by jboullion | Jun 30, 2009 | Uncategorized
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From a news release issued by Madison Gas and Electric:
MADISON, Wis. – (Business Wire) Wisconsin’s first large-scale wind farm began producing clean, renewable electric power 10 years ago today in Kewaunee County. The 17-turbine, 11.22-megawatt facility built and owned by Madison Gas and Electric (MGE) is located near Rosiere. Since 1999, the facility has produced over 215,000 megawatt-hours of electricity, enough power to supply 3,000 homes annually.
The facility was built in direct response to MGE customers who wanted to purchase green energy for their homes and businesses. The wind farm’s generating capacity available for green energy sales was sold out in less than four months. Over the last 10 years, MGE has increased its wind energy portfolio by 12 times as strong customer support for renewable energy continues. MGE customers have one of the highest participation rates nationally in green energy programming offered by investor-owned utilities.
“We are grateful to the landowners and communities that support this project,” said Lynn Hobbie, MGE senior vice president. “We also thank the customers who have made our green pricing program so successful.”
“In 10 years, wind generation has completed the transition from boutique energy to a bulk power,” said Michael Vickerman, executive director of RENEW Wisconsin. “Early commitments to wind power from utilities like MGE helped make that happen and were instrumental to that industry’s subsequent growth and maturation.”
At the time, MGE’s Rosiere facility was the largest wind farm in the Eastern United States. Today the wind farm is one of nine commercial facilities in Wisconsin. Wind-generating capacity in Wisconsin totals nearly 450 megawatts.
by jboullion | Jun 29, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Focus on Energy:
As temperatures creep higher, so do energy bills.
Fortunately, Focus on Energy, Wisconsin’s energy efficiency and renewable energy initiative, has a number of simple tips to get your home ready for summer — saving you energy and money. The following are Focus on Energy’s top five tips for keeping your cool this summer:
1. Install a Programmable Thermostat. These help save money and keep homes
comfortable by automatically adjusting temperature settings while the homeowner is asleep or away. A tip for getting savings is to set it five degrees higher in the summer when the house is unoccupied for eight hours or more. Homeowners can save about $100 a year by properly setting their programmable thermostats and maintaining those settings.
2. Replace an Outdated Cooling System. When replacing an air conditioner it’s important to look for the ENERGY STAR®, as these units can use up to 14 percent less energy than standard models. Also, consider a timer for window units. Set the timer for a half hour before you return home so it’s not running when no one is there.
3. Install a Ceiling Fan. Used in combination with your air conditioner, ceiling fans allow you to raise your thermostat setting by as much as four degrees without reducing your comfort. However, be sure to turn the fan off when you’re not in the room to save energy — ceiling fans cool people, not rooms.
4. Replace standard bulbs with CFLs. Turning off lights when you are not using them helps to keep a room cool, but another tip is to replace standard light bulbs with ENERGY STAR qualified bulbs — they produce about 75 percent less heat, which helps cut energy costs associated with home cooling. Additionally, replacing your five most used light bulbs with ENERGY STAR qualified bulbs can save at least $35 a year.
5. Install Window Treatments. Shut out the hot summer sun by closing windows and pulling shades or curtains on south- and west-facing windows. This helps to reduce the amount of solar heat coming through the windows.
by jboullion | Jun 29, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an introduction to a guide just released by the Center on Wisconsin Strategy (COWS) and Green for All:
Green For All and COWS have just released A Short Guide to Setting Up a City-Scale Retrofit Program. This guide provides a model for designing and implementing energy efficiency retrofitting programs on a citywide scale, with a goal of making these retrofits available to more households and providing good, entry-level jobs with career pathways that are accessible to low-income communities and communities of color.
Energy efficiency retrofits of our homes, schools, and workplaces are the first steps to building an inclusive clean energy economy by addressing climate change, putting people in careers, and reducing working families’ energy bills. Despite their overwhelming economic and environmental benefits, current retrofitting programs have limited capacity and limited scope. Many are available only to income-eligible individuals, or to those with the money up-front to do the work. Furthermore, many current retrofitting programs only create low-wage, short-term jobs, rather than providing pathways into sustainable careers in construction and green building.
