Madera Joins Ranks Of Solar-Powered Treatment Plants

More cities and special districts are using the sun to help power their water-treatment plans in an effort to reduce energy costs.



As this story from Sign On San Diego notes, water is heavy and has to be moved around a lot. Plus, water plants have plenty of room for solar panels and suck up much power.

One project in San Diego has 4.3 acres of solar panels, and more agencies are getting into the game. In Santa Cruz, thousands of solar panels at three water treatment plants will shave $1 million off power bills over 25 years, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported.

Madera city officials are using 94 panels mounted on a dual-axis structure that tracks the sun movements. Over 20 years, the city will cut about $3 million off its sewage-treatment power bill, according to The Fresno Bee.

Expect more projects like these.

Roads As Energy Producers! Not As Crazy As It Sounds

Rooftops, light poles and bus shelters are doubling as power generators, so is it really such a stretch to think that roadways could do the same thing? Thousands of miles of roads in this nation bake under hot temperatures. Surely there is a way to tap into that.

There is. Scientific American has already written about it, and Clean Technica has a fascinating piece on how researchers are starting to harvest energy from America's roads. Researchers in Rhode Island say solar panels can be affixed to median barriers and the little strip of roadway alongside them.

Existing technology also could heat the underside of bridges, melting ice and creating a power source for nearby buildings and power plants. There also is research into using new materials - think pig poop - to make roads, thus relying less on petroleum-based products.

California Gov.-elect Jerry Brown is thinking along the same lines. He wants to boost the state's green-energy profile and creating a solar highway is one way to do that, he says in his new jobs plan.

Political and budget challenges are ample, and who knows where all this will lead. But California has severe water and air pollution problems, and voters in the recent election sent a message that a future with clean energy is important to them.

Global warming -- or cooling aerosols?

The subject of global warming remains a political hazard largely due to its perceived uncertainty and the drastic solutions proposed to keep it at bay.

Energy companies believe fossil fuels are king and reject measures that would hamstring their dominance, while renewable energy gurus say, "Too bad, it's gotta be done."

Meanwhile, J.Q. Voter, wavers. He likes clean air but wants a stable economy, jobs and the San Francisco Giants back in the World Series.

"Where the proof?" he asks.

The California Air Resources Board and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration believe they can track down a piece of the answer through a relatively massive project measuring the pollutants and greenhouse gases fouling California's once azure skies. The $20 million CalNex project dispatched airplanes, ships and researchers to, as officials said, "examine the nexus between air pollution and climate change."

The project took three years to plan. Monitoring started in early May and continued through June, involving four airplanes, NOAA's ocean-going research ship the Atlantis, two land-based air monitoring super sites -- one in Kern County -- and more than 150 highly trained scientists.

Eileen McCauley, manager of the research division at the Air Board, said she expects some preliminary results from the CalNex 2010 study will be presented at the American Geophysical Union Conference in San Francisco in December. She said the California Air Resources Board plans to continue research to produce a report for policy makers on CalNex findings.

The follow-up report is meant to address "emissions (both greenhouse gases and ozone and aerosol precursors), important atmospheric transformation and climate processes, and transport and meteorology," according to documents.

Determining the effects of a warming environment is complex in the extreme. The white paper describing the CalNex project touches on the difficulty researchers have determining how to separate out the cloud of cooling aerosols over population centers from the warming swirling nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds and microscopic particulates.

But just about anybody who spent any time around the subject realizes it won't be easy to solve or explain. Our habits as consumers, travelers and entrepreneurs have led us down a comfortable path. Now that road looks a little like the a highway in Canada's Yukon Territories at night in a snowstorm at 35 below -- uncertain at best.

350.org explains that scientists believe that 350 parts per million of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the safe limit for humanity, but the site places the current level at 388 ppm.

“The goal is to provide decision makers with the information they need to develop win/win strategies that address both climate and air quality,” said A.R. Ravishankara, director of NOAA’s Chemical Sciences Division, in a statement.

Officials said the CalNex data will help scientists better understand atmospheric-chemical transformations and climate processes and help the Air Board measure greenhouse gases, traditional air pollutants and their causes.

But don't expect miracles even after results are posted and regulations announced. Coming to terms with the state of the environment is something many of us would rather avoid. The answer might mean we'd have to adapt.

Not that it can't be done. It's just not easy.

Feds Unveil Energy Efficiency Recommendations

We here at the San Joaquin Valley Clean Energy Organization tout the power of energy- efficiency improvements. Changing windows, adding insulation, sealing air ducts, installing efficient lighting and other upgrades can go a long way toward reducing power bills.

Such improvements - the industry calls them "retrofits" - are the low-hanging fruit of the green-energy movement. It's been shown time after time that a minimum investment can result in maximum returns. At my house in Fresno - where summer temperatures hit triple digits and the air conditioner runs all day - the power bill is the second-largest expense behind the mortgage.

If I can cut energy expenses, I save money. It sounds so simple, but the federal Department of Energy says energy conservation is not a pressing issue for most people. So, the agency is trying to come up with a plan that would encourage energy conservation among homeowners.

