CLEVELAND, Tennessee, February 26, 2009 (ENS) – Tennessee officials and executives of the world’s second largest producer of hyperpure polycrystalline silicon today announced that the German company will build a $1 billion facility in Tennessee. Polycrystalline silicon is a primary component used in the manufacture of solar panels and semiconductors.

Wacker Chemie AG of Munich, Germany paid about $20 million for a 550-acre site near the Hiwassee Industrial Park in the Bradley County town of Charleston for the new factory.

The project is expected to create about 500 new green collar jobs in the region.

“This announcement further enhances Tennessee’s growing reputation as an innovation center in the development and manufacture of clean energy technologies,” said Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen today.

“I appreciate Wacker Chemie’s investment in Tennessee and its recognition of the productivity of Tennessee workers, and I’m very pleased the company believes this is the best place to enhance its position in this growing economic sector,” the governor said.

“We expect polysilicon demand from the solar and semiconductor industries to further increase in the coming years,” said Dr. Rudolph Staudigl, president and CEO of Wacker Chemie. “Purchasing this site is an essential prerequisite to quickly build up additional production capacities outside the euro zone in line with projected market trends and growth in demand.”

Polycrystalline silicon solar module converts sunlight into electricity. (Photo courtesy Wacker Chemie AG)

The U.S. solar industry is set to expand, but a shortage of polycrystalline silicon has been hampering growth, even as governments increase tax incentives to homeowners and businesses who install solar systems.

Wacker Chemie’s choice of Tennessee for the new factory was influenced by the state’s strong business climate, Tennessee’s well-developed infrastructure and the cooperative partnership of state agencies, local government, the Tennessee Valley Authority and the local chamber of commerce, Wacker officials said.

The partnership between the state of Tennessee and TVA will allow the company to take advantage of industrial electricity rates approximately half those found in Germany.

In addition, the “over-the-fence supply of chlorine from the adjacent OLIN Corporation facility and excellent transportation infrastructure made this an attractive site location,” the company said in a statement today.

Wacker will qualify for statutory incentives on the state and local level, including the FastTrack Infrastructure Development Program, the FastTrack Job Training Assistance Program, and the Super Jobs Tax Credit.

“We are fully committed to sustainable development – a key component of our thinking and actions,” the company says on its website. “We attach equal importance to economical, ecological and social factors.”

“Under Governor Bredesen’s leadership, we’ve developed a strategy for the creation of green collar jobs in Tennessee,” said Tennessee Economic and Community Development Commissioner Matt Kisber. “That strategy has resulted in more than $2.5 billion dollars in capital investment and over a thousand new jobs being announced in the past year and we truly believe Tennessee is well-positioned for the growth of a sustainable economy in the U.S.”

There is vast potential for solar energy development across the southeastern United States, Solar Energy Industries Association president and chief executive Rhone Resch said today from his office in Washington, DC.

“The United States has some of the best solar resources in the world – resources that are more than double that of Germany, the current world leader in solar. With the right policies, solar can play a significant role in creating jobs, growing local economies and cutting energy costs for consumers and businesses,” said Resch.

Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina have solar resources 60 percent better than Germany, said Resch.

“Those who claim the U.S. does not have enough Sun to power our nation are simply wrong,” he said. “In Georgia, 23.6 percent of electricity could come from rooftop solar alone.”

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OTTAWA, Ontario, Canada, February 19, 2009 (ENS) – President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced plans to collaborate on a new clean energy economy as a key element of broader economic recovery and reinvestment efforts between the United States and Canada.

“I value our strategic partnership with Canada and look forward to working closely with the Prime Minister to address the global economic recession and create jobs, to protect our environment through promoting clean energy technologies, and achieve our shared goals in responding to international security challenges,” said President Obama at a press conference in the Reading Room at Parliament in Ottawa.

“The President and I agree that both our countries must take immediate action to restore economic growth by lowering taxes, ensuring access to credit and unleashing spending that stimulates economic growth. We also agreed to strengthen our cooperation in the areas of environmental protection and global security,” said Prime Minister Harper.

President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Stephen Harper discuss clean energy in Ottawa. (Photo courtesy Office of the Prime Minister)

Noting the history of bilateral co-operation on continental environmental protection and energy trade and technology, the two leaders agreed that environmental protection and the development of clean energy are inextricably linked. They agreed to collaborate on high-return opportunities for expanded and new joint research.

“We are establishing a U.S.-Canada clean energy dialogue which commits senior officials from both countries to collaborate on the development of clean energy science and technologies that will reduce greenhouse gases and combat climate change,” Harper said.

“How we produce and use energy is fundamental to our economic recovery, but also our security and our planet,” Obama said. “And we know that we can’t afford to tackle these issues in isolation. And that’s why we’re updating our collaboration on energy to meet the needs of the 21st century.”

“The clean energy dialogue that we’ve established today will strengthen our joint research and development,” the President said. “It will advance carbon reduction technologies and it will support the development of an electric grid that can help deliver the clean and renewable energy of the future to homes and businesses, both in Canada and the United States. And through this example, and through continued international negotiations, the United States and Canada are committed to confronting the threat posed by climate change.”

