USA Today had an article last week with the worst good news for carbon emissions that I’ve read in a while. The good news was that U.S. emissions fell to the lowest rate since the mid-1990s, dropping 200 million tons, or 3.8 percent. The bad news is that world carbon emissions rose by 1.4 percent in… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Energy Conservation
Subscribe to Energy Conservation RSS FeedCan Puget Sound Bike Share Help Solve King County’s Last Mile Problem?
Posted in Energy Conservation, Fuel EfficiencyBy Diane Meyers, Guest Blog Contributor I am new to Green Tech blog, but you might remember me as the “incensed” partner who objects to paying bicycle taxes on bikes as a way of funding a highway and other infrastructure to which bike users have virtually no access (at the top of my list of… Continue Reading
Obama Budget Increases Funding for Clean Energy – But Don’t Get Too Excited Yet
Posted in Clean Energy, Department of Energy, Energy Conservation, Legislation, Renewable Energy, Tax, Tax and Tax StimulusPresident Obama has released a budget plan for the 2014 fiscal year that increases funding for the development of clean energy. Before you break out the champagne, however, keep in mind that this is just a proposal by the President and must still be approved by Congress. The plan, which was released on April 10, would:… Continue Reading
Governor Inslee is Doubling Down on Clean Transportation
Posted in Clean Energy, Energy ConservationGovernor Inslee released his February clean energy policy brief last week. It was full of references to clean transportation—as a means for economic development as well as reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. While there are many aspects that are worthy of highlighting, I am highlighting just a few items in Governor Inslee’s brief. Washington spends… Continue Reading
Seattle Energy Code — Part Two
Posted in Energy Conservation, Green Building, Renewable EnergyPoint/Counterpoint on Requiring Upgrades When Buildings Undergo Major Renovation In an earlier post (Part One) I described the broad outlines of the new City of Seattle Energy Code that is under development. The new Seattle Energy Code seeks to go significantly beyond the newly approved 2012 Washington State Energy Code – which itself is light… Continue Reading
The Seattle 2012 Energy Code – Part 1
Posted in Energy Conservation, Green Building, Renewable EnergyGrinding Out the Ground Game of Energy Efficiency Back in October of 2011 the Seattle City Council passed a resolution “committing” the City to become a zero-net greenhouse gas emitter by 2050. Although individuals, cities, and governments or organizations in general seldom achieve lofty goals without first setting lofty goals, we all know that lofty… Continue Reading
A Message to Gov.-Elect Inslee: Oregon is a Strategic Partner in the Goal to Transform Transportation in Washington
Posted in Alternative Fuels, Electric Vehicles, Energy Conservation, Fuel EfficiencyOn Tuesday, Steve Marshall, Jan Greylorn, Mike Grady, and I drove to Portland for informational meetings with various Oregon thought leaders and one senior policy advisor regarding how Washington and Oregon can join forces to transform transportation. We arranged our trip so that we could attend a Drive Oregon meeting. Despite the long trip (in… Continue Reading
The Blessing and Curse of Low BPA Electric Rates as the Northwest Moves Towards a Clean Energy Future
Posted in Clean Energy, Electric Vehicles, Energy ConservationBPA Administrator Steve Wright was in Seattle in early November as part of a victory lap prior to his announced retirement next February. The victory lap is well deserved. He is the longest-serving administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration, having joined BPA in 1981, coming up the ranks until he was named Acting Administrator in… Continue Reading
Transportation is About to be Transformed in the Northwest – Part Two: An intimate dialogue with Amory Lovins
Posted in Energy Conservation, Events, Fuel Efficiency, Tax, TechnologyIn my blog last week (Transformation is About to be Transformed in the Northwest- Part One), I discussed the highlights from the Beyond Oil: Transforming Transportation conference held at the Seattle Center on September 7, 2012. Graham & Dunn held a private lunch reception for industry/government stakeholders in honor of Amory Lovins, Chief Scientist at… Continue Reading
Transportation is About to be Transformed in the Northwest – Part One
Posted in Clean Energy, Electric Vehicles, Energy Conservation, Entrepreneurs, Events, Fuel Efficiency, Renewable Energy, Technology, UncategorizedOn September 7, 2012, Steve Marshall, executive director of CATES (Center of Advanced Transportation and Energy Solutions), Next 50, and Washington Clean Cities hosted the Beyond Oil: Transforming Transportation in Century 21 conference at the Seattle Center. Amory Lovins, chief scientist at the Rocky Mountain Institute, and Bob Lutz, former vice chairman of GM (North… Continue Reading
Don’t Miss It: Only 10 More Days Left—Register Now for the Beyond Oil: Transforming Transportation Conference on September 7, 2012!
Posted in Electric Vehicles, Energy Conservation, Entrepreneurs, Events, Fuel Efficiency, Renewable Energy, TechnologyA Conference About Transforming Transportation in Century 21 This full day conference and summit on September 7, 2012 is part of Seattle’s Next Fifty celebration that will look to the future of transportation with a conference focusing on the market and technological transformations that will move us beyond oil. Speakers and exhibits will discuss how… Continue Reading
Liaoning Province, Washington State, and UniEnergy Technologies
Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Conservation, Entrepreneurs, TechnologyA high-level delegation from Liaoning Province, a major industrial center in Northeast China, and officials from Washington and the City of Bellevue recently conducted two days of meetings in Seattle, Bellevue, and Mukilteo, Washington, to foster collaboration between the two economic areas on the development and commercialization of clean technology including advanced energy storage. The… Continue Reading
Should Real Estate Appraisals Consider a Building’s Energy Efficiency? The U.S. Dept. of Energy Thinks They Should.
