The Wind Siting Advisory Committee, created to advise the Public Service Commission on statewide wind siting standards, toured Blue Sky Green Field Wind Energy Center and Forward Wind Center to gain first hand knowledge of turbine impacts.
A Community Solar Event
New Richmond WITC Campus
Edwin J. Cashman Conference Center, Burnett Room 105
1019 South Knowles Avenue
New Richomnd, WI 54017
Interested in finding more about Solar Electric Systems?? Find out how you can take control of your energy costs while making a positive impact on the environment! Craig Tarr, PE president of Hudson based Energy Concepts, Inc (ECI) will host an informative presentation on the benefits of solar electric systems, how they work and the available rebate and incentive programs.
Energy Concepts, the State of WI’s “Renewable Energy Market provider of the year – 2009” designs and installs solar electric, wind and solar hot water systems for residential and commercial applications.
Thursday, May 6, 2010 – 6:30 – 8:30 pm
6:30-7:00 Light Refreshments/Socialize
7:00 – 7:45 Solar Electric – The Basics
7:45 – 8:00 Q & A
8:00 – 8:30 SUNPOWER – “The planet’s most powerful solar” presentation
www.energyconcepts.us
Craig Tarr – 715 381 9977
From a Community Conversation column by Bob Cleaves, president of the Biomass Power Association, in the Sheboygan Press:
Wisconsin is in the midst of a serious debate about the environmental impact of biomass power, and whether increasing their use of clean, renewable biomass for electricity could potentially lead to unintended negative consequences, specifically with respect to forest health and greenhouse gas emissions. The truth, however, is that increasing our use of biomass power will improve forest health in Wisconsin and reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.
Biomass power is carbon neutral electricity generated from renewable organic waste that would otherwise be dumped in landfills, openly burned or left as fodder for forest fires.
On average, America’s biomass power industry removes 68.8 million tons of forest waste annually, improving forest health and dramatically reducing the threat of forest fires. This forest waste includes dead debris and brush left to rot on the forest floor. Clearing this debris is a part of regular forest maintenance and is frequently done by state forest services in the form of open burns.
By using this waste to generate electricity, the biomass power industry is preventing the need for open burns and significantly reducing the risk and spread of forest fires. Waste byproducts from other industries and organic waste from the forest floor continue to be the only economically viable fuel sources for biomass power.
Fuel providers to the biomass power industry do not harvest wood solely for the purpose of generating electricity — forests are simply far too valuable.
From an article in the Stevens Point Journal:
A local renewable energy organization and two local state officials will be among those honored next week by the College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
The Midwest Renewable Energy Association and state representative Louis Molepske, Jr. have been named co-recipients of the 2009-10 Environmental Leader Award. In addition to his involvement as a member of the CNR’s Advisory Board, Molepske, Jr., also serves on the Assembly Committee on Agriculture, Committee on Natural Resources, and Committee on Fish and Wildlife.
The MREA promotes renewable energy, energy efficiency and sustainable living through education and demonstration and sponsors the MREA Energy Fair, the nation’s longest running energy education event of its kind.
The award honors individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to maintaining the integrity of our ecosystems. Candidates are nominated by the faculty and selected by the CNR Dean’s Council.
State Senator Julie Lassa is one of five individuals to receive the CNR’s 2009-10 Outstanding Contributor Award for her longtime support of college programs, most recently her efforts to secure state funding for core staffing in UWSP’s promising initiative, the Wisconsin Institute for Sustainable Technology.
A letter to the editor in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel by Jeff Anthony, Director of Business Development of the American Wind Energy Association and a member of the board of directors of RENEW Wisconsin:
John Torinus’ column celebrating the demise of Wisconsin’s Clean Energy Jobs Act legislation couldn’t be more misguided and wrong (April 25, Page 3D).
Torinus conveniently ignores the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin study concluding that average utility bills would be lower under the bill compared to the status quo. Further, a comprehensive economic assessment of the proposed legislation concluded it would create at least 15,000 jobs in Wisconsin by 2025.
