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ENERGY STAR celebrates 1 million homes; Houston is top-ranked market
Green Right Now Reports
Where there’s a need, there’s a way. Turns out that the biggest proportion of ENERGY STAR homes are being built in steamy Sunbelt locations where keeping the AC under control is an urgent need.
The top market, with the most ENERGY STAR-qualified homes built since the program begin in 1995, is Houston, with 144,000 homes.
The next top cities with the most homes built to these guidelines include Dallas, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Los Angeles
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Tags: · Dallas, energy efficiency, ENERGY STAR conservation, ENERGY STAR homes, Greater Los Angeles, home building savings. Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix
Green Test Drive: BMW 335d
By Clint Williams
Green Right Now
Cars that deliver 30 mph typically don’t deliver much else. Acceleration is, at best, peppy. You can buy fuel efficiency, but you can’t find a thrill.
 The 2009 BMW 335d is a breakthrough automobile: great fuel economy coupled with great performance.
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Tags: · BMW 335d, diesel engines, energy efficiency, Green Test Drive, high mileage cars
Las Vegas does green glam with new City Center project
By Shermakaye Bass
Green Right Now
Las Vegas, that city of celebrated excess, is going green?
In a word, yes – at least, in one concentrated area.
The soon-to-debut CityCenter, a seven-building luxury development created by MGM Mirage and Infinity World Development Corps, a subsidiary of Dubai World is slated to open in stages from early December 2009 into [...]
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Tags: · City Center, Dubai World, energy efficiency, Las Vegas, LEED certified, MGM Mirage, Recycle & Reuse, sustainable development, urban density
Get answers about Nissan’s new Leaf
From Green Right Now Reports
Nissan has opened a chat room to discuss it’s newly unveiled all-electric vehicle (EV), the Leaf, with potential customers.
 The car company’s also publishing more pictures of the family sedan, due out in 2010 and revealed this past weekend in Japan.
Many of the questions, predictably, center on the infrastructure to support electric vehicles. For instance, how does an apartment-dweller recharge the thing? There’s not a great answer for that, just yet; apartment building owners will have to get on board and provide parking lot charging stations. Nissan replies that urbanites might find some help at public facilities.
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Tags: · charging stations, Electric vehicles, energy efficiency, LEAF, Nissan
McKinsey & Company: Quick, get out the duct tape!
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
Wherever you turn, someone, somewhere is talking about climate change. And that’s a good thing. But it’s not a happy conversation. Often, the discussion pivots on how much time we have left to reel in our carbon emissions — and among those who consider climate change a real threat (let’s say the majority of us), the realistic answer to that is, less than a decade.
Give or take a month. (I’m kidding.)
So we’ve got to make some real progress, fast.
Here’s some good news, being highlighted by the WorldWatch Institute today. McKinsey & Company says the U.S. could reduce it’s “non-transportation” energy consumption by 23 percent by 2020.
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Tags: · BarbaraKesslerBlog, Climate Change, energy efficiency, energy savings, McKinsey and Company, Worldwatch Institute
Greening in place, tips for retrofitting from LA’s Eco/Consulting US
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
New green homes can awe-inspiring, both for their groundbreaking designs and their show of techno-muscle. Those tubular daylights, state-of-the-art solar panels, sleek recycled flooring, dehumidifying HVAC systems, complex gray water reclamation systems, louvered light “shelves” and heat-reflecting metal roofs can leave the common homeowner gaping — and wishing.
The truth is most of us won’t be building a brand new green castle, at least not anytime soon — and perhaps there’s something to be said for the alternative; let’s call it “greening in place”.
Almost any home can become more energy friendly, and this “in fill” project can occupy a very important spot in the urban landscape: your own lot!
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Tags: · Anna Roseman, Eco/Consulting US, energy efficiency, Energy Star, Green Homes, Home Energy, Home Energy Rating System, Home Performance Test, home retrofits, HVAC systems, low-flow faucets, low-flow shower heads, Photovoltaics, solar panels
Landmark restaurants sign up for green certification
By Ashley Phillips
Green Right Now
Some of our nation’s most prominent locations are greening up their dining practices. Restaurant Associates, the operators of eateries inside some of America’s museums and landmarks, has committed to a five year partnership with the Green Restaurant Association.
