Denmark Funds Maldives Trip to UN Climate Summit in Copenhagen

Saying that as the Maldives will be one of the nations worst affected by climate change, Denmark has ponied up €2.5 million in funds so that the world’s poorest nations and low-lying island states will be able to attend the summit. The money will enable each nation will be able to send three delegates.

The Maldives president, Mohamed Nasheed, said he was “delighted to hear of Denmark’s kind offer of support.” Adding that due to huge budget deficits inherited from the previous government, “we are unable to travel abroad without financial assistance”.

My impression of Denmark just increased phenomenally upon reading this news.

$467 Million in Stimulus Money Released for Solar Power & Geothermal

photo: David Blaikie via flickr.

Solar power and geothermal power have finally gotten their portion of money allocated in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, to the tune of $467 million. President Obama announced this by touting the usual rhetoric of decreasing dependency on foreign oil and putting people back to work in through green energy jobs. Energy Secretary Stephen Chu too talked up green jobs, plus the role renewable energy can play in combatting climate change Frankly, absolutely nothing new or novel was said, but it is great that solar and geothermal have finally been shown some federal stimulus love. This is how all that money is being divided up:

Geothermal to Get Most of the Funding
All told geothermal is getting $350 million: $140 million is going toward Geothermal Demonstration Projects; $80 million towards Enhanced Geothermal Systems Technology Research and Development; $100 million towards Innovative Exploration Techniques; $30 million towards a National Geothermal Data System, Resource Assessment, and Classification System.

Solar Power Gets One-Third of Geothermal
Solar power has been allocated $117.6 million: $51.5 million for Photovoltaic Technology Development; $40.5 for Solar Energy Deployment (“Projects in this area will focus on non-technical barriers to solar energy deployment, including grid connection, market barriers to solar energy adoption in cities, and the shortage of trained solar energy installers.”); Concentrating Solar Power Research and Development brings up the rear with $25.6 million.

More: Department of Energy

Bush Administration to Open Public Lands Near Utah’s National Parks for Natural Gas and Oil Drilling

Source:”Bush Administration to Open Public Lands Near Utah’s National Parks for Natural Gas and Oil Drilling“, treehugger.com, Business & Politics, Jeremy Elton Jacquot, 9th Nov 2008

Image from jderuna

There is no doubt that the Bushies will go down in history as the administration with the least environmentally-friendly record (among other dubious distinctions). Having already gutted the Endangered Species Act, denied the existence of climate change and vehemently resisted efforts to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, it is not as if the president has been trying especially hard to rehabilitate his dismal reputation. Last Friday, we learned of the Bush administration’s latest environmental hit job, courtesy ofThe New York Times‘ Felicity Barringer: a plan by the Bureau of Land Management to open tens of thousands of acres on or near the borders of three national parks in eastern Utah, including Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park, to drilling.

Image from Wolfgang Staudt

Decision taken without consulting National Park Service
In light of the administration’s ongoing (and recently accelerated) efforts to ease regulations on its industry allies, this does not exactly come as a shock (see Greg Haegele’s list of top 10 “eco-horrors” for more recent coverage). What was perhaps a little surprising was that the BLM did not even bother to notify officials in the National Park Service (some of whom presumably adhere to the administration’s anti-environment philosophy); instead, the agency quietly released an updated lease proposal (the first one was also heavily criticized for giving the green light to further industrial activity) that included 40 – 45 new areas. It evidently hoped to attract as little attention as possible, releasing it on November 4.

Late auction date will hurt next administration’s efforts to reverse sales
The new tracts will be sold at auction on December 19. (Incidentally, this is the last lease sale before the president leaves office.) As a result, instead of having the customary 1 – 3 months to comment on the new proposal, top managers at the NPS will have precious little time to voice their concerns about the drilling’s impact on the parks’ water, air and wildlife. When asked if she would reconsider offering the tracts in December, Selma Sierra, BLM’s state director, pointedly refused, Barringer notes.

Those who believe an Obama administration would be able to easily reverse the sales are mistaken: Any effort by the new government to do so would likely result in the energy companies filing suit or taking other retaliatory action — moves that would likely drag out the process for several months or years.

