Five energy proposals for Wisconsin & Madison

Thursday, August 07, 2008

From a commentary by Don Wichert, director of renewable energy programs for Focus on Energy, in the Wisconsin State Journal:

High energy prices and potential supply disruptions can prompt creative thinking and new approaches in thousands of situations. Here are five energy proposals that could be started immediately.

The most imminent is to provide innovative and analytical support to rebuild flooded homes and communities with sustainable energy designs.

Wisconsin folks have done this before in Soldiers Grove in 1978. This community effort can be replicated and improved upon using 30 years of sustainable development practices.

The second proposal is to retool the General Motors plant in Janesville to make the new GM Plug-In Hybrid Electric "Volt" or some similar next generation vehicle.

The changing of the car guard from big to efficient is a perfect transitional energy fit and an entire trained workforce and significant manufacturing infrastructure awaits in Janesville.

The Volt is due to be produced in 2010 for the 2011 model year, about the same time Janesville's SUV line will close.

Proposal three is to get the Wisconsin printing industry, led by companies like Quad Graphics, Serigraph and others, to start printing solar electric "paint" on building materials, like roofing, siding and windows.

A company called NanoSolar in the Silicon Valley has shown that this process can be done at drastically reduced cost. And that's when the printing techniques were developed from scratch.

This is a fantastic opportunity for our mature printing industry to follow suit.

Everyone welcome at monthly meeting!

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Peak Oil Discussion Group
August 7, 2008

DRAFT Agenda
1. Introductions

2. Announcements/miscellaneous
a. Tabling at Farmers’ Market
- August 30 – Jeff Riggert
- October 11
b. Other

3. Financial report

4. Program committee report
a. “What’s the program?” – David Knuti & Ross DePaola
b. Prospects for a teach-in in conjunction with the Nelson Institute – Ed Blume
c. Good sources for information on post peak planning – Beth Campbell
d. Review of statement on support for RTA to deliver to Legislative Council Study Committee on RTA – Hans Noeldner
e. Coordination of activities with Green Action Network – Barb Smith

5. Next meeting: September 4

Renewable Wood Energy workshop, Sept. 4, Green Bay

Monday, August 04, 2008

From a media release issued by Focus on Energy:

MADISON, Wis. (August 4, 2008) - On Sept. 4, Focus on Energy, Wisconsin's energy efficiency and renewable energy initiative, will host a conference demonstrating how businesses and organizations can take advantage of Wisconsin's most abundant natural resource - wood. The one-day conference titled "Work Smarter with Wood, Renewable Wood Energy," will be held at the Best Western Midway Hotel in Green Bay, Wis., and will offer attendees information and tours highlighting how wood can be used to generate bioenergy. In addition, the conference is being presented as a precursor to the 63rd Annual Lake States Logging Congress - the Midwest's largest forestry tradeshow - presented by the Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association September 4 - 6. . . .

Focus on Energy's conference will consist of information sessions and keynotes, including speakers from the Office of Energy Independence, the Environmental Law & Policy Center, the Pellet Fuel Institute, and Focus on Energy. There will also be tours of two area facilities that are benefiting from the use of renewable wood energy, ST Paper and Pomp's Service. Attendees will have a chance to tour a biomass combustion system located at ST Paper and Pomp's Service's wood brokering facility (ST Paper acquires their wood fuel from Pomp's).

Complete workshop details here.

Gov says no to coal for state power plants

Friday, August 01, 2008

From a story by Bill Novak from The Capital Times:

Using coal at state-owned heating plants is not an option that should be considered as a fuel source, according to a directive issued Friday by Gov. Jim Doyle.

The directive to move away from coal is in line with recommendations made by the governor's task force on global warming.

"The state should lead by example and move away from our dependence on coal at the state-owned heating plants in Madison," Doyle said. "Global warming demands leadership, and as we plan for the future of the Madison heating facilities, we must chart a course that lowers greenhouse gas emissions and encourages new alternative energy sources."

A comprehensive heating plant feasibility study released Friday looked at 13 options for the three existing state-owned heating plants in Madison and a possible new combined heating plant, and coal is not in the mix.

"The state should seriously explore the possibility of eliminating coal at the plants considered in this study and move to technologies and fuels that will provide a cleaner energy future for the capital city," the study said.

The plants provide steam for heat and chilled water for cooling at state agency buildings and the UW-Madison campus.

The Charter Street Heating Plant has five boilers, four of which are permitted to burn coal (or paper-derived fuel, tire-derived fuel and wood), with the fifth boiler burning oil or natural gas.

The Capitol Heat and Power Plant, which supplies steam and chilled water to the Capitol and other buildings, has four boilers, two permitted to burn coal and two burning natural gas or oil.

The Walnut Street Heating Plant has three natural gas or oil boilers.

The proposed Isthmus Combined Energy Plant would use a combination of gas/oil boilers or biomass boilers and would replace both the Charter and Capitol plants in a full-scale option or just the Capitol plant in a reduced-scale option.

The study summary says no one option of the 13 options analyzed ranked first in all criteria, but all options would bring the Charter Street plant into compliance with the Clean Air Act.

One-stop assistance for solar power shopping

Thursday, July 31, 2008

From an article by Kristin Czubkowski in The Capital Times:

Thinking of outfitting your house with solar power?

Certified solar agent Larry Walker is at your service -- for free!

Walker was recently hired by the city as a consultant to advise residents and businesses gratis on everything from how solar power works to its costs, including the availability of state and federal tax rebates.

It's all part of Mayor Dave Cieslewicz's MadiSUN initative, announced in early June, that uses the $200,000 Solar America Cities federal grant along with money from the city, the state's Focus on Energy program and Madison Gas & Electric to promote solar power to city residents.

"I've been doing the homework for the last year or so, so I've got my presentation that explains how solar works," Walker said in an interview. "I've got examples of what it would cost for a typical system. I can do the assessment and tell them what rebate they're going to get from Focus on Energy, and just sort of be a one-stop shopping for somebody."

After residents or businesses leave a message for Walker by phone or email, he calls them to discuss the site's potential for solar power. After that, Walker usually visits the location within three to four weeks and then mails a written report within a week. After that he solicits quotes for parts and installation from local vendors.

Contact Walker at (608) 243-0586 or solar@cityofmadison.com.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

From Cows to Crops
Thursday, July 31st
10:30 am – 11:30 am, Room 300 SE, Wisconsin State Capitol
1 – 2:30 pm, Room 411, DATCP, Madison, Wisconsin
Summary: High food and crop prices are straining farmer and consumers. But this briefing will explore an innovative approach to use dairy manure as a resource to heat greenhouses and grow locally produced, high quality food, and clean up potential pollution concerns from waste.

The National Produce Production Development Company Inc. (NPPI) will discuss its proprietary Thermophilic Anaerobic Digestion (TAD) technology and plans to build the first network of profitable greenhouses in the United States, enabling local grown, quality produce food for consumers while cleaning our air and water.

Speakers: Steven Siegel, NPPI CEO, will present their patented process and WI prospects,

Brett Hulsey, Better Environmental Solutions, How dairy farmers can light our homes, run our cars, clean our air, provide us high quality food, and protect our streams.


Brett Hulsey, MNS
President, Better Environmental Solutions
Practical Solutions Today for a Better Tomorrow
222 S. Hamilton, Suite 14
Madison, WI 53703
Phone: 608-238-6070
Cell: 608-334-4994
Email: Brett@BetterEnviro.Com
Website: www.BetterEnviro.Com

Stars are aligning for a commuter rail system in Dane County

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

From an article by Steven Elbow in The Capital Times:

After years of roadblocks, the stars are aligning for a commuter rail system in Dane County.

On Aug. 7, a state legislative study committee will begin work on drafting a bill to allow regional transit authorities -- local taxing districts that will manage and fund transit systems.

"The state legislation is really going to be the thing that sets the framework for what we can do here locally," said David Trowbridge, project manager for Transport 2020, an ambitious plan that could change the way Dane County residents get around.

State Senate President Fred Risser, D-Madison, said he expects the committee to come up with a proposal that can be introduced to the Legislature in the spring -- a fast track for any legislation, but even more so on an issue lawmakers in years past have been reluctant to embrace.

The centerpiece of the Transit 2020 plan is a light rail corridor stretching from Middleton to Sun Prairie. The rail line would connect a growing number of workers, students, sports fans and shoppers to state office buildings, cultural events, the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, hospitals and businesses.

State legislative association to Congress: Increase federal gas tax

Monday, July 28, 2008

From a story released by the National Conference of State Legislators:

NEW ORLEANS -- The nation's state legislators collectively told Congress Friday that they are in the driver's seat with transportation policy.

At the Legislative Summit in New Orleans, the National Conference of State Legislatures approved a new Surface Transportation Federalism policy that calls for a narrow, focused vision for the next federal transportation bill.

"Our current method of collecting revenue and paying for transportation projects is broken, especially at $4 per gallon gas prices," said Oregon state Senator Bruce Starr, who helped draft the policy and leads NCSL's Surface Transportation Reauthorization Working Group. "Our policy calls on Congress to maintain the Highway Trust Fund, which is depleting at a rapid rate, and to do this they will have to increase the federal gas tax."

