Net-zero construction gains ground in U.S.

Apollo 11 touched down on the Sea of Tranquility with the world watching.

The date was July 20, 1969.

"Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed," the spacecraft announced. Some hours later Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong took man's first steps on the Moon followed closely by fellow spaceman Buzz Aldrin.

Their footprints at Tranquility Base likely remain, a small sign of a massive accomplishment.

NASA's back in the historic footprint game again but in an entirely different way. The space agency, now somewhat redirected and fiscally leaner with the closure of the Space Shuttle program, has been constructing a facility that takes inspiration for its name from Tranquility Base and seeks to be a landmark in another sense, leaving as little footprint as possible.

Here on Earth

Sustainability Base, at Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., has been dubbed NASA's latest mission on Earth. The facility has received LEED platinum certification, the highest level of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating by the U.S. Green Building Council. Its design incorporates natural lighting, shading and fresh air. The interior boasts non-toxic materials and is, according to NASA, "a living prototype for buildings of the future."

Clean energy marches toward maturity using traditional path

It's tempting to believe the political rhetoric over renewable energy and assume the industry is dying without ever grabbing a foothold. In reality, it is following a well-worn path traveled by emerging technologies for dozens of years.

 A new report from the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy at University of Tennessee compares the stutter-step progress of clean energy with that of the automobile and other industries. The report cites the Chief Strategist of Shell Oil as saying, "It takes about 30 years for any new energy source to attain 1% market share."

From the report: "Only in retrospect is technology change smooth. Within its own historical context, it is rough and uncertain with many false starts and byways. The social history of technology change is replete with stories of early technology adoption in unexpected niches. Often the early innovators are not the ones who profit from the process."

University teams square off for national clean energy finals

Northwestern University's team also won Rice competition.

The best and brightest minds at U.S. colleges squared off recently, gathering their collective intelligence, imagination and ideas in a competition to come up with the most formidable and commercially promising clean energy innovations.

The preliminary results have just been unveiled. Regional winners of the U.S. Department of Energy's National Clean Energy Business Plan Competition have been named. Northwestern University, University of Utah, University of Central Florida, MIT, Stanford University and Columbia University will go on to compete in the first national competition in Washington, D.C. in June.

"The winning teams have developed effective strategies for bringing innovative technologies into the market that will help keep America competitive in the global race for clean energy technologies," Energy Secretary Steven Chu says in a statement.

Each regional winner receives $100,000 in prizes.

PlanetSolar, solar catamaran, finishes round-the-world trip

Raphael Domjan, left, and M. Immo Stroher

Raphael Domjan is a modern-day Phileas Fogg.

Rather than circumnavigate the globe in 80 days like the unstoppable Jules Verne character, Domjan opted for a more leisurely pace -- about 6 knots at last look. But Domjan's trip is no less historic.

Domjan, a Swiss national trained as an electronics engineer and Jules Verne fan, joined with German businessman M. Immo Ströher to accomplish the feat in a solar-powered boat.

Their photovoltaic sheathed catamaran, PlanetSolar, plans to conclude its voyage after 584 days upon the high seas, cruising into the high-society port of Monaco on May 4, 2012. Aboard the PlanetSolar, most activity likely focused on journey's end, wrapping up the adventure with shore-based activities before letting the public get a look at the historic vessel.

10 cool advancements in clean energy

The Space Race showed nations can accomplish great things when everyone is committed to a common goal. Increasingly, people are suggesting that same we-can-do-anything attitude be applied to clean energy. In many ways, it's occurring.

Here are 10 things that grabbed my attention in recent days:

1/Solar windows: Much is being written about solar shingles and even solar clothing, but researchers are also studying if windows - think skyscrapers - could double as energy generators. Challenges abound, as this post in environment 360 points out because they have to be clear, but a Maryland company claims to have a way to spray on a see-through solar coating. Researchers and students at UC Merced also are working on something similar here;


2/The smart minds up the road from us at UC Merced designed an innovative low-cost, non-tracking solar thermal collector system that is able to operate with a solar thermal efficiency of 50% at extreme temperatures. Previously, only more complex tracking solar thermal collector systems could achieve this temperature. The system has practical applications in solar heating, cooling, desalination, oil extraction, electricity generation, and food processing, says Ron Durbin, executive director of University of California Advanced Solar Technologies Institute. Here's an ABC 30 story on it;

3/ Speaking of universities and solar cells, the equally smart minds at USC are developing nanocells that could fit on plastic. Think of the possibilities! More here;

4/ Isn't nature great! The humpback whale is influencing windmill blade design. Click here.

5/ Iceland wants to lay an undersea cable to export geothermal to Europe;

6/ A New York company uses on-site wind turbines to meet 60 percent of the power needs of a mammoth manufacturing plant. Gigaom has it - and more here;

7/ Sidewalks that use kinetic energy from footsteps to generate power for nearby appliances. Crazy, but read about it here. Similarly, these trains in Philly can store kinetic energy from braking for further use.

8/  Superman may not be able to change in these booths, but folks will be able to power up their electric vehicle and monitor pollution. Oh, and they can also make a call;

9/ Making good clean power out of bad bad land. Our blog;

10/  The U.S. and U.K. joining forces to develop floating wind power. More here.

These are just a few things that I noted in recent days, but certainly isn't complete. These solar powered bins that text when they're full are pretty cool too. Maybe it's true when people say clean energy is the next industrial revolution.

Video by UC Merced
Photo of people walking by Graham Kingsley


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May 5: Connect the Dots Climate Impacts Day

On Saturday May 5, 350.org is coordinating a "global day of action."