Earlier this year I wrote about the NPS selling our parks short by inhibiting its own ability to purchase the estimated 1.8 million acres of land listed for acquisition (it only requested $100 million from Congress for fiscal year 2009 to buy $1.9 billion worth of land). The fact that this administration has even managed to take its own officials by surprise speaks volumes.

More about the Bush administration’s shenanigans
In this Week’s Bargain Bin: Our National Parks
10 Eco-Horrors That Should Have You Scared
A Return To Colorado Oil Shale?

Obama and McCain Discuss Global Warmng, Environmental Views in Interview

Image courtesy of Backpacker

In an exclusive Backpacker Magazine interview, the presidential candidates discussed their prospective policies regarding a slew of environmental topics: global warming solutions, cap and trade policies, oil drilling, gun laws in national parks, andendangered species rulings were some of the subjects addressed. Plus, they each touched upon the origins of their environmental views, and what shaped their outlook on nature.

Obama and McCain’s Environmental Views
Here’s a rundown of a few of the more interesting stances revealed from the interview:

-McCain would support allowing loaded guns in national parks, (guns are currently banned from almost all national parks) and though he fully supports 2nd Amendment rights, Obama is “concerned about allowing loaded firearms into family-oriented spaces”

-Regarding the protected Rocky Mountain Gray Wolf, McCain welcomes “delisting the wolves where appropriate”

-Obama says he will “will increase funding for the Conservation Security Program and the Conservation Reserve Program and will create additional incentives for private landowners for sustainable agriculture”

-McCain emphasizes the need for a “greater reliance on nuclear power.”

-Both candidates support a cap and trade system for limiting and reducing greenhouse gases (McCain’s goal is 60 percent below levels in the 1990’s, and Obama’s aims for 80 percent below)

Origins of Obama and McCain’s Environmental Views
For Obama, it was growing up in Hawaii that fostered his respect for the great outdoors, and McCain has witnessed the damage done by global warming. From the interview:

What experiences have affected your views on the environment?Obama: My connection to the earth was formed during my time in Hawaii, my birthplace. I think those of us who grew up in Hawaii have a particular attachment to the land and understand how fragile it is. When you are snorkeling through the coral reefs, you can see firsthand that a slight change in temperature or increase in sediment and runoff or change in acidification could end up destroying it all and making it unavailable for your children.

McCain: I have viewed the tremendous harm that global warming has done to our planet. In Greenland, you can see the glaciers have receded dramatically. You can see the impact in northern Norway. You can go to the South Pole and see incredible damage. These are the visible and disturbing manifestations of climate change, and they should compel us to action.

 

Read the entire interview at Backpacker.

More on Environmental Views in Presidential Politics:
Sarah Palin’s Record on the Environment: A Closer Look
My Bottom Line is Green: McCain Vs. Obama on Renewable Energy

Source:

“Obama and McCain Discuss Global Warmng, Environmental Views in Interview“, treehugger.com, Business & Politics, Brain Merchant, 18th Oct 2008

Singapore’s First “Clean Coal” Power Plant to be Built

TUAS Power, the third-largest power generator here, plans to build a $2 billion steam and electricity production plant.

It will be the first plant here to run on clean coal and biomass, ensuring the efficient and non-polluting use of coal to power industries on Jurong Island.

Given the nod by the National Environment Agency, construction of the Tembusu Multi-Utilities Complex will start soon, Tuas Power said yesterday.

The company believes if the plant proves successful, it could pave the way for greater use here of clean coal combined with other fuel sources.

Hastening this change: soaring global oil and gas prices.

Tuas Power said the new complex will start operating in 2011, to supply steam, chilled water and electricity, and treat industrial waste for up to 10 petrochemical companies on Jurong Island.

The plant will be powered by 80 per cent low-ash, low-sulphur coal and 20 per cent biomass, which is waste woodchips and palm kernel shells. Coal is the world’s most abundant fuel but is controversial for its high carbon emissions.

Tuas Power plans to keep emission levels down with the latest biomass and clean coal boiler technology from Japan. Biomass is a renewable, zero-emissions energy source.