The federal gas tax funds the nation’s transportation system, but has been diminishing in value in recent years as alternative fuels enter the marketplace, hybrid vehicles sales increase, and people are driving less. In turn, that decreases the revenue generated by the per-gallon gas tax.

The gas tax was last increased in 1993. In the short term, an increase will ensure the Highway Trust Fund remains solvent, but the NCSL policy encourages Congress to move toward new funding strategies. One such concept is a vehicle miles traveled (VMT) fee that charges a vehicle based on the number of miles driven in a state. An Oregon pilot program proved the concept viable and NCSL encourages Congress to explore VMT, including the necessary vehicle-based technology to realize it, as a new user fee to fund federal highway coffers.

Oil drilling and other schemes only produce droplets

Friday, July 25, 2008

Announcements of new oil discoveries and the debate on the release of oil from strategic reserves only fuel daydreams that we can drill or wiggle our way out of the inevitable decline in worldwide supplies of oil.

From an article in The Independent:

The future of the Arctic will be less white wilderness, more black gold, a new report on oil reserves in the High North has signalled this week. The first-comprehensive assessment of oil and gas resources north of the Arctic Circle, carried out by American geologists, reveals that underneath the ice, the region may contain as much as a fifth of the world's undiscovered yet recoverable oil and natural gas reserves.

This includes 90 billion barrels of oil, enough to supply the world for THREE YEARS at current consumption rates . . .

From an article on Fox News:

WASHINGTON — The House on Thursday defeated a Democratic-backed initiative aimed at driving gasoline costs down, and Democrats and Republicans continued to blame each other for stalling each other's energy agendas.

Thursday's bill would have released about 70 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, roughly a THREE-DAY SUPPLY. The reserve is designed to keep oil in stock in the event of an emergency.

Emphasis added in both quotes.

Task force releases final global warming recommendations

Thursday, July 24, 2008

From a media release announcing release of the final report of the Governor's Global Warming Task Force:

MADISON – Today, Governor Jim Doyle’s Task Force on Global Warming announced it has finalized its report on addressing global warming in Wisconsin. The 29-member Task Force, comprised of environmental, agricultural, industry, citizen, tribal and utility leaders will now forward the report on to Governor Doyle for consideration.

“By working together the Task Force has developed an aggressive multi-sector strategy to address global warming that will put Wisconsin on track to being a leader in meeting one of the most significant challenges of our time,” said Roy Thilly, Global Warming Task Force Co-Chair. “The recommendations contained in this report help keep Wisconsin competitive and create new jobs, while preserving our environment for future generations.”

“I am very pleased with the breadth and depth of the strategy this Task Force has put forth,” said Tia Nelson, Global Warming Task Force Co-Chair. “The stringent emission reduction targets combined with substantial new investments in energy conservation and efficiency and increased reliance on home grown renewable power will establish Wisconsin as a national leader on climate change while helping the state achieve greater energy independence in the years to come.

The Governor’s Task Force on Global Warming agreed on a group of interim targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 2005 levels by 2014 and 1990 levels by 2022. The long-term targets include a goal to reach 75 percent reduction from 2005 levels by 2050.

The Report makes over 50 viable and actionable policy recommendations in the utility, transportation, agriculture, forestry and industry sectors, as well as a number of recommendations in other areas, including support for a proposed federal or regional greenhouse gas cap and trade program. In accordance with Governor Doyle’s Executive Order 191, which created the Task Force, many of the Task Force’s recommendations identify ways to grow the state’s economy and create new jobs arising from the opportunities created by addressing climate change. Careful attention also has been paid to mitigating the potential costs of the recommended policies on consumers and Wisconsin’s industrial base. . . .

Petroleum blows the roof off bids

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

The end of cheap oil and consequent rising costs continue to ripple throughout the economy, as illustrated by an article by in The Daily Reporter:

As petroleum prices rapidly drive up material costs, roofers don’t know how much expenses will change between bidding and building.

But when contractors add a healthy buffer to their price to safeguard against shortfalls, they run the risk of being under-bid by the competition, said Richard Lemirande, president of Northern Metal & Roofing Co. Inc., Green Bay. At the rate prices are escalating, contractors run the risk of locking themselves into a bid that’s too low to cover costs, he said.

“When you get into a hard-bid situation,” Lemirande said, “that’s when it becomes much more difficult.”

Material prices for industrial and commercial projects are climbing faster than Don Leitel has seen in his 20-year career. The price of everything except insulation went up since last year, said Leitel, vice president of Roofers Mart of Wisconsin Inc., Wauwatosa.

There’s talk, he said, of monthly insulation cost increases between 5 and 7 percent in coming months.

“It’s tough for these contractors,” Leitel said. “I’m sure it’s been a battle for them going back to jobs where they had contracts or commitments and things weren’t ready to go.”

Leitel said sales agents often warn contractors about possible price increases, but he warned this year the threat should be taken seriously.

“In the past, sometimes it would be up, sometimes it wouldn’t,” he said. “But today, we’re in a whole different world.”

The city of Milwaukee on July 14 collected one bid for its project to re-roof an engine house. But the $225,700 bid from M.M. Schranz Roofing Inc., Milwaukee, was $74,000 higher than engineering estimates made in November, said Paul Klein, an architectural designer in the Milwaukee Department of Public Works. Klein said he expects subcontractors to start offering bids that let them change material prices to keep up with increases.

“I don’t think there’s been that kind of increase in concrete or anything like that,” he said. “Asphalt shingles are a petroleum product, and the EPDM (ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer) roofing is a petroleum product, and I’m guessing that had a lot to do with it.”

The increases so far were driven by petroleum prices, among other production costs, Klein said.

Accidents change tune of offshore drilling fans

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

From a commentary by Dave Zweifel in The Capital Times:

As George Bush and his oil industry cronies use the gas price crisis to push for more offshore drilling and the opening of the protected Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, I remembered a clipping I saved from the Chicago Tribune's editorial pages several weeks ago.

It was an op-ed column written by David McGrath, a teacher at the University of South Alabama who lives on Dauphin Island, three miles into the Gulf of Mexico, and admitted that he once was a big fan of drilling for oil and gas in the ocean floor.

Alabamians figured, for example, that to have big rigs as close as a quarter mile off the coast would give the state cheaper fuel if only for the fact that the fuel wouldn't have to be transported far. Besides, those big oil platforms provide good fish habitat -- much like, I assume, the overhang of Monona Terrace does for fish in Lake Monona. McGrath, like many who live near the ocean, is a big fisherman.

He and his neighbors changed their tune, however, after the many accidents that occurred on the giant rigs. There have been more than 300 accidents on offshore rigs worldwide in the past couple of decades.

McGrath said the scariest for him happened last fall when a cloud of poisonous gas was expelled by a natural gas rig and drifted over the island on which he lives. It sickened dozens of residents and forced the evacuation of the island's sea lab school.

Leadership sought for 21st century transportation solutions

Monday, July 21, 2008

From a media release from WISPIRG:

Madison, WI - With average gas prices consistently above $4/gallon across Wisconsin, WISPIRG is calling on Governor Doyle to move Wisconsin toward a new transportation future. WISPIRG’s 21st Century Transportation Solutions campaign is calling on the Governor to increase investment in public transportation and to prioritize maintaining our existing highways over building more.

“With high gas prices, we need clean, efficient alternatives to the rising cost of driving,” said Bruce Speight, WISPIRG Advocate. “Imagine taking the train to work, or to Chicago or Minneapolis, and not having to spend $50-$100 every week to fill up the gas tank. Local leaders across Wisconsin are advocating for enhanced bus and rail systems, but they need a commitment from state and federal leaders to get these projects off the drawing board and on track. . . .”

WISPIRG is calling on Governor Doyle to support a state transportation policy that:

• Expands clean, efficient transportation choices for Wisconsinites by prioritizing investment of new capital funds for light rail, commuter rail, rapid bus transit, high-speed intercity rail and transportation options that build dynamic and accessible communities, where more Wisconsinites walk, bike, or take transit to get where they need to go;

• Fixes our crumbling roads and bridges by investing more state highway money in maintenance, not massive highway projects. It’s time for the state government to embrace an approach to highway spending that prioritizes maintaining and modernizing
our existing highways over building more;

• Spends taxpayers’ money more wisely by focusing transportation dollars on solving our state’s biggest problems. For decades, the government has spent billions of dollars on highway projects with inadequate evaluation and accountability. State transportation money should be spent on projects that produce real results over the long haul—by reducing our dependence on oil, curbing global warming pollution, reducing traffic, improving safety, and promoting healthy, sustainable communities;

• Encourages regional transportation planning by enabling and granting authority to regional transportation authorities in communities that want them. Regional transportation authorities can help meet changing transportation needs, and work locally to ensure that people connect to jobs, shopping, and the cultural and tourist attractions that help our communities to thrive.

Visit Madison Peak Oil Group at Hybridfest, July 19-20

Friday, July 18, 2008

Members of the Madison Peak Oil Group will staff a table at Hybridfest on July 19 and 20.

We'll be trying to educate inform people about the end of cheap oil

Please drop by Booth 126S and chat.