Clearly, a new model is needed. This guide is a tool for local organizations, business leaders, entrepreneurs, elected officials, and others in cities across the country to use to promote energy efficiency in their communities. It outlines all of the important aspects of such a program, including policies, labor standards, community coalitions, and long-term funding options.
by jboullion | Jun 29, 2009 | Uncategorized
From the Iowa Renewable Energy Association (I-RENEW):
I-Renew’s Energy and Sustainability Expo 2009 will be a celebration of the change that persistence can bring. We’ve got a lot to celebrate. We’ll start by emphasizing the continued growth of green jobs in Iowa and finish by presenting a full spectrum of alternative energy and sustainability options.
Kate Gordon, Vice President of the Center for American Progress, is one of two keynote speakers. Ms. Gordon was, until June of this year, Co-Director of the National Apollo Alliance. The Apollo Alliance is a coalition of labor, business, environmental and community leaders working to catalyze a clean energy revolution that will put millions of Americans to work in a new generation of high-quality, green-collar jobs. Kate is nationally recognized for her work on the intersection of clean energy and economic development policy, and especially for helping to shape the modern definition of “green-collar jobs” as “well-paid, career track jobs that contribute directly to reserving or enhancing the environment.” She has a long history of working for economic justice and labor issues. She serves on several boards, including the Midwest Agriculture Energy Network and the National Green Industries Policy Retreat.
by jboullion | Jun 29, 2009 | Uncategorized
Now in its fifth year, the Wisconsin Solar Decade Conference is your opportunity to see firsthand the latest developments in the world of solar energy. Register today to hear from top industry experts and attend dozens of exhibits, workshops and panel discussions as you discover the state of the technology, the state of the market and where both will be tomorrow!
•Learn about the latest solar energy applications for your home and business
•Discover opportunities to tap the renewable energy market and expand your business
•Network with fellow builders, contractors, homeowners and business owners
by jboullion | Jun 29, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article in Walworth County Today:
DELAVAN TOWNSHIP — A totally “green,” 19-room, luxury bed and breakfast inn being developed in Delavan Township will be the first of its kind in the Midwest.
The Green Leaf Inn, located off Wisconsin Highway 50 and west of Wisconsin Highway 67, plans to open in the summer of 2010 and will make Walworth County a major point of interest for the burgeoning eco-tourist movement.
The Inn will incorporate green energy sources, renewable and sustainable materials and practices, and environmentally responsible land and water use, according to a news release
That is the goal of Catherine McQueen and Fritz Kreiss, the owners of the Green Leaf. The couple has been in the energy industry for more than 17 years, and has been involved with the green energy movement from the start of their professional partnership, but the hospitality industry is a whole new field for them. With the Green Leaf, they’ve jumped in feet first.”
“Walworth County is a wonderful location,” Kreiss said. “Within easy driving distance to the three major population centers in the area (Chicago, Milwaukee, and Madison), yet still relatively unspoiled. Lake Geneva was one of the most popular tourist destinations in the area in the 20th Century. We want to set the stage to keep it that way in the twenty-first.”
Their goal is to meet the highest standards for green building in all aspects of the Inn’s design and construction. The list of technologies and practices involved has proven to be daunting. “We had a background in green energy: solar, wind, geothermal, biomass,” says McQueen. “One of our early business ventures involved combined heat and power (CHP) units. But sustainable building, sustainable landscaping, water use, renewable materials, low-impact practices…we’ve put together quite a list of things to consider.” With no previous experience in the hospitality industry, they’ve also had to learn about aspects of zoning and permitting that were new to them.
“We want the Green Leaf Inn to be a learning center,” says Kreiss. “I think we can say it has already succeeded in that respect.”
