Renewable Energy and Alternative News Bites:

Missouri town of Rock Port goes 100% wind power! Its wind power status is due to four wind turbines located on agricultural lands within the city limits; Rock Port’s community uses about 13 million kilowatt hours per year, and these wind turbines produce 16 million kilowatt hours per annum. Excess power is transmitted to Missouri Joint Municipal Utilities for use elsewhere. www.rockportwind.com for more information.

Hybrids, meet your rival: How does 376 miles to the gallon sound? Don’t choke on your latte, check out the documented fuel efficiency of this Seattle man’s car at http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/351903_needle20.html. If this could be done in the 70’s, why not now?

Solar thermal technologies on a grand scale may solve a lot of pollution problems, stating that “over 90% of the electric grid, and car fleet in the U.S. could be powered by solar thermal power”. Sunshine is used on a field of mirrors to make steam to drive turbines, and the heat can be stored for use at night, working even when the sun is variable. Read more about this exciting technology at http://www.gizmag.com/solar-thermal-power-study/8965/ and another article about the same at http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/business/06solar.html?ex=1205470800&en=39265cb2f87e3916&ei=5070&emc=eta1

Australia offers solar hot water for free with rebate: Three-quarters of Australians support government action to makes homes more energy efficient, and the State Government may merge its rebate scheme with the Federal Government’s scheme, which would make the buying and installation of a solar hot water system virtually cost-free. http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/solar-hot-water-for-free-with-new-rebate/2008/03/10/1205125819869.html for a link to this article. Electric hot water systems use as much as 40% of the electricity in a household.

Experts Show Farmers the Future is Methane: cattle ranchers and dairy owners are finding that that one can turn a lagoon of cow manure into electricity, fuel--or even dollars, as well as earn green credits and control pollution. While not as pretty as wind turbines, this technology will be a part of our renewable energy future. More information at http://www.redorbit.com/news/business/1286941/experts_show_farmers_the_future_is_methane/index.html

Only 4% of the Earth’s oceans remain undamaged from human activity. It appears that human’s pollution, fishing, climate change, and other factors have degraded most of the world’s water; visit http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7241428.stm for more information.

How green are photovoltaic (PV) modules? Yes, they sit basking in the sun, making electricity for roughly 30 to 40 years, but what about their manufacturing process? Is the process more toxic than the power they produce? http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/abstract.cgi/esthag/2008/42/i06/abs/es071763q.html for the answer!

Storing wind power has always been a major issue due to the variable nature of wind supply. A company called Xcel Energy is launching a major wind-to-battery project, with batteries the size of semi-trailers. Two of these would be able to store 7.2 megawatt hours of electricity; the project will take place in Luverne, MN, and is expected to go online by October of 2008. More information is available at www.xcelenergy.com.

Oil from algae? A company by the name of AlgaeLink is developing a new extraction method of oil extraction from algae without the use of chemicals, a centrifuge or an oil press. This new system not only makes the algae oil more eco-friendly, but some of the byproducts (like vitamins) may be useful to the food industries. See more about this interesting technology at http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=51772.

QUOTABLE QUOTES:

"There is no clean coal. There's cleaner coal, but all coal is dirty. What's important is we recognize we must move to renewables."
--Nevada Senator Harry Reid

“My mother always said democracy is the best revenge.”
--Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, son of slain Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto

“Perseverance in a noble cause is a renewable source of energy.”
--Brad Collins, American Solar Energy Society, www.ases.org

“We simply must balance our demand for energy with our rapidly shrinking resources. By acting now, we can control our future, instead of letting the future control us.” --Jimmy Carter

“Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party!’” --Robin Williams

“The road to hell is paved with politicians.” --Unknown

“It has become appallingly clear that our technology has surpassed our humanity.” --Albert Einstein

“Having children is a lot like living in a frat house -- nobody sleeps, everything’s broken, and there’s a lot of throwing up going on.” --Ray Romano

“When I despair, I always remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end they always fall…think of it...always.” - Mahatma Gandhi

“We should be the heart and mind of the earth, not its malady. So let us be brave and cease thinking of human needs and rights alone, and see that we have harmed the living earth and need to make our peace with Gaia. We must do it while we are still strong enough to negotiate, and not a broken rabble led by brutal war lords. Most of all, we should remember that we are part of it, and it is indeed our home.”
 --James Lovelock

“Midlife crisis is what happens when you climb to the top of the ladder and discover that it’s against the wrong wall.” --Joseph Campbell

“The factory of the future will have only two employees, a man and a dog. The man will be there to feed the dog. The dog will be there to keep the man from touching the equipment’” --Warren G. Bennis

“If there is in fact a heaven or hell, all we know for sure is that hell will be a viciously overcrowded version of Phoenix.” --Hunter S. Thompson