You are browsing the archive for February 2009.
I’ve been reading So Damn Much Money by Robert Kaiser, a book about the synergistic changes of lobbying , politics and governing over the years. I came to a part where he discusses Pirelli Cable Corporation’s unsuccessful efforts to obtain federal funding for an undersea cable to convey geothermal energy amongst Hawaii’s islands. (Geothermal energy [...]
In the spirit of environmental responsibility the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 – HR1 includes provisions on how to address the National Environmental Policy Act of 1970 (NEPA) which requires Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) for any projects receiving federal funding to “balance man and nature”.
The Act was created to avoid environmental litigation for [...]
EPA seeks to identify environmental risks through a unique process. Their risk assessment process develops models by assessing the quantity of a chemical in soil, water, or air; the exposure to people, plants or animals; and the inherent toxicity of the chemical. One component is the development of a dose-response ratio giving a numeric value [...]
The EPA’s Clean Air Act (CAA) currently regulates six criteria air pollutants: particulate matter, ground level ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides and lead. Through partnerships with states and tribes it has identified non-attainment areas where standards for the criteria pollutants, set to protect human health and the environment, are not met. State implementation plans have [...]
Geologic carbon sequestration is a process of capturing CO2 emissions from fossil fuel power plants and other major sources and injecting it, one to four kilometers down, into porous rock formations where, in theory, it can become trapped beneath impermeable geologic layers for thousands of millions of years.
However, questions about whether CO2 can leak back [...]
There is funding available for industrial energy saving assessments for those organizations that provide technical assistance. $50,000,000 is available to help manufacturing facilities across the nation to identify immediate energy and cost saving opportunities that will also ease energy costs over the long-term.
There are two components to the funding opportunity. Plants can apply directly to [...]
There are four nuclear power plants in my state, New Jersey. The Nuclear Energy Institute estimates that NJ’s nuclear power plants did not emit: 186,800 tons of SO2, 50,000 tons of NOx and 29.7 million metric tons of CO2 for the year 2007 while providing 32,010,376 Mwh of electricity.
Here’s some information to make comparisons: the [...]
How can I shrink my carbon footprint efficiently? In my state I can choose to have 100% of my electric energy supplied from alternative sources through my established power provider.
I chose the least expensive choice of 50% wind and 50% low impact Hydro provided by Green Mountain Energy through FirstEnergy Corp to supply 100% of [...]
Studying things on a nano level leads to the production of better tools, products and technologies that can meet emerging energy, environmental and medical challenges. This applied scientific field is called nanotechnology and is the study of nanoparticles, particles at a scale of one-billionth of a meter. It is unique because materials exhibit different properties [...]
Following are the projections for US energy supply for the year 2030 based on information obtained from the DOE’s Energy Information Administration.
The information is categorized by source and type of energy provided. Numbers are for quadrillion BTU/Year (1 BTU = 1 055.05585 joules and a 60 watt light bulb uses 60 joules/second).
US Production: Oil 15.98; [...]