Blogs

Queen Elizabeth buys world's largest wind turbine

Hank Green — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 10:29:09 PDT

She can afford it, but it's still cool that the Queen of England just commissioned the world's largest wind turbine. When it's completed in 2010, the turbine will produce 7.5 megawatts of power all on its own. That's roughly 1.5 megawatts more than today's largest turbine.

The Queen has more than enough land to build the turbine. In fact, she owns most of the shelf off of the U.K.'s coast. Previously, she's simply leased the land to wind turbine companies, but now she's investing her own money in the project.

The cost is going undisclosed for now, but we imagine it's quite high, especially since the turbine (at least at first) will be one-of-a-kind. It will be built by Clipper Wind, and is massively larger than anything else they have available today. The turbine will be 575 feet tall. That's more than 600 corgis standing on each other's backs.

The Queen's monetary endorsement of this technology is a big deal, especially as the U.K. has pledged to reduce its carbon emissions 20% by 2020.

But it's going to take a lot more than one massive wind turbine to do it. Maybe if the queen springs for 1,000 more of these babies, they'll have a fighting chance to meet their target.

Via EarthTimes

Rap vs. rock for the planet

Trystan L. Bass — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 07:34:49 PDT

Admittedly, I'm don't know anything about Ludacris, and most of what I know about Tommy Lee isn't suitable for publication on a G-rated site.

But the ads showing the rapper and hard rocker competing to be cleanest and greenest on Planet Green's new show "Battleground Earth" were too funny to pass up.

The show, which started in August, has lived up to the promise. From the very first episode, the two have been a riot to watch. They slam each other and play tricks, but the planet comes out the winner.

Here's the gist: Ludacris and Tommy Lee each have a team of three friends, and they're traveling across the country in biodiesel buses. The teams compete at environmentally themed tasks, and whoever finishes the task correctly first is that episode's winner. At the end of the series, the final champion will headline a concert, and the loser will be the opening act.

One competition had them install solar panels in New Orleans, while another task involved shoveling cow manure in Texas to create methane-gas power. When their biodiesel buses ran out of fuel, the teams served up burgers and fries to create grease that could be recycled into veggie biodiesel.

The show is filled with cameos by famous musicians and actors along the way. Plus, each episode has little "Pass It On" intros where celebs share green tips and ideas.

If you want a dose of eco-inspiration washed down with pure entertainment and a splash of reality TV, I highly recommend "Battleground Earth." No preaching, no guilt, lots of laughs, and, yeah, you may actually learn something along the way -- not many "educational" shows can say that!

Even if you've missed episodes, the series will undoubtedly be repeated on Planet Green and other Discovery Networks channels. And it's not the kind of thing you have to watch sequentially to understand or enjoy either. Find out when it's airing near you.

David Duchovny is a reluctant electric-car driver

Forecast Earth Correspondent — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 17:06:12 PDT

Finally, an environmetnally couscious celebrity who's honest enough to admit that being an eco-warrior aint always what it's cracked up to be. TV and film star David Duchovny has moaned to a British newspaper that his electric car just doesn't go far enough to be truly useful.

As Ecorazzi reports, Duchovny considers his all-electric Toyota RAV4 green, but impractical:

I've had it for the last four years. It was supposed to be a prototype for the next generation of cars. But the problem is that the car needs charging every night and the most you can do in a day is 80 miles. It is like being tethered.

To facilitate his New York City lifestyle, Duchovny also has a Vespa scooter. That should make a good paparazzi shot.

Duchovny also points out an important fact that other eco-celebs sometimes gloss over when they give tours of their million-dollar green homes or show off their fleet of hybrid cars: "We try to set an example. Unfortunately, you have to have the means to be green. That's what has to change in this world. It should be cheaper to be green."

Thanks, David. Now, as they say, "the truth is out there."

Don Willmott's blog posts are provided by LifeWire, a part of The New York Times Company.

Yao Ming teams up with the U.N on environmental issues

Forecast Earth Correspondent Don Willmott — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:13:32 PDT

What's not to like about Yao Ming, the high-profile (literally) international basketball star who most recently electrified the Olympic Opening Ceremonies by carrying his nation's flag into the stadium.

Yao is using this moment in the spotlight to announce that he has become the U.N. Environment Program's (UNEP) first Environmental Champion, and in that role he will raise awareness of issues surrounding climate change and energy efficiency. The effort is underway at the Olympics themselves, with UNEP providing lots of fun info. and videos about what has gone into making these games at least somewhat "sustainable."

