by jboullion | Apr 29, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Wayne Nelson on BusinessNorth.com:
The Marshfield Clinic is incorporated sustainability principles in the construction of a $42 million new hospital campus under construction in Rice Lake.
BWBR Architects in St. Paul and its design partners have designed the project to conserve natural resources, reduce operating energy costs, and provide a quality indoor environment, said Edward Wolf, chief executive at Lakeview Medical Center in Rice Lake. . . .
The project’s energy-saving features include efficient lighting, air conditioning and plumbing systems. Lakeview’s board of directors committed to maximum energy use 15 percent below the state’s current building code limit. To meet that goal, the building ventilation design will recover heat from air exhausted out of the building that will heat incoming air, said mechanical engineer Linda Weingarten of Minneapolis-based Dunham & Associates, the project consulting engineering firm.
Heat given off by chillers that cool the building will be used to heat hot water, lowering electric usage during summer, she said.
“This isn’t new technology, but it’s the first time we’ve used it in a hospital project,” she said. The design is expensive, and wouldn’t be cost-effective if retrofitted in an existing building, she said.
High efficiency condensing boilers also will help lower fuel consumption year round.
Increased roof insulation values and high performance windows also will help reduce energy costs.
by jboullion | Apr 27, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Jeff Holmquist in the New Richmond News:
A proposal to construct a wind turbine network in the Town of Forest, east of New Richmond, is picking up steam.
A proposal to construct a wind turbine network in the Town of Forest, east of New Richmond, is picking up steam.
The project is being promoted by Emerging Energies of Wisconsin LLC, a Hubertus company that is involved in several wind farm projects across the region.
Emerging Energies has been studying wind speeds in the St. Croix County township for two years.
According to Bill Rakocy, co-founder and principal of Emerging Energies, the Forest area is “looking very favorable” as a site for large wind turbines.
The company’s research shows that average wind speeds are about 16 to 17 miles per hour, which is sufficient to turn a large turbine and thus generate electricity.
As the state and federal governments begin to encourage development of alternative energy sources, Rakocy said his organization is poised to make a difference.
Among current available clean energy sources, Rakocy claims, wind power is the best for Wisconsin.
by jboullion | Apr 26, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Tim Damos in the Baraboo News Republic:
Green energy subsidies and new partnerships between manufacturers and contractors are making it easier for the average homeowner to utilize solar technology.
“I’m really excited about this,” said Craig Dittrich, general manager of Senger Lumber, Inc. of Baraboo. “I think it’s really going to catch on.”
Customers of Senger Lumber soon will have the option to build with metal roofing that comes with a solar-energy-trapping film already attached.
Dittrich’s supplier is McElroy Metal, a national firm that produces metal roofing, siding and substructural components, and operates a manufacturing plant in Mauston.
McElroy Metal has partnered with UNI-SOLAR, which produces thin, flexible solar laminates with an adhesive backing that allows them to be easily applied to smooth surfaces.
“It’s easy to apply so you don’t have to pay as much for the installation,” Dittrich said.
With a 30 percent federal tax credit and another 30 percent credit available from the state, Wisconsin home builders can purchase the portion of the roof that includes solar laminates at a 60 percent discount, Dittrich said.
by jboullion | Apr 23, 2010 | Uncategorized
A news release issued by Clean Wisconsin:
MADISON — Hours ago, the democratically controlled state Legislature failed the people of Wisconsin when it adjourned before taking up the Clean Energy Jobs Act.
“It’s ironic that on Earth Day, our Democrat-led state Legislature effectively killed a vital piece of clean energy legislation,” says Keith Reopelle, senior policy director, Clean Wisconsin. “Senate Democratic leaders Jeff Plale and Russ Decker’s refusal to schedule the bill for a vote guaranteed the bill’s demise.”
The Clean Energy Jobs Act would have created more than 15,000Â jobs for Wisconsinites. Just yesterday, Wave Wind, a wind energy service provider in Sun Prairie, sent an open letter to the state Legislature noting that the delayed passage of the bill forced the company to lay off 12 employees. Had the bill passed, Wave Wind would have created 100 new high-quality jobs.
“The world is transitioning to a clean energy economy, and Wisconsin is getting left behind,” says Reopelle. “Wisconsin has now lost the manufacturing and design jobs that would have been created by the bill  to China, California and Illinois.”
The bill also would have lowered energy bills for homeowners and businesses with its renewable energy and energy efficiency provisions, allowing Wisconsin to make incremental but critically important steps toward reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and increasing our energy independence.
“It is a travesty that Wisconsin’s Legislature missed the opportunity to take action on such an important bill for the health of our state’s economy and environment,” says Reopelle. “While today’s inaction is definitely a setback, thanks to the hard work of our allies in the Legislature and coalition partners, we have laid the foundation for future clean energy legislation and remain hopeful that Wisconsin will soon return to its forward-thinking roots.”
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Clean Wisconsin, an environmental advocacy organization, protects Wisconsin’s clean water and air and advocates for clean energy by being an effective voice in the state legislature and by holding elected officials and polluters accountable.
by jboullion | Apr 22, 2010 | Uncategorized
A memo distributed to all members of the state Assembly by Xcel Energy on April 20:
Xcel Energy has consistently supported enhanced Renewable Portfolio Standards and increased energy efficiency and conservation spending in the states that we serve. As the nation’s #1 wind provider and a leading provider of renewable energy in Wisconsin, we have been able to incorporate renewable resources into our diverse energy portfolio in a manner that is both cost effective and that meets the increasing energy needs of our customers.
The substitute amendment to the legislation contains many of the important changes for which we have advocated, including: capping the RPS mandate increments as to not penalize early adopters of renewable energy by forcing them to go over the mandates, adding Legislative oversight on proposed increases in spending on energy efficiency and conservation, modifying the nuclear language to ensure its constitutionality and removing language mandating advanced renewable tariffs. While we would still like to see a cap at the 10% increment of the RPS and retention of the current statutory definition of biomass, the changes move the bill to a place that is more consistent with the intent of the Governor’s Global Warming Task Force Recommendations. Xcel Energy served on that Task Force and voted in favor of those recommendations.
For the reasons outlined above, Xcel Energy supports passage of Assembly Bill 649.