President Obama and Prime Minister Harper take questions from the media. (Photo courtesy Office of the Prime Minister)

The United States and Canada are already collaborating on energy research related to advanced biofuels, clean engines, and energy efficiency.

The leaders signed a document today stating that the new clean energy dialogue will focus on carbon capture and storage technology, which they said “holds enormous potential to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions as we use our own energy resources to power our economy.”

To spur rapid progress in this critical technology, the two nations will coordinate research and demonstrations of carbon capture and sequestration technology at coal-fired plants.

“This will build on our experience with the North Dakota-Weyburn project,” the leaders’ statement says. This project pipes carbon dioxide from a North Dakota synfuels plant to a Saskatchewan oilfield 320 kilometers away and injects the greenhouse gas to enhance oil recovery. The project is expected to store about 22 million tons of CO2 and produce 130 million barrels of oil over 20 years.

To fund this part of the collaboration, the United States will draw from the $3.4 billion for carbon capture and storage demonstration provided in the newly enacted American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Canada’s Economic Action Plan establishes a $1 billion Clean Energy Fund which builds on the Canada’s previous investments in carbon capture and sequestration.

“A strengthened U.S.-Canada partnership on carbon sequestration will help accelerate private sector investment in commercial scale, near-zero-carbon coal facilities to promote climate and energy security,” according to the leaders’ statement.

President Obama listens as Prime Minister Harper answers a reporter’s question at the news conference. (Photo by Paul Souza courtesy The White House)

The two nations will consult and share information on the demonstration and deployment of smart grid technology, including installing smart meters in residential and commercial buildings, digitizing distribution systems, and employing information and measurement tools to manage the grid more effectively.

To fund this part of the collaboration, the United States will draw from the $11 billion for smart grid technology and transmission investment in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

To build a bigger grid, the United States and Canada will share analysis of new transmission options for integrating wind power and other clean generation sources and encourage development of a grid stakeholders group, building on the existing U.S.-Canadian collaboration among the states and provinces.

These investments are expected to make electricity delivery more reliable, reduce congestion that can lead to blackouts and power losses, enable consumers to use energy more efficiently, and promote broader development of renewable power.

In advance of President Obama’s visit, Michael Ignatieff, the MP for Etobicoke-Lakeshore and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, wrote in the “National Post” newspaper a piece that included his vision for an environmental partnership between Canada and the United States.

“Our environmental partnership should extend into the far north. Canada and the United States should work together, with other northern nations, to protect this region for the whole globe,” Ignatieff wrote.

“We should applaud the President’s campaign commitment not to undertake drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. We should maintain Canada’s long-held legal position that the North West Passage is an inland waterway and not an international strait, but we should not allow our disagreement with the Americans on the issue to preclude bilateral efforts to ensure good stewardship and orderly management by Canadians of passage through the waterway,” he wrote.

“We need to reinvigorate the Arctic Council so that all northern nations develop common strategies to mitigate the impact of global warming, avoid conflict over resource development and improve the lives of the region’s indigenous peoples.”

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HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania, January 6, 2009 (ENS) – Pennsylvania has signed a letter of agreement with 10 other eastern states to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation fuels and other sources by developing a regional low carbon fuel standard.

Vehicles using low carbon transport fuels include cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells; electric cars such as plug-in hybrids; cars fueled with ethanol, especially cellulosic ethanol made from non-food plant materials; and cars fueled with biodiesel.

“This partnership will work closely on a standard for the entire region,” said Governor Ed Rendell on Monday, announcing the agreement. “In conjunction with Pennsylvania’s energy policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase clean energy development, this work done by this partnership will ultimately grow our economy and protect our planet by fostering a cleaner environment.”

The other states in on the agreement are Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont.

The 11 states already are partners in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, RGGI, the first mandatory, market-based effort in the United States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The push towards a regional low carbon fuel standard started in June 2008 when Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick sent a letter to the governors of all 10 RGGI states inviting them to cooperate on a standard that would apply to the entire region. Massachusetts committed to developing a low carbon fuel standard for the state last April.

“The response to Governor Patrick’s call for a regional low carbon fuel standard by our neighbor states has been tremendous,” said Massachusetts Energy Secretary Ian Bowles.

“Working together, the 11 states from Maine to Delaware will cut greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks, spur the development of clean energy technologies like advanced biofuels and electric cars, and reduce our dependence on petroleum,” said Bowles.

Ron Yerxa, center, and wife Annette Ballester get a lesson from Tim Cunningham, Honda fuel cell vehicle program consultant, on how to refuel
their new hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle, July 2008 in West Los Angeles. (Photo courtesy Honda)

“After power generation, transportation is the next logical target for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and a low carbon fuel standard gives us a market-based mechanism to get the environmental results we need,” said Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Laurie Burt.

The 11 states will collaborate with the Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management, which has been studying a low carbon fuel standard for the region. The eastern states also have agreed to work cooperatively with other states and the federal government, and to influence the design of any federal standard or other proposed fuel policy.

In January 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger established the world’s first low carbon fuel standard by Executive Order.

“I applaud these 11 Eastern states for recognizing the power of California’s groundbreaking low carbon fuel standard to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and oil dependency while rewarding innovation and expanding consumer choice,” Schwarzenegger said Monday.

