Tag Archive for AWEA

What You Can Do To Mark Earth Day 2013

Honor Earth Day; Support Solar, Wind and The Environment!

Honor Earth Day; Support Solar, Wind and The Environment!

With Earth Day in Mind, you can help make the world a better place.    How?

 

You could show the love and…join in:

Support Solar Power
Solar Energy Industry Association (SEIA) has some Great Ways to show your support for more solar energy through policy initiatives: check them out here:
Act Now / SEIA

Support Wind Power
Power Of Wind is the public outreach of the American Wind Energy Association.
become a Wind Avocate here

followlogo

Get involved with mature, respectable environmental groups
click here to Join Sierra Club. theyve finally taken the gloves off this year in opposition to the Keystone XL Pipeline and actually protested and were arrested for it! 

      Time had long past, even for their high road tactics, to make a stand against

    • the dirtiest oil possible,
    • on a pipeline that will be excluded from contributing to the oil spill cleanup fund,
    • by people and their associates who have bad track records on spills,
    • that the head of NASA’s Climate Science said would be “game over” for the Earth’s climate,
    • that won’t even be used here in the US-its for Export to be used elsewhere!

You don’t have to go that far, but you sure can help support them!

You are what the world is waiting for.  What are you waiting for?

The Election’s Over: So Now What?

it’s time to get off the fence… take a minute to put your voice behind these renewable energy political motions!

 

 The Election’s Over: So Now What?

 

 
Our take on the election:

I haven’t heard the full total yet, but at last count this summer big oil, coal, and dirty energy had spent in excess of $180 million and by election day had ramped that up to over $270 million spent on this year’s Presidential and Congressional races.. and LOST on many actual ballots. 

In fact, they may have helped galvanize voters against their repugnant fossil-fuels-at-all-costs agenda. A must-read article here from Rebecca Leber at Think Progress discusses WHY, instead of just letting “you decide” with only innuendo, fear and half-truths to go on: Analysis: Why Voters Didn’t Buy TV Attack Ads From Fossil Fuel Interests.

Truth will out, as the Brits say.

That is, unless you count the costs their anti-renewables campaign contributions got them:

  • their bought and paid for witch hunts that made Solyndra a household name and all renewable energy implied as the same, causing a cascade of other failures.
  • putting an end to the measly, yet effective, Production Tax Credit (PTC)
  • help to brainwash “low information voters” as Bill Maher calls them, convinced they don’t benefit from a cheaper, cleaner, renewable resource
  • the idea that giving RE government support, as in tax break “subsidies”, even if only a microscopic percentage of what dirty energy gets, is a “boondoggle”!!  I’ve gotta admit I love that word, it tells me instantaneously I’m dealing with one of the powerwashed!

Well, just because the party less antagonistic to renewable energy was re-elected and gained seats, doesn’t mean you and we should just sit on our collective haunches…

So here’s some political action floating at the moment:

� First, one of my renewables idols, Paul Gipe, says we should be bringing president Obama’s attention to our abysmal rankings and how far we’ve fallen behind most of the free world, and many of the not so free, as well.
You can read his article here:
Now Re-elected, President Obama Should Examine US’ Renewable Rank

� I found in my inbox this great one from AWEA (American Wind Energy Association)’s Power of Wind,  where you can sign their petition to:

 Let congress know to pass the Production Tax Credit(PTC) beyond this year.

It has helped spur billions in private investment, and helps serve the country’s strategic interest. They say the PTC has been instrumental in helping the wind industry to:

• Lower the cost of wind power by more than 90%
• Manufacture components for wind turbines at nearly 500 U.S. manufacturing facilities
• Power the equivalent of 12 million American homes
• Provide 35% of all new U.S. power capacity in the past five years

� And when you finish with that, you can then directly contact your legislators and let them know that they need to get on board via email on their system.
You can do that here: Save USA Wind Jobs: Contact Congress Today!
Both took less than 30 seconds.

� Then a real grassroots campaign I’ve picked up from my local Sierra Club :
a petition to Pres. Obama, for the establishment of a National Energy Policy based on renewable wind and solar power, and help for us to End Our Fossil fuel Addiction. “

also took less than 30 seconds.
I LOVE the share options when you finish, in fact you may have been tweeted it directly from us already…

 

� Solar campaigns exist as well, here you can join the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) ‘s

Solar Power Advocacy Network

and click on this link where you can see all their pending legislation and

Legislative Agenda

and what you can do about it.

 

Or, you could just write your own state and national legislators. Feel free to share those with us. 

Oooh, getting political now, huh?   You betchya! (Sarah Palin, 2008)

So what the heck are you waiting for? get moving!

Windmade: The Live Event

Ok, so- no, it’s not an actual event, but the launch of the concept surely is to us here at All Our Energy.

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As a follow up to our previous post Windmade: Change You Select, the European (EWEA) Wind Energy Association are putting forth a new concept: make your event Windmade.

