Austin Energy: Small projects = big energy savings
Austin Energy is the nation’s 9th largest community-owned public utility, serving a 440-acre that includes the Texas state capitol. This utility is known for its involvement in the Pecan Street Project, a smart grid demonstration community in Austin, as well as its extensive energy efficiency program portfolio. In fact, Austin Energy is home to the nation’s first green building program,... Read More
EPA to Limit Emissions from Power Plants and Refineries
Federal greenhouse gas regulations might have died this year in the Senate, but not in Washington. It appears that the Obama administration is going ahead with new greenhouse gas emissions limits via the Clean Air Act and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Under this federal clean air standard, the EPA has the ability to require pollution controls at both new and existing facilities –... Read More
Pet Coke in Corpus Christi
“What in the world is pet coke?” I was recently asked this question by a Corpus Christi resident who wanted to know my opinion on the Las Brisas Energy Center project in their hometown. This facility, a 1,320 MW power plant located in Corpus’s Inner Harbor, is designed to burn pet coke to generate electricity for the area. Technically classified as a coal plant (it uses the same technology),... Read More
Nuclear Power – Getting more from our fleet (without new construction)
In recent years, the U.S. Nuclear fleet has not grown, but the amount of electricity that it provides has. Today, plant operators are looking to get even more power out of our reactors, using new technologies that might increase the maximum power level that nuclear power plants can achieve. By “uprating” the country’s nuclear power plants, we might be able to get more from our fleet,... Read More
The Smart Grid – A vision for the future
Photo courtesy of Consumer Energy Report via Marc Gunther’s blog. Read More
I love science…
“I love science, and it pains me to think that so many are terrified of the subject or feel that choosing science also means you cannot choose compassion, or the arts, or be awed by nature. Science is not meant to cure us of mystery, but to reinvent and reinvigorate it.” ~Robert Sapolsky, “Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers” xi Read More
Waste-to-Energy: a mountain of trash, or a pile of energy?
David Wogan (friend and author of The Daily Wogan) and I co-authored a post for Scientific American’s Guest Blog. The article, published this morning, discusses Waste-to-Energy technology and the dirty image that might be keeping this technology from taking-off in the United States. Check out the post here - and, if you have a moment, please share your thoughts and comments. Read More
Cooler Roof in DC – Saving DOE (tax-payer) Money
When the Department of Energy headquarters building in DC needed a new roof, they decided to make it a cooler one – using lighter-colored roofing materials and special coatings to reflect more of the sun’s heat. Combined with improved insulation in the building, this new roof will save tax-payers $2,000 each year for no additional money out-of-pocket (the roof needed to be replaced). According... Read More
The Daily Wogan: Texas’ Transition to the Green Star State
The following was a post published last Tuesday (12/7) by Mr. David M. Wogan on his blog The Daily Wogan. The post includes commentary on activity in the Texas Legislature on the topic of clean energy. Published the day before the CleanTX Legislative Minisummit at the Texas capitol building, it is an interesting commentary for those interested in Texas politics and the state’s drive toward the... Read More
Energy & Water – How U.S. Energy Choices Affect Fresh Water Supplies
Water and energy, energy and water – two resources that we might like to think of as being separate, but which are actually interdependent in a way that can cause concern regarding the long-term sustainability of this dependence. For every kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity that is generated in the United States, water is consumed. For the average Austin household (using about 1,000 kWh per... Read More
