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There are more benefits to driving a solar charged vehicle than meets the eye.
As technology for these vehicles improve, so will their travel distance and accessibility, as charging stations are becoming more common, with locations at airports, malls, and even college campuses. Electric vehicles are good for the environment, and recent studies have shown they also play a role in our health.
This infographic outlines their benefits, compares emissions from the different types of charging stations, maps locations across the US, and summarizes the positive impact electric vehincles have on the economy, environment and our health.
Via Lauren Moss
When Facebook users post photos or status updates, data seemingly drifts into the “cloud,” which is actually a complex data center housing racks of servers using as much energy as a small town...
Defying this energy-draining typology, the Facebook Prineville Data Center in central Oregon has achieved LEED Gold status through advanced technologies, including an innovative mechanical equipment penthouse and evaporative cooling system, all while keeping data flowing and providing pleasant workspaces. For Facebook, a company that prides itself on openness, the architects created a prominent building that harmonizes with its high desert landscape. The permeable yet secure perimeter is clad in warm-toned precast concrete panels, corrugated steel and layered glazing. “People spaces,” including conference rooms and workspaces, open onto an interior courtyard. In fact, every employee enjoys views and natural light from at least two directions.
To reach the status as one of the world’s most energy efficient data centers, not to mention rigorous LEED Gold requirements, the designers of the had to rethink every part of a data center’s building, mechanical, electrical, and computing systems and remove everything that didn’t directly benefit efficiency- learn more and view the complete gallery of images at ArchDaily...
Via Lauren Moss
Even as more affordable photovoltaics and government incentives for adopting renewable energy sources have made solar a financially attractive alternative in some areas, it can still be hard to find accurate, easy-to-understand information to help make the leap. The Solar Tool, developed by the Sustainable Design Lab at MIT and Boston-based design workshop MoDe Studio, aims to solve that problem for the city of Cambridge. Simply enter your address, and a comprehensive satellite map of Cambridge shows you how efficient your own rooftop is for soaking up the sun’s rays, from excellent to poor, down to the square meter.
Via Lauren Moss
Renewable energy enjoys broad support in the US where people expect the government to support emerging clean power technologies- Americans more concerned about the state of the economy than the threat of climate change: 41% of respondents ranked climate change in the lowest category as a threat facing the world and 51% ranked the economic recession in the highest category in the recent 2012 Global Consumer Wind Study. When asked to what extent does the electric utility industry cause human-action induced climate changes, 32% of GCWS respondents answered to a certain degree and 39% answered to a high or very high degree. The overwhelming majority (67%) of respondents said that they would prefer to have their electricity sources supplied by renewables, versus 9% for fossil fuels and 8% for nuclear. 78% of respondents said that they would prefer to see renewables such as wind, solar, hydro, biomass and geothermal developed over the next five years. To see this information and learn more, view the infographic, as well as visit links shared at the complete article...
Via Lauren Moss
Solar power, which makes up a tiny part of Californias overall energy mix, will account for the biggest piece of the states renewable energy pie by the end of the decade, according to the states largest utilities. Last year, Pacific Gas & Electric got most of its renewable energy from wind, bioenergy, geothermal and small hydropower dams. Solar accounted for about 1 percent. But that mix is quickly changing, and by 2020, the San Francisco-based utility expects solar to account for 40 percent of its renewable portfolio.
California's aggressive "Renewable Portfolio Standard" law requires utilities to purchase 33 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Bioenergy, geothermal, solar, wind, wave and tidal power and small hydroelectric dams -- which cause less harm to the environment than large hydro dams -- all count toward meeting the law...
But solar is the fastest-growing piece of renewable portfolios, driven by federal stimulus funding for large solar power plants, a drop in solar panel prices and a boom in the number of developers competing for long-term utility contracts in California...
Via Lauren Moss
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Transitioning from a carbon-intensive economy to a low-carbon future presents challenges and opportunities for developing countries. The Sustainable Energy Roadmaps help countries successfully navigate the change to an infrastructure capable of meeting the energy challenges of the 21st century.
The approach examines a country’s potential for renewable energy production such as wind, solar, small hydropower and biomass. Existing energy infrastructure is analyzed to identify the potential for, and hurdles to, increased efficiency and energy storage. At the same time, current socio-economic and policy environments are factored into the analysis to identify barriers to low-carbon development and determine international best practices to suggest how they can be overcome. Equally important, funding options that might be available from private, public, and multilateral institutions to help bring renewable energy projects into being are assessed. The project strengthens government and civil society capacity, enhances stakeholder engagement, and advances policies that combat climate change...
Learn more about the program and sustainable energy roadmaps at the article link.
Via Lauren Moss
Dubai : Dewa seeks companies to retrofit old buildings with smart grid “We are looking at companies that could install new technologies and retrofit the old buildings with those so that they could become part of the smart grid,” said Al Tayer, who is also the Managing Director and CEO of Dewa, responding to a question by Gulf News. He was talking about Dewa’s success in energy efficiency. “By 2030, Dubai’s average energy growth is projected to be in the range of 4-5 per cent per annum and our target under the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy 2030, is to reduce energy consumption by 30 per cent,” he added.
Via Christian Aymé
Energy Land(ing)-scape | Calderara di Reno Italy This project seeks to find a effective balance between two principal necessities: to redevelop and revitalize the area, with a strong ecological impact on surrounding territories. The solution was to transform the area into a ZEA: Zero Emission Area. A ZEA promotes the area and seeks for investments and a new economical initiatives to transform an area into a environmental zone. The project consists of a solar roof installed over the existing warehouse’s roofs and over the outdoor areas, including parking, producing clean energy, reduces emissions, collects water and gives a new image of the region to all people that are taking off or landing in the close Airport of Bologna. The project seeks to give new life to this area from an economic point of view, as well as to demonstrate how development can have a positive ecological impact. Visit the article link for more renderings, aerial imagery, site plans, and diagrams...
Via Lauren Moss
An intriguing look at just how much clean, renewable energy we could harvest from the sun...
Via Lauren Moss
Walmart reached a very special renewable energy milestone this week. The mammoth retail giant revealed San Diego’s College Avenue store as it’s 100th store in California to use roofto...
Via Christian Aymé
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