Switchgrass as fuel touted for energy, cost benefits

Thursday, July 17, 2008

From an article by Anita Weier in The Capital Times:

Switchgrass grown on marginal farm acreage could be an efficient renewable fuel source while also protecting wildlife habitat and water quality, according to "Growing Wisconsin Energy," a study by Agrecol Corp.

Switchgrass is a perennial grass native to Wisconsin.

The study produced by the Madison-based seed company with a grant from the state Department of Agriculture found that converting native grasses into renewable fuel could be a profitable enterprise for farmers and a relatively inexpensive fuel source for businesses and schools.

Businesses in the study reduced fuel costs an average of 42 percent by switching from traditional fuel sources to pellets made from switchgrass, the study found.

Agrecol, a seed company that specializes in native prairie grasses and produces biomass pellets for heat, is also developing a pellet stove for residential and commercial heating. Its study focused on the feasibility of developing a native grass pellet bioheat industry in Wisconsin.

Renewable "biomass" includes corn stalks, straw and other agriculture crop residue as well as wood chips and wood residue.

"Grass-based biomass can reduce carbon dioxide and global warming pollution, promote farmer-grown energy crops, expand local rural economies and reduce reliance on fossil fuels," the study said.

Rural areas benefit from urban mass transit

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

An editorial from The Tomah Journal:

Mass transit -- it isn’t just an urban issue anymore.

Traditionally, mass transit has been considered an urban concern, or worse, an issue that pits urban interests against rural interests. That idea is wrong. Mass transit benefits anyone who uses energy, and the longer America delays its commitment to urban mass transit, the more severe our rapidly escalating energy crisis becomes.

Why is urban mass transit a rural issue? Because urban commuters consume gasoline needed by rural consumers. In smaller communities like Tomah, where mass transit isn’t economically viable, citizens have no choice but to commute by automobile. Every gallon of gas that’s guzzled by a long, solitary urban commute is a gallon of gas that isn’t available for drivers in Tomah. Reduced urban consumption means lower prices for rural consumers.

It makes sense not only for rural lawmakers to support urban mass transit, but to also support the funding choices that encourage its growth. It means spending less money on expanding urban freeways and shifting those dollars to buses, railroads, subways and light rail (the latter two use electricity instead of gasoline).

Energy independence isn't a pipe dream

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

From a commentary in The Capital Times by Gal Luft, director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security and co-founder of the Set America Free Coalition, a bipartisan alliance of groups promoting U.S. energy independence:

. . . It's time to get serious. Policies such as "drill more" and "drive smaller cars" all keep us running on petroleum. At best, they buy us a few more years of complacency, whether or not we drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The hard truth is that real energy independence can be achieved only through fuel choice and competition. That competition cannot take place as long as we continue to put 16 million new cars that run only on petroleum on our roads every year -- thereby locking ourselves into decades more of petroleum dependence.

So let's remember the old saying: When in a hole, stop digging. If every new car sold in the United States were a flex-fuel vehicle and if millions of Americans could plug in their electric cars, gasoline would be facing fierce competition. . . .

CDW converts two Wisconsin facilities to 100 percent renewable energy

Monday, July 14, 2008

From an article in Small Business Times:

Vernon Hills, Ill.-based CDW Corp., a provider of technology products and services, announced today that it has contracted with Madison Gas and Electric (MGE) to purchase almost 12 million kilowatt-hours per year of renewable energy as part of a corporate initiative to reduce its carbon footprint. The company's two Madison-based enterprise hosting centers, totaling 10,500 square feet will now be powered by 100 percent renewable energy.

"This effort will provide an annual carbon offset of 12,649 tons – equal to the CO2 emission from electricity use by about 1,500 average Madison residential homes," said Phil LaForge, director of hosting and managed services for CDW.

"Our Wisconsin hosting centers customers will now benefit from a decrease in CO2 emissions that will allow them to continue to build their businesses confidently knowing that their data is secure and powered by green energy," said Paul Shain, senior vice president of CDW. "It is our hope that more companies in our region and across the nation will also take action and move toward using renewable energy sources."

Weather risks cloud promise of biofuel

Friday, July 11, 2008

From an article by Jad Mouawad in The New York Times:

The record storms and floods that swept through the Midwest last month struck at the heart of America’s corn region, drowning fields and dashing hopes of a bumper crop.

They also brought into sharp relief a new economic hazard. As America grows more reliant on corn for its fuel supply, it is becoming vulnerable to the many hazards that can damage crops, ranging from droughts to plagues to storms.

The floods have helped send the price of ethanol up 19 percent in a month. They appear to have had little effect on the price of gasoline at the pump, as ethanol represents only about 6 percent of the nation’s transport fuel today.

But that share is expected to rise to at least 20 percent in coming decades. Experts fear that a future crop failure could take so much fuel out of the market that it would send prices soaring at the pump. Eventually, the cost of filling Americans’ gas tanks could be influenced as much by hail in Iowa as by the bombing of an oil pipeline in Nigeria.

“We are holding ourselves hostage to the weather,” said John M. Reilly, a senior lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an ethanol expert. “Agricultural markets are subject to wide variability and big price spikes, just like oil markets.”

Three years ago, Americans discovered that the vicissitudes of the weather could have a powerful effect on energy prices when two hurricanes struck the Gulf Coast. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita interrupted a quarter of the nation’s oil production and closed dozens of refineries for weeks. Lines formed for the first time since the 1970s as gasoline spiked above $3 a gallon, a record at the time. The nation’s increasing dependence on crops for motor fuel adds another level of vulnerability from the weather.

Full speed ahead on biofuels

Thursday, July 10, 2008

From an editorial in the Wisconsin State Journal:

The average gasoline price in Madison set a daily high this week, topping $4.02 a gallon on Tuesday.

On the same day a federal forecast warned that gas prices nationwide are likely to remain above $4 a gallon for the rest of the year and into 2009.

The higher cost of gas is a costly problem that underscores the importance of proceeding full speed ahead with efforts to develop biofuels as an alternative to gasoline.

That 's why Wisconsin policymakers and entrepreneurs should focus on making the state a leader in the next generation of biofuels, made from wood waste and other renewable plant material.

"Take a look at what used to be pristine forests in Canada"

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

A video report on CNN Ali Velshi puts sobering images to the "black gold...actually squeezed from the sand" in Alberta, Canada.

Renewable energy enthusiast and author Marc Franke comments:

If you’ve been worried that farming corn is “hard on the land”, take a look at what used to be pristine forests in Canada.

Canada has now surpassed Saudi Arabia as the single largest supplier of oil to the U.S.

Oil sands contribute three times the green house gases during extraction compared to normal crude oil.

Folks, we need to get off of petroleum. We are destroying our environment to get it.

Marc Franke www.itsgood4.us
Author: One week to save the Earth
www.amazon.com/dp/0979902401
319-848-3663

Passenger rail can play a key role in our transit system

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

From an editorial in the La Crosse Tribune:

A story Sunday by Tribune reporter Chris Hubbuch told what it is like to ride the train between here and Milwaukee.

Most riders appreciate the opportunity to meet other people and view the scenery on the train. But these days, train travel can play a role in helping people conserve energy. In an era of high gasoline prices (that could easily be the way of the future), it makes sense to have rail passenger service as an alternative to either automobiles or the airlines. Rail already is an important part of the transportation system in the densely populated northeast corridor, where trains provide additional links between the major cities.

But it also can play an important role in the rest of the country — particularly in medium-length regional routes, such as between Chicago and the Twin Cities.

A guide to peak oil for the media; spread it around

Monday, July 07, 2008

From a post by Chris Nelder on the Web site of the Association for the Study of Peak Oil - USA:

I have collaborated with Steve Andrews, a co-founder of ASPO-USA, on a new “Peak Oil Media Guide,” to address the important questions that regularly come up about peak oil. We encourage those who engage with the media to distribute the guide. It is my hope that the guide will become a “living document” which can be updated and enhanced as time goes on by knowledgeable experts. We welcome their input. For now, please send comments to Chris Nelder at chris.nelder@getreallist.com This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it and include “PO Media Guide” in the subject line. You can find the full document here (pdf).

Divorce your car!

Thursday, July 03, 2008

From the Web site of Community Car:

2nd Annual Divorce Your Car Party
Join Community Car in celebrating a car-lite lifestyle. Whether you've been thinking about ending your unhealthy relationship with your car, want to talk to people who've taken the leap, or just like the idea of the car-life lifestyle, join us in congratulating four local Divorcees on their new venture in life.

Even if you're in a loving relationship with your car, feel free to join in the fun!

Attend the event or sign up online by July 10th and receive a FREE APPLICATION (a $50 value!). Be sure to put DIVORCE in the promo code field.

What: Celebrating a car-lite lifestyle
When: Thursday, July 10th, 4:30-7:30pm, Divorce Ceremony at 5:30pm
Where:High Noon Saloon, 701 E Washington Ave.

Gas prices change views on energy

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

From an Associated Press article by H. Josef Hebert in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- High gasoline prices have dramatically changed Americans' views on energy and the environment with more people now viewing oil drilling and new power plants as a greater priority than energy conservation than they did five months ago, according to a new survey.

The poll released Tuesday by the Pew Research Center shows nearly half of those surveyed - or 47 percent - now rate energy exploration, drilling and building new power plants as the top priority, compared with 35 percent who believed that five months ago.

