News 2009:

Footnote:  We always attempt to get the news to you AND obey copyright laws.  We apologize if, in our haste to get the news out, we miss a notice that it was copyright protected. We are a non-profit foundation therefore  we do not reprint for profit.  Our sole motivation is to keep our public informed.  If you have an article reprinted here and desire us to eliminate it, just let us know and we will immediately delete it, without question, with apologies.  arizonaenergy on copyright law   FAIR USE NOTICE

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World CO2 since 1750 (cubic feet)

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March 31, 2009

Abundant gas to help N America become petrochemical leader

North America can become the leader of the global petrochemical industry again, as new supply of natural gas liquid feedstock will help growth of plant capacities in the region, Nova Chemicals CEO Jeffrey Lipton said Sunday.

Access to Water; A Human Right or a Human Need?

Twenty countries have officially challenged the Ministerial Declaration released Sunday at the close of the week-long World Water Forum because it defines water as a human need rather than as a human right.

'Alarming' Use Of Energy In Modern Manufacturing Methods

Overall, new manufacturing systems are anywhere from 1,000 to one million times bigger consumers of energy, per pound of output, than more traditional industries. In short, pound for pound, making microchips uses up orders of magnitude more energy than making manhole covers.

American Indians represented on global stage

TIMOTCA, The International Museum of 21st Century Arts, is an international nonprofit corporation founded in 1980 to foster peace and cultural understanding through the universal language of art. TIMOTCA is premised on the belief that art transcends national borders, inter-cultural differences and racial distinctions, uniquely touching a peaceful and humanistic quality in all of us, expanding our potential to move beyond historic fears toward higher spiritual and evolutionary challenge.

Among Climate Scientists, a Dispute Over 'Tipping Points’

"The climate is nearing tipping points," the NASA climate scientist James E. Hansen wrote in The Observer newspaper of London. "If we do not change course, we’ll hand our children a situation that is out of their control."

The resulting calamities, Dr. Hansen and other like-minded scientists have warned, could be widespread and overwhelming: the loss of untold species as ocean reefs and forests are disrupted; the transformation of the Amazon into parched savanna; a dangerous rise in sea levels resulting from the melting of the mile-high ice sheets in West Antarctica and Greenland; and the thawing of the Arctic tundra, which would release torrents of the greenhouse gas methane into the atmosphere.

Antarctic Dust Layers May Give Climate Hints

South American glaciers are a source of puzzling layers of dust in Antarctic ice, according to a study published on Sunday in Nature Geoscience that might help improve climate change forecasting.

Scientists have long thought that dust entombed in the ice was a sign that the world went through drier or windier periods during the past 70,000 years. But they could find no evidence in other parts of the world to back up that theory -- until now.

Biogas could power 2 mm homes in Britain

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is launching a task force to help sectors including farming and the water industry meet goals to produce energy from anaerobic digestion, which generates gas from the break down of organic material without oxygen.

Building a ‘Green’ Manufacturing Base

A bipartisan group of eight senators have introduced a bill aimed at renewing America’s industrial sector by using less energy, reducing carbon emissions and producing the technologies that will help the U.S. (and world) reduce its reliance on fossil fuels.

Cheap oil slows race to tap Arctic supplies

The collapse of oil prices has slowed efforts to tap vast crude oil and natural gas supplies that lie under the Arctic Ocean but countries like Russia, Canada and Norway are still vying for a potential bounty of energy riches trapped there. The potential payoff is huge -- the US Geological Survey estimates that a quarter of the world's undiscovered oil and natural gas lies in the Arctic.

China Hails US Climate Pledges, OPEC Fears For Oil

China and other nations hailed US pledges to do more to fight global warming on Monday but OPEC dampened celebrations by predicting that a planned UN climate treaty would damage the economies of oil exporters.

Chinalco confident of proposed investment in Rio Tinto; president

Aluminum Corporation of China, also known as Chinalco, remains committed to the proposed $19.5 billion investment in Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto, Xiong Weiping, president of Chinalco, said Tuesday. The bid is still awaiting approval from Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board.

EPA Issues New Requirements for Energy Star Computer Monitors, Picture Frames

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing new requirements for computer monitors, digital picture frames and other displays to earn the Energy Star label. On average, Energy Star qualified products will be 20 percent more energy efficient than conventional options.

Food versus Jatropha

The myth the west uses is that marginal lands are waste lands, this can never be further from the truth. These areas also have food crops that are adopted to these regions. However poor Agricultural practices based on monocultures have introduced food crops that are not site adopted in these areas e.g. the growth of maize varieties that are not adapted to these regions increasing food insecurity and leading to food aid dependency.

Fossil Based Electricity Generation Declines, Nuclear Stagnant, as Renewable Energy Sources Soar; Non-Hydro Renewables Grow by 17pct over 2007

According to the latest figures published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its "Electric Power Monthly" report released on March 24, 2009, non-hydro renewable sources of electricity enjoyed double-digit growth during the past year while coal, natural gas, and petroleum experienced notable declines and nuclear power remained stagnant.

Globally, Land Degrading Faster Than Expected

As goes the land will go humanity.  A fascinating yet terrifying new study finds that 24% of the Earth‘s land is degrading, some of it formerly quite productive. This is the first accurate satellite based quantification of land degradation.

GM, Chrylser must improve auto fleet fuel efficiency; Obama

US President Barack Obama Monday demanded that Chrysler and General Motors accelerate production of fuel-efficient vehicles as one condition of receiving more government aid.

Green Group Buys CO2 Emissions Permits to Retire Them

The first market-based, mandatory cap-and-trade program in the United States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions held its third auction of emissions allowances in a 10-state region from Maine to Maryland on Wednesday. Allowances for 1,000 tons of emissions were purchased by an environmental group, not for use but to remove them from the market.

Jolting the Energy Sector

It had been termed the Brave New World -- the one where electricity restructuring would revolutionize business models, technology development and consumer behaviors. But it has yet to happen. With the newfound emphasis on climate change, however, the energy sector may be jolted in ways that advocates of deregulation had only dreamed.

Medium Price of Single Family Home Chart

For some perspective into the all-important US real estate market, today's chart illustrates the US median price of a single-family home over the past 39 years.

Not only did housing prices increase at a rapid rate from 1991 to 2005, the rate at which housing prices increased – increased.

That brings us to today's chart which illustrates how housing prices have dropped 33% from the 2005 peak.

New Day Dawns for U.S. Global Warming Policy

President Barack Obama has reversed the U.S. position on global climate change negotiations from the skepticism, delays and obstructive strategies of the previous administration to a new cooperative policy based on both science and practicality.

North Dakota coal-fired plants return after water reduction

Great River Energy's 188-MW Stanton station and Basin Electric Power Cooperative's 650-MW Leland Olds plant returned to service over the weekend, spokesmen for both companies said Monday.

"We were back online late evening on Saturday," Great River spokesman Lyndon Anderson said Monday.

Obama administration to appoint nuclear waste commission; Reid

US Energy Secretary Steven Chu, not Congress, will establish a blue-ribbon commission to develop a new strategy for managing the country's nuclear waste, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Democrat-Nevada, said Friday.

Obama announces climate talks between world's major economies

The Obama administration will continue a series of international climate change talks between developed countries and major developing countries that were initiated under the prior Bush administration, announcing over the weekend that it would pursue the negotiations as part of an effort to craft a climate treaty by the end of the year.

Obama energy 'taxes' have silver lining, prices to rise; analyst

US exploration and production companies may find that the Obama administration's proposed oil and gas taxes in the 2010 budget have a silver lining -- higher commodity prices as domestic output is reduced, investment bank Raymond James' energy analyst Marshall Adkins said Monday.

Obama Says Budget Must Support Clean Energy

President Obama on Monday began what is to be a week-long publicity push in support of his federal budget proposal. Of the four primary objectives within the budget, he began by highlighting the importance of developing the nation's clean energy supply.

Obama Signs Landmark US Conservation Bill

US President Barack Obama signed sweeping land and water conservation rules into law on Monday, setting aside millions of acres as protected areas and delighting environmentalists.

The measure, a package of more than 160 bills, would designate about 2 million acres (809,400 hectares) -- parks, rivers, streams, desert, forest and trails -- in nine states as new wilderness and render them off limits to oil and gas drilling and other development.

Obama Signs Wilderness Bill

Obama called the new law among the most important in decades "to protect, preserve and pass down our nation's most treasured landscapes to future generations."

Also in the legislation signed by Obama is a provision named for "Superman" actor Christopher Reeve that provides for paralysis research and care for persons with disabilities.

Oil, gas industry aims to nip tax hikes in the bud

Congressional anger at the oil and gas industry hasn’t receded nearly as much as gas prices have, complicating the effort by lobbyists to block $31 billion in taxes or new fees proposed by President Obama in his budget blueprint.

Saudi adviser says OPEC cuts have supported oil prices

OPEC's decision to cut crude production by a combined 4.2 million b/d last year put a floor under oil prices and prevented a collapse, balanced the oil market and prevented an "unusual and uncontrolled" build in stocks, a senior Saudi oil adviser said in a comprehensive review of the market.

Shampoo in the water supply triggers growth of deadly drug-resistant bugs

The warning has been made by Birmingham and Warwick university scientists, who say disinfectants and other products washed into sewers and rivers are triggering the growth of drug-resistant microbes. Soil samples from many areas have been found to contain high levels of bacteria with antibiotic-resistant genes, the scientists have discovered - raising fears that these may have already been picked up by humans.

Slums May Triple As Economic Woes Hobble UN Efforts

The UN housing agency UN-Habitat, which is hosting a major meeting this week in the Kenyan capital, says the number of slum dwellers in the world could triple to 3 billion by 2050 if left unchecked.

Sydney Rush-Hour Power Blackout Causes Chaos

A severe power blackout brought chaos to downtown Sydney on Monday afternoon, causing peak-hour traffic jams as traffic signals failed and leaving dozens of workers stranded in lifts as they tried to make their way home.

This year and next critical for many LNG projects; IEA analyst

This year and next year will see critical decisions being made on many of the world's LNG terminals, but these terminals will not help mitigate against security of supply problems, said Hiroshi Hashimoto, natural gas analyst at the International Energy Agency, Tuesday.

UK promises up to $14 million in fund for offshore wind techs

The UK government plans to offer up to GBP10 million ($14 million) to help speed up the technologies needed to develop more large-scale multi-megawatt turbines in offshore wind farms, the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change said Sunday.

US FERC commissioners weigh cap-and-trade, transmission proposals

Two commissioners from the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission late Monday outlined potential issues with key power initiatives on CO2 emission reduction and transmission planning now before Congress.

US Power Use Tumbling With Recession

US electricity demand will continue to shrink in 2009 as the economic meltdown hits industrial power consumption, but a rebound could come in 2010.

Bigger houses, a myriad of electric devices and an expanding economy have kept US power use on a nearly uninterrupted climb for 25 years - until the recession put the brakes on industrial demand in 2008.

US senator to introduce mercury, NOx, SO2 emissions bill; aide

US Senator Tom Carper plans to introduce a bill in the coming months that would regulate mercury, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants, an aide said Monday.

Wind energy finds fix for exploding bats

Researchers think they are close to solving a problem that has slowed progress in meeting America's future electricity needs - The giant wind turbines that constitute one of the most promising alternative energy technologies also cause bats to explode.

World Switches Off To Save Planet In 'Earth Hour'

Lights went out at tourism landmarks and homes across the globe on Saturday for Earth Hour 2009, a global event designed to highlight the threat from climate change.

