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What Renewable Energy can DO … Power the World

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77 1 Comment

by RAN … Rainforest Action Network

renewables

Fossil fuels are finite, dirty, and dangerous. In 2010, the investment bank HSBC published a white paper that speculated that even under the rosiest scenarios, the world only has 50-year supply of oil left. That’s why oil companies are drilling offshore and in the Arctic—the easily accessible oil is already used up.

Fortunately, we have the technologies right now to begin our transition to an energy system powered by a green energy—one that is powered by renewable energy source like wind, solar, and geothermal. The transition to these solutions, coupled with improved energy efficiency, will create new jobs, decrease our exposure to toxic pollutants like mercury, and help to solve the climate crisis.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published a report in 2010 that examined 164 different energy scenarios and found that with the right policies in place, renewable energy can supply up to 43% of energy in 2030 and 77% in 2050. Togehter with improved energy efficiency, we would be well on our way to a zero carbon world.

We are already making significant progress, but there is so much work left to do. In the U.S. in 2010, renewable energy accounted for just 10.9% of U.S. domestic primary energy production, but that is an increase of 5.6% over 2009. In the same period, China added 29 gigawatts (GW) of grid-connected renewable capacity, for a total of 252 GW, an increase of 13% compared over the previous year.

To make a world powered by renewable energy, we need the right policies in place to incentivize the use of clean energy. Policies such as renewable energy standards (only 30 states in US have one now), feed-in tariffs, and a true price on carbon will speed up the transition. We also need the corporate sector to help lead by cleaning up their carbon footprints and by championing strong governmental to help move us forward.

Solar: The Power of the Sun

Solar works in multiple ways: Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels convert sunlight directly into electricity; and concentrated solar power (CSP) uses mirrors to concentrate sunlight onto receivers that collect the solar energy and convert it to heat energy that powers a steam turbine.

Globally, solar PV capacity has increased by a factor of seven in five years. As an example of change look at California, where a mix of policies is making renewable energy the standard. The California utility Southern California Edison requested in June 2010 approval for 20 solar PV projects. The project would generate approximately 567 GWh of energy in all – and would do it for less than the cost of natural gas!

Change is in the Wind

Wind turbines, some of which stand as tall as 300 feet, create electricity by using the wind to turn their blades which power an electric generator. The US Department of Energy estimates that wind alone can power 20 percent of the US grid with 10 years.

China is leading the world in the installation of wind turbines, and at the end of 2010 it had installed an amazing 41.8 GW of wind energy. The US is scaling up its use of wind as well, with project springing up in the MidWest and Texas at record speed. In 2010, the Department of Energy approved an offshore wind project that will power an amazing 1.9 million U.S. homes.

Geothermal

Geothermal power plants naturally heat water and create steam to drive a flash steam plant to make electricity. The steam can be as hot as use 360°F (182°C)! The US is the world leader for installed geothermal electricity capacity and generation, but the country has just scratched the surface of what geothermal can provide. In past two years in the U.S. geothermal capacity has growth more than 3%, and the Department of Energy estimates that geothermal can power the grid with 15,000 MWs of new capacity within the next ten years.

Using Energy More Efficiently

Part of solving the energy puzzle is using the energy we already use more efficiently. Insulation, painting our roofs white, passive solar design, and compact fluorescent lights, which use two-thirds less energy and may last 6 to 10 times longer than incandescent lights, are just a few examples of technolgies that can save energy. In fact, the International Energy Agency has said that improved energy efficiency in buildings, industrial processes and transportation could reduce the world’s energy needs by one third by 2050, putting us far down the path to a saving the climate.

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The Dirty Dozen?

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

We know that you try to live an environmentally friendly lifestyle, but could your utility company be harming the planet? Please read this important message from our friends at Pear Energy to learn how you can support clean energy. Thank you for all you do.
-The Care2 Campaign Team

Is your utility in the Dirty Dozen?

Find Out Here

Here’s a wild guess for you: your utility company does not share your environmental and social commitments. And another guess: we do share your values at Pear Energy. That’s why I’m inviting you to sign up with Pear now.

Pear Energy released the Dirty Dozen Report, detailing the worst utility emitters. Did your utility make the list?

Even if your utility is not among the rock-bottom losers of the lot, it is still certain that it relies on burning coal, fracking for natural gas, or operating unsafe nuclear plants to supply you with electricity. If we are going to win the fight to control climate change, your utility is simply part of the problem.

By Contrast:

Pear Energy is an easy way to have clean wind and solar energy produced and addedto the grid for the exact amount of your energy usage;

We only deliver friendly, efficient and reliable customer service;

We stick to our Fair Price Promise of transparency and reasonable prices.Buying clean energy does cost a little more, but just a little more — around the cost of a cup of coffee per week;

Pear Shares — We contribute to organizations that share our dedication to ecological sanity and full employment;

We have a no-hassle satisfaction policy — if you are unhappy, we’ll switch you back with no switching costs and no service interruptions.

Because your current utility owns the power lines to your home, it will continue to read your meter and deliver your electricity. With Pear Energy, you’ll get the same reliable service, but with the knowledge that you are buying into the solution, not the problem.

Signing up for Pear Energy now is one thing you can do right away. Just click here to visit our website and your efforts will be almost complete.