‘Overall, we are able to produce one unit of energy at a more competitive cost,’ said Tuas Power president and CEO Lim Kong Puay.

It will translate into cost savings of about 10 per cent of a factory’s utilities bill compared to energy generated by a gas-fired plant, he told The Straits Times.

With the plant, clean coal will contribute 15 per cent to Tuas Power’s revenue by 2012. It is now wholly reliant on gas.

‘The approach we are taking is to incorporate very efficient energy processes and renewable biomass to minimise the impact on the environment,’ said Mr Lim.

Its diversification into other fuel sources was welcomed by the Energy Market Authority (EMA), which said in a statement yesterday the move would ‘serve as a hedge against rising oil prices’.

Currently, about 80 per cent of Singapore’s electricity is generated from natural gas, the cleanest available fossil fuel, and the rest from oil.

However, the EMA stressed the Government is not about to allow the use of coal for power generation ‘solely or on a large scale’ any time soon.

This stems from its decision two years ago to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) and build an LNG terminal, to diversify Singapore’s sources of natural gas.

‘We will not allow any entry of coal to adversely affect and jeopardise the viability of the LNG project,’ it said.

Apart from moving into new fuel sources, Tuas Power is the first of the big three power-generating companies (gencos) to offer utilities beyond just electricity. These multi-utilities would include steam or chilled water power.

Tuas Power is expanding beyond its core business of electricity production after being acquired earlier this year by China Huaneng, China’s largest coal-fuelled power producer.

Last week, the Singapore genco won a contract to supply multi-utilities to Finnish company Neste Oil Corp’s $1.2 billion plant which produces renewable diesel.

Mr Lim believes his company has the ‘core skills’ to go into multi-utilities as ‘the production of electricity involves the production of steam as well as very high-grade water for boilers’.

The integrated supply of different utilities to clients is expected to contribute about 30 per cent of Tuas Power’s total revenue by 2012.

 

Green features

# No exposure of coal to the environment: Coal from neighbouring countries is transported in covered barges, unloaded through fully enclosed conveyors and stored in covered silos.

# Biomass clean coal boilers: This technology allows combustion to take place at lower temperatures, keeping emissions to a minimum.

# Total carbon emissions are around 400g per kilowatt of power, which is lower than the 700g per kilowatt emitted by an oil-fired power plant.

# Filters have been installed to ensure particulate matter emitted meets National Environment Agency requirements. Ash generated will be reused in the plant.

# High-energy efficiency: 70 per cent of energy fed into the plant can be turned into useful energy in the form of steam and electricity. This is comparable to the 40 to 50 per cent efficiency of steam or gas-fired power plants. 

Source:

“Tuas Power to build $2b ‘clean’ plant”, The Straits Times, Clarissa Oon (clare@sph.com.sg), 26th Sept 2008

Greener fuel for Jurong Island
 

 

High oil prices are pushing Singapore power suppliers to embrace more efficient energy generation technologies, in order to help industries cut costs.

Tuas Power, for one, is investing $2 billion to build a state-of-the-art complex on Jurong Island featuring three different plants, which will provide cogeneration, desalination and waste water treatment to corporate clients located there.

The Tembusu Multi-Utilities Complex will be the first such facility in Singapore to use biomass and clean coal technology.

The biomass burnt will be comprise mostly waste woodchips and palm kernel shells, which will be sourced both locally and from neighbouring countries.

Tuas Power said this will make energy cheaper by as much as 10 per cent for petrochemical firms on Jurong Island.

Mr Lim Kong Puay, chief executive of Tuas Power, said: “The efficient use of the cogeneration technology coupled with biomass and clean coalallows us to achieve savings, and this saving will be passed on to our industrial consumers.”

The new technology uses 20 per cent biomass and 80 per cent coal to produce steam and electricity.

As a result, system efficiency can reach as high as 70 per cent, 30 per cent more than an oil-powered plant.

Some residual energy will also be produced, half of which will be channelled back into the plant for internal consumption, while the rest will be exported to the national grid.

It is also expected to reduce carbon emissions by roughly20 per cent compared to a coal-fired plant.

