"First they laugh at you,
then they ignore you, then they fight with you, then you win." -- Ghandi
"Mankind's future depends
on America's energy choices. Let's clean house and abandon the
phony solutions that result in war, environmental ruin,
poverty, hunger, hatred and disease.
We must lead. We must set the example and Build A World That
Works!"TM -- Richard D.
Masters
"Hydrogen?
How silly!"
The Latest
Advances in
RENEWABLE Hydrogen Energy Part
1 2
NUCLEAR, OIL & COAL'S
GREATEST FEAR THE HYDROGEN CENTURY
BEGINS!
The
Latest
Advances
in Renewable
Hydrogen
Energy 1
2
The plan advocates immediate investment in energy efficiency, renewable
power generation -- including public investment in wind, solar and
geothermal technology -- and the creation of a unified national smart grid.
Dr. R.K. Pachauri
Head, UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Pachauri's
Blog November 5, 2008
"The presidential
elections in the US have vindicated the power of democracy as the most
responsive form of government of the people, by the people and for the
people. In respect of policies related to climate change, there was
obviously a major divergence between the position of the Federal Government
and that of the people at large, state governments and the cities in the US.
President-elect Barack Obama has not only been very clear in emphasizing the
need for the US to engage in global solutions to meet the challenge of
climate change but also in respect of bringing about a major shift in US
energy policy.
"The US now has a unique opportunity to assume leadership in
meeting the threat of climate change, and it would help greatly if the new
President were to announce a coherent and forward looking policy soon after
he takes office. There is every reason to believe that President Obama will
actually do so. This should please people across the globe, because US
leadership is critical for mounting global efforts to meet this threat
effectively. For this reason itself, apart from several others, the election
of Mr Obama is a development that should generate optimism all-round."
"To date, we have had no
leadership capable of moving the world in a new direction. President Obama
can be this leader, he will be the catalyst for the dawn of the solar
revolution and the beginning of the transition to a truly renewable
economy." J. Peter Lynch,
Financial Analyst
How Will Renewables Fare in the New Political Environment?
Renewable Energy
World
November 5, 2008
"We no longer have a country.
We don't have a republic any more.
...They managed to destroy the United States. Why? Because they're oil and
gas people
and they're essentially criminals." Author Gore Vidal Gore
Vidal: 'The US is Not a Republic Anymore' PressTV (IR)
June 30, 2008
"Democracy is not
working
the way it's intended to work." James Hanson, NASA Climate
Scientist
"We must end
the Age of Oil in our time." Senator Barak Obama
Lansing, Michigan
August 4, 2008
BIG OIL'S MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE
"[John
McCain thinks]
Americans are so stupid — so bloody stupid — that if you just show them wind
turbines in your Olympics ad they’ll actually think you showed up and voted
for such renewable power — when you didn’t."
Eight Strikes and You’re OutNY
Times
Thomas Friedman
Author of
Hot, Flat & Crowded
Why we need a Green Revolution and how it can
renew America
Senate Voting Record on Renewable Energy
"Senator
McCain did not show up for the
crucial vote on
July 30, and the renewable energy bill was defeated for the 8th time. John
McCain has a perfect record on this renewable energy legislation. He has
missed all eight votes over the last year — which effectively counts as a
no vote each time." Thomas Friedman
The New York Times August 12, 2008
HOW VALUABLE ARE FUEL
CELLS TO THE THIRD WORLD?
India to Bottle, Sell Pure Water from Hydrogen Fuel Cells Andrew Williams
CleanTechnica.com
November 1, 2008
Bharat estimates that it will be
able to produce 1 million metric tonnes of clean water for every 1000 MW
of energy from hydrogen fuel cells.
The platinum
nanowires at the cathode of a membrane electrode assembly prepared
in Dodelet's lab can reach much better performance in fuel cells
than a commercial membrane electrode assembly. "We found that our
in-house platinum nanowire catalyst shows a 50% higher mass activity
than the commercial cathode" says Dodelet. "Quite surprisingly, this
improvement occurred in spite of a 50% lower platinum area for the
platinum nanowire catalyst. Taking into account both effects, a
specific ORR activity of the platinum nanowire catalyst of 275 µA
per square centimeter platinum (at 0.9 V) was calculated, which is
threefold better than that of the commercial cathode when tested at
the same fuel cell test station."
The script of the advert is similar in
tone to political speeches made by Obama and McCain during the
election season. An unseen narrator states that climate change can
be combated through wind and solar power as well as "end[ing] our
dependence on foreign oil". Over an image of a young child playing
with blocks, the narrator continues: "So why are we still stuck with
dirty and expensive energy? Because big oil spends hundreds of
millions of dollars to block clean energy. Lobbyists, ads, even
scandals. All to increase their profits, while America suffers."
"Our
heritage and ideals, our code and standards - the things we live by
and teach our children - are preserved or diminished by how freely
we exchange ideas and feelings."
Walt Disney
Why would Honda hold back on its
own marvelous technology? Japanese Honda has understood that if it
mass produces the Clarity and Home Energy Station, the public will
flock to it as fast as they have been fleeing from Honda SUVs and
similar gas guzzlers. While Honda makes some of the most
fuel-efficient and well-engineered cars in America, the Japanese
company also makes gas guzzlers, such as the Honda Ridgeline
crossover pick-up which only achieves about 15 MPG in the city, the
snazzy S-2000 sports car at 18 MPG, and the Pilot midsize SUV at
about 16 MPG. In July, 2008, sales of the Pilot, manufactured in
Alabama, posted a 47 percent drop over the previous year, just 7,486
compared to 13,136 in July, 2007. Pilots were down more than 21
percent for 2008. Sales of other Honda gas guzzlers plummeted as the
market for such vehicles by all makers completely collapsed in
mid-July, 2008. When the market for SUVs collapsed, SUV leasing
programs by numerous auto companies nearly all terminated during a
several-day period in July, 2008.
Helping America and the world out of its financially wracking
oil addiction would hamstring overall profits for the Japanese
carmakers. In the case of the Honda Civic GX and Clarity, the
company may have indeed gone slowly on its best alternative fuel
vehicles, keeping them out of America’s anxious hands, for no reason
other than the preservation of profits on gas guzzling vehicles well
into the third decade of the 21st century. Honda cars, generally
among the best built in the world, boast a scrappage rate that can
easily exceed a decade. Vehicles sold in 2009 and 2010 can be
expected to require parts and service for at least a decade.
more
UK: Loughborough University
Unveils
New Hydrogen Refuelling Station Intelligent Energy
September 25, 2009
The facility is one of only two currently operational in the UK,
and will enable Loughborough University to add impetus to its
research on hydrogen and fuel cells. ...Intelligent Energy’s ENV,
the world’s first hydrogen fuel cell motorcycle, was the first
vehicle to be refuelled at the station. ...Initially an external
supplier will provide hydrogen gas for the facility, but the
University is investigating ways of creating its own renewable
hydrogen through the use of green technologies on campus.
British Jury Decides Threat of Global Warming Justifies Breaking Law Michael McCarthy The
Independent (UK) September 11, 2008
"When a jury of normal people say it is legitimate for a direct action
group to shut down a coal-fired power station because of the harm it does
to our planet, then where does that leave Government energy policy? We
have the clean technologies at hand to power our economy. It's time we
turned to them instead of coal." Defendant Ben Stewart, Greenpeace
WHEN WILL DETROIT REALIZE
HOW BADLY IT'S BEEN MISLED? "For a real recovery,
you're going to need gas prices below $3
and stay there for at least six months." Jesse Toprak
Executive director of industry analysis
for Edmunds.com
Auto Sales Plunge Again
Sales of Ford's pickups and vans tumbled 39%
while sales of SUVs plunged 53%.
CNN Money
September 3, 2008
Ford is extending its three-year-old
hydrogen fuel cell program for up to 24 months in cooperation with the
Department of Energy (DOE) after
the company found its first generation fuel cell equipped Focus sedans
lasted three times longer and worked much better than originally expected
with virtually no degradation in performance. The company said its
30 fuel cell test vehicles have accumulated 865,000 real-world mi. and
earned high marks from various fleet users around the world.
Ramea is the site of a five-year innovative research and development
project for an isolated wind-hydrogen- diesel generation system, among the
first of its kind in the world. This project is focused on developing an
environmentally-friendly energy solution to be used in small, isolated
electrical distribution systems. The project builds on the existing,
successful wind-diesel system that has been operating in Ramea since 2004.
Don’t Flush Yet! Why Joe Romm is Wrong Bob Rose, US Fuel Cell Council
Fuel Cell Insider
August 21, 2009
Joe Romm advocates
require the combustion of fuels on board vehicles, with all the attendant
emissions, inefficiencies, noise and so on. Only dedicated battery EVs and
hydrogen fuel cell vehicles would allow us to break our combustion habit
and fully electrify our vehicle fleet. Neither option is commercial at the
moment. Research is complementary – better electric drive trains yield
benefit both pathways, better batteries mean better FCVs.
"At a time when
unemployment is at a four-year high and the economy needs every stimulus
it can get, a rapid extension of the credit should be on any economic
priority list for Congress." Randall Swisher, Executive
Director American Wind Energy
Asociation
Policy Uncertainty Weighs on Wind Industry Christine Real de Azua
AWEA
August 14, 2008
Water-Powered Cars: Hydrogen Electrolyzer Mod Can't Up MPGs Mike Allen
Popular Mechanics
August 7, 2008
The entire concept of
running your car on water is based on bad science. The idea is to use
electricity from the car's alternator to electrolyze water into HHO, a
mixture of pure hydrogen and oxygen. This mix is fed into the intake air,
where it is burned along with gasoline, thereby increasing your fuel
economy anywhere from 15 to 100 percent—depending on which Web site you're
visiting. Believe the hype, and those 1 to 2 liters of HHO streamed into
the engine will double the fuel economy, clean the engine out, and maybe
even grow hair. Plenty of these budget sites even claim their devices are
efficient enough for a version that would run a car entirely on water—no
gasoline at all. If this sounds like it's too good to be true, it is.
The U.K. Backtracks "Mayor [Boris] Johnson has just scrapped
the biggest hydrogen vehicle project in this country. It is one thing for
the London mayor to talk green, but he is clearly turning into a one man
environmental disaster." Darren Johnson, Member of Parliament
New London Mayor Cancels 60 Fuel Cell Vehicle Order BBC
August 7, 2008
U.K. Kyoto
commitment
all bluster, no substance ‘‘The
overall message is fairly grim unless we do something radical. We need
fewer, shorter reports and more action from the Government.’’ Professor Rod Smith Chairman of the Future Railway Research
Centre
UK Transport Expert Calls for Government
to Fund Hydrogen Research
Process and Control Today
December 13, 2007
Prof Smith is among a growing number of
transport experts that believe the UK will fail to meet even its first
carbon reduction target, let alone a 60% reduction by 2050.
ANOTHER BLACK DAY FOR AMERICA Republican Senators vote as a bloc to protect oil
profits
from the threat of limitless renewable energy --
RDM
Renewable Energy Tax Credit Legislation Voted Down
in U.S. Senate Renewable Energy World
July 31, 2008 “Time is running out to extend the solar tax
credits and without passage in the immediate future, tens of thousands of
jobs and billions of dollars will be lost in new solar investment. Already
companies are putting projects on hold and preparing to send thousands of
jobs overseas — real jobs that would otherwise be filled by American
workers. Failure to extend the solar tax credits is a severe blow to an
industry that has proven to be an economic engine for the U.S. at a time
when we need it most."
Rhone Resch, President, Solar Energy Industries Association
“With today’s technology, we can
produce hydrogen for less than the cost of gasoline.… The technology to
create hydrogen cheaply has been around for quite some time. The challenge
is to get it to the fueling stations.” Patrick Serfass, National Hydrogen
Association
Clean-burning, Cheap-hydrogen Cars
Start High-profile Road Trip
Meggan Clark
KeepMECurrent July
31, 2008
What these tax
credits are designed to do is to stimulate investments by many players in
solar and wind so these technologies can quickly move down the learning
curve and become competitive with coal and oil — which is why some people
are trying to block them. As Richard K. Lester, an energy-innovation
expert at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, notes, “The best
chance we have — perhaps the only chance” of addressing the combined
challenges of energy supply and demand, climate change and energy security
“is to accelerate the introduction of new technologies for energy supply
and use and deploy them on a very large scale.”
Eight Strikes and You’re Out Thomas Friedman The
New York Times August 12,
2008
REPUBLICANS NOW TARGET THE LAST
VESTIGES OF AMERICA'S WILDERNESS, PARKS AND COASTLINES FOR OIL
EXPLOITATION BY THEIR INTERNATIONAL MASTERS WHILE THEY STEADFASTLY REFUSE
TO ALLOW A TRANSITION TO RENEWABLE FUELS, EVEN AS U.S. CITIZENS AND
BUSINESS SLOWLY STRANGLE ON RISING GASOLINE AND DIESEL COSTS.
MANY SHORT-SIGHTED AMERICANS SUPPORT THIS PILLAGE AT THE EXPENSE OF THEIR
CHILDREN'S HERITAGE. THEY MUST ASK THEMSELVES, "IF WE DRAIN THE LAST OF
NORTH AMERICA'S OIL WITHOUT DEVELOPING A RENEWABLE ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE
NOW, WHILE WE CAN STILL AFFORD TO DO IT, WHAT WILL OUR CHILDREN HAVE LEFT?
WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THEM IF WE FAIL TO REPLACE OUR EXHAUSTED OIL RESERVES
WITH SUSTAINABLE ALTERNATIVES? WHO WILL RULE THEM IF WE LEAVE THEM
HELPLESS?" -- RDM
As wind energy continues to expand
across the U.S. heartland, rural America is likely to experience a
revitalization not experienced since the homestead land grabs of the 19th
century. Green jobs - high-quality employment for environmentally
sustainable industries - and related spin-off opportunities are
proliferating across West Texas.
Former Vice President Al Gore has
challenged the United States to shift its entire electricity sector to
wind, solar and geothermal power within 10 years. "This goal is
achievable, affordable and transformative," Gore said during a speech at
the Daughters of the American Revolution Constitution Hall in Washington.
"It represents a challenge to all Americans in every walk of life: to our
political leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators, engineers and to every
citizen."
Alternative Energy Expert Tai Robinson
Discusses the Hierarchy of Automotive Fuels
The Standing Committee on Emission Regulation — under the Ministry of
Shipping, Road Transport & Highways — today approved addition of hydrogen
to CNG (compressed natural gas) for use in vehicles. The proposal is to
use CNG with 20 per cent hydrogen content. When this gets notified, India
will become the first country to use this mix on a commercial basis and
take a definitive step towards enhancing the use of renewable energy in
automobiles.
NEWS YOU WILL NEVER SEE! "We Told You So!" Say Republicans
as Sun Stops Shining
Mid East Saber-Rattling Causes Wind kW/h Cost to Spike
New U.S. Wind Farms Cause Millions in Africa to Starve
Republicans Agree Oil is the Problem, Endorse Renewables
Wind Turbine Wreck Pollutes 100s of Miles of Coastline
Army to Protect Wind Farm Routes; Draft Reinstated
Military On High Alert for Terrorists at Wind Farm
Asthma Epidemic Blamed on Solar, Wind Turbines
Newly Empowered Democrats Refuse Oil Pay-Offs Chad Invades Sudan: Seizes Solar,
Wind Resources
Smog Alert Idles Wind Farm; Schools Closed
"We're Addicted to Wind Power," Says Bush
Wilkes said if the
Internet hawkers were truthful - or if they did careful enough
measurements - they would find more energy is expended by the motor to
turn the alternator than the energy produced by the minuscule amount of
hydrogen.
The Truth About Water-Powered Cars: Mechanic's Diary Mike Allen
Popular Mechanics
July 3, 2008
The laws of thermodynamics haven’t changed,
in spite of any hype you read on some blog or news aggregator. Subtract
the losses to heat in the engine and alternator and electrolysis cell, and
you’re losing energy, not gaining it—period.
