November 29, 2013 - Creating jobs six times faster than the overall job market, the solar industry has become a robust engine of job growth, totaling over 119,000 new jobs as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics. These numbers help to solidify the argument that the investment in solar energy has considerable long-term payoffs and here’s why: Sunlight, the most abundant source of potential energy on the planet, generates enough energy every hour to meet the world’s energy usage for an entire year, according the U.S. Department of Energy.
As solar energy becomes more cost-effective and as it expands in usage, there is a growing need for more manufacturing workers to make solar panels, construction workers to build power plants, solar photovoltaic installers to install solar panels and so on. Now more than ever, solar projects are becoming more prevalent in the U.S. and more people are interested in going solar at home and work. read more>>>
December 1, 2013 - Back in the 1950s, most hospitals were eerie places: Tiled walls, dimly lit hallways, gruff personnel. It would be tough to find such an old-style, stark facility in this country today.
But even among the modern ones, some stand out because they’re built under sustainability principles, which includes the whole spectrum of human well-being.
“Before the patients can get healthy, the hospital needs to be healthy,” said Rudy Lonergan, Director of Facilities Development of Northeast Georgia Health System.
As a result, Northeast Georgia Medical Center at Braselton promises to be a facility whose features stand out even in worldwide comparison.
“Adopting a ‘lean’ philosophy was first,” said Lonergan, “with the greatest energy efficiency possible. Heating and air are provided through geothermal systems. Hospitals are some of the highest users of energy, and this will keep costs in check.” Another major concern was water. The park landscape around the facility uses reclaimed “purple water” instead of drinking water from the tap. Parking lots with smart drains send water to the plants instead of the nearest creek. read more>>>
12/02/2013 - In a seminal 1987 report, Our Common Future, the Brundtland Commission advanced the understanding of global interdependence and the relationship between economics and the environment. The report wove together social, economic, cultural, and environmental issues and global solutions. It stated that “the environment does not exist as a sphere separate from human actions, ambitions, and needs, and therefore it should not be considered in isolation from human concerns. The environment is where we all live; and development is what we all do in attempting to improve our lot within that abode. The two are inseparable.
” The concept of sustainable development, development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, was adopted in the Rio Declaration in 1992, to which Canada was one of the first signatories, under the leadership of a Conservative prime minister, Brian Mulroney. read more>>>
December 2, 2013 - The United Nations says China is facing significant environmental and social challenges that must be addressed if it is to achieve its sustainable development goals.
The assessment comes in a joint report released by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Chinese government.
China’s Green Long March: A Study of Renewable Energy, Environmental Industry and Cement Sectors notes that the country has a strong policy framework in place to support a national transition to a green economy. read more>>>
11/30/13 - The moon affects the tides on Earth, helps brightens the night sky, and soon it might also provide us with even more solar power. Tokyo-based Shimizu Corporation wants to install a belt of solar panels 250 miles wide around the equator of our orbiting natural satellite. This massive, 6,800 mile long solar array called the “Luna Ring” would then relay a constant stream of energy to receiving stations on the planet by beaming lasers and microwave transmission. The proposed Luna Ring, according to Shimizu’s specifications, would send 13,000 terawatts of power to Earth.
Shimizu didn’t put a price tag on the moon-bound solar project, but we bet it would be astronomical. Even so, the company says construction work could start as early as 2035. read more>>>
{this is a Win against the forces behind the heavily financed ALEC special interests}
Another win for team solar! Georgia consumers and solar businesses won a big victory last week with the state’s major utility, Georgia Power, stripping a proposed solar fee from its current rate case.
This new charge would have amounted to a 45-55% tax on solar energy systems. read more>>>
28 November 2013 - The US Patent & Trademark Office has approved a patent for Ecosphere’s Ecos PowerCube, a mobile micro-utility that can provide solar electricity in remote locations
Ecosphere’s Ecos PowerCube has been awarded US Patent No. 8,593,102 by the United States Patent & Trademark Office. The device is a portable, self-contained micro-utility that uses solar power to provide electricity in the most remote, off-grid locations. It was designed to help meet the growing demand for off-grid energy and incorporates an array of stacked solar panels in order to maximise the total amount of solar power generation possible in 10', 20' and 40' standard ISO shipping container footprints. read more>>>
Nov. 28, 2013 - Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue:
Sustainability Issues will Continue to Shed New Perspectives on Buildings
The market outlook focus on five important areas in the building industry that have the potential for business opportunities for market participants in the Asia-Pacific region. Driven by government initiatives, property developers are shifting their business focus on sustainable and resource efficient buildings. The building industry is challenged by rising resources costs such as energy, water, and raw materials for building construction. In addition, the changing global climate is expected to place saftey of buildings at risk. This will likely entail immense business prospects in green buildings, smart buildings, disaster-shield buildings, solar-powered buildings, and resource conservation.
Executive Summary read more>>>
November 28, 2013 - A year after Hurricane Sandy, the costs and risks of inaction on the climate are becoming clearer. Among the costs are those revealed in a new Ceres report about the growing taxpayer burden from climate inaction. The escalating risks to coastlines from climate-driven sea-level rise are highlighted in granular detail in a major new expansion of Surging Seas, Climate Central's online tool to analyze the impacts of sea-level rise.
Happily, despite the increasingly frantic efforts of the Koch brothers and other fossil fuel fat cats to force Congress to throttle the rising clean energy industry, the renewable energy gospel is spreading. Even the wing-nuts of the right are getting on the bandwagon, as Glenn Beck shills solar generators to his fans. read more>>>
November 29, 2013 - Our technological infrastructure is complicated, expensive to repair, and in many areas, antiquated. "Companies like Primus Green Energy, Axion International, and Tollgrade Communications are finding ways to bring to market high cost endeavors by thinking creatively," according to Tana Kantor, publisher of TGEink.
Primus is turning natural gas into gas at the pumps. Primus is bridging the production ‘valley of death’ by developing creative partnerships with investors and technology partners.
Axion turns large-scale plastic waste into railroad ties that can withstand climate conditions that devastate conventional materials. read more>>>
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