According to the American Wind Energy Association, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) recently told wind power supporters that a House vote on a national renewable portfolio standard (RPS) was likely to happen the week of July 30.

A renewable portfolio standard – also called a renewable energy standard – is a measure requiring utilities to get a certain amount of their power from renewable sources by a particular time.

Last month in the Senate, Senator Jeff Bingaman’s (D-NM) RPS amendment to the energy bill was killed before a vote could be held. Although the current House version of the energy bill does not have an RPS provision, Representatives Tom Udall (D-NM) and Todd Platts (R-PA) are expected to offer an amendment requiring utilities to get 20 percent of their energy from renewables by 2020. This amendment is based on H.R. 969, which calls for an RPS and is also authored by Udall and Platts. (Make sure your Representative is one of the 120 co-sponsors here).

In her meeting with wind power supporters, Pelosi underscored the critical role an RPS would play in moving the nation towards global warming solutions.

According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, a 20 percent by 2020 RPS would save consumers nearly $11 billion on energy bills by 2030 and save nearly 2 billion short tons of coal from being burned up into the atmosphere. Similarly, the American Solar Energy Society found that an RPS could help create nearly 40 million new jobs in the U.S. by 2030 in the renewable energy and energy efficiency sectors.

It’s Getting Hot in Here
Union of Concerned Scientists
Wind Energy Weekly

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy recently released an energy efficiency scorecard for the states. In it, the ACEEE considered state-level policies, programs, and technologies and ranked the 50 states and the District of Columbia in eight categories:

1. Spending on Utility and Public Benefits Energy Efficiency Programs
2. Energy Efficiency Resource Standards
3. Combined Heat and Power
4. Building Energy Codes
5. Transportation Policies
6. Appliance and Equipment Efficiency Standards
7. Tax Incentives
8. State Lead by Example and Research & Development

The “State Energy Efficiency Scorecard for 2006” found that states are spending three times as much money on energy efficiency programs as the federal government. They’re also far ahead on appliance standards and building codes.

By documentng best practices and leadership across the county, a roadmap is created for states and other entities to learn from each other and work off of each other. Not to mention encouraging (perhaps) the federal government to catch up. The researchers at ACEEE found these states to have the best investment and policies on energy efficiency programs, codes, and standards in 2006:

1. Vermont, Connecticut, and California (tie)
2. Massachusetts
3. Oregon
4. Washington
5. New York
6. New Jersey
7. Rhode Island, Minnesota (tie)

ACEEE Acting Executive Director, Bill Prindle, described energy efficiency as a “first fuel” in the transition towards a clean energy economy. That is, the cheapest and cleanest energy is the energy we never have to use:

“Unless we accelerate the pace of efficiency investment, no clean energy strategy will work.”

Maybe Congress is taking some small steps: On Tuesday, the U.S. House voted 312-111 to increase programs that make cars and buildings more energy efficient, along with boosting research and development of clean energy. The vote count would in theory be large enough to overturn the promised veto by President Bush, who wants 4 percent less for the programs covered by the bill. The extra money in the bill would go towards research in wind, solar, geothermal, and hydropower power, as well as ethanol and biodiesel. It doesn’t include anything about the new, sturdier nuclear warhead Bush wanted included.

ACEEE
Associated Press, via Yahoo! News

A new study shows that renewable energy could save the world $180 billion dollars each year in fuel costs and cut emissions in half by 2050.

The European Renewable Energy Council teamed up with Greenpeace International to examine how much the planet would save in terms of energy and money by investing heavily in renewable energy. And by heavily, I mean taking all of the $250 billion of subsidies currently given to the coal and gas industries and switching to investments and policies that focus on renewable sources. That also means an extra global investment of $22 billion in clean, renewable power plants. But by changing direction, the global clean energy market could be worth an annual $288 billion by 2030, up from $50 billion in 2006, and we would drastically cut our global warming emissions.

Businesses and governments would see the cost savings by investing in resources like wind, solar, and geothermal power, as well as biofuels.

The report is the financial argument for Greenpeace’s "Energy Revolution" plan for how to cut the world’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 50 percent by 2050, while maintaining global economic growth.

Bloomberg, via the Financial Express
Environment News Service
The Sietch Blog

An 80 megawatt (MW) solar power plant – the world’s largest and big enough to power nearly 21,000 homes – will be built near Fresno, California.

A California-based startup company called Cleantech America LLC plans to build the solar farm. The company develops utility-scale solar plants and wants to commercialize photovoltaic (PV) solar technology in order to slow global warming and increase America’s energy independence.

The San Joaquin Valley Customer Choice Solar Farm (hopefully they’ll think of an acronym or something) is expected to be completed in 2011 and will cover 640 acres. That’s far larger than North America’s largest planned solar power plant in Nevada and double the size of the world’s largest solar project planned for Germany.