"Congress has never
been more cowardly, nor more corrupt. All Bush has do is to make sure
certain amounts of money go in the direction of certain important
congressmen and that's end of any serious investigation. ...We no longer
have a country. We don't have a republic any more. ...They managed to
destroy the United States - why? Because they're oil and gas people and
they're essentially criminals." Author Gore Vidal Gore
Vidal: 'The US is Not a Republic Anymore' PressTV (IR)
June 30, 2008
"We
know that the administration's efforts have been about covering up the
real dangers of global warming and hiding facts from the public. This
cover-up is being directed from the White House and the Office of the Vice
President." Senator Barbara Boxer
Chairman, Environment and Public
Works
Cheney's Office Pushed Purge Of Climate Change Testimony Siobhan Hughes
Wall Street Journal
July 8, 2008
Cheney Wanted Cuts in Climate Testimony H. Josef Hebert
AP July
8, 2008
NATIONAL EMERGENCY: A BEACON OF HOPE
Oil Magnate Boone Pickens Unveils Wind Power Plan Texas magnate says foreign oil is
'killing' the economy;
invested $2 billion in plan to build world's largest wind farm.
...His energy plan could be implemented within 10 years if both Congress
and the White House treat the current energy situation as a "national
emergency and take immediate action,"
he predicted. CNN Money July 8, 2008
Enthusiasts Predict Comeback in Hydrogen Ballooning Euan Rocha
Reuters June
30, 2008
Suppliers in the U.S.
shy away from catering to hydrogen gas balloons, concerned about the risks of
lawsuits in case of an accident. Despite the dangers, gas ballooning enthusiasts
are drawn by the thrill of the sport and the beauty of silent flight. In
Germany, hydrogen-based gas ballooning has been conducted successfully for
years. "Let's face it, the future of alternative energy down the road is
possibly hydrogen. This country needs to be better educated on hydrogen and the
energy that you can get from it," said Padelt, the balloon designer.
Anger Expressed Over Supreme Court's Exxon Decision Maggie Wall
Sitnews
June
28, 2008
They stretched the case out so long that
of the original nearly 33,000 claimants, 3,000 died while waiting for a decision
in the case.
The Promise of Hydrogen
Health News Digest
June 28, 2008
Stanford University
researchers in 2005 assessed the environmental effects of three different
hydrogen sources: coal, natural gas, and water electrolysis powered by wind.
They concluded that we’d lower greenhouse gas emissions more by driving
gasoline/electric hybrid cars than by driving fuel cell cars run on hydrogen
from coal. Hydrogen made using natural gas would fare a little bit better in
terms of pollution output, while
making it from wind power would a
slam-dunk for the environment.
Shooting the Moon on Renewables Steve Hargreaves
CNNMoney June 19, 2008 While McCain wants to drill more oil to fight $4
gas, Obama calls for an 'Apollo project' aimed at alternative energy.
...The presumed Democratic nominee wants to fund renewable energy to the
tune of $15 billion a year for 10 years, paid for by auctioning off
permits to companies that emit greenhouse gases.
Oil Puppets in U.S.
Senate Again Prevent Expansion of Wind Energy -
RDM
On June 10, the Senate failed to
move forward with the House of Representatives’ proposed one-year PTC
extension. Without rapid legislative action, the PTC will expire at the
end of 2008. To maintain existing jobs and to continue growing thousands
of new jobs, it is vital that Congress acts quickly to extend the PTC.
Should we enter late summer without a PTC extension, wind industry
investment in 2009 and later will be in jeopardy. A recent study by
Navigant Consulting shows that 116,000 jobs and more than $19 billion in
investment in the wind and solar industries are at risk if the renewable
energy tax credits are not extended. -
American Wind Energy Association
Device Turns Water into Hydrogen Fuel at Robins Air Force BaseGene Rector Macon Telegraph (GA)
June 9, 2008 The Hyhauler Plus is only
the beginning of hydrogen exploitation at Robins. The pending fixed
station will pull hydrogen from water but will employ photovoltaic solar
collectors as a power source in addition to using electricity from the
base's power grid. ...A second fixed station - a partnership between the
Air Force and the Defense Logistics Agency - will produce hydrogen from
natural gas to power 20 forklifts planned for a new DLA warehouse on base.
Toyota Develops Advanced Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle; TOYOTA FCHV-adv, with
New Toyota FC Stack, Earns Vehicle-type CertificationToyota
June 6, 2008 Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC)
announced today that it has developed a fuel cell hybrid vehicle equipped
with the newly designed high-performance Toyota FC Stack. The "TOYOTA FCHV-adv"
acquired vehicle-type certification from Japan's Ministry of Land,
Infrastructure and Transport (MLIT) on June 3. During development, TMC
analyzed results and data from various utilization studies by the Japan
Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Demonstration Project organized by Japan's Ministry
of Economy, Trade and Industry, tests conducted by the California Fuel
Cell Partnership in the United States and cold-weather tests in Timmins,
Canada. TMC also repeatedly carried out basic research to get to the core
of technical problems as they arose. Based on the results gained from
these studies, the TOYOTA FCHV-adv's fuel cell system was enhanced to
further improve cruising distance and low-temperature starts, which had
presented obstacles to widespread fuel cell vehicle use. The building
block of the Toyota FC Stack is the Membrane Electrode Assembly (MEA),
where engineers focused on the basic problem of internally produced water
interfering with electrical generation within the MEA at low temperatures.
Fundamental research, such as internal visualization tests, was carried
out to understand the behavior and amount of water generated in the fuel
cell, allowing engineers to optimize the MEA design to improve
low-temperature startup. As a result, the
TOYOTA FCHV-adv can start and operate in cold regions at temperatures as
low as -30 degrees Celsius, meaning the vehicle can be used in a
wider variety of conditions and climates. In addition,
fuel efficiency was improved by
25% through improving fuel cell unit performance, enhancing the
regenerative brake system and reducing energy consumed by the auxiliary
system. Further changes include incorporating degradation control for the
electrode catalyst and improving fuel cell durability. Furthermore,
equipping the vehicle with TMC-developed
70Mpa high-pressure hydrogen tanks makes it possible to travel
approximately 830km on a single fueling - performance that more than
doubles that of the TOYOTA FCHV-adv's predecessor, the TOYOTA FCHV.
"It's unbelievable that we have not done more with wind.
...We are going to have to do something different in America. You can't
keep paying out $600 billion a year for oil." T. Boone Pickens
Billionaire Oilman Backs Wind Power
CNN
May 19, 2007
"The U.S. wind industry has been crashed at least three
times, quite deliberately, by Congress messing with the tax credits from
year to year and in a stop-and-go fashion.
You can't run an industry that way and develop the capacity and the jobs.
That's why we import most of our wind turbines." Amory Lovins, Rocky Mountain Institute
Power Q&A: Amory Lovins Michael Mechanic
Mother Jones May/June
2008
For a Change in the Wind, We Must Change
Congress Commentary by Richard D. Masters
International Clearinghouse for Hydrogen Commerce
May 31, 2008
INCREASINGLY
AFFORDABLE WIND POWER PRESENTS THE GREATEST THREAT TO THE FUTURE
PROFITABILITY OF BIG ENERGY, WHICH PRESENTLY DICTATES U.S. ENERGY POLICY
THROUGH ITS PROXIES IN THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH AND CONGRESS. BUT NOW,
AS THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY GEARS UP FOR A COSTLY AND DANGEROUS NUCLEAR
EXPANSION ACROSS AMERICA, THEY TOSS A CURIOUS CRUMB TO THE POTENTIAL
OF CHEAP WIND POWER BY WAY OF DOE'S UNDER-FUNDED, OFT-IGNORED AND
UNDER-STAFFED BASTARD CHILD, THE OFFICE OF ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE
TECHNOLOGY.
ALTHOUGH THE NEWLY-RELEASED DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REPORT
"20% WIND ENERGY BY 2030" IS
BEING VIEWED FROM WITHIN THE WIND INDUSTRY AS A BREAKTHROUGH, ONE NEEDS TO
COMPARE THIS LACKLUSTER PROPOSAL TO WHAT WE COULD ACTUALLY DO WITH VISION,
WILL AND COMMITMENT. HARRY BRAUN'S CALL FOR A
"PHOENIX PROJECT" AND
JACOBSON AND ARCHER'S OBSERVATION THAT THE ENERGY IN AMERICA'S WIND
COULD SUPPLY FIVE TIMES WHAT WE NOW USE ARE CLEAR EXAMPLES. FOR
THOSE WHO THINK WE ARE WITNESSING A SUDDEN EPIPHANY BY DOE, ONE SHOULD
EXAMINE
DOE'S REAL PRIORITIES TO UNDERSTAND THAT AGENCY'S PRIMARY PURPOSE IS
TO RATIONALIZE THE LEGITIMACY OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS BY ENCOURAGING THE
EXPANSION OF THE NUCLEAR POWER INDUSTRY. IF A REAL ENERGY DEPARTMENT
EXISTED, IT WOULD IMMEDIATELY SEIZE UPON THE MOST COST EFFECTIVE
TECHNOLOGY THAT EXISTS - WHICH IS CLEARLY WIND - AND LEAD A NATIONAL
PROGRAM OF WIND EXPANSION IN THE SPIRIT OF APOLLO AND THE MANHATTAN
PROJECT TO FREE US FROM THE LOOMING HANGMAN'S NOOSE OF IMPORTED OIL. THIS STUDY USES A PREPOSTEROUS, UNREALISTIC AND
RIDICULOUS PRICE PROJECTION FOR NUCLEAR AND FOSSIL FUEL WHICH SERVES TO
PRESENT DIRTY, OVERPRICED AND DESTRUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES AS COMPETITIVE WITH
WIND. FOR INSTANCE, THE STUDY SETS A VALUE (p 187)
FOR NATURAL GAS AT $7 IN 2030! YET IT MAKES CLEAR THAT THE COST OF WIND
POWER, EVEN THOUGH PRESENTLY COMPETITIVE, WILL CONTINUE TO DECLINE. IT
WILL BE ENTERTAINING TO COMPARE THIS TO THE INEVITABLE RE-WRITE ONCE THE
EXECUTIVE, LEGISLATURE AND UPPER DOE MANAGEMENT ARE REPLACED WITH PEOPLE
FOCUSED ON THE SURVIVABILITY OF THE COUNTRY RATHER THAN ON VENUES FOR BIG
ENERGY PROFITS.
WITH THE ABSURDLY MIS-NAMED AND UNFUNDED
Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008,
DESIGNED TO DELAY RENEWABLE ENERGY EXPANSION, THE PRODUCTION TAX CREDITS
FOR WIND ARE EXTENDED ONLY A FEW MONTHS RATHER THAN FOR THE MANY YEARS
REQUIRED TO ESTABLISH A HEALTHY FINANCIAL BASE FOR THE FINANCING OF LARGE
PROJECTS. ONCE AGAIN, A CONGRESS OWNED BY FOSSIL AND NUCLEAR ENERGY
PROVIDES PATHETIC LIP SERVICE TO RENEWABLE ENERGY WHILE DISCOURAGING THE
DYNAMIC PROGRESS AMERICA DESPERATELY NEEDS TO COST-EFFECTIVELY REDUCE OIL
CONSUMPTION. BY PERPETUATING THE FOSSIL AND NUCLEAR POWER MONOPOLY,
CONGRESS IS ENCOURAGING FOREIGN OIL DEPENDENCE AND MILITARY ADVENTURISM,
AND INVITING THE DESTRUCTION OF THE U.S. ECONOMY. THESE PEOPLE ARE
TRAITORS AND CRIMINALS WHO HAVE SOLD INFLUENCE TO FOREIGN NATIONS AND
INTERNATIONAL CORPORATIONS IN VIOLATION OF THEIR SWORN DUTY. CITIZENS
SHOULD BE OUTRAGED.
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy May 2008
The modeling done for this report
estimates that wind power installations with capacities of more than 300
gigawatts (GW) would be needed for the 20% wind in 2030 scenario.
Increasing U.S. wind power to this level from today’s 11.6 GW level would
require significant changes in transmission, manufacturing and markets.
This report presents an analysis of one specific scenario for reaching the
20% level and contrasts it to a scenario of no wind growth beyond the
level in 2006. Major assumptions in the analysis have been highlighted
throughout the document and have been summarized in the appendices. These
assumptions may be considered optimistic. In this report, no sensitivity
analyses have been done to estimate the impact that changes in the
assumptions would have on the information presented here. As summarized at
the end of this chapter, the analysis provides an overview of some
potential impacts of these two scenarios by 2030. This report does not
compare the Wind Scenario to other energy portfolio options, nor does it
outline an action plan.
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy May 2008
The U.S. wind industry experienced
unprecedented growth in 2007, surpassing even optimistic projections from
years past. This rapid pace of development has made it difficult to keep
up with trends in the marketplace. Yet, the need for timely, objective
information on the industry and its progress has never been greater. This
report— the second of an ongoing annual series —attempts to meet this need
by providing a detailed overview of developments and trends in the U.S.
wind power market, with a particular focus on 2007.
RELEASED
READING BETWEEN THE LINES, THIS DOE STUDY PORTENDS THE END OF COAL, THE
END OF NUCLEAR, THE END OF RESOURCE DEPLETION AND THE END OF OIL WARS.
-RDM
"In several states, the renewable electricity
required by RPS policies appears
competitive with fossil generation."
Renewable Portfolio Standards
in the United States Lawrence Berkeley National Lab April 2008
As one indicator of the role of state
RPS programs in renewable resource development, over 50% of non-hydro
renewable capacity additions in the U.S. from 1998 through 2007 occurred
in states with active, mandatory RPS policies, totaling roughly 8,900 MW
(see Figure 5). Since 2002, this percentage rises to over 60%. In 2007
alone, approximately 76% of all non-hydro renewable capacity additions
came from states with active RPS programs. By this metric at least, it
appears that state RPS policies are already playing a major role in
renewable resource development in the United States.
Adding the reduction in health and mortality costs from
wind Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles of $0.29 to $1.80/gallon, which is the
externality cost of gasoline, gives a direct cost plus externality cost of
U.S. gasoline/diesel of $2.35 to $3.99/gallon, which exceeds the mean cost
of hydrogen from wind ($2.16/gallon) even if retail hydrogen is marked up.
Cleaning the Air and
Improving Health
with Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Vehicles M. Z. Jacobson, W. G. Colella, D. M. Golden
Science
June 24, 2005
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO, CANADA
-- Hydrogenics Corporation (TSX: HYG)(NASDAQ: HYGS), a leading designer
and manufacturer of hydrogen electrolyzers and fuel cell systems,
announced today that it has been
selected to provide the hydrogen electrolyzer for a
community wind-hydrogen-diesel system in the community of Ramea,
Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. By adding zero-emission hydrogen
generation and storage, Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro (Hydro), is
anticipating an increase in the amount of electricity derived from wind
which will lead to a decreased dependence on diesel fuel. Hydrogenics
anticipates it will deliver its commercially proven HySTAT onsite
generation electrolyzer to Hydro within one year.
Ramea, like many communities around the globe, is isolated
from the main electrical grid and dependent on diesel generation to meet
its electricity needs. Harnessing the power of available renewable
resources, such as wind energy, is an ideal approach for communities like
Ramea to offset the power needed from the diesel gensets, but is limited
by wind's inherent intermittency. Introducing hydrogen technologies to the
community allows excess wind power to be stored and redeployed when the
wind is not blowing enabling wind to supply a greater percentage of the
community's power requirements. This project is a five year research and
development pilot with potential for expansion to other remote
communities.
"Hydrogen provides an ideal energy storage solution," said
Daryl Wilson, President and CEO of Hydrogenics. "We believe that hydrogen
will play a critical role in capturing the power of renewable resources
and creating viable energy systems that are cost effective, sustainable
and environmentally friendly," says Wilson. Batteries are often used to
store excess energy; however, batteries incur significant loss over
periods of time and are relatively expensive options for energy storage.
By comparison, stored hydrogen does not dissipate energy over time and the
cost of storage is relatively low. "Hydrogen storage is highly scaleable
and ideal for storing large amounts of energy for long periods of time,"
Wilson added. In addition, hydrogen is multi-use and can be used to fuel
vehicles, devices or other industrial equipment.
more
New Foundland and Labrador Hydro Purchase Three Northwind 100 TurbinesDistributed Energy Systems Mar 25
2008 Three Northwind 100 turbines
will be installed in Ramea, a small remote island on the south coast of
Newfoundland and one of 22 isolated communities served by Hydro. Ramea
is the site of a five-year innovative research and development project
for an isolated wind-hydrogen-diesel generation system, one of the first
of its kind in the world.
more
MILLIONS IN TAXPAYER
R&D FUEL CELL INVESTMENT BECOME AVAILABLE TO FOREIGN NATIONS FOR A
PITTANCE AS AN OIL-DOMINATED CONGRESS CONTINUES TO DRIVE HI-TECH HYDROGEN
COMPANIES OFFSHORE. -- RDM
John Freeh, HydroGen's CEO, stated:
"While we have made significant strides in advancing our technology to the
commercialization stage, we must face the reality of the difficult equity
market we find ourselves in. The announced reduction in force is required
to provide additional time for us to pursue several different funding
strategies that we are considering, including the sale of the company. By
implementing this immediate cost savings initiative, we are taking the
actions needed to best position our company for the future."
