One man's garbage is another man's biogas

Awesome article in the New York times regarding how Kristianstad, Sweden has converted their biowaste into biofuel - heating most of the city and providing biogas to all government-operated vehicles. This has pretty much cut out all needs for municipal and utility petroleum-based fuels.

The city of Kristianstad (which was apparently nearly bankrupted during the oil shocks of the 1970s from fuel costs) pay half for energy than they would if they relied on oil, easily get rid of biowaste from their agricultural sector that would have to be disposed of anyways and could intoxicate the water supply if not properly taken care of, employ tons of people, and have as a byproduct, produced technology and expertise within their citizens that could be exported probably for loads of cash.

So, so, fricking smart. Why can't we do this?

So, who wants to drill more?

Seriously, how can anyone still want to keep on with off-shore drilling. The US Gulf wetlands are facing the prospect of being irreparably damaged for a generation, if not more. The machinery to get the oil out is ridiculously complicated and difficult to install.... It's a wonder that disasters like BP's haven't occurred more often, or been equally catastrophic.

An oil rig, the helicopters to service it, and the ships to drill and transport petroleum to the coast all together cost 100's of millions of dollars - and that's just the initial fixed cost to get the thing up... Never mind the net present value of wages, maintenance, and operational costs for the lifetime of the investment... If just a fraction of that were deferred, to say, a venture fund that focused on clean energy start-ups, we might even find a couple of real solutions. Hopefully Better Place and the Nissan Leaf will catch on in a big way, soon.

TF On the Ball

I find myself agreeing with Thomas Friedman again and again. I think he once more has his finger on the pulse of what "should happen" in terms of alternative energy investment in the US. As he highlights in today's column, the Chinese are starting to throw the kitchen sink at green energy production and at our (the US') current relative speeds, we will soon be left far behind.

With all of the debate over the impending energy capping bill vote, which some say is too weak, and others say is too restrictive and will choke off job creation (doubtful because nearly every change in the way things are done has spurred massive innovation which leads to the creation of new industrial sectors), I am reminded of the boldness that America was once known as having to do "the impossible" as is highlighted in JFK's go to the moon speech. Where is this resolve right now?

"We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too. "
- JFK, 1962

Go Smart Grid Go

Three cheers for Miami's utilities!

Is this the beginning?

Article in CNN about people switching to "green-collar" jobs. Is this the start of something new, or just a flash in the pan?

Friedman Strikes Again

Once again, Thomas Friedman has his fingers on the pulse on the latest in the world. Here's a great highlight drawn from his experience in India, comparing the US and Chinese embassy in New Delhi:

The U.S. Embassy and the Chinese Embassy are both located on Panchsheel, directly across from each other. They asked me to check out the rooftops of each embassy. What do I notice? Let’s see ... The U.S. Embassy’s roof is loaded with antennae and listening gear. The Chinese Embassy’s roof is loaded with ... new Chinese-made solar hot-water heaters.

You couldn’t make this up.

Friedman strikes again!

Demand is a beautiful thing

Interesting CNN article here. Apparently, there is so much pent up demand for electric cars which is being unmet by car manufacturers, that a bunch of DIYers are taking matters into their own hands and building their own. Sound like the early adopters are ready. Let's see which car manufacturer is the first with a commercially sound product.

It can be done!

Although he may be oversimplifying a bit, Thomas Friedman details a case study of Denmark's energy strategy, which has led them to be completely independent from the Middle East's petroleum.

Denmark accomplished this through government intervention in setting the stage for making innovation in the energy field competitive, and then let their domestic entrepreneurs and markets take off. This has also positively affected their unemployment rate as Denmark is becoming a front runner in alternative energy technology and is turning it's market view towards the rest of the world.

Denmark is significantly smaller than the US, China, India, and many other of the top petroleum importers, but still, if they can do it, there's no reason others can't.

The Electric Slide

Here's an interesting article about technologies being developed to capture the energy that humans create when moving and turning it into electricity. Aside from some gyms in Hong Kong and Portland, there's a dance club in Rotterdam, NL, that has crystals under the floor which rub against eachother when people atop them dance. I wonder how much the Thriller dance would generate?