The Wall Street Journal

By Guy Chazan

Published: February 6, 2009

 

Sweden says it will overturn a ban on building new nuclear-power stations, in a further sign of how concerns about climate change and energy security are fueling a nuclear renaissance across Europe. Swedes voted to phase out nuclear power in 1980, shortly after the Three Mile Island accident in the U.S. Since then, two of the country's 10 reactors have been shut down. But Sweden's coalition government said on Thursday that it will present a bill to parliament in March calling a halt to the phase-out and allowing nuclear construction, as part of a new climate and energy policy.

Cleveland Daily Banner

By David Davis

Published: February 6, 2009

 

Electrical usage records close to record highs are still being recorded by Cleveland Utilities and Volunteer Energy Cooperative as customers ward off the cold weather lingering in Tennessee. Volunteer Energy Vice President of Marketing and Economic Development Patty Hurley said customers have set several peaks at substations in nine service areas during January and February.

The Wall Street Journal

By Keith Johnson

Published: February 6, 2009

 

One of the big knocks against much of the proposed spending in the stimulus packages is that it will take years for the money to trickle into the economy. New energy secretary Steven Chu vows to make sure that doesn’t happen on his watch, and pledged to try to spend about half the department’s $35 billion to $40 billion in expected funding this year.

The Washington Post

Published: February 6, 2009

 

The energy you reap from the earth, sun or wind may be free, but the equipment needed to produce renewable energy for your home typically costs more than traditional technology. New federal tax credits are available to people who install qualifying renewable-energy technologies in their primary residence, rental home or vacation property.

The Tennessean

By Anne Paine

Published: February 5, 2009

 

Metro Nashville is one of several Southeastern cities or counties that may be given up to a half million dollars to put a "community energy alliance" in place to retrofit homes and other buildings with energy-saving features. The Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance said Wednesday in an e-mailed announcement that it is seeking proposals for a program designed on efforts under way in Cincinnati; New York; Cambridge, Mass.; and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The New York Times

By Leslie Kaufman

Published: February 5, 2009

 

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on Wednesday canceled leases to drill for gas and oil on 77 parcels of public land in Utah. The leases, which cover more than 100,000 acres, including lands near Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, were auctioned in the last weeks of the Bush administration. They were among 11th-hour actions taken by the Bush Interior Department that have been criticized by environmental groups and are being reviewed by Obama officials.

Reuters

By Tom Doggett and Ayesha Rascoe

Published: February 5, 2009

 

President Barack Obama on Thursday ordered the Energy Department to set energy efficiency standards for a broad range of common household appliances, which will save Americans billions of dollars in electrical costs and reduce power plant emissions. The department was charged with slashing the energy use of more than 30 product categories.

NBC Los Angeles

Published: February 5, 2009

                        

A proposal to generate 400 megawatts of power by 2014 through the installation of solar panels on the rooftops of Los Angeles buildings was placed on the March ballot to encourage public debate, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Tuesday. Measure B is part of the mayor's plan to meet 10 percent of the city's energy needs with solar sources by 2020. It is one-third of the city's Solar LA plan, but the only component to appear on the March 3 ballot.

The New York Times

By Steven Kurtz

Published: February 5, 2009

 

For the last two years, Rachel Muston, a 32-year-old information-technology worker for the Canadian government in Ottawa, has been taking steps to reduce her carbon footprint — composting, line-drying clothes, installing an efficient furnace in her three-story house downtown. About a year ago, though, she decided to “go big” in her effort to be more environmentally responsible, she said.

The Chattanoogan

Published: February 5, 2009

 

A recent $1.96 million grant from the Department of Labor to the Southeast Tennessee Development District will be dedicated to regional expansion by providing training for high growth careers, officials said. According to the grant’s author, Stephen Dunn, Workforce Investment Act manager with the SETDD, “This whole grant was formulated with employers in the Southeast Tennessee Development District, Chattanooga State Technical Community College and the Tennessee Technology Centers (TTC) at Chattanooga and Athens.”

Stateline.org

By Daniel C. Vock

Published: February 5, 2009

 

If microwaves in Los Angeles and air conditioners in Chicago are going to run using wind power generated by turbines on the Great Plains, the country is going to need thousands of miles of additional power lines to deliver the electricity. For that to happen, state and federal leaders are looking at how to conquer imposing obstacles, from mountain ranges to a daunting economy to layers of red tape.

