A new study by the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Bonneville Power Administration finds that two underground sites in the Pacific Northwest are ideal for storing energy produced by the wind. Compressed air energy storage plants could capture the wind during times when breezes are more abundant at night and demand for electricity is low for use during peak hours. Able to switch between power storage and generation in a matter of minutes, the method could be an important means to assist states reach their Renewable Portfolio Standards.

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Post tags: "wind power", alabama, boardman, bonneville power administration, columbia hills site, Department of Energy, Electricity, geothermal, germany, natural gas, northwest power and conservation council, Oregon, Pacific Northwest, pnnl-bpa, renewable portfolio standard, washington, yakima minerals site

A new report by the National Research Council has some good news for the future of US transportation. By taking advantage of biofuels, new vehicle technology, and policy reform, America has the potential to reduce petroleum consumption and greenhouse gas emissions up to 80% by 2050. The numbers apply to cars and small trucks, both of which are expected to become more efficient in both fuel economy and design in the coming years.

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Post tags: alternative vehicles, biofuel, CO2, cost effective, douglas m. chapin, emissions, fossil fuel, greenhouse gas, hybrid, hydrogen fuel cell, infrastructure, lignocellulosic biofuel, mpr associates, national research council, natural gas, petroleum, Policy

According to current data, wind power capacity in the United States might beat natural gas and coal in 2012. Up until November 2012, the United States has installed new wind power adding up to 6,519 megawatts. That’s slightly more than natural gas at 6,335 megawatts, and more than twice as much energy produced by coal.

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Post tags: "clean energy", "energy efficiency", carbon emissions, green technology, natural gas, renewable energy sources, US clean energy, US fiscal cliff deal, US wind farms, us wind power, wind energy, wind turbines

On the heels of the recent COP 18 climate conference in Qatar, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has reported that global coal use is on the rise. Without controls to make one of the most polluting fossil fuels on earth less economically attractive, by 2017 the world will be burning as much coal as oil, the IEA warns. This would make redundant all other efforts to arrest climate change and imperil millions of people around the world.

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Post tags: acid rain, carbon, carbon dioxide emissions, Climate Change, coal, Environment, global warming, greenhouse gases, IEA, natural gas, News, shale gas, sulphur

Just days after the UN climate change conference closed in Qatar, Energy and Climate Secretary Ed Davey has given government approval to fracking for natural gas in the UK. A ban prohibiting the company Caudrilla from pursuing its fracking explorations following two minor earthquakes in Lancashire last year has been lifted with the promise that a suite of new mechanisms are in place to keep the process safe. Shale gas is thought to be the least polluting of all fossil fuels and the government hopes its exploration plans will free the UK from foreign imports. Environmentalists are of course opposed to the plan.

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Post tags: Climate Change, CO2 emissions, Cuadrilla, earthquakes and fracking, environmental news, fossil fuels, fracking, global warming, Lanchashire, natural gas, Renewable Energy, renewable energy, shale, UK

Many countries in the Middle East and North Africa are embracing solar power to take advantage of the copious amount of sunlight they receive. Recently the Moroccan Agency For Solar Energy (MASEN) announced that they are “very confident” of securing the investment needed to build vast solar power plants in the country’s southern desert regions. The country is on its way to become a world-class solar energy producer, and it plans to harvest 14% of its energy from the sun by 2020.

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Post tags: "solar energy", Desertec, hybrid power plant, Middle East, middle east solar energy, Moroccan Agency For Solar Energy (MASEN), morocco, natural gas, North Africa, solar plant, Solar Power

Before the London 2012 Olympic Games began, we explored how the event had failed to live up to some of the green targets it had set itself. The organizers of London 2012 had always claimed that they would host the ‘greenest Olympics’ ever seen, and according to an group of independent monitors, they have! A new report published by the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012 finds that along with holding a fantastic Games the city’s efforts to recycle and implement other green practices were a complete success.

