HOV Lanes

Last week, I traveled to Irvine California for a job interview. During my trip, I was extremely upset about the HOV lanes.... they were empty. I was upset for two reasons. One, there were very very few cars using the HOV lanes and second, the remaining 4 to 5 lanes were traveling at a snails pace. Traffic was bumper to bumper and would have moved must faster if the HOV lanes were being used by more cars.

While I'd love to see people traveling 2-3 in each vehicle... or even more. It wasn't happening that day. I asked a friend about this and he said its always like that. UGH. Very upsetting and frustrating.

We need more people using the HOV lanes. I 100% agree with that. However, if people are not using them... we need to use them for everyone else.... since they are using much more fuel just sitting there in traffic while the HOV lanes are empty. Opening up the HOV lanes to others, when not being used by HOV commuters, would save a significant amount of energy.

The State of California has given a small number of hybrid cars and trucks the ability to use the HOV lanes, they need to expand that and allow all hybrids and electric cars to use it. In addition, it would be great if they also allowed other energy efficient vehicles access. They could even charge for its use and then use that money to expand access to energy efficient cars and trucks.

While this was California, I'm confident that this situation is happening across American, where HOV lanes exist. I applaud the concept, however, if its not working as intended, it needs to change. The objective is laudable, the program just needs to be modified to better promote energy conservation and reduced our reliance on fossil fuels.

Cell Phone Companies going Green

I read the following article with great interest. I worked in the wireless telecommunications industry for over 12 years... for companies both big and small. Businesses are big energy users. While the article talks about cell towers... using 4 to 8 times the amount of electric as a single family home, and there are over 200,000 towers, this is really only the 'tip' of the iceberg as it relates to the wireless phone companies. Cell phone companies operate thousands of retail stores, switching centers, customer service centers and business offices. They have technical teams visiting the cell towers on a regular basis. All these activities consume a great deal of energy. On top of that .... they all have millions of customers who have to charge their cell phone on a regular basis.... for many everyday.

I am glad to see that they are working towards alternative sources of energy. They need to continue to do so.... and the company that makes the transition the fastest will certainly benefit significantly. I am confident that consumers would be happy to do business with a truly green telecommunications provider.

..... I know many people who would love to buy a solar cell phone charger.... priced at less than $50 ..... come on cell phone companies..... lets put one out there in the marketplace.

FOXNews.com

Greener Cell Power Presents Challenges

Saturday, March 08, 2008

By DAVID TWIDDY, AP Business Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — When wireless industry technicians speak of "green" cell towers these days, they're not just talking about making them look more like trees.

They're talking about towers powered by wind turbines or solar panels, antennas that get backup energy from hydrogen fuel cells and geothermal cooling for computer equipment.

Cell phone companies are experimenting with these and other strategies to reduce their increasingly ubiquitous industry's environmental impact.

To be sure, the "greening" of wireless communication is still in its infancy. The vast majority of the nation's more than 200,000 cell towers and antennas run off the same electric grid everybody else does. And even companies experimenting with alternative energy plan to limit its use to backup power.

The average cell tower requires four to eight times as much power as a typical household, and cell companies say power from conventional supplies is still cheap compared to alternative sources. They say they would use green power mainly in remote areas where towers don't face the same aesthetic and zoning limits as in neighborhoods and cities.

Wireless companies aren't seeing big demand from subscribers for sustainable technology, said Jackie McCarthy, director of governmental affairs for PCIA _ The Wireless Infrastructure Association.

"I think we're hearing a lot more about dependability in terms of the wireless network," McCarthy said. "I don't think the whole 'green' wireless site development (issue) has really gotten to our infrastructure providers yet."

But carriers say it's important they consider environmentally friendly technology, especially if it can save them money.

Sprint Nextel Corp. began seriously investigating alternative energy in 2004 and has since deployed hydrogen fuel cells at several of its roughly 65,000 sites.

"It solves a lot of issues for us regarding the traditional use of diesel generators," said Bob Azzi, Sprint Nextel Corp.'s senior vice president of field engineering and operations.

