by jboullion | Feb 5, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Debbie Griffin in the River Falls Journal:
For the first time ever, River Falls made the Environmental Protection Agency’s list of top 21 Green Power Communities in the country. The city made number 10 to be exact, with a 5% participation rate and deriving 15% of its energy from renewable sources.
Not only is it River Falls’ first time on the list, but also it’s the first city in Wisconsin or the Midwest to make it.
River Falls Municipal Utilities Communication Coordinator Chris Blasius said RFMU has been eyeing the list for years, waiting to apply for the status if and when River Falls ever met the EPA’s criteria. The city hit that magic mark this year.
Blasius said the main thing that landed the city on the list is how much it spends on renewable energy.
by jboullion | Feb 4, 2009 | Uncategorized
A crew prepares a tower for the wind turbine at Dave’s Brewfarm™.
From a news release issued by Dave’s Brewfarm™, Wilson, WI (St. Croix County):
. . .we’ll be putting up a Jacobs 31-20, a 20kW wind generator on a 120-foot tower to harvest the bountiful winds on the northern ridge of Wilson. The generator is projected to provide up to 50% of the needed electricity for the brewery/residence.
The wind generator is but one component of the sustainable aspect of the BrewFarm project, with geothermal heating/cooling and solar thermal rounding out the renewable energy mix. Greywater recycling will handle the brewery’s wastewater, which will be used in the hopyard and orchards of Little Wolf Farmstead, the agricultural component of the project.
The BrewFarm is an innovative demonstration project showcasing the latest in renewable and sustainable business practices, and rural development. Our hope is that through “leading by example” other businesses will adopt these (and other) sustainable strategies, realizing that every effort helps the planet – and the bottom line.
by jboullion | Feb 3, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Chad Dally in The Daily Press (Ashland):
Municipalities around the Chequamegon Bay region have been awarded state funding for energy independence assessments as part of a pilot program for Gov. Jim Doyle’s 25×25 plan.
Doyle has set a non-binding goal for communities around the state to generate 25 percent of their energy and 25 percent of their transportation fuel from renewable sources by 2025.
So far, more than 70 municipalities have signed on to the 25×25 resolution, including several around the bay area. But current energy and fuel usage, and how to reach that 25 percent goal, remains cloudy. The Alliance for Sustainability will help eight municipalities and Bay Area Rural Transit with both. The municipalities include: the cities of Ashland, Bayfield and Washburn; the towns of Bayfield and LaPointe; Ashland and Bayfield counties; and the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
The Alliance will itself have help from “resource teams” from the state’s Office of Energy Independence and agents from UW-Extension in both Ashland and Bayfield counties, said Kelly Randleman, office assistant for the Alliance.
The first task for the $60,000 award will be to establish a baseline assessment for each municipality to determine how much work needs to be done toward the 25×25 goal. That means meeting with representatives from each municipality to get an inventory on their “fleets and facilities,” Randleman said. Energy consumption in municipal buildings, street lights and other areas under public control would be studied, along with fuel consumption for municipalities’ vehicle fleets and what type of fuel is used in each vehicle.
While one end of the assessment studies consumption, another will examine renewable resource potential in the region, Randleman said.
by jboullion | Feb 2, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an announcement from Wisconsin Public Power Inc. (WPPI):
Grants are now available for both new construction and remodeling of existing homes that are targeting net zero energy use when completed.
Complete details can be found at www.GreenMaxHome.com. Click here to view the GreenMax Home RFP.
WPPI’s Web site explains the concept of a net zero energy home:
A net zero energy home is connected to the energy grid that supplies your local utility with power, but it is designed and constructed to produce at least as much energy as it consumes. The house supplies energy back to the grid in — at a minimum —an amount equal to the amount of power the homeowner purchases from the grid, resulting in a “net zero” impact on the nation’s energy supply. Any excess energy generated by the house is fed back into the grid.
This new concept combines state-of-the-art, energy-efficient construction and appliances with commercially available renewable energy systems such as solar water heating and solar electricity. In many cases, the entire energy consumption — heating, cooling and appliances — of a net zero energy home can be provided by renewable energy sources.
Proposed homes must be built in a WPPI Energy member utility service area. WPPI’s member utilities are:
Alger Delta, MI
Algoma
Baraga, MI
Black River Falls
Boscobel
Brodhead
Cedarburg
Columbus
Cuba City
Eagle River
Evansville
Florence
Gladstone, MI
Hartford
Hustisford
Independence, IA
Jefferson
Juneau
Kaukauna
L’Anse, MI
Lake Mills
Lodi
Maquoketa, IA
Menasha
Mount Horeb
Muscoda
Negaunee, MI
New Glarus
New Holstein
New London
New Richmond
Norway, MI
Oconomowoc
Oconto Falls
Plymouth
Prairie du Sac
Reedsburg
Richland Center
River Falls
Slinger
Stoughton
Sturgeon Bay
Sun Prairie
Two Rivers
Waterloo
Waunakee
Waupun
Westby
Whitehall
by jboullion | Jan 30, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a letter to Governor Jim Doyle from State Senator Pat Kreitlow:
The current draft of a Wisconsin plan for high-speed intercity rail connects many of our state’s population and economic centers. But unfortunately the Connections 2030 plan fails to include a route through the Interstate 94 corridor, an omission that in my opinion leaves the entire system incomplete and less efficient than it should be. I am encouraging people throughout western Wisconsin and the East Metro area of the Twin Cities to provide comments to the Department of Transportation supporting the inclusion of a route that includes Eau Claire, Menomonie and Hudson, and I hope to have your support for an Eau Claire route as well.
Some of the fastest growing counties in the state are in western Wisconsin, according to the Department of Administration’s recently released report on projected populations through 2035. Chippewa, Dunn, Eau Claire, Pierce and Polk counties are all expected to see over 30% population growth by 2035, putting them in the top quarter of counties, while St. Croix County is projected to see a population increase of 135% during that time, making it the fastest growing county in the state. Widening Interstate 94 alone will not provide sufficient ways to link this rapidly growing economy to Madison, Milwaukee and Chicago. A rail line would displace many more auto trips compared to the Tomah-La Crosse corridor. Even your Task Force on Global Warming makes a specific recommendation to implement high speed rail “to Eau Claire and the Twin Cities” as a means toward reduction in transportation greenhouse gases.