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Post tags: commission for a sustainable london 2012, Green Olympics, LOCOG, london 2012, london 2012 olympic games, London Olympic Cauldron, natural gas, Olympic Cauldron, Recycled Materials, thomas heatherwick, Thomas Heatherwick Olympic Cauldron

The opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games had many highlights, culminating in the lighting of the Thomas Heatherwick-designed Olympic Cauldron. A major aim of the Olympic committee has been to make the London Games as green as possible, but the iconic copper cauldron—beautiful as it may be—is fueled by a steady stream of natural gas.

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Post tags: Green Olympics, london 2012, london 2012 olympic games, London Olympic Cauldron, natural gas, Olympic Cauldron, thomas heatherwick, Thomas Heatherwick Olympic Cauldron

We all make mistakes, but our errors are rarely made law. That is what happened in North Carolina when state representative democrat Becky Carney accidentally pushed the wrong button whilst casting the deciding vote on a key fracking bill. Even worse, House rules prohibit changing a vote that would affect the outcome.

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Post tags: becky carney, Design, fracking, green design, House of Representatives, hydraulic fracking, inhabitat-news, natural gas, north carolina, petroleum, Pollution, sustainable design

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Post tags: 242 social housing units, ACXT, affordable housing, cogeneration, eco design, Energy Savings, excess energy, green design, natural gas, Salburua, social design, social housing, Spain, sustainable design

Today the EPA finally introduced long-delayed regulations requiring natural gas companies to utilize technologies that reduce or eliminate the emission of smog-forming volatile organic compounds (VOCS) from fracking. The rule will be rolled out in two stages – the first of which goes into effect in 60 days, and will require newly fracked or refracked wells to use either flaring or green completion technologies to control their emissions. From January 1, 2015 on, all new fracking ventures will be required to use green completion methods, whereby gases which can have devastating health impacts when released are instead recaptured to be be treated and sold. The rules will also apply to new drilling for oil.

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Post tags: air pollution, carbon emissions, clean air act, environmental protection agency, flares environment, Fracking earthquake, Fracking Environment, Fracking Smog, fracking water, gas drilling, gas flaring, green completion, hydraulic fracturing, natural gas, oil exploration, reduced emission completion, volatile organic compounds

Natural gas drilling has starred in several documentary films in recent years, including Josh Fox’s Oscar-nominated “GasLand,” and now it’s set to become the subject of a major feature film starring Matt Damon. Last week, WME Agency, which represents Damon, confirmed to Politico that Damon will star in “Promised Land,” a movie about hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) – the controversial and environmentally destructive technique of removing natural gas from the earth. The movie is still in pre-production, and filming is scheduled to begin in the Pittsburgh area later this month.

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Post tags: Dave Eggars, drilling, Film, fossil fuels, fracking, gas, Gasland, Gus Van Sant, hollywood, hydraulic fracturing, John Krasinski, Josh Fox, Matt Damon, movies, natural gas, shale

Much has been made about the environmental costs associated with natural gas drilling, but there’s a different type of natural gas that’s produced by every one of the planet’s more than 7 billion inhabitants that requires no drilling at all. Seeking to tap into that natural resource, General Motors is hard at work developing a next-generation hybrid vehicle fueled by human-produced methane gas. For its all-new RE:VOLT model, GM has developed a methane capture and sequestration device that will be built into each passenger seat. The green vehicle is expected to hit dealerships in 2013, and it promises to bring new meaning to the phrase “Drive by the seat of your pants.”

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Post tags: alternitve energy vehicle, chevy, general motors, GM, hybrid vehicle, methane gas, natural gas

When hydraulic fracturing (or fracking – the technique of extracting natural gas from rocks) was thrust into the public consciousness with the release of the 2010 film Gasland, most of the conversation centered around water contamination. Since then, questions have been raised about some of the other byproducts of fracking, including earthquakes, waste disposal, and now, air emissions. A new study from the Colorado School of Public Health reveals that emissions from fracking sites contain known carcinogens and other harmful chemicals.

