Posts Tagged ‘renewable energy’
Responsible Choices
The choices we make and the products we buy test our commitment to maintain a healthy planet. When we burn fossil fuels—such as oil, coal, and natural gas—to run our cars and light our homes, we pump carbon dioxide (CO2) into the air. This thickens the heat-trapping blanket that surrounds the planet, causing global warming.
Choosing modern technology can reduce our use of fossil fuels and help protect the planet. These ten steps will help curb global warming, save you money, and create a safer environment for the future.
Drive Smart!
A well-tuned car with properly inflated tires burns less gasoline—cutting pollution and saving you money at the pump. If you have two cars, drive the one with better gas mileage whenever possible. Better yet, skip the drive and take public transit, walk, or bicycle when you can.
Buy Local and Organic
Did you know the average American meal travels more than 1,500 miles from the farm to your plate? Think of all the energy wasted and pollution added to the atmosphere—not to mention all the pesticides and chemicals used to grow most produce! So go to your local organic farmer to get your fruits and veggies.
Support clean, renewable energy.
Renewable energy solutions, such as wind and solar power, can reduce our reliance on coal-burning power plants, the largest source of global warming pollution in the United States. Call your local utility and sign up for renewable energy. If they don’t offer it, ask them why not?
Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs.
Especially those that burn the longest each day. Compact fluorescents produce the same amount of light as normal bulbs, but use about a quarter of the electricity and last ten times as long. Each switch you make helps clean the air today, curb global warming, and save you money on your electricity bill.
Saving energy at home is good for the environment and for your wallet.
Start with caulking and weather-stripping on doorways and windows. Then adjust your thermostat and start saving. For each degree you lower your thermostat in the winter, you can cut your energy bills by three percent. Finally, ask your utility company to do a free energy audit of your home to show you how to save even more money.
Become a smart water consumer.
Install low-flow showerheads and faucets and you’ll use half the water without decreasing performance. Then turn your hot water heater down to 120°F and see hot-water costs go down by as much as 50 percent.
Buy energy-efficient electronics and appliances.
Replacing an old refrigerator or an air conditioner with an energy-efficient model will save you money on your electricity bill and cut global warming pollution. Look for the Energy Star label on new appliances or visit their website at www.energystar.gov to find the most energy-efficient products.
Plant a Tree, protect a forest.
Protecting forests is a big step on the road to curbing global warming. Trees “breathe in” carbon dioxide, but slash-and-burn farming practices, intensive livestock production, and logging have destroyed 90 percent of the native forests in the United States. And you can take action in your own backyard—planting shade trees around your house will absorb CO2, and slash your summer air-conditioning bills.
Reduce! Reuse! Recycle!
Producing new paper, glass, and metal products from recycled materials saves 70 to 90 percent of the energy and pollution, including CO2, that would result if the product came from virgin materials. Recycling a stack of newspapers only four feet high will save a good-sized tree. Please… buy recycled products!
Mount a local campaign against global warming.
Educate your community about how it can cut global warming pollution. Support measures at the national, state, and local level that:
- Make automobiles go further on a gallon of gas;
- Accelerate the use of clean, renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind;
- Increase energy efficiency and conservation; and
- Preserve forests around the world.
Interested in helping your city become a “cool city”? It’s easy! Click here for details and you’ll be on your way to helping your city be Cool!
A safe product that is not popular does not need to be banned, because so few are using it anyway.
This gives us the beautiful (and typical) logic, that the more popular a product is, the more energy use it will cause, and the more politicians can wave their arms in their air and say how great they are for (supposedly) letting people save so much money, by banning a product that people obviously want to buy and use!
Unsurprisingly, the EU is at the forefront of this logic.
The word from EU officials is
“The campaigns have failed, Europeans still choose to buy these lights, legislation is the next logical step”
Instead of saying
“The campaigns have failed, Europeans still choose to buy these lights, how can we respect this strong will of the people?
Is it really necessary to ban these bulbs?”
Light bulbs are overwhelmingly popular in the EU, as elsewhere.
They are the lights that people want to buy (9 times out of 10 in the EU, according to the European Commission’s own research 2007-8, 19 out of 20 in the USA from lighting industry data in the same period).