Cleantech’s CEO Bill Barnes told CNN that this project will make California the world’s clear leader in solar power, catapulting it ahead the current powerhouse, Germany:

“We’re pretty confident that solar farms on this scale are going to have an industry-changing impact. We think it’s the wave of the future. This scale of project, I think, creates a tipping point for renewable energy…the impact for it will be similar to the impact of the computer chip.”

The San Joaquin Valley is well-suited for a large solar project, according to Cleantech. Its good sun resources allow for power to be generated close to where it is needed and reduce the poor air quality that plagues the area. Producing power locally will also save on transmission costs that can drive up the price on out-of-state electricity.

According to the EPA, an 80 MW solar power plant would avoid up to 450 pounds of toxic mercury emissions and 100 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions each year – a major contributor to global warming. That’s the equivalent of keeping 20,000 vehicles off the road. The University of California at Berkeley found that the San Joaquin Valley could see considerable job creation if the growth of solar projects in the area continues; up to 1,040 installation and maintenance jobs and 1,600 solar manufacturing jobs may be created, mostly in the local vicinity.

Some significant hurdles remain. Namely, choosing one of five sites under consideration to locate the solar power project, connecting it to the transmission system, and contracting with a manufacturer to supply the PV panels. The California Energy Commission must certify the solar plant as a renewable energy source that doesn’t create pollution, and a number of local permits must be obtained.

Cleantech will partner with the California Construction Authority to build the plant and sell the energy to the Kings River Conservation District, a public agency that is the water management arm of the San Joaquin Valley Power Authority. The Power Authority was created in late 2006 to reduce the power now bought from investor-owned utilities like PG&E and Southern California Edison.

Cleantech America
CNN
Fresno Bee

Oregon’s legislative session went out with a bang. Building on the renewagble energy standard passed earlier this summer that requires 25 percent of energy to come from renewables by 2025, this week Governor Ted Kulongoski signed key solar power policies that will continue to encourage solar manufacturing and solar energy systems in the state.

For starters, the tax credit for solar power projects jumped from 35 percent of project costs to 50 percent. A tax exemption passed for solar net metered systems, and a provision requiring public buildings to set aside 1.5 percent of their construction budget to fund onsite solar power technologies also made it through.

Jon Miller, executive director of the Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association, explained why solar power is good for Oregon:

It's another example of how we're growing manufacturing in the northwest. We're now a powerhouse in the United States in solar manufacturing. Oregon's established and educated semiconductor workforce makes it a natural fit for the solar PV industry.

Solar business is booming in Oregon. Indeed, two manufacturers (Germany-based SolarWorld AG and California-based Solaicx) have already committed to the state, and overall the solar industry is growing more than 30 percent annually. Oregon ranks 5th in the U.S. for solar hot water systems and in the top 10 for photovoltaic (PV) systems. By 2009, Oregon is expected to be the largest producer of PV cells in the U.S.

Renewable Energy Access

Last week, the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee passed the Green Jobs Act of 2007 (HR 2847) by a vote of 26-18. Originally introduced by Congresswoman Hilda L. Solis (D-CA) and John Tierney (D-MA), the Green Jobs Act would authorize up to $125 million in funding to establish national and state job training programs for about 35,000 U.S. workers. These jobs training would help to address the shortages in green industries such as solar panel installation, building weatherization, and wind turbine maintenance.

Congresswoman Solis explained why the bill is important:

"… I know that we can achieve the goals of becoming energy independent and reducing our global warming emissions. But the strength of our nation’s economy depends on the availability of a highly skilled and well-trained work force. This legislation is an opportunity to advance not only the energy security of our nation, but also the economic security of our families.”

During committee deliberation, Democrats defeated a Republican amendment to include coal-to-liquid technologies. Fuel from liquid coal produces more than double the amount of global warming pollution as petroleum-based fuels and doesn't help to solve the climate change problem.

The Green Jobs Act is part of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s “Energy Independence Day” plan. Other parts of the plan include bills that would set new energy-efficiency standards for home appliances, require more efficient lighting, promote green buildings in the public and private sectors, provide long-term incentives for companies to invest in renewable energy, and spend $3.5 billion over five years to improve how the U.S. grows and produces biofuels.

Congresswoman Solis
Gristmill, via Topix
Tri-Valley Herald
Washington Post
The Green Options Interview: Van Jones

Photo Courtesy of Solaicx

Solaicx, a manufacturing company that produces high-efficiency silicon wafers for photovoltaic solar power, has announced a new facility planned for Portland, Oregon.

