by jboullion | Aug 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by the Department of Workforce Development:
PARK FALLS – Department of Workforce Development (DWD) Secretary Roberta Gassman today announced a $463,488 Wisconsin Industry Partnership grant to train workers for biofuel production in Northern Wisconsin, further advancing Governor Doyle’s agenda to grow the state’s clean energy economy.
“This training grant is another example of Governor Doyle’s strategic investments to help Wisconsin create jobs and seize the opportunity to be a leader in the clean energy economy,” Secretary Gassman said. “These funds will help ensure that workers will be job ready as the biofuels industry expands in northern Wisconsin.”
Secretary Gassman awarded the grant to the Northwest Wisconsin Workforce Investment Board, DWD’s regional partner that proposed the Bio-Energy Sector Training project. The board worked with 15 employers in the biofuel, logging and paper production sector, including Flambeau River Papers, which will be powered by the new Flambeau River BioFuels bio-refinery plant once it is operational in 2013.
Through the grant, current employees and unemployed or underemployed workers will receive training in technology covering areas such as biomass harvesting and management. Chemical plant and system operators, chemists and first-line supervisors are among the jobs that will be supported through the 12-month grant project. With over $490,000 in local matching resources, total funding for the training project will surpass $900,000.
by jboullion | Aug 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Town of Oconomowoc — Sandy Syburg has driven school buses for years – but none like these.
When they start rolling on their routes next week, these hybrid electric school buses won’t lurch forward the way conventional school buses do.
A diesel engine is least efficient when it’s trying to get a 27,000-pound vehicle moving from a full stop, Syburg said. Thanks to the hybrid technology, the electric motor kicks in first, with lithium-ion batteries powering the bus forward from a stop.
“It’s very smooth. It’s like a gust of wind when you’re sailing,” said Syburg, chief executive of Oconomowoc Transport Co.
In the bus terminal, Syburg can plug an electrical cord into the side of the bus so that solar panels can charge the batteries that run the vehicle’s electric motor.
To date, more than 100 hybrid school and commercial buses have rolled off of the IC Bus LLC assembly line since 2007. Eleven of them are plug-in hybrid electric school buses in Oconomowoc, ready to start the school year next week.
The investment, aided by a state grant through the federal stimulus package, aims to reduce diesel fuel use by 7,500 gallons a year. That would provide savings of $26,000 in fuel costs for the Oconomowoc Area School District at today’s diesel prices.
When they’re done with their morning school run, the buses will return to the bus company on Brown St. and their batteries will be recharged with the help of 224 solar panels that were erected by Renewable Energy Solutions of Waukesha.
It’s the first solar-electric charging station in the state, and it’s ready to power the biggest fleet of plug-in hybrid school buses in the country.
The buses are projected to result in saving because of a 50% gain in fuel economy. A typical bus gets 7 miles per gallon, but the hybrid technology will boost that to 12.
“It’s a little glimpse of the future; it’s very impressive,” said Mike Barry, assistant superintendent of the district. The district will seek to incorporate the solar-powered hybrids into its curriculum.
“We’re trying to make some links between the curriculum that the students learn about in school and the real world,” he said. “When the connection is as immediate as the very bus that takes you to and from school, that’s a powerful connection.”
by jboullion | Aug 24, 2010 | Uncategorized
From Madison Gas & Electric:
A few changes in your driving habits could save you money and gasoline. Hypermilers say it’s easy… and anyone can do it.You don’t have to drive an electric car or hybrid to drive more sustainably. In this story, we hit the road with an expert hypermiler to learn what it takes to go the extra
mile.
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by jboullion | Aug 23, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an story on WEAU-TV, La Crosse:
The La Crosse County Board has approved moving forward with a solid waste project that could bring about $3.5 million to La Crosse County.
The county has been working with Gundersen Lutheran on a gas to energy project. Right now the methane gas that’s taken from the decomposing garbage in the landfill is wasted as it’s burned off.
The new project would send that gas through a pipeline directly to Gundersen’s Onalaska Clinic where it can be used to create electricity and heat.
From a news release issued by Gunderson Lutheran:
Gundersen Lutheran and La Crosse County are moving forward on a unique green project that will turn garbage into renewable energy. The project will use waste gas that is created from garbage at the La Crosse County Landfill to create electricity and heat. The La Crosse County Board unanimously approved moving forward on the combined heat and power project, which is expected to offset about 12 percent of Gundersen Lutheran’s total energy use.