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have unveiled some recommendations for prodding homeowners down the energy-efficiency path, and for guiding the government's future efficiency programs.

• Sell something people want: identify an issue such as health, financial savings, energy security or comfort to attract public interest;


• Target the audience and tailor messages accordingly. A blanket marketing campaign won't work;


• Partner with local organizations and local leaders, and build on existing relationships;


• Language is powerful: avoid using words such as "retrofit" and "audit." Focus instead on concrete examples, personalize the material and frame statements in terms of loss rather than gain;


• Contractors can be used as program ambassadors;


• Make it easy, make it fast: package incentives, minimize paperwork and pre-approved contractors;


• Repeat the message: advertising studies show that people need to be hit with a message at least three times before being convinced. Energy efficiency can be a tough sell because homeowners have to spend money to reap the benefits. Plan a multilayered campaign;


• Rebates, financing and other incentives do matter;


• A well-qualified workforce is essential: promoting a program before contractors can handle the workload leads to disgruntled customers;


• Be patient: programs need to last for more than a year or two to be successful;


• Use pilot programs to test strategies.

Lawrence Berkeley's report came out one day after Vice President Joe Biden unveiled a new federal program that offers certified contractors new software to show how much energy homeowners are wasting and to offer low-cost financing to finance improvements.

Dubbed "Recovery Through Retrofit" (thus going against the recommendation listed above to abandon the phrase "retrofit"), the software produces an energy score for each homeowner.

Biofuel & batteries bolster Golden State

Manufacturers of sorghum biofuel, electric trucks and lithium-ion battery packs are among eight to receive about $9.6 million in grants from California, reportedly producing a potential 2,500 jobs.

The money comes from the California Energy Commission's Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Transportation program and is reported to be beefed up with $11,969,855 in private funds.

Energy Commissioner Anthony Eggert said in statement the idea is to tap partnerships to rebuild California's manufacturing base. The projects, he said, "will improve California's economy and its environment by fostering green, clean advancements in transportation."

The projects include:

Great Valley Energy LLC gets about $2 million to test sweet sorghum as a biofuel crop. The salt-tolerant crop needs one-third less water than cotton or corn and can yield as much ethanol per bushel as corn. Match funding of about $2 million will help install a pilot sorghum separation and testing facility in Hanford. "If the testing is successful, the team will consider building smaller-scale ethanol plants distributed across the Valley to be close to the sorghum fields to lower transportation costs," officials said. Each of the commercial refineries could create an additional 20 jobs. By 2020, Great Valley Energy estimates it could have 15 small dispersed plants. Total annual production would be more than 47 million gallons.

Here is the Green of Brown's Jobs Plan

Now that Jerry Brown has prevailed and gets a do-over as California's governor, we are posting the green portion of his jobs plan. It's on his Website, but here is a link to it.

It calls for investment in renewable energy, which he says produces up to three times as many jobs per dollar as gas, oil and coal, and in energy efficiency - "the cheapest, fastest and most reliable way to create jobs, save consumers money and cut pollution from the power sector."

Here are the highlights of the plan, which, of course, is constrained by an economic recession and multibillion-dollar deficit:

• Develop 12,000 megawatts of local energy by 2020 by installing solar systems on roofs of warehouses, parking structures, schools and other commercial buildings; putting solar panels along state highways; and through a feed-in tariff program of incentive payments for power projects;


• Prepare a renewable-energy plan that speeds permitting of the highest-priority generation and transmission projects;


• Reduce peak-energy demands and develop energy storage so that wind and solar energy, which is intermittent, can be used when needed;


• Establish a timeline and plan for new houses and commercial buildings to use onsite renewable energy;


• Continue the fight for Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs that enable property owners to finance energy upgrades through property tax assessments;


• Develop more cogeneration projects, using incentives;


• Appoint a clean-energy czar, directly accountable to the governor, to ensure that goals and deadlines are achieved.

Prop 23 failure irks industry

Reading the clean energy press and blogosphere, a reader would think the failure of California's Proposition 23 was foregone.

Not so. The petrochemical industry had a very different opinion of the move to postpone the state's climate change laws.

"It is the wrong medicine at the wrong time for California's ailing economy," said Charles T. Drevna, president of the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association, in a statement. "The defeat of Proposition 23 will hurt families across California by destroying jobs and raising the costs of gasoline, diesel fuel, electricity and more."

Proponents of California's Global Warming Solutions Act, or AB 32, say it's the best hope for reducing the build up of greenhouse gas and pollution in a state whose blue skies have often been colored gray or light brown.

However, the fourth paragraph of the initial press release issued by Drevna's group appear to offer a bone to AB 32 proponents. Drevna is quoted as saying:

"The severe economic pain and hardship caused by the extreme mandates of Proposition 23 will accomplish absolutely nothing positive in terms of climate change. They will result in the relocation of jobs and businesses from California to other states and other countries, along with the relocation of carbon emissions produced by those businesses and people. Since every state and nation on Earth share the same atmosphere, moving carbon from one location to another will not bring about any reduction in greenhouse gases."

