Amory Lovins Lays Out His Clean Energy Plan

For four decades, Amory Lovins has been a leading proponent of a renewable power revolution that would wean the U.S. off fossil fuels and usher in an era of energy independence. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, he talks about his latest book, which describes his vision of how the world can attain a green energy future by 2050.
Amory B. Lovins is fond of referring to the Rocky Mountain Institute, where he serves as chairman and chief scientist, as a “think and do” tank, and it’s clear that to Lovins the doing is every bit as important as the thinking. Hardly lacking in confidence or ambition, Lovins — in conjunction with his colleagues at the institute — has published Reinventing Fire, his step-by-step blueprint for how to transition to a renewable energy economy by mid-century.

Amory Lovins

Impressive in both its scope and detail — Lovins discusses everything from how to redesign heavy trucks to make them more fuel efficient to ways to change factory pipes to conserve energy — the book lays out a plan for the U.S. to achieve the following by 2050: cars completely powered by hydrogen fuel cells, electricity, and biofuels; 84 percent of trucks and airplanes running on biomass fuels; 80 percent of the nation’s electricity produced by renewable power; $5 trillion in savings; and an economy that has grown by 158 percent. … Continue Reading

Device Could Drive Down Solar’s Cost

Inverters mounted to the bottom of each panel provide grid-ready power at a test site in Sunnyvale, California. ArrayPower

By Phil McKenna – As solar panel manufacturers try to harvest more of the sun’s energy for less, they face increasingly diminishing returns. At roughly $1 per watt, the cost of solar modules now represents less than a third of the total cost of commercial solar installations. To cut the total cost of solar power—currently $3.00 to $3.50 per watt—bigger gains will have to come from improvements in the power electronics, wiring, and mounting systems required for solar installations. … Continue Reading

10 Technologies Helping the Military Go Green

by Brian Frank - The private sector isn’t alone in its pursuit of mean-and-green, energy-conscious technologies. All branches of the U.S. military have thrown their hats into the race.

For one thing, our dependence on foreign oil has been acknowledged by the military as a strategic disadvantage. Some 80 percent of the military’s energy consumption comes from oil products, according to a 2011 report on green initiatives in the armed forces by the Pew Charitable Trusts. … Continue Reading

New ATM turns your old phone into cash

EcoATM Dishes Out Instant Cash For Your Old Cell Phone

LAS VEGAS –  The International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is all about the latest smartphones, tablet computers and other devices. But what about the old gadgets? Don’t they get any love?

Actually, one machine at the show is designed to help recycle gadgets, giving old phones a fitting end, or a better home. … Continue Reading

New Report: Integrating Variable Wind Energy into the Grid

The Energy Department and Alstom Grid announce the availability of a new report on integrating wind energy into the electrical grid. | Image source: The Strategies and Decision Support Systems for Integrating Variable Energy Resources in Control Centers for Reliable Grid Operations Report.

Wind doesn’t always blow consistently and sometimes doesn’t blow at all, but wind energy is not unreliable – just ask grid operators.

In a new report, Strategies and Decision Support Systems for Integrating Variable Energy Resources in Control Centers for Reliable Grid Operations, they offer their first-hand perspectives on how variable energy sources, including wind energy, actually impact grid operations. … Continue Reading

12 clean water startups to watch in 2012

 By Heather Clancy  – Green Tech Pastures

 Systems for recovering and treating wastewater are notorious energy hogs, a concern that many of these early stage companies are hoping to address with their technology. … Continue Reading

City of Chicago Boasts Having the Greenest Restaurant in the Country

The Green Restaurant Association certified 20 Chicago restaurants for their efforts to reduce waste, energy and water use, improve recycling, and support organic farming.

By N. Kratky – Whether planning the holiday office party or a festive luncheon with clients, choosing a restaurant certified by the Green Restaurant Association can help you keep in tune with your sustainability plan. Recently, Chicago’s Uncommon Groundrestaurant, located on W. Devon Ave., was awarded the association’s title of most environmentally responsible eatery in the nation. Their second location in Lakeview was named to the number two spot. … Continue Reading

Insight: How renewable energy may be Edison’s revenge

U.S. inventor Thomas Alva Edison poses in this photograph taken in 1914. REUTERS/NPS/Thomas Edison/Handout

(Reuters) – At the start of the 20th century, inventors Thomas Alva Edison and Nikola Tesla clashed in the “war of the currents.” To highlight the dangers of his rival’s system, Edison even electrocuted an elephant. The animal died in vain; it was Tesla’s system and not Edison’s that took off. But today, helped by technological advances and the need to conserve energy, Edison may finally get his revenge.

The American inventor, who made the incandescent light bulb viable for the mass market, also built the world’s first electrical distribution system, in New York, using “direct current” electricity. DC’s disadvantage was that it couldn’t carry power beyond a few blocks. His Serbian-born rival Tesla, who at one stage worked with Edison, figured out how to send “alternating current” through transformers to enable it to step up the voltage for transmission over longer distances. … Continue Reading