The Pew poll, conducted in late June, showed the number of people who consider energy conservation as more important declined by 10 percentage points since February from a clear majority to 45 percent. People are now about evenly split on which is more important.

The number of people who said they considered increasing energy supplies more important than protecting the environment increased from 54 percent in February to 60 percent and the number of people who favor oil drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge also increased.

Madison mayor calls for federal support for transit, energy efficiency

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

From a media release issued by Mayor Dave Cieslewicz:

Madison - Mayor Dave Cieslewicz today called on Congress to act quickly to pass two measures that would increase support for local transit and energy efficiency initiatives. With gas prices continuing to average $4 per gallon with little relief in sight, these initiatives would help local governments and commuters reduce both energy costs and global warming emissions. . . .

The Mayor is taking part in a nationwide campaign asking for Congress to enact two measures, both of which are supported by Cong. Tammy Baldwin:

- Full funding for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program, which would provide grants to cities and counties to implement strategies that reduce fossil fuel emissions, reduce energy use and improve energy efficiency. Earlier this month, a House committee appropriated $295 million for EECBG, and a Senate committee will take up the issue in July. The program has a potential authorization of up to $2 billion.

- The Energy Savings Through Public Transportation Act (H.R. 6502), which would provide additional resources to mass transit systems. Rapid increases in fuel prices have spurred new interest in mass transit options, with ridership on Metro Transit up 6% compared to last year, and reaching record levels. The resources provided by this legislation would help Metro Transit keep pace with that demand, and continue to provide a high level of service to mass transit users. This measure passed the House last week and now goes to the Senate for consideration.

One step ahead with hybrid vehicles

Monday, June 30, 2008

From an article by Roberto Michel in the Wisconsin State Journal:

For a business in which gasoline is like life's blood, Barnes Inc. could be hurting much worse than it is, according to Mark Barnes, president and CEO of the Madison-based landscaping, lawn maintenance, and snow removal company.

Barnes credits his company's ability to cope with high gas costs to steps taken years ago, such as changing its fleet of sales vehicles to hybrid sedans.

In 2006, the company replaced the pickup trucks used by sales people with Toyota Prius hybrids and now has 14 Prius sedans, which get better than twice the mileage of the pickups.

"We bought them in 2006, not necessarily with the anticipation that gas was going to be creeping up on $4 a gallon, but with the savings to us then, " Barnes said.

Other businesses also have made major changes to their vehicle fleets. Jim Hirsch, president of Paul Davis Restoration of Lakeland Counties, Cottage Grove, said he began buying Prius sedans back in 2004 to replace conventional pickups and sedans used for sales and project management.

Learn about lighting with light emitting diodes (LEDs), July 2, Madison

Friday, June 27, 2008

From Barbara Smith at the Wisconsin Department of Administration:

A local manufacturers’ rep for LED lighting will be giving a presentation on LED products, especially those with applications to commercial buildings. They will also talk about their experience so far with these new products in local businesses, as well as the buzz about LEDs at the most recent LightFair. Please join us if you are interested.

Wednesday, July 2nd
11:30am
DOA, Conference Room 6B
101 E. Wilson Street, 6th Floor

Seeking a flex-fuel car? State auctioning vehicles

Thursday, June 26, 2008

From an article by Ben Jones in the Appleton Post-Crescent:

MADISON – People looking to beat high gas prices with alternative energy may want to check out a state vehicle auction this weekend.

The state of Wisconsin is auctioning off 42 Ford Tauruses that can run on E85 fuel. The flex-fuel cars are part of more than 100 vehicles, including cars, trucks and vans, the state is auctioning because of age or condition. The auction will be held Saturday in Arlington. . . .

The state continues to purchase flex fuel cars. The Tauruses are not being sold because they burn E85, but because they have reached the end of their useful life for the state.

Most of the cars the state is auctioning have more than 100,000 miles and some are more than 10 years old.

But bargain hunters may find good deals on cars that have been regularly maintained. At one recent car auction E85 Tauruses sold for around $4,000.

The auction is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. Saturday at the UW Agricultural Research Station in Arlington. An inspection will be held from 1-6 p.m. Friday and at 8 a.m. the day of the auction. . . .

Election spin on energy

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

From an article in the Entropic Journal of Hans Noeldner, an active participant in the Madison Peak Oil Group:

Now that the final stretch of Election 2008 is underway, Neo-Conservative spin on energy issues is becoming obvious.

(1) High gasoline prices? It's the fault of environmentalists (i.e. DEMOCRATS.) These guys – and their bosom buddies the trial attorneys and activist judges – have managed for far too long to block exploration and extraction of vast reserves right here in America.

(2) But Mr. McCain, didn’t you say you were opposed to more offshore drilling only a few months ago? $4 gas changes everything, just like 9/11 changed everything. (Remind the people of 9/11 whenever possible.) Next question?

(3) And didn’t President Bush help his brother Florida Governor Jeb Bush to block offshore drilling in Florida? Next question!! (And make sure that damned reporter gets blacklisted – I don’t want any more questions from him!)

Home Depot will collect CFLs for recycling

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

A summary from Grist:

Home Depot announced Tuesday that it will collect compact fluorescent light bulbs and send them off to be recycled. The home-improvement behemoth hopes the new program will keep the bulbs, which contain a small amount of mercury, out of household trash and recycling bins. IKEA also collects CFLs for recycling but doesn't have the market saturation of Home Depot; more than three-quarters of U.S. households are estimated to be within 10 miles of a Home Depot store. The company's 1,973 U.S. stores will also switch to CFLs in light-fixture showrooms by the fall, a move expected to save it $16 million annually in energy costs.

Mpower your home: Demonstrations and presentations, June 28

Monday, June 23, 2008

From Mpowering Madison:

You’ve taken the Mpower pledge, now learn how to turn your pledge into action!

Saturday June 28th, 2008
11 am – 3 pm
211 S. Paterson Street, Madison, WI

Rain or shine in the parking lot behind the building with the large metal birds on the bike path.

Demonstrations and presentations to answer your building and home improvement questions.

Ideal for homeowners, renters, property managers, landlords, contractors and anyone wanting to lower their energy costs!

“Ask the Expert”
12 – 1:15 pm Indoors

Panel of Experts:
Bob Pfeiffer
Kevin Hogan
John Viner - a frequent guest of the Larry Meiller show of Wisconsin Public Radio

After a short presentation, your questions about home improvement will be discussed. Feel free to bring photos of your specific problems.

“How To” Demonstrations

Insulation
Air Sealing
Lighting
Exhaust Fan Display
RainReserve Rain Barrel
Using Metro Bus Bike Rack
And more!

Check out MGE solar display on 6/24 at Eastside Farmers Market

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

From Madison Gas & Electric:

Learn about solar photovoltaic systems while you pick out your fresh veggies. Stop in and see Madison Gas and Electric's new solar display trailer at the Eastside Farmers Market from 4:00 to 7:00 PM on Tuesday, June 24 at 201 S. Ingersoll Street.

This display has a complete working system with two types of solar panels along with a controller, inverter and storage batteries. Come and see how the system works and learn about available solar programs and incentives.

Time's right for rail

Monday, June 16, 2008

From an editorial in The Capital Times (Madison):

The impossible happened this week -- the U.S. Senate and House voted overwhelmingly to fully fund Amtrak for the next five years. There's even some matching money to help states set up or expand rail service.

It's amazing what four-buck-a-gallon gas will do.

Amtrak's funding package even got the votes of some of its biggest critics, like Florida Republican Rep. John Mica, who admitted for the first time that Americans need some transportation choices.

"Nothing could be more fitting to bring before Congress today, on a day when gasoline has reached $4.05 a gallon across the United States on average," he announced on the floor.

The two houses need to patch over some minor differences in the bills they passed, but Amtrak backers are confident that won't be any trouble.

The biggest trouble, though, may still come from the White House. President Bush, who has attempted to dismantle the national rail system throughout his presidency, has pledged to veto the bill. Fortunately, both the House and Senate passed the funding by veto-proof margins. Unless Republicans switch because they don't want to "embarrass" their president, Bush's veto will be moot.

Frankly, the president should be embarrassed. His stand on public transportation has marginalized him on the issue. He continues to insist that Amtrak should be dismantled and pieces of it turned over to private companies to run short-line routes. That might work in highly urbanized areas, but without government subsidies the vast expanse of America would be left with no rail service of any kind.

But Bush has been far from alone. There has long been a mind-set against subsidizing rail transportation. Politicians from both sides of the aisle have never had trouble subsidizing the building of more and bigger highways and underwriting the cost of airports and sleek terminals, but when it came to rail, they sang a different tune.

Had we adequately funded Amtrak so that it could have improved trackage in congested areas and run more than one train a day between big cities like Chicago and Minneapolis, for example, the country would today have a reasonable alternative to $4gas and gridlocked and unreliable airports. We might even have had rail service to Madison. . . .

Gasoline consumption declines

From an article by Brian Reisinger in the Wausau Daily Herald:

As soaring gas prices take their toll, consumers in central Wisconsin seem ready to do something about it.

Riiser Energy, which owns 26 convenience stores primarily in central Wisconsin, has seen overall fuel sales decline a "significant" amount in recent months compared to the previous year, president and chief executive officer Jim Kemerling said.