March 27, 2009

A 5,000-year-old approach to a healthy cardiovascular system

Can the calming rhythms of yoga help your heart the same way as an energetic 30-minute walk? The answer for many with cardiac disease is a resounding “yes.”

Afghanistan to soon launch maiden bid round, offers three blocks

Afghanistan has invited expressions of interest for three blocks to be offered in a soon-to-be-launched maiden licensing round, the Ministry of Mines said in a statement released earlier this month.

Algae Biofuels - The Hype, the Hope, the Promise

It was a sobering day for me, as it became clear that much of what is bandied about on blogs and in the mainstream media (to the extent algal biofuel research gets any coverage in the mainstream media) is wild-eyed optimism and pure hype. No, you can produce 15,000 gallons of algae biofuel per acre per year; no, algae biofuel will not replace oil all by itself - and the list goes on.

Another Record Low Set for US Long-Term Mortgage Rates this Week

Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) yesterday released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey^â (PMMS^â) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.85 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending March 26, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 4.98 percent.  Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 5.85 percent.  The 30-year FRM has not been lower in the life of Freddie Mac’s weekly survey, which dates back to 1971 for the 30-year FRM.

April OTC coal prices continue tumbling

Coal prices continue to drop, month over month, following most energy commodities. The small ray of sunshine is that over the final two trading days for April deliveries, volume picked up in over-the-counter trades. The fourth quarter for NYMEX look-alike trading was especially active.

California's Renewable Energy Law Lives!

California is a leader on a great many environmental issues. It is now cliche that "as goes California, so goes the nation." This makes it even more surprising that on renewable energy, we have relinquished our lead to states like Texas and Iowa! Those two states have passed us by in terms of installed wind power. California's wind power growth, as well as other utility-scale renewable energy growth, has been stuck in neutral for about a decade.

Canada Offers To Fund Carbon-Capture Projects

Eight carbon capture and storage projects in Western Canada will share C$140 million ($114 million) in funding from the Canadian government, Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt said on Thursday.

Chinese buying spree sparks fears of base metal shortage in Asia

Robust Chinese demand could result in a supply shortage of base metals in Asia even as the rest of the world grapples with low demand, market sources said this week.

Cold fusion experimentally confirmed

U.S. Navy researchers claimed to have experimentally confirmed cold fusion in a presentation at the American Chemical Society's annual meeting.

"We have compelling evidence that fusion reactions are occurring" at room temperature, said Pamela Mosier-Boss, a scientist with the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center (San Diego). The results are "the first scientific report of highly energetic neutrons from low-energy nuclear reactions," she added.

Combating Desertification; Jatropha Project

Jatropha curcas is generally well-known among the populations of Mali and has long been recognized as a plant of many uses. If carefully planted, Jatropha hedges not only protect gardens from hungry livestock but also reduce damage and erosion from wind and water. Traditionally the seeds were harvested by women and used for medical treatments and local soap production.

Congress Votes 'Yes' to Sweeping Public Lands Protection Act

Congress today approved a massive public lands bill that protects two million acres of wilderness in nine states and a thousand miles of rivers, a 50 percent increase in the wild and scenic river system. It establishes new national trails, national parks and a new national monument and provides legal status for the National Landscape Conservation System, which will protect some of the country's most spectacular landscapes.

Fall in oil prices puts future supply growth 'at risk'; CERA

The sharp drop in oil prices since last summer's record highs could reduce the growth in future oil supplies by half of what would have been anticipated during the period of high prices, Cambridge Energy Research Associates said in a new report, out Friday.

Farmers Face Growing Climate Change Dilemma; Scientist

Farmers of the future will have to use cattle and sheep that belch less methane, crops that emit far less planet-warming nitrous oxide and become experts in reporting their greenhouse gas emissions to the government.

Agriculture is a major source of greenhouse gases and globally that share will rise as demand for food from growing human populations also increases, scientist Richard John Eckard of the University of Melbourne said on Thursday.

Federal Judge Says No to Modified Crops on U.S. Refuge Land

In a court case with potential impact in Missouri and across the country, a federal judge in Delaware ruled today that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife should not have permitted farming with genetically modified crops on a national wildlife refuge.

Global steel can recycling rate sets 68pct record in 2007

The 68% rate was a slight bump from 67% in 2006 and is the third straight year it has increased. Thirty-seven countries reported recycling 7.9 million tons of steel cans in 2007.

Global Warming 37 Percent To Blame For Droughts; Scientist

Global warming is more than a third to blame for a major drop in rainfall that includes a decade-long drought in Australia and a lengthy dry spell in the United States, a scientist said on Wednesday.

Groups urge Congress to adopt renewable standard

More than 220 groups are urging Congress to adopt a national renewable electricity standard to provide the long-term policy commitment that would attract billions of dollars of investments.

Idled U.S. Farmland May Be Large Carbon Sink; USDA

The Conservation Reserve, which pays owners to idle fragile U.S. farmland, could become one of the largest carbon sequestration programs on private land, an Agriculture Department official said on Wednesday.

Legislation would limit phosphates in dish detergents

Sens. Carl Levin, D-Mich., and George Voinovich, R-Ohio, have introduced legislation limiting phosphates in automatic dishwashing detergents, which would help to reduce phosphate pollution that wreaks havoc on aquatic plants and fish in the Great Lakes and other waters.

Less Dusty Air Warms Atlantic, May Spur Hurricanes

A decline in sun-dimming airborne dust has caused a fast warming of the tropical North Atlantic in recent decades, according to a study that might help predict hurricanes on the other side of the ocean.

Marriott International Inc. to participate in Earth Hour 2009

Marriott International Inc. is signing on to participate in Earth Hour 2009, a global climate event organized by the World Wildlife Fund.

Hundreds of hotels and timeshare units in Marriott´s portfolio will turn off or dim non-essential lighting for an hour starting at 8:30 p.m. local time on March 28.

Mexico's February oil export revenues fall 56.4% year on year

Mexico's February oil sales revenue plunged 56.4% year on year to $1.66 billion, the National Statistics Institute, or Inegi, reported Wednesday. Despite the oil sales plunge, the country's trade deficit fell more than half to $491 million in February 2009, compared with $1.081 billion in February 2008.

N.J. senator introduces bill to protect water from oil spills

Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg, D-N.J., has introduced a bill to protect the environment from oil spills by encouraging the use of double hulls for non-tank ships and implementing recommendations by the National Transportation Safety Board in response to a 2007 oil spill in San Francisco.

Nigeria military outfit warns of new attacks on oil installations

Nigeria's Joint Task Force, a special military outfit that tackles unrest in the oil-rich Niger Delta, warned Friday that militants were planning fresh attacks on oil and gas production facilities in the area.

OPEC exports in 4 weeks to April 11 to fall 770,000 bd; analyst

OPEC crude exports, excluding Angola and Ecuador, are set to fall to 22.23 million b/d in the four weeks ending April 11, down 770,000 b/d from the previous four-week period, UK-based tanker tracker Oil Movements said Thursday.

Report of Solar-Geophysical Activity 032609

Two B-class flares were observed: the first was a B1.8 at 26/0143Z from an unnumbered area (N23W12), the second was a B3.5 at 26/0216Z from beyond the east limb...The geomagnetic field is expected to be quiet to unsettled on day one (27 March). Days two
and three (28-29 March) are expected to be quiet.

Rosebud woman nominated to lead IHS

Rosebud Sioux tribal member Yvette Roubideaux, 46, was nominated March 23 by President Barack Obama to direct the IHS. If confirmed by the Senate, she will become the first American Indian woman to ever lead the agency.

Russia Says Won't Stand Still In Race For Arctic

Russia will not allow itself to be left behind in the race to exploit the resources of the Arctic now being opened up by global warming, the Kremlin's special representative for the region said in an interview.

Scientists say the ice is receding so fast that drilling for oil and gas high in the Arctic will soon become routine and cargo ships could sail between the Atlantic and Pacific along a new shipping lane much shorter than the routes used now.

Senators introduce legislation to ban mountaintop mining

Sens. Benjamin L. Cardin, D-Md., and Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., have introduced legislation that could essentially ban mountaintop mining.

Their bill, dubbed the Appalachia Restoration Act, would prohibit the dumping of mining waste into stream and river beds. Mountaintop mining involves removing the summit of a mountain to expose the coal underneath. Waste rock, dirt and vegetation ends up in nearby stream and river valleys.

Stimulus Package Only the Beginning; Renewable Energy Makes Strides in the US Political Arena

Cautious optimism, that was the term being used across all sectors of the renewable energy industry in the days and weeks following the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) as industry leaders tried to understand exactly what the package could do for their often struggling companies. Yet as the weeks have worn on, the American public's support for the measure has started to wane.

Tell Congress; Keep Antibiotics Working

Doctors caution that these vital drugs should only be used when absolutely necessary, because resistance emerges when bacteria are constantly exposed to antibiotics. Yet roughly 70 percent of antibiotics used in the United States are added to the feed of livestock and poultry that are not sick. This reckless practice encourages the development of antibiotic-resistant diseases—such as food poisoning and post-operative blood infections—that affect humans.

Tesla Unveils Four-Door Electric Sedan

Electric car start-up Tesla Motors Inc unveiled its newest, cheapest vehicle on Thursday, a four-door sedan that can carry five adults and could travel up to 300 miles per charge.

The Arctic Divide

It's part of the great ideological divide. And any bridge that would help close the gap will remain elusive. It's about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which has been at the forefront of a national discussion over whether to allow more oil and gas drilling in areas that are now off limits to production.

Twenty Years After Valdez Spill, Exxon Grows In Alaska

Today, Exxon Mobil Corp, as the company is now known, is expanding in Alaska and officials are striking a conciliatory tone about the tanker disaster that has defined the company in Alaska and much of the world.

U.N. Plans Guide To Fighting Climate-Change Disasters

A proposed U.N. study of climate extremes will be a practical guide for tackling natural disasters and fill a gap in past reports focused on the gradual effects of global warming, experts said.

U.S. Interior Chief Touts Renewable Energy Zones

The Obama Administration is carving out renewable energy zones across the country and offshore, and is preparing to work with critics who object to wind turbines or solar farms near wilderness or tourist areas, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said on Tuesday.

U.S. lags in top 10 solar markets

Spain ranked first, followed by Germany. The United States was a distant third.

What are we talking about? The top solar markets ranked by countries for 2008.

US House budget panel to exclude cap-and-trade revenue from plan

The US House Budget Committee is considered likely Wednesday to approve a fiscal 2010 budget resolution that excludes the Obama administration's assumption that the Treasury will begin receiving revenue from a nationwide CO2 cap-and-trade program beginning in 2012, according to draft documents released by the committee.

US Senate bill to aid US manufacturing energy use seen timely

A bill introduced by leaders of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to help improve energy efficiency in the US manufacturing sector would provide timely assistance as companies rebound from an economic recession and respond to likely government mandates to control greenhouse gas emissions, witnesses told the panel Thursday.

US Treasury Outlines Framework for Regulatory Reform

The crisis of the past 18 months has exposed critical gaps and weaknesses in our financial regulatory system. As risks built up, internal risk management systems, rating agencies and regulators simply did not understand or address critical behaviors until they had already resulted in catastrophic losses. These failures have caused a dramatic loss of confidence in our financial institutions and have contributed to severe recession

Used paper recovery increases to 57.6% in 2008

Used paper recovery increased again last year, from 56% to 57.6% in 2008, but the impact of the current economic problems could impact future rates, according to the American Forest & Paper Association.

Victims of French Nuclear Testing Scorn Meager Compensation

French Defence Minister Herve Morin has offered 10 million euros to compensate, for the first time, victims of nuclear testing conducted by France both in Algeria and French Polynesia, between 1966 and 1996.

