United States: Renewed debate on tortoises vs. solar

San Francisco Chronicle: For a sense of how complicated it is to combat climate change without collateral damage, consider the $56 million spent so far to rescue and relocate desert tortoises from the upheaval caused by the construction of a Mojave Desert solar plant. When completed next year, the $2.2 billion Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System will use 173,500 computer-controlled mirrors to aim 1,000-degree rays at boilers mounted atop three 459-foot towers, turning water into enough steam-generated electricity...

URL: http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Renewed-debate-on-tortoises-vs-solar-3925015.php

Romney’s Goals on Environmental Regulation Would Face Difficult Path

New York Times: Mitt Romney vowed in a campaign appearance earlier this year to "take a weed whacker" to the thicket of federal regulations adopted by the Obama administration and promised to impose a rigid freeze and cost cap on all new government rules. He has pledged to reverse a half-dozen major Environmental Protection Agency pollution and public health rules, to swiftly approve the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada, to rewrite the ambitious new vehicle fuel efficiency standards and to open untouched coastal...

URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/us/politics/romney-weed-whacker-on-environmental-rules-may-falter.html

Clouds are gathering over Britain's new nuclear dawn

Independent: The politicians of Cumbria County Council have cooled on the idea of burying hundreds of thousands of tonnes of nuclear waste but a kilometre beneath their feet. Initially tempted by the huge economic benefits a £12bn nuclear research and disposal would bring, councillors now seem dismayed that the waste wouldn't be considered safe for another 100,000 years. On Tuesday, the council put back plans to test the suitability of potential sites until next year. This is the latest in a series of blows...

URL: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/clouds-are-gathering-over-britains-new-nuclear-dawn-8200600.html

Scientists Adopt Tiny Island as a Warming Bellwether

New York Times: From a stretch of rocky shoreline on this tiny island, one can, on any given morning, watch otters floating on their backs, elephant seals hauling out of the water and a bald eagle flying past murres huddled along a cliff face. The startled birds perform a synchronized dive into the sea, their ovoid black-and-white bodies resembling miniature penguins. It appears as if the island's wildlife is thriving at this remote outpost, which is also a former Coast Guard station crowned by a decommissioned...

URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/us/scientists-in-washington-state-adopt-tiny-island-as-climate-change-bellwether.html
Enclosure: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/10/07/us/TATOOSH-1/TATOOSH-1-articleLarge.jpg

Warmer climate threatens Nebraska

North Platte Bulletin: So say a panel of five environmental scholars and professionals, who presented "Climate Change and Nebraska: What Does Our Future Hold?" Saturday at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to warn of the dangers of a potential 4-10 degree temperature increase in the state. The speakers examined the scientific evidence for climate change, the impact this could have on the future and the steps that can be taken to assuage it. Robert Oglesby, a professor of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at UNL, said...

URL: http://www.northplattebulletin.com/index.asp?show=news&action=readStory&storyID=23925&pageID=24

United States: Even After Rains, Facing Long-Term Water Needs

New York Times: With its pretty rivers and lakes, this city of 95,000 people is sometimes called the oasis of West Texas. But San Angelo recently came within a year of running out of water, as it faced a severe drought that produced brown lawns, dying bushes and fear. "Who wants to pull up to a hotel and it's dead?" said Bob Banskter, general manager of the Rodeway Inn in San Angelo, referring to the state of the landscaping. It was late September, a day after City Council members had voted to ban the use of outdoor...

URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/us/time-for-west-texas-to-face-long-term-water-needs.html
Enclosure: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/10/07/us/07TTWater1ALTERNATE/07TTWater1ALTERNATE-articleLarge.jpg

British Gardeners Battle Over Peat, for Bogs’ Sake

New York Times: For Britain's legion of gardeners, peat has long been as essential to gardening as beer is to the corner pub. So trowels flew after the British government — heeding environmental concerns — announced plans to gradually eliminate peat from all gardening products, setting off an intense battle over how to prioritize two of this country's defining passions: indulging the yard and protecting the planet. While many gardeners regard the partially decomposed plant matter known as peat as an almost magical...

URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/science/earth/british-gardeners-battle-over-peat-for-bogs-sake.html
Enclosure: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/10/10/world/video-uk-peat-bogs/video-uk-peat-bogs-articleLarge.jpg

Die-back kills off 90% of Denmark's ash trees. Britain faces a similar threat

Guardian: Deep in the forest of Gribskov, some of the leaves are starting to flush with their autumnal colours. It makes the stand of blighted trees all the more obvious. Seven or eight 20m-high sticks, stripped of their greenery, are all that is left of a group of ash trees. "It's very ugly and very sad," said Ditte Christina Olrik, a scientist with the Danish government's Nature Agency. "The fungus is very, very small, like pinheads, on the leaf stalks. When the leaves die and fall, the wind carries them...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/07/disease-killing-denmarks-ash-trees
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Observer/Pix/pictures/2012/10/5/1349461224845/Forest-in-denmark-010.jpg

New Cleanup Method Offers Major Solution to Oil Spills, Study Says

Yale Environment 360: Scientists have developed a superabsorbent material they say offers a cost-effective way to remove, recover and clean up large oil spills. Writing in the journal Energy & Fuels, Pennsylvania State University researchers Xuepei Yuan and T. C. Mike Chung describe a polymer material that they say can absorb 40 times its own weight in oil, transforming spilled material into a solid, oil-containing gel that is strong enough to be collected and transported to oil refineries for reprocessing. While many...

URL: http://e360.yale.edu/digest/new_cleanup_method_offers_major_solution_to_oil_spills_study_says/3652/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+YaleEnvironment360+%28Yale+Environment+360%29
Enclosure: http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ef300388h

The Next Pandemic: Why It Will Come from Wildlife

Yale Environment 360: Emerging diseases are in the news again. Scary viruses are making themselves noticed and felt. There's been a lot of that during the past several months -- West Nile fever kills 17 people in the Dallas area, three tourists succumb to hantavirus after visiting Yosemite National Park, an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo claims 33 lives. A separate Ebola outbreak, across the border in Uganda, registers a death toll of 17. A peculiar new coronavirus, related to SARS, proves fatal...

URL: http://e360.yale.edu/feature/quammen_the_next_pandemic_will_come_from_wildlife/2579/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+YaleEnvironment360+%28Yale+Environment+360%29

Health Professionals Denounce Cuomo’s Health Reveiw on Fracking

EcoWatch: Led by Dr. David O. Carpenter, director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the University at Albany`s School of Public Health, a number of health experts--on behalf of the broad medical and scientific community in New York State--declared concerns with the health review on fracking undertaken by New York Gov. Cuomo's Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) that is now being reviewed by the Department of Health (DOH). The health experts released a letter to Cuomo in which they...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/denounce-fracking-reveiw/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/frackinghealth.jpg

Dems use climate change to tag Republicans as extreme

The Hill: Climate change has become a sleeper issue in a number of Senate races as Democrats attempt to paint their opponents as extreme, based on their views on the issue. It's a largely straightforward peg for an attack that some Democrats hope will appeal to centrist voters that may be swayed if they see the Republican candidate as part of the party's extreme. In the Maine and Nebraska Senate races, the independent and Democratic candidates, respectively, have focused in on their opponents' position,...

