The renewable portfolio standard in NC requires utilities to have up to 12.5% of their electricity come from renewable sources. The standard kicks in in 2012 but
utilities are already purchasing Renewable Energy Certificates from Texas
wind farms. Utilities may meet up to 25% of their obligation through buying in credits from out of state.
See the full story on the Charlotte Observer here.
More than 25 percent of the U.S. Southeast region’s electric power could come from locally-available renewable energy by 2025, according to a report released today by the World Resources Institute (WRI), Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE), and Southface.
This new report, Local Clean Power, can be found by clicking here.
Prompt policy action to develop these resources can also create tens of thousands of new jobs, attract more regional energy investment, and help protect regional air and water resources.
“The Southeast has a strong portfolio of renewable energy resources that offers several economic and environmental advantages over traditional electric power generation,” said Eliot Metzger, a project manager at WRI and an author of Local Clean Power, the first in a three-part series of reports about energy opportunities in the Southeast United States.
The report estimates that investments in local renewable energy resources - like biomass, solar, wind, and hydropower - can meet more than a quarter of future electricity needs in the region by 2025. That amount would be sufficient to meet national renewable energy targets currently being discussed as part of upcoming federal energy legislation.
The expansion of current renewable power production from its current level of about five percent will be a critical step towards meeting future electricity needs with cleaner supplies and increasing energy independence.
Stephen Smith, executive director at SACE, another research partner, added, “Right now we are depending on other regions of the country, and foreign countries like Columbia and Venezuela, to supply us with coal. Doesn’t it make more sense to be producing cleaner power, closer to home? Our research suggests we certainly have sufficient resources. It’s just a matter of recognizing and capitalizing on these home-grown energy supplies.”
Renewable power potential is well distributed throughout the region, though differences in total electricity sales mean that states like Mississippi and Alabama can meet much more than 25 percent of electricity needs with renewable resources (see table). Some electric power utilities are starting to develop renewable resources in the region, but additional policy action is needed to drive investment and carefully manage the transition to new energy resources.
“A focus on developing our own renewable energy resources will create good-paying jobs that cannot be exported from our region,” said Dennis Creech, executive director at Southface, which was a partner on this research. “However, we need public policy to remove market barriers and encourage these investments in the Southeast.”
“Additional policy action and investment in a clean energy future translates to new growth opportunities - which for us means the creation of more jobs,” noted Tim Blackwell, president of OneWorld Sustainable, a company specializing in efficiency and renewable energy in the Southeast.
The report's recommendations to advance renewable energy in the region include: firm targets for renewable power production; flexible incentives to advance local investments in renewable resources; and comprehensive state-level resource assessments, economic analyses, and regulatory guidance to integrate renewable power into the electricity grid.
A recent article in GreenerBuildings.com explores the growing potential for hotels and resorts to save by installing solar thermal solutions. The Proximity Hotel, in Greensboro NC, which I've written about more than once, is heavily featured. Its 100-panel installation covers 4,000 square feet on the LEED Platinum building delivering about 5,000 gallons of hot water each day. This is saving the hotel about $16,000 per year , according to Dennis Quaintance, of Quaintance-Weaver, the company that owns the property.
The company expects to recover its investment in the system within five years. When you total up energy savings, renewable energy credits of $20,000 a year, a 30 percent federal tax credit, 35 percent state tax credit, and accelerated depreciation it's a rapid return on investment. The solar hot water heating system is backed up by a natural gas system, but has been meeting 60 percent of the hotel’s domestic hot water needs.
An even larger system has been installed on the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort and Spa. This one goes to 166-panels heating 100,000 gallons of water each day. The installers estimate the hotel's owners should get a return on their $550,000 investment in less than three years. In this case, Arizona Public Service is offsetting 60% of the cost through its purchase of RECs. The hotel owners are now planning a possible additional 212 panels, which would make it the largest solar thermal installation on any hotel in the United States. The heated water from phase two will be used for the resort’s restaurants, laundry and pool. Because so much water is used for these, payback time on phase two will be just six months
Hotels are clearly catching on to the sizeable savings they can gain from solar hot water implentations. And it seems to work in almost every part of the country.
Practical Solar is a computer controlled heliostat (mirrors) system that directs the sun's rays from your lawn or garden into your home. A single heliostat directed through a window or skylight can deliver the equivalent of 40 100-watt incandescent bulbs. Two systems can directly heat a room with 600 watts of thermal energy.