Most puzzling is that Torinus criticizes the bill by citing the European experience, which has incorporated the very same kind of renewable energy targets already in place in Wisconsin and that the bill would have strengthened.
And contrary to still more puzzling claims from Torinus, behind the development of the bill was an impressively diverse range of businesses and stakeholders, all working in concert over a lengthy period to come up with a pragmatic piece of legislation that would simultaneously create jobs and foster a cleaner environment.
Torinus apparently has failed to take a look at the list of businesses and other organizations that formed such pro-bill coalitions as “Clean, Responsible Energy for Wisconsin’s Economy.” Conspicuously absent from the collaborative effort, in fact, was Torinus’ own company.
Jeff Anthony
Director of Business Development
American Wind Energy Association
Milwaukee
From an article by in the Thomah Journal-News:
A proposal to generate energy for solid waste by-products of the Ridgeville landfill site will be the subject of a special meeting of the Monroe County Board of Supervisors at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Sparta.
Gail Frei, Monroe County solid waste manager, will present the proposal at the session to be held in the courthouise annex meeting room.
Frei outlined the plan to make electricity from biogas at a meeting of the Solid Waste Committee in February. At the time, the committee approved $14,000 to begin initial planning for the program. Frei, who was Vernon County’s solid waste manager for 18 years, said there was a ready market for the electricity produced and the process would extend the life of the landfill.
As outlined, The Monroe County Landfill Gas-to-Energy/Food Waste Diversion Project is an environmentally proactive landfill gas management project designed to reduce the amount of methane gas released to the environment by the landfill, process specific food waste outside the landfill to create biogas, and use those gas products for constructive purposes. Frei said the project would reduce landfill odors from decomposing food waste, extend the life of the landfill, and develop a new revenue source (sale of electricity) to pay a capital cost loan. After the loan is repaid, the revenue would be used to offset landfill costs, which means anyone using the landfill will share in the benefits.
From a story on WQOW-TV, Eau Claire:
CUMBERLAND, WI. (Press Release) – 3M Cumberland was formally welcomed into the Department of Natural Resources’ Green Tier program today, during Earth Week, at a celebration event at their facility in Cumberland, Wisconsin. DNR officials congratulated 3M for its commitment to environmental protection during the celebration, which included staff and management from the facility, local officials and 3M Corporate officials.
“The Department of Natural Resources is proud to add 3M Cumberland to the growing ranks of Green Tier companies,” Department of Natural Resources Secretary Matt Frank said. “They have proven that they are leaders in their community by managing operations to protect our shared natural resources for future generations.”
Frank said it is fitting the company is welcomed into Green Tier during Earth Week when so much is being done to enhance the natural resources of the state.
3M has a long-standing corporate commitment to three pillars of sustainability, also known as the triple bottom line: environmental protection, social responsibility and economic progress. 3M uses this philosophy to reduce their environmental footprint while continuing to grow their business. To do this, 3M pioneered the concept of pollution prevention with the creation of the Pollution Prevention Pays (3P) program in 1975. The 3P program is based on the reality that pollution prevention is more environmentally effective, technically sound and economical than conventional pollution control equipment. 3P seeks to eliminate pollution at the source through product reformulation, process modification, equipment redesign and the recycling and reuse of waste materials. By 2009, 34 years later, 3P ideas and initiatives from employees have prevented 2.9 billion pounds of pollutants and saved 3M nearly $1.2 billion.
From an article by Amy Ryan in the Wausau Daily Herald:
WESTON — After presentations for and against a proposed biomass energy plant to be built across from Rothschild Elementary School, the D.C. Everest Area School Board decided Tuesday to not yet take a position on the project.
Residents fighting the biomass plant were hopeful the board would join the effort to stop its construction.
“I think we have too much material. I would not make a recommendation at this time,” said board member Rita Kasten.
We Energies plans to build a $250 million power plant that burns low-quality and unusable wood and paper waste, powering the Domtar paper mill in Rothschild and providing electricity to homes in portions of Wisconsin. We Energies hopes it will be operating by fall 2013.
