Archive for the 'energy' Category

My kind of town, Chicago is…

Published
by
JB
on June 15, 2008
in action, carbon, energy, global warming, pollution, recycling and solar
. 3 Comments

chicago-skyline.jpgI lived in Chicago circa 1993-2004, during which most of this time I lived near Lincoln Park (Lakeview to be exact). I worked in downtown Chicago and would hop on the 151 (bus) everyday. I had my ups and downs with the 151 - it safely brought me to 333 East Wacker and back without fail, but was crowded and downright gross in the heat of the summer (picture your face being smashed into someone’s armpit when the bus lurched to a stop.) Yum. Regardless, I loved the freedom public transportation afforded me. The fact that I only used my car on the weekends is a total 180 from my life today, where I basically drive everywhere and everyday (public transportation in Mountain View, CA is sorely lacking in comparison). Anyway, there are other things I miss about Chicago - the food, the summer festivals, Ravinia, etc. I can go on and on.

Well here’s one more reason why Chicago is a great city: Mayor Daley. Regardless of your political party affiliation, you have to admit that he’s doing a pretty good job of making Chicago one of, if not the greenest cities in the US today. Here are just a few examples:

  • Chicago’s City Hall is the country’s first rooftop garden on a municipal building - Check out the Featured Projects link on this website
  • The Green Alley Project where alleys are retrofitted with environmentally sustainable road-building materials (there’s a lot more interesting information about this project here)
  • Museums (all of them) have been converted to partially run on solar power
  • All new public buildings to achieve at least LEED Silver status

Check out this cool PDF which shares more info on some of the other big green projects Chicago has completed.

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San Jose street lights might get an IQ lift

Published
by
greenhl
on June 7, 2008
in action, energy, government and transportation
. 0 Comments

San Jose, located in the heart of Silicon Valley and home to companies like eBay, Adobe, Cisco, IBM, Hitachi, Xilinx, and Lockheed Martin, is looking to test new smart street lights. San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed hopes to turn San Jose’s street lights into power and internet access points for motorists. The smart street lights will have power jacks for electric and hybrid cars (which will require payment to make the power flow), antennas for Wi-Fi internet access, and built-in web cameras. The web cams will double as traffic and crime monitoring.

This doesn’t sound too green you say. Well, the lights are also set to use the latest LED lighting technology, which will last longer and consume less power than their current counterparts. In addition, the lights will be “intelligent” enough to turn off when it doesn’t sense any cars or people in the area. With thousands of street lights across the city, this could prove to be a real power and money saver.

The test is scheduled to begin this week. If the initial demonstration is successful, there will be a larger test this summer. It would sure be great to have these smart lights as well as “smart traffic lights” too.

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We all burn millions of dollars each year… literally

Published
by
greenhl
on June 4, 2008
in action, energy, transportation and waste
. 3 Comments

traffic_gridlock

How often do you find yourself sitting needlessly at a traffic light? I’m not talking morning commute gridlock, but rather, sitting at a red light when there are no other cars on the road, or sitting at the 3rd, 4th, or 5th red light in a row because of poor light timing? You may not know it, but sitting at a red light costs millions of dollars a year in wasted fuel, not to mention countless hours of wasted time. In fact, up to a gallon of fuel or more an hour burns when you’re just idling and sitting at a traffic light. In addition, stop and go city driving is what causes gas mileage to plummet when driving in the city. Owners of hybrids are lucky because their gas engines turn off automatically, providing one of the primary methods for hybrid cars to save fuel. Also, hybrid cars have regenerative braking, which pumps power back into the car’s batteries when the brakes are applied, thus recouping some of the lost energy when applying the brakes.

In San Jose and Santa Clara, it’s estimated poor traffic light management wastes over $3 million dollars a year in fuel. Fortunately, the California Transportation Commission is coming to the rescue with a $52 million allocation to improve lights throughout the Bay Area, including cities in the Silicon Valley such as San Jose and Santa Clara. Some signals will simply be smarter, allowing cars at rail crossings to go first if they have been waiting the longest. Other signals will be connected to traffic control centers, allowing lights to dynamically adjust based on traffic conditions.

For those who drive certain routes daily and see cases of poorly timed lights, take the time to write or call the city. In particular, you will more often than not have a traffic department. Making them aware of poor traffic light timing patterns will at the very least bring attention to the problem. No one knows the roads better than those of us who drive them every day. Often, the latest technology isn’t needed to help bring small improvements. In fact, simple timing changes can be the quickest to implement and help the most.