The system comes with software that runs on a standard pc and can individually control up to 200 heliostats with unique targets and timer settings for each one.
It's a very intriguing and novel idea. I have to commend the designers on coming up with such a simple way to harness solar energy for practical uses. On the other hand, it looks like it will take up a fair bit of lawn space with not particularly handsome equipment. And I have to wonder what it's like to look out your window at mirrors that are focusing the sun right back at you.
Fine Homebuilding magazine ran an excellent 6-page overview of solar hot water technology which is available free - click here to view it.
The author, Scot Gibson, highlights the different technologies and the benefits of each. He also gives a brief run down of what is involved in the installation of a typical system.
This is also a good place to remind readers that we're now installing both Solahart thermosiphon units and Apricus evacuated tube units in the NC Triangle area as well as Solahart units in the Charlotte NC area.
Last year around this time we ran a piece on a solar air conditioning unit being offered for commercial use made up from an Apricus Hot Water system with a Yazaki absorption chiller (see story here.)
Now another solar air conditioning system to run across our radar is the Green Core system. This one instead of using efficient solar thermal, relies on solar photovoltaic with a battery backup system to run the unit. It can be configured as a hybrid, using a small amount of grid electricity to charge its battery system, or with a larger collector, it can operate completely off-grid. And it offers an optional heating component so you can run both heating and cooling from the sun's rays.
The Green Core system can cool about a 600 square foot area so it's not a replacement for typical residential systems. Rather it's targeting modular class rooms, construction trailers, guard houses, remote offices and the like. There's a unit available on a wheeled trailer that is perfect for certain off-grid situations.
The Proximity Hotel in Greensboro is an inspired and inspiring building. They earned a LEED Platinum rating, and is the only hotel to hold a Platinum level so far. I came across this video from National Geographic Intelligent Traveler, I couldn't resist posting it.
The Proximity uses 36.5% less energy than conventional hotels. They then supply 60% of their hot water through solar panels. And they have the first Regenerative Drive Otis elevator in North America. The list of green and sustainable features is simply awesome. Which is what you'd expect from a Gold or Platinum rated building. Check out their site here for the full list of sustainable and green features of the build.
Sapona Green Building Center is hosting a free evening event about Geothermal energy from 5pm-6pm on Thursday September 18th. The event will be at their show room in Anderson Sq, 4113 oleander dr. Wilmington, NC.
Speaking will be Paul and Bryan Donaldson representing WaterFurnace, makers of some of the most efficient, energy-saving heat pumps available.
Wherever you live, whatever time of year the temperature below ground stays fairly consistent all year. Geothermal systems tap into the free energy of the differential between air and ground temperature using an earth loop (pictured).
Geothermal systems use the earth loop to extract heat from the ground. As the system pulls heat from the loop it distributes it through a conventional duct system as warm air or it can be used for a radiant floor system or domestic hot water heating.
In its cooling mode, a geothermal system reverses the process extracting heat from the building and back into the earth loop, or used to preheat water in your hot water tank.
Duke Energy is proposing a plan to install 20 Mw of solar PV
panels distributed across up to 850 North Carolina sites such as homes,
schools, stores and factories.
The company recently filed an application with the NC Utilities Commission for approval to implement this solar distributed generation program.
Keith Trent, group executive and chief strategy, policy and regulatory
officer said, “This program also will enable us to evaluate the role of
distributed generation on our system, and gain experience in owning and
operating renewable energy resources.”
Duke Energy Carolinas would own and operate the equipment
and the power produced by each installation would be used to serve the
utility’s customers. Customers who agree to place solar panels at their
location would be rewarded based on the size of the installation and the amount
of energy it produces.
Duke expects to recover its $100 million investment through North Carolina’s new Renewable and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard (REPS) cost recovery mechanism.
See the full press release here
SunEdison, a Maryland company, plans for a 100-200 acre array of solar panels generating 16 megawatts of power. Duke Energy intends to buy all of the output under a 20-year deal, and anticipates selling the power by the end of 2010.
The exact site has not yet been selected but it should be announced within a few weeks. Davidson County commissioners approved $2 million in incentives SunEdison to built the plant there.