Speaking of the USA:
Just 18% of adults think it’s the government’s job to tell Americans what kind of light bulb they use, according to a July 2009 Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. 72% say it’s none of the government’s business, and 10% are not sure.
Now, the European Commission has also relied on data from an organization called VITO.
The music was then rather different.
As the Cambridge Network science organization point out:
A study by VITO consultants showed the following breakdown of lamp use in European homes in 2007:
• 54% incandescent (down from 85% in 1995 and still decreasing)
• 18% low-voltage halogen (and increasing)
• 5% mains-voltage halogen (and growing)
• 8% linear fluorescent
• 15% CFL
What spiel did the Brusselcrats then think up?
Of course the story was then “how Europeans are taking to these lamps”, and that the “reports that they don’t like them” are “unfounded”!
The problem is, that this kind of data of course means that the supposed great savings aren’t there, and, as outlined in Old Technology – New Technology above, that a ban is again unwarranted, this time because a conversion is taking place anyway.
As the good Cambridge scientists put it:
“If we assume that all remaining filament bulbs are replaced by CFL at some point in the future (unlikely, as use of halogen bulbs is likely to increase), that these bulbs are used to the same extent as those they replace and that the energy reduction per bulb is 80%, the total reduction in EU energy use would be 0.54 x 0.8 x 0.76% = 0.33%. This figure is almost certainly an overestimate, particularly as the inefficiency of conventional bulbs generates heat which supplements other forms of heating in winter. Which begs the question: is it really worth it?”
No, scientists, it isn’t – whether the bulbs are popular or not – but try explaining that to anyone who commutes to Brussels.
Besides, if people like halogens, then that door must – and will – be shut too, as laid out in the December 2008 EU banning documentation linked above. Remember: Soviet Union, not European Union.
The assumption is that people only buy light bulbs because they are cheap.
Certainly they are cheap -no crime- but you don’t keep buying something only because it is cheap, and attractive features of light bulbs will soon be given.
Nor do you avoid buying a CFL or anything else just because it is expensive:
Otherwise no expensive alternative products anywhere would ever be bought.
In normal advertising manufacturers themselves highlight advantageous features of their products.
Think of long-lasting batteries and Energizer bunnies, think of washing up liquids that wash piles of dishes.
“Expensive to buy but last long”:
CFL/LED manufacturers wrongly rely on public campaigns and bans to make sales.
So, when politicians say “a ban is the only way” for the public to buy an expensive product that “people will find very attractive when they do buy it”, advertising by manufacturers could highlight that, and people would buy one and then buy more if they are so good, as with the other products.
That said, many households already have at least 1 CFL (the UK is typical, 1/2 of households there and in most countries have at least 1 CFL and the average UK and European household has around 2 CFLs and 20 light bulbs, Commission research).
So maybe they feel that is enough:
There is no reason just to use CFLs -or light bulbs- in a house, all lights have their own advantages and different uses (see below).
Of course, the other explanation is that maybe people simply don’t like CFLs, having tried them…
Certainly CFLs can improve, but it hardly justifies banning bulbs now, and hardly justifies it later either:
if people actually like improved CFLs or LEDs and buy them in greater numbers, there is again no need to ban ordinary light bulbs, as explained above.
Light bulbs have many attractive features, apart from being cheap.
A warm bright light quality:
This is the biggest loss, in banning “incandescent” lights (=ordinary light bulbs and halogens).
For displays and in some home decorating schemes, designers use the sparkle effect that one can get with the point source incandescent lighting.
Also the beam can be focused, by lamp shades in reading lamps for example.
Small bright incandescent lights are particularly useful, since small CFL or LED lamps technically can’t be made as bright, and the bright types that can be made are particularly expensive.
New York, NY – The growing community of Battery Park City now has its own library. On March 18, The New York Public Library will open its Battery Park City branch, an environmentally friendly library which provides a wide range of services for the community. The public is invited to celebrate the branch’s opening with a morning ceremony, an architectural tour of the library, and a day of free events for the entire family. The 10,000 square-foot, two-story branch is located at 175 North End Avenue.
