Category Archives: Bali Protocols

The International Year Of Sustainable Energy – Did you know

Posted on by
1

I had no idea this was declared by the UN. I have no idea how I missed it. Sustainability is the only way the human race will survive. Steady state economies can attain just as big aspirations as corporate capitalism without the environmental degradation. It is just that a lot more people would have to agree to the giant goal. Like space travel for instance.

http://www.un-energy.org/stories/860-international-year-of-sustainable-energy-for-all

International Year of Sustainable Energy for All

Publication Date: May 31, 2011

 

“Expanding access to affordable, clean energy is critical for realizing
the MDGs and enabling sustainable development.”
-Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations

 

The Challenge and the Goal

 

Access to clean and affordable modern energy is critical to fostering lasting social and economic development and to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Worldwide, some 2.7 billion people rely on traditional biomass for cooking and heating, and 1.4 billion have no access to electricity, with one billion more having access only to unreliable electricity networks.

The lack of modern energy services stifles income-generating activities and hampers the provision of basic services such as health care and education. In addition, smoke from polluting and inefficient cooking, lighting, and heating devices kills nearly two million women and young children prematurely every year and causes a range of chronic illnesses and other health impacts. Black carbon emissions from these devices worsen global climate change, and foraging for fuel contributes to deforestation.

In response, the Secretary-General’s Advisory Group on Energy and Climate Change – composed of global business leaders and heads of UN agencies – has called on the United Nations and its member countries to commit themselves to ensuring universal access to modern energy services by 2030. UN-Energy a collaboration of 20 UN agencies will lead the effort.

Why Energy Matters 

Energy Lifts People From Poverty:
Energy is essential to economic development and to meeting the Millennium Development Goals, yet 1.4 billion people have no access to electricity and 2.7 billion people lack clean cooking fuels and stoves.

Clean Energy Saves Lives:
Nearly two million women and children, die prematurely every year (that’s four every minute) due to illnesses caused by indoor air pollution.

Energy is the single biggest contributor to climate change:
Energy accounts for 60% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

:}

More tomorrow.

:}

Paul Krugman And Energy Policy – California and what can be accomplished

Posted on by
Reply

It is so basic – save money on energy and there is more to spend on other things.

:}

http://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2007/02/paul_krugman_co.html

Friday, February 23, 2007

Paul Krugman: Colorless Green Ideas

Now that the scientific debate over global warming is all but over, Paul Krugman looks at what we can do limit greenhouse gas emissions:

Colorless Green Ideas, by Paul Krugman, Commentary, NY Times: The factual debate about whether global warming is real is, or at least should be, over. The question now is what to do about it.

Aside from a few dead-enders on the political right, climate change skeptics seem to be making a seamless transition from denial to fatalism. In the past, they rejected the science. Now, with the scientific evidence pretty much irrefutable, they insist that it doesn’t matter because any serious attempt to curb greenhouse gas emissions is politically and economically impossible.

Behind this claim lies the assumption, … that any substantial cut in energy use would require a drastic change in the way we live. To be fair, some people in the conservation movement seem to share that assumption.

But the assumption is false. Let me tell you about … an advanced economy that has managed to combine rising living standards with a substantial decline in per capita energy consumption, and managed to keep total carbon dioxide emissions more or less flat for two decades, even as both its economy and its population grew rapidly. And it achieved all this without fundamentally changing a lifestyle centered on automobiles and single-family houses.

The name of the economy? California.

There’s nothing heroic about California’s energy policy… [T]he state has adopted … conservation measures that are … the kind of drab, colorless stuff that excites only real policy wonks. Yet the cumulative effect has been impressive…

The energy divergence between California and the rest of the United States dates from the 1970s. Both the nation and the state initially engaged in significant energy conservation after that decade’s energy crisis. But conservation in most of America soon stalled…

In California, by contrast, the state continued to push policies designed to encourage conservation, especially of electricity. And these policies worked.

People in California have always used a bit less energy … because of the mild climate. But the difference has grown much larger since the 1970s. Today, the average Californian uses about a third less total energy than the average American, uses less than 60 percent as much electricity, and … emit[s] only about 55 percent as much carbon dioxide.

How did the state do it? In some cases conservation was mandated directly, through energy efficiency standards for appliances and rules governing new construction. Also, regulated power companies were given new incentives to promote conservation…

:}

More tomorrow.

:}

Response To The Gulf Gusher – Change your mind and change your life

Posted on by
Reply

http://www.newenergymovement.org/index.php

Ere many generations pass, our machinery will
be driven by power obtainable at any point in the
universe. It is a mere question of time when men
will succeed in attaching their machinery to the
very wheelwork of nature.

—Nikola Tesla
The World We Envision
Clean, safe, abundant, inexpensive energy for all… stabilized climate… clean and healthy water, food, and air for all… beautiful blue skies over our cities… low-impact, sustainable forestry and agriculture… beautiful landscapes unspoiled by wires and smokestacks… recycling of virtually all wastes… rivers running
free and natural… thriving sustainable local economies… living standards and education rates increasing… birth rates declining…
a global culture of sharing… unleashed human creativity…
a new and lasting era of world peace…

With a revolution in energy as the foundation of renewed and loving stewardship of our planet, we can transform our world into a beautiful and healthy home full of promise, opportunity, abundance, and peace for all of humanity.