URL: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/260619-dems-use-climate-change-to-tag-republicans-as-extreme

Looks Like Big Bird and Climate Change Have Been Abandoned

EcoWatch: Despite hundreds of thousands of petitions asking for a question on climate change, former PBS NewsHour host Jim Lehrer did not ask the candidates what they would do to address manmade global warming as moderator of the first presidential debate. Even more stunning, Lehrer did not ask a single question about the environment or energy issues. Lehrer, who currently serves as NewsHour's executive editor, said at the outset of the debate that he wanted to focus on "specifics." Yet while both President...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/lehrer-ignores-environment/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/workforfood.jpg

Decision looms on future for British polar research

BBC: Press reports say the world famous British Antarctic Survey is doomed. A petition to save Britain's polar heritage does the rounds. Captain Scott must be turning in his icy grave. If any of this is right? Beneath the smoke, how much fire can be found? As with any plan for cuts in public spending, there is a swirl of confusion, resentment and rivalry amid a genuine fear about jobs. Throw in a proposed merger of one proud institution with another - in this case, the British Antarctic Survey...

URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19844438#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
Enclosure: http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/63312000/jpg/_63312844_penguin.jpg

$90 Billion for Green Energy? A Closer Look

New York Times: Three times in Wednesday night`s debate, Mitt Romney said that President Obama had plowed $90 billion of federal money into green energy. "Now, I like green energy as well, but that`s about 50 years` worth of what oil and gas receives,'' he said. "Ninety billion - that - that would have - that would have hired two million teachers,'' he said. Is $90 billion accurate? As we reported in August when Mr. Romney first raised the figure, sort of. The $90 billion is a real number drawn from the 2009...

URL: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/04/90-billion-for-green-energy-a-closer-look/?partner=rss&emc=rss
Enclosure: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/10/04/blogs/mitt/mitt-blog480.jpg

Jays hit by acorn shortage

Independent: A poor acorn crop this year could be pushing jays into gardens in search of food, experts said today. Jays, the most colourful member of the crow family, have been more visible than normal around the UK as they widen their search for food in the face of a poor autumn for acorns, the RSPB said. Jays from Scandinavia and other parts of Europe could also be arriving in the country to join the UK population of the shy woodland bird, indicating that food sources may be scarce elsewhere, the wildlife...

URL: http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/jays-hit-by-acorn-shortage-8200375.html

Environmentalists in Rio Worried about Reindustrialisation

Inter Press Service: The decline in Brazil's manufacturing sector has not affected some parts of the country, which on the contrary have grown, driven by polluting industries like iron and oil production. The city of Rio de Janeiro is a prime example of this reindustrialisation process. Industry here is rallying, especially the petrochemical and steelworks sectors, Latin America's biggest. But this has tainted its image as an environmentally-friendly city that hosted the most important global summits on sustainable...

URL: http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/10/environmentalists-in-rio-worried-about-reindustrialisation/

Melting Permafrost Will Boost Temps, But Not Quickly

Climate Central: Climate scientists have long known that human-generated greenhouse emissions are only part of the story with global warming. A rising planetary temperature sets in motion all sorts of secondary effects that can boost the temperature even higher -- effects like melting Arctic sea ice, rising levels of heat-trapping water vapor in the atmosphere, and more. When researches try to figure out how high the thermometer will go over the next century or two, it's important to figure in these so-called feedbacks...

URL: http://www.climatecentral.org/blogs/melting-permafrost-will-boost-temps-but-not-much-this-century-15083?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climatecentral%2FdjOO+Climate+Central+-+Full+Feed
Enclosure: http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ngeo1573.html

Greens slam Romney over clean tech 'lies'

BusinessGreen: The Obama campaign has accused Republican challenger Mitt Romney of repeated dishonesty during Wednesday's presidential debate, which has been widely hailed as a victory for the GOP candidate. Accusing Romney of a performance which "was devoid of honesty" and not "rooted in fact", senior Democrats highlighted how Romney denied the existence of his well-established plans to push through $5tr of tax cuts. They also said he used discredited figures to suggest half of the clean tech companies supported...

URL: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2215047/greens-slam-romney-over-clean-tech-lies?WT.rss_f=Home&WT.rss_a=Greens+slam+Romney+over+clean+tech+%27lies%27

Radiation from Idaho fire posed no health risks: officials

Reuters: Smoke from a wildfire in Idaho that burned mining sites with traces of uranium and thorium contained elevated levels of radiation, but none that posed a risk to human health, state officials said on Friday. The state Department of Environmental Quality last month took air samples in North Fork, a town in the burn zone in east-central Idaho, after the so-called Mustang Complex fire swept through a former uranium mine and two abandoned gold mines. Health officials said then they believed risks...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/06/us-usa-idaho-radiation-idUSBRE89501V20121006?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Will U.S. Taxpayers Foot the Bill for BP Oil Spill Cleanup?

EcoWatch: A proposed settlement deal between the federal government and BP over their involvement in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and subsequent oil leak could shift the burden of cleanup costs away from the oil giant and onto U.S. taxpayers. The current settlement option is just one of several being negotiated between the federal government and BP. But this settlement option would route fine and settlement money through the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA), rather than fining the...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/taxpayers-foot-bill-bp-oil-spill/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/gulf.jpg

Ireland: Robinson warns on climate change

Irish Independent: FORMER President Mary Robinson (right) has warned that climate change will be one of the "greatest injustices" we inflict on our grandchildren. Addressing the International Bar Association annual conference in Dublin's Convention Centre yesterday, Mrs Robinson said the public needs to urgently motivate political leaders to act on climate change. "Until there is greater demand from people in all walks of life for meaningful action on climate change, political leaders will continue to be able...

URL: http://www.independent.ie/national-news/robinson-warns-on-climate-change-3251160.html

EPA asks full court to rehear air pollution case

Reuters: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Friday asked a U.S. appeals court to rehear a case in which a three-judge panel struck down a rule that would reduce harmful emissions from coal-burning power plants. The EPA filed an "en banc" petition in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which in August ruled 2-1 to suspend the agency's cross state air pollution rule and ordered it rewritten. The EPA rule targeted sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions from power plants, ensuring...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/05/us-epa-air-pollution-power-plant-idUSBRE89413620121005?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

United Kingdom: Ed Davey hints at 'flexible' carbon target for 2030

Guardian: Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey has hinted at plans for a "flexible" decarbonisation target for the power sector, which would help ensure the UK meets its legally-binding climate change targets for 2050. The Liberal Democrats last week backed a motion at its party conference calling for an emissions target of between 50g and 100g of CO2 per kWh to be set for the power sector in 2030 as part of the Energy Bill. However, the target remains the subject of fierce debate within Whitehall,...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/oct/05/ed-davey-flexible-carbon-target

The Plague of Climate Denial Confronts an Actual Plague

Esquire: We are not ready for a serious national response to the problem of climate change, not are we anywhere near ready to provide a national response to its most predictable consequences. Just to get your weekend off to a happy start, there seems to be an outbreak of the hantavirus in Yosemite, and folks aren't entirely sure that it will stay there, or that it will be the only little biological horror to visit these shores. For the purposes of the blog, though, I was intrigued by two elements of the...

URL: http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/yosemite-hantavirus-climate-change-13403567

Northern Conifers Are Younger As a Result of Extreme Climate Shifts, Study Says

Yale Environment 360: Extreme climate cycles in the Northern Hemisphere over millions of years altered the evolutionary history of the hemisphere's conifer trees, encouraging the formation of new species that are millions of years younger than their counterparts in the Southern Hemisphere, according to a new study. In an Wikimedia Commons analysis of the fossil remains and genetic makeup of 489 of the world's roughly 600 living conifer species, scientists found that while the majority of conifers belong to ancient lineages,...