...HydroGen Corporation is a manufacturer of multi-megawatt
fuel cell systems utilizing its proprietary 400 kW phosphoric acid fuel
cell (PAFC) technology. HydroGen's fuel cell technology, originally
developed by Westinghouse Corporation, offers a multi-megawatt,
zero-emission power generation product that supports the growth of
industrial distributed energy.
Outer Hebrides and Air Propducts Lead Renewable Hydrogen Revolution
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar/Western Isles Council
(UK) May
21, 2008
Comhairle nan Eilean
Siar (the Western Isles Council) has a vision to establish a
hydrogen economy within the Outer Hebrides. The Hebridean Hydrogen
Seed (H2seed) project, the second phase of the Hebridean Hydrogen
Park, will establish a renewable hydrogen production and
distribution facility. The region suffers from the highest fuel
costs in the UK and yet is surrounded by the richest renewable
energy resources in Europe. Exploitation of this resource for
electrical generation is presently constrained by the weak nature of
the region’s connection to the national grid. These circumstances
represent a unique opportunity, harnessing the rich renewable and
sustainable energy resources for hydrogen generation and
demonstrating pre-commercial hydrogen technologies on a
near-commercial basis. The Hydrogen fuelling station and storage
facilities will be operational in October 2008.
H2Seed
Honda expects to lease several dozen
FCX Clarity models per year in the U.S. and Japan to reach the total of
about 200 units in the first three years. Since its Tokyo concept debut,
Honda has received requests from more than 50,000 individuals who have
indicated their interest in receiving further updates about the vehicle
and about being considered as future customers of Honda fuel cell
technology. ...Based on respondents' residential location, the list of
potential customers has been narrowed to approximately 500 people living
in very close proximity to publicly-accessible hydrogen fueling stations,
including planned or existing stations in Santa Monica, Torrance and
Irvine.
more
BREAKTHROUGH
Hydrogen Gas-barrier Material Developed With Clay
Motohiko Hamada Tech-On (JP)
May 20, 2008
The result of gas
chromatographic measurement using 0.7MPa hydrogen showed that the hydrogen
gas barrier property of the new material is more than 100 times higher
than that of any other material thus far reported. The barrier property is
equivalent to the annual leakage of 0.01% in a hydrogen tank with a length
of 5m, a diameter of 1m and a pressure of 5MPa.
Burns also said the production of
hydrogen should not be a problem for the future, since global production
is slated to rise to 81 billion kilograms by 2011, half of which is used
by oil refineries to remove sulphur from "dirty" crude. Not without irony,
Burns notes the hydrogen being used to refine oil into gasoline would be
enough to fuel 135 million fuel-cell powered vehicles, which would
significantly reduce the world's dependency on fossil fuels.
OIL-DEPENDENCE SUICIDE
PROMISES
GRIM TIMES AHEAD FOR AMERICA
"The market is beginning to perceive that OPEC has lost control. It is a
devastating realization because it means that there is no supply-based
ceiling on price." --
Jack Zagar, associate of Colin Campbell Hydrogen
Hawaii
Directed by Richard D. Masters
2001
"The oil price is out of our control." Qatar's oil minister Abdullah
al-Attiyah Oil
Steady Above $126Reuters
May 11, 2008
OUR CALLS TO AVOID THIS DIRE FUTURE
HAVE FALLEN ON DEAF EARS FOR 9 YEARS
NOW THAT FUTURE IS PRESENT
U.S. FOOD-FOR-FUEL CATASTROPHE LAYS
OUT
RED CARPET FOR RETURN OF GLOBAL COMMUNISM
"Casino capitalism has taken a seat
at the table of the poor. This is immorality carried to the extreme." Martin Schulz, MEP,
European Parliament
India
Suspends Soybean Oil Futures Trading Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
The Telegraph (UK)
May 8, 2008
As food and fuel riots spread across
the world, a string of governments have resorted to steps that menace the
free flow of food and key commodities.
AMERICA'S SHAME
Congress' glacial pace could cost $19
billion in economic investment in wind, geothermal and solar technologies. And
nearly 120,000 green jobs could dry up between now and next year.
Stalled Energy Policy Slows Business
Danielle Karson
American Public Media
May 15, 2008
INERTIA RULES RAMPAGE: OUR BROKEN COUNTRY commentary by Richard D. Masters,
ICHC April 18,
2008
WIND, SOLAR, WAVE, GEOTHERMAL, AND OTHER NEW CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES
THREATEN THE
FOSSIL AND
NUCLEAR MONOPOLY THAT OWNS MOST
SENATORS AND CONGRESSMEN.
THE U.S.
GOVERNMENT SHUNS RENEWABLE ENERGY AT ALL COSTS, AS DEMONSTRATED BY THE
SENATE'S PASSAGE OF AN UNFUNDED, 1-YEAR EXTENSION OF THE PRODUCTION TAX
CREDIT FOR WIND. BANKS ARE SUPPOSED TO PROVIDE 30-YEAR FINANCING BASED
ON A ONE-YEAR HORIZON? NO WONDER THE HOUSE KILLED IT!
WHILE OTHER COUNTRIES HIKE GAS TAXES TO FINANCE RENEWABLE
INFRASTRUCTURE, U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES CALL FOR A GAS TAX HOLIDAY
DURING PEAK SUMMER DRIVING SEASON. OH YEAH, THAT'S GOING TO SAVE GAS?
"GULLIBLE FOOLS, VOTE FOR ME."
THEY WILL.
AND THE CYNICAL PURPOSE OF THE
GREAT ETHANOL FRAUD? IT WAS
DESIGNED TO DRAW OFF FUNDING FROM TRUE RENEWABLE SOLUTIONS. AND IT WORKED,
BIG TIME!
"GULLIBLE FOOLS, BURN YOUR FOOD!"
THEY DID!
I NEVER THOUGHT MY FELLOW AMERICANS WOULD FALL FOR THIS, BUT
HERE WE GO, DOWN THE TUBES IN FLAMES WITH THE GHOST OF KURT COBAIN WAILING
"RAPE ME" IN THE BACKGROUND.
YEARS OF TAXPAYER INVESTMENT IN NEW ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES IS
SQUANDERED AS COMPANIES SEEK FOREIGN MARKETS OR ARE ACQUIRED BY FOREIGN
INTERESTS.
THE LACK OF EFFECTIVE ENERGY ALTERNATIVES KEEPS THE PRICES OF
OIL PRODUCTS AI ALL-TIME HIGHS AS OUR MILITARY IS HIJACKED TO SERVE THE
NEEDS OF INTERNATIONAL OIL CORPORATIONS AND DRACONIAN FOREIGN DESPOTS -- ALL
THIS PAID FOR BY LYING TO TAXPAYERS ABOUT INFLATION AND TRUE COSTS, THEN
ROBBING THEM BLIND OF THEIR SAVINGS VIA DISHONEST FINANCIAL MANIPULATIONS,
RESULTING IN A DEVALUED CURRENCY.
THERE IS NO PLAN FOR THE FUTURE.
THERE IS NO VISION.
INERTIA RULES RAMPAGE.
THIS COUNTRY IS BROKEN AND WE ARE IN BIG, BIG TROUBLE.
-- RDM
"We conclude that
even if all FCVs use hydrogen from natural gas, the impact on natural gas
resources would be minimal on a global scale, and the slight decrease in
natural gas consumption is more than offset by the larger increase in oil
resources. The net effect is to partially improve the balance between
natural gas and oil consumption while cutting total fossil fuel use in
half."
Burns is stepping up the call for
the energy industry and government to start implementing a fuel
distribution system. ...Without this investment, the U.S. will get left
behind.
"It's now a
question of collective will.
Do we have the collective resolve to work together to solve the challenges
we face rather than handing them off to future generations?"
Larry Burns, GM VP for
R&D
GM Calls For Hydrogen Fueling
Stations For Cars Dow Jones April 2, 2008
"There is a significant and growing body of evidence
suggesting that, in the long term, customers will not have to pay more per
mile for hydrogen than they do for gasoline today."
Hydrogen Fueling Infrastructure Assessment Britta K. Grossand Ian Sutherland, General
Motors Dr. Henk Mooiweer, Shell Hydrogen December 11, 2007
"We are calling upon governments world wide, not just
the UK and the US, to assist our businesses by building hydrogen filling
stations in key cities so that drivers can fill up their cars more easily.
As a first step, existing filling stations could add renewable energy
pumps alongside other fuel pumps." Richard Branson, Chairman, Virgin Airlines
Branson Calls for Hydrogen Stations MSN (UK)
March 3, 2008 The Virgin chairman also
appealed to governments world wide to build hydrogen garages. His call
came as Virgin announced in New York that it was teaming with car giant
General Motors to offer zero-emissions hydrogen fuel cars as part of
Virgin's limo service for first class passengers.
GM: Going Electric
Hydrogen is still in the game
Automotive Design & Production
February 2008
Whereas the Equinoxes are using GM's
fourth-generation fuel cell, the Provoq has the fifth. There are two
10,000 psi hydrogen storage tanks that provide 13.2 lb. of hydrogen, which
when mixed with oxygen in the fuel cell stack located under the hood,
generate up to 88 kW of continuous power. There is also a lithium-ion
battery pack that can store a total of 9 kWh of electrical energy and
provide a peak of 60 kW of power. The electricity is used to power a 70-kW
coaxial drive system for the front wheels and individual 40-kW wheel hub
motors on each of the rear wheels. The 0 to 60 mph time is said to be 8.5
seconds. The E-Flex system in the Provoq has an expected range of 300
miles per H2 fill up, with 280 miles coming from the stored hydrogen and
20 miles from the stored battery electric energy.
Hydra produced the
fuel cell; American Hydrogen is licensed to commercialize a converter that
will crack the ammonia molecule into hydrogen and nitrogen. Both companies
are owned by American Security Resources Corp. in Houston.
American Hydrogen Corp. Gains Rights to Ohio University
Ammonia-to-Hydrogen Research
Eurekalert
August 7, 2007
Gerardine Botte,
associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering in the Russ
College of Engineering and Technology, has developed the patent-pending
ammonia catalytic electrolyzer technology, which efficiently converts
ammonia into hydrogen to produce inexpensive fuel.
VESTAS:
Fill Up with Hydrogen at Nacelles
Vestas Inside
February 2008 The forklift truck and a filling station that
will supply the fuel cell with hydrogen will constitute the first
tangible result of the project entitled "Hydrogen Link Vestjylland",
in which Vestas is participating along with the company H2 Logic
and a number of International companies. In addition to this
filling station, Vestas will be opening four other hydrogen
filling stations in Denmark, which will be used to fuel a range of
other hydrogen-powered vehicles.
CNN: ANDERSON COOPER 360
DEGREES
Special Investigations Unit
Broken Government - Scorched Earth
TRANSCRIPT Aired February 21, 2008 - 23:00 ET
Maybe the last things on earth you
would expect to find a fierce political fight over are values like clean air
and clean water. But the corporate lobbying and bitter partisanship in
Washington have dramatically changed the political environment. And our broken
government is not only failing to protect the environment, even supposed
solutions turn out to do more harm than good.
THE WAR ON RENEWABLE
ENERGY
"...federal policy on clean tech seems to have gone from an annoying
laissez-faire, lack-of-leadership approach to outright hostility,
bordering on the ridiculous, against meaningful policy action."
Federal Clean-Tech Policy is Theater of the Absurd Clint Wilder
Renewable Energy World
February 21, 2008
EU Study Says Hydrogen Support Needs to Start Now David Ehrlich
Cleantech
February 29. 2008
A European Union report is calling
for immediate support for hydrogen energy projects, saying member states
could gain an ecological and competitive edge by starting work now.
"If the White House and 41 Republican
Senators continue their opposition, American investment in the
green-collar economy -- and the jobs it creates – will go overseas." Senator Harry Reid
PowerGen Keynote Address
Las Vegas, NV
February 20, 2008
AN UNENDING FUTURE
OF PROFITABLE OIL WARS
U.S. SENATE BETRAYS ELECTORATE
"With 116,000 jobs and nearly $19 billion in investment at risk in the
renewable energy industries, a minority of the Senate has again frustrated
the desire of millions of Americans across the political spectrum who
overwhelmingly support clean, home grown energy." Randall Swisher, American
Wind Energy Association
Senators Block Stimulus Package with PTC Extension Jeff Siegel
North American Windpower
February 7, 2008
"...the packages
offered thus far do nothing to address the long-term needs for economic
and jobs growth. There are investment incentives in the tax code that will
expire at the end of 2008 - for research and development, alternative
energy and energy conservation - and Congress should extend these
important incentives in order to avoid choking off critical investments
that can have tremendous long-term economic benefits." Senator Maria Cantwell, WA
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
January 24, 2008
A CONGRESS OWNED BY
THE FOSSIL AND NUCLEAR LOBBY IGNORES REAL ECONOMIC STIMULUS TO WAGE WAR ON
RENEWABLE ENERGY -- RDM
"While a stimulus bill is welcome, it
is a major disappointment that, at least as proposed, this package does
not extend the renewable energy incentives which expire at the end of this
year. We estimate that the slowdown in the wind industry from
a failure to extend the renewable
tax incentives will place 75,000 jobs at risk and undercut a
singular bright spot in the American economy--the booming renewable
electricity sector that is creating tens of thousands of manufacturing and
construction jobs annually. Last year we saw more than $20 billion in
investment in renewable electricity in the U.S.--
today, investors are holding back on
decisions regarding wind and solar power projects
that will not come on line until next year. Immediate Congressional
action is essential if wind and other renewable energy industries are to
continue to grow, attract large-scale manufacturing investment and create
jobs for Americans across the country."
American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) Issues Statement on Tentative
Agreement on Economic Stimulus BillJanuary 24, 2008
IS THIS THE END OF
AMERICA?
A TRAITOROUS CONGRESS, HARD AT WORK DESTROYING THE ECONOMY FOR THE SAKE OF
OIL PROFITS, IS PUTTING AMERICA UP FOR SALE TO HER ENEMIES. THESE PEOPLE
SHOULD BE JAILED, NOT RE-ELECTED. --
RDM
"Congress will be raising taxes on clean,
domestic, renewable energy sources and will undercut one of the fastest
growing segments
of the U.S. economy. With the nation facing a possible recession, it is
difficult to imagine a worse time to destabilize America's rapidly growing
renewable energy sector." American Wind Energy Association
Solar Energy Industries Association
National Hydropower Association
Geothermal Energy Association
Renewable Energy Leaders Urge Congress, Bush to Extend Tax Credits Quickly Jim Pieroban
RenewableEnergyAccess.com
January 22, 2008
...Rhone Resch, President of the
Solar Energy Industries Association, tried simplifying it for lawmakers:
"Do you want to write them (consumers) a check, or do you want to give
them a job?" Resch highlighted 80
utility-scale solar projects on the drawing boards collectively
representing about 56,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity generating
capacity, more than 20,000 permanent jobs and hundreds of thousands of
construction jobs. "None of these projects will be built unless the
investment tax credit is extended," he said. For workers in
Michigan where the automobile industry continues to unravel, the risks are
in sharp focus for solar companies such as Hemlock Semiconductor, which
Resch said has invested one billion dollars to expand plant capacity in
Midland; ditto for Unisolar, a thin-film manufacturer that is creating
hundreds of new jobs for six plants planned in Greenfield.
Randall Swisher, Executive
Director of the American Wind Energy Association, said "major wind farm
development companies are telling us that investment is drying up and they
are being forced to put large projects in the pipeline for construction
next year on hold." Swisher told reporters that AWEA estimates about
75,000 jobs are now at risk, including more than 32,000 in the direct
manufacture, construction and operation of wind energy facilities.
more
“The use of hydrogen in wind projects
looks very promising for smoothing out the peaks
and valleys in wind energy production.”
Ted Hollinger, President,
Hydrogen Engine Center
"There are seven sins in the world: Wealth
without work, Pleasure without conscience,
Knowledge without character, Commerce
without morality, Science without humanity, Worship without
sacrifice and Politics without principle." -- Ghandi
VICTORY! "The days of
conventional coal
really are over." Mark Brownstein,
Environmental Defense
RENEWABLE ENERGY
STRIKES!
