to traditional ATMs.
Habitat goes green, saves green for residents. Antonio and Christie Miller of Nashville and Casey Greer are happy to see the decline in their utility bills thanks to their Habitat for Humanity built home that was designed to meet top energy efficiency standards. Habitat for Humanity, a non-profit organization, is responsible for building 4,800 homes in the United States and Canada in the last year, and they are committed to building energy efficient homes that are both affordable and green. Habitat homeowners agree. “Oh, my gosh, my utility bills are awesome,” Greer said. “This summer when it was extremely warm, I think the highest bill was 80 bucks. In my old place, the cheapest bill was almost $200.” Habitat programs in Nashville, Denver and Goshen, Ind., earned the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2011 Energy Star Sustained Excellence award for dedication to reducing greenhouse emissions through energy efficiency. With Habitat building homes for low income families, increased energy efficiency equates to lower monthly bills thereby making the ongoing costs to live there more affordable.
Are you afraid to go back in the water with new ‘hybrid’ sharks out there (I’m terrified of sharks)? Do you think solar ATMs will be popularized in North America? And bravo Habitat for Humanity, for green building and helping residents save on monthly utility expenses. Stay tuned for more green news.
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Planet Forward is an online retailer of ethically-made, earth-friendly products designed for everyday use with a distinctly urban feel. Products include reusable stainless steel bottles, stainless steel thermal travel mugs, waste-free lunch bags, reusable shopping bags, Make-it-Yourself toxin-free Green Cleaning kits, organic fashions and other accessories. SALE 50% OFF ALL PRODUCTS – SHOP NOW !