"I think people are cutting back," Kemerling said. "There's no doubt about it."

Sales in 2008 began slightly above the previous year's, but in March that trend reversed, with gallons of fuel sold declining by about 6 percent from the previous year, Kemerling said. Sales declined 4 percent in April from the previous year and 6 percent in May.

Consumption seemed to decline when gas per gallon topped the "$3.20 barrier," Kemerling said.

New retail store sells and promotes renewable energy

Thursday, June 12, 2008

From a story by Anita Clark in the Wisconsin State Journal:

A new store on Madison's Far East Side is pinning its hopes on renewable energy as it opens its doors this weekend.

Just inside those doors at Off the Grid, 4261 Lien Road, are comfortable chairs aimed at enticing people to plop down with brochures, books, magazines and the Internet as they ponder energy choices.

"If you want to come and sit and read, that's great," said founding partner Richard Fitzgerald. "I'm hoping there will be some interesting conversations."

A little farther into the store, visitors will find a large section of roof displaying photovoltaic panels that convert sunlight into electricity.

The store is selling the solar electricity systems, which consist of the panels, inverters and mounting equipment, starting at prices of $18,000 for a 1.5-kilowatt system and $21,000 for a 2-kilowatt system, including installation by Town and Country Electric, Sun Prairie.

In addition, "a salesman from Green Autos in Janesville will demonstrate low-speed electric commuter cars Saturday."

Grand opening events will be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Regular store hours will be Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Madison Water Utility working to achieve 20% fuel reduction

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

From a media release issued by the Madison Water Utility:

Madison--With an eye on achieving a 20 percent fuel savings within 10 years on its gasoline-powered vehicles, the Madison Water Utility has been going green with the types of cars and trucks it buys.

“We’re trying to improve fuel economy by replacing older vehicles with more fuel-efficient models, and also by looking for ways to save gas with our driving practices,” said interim Water Utility general manager Larry Nelson, who is also the City Engineer. “The Water Utility is on track to be the first city agency to replace its entire fleet with energy-efficient cars and trucks. Reducing gasoline consumption by 20 percent would be 10,000 gallons per year.”

As the utility’s 71 cars and trucks need replacing, it has been purchasing subcompact cars that get 30 mpg or better.

“We’re trying to downsize the vehicles to match the job at hand,” said Nelson. The larger, heavy-duty trucks should be used only for work that requires them, jobs like repairing water mains or construction. Workers are also saving fuel by reducing unnecessary idling while on the job, planning the most efficient routes for meter reading, and using a GPS system to locate and dispatch the closest repair vehicles to job sites.

We can't let the gripers win!

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

A commentary by Scott Milford in the Wisconsin State Journal:

I can lie in my bed at night with the window open and hear the traffic on Highway 51 two blocks to the east.

I don't mind the noise at all — a subtle and consistent whoosh that you'd have to concentrate on to really notice.

It sounds like a city. I wouldn't want to live right next to the four-lane expressway. Yet I'd probably miss it if I moved farther away.

The best part is this: That road noise helped my family afford our cozy home with a large backyard on Madison's otherwise pricey East Side. Our close proximity to the highway helps hold down neighborhood real estate prices.

This is true in a lot of spots across the city. Urban sights and sounds such as highways, airports, trains and transmission lines have done far more to provide affordable housing in Madison than anything our touchy-feely city leaders have accomplished through convoluted development laws.

I am not advocating for more blight and noise. But it does bug me when people move to the city and then demand that it not sound or look urban.

The best (or worst) example of this is Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz's ongoing effort to ban train whistles Downtown. He's spending millions on gates, lights and signs around Downtown railroad crossings so that the city can legally enforce "quiet zones" without jeopardizing public safety.

What's funny is that lonesome train whistles are more associated with rural than urban life. Think Johnny Cash, the Old West or hobos.

I grew up in small-town Wisconsin a half block from train tracks. Often at night a whistle would loudly sound. These days, when train horns blow late at night in my Madison neighborhood, I feel nostalgic and peaceful.

The latest and most unfortunate target of picky people are majestic windmills, which produce clean and renewable energy — something our state and nation need more of. Wind farms are being proposed and opposed in rural and urban settings. The complainers blame windmills for casting shadows, making noise, ruining scenery and threatening birds.

I have a smidge of sympathy for people who don't want giant windmills going up immediately next door to their homes. But even conceptual plans to site windmills miles offshore in Lake Michigan and the Atlantic Ocean face fierce and fussy foes.

In Cape Cod, for example, U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., vehemently opposes a wind farm 8 miles from his oceanfront mansion. Here in Wisconsin, cries of "local control" shot down a sensible bill to standardize and streamline the approval process for wind farms statewide.

A couple of weeks ago I stood beneath one of several picturesque wind turbines at a modern wind farm overlooking Lake Winnebago near Fond du Lac. I shut off the car, silenced the kids and got out to listen.

I could barely hear a thing from the spinning blades high above. It was even softer than the traffic on Highway 51 from my bedroom.

We can't let the gripers win — especially when it comes to improving our mostly imported and dirty energy supply.

RENEW Battles Local Opposition to Wind

Monday, June 09, 2008

Articles in the Renewable Energy Quarterly, Spring 2008, include:

RENEW Battles Local Opposition to Wind
Starting a Renewable Energy Business
Renewable Profiles: Wes Slaymaker
Solar Hot Water from the Garden
Reviving a Classic Wind Machine
Calendar

Pollution in the land of oil sands

Saturday, June 07, 2008

From a story by Jason Markusoff in the Edmonton Journal:

EDMONTON - A provincial advisory group has yanked from its website a pair of reports that reveal air pollutants are on the rise in the oilsands region, insisting they should have never been made public.

The Alberta Environment reports on chemical emissions and air quality show that peak concentrations of the toxic gas hydrogen sulphide in areas around the massive plants had jumped by 30 to 175 per cent since 1999, bucking a downward trend elsewhere the province.

This means the levels occasionally exceeded the province's air-quality guidelines, and one of the papers is forthright about what was happening.

"Increased activity in the oilsands is likely the cause of the increased levels seen in that area of the province," says the November 2007 paper on air-pollutant trends, prepared for the Clean Air Strategic Alliance (CASA).

A related paper shows that another pollutant, nitrous oxide gases, were on the rise because of the conventional oil and oilsands sectors. Oilsands operators had succeeded in reducing sulphur-oxide levels from 2000 to 2005, but the second report predicted they would rise as development expanded.

The findings came amid Premier Ed Stelmach and the government's repeated assertions that Alberta is a leader in environmental stewardship, and that the oilsands are clean-energy producers.

Enbridge Energy is building a pipeline through Wisconsin to carry the oil extracted from Alberta tar sands to Chicago-area refineries, and RENEW Wisconsin previously raised questions about the tar sands.

Sign the energy independence declaration

Friday, June 06, 2008

Sign the declaration at Solve Global Warming Wisconsin:

Declaration of Energy Independence

Because global warming is a genuine moral, health and economic issue; and

Because the United States of America produces approximately 25 percent of the world’s greenhouse gases that cause global warming, and Wisconsin generates those gases at a rate about one-third faster than the national average; and

Because lifestyle changes and new energy technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions can also reduce personal and business costs, promote local economic growth, and improve national security; and

Because I have the power to make those changes in my personal and professional life that can free me from reliance on greenhouse gas-producing energy sources;

I Declare Energy Independence and Pledge:

That I will reduce my personal carbon emissions by at least 5 percent within the next year;

That I will reduce my personal carbon emissions by at least another 5 percent within the year after that;

That thereafter I will not increase my personal carbon emissions, but rather will attempt to further reduce and offset them;

That I will ask my friends, family, elected officials, and employers and local businesses to follow my leadership example.

City of Madison starts program to help homes and businesses install solar

Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Larry Walker (left), who will provide the assistance to homeowners and businesses thorugh MadiSUN, talks with Mayor Cieslewicz in front of a solar installation at Goodman Pool at the announcement of the new program.

From a story by Ron Seely in the Wisconsin State Journal:

From solar-powered water heaters in fire stations to solar panels on schools and some libraries, Madison is increasingly turning to the sun for energy.

Now, thanks to a $200,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, the city hopes to encourage more homeowners and businesses to convert to solar power. The grant is part of the federal Solar America Initiative, which is making $5 million available nationwide to encourage the use of solar power. Madison joins 25 other cities in winning one of the competitive grants.

Madison, Mayor Dave Cieslewicz announced Tuesday, has become MadiSUN. At least that's the name that's been attached to the city's initiative.

Madison grapples with green

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

From a story by Paul Snyder in The Daily Reporter:

Madison still can’t bridge the gap between its green government and its goal of a green city.

And that may be because the city needs to more clearly define its goals, said Steve Hiniker, executive director of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin.

“If Madison can explain what it’s looking for in terms of development, I think we could be a national leader in green building,” he said.

City administrators spent four years putting together sustainable design committees. They implemented Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards for city-owned building and renovation jobs. They developed programs like Green Capital City, which focuses Madison efforts on environmental practices.

But the city still can’t decide exactly where it wants to go or how it wants to get there.

When recently discussing the Regent Street-South Campus Neighborhood Plan, the city’s Urban Design Commission turned a green eye to the private sector and the possibility of placing LEED standards on new buildings planned for the area.

