January 21st, 2011

other big solar project got a needed a ray of hope today from the U.S. Department of Energy, which announced conditional loan guarantees of nearly $1 billion for the Agua Caliente Solar LLC project in Yuma County, Arizona.
The 290 megawatt project will be the largest photovoltaic generation facility in the world, according to its owner, NRG Solar of Carlsbad, Calif.

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November 3rd, 2010

California voters — at least 61 percent of them — appear convinced that working to cleanse the air, fight climate change and ramp up clean energy sources will propel the economy forward.

In squashing Prop 23, an attempt by Texas oil companies to overturn the state’s landmark climate legislation, Californians signaled by that clear majority that they weren’t going to be swindled by Big Oil’s argument that Americans “can’t afford” clean air and clean energy during these shaky economic times.

Voters may even be saying that the opposite is true – that developing clean energy makes sense environmentally, and provides a way out of the recession.

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September 17th, 2010

(The following is adapted from Lester R. Brown’s Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2009), which is available at the Earth Policy Institute website. Brown is the president of the Earth Policy Institute.)

Lester Brown

As oil and natural gas reserves are being depleted, the world’s attention is increasingly turning to plant-based energy sources. These include food crops, forest industry byproducts, sugar industry byproducts, plantations of fast-growing trees, crop residues, and urban tree and yard wastes—all of which can be used for electrical generation, heating, or the production of automotive fuels.

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September 28th, 2009

By Bill Sullivan Green Right Now If you’ve ever thought about going solar to take a bite out of your utility bills, you may want to take another look: A perfect storm of events, policies and programs currently makes solar more affordable than ever. The problem: He who hesitates may miss the best deals. “People [...]

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August 6th, 2009

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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April 14th, 2009

Chad W. Sanders, 34, Lakewood, Colorado

What I do:

I work for Metro Solar, a solar thermal and photovoltaic installation and service company. We specialize in solar thermal heating and high efficiency boiler systems, but also install PV (photovoltaics). Since we are one of the few companies that service old systems, the majority of the work I do is in this area. There were many solar thermal systems installed in the Denver area back in the ‘80s and Metro Solar has stayed in business maintaining these systems during the last three decades. Now that there is a renewed interested in solar we are starting to install new systems.

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January 28th, 2009

By John DeFore
Green Right Now

Wal-Mart has drawn fire over all sorts of issues through the years, but the company certainly is pushing to be a leader on environmental matters. Just this month, the company announced two green ventures representing serious investment and another initiative that could greatly influence the eco-friendliness of common household products.

First came the announcement that the retailer is following the lead of REI with the opening of its first-ever “Environmental Demonstration Store.”

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June 26th, 2008

By John DeFore Migrating from coal- or gas-produced electricity to solar power is a dream for most of us, but we’ve always been told that equipment costs make it an option only in the distant future. That’s about to change, according to some solar boosters who think with the right steps the United States could [...]

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