BANK DECISION
HERALDS END OF U.S. COAL THREAT!
Wall Street Shows Skepticism Over Coal
Banks push utilities to plan for impact of emissions
caps Jeffery Ball Wall
Street Journal February
4, 2008
Three of Wall Street's biggest
investment banks are set to announce today that
they are imposing new
environmental standards that will make it harder for companies to get
financing to build coal-fired power plants in the U.S.
Citigroup Inc., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley say they have
concluded that the U.S. government will cap greenhouse-gas emissions from
power plants sometime in the next few years. The banks will require
utilities seeking financing for plants before then to prove the plants
will be economically viable even under potentially stringent federal caps
on carbon dioxide, the main man-made greenhouse gas. ...The
banks say they will encourage energy-efficiency and renewable-energy
pushes before backing new coal plants. And they say they will help
utilities push for new government policies that make efficiency programs
and renewable energy more practical.
more
Renewable hydrogen, widely distributed and consumed locally, threatens
centralized energy in the same way that the personal computer threatened
IBM's mainframe monopoly. Like Big Oil's ill-fated attempt to corral the
wide-open hydrogen future with petroleum reforming, today's cancellation
of the bizarrely expensive political payoff to Big Coal -- "FutureGen" --
puts another nail in the coffin of centralized energy's desperate hopes to
keep distributed hydrogen energy in the bottle. Next to fall will be
nuclear energy's unaffordable and dangerous nightmare of thermochemical
hydrogen. -- RDM
DOE Kills FutureGen Coal-to-Hydrogen Boondoggle Steven Ashley Scientific
American February 4, 2008
...Green energy watchers always
suspected that the government was not ready to pony up the necessary
billions it would take, including the ballooning $1.8-billion estimated
budget for FutureGen, which many environmentalists charged was a mere
payoff for the politically connected coal industry.
COAL DEATHS AND MINE
TRAGEDIES
DOES COAL MAKE SENSE IN THE 21ST CENTURY?
Exploiting Wind Versus Coal Mark Z. Jacobson and
Gilbert M. Masters Science
Much of the recent
energy debate in the United States has focused on increasing coal use.
However, the cost of wind energy is now less than that of coal. Shifting
from coal to wind would address health, environmental, and energy
problems.
Denmark's Wind-Hydrogen Projects
Fuel Cell Today (UK)
February 4, 2008
This summer, six
new hydrogen plants will be opened in western Jutland, all of which will
use renewable energy such as wind to produce hydrogen.
Northern Jutland Invests Millions in H2 and Fuel Cell Projects
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark
December 20, 2007 Hydrogen technology
is an innovation and enterprise focus area in Jutland, with the
development of a "Hydrogen Valley" cluster centred around the town of
Hobro, which is centrally located between three of Denmark's leading
centres for hydrogen and fuel cell research as well as bioenergy
research – the universities in Aalborg and Ĺrhus, and the Centre for
Danish Agricultural Sciences near Viborg.
Catching the WindJim Motavalli
EMagazine.com
Jan/Feb 2005
Claus Moller of the Danish Wind Energy Association says that
the concept of hydrogen from wind is being actively pursued in Denmark,
with small-scale demonstration projects and long-term feasibility
studies underway in research institutes. If economics of scale come into
play to dramatically reduce the cost of wind-powered hydrogen
electrolyzers, reports a paper by Harry Braun of the Hydrogen Political
Action Committee posted on EV World, then electricity could be generated
at a cost of one cent per kilowatt-hour, resulting in liquid hydrogen
produced for the same cost as gasoline at $1.95 a gallon. Braun calls
for 12 million wind systems to be mass-produced and installed within 24
months and coupled to an interstate hydrogen pipeline. “It is possible
for the U.S. to be energy independent, with a pollution-free and
inexhaustible energy resource within five to 10 years,” he says.
BIG OIL WINS!
BIG COAL WINS!
BIG NUKE WINS!
You lose.
NO RENEWABLE PRODUCTION TAX CREDITS
NO FEDERAL RENEWABLE PORTFOLIO STANDARD
AMERICA'S SLAVE MASTERS
HAVE SPOKEN
- RDM “The failure to pass critical
policy provisions to reduce energy costs for business owners and
homeowners, protect our energy infrastructure against acts of nature and
terrorism, and fundamentally reduce emissions causing respiratory diseases
and global climate change was an
abdication of duty to the American
people by a minority of legislators from both parties and the
Administration." Scott Sklar, President, Stella
Group
Energy Bill Update: Senate Approves Compromise Legislation
RenewableEnergyAccess.com
December 14, 2007
Yesterday, the U.S.
Senate dealt a losing hand to all those who believe in solar power as a
vital component of our energy future.
By a vote of 59-40, just one vote short of the number needed
to cut off debate, the Senate failed to include a tax title in the 2007
energy bill that would have provided investment and production tax credits
for renewable energies.
Many people have worked long and hard this year to secure a
government commitment of support for solar and other nascent renewable
industries, including solar citizens like yourself, Congressional
Democratic leadership, environmental and conservation groups, industry
associations, and scientific bodies. And although representatives and
senators were left in no doubt about the importance of the legislation to
America's future, the peculiarities of the American way of politics
trumped common sense and hope. Senators from states where the oil and gas
industry lobby is strongest voted to continue support for the industry,
even though the proposed tightening of tax breaks would have amounted to
only 1%-2% of its net profits. To see which senators voted against the tax
title measure, check the list at the end of this message. (Look closely
and you'll find one Democrat who voted 'nay', and one presidential
candidate who failed to vote at all).
Late yesterday evening, the Senate finally voted on what was
left of the bill. Absent investment tax credits, production tax credits
and a national renewable electricity standard (RES), the bill sailed
through by a vote of 85-12. It will now go back to the House, then on for
signature by President Bush. And what the President signs will contain
CAFE standards for automobile mileage standards, a renewable fuels
mandate, and provisions for energy efficiency in federal government
departments. For renewables, there is practically nothing.
The timing of the vote may strike historians as curious in
years to come; half a world away in Bali, attendees at the UN global
warming conference were working toward final agreement on long-term
measures to mitigate climate change while the U.S. Senate was rewarding
the oil and gas industry for its long-term support.
more
$140 a Barrel!! Commentary by Richard D. Masters
"Oh, do it again!
I love it! I love it!"
SO IT GOES. AMERICA FOLLOWS ITS
SO-CALLED "LEADERS" LIKE LEMMINGS LEAPING OFF A CLIFF, WILLING TO ACCEPT
ANYTHING, IT SEEMS, TO AVOID RENEWABLE WIND, GEOTHERMAL, WAVE AND
SOLAR ENERGY -- THE CHEAP BUT GENUINE SOLUTIONS THAT THREATEN RAPACIOUS
FOSSIL ENERGY PROFITS. THIS WAS CLEARLY DEMONSTRATED BY THE WILLING
FAILURE OF THE FAUX SENATE, THE MAJORITY OF WHOM REPRESENT THE
INTERESTS OF OIL COMPANIES, TO HELP LEVEL THE RIGGED PLAYING FIELD FOR ENTRY
OF OUR STRUGGLING RENEWABLE ENERGY COMPANIES BY SIMPLY EXTENDING THE
PRODUCTION TAX CREDIT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF GREEN ENERGY.
BECAUSE OF REDUCED
EXTERNAL COSTS, IT WOULD HAVE COST THEM NOTHING TO TAKE THIS SIMPLE STEP
TOWARD FREEING AMERICA FROM THE SHACKLES OF MIDDLE EAST OIL DEPENDENCE, FROM
OPEC, FROM SPIRALING FOOD PRICES, FROM SACRIFICING OUR SONS AND OUR
DAUGHTERS DYING BY THE THOUSANDS IN FOREIGN LANDS FOR WHAT WILL TURN OUT TO
BE LESS THAN NOTHING, TO STOP THE ASTHMA EPIDEMIC IN OUR YOUNG CHILDREN, TO
STOP THE MERCURY POISONING OF THE NORTHEAST, TO FORESTALL THE HORRIBLE
BURDEN OF UNSECURED RADIOACTIVITY ON OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS. BUT EVEN THE
"ARIZONA IS THE SOLAR STATE" HYPOCRITE JOHN MCCAIN, ONE OF MANY, WOULDN'T
GET OUT OF BED, WOULDN'T LIFT A FINGER WHEN HE COULD HAVE CHANGED THE COURSE
OF HISTORY. NOW NEW HAMPSHIRE CROWNS HIM THE REPUBLICAN FRONTRUNNER.
NEVER HAS THERE BEEN A PEOPLE AS STUPID AS THIS. GOD HELP US ALL OR GOD DAMN
YOU ALL. I DON'T KNOW WHICH. PROBABLY BOTH.
IMPLEMENTING THESE NEW
TECHNOLOGIES TO GATHER ABUNDANT FREE CLEAN NATURAL ENERGY WOULD HAVE BEEN A
WORTHY CHALLENGE FOR THE LONG LOST AMERICA I GREW UP IN. THE REASONS
TO DO SO NOW ARE MYRIAD, RATIONAL AND URGENT. WE PUT MEN ON THE MOON TO MEET
OUR DREAMS. WE DID THE IMPOSSIBLE. WE MADE A LEGEND THAT WILL LINGER ON THE
LIPS OF HUMAN HISTORY UNTIL THE END OF TIME.
BUT TODAY WE PUT MEN IN IRAQ TO MEET OIL
PRODUCTION.
WHY?
ALL THE STUDIES SHOW TEN TIMES THE EMPLOYMENT
WITH RENEWABLE ENERGY. NO MORE MONEY DRAINING FROM OUR COUNTRY TO THE MIDDLE
EAST. THE END OF UNBEARABLE HEALTH COSTS FROM THE EFFECTS OF FOSSIL
POLLUTION. A HUGE ECONOMIC BOOM FROM THE GROWTH OF NEW, CLEAN ENERGY
TECHNOLOGIES. MORE POWER THAN WE COULD EVER DREAM OF USING. INFINITE POWER.
NO DEPLETION. FREEDOM FROM FEAR. FREEDOM FROM FOOLS.
WHY HAVEN'T WE MOVED IN THIS DIRECTION?
WE HAVE LOST SIGHT OF COMMON SENSE!
WORSE, WE HAVE LOST SIGHT OF GOOD AND EVIL.
THE VERY WORST EXAMPLE, OUR REPRESENTATIVES CYNICALLY CHOOSING TO FOREGO
TRUE RENEWABLES AND LINK THE PRICE OF OIL TO FOOD WITH CORN ALCOHOL AND
BIOFUELS WHEN MILLIONS ARE HUNGRY, SEEMS TO HOLD NO MORAL COMPUNCTION TO
THESE VICIOUS, STUPID, SOULLESS CREATURES FROM BOTH SIDES OF THE AISLE. SOON
THEY WILL BLAME YOU FOR THIS DISASTER.
AND NOW, AS THEY PREPARE TO SEND YET ANOTHER
GENERATION OF OUR CHILDREN TO FIGHT FOREIGN OIL WARS FOR INTERNATIONAL
CORPORATIONS, PEOPLE OFTEN ASK ME, WHAT CAN WE DO TO STOP IT?
TO CHANGE IT? TO TURN IT AROUND?
THESE ARE THE SAME PEOPLE WHO DROWNED OUT THE
VOICES OF REASON, WHO SHOUTED DOWN THOSE WHO CRIED, "IF YOU TURN FOOD INTO
GASOLINE, WHAT WILL WE EAT?"
WHAT CAN WE TELL THEM NOW?
ACTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES.
IF DEMOCRACY ACTUALLY WORKS AS ADVERTISED, THE
SOLUTION IS SIMPLE AND EASY. STOP ELECTING PEOPLE TO OFFICE WHO ARE
BEHOLDEN TO GIANT FOSSIL, NUCLEAR AND AGRICULTURAL CORPORATIONS.
DEMAND REAL CANDIDATES, REAL CHOICES. REAL SOLUTIONS.
DEMAND CHEAP, FREE, CLEAN, DOMESTIC RENEWABLE
ENERGY TO END THE OIL WARS FOREVER.
OTHERWISE, NOTHING WILL EVER CHANGE.
ON THE OTHER HAND, IF DEMOCRACY HAS BEEN LOST, IF
OUR REPUBLIC IS A FRAUD AND HAS BECOME BUT A DIM SWORD TO ENFORCE THE
WILL OF INTERNATIONAL FOSSIL ENERGY CORPORATIONS AND THEIR MILITARY COHORTS,
THE SOLUTION TO OUR SUDDEN DILEMMA, IF EVEN ACHIEVABLE, BECOMES DIFFICULT
AND UGLY.
IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT A PEOPLE DESERVE THE GOVERNMENT
THEY CREATE. NOW AS THE DEMOCRATS WAIT IN THE WINGS, SALIVATING LIKE
PAVLOV'S DOGS FOR THEIR CHANCE AT THE OIL MONEY THE REPUBLICANS HAVE
FUMBLED, I HAVE COME TO THE SAD AND BITTER CONCLUSION THAT THIS IS TRUE.
I WAS A REPUBLICAN. I WAS AN OBJECTIVIST. BUT NOW
I AM ONLY ASHAMED.
IF GOD IS JUST, PREPARE TO SUFFER. FOR THE POOR
ARE MORE THAN THE FIRST WORLD'S CALLOUSLY ORPHANED CHILDREN, SO CRUELLY TORN
FROM THE LIVES THEY DESERVE -- THE LIVES THEY COULD SO EASILY HAVE HAD
IF THOSE WITH WEALTH AND ABILITY AND KNOWLEDGE HAD CONSCIENCE. THE WORLD'S
POOR ARE INSTEAD PITIFUL, HELPLESS, CAGED CANARIES, ABANDONED DEEP, DEEP
DOWN IN THE DARKNESS OF PLANET EARTH'S FOUL COAL MINE WHILE THE OTHERS SEIZE
THEIR FOOD TO CIRCLE THE MALLS IN GIANT STEEL MACHINES.
FIRST THEM.
THEN YOU.
THE WAR FOR OIL & THE WAR TO BURN THE
POOR'S FOOD FOR FUEL
"Why
have you stopped sending food?" THE
GREAT ETHANOL FRAUD There are people in the world so
hungry, that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread.
-- Ghandi
A new crisis is emerging, a
global food catastrophe that will reach further and be more crippling than
anything the world has ever seen. The credit crunch and the
reverberations of soaring oil prices around the world will pale in
comparison to what is about to transpire, Donald Coxe, global portfolio
strategist at BMO Financial Group said at the Empire Club's 14th annual
investment outlook in Toronto on Thursday. ...Mr. Coxe warned U.S.
corn exports were in danger of seizing up in about three years if the
country continues to subsidize ethanol production. Biofuels are expected
to eat up about a third of America's grain harvest in 2007. more
WIND POWER THREATENS OIL
& COAL PROFITS!
WHAT BIG ENERGY DOESN'T WANT YOU TO
KNOW "Don't think of renewables as the
last kind of electricity you add, but think of them first and then plan the
rest accordingly.
It's a vision switch." Christina Archer
STANFORD RESEARCHERS DETAIL METHOD FOR UTILIZING 100% OF WIND POWER
Linking Wind Farms Offers Energy Windfall Discovery Channel
December 4, 2007
Supplying Baseload Power and Reducing Transmission Requirements
Interconnecting Wind Farms Christina L. Archer and Mark Z.
Jacobson Department of Civil and
Environmental Engineering
Stanford University, Stanford, California
In conclusion, this study implies that if interconnected wind is used on a
large scale, a third or more of its energy can be used for reliable electric
power and the remaining intermittent portion can be used for transportation
(i.e., to power batteries or to produce hydrogen), allowing wind to solve
energy, climate, and air pollution problems simultaneously.
“By bowing down to
corporate interests, the Bush Administration is thwarting the will of the
citizens of more than a dozen states and the Supreme Court of the United
States.” Maryland Gov. Martin
O’Malley
“EPA’s decision ignores the
law, science, and commonsense.” Representative Henry Waxman,
California
The EPA Vs. Everyone Else: Get Ready To Rumble
Center for American Progress
December 21, 2007
"A
horrendous decision." New Jersey Governor John
Corzine Corzine Considers New Fight on
EPA Car Emission Rules John Reitmeyer
North Jersey
December 21, 2007
WASHINGTON (December 19, 2007) - The same day the president
signed a ground-breaking fuel economy bill, his administration reversed
course and denied California a waiver to regulate global warming pollution
from vehicles, the first time in the history of the Clean Air Act that the
federal government has denied the state a waiver.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) denied the waiver
despite clear guidance from the U.S. Supreme Court that miles-per-gallon
standards and the global warming pollution standards required under the
Clean Air Act are “wholly independent.” A recent Fresno, California,
federal district court ruling added that “it would be the very definition
of folly” to prevent the implementation of vehicle global warming
emissions standards.