Residents at the meeting said they were concerned about the effect the plant might have on the health of the children at the nearby elementary school. Those concerns were shared by board members and district administrators.
“USA TODAY … studied 127,000 schools, and only 23,000 have worse air than Rothschild,” said board member Larry Schaefer. “We’re starting with some pretty poor air already. That’s a concern I have with this plant.”
Rob Hughes, the parent of a 7-month-old, lives near the proposed site of the energy plant and said he is concerned about children playing on the playground near an energy plant.
“In the long term, these particulates cause development of lung disease in children,” he said. “It’s hard to learn if you’re puffing on an inhaler, if you’re light-headed and struggling to breathe.”
Representatives from We Energies and Domtar said the new plant would emit less pollution than the current biomass generators used at Domtar.
“There are very rigorous standards placed by regulatory agencies to protect our welfare,” said Terry Charles, environmental health and safety manager for Domtar. “That includes asthmatics and elderly.”
The plant would cut dependence on fossil fuels, reduce acid rain and be nearly carbon-neutral, the environmental advocacy group Clean Wisconsin and the U.S. Forest Service have said.
Shortly following the end of the legislative session, RENEW Wisconsin wrote to Governor Jim Doyle asking him to veto Senate Bill 273, which would allow “plasma gasification” of municipal wastes to generate electricity. RENEW sought the veto because the bill would allow the electricity to be called renewable and count toward the renewable energy requirements placed on Wisconsin utilities.
Now several other organizations, including RENEW, fleshed out the orginal veto request with a second letter:
We, the undersigned businesses and organizations, urge you to veto SB 273, which would undermine Wisconsin’s current renewable energy standards under Act 141. Signing this bill will result in less renewable solar, wind and biomass energy for Wisconsin at a time when our economy and our environment desperately need more, not less, of these technologies to decrease our dependence on dirty fossil fuels.
New development companies across the country are attempting to define gasification facilities as “green” renewable energy. Yet this technology, a glorified form of incineration that is burdened with many of the same cost and environmental drawbacks, has never been successfully deployed anywhere in this country. Developers are seeking tax incentives, grants and renewable energy credits at the expense of recycling and true renewable energy programs.
Please end your tenure as Governor by vetoing the bill that will undermine Wisconsin’s efforts to become a leader on genuine renewable energy. The benefits of doing so will be recognized for years to come.
The letter came from the Sierra Club – John Muir Chapter * Waukesha Environmental Action League * Midwest Environmental Advocates * Advocates for Renewable Energy * Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters * Clean Wisconsin * Wisconsin Environment * Citizens Utility Board * RENEW WI * Physicians for Social Responsibility * Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice.
Click here for a description of SB 273, as amended.
From an article by Wayne Nelson on BusinessNorth.com:
The Marshfield Clinic is incorporated sustainability principles in the construction of a $42 million new hospital campus under construction in Rice Lake.
BWBR Architects in St. Paul and its design partners have designed the project to conserve natural resources, reduce operating energy costs, and provide a quality indoor environment, said Edward Wolf, chief executive at Lakeview Medical Center in Rice Lake. . . .
The project’s energy-saving features include efficient lighting, air conditioning and plumbing systems. Lakeview’s board of directors committed to maximum energy use 15 percent below the state’s current building code limit. To meet that goal, the building ventilation design will recover heat from air exhausted out of the building that will heat incoming air, said mechanical engineer Linda Weingarten of Minneapolis-based Dunham & Associates, the project consulting engineering firm.
Heat given off by chillers that cool the building will be used to heat hot water, lowering electric usage during summer, she said.
“This isn’t new technology, but it’s the first time we’ve used it in a hospital project,” she said. The design is expensive, and wouldn’t be cost-effective if retrofitted in an existing building, she said.
High efficiency condensing boilers also will help lower fuel consumption year round.
Increased roof insulation values and high performance windows also will help reduce energy costs.