Our Mission
The New Energy Movement acts to promote the rapid widespread deployment of advanced, clean, and sustainable energy sources across our imperiled planet. This transformation in the way our civilization generates and uses energy provides the best physical means to protect the biosphere, remediate ecological damage, and enhance the health and well-being of the global human family.

The New Energy Movement’s major priority is to educate the public, policymakers, and investors about the need to support research, development, and use of zero-point energy, magnetic generators, advanced hydrogen processes, and other little-known powerful energy technologies now emerging from inventors and scientists all over the world…

The Challenges

Critical and unprecedented challenges now face our civilization, inflicting a terrible toll on our people, our companion species, and the planet itself. If not reversed soon, they threaten to end human life on Earth.

Without a revolution in energy, we will not be able to act with the speed and scope demanded by the climate change emergency we face. With this revolution we will be able to create sustainable and just economic development required for world peace.

______________________________________________

Our survival will require
a vast and dramatic shift
in how human civilization
generates and uses energy.

______________________________________________

Read complete Mission Statement

:}

More tomorrow

:}

Last Day On Energy And/Or Carbon Neutral – Don’t know what I will post next

Posted on by
Reply

After a very disastrous environmental year, I have the summer doldrums. So I may just randomly post short things for awhile and as Mark Twain used to say, “let my tanks fill up”.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/alternate-energy-holdings-incs-energy-neutraltm-nominated-for-idaho-smart-growth-award-2010-07-08?reflink=MW_news_stmp

press release

July 8, 2010, 10:14 a.m. EDT · Recommend · Post:

Alternate Energy Holdings, Inc.’s Energy Neutral(TM) Nominated for Idaho Smart Growth Award

Nomination Distinguishes Energy Neutral(TM) as Leader in Sustainable Communities

BOISE, Idaho, Jul 8, 2010 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) — Alternate Energy Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB:AEHI) today announced its subsidiary Energy Neutral(TM) has been nominated for the Idaho Smart Growth award. The award sets the company apart from others in its construction techniques and use of renewable energy to create livable environments that maintain and enhance the idea of sustainable communities.

“This is a great honor to be publicly recognized for the work we’ve been doing with AEHI and Energy Neutral(TM). The very reason we started Energy Neutral(TM) was to show that proper planning and reliable use of renewable energy sources would result in a better, more productive building process–one that would create sustainability at an affordable price. In doing so, we’ve proven that anyone can take part in the process of making our communities cleaner and healthier,” said Don Gillispie, AEHI CEO.

“Energy Neutral(TM) unveiled its first model home in March 2010, which has consistently demonstrated it can create more power than it actually uses. In addition to bringing together state of the art technologies at low cost for our Energy Neutral(TM) homes, we have expertise in siting locations that provide added energy saving benefits. This home’s convenient location, close to shopping areas, public transportation, and the freeway, will aid in reducing vehicle emissions. The eventual owners will have more opportunities to leave their car at home when they go to work, stores, or recreation.”

“The Energy Neutral(TM) home is about being smarter stewards of the communities and environment we live in. It is the very reason we’ve been approached by builders from across the nation who are now looking to franchise with Energy Neutral(TM). We are able to provide them with an entirely new way to look at new home and commercial construction and I am hopeful this will be a strong contributor to the real estate market as more business and home owners come to recognize the Energy Neutral(TM) vision,” said Gillispie.

:}

I know…I know…It’s Idaho. But if the white supremacist fundamentalists get it…Well maybe everyone will.

GE’s Net Zero Home Project Aims For Energy Neutral Living By 2015

Using smart grid tech, solar panels and energy-efficient appliances to create homes that produce as much energy as they use
By Adrian Covert Posted 07.15.2009 at 12:30 pm 10 Comments
GE Net Zero Energy Home General Electric

By 2015, if General Electric has their way, all our homes will be running on smart grids with mini-turbines and solar panels to produce electricity, consuming zero net energy in the process.

GE says that their smart energy system, dubbed the Net Zero Home project, will center around a $250 central management hub that will allow all of a home’s networked appliances and on-site power-producing equipment talk to each other, as well as to the smart grid outside the home..

GE’s push comes at a time when power conservation is valued more than ever, and smart energy innovations are pouring in by the day.

The goal here is to make people more conscious of how much power they’re using and how often they’re doing it. By enabling a home’s appliances to scale down their performance or power state during peak hours, cities will not only conserve energy, but consumers will save money.

:}

As usual California is in the lead.

http://articles.latimes.com/2007/oct/19/business/fi-puc19

Energy neutral homes urged

The PUC adopts targets emphasizing efficiency for new construction.

