Dash of Calabash

The Honolulu Advertiser, 1/18/08 p C7 reported 5.244 megawatts of wind power generation installed in 2007, accounting for 30% of all new electricity-generating capacity. Note that this was done at a tax credit cost of a 2 cents per kilowatt hour of energy produced (around $100K), which lowered the development costs to the same level as coal-fired plants.

At this time the tax credit has not been extended past the end of 2008, but it seems likely it will be.

Currently wind power represents just less than 1% of all power generated in the United States according to the US Energy Information Administration.

Read the article by clicking here

The Honolulu Advertiser, 1/19/08 p C3, reported that the Kaheawa wind farm exceeded its output target last year, generating more than 125,000 megawatt-hours of electricity. It further reported that the company supplied electricity to more than 11,000 Maui homes, reducing the island’s oil dependence by 236,000 barrels a year.

While this sounds almost too good (one comment to the press release noted that this would mean 48% capacity, which is unheard of) and means that the project would be generating 11 MW for each of its 11,000 customers (Sierra Club of Hawaii reports an average household uses 7,800 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually), this is indeed a step in the right direction.

Look to see alternate energy production increase from 6% in 2006 when the report for 2007 is released by DBEDT this year. Read the 2006 report using this link. See page 11. (As a point of comparison, note that in 2006 geothermal power represented 20% of energy production for the Big Island.) The goal for the state is 20% overall. Note that the HECO Kahe Wind Farm project was refused permits by the City and County of Honolulu.

From Kenneth Green at TCS Daily:

Common sense should tell us that good policies produce more in benefits than they cost us. Unfortunately, common sense has left the building when it comes to climate policy. Asserting (somewhat absurdly) that America’s economic and geopolitical competitors, such as China and India, are just waiting for “U.S. moral leadership,” several voices are renewing their call for domestic cap-and-trade legislation to control greenhouse gases. (more…)

Bjorn Lomborg argues that many of the elaborate and expensive actions now being considered to stop global warming will cost hundreds of billions of dollars, are often based on emotional rather than strictly scientific assumptions, and may very well have little impact on the world’s temperature for hundreds of years. Rather than starting with the most radical procedures, Lomborg argues that we should first focus our resources on more immediate concerns, such as fighting malaria and HIV/AIDS and assuring and maintaining a safe, fresh water supply-which can be addressed at a fraction of the cost and save millions of lives within our lifetime. He asks why the debate over climate change has stifled rational dialogue and killed meaningful dissent.

You can find a link to the Lomborg’s website by clicking here

Green Sand Inc. (GSI) announced today that it has offset its carbon emissions with Carbonfund.org the country’s leading carbon offset organization. After implementing strategies to reduce their footprint directly, GSI’s carbon footprint was calculated at 40 tons. GSI’s donation through the CarbonFree Small Business program offsets 70 tons of carbon dioxide, making GSI a carbon-negative company. This commitment places GSI as an environmental leader in the architecture community and demonstrates proactive steps being taken in the fight against global climate change.

A visit to the Carbonfund.org web site revealed that the 70 ton offset that GSI made is the minimum allowed on the site. A review of participating companies showed that most, having reduced paper and electricity usage usually offset their remaining electrical usage. None seem to offset any part of their manufacturing business. The largest company participating, Dell, only offsets the electricity used when owners power up their individual PCs.

(more…)

Minnesota’s corn ethanol industry blends subsidies, politics and lobbying

By: Ron Way

LAKE CRYSTAL, MINN. - Brad LeMay owns the Humphrey Street Grill in Lake Crystal, a southwestern Minnesota farm community that for years tried to build a new high school. Early last year, that new school opened after voters earlier approved the long-sought referendum.

LeMay credits a nearby ethanol refinery for the voters’ change of heart.

“It’s sure helped our business,” LeMay said of the 52-million-gallon refinery, adding that POET Biorefining’s plant brought enough financial security to the community to allow voters to give their approval in 2005, the same year the plant was built.

POET’s Lake Crystal facility is one 17 ethanol plants in Minnesota and one of 134 that dot the U.S. countryside, annually consuming a fifth of the nation’s corn crop - and nearly a quarter of Minnesota’s - to produce 7.2 billion gallons of ethanol (the very same “white lightning” distilled by moonshiners of lore).

The domestically-produced “biofuel” - seen as an antidote to U.S. oil-import vulnerability - is one of Minnesota’s biggest booming industries.

(more…)

BEIJING - Declaring war on the “white pollution” choking its cities, farms and waterways, China is banning free plastic shopping bags and calling for a return to the cloth bags of old - steps largely welcomed by merchants and shoppers on Wednesday.

The measure eliminates the flimsiest bags and forces stores to charge for others, making China the latest nation to target plastic bags in a bid to cut waste and conserve resources.

Read the rest of the article here

Hoku Solar Inc. yesterday announced the completion of two photovoltaic power systems for Paradise Beverages Inc. - one at its Kailua, Kona, office and another at its Lihu’e, Kaua’i, facility. Combined, the systems include approximately 100 kilowatts of photovoltaic panels and are expected to produce more than 150,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.Paradise Beverages is the Hawai’i distributor for Coors, Heineken, Corona and Miller products.

Hoku Solar is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kapolei-based Hoku Scientific Inc.

Hoku Scientific’s shares closed down 12 cents at $10.65 yesterday on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

(Article taken from the Honolulu Advertiser)

Three years ago, the European Union implemented an emissions trading scheme that ties in with Kyoto’s credit system. Has the scheme provided any emissions reductions for the region? What lessons can the United States learn from the European Union as it tries to create its own domestic climate policy?

During today’s OnPoint, Neil O’Brien, director of Open Europe, a London-based think tank, explains why he believes the European Union’s emissions program has been a total failure. He cautions that the Lieberman-Warner bill could provide similar results and recommends the United States take a different approach to reducing emissions. O’Brien, author of the report, “Europe’s Dirty Secret: Why the E.U. Emissions Trading Scheme Isn’t Working” also explains why he believes a cap-and-trade program could interfere with technological innovations.

Click here to see the video from OnPoint, 12/05/2007

By Chuck Muth
How many congressmen does it take to change a light bulb? 400.
That’s how many members of Congress recently voted for a bill which will force American consumers to change the 50-cent incandescent light bulbs they’re currently using and replace them with expensive new, $3 “energy-efficient” light bulbs. As Shane Cory of the Libertarian Party sarcastically put it, “If you outlaw light bulbs, then only outlaws will have light bulbs.” (more…)