“It’s a debate we need to have,” said Todd Barnett, an architect and member of the commission, “because I wonder where LEED will be in 10 years’ time. . . .”

Clean Energy Car Show, Custer, Wisconsin, June 20-22

Monday, June 02, 2008

From the just-released program for The Energy Fair in Custer, Wisconsin (just outside of Stevens Point), June 20-22:

Clean Energy Car Show
A popular part of the Energy Fair, the Clean Energy Car Show will be back for its fourth year. The Car Show, sponsored by Toyota, will feature sustainable transportation options though exhibits, workshops and demonstration vehicles. Example workshops include Sustainable Transportation Technologies, Biofuels 101, and Reacquaint Yourself with Your Bike.

Hybridfest 2008, weekend of July 19, Dane Co. Fair

Saturday, May 31, 2008

From the Web site of Hybridfest:

Yes, Hybridfest is about hybrid cars, but it is also a place for discussion of important issues such as climate change, air quality, and the need for sustainable transportation. Car dealers, environmental groups, vendors, and others will be on hand to make Hybridfest a memorable experience.

+ Hybrid Owners Car Showcase – This year's goal: 200 Hybrids on site!

+ Hybrid vehicle test drives

+ Interesting exhibitors

+ Hybrid-related and environmental speakers Learn more

"GasHole" to be shown in Madison, June 3

Friday, May 30, 2008

"GasHole" narrated by Peter Gallagher coming to The Point Ultra Screen in
Madison on June 3rd!

IF YOU BUY GASOLINE, THIS IS A MUST SEE FILM! -- Judy Dugan, former LA
Times Reporter & current Research Director of Oilwatchdog.org

My name is Scott D. Roberts and my partner, Jeremy Wagener and I are the
writer, producer and directors of the new documentary, "GasHole," narrated
by Peter Gallagher. (www.gasholemovie.com) This timely, hot-button film takes an intense look at oil prices and the future of alternative fuels. The film has a special screening event at The Point Ultra Screen on Tuesday, June 3rd, at 7:00 pm with a Q & A session with the filmmakers to follow the screening. Tickets
are $10.00 for general & $8.00 for Seniors/Students. Tickets can be
purchased in advance at www.Marcustheatres.com

Please pass along this information so that Madison will be a success on
our tour!

Here is our latest review from "Fox in the Morning."

Here is a review from The Lincoln Journal Star.

To see the trailer, view PR Photos, TV appearances, and radio interviews,
please visit www.gasholemovie.com.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,
Scott D. Roberts
The Film Racket
310-975-9830

Citing energy costs, Dow raises prices

Thursday, May 29, 2008

From an Associated Press story that appeared in numerous newspapers, including The New York Times:

The Dow Chemical Company, the chemical giant, said Wednesday that it would raise its prices by up to 20 percent almost immediately to offset the soaring cost of energy, and the company’s chief executive criticized Washington for failing to develop a sound energy policy.

“For years, Washington has failed to address the issue of rising energy costs and, as a result, the country now faces a true energy crisis, one that is causing serious harm to America’s manufacturing sector and all consumers of energy,” Andrew N. Liveris, Dow Chemical’s chairman and chief executive, said in a written statement. . . .

Of course, addressing the issue of rising energy costs usually means opening more U.S. lands and offshore sites to oil drilling. However, another AP article about North Sea oil provides some insight into the limits of trying to reverse the inevitable depletion of world oil supplies:

LONDON, England (AP) -- Britain is granting licenses for two new North Sea oil fields as part of an attempt to encourage major oil producers to help stabilize the world's energy markets.

John Hutton, Britain's business and enterprise secretary, authorized two new oil field developments and said Wednesday he plans to help companies extract reserves from previously unprofitable parts of around 30 existing fields. . . .

Hutton's ministry says the two new fields have an estimated total output of 50 million barrels and additional daily production in the existing fields could produce up to 20,000 extra barrels per day.

The U.S. uses about 20 million barrels of oil each day, meaning the "total output" would only satisfy the U.S. oil addiction for two and a half days!

Visit Peak Oil Group at Farmers Market, May 31

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

The Madison Peak Oil Group will have a table top display at the Farmers Market from 9:00 a.m. to noon on the corner of South Hamilton, North Caroll, and West Main.

Feel free to stop to say hello, talk about peak oil, complain about the price of gasoline, and sign up for news from the Madison Peak Oil Group.

Energy watchdog warns of oil-production crunch

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

From an article by Neil King Jr. and Peter Fritsch in The Wall Street Journal:

The world's premier energy monitor is preparing a sharp downward revision of its oil-supply forecast, a shift that reflects deepening pessimism over whether oil companies can keep abreast of booming demand.

The Paris-based International Energy Agency is in the middle of its first attempt to comprehensively assess the condition of the world's top 400 oil fields. Its findings won't be released until November, but the bottom line is already clear: Future crude supplies could be far tighter than previously thought. . . .

For several years, the IEA has predicted that supplies of crude and other liquid fuels will arc gently upward to keep pace with rising demand, topping 116 million barrels a day by 2030, up from around 87 million barrels a day currently. Now, the agency is worried that aging oil fields and diminished investment mean that companies could struggle to surpass 100 million barrels a day over the next two decades.

The decision to rigorously survey supply -- instead of just demand, as in the past --reflects an increasing fear within the agency and elsewhere that oil-producing regions aren't on track to meet future needs.

"The oil investments required may be much, much higher than what people assume," said Fatih Birol, the IEA's chief economist and the leader of the study, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. "This is a dangerous situation. . . ."

The IEA's study marks a big change in the agency's efforts to peer into the future. In the past, the IEA focused mainly on assessing future demand, and then looked at how much non-OPEC countries were likely to produce to meet that demand. Any gap, it was assumed, would then be met by big OPEC producers such as Saudi Arabia, Iran or Kuwait.

Grist began its summary of the article with a bit of humor:

Predictions that global oil supply will keep up with demand may be just plain wrong, says some peak oil preaching wacko the world's leading energy monitor.

Peak oil pushes some to survivalist approach; maybe there's a better way

Sunday, May 25, 2008

From an Associated Press story by Samanta Gross published by several media outlets including the Wisconsin State Journal:

BUSKIRK, N.Y. (AP) -- A few years ago, Kathleen Breault was just another suburban grandma, driving countless hours every week, stopping for lunch at McDonald's, buying clothes at the mall, watching TV in the evenings.

That was before Breault heard an author talk about the bleak future of the world's oil supply. Now, she's preparing for the world as we know it to disappear.

Breault cut her driving time in half. She switched to a diet of locally grown foods near her upstate New York home and lost 70 pounds. She sliced up her credit cards, banished her television and swore off plane travel. She began relying on a wood-burning stove.
"I was panic-stricken," the 50-year-old recalled, her voice shaking. "Devastated. Depressed. Afraid. Vulnerable. Weak. Alone. Just terrible."

Convinced the planet's oil supply is dwindling and the world's economies are heading for a crash, some people around the country are moving onto homesteads, learning to live off their land, conserving fuel and, in some cases, stocking up on guns they expect to use to defend themselves and their supplies from desperate crowds of people who didn't prepare.

A post titled Why the Survivalists Have Got It Wrong takes the survivalist approach to task:

For me, peak oil is our personal and collective call to power. This is the time when we truly find out what we can do when we collectively apply our genius and brilliance. I don’t believe that our collective response to crisis will be violence and disintegration, I believe our collective adaptability, creativity and ingenuity will come to the fore. The irony is that these survivalists who have the insight into the urgency of peak oil and who decide, in response, to head for the hills, are, ironically, most needed in the places where the rest of the people are, sharing their skills and their insights.

Just what is our relationship to gasoline?

Thursday, May 22, 2008

A letter from Hans Noeldner, an active participant in the Madison Peak Oil Group, appeared in The Capital Times:

Dear Editor: Even as Americans feel pain at the pump, even as presidential candidates struggle to outdo each other railing against exorbitant oil profits, some pundits claim that prices "need" to be higher to convince us to break our addiction to oil and slash our greenhouse gas emissions.

Just what is our relationship to gasoline? And what would we like it to be?

We the people are responsible for restraining our own consumption and emissions to fair and sustainable levels, and for directing our government to enact prudent collective restraints via regulations, taxes, penalties, etc.

I choose to believe this. I would like you to choose this worldview too.

Citizens will not see gas as cheap no matter what the pump price is. Why? Because we will see the costs written in blood on gas pump handles, the costs written on the sky with global warming, the costs written on the landscape with earth-suffocating pavement, and the costs written on humanity with isolation and obesity and the destruction of healthy self-locomotion. Citizens will not need dollars and cents to communicate these "externalities" to us.

Citizens will avoid touching gas pump handles as much as possible. We will also point out the costs in blood and greenhouse gases and such to our families, friends, neighbors and fellow congregants.

True, right now most people are reluctant to acknowledge direct connections to their own behaviors. They say that the "little bit" they use doesn't matter. They say that if they burn less oil, someone else will just burn more. And they insist on "rights" to consume as much as they can personally afford.

Citizens will keep on standing for connections and responsibilities. And the people will join us.