October 19, 2007|From Bloomberg News

California energy regulators Thursday adopted a target that all homes built after 2020 produce at least as much energy as they consume to reduce demand for electricity and cut pollution tied to power generation.

The California Public Utilities Commission approved the guideline at a meeting in San Francisco. Homes would meet the goal through such measures as advanced insulation and solar power systems.

:}

There’s always more tomorrow

:}

Living In A Cave Or The Next Best Thing – They have nearly zero energy use

Posted on by
Reply

People all over the world live in caves. I am not talking about subsistence living either. Downtown Minneapolis is pretty much underground or connected by underground walkways.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underground_City,_Montreal

Montreal’s Underground City (officially RÉSO or La Ville Souterraine in French) is the set of interconnected complexes (both above and below ground) in and around Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is also known as the indoor city (ville intérieure), and is the largest underground complex in the world.[1]

The lower floors of the Eaton Centre between the McGill and Peel metro stations.

Not all portions of the indoor city (ville intérieure) are underground. The connections are considered tunnels architecturally and technically, but have conditioned air and good lighting as any building’s liveable space does. Many tunnels are large enough to have shops on both sides of the passage. With over 32 km (20 mi) of tunnels spread over more than 12 km2 (4.6 sq mi), connected areas include shopping malls, apartment buildings, hotels, condominiums, banks, offices, museums, universities, seven metro stations, two commuter train stations, a regional bus terminal and the Bell Centre amphitheatre and arena.[citation needed] There are more than 120 exterior access points to the underground city. Each access point is an entry point to one of 60 residential or commercial complexes comprising 3.6 km2 (1.4 sq mi) of floor space, including 80% of all office space and 35% of all commercial space in downtown Montreal.[citation needed] In winter, some 500,000 people use the underground city every day. Because of its Underground City, Montreal is often referred to [by whom?] as the “Double-Decker City” or “Two Cities in One”.

:}

OK so it is really really cold in Montreal. The point is caves do not really need heating and cooling. Hot water can be supplied by solar or geothermal and that just leaves your electrical needs. They also do it where it is really really hot.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coober_Pedy

Coober Pedy is a very small town, roughly halfway between Adelaide and Alice Springs, that has become a popular stopover point and tourist destination, especially since the completion of the sealing of the Stuart Highway in 1987.

Interesting attractions in Coober Pedy include the mines, the graveyard, and the underground churches. The first tree ever seen in the town was welded together from scrap iron. It still sits on a hilltop overlooking the town. The local golf course – mostly played at night with glowing balls, to avoid daytime temperatures – is completely free of grass, and golfers take a small piece of “turf” around to use for teeing off. As a result of correspondence between the two clubs, the Coober Pedy golf club is the only club in the world to enjoy reciprocal rights at The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.[4]

:}

http://www.outback-australia-travel-secrets.com/coober-pedy-underground-homes.html

Coober Pedy Underground Homes
Think A Dugout Is A Hole In The Ground? Think Again!

Coober Pedy underground homes are not what you expect.

The idea of living underground usually triggers thoughts of dark, damp and cramped spaces.

It doesn’t help that those underground homes are called “dugouts” in Coober Pedy… Or that people are told that they are abandoned mine shafts…

But as I said, Coober Pedy dugouts are not what you think.

You really have to go and have a look at some of those homes yourself, or stay in underground accommodation in Coober Pedy. You’ll probably end up dreaming of an underground home yourself. I certainly did.

Historic Coober Pedy Dugouts | Modern Coober Pedy Underground Homes

Historic Coober Pedy Dugouts

Coober Pedy Dugout

The early Coober Pedy dugouts were indeed the holes that had been dug in search for opal.

Back then opal mining was back breaking manual labour, so the earliest Coober Pedy homes were no bigger than they absolutely needed to be.

:}

Tomorrow more on Energy Neutral Houses.

:}

Cash For Caulkers Bill – Houston Neal explains it all

Posted on by
Reply

OK I am burned out on the Gulf Oil Spill. Houston Neal offered to let me post his piece on the Cash For Caulkers Bill. Normally such offers are from scammer links and such. Houston is involved with a software company so it is clear that he has advertising intents BUT it is such a damn fine article that I will post part of it so you can see for yourself and then you can go there and read it for yourself.

http://www.softwareadvice.com/articles/construction/cash-for-caulkers-the-definitive-guide-to-the-home-star-bill-1061110/

Houston Neal close Houston info gravatar Houston Neal

Director of Marketing at Software Advice
(512) 364-0117 LinkedIn
houston@softwareadvice.com v-card

See Authors Posts

Cash for Caulkers – The Definitive Guide To The Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010

Posted on June 11, 2010 at 11:41 am

“Cash for Caulkers” is nearly here. Last month the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5019 – also known as the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010 or “Cash for Caulkers” – to kick-start construction, create jobs and cut back carbon emissions. While the bill still needs to clear the Senate, supporters predict it will pass this summer.

This is great news for homeowners and contractors alike. The bill provisions $6 billion for energy-efficient or “green” retrofits. It is expected to fund renovations for 3 million families, create 168,000 new jobs and save consumers $9.2 billion on energy bills over the next 10 years.

