by jboullion | Apr 26, 2011 | Uncategorized
From an article by Laurel Walker in the Milwaukee journal Sentinel:
Waukesha – GE Healthcare is seeking city permission to install 10 wind turbines up to 155 feet tall on its 662-acre Waukesha campus on county Highway T north of I-94.
The project, if approved, would be built next year or later, said Annette Busateri, public relations manager. It is part of the company’s 2015 goal of reducing electrical usage by 15% and improving building energy efficiency by at least 10%, she said.
The Waukesha Plan Commission is scheduled to consider a conditional use permit for the project at its 6 p.m. meeting Wednesday. The city has no wind turbines, planner Michael Hoeft said.
City planner Jennifer Andrews said the company has lined up letters indicating state and federal agencies likely have no objections.
“They seem to have all their ducks in a row,” she said.
Although the proposed turbines are about a mile from the runways of Waukesha County’s airport, Crites Field, their height would be below the limit set by the county’s zoning ordinance that protects airspace around the airport from encroaching structures.
The plan calls for turbines on towers ranging from 135 to 155 feet tall. Three would be behind the former headquarters building, now an assembly building for medical imaging equipment that’s the farthest north of three buildings. The other seven would be between the two other buildings farther south.
Waukesha County Parks and Land Use Director Dale Shaver said there are no commercial wind turbines in the county. Not only would this project be the first, but they would be near a high-traffic, very visible interchange.
by jboullion | Apr 25, 2011 | Uncategorized
From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Rising gasoline prices will pack a punch to pocketbooks this year, leaving consumers less inclined to buy big-ticket items, economists say.
But a Milwaukee group wants to help consumers keep from overspending on fuel.
Consider:
• A report by the Energy Information Administration said that, on average, a typical American household driving about 20,000 miles a year will see gas prices surge about $825 this year, based on the recent run-up in fuel prices to near record levels.
• A similar consumer hit is forecast for Canadian consumers in a recent economic forecast from CIBC World Markets, which found that the run-up in prices means that a greater share of household income is being spent on filling gas tanks than at any time except 2008. That will have consequences for sales of everything from big-ticket items like cars to every day items such as groceries, CIBC economists say.
“The rise in food and gasoline prices since the start of the year has effectively offset most of the benefit to (U.S.) consumers from the recent tax stimulus,” said CIBC economist Peter Buchanan in a recent report.
That’s where Drive Smart America, a business with a passion for getting great gas mileage, comes in.
Drive Smart America has trained drivers at Veolia Water Services, the Milwaukee Department of Public Works and other local fleets on smart-driving techniques that result in less wasted fuel. The business is led by Bradlee Fons of Pewaukee but includes experienced hybrid drivers who have been able to top the gas mileage charts.
Fons routinely gets more than 80 mpg in his Honda Insight hybrid – and has hit 100 in summer driving. On a recent drive in a minivan to see his son in La Crosse, Fons managed 33 mpg in a vehicle rated to get 24 on the highway.
The initiative is part passion, part business. The 6-year old Milwaukee Hybrid Group is changing its name to Drive Smart Wisconsin and hopes to stage more events like a tire pressure checkup held last year in Waukesha County. Fully inflated tires can be an important factor in improved gas mileage.
by jboullion | Apr 22, 2011 | Uncategorized
From an editorial in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
This Earth Day falls a year and a day after one of the worst environmental disasters to hit the United States. The explosion of BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig took the lives of 11 rig workers and released 206 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
What have we done with the lessons learned in that year? Not so much.
Still missing: a comprehensive energy policy that would significantly reduce the consumption of fossil fuels and place more reliance on alternative or renewable fuels.
There has been some improvement. Cleanup efforts continue, but most of the mess has been removed or has disappeared through evaporation or microbes. The disaster was extensive, but the damage turned out not to be quite as devastating as some expected (although not all of the victims have received full compensation and some effects will certainly linger).
Beaches are open again. Commercial and recreational fishing is back in action. Deep water drilling is probably safer than it was before the explosion; the federal government’s inspection program is tougher and more independent.
But critics say this all could happen again – that, in fact, another disaster is inevitable. That’s the risk of drilling in ocean waters. The feds recently approved the 10th deepwater drilling permit since the disaster.
Some of that is necessary in the short term. But in the long term, relying on fossil fuels is unsustainable.
by jboullion | Apr 21, 2011 | Uncategorized
Madison Peak Oil Group listserve subscribers are debating coal vs. wind. To join the debate, drop an email to madisonpeakoil-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
by jboullion | Apr 20, 2011 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Honeywell:
MINNEAPOLIS, April 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Honeywell (NYSE:HON – News) today announced it has completed the company’s first energy-efficient building upgrades at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), which will save the school an estimated $620,000 in annual energy costs. The work is part of a multi-phase, $21.7-million energy conservation and infrastructure renewal program that will improve comfort and efficiency in university facilities while cutting utility costs and greenhouse gas emissions.
All the improvements UWM has asked Honeywell to make are expected to reduce energy and operating expenses by $30.8 million over the next two decades. They will also trim electricity use by more than 10 million kilowatt-hours annually — enough energy to power nearly 940 homes. And they will decrease annual carbon dioxide emissions by an anticipated 31 million pounds as well. According to figures from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, this is equivalent to removing more than 2,700 cars from the road.
Honeywell is completing the work under three 20-year performance contracts with the university. These contracts allow school officials to pay for the upgrades using the savings they generate, which Honeywell guarantees. As a result, the program won’t increase school budgets or require additional taxpayer dollars.
“Through our Energy Matters program, we demonstrate how progressive partnerships lead to environmental improvements and cost savings that benefit everyone,” said UWM Interim Chancellor Michael R. Lovell. “By working with external partners like Honeywell, we’re making it possible for faculty, staff and students to better understand sustainability and make meaningful reductions in the amount of energy, water and other resources UWM requires to operate each day.”