URL: http://e360.yale.edu/digest/northern_conifers_are_younger_as_a_result_of_extreme_climate_shifts/3654/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+YaleEnvironment360+%28Yale+Environment+360%29
Enclosure: http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2012/09/12/1213621109.full.pdf+html?with-ds=yes

Government starts review of draft IPCC working report

Sydney Morning Herald: The Australian government has begun its review of the latest draft of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change`s (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report, pledging ''an open and comprehensive approach`` as it taps selected input. The review will draw on comments from experts, state and territory governments, industry groups and research organisation, the government said in a statement. "IPCC Assessment Reports are a vital reference and evidence base for policy considerations on climate change by...

URL: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/government-starts-review-of-draft-ipcc-working-report-20121006-275p1.html

The Browning of America

Environmental News Network: Nearly two thirds of the contiguous United States was experiencing some level of drought by the end of August 2012, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. 39 percent of the nation suffered from severe to extreme drought. Though the numbers changed a bit in mid-September, the drought parched much of the interior United States and left both domestic and wild animals scrounging for food. There were also plenty of spectacular wild fires. The browning and withering of vegetation in the United States and...

URL: http://www.enn.com/climate/article/45040?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ClimateChangeNews-Enn+%28Climate+Change+News+-+ENN%29

Human Greenhouse Gas Emissions Traced to Roman Times

LiveScience: By burning wood, humans have been significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions as far back as the Roman Empire, researchers say. The finding may lead scientists to rethink some aspects of climate change models, which assume humans weren't responsible for much greenhouse gas before the Industrial Revolution. "It was believed that emissions started in 1850. We showed that humans already started to impact greenhouse effects much before," study co-author Célia Sapart of Utretcht University...

URL: http://news.yahoo.com/human-greenhouse-gas-emissions-traced-roman-times-192551162.html

EPA says California has not requested winter fuel waiver

Reuters: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has not received any request from California for a waiver to allow early sale of winter-blend gasoline, the agency said on Friday. California gasoline prices have spiked sharply this week on tight supplies.

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/05/us-gasoline-california-epa-idUSBRE8941HK20121005?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Show Your Solidarity for Frontline Activists Protesting the Keystone XL Pipeline

Rainforest Action Network: As we write, our friends with the Tar Sands Blockade are blocking construction of TransCanada`s Keystone XL pipeline in the woods of Texas. For the past six months they have built a movement of climate activists, rural landowners, Texans, Oklahomans and people from all over the country to fiercely resist it. For two weeks, they have captured the imagination of the world with a daring tree-sit and bold ground actions near Winnsboro, TX that have delayed TransCanada`s operations. TransCanada has...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/show-solidarity/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/frontlines.jpg

Starfish Blamed For Great Barrier Reef Coral Loss

National Public Radio: IRA FLATOW, HOST: This is SCIENCE FRIDAY, I'm Ira Flatow. Australia's Great Barrier Reef is in trouble. In the last 27 years, the world's largest coral reef system has lost 50 percent of its coral cover, and if this trend continues, the amount of coral could halve again by 2022. According to researchers at the Australian Institute of Marine Science, 10 percent of the loss was from coral bleaching, which is primarily caused by warming ocean temperatures; 48 percent from storm damage; and 42...

URL: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=162372193&ft=1&f=1025
Enclosure: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=162372193&m=162372180

Obama and Romney Should Talk about Climate Change at Next Debate

Scientific American: Somebody please ask Governor Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama to talk about climate change at the next debate for crying out loud! Or what to do about growing fresh water shortages or protecting the Internet or addressing any of the other fundamental challenges the U.S. faces in the coming years that are based on serious technological and scientific problems. For a few minutes at the beginning of the October 3 debate in Denver, I was heartened when Obama used the terms "math," "data" and...

URL: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2012/10/05/obama-romney-should-talk-climate-change-debate/

Biofuels and the food that's going up in smoke

Telegraph: 'It's possibly,' someone remarked to me this week, "one of the worst things ever to come out of Brussels.' Quite a condemnation, everything considered -- and all the more so for coming from an Action Aid campaigner against poverty and climate change. For the EU biofuels policy is supposed to tackle both. But that was putting it mildly. The growing use of energy from crops has driven up food prices and hunger, spurred enormous corporate land grabs in poor countries, and probably made global warming...

URL: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/energy/biofuels/9589634/Biofuels-and-the-food-thats-going-up-in-smoke.html
Enclosure: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02361/biofuelalamy_2361411b.jpg

Global warming can trigger extreme Pacific weather, says study

SciDev.Net: Global warming is likely to alter rainfall patterns in East Asia and the Pacific, causing more intense drought and floods in decades to come, according to a study published in Nature last month (15 August). A team of Australian-based scientists estimated that increased greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere will enhance equatorial Pacific warming by two degrees Celsius by 2050. This will cause the South Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ) -- the Southern Hemisphere's most expansive rain band,...

URL: http://www.scidev.net/en/agriculture-and-environment/news/global-warming-can-trigger-extreme-pacific-weather-says-study.html?utm_source=link&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=en_agricultureandenvironment
Enclosure: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v488/n7411/full/nature11358.html

Testing the Effect of Plastic Pipes on Potable Water

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A government grant is enabling researchers to study how plastic pipe affects drinking water odor and chemical quality

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[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/testing-effect-plastic-pipes-potable-water)

Plastic building products are no strangers to controversy. But at least one of the concerns dogging the use of plastic pipes in green buildings is now being addressed by scientific research.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/testing-effect-plastic-pipes-potable-water

A Cleantech State of the Union


With October now upon us, data providers are beginning to issue their preliminary analyses of cleantech investment in the third quarter of 2012 that just closed. This quarter, the Clean Energy pipeline service of London's VBResearch is the first to weigh in, counting cleantech venture capital & private equity investment (excluding buyouts) as appro

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/10/a-cleantech-state-of-the-union?cmpid=rss

Testing the Effect of Plastic Pipes on Potable Water

Subtitle:&nbsp_place_holder;

A government grant is enabling researchers to study how plastic pipe affects drinking water odor and chemical quality

Images:&nbsp_place_holder;

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/testing-effect-plastic-pipes-potable-water)

Plastic building products are no strangers to controversy. But at least one of the concerns dogging the use of plastic pipes in green buildings is now being addressed by scientific research.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/testing-effect-plastic-pipes-potable-water

How Do Installers Effectively Harness the "Solar Walmart Effect?"