But in order to cash in on upcoming rebates, homeowners and contractors will need to do their homework. There are 13 types of retrofits eligible for funding. Each retrofit has unique eligibility requirements and set rebate amounts. You can read the full text here.

We made it really easy to wade through the legalese. Below is a table that breaks down the 13 retrofits of the bill, along with the requirements and rebate amount for each. In addition to the requirements we listed, each retrofit must comply with Building Performance Institute (BPI) standards or other procedures to be approved by the Secretary of Energy.

Retrofit Requirements Rebate Amount
Air sealing Rebate covers both interior and exterior sealing and includes use of the following products: sealants, caulks, insulating foams, gaskets, weather-stripping, mastics, and other building materials. $1,500
Attic insulation Must meet the attic portions of the Department of Energy (DOE) or Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) thermal bypass checklist. You must add at least R–19 insulation to existing insulation, and it must result in at least R–38 insulation in DOE climate zones 1 through 4 and at least R–49 insulation in DOE climate zones 5 through 8. Finally, it must cover at least 100 percent of an accessible attic or 75 percent of the total conditioned footprint of the house. $1,000
Duct replacement and sealing Sealing must be installed in accordance with BPI standards or other procedures approved by the Secretary of Energy. For duct replacement, you must replace and seal at least 50 percent of a distribution system of the home. $1,000
Wall insulation Insulation must be installed to full-stud thickness or add at least R–10 of continuous insulation. It must covers at least 75 percent of the total external wall area of the home. $1,500
Crawl space or basement insulation Insulation must cover at least 500 square feet of crawl space or basement wall and add at least R–19 of cavity insulation or R–15 of continuous insulation to existing crawl space insulation; or R–13 of cavity insulation or R–10 of continuous insulation to basement walls. For rim joist insulation, you must fully cover the rim joist with at least R–10 of new continuous or R–13 of cavity insulation. $250 for rim joist insulation
Window replacement Must replace at least 8 exterior windows, or 75 percent of the exterior windows in a home, whichever is less, with windows that are certified by the National Fenestration Rating Council. Must comply with criteria applicable to windows under section 25(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or, in areas above 5,000 feet elevation, have a U-factor of at least 0.35 when replacing windows that are single-glazed or double-glazed with an internal air space of 1/4 inch or less. $1,000
Door or skylight replacement Must replace at least 1 exterior door or skylight with doors or skylights that comply with the 2010 Energy Star specification for doors or skylights. $125 per door or skylight with a limit of 2 doors and 2 skylights
Heating system replacement See second table below $1,000
Air-source air conditioner or heat pump installation Must be installed in accordance with ANSI/ACCA Standard 5 QI–2007. The air-source air conditioner must meet or exceed SEER 16 and EER 13; or SEER 18 and EER 15. The air-source heat pump must meet or exceed SEER 15, EER 12.5, and HSPF 8.5. $1,500
Geothermal heat pump installation Must be an Energy Star qualified geothermal heat pump that meets Tier 2 efficiency requirements and that is installed in accordance with ANSI/ACCA Standard 5 QI–2007. $1,000
Water heater replacement See third table below $1,000
Storm windows or doors installation Must be installed on at least 5 existing doors or existing single-glazed windows. Must comply with any procedures that the Secretary of Energy may set for storm windows or doors and their installation. $50 for each window or door with a minimum of 5 windows or doors and a maximum of 12
Window film installation Window film that is installed on at least 8 exterior windows, doors, or skylights, or 75 percent of the total exterior square footage of glass in a home, whichever is more, with window films that are certified by the National Fenestration Rating Council. Must have a solar heat gain coefficient of 0.43 or less with a visible light-to-solar heat gain coefficient of at least 1.1 for installations in 2009 International Energy Conservation Code climate zones 1–3; or a solar heat gain coefficient of 0.43 or less with a visible light light-to-solar heat gain coefficient of at least 1.1 and a U-factor of 0.40 or less as installed in 2009 International Energy Conservation Code climate zones 4–8. $500

We also decided to combine these retrofits into three packages that will help homeowners get the best bang for their buck. But first, let’s review the program details.

Who is Eligible and How to Qualify?
The Home Star bill offers two rebate programs, the “Silver Star” program and “Gold Star” program. Here are details for each:

  • Silver Star – Unless another amount is specified in the “Rebate Amount” column above, homeowners will receive a $1,000 rebate for each retrofit listed in our table. The maximum amount of rebates paid out will be $3,000 or 50% of the total cost, whichever is lower. For example, if a homeowner spends a total of $4,000 on eligible retrofits, they will get $2,000 or 50% back as a rebate. If they spend $8,000 on eligible retrofits, they would only receive $3,000 in rebates instead of $4,000 (which would be 50% of the cost).
  • Gold Star – To qualify for the Gold Star program, homeowners must reduce their total home energy consumption by 20%. A $3,000 rebate will be rewarded for this reduction. Homeowners can receive an additional $1,000 for each additional 5% reduction, up to a total rebate of $8,000 or 50% of the total retrofit cost. Rebates may be provided for any of the retrofits listed under the Silver Star program, or for any other energy-saving measure, including: home energy management systems, high-efficiency appliances, highly reflective roofing, awnings, canopies, and similar external fenestration (window) attachments, automatic boiler water temperature controllers, energy-efficient wood products, insulated vinyl siding, and mechanical air circulation and heat exchangers in a passiv

:}

Please go to this article and read the rest of it….Conservation is in the air.