The 136,000-square-foot plant will produce silicon ingots, which are logs of pure silicon that get heated to high temperatures and sliced like lunch meat to make silicon wafers. The wafers are the semiconductor materials in solar panels. The process for producing and processing silicon wafers for solar power is difficult and expensive, but Solaicx claims it uses silicon more efficiently and thus creates a more cost-competitive product.

The plant will provide about 100 new green collar jobs and, by the time it reaches full capacity in 18 months, may produce enough material for 142 megawatts of solar panels.

Why Portland? The Oregon Department of Energy created a Solar Energy Working Group charged with developing and implementing a strategic plan to lure clean tech companies to Portland. Jeff Jones, Vice President of Manufacturing for Solaicx, said the state’s incentives were key in the company’s decision to locate there:

"We looked at the state of Oregon's generous financial incentives for renewable energy and Portland's deep base of skilled labor in silicon manufacturing, and decided that the port is an ideal place for our continued growth as a company. This welcoming atmosphere will allow us to meet our goals and rapidly ramp-up to full production by the end of 2008."

Although many manufacturing facilities are located in or are moving to China, precision manufacturing is expanding in the U.S., Japan, and Europe.

CNET News
Oregon Energy Model
Solaicx

What do you do when you’ve got a problem like communicating the need for renewable, efficient energy to hundreds of millions of people? Harness the web, of course.

SmartPower, a nonprofit marketing organization that promotes clean energy, used YouTube to form the Clean Energy Challenge. The aim was to create an ad for SmartPower around the belief that “clean energy is real. It’s here. And it’s working.”

After reviewing 150 submissions (not a ton, but not bad for such a wonky topic whose actors have virtually no chance of finding a mate on national TV), the $10,000 winner has been chosen. But in the true style of any reality show, the final results are drawn out over several days. The top 10 ads were posted on June 10th and for every day until the 18th one ad will be removed, finally leaving the “last ad standing” on Monday.

The winner will be announced via webcast at 5:00PM on June 18th and all finalists voted off are highlighted on the SmartPower Blog.

I was impressed with the quality of most of the finalists – these weren’t all made in someone’s basement. I’m a big fan of “Reading Light” and “Time Machine” because they made me laugh. And the kid in “It’s Your Choice” is really quite good. What's your favorite?

SmartPower

People of faith from around the globe are taking the lead on global warming solutions. Following on the heels of an alliance among some U.S. faith leaders to fight global warming, the Vatican has announced plans to install a giant solar power system.

The 1,000 solar panels will adorn the football-sized roof of the Paul VI audience hall, one of the top energy guzzlers in the sovereign city state. The solar system will be able to provide all the heating, cooling, and lighting needs of the entire building year-round, and any extra electricity generated will be fed back into the Vatican’s grid.

Pier Carlo Cuscianna, head of the Vatican’s department of technical services and mastermind of the project, was inspired by the calls of Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II to treat the planet with respect and their warnings that global warming will effect the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people.

This isn’t the first time the Vatican has shown leadership on clean energy. In 1999, the entire lighting system of St. Peter’s Basilica was refurbished with energy-efficient lighting, which cut its energy consumption by about 40 percent.

Although Vatican City is not a signatory of the Kyoto Protocol, the Catholic News Service reports that this solar project marks “a major move” to reduce its carbon-footprint and move away from its dependence on Italy’s power grid.

CathNews
Catholic News Service

Ontario, Canada is building one of the largest solar power plants in the world. More than a million photovoltaic solar panels will be constructed near Sarnia, Ontario, about 70 miles northeast of Detroit, MI. The 40 megawatt (MW) project – with panels erected as high as 23 feet off the ground – will power around 6,000 homes.

OptiSolar Farms of Canada, a subsidiary of California-based Opticsolar, Inc. was awarded the 20-year contract. The Ontario Power Authority will purchase the solar energy for 42 cent per kilowatt hour, a premium price that contributed to OptiSolar choosing Ontario for the massive project over its home base of California.

The company wouldn’t talk about the cost of the project for proprietary reasons, but they claim to have developed a way of mass-producing solar cells to dramatically lower the cost of the technology. Solar still isn’t cheap: some estimates put the cost of the plant at around $300 million. But you’ve got to start somewhere, and Ontario’s provincial government wants to make solar – typically a low-maintenance technology - a common energy source. From the Toronto Star:

“Deborah Doncaster, executive director of the Ontario Sustainable Energy Association, said the premium may seem high but is justified given the environmental benefits. She said it's often forgotten that solar-generated electricity tends to offset natural gas during peak periods when air conditioners are blasting and electricity rates are at their highest.”

This is a big solar step for Canada. The Sarnia project is 400 times larger than the country’s next biggest solar system. But even this project won’t be the world’s largest for long: Germany is planning a similar sized plant, and Australia announced funding for a proposed 154 MW solar plant to be online by 2013.

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Toronto Star, via Slashdot