At the recent SPI 2012, I participated in a Renewable Energy World video roundtable on Big Box retail stores going solar with a representative from Walmart and another representative from SunEdison. (You can see the two part videos below.) There's a lot of great information here, but I'd like to summarize a few of the points, and also make some sug

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/10/how-do-we-effectively-harness-the-solar-walmart-effect?cmpid=rss

Despite Setbacks, San Diego Unified School District Asserts Commitment to Clean Energy Alternatives


Citing safety concerns and the risk of fire, solar panels have been removed from the rooftops of 24 San Diego Unified School District buildings. The panels, which were manufactured and installed by Solar Integrated Technologies (SIT) in 2005, were found to have a number of defects that resulted in premature corrosion of the solar cells. The last of the defective panels were removed on August 31.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/despite-setbacks-san-diego-unified-school-district-asserts-commitment-to-clean-energy-alternatives?cmpid=rss

New Zealand Curbs Gas Emissions as Polluters Use More Wind, Geothermal


New Zealand's energy industry reduced its greenhouse gas emissions for the third straight year in 2011 as polluters decreased their reliance on coal and gas in favor of renewable sources.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/new-zealand-curbs-gas-emissions-as-polluters-use-more-wind-geothermal?cmpid=rss

Energy Storage: Q4 2012 Winners and Losers


In late June I wrote a forward looking article that identified several companies in my energy storage and vehicle electrification group that I expected to perform well or perform poorly during the third quarter. Since short-term market changes are notoriously hard to predict, it's worthwhile to look back and see where I got things right and where I got them wrong. So I'll start today with a quick summary table and assess the relative accuracy of my Q3 calls, and then turn my attention to Q4, which is shaping up as a time of bright opportunity for some companies and continuing risk for others.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/energy-storage-q4-2012-winners-and-losers?cmpid=rss

PV in the UK: The Future Is Still Bright


The UK's stated policy aims at the start of the feed-in tariff scheme in 2010 were twofold: to create more demand for modules in order to ramp up production and bring their unit price down; and to increase public awareness of renewable energy. In 2011 both these aims succeeded beyond expectations. As a result, the tariff rate has been reduced from 43p to 16p per kWh for common domestic installations. Yet the costs of modules have also almost halved (although the balance of system costs have not).

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/pv-in-the-uk-the-future-is-still-bright?cmpid=rss

PV and CPV Standards on the Rise


Reliability of PV and CPV modules is a key requirement for sustainable consumption of solar energy. To ensure their reliability and safety, PV modules must be tested to and comply with a universally accepted set of standards. Additionally, several initiatives are currently underway to enhance product reliability, some of which are likely to become industry-enforced standards in the near future.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/pv-and-cpv-standards-rise?cmpid=rss

Kenya's M-KOPA Offers Cheaper Solar Power to Off-Grid Villages


M-KOPA LLC, a mobile-technology startup, is extending credit to low-income earners in Kenya to buy solar-power systems that are otherwise out of their financial reach, Managing Director Jesse Moore said.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/kenyas-m-kopa-offers-cheaper-solar-power-to-off-grid-villages?cmpid=rss

Drought Conditions Recede Slightly Across U.S

Climate Central: Thanks to heavy rains from a slow-moving cold front, the massive drought affecting the U.S. receded slightly during the past week, as the drought footprint for all drought categories fell between Sept. 25 and Oct. 2. The findings, contained in the latest U.S. Drought Monitor, were released Thursday. As of Oct. 2, about 65 percent of the contiguous U.S. experienced some form of drought, down a smidgen from 65.45 percent one week ago. The biggest drop occurred in the area of the lower 48 states...

URL: http://www.climatecentral.org/news/drought-conditions-recede-slightly-across-u.s-15081?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climatecentral%2FdjOO+Climate+Central+-+Full+Feed
Enclosure: http://www.climatecentral.org/images/uploads/news/10_4_12_andrew_seasonaloutlook.gif

United Kingdom: Government ties £250m “carbon leakage” support package to industry efficiency gains

BusinessGreen: The government has today launched its long-awaited consultation on how it proposes to distribute a £250m support package designed to help the UK's energy intensive industries cope with the impact of carbon pricing policies. The proposals, which will now be open for consultation until December 21, detail which industries will be eligible for support and outline how payments will be tilted in favour of those firms that deliver the highest levels of energy efficiency. The £250m fund was announced...

URL: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2214999/government-ties-gbp250m-carbon-leakage-support-package-to-industry-efficiency-gains?WT.rss_f=Home&WT.rss_a=Government+ties+%C2%A3250m+%E2%80%9Ccarbon+leakage%E2%80%9D+support+package+to+industry+efficiency+gains

Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil hits 10 year mark

Mongabay: The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) is holding its tenth annual meeting later this month. The initiative, which aims to improve the social and environmental performance of palm oil production through a certification standard, has advanced considerably during that time, moving from an idea to a reality: RSPO-certified palm oil now accounts for 12 percent of global palm oil production. Yet the RSPO is not without controversy. Some palm oil companies say its criteria are too costly to adopt...

URL: http://news.mongabay.com/2012/1004-hance-interview-webber.html

Australia: Think the Decline of the Great Barrier Reef is No Big Deal? Think Again

EcoWatch: A study released on Monday found that the Great Barrier Reef`s coral cover declined by 50 percent in the past 27 years, partially as a result of human activities. These dramatic findings have caught the attention of scientists, politicians and some media outlets--even Fox News--but have been ignored by ABC, NBC, MSNBC and several major newspapers. Researchers from the Australian Institute of Marine Science examined thousands of surveys of the area and found that the amount of seafloor covered...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/decline-great-barrier-reef/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/coral.jpg

Farming 'shortcomings' undermines case for badger cull

Guardian: A catalogue of failures in how England's farmers prevent their cattle spreading TB between herds was uncovered by an official European Commission inspection, the Guardian has learned, undermining the case for the imminent cull of badgers. The previously unreported document was highlighted as government body Natural England issued a licence for a pilot cull in west Somerset on Thursday, following last month's granting of a licence to shoot badgers in Gloucestershire. The government and the National...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/oct/04/farming-shortcomings-badger-cull-bovine-tb
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/10/4/1349366439343/South-Devon-beef-cattle-008.jpg

A Modest Rise in Global Food Prices

New York Times: Given the fears set off by the agricultural disasters of the summer, the latest report on food prices from the United Nations has to be counted as good news. The Food and Agriculture Organization reported Thursday that global prices rose 1.4 percent in September from the previous month. Food and Agriculture OrganizationAfter sharp increases this summer, the climb in food prices was modest last month. Prices increased only 1 percent in the all-important cereals sector, with gains in rice and...

URL: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/04/a-modest-rise-in-global-food-prices/

Sweden: Lakes react differently to warmer climate, study finds

PhysOrg: A future warmer climate will produce different effects in different lakes. Researchers from Lund University in Sweden have now been able to explain that the effects of climate change depend on what organisms are dominant in the lake. Algal blooms will increase, especially of toxic blue-green algae. The study in question has been carried out by a group of researchers at the Department of Biology at Lund University. The research team is specifically focusing on predictions regarding how our water...

URL: http://phys.org/news/2012-10-lakes-react-differently-warmer-climate.html
Enclosure: http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate1689.html

United States: Daryl Hannah and East Texas Great-Grandmother Arrested Protesting Keystone XL Pipeline

Tar Sands Blockade: Actress and activist Daryl Hannah was arrested today alongside East Texas farmer, Eleanor Fairchild while defending her farm from the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. The duo peacefully stood in front of TransCanada's heavy machinery, which was burning piles of once-majestic trees from Eleanor's beloved farm and delicate wetlands. How can you be arrested for "trespassing" on your own land? Well, anything can happen when a multi-national corporation comes in and expropriates your farm for their...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/daryl-hanna-arrested/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/dand32.jpg

More efficient all-organic catalysts in fuel cells

ScienceDaily: Organic catalysts are a breakthrough in the quest for inexpensive and efficient materials for environmentally friendly production of energy in fuel cells. A new study by physicists at Umeå University in Sweden, published in ACS Nano, provides better knowledge about key processes in producing these catalysts. The world's needs for energy and raw materials are constantly growing, and the search for readily accessible and inexpensive material for energy applications is driving research teams all...