Hans Noeldner

Oregon

MGE customers triple green energy commitment

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

A press release issued by Madison Gas and Electric:

Madison, Wis., March 27, 2008—Madison Gas and Electric (MGE) customers have tripled their commitment to green energy since the introduction of the company's Green Power Tomorrow program in early January. More than 10,000 customers have signed up to pay a small premium on their electric bill in order to offset the carbon emissions normally produced by their electricity.

MGE's new Green Power Tomorrow program offers renewable energy from a recently constructed wind farm in northern Iowa, two wind farms in Wisconsin and solar power from several projects in the Madison area. The company's wind power portfolio is scheduled to increase by eight times this year.

Interest in the renewable energy program remains high and the company is continuing to enroll customers. MGE was one of the first Wisconsin utilities to offer a green pricing program to customers. In 1999, the company brought online a new wind farm in Kewaunee County and subscribed its entire capacity of green energy in less than four months.

MGE generates and distributes electricity to 136,000 customers in Dane County, Wis., and purchases and distributes natural gas to 140,000 customers in seven south-central and western Wisconsin counties. MGE's roots in the Madison area date back more than 150 years.

Tour of solar heating in homes and businesses, Madison area, June 14

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Hot Water Products, Cardinal Solar, Advantage Plumbing, Hydronic Solutions announced a tour on June 14th of local homes and businesses that have gone solar.

Here are the details from Cardinal's Web site:

WHAT:
A free bus tour of homes and businesses that harvest the sun’s energy to provide heat and hot water. Viewing of entire system by bus tour only.
WHEN:
Saturday June 14th from 10:00am – 4:00pm. Bus tour begins at 11:00am & 1:30pm.
WHERE:
Advantage Plumbing / 2881 Larue Field Ln., Sun Prairie, WI
RSVP:
Please rsvp before tour day to 608-837-9367 as seating is limited.

LEARN HOW TO:
• Reduce energy cost and be a more efficient energy user
• Reduce carbon emissions in and around your home
• Improve the comfort of your home

Reject backlash against biofuels

Monday, May 19, 2008

From an editorial in the Wisconsin State Journal:

In 1995, before the ethanol boom began, American farmers produced 162million metric tons of corn for food and export.

By 2007, ethanol production was taking 62 million metric tons of corn. So the corn left for food and export was — 308 million metric tons.

That's right, 308 million metric tons — 82 percent more than before the ethanol boom, thanks to higher yields and more land in cornfields.

But how can that be true when, according to the backlash against biofuels, a scarcity of corn — caused by America's diversion of corn into ethanol production — is to blame for world food shortages and skyrocketing prices?

It is true because the backlash against biofuels is based on myth, misrepresentation and myopia, adding up to a failure of reason.

That's why Wisconsin, and all of America, should stay on course with the development of biofuels.

Several posts follow the editorial on the State Journal's Web page, including one that says in part:

Problem: Reduce Pollution – a noble pursuit.

How Ethanol fails: When you factor in the carbon output of producing the crop (planting, fertilizing, cultivating, harvesting), transporting the crop to the ethanol production facility, actually producing the ethanol, transporting (via truck or train, since ethanol cannot be sent through a pipeline) the ethanol to a refinery to be blended with gasoline, and then transporting the finished product to a filling station for consumption, you have produced so much more additional pollution that you have significantly negated any potential gain in pollution reduction.

Gas Tax Pain

Friday, May 16, 2008

From a new Fossil Fuel Watch by Michael Vickerman:

Could there be more convincing proof of America’s debilitating addiction to oil than the recent calls to institute a gasoline tax holiday issued by two of the three presidential aspirants still in the race?

Imagine what would happen if a candidate for public office endorsed a repeal of cigarette taxes. Articulating such a position would instantly disqualify that candidate from serious consideration by rank and file voters. Indeed, it would stop a candidacy faster than you can say “macaca.”

Yet, while Sens. John McCain or Hillary Clinton, both advocates of suspending the 18.4 cents/gallon gasoline tax, have been excoriated in editorials for espousing such patent flim-flam, they don’t seem to have lost any ground with the voting public.

While the McCain-Clinton gas tax suspension proposal may have a set a new low in the public discussion of energy, it can’t be dismissed as mere election-year pandering. Instead, this proposal reveals a dark truth about ourselves: we Americans are psychologically unprepared to accept the energy reality we now inhabit, which is that oil is neither cheap nor plentiful (relative to demand). The same holds true for natural gas.

The factors converging to create global energy insecurity—diminishing output from supergiant fields, rapid demand growth in the world’s most populous nations, civil unrest in oil-exporting nations, etc.—cannot be held at bay with political stunts.

Whether its citizens like it or not, the United States will, going forward, consume a smaller portion of the Earth’s remaining petroleum than at any time before during the Automobile Age.

Details released on nation's premier energy education event in Custer, Wisconsin

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Join the MREA and RENEW for the 19th annual Energy Fair June 20-22, 2008. The Fair will be held at MREA's headquarters, the ReNew the Earth Institute, located at 7558 Deer Road in Custer, WI. See the Travel and Accommodations page for directions and other information.

General Energy Fair Information
Since 1990, the Energy Fair has shown fairgoers how to change the world while having fun. Each summer the Fair transforms rural central Wisconsin into the global hot spot for renewable energy education. The Energy Fair is the world's largest renewable energy, energy efficiency, and sustainable living educational event of its kind. Please join us this year!

The Energy Fair features hundreds of workshops and exhibits all emphasizing clean energy & sustainable living and is fun for the whole family. In 2007, the Energy Fair hosted over 19,500 attendees. We hope to see you in 2008!

Running on empty: Cars that never need gas

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

From the Web site of the Sierra Club:

There are hybrids. There are electric cars that plug into a wall and get their juice from whatever mix the electric company is offering. And then there are electic cars that are charged by solar panels on the roof of one's house. They never need gas, and the power is free after the set-up cost.

We wondered: How tough is it to do this? Are electric cars hard to find? Is it difficult to get a rooftop solar collector set up? Here are the stories of vehicles that run on empty.

Darrell Dickey: A New Car -- And Fuel for Life

Darrell Dickey regularly commutes to work 24 miles, one way, by bike. But when it's too cold or wet for the bike, or when he and his family travel long distances from their home in Davis, California, he drives a battery-powered electric vehicle that he charges with photovoltaic (PV) panels mounted on his garage roof.

"Five years ago, I spent about $45,000 and got a brand new car (the RAv4EV) and the solar system," he says. "We're still driving the car every day, and the solar system will continue to make fuel for whatever EV we drive in the future. For $45,000 we bought a new car and fuel for the rest or our lives."

In 1996, Dickey was invited to test-drive the GM "Impact", which he then leased for two years. (The Impact later became the EV1, the first modern electric vehicle.) "We loved that car and hated to give it back," he says. But the Toyota Rav4EV had just become available for purchase, so he bought the electric vehicle he is driving today.

Dickey says the inspiration to drive electric comes from having a child. "It would embarrass me to have to explain to my daughter why we continued to import and burn oil when we knew the consequences," he says. "Having no tune-ups and no trips to the gas station ever is just icing."

By installing a solar system atop his garage, Dickey took the next step in driving a totally clean car. "Now," he says, "I can deflect the comments that my 'electric' car is just a 'coal-burning' car. EVs are the ultimate flex-fuel vehicle. You can make electricity out of just about anything: sun, wind, natural gas, coal—even gasoline! Your fuel can be totally domestic, or in my case, totally local."

Asked how long it will take for the PV system to pay for itself, Dickey replies: "If we think of everything in terms of what it costs us in the short-term, we're screwed. It's the same argument people use against the Prius: When will it pay back in gas savings? But that only accounts for the money paid at the pump. What of the billions of dollars that leave our economy for oil, or the billions of our tax dollars that go toward tax incentives for oil companies? What of the cost of the military and the lives lost to protect our oil?"

But the short answer for the solar pay-back, he says, was "the instant I turned my system on." Dickey had been paying $75 a month for electricity. He took a loan out to buy the PV system, and pays $70 a month toward that loan. "My electricity and gasoline bills are now zero, and next year when my loan is paid off, this investment will be paying me probably for the rest of my life. My PV system covers the power for my home and my car. It displaces $90 worth of electricity and over $100 worth of gasoline every month. So my estimate of how long until the system pays for itself is no time at all!"

Transit ridership up across U.S.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

A news summary posted on Grist:

Transit ridership has jumped across the U.S. as folks get tired of paying at the pump. From January to March, transit ridership jumped 10 percent in Boston, 8 percent in both Los Angeles and Denver, and 7.2 percent in the Twin Cities. In Philadelphia, transit ridership in March 2008 was up 11 percent from March 2007; in April, ridership in south Florida was an impressive 28 percent above the year before. "Nobody believed that people would actually give up their cars to ride public transportation," says Joseph Giulietti of south Florida's transportation authority. "But in the last year, and last several months in particular, we have seen exactly that." In addition, motorcycles and scooters are selling like fuel-efficient hotcakes, and vanpools and bikes are increasingly popular. Says Clark Williams-Derry of the nonprofit Sightline Institute, "It's almost like we hit a point where, 'I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore,' and that point was about $3.50 a gallon."

