Tag Archives: energy

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Fracking, superstorm​s, and science: What you don’t know can hurt you


Fracking information toolkit

How will my city hold up against the next superstorm? What’s the truth about the effect of fracking on my drinking water? These days our communities are faced with more and more complex issues. To make smart decisions that protect the health, welfare, and environment of our communities, we need access to current, accurate scientific information. With tools like our recently-released fracking information toolkit that helps citizens and policy makers make informed decisions on hydraulic fracturing (fracking), and our upcoming webcasted forum on how communities can improve prediction, response, and recovery in the face of extreme weather events—UCS is working to integrate science into community decision making so we can better plan for a healthier and safer future. —Karla

Fracking Secret Sauce
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Ask a Scientist
Gretchen Goldman
Analyst
Scientific Integrity Initiative

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 “With all the polarized discussion about fracking in the news lately, what does the evidence and data actually tell us about the risks associated with this extraction process for oil and natural gas?”—P. Simon, Oscoda, MI Technological advances such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (commonly known as “fracking”) have resulted in the rapid expansion of unconventional oil and gas extraction from shale and other tight rock formations that had been previously deemed inaccessible or too costly to tap. Fracking for oil and natural gas has now expanded into some 28 U.S. states, creating new risks in new places including drinking-water contamination, air pollution, and earthquake risks. MORE
This Just In
Hurricane Sandy One Year Later Join us: What can your community learn from New Jersey?
One year after Hurricane Sandy devastated communities on the east coast, UCS invites you to join us for a forum to learn from New Jersey’s circumstances and experience. Discover strategies that can help coastal states throughout the country use the latest available research to make smart planning decisions as we brace for more damaging storms in the future. MORE
Science in Action
Join the conversation about fracking Fracking: You can help separate fact from fiction
When it comes to air and water quality, we can’t play around with the facts. Join UCS experts on October 17 to explore the pressing questions on people’s minds about fracking and its impact on communities. Using our new report findings, we’ll discuss the barriers that people face in trying to find this information, and offer some needed steps to overcome these obstacles. Join our web-based conversation today.
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

These energy efficiency rules would save you money and cut carbon emissions


The White House

Energy efficiency is one of the clearest and most cost-effective ways we have to save families money, make our businesses more competitive, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In the President’s first term, the Energy Department established new standards, and they’re producing huge results. New efficiency rules for dishwashers, refrigerators, and other products will cut consumers‘ electricity bills by hundreds of billions of dollars through 2030 — and save enough energy to power more than 85 million homes for two years.

Now we’re building on that: Proposed rules from the Department of Energy could cut energy bills by nearly $28 billion and cut emissions by over 350 million metric tons of CO2 over 30 years. That’s like taking nearly 109 million new cars off the road for a year. Put another way, the energy saved is equal to the amount of electricity used by 50 million homes in a year.

That’s some serious progress, and we could use your help to spread the word.

Find out more about what we’re doing to save consumers money and reduce carbon emissions — then forward this email to get out the message.
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

The fastest growing source of power in the United States


Check out this wind energy infographic

The White House

Climate Change

The Department of Energy recently released two new reports that make one thing clear: We’re hitting record highs for U.S. wind energy production and manufacturing.

Wind energy is the fastest growing source of power in the United States — representing more than 40 percent of all new U.S. electric generation capacity in 2012. We’ve more than doubled wind and solar power generation in the past four years.

President Obama has made clear that the growth of clean, renewable wind energy is a critical part of his Climate Action Plan, and we’re committed to seeing wind energy production double once again.

Check out the role wind energy is playing in the infographic below, or visit Energy.gov for more.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Pledge to slay your energy vampires


Help power a billion more Acts of Green

A Billion Acts of Green® has been a huge success. We are now well on our way to collecting two billion Acts of Green. Thank you for all your contributions!

Over the next several months, we will be unveiling new actions to help you reduce your carbon footprint and live more sustainably. Stay tuned each month for new ideas about how you can make a difference!earthdaylogo

Today, we are proud to introduce our first action of the series: Slaying Vampire Energy. Even when appliances are turned off, they still consume electricity, called “Vampire Energy.” Each year, vampire energy is estimated to cost US consumers $11 billion. Since the majority of electricity is produced by fossil fuel power plants, vampire energy is also responsible for millions of tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year!

Fortunately, there are several easy steps we can take to cut down on vampire energy. Unplug appliances and chargers when they are not in use, plug appliances into power strips, which can be easily turned on and off with one button, or replace old appliances with energy efficient models.

Make the pledge to reduce the amount of electricity wasted in your home today! Tell your friends! And be sure to engage with us on Twitter: #ActOfGreen. Together, we will form an active network of people striving to live more sustainably.

— The Earth Day Network Team