“The striking new environmentally friendly library in Battery Park City is sure to quickly become a beacon for the community,” said Paul LeClerc, President of the New York Public Library. “At a time when people are depending on libraries more then ever for free resources and job assistance the library is a crucial resource for the neighborhood. We are deeply grateful to our elected officials, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, and City Council Member Margaret Chin for their support of the branch’s construction. We also greatly appreciate the generous private funding provided by Goldman Sachs & Co.
Photo: Tim Furzer
With light streaming through broad windows and glimpses of the Hudson River the $6.7 million Battery Park City Library provides a vibrant and welcoming atmosphere for the public. The 88th branch of the New York Public Library will anchor the bottom two floors of the city’s greenest residential high-rise to date. Designed by the architecture firm 1100 Architects, the branch includes 24,000 items, 36 public access computers, and separate reading areas for children, young adults, and adults. A multipurpose programming room on the second floor is also featured, as well as two self-checkout machines for public use. The Library was constructed with a focus on environmental sustainability and will be the first GREEN Library in Manhattan. The branch is expected to receive LEED Gold certification from the U. S. Green Building Council. Some of the features contributing to the branch’s environmental efficiency include:
- an efficient technologically advanced low-energy heating/cooling system
- low-flow sanitary fixtures which reduce water consumption
- low-energy lighting system
- use of recycled and renewable building materials including a wood floor constructed with off-cuts from window frame manufacture, carpets constructed from old truck tires, millwork made from recycled cardboard composite, and terrazzo with recycled glass and mirror aggregate
- the inclusion of a dedicated area for the collection and storage of all recyclable materials accumulated during the day to day operations of the branch
- use of a large number of the products that are low emitting in order to help the overall indoor air quality.
“Libraries play an important role in communities throughout the city, serving as a place for people to gather, attend readings, access the internet and more,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg. “The new environmentally-sustainable Battery Park City branch will be a model for future branch designs and an asset for the local community for decades to come.”
“Expanding literacy, arts and education to any neighborhood in New York City is an issue we at the City Council feel is one of the most vital for New Yorkers,” said Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “Having access to these materials is essential to the growth of our neighborhoods. Battery Park for so long did not know what it was to have these resources available to them down the street from their homes. Now, residents downtown and throughout the City will be able to enjoy this new branch and the new resources it brings to this beautiful area of our City.”
“The opening of the Battery Park City library is another big step in the continuing progress of the community as one of the great neighborhoods in our city,” said New York State Senator Daniel Squadron. “Public libraries are more important than ever in the 21st century, in which broad, democratic access to information–whether printed or digital–is more important than ever.”
“I am delighted to join Battery Park City residents in welcoming the newest branch of the New York Public Library to the neighborhood,” said United States Congressman Jerrold L. Nadler. “I am proud of this terrific New York institution and believe that it profoundly enriches the lives of those who use it. As a lifelong enthusiastic reader and library patron, I hope that residents will enjoy this library as much as I have always enjoyed my local libraries and read to their hearts’ content.”
“I am thrilled to be joining the New York Public Library and the residents of Battery Park City in opening this beautiful new library,” said Councilmember Margaret Chin. “To have a public facility like this, in a community like Battery Park City, is really wonderful, especially with the construction’s focus on environmental sustainability and what we hope will be a LEED Gold certification. It’s important that we teach our children about the environment as we instill in them a love of reading and learning, while providing a great place for our seniors and others in the community to read and gather. I also want to specifically recognize my predecessor, Councilmember Alan Gerson, without whose work this library simply would not exist, and also the work of Community Board 1 Battery Park City chair Linda Belfer, a tireless champion of all things Battery Park City.”
“As Chair of Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations, I am ecstatic that this library has been finished,” said Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer. “Any day that a library opens is a very good day for the community it serves. This library will enhance the educational and cultural life of the neighborhood.”
“The new Battery Park City library and the expansion of New York Public Library services means the promotion of literacy, education and technology for local residents,” said New York City Council Member Vincent Gentile. “Public libraries, particularly ones developed in an environmentally friendly way like this one, enrich the neighborhoods in which they’re placed; it’s a joy to see all the benefits that come along with a new public library being introduced to a neighborhood that didn’t have those resources at their fingertips before.”