“Like California, these other states are leading the way in recognizing that we must take action now to fight global warming, and I look forward to working together to find additional solutions like the LCFS that both protect our environment and grow our economy at the same time.”

Once the low carbon fuel standard is developed for the eastern region, governors from participating states will have the opportunity to consider implementation.

Fuels that may reduce greenhouse gas emissions include advanced biofuels like cellulosic ethanol, which have lower lifecycle carbon emissions and may be less likely to cause indirect effects from crop diversion and land use changes than biofuels on the market today such as ethanol made from corn.

Many of the 11 states in the partnership have set individual policies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Pennsylvania enacted the Climate Change Act last year, establishing an advisory committee to create a report on potential climate change impacts and economic opportunities for the commonwealth.

The committee also will write an action plan for cost-effective strategies to reduce or offset the state’s greenhouse gas emissions and help the Department of Environmental Protection, DEP, compile an annual inventory of the sources and amounts of greenhouse gas emissions generated within the state.

DEP Acting Secretary John Hanger said, “By implementing the Climate Change Act, investing in alternative energy, and generating more of our energy needs from clean energy sources, Pennsylvania can reduce the air pollution emissions that lead to climate change.”

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WASHINGTON, DC, November 28, 2008 (ENS) – President-elect Barack Obama can revive the U.S. economy – and aggressively combat climate change – by investing in clean energy technologies and strengthening environmental protections, the leaders of major U.S. environmental groups advise.

The recommendation is a central part of a lengthy wish list of policies sent to Obama’s transition team Tuesday by a broad coalition of 29 of the nation’s leading environmental and conservation organizations, who also urged the president-elect to swiftly reverse “eight years of environmental neglect” under the Bush administration.

“Our economy is suffering and so is our environment,” Larry Schweiger, head of the National Wildlife Federation told reporters on a conference call. “The solutions to both go hand in hand.”

The groups contend that difficult economic times provide opportunities, rather than obstacles, to tackling the daunting issues of climate change, clean energy and environmental protection.

Oak Ridge National Lab engineer Jeff Christian
directs the design and construction of highly
energy-efficient houses for low-income
families. (Photo courtesy ORNL)

“Generating green collar jobs, making our offices and homes more efficient, rebuilding our water infrastructure, reducing our dependence on oil, reviving our ailing landscapes – these are solutions that can lead directly to economic prosperity, greater social equity and even enhanced national security,” the coalition said in the 391-page report.

The solution to the nation’s economic problems “is a new green economy,” said Gene Karpinski, president of the League of Conservation Voters. “Delay is not just bad for the planet, it is bad for the economy.”

That message echoes some of Obama’s own rhetoric on energy and climate change – last week he pledged support for a federal carbon cap-and-trade system, that would mandate cutting greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and a further 80 percent by 2050.

Obama also outlined support for a $15 billion annual investment to support renewable energy and build a clean energy future, predicting the efforts would produce some five million new green jobs.

Those goals are in line with what environmentalists have long supported – a key reason the environmental groups are confident their agenda will now have a powerful advocate in the White House.

Workers install the first Mariah Windspire vertical
axis wind turbine in the Midwest at the
The College School, an elementary
school in St. Louis, Missouri. October
2008. (Photo by Matthew Diller)

Obama has made it clear that his priorities “jive nicely” with the major concerns of the environmental community, said Maggie Alt, executive director of Environment America.

The environmental groups’ planning document contains broad goals as well as specific recommendations for the White House and federal agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and Interior Department, as well as the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy

“It covers a wide range of issues that merit prompt presidential attention, but it underscores the urgent need to build a green energy economy to tackle global warming,” the groups wrote. “Most importantly, the document reflects a fundamental consensus that serious action is needed right now in order to usher in a healthier, cleaner, more prosperous and more sustainable era for America.”

Along with the climate and energy recommendations, the groups call for a slew of policies to safeguard the Arctic, as well as steps to increase protection for wetlands, national parks, wildlife refuges and other public lands.

The report recommends increased funding for conservation programs, stricter oversight of energy production from public lands and tighter air pollution standards.

The groups want Obama to reinstate a federal moratorium on offshore oil and gas drilling along with a Clinton administration rule protecting roadless areas in national forests. They also want Obama to restore protections for endangered species weakened by the Bush administration.

The Sacramento Municipal Utility District solar-powered
hydrogen vehicle fueling station opened
April 1, 2008. As solar panels make
electricity, it powers the separation of
water into hydrogen and oxygen to make
fuel for hydrogen-powered vehicles.
(Photo by Keith Wipke courtesy NREL)

“There is lot of work to do to reverse the damage of the last eight years,” Alt said.

In addition, the Obama administration should act quickly to reverse any last minute Bush rules that weaken environmental protections, Karpinski added.

“On day one they should place a moratorium on finalizing midnight regulations and reviewing those that have not yet taken effect,” he said.

The environmentalists contend the widely anticipated economic stimulus package provides a critical opportunity for Obama to quickly signal his intention to follow through on his promises to solve the “entwined economic, climate and environmental crises.”

Obama should lead the effort with bold measures to promote energy efficiency and spark increased development and use of renewable energy through modernization of the nation’s electrical grid, the groups said.

“There’s economic opportunity if we do this right,” said Kevin Knobloch, president of the Union of Concerned Scientists.