The company has also installed a wind turbine at its headquarters, is experimenting with geothermal cooling as a replacement for conventionally-powered air conditioning in warmer climates and is testing mini turbines in California that are fueled with natural gas and used for backup power.

"It has the advantage of being quieter," he said of the mini turbines. "They're more reliable and we think they're more efficient than traditional diesel power generators."

Miles Schreiner, director of national operations planning for T-Mobile USA, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom AG, said his company last year began using a small number of hydrogen fuel cells in the Northeast "mainly to kick the tires and see how it does."

He said the fuel cells cost twice as much as standard batteries or generators and are valued primarily because they are reliable and have lower emissions. He said the company also is making limited tests with solar and wind-powered systems.

"One advantage to alternative power is you get some kickbacks from states in terms of tax incentives," he said. "We're looking at the viability of the long term. We're a business like any other carrier so the question is, 'Is the trade-up and capital outlay worth the costs?'"

AT&T Inc., the nation's largest wireless carrier, said it is working on alternative energy but declined to give specifics.

A spokeswoman for No. 2 Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Verizon Communications Inc. and Britain's Vodafone PLC, said Verizon is considering alternative energy.

(This version CORRECTS the name of Miles Schreiner, who was wrongly named 'Mike Schreiner' previously.)

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Jobs

Last week it was reported that over 63,000 net jobs were lost. The auto industry continues to scale back production, the retail sector is cutting jobs and re engineering its business as a way of improving its profitability.

Alternative energy and green technologies are areas in which the US can rebuild our employment base to create good jobs that pay good wages. These technologies are wanted and needed around the world to reduce global warming and to escape the rapidly increasing price of oil.

The US government, both Federal and State levels, needs to do everything possible to support the development of these industries. Just as the industrial revolution moved us from being an farming based society, we need another 'revolution' of sorts to move us towards self sustaining technologies.

Home Fuel Cells

New technologies and applications are popping up everywhere to transition the US and world from dependence on fossil fuels... and foreign oil to self reliance and clean technologies.

While the cost of this technology might be prohibitive, for now, it is a great starting point where the bugs can be worked out and the application proven. I continue to be amazed at the things people are working on in this area. I know we can find alternative solutions for all our energy needs.

Fuel cells make power for homes in Japan

By YURI KAGEYAMA, AP Business Writer Mon Mar 3, 3:38 PM ET

HIRATSUKA, Japan - Masanori Naruse jogs every day, collects miniature cars and feeds birds in his backyard, but he's proudest of the way his home and 2,200 others in Japan get electricity and heat water — with power generated by a hydrogen fuel cell.

The technology — which draws energy from the chemical reaction when hydrogen combines with oxygen to form water — is more commonly seen in futuristic cars with tanks of hydrogen instead of gasoline, whose combustion is a key culprit in pollution and global warming.

Developers say fuel cells for homes produce one-third less of the pollution that causes global warming than conventional electricity generation does.

"I was a bit worried in the beginning whether it was going to inconvenience my family or I wouldn't be able to take a bath," said the 45-year-old Japanese businessman, who lives with his wife, Tomoko, and two children, 12 and 9. But, as head of a construction company, he was naturally interested in new technology for homes.

Tomoko Naruse, 40, initially worried the thing would explode, given all she had heard about the dangers of hydrogen.

"Actually, you forget it's even there," her husband said.

Their plain gray fuel cell is about the size of a suitcase and sits just outside their door next to a tank that turns out to be a water heater. In the process of producing electricity, the fuel cell gives off enough warmth to heat water for the home.

The oxygen that the fuel cell uses comes from the air. The hydrogen is extracted from natural gas by a device called a reformer in the same box as the fuel cell. But a byproduct of that process is poisonous carbon monoxide. So another machine in the gray box adds oxygen to the carbon monoxide to create carbon dioxide, which — though it contributes to global warming — is not poisonous.

The entire process produces less greenhouse gas per watt than traditional generation. And no energy is wasted transporting the electricity where it's actually going to be used.

Nearly every home in Japanese cities is supplied with natural gas for cooking or heating, which could make it relatively easy to spread fuel cell technology there. The potential for widespread use of fuel cells in bigger or more sparsely settled countries is less certain. Many American homes don't have gas service, for example.