URL: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121005082544.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29

Coalition calls for changes to halt change in climate

Nebraska Radio Network: A coalition of special interest groups has formed to press for change to curb the effects of climate change. The Nebraska Farmers Union, the Nebraska Wildlife Federation, Sierra Club, Bold Nebraska, Nebraskans for Peace, and the League of Women Voters held a news conference prior to the upcoming study release by the United States Global Change Research Program this weekend. A study by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln High Plains Climate Center, indicating there has been a two-degree increase in...

URL: http://nebraskaradionetwork.com/2012/10/05/coalition-calls-for-changes-to-halt-change-in-climate-audio/
Enclosure: http://nebraskaradionetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/John_Hansen.mp3

Nary a mention of climate change during U.S. presidential debate

Mongabay: The hour-and-a-half long debate between President Barack Obama and ex-governor Mitt Romney last night ended without a single reference to climate change. Frustrated with the lack of discussion on the issue from both candidates, environmental activists sent a petition with over 160,000 signatures to debate moderator, Jim Lehr, urging him to ask a question about climate change. The petition fell on deaf ears. "Although Barack Obama and Mitt Romney sprinkle their speeches with mentions of energy...

URL: http://news.mongabay.com/2012/1004-hance-climate-debates.html
Enclosure: http://www.mongabay.com/images/2006/graphs/co2_global_1750-2000.jpg

Judge Rejects Binghamton's Fracking Ban

New York Times: A court has struck down a moratorium on natural gas drilling in Binghamton, N.Y., yet both sides are claiming victory. Binghamton, in Broome County, is among dozens of municipalities that have enacted bans and moratoriums blocking high-volume hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a gas extraction process that is under consideration by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's administration. Two previous court decisions have upheld the rights of municipalities to determine whether to allow fracking within their borders...

URL: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/04/judge-rejects-binghamtons-fracking-ban/
Enclosure: http://www.nycourts.gov/courts/6jd/broome/supreme.shtml#proceedings

Food prices rise as food aid needed in Middle East and Africa

Mongabay: Food prices increased in September on the FAO Food Price Index after two months of stability, while food aid has been urgently called for in Yemen and Syria, and concerns lingered in parts of Africa. Food prices globally rose 3 points (or 1.4 percent) to 216 points. Civil war in Syria has sparked a widespread food crisis there. Currently, 1.5 million people are in need of urgent food aid, though that's expected to go higher as the now seemingly entrenched conflict continues. However, Yemen...

URL: http://news.mongabay.com/2012/1003-hance-food-prices-sept.html
Enclosure: http://photos.mongabay.com/j/05-02-unicef-sahel.568.jpg

The Pretty Good House: A Better Building Standard?

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At NESEA's annual meeting, a panel discusses the 'pretty good house' concept

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[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/pretty-good-house-better-building-standard)

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/pretty-good-house-better-building-standard)

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/pretty-good-house-better-building-standard)

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/pretty-good-house-better-building-standard)

The Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEANorth East Sustainable Energy Association. A regional membership organization promoting sustainable energy solutions. NESEA is committed to advancing three core elements: sustainable solutions, proven results and cutting-edge development in the field. States included in this region stretch from Maine to Maryland. www.nesea.org) held its annual meeting in Portland, Maine, on September 15th, 2012. After a day of tours of local sustainably designed projects and some pre-meeting smorgasbord grazing, the meeting started with a round of speeches by board and association directors. (Exciting changes are coming; stay tuned!). Then the meeting continued with the entertainment portion of the evening: a panel-style discussion about the Pretty Good House.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/pretty-good-house-better-building-standard

Africa's mineral wealth hardly denting poverty levels, says World Bank

Guardian: Strong economic growth in the past decade among African countries rich in oil and minerals has failed to make a significant dent on their poverty levels, according to a World Bank report. Africa's Pulse, a twice-yearly analysis of Africa's economic prospects, noted that the decline in poverty rates in resource-rich countries has generally lagged behind that of countries without riches in the ground. Some countries, such as Angola, Congo-Brazzaville and Gabon, have witnessed an increase in the...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/2012/oct/05/africa-mineral-wealth-poverty-world-bank
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Environment/Pix/columnists/2012/9/3/1346677683170/MDG--Democratic-Republic--008.jpg

Daryl Hannah arrested in Keystone XL protest

Associated Press: The actor Daryl Hannah was arrested in northeast Texas on Thursday, along with a landowner as the pair protested against an oil pipeline designed to bring crude from Canada to the Gulf Coast. "They've arrested Daryl Hannah and a rural Texas great-grandmother," said Paul Bassis, Hannah's attorney. Hannah and Eleanor Fairchild were standing in front of heavy equipment in an attempt to halt construction of the Keystone XL pipeline on Fairchild's farm in Winnsboro, a town about 100 miles east of...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/oct/05/daryl-hannah-arrested-keystone-protest
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/About/General/2012/10/5/1349427678361/Daryl-Hannah-photographed-008.jpg

United Kingdom: Road building programme gets green light by stealth

Ecologist: With a government seemingly intent on pushing through the latest road-building programme via its localism agenda campaigners are readying themselves for combined resistance using legal experts, alliance groupings and direct action The 'first and worst' of the current tranche of new roads is the £120m Bexhill Bypass set to cut a swath through the pellucid water meadows and reed beds of Combe Haven Valley with construction slated for January 2013. Speaking at a weekend camp there (Sep 29-30), John...

URL: http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_analysis/1620131/road_building_programme_gets_green_light_by_stealth.html
Enclosure: http://www.theecologist.org/siteimage/scale/300/2000/175260.jpg

Small Farmers in West Africa Need Support – Despite Good Rains

Inter Press Service: Despite an abundance of rain, promising good harvests for the current growing season, small-scale farmers and non-governmental organisations are calling for support to smallholders to be maintained with a view to eradicating food insecurity in Africa's Sahel region. The Permanent Interstate Committee for drought control in the Sahel forecasts that between 57 and 64 million tonnes of grain will be harvested in West Africa in 2012-2013, representing an increase of between five and 17 percent over...

URL: http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/10/small-farmers-in-west-africa-need-support-despite-good-rains/
Enclosure: http://ipsnews-net.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/Library/2012/10/Africa-Sahel-agriculture-small.jpg

Actress Daryl Hannah arrested in Keystone pipeline protest

Reuters: Actress Daryl Hannah was arrested in Texas on Thursday after she stood in front of an earth-moving machine clearing ground for the construction of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, her representative said. The protest took place outside Winnsboro, Texas, about 80 miles east of Dallas, said Hannah's agent, Paul Bassis. Hannah, 51, a longtime environmental activist, was arrested last year outside the White House in another protest against the pipeline. The Keystone XL pipeline, a project...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/05/entertainment-us-usa-darylhannah-keyston-idUSBRE89403T20121005?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Power shortage 'risks' by 2015

BBC: Britain risks running out of energy generating capacity in the winter of 2015-16, according to the energy regulator Ofgem. Its report predicted that the amount of spare capacity could fall from 14% now to only 4% in three years. Ofgem said this would leave Britain relying more on imported gas, which would make price rises more likely. The government said that its forthcoming Energy Bill would ensure that there was secure supply. Ofgem blames the risk on coal-fired power stations being...

URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19842401#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
Enclosure: http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/63311000/jpg/_63311290_station_getty.jpg

Innovate to put climate know-how into practice - experts

AlertNet: Knowledge is now plentiful on how to adapt to climate change and build resilience to its impacts, but putting that expertise into practice remains a problem around the world, climate and security experts say. "We're at a point where we've run through the theory and have to start doing practical stuff,' said Nick Mabey, the chief executive of E3G (Third Generation Environmentalism), an international non-profit organisation that works on accelerating transitions to sustainable development. Applying...

URL: http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/innovate-to-put-climate-know-how-into-practice-experts
Enclosure: http://www.trust.org/contentAsset/resize-image/ee32e26f-6730-4df4-9d9d-37bc5a35c815/photowide/?w=460&h=318&vn=201210050024

Flood-stricken Pakistan seeks to improve weather forecasts

AlertNet: Ghulam Qadir suffered a heart attack when he saw the rushing floodwaters swamping the rice crop he had been about to harvest in the village of Bakhshapur. "My father crashed to the ground in agony when he saw the damage to his 22 acres (8.9 hectares) of rice,' said Qadir's 21-year-old son Bilal Hussain. "His life was saved by quick medical attention, but doctors say it will take months for him to recover from the shock.' Qadir, 49, is one of about 4.8 million people affected by the monsoon...

URL: http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/flood-stricken-pakistan-seeks-to-improve-weather-forecasts
Enclosure: http://www.trust.org/contentAsset/resize-image/00a129f5-14f9-44b5-b7a7-766759887ede/photowide/?w=460&h=318&vn=201210050026

Call for UN climate agency to back Robin Hood Tax

RTCC: The UN climate secretariat must show its support for a Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) if proposals for it to contribute to international climate action are to be fulfilled. According to the Sustainable Energy & Economy Network/Institute for Policy Studies (SEEN/IPS) in Washington DC, the UNFCCC must send a signal to governments that the FTT has a legitimate role to play in raising funds to help developing countries cut their emissions and adapt to their new climate reality. While the FTT...

URL: http://www.rtcc.org/policy/call-for-un-climate-agency-to-back-robin-hood-tax/
Enclosure: http://www.rtcc.org/files/2012/10/nathalie-kosciusko-french-minister-for-ecology-sust-dev-and-trans-and-housing-in-a-robin-hood-outfit-600x399.jpg

Impact of U.S. ethanol waiver would arrive year later: think tank

Reuters: If the Obama administration relaxes the requirement to use corn-based ethanol in gasoline, the benefits would arrive a year later, with more corn available at lower cost for livestock feed and lower ethanol production, said a think tank on Thursday. The governors of seven states in the U.S. South and Southwest have asked for a one-year waiver of the ethanol mandate on grounds it drives up feed costs and is bankrupting cattle, hog and poultry farmers. The corn harvest, now under way, is forecast...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/05/us-usa-ethanol-idUSBRE89400U20121005?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Japanese minister: reactors can restart if watchdog gives OK

Reuters: Economics Minister Seiji Maehara said on Friday nuclear reactors can be restarted if a new regulator deems them safe, throwing into confusion how the dozens of units idle since the Fukushima disaster could be used in future energy plans. Maehara, whose ministry had led debate in the cabinet on energy policy, said a new law empowered the regulator to endorse bringing reactors back on line. He said the idle reactors could be a key source of power generation for now, a notion certain to anger Japan's...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/05/us-energy-japan-idUSBRE8940A720121005?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29
Enclosure: http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20121005&t=2&i=660189420&w=460&fh=&fw=&ll=&pl=&r=CBRE8940P9F00

World Bank chief Kim signals changes to come

Reuters: The head of the World Bank said on Thursday he is preparing broad reforms at the development lender to make it more effective in ending global poverty and will discuss the changes with member countries at meetings in Tokyo next week. The annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank from Oct. 11-14 in Japan will be the first opportunity for Jim Yong Kim to put his mark on the institution since becoming president in July. "We're not ready to ask for specific changes yet ......

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/04/worldbank-kim-idUSL1E8L4JCQ20121004

Newspapers in UK and US give climate sceptics most column inches

Guardian: Climate sceptics feature more prominently in newspapers in the US and UK than other countries, and their views are more likely to go unchallenged in right-leaning papers, an academic study has shown. Friday's report, which was published in the Environmental Research Letters journal, delved deeper into data that was first published last year. For the study, 2,064 newspaper articles from the US, UK, France, China, Brazil and India over two three-month periods in 2007 and 2009-10 were scrutinised...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/oct/05/newspapers-uk-america-climate-sceptics
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/10/4/1349370553511/British-climate-sceptic-L-008.jpg

Global Food Prices on the Rise, U.N. Says

New York Times: Global prices for meats, dairy products and cereals resumed rising last month, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization reported Thursday, adding to concerns that developing countries may face food shortages. The agency said that on average, prices rose 1.4 percent in September, after remaining steady in July and August. Scorching heat and drought in the United States, Russia and Europe constricted agricultural production and pushed up prices of corn and soybeans to record highs, the...

URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/05/world/global-food-prices-on-the-rise-united-nations-says.html

Calling all Weatherization Workers

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The DOE wants to interview weatherization workers and home performance contractors to find out more about the 'values, opportunities, and challenges' of their work

Images:&nbsp_place_holder;

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/calling-all-weatherization-workers)

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOEUnited States Department of Energy.) wants to standardize and professionalize the work of weatherization and home performance contractors. Towards that end, the government agency has launched a project called the "Guidelines for Home Energy Professionals" project.

The project has three goals:

<

ul>

* The DOE wants to develop standard work specifications for weatherization and home performance tasks.
* The DOE wants to identify the elements of a curriculum for training weatherization and home performance workers.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/calling-all-weatherization-workers

Renewable Energy Gets Brief Mention During 2012 Presidential Debate


Wednesday night was a dry one for those playing renewable energy-themed drinking games during the first debate between President Barack Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney. In the course of the entire 90-minute debate, which focused specifically on domestic issues with the economy and health care taking front and center, not a single mention was made of global warming or climate change by either candidate.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/renewable-energy-gets-brief-mention-during-2012-presidential-debate?cmpid=rss

CASE Companies Rail Against China "Trade War"


Members of the Coalition for Affordable Solar Energy (CASE) railed against the impending "trade war," arguing that the steep price drop in imported Chinese photovoltaic modules was good for "98 percent" of U.S. solar industry jobs. "We are growing U.S. solar jobs and this trade case will undermine all the advances we have made in the U.S. solar industry," said one CASE member.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/case-companies-rail-against-china-trade-war?cmpid=rss

Power Engineering and RenewableEnergyWorld.com Name Projects of the Year Awards Finalists


The editors of Power Engineering magazine, RenewableEnergyWorld.com and PennWell Corp. have announced 15 finalists for the annual Projects of the Year Awards program.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/power-engineering-and-renewableenergyworld-com-name-projects-of-the-year-awards-finalists?cmpid=rss

Calling all Weatherization Workers

Subtitle:&nbsp_place_holder;

The DOE wants to interview weatherization workers and home performance contractors to find out more about the 'values, opportunities, and challenges' of their work

Images:&nbsp_place_holder;

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/calling-all-weatherization-workers)

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOEUnited States Department of Energy.) wants to standardize and professionalize the work of weatherization and home performance contractors. Towards that end, the government agency has launched a project called the "Guidelines for Home Energy Professionals" project.

