"Killing God's Green Earth"

The latest from the Alliance for Climate Protection - a middle America message:


More at the Alliance.

SF Chron Columnist Slammed by Climate Scientists Worldwide

Over the weekend, one of the most respected climate change blogs in the world asked the question, "Why don't op-ed columnists get fact checked?" after SF Chron writer Debra Saunders wrote this column that attacks and distorts the scientific consensus. Saunders penned the piece after interviewing NASA scientist and RealClimate.org contributor Gavin Schmidt.

[S]ince her questions were straightforward, I answered them as best I could. Indeed in her subsequent column, she quotes me accurately and in context. However, the rest of her column shows none of the same appreciation for basic journalistic standards.

Coulomb begins national network

On the heels of Better Place's recent local announcement and UC Berkeley's report on economic benefits of electric cars, Campbell-based Coulomb Technologies is beginning to setup its national network of resellers for its charging stations.

It's worth noting the Coulomb's model is completely different but potentially complementary to Better Place. Whereas Better Place offers a subscription to swap batteries on demand in service stations, Coulomb is establishing charging stations. It seems likely that both will be useful and needed.

Hayward moving on green building

The city of Hayward is set to move on green building standards.

construction of new homes and significant additions to both residential and commercial properties will have to achieve a GreenPoint Rating.

That's done by earning points for various environmental factors on a checklist. There are five categories: energy efficiency, resource conservation, indoor air quality, water conservation and community.

Using high-efficiency lighting and bathroom fixtures are obvious examples of how points can be earned, but the list also takes into account things such as the housing's proximity to public transit lines and using native plants as foliage.

A home must meet minimum requirements in each category and score at least 50 points to be GreenPoint Rated

The minimum standard is consistent with that recommended by BuildItGreen and the Home Builders Association of Northern California however it is lower than that adopted by Palo Alto, San Francisco, and several others.

Superbulbs out of Redwood City

New clean-tech startup SuperBulbs aims to address one of the biggest opportunities in energy efficiency.

SuperBulb’s first product is the 4″x2″ A19 bulb. It produces the same lumen output as a 60W incandescent bulb, and like incandescents, can be screwed into a light system, has a sturdy casing, and is dimmable. Unlike compact fluorescents, however, SuperBulbs says the A19 uses no mercury, turns on instantly, is more efficient than a CFL and has a minimum average life of over 20,000 hours.

Earth2Tech has the story.

Electric cars good for economy

Electric cars would benefit the California economy according to a new UC study:

Electric cars are as good for the economy as the environment and could put $80 billion in consumers’ pockets by 2030, according to a new study from the University of California.

Not surprisingly, the oil industry would take a $175 billion hit under the scenario sketched by UC Berkeley’s Global Venture Lab, while a booming battery business would gain $130 billion as the internal combustion engine sputters out. “There will also be significant changes in the balance of payments among nations as petroleum imports decline,” the authors wrote. “We find the net imports of the U.S. will decline by $20 billion.”

This report was nicely timed with the announcement of regional support for Better Place.

Samceda's green business guide

Business group Samceda in San Mateo County just published a local guide of businesses offering green products and services.

Solar in the Bay Area

From today's Chron about solar power's rise in California:

"Californians have more than 60 percent of the nation's solar installations, and more than 66 percent of the state's solar applications are in Northern California, according to a report released Monday by the Northern California Solar Energy Association, a nonprofit advocacy group."

Here's the report. In terms of installations by county in the Bay Area, Santa Clara makes a good example. Here are the top five: SC, 2,462; Alameda, 1,699; Sonoma, 1,611; Contra Costa, 1,181; Marin, 1,109.

Agassi and Musk at Web 2.0 Summit

Shai Agassi of Better Place:


Elon Musk of Tesla:

Bay Area Better Place?

Project Better Place to come to the Bay Area?

Endorsed by all three of the Bay Area's big city mayors, the plan would provide the re-charging infrastructure that must be in place before most consumers would consider buying or leasing an electric car.

Better Place, headed by former high-tech executive Shai Agassi, plans to install about 250,000 charging ports, 200 battery-exchange stations and a control center to service Bay Area electric car drivers. The goal is to have most of the system in place by 2012.

This is a fascinating prospect. While one of these cars would not be useful for driving outside the Bay Area, they could be perfect for day to day commuting. And since most families have 2 cars, this could be the perfect second car. Also, the PBB model is to lease the cars so there should be no up-front cost. Could be a winner - bringing electric cars to mass reality.

GreenWombat has more.

Message from Barack Obama

Message from the President-Elect delivered by video to the Governor's Global Climate Summit.

The conference, which begins Tuesday in Beverly Hills with some 700 participants expected, is an attempt by the Republican governor to influence a U.N. gathering in Poland next month. Schwarzenegger has said he wants the summit to inform negotiations over a new global climate treaty, which the U.N. hopes to finish by December 2009.

Updated x2: Adaptation to get its day & more renewables

Virtually all efforts around climate change have been focused on mitigation - reducing emissions to minimize climate impacts - but adaptation efforts are beginning to pick up.

Governor Schwarzenegger has just signed on Friday an executive order requiring agencies to plan for sea level rise. The Christian Science Monitor reports:

Governor Schwarzenegger called for a comprehensive “Climate Adaptation Strategy” that would identify the state’s vulnerabilities and plan accordingly. To do so, the state will request a report from the National Academy of Sciences on the impact of rising sea levels on California’s coastlines. State agencies will take this report into account – due in December 2010 – when planning new infrastructure such as roads, bridges, and water treatment facilities.

San Francisco Bay has already seen a measurable increase of seven inches in the last century and this can be expected to accelerate dramatically.

Updated: Fortunately, the governator didn't stop there. He is also set a new target for state renewable energy - 33% by 2030. This is a tremendous, bold target.

Currently, we are at about 12%:

In 2007, 11.8 percent of all electricity came from renewable resources such as wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and small hydroelectric facilities. Large hydro plants generated another 11.7 percent of our electricity.