See the full article in the Greensboro N&O here.
I've just noticed over on Springboard, a Greensboro blog, a piece about the Solar PV Picnic area at the State Zoo. This was installed late last year by the good folks at Carolina Solar Energy, who were responsible for the 75.6 KW system at NC State among other great works.
The array has 9,600 sq ft of solar collectors mounted onto three large picnic pavilions. Its total capacity is for 104 KW of electricity. The electricity is being sold to the electric grid via Randolph Electric Membership Corporation with a subsidy from NC Green Power. The project began generating electricity last December.
The Zoo rents the shelters out for catered events and they include interactive graphics explaining how solar power generation works. One of the things I like best is the web-based read out you can view here.
Progress Energy announced three new initiatives
aimed at the construction industry.
Home Advantage, would pay builders and developers to build Energy Star qualified homes. The program would pay builders for installing efficiency equipment, and it includes a rebate of $1,000 for installing solar water-heating in new homes. Progress already has similar initiatives active in Florida.
Progress' other two initiatives are for commercial builders. They will provide "custom financial incentives" to help commercial builders recoup the costs of energy-efficiency measures they take. And they will pay customers to retrofit existing facilities for energy efficiency.
Progress Energy says its overall goal is to double the
energy savings it gets through efficiency programs.
Earlier this week, Progress announced that it would upgrade its distribution lines and build in a capability to remotely control customer air conditioners during peak energy use times.
The plans must still be approved by the NC Utilities Commission.
North Carolina Governor Mike
Easley today announced the creation of the Advanced Transportation Energy
Center to be located at North Carolina State University's Centennial Campus. The center aims to:
It is being set up as a public-private partnership to include the university, Progress Energy and Duke Energy. Together they will develop practical technology for plug-in hybrid vehicles and other energy-efficient transportation.
Specific practical objectives are to:
For the full press release including great quotes from the Governor, the Chancellor and the CEO of Progress Energy click here.
Sounds like something out of Jonathan Swift's writing but you have to love the idea of floating energy islands. The plants will use the temperature difference between surface water and deeper water to drive turbines. The developers estimate that each island complex could produce abou
t 250MW, and
that 50,000 islands could supply the entire world’s energy and produce tons of fresh water as a byproduct. Of course they'd still have to ship that water someplace.
Read the full story on Inhabitat, one of my favorite blogs.
A new 75.6 kW system is now live at NC State University near the RBC Center, as was unveiled Tuesday at a ribbon cutting event. This makes it the largest privately financed array in the State - for now.
Richard Harkrader, this month's green hero and owner of Carolina Solar Energy, started the project back in 2004. His company now plans to build a series of further projects across the State. Plans include systems hosted by businesses, schools, shopping centers and government facilities, all at around 100 kW.
Speaking at the ribbon-cutting event, Harkrader said, “One of our goals with this project and our other solar projects across the state, is to show that solar power isn’t just for people in California and Nevada – it is feasible on a large scale right now, right here in North Carolina.”
He also said, “Photovoltaic solar technology has come a long way. There's no doubt solar power is becoming a viable investment in North Carolina, and will improve the larger projects we build.”
For the full press release click here.
A new venture called SolarReserve
aims to provide reliable, predictable solar generation even at night by using salt.
Their program would save and store
captured solar energy in molten salt. The new solar plant will produce
up to 500 megawatts of peak power
.
Read full story on Inhabitat.
Delta Products has just recently connected a 30 KW solar PV array made up of 160 panels mounted on the roof of their corporate office in Research Triangle Park. It is presently the largest corporate-owned PV system in the state.
It is expected to generate 36 Megawatt hours of power, offsetting 37 tons of CO2 annually.
See the press release here.
Anyone not yet ready to build a green home of their own can now buy a miniature house with working solar panels, wind mill, green house and desalination system. The Power House is available for $149.95 from science-kit distributor Thames & Kosmos.
The kit aims to teach children what it’s like to
live off the grid.
Power House includes a 96-page full color manual with 70 experiments 
and 20 building projects. The manual is not just a set of
instructions. It is based on a story of a group of
high-tech pioneers on an island who must live sustainably with only the resources
available to them. As you read their journal
entries and learn of their projects and experiments, you build models
of the same projects and conduct the same experiments alongside them. The experiments and projects mimic
the tasks the kit’s fictional pioneers must perform.