"There are not any real show-stoppers for this technology being used in the U.S.," said electrical engineering professor Roger Dougal at the University of South Carolina at Columbia, S.C.

Dougal said fuel cells are no more hazardous than any stove or water heater. Their major drawback is cost.

"Ultimately, I expect that some fraction of homes will use this technology, but it will be a very long time before a sizable fraction does," he said in an e-mail.

Naruse is paying $9,500 for a 10-year lease on a test fuel cell for his home southwest of Tokyo from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Matsushita, which sells Panasonic brand products, plans to offer fuel cells commercially in 2009.

Other Japanese companies working on fuel cells for homes include Toyota Motor Corp., which is developing fuel-cell vehicles, and electronics maker Toshiba Corp. Automaker Honda Motor Co. is working with Plug Power Inc., a fuel cell company in the U.S., to test a home fuel cell generator that also provides hydrogen as fuel for fuel cell vehicles.

Honda hopes domestic use of fuel cell generators will help make fuel cell vehicles become more widespread because owners can refuel at home. It plans to start marketing the FCX Clarity fuel cell vehicle this year in California; it will lease for about $600 a month.

Fuel cells are expensive in part because they don't last very long. The latest model from Matsushita, for example, lasts about three years.

But the technology is improving. Matsushita says the savings from using fuel cell-generated power will vary by household and climate, but it promises a cost drop of about $50 a month.

Naruse's family — with three TV sets, a dishwasher, clothes washer, dryer, personal computer and air conditioner — saves about $95 a month. At the same time, conventionally generated electricity remains available to them, should the power generated by their fuel cell run low.

The Japanese government is so bullish on the technology it has earmarked $309 million a year for fuel cell development and plans for 10 million homes — about one-fourth of Japanese households — to be powered by fuel cells by 2020.

Professor Bruce Rittman, director for the Center for Environmental Biotechnology at Arizona State University, says the biggest benefit of fuel cell technology is that it emits only water — when there's a clean source of hydrogen.

"Fuel cells are wonderful devices because they provide combustionless, pollution-free electricity," he said.

Tomoko Naruse said she might never have chosen a fuel cell if her husband hadn't insisted.

But she is happy her children are proud of it because they are learning about the threat of global warming in school.

"I think my children are thinking are about the future," she said.

Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Diesel Hybrid 69 MPG

Exciting News. 69 mpg for a diesel hybrid car. The article attempts to make a point that consumers would be unwilling to pay the extra $$ for a diesel hybrid vehicle. With gasoline prices continuing to increase... soon to be $4 plus per gallon. I'm not so sure that would be the case.

If you could double or even triple your fuel economy.... perhaps it will make sense to some consumers.... depending on their driving behavior. There are also some of us out there that would pay a premium in order to help the environment and reduce our reliance on foreign oil.

To learn how diesel hybrid vehicles work, go to http://altenergystation.com/Hybrid-Electric_Vehicles.html , while this is a description of a gasoline hybrid, the concept is very similar.

CNNMoney.com 3/7/08

Better mileage than a Prius? Not so fast

VW's new diesel-powered hybrid gets great mileage - better than Toyota's top-selling hybrid. Its price-tag is another story.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- It was bound to happen - the Toyota Prius could soon lose its crown as the most fuel-efficient car on the market. But you might want to hold off before you cancel your order.

The VW Golf TDI Hybrid gets 69 miles per gallon in the European fuel economy test cycle, according to Volkswagen. Toyota claims 54 mpg for the Prius in the same test.

Volkswagen unveiled a Golf hatchback in Europe this week that gets even better mileage than the Prius. It's a concept vehicle for now, but the diesel-powered hybrid indicates something that's in the "near term future" for European customers, a VW spokesman said.

Customers in the U.S. would have to wait a little longer, but a car like this could eventually be sold here, said Keith Price, a spokesman for Volkswagen of America.

Check under the hood

It's easy to understand why the Golf gets 26% better mileage than a Prius, which burns gasoline. The Golf TDI hybrid has a diesel engine, which is more efficient.

