Guest Post: Hawaii Can Show the Way to a Better Energy Future Over the past decade, world oil prices have advanced from approximately $25 per barrel to more than $100 per barrel. Had the price of oil merely kept pace with inflation, the $25 barrel in 2000 would have been worth just over $30 in 2010. Clearly, there has been a fundamental shift in the oil markets. By 2005, the idea that the price increase was being caused by oil depletion -- commonly referred to as “peak oil” -- was receiving widespread attention. Historically, spiking oil prices have contributed to recessions. Ultimately, the combination of lower demand and increasing oil supplies has caused oil prices to decline, which in turn spurs economic activity and allows the economy to recover. The inability of the global oil industry to ramp up production in the face of $100 oil is a signal that the days of excess oil production capacity may be at an end. But the days of expanding global oil supplies are coming to an end, and that has serious implications for the world as a whole.
New plan crafted to limit Ocean Beach erosion The silver tide that surges through Ocean Beach from dawn to dusk is a surfer's delight. For San Francisco, however, it is an unrelenting test of nature. The 3.5-mile shore that lines the city's western edge draws more than 300,000 visitors annually. More shrouded in fog than in sun, it is not a postcard-perfect stretch of sand. But its condition has worsened for years as waves - heightened by climate change - hammer at bluffs, parking lots and the Great Highway. A new, nonbinding plan by the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association, a public-policy think tank, proposes solutions to a problem that will only intensify if, as expected, sea level rises 14 inches by 2050. Whatever long-term action the city takes will be costly and watched by other coastal communities grappling with the same challenge. "We're really faced with a sort of crisis point," he said. Environmentalists have long criticized the city for managing the erosion on an emergency basis. A management challenge
Institute e.V. Global Warming : Climate Change News, Facts, and Solutions Clean Clothes and Dishes For a Fraction of the Energy Standards -- they’re so boring yet so essential. That is true in every industry, and particularly for energy-intensive products. Just ten years ago, a clothes washer used double the amount of energy it does today. The new standards for clothes washers and dishwashers will save consumers an estimated $10 billion in energy and water costs. "Working with consumer, industry and environmental groups to develop common-sense energy-saving appliance standards is an important part of the Obama administration's all-of-the-above approach to American energy and the Energy Department's efforts to reduce energy costs for consumers," DOE Secretary Steven Chu said in a statement. The standards for clothes washers will go into place in 2015 and dishwasher standards will take effect in 2013. Some appliances, such as dishwashers, have already become so efficient that updating the standard is important, but there is diminishing savings that can be gained. Even with the advancements, it’s a slow roll.
GlobalWarming.org — Climate Change News & Analysis PL series (20 – 60 A) | Phocos.com All Charge Controllers 12 V, 24 V, 32 V, 36 V and 48 V in one controllerBuilt-in 30 days dataloggerMultifunctional LC displayExternal current sensing (optional)R5232 interface (optional)Hybrid system controlWidely programmableBuilt-in programmable logicThe PL series of charge controllers offer complete control over the charge cycle and various information about current and past performance. PL controllers have a built-in Iow battery disconnect switch. In addition, the versatile event controller can switch power on or off according to criteria set by the user. This allows the PL to do extra tasks such as switching a light on at night or keeping a water tank full by operating a pump when needed.
An Inconvenient Lawsuit: Teenagers Take Global Warming to the Courts - Katherine Ellison - National Industry giants say their case is misguided. But that isn't stopping a group of high school students from using the legal system to make environmental demands. Alec Loorz became a climate activist at age 12 after watching An Inconvenient Truth twice in one evening. Alec Loorz turns 18 at the end of this month. The Ventura, California, teen and four other juvenile plaintiffs want government officials to do more to prevent the risks of climate change -- the dangerous storms, heat waves, rising sea levels, and food-supply disruptions that scientists warn will threaten their generation absent a major turnabout in global energy policy. "I think a lot of young people realize that this is an urgent time, and that we're not going to solve this problem just by riding our bikes more," Loorz said in an interview. The youth -- represented, pro bono, by the Burlingame, California, law firm of former U.S. The tall, lanky Loorz is an especially compelling spokesman for the U.S. children's lawsuit.
Phocos PL60 Charge Controller 12-48V 60/30A Positive Ground I PVPower.com The PL series controllers offer complete control over the charge cycle and gives information about current and past performance. PL regulators have a built-in low battery disconnect switch. In addition, the versatile event controller can switch power on or off according to criteria set by the user. This allows the PL to do extra tasks such as switching a light on at night or keeping a water tank full by operating a pump when needed. Regulation can be done in slow speed switching and PWM in both series and shunt modes. Display shows battery voltage, charge current, ampere hours in and out of battery, load being drawn from the battery and charge status. Information is available for the past 30 days - so even if the user doesn't remember what happed, the regulator will. With the optional PLI interface, the user can access the regulator from a computer or via modem. Up to three units can operate in parallel. Spec SheetUser ManualCE CertificatePL System DesignPL Menu Structure Item Number: PL60
Global Temperatures Rising on a Devastating Trajectory UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 25, 2012 (IPS) - Climate-heating carbon emissions set a record high in 2011, in a 3.2 percent increase over the previous year, the International Energy Agency reported this week. The main reason for this dangerous increase is that governments are failing to implement policies to prevent catastrophic increases of global temperatures. A new report released on the last days of international climate talks in Bonn, Germany this week reveals that the planet is heading to a temperature rise of at least 3.5 degrees Celsius, and likely more, according to the Climate Action Tracker (CAT), despite an international agreement to keep global temperature rise below two degrees Celsius. Not only are pledges inadequate, but countries are unable to fulfill even those pledges, a new CAT analysis shows. CAT is a joint project of Dutch energy consulting organisation Ecofys , Germany's Climate Analytics, and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Climate talks deadlocked