The project has three goals:

<

ul>

* The DOE wants to develop standard work specifications for weatherization and home performance tasks.
* The DOE wants to identify the elements of a curriculum for training weatherization and home performance workers.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-news/calling-all-weatherization-workers

German Coal-Fired Generation of Electricity Falls While Renewable Generation Rises


German use of coal to generate electricity has declined steadily from 1990 to 2011, according to readily available statistics on the German electricity system. The percentage of coal-fired electricity in German electricity generation has fallen from 56.7% in 1990 to 43.5% last year — a decrease of more than 10% despite a increase in total electricity generation during the same period of about 10%. At the same time the share of renewable energy in the electricity mix has increased from 3.6% to 19.9%, mostly due to the rapid development of wind energy and biomass.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/german-coal-fired-generation-of-electricity-falls-while-renewable-generation-rises?cmpid=rss

The Question Day 3: What is the Most Difficult Issue Facing the Solar Industry?


It's been a year of both continued expansion and mounting challenges for the global solar industry. RenewableEnergyWorld asked solar industry executives to share their thoughts and insights on one burning question:

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/the-question-day-1-what-is-the-most-difficult-issue-facing-the-solar-industry?cmpid=rss

SolarWorld Says Unfair China Policies Rate Import Penalties


U.S. solar-energy manufacturers led by SolarWorld AG said they were forced to close plants and lay off workers because of unfair Chinese government policies, as they tried to persuade regulators that the U.S. should continue to impose penalties on imports from the Asian nation.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/solarworld-says-unfair-china-policies-rate-import-penalties?cmpid=rss

Designing Homes and Communities That Can Survive a Disaster

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The Resilient Design Institute highlights an important element of sustainability

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[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/energy-solutions/designing-homes-and-communities-can-survive-disaster)

Some 27 years ago, following a five-year stint as director of the [Northeast Sustainable Energy Association](http://www.nesea.org/) (which was then based in Brattleboro), I launched my own company focusing on information about environmentally responsible design and construction.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/energy-solutions/designing-homes-and-communities-can-survive-disaster

Joseph Lstiburek Surprises Passive House Conference Attendees

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Dr. Joe mixes history, insight, and wit — and decides to show his nice side

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[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/joseph-lstiburek-surprises-passive-house-conference-attendees)

[](http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/joseph-lstiburek-surprises-passive-house-conference-attendees)

At the 2012 Passive HouseA residential building construction standard requiring very low levels of air leakage, very high levels of insulation, and windows with a very low U-factor. Developed in the early 1990s by Bo Adamson and Wolfgang Feist, the standard is now promoted by the Passivhaus Institut in Darmstadt, Germany. To meet the standard, a home must have an infiltration rate no greater than 0.60 AC/H @ 50 pascals, a maximum annual heating energy use of 15 kWh per square meter (4,755 Btu per square foot), a maximum annual cooling energy use of 15 kWh per square meter (1.39 kWh per square foot), and maximum source energy use for all purposes of 120 kWh per square meter (11.1 kWh per square foot). The standard recommends, but does not require, a maximum design heating load of 10 W per square meter and windows with a maximum U-factor of 0.14. The Passivhaus standard was developed for buildings in central and northern Europe; efforts are underway to clarify the best techniques to achieve the standard for buildings in hot climates. Conference in Denver, Dr. Joseph Lstiburek gave the keynote address for the opening plenary (or plenum, [as Henry Gifford would say](http://www.energyvanguard.com/blog-building-science-HERS-BPI/bid/54771/Don-t-Do-HVAC-to-Me)) session. His words, clever as always, added some nice historical perspective to what the Passive House folks are doing but also caught some people off guard.

Read on, and I'll tell you more about that.

URL: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/green-building-blog/joseph-lstiburek-surprises-passive-house-conference-attendees

Geothermal Solutions: How Hot Rock Helped Keep the Peppermill Afloat


The Peppermill Resort in Reno, Nevada boasts more than 2,200 hotel rooms and suites, convention space, a spa, two pools, more than 25 restaurants and lounges, a fitness center, and more – in all, more than 2 million sq. ft. of operations. But the most interesting aspect of the resort, at least to its guests this week, may be that everywhere they walk or swim is heated by geothermal energy. This makes the Peppermill the perfect spot for this year's GRC Annual Meeting and Geothermal Energy Expo.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/geothermal-solutions-how-hot-rock-helped-keep-the-peppermill-afloat?cmpid=rss

Climate Change Ignored Entirely in Presidential Debate

EcoWatch: [Editor's note: As I sat and watched the debate last night with my 13- and 15-year-old kids, I was hoping, mostly for their sake, that at least one of the two candidates running for President of the U.S. would focus on the most important issue our country faces--the health of our planet. Why is it so hard for people to understand that the health of the planet directly impacts our own survival? The Earth provides us with water, food, energy, shelter and all the other things that we need to live. We...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/climate-change-ignored/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/debate.jpg

GCL-Poly Planning Massive Solar Power Installations in China


Foxconn Technology Group and GCL-Poly Energy Holdings Ltd. will build and jointly operate a solar- power plant in China's Shanxi province.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/gcl-poly-planning-massive-solar-power-installations-in-china?cmpid=rss

Pentagon Study Cites Climate Change as National Security Threat

Huffington Post: Even before recent predictions that Arctic sea ice would melt by the summer of 2016 in a "final collapse," setting off a "global disaster," the Pentagon and the Center for Naval Analyses's (CNA) Military Advisory Board had already gone on record warning about the impacts of climate change as a threat to national security. To better understand the impact of global water challenges on U.S. national security interests, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton requested the intelligence community to produce...

URL: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/renee-parsons/climate-change-national-security_b_1929398.html

Researchers: World's fish to get smaller as oceans warm

CNN: Be prepared for smaller fish. That's the warning from researchers at the University of British Columbia, who say that we could see the maximum body weight of fish shrink by as much as 20% by the middle of the century, according to a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change. They blame global warming, which is heating up the world's oceans. Warm water holds less oxygen than cold water. "A warmer and less-oxygenated ocean, as predicted under climate change, would make it more difficult...

URL: http://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/03/researchers-worlds-fish-to-get-smaller-as-oceans-warm/?hpt=hp_c2

Republican climate sceptics face battle for re-election as green groups hit back

Guardian: It is the issue most notable by its absence in the 2012 presidential race. But the environment may yet have an impact this election as campaign groups target the vulnerable congressional seats of Republicans who dismiss the dangers of climate change. The present US Congress is generally considered the most unfriendly to the environment on record – with multiple votes in the House of Representatives to strike down or weaken environmental regulations, cut back funds for developing clean energy,...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/oct/03/republican-climate-sceptics-reelection-backlash
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/audio/video/2012/10/3/1349285129241/Environmental-activists-i-010.jpg

Cities Getting Local Energy Choice with Aggregation


Over 200 Illinois towns helped cut their citizens' electric bills in 2012, and some even achieved 100% renewable energy, thanks to a state law that lets cities choose their electricity provider.  The law, called community choice aggregation, lets municipalities pick from competitive electricity suppliers for their residential and small business cus

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/10/cities-getting-local-energy-choice-with-aggregation?cmpid=rss

Stop Fracking Up Our Water—New Study Supports Water Contamination Due to Fracking

Earthworks: An independent analysis of new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) water monitoring data verifies a 2011 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigation into whether hydraulic fracturing contaminated the Wind River aquifer near Pavillion, Wyoming--an important groundwater source that provides water to thousands of Wyoming residents and farmers. The preliminary results of U.S. EPA's study was one of the first to document hydrocarbons consistent with fracking fluid chemicals in drinking water...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/water-contamination-fracking/
Enclosure: http://www.earthworksaction.org/library/detail/assessment_of_groundwater_sampling_results_completed_by_the_usgs