Library Hours
The Battery Park City Library will be open: Monday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Tuesday, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursday, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Grand Opening Celebration
Thursday, March 18, 2010
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Free and open to the public
175 North End Avenue
10 a.m.,
Opening ceremony and ribbon cutting, with elected officials and special guests.
11 a.m.,
Architect’s tour and overview of environmental features
11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.,
Crafts with Linda DeCresenzo, program for children of all ages.
2:30 p.m.
Poetry Reading
3:30 p.m.
“Birds of Prey”, a program for the whole family that examines such birds of prey as hawks, owls, falcons or other species! Patrons will get to touch raptor artifacts and a lucky volunteer may get to help with some of the demonstrations. Presented by the New Canaan Nature Center.
Source: New York Public Library
Trees, Water & People is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that was founded in 1998 by Stuart Conway and Richard Fox, and is staffed by a group of dedicated conservationists who feel strongly about helping communities to protect, conserve, and manage the natural resources upon which their long-term well-being depends. Their work is guided by two core beliefs:
- That natural resources are best protected when local people play an active role in their care and management; and
- preserving local trees, wetlands, and watersheds is essential for the ongoing social, economic, and environmental health of communities everywhere.
TWP develops and manages continuing reforestation, watershed protection, renewable energy, appropriate technology, and environmental education programs in Latin America and the American West. TWP’s international programs have been recognized nationally and internationally, receiving the Ashden Award for Renewable Energy, as well as awards from Kodak, The Conservation Fund, and etown, the nationally syndicated environmental radio show. TWP’s programs have been featured on National Geographic Television, National Public Radio, and in the Christian Science Monitor.
In the nation’s poorest communities — Indian reservations of the American West — bitter winters force many families to spend up to 70% of their total income to heat their homes. Choices are few: expensive electricity, polluting propane, or firewood from the few trees that remain.
Energy costs on these reservations create hardship for almost every family. The harsh cold can be deadly for tribal elders living in homes that aren’t adequately heated. The high cost of heating often puts other necessities, such as health care and medicine, out of reach. The result is more suffering for a people that has already suffered much.
Trees, Water & People’s Tribal Lands Renewable Energy Program puts the power of nature — the warmth of the sun, the power of the wind, the shelter of trees — to work for Native Americans. Working with reservation communities, TWP plants windbreak and shade trees around homes, and builds and installs supplemental solar heaters for families in need. These solutions are sustainable, economically beneficial, environmentally friendly, and celebrate the Native Americans’ respect for Mother Earth.
Since the program began in 2003, more than 300 supplemental solar heating systems have been installed at Pine Ridge, Rosebud and other Great Plains reservation communities. In 2006-2007, TWP expanded the Tribal Lands program to include a pilot installation of a household-scale wind turbine and solar electricity (photovoltaic or PV) system at the Little Thunder home on the Rosebud Sioux reservation in South Dakota. The home had previously been outfitted with a supplemental solar heater and windbreak and shade trees. Working with our partners in the Rosebud Housing Authority and Tribal Utility Commission, we’re testing the viability of this multi-modal approach to helping Native families.
In 2008, TWP and our Pine Ridge partner, Lakota Solar Enterprises, established the Red Cloud Renewable Energy Center, where tribes from around the country can receive hands-on training in renewable energy applications from Native American trainers. Visiting tribal members are currently being trained in the theory and practice of solar heating. These newly-certified solar technicians then return to assemble and install heating systems for families in their own communities.
The program is currently working on the Pine Ridge, Rosebud and Cheyenne River Reservations in South Dakota, Spirit Lake and Standing Rock Reservations in North Dakota, and with Winona LaDuke and the Honor the Earth organization on the White Earth and Red Lake Reservations in Minnesota.
Volunteering with Trees, Water & People
Office Volunteers. The vast majority of our volunteer opportunities are office-based. TWP receives over 1000 volunteer hours per year, and we could not accomplish everything we do without this help. Normal office tasks include data entry, assistance with mailings, and organizing our recycling and reuse programs within our operations.
Planting, weeding, mulching xeriscape demonstration garden. This garden is located at the TWP office. We have plants that need care, weeds that need to come out & mulch to put down as well. So far we have had some excellent help, but there is always more to be done!
Internships: We offer varied internships every semester. Spring 2010 internships have been filled. Please check for opportunities this summer!
