Try again: A national US renewable energy standard will

James Montgomery, co-editor, RenewableEnergyWorld.com

New Hampshire, USA-several U.S. Senators be resurrected legislation for a national renewable energy standard (RES), to create the search, while crop changes in some quieter markets more proposed RPS.

Senate S. 1595 by Mark Udall (D-Colorado) and Tom Udall (D - New Mexico) and days later "American renewable energy and efficiency Act" by Senator Ed Markey (D-Mass.), both demand demand a national RES policy proposes to introduce a short-term requirements 6 percent renewable energy adoption (2015 for the Udall Bill 2014 for Markey) gradually increase up to 25 percent by 2025. Both would complement (not override) individual State programs RPS; renewable, include both handed out for purchase (Markey's plan offers a bonus for distributed power generation and renewable energy projects on Indian countries and distributed brownfield sites.). Both quote billions in economic benefits in certain States and communities, energy independence and a cleaner future for all benefits for hundreds of thousands of jobs at the national level.

There was a communication between the Senators offices over these bills before they were started within two days of each other, noted Mike Saccone, Communications Director for Senator Mark Udall.

But there are some differences in the proposals:

Low-impact biomass. Markey's plan calls for use of biomass, that 50 percent greenhouse gas emissions vs. reduced yields a combined cycle natural gas plant (20-year life cycle). "" This distinction between perennial crops and grasses, wood waste and reclaimed wood and tree crowns and branches --vs. cut and burn whole Baume--Associate Director of Government Affairs for the natural resources Defense Council (NRDC) is important, because "All trees are anything but 'CO2-neutral', a major CO2 polluters as coal,", emphasizes Franz Matzner. Markey to track the bill charges of also the EPA, such emission reductions.

Energy efficiency. Markey's Bill also emphasizes energy-efficiency programs through combined heat/electricity, to switch fuel, reducing network losses, codes and standards, and end-use energy efficiency receives from equipment upgrades. Energy companies would have to implement energy efficiency programs that save 1 percent of sales by the year 2015 and cumulative 15 percent of sales by the year 2025 required. Natural gas plants have similar requirements to: half a percent to 2015 and cumulative 10% by the year 2025. U.S. households would such improvements to savings of $49 per year and cumulatively by 2030, adding $90 billion while reducing CO2 emissions by 480 million tons annually up to the year 2025, the corresponding output of 120 coal-fired power plants.

The Udall does not include energy efficiency legislation, but it is introduced as an amendment to the proposed Shaheen-Portman-energy efficiency law. The Bill has garnered welcome broad bipartisan support but has been bogged down in debates over some other changes and other political diversion.

The question of national RPS has come up often in recent years, but there were enough lasting impulses. Udall even hoisted the 25 x 25 banner before, in 2002, while members of the House and later repackaging and reintroduce it the Senate in 2009. Markey, offered in the meantime its own crack on energy efficiency in 2009 with the Waxman-Markey Bill in the House are there many echoes from this proposal in his latest one

It is hard to say, what will get traction a national RPS debate (let because two separate ones), much less in the Senate as the Republican House dominated already in direction to them, before you stopped the current status was unfriendly. In the meantime more than half of U.S. States have developed their own RPS standards and some are their objectives approaches now sooner than planned. RPS policies continue to work and at State levels, repeatedly attempting it in (ALEC et al.) rule fend off popular. But probably more direct accountability of fossil fuels costs and negative effects need always enough momentum behind any national RPS policy, and this should not happen in the current situation.

Senator Mark Udall wants to see that RES "Way present themselves," Saccone adopted, said, whether as an amendment to the Bill Shaheen Portman or as stand-alone legislation-means, or maybe even a combination with the Markey Bill. "We'll certainly be open."