The current electricity transmission grid is “a patchwork of antiquated technology” that loses 20-25 percent of electricity generated by coal-fired power plants, he explained.

Upgrading the grid can create jobs and unleash the potential of renewable energy, said Schweiger.

“This can get the system moving in terms of new energy … and allows us to invest in solar in the Southwest, wind in the Midwest and elsewhere and move that energy to places where it is needed,” he told reporters. “Currently we do not have an infrastructure for that.”

The following groups collaborated to produce the recommendations [www.saveourenvironment.org] – American Rivers, Center For International Environmental Law, Clean Water Action, Defenders of Wildlife, Earthjustice, Environment America, Environmental Defense Fund, Friends Of The Earth, Greenpeace, Izaak Walton League, League Of Conservation Voters, National Audubon Society, National Parks Conservation Association, National Tribal Environmental Council, National Wildlife Federation, Native American Rights Fund, Natural Resources Defense Council, Oceana, Ocean Conservancy, Pew Environment Group, Physicians For Social Responsibility, Population Connection, Population Action International, Rails-To-Trails Conservancy, Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, The Trust For Public Land, Union Of Concerned Scientists, and World Wildlife Fund.

By J.R. Pegg

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BOSTON, Massachusetts, November 19, 2008 (ENS) – Five large U.S. corporations and a coalition of investors and environmental groups today announced that they have formed a new organization to lobby for strong U.S. climate and energy legislation in early 2009 to spur a clean energy economy and reduce global warming.

The founding members of Business for Innovative Climate and Energy Policy, to be known as BICEP, are Levi Strauss & Co., Nike, Starbucks, Sun Microsystems and The Timberland Company.

BICEP members believe that climate change impacts will ripple across all sectors of the economy and that new business perspectives are needed to solve the climate and energy challenges facing America.

“These companies have a clear message for next year’s Congress – move quickly on climate change to kick-start a transition to a prosperous clean energy economy fueled by green jobs,” said Mindy Lubber, president of Ceres, the coalition of investors and public interest groups that helped to organize BICEP.

The BICEP companies said today that greenhouse gas reduction targets should be set to at least 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Of all the target figures demanded by various groups, these are some of the strictest.

To accomplish these goals, they would like to see the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama and the new Democrat-controlled Congress establish an economy-wide greenhouse gas cap-and-trade system that auctions 100 percent of carbon pollution allowances, promotes energy efficiency and accelerates clean energy technologies.

BICEP’s plan includes a redoubling of energy efficiency efforts, fuel-efficient vehicles, plug-in electric hybrids, low-carbon fuels, and transit-oriented development.

They would stimulate job growth through investment in climate-based solutions, especially green-collar jobs in low-income and climate-vulnerable communities.

They would have the government adopt a national renewable portfolio standard requiring 20 percent of electricity to be generated from renewable energy sources by 2020, and 30 percent by 2030.

Clean energy can lead to green collar
jobs, such as manufacturing wind turbines
at this new Clipper Windpower plant in
Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (Photo courtesy
Clipper Windpower)

And they would limit construction of new coal-fired power plants to those that capture and store carbon emissions. They would create incentives for carbon capture technology on new and existing plants, and phase out existing coal-based power plants that do not capture and store carbon by 2030.

The new coalition’s goal is to work directly with key allies in the business community and members of Congress to pass meaningful energy and climate change legislation.

They will likely find allies among the member companies and environmental groups in the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, USCAP, a coalition of 26 corporations and six nonprofit environmental and conservation organizations established in January 2007 to encourage goverment to establish a cap-and-trade program for carbon emissions.

USCAP held a press conference in Washington Tuesday to make the economic case for cap-and-trade legislation that they would like to see written soon after the Obama administration picks up the reins of power.

The non-partisan group said that cap-and-trade legislation is urgently needed to prevent the serious impacts of climate change and will create new economic opportunities.

“While the magnitude of needed reductions are not free of costs, legislation is necessary to spur innovation in green technologies that will create jobs, increase economic activity and provide the foundation for a vibrant, low-carbon economy,” USCAP said in a statement.

“The economic opportunity embedded within the shift away from fossil fuels is historic,” said David Crane, NRG Energy’s chief executive. “For example, think of the enormous fortunes made by those who were on the right side of the shift from the horse to the internal combustion engine. The right climate solution, a moderate price on carbon, can help create real economic opportunities.”

“Investment in new technologies and the infrastructure needed for a low-carbon economy are effective ways to generate the jobs and economic growth the U.S. needs to address the current economic crisis,” said James Rogers, CEO of Duke Energy. “We must position the U.S. to succeed in the new low-carbon, global economy and this is the best way to accomplish that.”

USCAP includes the following corporations and environmental NGOs: Alcoa, AIG, Boston Scientific, BP America, Caterpillar, ConocoPhillips, Chrysler, John Deere, Dow, Duke Energy, DuPont, Environmental Defense Fund, Exelon, Ford, FPL Group, General Electric, General Motors, Johnson & Johnson, Marsh, National Wildlife Federation, Natural Resources Defense Council, NRG Energy, The Nature Conservancy, PepsiCo, Pew Center on Global Climate Change, PG&E, PNM Resources, Rio Tinto, Shell, Siemens, World Resources Institute, and Xerox.