As gas prices break through $4 per gallon, drivers are becoming painfully aware of how driving habits, traffic light timing, general congestion, and other factors add up to even more pain at the pumps. It’s great to see money being set aside to help address traffic light timing issues. In fact, I’ve even met some folks who have Masters degrees in Traffic Engineering. This type of work is right up their alley, and we should get them working as quickly as possible. Who isn’t for saving time, gas, and money?

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Google’s Solar Trees are Thriving

Published
by
greenhl
on June 1, 2008
in action, corporate, energy and solar
. 0 Comments

google_solar_project_mountain_view_arial_view

google_solar_project_parking_lot_installation

Okay, Google hasn’t really unlocked the genetic secret to grow solar trees (I’m sure they will soon), but their solar installation is really like a solar forest. In a previous post, I wrote about how Google gave its employees a lift with the Google Shuttle Program. The program brings hundreds of workers to and from its offices each day, and in the process, removes hundreds of cars from the roads.

I recently discovered another great Google initiative, the Google Solar Project, which “went live” last year. In October 2006, Google announced an initiative to install over 9,200 solar panels in its Mountain View campus, nicknamed the “Googleplex”. The solar panels are installed everywhere from the top of their buildings to their parking lots. In fact, one great side benefit of the solar arrays is that a huge amount of covered parking was produced. I wonder how much energy is saved for employees who don’t have to use their air conditioning because their cars were not baking under the sun all day?

Google’s solar array went live last year and produces an estimated 1.6 megawatts of electricity, enough to power about 1,000 homes. The undertaking was immense and is one of the largest corporate installations at the time (and it is still one of the largest corporate installations). To understand the scale of electricity produced, the panels are expected to offset approximately 30% of Google’s peak electricity consumption at those buildings. Although the return on investment is estimated to be between 5 – 10 years, Google undertook this project to help fulfill its role as a responsible corporate citizen, something more companies and people should aim to do. Not only is Google saving electricity, but they are also saving money and using this as a working lab to demonstrate the feasibility of large solar installations.

Although installing a solar array can be fairly expensive and not an option for many people, it’s great to see companies like Google stepping up to do its part. Many other companies have already installed solar arrays, and many more are beginning to do so. I do have one question. Who gets the fun job of cleaning all these solar panels?

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Talk about irony!

Published
by
greenhl
on May 29, 2008
in action, conservation, energy and waste
. 0 Comments

I am a member of an organization (which shall go unnamed as I’m feeling in a particularly kind mood) that sent me a publication (which shall also go unnamed) this month and last month. In last month’s mailing, the publication took care to place special 31-page insert titled, “Environmental Sustainability – Going Green: In-Store Marking Business Practices & Strategies”. The insert is actually quite good. It discusses green trends, costs, and manufacturing as they relate to the in-store marketing environment. The insert covers profiles of companies that have green practices, best green practices, and green resources to help readers take green and environmental care to the next level.

Apparently, the publication and organization thinks the insert is so good, they felt compelled to send me another exact copy of the 31-page insert. How is that for irony? The new publication had another identical copy of the 31-page insert, all nicely wrapped in what must be a very environmentally friendly plastic bag. I don’t know what the publication’s circulation is, and in fact, I’m a little afraid to ask. How many resources must have gone into producing extra copies of this insert, not to mention the added waste of distributing it and wrapping it in plastic? Do members of their organization drive around in Hummers or large SUVs with signs saying “I’m green, and I want to save Earth”?

In the spirit of this irony, I’m going to list some quick tips you can employ to stay green. I will be shocked if you don’t employ at least half these tactics already. These are the low hanging fruit items you can implement, with little or no cost, which will help our environment tremendously. In the future, I’ll write more items, some of which may be more difficult, but should be equally fulfilling to know you’re doing your part.

  • Turn off your monitor when you’re not using your computer. The power save mode is a scam – your monitor still uses electricity when it’s plugged in even when it’s off or in power save mode.
  • Replace your incandescent light bulbs with CFLs (compact fluorescents)
  • Drive slower – you can save a lot of gas by doing so, and if you leave just 5 minutes earlier, you’ll still get there on time (and more safely). While you’re at it, turn off your car if you’re waiting somewhere and not moving.
  • Don’t leave your computer or laptop on all night unless you really have to.
  • Reuse plastic bags or use reusable bags when you go grocery shopping.
  • RECYCLE! True, they may separate recyclables at the garbage facility, but do you really think they’re doing a great job?
  • Use LESS – see where in your life you can use less, whether it’s energy, water, or anything else.
  • Take shorter showers. Even 1 minute helps. At the very least, if you’re not timing yourself, start with that!

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