“This is a great use of a currently unused natural resource and it is an excellent example of what a public-private partnership can achieve in our community. We considered many partners for this project, and Gundersen Lutheran was a logical fit with their experience in renewable energy projects,” says Hank Koch, solid waste director, La Crosse County.
“We are very pleased to be entering into this partnership with La Crosse County,” adds Jeff Rich, executive director of Business Services, Gundersen Lutheran. “This project will help Gundersen Lutheran reduce the cost of healthcare, but beyond that, it’s good for the environment and it will be beneficial for the taxpayers of La Crosse County.”
by jboullion | Aug 23, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Andrew Weiland in BizTimes.com:
Although U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood insists that high-speed rail is inevitable in the state, Wisconsin Department of Transportation officials indicate a new governor could stop the $810 million project planned between Milwaukee and Madison. However, it would be costly to do so.
The Republican candidates for governor in Wisconsin, Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker and former Congressman Mark Neumann, have pledged to stop the high-speed rail project if elected.
“As governor, I will stop this train dead in its tracks,” Walker said.
“This is an Obama wasteful spending boondoggle that I will stop immediately in its tracks as governor,” Neumann said. . . .
Although the federal government is providing the construction funds for the Milwaukee-to-Madison high-speed rail project, the state Department of Transportation, and not the federal government, is in charge of the project, said John Oimoen, passenger rail program manager for the Wisconsin DOT.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. DOT declined to directly answer a question asking if a future governor could cancel the high-speed rail project in Wisconsin.
“We’re not going to speculate on hypothetical situations,” said U.S. DOT spokeswoman Olivia Alair.
If a new governor wants to stop the high-speed rail project, the federal funds would have to be sent back to the federal government. By the time a new governor is sworn in, in January, the state will have allocated more than $100 million in engineering and construction contracts, Oimoen said. Construction is expected to begin in October on “land bridges” over wetland areas west of Watertown, he said.
A new governor could direct the Department of Transportation to cancel engineering and construction contracts. However, the state would have to pay a “significant” amount of money to contractors for claims that they would make for their equipment, material and labor costs incurred on their cancelled projects, said Paul Trombino, division operations director for the state DOT.
“I’m not saying it can’t be done,” Trombino said. “We have the ability to get out, but there could be significant costs to get out of a contract.”
The state has a $2.5 billion budget deficit, which could make it difficult to find funds to reimburse the federal government for money already spent on the high-speed rail project by January when the new governor takes office, and to pay the claims filed by contractors for the cancelled contracts.
“In the short term, it creates a major budget problem if we just decide we’re going to stop everything and scramble to send the funds back to Washington that we have already spent,” said state Rep. Jon Richards (D-Milwaukee). “I think it will be very difficult to cancel the project, and I think it would be unwise to do so.”
by jboullion | Aug 20, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Kathleen Foody in the Wausau Daily Herald:
ROTHSCHILD — The village Board of Appeals gave advocates of a controversial proposed biomass plant a boost Thursday, approving the installation of stacks and a boiler building higher than village ordinances typically permit.
About 275 residents attended the hearing at the Rothschild Pavilion, but the crowd had dwindled to double digits after about five hours of testimony.
The ultimate question of the hearing was whether the height of four structures proposed in the site plans was detrimental to the village. But opponents and proponents discussed air quality, noise, truck traffic and other issues that routinely have been raised since the $250 million project was announced in September 2009.
“When we built our homes here, we all knew what the rules were,” Rothschild resident Thomas Jessup said during the hearing. “With this plant, we just don’t know enough. I’m all for jobs and those are all good people working at Domtar, but there’s not enough information.”
Most opponents began their testimony with “I live in Rothschild,” and asked the board not to make an exception in the village’s height limits and to remember residents in their deliberations.
Joe Twaroski, who has worked at the Domtar mill for 28 years, went to the hearing in support of the biomass project and to “put a face” on the paper producer’s employees.
He said he’s one of the mill employees constantly monitoring emissions and finding a solution for any unusual readings.
We Energies and Domtar presented data backing the variances during the hearing. Experts on air quality, property values, traffic and construction of the plant gave individual presentations.