More tomorrow.

:}

Cap And Trade This Year – I know this seems like a little off topic

Posted on by
Reply

We will get back to energy use and Healthcare tomorrow. This is such an obvious linkage that I thought I would put it up.

http://www.businessgreen.com/business-green/news/2259898/obama-healthcare-victory-clears

Obama’s healthcare victory clears path for climate change bill

As Democrats secure historic healthcare reforms, fresh details emerge of proposed climate change bill
James Murray, BusinessGreen, 22 Mar 2010
President Obama

The chances of US climate change legislation passing this year received a major boost after President Obama secured victory in his historic battle to pass healthcare reforms late last night.

The successful House vote on the legislation following over a year of intense and fraught negotiations will clear a path for the administration to turn to its next large piece of administrative business: climate change.

Some senior Democrat Senators have suggested that following such a long battle to pass healthcare legislation the Senate will have “no appetite” to deal with a climate change bill that is likely to prove equally contentious.

However, both the administration and Democrat leaders in the Senate and House of Representatives remain adamant that they want to pursue a vote this year and with the party still behind in the polls ahead of November’s mid-term elections the race is now on to move the legislation forward as quickly as possible.

The key healthcare vote comes just days after the compromise version of the climate change bill being prepared by the bi-partisan trio of Senators Democrat John Kerry, Republican Lindsey Graham, and independent Joe Lieberman, received a further boost when both environmental and industrial groups signaled their support for the proposed legislation.

In a surprise move, Bruce Josten, the top lobbyist at the US Chamber of Commerce, told reporters last week that the work being done by the three senators was “largely in synch” with the business group’s views.

Josten stopped short of fully endorsing the bill, but following a meeting with the Senator’s last Wednesday he struck a markedly different tone to the outright opposition to previous versions of the bill that the Chamber adopted last year.

“The fairest comment would be, directionally speaking, the way they are trying to conform and shape this bill I would suggest is largely in sync with what most people in American industry think is the direction you are going to have to go if you are going to have a successful program,” he told reporters.

:}

Let’s See Dorothy, Tornadoes, Little People And An Eco Friendly Infrastructure – What the heck is going on in Kansas

Posted on by
Reply

This doesn’t look like Kansas anymore TOTO:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0-um0pHTAg

They have a cool organization to prove it:

http://www.greensburggreentown.org/

U. of Colorado Students to Present Their Designs

DateMonday, April 20, 2009 at 10:08AM by AuthorEmily Schlickman

Students survey the proposed site. Model of a new green housing design.

During the Fall of 2008 and Spring of 2009, graduate-level architecture students from the University of Colorado-Denver met with residents of Greensburg, Kansas to better understand the needs of the community and the devastation of the EF5 tornado that hit Greensburg almost 2 years ago. They spent the next 8 months researching the Kansas climate and the appropriate materials and building techniques for new “green” housing designs.

:}

Supper to Feature a Banquet of Local Foods

DateSaturday, April 18, 2009 at 10:22PM by AuthorCatherine Hart

image courtesy of Local Burger

GreenTown will host supper Saturday, May 2 at 6:30 as part of the weekend of events observing the second anniversary of the tornado. (See entry from April 5, below, for itinerary.) Guests at our First Annual Green Initiative Awards banquet will be treated to a meal made possible by: Local Burger, a Lawrence, Kansas organic/sustainable/local foods eatery owned by Hilary Brown; Good Natured Family Farms, a consortium of over 100 family farms headed up by Diana Endicott; New Grass Bison Company, a sustainable food production and distribution company founded by Jeff Adair in 2001; and Anita Friesen, local Greensburg caterer extraordinaire.

:}

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVCkD-SLmK0&feature=related

If you will remember 2 years ago they got wacked at the knees:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17643060

OH that’s Hendrick not Hendrix:

Kansas Town’s Green Dreams Could Save Its Future

by Frank Morris

All Things Considered, December 27, 2007 · Greensburg, a tiny town on the vast, flat prairie of western Kansas, is at the center of a grand experiment. In May, a tornado obliterated nearly every house, tree and business.

The twister — among the strongest on record — killed 10 people and displaced almost 1,400 residents. The community had been in steep decline before the storm, but city leaders quickly saw opportunity in the disaster. Perhaps they could revive Greensburg and sustain it for generations to come by making it the greenest town in America.

Rebuilding Better

Less than two days after the tornado, as huge machines began to tear into the wreckage of his hometown, School Superintendent Darren Hedrick managed to put a brave face on.

