CO-2 Lockdown

If you build-smart, you can put CO-2 on lockdown, by "fixing" cement:

When portland cement is mixed, about 33% of the CO2 , that is released in the kilns, is sequestered back into its “micro-crystal” formation during the curing period, that lasts upwards of 100 years.

When MgO Ceramic Cements are mixed, close to 200% of the CO2 that was released in the kilns is sequestered, during the curing period, lasting only 180 days. And even more is possible with the introduction of bio-mass (the best being Hemp), creating more minerals and space to “petrify”, sequestering even more CO2!

In 2006, the United States produced an estimated 101 million tons of cement,* resulting in the direct release of 50.5 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. This calculation is independent of the gases released by the combustion of fuels consumed in making cement, which can equal the amount produced by calcining.

Concrete is the principal building material in regions where wood is unavailable.

We lack the will and coordination, not the means ... The energy future is bright, if we can get past the barriers to seizing it.

It may prove a bigger problem easier to fix than "healthcare", even. "Ha!", as Chris Matthews would say.

[+/-] Show Full Post...

[+/-] Hide Full Post...

All trade, no cap ..

MAKE MONEY WHILE THE SUN IS OUT

Japan requires that electric utilities purchase excess electricity generated by residential systems at the same price they charge consumers (the average is about $0.22/kWh).
- Fastfacts

JUNKET-JUICE: GET PAID TO GO ON VACATION

While you are away, your house generates $$ for the grid ...

[+/-] Show Full Post...

[+/-] Hide Full Post...

Real Leadership: The Last Time Around

On a sunny june day in 1979, President Jimmy Carter held the first and only press conference on the White House roof. Atop the West Wing, he unveiled a $28,000 solar cell system that captured the sun's energy to provide hot water for the White House. He also launched a sweeping drive aimed at harnessing the sun, the wind, and other renewable resources to generate 20% of America's electricity by 2000.

It didn't happen, of course. The share of electricity produced by solar cell technology in the U.S. last year was a mere 0.07%. Carter's solar water-heating system was removed in 1986 so a leak in the roof could be fixed. The solar panels were supposed to be reinstalled but they never were.

-Businessweek, 2004

After being taught to hate Carter, a refrain the Right is happy to revive, he now looks prescient.

We traded a chance at energy-security for ... Reagan's must-have "star wars", unveiled in March, 1983, which cost how much?

Update: from 1977,

[+/-] Show Full Post...

[+/-] Hide Full Post...

You know it's not going to be a good day when ...

... it is 80 degrees at 6:30 a.m.

PEAK DEMAND MEET PEAK SUPPLY

Meanwhile, solar panels have the added benefit that they are the most effective when the demand for cooling is highest.

The marginal cost of peak-demand energy is higher. Electricity companies can save a lot by having a "smooth" demand...

[+/-] Show Full Post...

[+/-] Hide Full Post...

Toward sustainability

THE OTHER LOW-HANGING FRUIT

Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration illustrates that buildings are responsible for almost half (48%) of all GHG emissions annually. Seventy-six percent of all electricity generated by US power plants goes to supply the Building Sector.

-Architecture 2030

Washington, D.C., September 10, 2007 — Although buildings produce nearly half of all greenhouse gas emissions contributing to global warming, a survey released today by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) shows that 40 percent of voters believe cars and trucks are the highest contributors, compared to just seven percent who accurately identified buildings as the top cause of emissions. - AIA

TELL ME

In your travels about, how many buildings, residential or commercial, have you seen rushing to adopt green technologies?

In NJ, there are substantial tax-credits for solar outfitting. I've observed very little 'outfitting' going on.

I would have thought that, last year, everyone who was responsible had scoped out this kind of project, so that it would merely have to be dusted off for this years "crisis". Apparently, not.


MORE

There are two types of energies, as far as I'm concerned, in a building.

There's what's called embodied energy, the energy it takes to make materials and then transport those materials to the site.

Then there are operational energies, the energies to run all the appliances, keep the space at a comfort level, operate windows, vents, fans, everything else.

You have to balance between those two different energies. Right now, in a typical building, about 10% of the energy used over the life of the building is embodied energy and 90% is in the operation.

If you wanted to really reduce energy consumption in the U.S., you would reduce as much operational energy as you could in a structure.

-Sustainable Ceiling

Although voters may not realize that homes and buildings are responsible for half of the greenhouse gas emissions, most were willing to invest in an energy efficient home. 91 percent said they would be willing to pay an additional $5 thousand for a house that would use less energy and protect the environment. Of the respondents who would not make the extra investment, 69 percent said they would, if they could get their money back through lower electric and gas bills over the next seven to eight years.
...

In addition to the inclusion of the AIA’s Federal Building policy position in the House and Senate energy bills, the AIA also is advocating for:
• The extension and deepening of the energy efficient commercial building tax deduction from $1.80 per square foot to $2.25
• The construction of a “Sun Wall” on the Department of Energy’s (DOE) headquarters in Washington D.C. that will generate 200kW of electricity
• Establishing a national energy efficiency goal for all sectors of the U.S. economy
• Establishing an Office of Green Buildings within the General Services Administration (GSA) and a consortium that includes architects to advise
• The creation of a Zero-Energy Commercial Buildings Initiative at DOE to focus on the goal of carbon neutrality

[+/-] Show Full Post...

[+/-] Hide Full Post...

Conservatives Rejecting PanGaia

1. increasingly zero-sum world economy...the best way to solve the problem of climate change is by applying the brainpower that only a wealthier developing world can deliver. - quoting
...
2. From a new study concluding that "9 out of 10 books published since 1972 that have disputed the seriousness of environmental problems and mainstream science can be linked to a conservative think tank". -conservatism's end-days
...
3. Subjecting policy proposals to cost-benefit analyses, ... And it is not a good sign when greens seem eager to discredit dissent rather than engage it.-AS

In reverse order:

3. Before deciding whether to shit where one eats, do you do a cost-benefit analysis?

2. It is only very, very recently, that the Right has conceded that there is a principled position on "environmentalism". 35 years of denying so much by a margin of 9-to-10? Yeah, I'd guess the opposition was radicalized...

1. When faced with uncertain outcomes, one seldom is advised or obliged to put all eggs in one basket. There is plenty to do before worrying about zero-sum. China and Europe have higher CAFE standards than the U.S. ... Japan has be planning its energy mix for years, with considerable success.

n.b. I haven't had to say anything about cap-and-trade as a schema to reach or support any conclusions ...

[+/-] Show Full Post...

[+/-] Hide Full Post...