Washington Fiddles as Global Deflation Rages

disturbing evidence that a number of banks have effectively shut down lending operations. As their portfolios run off, these banks must shrink both in terms of assets and core revenues.

Waste_Inbox 032609

Everyone in the solid waste industry knows the general public hates landfills. And despite all the efforts of landfill operators to improve the quality and educate the citizenry, the attitude is getting worse, not better.

Yucca Mountain Flattened

It had long been thought that if the nuclear sector is to make a revival, it would need a permanent place to bury its radioactive material and Yucca Mountain, 90 miles outside of Las Vegas, provided such a spot. But the site has been entangled in one legal morass after the next -- a predicament that will now force the industry to rethink its growth strategies.

March 24, 2009

20 Years After Valdez Oil Spill, Exxon Still Owes $92M

Today is the 20th anniversary of the massive Exxon Valdez oil spill, but the federal and state governments have yet to collect millions of dollars that the oil company agreed to pay.

A final $92 million claim for harm to wildlife, habitat and subsistence users filed in 2006 has gone unanswered by the Exxon Corporation, now ExxonMobil.

Alaska's Redoubt Volcano Erupts, More May Follow

Alaska's Mount Redoubt volcano erupted with a burst of ash that rose more than 9 miles (15 km), and more eruptions are expected.

The first blast occurred at 10:38 p.m. Pacific time on Sunday (0538 GMT Monday), the Alaska Volcano Observatory said, followed by four smaller eruptions.

Algeria's Khelil sees $60/b oil price possible by year end

Algerian oil minister Chakib Khelil said Sunday that the 2.2 million b/d OPEC production cut, which came into effect on January 1, had stabilized oil prices and that $60/barrel by the end of the year is now possible despite an anticipated 1.1 million b/d fall in demand.

Americans Need More Vitamin D, US Researchers Say

Analyzing data from government health surveys, researchers from the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine found three out of four Americans had "insufficient" levels of vitamin D, up from about one out two 20 years ago.

As Climate Changes, Is Water The New Oil?

Translation: if water is now the kind of precious commodity that oil became in the 20th century, should delivery of clean water be the same sort of powerful political force as the environmental movement in an age of climate change?

And, in another sense of green, is there money to be made in a time of water scarcity?

BP Says Abu Dhabi Hydrogen-Fueled Plant to Start 2013

BP's President of Middle East and South Asia Steve Peacock confirmed that BP and its partners are still conducting engineering and design work for their planned $2 billion hydrogen-fueled power plant in Abu Dhabi, in an interview with Bloomberg.  BP expects the facility to start in 2013 and to generate 420 megawatts of electricity.

City-Dwellers Emit Less CO2 Than Countryfolk - Study

Major cities are getting a bad rap for the disproportionately high greenhouse gases they emit even though their per capita emissions are often a fraction of the national average, a new report said on Monday.

Eastern US States Raise $117 Mln In Carbon Auction

Ten states in the US East said on Friday they raised more than $117 million in a third auction of permits for power plants to emit the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, about $10 million more than the last sale.

Washington is closely watching the auctions. President Barack Obama hopes to launch a cap-and-trade market on emissions of planet-warming gases and raise hundreds of billions of dollars through similar auctions starting in 2012.

Energy Price Can Stimulate Economic Recovery

As the ongoing global recession continues to dominate news channels and papers throughout the world, two articles that dealt with renegotiations and price reductions recently caught my attention. The first outlined a call by the Danish Social Democratic Party for a renegotiation of the Danish energy agreement following a new report that Denmark may not succeed in meeting their Kyoto Protocol targets for 2008-2012.

EPA Finds Greenhouse Gases Endanger Health

The US Environmental Protection Agency found that climate-warming greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, pose a danger to human health and welfare, a White House website showed on Monday.

EU Urges Swifter Action On Climate, Pledges Funds

The European Union will surmount internal disputes and honour pledges to help poor states tackle climate change, the bloc's environment chief said on Friday, urging other rich regions to make clear their goals.

European Lab Accidents Raise Biosecurity Concerns

Lab accidents involving bird flu and Ebola viruses have increased biosecurity fears in Europe, where public health experts say research on dangerous pathogens needs to be more strictly monitored.

A scientist in Germany last week pricked herself with a needle that was believed to be contaminated with a strain of the Ebola haemorrhagic virus with a mortality rate of around 90 percent. She is still under observation in hospital.

Fed Monetization, Not What It Buys, but How Much of Anything It Buys

Last week the Fed announced that it would purchase $300 billion of longer-maturity Treasury securities. The mainstream media got all excited, talking about the Fed “printing money.” But the Fed figuratively “prints money” or creates credit whenever it acquires assets – loans or investments.

Gallup poll finds 59% support US nuclear power, a 'new high'

In a telephone survey of 1,012 adults conducted March 5-8, 59% of respondents said they "favor the use of nuclear energy as one of the ways to provide electricity for the US," and 27% "strongly favor it."

Global crude futures push higher, WTI hits fresh 2009 high

Global crude futures continued to rise Monday, with the front-month NYMEX WTI contract trading at its highest level so far this year and ICE Brent just 1 cent shy of its 2009 high.

At 11:09 GMT, front-month ICE Brent traded at $51.44/barrel, up 22 cents from the previous settle, while the front-month NYMEX WTI contract traded 17 cents higher at $52.24/b, a level last seen December 1, 2008.

Has Calif.'s hydrogen highway gone bust?

Soon after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) took office in 2003, he set in motion a campaign promise to build, by 2010, a "hydrogen highway" composed of 150 to 200 fueling stations spaced every 20 miles along California's major highways.

Hydrogen's 500-MW CCS Sails Through Credit Crunch

A joint venture between BP and Rio Tinto, Hydrogen Energy, is pushing on with the world's first large-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects despite the credit crunch hitting both Abu Dhabi and California.

Is a Food Revolution Now in Season?

As tens of thousands of people recently strolled among booths of the nation's largest organic and natural foods show here, munching on fair-trade chocolate and sipping organic wine, a few dozen pioneers of the industry sneaked off to an out-of-the-way conference room.

Less ice on Great Lakes during winter

Ice cover on the Great Lakes has declined more than 30 percent since the 1970s, leaving the world's largest system of freshwater lakes open to evaporation and lower water levels, according to scientists associated with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Obama to begin push to pass budget with focus on energy funding

US President Barack Obama is set to ramp up pressure this week to pass his sweeping budget through Congress, starting Monday with a White House speech highlighting billions of dollars in renewable and low-carbon technology funding which he wants to enact.

Obamas to Plant Organic Vegetable Garden at White House

Michelle Obama will begin digging up a patch of the South Lawn on Friday to plant a vegetable garden, the first at the White House since Eleanor Roosevelt's victory garden in World War II. There will be no beets - the president does not like them - but arugula will make the cut.

Overrun by waste; Large agriculture operations add billions to our economy but what price are we paying

A brown frothy mix of water tumbled from the mouth of a 42-inch pipeline to a cinderblock basin covered with slime, its rim shining with the gloss of accumulated muck.

The air smelled of boiled sour chicken.

Recent Volcanic Eruptions

For a few months now we have been monitoring Mount Redoubt in Alaska. This volcano has finally erupted, with volcanic ash raining down in mostly sparsely populated areas of Alaska. Preliminary reports indicate that Volcanic Ash clouds have been released into the upper Troposphere [~50,000 feet ~ 15km] and partially the lower Stratosphere for these Polar latitudes.

Report of Solar-Geophysical Activity 032309

Solar activity was very low. No flares were observed during the past 24 hours.The geomagnetic field was quiet. Solar wind velocities at ACE ranged from 361-438 km/s...

Researchers Generate Hydrogen Without The Carbon Footprint

A greener, less expensive method to produce hydrogen for fuel may eventually be possible with the help of water, solar energy and nanotube diodes that use the entire spectrum of the sun's energy, according to Penn State researchers.

Scientists find new way to produce hydrogen

Scientists at Penn State and the Virginia Commonwealth University have discovered a way to produce hydrogen by exposing selected clusters of aluminum atoms to water. The findings are important because they demonstrate that it is the geometries of these aluminum clusters, rather than solely their electronic properties, that govern the proximity of the clusters' exposed active sites. The proximity of the clusters' exposed sites plays an important role in affecting the clusters' reactions with water.

The Superficial Economy and The Profound Economy

Is there a profound economy? Although it is not the dominant economy, I believe it exists, and should exist. In the early 1970s, Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess, recently deceased, introduced a distinction, now widely accepted in environmentalist circles, between the superficial ecology and the profound ecology. The superficial one is that which separates the human being from nature, and places humans outside of and above nature, assuming that things have meaning only so long as they are useful to human beings. The profound one sees the linkage between humans and nature, affirms the intrinsic value of every being and understands that everything is encompassed by the network of relationships that form the community of life. There is an organic Whole filled with purpose, and the human being is capable of identifying the thread that links and re-links everything. He calls it the Original Source of all being, the basis of the infinite values (veneration, love, justice), that give meaning to human existence. The profound economy helps the superficial one impose internal limits and to not be destructive.

Tri-State Generation, First Solar to build 30-MW solar plant

Westminster, Colorado-based Tri-State Generation and Transmission on Tuesday said it has reached an agreement with First Solar to develop a 30-MW solar power plant in northeastern New Mexico.

The proposed 500,000-panel photovoltaic plant, dubbed the "Cimarron I Solar Project," would be the largest photovoltaic project by an electric cooperative and one of the largest in the world, Tri-State said.

Turbines officially spinning in Antarctica

Eight wind turbines in Antarctica are withstanding temperatures of -60 degrees Celsius and winds of over 90 m/s. The Princess Elisabeth Station will be officially inaugurated in Antarctica on February 15th, 2009. This station is the only polar base operating entirely on renewable energies. It marks a major change as most stations rely on diesel generators because no wind turbines, until now, were thought to be robust enough for such extreme conditions.

US DOE offers loan guarantee to California solar firm

The US Department of Energy on Friday said it has offered a $535-million loan guarantee to Freemont, California-based Solyndra to support the company's construction of a commercial-scale manufacturing plant for its proprietary cylindrical solar photovoltaic panels.

The offer marks the first-ever award of a loan guarantee under a program authorized in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, a program also criticized for its slow pace in awarding guarantees.

US Installed Solar Capacity Up 17 Pct In 2008 - SEIA

Installed solar power capacity in the United States rose by 17 percent to 8,775 megawatts in 2008, the strongest growth in a single year, solar advocate Solar Energy Industries Association said in an annual review issued Friday.

US refiners curtail capacity, face economic, policy issues; NPRA

US refiners remain viable in the current economic downturn, due in part to production cuts that are expected to continue, as the industry is tested by the economy and policymakers, said officials with the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association, on Sunday.

US senators worry nuke waste plan could leave government liable

The US government could be liable for roughly $30 billion in damages if it were to abandon the Department of Energy's high-level nuclear waste repository project at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, the Sentate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is warning.

US States Anxious As Obama Shapes Climate Policy

US states have spearheaded moves to curb global warming and are not ready to pass the leadership baton to President Barack Obama.

Regional markets to trade air pollution credits, aimed at cutting emissions that heat the planet, could be overshadowed by a federal system Obama sees as central to his environmental policy.

White House Gets Global Warming 'Endangerment' Proposal

The US Environmental Protection Agency proposed an "endangerment finding" that could designate climate-warming greenhouse pollution a threat to human or environmental health, a White House website showed on Monday.

