Affordable Portable Solar

Going solar has usually meant a significant financial outlay and a time-consuming, complicated installation. No longer.
 

Now there’s the Solar Stik, a portable solar generator weighing around 100 pounds that installs in around 10 minutes.
It’s already been used by the military, classified as a Tactical Quiet Generator (TQG), given the name “TESS” (Tactical Electric Solar System) [...]

Consumer Electronics Report Card part 2

Some of the statistics on consumer electronics companies reviewed as part of the recently released Environmental Sustainability and Innovation in the Consumer Electronics Industry Report are pretty impressive.
Epson’s packaging now comes from trees specifically grown for them. They also plant 20 percent more trees than they harvest.
The amount of electrical energy Nokia’s cell phone chargers [...]

Wave Energy – A Wave of the Future (Part 2)

Off the northern coast of Portugal, the Pelamis Wave Power’s converters are tethered by cables to the ocean’s floor and placed perpendicular to the coastline. Each device has several sections. As waves roll past, each section moves up and down, while internal hydraulic rams resist this motion. This opposition forces high pressure fluid through hydraulic motors, [...]

A Greener Report Card for the Electronics Industry

In these days of rampant greenwashing, consumers have been dealt a winning hand by the Consumer Electronics Association.
The CEA’s recent “Environmental Sustainability and Innovation in the Consumer Electronics Industry Report” http://www.ce.org/PDF/Sustainability_Final.pdf 
analyzed  20 corporations, including many of the largest consumer electronics sellers in the world.

The report paints a positive picture, including lower manufacturer energy consumption and improved [...]

Wave Energy – The Future is Here (part 1)

Waves over the Pelamis Wave Converters generate electricity

Portugal has launched the world’s first wave farm, technology so new it’s been viewed as speculative for the past few years.
The Pelamis Wave Power project, went live the end of September off Portugal’s northern coast, in Agucaduora. The three coral-colored, whale-like, partially submerged wave-energy converters use naturally-occurring waves [...]

Forward Thinking in Colorado

Have been on the email list for CASBA – Colorado Alliance of Sustainable Business Associations for some time. Sort of fell into my lap.
I continue to be amazed at the effort and broad-stroked commitment that that CASBA demonstrates is occurring and that’s bringing the conversation of climate change and related issues forward in that state.

The [...]

More States Steward Mercury Disposal

Mercury disposal is a big health concern. Approximately 50 million mercury-containing thermostats – each containing an average of 4 grams of mercury – are still in homes in the U.S..Though 15 states in the U.S. ban or restrict their sale and manufacturers no longer produce them, mercury thermostats are legally sold in 35 states.
Some states [...]

Solar Highways Begin to Light the Way

The state of Oregon began installing the U.S.’s first solar highway in August. Located at the intersection of Highways 5 and 205, its 104-kilowatt array will produce 28 percent of the power necessary to light the exchange.
Portland (OR) General Electric and U.S. Bankcorp Community Development Corporation partnered to create the funding for this $1.4 million [...]

A “Natural” Legacy

A plethora of states would love to jump on the National Trail System’s bandwagon – from Washington, D.C. to Ohio, from Maryland to Indiana.
The pending National Trails bill that awaits action by the U.S. Senate, authorizes the National Park Service to study extending numerous trails and sites throughout the Eastern half of the country.
The Secretary of the [...]

Trails Bill Rests in the Senate

Some remarkable trails have been proposed for annexation into the National Trails System. Amazingly, the U.S. House has approved many of them. Typically, the Senate hasn’t.
The Senate could vote on this bill – containing 150 public lands, natural resources, and water projects -on November 17th, in a lame duck session. If so, the House would [...]