At the press conference, Environmental Defense Fund President Fred Krupp cited a recent University of Maryland study showing that unchecked climate change will strain public budgets and cut growth across all sectors of the economy.

By contrast, a cap-and-trade program designed to cut carbon emissions could provide an economic stimulus, he said.

“A cap can instantly create new customers and new jobs for U.S. manufacturers in the supply chain for clean energy. Think of wind turbines and all of the cement and steel that go into them,” said Krupp. “It’s the energy and economic revitalization policy America needs now.”

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SACRAMENTO, California, November 5, 2008 (ENS) – California voters approved Proposition 1A, the Safe, Reliable High Speed Passenger Train Bond Act Tuesday by a margin of four percentage points. The act approves nearly $10 billion in bond money to build a modern bullet train linking northern and southern California that is expected to reduce air pollution by taking cars off the road.

“Californians showed their support once again for modern, clean energy technologies with their approval of Prop 1A, the high-speed rail bond,” said Bernadette Del Chiaro, clean energy advocate for Environment California, one of several environmental organizations that endorsed the measure.

“Better public transportation is critical to solving global warming and creating real energy independence in California,” she said.

Artist’s conception of the California bullet train
(Image courtesy NC3D)

Quentin Kopp, chairman of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, said Tuesday night, “Thanks to tonight’s vote, a state-of-the-art, new transportation choice will link every major city in the state and move people and products like never before. The citizens of California have put the 21st century golden spike in the ground with a clear affirmation of high-speed trains.”

While voters approved Prop 1A, they struck down Props 7 and 10, both opposed by environmental and consumer groups around the state and across the country.

The Natural Resources Defense Council, California League of Conservation Voters, Union of Concerned Scientists, and the Sierra Club led the fight against Props 7 and 10.

Proposition 7, the Renewable Energy Generation Initiative, sought to increase renewable electricity mandates but was opposed by nearly every environmental organization because of drafting flaws that locked in loopholes for utility compliance, among other cited problems. It gained only 35 percent of the vote.

Proposition 7 would have erected complex regulatory barriers, excluded smaller renewable energy providers and made it harder to bring more renewable energy to California, according to the groups.

Jim Metropulos, Sierra Club California’s senior advocate, said, “Once again, California voters have shown that they are able to see through the smokescreen of clever ads and deceptive ballot language to do what’s best for our state. Now the real work begins: convincing the California Legislature to adopt meaningful, enforceable renewable power standards and convincing state regulators to do a better job at encouraging clean vehicles in our state.”

Proposition 10, the Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Renewable Energy measure, was also rejected, attracting only 40 percent of the vote.

It was backed by billionaire oilman and recent natural gas and wind energy advocate T. Boone Pickens. Critics of the proposition have noted Pickens’ financial interest in supporting natural gas vehicles.

Proposition 10 was written to provide large subsidies to natural gas, a non-renewable fossil fuel source, that the groups point out would have crowded out better vehicle technologies and cleaner fuels.

Prop 10 would require $5 billion in public bond money to fund a grab-bag of alternative fuel, vehicle, and energy measures which was predicted to balloon to $10 billion by the time it was to have been repaid.

“Californians were not be fooled by clever packaging and fancy TV ads,” said Del Chiaro. “This initiative was a special interest give-away to the natural gas industry and voters rightly said ‘no way.’”

The groups said the failure of Propositions 7 and 10 in no way reflects negatively upon the strong support for renewable energy or clean, alternative-fueled vehicles in the state.

David Pettit, director of NRDC’s Southern California Clean Air Program, said, “California voters overwhelmingly support renewable energy and alternatives to oil, and voted No on Props 7 and 10 to sustain California’s momentum and leadership on clean energy solutions. We cannot delay investing in solutions that will free us from our addiction to fossil fuel.”

“The fact that voters struck down Props 7 and 10 does not mean Californian’s support for clean energy solutions has waned,” said Del Chiaro. “On the contrary, Californians are keenly interested in promoting real, big and bold clean energy solutions as demonstrated by their willingness to pass Prop 1A.”

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AUSTIN, Texas, April 17, 2008 (ENS) – The state of Texas will invest $1 million in HelioVolt Corp. of Austin for the construction of a 125,000 square foot manufacturing facility and development space to test and produce the company’s thin-film solar power cells, which convert sunlight into electricity.

The company will manufacture a new type of seamlessly solarized building materials and architectural modules to cover structures with a solar skin.

The investment will come through the Texas Enterprise Fund, TEF, a multi-million dollar business incentive fund created by state legislation in 2003 and refilled in 2005 and 2007.

“Texas is the place to grow a business thanks to our mix of a reasonable regulatory environment, an educated workforce, and a variety of economic incentives that bolster our stature in the global marketplace,” said Governor Rick Perry announcing the HelioVolt funding on Tuesday.

“HelioVolt’s investment in this alternative energy technology will not only create more jobs in Texas but also help our state remain at the forefront of the renewable energy market,” said the governor. These advances will also help decrease our dependence on foreign energy sources.”

Texas was in competition with New York, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania for the facility.