“Towns are about people, they’re not about buildings. And it’s a huge opportunity to rebuild — not just rebuild it the way it was but maybe rebuild it a little bit better than it was,” Hedrick said.

Though buildings, books and records were gone, Hedrick pledged to open school on time in the fall.

He did.

First-graders recently celebrated the end of an odd semester. Classes were held in small, white trailers lined up a quarter-mile from where most of the students now live. Their teacher, Laura Proser, says winter break marks a welcome milestone.

“We just got our stoplight yesterday, and everybody’s excited about that,” Proser said.

The Greening of Greensburg

Townhomes are beginning to rise from the ragged tree trunks, weeds and ruins off Main Street. They mark a radical departure from traditional low-income housing, according to Duncan Prahl, who is from Pennsylvania and on contract with the National Renewable Energy Labs.

:}

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3Uia79MRrI&feature=related

Even Leonard DiCaprio got into the act:

http://www.inhabitat.com/2007/07/23/leonardo-di-caprio-to-build-eco-town-in-kansas/

LEONARDO DI CAPRIO to Build “Eco-Town” in Kansas

by Tylene Levesque

Tornado Damage in Greensburg, Kansas, Discovery Communications, Planet Green Channel, “Eco-Town”, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sustainable Building

Discovery’s new eco-lifestyle channel Planet Green is partnering with actor and avid environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio to help launch the channel early next year with a touching environmentally-friendly project. DiCaprio is set to executive produce “Eco-Town,” a 13-part reality series which will follow state and local officials in their quest to build an ecologically—and economically—sustainable town in Kansas, aptly named Greensburg.

The series will document the green rebuilding of Greensburg, Kansas, a small town that was leveled by a devastating tornado on May 4th. Environmentally friendly, energy efficient materials and technology will be used to reconstruct the hundreds of homes and businesses damaged by the storm in hopes of encouraging many of the 1,500 residents to return home. We’re eagerly waiting to see what other green programs Planet Green has in store for us.

:}

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z94RfLEzwAg&feature=related

But does it really take ALL of this to get earth friendly? Do we have to wait for disasters like Katrina to do the things we know are right. Isn’t this Environmentalism by suicide?

http://www.parade.com/news/2009/04/the-greenest-town-in-america.html

 

Previous 1 of 3 Next

The Greenest Town in America

by Lamar Graham

published: 04/19/2009

1. The Greenest Town in America

 

2. Personality Parade

 

3. Wind Power

An eco-friendly home in Greensburg, Kansas. Photo by Jim Reed.

Darin Headrick, superintendent of schools in Greensburg, Kan., wasn’t particularly alarmed to hear a tornado siren wail on the evening of May 4, 2007. Such warnings are rites of spring in south-central Kansas, and when Mother Nature gets her dander up, “there’s nothing much you can do but get home, put the vehicles away, and get down in the basement,” Headrick says. So he and his wife went next door and joined their neighbors, a couple with two teenage daughters, in their below-ground rec room.

Violent wind, rain, and hail lashed the town. The power went out. Suddenly, Headrick says, “ there was a huge pressure change in the atmosphere.” They heard glass begin to shatter above them, then a sound like a giant wrecking ball.

Miraculously, the planks over their heads held fast. The rest of the house simply vanished. So did every other dwelling in the vicinity. For a desperate hour, the two families searched for neighbors. Eventually, they set out on foot for the dark center of town.

Every house and building they passed had been flattened. “We met people coming from the other direction,” Headrick recalls. “They said, ‘It’s not any better back there.’ That’s when we knew.” Greensburg, population 1574, had been wiped off the map.

  Devastated but not destroyed: Greensburg after the twister that killed 11 on May 4, 2007

The tornado that obliterated Greensburg was one of the strongest ever recorded anywhere, with winds of 205 mph and a footprint 1.7 miles wide. The town, only about 1.5 square miles, never stood a chance. Eleven people died. Fewer than a dozen homes were left standing.

The devastation was so complete that folks in Greensburg wondered whether to rebuild at all. Even before the twister, their town had been on the wane, its population graying, its young people moving away. “Rural America is kind of dying,” Headrick observes.

:}

Sarah Palin Demands Cap and Trade System To Save Alaska’s Environment – You betcha

Posted on by
1

OK maybe not but all the deniers are now having to become cryers…They lost the public because they lost sight of scientific truth, which of course half of them don’t believe in anyway.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixAGZZK_XbMkinda doesn’t matter at this point:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2IVytlHDcY

to the right of Bush/Cheney:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viFu7iB02xs

But then:

Climate change: Alaska Gov.

Sarah Palin acknowledges global warming is affecting her state

But the former GOP vice presidential

candidate contends gas drilling will help curb rising temperatures

By Kim Murphy |Tribune Newspapers
April 15, 2009

ANCHORAGE — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin acknowledged Tuesday that global warming is harming her state but said stepped-up natural-gas production could mitigate its effects.