Likewise, the EPA denied the waiver despite the fact that the
Bush administration has touted the California standards as evidence that
the United States is meeting its international commitments on climate
change. While California and the 12 other states that have adopted
California's tailpipe standard will pursue legal avenues to overturn the
denial, the announcement today could delay the implementation of the
standards, undermining potential benefits.
The goals of a fuel economy standard and a vehicle global
warming emissions limit are different. The Department of Transportation
(DOT) sets fuel economy standards to reduce oil use. The DOT is not an
environmental agency. The EPA regulates motor vehicle global warming
emissions limits according to Clean Air Act requirements to protect public
health. Under the Clean Air Act, California has the right to set higher
standards for pollution reduction from automobiles, and recent court cases
clarify that states have the authority and obligation to regulate vehicle
global warming pollution. The Bush administration is illegally preventing
California from exercising its right, under the Clean Air Act, to set
pollution standards for automobiles.
The following is a statement by Clean Vehicles Program
Director Michelle Robinson:
“In the eleventh hour of this presidency, the administration is still
doing what it can to throw roadblocks in the way of progress in combating
global warming. California has the legal right to set stringent pollution
standards and has historically led the way for the rest of the country.
But the EPA is blocking California and a dozen other states from
protecting their residents. Administrator Johnson has sadly chosen
politics over his responsibility to protect public health and the
environment.”
Fed up with the Feds
OWNED BY OIL, NUKES AND COAL, THE BUSHBOTS BLATANTLY DELAY PROGRESS ON
CLEAN AIR AND THE PRODUCTION OF LIMITLESS FREE FUEL.
-- RDM
COMPLAINT FOR UNREASON
WASHINGTON D.C. — In a precedent setting lawsuit,
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Edmund G.
Brown Jr. today sued the U.S. EPA, to force the agency to take action on
California’s request to curb greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles.
The lawsuit, filed today in Washington D.C., charges the EPA with an
unreasonable delay in reaching a decision on California’s landmark law,
known as the Pavley bill, which mandates a 30 percent reduction in motor
vehicle emissions by 2016.
“Despite the mounting dangers of global warming, the EPA has
delayed and ignored California’s right to impose stricter environmental
standards,” Attorney General Brown told a news conference at the state
capitol with Governor Schwarzenegger and California Air Resources Board
chair, Mary Nichols. “We have waited two years and the Supreme Court has
ruled in our favor. What is the EPA waiting for?” Brown asked.
Under the Clean Air Act, passed in 1963, California can adopt
environmental standards that are stricter than federal rules, if the state
obtains a waiver from the U.S. EPA. Congress allowed California to impose
stricter laws in recognition of the state’s “compelling and extraordinary
conditions.” After a California waiver request is granted, other states
are permitted to adopt the same rules.
In the Act’s 40-year history, EPA has granted approximately
50 waivers for innovations like catalytic converters, exhaust emission
standards, and leaded gasoline regulations. In today’s lawsuit, California
asserts that EPA has failed to act in a reasonable length of time. "
In 2002, California passed AB 1493 which require a 30 percent
reduction in global warming emissions from vehicles by 2016, starting with
model year 2009. In December 2005, the California Air Resources Board
applied for a waiver to implement the law. Governor Schwarzenegger wrote
to the EPA in April 2006 and in October 2006, requesting action on
California’s application.
Sixteen other states— Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut,
Florida, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York,
Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Washington —have
adopted, or are in the process of adopting California’s emissions
standards.
The state asserts that EPA does not need any additional time to
review the facts—the California Air Resources Board submitted a detailed
251-page assessment in 2005 and the U.S. Supreme Court already issued a
decision that greenhouse gases are pollutants. In September, a Vermont
District Court ruled in favor of the state regulations, rejecting a
challenge from the automobile lobby.
There are 32 million registered vehicles in California, twice
the number of any other state. Cars generate 20% of all human-made carbon
dioxide emissions in the United States, and at least 30% of such emissions
in California. If California’s landmark global warming law—and the
corresponding 30% improvement in emissions standards—were adopted
nationally, the United States could cut annual oil imports by $100 billion
dollars, at $50 per barrel.
Last year, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the landmark
Global Warming Solutions Act, AB 32, which sets a goal to cut California
greenhouse gas emissions back to 1990 levels by 2020. To meet this target,
California must reduce emissions by 174 million metric tons. If
California’s motor vehicle emissions law is implemented, it will account
for 17% of this reduction target.
Climate research shows that global warming is having a
profound effect on California’s temperature, weather, air quality, and
mountain snowfall. Last year Southern California experienced its driest
year since record-keeping began 130 years ago. Between 1949 and 1999,
average temperature in California increased 1.03 degrees Fahrenheit and
mountain snow accumulation declined ten percent. By 2099 there will be
virtually no snow below 3280 feet.
California’s complaint, filed in the United States District
Court for the District of Columbia is attached. California’s petition for
review, filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia Circuit, is also attached.
Later today, fourteen other states are expected to support
California as interveners in the lawsuit.
...Democrats
could have refused to take the bill forward when they knew that
revenue-raising from oil & gas was an insurmountable obstacle for
Republicans.
The total collapse of the bill would have
made it clear that the GOP was joined at the hip to Big Oil, and that
nearly half the U.S. Senate existed merely to do the bidding of the fossil
fuel industry. Going into an
election year, this might have been a powerful tool in many Democratic
candidates’ favor. Had Democrats done this, of course, it would have
meant abandoning CAFE standards for the sake of an electioneering ploy,
which might well have rebounded on them in other ways. Instead,
Congressional Democratic leadership put the country on notice that they
would reintroduce those provisions that were stripped from the bill at an
early stage next year. But
we have yet to hear an unequivocal
statement from Democratic leadership to the effect that their attempt at
social justice—redirecting a sliver of Big Oil’s obscene profits to the
renewable sector of the energy industry—was blocked by corrupt politicians
on the other side of the aisle.
Playing nice still seems to be a priority
in the nation’s capital.
more
How Green is Toyota?
National Resources Defense Council Why is Toyota, a company that can
make a car that gets 55 miles per gallon today, fighting a 35 mpg
standard?
"Our country does not have a long-term, national policy in place to
promote
renewable energy development." Randall Swisher, AWEA executive director
U.S. Wind Industry Blowing Past Previous Development Records RenewableEnergyAccess.com November 8, 2007
The U.S. wind industry is on track to
complete roughly 4,000 megawatts (MW) of wind projects in 2007, shattering
the 2006 record of 2,454 MW and solidifying wind as a major source of new
power in the country today, according to a new market report from the
American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).
THE NUCLEAR FISSION
INDUSTRY HAS HIJACKED THE U.S. GOVERNMENT. PLANNED ARE
HUNDREDS OF
COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY, TERRIBLY DANGEROUS AND HIDEOUSLY EXPENSIVE
URANIUM POWER PLANTS.
BY LABELING NUCLEAR POWER AS "CLEAN," YOUR
CONGRESS NOW PROVIDES THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY LOAN GUARANTEES
WITHOUT LIMIT, MAKING THE LATEST
ENERGY BILL A SMOKESCREEN FOR NUCLEAR EXPANSION.
- RDM
NEW REACTORS IN SOUTH
TEXAS WOULD SET
U.S. ENERGY POLICY ON MISGUIDED COURSE
Michael Mariotte, Executive Director
Nuclear Information and Research Service
September 25, 2007
Today, NRG Energy said it
is submitting an application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to build
two new reactors at its South Texas nuclear site. This is the first full
application for a new reactor in the U.S. in more than 30 years.
This project is emblematic of the failures of U.S. energy
policy to effectively meet the needs of our nation. Nuclear power is a 20th
century technology in a new world of climate crisis and a future that
demands a distributed, sustainable approach to energy. Nuclear power
requires massive taxpayer subsidies and yet still cannot compete
environmentally with the sustainable energy technologies that will power
our future.
NRG Energy already has been quoted in the media (Washington
Post, September 25, 2007) as saying that “the whole reason” the
company is considering new nuclear reactors is taxpayer subsidies provided
by Congress and the Bush Administration in the 2005 Energy Policy Act.
These multi-billion dollar subsidies include taxpayer loan guarantees for
new reactors, tax credits for the first six reactors built, the
Price-Anderson Act limitation of utility liability for nuclear accidents,
and “risk insurance” to cover possible delays in the licensing process.
Without taxpayer support, no utility would build a new atomic
reactor, and no financial institution would invest in a new reactor.
Moreover, the NRG Energy application would repeat one of the
fundamental mistakes of the first generation of nuclear power: the
construction of nuclear reactors without a feasible facility or plan for
storage of the lethal radioactive waste the reactor would produce. The
Yucca Mountain, Nevada, radioactive waste dump is on its last legs, and
appears increasingly unlikely to ever open. Even if it did, a new round of
nuclear construction would necessitate construction of another radioactive
waste dump as well—something no state in the country likely would accept.
After 50 years, one would think the lesson would have been learned:
building atomic reactors without a scientifically-sound waste plan is
folly.
Texas is blessed with enormous
potential for wind and solar power, while aggressive energy efficiency
programs remain the cheapest, fastest and cleanest method of addressing
both electricity demand and the need to quickly reduce carbon emissions.
Construction of new reactors in Texas would divert the resources needed to
implement those efficiency programs and help solar and wind reach their
full potential—to the detriment of Texans and all Americans. A recent
study from American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy shows that
Texas can meet all forecasted energy demand through energy efficiency and
sustainable energy technologies.
(see
http://www.nirs.org/alternatives/sestudy10.pdf )
Both Texas and the United States deserve better than a greedy
utility feasting at the taxpayer trough to build another large polluting
power plant. We expect Texans to oppose the NRG Energy project, and we
expect to help Texans with their opposition.
Don’t forget to Sign the
Simple Statement on Nuclear Power and Climate:
"We do not support construction of new nuclear
reactors as a means of addressing the climate crisis. Available renewable
energy and energy efficiency technologies are faster, cheaper, safer and
cleaner strategies for reducing greenhouse emissions than nuclear power." Join Bonnie Raitt, Jackson
Browne, The Indigo Girls, Graham Nash, Ani DiFranco, Ed Asner, Peter
Coyote, Mike Farrell, and Greenpeace, Sierra Club, Friends of the Earth,
Physicians for Social Responsibility, and hundreds of other organizations
and thousands of individuals! Sign now at:
http://www.nirs.org/petition2/index.php
The economics of
nuclear power have always been questionable. The fact that consumers or
governments have traditionally borne the risk of investment in nuclear
power plants meant that utilities were insulated from these risks and were
able to borrow money at
rates reflecting the reduced risk to investors and
lenders.
However, following
the introduction of competitive electricity markets in many countries, the
risk that the plant would cost more than the forecast price was
transferred to the power plant developers, which are constrained by the
views of financial organisations such as banks shareholders and credit
rating agencies. Such organisations view investment in any type of
power plant as risky, raising the cost of capital to levels at which
nuclear is less likely to compete.
The logic of this transfer to competitive electricity markets
was that plant developers possessed better information and had direct
control over management and so had the means as well as the incentive to
control costs. Builders of non-nuclear power plants were willing to take
these risks, as were vendors of energy efficiency services. Consequently,
when
consumers no longer bore the economic risk of new plant construction,
nuclear power, which combines uncompetitively high prices with poor
reliability and serious risks of cost overruns, had no chance in countries
that moved to competitive power procurement.
A headline you
will never see: "Wind Farm Guards Asleep on the Job"
COMING SOON TO A CITY NEAR YOU: Nuclear
Plant Guards Asleep On The Job WCBSTV
September 25, 2007
The Hype Against Hydrogen
Setting the Record Straight on
Six Hydrogen Myths Perpetuated by Joseph Romm
Hydrogen Discoveries
September 24, 2007
Over the past several years, Joseph
Romm has been a harsh critic of using hydrogen in cars. He has been so
successful that it has become fashionable to bash hydrogen.
TO AVOID RENEWABLE
ENERGY, CAPITOL HILL SACRIFICES WALL STREET! ARE WE GOING TO ALLOW TRAITORS IN
OUR GOVERNMENT TO GIVE AWAY OUR COUNTRY? WE NEED TO GET THE U.S. OUT OF
THE OIL BUSINESS!
- RDM
Arab Oil Wealth
Buying the Nasdaq Jerome R. Corsi
WorldNetDaily.com
September 20, 2007
The transaction is being made
through Borse Dubai, a holding company 100-percent owned by the government
of the Emirate of Dubai and controlled by Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum,
the head of the Dubai ruling family. ...As a result of the transaction,Dubai
also will acquire 28 percent of the London Stock Exchange....
America's elder statesman of finance,
Alan Greenspan, has shaken the White House by declaring that the prime
motive for the war in Iraq was oil. ...“I am saddened that it is
politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows: the Iraq war
is largely about oil,” he says.
"It has been impossible for the general public to wipe its collective
windshield clear enough to actually see the truth. But once the haze is
rubbed away--even a little--the world will peer into the past and discover
that to achieve clean energy independence and petropolitical security we
do not need to reinvent the wheel. We need to exhume that wheel from
whence it was deliberately buried by those who have diligently worked to
keep us focused on petroleum."
Edwin Black, Internal Combustion
“Our
mission to reduce dependency on foreign oil by developing products powered
with cost effective, carbonless fuel is one step closer to being a
reality. We are pleased that, in a relatively short period of time, we
have developed the technology to a point where we are ready to begin full
field trials. We believe that implementing ammonia as a carbonless fuel
with our Oxx Power products will open new markets that have been dominated
by fossil fuel powered engines for decades.” Ted
Hollinger, CEO and President, Hydrogen Engine Center
Iowa Energy Center Thursday and
Friday, October 13-14, 2005
Argonne National Laboratory
EUROPE:
Hydrogen Hopes Europe has started to invest in
hydrogen,
potentially paving the way for a fertile jobs market Quirin Schiermeir
Nature September 5, 2007
Germany alone is set to invest more than
1
billion during the next ten years in hydrogen and fuel-cell technologies.
The federal ministry of transport will provide some
500
million through a national innovation programme for R&D, and industry is
expected to contribute roughly the same amount. The programme could create
up to 1,000 jobs for scientists, engineers and technicians, says Detlef
Stolten, director of the Jülich institute.
The Charlotte company
spent just over one million dollars in the first half of the year on
lobbying in Washington, D.C.
Environmental Impacts of Coal Power: Air Pollution Union of Concerned Scientists
Burning coal is a leading cause of smog, acid rain, global
warming, and air toxics. In an average year, a typical coal plant
generates:
3,700,000 tons of carbon dioxide
(CO2), the primary human cause of
global warming--as much carbon dioxide as cutting down 161 million
trees.
10,000 tons of sulfur dioxide
(SO2), which causes acid rain that
damages forests, lakes, and buildings, and forms small airborne
particles that can penetrate deep into lungs.
500 tons of small airborne
particles, which can cause chronic
bronchitis, aggravated asthma, and premature death, as well as haze
obstructing visibility.
10,200 tons of nitrogen oxide
(NOx), as much as would be emitted
by half a million late-model cars. NOx leads to formation of ozone
(smog) which inflames the lungs, burning through lung tissue making
people more susceptible to respiratory illness.
720 tons of carbon monoxide (CO),
which causes headaches and place additional stress on people with heart
disease.
220 tons of hydrocarbons,
volatile organic compounds (VOC), which form ozone.
170 pounds of mercury,
where just 1/70th of a teaspoon deposited on a 25-acre lake can make the
fish unsafe to eat.
225 pounds of arsenic,
which will cause cancer in one out of 100 people who drink water
containing 50 parts per billion.
114 pounds of lead, 4 pounds of
cadmium, other toxic heavy metals, and trace amounts of uranium.
COAL
DEATHS AND MINE TRAGEDIES
DOES COAL MAKE SENSE IN THE 21ST CENTURY?
Exploiting Wind Versus Coal Mark Z. Jacobson and
Gilbert M. Masters Science
Much of the recent
energy debate in the United States has focused on increasing coal use.
