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Archive for October, 2009

If I was a betting man, I’d bet you are already using solar power. It is in your fuel, your food, and in some form or another almost everything you do. In more practical terms, though, we are talking about heat and electricity. Why should we use soar power to provide energy to our homes?

The answer, solar power is reliable and free. From the early morning dawn to the late evening set, the Sun will shine each and every day. Solar energy may be the single most consistent thing there is on our planet.

The great thing is no taxes, no pollution, and no global warming. And solar energy needs no refinement, it’s ready to go. Pure solar energy, perfect and clean, like a gift from above.

So what if your photovoltaic system is only 12% efficient, or your solar collectors absorb only 70% of the available heat? The truth is, your energy source is free! No more utility bills, gas stations, and no more power outages. When your solar power system is finally in service there are no more continuing fuel costs. All that could take you down would be a volcanic cloud or weeks of unstoppable rain.

The difficulties in using solar energy are with selecting the right application and the right equipment. How much does a solar energy system cost and how difficult is it to integrate? How simple or elaborate should it be? In my location, is solar energy right for me? Here we present a few straight forward answers to help your case.

If you have a sunny climate with lots of solar energy, then put it to use. You will save money long term and do so in an environmentally safe way. We would estimate that at least 50% of the United States could be using solar energy in some way.

If where you live is cloudy and rainy all the time then solar energy probably won’t work out for you. The northern winters and coastal climates can be tough for this. But this does not mean you should not investigate, there may still be some opportunity.

When it comes to making heat and hot water with solar energy – absolutely. We refer to this as passive solar heating. These are cost effective systems that can be incorporated directly into your business or home. Many designs for passive solar heating systems are inexpensive and simple too.

When it comes to making electricity from solar energy, the answer will depend on many things. You know sometimes it is just hard to beat how effective the power supplied by the local utility.

If you are using tons of electricity in your home or your business then solar energy may be difficult to justify. This is where local Utilities are good, they can kick out the juice for all the high power users and the heavy duty industries. But if you are simple in life and efficient in how you use energy, then the up-front cost of solar power can pay off over time. It could be as little as 5 years depending on the electrical rate of your local utility.

If you have to tap into the electric grid in a remote location with any distance between you and the power supply then solar energy may be the way to go. You can save money by avoiding expensive transmission cables routed to your property.

If you are interested in an emergency reserve of energy, then this also is a good use for solar energy. With just a few solar panels you can charge a large bank of batteries. So when you get those destructive storms and environmental disasters, just kick in the emergency reserve and ride it through.

Whatever your specific purpose, the reasons for using solar energy are many. Be it an emergency back up, a money saver, or just to reduce pollution, installing a solar energy system is a beneficial experience.