Huh? (Sub AB 32 for Prop 23 in first sentence in paragraph above and it sounds better.)

I sent an email to the NPRA contact, and David Egner responded, "Thanks. Yes, we caught it and PR Newswire has put out a corrected release at my request."

I receive PR Newswire alerts for anything energy related and am on the mailing list for releases like this one. And after 24 years in the newspaper business, I know a misplaced word or keyboard strike can definitely be a pain.

Of course, electronic fixes are a lot faster than those in newsprint.

Photo courtesy NPRA

Energy efficiency movement gains steam

Energy efficiency doesn't boast the sex appeal of solar or wind power, but it gets results.

And influencing more people to champion the cause could siphon off a large resource of untapped energy savings. At least that's the conclusion of a study released this week by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, or ACEEE.

After all, the nation’s largest single user of energy -- accounting for about half -- is homes and commercial buildings, said William Fay, executive director of the Energy Efficient Codes Coalition, this week. Fay made his remarks at the Final Action Hearings for the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code in Charlotte, N.C. on Monday where building officials from across the country voted for a series of new building energy codes expected to improve energy efficiency in new buildings by 30 percent, according to BrighterEnergy.org.

The ACEEE study's authors said programs that motivate green behavior could lead to significant savings and should be implemented with greater zeal. "We need to design and build programs that change habits as well as light bulbs," they said.

The sentiment reflects that of Art Rosenfeld, the nuclear physicist and California energy commissioner, a pioneer and tireless advocate of energy efficiency. He was dubbed the Godfather of Green by KQED and told CBS news in a past interview that the United States' descent into an unrepentant energy guzzler can be explained simply: "Energy in the U.S. is dirt cheap. And what's dirt cheap is treated like dirt."

Rosenfeld adopted the position advocated by ACEEE early on, successfully working to change consumers' wasteful habits in California.

The state got the message -- with Rosenfeld's help -- back in the 1970s at the height of the anti-nuclear movement. To avoid building another reactor, the state went with energy efficiency, improving building and appliance standards. The result: the Rosenfeld Effect, which resulted in the flattening of the state's per capita energy use.

ACEEE's researchers made a number of recommendations for enhancing the acceptance of energy efficiency. One was increasing the visibility of energy using behaviors. One particular program, already offered by PG&E's smart meters, allows consumers to see more clearly how much power they consume.

The smart meter on my house enabled me to monitor power consumption of my new SEER 13 air conditioning unit. I had switched from an evaporative, or swamp cooler, and was worried about ballooning electric bills. Fortunately, those didn't come to pass, and my family was able to keep summer cooling bills relatively low, keeping the thermostat on 78 degrees.

We're still not great about dealing with vampire power -- the electronic devices all over the home constantly sucking energy and consuming as much or more than 10 percent of a home's power demand.

Changing habits can make a big difference to the environment, not just the bottom line. As Rosenfeld said, "To delay global warming, you get halfway there with efficiency."

Energy efficiency is what many refer to as the "low-lying fruit" in the move to clean energy. For instance, a recent report by Boulder, Colo.-based Pike Research estimates potential annual energy savings of more than $41.1 billion if all U.S. commercial space built as of 2010 were included in a 10-year retrofit program.

The next step in the clean energy movement is more costly.

Rosenfeld said renewables like solar and wind should be pursued once energy efficiency is addressed. "But renewables cost you money, while efficiency saves money," he said.

Merced College Picked To Share In Clean Energy Grant

Merced College will develop classes and training opportunites for students interested in the emerging green-energy industry thanks to a national grant that includes the San Joaquin Valley campus.

The college is one of nine schools in California picked to share a $3 million National Science Foundation grant. Merced College will receive $81,000 annually for four years for curriculum development, technical support, supplies and assistance.

College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita received the grant through its innovative California Regional Consortium for Engineering Advances in Technological Education (CREATE) program, which will provide technical help to Merced College and the others.

The other participating schools are Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo, College of the Canyons, Santa Barbara City College, Cerro Coso in Ridgecrest, Pierce College in Woodland Hills. In addition, Oxnard College, Porterville Community College and Lompoc High School are included.

Together, they will establish a regional "renewable energy center" to create training programs.

In Merced, the new center will work in conjunction with the college's established and expanding Industrial Technologies program, said James Andersen, dean of Career Technical Education and Agriculture.

The school also will create a "Green Council" of business representatives to help shepherd curriculum development.

(Photo by mccd.edu)

Veterans District Gets Biggest Solar Project In Clovis

A rescheduling of priorities is allowing directors of the Clovis Veterans Memorial District to get a solar electricity system that will shave more than $3 million off their power bills over the next 25 years.

Installation of the $1.3 million system on the Old Town building is being made possible by shifting work projects. It is believed to be the largest solar project in Clovis, according to stories in The Fresno Bee and The Business Journal..

That is yet another example of the region's increasing interest in solar and clean energy. In 2009, the Fresno-Clovis metropolitan area ranked second among California cities behind San Diego in the number of solar installations, The Bee reported.