Posted in Department of Energy, Energy Conservation, Green Building, LEEDSo how much are those energy-efficient upgrades you paid extra to install on your commercial building really worth? Sure, they lower your monthly operating costs, but will “the market” ever recognize these savings and factor them into the value of your building? And what about the fact that your ahead-of-its-time building is more likely to… Continue Reading
Energy Provisions in Budget Show President’s Priorities
Posted in Capital and Funding, Energy Conservation, Legislation, Tax and Tax StimulusOn February 13, 2012, President Obama sent Congress a $3.8 trillion budget proposal for the 2013 fiscal year, which begins October 1. The budget proposal contains a number of energy-related provisions, including the following: Tax Credit for Wind Facilities – The U.S. Tax Code currently provides a production tax credit (PTC) for wind facilities. The… Continue Reading
The State of Cleantech in Washington, Part I: Clean Energy Leadership
Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Conservation, LegislationInnovate Washington – Have you heard of it? In one of our earlier posts in October 2010, Elaine Spencer reported on the findings and recommendations of the Washington Clean Energy Leadership Council (CELC), as presented in the Council’s Clean Energy Leadership Plan Report. The CELC had been created by our state legislature in 2009 and… Continue Reading
Washington’s State Energy Strategy
Posted in Electric Vehicles, Energy Conservation, Fuel Efficiency, Green Building, LegislationPundits, at least pundits of a certain stripe, have long decried the fact that the United States has no energy strategy. Without a strategy, the argument goes, we are left at the whim of forces we cannot control and that will whipsaw the economy and the nation. And so, one has to be a bit… Continue Reading
The Top Five Cleantech Stories of 2011, Part III
Posted in Department of Energy, Energy Conservation, Legislation, SolarFinally, we come to the number one cleantech story of 2011. And the honor goes to – drum roll, please – Solyndra. If you did not follow this story in 2011, don’t worry. You will have plenty of opportunities to do so in 2012. Solyndra is a story that will continue to be in the… Continue Reading
Doubling Down on U.S. Car Efficiencies by 2025 and Our Local Opportunities
Posted in Energy Conservation, Fuel Efficiency, Legislation, Patents, TechnologyOn November 16, 2011, President Obama and his administration made a bold announcement: The EPA and Department of Transportation reached a deal with all of the top U.S. based automakers (including Ford, GM, and Chrysler) where the annual mileage improvements will be 5% for cars in 2017. But, here’s the biggie: by 2025, these same… Continue Reading
Last Chance to Fix Up Your House and Get a Tax Break – Expiring Energy Tax Incentives for Individuals
Posted in Capital and Funding, Energy Conservation, LegislationA number of financial incentives offered by the federal government to encourage the development and adoption of clean energy technologies and practices are set to expire at the end of 2011. We discussed one of the expiring incentives, the Section 1603 cash grant program, in an earlier blog posting. See “Last Chance to Take Advantage… Continue Reading
Seattle Resolves to Achieve Zero Net Green House Gas Emissions by 2050
Posted in Electric Vehicles, Energy Conservation, Legislation, Renewable EnergyDo you believe in magic? There is a certain sense that is what it takes for the Seattle City Council to do what it did on October 3, 2011, when it passed Resolution 31312, which puts the City on the path towards reducing Seattle’s net green house gas emissions level to zero by 2050. The… Continue Reading
Kudos to Representative Eddy for Thinking Ahead
Posted in Energy Conservation, Legislation, RegulatoryLast summer, State Representative Deborah Eddy convened a legislative focus group to examine and explore various policy options to promote the development of Distributed Energy (“DE”). Rep Eddy invited key legislative colleagues interested in energy policy, stakeholders in private and public energy development and representatives from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (“WUTC”) to convene… Continue Reading
The City of Seattle is a Microcosm of Why You Should and Why You May Not Build a LEED Building
Posted in Energy Conservation, Green Building, LEED, LegislationIn 2000 the City of Seattle became the first city in the country to require that all city buildings over 5,000 square feet achieve LEED silver rating. The City’s goal in doing that was to spur development of LEED buildings by demonstrating their value and increasing the familiarity of the local design professions and contractors… Continue Reading
October 1 Deadline for Seattle Building Owners to Complete Energy Benchmarking Reports
Posted in Energy Conservation, Green Building, LEED, LegislationThe City of Seattle has set a goal of reducing energy use by 20 percent over 2005 levels by 2020. To do that, it has to make major improvements in the half of all energy use which occurs in buildings. The City’s energy code for new buildings is state of the art. But that alone… Continue Reading
Green Power Becomes Fashionable
Posted in Capital and Funding, Energy Conservation, Legislation, Renewable Energy, Sustainable BusinessSeveral weeks ago, a headline caught my eye: “Flagship Lord & Taylor to be 100% Wind-Powered.” I read the short article that followed and learned that Lord & Taylor’s flagship store on New York’s Fifth Avenue and another store will be powered by renewable energy after the company signed a two-year contract with Green Mountain… Continue Reading