Climate Impacts Day is not location specific and being coordinated through the web. There are a number of locations at which people are getting together to talk about climate change and the effect it's having.

"On that day, we will issue a wake-up call, and connect the dots between climate change and extreme weather," 350.org organizers say. "We will educate, protest, create, document, and volunteer along with thousands of people around the world."

At this point there are no events scheduled in the San Joaquin Valley. But there's still time. Think about starting a new event in your community.

Here's a list of nearby events:

Swiss teacher drives around globe in solar car

Swiss school teacher Louis Palmer takes his homemade solar powered car on a trip around the world just because he could.

He's Swiss so why not? And he calls it a solar taxi because so many people want to ride along.

This video from The Associated Press has been around a couple of years but it still offers a look at zero fossil-fuel travel and the possibility of not having to plug in. "Technology is here today," Palmer says.

Solar technology is improving each year with panels getting increasingly efficient. Perhaps at some point electric cars or plug-in hybrids will offer integrated solar to enable greater range.

Finding a solution to clean energy is one man's quest

Andrew West has nothing against clean energy.

"But they don't have the capacity to make a measurable difference in the near term," he says.

West says he has spent the past decade and about $7 million searching for solutions to big problems. One of those is clean energy. He and I began an email conversation after West commented on a colleague's blog post about the study "Beyond Boom & Bust," which said clean energy has reached a crossroad because federal support is expected to plunge. The study was put together by the Breakthrough and World Resources institutes and Brookings Institution.

West's focus is on concepts that can make an immediate difference. "We have been held hostage by oil imports, and the availability of energy is necessary for our continued growth," he says.

More than clean energy

West didn't limit his quest to energy. On his site, solutioneur.com, he also outlines concepts to tackle and develop sustainable agriculture, assist education, create affordable urban living and enable more effective and job creating charitable giving.

A new day dawns for solar energy

Declining subsidies and oversupply are seen by many as death stars to solar energy, but the industry in the U.S. is just pausing, and expansion is projected for the next two decades, according to a new study. Entitled, "Solar Power: Darkest before dawn," the report by McKinsey and Co. suggests a bright future ahead for nature's most abundant natural power source.

From the McKinsey web site: "McKinsey research indicates that the industry is suffering from growing pains rather than undergoing death throes. Solar is entering a period of maturation that, in just a few years, will probably lead to more stable and expansive growth for companies that can manage costs and innovate to tap rising demand from multiple customer segments."

Here's a link to the write-up, and also to an earlier blog that discusses the boom-and-bust cycle of clean energy and notes the industry is at a crossroad.

The report finds that falling prices will spur demand, even without subsidies, for five key markets: "off-grid, residential and commercial in areas with good and moderate sun conditions, isolated grids, peak capacity in growth markets, and new large-scale power plants."

Critics point to the implosion of Solyndra, companies downsizing, fights between solar developers and environmentalists, and other issues as an industry in disarray. But is it? Various reports say solar power will reach grid parity with traditional sources of power within a few years. GE says here that dropping solar prices combined with rising fuel prices will make solar energy cheaper than fossil fuels within five years.

Bloomberg here projects solar to be investment worthy in the U.S. by 2020.  Banks could become moret than bit players, according to this post.

This post in Triple Pundit by sustainability consultant Leon Kaye suggests the industry "shakeout" will continue for at least a year, and shouldn't be viewed as a "meltdown," but rather as laying the foundation for expansion.

Think about it. Increasingly, volatile energy prices are playing havoc on budgets, and businesses are looking for some balance. Delta Air Lines is so desperate it is spending $150 million for its own oil refinery. The Washington Post has more here.

Closer to home, we in Fresno, CA., are seeing solar panels installed at wineries,schools, farms and on rooftops. Fresno is ranked 4th in the state in rooftop solar capacity, and dozens of solar arrays are proposed throughout the San Joaquin Valley, according to local planning officials.

Solar really makes sense here. The Valley is the nation's salad bowl, and the $25 billion agriculture industry consumes lots of power. So, it makes sense farmers want to reduce their bills and carbon footprints. Temperatures are high, power bills skyrocket during the I'm-going-to-spontaneously-combust-walking-to-my-car summers, the sun shines much of the year and the air quality is among the worst in the nation.

 There are other uses for solar too. Did you know that oil and solar can mix?. Check out this about a California-based start-up, and this about Chevron and Bright Source Energy teaming up in an oil field in Fresno County. And I wonder if a nifty new mapping tool like this will spark a solar rooftop revolution.

"Revolution." That may not be too strong a word.

Image by Gabriella Fabbri

Trend to slash high-rise electric bills sweeps industry

King Kong immortalized the Empire State Building -- more than once.

And while its status as the biggest and tallest has been eclipsed a number of times since Pres. Herbert Hoover turned on the lights May 1, 1931, the iconic skyscraper continues to lead the nation. However, now it's gaining fame as perhaps the best known energy efficient high-rise.

Others have followed, drawn by the prospect of saving money in a turbulent economy through relatively simple and cost-effective upgrades that can pay off in a matter of years. The U.S. Green Building Council says green commercial building retrofits actually exceeded new construction some months in 2011.

"Deep energy savings (30 percent to 40 percent) can be mined from existing buildings," says a July 2011 study by Vancouver, Wash.-based New Buildings Institute.

Energy Star fast tracks

A barometer of the trend has been the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's list of cities with the most buildings qualifying for Energy Star status. Energy Star certified buildings use an average of 35 percent less energy and are responsible for 35 percent less carbon dioxide emissions than typical buildings. Buildings are responsible for about 40 percent of carbon dioxide emissions, while commercial buildings make up half that.