Mr Lim said: “By providing centralised multi-utility services, we are able to offer competitive solutions, and this provides an attraction for investors to Jurong Island.”

Construction for the complex will start next year and it is expected to start operations by 2011.

Currently, Tuas Power has a market share of 24 per cent of the power generation market in Singapore.

Source:

“Greener fuel for Jurong Island”, Today Online, 26th Sept 2008

Wal-Mart Goes on a Plastic Diet: 9 Million Plastic Bags to Be Eliminated From Waste Stream

photo: Jim

Another significant environmental commitment coming out of the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting comes from an seemingly unlikely paring: The Environmental Defense Fund and Wal-Mart.

Announced in the Metropolitan Ballroom by President Bill Clinton, who was keen to point out the odd-couple nature of the situation, the Global Plastic Shopping Bag Commitment stands to make a serious dent in the plastic shopping bag waste by big box mega-retailer Wal-Mart. How much waste will be avoided:

One-Third Per Store Plastic Bag Reduction by 2013
Granted the qualifying word “potentially” prefaced this next figure in the public announcement, but this commitment could eliminate 9 million plastic shopping bags per year from Wal-Mart stores. To do this EDF will help Wal-Mart develop strategies for recycling, reusing and reducing the use of plastic bags in its stores by an average of one-third per store, from 2008 levels, by 2013.

An estimated 290,000 tonnes of carbon emissions and energy consumption equal to 678,000 barrels of oil will be eliminated through this action.

Specific Measures That EDF Will Be Taking 
Proving scientific advice to Wal-Mart on the environmental impact of plastic bag use, as well as quantifying the carbon footprint of alternative bags and packing options.

Assist in developing educational materials for Wal-Mart customers.

Evaluating Wal-Mart projections for program’s environmental benefits.

Monitor and assess the project’s progress.

:: Clinton Global Initiative

Clinton Global Initiative
3500 MW of Green Power in India, China to be Developed by Suzlon Green Power
Clinton Global Initiative Highlights: Old World is Oil, New World is Renewables

Plastic Bags
Encinitas, CA – Latest City to Ban Plastic Bags
Paper Bags or Plastic Bags? Everything You Need to Know

Source:

“Wal-Mart Goes on a Plastic Diet: 9 Million Plastic Bags to Be Eliminated From Waste Stream“, treehugger.com, Business & Politics, Matthew McDermott, 25th Sept 2008

Green Tech in “Formula Zero” Race

Delft University’s Greenchoice leads the newly established table The world’s first international hydrogen-powered motorsport race was held in Rotterdam this weekend. Dubbed the Formula Zero championship, the contest pitted teams from five countries against each other in a zero-emissions go-kart race. Each team’s entry was powered by a commercial fuel cell that produces electricity from hydrogen. A Dutch team won the endurance event, while a Spanish team clinched the award for fastest lap. Peak power Founded by Dutch motorsport enthusiasts Godert van Hardenbroek and Eelco Rietveld, Formula Zero is already recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, the world’s motorsport governing body. The championship consisted of several events, with teams from the UK, US, the Netherlands, Spain, and Belgium competing for the top honour: zeroth place. The events included a sprint race, won by a Spanish team called EuplatecH2 with a lap time of 36 seconds. In the endurance event, the Greenchoice Forze team from Delft University took the zeroth place on the podium.   Formula Zero looks set to green up motorsport That puts the Delft team on top in the standings. In third place was Imperial College London’s team Imperial Racing Green, who proved to have the most reliable entry if not eventually the fastest. “In 10 years if the motorsport industry as a whole hasn’t engaged in zero or low emission principles, it probably won’t be around,” said Greg Offer, who headed up the Imperial team. “Teams that embrace this new technology early on will succeed, and those that don’t will fall by the wayside.” Racing excitement won’t suffer, though; Dr. Offer says that fuel-cell powered vehicles don’t represent a compromise in performance over traditional petrol-fuelled engines. “With a combustion engine, you have to reach three or four thousand rev[olutions per minute] to get your peak power,” he says. “With an electric vehicle, it’s all there from standing, and they’re more efficient.” It is expected that the class will grow to Formula Three standard and then full-size racing class as interest in green motoring escalates. The next event will be held in the US in March. In 2009 the Formula Zero championship will comprise four races.