World Wants Tough 2050 Climate Cuts, Split On Path

Governments broadly support tough 2050 goals for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions but are split on how to share out the reductions, according to a new guide to negotiators of a new UN climate pact.

A document to be presented to UN climate talks in Bonn from March 29-April 8 narrows down a list of ideas for fighting global warming in a new treaty due to be agreed in December to about 30 pages from 120 in a text late last year.

March 20, 2009

$750 Billion 'Green' Investment Could Revive Economy; U.N

Investments of $750 billion could create a "Green New Deal" to revive the world economy and protect the environment, perhaps aided by a tax on oil, the head of the U.N. environment agency said on Thursday.

1 Percent of World's Wealth Could Fund Global Green New Deal

Investing one percent of global wealth, or around $750 billion, into five key sectors from renewable energy to freshwaters would stimulate a Global Green New Deal, advises a policy brief released today by economists and the United Nations. But in a separate assessment today, the International Monetary Fund projects that global economic activity will shrink by one-half to one percent this year.

27th Aikido-Ai Memorial Weekend Retreat

250 MW solar thermal power plant in Nevada

Solar Millennium LLC, NV Energy and MAN Ferrostaal Inc, the joint venture partner of Solar Millennium AG for the construction of solar thermal power plants in the USA, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the joint development of projects in the Amargosa Desert.

Administration says green sector will stimulate economy

Two members of the Obama administration speaking at a National League of Cities conference in Washington promised the nation´s multi-billion investment in environmental and green energy projects would help stimulate the economy by creating jobs.

Antarctic Ice Close To Melting Tipping Point-Study

A large part of the ice covering West Antarctica could be lost if greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increase only slightly from today's levels and ocean temperatures continue to rise, a study released on Thursday says.

Another related study said if the West Antarctic ice sheet collapsed and the East Antarctic ice sheet continued to melt at its marine margins, global sea level would rise seven meters from today's level.

Antarctica stores about 90 percent of the world's freshwater.

Bond Yields Pull US Long-Term Mortgage Rates Down to Near Record Lows this Week

Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) yesterday released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.98 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending March 19, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 5.03 percent.  Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 5.87 percent.  The 30-year FRM has not been lower since the week ending January 15, 2009, when it hit an all-time low of 4.96 percent in Freddie Mac’s weekly survey survey.

Calling Dr. Chu.

Since the Department of Energy was founded in 1977, it has been headed by an economist, a businessman, a retired admiral, an engineer turned financier, and several lawyers and politicians. It has been part of the presidential spoils -- a home for a defeated senator like Spencer Abraham -- and a safe way to diversify the cabinet with an African-American, a Lebanese-American and a couple of Hispanics.

Coal industry can begin deploying CCS technology now; WCI chief

Carbon capture and storage technology has developed to the point where it can now deliver up to 55% of the emission reductions needed to fight global warming worldwide up to 2100, World Coal Institute CEO Milton Catelin said Wednesday on the sidelines of a carbon industry conference.

ECOtality and Nissan partner to launch EVs in Arizona

ECOtality Inc has entered into a commitment with Nissan North America and Pima Association of Governments (PAG) to facilitate the establishment of electric vehicle (EV) charge infrastructure throughout Pima County, Arizona, USA.

EPA Issues Latest Information on Toxic Chemical Releases

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today is making available the most recent reporting on the amount of toxic chemicals released into the U.S. environment.  According to the EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory, the latest data, from the calendar year 2007, show an overall decrease of five percent in releases since 2006. Releases to air decreased seven percent and releases to water decreased five percent.

Financial Crisis Puts Pressure on World's Forests

The global economic turmoil has resulted in reduced demand for wood, shrinking investments in forest industries and forest management, finds the United Nations "State of the World's Forests" report released Monday.

Forum Moves Water Higher Up Global Priority List

Climate change, financial turmoil, energy supplies, biodiversity loss, food scarcity - all are competing for the attention of world leaders, but this week the focus is on the one resource essential for life - water. Participants from 192 countries are in Istanbul for the world's largest water event, the World Water Forum, which drew three princes, three presidents, five prime ministers, over 90 ministers, 63 mayors and more than 23,000 attendees.

Group of US senators looks to ease GHG bill's impact on industry

A group of moderate Democrats in the US Senate is developing a proposal
designed to ensure that any US scheme to limit carbon emissions would not harm
the nation's manufacturing sector, while maintaining a level of CO2 reductions
most agree are necessary to combat climate change, Senator Debbie Stabenow
said Thursday.

High-temperature superconducting explained

Superconductors transport electrons with zero resistance by synchronizing their movement through changes in the internal structure of materials. Hence, no physical collisions occur.

The exact character of these changes has been the subject of much speculation, prompting over 100,000 scholarly papers on the subject in the last 20 years.

I Thought This Was a National Energy Crisis!

Can I interest anyone in a $280 billion stimulus package for renewable energy and efficiency that won't increase the federal deficit?

Korean PV grows six-fold in 2008

According to market research company Displaybank, this now makes Korea the fourth largest installation market worldwide. Spain accounted for the largest market with 2,281 MW, and was followed by Germany with 1,532 MW and the USA with 333 MW.

Mexico's proven reserves down 2.7pct to 14.3 bil boe; Calderon

The decline was Mexico's lowest in at least five years and marked a sharp increase in the country's reserve replacement rate, said Calderon at a rally to mark the 71st anniversary of the Mexican oil industry.

Nigerian militants attack Shell pipeline, cutting crude supply

The volume of oil lost could not be immediately confirmed.

It was the second major sabotage of a Shell facility in the western
division of the Niger Delta in three weeks

NRC Expects Requests For 7 New Nuclear Reactors

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has received 17 applications to build 26 new U.S. nuclear reactors and could get five more applications for seven reactors by the end of next year, the agency's chairman told Congress on Wednesday.

Optimism Abounds Throughout Renewable Energy Industry

Last week the editors at RenewableEnergyWorld.com and Renewable Energy World magazine traveled to Las Vegas to attend the 6th annual Renewable Energy World North America (REWNA) Conference and Expo. With almost twice the attendance of last year's event and more than double the exhibitors, the show's exponential growth in spite of a dismal economy is a testament to the strength of the renewable energy industry.

Renewable Energy's Biggest Ally

Although it has been said that when it comes to the U.S. military "successes are private while failures are public," a recent success involving the Defense Department (DoD) and the renewable energy industry must come to light.

Rubber flap reduces wind turbine blade loads

“Providing the blade with a movable trailing edge it is possible to control the load on the blade and extend the life time of the wind turbine components. This is similar to the technique used on aircraft, where flaps regulate the lift during the most critical times such as at take-off and landing

Salazar says no 'war' on energy companies, asks for cooperation

There is no "war on the oil and gas industry" by the Obama
administration, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar told the American Petroleum
Institute's board Thursday, saying instead he needs the industry's help in "an
honest accounting" of US natural resources under the Outer Continental Shelf.

Shell Goes Cold On Wind, Solar, Hydrogen Energy

Oil Major Royal Dutch Shell Plc doesn't plan to make any more large investments in wind and solar energy in the future and does not expect hydrogen to play an important role in energy supply for some time.

'SHOW YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT' COMPETITION

The Centre for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) in Chicago is hosting a Carbon Neutral competition to reward the organization with the most creative concept for a Carbon Neutral Event or Product.

Soil Neglected Asset In Greenhouse Gas Fight

Scientists complain that the world has so far failed to support agriculture in the fight against climate change, focusing instead on more visible emissions from factories and power plants.

Solar panel market growth to slow in 2009, says analyst

Sales of solar energy panels amounted to 5.6-Gwatts in 2008, up 48 percent on 2007, according to The Information Network market research company (New Tripoli, Pennsylvania). However, the global economic crisis will result in newly installed solar capacity reaching only 7.1-GW in 2009, equivalent to a global growth rate of 26 percent, before the strong growth resumes in 2010.

TALF - Eligible Collateral for Loans Expanded to Include Four Additional Categories of Asset-Backed Securities.htm

The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday announced that the set of eligible collateral for loans extended by the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF) is being expanded to include four additional categories of asset-backed securities (ABS):

Temperature Rise May Trigger West Antarctic Thaw

The West Antarctic ice sheet may start to collapse if sea temperatures rise by 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit), triggering a thaw that would raise world ocean levels by 5 meters (16 ft), U.S. scientists said.

Such a rise in sea levels -- taking thousands of years -- would swamp many coasts and cities and wipe some low-lying Pacific islands off the map.

The Rooftop Revolution

A little-known policy is turning sleepy central Florida into a green energy hub. Could it do the same for America at large?

Toxic Emissions Fell in 2007, E.P.A. Says

The volume of toxic chemicals that were released into the environment or sent for disposal in 2007 dropped 5 percent compared with 2006, the Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday. But concealed within the overall numbers was good and bad news.

27th Aikido-Ai Memorial Weekend Retreat

U.S. Birds Struggling to Survive Habitat Loss, Climate Change

Nearly one-third of the more than 800 bird species in the United States are endangered, threatened or in decline due to climate change, habitat loss, and invasive species, finds the first comprehensive report ever produced on U.S. bird populations.

US refined products deliveries in February fall 3%; API

Deliveries of oil products in the US, a key indicator of demand, fell by 3% in February, putting them at "the lowest for the month since 1999," the American Petroleum Institute reported Wednesday.

US Senate passes omnibus public lands bill

For the second time since the start of 2009, the US Senate on Thursday passed a omnibus public lands bill that some Republicans say would unnecessarily withdraw 2.2 million acres from potentially being used for energy production.

US to remain opposed to carbon offsets despite expectations; Citi

The US government will likely continue to remain opposed to the use of international carbon offsets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in any successor agreement to the Kyoto Protocol despite the developing world already banking on the continued use of the credits post-2012, Citigroup head of emissions markets Garth Edward said Tuesday.

Waste_Inbox 031909

Here's yet another story -- this one from CNN.com -- about the pinch the recession is putting on recycling. Cities like Atlanta and Berkeley, Calif., are scaling back services and hiking fees to make ends meet.

Also, CNN reports that many recycling centers are stockpiling material in hopes that the commodity markets will soon snap back to normal. That sounds like a smart strategy for those that have plenty of cheap space available.

March 17, 2009

Alaska senator sees ANWR bill a possible amendment to energy bill

Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican-Alaska, suggested Friday that her legislation to open the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to directional drilling is unlikely to be taken up as a freestanding bill.

America Unprepared for Climate Change, Say Policy Advisers

America is woefully unprepared for climate change, and the government agencies charged with delivering the latest science to decision makers are not up to the task, a new report said today.

Applied seeks to gain bigger slice in solar

Continuing its push into alternative energy, Applied Materials Inc. has rolled out a new production system for solar fabs that claims to reduce wafer slicing costs.

Crude futures mixed amid volatile dollar, softer equities

Global crude futures were showing mixed reactions Tuesday against the backdrop of a weak dollar. Crude for April delivery held on to late Monday's gains, when a rally reversed earlier losses related to OPEC's decision to keep its quota unchanged. Other maturities were range-bound, as was the ICE Brent contract.

Disaster Declared After Australia Oil Spill

Authorities declared parts of Australia's northeast coast a disaster area on Friday after tonnes of oil from a damaged cargo ship contaminated several beaches popular with tourists.

EU Imposes Duties On U.S. Biodiesel Imports

The European Union has imposed anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on imports of biodiesel from the United States, the latest in a series of trade frictions between the two trading giants.

Global Forum Seeks To Avert Water Crisis

Government ministers from 120 countries, scientists and campaigners meet in Istanbul this week to discuss how to avert a global water crisis and ease tensions between states fighting over rivers, lakes and glaciers.