In September, there was a post to a solar industry Linked-In group suggesting that solar markets were declining and not very important. The evidence is GLOBAL and to the contrary in terms of dollars now moving in solar markets. Two of the world’s largest engineering giants, German conglomerate Siemens and US powerhouse General Electric (GE), have both committed to the renewable energy sector. Both have acquired high-profile Israeli solar energy firms. Siemens announced will acquire solar thermal power firm Solel Solar for what is nearing a half BILLION dollars ($418 million). The buyout is subject to regulatory approval, but Siemens said it is confident the acquisition can be completed before 2010. Israel-based Solel is one of the world’s leading providers of giant mirrors, which are used in parabolic trough solar thermal systems. The company posted sales of almost $90 million in the first six months of this year and has operations in a number of key solar thermal markets, including Spain and the US. Siemens’ President suggests that they want to replicate their success in the wind energy market. They are estimating a Solar Thermal market worth €20 billion PER YEAR by 2020. Siemans is also a member of the Desertec coalition of German blue chip firms exploring large scale solar farms in North Africa that hopes to export energy to Europe. GE announced it has spent an undisclosed sum as part of a $23 million funding round for Israeli solar start- up SolarEdge. The company provides an automated management system for photovoltaic solar panel arrays designed to ensure each panel is able to maximize power output. GE also took a piece of US smart grid firm Tendril and announced that it was aiming to boost its investment in renewable energy generation from the current level of $4 billion to $6 billion by the end of 2010. That's just a few “smart billion” among friends. Let’s look at California, since they are one of the largest economies in the world and the government is complaining it’s broke. You’d think this would mean that they would stop investing in solar if anyone would. Sempra Energy and PG&E both announced large new solar commitments in October (2009) with Sempra planning to build up to 500MW of its own new solar-power plants in the next few years and PG&E signing contracts to buy a whopping 830MW of new solar. PG&E wants to add 500MW of ground-mounted solar-power systems and Sempra subsidiary San Diego Gas & Electric has applied for approval for 70-80MW of ground-mounted solar panels. Another California utility, Southern California Edison, has gotten approval to add 500MW of rooftop solar projects, and both SCE and PG&E have signed deals for huge solar-thermal projects, including 1.3GW and 1.31GW contracts from BrightSource, respectively. Residential and commercial installations appear tiny in terms of capacity, although there are many more of them. In the first quarter of this year, for example, the California Solar Initiative announced that its participants installed a record total of 78MW at more than 3,600 sites. The leap in utility solar development has been even more pronounced because it comes at a time when it’s been so difficult for other large solar-project developers to raise money. Recession financing has remained scarce, and while federal cash grants are beginning to help, most of those have gone to wind projects so far. But we see a helio-tropic shift coming. It’s not a coincidence that utilities have begun driving the solar market at the same time that they have become eligible for the first time for federal tax credits and cash grants. Those incentives have made it feasible for them to build their own plants, instead of financing them through power-purchase-agreement providers that own and operate the plants. Some entrepreneurs worry that big utilities could monopolize the industry instead of encouraging competition within the market. We expect many of these utilities will also help the economy by hiring clean tech research firms like Research 13 to evaluate the markets and show the positive impact of solar investment pushing prices downward for all as the demand for systems increase in the long run. The PUC has addressed concerns by industry pundits by developing projects themselves – utilities also buy solar power from others such as developers, making them customers as well as competitors. The Govenator has been busy this month keeping his wife off of the cell phone, and he’s been out of the sunlight as First Lady Maria promotes her new book about women in the workplace. While this month appears to be Maria’s month, last month the Gov. raised the state goal, requiring utilities to get one third (33%) of their electricity from renewable sources by 2020. That’s ambitious, even for Hans and Frans, considering that utilities are expected to fall short of the previous goal of 20 percent by 2010. You don’t get to be one of the world’s biggest box office stars and marry into the Kennedy family without an ambitious plan. Let’s not forget China who is producing half of the solar PV panels. China is reportedly spending $230 billion in stimulus money on “green infrastructure.” That’s 40% of China’s stimulus package is going to the green economy. There’s a big push to get a domestic solar market. They started off in March with the Solar Roofs Program and then in late July they announced the Golden Sun project, which is more utility-level. So with just the California “warm California sun” plans and the Chinese “Golden sun” program, things are, eh, sunny and bright. Of course a little more exploring of the gentleman who said solar was going to decline reveals that he was part of the petro-chemical industry. They’ve owned energy for a long time, so I’m not surprised it’s hard to believe for him. However, I think he might also thin the sun rises in the morning (the earth actually spins once every 24 hours and takes 365 days to get around the sun). Sources: Business Green, Aimeebarnes.com, Environmental Leader, Earth2Tech, Earth Stream, Research 13

Today, going green is not only a jargon it is requirement.  Each of us has to do what we can to help keep the environment healthy for the next generation.  Often times it is straightforward to overlook the day-to-day things we do possessing a huge impact on the environment.  Printing is one of those areas.

If you stop and think about all of the business cards and brochures floating around, the mixed impact on the environment is stunning.  With a little foresight and planning, each business can do their part to minimize the impact of printed materials on the environment.  Instead of using normal printing materials, business can milk eco-friendly printing.  Having an eco friendly business card or green flyers, makes a positive statement about your business.  You could be thinking about what is eco friendly printing.

First of all, let me tell you that going green when printing your business supplies can save your cash. So not only do we help the ecosystem, we’re able to keep a bit of cash in the bank.

Sounds like a win-win situation to me.

When you make a decision to go green with your business selling and communication needs , select a company that offers recycled paper and soy ink for printing.  This makes you stand out as a responsible company. Everyone likes to hear about the companies that are attempting to contribute to a Healthier planet.