Solar air-conditioning units can leverage the sun’s heat to drive either thermal absorption cycles or desiccant
cooling.
The unit I'm now supplying in NC is a combination of two well established technologies - solar thermal collectors and absorption chillers.
Absorption chiller air conditioners are already a very widely deployed technology, very popular for large commercial installations in Asia and the US. They are simple, dependable and use no Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). Most, however, are using heat sources other than solar. In part, that's because they require high heat - higher than flat panel collectors can produce.
What has now made solar AC possible for a residential or small commercial application is the emergence of evacuated tube collectors and the availability of smaller scale absorption chillers and smaller cooling towers.
When engineered to run on solar energy the absorption chiller AC units provide the lowest cost to operate and the best return on investment of any air conditioning system in the world. In North Carolina with our excellent 35% State tax incentive the payback can be as short as 2 years. And they can be configured to supply heat in Winter as well.
Our solar heating and air conditioning units can be used anywhere that the sun shines. They are low in operating and maintenance costs and consume very little electricity - which can be supplied by solar PV panels.
[addendum 1/15/08] - These units are currently available only in 10, 20 and 30 ton sizes. A 5 ton unit may become available next year. So they're most applicable to commercial installations.
Contact me for more information and to discuss the applicability of this system for your project. Or read more technical information here.
For a source of more general technical information see this article in Renewable Energy World.
My once home, Berkeley CA, just yesterday approved a new plan to help home owners finance solar panels through a voluntary tax. Effectively the city will use its volume borrowing rates to finance the purchase of solar systems over a 20 year period with the home owner paying a voluntary tax to cover the payments. The tax will be set to be less than or equal to the expected savings on the home's utility bills. The agreement is also transferable if the home is sold.
So will my new home town please start considering something similar?
A new process
for manufacturing thin film solar panels is being employed by Vanguard Solar Inc. in Sudbury MA.
Vanguard says its process for growing flexible solar material -- using carbon nanotubes -- means that its thin-film material can be manufactured in almost any roll-to-roll printing plant.
By changing the cost structure of producing solar materials, Vanguard officials say they can make solar a much cheaper source of energy for commercial and residential buildings.
See the full story on Mass High Tech. News.
Apricus Solar Hot water systems made with evacuated tubes are incredibly efficient because their design captures sun throughout the day and because the vacuum insulates so well. That's probably why 9 of the 20 teams competing in this year's Solar Decathlon have selected Apricus collectors for their houses. The Solar Decathalon is
an international competition between 20 collegiate teams who plan, design, build,
and operate unique houses that incorporate high energy efficiency
products powered by solar thermal and PV (photovoltaics). All 20 houses are being showcased on the National Mall in Washington DC October
12-20.
One of the main advantages of the Apricus evacuated tube collectors is that they can achieve very hot water even in cloudy or overcast conditions. Their higher efficiency makes them best suited to the climate from North Carolina and Northward, where we experience some cooling and some overcast conditions during Winter. Areas like Florida and Texas are better off with traditional flat plate collectors because they get strong sun year round and so it's not worth the extra premium for them.
There are several different systems for solar hot water. The Home Power web site has an excellent primer on the different types and benefits of each. For residential applications in this area (NC), I tend to favor the Solahart Thermosyphon models. Though the Home Power prime summary says Thermosyphons are not freeze tolerant, the Solahart is, making it well suited to a climate like ours where there are occasional freezing days.
Simpler Flat Plat collectors may be cheaper but they're much less efficient. In places like Florida where there isn't much of a Winter, that can be the right choice. Evacuated tube collectors are also great, but a bit pricier. They're so efficient that they often need a heat dissipator to prevent over heating. They're excellent where there are a lot of cloudy or rainy days or where there is a need for very hot water. I recommend them for many commercial situations in this climate, or larger homes.
One of the great things about the Solahart Free Heat series thermosyphon systems is that they're passive which means there's no need for pumps and fewer moving parts. That also means less maintenance and longer life span. Some people really like the fact that it comes with its own tank, so in a new construction you can avoid installing a hot water tank at all. Just rig a tankless hot water heater, like the Rheem model discussed earlier, saving space, money and time.