Meanwhile arise some updates on renewable portfolio standards (RPS) at the level of the Federal States:

-Vermont 2011 comprehensive energy mandates plan (CEP) 90% renewable energy by 2050, but the State renewable companies want to push more short-term goals: 20% of total energy consumption from renewable energy sources and energy efficiency by 2020 (the State current renewable energy use lies at about 11 percent, according to renewable energy Vermont, the State non-profits renewable energies Association.) REV wants also an official State renewable portfolio standard (RPS) of Vermont "Goals" for provider dictate integration of renewable energies in their annual electricity retail sales. Other items on the wish list of the REV are Community-scale more solar and wind, a stronger net metering program and a CO2 tax. "This is a demanding and difficult challenge, but we have to start somewhere," said David Blittersdorf, President and CEO of AllEarth renewables.

-Introduced in 2008 in Ohio, SB-221, and in 2012, set changed 12.5 percent RPS by a half percentage point carve-out solar. A new law is now to chip away at the State RPS criteria. SB 58 would substantially rewrite, that these rules: eliminates the requirement of half of this hit in the State include Canadian Hydro and cost caps fit. It would also tweak the language to sanctions optional, if utilities not to make the RPS goals.

-Michigan established 2008 RPS policy is for 10 percent until 2015 under the more robust State, although at that time began to fair Michigan renewable energy its portfolio by a much smaller place. Last year Michigan tried unsuccessfully to expand its RPS, but approaching the target date 2015 a new report shows that a 30% RPS is economically feasible.

Wider political movements over State RPS arise in Midwest States of Iowa, Illinois and Minnesota.

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory Debuts Titan supercomputer

The Department of energy Oak Ridge National Laboratory Titan supercomputer is 10 times faster than the previous fastest Energy Department computers.
Credit card: ORNL

The Department of energy Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) on 29 October debuted the Titan supercomputer, a system the a theoretical peak performance of more than 20 trillion calculations per second (or 20 Petaflops). Titan employs a family of processors known as graphical processing units (GPU), first for computer games, created and be 10 times stronger than the ORNL last leading system, Jaguar.

Titan provides unprecedented computing power for research in energy, climate change, efficient engines, materials and other disciplines, and paves the way for a wide range of achievements in science and technology. Titan Cray uses XK7 system contains a 16 core AMD Opteron 6274-processor and a NVIDIA 18.688 nodes each holding, Tesla K20 GPU accelerators. Titan has also more than 700 TB of memory. The combination of central processing units, the traditional basis of high-performance computers and newer GPUs can Titan Jaguar to occupy the same space as its predecessor while using only slightly more power. See press release, ORNL

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National Solar Tour Kicks Off in September

Local tours of solar houses are being offered throughout the United States starting in mid-September, with most on or around October 6.
Credit: MSB Energy Associates

The American Solar Energy Society (ASES) National Solar Tour officially takes place on October 6, but several events kick off as early as mid-September, and some offer weeklong action. Now in its seventeenth year, the annual showcase allows participants the opportunity to see innovative green homes and buildings that use solar energy, energy efficiency, and other sustainable technologies. ASES estimates that more than 165,000 participants will visit some 5,500 buildings in 3,200 communities across the United States.

Kicking off the nationwide series of tours, the Michiana Solar Tour is scheduled to take place on September 15 at Goshen College in Goshen, Indiana. The following day, the BRING Home & Garden Tour bus will take ticketholders to a variety of sustainable sites in Eugene, Oregon. Most tours will take place on or around October 6, but there are events scheduled through October 27. See the ASES National Solar Tour website and the list of tours.

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Four Major Firms Join National Clean Fleets Partnership

This is an excerpt from EERE Network News, a weekly electronic newsletter.

DOE announced on March 5 that four new corporate partners—Best Buy, Johnson Controls, Pacific Gas and Electric, and Veolia—are joining DOE's National Clean Fleets Partnership, a broad public-private partnership that helps the largest fleet operators reduce how much gasoline and diesel they use. The new partners join 14 other major national companies in committing to improve the fuel economy of the commercial fleets and integrate alternative technology vehicles such as natural gas trucks and electric vehicles into their fleets. National Clean Fleets Partners operate more than a million commercial vehicles nationwide, accounting for more than 12% of all commercial vehicles on U.S. roads.