Bob Pollin

Founder and President, PEAR

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Tips for Saving Energy During the Winter

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

Seal of the United States Department of Energy. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In the winter, when many people turn on their heaters and put up holiday lights, gas and electric bills can be much higher than usual.
According to the Department of Energy, a family spends more than $1,900 a year on electricity bills and other utilities. A big part of those costs come from wasted energy during those cold months.
However, you can save on winter energy costs if you make some changes in certain areas of your home. Get tips to save energy and money this winter.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

“We can’t feed our children oil.”

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

Português | Español | Deutsch | More

Patricia Gualinga, fearless Kichwa leader”We can’t feed our children oil.” She stops, her eyes turning up toward an electric rainforest sky. She knows there’s another way.

Meet Patricia Gualinga, a Kichwa leader from the Ecuadorian Amazon and one of the most courageous women I’ve had the honor of meeting anywhere. Many miles up the winding Bobonaza River deep in rainforest lives Patricia’s community, the Kichwa people of Sarayaku. They call themselves the People of the Zenith, stemming from an ancient prophecy of their ancestors claiming that Sarayaku would be a pillar of territorial, cultural, and spiritual defense – a beacon of light as strong as the sun the moment it reaches the highest point above their forest lands.

“When others have surrendered, Sarayaku will not back down!” And then they prove it again and again, continuously beating back oil drilling plans on their lands, winning landmark cases in the highest international courts, and rising to symbolize indigenous resistance in the Amazon and around the world. Their recent history nothing less than tumultuous, starting in 1996 when the Ecuadorian government imposed oil concession blocks in their territory without permission from the 1,200 people who live there. Communities only learned that their land had been opened for oil exploration when strange helicopters arrived, followed by “men with guns.” But instead of becoming another environmental war tragedy, the story of Sarayaku has been one of fierce resistance.

For years, Patricia has been on the front lines of Sarayaku’s struggle, a key protagonist in the recent historic indigenous rights victory at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and an incredible leader of a rapidly-growing movement of women defending the Amazon.

“We want the Amazon to be valued for what it is, not just an economic resource,” she declares with a confidence and grace that seems contagious to hundreds of Amazonian women rising with her. “We are standing up for our lives, yours, the entire world and for the lives of our future generations!”

Patricia’s story is one of hope, fearlessness and determination. That Sarayaku beacon pours bright through glinting eyes, illuminating just one of the many courageous leaders Amazon Watch joins forces with daily in the fight for forests, the climate, future generations…for life.

The struggle is not over for the people of Sarayaku, for Patricia, or for the hundreds of women warriors mobilizing in defense of their lands and lives. Sarayaku’s triumphs rest largely on their great success in building unity in their community and a strong network of national and international allies. For the past decade Amazon Watch has joined Sarayaku in efforts to assert their rights and prevent oil development on their ancestral lands, and we’ll continue to support them with your help.

In support of fearless women warriors of the Amazon,

Caroline Bennett
Communications Director

Black History

the Senate CONGRESS 11/22 the House

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

The Senate will convene at 2:00pm on Monday, December 9, 2013.

Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 4:00pm with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of S.1197, the National Defense Authorization to allow the Chairman and Ranking Member to provide a status update on the bill.

At 5:00pm, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session to consider Executive Calendar #327, the nomination of Patricia Ann Millett, of Virginia, to be United States Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit, post-cloture. There will be up to 30 minutes of debate equally divided and controlled in the usual form. At 5:30pm, all post-cloture time will be expired and there will be a roll call vote on confirmation of the Millett nomination.

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Last Floor Action:
10:05:59 A.M. – The Speaker announced
that the House do now adjourn pursuant to S. Con. Res. 28. The next meeting is
scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on December 2, 2013.

Last Floor Action:
2:43:30 P.M. – The House adjourned
pursuant to a previous special order.

The next meeting is scheduled for 10:00
a.m. on November 22, 2013.

10:00:24 A.M.		The House convened, starting a new legislative day.
10:00:34 A.M.		The Speaker designated the Honorable Thomas E. Petri to act as Speaker pro tempore for today.
10:00:54 A.M.		Today’s prayer was offered by Reverend John Robert Skeldon, Diocese of Fort Worth, Fort Worth, Texas.
10:02:29 A.M.		The Chair announced that pursuant to section 2(a) of H. Res. 420, the Journal of the last day’s proceedings was approved.
10:02:32 A.M.		PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – The Chair led the House in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
10:02:55 A.M.		The House received a message from the Clerk. Pursuant to the permission granted in Clause 2(h) of Rule II of the Rules of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Clerk notified the House that she had received a message from the Secretary of the Senate on November 21, 2013 at 5:39 p.m. stating that that body had agreed to S. Con. Res. 28.
10:03:22 A.M.	S. Con. Res. 28	Considered as privileged matter. S. Con. Res. 28 — “Providing for a conditional adjournment or recess of the Senate and an adjournment of the House of Representatives.”
10:04:41 A.M.	S. Con. Res. 28	On agreeing to the resolution Agreed to without objection.
10:04:46 A.M.	S. Con. Res. 28	Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
10:05:59 A.M.		The Speaker announced that the House do now adjourn pursuant to S. Con. Res. 28. The next meeting is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on December 2, 2013.