However, the cost of wind energy is now less than that of coal. Shifting
from coal to wind would address health, environmental, and energy
problems.
Hopes Dwindle for 172 Miners Missing in China Edward Cody Washington
Post August 20, 2007
More than 2,800 miners
were killed in underground explosions and floodings last year, making
China's mines the deadliest in the world.
YOU CAN SEND YOUR
SO-CALLED REPRESENTATIVES THIS SIMPLE MESSAGE BY CLICKING ON THE LINK
BELOW. - RDM
"We do not support construction of new
nuclear reactors as a means of addressing the climate crisis. Available
renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies are faster, cheaper,
safer and cleaner strategies for reducing greenhouse emissions than
nuclear power."
http://www.nirs.org/petition2/index.php
House
Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) is the second-ranking House
Democrat, behind Speaker Nancy Pelosi. While he is not as well known
nationally as some other House members, his position ensures that he plays
a major role in national politics and issues.
Unfortunately, Hoyer is an enthusiastic supporter of loan
guarantees for new reactors—mostly because he wants Constellation Energy
to receive taxpayer-backed loans for a new reactor at Calvert Cliffs,
Maryland, which is in his district. Constellation officials have been
quoted in both the New York Times
and Washington Post as
saying they will not build a new reactor without taxpayer loan guarantees.
“Without the federal loan guarantees, this whole thing will come to a
stop,” a Constellation executive told the Post.
Language in the Senate-passed energy bill could open up huge
amounts of money—the nuclear industry says it wants $50 Billion or
more—for new taxpayer loan guarantees for nuclear utilities. Note: the
provision could also clear the way for massive taxpayer subsidies for
coal-to-liquid and other polluting energy projects as well. Taxpayer funds
should go only to non-polluting, renewable energy and energy efficiency
technologies! A critical need in the upcoming Senate-House conference
committee on the energy bill is to remove this Senate language. But Hoyer
may be standing in the way. As House Majority Leader, representing all
Democrats across the country, Hoyer should be working for the nation, not
his local nuclear utility!
Actions:Call Rep.
Hoyer at 202-225-4131 and let him know you oppose taxpayer support and new
loan guarantees for all unnecessary and dangerous atomic reactors, and for
a new reactor at Calvert Cliffs in particular.Let’s keep Hoyer’s phones ringing off the hook
with calls from people from all over the country! Then,
call your own Congressmembers (Capitol Switchboard, 202-224-3121) with the
same message on loan guarantees.
Three powerful lobbying forces -
automakers, electric utilities and the coal industry - are confounding
Democrats' efforts to forge a less-polluting energy policy. ...The
companies, in letters to senators, argued that the requirement to produce
15 percent of their power from renewable energy sources can't be met
without huge electricity cost increases. ...The coal industry has weighed
in as well, urging support of an alternative that would have included more
efficient coal-burning power plants and nuclear reactors....
...The loan guarantee program however came under fire,
since nuclear power was included as a “clean technology.” Section 9202 in
the House energy bill did not give the nuclear industry $50 billion in
loan guarantees that got play in the national media; however, it prevents
Congressional appropriators from being able to exclude any eligible
project from the guarantees. It does not prevent appropriators from being
able to set a cap on the amount of guarantees that the Department of
Energy (DOE) can give out.
Fluor Corporation announced today
that its Power Group was awarded a contract by Toshiba International
Corporation, a U.S. business unit of the Toshiba Corporation, for
engineering, procurement and construction-related services for two new
nuclear reactors planned for the South Texas Project Nuclear Generating
Station in Bay City, Texas. Later this year, STP's 44-percent owner, NRG
Energy, Inc. plans to apply to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for
a combined construction and operating license to build two Advanced
Boiling Water Reactors, known as STP Units 3 & 4, which will be adjacent
to the two existing reactors (STP Units 1 & 2). NRG announced on Aug. 9,
2007, that it had contracted with Toshiba to provide key reactor
components as well as early engineering, procurement and
construction-related services for these planned reactors. "These two new
reactor units for the South Texas Project could very well be the first new
nuclear power plants built in the United States in more than two decades,"
said Alan Boeckmann, Fluor Corporation's Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer.
A catastrophe at a nuclear fission power
plant could make a city uninhabitable -- a total loss. The response to
Hurricane Katrina
reportedly hit $2 BILLION PER DAY. What would the cost be for a
core meltdown such as we almost experienced with the "safe" reactors at
Three Mile Island? Only fools would accept such risk, which is exactly
what the U.S. Congress did in authorizing the Price Anderson Act.
-- Richard D. Masters
The liability limit for DOE facilities is $10 billion subject to
adjustments for inflation. In the event of a nuclear incident involving
damages in excess of the limits established in the Act, Congress could
take further actions, including the appropriation of funds.
"Disasters on the scale of the
Chernobyl accident lead to harmful effects on the population, territorial
losses without any military action, and to thousands of billions of
roubles' worth of damage, and are, therefore, hard to justify by the need
for electric power."
Chernobyl, Insight from the Inside
Vladimir M. Chernousenko, Scientific Director of the
Ukrainian Academy of Sciences Institute of Physics in Kiev's Task Force
for the Rectification of the Consequences of the Chernobyl Accident
Big Energy Stooge Pete
Dominici (R - NM) to Raid U.S. Renewable Funds for Nuclear and Coal
Energy policy is once again up for
debate on Capitol Hill with Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) expected to
introduce an amendment today that would require 15 percent of electricity
generated in the U.S. to come from renewables by 2020. The legislation
will be countered by Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM), who is planning to
offer a "weaker" amendment that defines coal and nuclear as clean energy,
and eligible for renewable credits. A National Renewable Energy Portfolio
Standard (RPS) that includes clean coal technologies and nuclear power
will reduce the demand for "genuinely clean" renewables such as wind,
solar, biomass, geothermal, and tidal, said Jim Rubens of the Union of
Concerned Scientists. "There's only 15 percent to go around," said Rubens,
adding that nuclear requires huge subsidies and clean coal technologies
are at least 10 years away from being commercial.
Sen. Pete Domenici: Nuclear Renaissance Man
Mike Stuckey MSNBC Jan
24, 2007
Since 1989, Domenici has received $1.2 million in
campaign donations from individuals and political action committees in
the energy and natural resources sector, well over a tenth of the total
$10.8 million he has raised for his Senate campaigns in that time,
according to federal election records. Electric utilities, with big
stakes in the future of nuclear power and government subsidies for it,
kicked in $384,923. The list of Domenici’s campaign donors includes at
least three dozen firms on the membership roster of the Nuclear Energy
Institute, the industry’s main lobbying arm.
GLOBAL WARMING:
The Truth About Denial Sharon Begley
Newsweek
August 13, 2007
Since the late 1980s, this
well-coordinated, well-funded campaign by contrarian scientists,
free-market think tanks and industry has created a paralyzing fog of doubt
around climate change. ...As a result of the undermining of the science,
all the recent talk about addressing climate change has produced little in
the way of actual action.
"It could well be that
the first country to seriously address the issues of creating a
market for renewables would become the central location for a major
new international business sector - with all the positive
consequences that carries in terms of economic activity and
employment." Rodney Chase,
CEO BP
NOW
IT'S OUR WAR, RALPH?
UNDERSTAND THIS:
YOUR LONG, LONG WAR HAS BEEN AGAINST RENEWABLE ENERGY FOR THE PROFIT
OF FOSSIL STAKEHOLDERS.
- RDM "There's a war going on against energy from
fossil fuels. I can't understand
the pure venom felt against
the oil and gas industry."
Rep.
Ralph Hall, Republican - TX Career recipient of $985,530 in funding
from oil, gas & utilities
The loan guarantee program however came under fire,
since nuclear power was included as a “clean technology.” Section 9202 in
the House energy bill did not give the nuclear industry $50 billion in
loan guarantees that got play in the national media; however, it prevents
Congressional appropriators from being able to exclude any eligible
project from the guarantees. It does not prevent appropriators from being
able to set a cap on the amount of guarantees that the Department of
Energy (DOE) can give out.
WHY SUPPORT RENEWABLE
ENERGY, ANYWAY?
NATIONS TO BECOME FO$$IL ENERGY
ROBBER BARONS!
Beware of Energy Nationalism, Warns Global Agency
A growing trend towards nationalism over
resources in Russia and even Britain could backfire by cutting expenditure
on oil and gas worldwide at a time when demand is likely to rise faster
than expected over the next five years, the International Energy Agency
warned yesterday. Guardian (UK)
July 27, 2007
Released yesterday, the 2007 Outlook
on Renewable Energy in America projects that wind power could account for
248 GW; solar energy 164 GW; hydro, ocean and tidal energy 23 GW;
geothermal energy 100 GW; and biomass and biofuels 100 GW.
But unless steps are taken to change the perceptions of U.S.
politicians and policymakers, the report concludes that coordinated,
sustained policies that expand renewable energy markets, promote and
deploy new technology, and encourage renewable energy use in critical
market sectors can't happen.
Bismarck, N.D. -- Dedication ceremonies for a
Wind-to-Hydrogen project have been set for Saturday, July 21 at 2:30 p.m.
The event will be held at the project site located at North Dakota State
University's (NDSU) North Central Research Extension Center, one mile
south of Minot, N.D. on U.S. Highway 83. The public is invited to attend
and enjoy refreshments, provided by Verendrye Electric Cooperative. The
hydrogen fueling site is the first of its kind in the nation. A short
program will include a speech by U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan
and speakers from electric cooperatives and industry
sponsors.
The world’s second largest car
company now views hydrogen fuel cell power as the “the end game,”
according to its director of advanced technology vehicle concepts Dr
Christopher Borroni-Bird. ...“Hybrids are not a solution,” he said. “They
just delay the day of reckoning. The debate about hybrids being cleaner
than diesel is irrelevant - the diesel is a dead end because it uses
fossil fuels.” Dr Borroni-Bird said that hydrogen-powered and electric
cars would develop alongside each other, and that GM would have a
“cost-effective” fuel cell car by 2010. “We will build a car that runs on
renewable energy, but it’s not our responsibility to produce the fuels,”
said a GM spokesman.
Dr. Chris
Boronni-Bird
"Imagine a world where we do not have to
concern ourselves with the supply of oil from the Middle East -- it would
revolutionize government priorities, military spending and make Americans
feel much more safe and secure. Imagine that the hydrogen fuel could come
from a variety of sources, such as from corn (Midwest), hydroelectric
power (Quebec), nuclear power (California), solar cells (Southwest), wind
(Dakotas), etc. Not only
would this create very many, technologically advanced new
jobs, but this diversity would also dramatically stabilize the economy
from fluctuations in supply from one source.
"At a more personal level, imagine being able to refuel at home (using
home electrolyzers or reformers) each night and, in a pinch, being able to
provide back-up power for the home if there is a blackout. These
capabilities would give individuals more independence and options, and
make life easier for them. The benefit and flexibility of this technology
is so powerful that it could literally open up hundreds of new markets
around the world to where entire populations who now only dream of owning
an automobile will soon be able to buy one."
Hydrogen Power: A Discussion with Chris Boronni-Bird PBS
May 19, 2004
"Converting wind energy to
hydrogen means that it doesn't
matter when the wind blows
since its energy can be stored
on-site in the form of hydrogen."
Dick Kelly, CEO of Xcel Energy
Clean Energy Blowin' in the Wind
Steve Raabe Denver Post
December 14, 2006
The facility links two wind turbines
to devices called electrolyzers, which pass the wind-generated electricity
through water to split the liquid into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen
can be stored and used later to generate electricity from either an
internal combustion engine turning a generator or from a fuel cell. In
either case, there are no harmful emissions, and the only by-product from
using the hydrogen fuel is water.
On site is a new building that houses the electrolyzers and a device to
compress the hydrogen for storage; four large, high-tech tanks to store
the hydrogen; a generator run by an engine that burns hydrogen; and
a control room building, where computers monitor all the steps of the
process. Xcel and NREL are each paying part of the $2 million budget for
the two-year project.
"I think both the
governor and I share
the belief it is time for us to act." British Columbia Premier Gordon
Campbell
BC's Premier Finds Environmental Soul Mate in Arnold Sheldon Alberts
CanWest News Service
May 26, 2007
Southern Company Takes Aim at Renewable Energy Bill The Hill May 8, 2007
The utility, which reported $14.4 billion in revenues in
2006, helped derail an administration plan to create a national
electricity market three years ago. Now Southern is targeting a high
priority of a key Senate Democrat: requiring utilities to purchase a
certain percentage of power from wind, solar, biomass and other renewable
energy sources.
The amount includes nearly $10 billion
in activities that the bank has already undertaken, and about $31 billion
will go toward supporting the "commercialization and growth of alternative
energy and clean technology," the bank said. ...In March, Bank of America,
the second-largest U.S. bank, said it would commit $20 billion over 10
years to support growth in environmentally friendly activities.
"It could well be that the
first country to seriously address the issues of creating a market for
renewables would become the central location for a major new international
business sector - with all the positive consequences that carries in terms of
economic activity and employment."
Rodney Chase, CEO BP
“The existing limitations
facing PEM fuel cell technology applications in the transportation sector could
be eliminated with the development of stable cathode catalysts with several
orders of magnitude increase in activity over today’s state-of-the-art
catalysts, and that is what our discovery has the potential to provide.”
U.S. Dept of Energy Researcher Vojislav
Stamenkovic
DETAILS ON THE EARTH-SHAKING BREAKTHROUGH
IN FUEL CELL RESEARCH
Nano Engineering Platinum Surfaces Engineer Live April 5, 2007
George Crabtree, director of Argonne’s Materials Science
Division, emphasised the path-breaking importance of the research. “This
dramatic increase,” he said, “addresses one of the grand challenges of the
hydrogen economy, reducing the amount of expensive platinum catalyst needed to
operate fuel cells efficiently. It is not only world-class basic science, it is
a major advance for energy research.”
The kind of cap-and-trade policies the UK and Italy long implemented
closely resemble U.S. approaches - and these two countries are going
nowhere with renewables. Italy has less than 10 % of Germany's installed
capacity. The UK, with the best wind conditions in the EU, has even less
installed than Italy. Germany, Denmark and Spain succeeded because of a
different system of guaranteed minimum prices called "feed-in rates".
"The days of fossil fuels as
a fuel are over....
The greatest fortunes in the history of the world
will be made in this new energy business." Ted Turner
Turner Calls for Fast Work in Making Switch from Fossil Fuels Brett Clanton, Tom Fowler Houston
Chronicle (TX)
February 8, 2007
The Hydrogen Alternative Peter Hildebrandt
Distributed Energy Journal
January /February 2007
Though fuel cells have been around for over 160 years,
the technology is finally becoming more viable.
TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE FOR BIG
OIL'S BIGGEST LIAR
AS RECORD GLOBAL LAWSUITS LOOM
EXXON BLINKS?
Now MSNBC naively claims
Exxon Cuts Ties to Global Warming Skeptics
MSNBC
January 12, 2007
“The fact that Exxon is trying to debate solutions, instead of whether climate
change even exists, represents an important shift,” said Andrew Logan, a climate
expert at Ceres, a coalition of investors and environmentalists that works with
companies to cut climate change risks.
MSNBC claims it was told that ExxonMobil has
stopped funding 5 skeptic groups but the UCS states that "ExxonMobil has
funneled nearly $16 million between 1998 and 2005 to a network of 43 advocacy
organizations that seek to confuse the public on global warming science."
-- RDM
EU:
ExxonMobil Continues to Fund Global Warming Sceptics
Oliver Hoedeman EU
ObserverMarch 13, 2007
Ending financial support for such irresponsible propaganda is obviously good
news, but unfortunately it is too early to rejoice. ExxonMobil continues to fund
think-tanks that raise doubts about the need to combat climate change, in the US
and in Europe, including EU capital Brussels.
"My opinion of ExxonMobil? What they have done is
nothing like what Big Tobacco did. Big Tobacco harmed the gullible. It was
punished. But
ExxonMobil has harmed the world
and everyone in it. It has committed a crime against humanity; a form of
warfare against democracy and against nature. Those responsible must be
jailed. The company should be dismantled, the proceeds used for what
little remediation is possible. And other corporations found to
influence national policy with deceit should suffer the same fate." --
Richard D. Masters
CALIFORNIA MOVE OVER...
BEGINNINGS OF WORLD'S LARGEST LAWSUIT?