Nearly half of the world's people will be living in areas of acute water shortage by 2030, the United Nations warned last week, and an estimated 1 billion people remain without access to safe drinking water and sanitation.

Green Home, Sound Body

Nurturing your own environment is the first step toward helping the planet.

Greenland thaw among feared climate shifts by 2200

A drastic climate shift such as a thaw of Greenland's ice or death of the Amazon forest is more than 50 percent likely by the year 2200 in cases of strong global warming, according to a survey of experts.

The poll of 52 scientists, looking 100 years beyond most forecasts, also revealed worries that long-term warming would trigger radical changes such as the disintegration of the ice sheet in West Antarctica, raising world sea levels.

Japan Unveils $5 Bln Green Loans For Asia At G20

Japan announced a $5 billion loan fund on Saturday to help developing nations, hard hit by the global credit crisis, to put in place running water, solar power systems and other environmental infrastructure.

Last February was ninth warmest month on record

Last February was the ninth warmest in 129 years of record keeping, according to information from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration.

Maldives Vows To Be First Carbon-Neutral Nation

The Maldives will shift entirely to renewable energy over the next decade to become the first carbon-neutral nation and fight climate change that threatens the low-lying archipelago's existence, the president said on Sunday.

Maryland regulators approve fast-track construction of wind farm

The Maryland Public Service Commission on Friday made public its approval of an exemption that would allow fast-track construction of a 69.6-MW wind farm in the western portion of the state.

Oklahoma House passes bill to support nuclear plant development

The bill (HB 1750), which now goes to the Oklahoma Senate, would establish a procedure for the Oklahoma Corporation Commission to review utility proposals to build nuclear capacity.

Planting one million trees for life in Peru

The project involves men, women and children of all ages planting trees and cleaning up lakes and rivers and working to protect a region sacred to these descendants of the Incas.

Polar bear fate seen to depend on emissions cuts

"If the ice is disintegrating in the Arctic, it will have enormous impact on polar bears," Environment and Development Minister Erik Solheim told reporters on the eve of a meeting to discuss the future of the huge white carnivore.

The meeting is the first since 1981 to bring together states which are home to polar bears -- Norway, Russia, Canada, the United States and Danish-administered Greenland.

Renewable energy's role 'underestimated'

Renewable energy could play a much larger role in supplying the world's energy needs than previously estimated — but it won't come cheap, according to a new study.

Report of Solar-Geophysical Activity 031609

Solar Activity Forecast: Solar activity is expected to be very low.Geomagnetic field activity was quiet. The Greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit reached high levels again today.

The Organic Shopping List

It's sad but true: Some produce items are more subject to pesticide contamination than others. Learn which fruits and vegetables make up the "dirty dozen" - and why you should buy them organically.

The Road Ahead Depends on You

The EPA has now begun the process of evaluating the state's request to implement clean car standards for global warming pollution. This decision is not only key to state plans to curb global warming pollution, but also represents the first major national move on climate policy. The stakes of success could not be higher.

The World's Water And Climate Change--FACTBOX

World water supplies may be severely stressed in coming decades because of climate change linked to the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil, and a rising global population.

Here are some facts and projections on water and climate change:

U.S., China worlds apart on climate change curbs

China's top climate negotiator's visit to Washington Monday sent a fresh signal that the two countries, which account for about half the world's greenhouse gas emissions, have a long way to go to reach a common agreement on how to cut emissions to prevent serious climate change.

China wants to become a "low-carbon society," but can't say when that will be achieved.

US Energy Future Hits Snag In Rural Pennsylvania

When her children started missing school because of persistent diarrhoea and vomiting, Pat Farnelli began to wonder if she and her family were suffering from more than just a classroom bug.

US Finalises Ban On Cattle Too Sick To Walk

Cattle too sick or injured to walk will no longer be allowed to enter US slaughterhouses, the Agriculture Department said in a rule finalized on Saturday, nearly a year after the largest meat recall in American history spurred the change.

US senator hammers Interior's Salazar for agency inconsistencies

A top Senate Republican on Monday reiterated mounting GOP criticism of US Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar for slowing or reversing oil and gas lease sales and other ambitious energy plans put in place in the final days of the Bush administration, despite Salazar's assurances that Interior supports increasing development.

US Senator Murkowski says higher taxes on oil, gas could backfire

US Senator Lisa Murkowski, ranking Republican on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said Monday that increasing taxes on the oil and gas industry would have the unintended consequence of driving natural gas producers and independent companies out of the country.

Warming To Make NY Vulnerable To Storms - Study

Global warming should lift sea levels along the US Northeast nearly twice as fast as global rates this century, putting New York City at risk to damage from hurricanes and winter storm surges, scientists said.

"The northeast coast of the United States is among the most vulnerable regions to future changes in sea level and ocean circulation, especially when considering its population density," said Jianjun Yin, a climate modeller at Florida State University.

Water Scarcity Clouds California Farming's Future

California almond farmer Marvin Meyers has moved into banking -- water banking that is.

In the heart of the San Joaquin Valley, the world's most productive agricultural region, Meyers bought land to collect water in wet years and recharge a shallow aquifer. The water authority takes his supply for nearby farmers and gives him credit to irrigate from a canal at his orchard 15 miles (24 km) away.

Why are GM Foods Not Labeled?

Genetically modified food, also known as GM food or genetically engineered food, entered the food supply in the 1990s. GM foods contain small pieces of foreign DNA (from other organisms and often from another species) however SA companies are not required to label foods that use GM ingredients.

World Water Forum Opens to Scarcity Fears and Protests

Driving the demand for water are population growth and mobility, rising living standards, changes in food consumption, and increased energy production by hydropower and biofuels finds a new assessment of the planet’s freshwater resources by 26 United Nations agencies.

March 13, 2009

A Look at Wind's Key Players; What's Next in Wind?

As a maturing industry, the wind power sector has emerged as dynamic and vibrant. A number of strong players are now coming to the fore by demonstrating the longevity, technology and capacity needed to make a major impact on the global market.

Action Needed To Avoid World Water Crisis, U.N. Says

The world needs to act urgently to avoid a global water crisis due to increased population, rising living standards, dietary changes and more biofuels production, the United Nations warned on Thursday.

Beacon of Light

The utility sector will fuel the light at the end of this dark tunnel. And while power companies are enduring during this difficult time period, they too have had to adapt to declining economic growth.

California panel urges 'immediate action' to protect against rising sea levels

Global warming is projected to cause ocean levels to rise 55 inches or more by the end of the century. Report recommends phased abandonment of coastal areas and moving state infrastructure inland.

Clean Tech Made Record Money In 2008

Solar power, wind and biotech made record money last year and promise excellent results in the future, but first, companies must survive the world financial crisis, a report said on Tuesday.

The Clean Edge report said global revenues in the three premier clean technologies grew to $115.9 billion in 2008 from $75.8 billion. But don't expect a repeat performance this year.

Climate change course reversed; State Senate shelves efforts to limit CO2 emissions

No one was pleased with the climate change bill that cleared the state Senate Wednesday, least of all its sponsors.

Conoco to slow Western Canada oil sands, gas projects; Mulva

ConocoPhillips plans to slow its Western Canadian oil sands development until costs drop further, as well as some of its natural gas projects in the region that are "not viable at today's gas prices," said Chairman and CEO Jim Mulva Wednesday.

Crude futures cling to gains amid firmer equities, weak dollar

Global crude futures held on to the previous day's strong gains Friday, supported by a softer dollar and firmer equity markets as well as a neutral reading of the International Energy Agency's report ahead of OPEC's meeting this weekend.

Crude prices forecast at $35-45/b regardless of OPEC; Cosmo Oil

Benchmark light sweet crude futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange are forecast to hover around $35-45/barrel until around September, regardless of any decision to be made at OPEC's upcoming meeting on March 15 in  Vienna

Fast-Growing Western U.S. Cities Face Water Crisis

Desert golf course superintendent Bill Rohret is doing something that 20 years ago would have seemed unthinkable -- ripping up bright, green turf by the acre and replacing it with rocks.

Back then "they came in with bulldozers and dynamite, and they took the desert and turned it into a green oasis," Rohret said, surveying a rock-lined fairway within sight of the Las Vegas strip. "Now ... it's just the reverse."

Ga. county to power homes with gas-to-energy project

Houston County, Ga., expects to produce enough energy to power "several thousand homes" from a new gas-to-energy project at its landfill.

The county has selected SCS Engineers to expand a methane gas recovery system to an area of the 200-acre landfill that closed last year.

Getting Serious About Clean-Energy Stimulus

This significant increase in revenue was due to continued growth in solar PV, wind, and biofuels deployment globally. For example, solar PV expanded from 2.8 GW installed in 2007 to 4.2 GW in 2008. Over the same time frame, biofuels increased from 15 billion gallons to nearly 20 billion gallons, with Brazil using more gallons of ethanol than petrol-based gasoline for the first time. Wind power expanded from 20 GW installed in 2007 to 27 GW in 2008, with the U.S. becoming the largest generator of wind in the world after bringing on nearly a third of last year's global total (8 GW).

Global recession halts spending on 2 mil b/d of new capacity; IEA

The global recession has shelved spending on some 2 million b/d of planned oil production capacity worldwide and almost as much refining capacity creating a potential supply crunch when demand recovers, an analyst at the International Energy Agency said Wednesday.

Green For All Founder Joins White House As Green Jobs Advisor

Van Jones, an early green jobs visionary will join the White House Council on Environmental Quality as special advisor for green jobs, enterprise and innovation, CEQ Chair Nancy Sutley announced Monday.

Jones is the founder of Green For All, an organization focused on creating green jobs in impoverished areas.

Group Would Study Alternatives to Yucca

Sen. Harry Reid said Monday he is working to form a study group to come up with alternatives to burying nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada.

Growing Pollution Leads To 'Global Dimming'; Study

Visibility on clear days has declined in much of the world since the 1970s thanks to a rise in airborne pollutants, scientists said on Thursday.

They described a "global dimming" in particular over south and east Asia, South America, Australia and Africa, while visibility remained relatively stable over North America and improved over Europe, the researchers said.

IEA's Report on 1st- to 2nd-Generation Biofuel Technologies

The current debate over biofuels produced from food crops has pinned a lot of hope on "2nd-generation biofuels" produced from crop and forest residues and from non-food energy crops. This IEA report, produced jointly with IEA Bioenergy, examines the current state-of-the-art and the challenges for 2nd-generation biofuel technologies. It evaluates their costs and considers policies to support their development and deployment.

Interior Secretary makes renewable energy a top priority

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today has issued a secretarial order making the production, development and delivery of renewable energy top priorities for his department.

Invisible, Underground HVDC Power Costs No More Than Ugly Towers

Clean, renewable power is running into transportation problems. To deliver renewable power from remote areas to where the people need it, we need to add a lot of transmission capacity to the grid. If we follow our traditional practice of building ugly towers all over the landscape and stringing wires from them, we will spend years fighting environmentalists only to ruin the landscape we love.

Is Peak Oil Almost Here?

To a geologist, gauging how much coal the world has left to burn is a fairly straightforward, if daunting, business. Millions upon millions of drill holes have revealed where the coal is. So geologists can just evaluate each seam's quality and the cost of extraction. Add up all the coal worth mining and you've got lots and lots--within the United States, a century or even two of U.S. consumption; globally, 150 years' worth for the world.

But there's another, emerging approach to assessing coal resources that yields more sobering results.

Jury Rules Exxon Must pay $150 Million For Spill

A jury in Baltimore County, Maryland on Thursday found oil company Exxon Mobil liable for a gasoline spill three years ago and ruled it must pay residents $150 million in damages.

