by jboullion | May 19, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a report published by Focus on Energy:
Computers waste a lot of electricity if they remain turned on when not in use. As the Chippewa Falls Area School District recently discovered, the cost savings from reducing computer-related energy use can make a real difference. The district began turning computers and monitors off during evenings and weekends and saw an immediate budgetary impact. The cost reduction from this one energy saving measure saved a staff position that would have been eliminated due to budget cuts.
“We always tell our schools they can cut energy costs in a lot of different ways,” said Charlie Schneider, program manager for the Focus on Energy Schools Program. “Many steps are small, but they can really add up.” Focus on Energy’s Schools Program maintains an on-line maintenance listserv for over 100 school building and grounds managers around Wisconsin. When participants have a good idea or a question about any maintenance issue, including energy efficiency, they share it with colleagues by posting it to the listserv. Recently, a Focus on Energy staff member alerted participants about a free software program created by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This program automatically puts networked computer monitors “to sleep” when they are not being used.
Bob Severson, the director of buildings and grounds at Chippewa Falls Area School District saw this message and was intrigued by the energy savings potential. His district currently owns and operates 1,150 computers. And he knew that his schools, like many around Wisconsin, do not have a formal system for putting computers into “sleep” mode or turning them on and off during evenings and weekends. . . .
The energy savings are real: this one energy saving step will save the district approximately $30,000 each year. And, at a recent school board meeting where difficult budget issues were being decided, it became clear that this unexpected reduction in energy costs will help offset a proposed staff cut.
For more information about computer use in schools, call Focus on Energy at 800.762.7077.
by jboullion | May 15, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by the UW-Extension and posted on Business North:
Energy independence and an educated workforce are critical to a prosperous future for Wisconsin. To respond, the University of Wisconsin-Extension is charging in with a bold new degree: the nation’s first online sustainable management bachelor’s degree.
For the first time, University of Wisconsin-Extension has brought together the strengths of four campuses UW-Parkside, UW-River Falls, UW-Stout and UW-Superior‹to craft a degree program that equips workers with the management skills they will need to lead sustainable business initiatives. . . .
The sustainable management degree takes the theories of sustainability and makes them tangible in the business setting, through a hands-on, problem-solving approach. By learning the fundamentals of the “Triple Bottom Line,” graduates can immediately start helping their companies create profits, preserve the environment, and improve their surrounding communities.
For more information or to complete an application, visit sustain.wisconsin.edu
by jboullion | May 12, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by WPPI Energy:
The GreenMax Home, the region’s first owner-designed and occupied net zero energy home (NZEH), has quickly generated interest for community members and renewable energy enthusiasts. Homeowners Tom and Verona Chambers are opening the doors to their NZEH and hosting public tours with WPPI Energy to showcase the energy-efficient construction and sustainable energy systems that make their Black River Falls home unique.
With grant funding from WPPI Energy’s GreenMax Home initiative, the Chambers’ designed and constructed an all-electric NZEH, which they completed in spring 2009. Through careful planning and research, the Chambers worked to refine their home’s design to control energy use, ultimately advancing the status of their home from highly efficient to net zero.
Together WPPI Energy and the Chambers will host three opportunities for interested participants to tour and learn more about the special features of their NZEH. The tours are open to the public; however, participants are encouraged to schedule a tour in advance for one of the following dates:
Saturday, May 16 from 1 to 5 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 13 from 1 to 5 p.m. in conjunction with the Black River Falls Memorial Hospital Fundraiser
Saturday, Oct. 3 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in conjunction with the Solar Tour of Homes and Public Power Week
To schedule a tour, visit www.greenmaxhome.com/projects. Open to the public, the tours will take place at the site of the Chambers’ NZEH. From the ground source heat pump to structural plumbing and the solar photovoltaic system, interested parties will learn about home energy use and renewable energy systems while getting a first-hand look at the state-of-the-art, energy-efficient construction techniques and features that make this NZEH so unique.
by jboullion | May 11, 2009 | Uncategorized
Editor’s note: Legislative committees will hold a hearing on the bill (Senate Bill 185 and an identical companion Assembly Bill 265) on May 12 in the State Capitol.
From an article by Brad Bryan in The Country Today:
Bipartisan legislation introduced in the state Senate last week seeks to make it easier for developers to build wind turbines in Wisconsin.
Authored by State Sen. Jeff Plale, D-South Milwaukee, Rep. Jim Solestki, D-Green Bay, and Rep. Phil Montgomery, R-Ashwaubenon, the bill would keep local municipalities from putting in place restrictive, anti-wind ordinances.
Tremplealeau County and the towns of Magnolia and Union in Rock County recently adopted ordinances that make it difficult, if not impossible, to construct wind turbines.
In 2007, Trempealeau County adopted an ordinance with a 1-mile setback limit from any occupied dwelling, which some have called the strictest anti wind power regulations in the country.
“There literally isn’t one square inch in Trempealeau County where you can lawfully place a turbine,” said Ryan Schryver, an advocate with Clean Wisconsin. “It’s no accident that every municipality uses different setbacks. There are no standards.”
Senate Bill 185 would establish statewide setback and other standards and would require a Public Service Commion-led stakeholder committee to oversee the process.
“I think everyone will get a seat at the table,” Schryver said. Among those at the table would be non-compensated landowners, PSC representatives, developers and other state agencies.
The bill would not, however, automatically roll back the strict standards already in place in some towns and counties.
“It’s not going to trump any existing ordinances without taking them into consideration,” Schryver said.
Ron Winn of Ettrick hopes the bill would roll back existing ordinances.
Winn is suing Trempealeau County for the right to build a turbine on his property.
Winn, who is suing on his own behalf, is a partner in the development company AgWind Energy Partners, which had erected test towers near Ettrick before a wave of backlash killed the project.
Because of the pushback it received in Trempealeau County – and the resulting expense – the company has set its sights on other wind projects, including one near Alma in Buffalo County.
by jboullion | May 8, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Chicago – Anyone looking for signs that sectors of the economy have found some shelter from the recession needed only to walk the halls of the McCormick Place convention center Thursday.
With more than 1,200 exhibitors, the world’s largest trade show for the wind power industry saw record attendance in its bid to prove that energy from wind has escaped the label “alternative.”
“When you look at this show, you wouldn’t know there’s a slowdown in the economy,” Kim Zuhlke, an executive at Alliant Energy Corp., said while standing between massive booths at the conference Thursday.
Organizers of Windpower 2009, sponsored by the American Wind Energy Association, weren’t sure how their conference would do, but the show ended up attracting more than 20,000 people. That’s 60% more than attended last year in Houston, the association said.
The recession has hit the wind power industry just like every other sector of the economy, as projects stalled for lack of financing. In an industry forecast earlier this year, the association said the wind industry is likely to slow this year after setting records for new projects last year.
“Everyone’s been in a holding pattern. It’s not just wind energy – the entire country had taken a pause,” said Ellen Shafer of Broadwind Energy, based near Chicago.
But the mood at the convention this week has been one of optimism, said Shafer, whose company has two Wisconsin subsidiaries – TowerTech, a Manitowoc maker of wind towers, and Badger Transport of Clintonville, a trucking company specializing in hauling the oversized components that are the of a wind farm development.