Palin spoke at a hearing before Interior Secretary Ken Salazar — the third of a series he is holding across the country to consider renewed oil and gas leasing on the Outer Continental Shelf.

The 2008 Republican nominee for vice president said relatively clean-burning natural gas can supplant dirtier fuels and slow the discharge of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

“We Alaskans are living with the changes that you are observing in Washington,” she said. “The dramatic decreases in the extent of summer sea ice, increased coastal erosion, melting of permafrost, decrease in alpine glaciers and overall ecosystem changes are very real to us.”

In the past, Palin has questioned the science behind predictions of sea ice loss.

But at Tuesday’s hearing, she made it clear that she recognizes the problem of global warming and cast energy development as part of the answer.

“Stopping domestic energy production of preferred fuels does not solve the issues associated with global warming and threatened or endangered species, but it can make them worse,” she said.

Palin acknowledged that “many believe” a global effort to reduce greenhouse gases is needed.

“Meeting these goals will require a dramatic increase, in the very near term, to preferred available fuels—including natural gas—that have a very low carbon footprint,” she said. “These available fuels are required to supply the nation’s energy needs during the transition to green energy alternatives.”

The federal Minerals Management Service estimates that Alaska’s offshore basins could hold 27 billion barrels of oil and 132 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

:}

Drill baby Drill. Sustainability, not so much.

As this blogger points out Sarah is always kinda vague about everything. No one can figure out whether that is symptomatic of a vague mind or a generalist’s over intelligence:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/10/sarah-palin-dis.html

Sarah Palin discusses global

warming and its causes, vaguely, on CBS

Sarah Palin clearly was in her comfort zone when she chatted on-air Tuesday with conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt. As The Ticket noted , she presented a persona and offered some lines that could serve her well in her Thursday debate with Joe Biden.Sarah Palin takes the stage in Ohio

Tuesday also saw the broadcast of another of her several interviews with Katie Couric of CBS.

This segment may not spark more calls from conservative commentators that Palin give up her spot on the Republican national ticket. But in front of the television cameras — and in the face of more pointed questioning — the self-assurance that marked her conversation with Hewitt continued to elude her.

One answer by Palin will do little to quell concerns about her position on global  warming. As she did with ABC’s Charlie Gibson a few weeks back, she did her best to skirt a direct answer on its causes.

From the transcript:

Couric: What’s your position on global warming? Do you believe it’s man-made or not?

Palin: Well, we’re the only Arctic state, of course, Alaska. So we feel the impacts more than any other state, up there with the changes in climates. And certainly, it is apparent. We have erosion issues. And we have melting sea ice, of course. So, what I’ve done up there is form a sub-cabinet to focus solely on climate change. Understanding that it is real. And …

Couric: Is it man-made, though in your view?

Palin: You know there are — there are man’s activities that can be contributed to the issues that we’re dealing with now, these impacts. I’m not going to solely blame all of man’s activities on changes in climate. Because the world’s weather patterns are cyclical. And over history we have seen change there. But kind of doesn’t matter at this point, as we debate what caused it. The point is: it’s real; we need to do something about it.

Pardon us for asking, but would it not be difficult to devise an effective policy to mitigate the effects of global warming without a firm grasp on what caused it?

:}

I am voting vague mind.

OverPopulation Is The Real Problem With Energy – We are not sustainable and 6 billion people will have to die

Posted on by
1

OverPopulation is never a pleasant topic. Why? Well for so many reasons:

1. It is Anti-Capitalistic. Capitalism is founded on an unlimited growth model as is it’s hand maiden in literature – science fiction. Malthus sends Capitalists into a frenzy of “it ain’t so” denial. But if he is ultimately right, and our technology and science can not prevent our population from stabilizing at a set amount, then Capitalism is dead.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8-WgJVUcD4

2. It is anti-religious. Almost every religion in the world preaches procreation. The idea has always been that the religion that has the most recruits will eventually  become the ULTIMATE Religion. Which is the goal of course.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kndX3tVxCt8&feature=related

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7974995.stm

Earth population ‘exceeds limits’

By Steven Duke
Editor, One Planet, BBC World Service


LIVING ON A CROWDED EARTH

Crowded commuter trains (AP)

 

Current world population – 6.8bn

Net growth per day – 218,030

Forecast made for 2040 – 9bn

Source: US Census Bureau

There are already too many people living on Planet Earth, according to one of most influential science advisors in the US government.

Nina Fedoroff told the BBC One Planet programme that humans had exceeded the Earth’s “limits of sustainability”.

Dr Fedoroff has been the science and technology advisor to the US secretary of state since 2007, initially working with Condoleezza Rice.

Under the new Obama administration, she now advises Hillary Clinton.

“We need to continue to decrease the growth rate of the global population; the planet can’t support many more people,” Dr Fedoroff said, stressing the need for humans to become much better at managing “wild lands”, and in particular water supplies.

Pressed on whether she thought the world population was simply too high, Dr Fedoroff replied: “There are probably already too many people on the planet.”