'Mad' Microplants Show Antarctic Climate Change

These microscopic sea plants are at the bottom of the food chain in the waters that surround the Antarctic peninsula, and when they're unhappy, everything that depends on them suffers, including fish, penguins and possibly, eventually, people.

A new study published on Thursday in the journal Science indicates that some of these Antarctic phytoplankton have become increasingly grumpy over the last 30 years.

Many Green Efforts Beginning to Wither

Gov. Chris Gregoire's own environmental agenda includes legislation to reduce Washington's contribution to global warming through a regulatory cap and a bill to raise energy efficiency standards in the state building code by 30 percent over time.

But halfway through the session, the fate of most of these bills remains clouded, and Washington's reputation as a national leader on climate change could hang in the balance.

Murkowski says she’ll keep Indian affairs a priority

Observers of most Senate Indian Affairs Committee hearings have come to learn that Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, is rarely shy about bringing awareness to Native American – and especially Alaska Native – issues.

New renewables to power 40 per cent of global electricity demand by 2050

With global cooperation and investment, renewables’ share will exceed all previous estimates

With adequate financial and political support, renewable energy technologies like wind and photovoltaics could supply 40 percent of the world's electricity by 2050, according to findings from the International Scientific Congress "Climate Change: Global Risks, Challenges & Decisions." However, if such technologies are marginalized, its share is likely to hover below 15 percent.

NRC says severe reactor accidents can be mitigated

Severe reactor accidents can be mitigated, and are unlikely to release much -- if any --radioactivity even if they are not, NRC staffers said March 11.

Nuclear power plants being revived worldwide; But what to do with radioactive waste remains an issue

A year after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident, amid panic worldwide about the safety of nuclear energy, Sweden voted to ban construction of new nuclear power plants and phase out its existing ones.

Now, like many countries across Europe, it is changing its mind. Last month, the government proposed allowing the construction of new reactors to replace the country's aging ones, which provide nearly half the nation's electricity.

Nuclear waste has no place to go

In a pool of water just a football field away from Lake Michigan, about 1,000 tons of highly radioactive fuel from the scuttled Zion Nuclear Power Station is waiting for someplace else to spend a few thousand years.

The wait just got longer.

Obama proposal angers coal industry, including Southern Indiana's Duke Energy

A White House proposal to use a cap-and-trade system to reduce emissions has drawn criticism from top Indiana officials and those in the coal industry.

Obama to restore ´scientific integrity´ to policymaking

President Obama signed a memorandum March 9 that he said would restore "scientific integrity" to information used in making policy decisions.

Democrats and environmentalists frequently criticized the Bush administration, arguing it allowed political considerations to influence policy decisions, such as the establishment of environmental standards. Obama, during his campaign, had pledged to restore scientific integrity.

Obama Veers From Bush's Climate Course

In less than two months, President Obama has put on hold Bush's plans for power-plant pollution, offshore oil drilling, nuclear waste storage and endangered species.

Oil Spill Blackens Queensland's Pristine Island Beaches

The government of Queensland has declared Moreton Island and the southern area of the Sunshine Coast a disaster area after a cargo ship damaged by the loss of more than half its containers spilled 30 tonnes of heavy oil into the sea.

OPEC's options are to keep current output ceiling or cut; Kuwait

Kuwait's newly appointed oil minister Sheikh Ahmed Abdullah al-Sabah said
Friday that it is too early to predict the outcome of OPEC's meeting on Sunday
but noted that the producers club faces a difficult task trying to balance oil
markets without pushing the global economy deeper into recession.

Our Oceans are Turning into Plastic, Are We?

A vast swath of the Pacific, twice the size of Texas, is full of a plastic stew that is entering the food chain. Scientists say these toxins are causing obesity, infertility...and worse.

Perma-Fix can destroy radioactive PCBs at Tenn. site

Perma-Fix Environmental Services Inc. can begin destroying radioactive polychlorinated biphenyls at the company´s Diversified Scientific Services Inc. site.

Reid aims to combine US CO2 cap, renewables, grid in single bill

US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Thursday said he hopes to move through the Senate by late summer a broad bill that would establish a national CO2 cap-and-trade program, expand the electricity transmission grid and require electric utilities to meet a fixed percentage of their demand with renewable energy.

Russian Gas and European Energy Security

In a bitter natural gas price and payment dispute in early January, Russia's state-owned gas company, Gazprom, turned off its taps to neighboring Ukraine. The Russian monopoly had complained about its counterpart's, Naftogaz, overdue fees and refusal to pay market rates. Moscow also accused Kiev of siphoning off gas and shutting down pipelines bound for the European Union (EU). Ukraine, meanwhile, denied all charges and believed higher transit fees were in order. Within a week, gas shipments from Russia to the EU had ceased.

S.C. takes steps to determine feasibility of wind project

South Carolina has taken a significant step to determine the feasibility of developing an offshore wind energy project.

Salt surge puts crops in peril

In this obscure village perched on the rugged coastline along the Bay of Bengal, climate change exudes a taste — the taste of salt.

As recently as five years ago, water from the village well tasted sweet to Mohammed Jehangir. But now a glassful, flecked with tiny white crystals, tastes of brine.

Saving Money; How the green building industry is thriving in a down economy

How has the green building movement seen so much growth in the face of such financial calamity? The answer was proudly exhibited by the 807 companies that filled the 145,000 square feet of trade show floor space.

Sea level rise could bust IPCC estimate

Sea level rises could bust official estimates — that's the first big message to come from the climate change congress that kicked off in Copenhagen, Denmark, today.

The Thermal Decompositon of Biomass

Pyrolysis is the thermal decomposition of biomass occurring in the absence of oxygen. It is the fundamental chemical reaction that is the precursor of both the combustion and gasification processes and occurs naturally in the first two seconds.

Toxic Jatropha Shrub Fuels Mexico's Biodiesel Push

Known locally as "pinon," jatropha is a hearty shrub that grows with no special care. Its oil-rich seeds are being eyed as an attractive feed stock for biofuel since the poisonous plant does not compete with food crops.

Toxic_Chemicals_update

"Most americans would assume that basic toxicity testing is available and that all chemicals in commerce today are safe... this is not a prudent assumption... most of them have never been tested." - US EPA

U.S. Climate Change Takes Center Stage In Congress

With climate change legislation a top U.S. priority for Democrats this year, lawmakers began zeroing in on Thursday on ways to ease the financial burden it could impose on the poor, especially in the midst of a deep economic recession.

US Senate approves energy-laden fiscal 2009 spending by voice vote

DOE will receive a total allocation of $27 billion for fiscal 2009.
Programs in renewable energy, energy efficiency, science and environmental
cleanup stand to receive large increases.

Waste_Inbox 031009

The Big Pivot: New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman is raising eyebrows with his recent proclamation that the current economic meltdown will develop into a historic fulcrum that fundamentally alters the way our society consumes energy and resources.

March 10, 2009

Baltic Sea Nations Plan Holistic Environmental Assessment

The Helsinki Commission wound up its annual meeting here today by endorsing plans for a holistic assessment of the environmental status of the Baltic Sea.

Biofuels For Airlines Promising, But Hurdles Remain

Biofuels could be used to fly commercial airlines within the next decade as a viable alternative to kerosene, although costs and concerns over environmental impact remain big barriers.

BP's Texas City Refinery Fined Again

This settlement addresses the company's noncompliance with EPCRA reporting requirements by failing to complete and submit toxic chemical release inventory information to the EPA and the state of Texas for the period 2002-2005, and failure to maintain reporting records for calendar year 2004.

Climate change accelerates water hunt in U.S. West

So look Down Under. A decade into its worst drought in a hundred years Australia is a lesson of what the American West could become.

Bush fires are killing people and obliterating towns. Rice exports collapsed last year and the wheat crop was halved two years running. Water rationing is part of daily life.

"Think of that as California's future," said Heather Cooley of California water think tank the Pacific Institute.

Companies rethink coal plants

Power use in the USA could grow 22% during the next 20 years, according to the Energy Department. To help keep the nation's laptops and TVs humming, dozens of new plants that burn coal — by far the nation's largest source of electricity — were in the works.

Court hears challenge to DOE transformer standards

Earthjustice and other environmental groups asserted in a December 2007 lawsuit that weak standards adopted under the Bush administration would result in wasteful energy consumption and increased greenhouse gas emissions. The California Attorney General filed a similar suit.

Dollar gains are crude's loss

A toxic combination of floundering equity markets and a resurgent US
dollar, proxies for ailing global economies, have kept global crude futures
rangebound for three and a half months now.

Drought, Recession Scorch Texas Cattle Ranchers

Frates Seeligson recalls when his ranch last saw rain: September of last year.

That was around the time he took on an extra 200 cows to help a farmer whose fields were ravaged by Hurricane Ike.

Talk about a perfect storm. The worst drought on record in this parched part of south-central Texas means his withered land can hardly support his own dwindling herds.

Efficiency Takes Center Stage

Think of all the electric power used by residential consumers in New York City. Multiply that vast virtual battery by 14. That is the amount of electricity that can be saved in 2030 if we finally get serious about rescuing every wasted crumb of an electron that can be scrounged from our energy feast.

Energy, climate should be separate bills; US Senator Murkowski

Wrapping a mandatory carbon cap-and-trade bill together with an energy
bill would make both difficult to pass in the US Senate and undermine
bipartisan attempts to reach a consensus on energy provisions, Alaska Senator
Lisa Murkowski said over the weekend.

EPA Orders Utilities to Self-Report Coal Ash Impoundment Problems

Responding to the coal ash spill last December at a Tennessee Valley Authority power plant in Kingston, Tennessee, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today released a plan intended to prevent threats to human health and the environment from similar incidents.

Five More Arrested Protesting West Virginia Coal Mining

Five people were arrested today while they were protesting blasting near Schumate dam on the Edwight mountaintop removal site operated by Massey Energy. These are the latest arrests in a wave of demonstrations against coal mining that is conducted by blasting off the tops of Appalachian mountains and dumping the rock waste into valley streams below.

Follow The Stimulus Package Money

President Obama's Stimulus plan, which was signed into law Tuesday, has many wondering how and where the money will be distributed.

A Web site has been created to let taxpayers know exactly where the money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is going. 

Groups ask EPA to allow use of 15% ethanol in gasoline

An alliance of ethanol groups has petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to allow the use of up to 15% ethanol in gasoline for motor vehicles.

Majority of Common European Birds Feeling the Heat

Climate change is having an observable impact on birds across Europe, according to a scientific team that has created the world's first indicator of the impacts of climate change on wildlife at a continental scale.

"We hear a lot about climate change, but our paper shows that its effects are being felt right now,"..

OPEC compliance with 4.2 million b/d cut at 85%; Badri

OPEC secretary general Abdalla el-Badri said Monday that oil prices currently around $40/barrel were not suitable because they would not guarantee investment in future capacity beyond 2013.

Palo Verde-3 remains under highest NRC scrutiny

The Arizona Public Service Co. unit has been in Column 4 of the action matrix under NRC's reactor oversight process since fourth-quarter 2006. The column reflects multiple or repetitive problems with one of seven safety areas of plant operations.

Salt, Sugar And Water Avert Diarrhoea Deaths - WHO

Instead of focusing on ways to stop diarrhoea from striking, the WHO said health authorities ought to ensure care-givers know how to use the rehydrating recipe, which can be home-made.

Senators call on EPA to inspect coal ash impoundments

U.S. Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., and Tom Carper, D-Dela., have introduced a resolution calling on the U.S. EPA to immediately inspect all coal ash impoundments in the United States.