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Post tags: air pollution, Air quality, benzene, carcinogens, emissions, environmental protection agency, epa, fracking, gas drilling, hydraulic fracturing, hydrocarbons, hydrofracking, natural gas

Natural gas has been widely billed as a “bridge fuel” – a low-carbon alternative to coal that will help us make the transition to cleaner energy – but a new study pokes some big holes in that argument. According to the study, which was published last month in Environmental Review Letters, the amount of carbon in the atmosphere is already so great that switching to natural gas would do very little to counter current warming trends. However, the study shows that switching to renewable energy could begin to cut the warming effect within two decades.

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Post tags: alternative energy, carbon, carbon dioxide, Climate Change, CO2, coal power, fracking, global warming, hydroelectric, natural gas, nuclear power, renewable energy, solar

Thanks to efforts by environmentalists and opponents of the natural gas industry, the process of fracking has come under the limelight recently – and the federal government is considering new, tougher regulations for the hydraulic fracturing industry. Although at one point some environmental groups saw natural gas as a less environmentally damaging alternative to coal, they are now rethinking their stance – and the Sierra Club has revealed they turned down a $30 million gift from natural gas company Chesapeake Energy because of their concerns about the process. That’s a huge hunk of cash for a non-profit environmental group to turn down on principle, and thanks to their honesty they’re now able to fight the good fight against this energy source, which we now know has a dirtier life-cycle than coal.

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Post tags: chesapeake, fracking, fracking dangers, fracking issues, fracking problems, natural gas, natural gas consequences, natural gas industry, natural gas issues, natural gas problems, Sierra Club, sierra club fracking, sierra club natural gas

The Energy Information Administration has released data to show that in 2011, coal power made up less than 40% of all U.S. electricity. As coal-fueled electric dropped to 30 year lows last year, the profoundly dirty fuel rounded out its year in decline by providing its lowest monthly rates of power production since March 1978. With coal plants shuttering their doors and production down, this looks like great news. But before we get too excited, the EIA attributes the drop in coal usage to a mild winter and a decline in the prices of less-than-environmentally-friendly natural gas (a.k.a. that stuff we’re fracking for).

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Post tags: air pollution, coal decline, coal power, electric production, Energy Information Administration, epa regulations, fracking dangers, mercury emissions, Michael Bloomberg, natural gas, renewable energy, Sierra Club

Gas prices have increased at record levels this month, with prices climbing for 20 days in a row, and as gas prices rise, interest in more fuel efficient vehicles go up as well. Automakers have continued to focus on hybrids, electric vehicles and more efficient gasoline and diesel engines, but one fuel source has been largely ignored, natural gas. There are several reasons for this (read on to learn more), but the good news is that several companies, like 3M, are working on nanoparticle technology that could make natural gas cars more attractive. While as green transportation supporters, we think it’s important to point out that natural gas is a sort of temporary band-aid that should not distract us from the ultimate goal of getting truly sustainable electric cars on the road, we’re still excited to hear about 3M’s strides to advance this cleaner alternative to gasoline for the time being.

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Post tags: 3m, automotive, chesapeake energy, green technology, Honda, honda civic, nanoparticle technology, nanoparticles, natural gas, natural gas buses, natural gas fleets, natural gas trucks

The US Department of Energy took a chunk out of the natural gas industry’s high hopes for the future yesterday by slashing the amount of gas estimated to be held in the Marcellus Shale — a huge swath of shale rock under the east coast of the United States thought by gas mongers to be the holy grail of energy. The Annual Energy Outlook states with a 90% certainty that the amount of gas locked under the east coast is actually 66% less than they previously imagined. They knocked the Marcellus shale estimate from 482 trillion cubic feet in last year’s outlook to 141 trillion cubic feet, and the entire United States reserves didn’t fare much better – they were slashed almost in half from 827 trillion cubic feet in last year’s outlook to 482 trillion this year. Here’s to hoping that gash in the future of natural gas will calm the frenzy of energy companies itching to use hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to obtain the stuff.

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Post tags: "clean energy", "sustainable energy", annual energy outlook, Department of Energy, DOE, fracking, fracking ban, fracking debate, gas company, hydraulic fracturing, hydraulic fracturing for natural gas, marcellus, marcellus shale, marcellus shale reserves, natural gas, natural gas extraction, natural gas reserves, us gas reserves