The Royal Society of the United Kingdom Questions ExxonMobil about
Conducting a Worldwide Misinformation Campaign on Global Warming
"My analysis indicates that ExxonMobil last year provided more than $2.9
million to organizations in the United States which misinformed the public
about climate change through their websites. ...I have shared the contents
of your documents with some climate researchers who are Fellows of the
Royal Society and it would be useful to update them about whether
ExxonMobil will be continuing to express views that are inconsistent with
the findings of their work."
Bob Ward, Senior Manager, Policy Communication, Royal Society
Letter from Bob Ward to Nick Thomas
September 4, 2006
GOODBYE OIL WARS!
GOODBYE FILTHY COAL!
GOODBYE DEADLY NUCLEAR! A
REVOLUTION IS BREWING
MINNESOTA WIND INTEGRATION STUDY FINDS
WIND POWER COST IS ALMOST INSIGNIFICANT
AT ONE-HALF CENT PER KWH!
NATIONAL AVERAGE = 9.26 CENTS/KWH MN Wind
Integration Study Final Report - Vol l
MN Wind Integration Study Final Report - Vol ll
THE FORCES FUNDING THE WAR AGAINST RENEWABLE ENERGY - HEAVILY SUBSIDIZED
AND COSTLY NUCLEAR, OIL AND COAL - DON'T STAND A SNOWBALL'S CHANCE IN HELL
WITHOUT BUYING EXTREME GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE IN THE FREE-MARKET
EXPANSION OF WIND POWER.
IS YOUR CONGRESSMAN FOR SALE?
-- RDM
WILL THE NEW
CONGRESS FREE TAXPAYERS
FROM FOSSIL FUEL AND NUCLEAR SLAVERY, AND A DISMAL FUTURE OF OIL WARS AND
TERRORISM?
“Maximizing energy efficiency and renewable energy is the domestic
epicenter in the war on terror, and it is imperative that we maximize the
partnerships between the public and private sectors in new and creative
ways with a sense of seriousness, national purpose, and the urgency the
situation merits.”
Alexander Karsner
Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Wind Power Today
US Department of Energy May 2006
DOD Study Allows For Wind Farm Construction Leaves Unanswered Questions on Research
and Mitigation Techniques Sierra ClubSeptember 28, 2006
While the report appears to downplay the effectiveness of
current mitigation measures, it importantly concludes that efforts must be taken
"to allow for construction of wind turbines while maintaining defense readiness
capabilities."
DURBIN AND OBAMA
ATTACK
REPUBLICAN MONOLITH
TWO DEM SENATORS JOIN WAR FOR RENEWABLE
ENERGY
Wind Farm Delays Pit Senators Against FAA
Michael Hawthorne
Chicago Tribune (IL)
July 25, 2006
Senate rules and privileges allow any senator to delay confirmation of a
presidential appointment. In this case, Obama and Durbin are blocking the
nomination of Andrew Steinberg to be assistant secretary for aviation and
international affairs at the Federal Aviation Administration. Earlier this year
the FAA issued stop-work orders, formally known as a determination of presumed
hazard, for at least 15 proposed wind projects in the Midwest.
CHOOSING SIDES:
Which Party is Owned by Big Oil?
The Sierra Club sued the Department
of Defense in federal court Wednesday for allegedly halting construction
of new wind farms across the United States by failing to complete a study
on whether they interfere with military radar.
The suit filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco
claimed that Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and the Pentagon missed
a deadline for completing a study that is holding up more than a dozen
wind farm projects in the Midwest. "The end result is
the wind industry is being crippled," said attorney Kristin Henry
of the Sierra Club.
...Delayed construction on
wind farms could make developers ineligible for federal tax credits
available until the end of 2007, dealing a severe blow to efforts to
develop clean, renewable energy sources in the United States, Henry
said.
The amendment ordering the study, authored by Sen. John
Warner, R-Va., came as a last-minute addition to a national defense bill
passed in January. The bill gave the Defense Department until May to
complete the study.
more
Feasibility of Mitigating the Effects of Windfarms on
Primary Radar
Alenia Marconi Systems May 2003
Department of Trade and Industry - United Kingdom
"This study concludes that radars can be modified to ensure that air
safety is maintained in the presence of wind turbine farms." - pp. 4
Wind Turbines and Radar: Operational Experience and
Mitigation Measures
Spaven Consulting (UK)
2001
"Case studies from Denmark, the Netherlands and the USA indicate that
technical solutions have been applied which enable radars to process out
wind turbine returns while retaining genuine aircraft tracks." pp. 36
THE US MILITARY IS THE "TIP OF THE
SWORD" IN
BIG ENERGY'S WAR AGAINST RENEWABLE ENERGY
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT CONTINUES TO STALL WIND POWER PROJECTS Catherine Komp The New Standard
September 1, 2006
"In energy as in politics, power corrupts. Through the ages, power has
indeed corrupted those who produce it, those who control it, and those who
need it. Today our high-energy world teeters at the brink. The gauge is
edging toward empty, and as it does, the political, environmental,
medical, and economic cost continue to squeeze humanity. The crisis is not
new, but now it has become more urgent. This time it is not money at
stake--it is mankind.
"It has been impossible for the general public to wipe its
collective windshield clear enough to actually see the truth. But once the
haze is rubbed away--even a little--the world will peer into the past and
discover that to achieve clean
energy independence and petropolitical security we do not need to reinvent
the wheel. We need to exhume that wheel from whence it was deliberately
buried by those who have diligently worked to keep us focused on
petroleum." -- Edwin Black, Internal Combustion
In the absence of a government-launched
Manhattan Project to ignite the alternative fuel revolution, the public
must turn not just to the White House or the state house but also to the
largest fleet owners in the country.
Carmakers such as Honda, BMW and Toyota are waiting for only
one thing before they redirect their considerable resources away from
gasoline cars and toward hydrogen, electric, natural gas (CNG) or other
alternatively fueled vehicles. Those companies want tangible demand.
Fleets -- governmental, commercial and private -- have a compelling volume
purchasing power no automaker can ignore.
San Francisco: The Sierra Club today filed suit against
Donald Rumsfeld and the U.S. Department of Defense for creating a virtual
moratorium on the construction of new wind power plants. Rumsfeld and DOD
have failed to complete a congressionally mandated study of windmills'
impact on radar. In the meantime, DOD, Department of Homeland Security and
the Federal Aviation Administration have halted wind farm construction
"within radar line of sight" of any military radar--which has effectively
stopped construction across the U.S.
"While the Defense Department drags its feet studying if wind
farms are a threat to national security, Americans are missing out on
cleaner, cheaper energy," said Kristin Henry, staff attorney for Sierra
Club. "If the military can have windmills and effective radar at
Guantanamo, why can't we have both in the Midwest?"
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern
District of California, claims that the Department of Defense has violated
the Administrative Procedure Act and will seek to "compel agency action
unlawfully withheld or unreasonably delayed." 5 U.S.C. § 706(1).
The move by the Bush administration to link wind power to
national security threats is especially ironic given that it took a recent
decision of the Ninth Circuit Court to get the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission to consider the potential impacts from a terrorist attack on
nuclear facilities when conducting environmental reviews.
"The same
administration that didn't want to consider terrorism when building
nuclear plants is saying that windmills may be a threat to national
security," said Henry.
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006
contained a last-minute amendment, inserted by Senator John Warner of
Virginia, requiring Donald Rumsfeld and DOD to complete a study on the
effect of windmills on military readiness and the operation of military
radar installations by May 8, 2006.
In order to operate and construct a windmill in the U.S., an
energy developer must obtain a notice from the FAA stating that the
installation is not a hazard to air navigation. The Federal Aviation
Administration is interpreting DOD's "Interim Windmill Policy" to mean
that it cannot approve any wind projects "within radar line of sight."
Instead, the agency has been issuing "Notices of Presumptive Hazard,"
which decline to provide the required notice until more information is
obtained regarding possible interference with military radar
installations. Since much of the nation and almost all of the Midwest is
"within radar line of sight," this policy has a sweeping effect and has
essentially created a de facto moratorium on new wind power projects. Federal officials
have declined to reveal how many wind projects have been blocked from
construction, but, according to media reports, at least 15 wind farm
proposals in the Midwest have been shut down so far. The list of
stalled projects includes one outside Bloomington, Illinois, which would
have been the nation's largest source of wind energy, generating enough
electricity to power 120,000 homes in the Chicago area. Coal and natural
gas will likely replace the lost wind generation, resulting in higher
energy costs and increased soot, smog and global warming pollution.
"Paralyzing wind
energy development could not have come at a worse time," said David
Bookbinder, senior attorney for Sierra Club. "The Department of Defense
has provided no indication of when it intends to complete the required
study, even though the deadline has already passed. Meanwhile the window
for claiming tax credits on wind projects is closing next year.
On June 2, 2006, Senators Russ Feingold, Dick Durbin, Herb
Kohl, Kent Conrad, Byron Dorgan, and Barack Obama wrote a letter to the
Department of Defense and the Federal Aviation Administration requesting
that they stop unnecessarily obstructing the construction of clean,
renewable energy sources.
If the moratorium persists through the summer, it may not be
possible to complete wind projects in time for their developers to claim
applicable federal tax credits, which were extended last August through
the end of 2007. The direct and indirect economic damage that will result
from suspension of wind farm construction could easily reach tens of
millions of dollars. Wind energy is the
fastest-growing source of power on the planet. With our tremendous
wind resources, the United States can become a world leader in wind
energy. Already, wind turbines in this country produce enough electricity
to meet the needs of more than 1 million households. A single modern wind
turbine can produce enough power to meet the annual electricity needs of
500 average homes.
The Enemy Within
commentary by Richard D. Masters, ICHC
June 17, 2006
WIND POWER IS KEY TO A HYDROGEN
FUTURE
RENEWABLE ENERGY MUST BE THE SOURCE OF HYDROGEN FUEL IF THE
HYDROGEN ECONOMY IS TO FREE US FROM RELIANCE ON FOREIGN SOURCES OF ENERGY.
ONLY A GREAT EXPANSION OF WIND POWER CAN SECURE A POLLUTION
FREE, AFFORDABLE ALTERNATIVE TO THE HUGE FOSSIL AND NUCLEAR EXPANSION
PLANNED FOR AMERICA BY THE BIG ENERGY LOBBY AND ITS BOUGHT-AND-PAID-FOR
PUPPETS IN THE EXECUTIVE AND LEGISLATIVE BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT. WIND ENERGY IS
CLEAN, ABUNDANT AND CHEAP. IT IS A DIRECT COMPETITOR TO THE
MINING INTERESTS WHO SUPPLY COAL TO THE UTILITIES THAT SPREAD MERCURY AND
AIR POLLUTION ACROSS OUR LAND. COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS CREATE
WIDESPREAD DESTRUCTION THROUGH ACID RAIN AND VAST OPEN PIT MINING.
BUT THE EXPANSION OF WIND POWER, BOTH ONSHORE AND OFF, MAY HERALD THE END
OF COAL BURNING AND THE ASSOCIATED PUBLIC HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL BURDEN
IT DELIVERS WITH EVERY KILLOWATT. IS IT ANY WONDER THAT
THE ANTI-CAPE WIND GROUP IS LED BY THE FORMER CEO OF MINING GIANT PHELPS
DODGE? OR THAT THE ANTI-WIND FORCES IN CONGRESS ARE LED BY SOULLESS
INCUMBENTS WHO CAN REGARD A NATIONAL CHILD HEALTH EPIDEMIC CAUSED BY
FOSSIL FUEL BURNING AS A SIMPLE MATTER OF DOING BUSINESS - AS LONG AS THEY
RECEIVE FAT CAMPAIGN CHECKS FROM ANTI-RENEWABLE FORCES?
IT IS TIME TO REPLACE THESE PREDATORY ANIMALS WITH HONEST
REPRESENTATIVES WHO ARE DEDICATED TO AMERICA'S FUTURE. -- RDM
SERIAL INCUMBENT ELECTED TO 18TH TERM
Nov 7, 2006
AN AMERICAN VAMPIRE
This rogue congressman is for sale to highest bidder.
SUCKING UP TO THE SAUDIS TO DESTROY AMERICA'S HOPE
FOR ENERGY INDEPENDENCE DON YOUNG
WRITES LEGISLATION FOR SAUDI LOBBYIST
BOUGHT BY SAUDIS: Alaskan Turncoat Don Young
What the Boston Globe missed: TOP CONGRESSIONAL LOBBYING FIRM
FOR SAUDI ARABIA FOUND TO BE LEADING ATTACK ON OFFSHORE WIND
Saudis buy last minute backdoor legislation from
Alaskan congressman
How an Expensive Foot in the Door Can Lead to Favorable
Language
Doreen Leggett Cape Cod Voice
June 1 - 14, 2006
IS ALASKA ATTACKING WIND POWER TO KEEP NATURAL GAS PRICES HIGH?
"It will chill the whole industry at a time when the president is calling
for offshore wind as
part of the Advanced Energy Initiative."
Jim Gordon, president of the Cape Wind project
Amendment Threatens Offshore Wind
Meredith Mackenzie UPI
March 15, 2006
Capitol
Hill's Ill Wind Boston Globe February 26, 2006 For a textbook
case of why the public holds Congress
is such low esteem, look no further than the way an Alaska congressman
is short-circuiting the legislative process to sabotage the Cape Wind
project off the coast of Cape Cod.
"The Young amendment is an insult to Americans who care
about good government."
Senator John Kerry (MA) Kerry
Denounces Young Amendment Clean Power Now February 24,
2005
VOTERS
SEND THEIR KIDS TO WAR SO THEIR IMPERIAL INCUMBENTS WON'T HAVE WIND
TURBINES IN THEIR PRIVILEGED OCEAN VIEWS. "Kennedy may still succeed in killing
Cape Wind through back-room machinations in Washington. And if he does, I
believe he'll destroy something else: whatever political aspirations
remain for the Kennedys."
Jack Coleman, Editor
Wind Farmer's Almanac
June 2, 2006
-- AMERICA COMMITS
ECONOMIC/ETHICAL SUICIDE --
Traitors in High Office Lead U.S. to Dead End Energy
Future
Wind-Power Projects Halted
Supporters See Political Motive Behind Defense Dept.
Study
Kari Lydersen Washington Post (DC)
June 10, 2006
Wind farm developers,
Midwestern legislators and environmentalists say the farms pose no risk,
noting that there are already numerous wind farms operating in military
radar areas. They say a renewable, domestic source of energy such as wind
is crucial to energy security and independence. They say their wind
turbines are victims of the ongoing dispute between Cape Cod residents and
developers of the proposed Cape Wind farm in Nantucket Sound. The Defense
Department study was put in the 2006 Defense Authorization Act --
inserted, say wind farm developers, by senators who want to block Cape
Wind.
The federal government has stopped work on more
than a dozen wind farms planned across the Midwest, saying research
is needed on whether the giant turbines could interfere with
military radar.
But backers of wind power say the action has little to do
with national security. The real issue, they say, is a group of
wealthy vacationers who think a proposed wind farm off the coast
would spoil the view at their summer homes.
Opponents of the Cape Wind project include several
influential members of Congress. Critics say their latest attempt to
thwart the planting of 130 turbines in Nantucket Sound has led to a
moratorium on wind farms hundreds of miles away in Illinois,
Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.
FAA Takes the Wind Out of Wind Farms
Michael Hawthorne Chicago Tribune June 9,
2006
"Recent action by some U.S. government
agencies to effectively halt development of many pending wind energy
facilities could lead to a de facto moratorium on the development of wind
power in the U.S."
-- American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).
This stems from The National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006, signed into law January 6,
2006 (PL 109-163), which contained a last-minute amendment inserted by
Senator John Warner (R-VA) requiring the Department of Defense to study
and report on the effects of wind projects on military readiness. A host of projects in
the Mid-West have been thrown into doubt pending completion of this
review. Reportedly as many as 15 potential projects in the development
pipeline were issued notices of "perceived hazard" from the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA), bringing progress to a halt.
Senator Warner has sponsored previous legislation at the
federal level that would have proven negative for wind power.
more
A Seller's Market for Wind Power Has Its Drawbacks Jesse Broehl
RenewableEnergyAccess.com June 7, 2006
Middle America
does not understand what is going on.
But they're starting to get pissed off. - RDM
Delaying Wind Farm Makes No Sense Pantograph (IL) June 3,
2006
Just a day before word got out
Wednesday that the Federal Aviation Administration had placed a moratorium
on construction of 15 wind farms across the United States, Twin Groves
Wind Farm project near Saybrook and Arrowsmith received its construction
permits. The project was originally listed among those where construction
was halted. And, in fact, excavation work on the county project was halted
last Friday.