Stimulus package Money to the people

Where you can find your stimulus bucks.  Banks, automakers and states aren't the only ones who get a piece of the $787 billion federal stimulus package.

There's a good chance your family qualifies for tax credits, grants and other help, especially if you're struggling financially. But don't expect all the benefits to fall into your lap.

The Ratings Chernobyl

In the current credit crisis, the massive downgrades of collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) and Structured Investment Vehicles (SIVs), especially those backed by subprime mortgages, have received extensive media coverage.  As a result, it is widely recognized that the original ratings of these complex structured products were in error, either due to flawed methodology or incentive conflicts.  But, what is not well known, and which is an even more important development, is the increasing erosion in the accuracy of corporate debt ratings.

U.S. needs to do more on climate; EU official

The United States must make deeper cuts in greenhouse gas emissions than proposed by President Barack Obama if the world is to stand a chance of avoiding devastating climate change, an EU official said.

What is the Plan? A Discussion with Bill Dunkelberg and David Kotok

"I don't want to nationalize them, I think we need to close them... Close them down, get them out of business. If they're dead, they ought to be buried... We bury the small banks; we've got to bury some big ones and send a strong message to the market. And I believe that people will start investing [again] in banks."

Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL)

Worst Dow Correction Chart

March 6, 2009

Accelerating Unemployment to Pose Tough Test for US Consumer ABS

Borrower defaults in U.S credit card and auto loan ABS transactions will continue to increase in the coming months as the unemployment rate accelerates at levels not seen since the 1973 recession, says Fitch Ratings.

Amazon's 2005 Drought Created Huge CO2 Emissions

A 2005 drought in the Amazon rainforest killed trees and released more greenhouse gas than the annual emissions of Europe and Japan, an international study showed on Thursday.

Arctic Summer Ice Could Vanish By 2013; Expert

The Arctic is warming up so quickly that the region's sea ice cover in summer could vanish as early as 2013, decades earlier than some had predicted, a leading polar expert said on Thursday.

BoE Reduces Bank Rate to 0.5pct and Announces £75 Billion Asset Purchase Programme

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee yesterday voted to reduce the official Bank Rate paid on commercial bank reserves by 0.5 percentage points to 0.5%, and to undertake a programme of asset purchases of £75 billion financed by the issuance of central bank reserves.

Bond Yields Push US Mortgage Rates Up in Latest Freddie Mac Survey

Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) yesterday released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.15 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending March 5, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 5.07 percent.  Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.03 percent.

Chu approves first US DOE stimulus spending steps

In its first weekly report on the stimulus, which was released Wednesday,
DOE said Chu has "reviewed and approved the spending plans" for the Office of
Science, the Office of Environmental Management, and part of the Office of
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Costs To keep U.S. Carbon Storage From Coal Elusive

Capturing carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants, the biggest U.S. source of the main greenhouse gas, is unlikely to play a big role in President Barack Obama's immediate plans to slow global warming, despite billions of dollars in incentives.

Credit Crisis 101- Humor

RiskCenter has scoured the earth to find a convincing explanation of how this “credit crisis” came about and what really went wrong. Our friends at YouTube have been kind enough to supply us with some video, that as far as we can gather, is the best explanation of the origins of this crisis.

Denial, Collective Housing Delusions

*  If one person, just one person, does it - they may think he's really sick...
* And if two people, two people do it, in harmony, they may think they’re both [strange]...
* And three people do it, three, can you imagine, three people ... [doing it], they may think it's an organization.
* And can you, can you imagine fifty people ... doing it? They may think it’s a movement.

Source: Arlo Guthrie, Alice’s Restaurant, 1967.

EU Inches Towards Climate Funding For Poor Nations

European environment ministers inched towards agreeing how to raise billions of dollars to help poor countries prepare for global warming and to coax them into a global deal to tackle the problem.

But cracks started to emerge on Monday among the European Union's 27 nations on how to split the burden of finance, and whether it would be wise to name a figure early in the game.

EU Parliament pushed to vote again on power plant emission limits

A cross-party group of 44 European Parliament members is pushing for proposals for emission limits for large combustion plant to be included in the report on a new EU industrial emissions law that the EP is due to vote on on March 12, environment group E3G's Mark Johnston told Platts Thursday.

Food stamp enrollment jumps to record 31.8 million

A record 31.8 million Americans received food stamps at the latest count, an increase of 700,000 people in one month with the United States in recession, government figures showed on Thursday.

Food stamps, which help poor people buy groceries, are the major U.S. anti-hunger program, forecast to cost at least $51 billion in this fiscal year ending September 30, up $10 billion from fiscal 2008.

Geothermal Power Continues Strong Growth, New Industry Report Shows

A new report by the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) shows strong growth in new geothermal power projects continuing into 2009. "There has been a 25% increase in new geothermal projects from August of 2008, when the last GEA report was released. There is also an increase in overall production potential by 35%," notes Kara Slack, the report's author.

Green Transmission Superhighway Needed for Renewable Energy to Reach Full Potential

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) have released a white paper titled "Green Power Superhighways: Building a Path to America's Clean Energy Future," detailing current inadequacies of the U.S. electric transmission infrastructure and offering policy solutions to address them

Greenhouse Gas Accumulations Change the Weather

Globally, heat waves during the last decade have killed more persons than tornados, hurricanes, and lightning combined.

Groups urge government to phase out coal ash storage

Some 109 environmental groups are calling on the federal government to phase out the wet storage of coal ash.

How to Resolve AIG and Citi, Walker Todd on Stress Testing the Banks

Greenberg: "There was a time when you could have saved AIG. I urged that. The first plan was a disaster -- $85 billion at 14.4% interest and 79% of the company. That was designed to liquidate the company. And to get $35 billion passing right through AIG to counterparties. That was Paulson's plan."

Eric Hovde: "Let me address that because on previous shows you have said that there should be an investigation about why the contracts on the CDS got bought out at par. That is an issue that I am outraged about.

Inconvenient Facts about Global Climate Changes due to Burning more than a Million Year's of Fossil Accumulations Each Year

Scientists around the world have used different methods to come to the same conclusion - global warming is real, and we are causing it.

Installed costs of PV systems fall in the USA

A study on the installed costs of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the USA shows that the average cost of these systems declined significantly from 1998 to 2007, but remained relatively flat during the last two years of this period.

Integrating Renewables

Consumers want to buy more of it. States are demanding utilities buy or supply ever-increasing amounts. Policymakers see it as the best hope of reducing carbon emissions. And the power industry is trying to adjust to all of these pressures.

Investors Like Clean Energy, Growth Dips; Survey

Half of institutional investors plan to increase their funding of clean energy compared with 12 months ago, but that will not be enough to drive global growth in the sector this year, a survey published on Wednesday said.

Iraq Looks to Solar Energy To Help Rebuild its Economy

Off-grid solar panels could soon be installed in Iraq in a push to supply electricity to people across the country, many of whom have no access to the national grid.

"They'll be able to go back to Baghdad and teach other colleagues how to build solar-powered street lamps and other systems. That way crucial know-how can spread quickly."

Key US senators issue resolution for federal coal ash regulations

Two key US senators have formally called on the US Environmental Protection Agency to use its existing authority to regulate coal combustion waste in an effort to prevent another massive spill of toxic substances like that seen at a Tennessee Valley Authority power plant in December, they said

La Niña is expected to gradually weaken

La Niña is expected to gradually weaken with increasing chances (greater than 50%) for ENSO-neutral conditions during the Northern Hemisphere Spring.

Making the Case for Carbon Capture and Storage

"There are many ways to make this work, to make it a reality. We need to store it underground and we also need to use it like a commodity, to find ways to sell it and spread the cost around."

More US Farmers Planting Non-GMO Soybeans This Year

For the first time since 1996, acres of Roundup Ready genetically modified soybeans could drop as more farmers decide to plant non-GMO.

New Air Pollution Study Reports Clean Alternative Fuels Gains At Top U.S. And International Container Shipping Ports

U.S. and international container shipping ports are among the world's biggest sources of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, because of their reliance on diesel fuel for goods movement. But progress toward reducing harmful emissions by switching to clean alternative fuels is gaining momentum worldwide, according to a new research study...

New Method To Eliminate Ibuprofen From Polluted Waters Using Ultrasound

An international team of scientists, in which researchers from the University of Barcelona (UB) have participated, has applied ultrasound treatment that enables ibuprofen to be eliminated from waters polluted with this drug. This method could be used in water purification plants, which would avoid the emission of pharmaceutical pollutants into rivers, lakes, seas and other surface waters.

NothingtoFear

That fear was at the heart of Great Depression, and it's at the heart of the economic crisis we're currently living through. And I'm seeing first-hand that the difficulty in getting past that fear is, well, pretty scary.

Opening OCS may only cut crude price by $1-$2; EIA, IEA officials

Opening the Outer Continental Shelf to oil drilling would only drop prices in the long term by $1 to $2 a barrel, officials from both the International Energy Agency and the US Energy Information Administration told Congress Thursday.

Price pressures ease on lower energy, raw materials; US Fed

Upward price pressures in the US continued to ease as a result of falling prices for energy and assorted raw materials, the Federal Reserve Bank said in the Beige Book, released Wednesday.

Rare U.S. Jaguar Euthanized Due To Severe Illness

Officials with the U.S. and Arizona wildlife services said the male cat, which was first caught on February 20 in a rugged area southwest of Tucson, was found to be suffering from untreatable kidney failure.

Report of Solar-Geophysical Activity 030309

Solar activity was very low. No flares were observed. The visible disk was spotless. Geomagnetic field activity was at quiet to unsettled levels. Field activity increased to unsettled levels.

Rich Nations Revise Up Greenhouse Gas Problem

Emissions reported by 34 nations for the 1990 base year that underpins U.N. efforts to rein in global warming have risen 3.5 percent overall to 17.6 billion tons in the most recent annual data from 17.0 billion in the first U.N. compilation in 1996, a Reuters survey showed on Wednesday.

South Africa Says Keen To Go 'Green' On Energy Supply

South Africa is confident it can overcome structural and financial challenges to balance a power shortage with climate concerns through greater subsidies, tax breaks and clear policies on renewable energy.

Stimulus payouts will flow to some projects, trickle to others

Energy programs could see money flowing in two to three months. Some highway projects could get funding right away, and some could wait until next year. And key tax breaks will start showing up this summer.

However, there’s no easy way to pinpoint when people will see pieces of the $787 billion economic stimulus plan start to show up in their communities.

Stimulus Plan Will Create Sustainable Jobs That Will Protect Public Health

"Through the President's stimulus package, green initiatives will play a significant role in powering economic recovery," said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. "EPA's portion of the plan will create good, sustainable jobs that help produce cleaner drinking water, purer air, environmentally friendly urban and rural re-development, and reduced greenhouse gases. This is a perfect example of economic growth and environmental protection working hand in hand to the benefit of all Americans."

The First Vegetables

In Jerzy Kosinski's novel and award-winning screenplay, "Being There," the U.S. president turns to a plain-spoken gardener named Chance for wisdom at a time of economic crisis. The insight Chance offers is as simple as it is reassuring: Growth has its seasons and, as long as the roots of growth are not severed, all will be well.

Top Paper in Environmental Policy; Eat Locally, or Eat Differently?

The team found that eating an all-local diet saves the greenhouse gas equivalent of driving 1000 fewer miles each year, but eating a vegetarian diet 1 day per week is equal to driving 1160 fewer miles per year.

TVA plans to restore area affected by coal sludge spill

The Tennessee Valley Authority plans to restore the area hit by a massive coal sludge spill, potentially leaving it in better shape than it was before the spill.

