Senate Votes – No more ethanol subsidies
Yesterday, the U.S. Senate voted decisively in favor of ending ethanol subsidies and removing tariffs for imported alternative fuels. With a vote of 73-27, the Senators approved an amendment authored by Senator Feinstein (a Democrat from California) that eliminates the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit. This credit provided a 45 cent/gallon tax credit for blending ethanol into regular gasoline.... Read More
CarStations: Find Your Charge
CarStations and its interactive map shows where electric car charging stations are located around the world. It uses Google’s map interface to allow you to focus on your area to find charging stations near your home or work. Users can add stations as they are built. This type of interface and the constantly evolving map can help electric car owners to plan routes that will allow them to get around... Read More
The Fracking Debate – The “Truth” about Gasland and water contamination
One of the major concerns with regards to hydraulic fracturing is the potential for fracking fluids – specifically, the chemicals in them – to contaminate drinking water. The YouTube video titled “My Water’s on Fire Tonight” outlined this concern: But there’s more in the water than just H2O Toxic chemicals help to make the fluid flow With names like benzene and formaldehyde You... Read More
Energy At the Movies at SXSW
During this year’s South By Southwest (SXSW) interactive music and film festival in Austin, TX, an event was held to discuss Energy at the Movies. Hosted by Dr. Michael E. Webber of The University of Texas at Austin, this event focused on energy as it is portrayed in and influenced by the silver screen. After giving a lecture on this topic, Dr. Webber hosted a panel discussion with research... Read More
Battery Swapping to Beat E-Vehicle Blues?
Driving an electric vehicle has environmental upsides including zero tailpipe emissions and a significantly lower carbon footprint compared to most of the vehicles you see on the road today. But, it also comes with the downside of a limited driving radius – leading to “range anxiety,” which can prevent many would-be electric vehicle owners from taking the plunge. However, a new... Read More
Noble Energy Granted Gulf Deepwater Drilling Permit
Four months after President Obama officially lifted the moratorium on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico a new drilling permit has been issued to Noble Energy Inc., a global independent energy company. Their well, located 70 miles southeast of Venice, LA, will drill 6,500 feet below the water’s surface. This is the first permit to be issued since the April 2009 Deepwater Horizon explosion... Read More
What if? Disruptions to world oil supplies
What if…? What if the uprisings that are currently spreading across northern Africa and the Middle East affected world oil supplies? How would the world’s oil markets respond to a temporary loss of Middle East oil production (1/5th of the world’s oil production and 70% of its spare production capacity)? Yesterday, David Wogan published a thoughtful post about the potential consequences... Read More
AAAS Annual Meeting – Day 1 Favorite Session
Today was the first “full” day of the annual meeting for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). This year, the meeting is being held in Washington, DC at the Washington Convention Center. It will run until Monday, hosting panel discussions and plenary speakers on a variety of science topics from sustainability to science and society aimed at giving scientists,... Read More
Court Upholds EPA’s Ability to Regulate Texas Emissions
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Attorney General Greg Abbott, and Ag. Commissioner Todd Staples announce lawsuits against the EPA late last year The Lone Star State has been fighting the Obama administration’s plan to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act since it was first announced back in 2009 – making it clear that they did not approve of federal oversight on this particular... Read More
South Texas – A Wealth of Natural Gas in Eagle Ford
There’s an energy revolution brewing right under our feet. The Wall Street Journal, 5/10/2010 The root of that revolution – shale gas. Lying under our feet, this unconventional resource was big news in 2010 – with the Haynesville, Barnett, and Marcellus shales getting the bulk of the nation’s attention. But another shale play, located south of San Antonio, Texas, is... Read More