HelioVolt chief executive and founder Dr. B.J. Stanbery said, “Governor Perry’s support of clean energy technologies, innovative companies and job creation through the Texas Enterprise Fund is a sign that he understands the critical role new approaches to energy generation will play in the future economic success of Texas.”

HelioVolt, founded in 2001, is pioneering the use of thin-film solar materials made from an alloy called copper indium gallium selenide, or CIGS, that are 100 times thinner than traditional silicon solar cells.

“Incentives such as the TEF award were instrumental in our decision to locate our first manufacturing and testing facility in Austin,” said Stanbery, who invented the HelioVolt process, which is based on rapid semiconductor printing.

HelioVolt process prints CIGS coating onto
building materials. (Photo
courtesy HelioVolt)

The proprietary HelioVolt process called FASST™ is a high-speed, cost-effective process for manufacturing thin-film photovoltaics using CIGS. FASST™ prints the CIGS coating directly onto a wide variety of substrates.

The CIGS coating can be embedded in roofing materials, glass and cladding, sunshades and canopies, skylights and modules. The new material absorbs more sunlight and is less expensive to produce than traditional silicon technology.

HelioVolt’s first factory, to be located in Austin’s Expo Business Park, will have an initial production capacity of 20 megawatts with the ability to expand as the company increases production.

Manufacturing silicon cells today costs roughly $3 a watt. The interest in HelioVolt is driven by belief that the company eventually can streamline the manufacturing process to produce solar cells at $1 per watt, a target that silicon and thin film producers are both aiming for.

Construction of the company’s new facility will be financed by the company’s Series B funding round, which closed late last year at $101 million, making it the largest solar technology venture capital round to date, HelioVolt said in a statement.

“A clear clean technology leader right here in our backyard, HelioVolt has already proven itself something of an Austin hero to this community that prides itself in its commitment to both clean energy and technological innovation,” said Austin Mayor Will Wynn. HelioVolt expects the new factory to create more than 150 additional jobs in the region.

HelioVolt is not alone in the CIGS marketplace. Based in Silicon Valley, Nanosolar, Inc. is already printing thin-film solar materials with its nanoparticle ink and roll-printing technology and has received about $20 million from the U.S. Energy Department for development in addition to private funding.

Global Solar Energy, opened its new 40 megawatts CIGS factory in Tucson, Arizona in March. Global Solar is breaking ground on what will be one of the world’s largest CIGS solar fields, at 750 kilowatts (kW), and commissioning its 35 MW plant in Berlin, Germany to open in fall 2008.

Worldwide silicon based solar technologies continue to dominate at more than 94 percent of the market share, with the share of thin-film at less than six percent, according to a 2007 report by the National Renewable Energy Lab.

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LONDON, UK, March 7, 2008 (ENS) – In its budget for 2008-2009, the British government has allocated hundreds of millions of pounds for clean energy technologies over the next three years.

Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs Hilary Benn, MP, Thursday announced an increase in funding for clean energy technologies, investments and enterprises to over £400 million (US$808 million) over the next three years as part of the department’s 2008-2009 budget.

A few of the wind turbines in the giant Kentish Flats offshore wind farm (Photo courtesy Vattenfall)

“Now is the time to act together to tackle climate change and protect our environment. The government must lead the way by ensuring we are investing in building a low-carbon Britain,” said Benn, who heads the Department of Environment, Food & Rural, Defra.

Benn announced a 1.4 percent real increase in Defra’s overall budget as compared with the department’s 2007-2008 budget

“Defra spending will increase to almost £4 billion over the next three years but we must invest wisely,” Benn said. “That is why we are focusing our efforts on helping to provide sustainable options for the future as well as supporting and influencing governments, businesses and consumers locally and globally.”

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged that the UK will become a low carbon economy. Specifically, he said:

* In 2008 we are legislating to put our emissions targets into law, and will create a Green Homes Service to help individuals save energy, water and money by going green.

* In 2009 we will put a strategy in place for a major increase in renewable energy by 2020

* In 2010 we will introduce a scheme for businesses and the public sector to save 4.2 million tones of CO2 a year

* By 2011 we will have phased out the sale of high-energy light-bulbs, five million more homes will have benefited from discounted or free insulation and another three million homes from discounted energy efficient appliances.

As part of Defra’s 2008-2009 budget, the Carbon Trust will receive £47.4 million (US$95.7 million) to bring forward new energy technologies such as offshore wind, third-generation solar photovoltaic power, marine energy and biomass heating.

This funding will also be used to increase the Carbon Trust’s energy saving loans plan for small and medium sized enterprises.

The UK currently has 169 wind projects in place generating 2435 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 1,361,693 homes, according to the British Wind Energy Association.

The Defra budget includes new investments in low-carbon technology to help tackle environmental challenges in developing countries over the next three years.

The sustainable waste infrastructure will receive over £2 billion (US$4 billion) in Private Finance Initiative credits provided over the next three years.

The Defra budget includes £2.15 billion (US$4.3 billion) over the next three years for flood protection.

And the resources of the Rural Development Programme for England were doubled to £3.9 billion (US$7.87 billion) available to 2013.

In addition, over the next three years the government will also provide around £10 million for a new anaerobic digestion demonstration program. Up to four commercial-scale facilities will show the potential of this technology to create renewable energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and avoid waste being sent to landfill.