The Windmade concept is an alternative driver to not only create a market for, but to help make available wind-powered electricity. They market to manufacturers who can then label amd market their goods as “Windmade” also letting the public choose to purchase products made with true clean energy (and by rights implying the consumer should consider how other products are made). We really like both ideas.

EWEA is showing how it’s done at their own “EWEA 2012” annual conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. All the electricity used will be purchased and used specifically for the event What better place than the world’s leading country for wind turbine manufacturing, community owned wind projects, and
Samsø:Denmark’s Renewable Energy Island

(We’ll also reference you to wind leader Paul Gipe’s Wind Works
article on Samsø: Denmark’s Renewable Energy Island)
And this awesome children’s book about it

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Energy Island: How one community harnessed the wind and changed their world by Allan Drummond

We believe the answer to expanding renewable energy is in getting the public involved and aware of renewable energy and help give them access to it, and this project wins on both fronts.

Just imagine… And let us know:
What else could be Windmade?

Why Wind?

 

Why wind?

 

“You mean not even getting into the bigger picture issues like: why change, why renewable energy, why stop polluting, why stop causing climate change and a hundred other ‘whys’?”  I ask myself.

 

Well, let’s look at some readily checkable facts when we ask, “Why wind”?

It’s generally agreed » Read more..

Origins

 

How did this all come about?

Well, basically, it’s really windy where I live.   That’s great in July and August, when my town is 10-15 degrees cooler than the “mainland”.   The other 9-10 months of the year, it makes it quite a bit more uncomfortably cooler here than elsewhere. Best I can tell, that means I get 3 good months, 9 less-than-desirable months.  This imbalance has weighed on my thoughts, especially in the winter months, if and when I could hear myself think over the loud bluster; the virtually continuous 20-30 mile-per-hour squall that blows from Columbus Day straight through until Memorial Day, when it then moderates to what is known as a just a “fresh breeze” at about 15-20 MPH, then the cycle repeats; the cycle and its phases a continuous reminder in those thoughts. 

As I’ve grown older and less resistant to the cool weather, I kept (keep?) thinking: if I could just capture all that wind to do my bidding, I would feel like I’ve fought back against the sheer slap to the face it can be on particularly “brisk” days; maybe making it worthwhile to put up with; its untamed nature tamed by the mastery of my very impressive hand.

All joking aside, I had spent many waking (and sleeping) hours dreaming up wind power systems.

Thanks to my wonderful wife and loving son, I received a gift that would change everything: Wind Power: Renewable Energy for Home, Farm or Business by Paul Gipe.

Cover-Wind Power by Paul Gipe

Wind Power by Paul Gipe

Understand:  this book is the equivalent of the bible, when it comes to wind energy.   I was engrossed in it and devoured it quickly.  When finished, I eagerly re-read it.  I probably refer to it several times a week, or more. 

Now crushed by my new understanding that my “unbelievable” designs really were, and had been proven not viable, I went through all the phases of grief. Pulling myself together, I moved on to the concept of having my own modern version of the familiar wind turbine, to both offset my use and maybe generate some extra for cash, the book unfortunately also dashed these dreams on numerous fronts: siting, zoning, grid interconnection and how impossible it might be to actually be paid for my power generation.

Really, a fantastic, truly enlightening book; I hold no grudge.  I know to embrace the messenger.  Great is great-my dreams aside.  New dreams have arisen, this time more reality-based, thanks to Mr Gipe’s in-depth explanations and examples.

 

Cover -Wind Energy Basics by Paul Gipe

Wind Energy Basics by Paul Gipe

If you cannot make it through Wind Power and its considerable bulk, descriptions, explanations and in-depth information; all of which is highly understandable for the average person, there is another alternative:

Wind Energy Basics (2009 edition) By Paul Gipe, which is an extremely condensed version PLUS has invaluable additional information, including completely necessary, exclusive chapters about Community Wind and more. In his summary chapter, he shows how much of our electricity could easily be coming from wind (we could have had 40% of our entire country’s electricity from free wind energy right nowfor the low, low price of the Iraq War thru only 2008!); how advancing every household a wind turbine credit would actually double back it’s investment, and also how such a large percentage of wind power usage could be attained; logistically, financially, and what it would mean economically for our country.   We have what we need right now to make it happen, except real leadership.

So, what will make it happen?  

It would seem everyday people, like you and I, DECIDING to do something about it, and then following through and acting on that decision is what it is going to take.   It’s pretty obvious the people that seem to be entrusted by the public with making this happen, ARE NOT. 

The system currently in place IS NOT working.  Sadly, even the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) has set their sights VERY LOW at wind energy only being 20% of this country’s usage by 2030.    20% in 20+years, from the group that is supposed to be leading the charge?   I much prefer Mr. Gipe’s vision of 40%, including his prescription for how it can happen; that it is not just wishful thinking.     

Don’t take my word, read these books.  Spread the word.   Ask your local bookstore to carry them.  Give them as gifts.  Request them at your library.  

Since then, I have still been imagining what can be, educating myself, trying to move these thoughts forward into something tangible, real, meaningful; and will continue along this path wherever it leads.  

You can also check out Paul Gipe’s website: Wind-Works