United States: Regulators Approve First Commercial Hydrokinetic Projects in U.S

EcoWatch: New hydrokinetic energy technologies that generate electricity by harnessing the energy from ocean waves, tides and river currents are advancing toward commercial development in the U.S. They are not expected to add major power supplies anytime soon, but federal regulators this year approved licenses for two hydrokinetic energy projects to produce electricity from wave power buoys anchored off the Oregon coast and from underwater turbines driven by the current in New York City`s East River. Hydrokinetic...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/hydrokinetic-projects/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/buoyandturbine.png

No Compromise on NY Fracking Health Impact Assessment

EcoWatch: As Governor, Andrew Cuomo will continue to be an environmental champion by . . . making sure health and environmental risks are comprehensively studied before natural gas exploration in New York's Marcellus Shale formation occurs. --2010 gubernatorial campaign website, Nov. 1, 2010 Obviously if there was a public health concern that could not be addressed we would not proceed. --DEC Commissioner Joseph Martens, New York Times, Sept. 20, 2012 Summary Statement Four years of study and...

URL: http://ecowatch.org/2012/no-compromise-on-ny-fracking-health-impact-assessment/
Enclosure: http://ecowatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/frackny.jpg

In Wake of Sea Ice Loss, Focus on New Models, Melt Ponds

Climate Central: Since Arctic sea ice extent plummeted to a record low in September, shattering the previous record set in 2007, much has been made of the fact that sea ice has declined at a much faster pace than what most scientists had anticipated. Until recently, most computer models failed to capture the precipitous decline in Arctic sea ice that has occurred since satellite observations began in 1979. In order to make improved projections, scientists are fine-tuning their understanding of the many influences...

URL: http://www.climatecentral.org/news/scientists-refine-their-understanding-in-wake-of-sea-ice-record-15068?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climatecentral%2FdjOO+Climate+Central+-+Full+Feed
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Major Policy Shifts Needed To Maintain Decline in U.S. CO2 Emissions

Yale Environment 360: A decline in U.S. carbon emissions in recent years is unlikely to continue over the long term unless there is a significant shift in how the nation produces and uses its energy, according to a new analysis. While several factors have triggered a 9 percent decline in annual carbon emissions in the U.S. since 2005 — including a decrease in the use of coal-fired electricity as a result of the natural gas boom — the most significant factor has been the economic recession, according to the group Climate...

URL: http://e360.yale.edu/digest/climate_central_policy_shifts_needed_to_maintain_us_carbon_emissions_decline/3651/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+YaleEnvironment360+%28Yale+Environment+360%29

Climate trends threaten U.S. forests

United Press International: U.S. university and federal researchers expressed concern about the long-term health of forests in the southwestern United States given recent climate trends. Scientists from the Los Alamos National Laboratory, the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of Arizona and partner organizations said that if warmer temperatures and drought continue for the southwestern states, forest ecosystems could change dramatically. Researchers, in a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change, compared...

URL: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Energy-Resources/2012/10/02/Climate-trends-threaten-US-forests/UPI-87331349180955/

GE Banking on Saudi Arabia's Shift Toward Solar Power


General Electric Co. predicts demand for its gas turbines will increase in Saudi Arabia, even with the kingdom working to supply a third of power needs from solar energy within the next two decades.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/ge-banking-on-saudi-arabias-shift-toward-solar-power?cmpid=rss

Chevron Announces Re-Entry into US Geothermal Market


Chevron announced yesterday that the company is re-entering the US geothermal power market after an absence of some years.  Gregg Rotenberg – Vice President of Strategy and Renewable Energy Investment at Chevron made the announcement during a speech at the Opening Session of the 36th GRC Annual Meeting in Reno, Nevada.  Gregg said that Chevron has

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/10/chevron-announces-re-entry-into-usa-geothermal-market?cmpid=rss

Vestas Says Emerging Wind Markets Can't Offset EU, US Decline


Vestas Wind Systems A/S, the world's biggest wind-turbine maker, said higher sales in emerging markets won't make up for a decline in demand in the U.S. and European Union next year.

URL: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/10/vestas-says-emerging-wind-markets-cant-offset-eu-u-s-decline?cmpid=rss

Good News on Climate Change....And Not So Good News

Mother Times: Chris Mooney has a piece for us today arguing that public opinion is turning around on climate change. What's more, he says, recent studies suggest that climate can even be a winning political issue: The first of these studies emerged in 2011 from Stanford pollster Jon Krosnick and his colleagues....Both Democrats and independents strongly favored a green candidate over a neutral one, while for Republicans it was basically a wash--neither a pro or anti-climate candidate moved them much. "By taking...

URL: http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2012/10/good-news-climate-changeand-not-so-good-news
Enclosure: http://www.motherjones.com/files/images/blog_climate_news_exaggerated.jpg

United Kingdom: British nuclear plans suffer blow as Chinese investors pull out

Guardian: The government's nuclear energy plans were in trouble on Wednesday with Chinese investors withdrawing interest in two projects and local councils postponing a decision on hosting atomic waste storage. Areva, the French nuclear engineering group, confirmed that it had pulled out of the running to buy a stake in Horizon Nuclear Power, the enterprise planning to construct new reactors at Wylfa in Wales and Oldbury in Gloucestershire. Areva said its partner, the state-owned China Guangdong Nuclear...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/oct/03/british-nuclear-china-investors-pull-out
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/10/3/1349286567789/Sellafield-in-Cumbria-010.jpg

Deepwater to build first U.S. offshore wind farm

Reuters: Deepwater Wind is racing to build the first U.S. offshore wind farm off Rhode Island and hopes to parlay that into a string of East Coast farms, the company's chief executive told Reuters. The privately held U.S. wind power developer plans to begin construction of the $250 million, 30-megawatt (MW) Block Island project by early 2014, ahead of a farm proposed by Cape Wind long expected to be the nation's first offshore facility. "The Block Island project is on target to become the nation's first...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/03/us-deepwater-wind-idUSBRE8920ZX20121003?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Monsanto sees U.S. 2013 corn acres steady at 96 million acres

Reuters: Monsanto Co., the world's largest seed company, said Wednesday that U.S. corn and soybean plantings in 2013 are likely to be similar to what was seen this year, though soybean acres may climb. As the company starts selling its seed products for the spring planting season, Monsanto President Brett Begemann said the company was planning for about 96 million acres of corn planted in the United States in 2013, and 76 million or more in soybean acres. "As I think about seed availability 2013 is...

URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/03/us-monsanto-acreage-idUSBRE8920WH20121003?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29

Russia accuses al-Qaida of 'forest jihad' in Europe

Guardian: Russia's top security official has alleged that al-Qaida was waging "forest jihad" in Europe by sparking the wildfires that have ravaged the continent in recent summers. "Forest fires in EU countries should be considered one of the new trends in al-Qaida's 'thousand cuts' strategy," Alexander Bortnikov, the head of the Federal Security Service, told a security conference in Moscow on Wednesday, Russian news agencies reported. "This approach allows them to inflict significant damage on the economy...

URL: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/03/russia-al-qaida-forest-jihad
Enclosure: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2012/9/5/1346858031050/592f2c72-d455-4d75-b25f-957b4eb2e6d2-460.jpeg