All current and future cafes within the US House of Representatives, American Museum of Natural History, and the Lincoln Center will become more environmentally friendly.
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Tags: · American Museum of Natural History, dinegreen.com, energy efficiency, Green Restaurant Association, Lincoln Center, polystyrene, Recycle & Reuse, US House of Representatives
Aeonian brick – ‘Legos’ for people who want greener, hurricane-safe homes
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
While people scurry to devise new green components for homes, Don Blalock is in the enviable position of launching one that he’s been nursing along for the last six years.
 His Aeonian brick will build houses that are significantly more energy efficient than conventional homes; help them qualify for LEED platinum certification and withstand hurricane force winds up to 240 mph. They’ll also resist heat, mold, mildew and termites, says Blalock whose goal is to build “the most structurally sound house that’s livable that will last for a very long time.”
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Tags: · Aeonian Brick Homes, building material, Charleston, Don Blalock, energy efficiency, energy savings, green building, hurricane-resistant, LEED certification, low-energy homes, Recycle & Reuse, repurposing, zero energy homes
Smart meters make smarter customers at Penn. Power & Light
By Carol Sonenklar
Green Right Now
Kim Williams didn’t really think she would be studying pie charts and graphs on a regular basis. But several times a month, that’s exactly what she does when she logs into her Pennsylvania Power & Light (PPL) Energy Analyzer account website.
 She checks her energy usage to see exactly what her bill is, what specific appliances are consuming, whether her usage is occurring during peak times, and also gauge her costs compared with other similar-sized homes.
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Tags: · electricity use, energy efficiency, Pennsylvania Power & Light, PPL, reduce consumption, smart grid, smart meters
Solar attic fans, an energy improvement with a quick payback
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
You’d like to make energy upgrades on the casa, but you’re a little short on the green.
Not enough green to green is a common problem right now. Yet, there are some changes you can barely afford not to make. One of these easy fixes involves addressing the build-up of heat in your attic this summer. If you live any place south of Washington, Maine and Michigan, you’re going to experience some days when it’s difficult to cool the house, and the typical attic compounds the problem by trapping heat overhead. If your AC unit is installed up there, the situation is even worse; the extreme heat will make the air conditioning system work harder and run longer as it pushes cooled air through hot duct work.
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Tags: · air conditioning, diy, energy efficiency, home improvement, Natural Light Energy Systems, solar attic fans, solar panels, Solatube, SunRise Solar, Tax Credits, U.S. Sunlight
Renaissance Lighting to show new LED light
From Green Right Now Reports:
Lighting and energy experts have been scratching their heads for sometime over how to make LED lighting as effective and pleasant as CFLs, because LEDs are even more energy efficient than CFLs.
Renaissance Lighting, based in Herndon, Va., appears to be inching forward in this effort. The company will be showcasing its new, all white solid-state LED downlight fixtures at the LIGHTFAIR International 2009 at the Javits Center in New York City. The new fixtures are brighter than ever and have two and half times greater efficacy.
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Tags: · energy efficiency, LEDs, LightFair International, Lighting
A Bright plug-in hybrid that could get 100 miles per gallon
By Clint Williams
Green Right Now
Bright Automotive, launched just last year, rolled out a plug-in gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle on Tuesday that doesn’t just get an estimated 100 miles per gallon — it gets 100 mpg hauling a bunch of stuff.
The “IDEA” isn’t some cramped commuter car. It’s a 21st Century panel van designed for commercial fleet use with 180 cubic foot cargo capacity and a 2,000 pound payload.
The vehicle was designed specifically for commercial fleet use, said John E. Waters, CEO and President of Bright Automotive, at the unveiling in Washington D.C.
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Tags: · Bright Automotive, energy efficiency, EV1, fleet vehicles, General Motors, IDEA, John E. Waters, plug-in hybrid car
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