:}

3. OverPopulation is very male. Knowing that OverPopulation must end is very women centered. One of the most mysogynist impulses is religion’s and men’s impulse to control a woman’s womb. When women control their womb they produce 2 or 3 children which is just about right for their health and just about right for the planet. But over procreation has been the norm for the last 300 years and we are about to reap it’s wind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlpyGhABXRA&feature=related 

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1525/is_5_84/ai_62896162/

COPYRIGHT 1999 Sierra Magazine

COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group

Y6B: The Real Millennial Threat

– effects of overpopulation – Brief Article

Sierra ,  Sept, 1999   by William G. Hollingsworth

Think the population explosion is over? Think again.

On or about October 12, 1999, human population is expected to reach 6 billion. While it took until about 1800 to reach the first billion, the trip from 5 billion to 6 will have required a mere 12 years. Those born in 1930 will have seen humankind triple within their lifetime.

That makes all the more surprising the strange take of the national media, which over the past few years have been full of stories like “The Population Explosion Is Over” (The New York Times Magazine) or “Now the Crisis Is Global Underpopulation” (Orange County Register). These contrarian stories are based on two recent demographic trends: fertility in nearly all developed nations has fallen below the population-stabilizing “replacement” rate (2.1 children per woman, where mortality is low), and fertility is declining in most of the developing world. These trends led the United Nations to revise its population projections, reflecting a slower rate of growth than previously forecast.

Related Results

Short Term Energy Monitoring: A Road To Long Term Energy Savings?

“Slower,” however, does not mean slow. At the current global growth rate, 1.5 million people–roughly a new metropolitan Milwaukee–are added every week. Despite fertility declines, birthrates in much of the world remain high. For example, Guatemala’s fertility is 5.1 children per woman, Laos and Pakistan’s 5.6, and Iraq’s 5.7. And those are not even the high end of the spectrum: Afghanistan’s fertility rate is 6.1. The 43 nations of East, West, and Central Africa average 6.0, 6.2, and 6.3 children per woman, respectively. Countries that have reduced their birthrate to three or four children per woman are also growing very rapidly. This is partly because of “population momentum,” in which earlier high fertility yields a large proportion of young people. Even fertility rates fractionally above replacement can perpetuate rapid growth.

What if every nation’s fertility stayed at its present level? Human population would exceed 50 billion by the year 2100–if the earth could support that many.

The UN “medium” projections (perhaps the most realistic) now assume that fertility in developing nations will fall to about 2.2 children per woman over roughly the next 30 years. Even so, world population would reach 8.9 billion by 2050. The 2.9 billion gain would itself equal the world’s entire human population in 1957.

Most future growth will occur in the most distressed regions of the earth, many of which are already experiencing severe deforestation, water shortages, and massive soil erosion. In the medium projections, sub-Saharan Africa’s present population of 630 million will more than double to 1.5 billion by 2050. By that time, Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, and Pakistan will also more than double, as will Bolivia, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Paraguay. Bangladesh will grow by two-thirds, and India will increase by more than half a billion persons to 1.5 billion.

:}

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/eye/overpopulation/overpopulation.html

4. OverPopulation harbors everyone’s worst fears about “State” control. That we will be prohibited to breed “for our own good” and that only the rich shall have kids. Which would your rather have a human die off of 6 billion people or a little self control?? But we are past that now. The die off will happen and the real issue is “what do we do when humans become food”…and once we get over the crash how do we stabilize the population.  Many world leaders are thinking about this now. Shouldn’t you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kndX3tVxCt8&feature=related

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overpopulation

Overpopulation

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

 The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (December 2007)

 

 

Map of countries by population density (See List of countries by population density.)

 

 

Areas of high population densities, calculated in 1994.

 

 

Map of countries and territories by fertility rate (See List of countries and territories by fertility rate.)

Overpopulation is a condition where an organism‘s numbers exceed the carrying capacity of its habitat. In common parlance, the term usually refers to the relationship between the human population and its environment, the Earth.[1]

Overpopulation does not depend only on the size or density of the population, but on the ratio of population to available sustainable resources. If a given environment has a population of 10 individuals, but there is food or drinking water enough for only 9, then in a closed system where no trade is possible, that environment is overpopulated; if the population is 100 but there is enough food, shelter, and water for 200 for the indefinite future, then it is not overpopulated. Overpopulation can result from an increase in births, a decline in mortality rates due to medical advances, from an increase in immigration, or from an unsustainable biome and depletion of resources. It is possible for very sparsely-populated areas to be overpopulated, as the area in question may have a meager or non-existent capability to sustain human life (e.g. the middle of the Sahara Desert or Antarctica).

The resources to be considered when evaluating whether an ecological niche is overpopulated include clean water, clean air, food, shelter, warmth, and other resources necessary to sustain life. If the quality of human life is addressed, there may be additional resources considered, such as medical care, education, proper sewage treatment and waste disposal. Overpopulation places competitive stress on the basic life sustaining resources, leading to a diminished quality of life.:}

:}

http://www.culturechange.org/overpopulation_resources.html

:}