Under the partnership, DOE experts provide each company with specialized resources, technical expertise, and support in developing a comprehensive strategy to reduce fuel use and achieve greater efficiency and cost-savings. DOE also helps connect partners with clean fuel providers and equipment manufacturers where their fleets operate.

The new partners have already begun taking action to develop and implement fuel-efficiency projects in their fleets. For example, Best Buy reduced its 5,000-vehicle fleet's carbon emissions by 21%, by taking steps including using the smallest, most fuel-efficient vehicles for the job. And Johnson Controls has committed to designing and delivering increasingly sustainable products as well introducing more than 500 hybrids and all-electric vehicles to its 19,000 vehicles worldwide. See the DOE press release and the National Clean Fleets Partnership Web page.

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Eight DOE of national laboratories offer optimized partnerships

DOE announced on 23 February that eight of the national laboratories are involved in, facilitate a pilot initiative for private companies that use laboratories research capacities. The participating laboratories are Ames, Brookhaven, Idaho, Lawrence Livermore National renewable energy, Savannah River, Oak Ridge and Pacific Northwest national laboratories. The arrangements for the commercialisation of technology (ACT) program will take advantage of the United States in innovation to create jobs and the development of new technologies for clean energy.

Previously companies want to partner with laboratories for commercial research two options had: signed a cooperative research and development agreement or a work for-other agreement. The eight laboratories participate in this pilot program to provide that restricted one less ACT opportunity. Under the Act are to negotiate more flexibility, the intellectual property rights for technologies that are created in a lab; There will be more flexibility on other issues of payment and project structures. The ACT agreements will facilitate also multi-party partnerships. See the DOE press release and a list of frequently asked questions about the ACT option.

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Industry, national laboratories in DOE tap initiative of bureaucratic overhead

On the December 8, DOE announced a new pilot initiative to reduce the barriers that prevent that innovative companies work with the DOE national laboratories. The new arrangements for commercialization technology (ACT) initiative helps more quickly bring to market companies, job creation technologies, by allowing them work with laboratories from beginning to end, development and deployment of new clean energy technologies and other innovations. In January to announce selected DOE Laboratories to participate in the pilot project.

The ACT initiative catapulted removed obstacles for businesses and start-up companies interested in access to the research, facilities and scientists at national laboratories, innovative new products to market. Laboratories have DOE's a long tradition of cooperation with companies and universities for scientific research and technology development efforts, which have generated much progress, brought new businesses and supports the creation of new industries and jobs. The ACT framework connects to other current DOE legal mechanisms for cooperation with national laboratories, including work on other program and cooperative research and development agreements.

Addressing input from the industry based on their experience in dealing with national laboratories, authorized one ACT to facilitate the intellectual property rights always technology from the laboratory to the market more flexible framework for negotiations on. It allows also contractors operating laboratories with businesses using terms that are better aligned with industry practice to attract more private investment. ACT allows laboratories to participate in groups formed to complex technological challenges that are of common interest. For the ACT initiative, see the DOE press release (copyright) and a list of frequently asked questions.

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National Laboratory 'Flips Switch' on East Coast's Largest Solar Array

On November 18, the DOE Brookhaven National Laboratory "flipped the switch" on the largest solar photovoltaic array in the eastern United States. The 164,312 solar panels hosted at the lab in New York state—one of the largest solar farms built on federal property—will produce enough energy to power up to 4,500 homes.

The 32-megawatt Long Island Solar Farm Project, a collaborative project between the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) and BP Solar International, Inc. (BP Solar), also boasts the smallest carbon footprint of any solar array with its amount of output. The use of a DOE site has helped attract investments from public and private sources, ensuring the economic success of the project and serving the nation's goal to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and foreign oil.

"The result is a significant source of clean energy for Long Island, as well as a positive economic impact for the local workforce and businesses," said Mike Petrucci, CEO of BP Solar, noting that a true "team effort" contributed to the successful development and construction of the project. LIPA chief operating officer Michael D. Hervey said that the project will help New York state meet its goal of 30% renewable resources by 2015, in addition to the "creation of new, high-quality energy jobs." See the Energy Blog post.

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