Anaerobic digestion is a process in which microorganisms break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen. The process treats wastewater sludges and organic wastes, reducing both volume and mass of the input material.

As part of an integrated waste management system, anaerobic digestion reduces the emission of landfill gas into the atmosphere.

Anaerobic digestion is a renewable energy source because the process produces a methane and carbon dioxide rich biogas suitable for energy production to help replace fossil fuels. The nutrient-rich solids left after digestion can be used as fertilizer.

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MONACO, February 20, 2008 (ENS) – A green economy is emerging worldwide as growing numbers of companies embrace environmental policies and investors pump hundreds of billions into clean technology and renewable energies, finds the 2008 United Nations Environment Programme Year Book.

The Year Book was presented here today at the opening of the largest gathering of environment ministers since the UN climate conference in Bali, Indonesia last December.

The ministers, joined by representatives of business, organized labor, science and civil society, are attending UNEP’s Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum with the theme “Mobilizing Finance for the Climate Challenge.”

“Hundreds of billions of dollars are now flowing into renewable and clean energy technologies and trillions more dollars are waiting in the wings looking to governments for a new and decisive climate regime post 2012 alongside the creative market mechanisms necessary to achieve this,” said Achim Steiner, UN under-secretary general and UNEP executive director.

UN officials introduce the 2008 UNEP
Year Book in Monaco. From left:
UNEP Governing Council President
Roberto Dobles of Costa Rica, UNEP
Executive Director Achim Steiner,
International Labor Organization
Director-General Juan Somavia.
(Photo courtesy Earth Negotiations Bulletin)

Climate change, as documented in the Year Book, is increasingly changing the global environment, from the melting of permafrost and glaciers to extreme weather events.

But it is also beginning to change the mind-sets, policies and actions of corporate heads, financiers and entrepreneurs as well as leaders of organized labor, governments and the United Nations itself.

Combating climate change increasingly is being viewed as an opportunity rather than a burden and a path to a new kind of prosperity instead of a brake on profits and employment, the UNEP Year Book shows. The emerging green economy is driving invention, innovation and the imagination of engineers on a scale not witnessed since the industrial revolution of more than two centuries ago.

The report points to the growing interest in novel geo-engineering projects such as giant carbon dioxide, C02, collectors that absorb the greenhouse gas from the air as trees do.

“Based on technology used in fish tank filters and developed by scientists from Columbia University’s Earth Institute, this method called “air capture” can collect the CO2 at the location of the ideal geological deposits for storage,” says the report.

Meanwhile, scientists in Iceland and elsewhere are looking at injecting C02 into that country’s abundant basalt rocks where it is claimed the gas reacts to form inert limestone.

Similar “sequestration rocks” exist in geological formations across much of the world and may provide a safe and long term disposal option for the main greenhouse gas emissions, says the UNEP Year Book.

Some elements of a green economy are already taking shape.

Prince Albert of Monaco emphasized scientific
warnings of climate change, referring
to his own observation of severe
warming effects in the Arctic.
(Photo courtesy ENB)

Corporate social responsibility reporting, including environmental concerns, is now found among corporations in over 90 countries – with the number of such statements mushrooming from virtually zero in the early 1990s to well over 2,000 now, the Year Book states.

The Investor Network on Climate Change, launched in November 2003, now has some 50 institutional investors with assets of over $3 trillion.

And the Principles for Responsible Investment, jointly facilitated by UNEP’s Finance Initiative and the UN Global Compact in 2006, now has 275 institutions with $13 trillion of assets.

In 2007, financial transactions in the sustainable energy sector reached $160 billion – up from just over $100 billion in 2006, according to another UNEP report drafted to inform the deliberations of ministers in Monaco.

“An initiative to provide seed money for clean energy entrepreneurs has spawned close to 50 new enterprises in Africa, China and India. The Principles for Responsible Investment, facilitated by the UNEP Finance Initiative and the UN’s Global Compact, has secured the support of over 275 institutions handling assets of over $13 trillion dollars,” said Steiner.

“Among the challenges facing ministers in Monaco is how to accelerate this transformation to ensure that it is far reaching, widespread and above all speedy,” he said.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, composed of more than 2,000 scientists established by UNEP and the World Meteorological Organization to advise governments, estimates that to avoid dangerous climate change emissions need to be stabilized at between 535 to 590 parts per million, ppm, in 2050.

In order to meet the stabilization target, global emissions of greenhouse gases will need to decrease in 2050 by 18 to 29 giggatonnes of carbon dioxide with emissions peaking even earlier – somewhere between 2010 and 2030.

A variety of recent assessments such as the Stern Review; ones by the IPCC and others by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change put the costs of stabilization at between 0.3 percent and four per cent of global Gross Domestic Product, GDP.

Stern estimates it at one percent of global GDP, costing around $134 billion in 2015 rising to $930 billion in 2050.

Industrialized countries, except the United States, are abiding by the Kyoto Protocol, which requires a reduction in six greenhouse gases by an average of 5.2 percent of 1990 levels by the end of 2012.
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Environment in the Bureau of Oceans,

Environment and Science Dan Reifsnyder
said most decisions should be put
off until next year’s Governing
Council. (Photo courtesy ENB)

After 2012, the Kyoto Protocol will be replaced by an global agreement now under negotiation that are expected to be completed by the climate convention meeting in Copenhagen in 2009.