A non-hybrid 2006 Volkswagen Jetta diesel sedan gets 33 mpg in combined city and highway driving, according to current EPA estimates. A 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid, a similarly-sized car, gets just one mile per gallon more. And the Jetta diesel gets much better highway fuel economy - 38 mpg - than the Camry Hybrid's 34 mpg.

You may wonder why no one thought of the diesel/hybrid combination before.

"From a consumer standpoint, it comes down to 'What kind of compromise do I need to live with to enjoy all this wonderfulness?'" said VW's Price. And the biggest challenge, he conceded, is cost.

And then check your wallet

Diesel engines burn fuel using high pressure and heat instead of a spark. The engines have to be more rugged to withstand the strain, so they're more expensive to build.

Chrysler has a small test-fleet of plug-in diesel hybrid Dodge Sprinter vans in commercial use today, but the technology is too pricey to put into passenger vehicles, said Chrysler spokesman Nick Cappa.

"There has to be a customer value there," he said. "It has to pay for itself."

For the U.S. passenger car market, there's an additional cost hurdle: It's harder for diesel engines to meet strict clean-air requirements here. They produce lots of noxious fumes and particles that require expensive exhaust treatment systems.

But with new ultra-clean diesel fuel now readily available at American gas stations and new exhaust-cleaning technology in cars, various automakers hope to introduce a new generation of clean-diesel cars here over the next couple of years.

But like hybrids, these new diesels will be more expensive than similar gas-powered cars. The mark-up may not be quite as much, though.

Volkswagen estimates that the 2009 Jetta diesel will cost about $2,000 more than the gas-powered version. Official pricing hasn't been announced yet, though. (The 2006 model year was the last time VW sold diesel cars in the U.S.)

Manufacturers almost always add unrelated equipment to hybrids, so it's difficult to estimate a cost, but hybrids usually cost at least $2,500 more than non-hybrid versions of the same vehicle.

Add those numbers altogether, and a hybrid diesel would be dauntingly expensive, even if federal tax incentives were factored in.

Buyers could also lose another big cost benefit: excellent resale value. Diesel engines last longer than gas engines so diesel cars are worth more after years of driving.

Hybrids, on other hand, generally do worse than other cars in resale value, according to Kelley Blue Book. Combine a hybrid and a diesel, and its resale value is anybody's guess, said Robyn Eckard, a Kelley Blue Book spokeswoman.

On its way to the U.S.A.

For now, the Golf TDI Hybrid comes closest to making sense in Europe. Diesel fuel generally costs less than gas there, adding to the financial benefit of greater fuel efficiency. And European regulations don't require all the pricey emission-cleaning technology needed to sell diesels in the U.S. That's why diesels make up about half of new car sales in Europe.

Technology costs will come down over time, though, points out VW's Price. "The costs of all technologies come down with acceptance," he said.

If a diesel hybrid is a hit in Europe, and VW were to ramp up production, that could bring down the per-unit costs, he said. And that could open the door to selling such a car in the United States.

By that time, U.S. consumers should be familiar with VW's - and other companies' - new diesels, said Price.

And if any company could make it work in the United States, it would be VW, said Charlie Vogelheim, vice president of J.D. Power and Associates.

Even though they're not currently sold here, VW's diesels still have a strong cult following, he said: "It's like 'I don't care what anyone else thinks, I love my diesel car."

Ethanol Leadership

I am extremely happy and excited about the continued leadership the President has been providing in the promotion and development of Ethanol. We need infrastructure, additional supplies, new technologies, cheap conversion equipment and more.

Many people, as the article below indicates, argue about the impact on food, efficiency, costs, the environment, etc. While I agree there are issues with ethanol... real and anticipated. We as a country need to move in the direction of alternative fuels and energy.

Ethanol is one piece of the solution to help transition our country from oil dependency to fuel/energy independence. There are other pieces... such as solar, wind, biodiesel and more.

We need more leadership from Congress, the President and leaders from around the US.

