Energy and Climate Change


Can a Greenhouse Grow Energy Savings, Too?

A grocery store, greenhouse, hotel and community college will be among a diverse group of West Coast organizations testing the next generation of fuel cells that produce both electric power and heat while saving energy, thanks to a $2.8 million combined industry and government award announced today by the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Italy Saying Goodbye to Nuclear?

Fallout from the March Fukushima nuclear plant leak reached into Italian government policy, as it now appears likely there will not be a renewed thrust toward the controversial power source anytime soon.

DVR, Cable and Satellite Boxes Waste $2 Billion of Electricity Every Year

Digital video recorders, cable and other pay-TV boxes cost American consumers $3 billion a year -- $1 billion to operate when in active use and an additional $2 billion while inactive but still running at near full power.

The Energy Debate: Coal vs. Nuclear

Researchers examine Americans' risk beliefs and preferences for coal and nuclear energy, and finds factors other than global warming and the potential for nuclear power plant accidents figure into their choices.

WHOI Leads Expedition to Measure Radioactivity from Fukushima Disaster in Pacific

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will lead the first international, multidisciplinary assessment of the levels and dispersion of radioactive substances in the Pacific Ocean off the Fukushima nuclear power plant—a research effort funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

IEA Report Explores Potential for ‘Golden Age’ for Natural Gas

. The new report, part of the World Energy Outlook 2011 series, examines the key factors that could result in a more prominent role for natural gas in the global energy mix, and the implications for other fuels, energy security, and climate change.

University Licenses Innovative Process to Convert Natural Gas to Clean Synthetic Fuel

The University of Texas at Arlington and 1st Resource Group Inc. will commercialize a new, efficient process for converting natural gas to clean, synthetic fuel at a cost lower than current market rates.

Methane Gas From Cows: The Proof is in the Poo

Scientists could have a revolutionary new way of measuring how much of the potent greenhouse gas methane is produced by cows and other ruminants, thanks to a surprising discovery in their poo.



Smart Meters Make U.K. Community More Energy-Efficient

The utility could provide individuals their energy-usage information in real time, which enabled them to make informed choices to reduce their electricity demand.

Father and Son to Cross Country on a Light Bulb's Worth of Energy

How far will a parent go to convince their child to stop leaving lights on around the house? For inventor and journalist Pierce Hoover, the answer is 4,000 miles.

Researchers Look at Energy-Efficient Programming to Curb Computers' Power Use

Researchers have created a system, called EnergJ, that reduces energy consumption in simulations by up to 50 percent, and has the potential to cut energy by as much as 90 percent.

Taking the Waste out of Nuclear Waste

While spent nuclear fuel continues to pile up by the ton across the United States, UC Irvine’s Mikael Nilsson says the solution is clear: recycle it at the commercial nuclear power plants that create it.

Vermont Enacts Registration Program for Small Solar Installations

H.56, signed into law by Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin May 25, establishes a registration process for solar systems 5kW and smaller.

Army Showcases Quantum Hybrid at Indy 500

The U.S. Army's Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) demonstrated the Clandestine Extended Range Vehicle (CERV) as part of special events ramping up to the Indianapolis 500. The U.S. Army labeled the CERV as one of the "greenest technologies" and demonstrated how its advanced hybrid electric powertrain developed by Quantum Fuel Systems Worldwide Inc. and TARDEC saves taxpayer dollars and soldiers' lives.

EPA's GreenChill Program Works to Revolutionize Supermarket Refrigeration

Supermarkets are among the most energy-intensive buildings around, and refrigeration uses more than half of that energy. That doesn't even include the harm that leaking refrigerants cause to the ozone layer. EPA's GreenChill program works with companies and their refrigeration engineers across the country to help program participants lower their refrigeration emissions of all kinds.

IEA: 2010 Saw CO2 Emissions at Highest Levels Ever

The prospect of limiting temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius is looking bleaker, officials at the International Energy Agency said.

First Fuel Cell to Power Residential Building in New York Installed in Roosevelt Island

The Octagon, a LEED Silver 500-unit apartment community on Roosevelt Island, made green history by becoming the first residential building in the State of New York to be powered and heated by a 400 kW fuel cell from UTC Power.

Report: Cost Obstructs Path to Alagae-Based Biofuel Market Worth Billions

According to a recent report from Pike Research, despite limited production to date, the scale-up potential of algae is substantial compared to other non-food based feedstocks.

Study Rebuts Conclusion That Bacteria Consumed Deepwater Horizon Methane

A technical comment published in the current edition of the journal Science casts doubt on a widely publicized study that concluded that a bacterial bloom in the Gulf of Mexico consumed the methane discharged from the Deepwater Horizon well.

U.S., Russia Reaffirm Cooperation on Energy-Efficiency and Smart Grid

The United States Agency for International Development, working with the U.S. Department of Energy to cooperate with Russia on energy-efficiency efforts and smart grids, is supporting efforts to share experience and best practices among U.S. and Russian municipalities and utilities.