Forbes Magazine on the Fifth Fuel

by Lloyd Alter, for treehugger.com, 17th July 2008

Forbes Magazine has produced a special report on a subject dear to our hearts, efficiency, the fifth fuel. Amory Lovins kicks it off with The Case for Efficiency:

“Using smarter technologies, more brains and less money to wring more work from less delivered energy–what energy experts call “end-use efficiency”–is the largest, cheapest, safest, cleanest, fastest, most diverse, least visible, least understood and most neglected way to provide energy services.”

Its photo essay with ten efficiency bangs for your buck include green roofs, building orientation, but surprisingly, from a business magazine known as “the Capitalist Tool” and owned by a right wing perennial presidential candidate, such un-American ideas as bicycles and following the speed limit.

Another article looks at the ten most fuel efficient neighbourhoods in America, which turn out to include Brooklyn Heights and Koreatown in Los Angeles.

We are thrilled to see such a mainstream and relatively conservative publication making such a big deal about the best and cheapest energy source we have- efficiency. ::Forbes : The Fifth Fuel

TreeHugger on Efficiency
Poor Energy Habits Slug Households $300 Million a Year
Graphic Of The Day: USA Residential Energy Consumption Outpacing Population Growth
It’s The Efficiency, Stupid: New York Times Gets It Right This Time
Beating the Energy Efficiency Paradox (Part I)
Superconducting Cables Beat Back NIMBY

Singapore: Student Protest Earns Temporary Reprieve for Banyan

(Photo Credit: Mr. Hepe on flickr. Tree in photo not the particular one below-mentioned)

by Sheralyn Tay for Mediacorp News, Singapore

sheralyn@mediacorp.com.sg

THE old banyan tree has sheltered hundreds of students under its green
canopy for years.

So when student Dani Guy, 15, learned it was to be felled yesterday to
make way for a new building at the Tanglin Trust School, she was
“extremely” upset. Today understands that staff found out only on
Wednesday that the tree was to be cut down the following day. The students
were not informed.

Dani, a student for 12 years at the school, said: “The school has been on
the site (at Portsdown Road) for 30 years, and the tree had been there
long before then … it could be 100 years old. It’s been very significant
in the school’s history and there are a lot of memories associated with
it.”

She spoke yesterday to headmaster and CEO Steven Andrews before class
started, showing him old yearbook photos “to make sure he could appreciate
the history the tree has”.

By mid-morning, news of the tree’s fate had spread. “Some of us went down
to the tree (now surrounded by a fence due to upgrading works) … we just
stood and sat in front of the tree throughout morning break,” said Dani.
Their silent protest has brought only a brief reprieve: Plans have been
postponed just a week.

“One of the people from management said it was inevitable,” said Dani.

In a statement yesterday evening, the school said necessary expansion
meant “tough decisions” had to be made and all alternatives had been
examined. “The school is actively seeking expert advice on how to save
part of the tree with a view to relocating it on the campus,” it read.

The school, which has promised “compensatory planting”, is also
considering ways for students, staff and parents to “mark the rite of
passage” of the tree, recognised as “a symbol of Tanglin’s history”.

It is not enough to satisfy Dani: “I don’t think you can plant anything
that can make up for this tree. It was what they told us today to make up
for it; I think it was in response to our actions. But it does not excuse
the fact they did not tell us about the news beforehand.”

Here’s another article on the same issue:

Tanglin Trust school says tree needs to be cut for new building. Students protest: Tree part of our history. It may look like just an ordinary old tree to some.

by Veena Bharwani for the Electric New Paper on 5th July 2008

IT may look like just an ordinary old tree to some.

But to Tanglin Trust School student Danielle Guy, 15, the three-storey tall Ficus microcarpa (banyan) tree with its buttress roots, is a part of the school’s history.

So when she heard that it is being cut down, she along with more than 30 others and several staff members of the international school, stood in front of the tree yesterday at lunch time to stage a silent protest.

The tree, which has a 30m wide trunk, has been at the school’s Portsdown Road premises for more than 20 years.

It is located behind the school campus.