Some developing countries are already committed to a green economy.

UNEP Governing Council President Roberto Dobles of Costa Rica told reporters today that his country wants to become a carbon neutral, zero impact economy by 2021.

“To change the economy, we have to become more resource efficient, the culture of consumption will have to change,” Dobles said.

Although the country enjoys a 62 percent forest cover, last year Costa Ricans planted six million trees and aim to plant seven million trees this year, he said.

Costa Rica will be reducing emissions and increasing its capacity to mitigate climate change, Dobles said. “We will be increasing our well-being through a low carbon economy.”

In a video message played at the Governing Council today, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appealed to the environment ministers to usher in a “new generation” of solutions to climate change.

“You can help us meet the crucial challenge of mobilizing finance to meet the climate challenge,” he said. “We must sustain the momentum, including through practical actions now.”

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HONOLULU, Hawaii, January 28, 2008 (ENS) – Rich in sun and wind, Hawaii is on track to become one of the world’s first economies based on clean energy resources under a long-term agreement signed today by representatives of the state and federal governments. The agreement sets a goal of using renewable resources such as wind, sun, ocean, geothermal, and bioenergy to supply 70 percent or more of Hawaii’s energy needs by 2030.

Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle and Alexander Karsner, U.S. Department of Energy, DOE, assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy, today signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative.

The goal is to reduce the state’s dependence on imported oil and help bring energy price stability to Hawaii consumers.

Hawaii gas prices are the highest in the nation. AAA and the Oil Price Information Service say the national average is $2.98 a gallon. In Hawaii, it’s $3.50 a gallon, up 56 cents from a year ago.

Another goal of the initiative is to curb climate change. In 2007, Hawaii became the second state in the nation, after California, to establish a cap on greenhouse gas emissions.

“This innovative, unprecedented partnership builds on the progress the state has made to increase energy independence by decreasing Hawaii’s reliance on imported oil,” said Governor Lingle, who previewed the historic agreement last week in her State of the State Address.

“Our islands’ abundant natural sources of energy, combined with the considerable capabilities of the Department of Energy will help Hawaii lead America in utilizing clean, renewable energy technologies.”

Solar electric panels on rooftop
at U.S. Naval Station Pearl
Harbor generate enough power
for 300 homes. (Photo courtesy
HNEI)

“Through this unique initiative, DOE is pleased to commit its technical and policy expertise and capabilities to help demonstrate reliable, affordable and clean energy technologies in Hawaii,” Assistant Secretary Karsner said.

DOE will focus on working with public and private partners to design cost-effective approaches for 100 percent use of renewable energy on smaller islands.

Systems will be put in place to improve stability of electrical grids operating with variable generating sources, such as wind power plants on the Island of Hawaii and Maui.

Renewable energy, including solar, wind, energy storage and advanced vehicle technologies will be integrated into existing systems to meet the islands’ energy needs.

At new large military housing developments, energy use will be minimized while energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies will be maximized.

Hawaii’s capability to use locally grown crops as byproducts for producing fuel and electricity will be expanded.

And comprehensive energy regulatory and policy frameworks to promote clean energy technology use will be developed.

“With an abundance of natural resources and environmental treasures, Hawaii is the ideal location to showcase the broad benefits of renewable energy at work on an unprecedented scale,” said Karsner.

“Hawaii’s success will serve as an integrated model and demonstration test bed for the United States and other island communities globally, many of which are just beginning the transition to a clean energy economy,” he said.

The partnership will provide technical assistance and technology program support for projects that draw on technologies developed through a range of DOE research and development programs.

The Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative will also tap the expertise of other federal agencies, including the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Defense, national research laboratories, and research and development entities, as well as the private sector.

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In an attempt to satisfy their constituents, and in what appears to be a genuine support of green, Governors from across the country have announced “The Securing a Clean Energy Future” initiative. It outlines some concrete steps to make their states more energy efficient, more homegrown fuels and finally, less polluting. The aim for a 30% reduction of green house gas emission by 2016. The chief architects of state of the initiative are Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, a Republican and current chair of the NGA, and Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, a Democrat.

It is encouraging to note that this is a bipartisan initiative, as this issue is clearly too important for ‘political touch football’. The project will be led by a task force of governors including three democrats and three republicans: from the left, Governors Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania, Brian Schweitzer of Montana, and Chris Gregoire of Washington; and from the right, Jodi Rell of Connecticut, Linda Lingle of Hawaii, and Charlie Crist of Florida.

Some primary elements of “Securing a Clean Energy Future”:

* Use existing energy resources more wisely through efficiency and conservation

* Promote non-petroleum based fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel

* Take “reasonable steps” to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

* Accelerate the research and development of advanced, clean energy technologies

Securing a Clean Energy Future is happening now, in part, because the federal government has been dragging its heels on enacting important global warming prevention programs. The NGA hopes to instigate the federal government into following suite and initiating more programs and funding for global warming prevention. It looks as if the ploy is already working, as Energy Secretary Bodman attended the press conference announcement with the NGA and pledged $610,000 in federal money to support “Securing a Clean Energy Future”.