Posts Tagged ‘Energy Efficiency’
The Emerging Efficiency Lobby: Diverse Interests Find Common Ground
By Molly Moore Conversations about blowing up mountains for easier access to coal or risking offshore oil spills to boost a corporation’s bottom line spark passions in a way that those about financing energy efficiency retrofits don’t. But wherever national energy dialogue goes, talk of energy efficiency and minimizing our energy consumption is sure to…
Read MoreBark Houses: Built With Nature’s Shingles
By Nan Chase Four years after completion, the rustic bungalow near downtown Asheville, N.C., is a local landmark. Covered in big overlapping shingles of tree bark — rather than the usual wood, brick or stone — it looks odd, a bit like a square tree. Although the unusual house appears antique and rooted in the…
Read MoreWright Bros, Georgia DOT Fined $1.5 Million for Clean Water Violations
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Justice will require Wright Brothers Construction Co. and the Georgia Department of Transportation to pay $1.5 million in fines for violations of the Clean Water Act between 2004 and 2007. One of the largest fines ever assesed under the CWA, the complaint states that Wright…
Read MoreEfficiency a Win-Win for the Mountains and the Economy
It can seem like a very long way from the ridges, hollows, and creeks of our part of Appalachians to the austere headquarters of the State Corporation Commission ( or SCC) in Richmond. The SCC regulates electric utilities in Virginia, however, and as removed as its financial number-crunching can seem from the bucolic Appalachians, the…
Read MoreDuke Energy Raises Rates in NC
On Jan. 27, the North Carolina Utilities Commission approved a 7.2 percent rate increase for North Carolina ratepayers. The North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper and a coalition of state public-interest groups filed legal briefs detailing their opposition to the rate hike. The 7.2 percent increase is the result of an agreement between Duke Energy…
Read MoreU.S. Renewable Energy Production Surpasses Nuclear in 2011
For the first time since the late 90s, energy produced by renewable sources (biomass, hydroelectric, wind, geothermal and solar) has surpassed the amount of energy produced by nuclear plants in the U.S., according to the most recent Monthly Energy Review from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Link to the report. The report shows that…
Read MoreOur Bright Energy Future — Are We There Yet?
In Bonneville, Wash., some residents using wind power are facing an unusual problem: Too much energy. Now the Bonneville Power Administration is asking customers to volunteer their appliances to help balance supply and demand. A story in the New York Times on Friday described the pilot project: When excess supply threatens Bonneville’s grid, an operator…
Read MoreDuke Energy’s Tough Times, Rate Hike Hearings Continue in Marion
On Tuesday Oct. 25, at the McDowell County courthouse in Marion, the N.C. Utilities Commission heard a succession of voices all proclaiming the same message: Do not approve the 17 percent rate hike proposed by Duke Energy Carolinas. Public hearings for feedback on the rate hike continue this week and Duke Energy’s customers are coming…
Read MoreMaking Your Home More Sustainable
Stories by Meg Holden, Molly Moore, David Pferdekamper and Jillian Randel In sustainable building and remodeling, terms like “conservation” and “efficiency” are thrown around a lot. But how does the difference between efficiency and conservation affect the sustainability of your home? Simply put, conservation is using less of a resource. Efficiency is using the same…
Read MoreEnergizing the Clean Economy
Political speeches, the nightly news and newspaper headlines are filled with reminders of the battered economy and the millions unemployed or underpaid. But as energy efficiency and renewable technologies advance, more domestic jobs are created that foster a sustainable economy, save money at home, and benefit human health and the environment. It’s an ambitious goal,…
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