As for Yao, his prepared statement reads, in part:

As a sportsman, I believe sport has a major role to play in promoting environmental issues, so I will work with young people across the world and try to inspire them to plant trees, use energy efficient light bulbs, harvest rain water, and to become environmental champions in their own communities.

As the world celebrates the Beijing Olympic Games, I would also like to call upon the organizers of all major sports events in the world to make sure they use public transport facilities, build proper waste management systems, and use greener forms for energy. Please join me in this global team effort.

Good for you, Yao.

And by the way, the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver are slated to be the greenest yet. Check out the official website to see the steps the host city is already taking.

Don Willmott's blog posts are provided by LifeWire, a part of The New York Times Company.

Jack Nicholson hawks hydrogen cars in the '70s

Hank Green — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:54:16 PDT

For those of you who think that the BMW Hydrogen 7 is a new idea, someone has dredged up a video of a similar car from 1978 being showed off by Jack Nicholson.

The "news" report seems laughable now, but it's a good lesson for a world that seems to think "breakthroughs" happen every day. Feeding hydrogen into an internal combustion engine is an old idea and, it turned out, a bad idea. And while almost all car companies (aside from BMW) are focusing on much more efficient hydrogen fuel-cell cars, decades of development still haven't brought us a mass-market car.

We're closer than ever, of course, with the Honda FXC Clarity and the Hydrogen Chevy Equinox both on the road in California. But hydrogen cars might need decades of development before they can operate coast to coast. And, by that time, I hope we've come up with another, better solution.

Johnny Depp's island to be solar and hydrogen powered

Hank Green — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:39:03 PDT

I don't spend a lot of time thinking about celebrities. I'm generally more interested in professors at MIT than actors in Hollywood. But every once in a while, our friends at Ecorazzi will post something that catches my eye.

Apparently Johnny Depp bought an island for around $3,000,000 a while back. And, since there aren't exactly power lines running to the tiny island, he had to figure out how to power his (ridiculously posh) home. For the green-minded Depp, diesel generators just weren't an option.

So he turned to Mike Strizki to help him build a system that would produce enough power to quench his celebrity-born thirst for decadence while not throwing off massive amounts of greenhouse gas. The result is a solar system that stores excess energy as hydrogen for use at night or during cloudy times of day (not too common in the Bahamas, but still).

The system, to me, seems vastly inefficient. Hydrogen gas is terrible at storing energy in a small space unless it can be compressed a great deal. But Strizki's system uses propane tanks to keep costs low. The result is that 10 thousand-gallon propane tanks are needed to store enough hydrogen to get the island through the night. You can see a video of his less-exotic system (in New Jersey) here.

Power storage for renewable systems is a huge deal. But this strikes me as a rather inelegant solution. But a high-pressure tank would be costly, and of course require an energy-hungry compressor. So maybe Depp's system is the best we're going to get.

In any case, it's hard to call any of this green when the excesses of owning your own island are so obvious. But I suppose it's better than complete disregard for the environment...

Via Ecorazzi

Summer rock tours travel with an environmental message

Don Willmott , Forecast Earth Correspondent — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 07:23:33 PDT

It's summer tour season. Are you planning to go see anyone play? The Daily Green has a rundown of musicians who go the extra mile to reduce their carbon footprints as they travel and perform.

Among the superstars is Radiohead. Their opening act says, "At the outset we were all given tour water flasks. Plastic anything is like contraband. Every bus and truck runs on bio-fuel. There is no idling, rather some newfangled way to deliver electricity cleanly. They don't do airfreight, either. The list goes on. Everything is supremely managed to reduce the 'footprint.'"

Also on the list is Coldplay, fronted by the always-too-prickly Chris Martin, and the supremely crunchy Jack Johnson, about whom The Daily Green says, "The tireless eco-supporting Hawaiian surfer dude not only has his own eco village at every venue but his concert rider includes fluorescent light bulbs and water efficient showers backstage, separate bins for waste and recycling (with biodegradable bags), an eco-crew to check tire air pressure for attendees, and a requirement that all leftover food be donated to local food banks." Impressive.

You may also want to check out The Dave Matthews Band. Why? "Every time the man tours, he ups the eco-ante. Last year it was biodiesel trucks and buses, carbon offsets for travel, eco-friendly merch, and an Eco-Village for fans. Green tour mavericks Reverb estimate more than 3 million pounds of CO₂ reduced or eliminated. This year, look for carpooling services and an eco-footprint reduction contest for fans."