You hear over and over that solar photo-voltaic (PV) takes a long time to pay back the investment. That is sometimes true, but there are some cases where the pay back can be incredibly short. One of the very best situations it with outdoor solar lighting, particularly street lighting. Where the cost of laying power cables can be outright avoided the cases is very strong for solar lighting and they can pay back the investment in as little as a year.
EcoSmart represents a wide selection of solar lighting solutions from garden lights to street lights and even artistic lighting.
If you have a situation or know of one you think could benefit from solar PV lighting, get in touch for more information about the many advantages.
Remember these lights are powered by rechargeable batteries that need occasional replacement and should be disposed of responsibly.
I'm very impressed with the Alternative Energy Store and sorry I didn't discover it sooner. For anyone in the US it's a great resource for the whole range of products related to renewable energy and eco lifestyles. Even for those of us residing in Europe and elsewhere out of the US, they can air freight smaller items and can still come out less expensive. They have excellent prices and a surprisingly wide range of products. I just wish I lived nearer so I could drop in a browse regularly!
Whole Foods Market (WFMI) is probably the largest health foods supermarket in the US. They also own one of the UK's major health food chains, Fresh and Wild. In a widely reported move they recently purchased renewable energy credits to offset 100% of their use across all of their stores and administrative offices. They are the first Fortune 500 company to take such a step and they claim the move is the equivalent to taking 60,000 cars off the road in terms of Carbon Dioxide emission reductions.
The move has also generated a lot of positive press. My hope is that other companies will take similar steps in other industries. But I've been dismayed to read a few comments that seem to downplay the importance of the decision on the basis that Whole Foods is using Wind Energy Credits in place of building their own wind turbines. It may be indirect, but it's just as effective at reducing CO2 emissions and displacing non-renewable power generation.
I recently came across a very similar myopia among very intelligent people here in the UK. A few months ago the Ecologist magazine ran a cover article declaring that some renewable energy suppliers weren't as "green" as others because they were using a similar offset purchasing mechanism in place of building and running their own wind farms. Of course, I wrote a letter (read it here), though much to my dismay, it was never published.
Perhaps my modest mathematical and logical abilities make it all to obvious to me, but in the end the different contributions of those who build wind turbines, those who run then and those who promote the green energy is all more or less equivalent. Each of these roles is needed to create a greener future.
So I'm very pleased that Whole Foods has taken this high-profile decision and I believe it will do a great deal to stimulate interest in renewable energy in the US.
I remember reading a few months ago that Willie Nelson was gettin behind biodiesel. As a fan of biodiesel I had to be supportive but didn't initially get how good a combo this is. Willie has a huge following among truck drivers so it's a natural brand association that gives biodiesel, and hopefully broader environmental concerns, much greater credibility with the people who need to be using this green fuel. And living in London, as I do, I hadn't realised that there really are no diesel passenger cars in America, so it really is only the trucks that can make this particular difference there. Anyhow, this article in the New York Times, tells the story about Willie Nelson's new BioWillie brand.
Canada's Province of Prince Edward Island has made a bold visionary step enacting new legislation that requires utilities to source at least 15% of their electricity from renewable sources by the year 2010. But the really bold step was to require 100% renewable power by 2015 - a positively aggressive timeline. Sure, it's a small place but they had the vision to realise that 100 percent renewable power is achievable.
The UK, who is on track to meet their Kyoto obligations, recently issued a study saying that Micro-generation could contribute up to 30-40% of the nations electricity needs by the year 2050. Nice enough thing to say, and even though I'm a big fan of micro-generation I can't help bringing to mind the phrase "poverty of ambition." If you're going to water down your conclusion with a major caveat like "could", then why pull your punches? Frankly I'm absolutely certain that micro-generation could deliver 100 percent - yes, ALL of it. And a lot sooned than 2050 - let's say 2020. Why not? Bigger changes have happened faster in recent memory.
For instance today I'm handling almost 90% of my communication with people who are more than 10 feet away, via the internet. Just 10 years ago that would all have been by phone or mail.
With the right economic and lifestyle incentives and people embrace change rapidly. The money spent on the war on Iraq could have been spent more wisely incentivising renewables in the US and would have delivered new technological developments that could easily have ended our dependence on Middle East oil within 10 years. But I doubt any of Bush's friends would have benefited from such a move. So instead we continue pouring money down a drain that disrupts world peace and perpetuates our dependence on oil.