Recycled paper is employed in eco-friendly printing such as, business cards brochures and the like.  Using a company that offers at least 80% recycled material can make an extreme difference on the environment.  Green recycled materials and paper are non-toxic and use such materials as a hemp, garlic skins, coffee chaff, junk mail and denim.

Environmentally friendly inks are used as well.  These inks consist of soy or other vegetable oil based inks.  Soy ink is made of soybeans.  Normal ink is petroleum-based, which isn’t extremely friendly to our world. The neat thing about soy-based Ink is that it’s not only green, but makes recycling the paper less complicated, and produces brighter colours.

As of current, only 25% of all commercial printers in the U.S. are using soy ink. On a good note however,over 95% of America’s daily newspapers do use soy based ink. So although we are making enhancements in the printing industry towards a greener way of living, we are not quite there yet. It is up to each and every one of us to do our part. For more insights go to Eco Friendly Printing

So many things are now going green and it looks like the mobile phone is set to hit the market too.

All electrical appliances with the energy star are already deemed to be green and of course you have the option of going green when it comes to the car thanks to the hybrid. However, when purchasing your next mobile, will there be an option for somebody who is passionate about saving the world?

Well since the teaming up of Sprint and Samsung there now is. This new phone is actually made from corn and is made up from 80% recyclable materials. The real query is why this hasn’t been done before? With nearly everyone in the developed world owning at least one mobile phone it seems crazy why this sort of thing wasn’t released sooner!

To try and make you a greener person, the phone charger itself has the energy star on it and some of the applications for the phones are now put on there beforehand. Pre-loaded apps from the Discovery Channel are placed on there to help turn you into a greener person. They have even put a glossary on there to help explain things on climate changes.

This isn’t it for this phone, it is also a smartphone that has GPS, Web browsing and speech recognition. What this shows is that technology seems to be jumping ahead at a very alarming rate.

Of course it doesn’t just have to stop on the phone, you can buy so many different things for the home that are green and eco-friendly now whether that is kitchen accessories as well as bathroom accessories So whatever home furnishings you are looking to change there is always something out there for you to choose.It makes you wonder what they will think of next. Wonderful as technology is, we wonder where it might all end?

Going green in the work environment is very important. Considering how much energy and resources the average office uses, it’s hard to deny the impact that office work can have on the environment.

Although there has been a lot written about reducing energy consumption in the work place, there are several other areas that need to be addressed. One of the most important is printer inks.

Printer ink cartridges are a big source of waste in the environment. Not only do they come in environmentally un-friendly packaging, they are disposable and are not normally recycled. In addition, disposing of them with the remainder of ink left in the cartridge can potentially pollute soil and water.

If you’re looking for a green alternative to traditional printer ink, consider using soy based inks. Soybeans are used in a variety of other capacities, and now they can be used to help in printing.

Soy based inks are produced from soy bean oil, which is created from soy beans. Because soy is a renewable resource and is relatively easy to grow, soy based inks are very environmentally friendly.

There are many benefits to soy bean ink that make it superior to other forms of ink. It is easier to recycle paper that has used soy based ink than paper that is printed with standard ink. Before paper is recycled, it is put through a de-inking process. Soy based inks tend to do better with this process than standard inks, which means that the paper can be used more thoroughly and produces a whiter, brighter recycled paper.

Soy based inks can also produce brighter, cleaner printings. The colors produced from soy based inks are often  much more vibrant than what is produced with regular inks. Since the colors are brighter, you can get better results with less ink, which leads to less waste.

In addition, soy based inks do not rub off as easily as traditional inks. If all newspapers switched to soy based inks, we wouldn’t have to worry about the smudgy black prints left on our hands after handling newspaper. This can also be an advantage to people who print professional media, such as flyers or business cards, on their own computers.

Soy based inks operate more efficiently than other types of inks, even in standard printers because soy inks require a higher temperature to boil than standard inks. This can be a big benefit when you are using a laser printer. The ink can get very hot and still maintain stability.

Additionally, printers can maintain a more consistent color and print darkness when they are run with soy based inks. Instead of having to adjust your printer every 100 sheets or so, you can go longer and still have consistent print quality.

Soy based inks can be used in ink jet and laser printers alike. With the use of soy based inks, you can reduce your carbon footprint and help divert oil into other resources.