Legislative committee to study renewable fuels

Monday, May 12, 2008

From a press release issued by State Senator Keitlow and State Rep. Suder:

(Madison) The Joint Legislative Council has announced the creation of a study committee to look into the economic and environmental impact of the development and use of renewable fuels in Wisconsin. Senator Pat Kreitlow (D-Chippewa Falls) and Representative Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) were named co-chairs of the non-partisan study group, which will be made up of legislators, citizens and industry experts.

“There is a lot of outdated and inaccurate data out there about bio-diesel, ethanol and renewable fuels in general. It seems every time the legislature looks into making renewable fuel policy that can benefit our state’s economy, that misinformation gets in the way,” said Kreitlow. “This committee will give us an
opportunity to take a fresh look at the issue from all sides, and give the legislature up to date and current information about the current status of renewable fuels. This way, when the legislature considers renewable fuel policies in the future, we can make decisions based on relevant facts, rather than old rumors. And where genuine barriers are found to renewable fuels’ efficiency, price or environmental impact, we can fairly assess what needs to be done to address those concerns.”

Kreitlow and Suder requested the creation of the study committee to examine the often controversial issues surrounding bio-fuel. The group will seek voices from all perspectives to help determine the best course

Wisconsin truckers slow down; association asks for lower speed limit

Friday, May 09, 2008

From an article by Rick Romell in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

The trucking industry's largest lobbying group called Thursday for a nationwide 65 mph speed limit, heavier trailers and other steps to help cut greenhouse gas emissions and save billions of gallons of fuel.

And Green Bay-based Schneider National Inc., one of the country's biggest trucking firms, went even further: The company on Thursday cut the top cruising speed on its 10,600 tractors to 60 mph.

"We encourage others in the industry to make this commitment with us," Schneider President and Chief Executive Officer Chris Lofgren said at a news conference in Washington, D.C., announcing the industry initiative.

Schneider's additional efforts aside, the proposals by the American Trucking Associations could potentially eliminate 900 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions over 10 years, the organization said.

What I Do: Energy consultant shrinks carbon footprint

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

The Wisconsin State Journal profiled Larry Walker, an active participant in the Madison Peak Oil Group:

With the cost of heating and cooling homes and businesses increasing at a rapid rate and the concern of availability of resources in the future, I got concerned, involved and decided to do something about it. I started Walker Energy Systems in October and I visit clients to conduct energy audits, solar assessments and energy-strategy consultations.With the cost of heating and cooling homes and businesses increasing at a rapid rate and the concern of availability of resources in the future, I got concerned, involved and decided to do something about it. I started Walker Energy Systems in October and I visit clients to conduct energy audits, solar assessments and energy-strategy consultations.

I left my career with a local software development firm at the end of 2006 and enrolled in the Midwest Renewable Energy Association's solar photovoltaic assessment certification program. I received my certification in September after I completed the assessment training classes, passed their certification exam and practice assessments. I'm in the process of completing the solar thermal (hot water) assessor's training. The MREA is one of only two groups in the U.S. that train and certify solar assessors.

GOP group wants curbs on ethanol due to increases in food prices; others point to oil prices

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

From a story by Thomas Content and Joel Dresang in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Twenty-four Republican senators, including likely presidential nominee John McCain, on Monday called for a halt to the expansion of ethanol production as a response to rising food prices.

The senators urged the Environmental Protection Agency to restructure rules that would require greater production of ethanol from corn by 2022.

"This subsidized (ethanol) program - paid for by taxpayer dollars - has contributed to pain at the cash register, at the dining room table, and a devastating food crisis throughout the world," McCain said in a statement.

Critics of the proposal said that too much attention was being placed on ethanol as a reason for rising food prices, and that not enough attention was being placed on the role that rising crude oil prices - which surged to $120 a barrel Monday - have played in driving up the cost of food.

"It's the wrong medicine for the problem," Wisconsin Agriculture Secretary Rod Nilsestuen said. "If we hadn't had the significant increase in renewable fuels that we've seen in the last five years, we would have higher gas prices today, not lower ones."

Experts give tips on holding down driving costs

Monday, May 05, 2008

From an Associated Press article by Eileen Powell:

When David Champion is behind the wheel of a car, he accelerates slowly and brakes gingerly. He tries to drive, he says, as if there were a cup of coffee on the dashboard that would shower him with scalding liquid if he were overzealous with the accelerator or the brake.

The driving habits adopted by Champion, director of automobile testing for Consumer Reports, have as much to do with saving money as they do with safety. . . .

Here, for example, is what a family that drives 12,500 miles per year in a vehicle with a fuel economy of 20.1 miles per gallon could save in the six specific areas:

• Keeping tires properly inflated, which can improve gas mileage by about 3 percent, for a savings of 20 gallons of gas a year, or up to $65.

• Using the manufacturer's recommended grade of motor oil, for a gain of 1 percent to 2 percent and annual savings of $40.

• Cutting the number of miles traveled by 5 percent through combining trips, walking or taking mass transit, for $100.

• Eliminating jackrabbit starts, speeding and rapid braking at highway speeds for as much as 80 gallons a year, or $260.

• More-sensible driving around town for about 30 gallons, or $100.

• Clearing 100 pounds of junk from the trunk to save 12 gallons, or $40.

People who take all those steps could potentially cut their gas costs by $605 a year.

Dumb as we wanna be

Friday, May 02, 2008

From an op-ed by Thomas Friedman in The New York Times:

It is great to see that we finally have some national unity on energy policy.

Unfortunately, the unifying idea is so ridiculous, so unworthy of the people aspiring to lead our nation, it takes your breath away. Hillary Clinton has decided to line up with John McCain in pushing to suspend the federal excise tax on gasoline, 18.4 cents a gallon, for this summer’s travel season. This is not an energy policy. This is money laundering: we borrow money from China and ship it to Saudi Arabia and take a little cut for ourselves as it goes through our gas tanks. What a way to build our country.

When the summer is over, we will have increased our debt to China, increased our transfer of wealth to Saudi Arabia and increased our contribution to global warming for our kids to inherit.

No, no, no, we’ll just get the money by taxing Big Oil, says Mrs. Clinton. Even if you could do that, what a terrible way to spend precious tax dollars — burning it up on the way to the beach rather than on innovation?

The McCain-Clinton gas holiday proposal is a perfect example of what energy expert Peter Schwartz of Global Business Network describes as the true American energy policy today: “Maximize demand, minimize supply and buy the rest from the people who hate us the most.”

Good for Barack Obama for resisting this shameful pandering.

But here’s what’s scary: our problem is so much worse than you think. We have no energy strategy. If you are going to use tax policy to shape energy strategy then you want to raise taxes on the things you want to discourage — gasoline consumption and gas-guzzling cars — and you want to lower taxes on the things you want to encourage — new, renewable energy technologies. We are doing just the opposite.

Are you sitting down?

Few Americans know it, but for almost a year now, Congress has been bickering over whether and how to renew the investment tax credit to stimulate investment in solar energy and the production tax credit to encourage investment in wind energy. The bickering has been so poisonous that when Congress passed the 2007 energy bill last December, it failed to extend any stimulus for wind and solar energy production. Oil and gas kept all their credits, but those for wind and solar have been left to expire this December. I am not making this up. At a time when we should be throwing everything into clean power innovation, we are squabbling over pennies.

These credits are critical because they ensure that if oil prices slip back down again — which often happens — investments in wind and solar would still be profitable. That’s how you launch a new energy technology and help it achieve scale, so it can compete without subsidies.

The Democrats wanted the wind and solar credits to be paid for by taking away tax credits from the oil industry. President Bush said he would veto that. Neither side would back down, and Mr. Bush — showing not one iota of leadership — refused to get all the adults together in a room and work out a compromise. Stalemate. Meanwhile, Germany has a 20-year solar incentive program; Japan 12 years. Ours, at best, run two years.

Living on the banks of denial

Thursday, May 01, 2008

From a commentary on the Oilism site of Chris Neldner:

How long have we been living on the banks of denial? And it slightly depressed me today to discover that I wrote an article by that very title back in September 2005, which I could have written today:

Energy will continue to get more and more expensive. In a short while, you won’t be able to afford to fill the tank on an SUV. You will learn to like wearing sweaters, and living without A/C. If you live in a big city or a suburb, you will probably have to move. If you’re in one of the red-hot real estate markets in the US, the value of your property will take a couple of sickening drops. Your money and investments will devalue. You will find it increasingly difficult to buy—or even get—food. Water will get scarcer, more expensive, and harder to clean.

I really can’t blame the media for their reluctance to face up to peak oil. It’s an unpleasant concept and it immediately strikes fear into one’s heart.

I have often reflected on how coming to grips with peak oil is much like the process of grieving, as identified by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross in her 1969 book, On Death and Dying. In peaker terms, I’d describe it like this:

Denial: “There’s plenty of oil out there, and we can drill our way out of this.”
Anger: “Why aren’t those bastards drilling our way out of this?”
Bargaining: “Well maybe ANWR, the continental offshore, the tar sands, and slightly more efficient cars will fix it.”
Depression: “Oh man, we’re screwed, it’s too big a problem for me, I might as well give up.”
Acceptance: “I’m ready for the second half of the Age of Oil and I’m going to find a way forward.”