by jboullion | Mar 2, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Clean Wisconsin:
Madison, Wis – Despite big oil and coal spending hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to confuse and turn the public against the Clean Energy Jobs Act, Wisconsin residents and businesses demonstrated overwhelming support for the bill in recent legislative hearings, with supporters outnumbering opponents by more than a 2 to 1 ratio, according to data recently obtained from the Wisconsin State Legislature.
“Attendance at the hearings shows that Wisconsinites support the Clean Energy Jobs Act, despite the attempts of big oil and coal lobbyists to sour public perception with misinformation and deceptive advertising,” said Keith Reopelle, Senior Policy Director at Clean Wisconsin. “Energy independence may be bad for the big oil and coal companies, but it’s good for the hard-working people of Wisconsin.
Supporters of this bill realize that greater energy independence means higher profits for Wisconsin businesses, more jobs, and a cleaner, healthier environment.”
In an attempt to weaken the Clean Energy Jobs Act, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) and big oil and coal companies have flooded the capital with lobbyists and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on advertisements and studies that use biased, outdated and discredited information to attack the bill.
Despite this misinformation campaign, individuals supported the bill 2 to 1 at recent legislative hearings, with actual businesses supporting the bill by a 3 to 1 margin.
by jboullion | Mar 1, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a story on WQOW-TV (Eau Claire):
Spooner (Eau Claire) – The DNR unveils designs for a new facility it hopes will lead the state in energy efficiency.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources hopes to set the gold standard in green.
“Well, the fact is this building is very expensive to operate,” says Wisconsin Secretary of Natural Resources, Matthew Frank. “We think, in the long run, we’re going to be saving the taxpayers money by investing in a new building.”
The department’s northern headquarters in Spooner is 45 years old. The department says it would cost millions to get the building to meet the state’s new energy efficiency standards.
So, Thursday morning, it unveiled plans for a new highly energy efficient building. The new 18,000 square foot facility will be built right behind the old building in Spooner.
The headquarters serves 18 northern counties, including Barron, Polk and Rusk.
The department says the building will meet the highest level of international energy and environmental standards. The building will, for example, face north to allow for more natural light inside. Rain gardens will collect storm water and water the grass. The builder will also use local materials.
by jboullion | Feb 26, 2010 | Uncategorized
From the announcement of a new map of winds published by the U.S. Department of Energy:
The Department of Energy’s Wind Program and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) published a new wind resource map for the state of Wisconsin. The new wind resource map shows the predicted mean annual wind speeds at 80-m height. Presented at a spatial resolution of 2.5 km (interpolated to a finer scale for display). Areas with annual average wind speeds around 6.5 m/s and greater at 80-m height are generally considered to have suitable wind resource for wind development.
Additionally, a national dataset was produced of estimated gross capacity factor (not adjusted for losses) at a spatial resolution of 200 m and heights of 80 m and 100 m. Using AWS Truewind’s gross capacity factor data, NREL estimated the windy land area and wind energy potential in various capacity factor ranges for each state. The table (Excel 75 KW) lists the estimates of windy land area with a gross capacity of 30% and greater at 80-m height and the wind energy potential from development of the “available” windy land area after exclusions.
Though difficult to see on the small image above, an area around in St. Coix County stands out for wind speeds higher than much of the rest of Wisconsin.
by jboullion | Feb 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a program description on the Website of River Falls Municipal Utilities:
In an effort to demonstrate our commitment to a strong local conservation ethic while demonstrating the effectiveness of energy efficiency, conservation and renewable resource development, we are now offering you a uniquely innovative renewable energy financing program called “Save Some Green”. This program is designed to financially assist you with the cost of purchasing and installing qualified renewable energy systems and efficiency improvements on your property. To accomplish this goal, a loan pool has been established to offer low cost financing to residential customers, with annual installment payments collected through annual property tax bills. . . .
QUALIFIED IMPROVEMENTS
· Solar Photovoltaic panel systems.
· Solar hot water.
· Solar thermal heating.
· Geothermal heating & cooling systems.
· Wind Turbines.
· Major energy efficiency projects in connection with a renewable energy project. . . .
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
· Payment of principal and interest shall be added to the annual property tax
statement and the original loan agreement be recorded as security
interest against the property.
· Payments include a 4% interest rate.
· Project funding can range from $2,500 to $50,000 based on the cost and energy
savings potential of the energy efficiency improvements.
· Renewable Energy Finance Program Loan Funding will be equal to the project costs,
less any incentives or other outside funding. The total combined funding will
not exceed the project cost.
· Loan terms will range from 5 to 20 years.
· In the event the property is sold or transferred, the remaining balance shall
be immediately due and payable on the date of sale, unless the Lender agrees to
extend the original agreement terms and conditions to the new purchaser.
by jboullion | Feb 23, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Wayne Nelson in BusinessNorth:
The proposed $250 million addition at Flambeau River Papers in Park Falls that would expand the mill into commercial manufacturing of “green diesel” and other renewable woody biomass products has cleared more hurdles on the way to a potential construction later this year.
On Jan. 19, Flambeau River Biofuels, an affiliate of the paper mill, said it has signed letters of intent with two more major project vendors. William “Butch” Johnson, majority owner of the paper mill and biofuels companies, said it has selected AMEC, a British engineering firm, to design the project, and Miron Construction based in Neenah, WI, as primary contractor.
In October, Flambeau River Biofuels selected Honeywell, Inc. to supply and integrate automation equipment and building controls for what would be the largest second-generation U.S. green diesel plant. In addition to producing transportation fuels and chemicals from woody biomass, the steam and electricity also produced in the process would make the paper mill the first in the nation to be fossil fuel-independent.
The biorefinery would be designed to process 1,000 dry tons per day of bark, sawdust and other residue with little market demand into 19 million gallons of green diesel and wax fuels per year. The project would add about 40 fulltime employees to the 300 already working in the mill. The additional demand for woody biomass would create an estimated 125 logging-related jobs for the regional wood products industry.