Find the latest coupons for discount office supplies, including any current offers for eco friendly office supplies as well $30 off $150 office coupons, when available.

Basically, a Wind Development Director is responsible for
taking a stretch of empty countryside and turning it into a
wind farm.

Visit:  http://www.GreenCareersGuide.com
 
The career outlook for a wind development director is good.
They make on average $54 to $75 thousand a year.

In some case, the Wind Development Director is even
responsible for selecting the site for the wind farm. They
study weather patterns and topographical maps to find a
location with good wind resources. Next, they are
responsible for securing the land. Then they supervise the
development and construction of the wind farm. Finally,
after the wind turbine complex has been set up, tested, and
is running smoothly at peak efficiency, they start the
process all over again.

A Wind Development Director needs to set up a development
and construction timetable, and ensure that a daily
production plan is met. They must be able to handle budgets
effectively. They must monitor the construction of the wind
farm and ensure that safety and quality standards are being
met. Finally, the wind park needs to be staffed with
competent technicians and managers, and its administration
set up to function smoothly and efficiently.

What Are the Qualifications for a Wind Development Director?

A job at this level requires a great degree of training and
experience. In general, Wind Development Directors are
either engineers with a great deal of business experience,
or businessmen with long time experience in the wind power
industry.

The minimum educational level would be a Bachelor’s in
engineering or business. A Master’s degree in electrical
engineering or business administration is, of course,
preferred, and increases your chances of landing a Wind
Development Director position.

Experience is perhaps the greatest factor. Wind power
companies would want at least 5 years of experience in the
industry to be considered for this position, and some
companies could require as much as ten or fifteen year’s
experience. Obviously, most of this work experience would
need to be in a supervisory capacity, displaying one’s
ability to work well with people and mold them into a
cohesive, productive unit.

What Type of Person Is Good for This Position?

People with good organizational and people skills make good
Wind Development Directors. Excellent communication skills,
both written and oral, are essential. The ability to lead
and motivate others, delegate responsibility and follow up
with subordinates, and negotiate personnel problems
effectively is important. To be a Wind Development
Director, one must be organized, manage time efficiently,
work within time and budget limitations, and cope well with
stress and unexpected complications.
 
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Brighton City Council has recently revealed it will be installing 20 roadside charging stations for electric vehicles. This is part of a big project to try and make Brighton a more Zero-emission city.

However, do people who own an electric car really think they are better than everyone else? If you watched an old episode of South Park it would maybe seem so. Many of the people in South Park bought a electric car and found that they all started to think very highly of themselves and better than the people without the car.

Naturally this was of course nonsense and just put there to annoy all the people of Chicago (where most of the episode was based) as well as everyyone who owns an electric car.

However is the answer to the worlds pollution actually in these cars or does it cause more hassle than good? At night there is already a lot of unused electric as the power stations cannot just close down for twelve hours, so without building more stations we could power millions of electric cars with no detrimental impact on the environment. If in the future we do have to build more power plants, it is hoped that they would be cleaner plants. It also works out that the price per mile is a lot cheaper for an electric car than it is for a gas car. The truth is it is all to do with efficiency as gasoline cars are 25% efficient whereas electric are around 95% meaning that a mile on electric costs a penny and a mile on gas costs around 15 cents.

So if you are about to Buy a new Alfa Romeo or buy a Nissan you should hold off and wait until an electric car comes your way. Whether it is new cars there is sure to be an eventual upgrade for a car to help take down your C02 emissions.

A Wind Turbine Machinist is just like a production
machinist for any other industry, only in this case they
specialize in the production of metal and plastic parts for
wind turbines.

Visit: http://www.GreenCareersGuide.com
 
The career outlook for a wind turbine machinist is good.
They make on average $13-$20/hour.

In this respect, it is not necessarily a “green” job in and
of itself, but rather a set of job skills that can be
applied to the green energy production industry.

Wind Turbine Machinist first review blueprints (written or
electronic) for the specific wind turbine part needing to
be made. Next, they select the tools and equipment needed
to shape the piece, and calculate where cut or drill the
material they are working with (steel, aluminum, titanium,
plastic, etc.). They use their knowledge of metal
properties and skill with machine tools to produce the part
to extremely precise specifications.

Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) machine tools are
becoming increasingly popular in production plants, and the
wind turbine industry is no different. These tools use
computers to control the cutting, drilling, shaping, and
filing of base materials into machine parts. Production
machinists are being called upon more and more to operate,
maintain, and even program this CNC tools to manufacture
new parts

What Are the Qualifications for a Wind Turbine Machinist?

Wind Turbine Machinists do not require a college degree. He
position calls more for vocational training in the trades.

In high school, aspiring machinists should tale courses in
metalworking, drafting, and especially math (especially
algebra and trigonometry). Some basic computer courses are
a good idea too. A high school diploma or GED is required
to go on to further training.

After high school, the aspiring machinist can go one of
several routes. Many community colleges and vocational
training schools offer two-year Associate Degree programs
for a production machinist. Another option is a formal
trade apprenticeship program sponsored by a manufacturing
company or a trade union (although these can be hard to get
into). After completing their training, one should take the
practical and written exams to be come certified as a
machinist by the National Institute of Metalworking Skills
(NIMS).

What Type of Person Is Good for This Position?

A good machinist will have mechanical aptitude, superior
math skills, and good problem-solving abilities.
Concentration, precision, and meticulous attention to
detail is essential, as some machine parts need to be
shaped to within 1/20,000ths of an inch. This is good job
for people who thrive on being able to work independently.
Finally, being a machinist requires stamina. It is
partially a manual labor job, requires standing most of the
workday, and may require the machinist to lift heavy
materials. 

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A lot articles have been written on solar power, its benefits and its advantages. Contained in this article is just a summary of most of the information talked about in a lot of them.

Below we cover the following topics: How Exactly Does Wind Power Work, How to Use Wind and Solar Power at Home and how to install solar power system

Quite a substantial number of briefs have been written on solar energy. I will attempt to summarize the information contained in most portable solar power review articles. Yes it is possible to produce solar power on a small scale. As you probably know you can now build your own solar panels from home and produce power for your house.

If you are searching for a system that is portable then it would be best to deal with one that you have constructed on your own. This way you will not run into any problems every time you have to take it down and put it up again; because you already know how. What you need to be aware of is when you choose portability you sacrificing the amount of power you can produce.

The portable and smaller panels do not create as much energy as the large ones do. The only alternative would be to build a number of small portable panels that you will be able to connect and run at the same time.

Most portable solar power review articles are compiled with the same information that’s why I have decided to put it all this brief article.

The benefit of small solar panels is the apparent ease of being able to travel around with them. You can also add on them. That is connect other panels and increase the outputenergy that you produce. But the amount will depend on how much energy you want and the term portable really varies from people to people.

One can look at the panels that are being installed to provide energy for big houses as small when compared to the industrial level. Most portable solar power review articles fail to differentiate between small scale production panels.  Why; because the concept is the same. What you should know is whichever panel you have in mind you can construct one for yourself and its very easy.

We only have one world to live in. We need to take our own share to keep this world going in a natural way and as clean as possible. The footprint that many people leave are so large as they deplete natural resources without the thought of replenishing them.  At this rate we could really be in trouble when it comes to

Nowadays, large numbers of individuals are using organic products and that number is growing. From organic food, to organically grown products like clothes, hemp shower curtains, bedding and even household furniture.

We have even coined a new term about a house called a “green house”. The house is built using organic, environmentally friendly materials. Walls and floors are made of wood while the decor, bedding and extra long shower curtains are also made from natural materials.  The windows are designed to keep the energy bill down and the house is equipped with a tankless water heater and solar panels. Self sufficient homes are completely unique with their ability to generate their own energy and even generate food and water.  There are lots of ways to make a home more organic and less wasteful.

Being environmentally friendly even goes into the kitchen where the foods are organic and more healthy. The homes are complete making them more natural and healthy to live in. The organic homes have large vegetable gardens that produce large quantities of food that don’t need to be grown elsewhere. They have even build a chicken coop in the back yard to help produce some eggs. To obtain and enjoy all of this is not a joke, and can be quite expensive upfront. The long term benefits are there to outweigh the short term costs.

Be prepared to have a large bill when setting all these organic items into your home but realize you are helping the planet last longer.  Even if you only do one thing, that is better than nothing at all. The benefits of going organic are great.