Don Willmott's blog posts are provided by LifeWire, a part of The New York Times Company.

Tesla building 225-mile electric sedan

Jaymi Heimbuch — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:53:07 PDT

In that magical year for electric cars â 2010 â Tesla plans to have a 5-passenger electric Sedan out and on the road. The Model S is to have a 225 mile range on a single charge, not too shabby! But as is the case with Tesla vehicles, buyers had better have padded wallets as the price is expected to be around $60,000, and likely higher as the release date approaches.

The announcement came on Monday at a press conference attended by Californiaâs governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has a $100,000 Tesla Roadster on order â not surprising considering his infatuation with powerful cars. Weâll leave the analysis open on that. â¦

The Model S is to be built in California, thanks to some incentives given by the state, including tax exemptions on manufacturing equipment and qualification for grants and special employee training programs. Itâs pretty impressive to have California vying for your business, so we have high hopes that the new Tesla will meet expectations, despite the fact that there are few expectations on the car as of yet â the design and specs are still under wraps. Weâll keep updating as more info makes its way to the surface.

Via Inhabitat; photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Larry King's questions for Chevron's chairman

Dave Loos, Samantha Hulkower, Rob Howard — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 16:36:43 PDT

Crossposted from Envirowonk

CNN's ~~ancient~~ venerable host Larry King will interview Chevron chairman and CEO David O'Reilly during this evening's edition of Larry King Live. The topic is "How High Will Gas Prices Go?" This strikes us as a fairly heavy topic for a man who knows only one sport when it comes to interviews: softball.

Given that Larry isn't exactly famous for doing his homework on guests or asking anything resembling a probing question, we couldn't resist making some predictions about what "questions" are in store for tonight's guest.

"Gas prices ... they're really high .... [dead air, O'Reilly waits for a question] ... how high will they go?"
"Are we running out of oil?"
"Why is gas so expensive" [As Samantha Hulkower notes, Larry has a tendency to just repeat the last word of the person he's interviewing.]
"So it's not your fault."
"What about that ethanol? Good? Bad?"
"Hybrid cars .... [more dead air, Larry hopes O'Reilly jumps in to save him here.] ... Wouldn't it save us lots of gas if everyone drove them?"
"Global warming ... is the jury still out on this thing?"
"Venezuela. Important. Hugo Chavez. Kind of crazy. How do you address a situation like that?"
"Offshore drilling ... tell us why it's a good thing."
"What's this I hear about Chevron and oil sands up in Canada? Sounds crazy. Tell me about it."
[Follow up to last question] "Kind of like squeezing juice out of an orange. Amazing!"
"What do you think about that Windfall Tax?"
[Follow up question] "Okay."
"What's this I hear about Chevron workers in Nigeria going on strike over safety standards and unfair staffing?" [Note: We don't really expect King to ask this, but if he does, if you don't think Larry is accepting O'Reilly's spin with little more than a nod, then ... well, you just don't know Larry.]

We'll check back in tomorrow morning with a transcript to see how we did.

Bill Gates produces 10,000 times more carbon

Peg Fong — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 21:26:48 PDT

MIT professor of mechanical engineering Timothy Gutowski recently had his students compare the energy consumption of people in different socio-economic classes -- from a homeless person to a senator. In total, 18 different lifestyles were chosen, ranging from vegetarian students to professional golfers to a five-year-old.

What the MIT researchers found was that even in the U.S., the people with the lowest energy usage -- a homeless person, a five-year-old, and a Buddhist monk -- all have a carbon footprint twice as large as the average global citizen. This is because the services provided for every American, including infrastructure and public services, guarantee a set baseline that no American can drop below.

The carbon footprints of the low energy consumers were about one-third of the American average. Americans are big-foots when it comes to their carbon footprints. The world average is four tons; Americans typically consume 20 tons.

Bill Gates, specifically chosen for the study, has a carbon footprint about 10,000 times the average. Of course, he also has produced a great deal of wealth and growth for the world. In general, the researchers found that as income rises, so do emissions.

A homeless person, who ate at soup kitchens and slept in shelters, had an average carbon footprint of 8.5 tonnes, still twice as much as the world average. Even monks, who lived half the year in the forest, had carbon footprints of 10.5 tonnes.

But the big question of how to lower carbon footprints is tough to answer. The study found that voluntary reductions is likely unobtainable for the average American. Considerably more can be done by the wealthy, but the best way to lower footprints is to tax carbon use which, Professor Gutowski says, is a hard pill to swallow, especially for politicians.Â

Via Environmental Research Web