The school management told The New Paper that they had decided to fell the tree because the area around it is being used to extend part of the school building to accommodate more students.

Currently, the school has 2,250 students and is looking to increase its enrolment to 3,000 by 2012.

The management consulted NParks before deciding to fell the tree. It will be cut down in due course.

However, Danielle and the others felt that cutting down the tree is like chopping away part of the school’s history.

She said: ‘I’ve been in this school for 12 years, ever since I was 3 years old and the tree has been there.

‘When I was 7, I used to swing by the tree’s long vines and have even collected insects around it for science experiments.’

‘The tree is the school,’ she added.

Upon hearing from a staff member on Wednesday that the tree will be cut down, Danielle decided to gather evidence to try and save it.

‘I only heard about it at 6pm on Wednesday. I looked through 15 old school magazines to gather information on how important the tree is to the school.

‘I found a school prospectus that had the tree’s picture on its cover and as the background of its every page.’

Her father Graeme Guy, 55, a biochemist, added: ‘I asked her if she was prepared to do this alone and she said ‘yes’, as she felt very strongly about it.’

Armed with evidence and arguments, Danielle met the headmaster yesterday morning to present her case.

She said: ‘I told him that as one of the older students in the school, it was my responsibility to try and prevent it from happening as it was a big part of the school’s history.

‘As part of the school curriculum, we learn about environmental conservation and we feel that the management is sending mixed signals to us by deciding to cut down the tree.’

Danielle, however, didn’t succeed in her appeal. The headmaster told her that the tree has to go.

She said: ‘I came out of the office crying and I told my classmates about it. They said why not stand in front of the tree to show our support for it.’

Within two hours, the entire school was buzzing with the news of the tree’s fate.

Some students had even made a poster to rally support for the tree to stay, she said.

Danielle’s classmate, who declined to be named, said: ‘We wanted to express our feelings about the decision to cut the tree down.’

In a staff briefing yesterday, the CEO of Tanglin Trust School, Mr Steven Andrews, explained that the decision to remove the tree was not something that was taken lightly and was only considered after all possible alternatives had been examined.

In an e-mail response to The New Paper yesterday, a school spokesman explained that demand for places at the school has grown significantly over the past few years, with waiting lists for places across the board.

The latest expansion – a new five-storey building – is designed to enable all students who are currently studying in the schools’ junior level (7 to 11 years) to enter the senior school and continue their studies up through to the Sixth Form (16 to 18 years).

And in consultation with NParks, the management decided to remove the tree to make way for the expansion.

However, the spokesman added that the school is ‘actively seeking expert advice on how to save part of the tree with a view to relocating it on the campus’.

My Input:

A very sad story, with likely no happy ending. It is heart-warming that the students do care for their culture, heritage, history of their school, and for their memories. It seems there’s reason for hope in some of Singapore’s youths.

New Thin-film Solar Cell Coater Reaches 1GW Annual Output

by Matthew McDermott, Brooklyn, NY on 19th June ’08 for treehugger.com

What you’re watching above is a new thin-film coater from Nanosolar in action. The San Jose-based company calls the machine a “milestone in solar technology” and while usually such language is standard PR hyperbole, considering that 10-30MW in annual production through other methods is usual, the 1 gigawatt annual throughput of this coater really is a cut above.

Nanosolar says the way in which it can achieve such high levels of production is through its proprietary nanoparticle ink, which allows them simply print their highly efficient (up to 14.5%) solar cells at rates up to 100 feet per minute.

The cost of the coater is $1.65 million, which is significantly less expensive that vacuum process tools, as well as being much faster in operation.

Nanosolar began shipping its first panels last December.

:: Nanosolar

Other Links by treehugger.com
EDF Energies Nouvelles Invests $50M in Nanosolar
Nanosolar: Printing Solar Film Like Paper
19.9%: New Thin Film Solar Efficiency Record
Sharp Invests $725 Million in 480 MW Thin-Film Solar Plant

See Also from The Green Guy Blog:

New Solar Cell Rivals Silicon-Based Ones

(Another article on Thin-film Solar Cells except from another company. Tells you a lot about the competition in this field yea?)