U.S. economy sheds 651,000 jobs in February

The U.S. unemployment rate hit a 25-year high of 8.1 percent in February as employers buckling under the strain of a recession that shows no sign of ending axed 651,000 jobs, government data showed on Friday.

Adding to the gloom, a combined 161,000 more jobs were lost in January and December than previously believed. February's decline in non-farm payrolls was close to economists' forecast for a 648,000 drop.

U.S. Energy Dept To Fund $84 Million For Geothermal Energy

The department said it plans to award as much as $35 million for 20 or 30 research proposals addressing development of advanced geothermal technology.

In addition, up to $49 million will be provided for five to 10 domestic projects demonstrating enhanced geothermal systems that generate at least 5 megawatts of electricity a year.

U.S. Energy Secretary Pledges To Fight Global Warming

The Obama administration wants to cap carbon emissions from U.S. power plants, oil refineries and other industrial sites, then auction permits to exceed those limits. Plants that then lower their emissions could in turn sell their permits to other facilities that pollute more.

U.S. greenhouse gas emissions increase 1.4% in 2007

Annual U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2007 increased by 1.4% from the previous year, according to the EPA´s annual Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2007 draft report.

U.S. Looking At Interim Options For Nuclear Waste

The department will consider solidifying liquid radioactive waste that is currently held at 121 locations across the nation, as the government works to develop a permanent solution for safe nuclear waste disposal. Chu said the department could solidify waste at current sites without environmental risk.

Union of Concerned Scientists Letter to DOE

The administration should cancel the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) program and the corresponding Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) process. Instead, it should take proactive steps to discourage nuclear waste reprocessing worldwide. GNEP will do nothing to solve the issue of nuclear waste and will undermine U.S. and global efforts to stop the spread of nuclear weapons material.

US Senate unlikely to pass 100% auction of CO2 permits

"To have 100% auction of allowances from the first day of a cap-and-trade system being in effect, I do think it runs the risk of causing substantial increased burdens on some utilities, some emitters," Bingaman said at a Platts Energy Podium event in Washington.

Wales; 20% electricity from biomass by 2020

Wales has announced a Bioenergy Action Plan for Wales aiming to generate at least 5 TWh of electricity, about 20% of current needs, from renewable biomass by 2020.

Waste_Inbox 030309

With so many people buying digital TVs and pondering what to do with their old sets, here´s an interesting thought that hadn´t occurred to me.

Wave & Tidal Current Stream Activity Set to Increase

Both the wave power and tidal current stream energy sectors are emerging industries. While development activities run back some 30 years, commercialization of leading technologies in both sectors is only just beginning.

The sectors are characterized by high numbers of prototype technologies. Over 200 are known of and tracked by Douglas-Westwood. Of these technologies, only a handful is now approaching full-scale commercial deployment. The majority fail to progress to full-scale prototyping, often due to difficulties raising the required finance in this now highly competitive market.

We Need a Clean Energy Bank

Dear President Obama: Do you want full transparency to ensure citizen oversight of fund allocation of our economic stimulus billions? Do you want public-private partnerships to support innovation?

Citizens are the answer to fixing our economy and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.

White House to drop Yucca, use temporary sites

US Energy Secretary Steven Chu told a Senate panel Thursday that the Obama administration would abandon the federal government's decades-old plan to store spent nuclear fuel at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, and will instead have temporary open-cask storage sites at nuclear plants across the country.

Wind Forecasting Key for More Efficient Turbines

Knowing when, where and how hard the winds will blow is one of the largest obstacles for the wind generation industry, and that knowledge only grows more important as more utilities expand their wind portfolios.

March 3, 2009

African Mayors Agree to Combat Climate Change

Mayors from 33 capital and major cities across Africa pledged Friday to quicken climate change adaptation and mitigation plans for their cities.

Alaska governor to revamp state gas authority

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin introduced bills in the state legislature late Friday giving the Alaska Natural Gas Development Authority, or ANGDA, a state gas corporation, expanded authority to build a possible in-state pipeline to bring gas from the North Slope to the state's major population areas in south-central Alaska

Alaska Senator Offers Compromise Bill On ANWR Oil

A bill introduced Friday by Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska would permit oil production in the ecologically sensitive Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, but only from directional wells that are drilled outside the refuge's borders.

Anti-Coal Protesters Block Gates to Capitol Power Plant

Several thousand demonstrators marched through chilly winds and snow to the Capitol's coal-fired power plant today in a bid to attract the attention of lawmakers to the dangers of climate change.

Asia's biofuel dreams shelved as crude oil tumbles

Hopes of a biofuel bonanza for Southeast Asia, raised when sky-high oil prices made the search for alternative fuels a priority, have been shelved as global fortunes and crude prices nose-dive.

BP says to grow production through to 2013 from existing projects

production growth of between 1-2%/year until 2020 without any further discoveries after replacing 121% of its production last year.

California Sees Billions In Losses From Drought

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Friday declared a state emergency due to drought, requested broad conservation measures and said agricultural revenue losses in the coming season could top $2 billion.

Total economic losses in 2009 could be nearly $3 billion, the governor said, and he requested urban users to cut water consumption by 20 percent and state agencies to implement a water reduction plan.

Canada Seeks N. American Fuel-Efficiency Standard

Environment Minister Jim Prentice said on Monday Canada aspires to be part of a stringent North American standard on fuel efficiency for the continent's heavily integrated auto industry.

"At this point in the United States, it would appear as though they are headed toward a 35 mile a gallon standard by 2020 and that would start to come into effect in the 2011 model year," Prentice told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp in Washington.

"We've essentially been prepared to go in that same direction ...

EPA Unveils Top 25 U.S. Cities with the Most Energy Star Buildings

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today released a list of U.S. metropolitan areas with the largest number of energy efficient buildings in 2008 that have earned EPA’s Energy Star.

The list is headed by Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Washington, D.C., Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago, Denver, Minneapolis-St Paul, Atlanta and Seattle.

EU Mulls US Biodiesel Dumping Duties

A key EU trade panel will be asked by the bloc's executive on Tuesday to back anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on imports of biodiesel from the United States, which are irritating trade relations with Washington.

Europe Mulls Running Ageing Coal Plants Until 2020

Dozens of ageing European coal-fired power stations could win life extensions to 2020 if they agree to scale back their operating hours, according to a proposal to be tabled by the European Union's Czech presidency.

Girding for a Global Revolution

A significant challenge is that the creation of the smart grid -- and, consequently, the evolution of the intelligent utility -- is that utilities cannot start this process from scratch. This is where lifespan plays a major role.

Global Corporate Credit Quality Remains Stable in February

Kamakura Corporation announced Monday that the Kamakura index of troubled public companies for February changed only slightly from January. The Kamakura global index of troubled companies increased modestly by 0.1% to 23.2% of the public company universe, still 0.8% below the recent peak of 24.0% reported for December 2008.

Going green; Entire Swedish city switches to biofuels to become environmentally friendly

Though a fraction of Chicago's size, this industrial city in southeast Sweden has plenty of similarities with it, including a long, snowy winter and a football team the town's crazy about.

One thing is dramatically different about Kalmar, however: It is on the verge of eliminating the use of fossil fuels, for good, and with minimal effect on its standard of living.

India Lauds Obama Climate Plan But Sees Concerns

India's chief climate envoy said on Friday he welcomed President Barack Obama's policy on climate change but warned there would be no global deal if rich nations insisted on emission targets for all.

Med Nations Top EU's Climate Change Risk List

Italy, Spain and Greece could bear the brunt of climate change in Europe this century, with heatwaves and wildfires hitting tourism earnings and food production, according to a draft European Commission report.

Mediterranean Sea Level Could Rise By over 2 feet

A Spanish-British research project has come up with three future scenarios for the effects of climate change on the Mediterranean over the next 90 years, using global models from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The conclusions show that ocean temperatures in this area will increase, along with sea levels.

Nothing to Fear

Ontario First Nations want power opportunities

A determination that there will be aboriginal participation in the planned expansion of Ontario’s power system was the clear message from a series of energy forums across the Anishinabek Nation territory.

Pacific Ethanol Suspends Plants In Idaho, California

Pacific Ethanol, Inc, the largest marketer and producer of the alternative motor fuel in the West, said Friday it has temporarily suspended operations at two more distilleries, citing "extended unfavourable market conditions."

Plenty More Fish In The Sea? Think Again - Reports

The world's waters were once seen as a boundless source of fish for humans to eat, but over-fishing and aquaculture have depleted some species and left others famished and weak, two reports said on Monday.

Climate change is expected to add more stress for fish populations, forcing warm-water species further toward the poles, changing marine and freshwater food webs and habitats, the reports said.

Rebates for scrapped cars would revive US economy; steel analyst

The US government should provide cash incentives to American consumers who turn in their old, high-mileage "clunker" automobiles, proposed veteran steel analyst Charles Bradford at the Steel Markets North America 2009 conference, hosted by Steel Business Briefing, Monday.

Retail market shakeout expected amid credit crisis; TXU's Burke

The shrinking field of retail marketers is not an indictment against restructured power markets but an expected result of the credit crisis and its impact on retailers, Jim Burke, CEO of TXU Energy said Monday morning.

Stimulus to create 'thousands of miles' of power lines; Biden

US Vice President Joe Biden on Friday said the $787-billion stimulus bill passed by the Senate February 14 will bring "an unprecedented investment in green energy."

Study critiques corn-for-ethanol's carbon footprint

To avoid creating greenhouse gases, it makes more sense using today's technology to leave land unfarmed in conservation reserves than to plow it up for corn to make biofuel, according to a comprehensive Duke University-led study.

Transmission Brains

Transmission wires have always been the transportation workhorses of the electric grid. Directing electrical current from generation to substation, these aging electricity highways have traditionally lacked intelligence.

But faced with the daunting task of increasing power delivery across the grid in a reliable and secure fashion -- not one wrought with congestion and inefficiency -- today's transmission wire manufacturers are looking at new solutions to transmission issues.

UK opted-out coal plants 'heading for early closure'; Drax CEO

Around 6,000 MW of opted-out UK coal-fired power capacity may have less than three years left to run if current rates of production are maintained, Drax Group chief executive Dorothy Thompson said in a 2008 results conference call Tuesday.

US Home-Value Drop Accelerated in Fourth Quarter

Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) announced last week that its Conventional Mortgage Home Price Index (CMHPI) Purchase-Only Series registered a 17.9 percent annualized decline in U.S. house prices during the fourth quarter of 2008, following a downward revised 8.0 percent annualized drop in the third quarter. Over the four quarters ending with the fourth quarter of 2008, home sales prices fell an average of 9.5 percent in the CMHPI Purchase-only Series – the largest annual decrease in its 39-year history.

US oil demand growth declines at fastest rate since 1980; ANALYSIS

US oil demand growth in 2008 declined at its fastest rate since 1980, dropping 1.208 million b/d to 19.472 million b/d, according to data released Friday by the US Energy Information Administration, and reflecting the largest downturn in the broader economy in 27 years.

What Does Dr. Doom Have to Say about US Home Prices

If you missed the Saturday 28 Feb New York Times, then you missed their somewhat tardy recognition of the Irish economist, Morgan Kelly. The Irish call him “Dr. Doom.”

World Faces Last Chance To Avoid Fatal Warming - EU

The world faces a final opportunity to agree an adequate global response to climate change at a UN-led meeting in Copenhagen in December, the European Union's environment chief said on Friday.

World leaders from about 190 countries meet in Copenhagen in December to try to agree a global framework to replace the Kyoto Protocol on fighting global warming, which expires in 2012.