CNN Money

By Steve Hargreaves

Published: February 4, 2009

 

A short-term booster shot for the economy? Or a complete rethinking of the way businesses and individuals consume energy? Those are the crucial questions as Congress debates the more than $100 billion in initiatives that are currently part of the nearly $900 billion stimulus package. As it stands, the bill would use tax cuts and government spending for a wide range of projects - everything from building wind farms to helping you replace your energy-hogging refrigerator.

Business Week

By L.J. Furman

Published: February 4, 2009

 

In July 2008, Al Gore challenged the U.S. to generate 100% of the electricity we need using clean, renewable, sustainable sources within 10 years. "When you connect the dots," he said, "it turns out that the real solutions to the climate crisis are the very same measures needed to renew our economy and escape the trap of ever-rising energy prices." Gore connected the dots to the crises we face and drew a picture of nonsustainability. We could meet the "Gore Challenge" via the deployment of 250 gigawatts of wind generation capacity and 50 gigawatts of solar, and it would cost approximately $911 billion. But is "clean, renewable, and sustainable" energy really necessary?

The Oregonian

By Ruth Mullen

Published: February 4, 2009

 

We wrap up in wool sweaters to keep warm in winter. Why not extend the same courtesy to our drafty, energy-gobbling homes? The "super-insulated" house got its start in Canada in 1977. The Germans followed up in 1991 with an improved version by eliminating the furnace altogether. They called it a "passive house," which quickly caught on in their chilly climate.

Chattanooga Times Free Press

By Joan Garrett

Published: February 4, 2009

 

As Congress debates a stimulus package that could provide billions of dollars for alternative energy, officials at Cleveland State Community College hope their growing green-energy majors get a chunk of the aid come fall. “This part of the world realizes the importance (of alternative energy) and wants to be a leader,” Cleveland State President Carl Hite said.

The Commercial Appeal

By Daniel Connolly and Amos Maki

Published: February 4, 2009

 

Landlords must now protect tenants against major energy-wasting defects such as leaky pipes and holes in walls, according to new ordinance passed unanimously by the Memphis City Council on Tuesday. The ordinance, proposed by Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division president Jerry Collins won praise from council members and community activists.

The Memphis Daily News

By Bill Dries

Published: February 4, 2009

 

The Memphis City Council has given final approval to an ordinance that sets minimum energy efficiency standards for rental property. The ordinance, approved Tuesday on third reading with a unanimous council vote, came with some amendments. They were worked out in talks between Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division officials and representatives of apartment complex owners as well as owners of smaller and single-family rental properties.

The New York Times

By Kate Galbraith
Published: February 4, 2009

 

Wind and solar power have been growing at a blistering pace in recent years, and that growth seemed likely to accelerate under the green-minded Obama administration. But because of the credit crisis and the broader economic downturn, the opposite is happening: installation of wind and solar power is plummeting. Factories building parts for these industries have announced a wave of layoffs in recent weeks, and trade groups are projecting 30 to 50 percent declines this year in installation of new equipment, barring more help from the government.

The Wall Street Journal

By Matthew Dolan

Published: February 4, 2009

 

Ford Motor Co. selected a supplier to manufacture its lithium-ion battery for future plug-in hybrid vehicles, as the auto maker attempts to show Congress and the White House that it is serious about an electric-vehicle strategy. The partnership with Johnson Controls-Saft announced at the Washington Auto Show Tuesday comes as Ford is racing against General Motors Corp., which plans to bring its Chevy Volt plug-in sedan to market late next year. Johnson Controls-Saft is a joint venture between Johnson Controls Inc. of Milwaukee and battery producer Saft Groupe SA of France.

Crain’s Detroit Business

By Daniel Duggan

Published: February 4, 2009

 

Two alternative energy-related projects were advanced by the Michigan Economic Growth Authority this morning. A startup company was given a tax abatement for a facility to manufacture towers for wind turbines and a real estate development consulting firm was given an incentive to grow its green consulting practice. Great Lakes Towers L.L.C. received a 10-year tax abatement for a 100,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Monroe. The company plans to start construction in the spring on the $20 million project, said CFO Ian Charles.