CNNMoney.com 3/5/08

Bush: Use ethanol to get off oil

Bush calls for energy independence, stands by ethanol although environmental benefits of the corn-based fuel are questioned while it is blamed for surging food prices.

By Steve Hargreaves CNNMoney.com staff writer

March 5 2008: 4:03 PM EST

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) -- President Bush said the United States should "get off oil" Wednesday as crude prices hit record highs and renewed his support for ethanol use despite concerns the corn-based fuel is driving up food prices and isn't more environmentally friendly than gasoline.

"We gotta get off oil, American has got to change its habits," Bush told a crowd at the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference, a meeting of global energy officials and an adjoining trade show that's the largest all-renewables show ever held in the United States. "It should be obvious to all, demand has outstripped supply, which makes prices go up."

As the conference got into its second day, crude oil on the New York mercantile exchange jumped nearly $4 on falling oil inventories, trading over $104 a barrel and setting a new all-time record.

Part of Bush's plan to wean the country off oil includes big investments in ethanol.

The energy bill passed by Congress and signed by Bush in December calls for refiners to replace 36 billion gallons of gasoline with ethanol by 2020, up from about 7 billion gallons today. About half of that will come from ethanol made with corn.

"That's good if you're a corn farmer, and it's good if you're concerned with national security," Bush said.

Bush acknowledged some of the problems with ethanol, particularly its role in pushing up the price of corn. The price of corn has doubled since 2006 which has pushed up the price of chicken, beef and poultry - livestock fed with corn.

Also, crops like wheat and soybeans are becoming more expensive as farmers devote more acreage to grow corn as they rush to satisfy the demand for ethanol.

"I'm beginning to hear complaints from cattleman about the price of corn," he said. "We're going to do something about it."

Bush said his administration has spent over $1 billion to make cellulosic ethanol - which can be made from non-food plants like grasses or wood chips - cost competitive. He also highlighted the use of biodiesel, which is diesel fuel made from agricultural and food waste.

"I'm confident the United States can meet those goals, for the sake of national security and the environment," he said.

Ethanol's impact on the environment is also up for debate. The U.S. government has previously said ethanol is about 20 to 30% cleaner than gasoline, even factoring in that it is less efficient than gasoline. But recent studies have called that into question, suggesting ethanol is no better than conventional fuel.

In the renewable field overall, Bush said his administration has spent $12 billion on research and development since he's been in office, all part of an effort to wean the nation off big oil and increase investment in solar and wind power.

Bush said wind capacity has increased 300% since he's been in office, and solar has grown as well.

But critics say Bush can hardly take credit for promoting renewables when he has held up incentives like production tax credits and refuses to cap carbon dioxide emissions.

"It's like Jamie Lynne Spears giving a talk on abstinence," said Daniel Weiss, director of climate strategy at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank referring to a teenaged TV star who recently disclosed she was pregnant.

Bush reiterated his call for a global cap on carbon dioxide - the main gas behind global warming - but said the United States should not act until nations like China and India do as well.

"These agreements must include solid agreements by every major economy," said Bush. "No country should get a free ride."

Bush also called for greater investments in nuclear power to combat global warming while meeting the world's growing energy needs, a call that was met by applause from the audience.

And, in his trademark humorist style, applauded the participants at the conference.

"I appreciate your commitment to renewable energy," he said. "It probably didn't help today when I rode over in a 20 car motorcade."

Solar Chargers

We all have numerous consumer products that operate off battery power. They include laptop computers, cell phones, electric razors, bluetooth ear pieces, GPS devices, power tools and so much more. There are also remote control toys, golf carts, scooters and so much more.

I have a friend who has looked into the possibility of finding a solar battery charging system to charge his electric scooter so that he could be 100% alternative... off grid. However, there doesn't seem to be a ready to use, off the shelf, system available to directly charge his scooter battery. He will have to use solar to charge a battery then use that battery to charge the scooter battery.

This seems like too many steps and an unnecessary added expense.

To help spread the use and acceptance of solar and alternative sources of energy... we need to have small systems which will help consumers to take small steps. While it will only save a small amount of energy... every bit will help to reduce our reliance on foreign oil and help improve the environment.