Maybe the federal government thinks a slight delay is OK, but
when up to 150 Central Illinois union carpenters, millworkers, operators,
ironworkers, laborers and others are told construction on the wind farm is
being delayed, it costs them money and hurts the local economy.
Delays are especially critical now because work for the
construction trades in this area is the slowest that it has been in 15 to
20 years, according to David Penn, business manager for Laborers
International Union Local 362. Penn said the wind-farm construction
timeline was moved back from April to June.
Saying the moratorium or delays are a concern for national
security may make the FAA action sound better, but prior events suggest
politics were really at the heart of the matter.
The FAA moratorium appears to have been promoted by
well-healed residents of Cape Cod, including the prominent Kennedy family.
People with summer homes on Cape Cod have tried numerous ways to stop
construction of turbines just off their coast.
U.S. Sen. John Warner, R-Va., an admitted "visitor" to Cape
Cod, is responsible for the FAA action. He reportedly "slipped" an
amendment into a military appropriation bill early this year.
THE SUICIDE OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY
- WHY?
SILENCE: ARE REPUBLICANS IN LOCK
STEP AGAINST RENEWABLE ENERGY? "Prohibiting, even temporarily, the development
of wind energy facilities within those areas would be a considerable
setback for efforts to increase our country's energy independence."
Senator Dick Durban (D-IL)
Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI)
Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) Senator Byron Dorgan
(D-ND)
Democrats Express Concern Over Halted Wind Farm Work
Free Republic June 3, 2006
"This is a big, ugly political maneuver by a handful of people who are
undermining America's energy security."
Michael Vickerman, executive director of RENEW Wisconsin
FAA Suspends Wind Projects in Midwest
May 31, 2006
The federal government has stopped work on more than a dozen
wind farms planned across the Midwest, saying research is needed on whether the
giant turbines could interfere with military radar. But backers of wind power
say the action has little to do with national security. The real issue, they
say, is a group of wealthy vacationers who think a proposed wind farm off the
coast of Cape Cod in Massachusetts would spoil the view at their summer homes.
New Hydrogen Plant Near Boise Delivers First Shipment
The Idaho Statesman
July 18, 2006
Most hydrogen plants use natural gas as the
feedstock, which some critics say raise questions about how truly
environmentally friendly the process is. Synthetic Energy's plant uses
water to create hydrogen in a process called electrolysis to remove
the hydrogen protons from water.
SYNTHETIC ENERGY: Powering Up
Alan Dorich
U.S. Business Review
March 2006
Synthetic Energy will produce hydrogen with proton exchange
membranes (PEMs). Also known as hydrolysers, the PEMs are supplied by
Proton Energy Systems Inc., based in Wallingford, Conn. When the
facility is fully operational, Griffith says the company will serve
Norco, a regional commercial gas distributor in Boise, Idaho.
..."We have capacity to add more hydrolysers and expand the
renewable source by incorporating more wind turbines and/or solar
panels," he says. "Once we have documented our performance, we hope to
provide more hydrogen to other users, including silicon chip
manufacturers and the emerging fuel cell market."
Griffith and Edmark would also like to add a mobile,
containerized vessel to the company's operations. "We would ultimately
like to able to come up with a containerized version of our production
plant," Griffith explains.
Mountain Home Wind-Power Plant Will Make Hydrogen
Idaho Statesman
June 10, 2006
Synthetic Energy plans to use a combination of wind power and
electricity to produce hydrogen that can be used in chemical
manufacturing and oil and gas refining, said Will Hart, a spokesman
for Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho. Craig will be on hand at 10 a.m. for a
ribbon cutting.
Commercial Hydrogen Plant to Open
Fox 12 (ID)
June 9, 2006
Wind-Hydrogen Plant to be Built
Mountain Home News Sept 28, 2005
"The hydrogen era looms on the
horizon and the first major industrial nation to harness its full
potential will set the pace for economic development for the remainder of
the century. ...Today's centralised, top-down flow of
energy, controlled by global oil companies
will then become obsolete."
The plant enables wind generated electricity to
convert into hydrogen which is then bottled and kept for converting back
into electricity as required. ...pureSHETLAND's entry will be the first to
use renewably produced hydrogen as a fuel, creating no pollutant emissions
during hydrogen generation, only water vapour as an exhaust.
Despite the President, Congress and the
public’s call for the rapid development of renewable energy resources, a
handful of Transportation and Infrastructure committee members, led by
Alaskan Congressman Don Young and working behind closed doors in
Washington, have tacked a special interest provision on a Coast Guard Bill
designed to single out and stymie America’s first offshore wind farm.
This 11th hour move to change the rules for a renewable
energy project that has already received its Massachusetts Energy
Facilities Siting Board approval and is moving favorably through an over
five year environmental review involving seventeen Federal and State
agencies is unjust and contravenes our regional and national energy policy
interest. Our project enjoys the support of national and local
environmental organizations, labor unions, health advocates and the
overwhelming majority of Massachusetts citizens and will deliver increased
energy independence, lower energy costs, a healthier environment and new
jobs.
For that reason, we today call on leadership and members of
Congress to stop this egregious abuse of process and to strip this special
interest anti-renewable energy provision from the legislation and begin to
replace the rhetoric for renewable energy with real action in support of
Cape Wind and the future of offshore wind energy.
BACKGROUND The Senate and House Should Reject Any Provision to Harm Offshore Wind
The Conferees to the Coast Guard Reauthorization bill have imposed a
provision that would likely ban the first offshore wind energy project
being developed in the United States: Cape Wind.
This provision has never been introduced in the House or the
Senate; no hearings or other public notice has ever been provided, and it
did not pass either House of Congress.
It sets a different standard for this project than any other
in the U.S. The provision has no direct relation to the Coast Guard.
It would allow the Governor of any adjacent state to ban
offshore wind energy projects in Nantucket Sound, for any reason
whatsoever, whether or not the Coast Guard determines the project has any
adverse effect on navigation. Because the Governor of Massachusetts
opposes this project, despite broad support in the legislature and among
the citizens of the state, this new authority would likely prohibit the
Cape Wind project, even though it meets all federal and state standards
for development.
By arbitrarily legislating a new barrier on a single project,
solely because of local opposition, this provision will impede the
development of offshore renewable energy throughout the country. The only
support for this provision is from the local landowner (NIMBY) group that
has been established to prevent the development of the Cape Wind project,
which is located on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound more than 5 miles
from any point of land.
More specifically:
This provision directly impairs development of secure, domestic offshore
renewable energy by upsetting the carefully balanced provisions to promote
offshore renewables enacted in the Energy Policy Act last year. Both
Senators Domenici and Bingaman have urged the Senate to reject this
provision as contrary to the Energy Act incentives for domestic renewable
energy.
The provision directly contradicts the initiative of the
President to promote the development of renewable energy and reduce our
dependence on insecure, foreign sources of oil.
The provision flies in the face of decades of precedent in
the careful balance between federal and state authority for energy
development on the OCS and sets a precedent that special rules can be
designed for specific projects.
The Cape Wind project has undergone 5 years of
regulatory review by the Army Corps of Engineers, including a 4 year
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIS).
Under the Energy Policy Act, the project will also
undergo further extensive analysis by the Department of the Interior,
which will include full consultation with the Coast Guard and the State
on long-term navigational issues.
The Coast Guard already has three separate regulatory
proceedings to guarantee that there are no adverse effects to
navigation. First, it has participated extensively in that EIS,
concluding that the Navigational Risk Assessment prepared by the Corps
sufficiently addressed issues raised by the Coast Guard.
Second, the Coast Guard will be a participating
agency in the new proceeding at the Department of the Interior, required
by sec. 388 of the Energy Policy Act, to license offshore alternative
energy projects.
Third, the Coast Guard must approve Cape Wind’s
application to the District Commander, under 33CFR part 66, to establish
the project’s Private Aids to Navigation
The Navigational Risk Assessment conducted for the
Army Corps’ EIS concludes that Cape Wind, which is primarily in a
shallow called Horseshoe Shoal, "is not expected to create negative
impacts on navigational safety." Further, the Wind Park "will provide
adequate watershed area for unrestricted and safe navigational access in
and around the Wind Park." Moreover, "the presence of the Wind Park will
not restrict large vessel movements in the area since they are naturally
restricted from the area by the charted water depths."
The Risk Assessment also finds that the Wind Park
"will essentially serve as an aid to navigation simply by its presence
in Nantucket Sound." Each tower will be marked on NOAA charts, "and will
serve as points of reference for mariners navigating in and around
Horseshoe Shoal."
European wind energy projects are operating and in
development adjacent to and within 1 1/2 miles from shipping channels
without incident.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has actually
approved the project, through its Energy Facility Siting Board, which
undertook a three year on the record review to determine whether to
license the cable coming ashore in state waters and found that the
project’s low cost, clean and reliable energy is essential for the state
and region’s energy needs.
The Massachusetts legislative leadership strongly
opposes this provision and has written to the Conferees expressing this
view and its support for Cape Wind.
The University of Massachusetts latest poll of
sentiment in the State regarding the Cape Wind project concludes that
voters favor the project by a 6 to 1 margin.
Greenpeace has 30 years history defending the world's
oceans. We would be the first organization to oppose this proposal if we
felt that it posed long-term threats to the marine ecosystem of
Nantucket Sound. We agree Nantucket Sound is a beautiful place that is
heavily used by tourists, locals, part-time residents, fisherpeople, and
commercial interests. We support offshore wind in Nantucket Sound
because we see it as an important step in our fight for renewable energy
solutions to global warming.
FLASHBACK
GM WAS
WARNED
In 2001, California Air Resources Board Chairman
Alan Lloyd sounded a resounding alarm about the anti-renewable energy
policies of General Motors. Today, just a few years later, gasoline
stands above $3, car lots are stuffed with GM's unsold gas hogs, electric
cars are dead, true plug-in hybrids and fuel cell vehicles remain beyond the
horizon - and GM faces bankruptcy. -- RDM April 13, 2006
"GM has decided to place its future in the hands of
its lawyers, rather than its engineers."
--
CARB Chairman Dr. Alan Lloyd Suing
for Relief Mark Haefele
Reason June 2001
"We are serious about
solar cells, and
in the future
will be making hydrogen with them." Takeo Fukui, president and CEO of
Honda
Honda Motor Enters Solar Cell Market
Nikkei Electronics Asia
April 2006
THE WAR ON RENEWABLE
ENERGY
DOE USES HYDROGEN TO JUSTIFY COAL
AND NUCLEAR EXPANSION
"This administration
believes that hydrogen energy offers the greatest promise of a fundamental
break with the patterns of the past." Samuel Bodman, US Energy
Secretary
U.S. Energy Secretary Pushes Grants for Hydrogen Vehicle Research
Bodman said the department was looking at a
number of ways to reduce the country's oil addiction, as Bush dubbed it
earlier this year, including clean coal, hydrogen fuel cells and a revival
of nuclear power.
Justin Hyde Middle East North Africa Financial
Network April
7, 2006
UNITED KINGDOM
Peter Hain
"We are facing two potentially catastrophic scenarios: a threat to our
security of energy supply, and, even more dangerous, global warming which
has seen the 10 warmest years on record since 1990 and threatens the very
future of our planet.
"Our failure to make the tough decisions at national levels
on alternative sources of energy in the past has left us now facing what
many see as the inevitability of an increase in nuclear capacity in Great
Britain just to keep the lights on.
"In the future, faced with the vast liabilities and dangerous
waste from nuclear, our children and grandchildren will ask how we ever
got ourselves into that position.
"Today we have an opportunity not to compound our failings by
again failing to take the difficult decisions to invest in renewable and
clean sources of energy."
Peter Hain, Secretary, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland 'Must Point the Way on Renewable Energy'
UTV (UK) January
31, 2005
How Government Makes Nuclear Power Competitive
U.S. Code
December 27, 2005
In the event of a nuclear incident involving damages in excess of the
amount of aggregate public liability under paragraph (1), the Congress
will thoroughly review the particular incident in accordance with the
procedures set forth in subsection (i) of this section and will in
accordance with such procedures, take whatever action is determined to be
necessary (including approval of appropriate compensation plans and
appropriation of funds) to provide full and prompt compensation to the
public for all public liability claims resulting from a disaster of such
magnitude.
Bigger than Nuclear Decentralized electricity generation is
the new power technology of choice. Amory Lovins
Earthscan
November 2, 2005
Hydrogen Fuel Cells May Help U.S. Military Cut Gas Usage Some day military bases may replace their
internal-combustion-engine truck fleets with fuel cell or fuel cell/ hybrid
vehicles
Gerry J. Gilmore American Forces Press Service
April 6, 2006
Germany Cannot Afford to Miss Out on Hydrogen and Fuel Cells
Competitors such as the USA and Japan are making
huge efforts to become technology leaders and are pushing the market
introduction of fuel cells and hydrogen as a fuel. The danger exists that
Germany could forfeit its leading role - and that is risky, warns the HyWays
project which is funded by the EU. Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation
Research April 5, 2006
NRDC
ENGINEERS A MAJOR CLEAN AIR VICTORY
Four years ago, the Administration issued new rules that
would have allowed 20,000 aging power plants, oil refineries and other big
polluters to evade pollution controls required by law. These proposed
changes, shaped directly by industry lobbyists, were little more than a
payback to Big Oil and Big Coal for their lavish campaign contributions.
This devastating reversal of the Clean Air Act would have
given ExxonMobil and other industry giants a free pass to clog our air
with hundreds of thousands more tons of harmful pollution. And it could
have led to a dramatic increase in asthma and heart attacks,
hospitalizations and premature deaths. The most vulnerable -- children,
seniors and those already struggling to breathe in our cities -- would
have suffered the most.
In response, we mobilized thousands of our online activists
to protest this unprecedented attack on our clean air safeguards. When the
Bush Administration moved ahead anyway, NRDC raced to court and argued
that the new rules would cause permanent injury to millions of Americans.
In December 2003, the court took the unusual step of blocking the new
rules from taking effect until the full case could be heard.
Now, the U.S. Court of Appeals has issued a ruling that slams
the door on the Administration's attempt to sabotage the Clean Air Act.
The court rebuked the Bush plan for threatening the health of millions and
undermining a law that was meant to limit pollution, not increase it!
This victory proves once again that the courts are often our
last line of defense against the Bush Administration's worst attacks.
Thank you so much for helping to defend America's clean air law.
Sincerely, Frances Beinecke
President,
Natural Resources Defense Council
DOE drags its feet
Hydrogen Economy Requires Cooperation The Energy Department did not request
as much as it could have for hydrogen programs for the 2007 budget Heather Farrell
UPI via National
Ledger (AZ)
April 3, 2006
Aviation Officials Imagine Planes Flown by Hydrogen Power Chris Jones Review
Journal (NV) March
31, 2006
The military is among those leading the charge,
said Mike Mead, chief of the U.S. Air Force's Advanced Power Technology Office
at Robins Air Force Base near Macon, Ga. Hydrogen-powered fuel cells are driving
buses, forklifts and tow trucks at military bases around the nation, he said.
"Unless
the Western democracies institute aggressive programs to develop
renewable energy resources now, all future democratic policy will by
necessity be based upon access to diminishing supplies of oil - the
great majority held by Middle Eastern dictatorships. Hence, freedom
will be lost and foreign dictators will rule the West by proxy." Richard D. Masters Producer/Director of
"Hydrogen? 
"Senator
McCain did not show up for the
"Our
heritage and ideals, our code and standards - the things we live by
and teach our children - are preserved or diminished by how freely
we exchange ideas and feelings."
‘‘The
overall message is fairly grim unless we do something radical. We need
fewer, shorter reports and more action from the Government.’’
"Why
have you stopped sending food?" THE
GREAT ETHANOL FRAUD
“Our
mission to reduce dependency on foreign oil by developing products powered
with cost effective, carbonless fuel is one step closer to being a
reality. We are pleased that, in a relatively short period of time, we
have developed the technology to a point where we are ready to begin full
field trials. We believe that implementing ammonia as a carbonless fuel
with our Oxx Power products will open new markets that have been dominated
by fossil fuel powered engines for decades.”
1
billion during the next ten years in hydrogen and fuel-cell technologies.
The federal ministry of transport will provide some
CARB Chairman Dr. Alan Lloyd
