tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53692452723782915602023-11-16T06:35:04.310-07:00Rocky Mountain Energy BlogWelcome to the law blog for the new energy frontier - focusing on energy law and policy for the Rocky Mountain region, the Department of Defense and innovative and collaborative solutions to challenges in the energy industry. Please contact me if you'd like to discuss.Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-60740367448125883432013-06-30T15:12:00.000-06:002013-06-30T15:12:39.820-06:00Hidden Risks, Challenges and Solutions Relating to Commercialization of Technologies for the Extractive and Utility Industries
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLWkosyFtLhXVmGx6lFEJ-6Z-Txwv-XzY_HBsFMhP-1IFCOslBM2CJ_ELRckyRbymKIc97kWYcl5bMal6Tv70slqrXEdgRCkZNmPxmDJg80LsvqkmVHWObJ5s6EW_axKXTSDPrl_Q89B4q/s1600/IMG_3442.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLWkosyFtLhXVmGx6lFEJ-6Z-Txwv-XzY_HBsFMhP-1IFCOslBM2CJ_ELRckyRbymKIc97kWYcl5bMal6Tv70slqrXEdgRCkZNmPxmDJg80LsvqkmVHWObJ5s6EW_axKXTSDPrl_Q89B4q/s320/IMG_3442.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Technology
is helping reinvent how the energy industry approaches extraction, power
generation, regulations and sustainability in its business operations. A surge
in technology innovation is reflected in investment trends into innovations
targeted to help the oil and gas and electric utility industries respond to
increasing regulations, an increase in the number of patents relating to the
extractive industries and an increased number of business models focused on
technology deployment. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<br /><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Integrating new
technologies that can facilitate extraction, minimize environmental impact and
positively impact a company’s bottom line are increasingly sought after and new
business models that involve multiple stakeholder engagement can expedite the process.
A </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://www.bain.com/Images/INDUSTRY_BRIEF_How_national_oil_companies_can_fuel_economic_development.pdf" target="_blank"><span lang="EN" style="color: windowtext; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Bain
report</span></a></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> highlights
development of “globally competitive clusters” defined as geographic
concentrations of interconnected companies, specialized suppliers, service
providers and associated institutions in related sectors to increase
productivity and lower the cost of doing business.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> In another example, </span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">national oil companies play a big role in driving
technology development. Brazil’s Petrobas has developed leading-edge technology
for deep-water exploration, development and production. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">While technology deployment represents huge business
opportunity, c</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ommercialization of technology can
pose a number of legal challenges to companies in the energy industry and those
that are approaching the energy industry. In particular, there are key issues
that every company should be aware of, for example: (1) the consequences of
public disclosure; (2) the consequences of a failure to define </span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ownership of
technology; (3) the difference between trade secret and patent protection and
the impact on talent acquisition; and (4) the challenges that may arise from
employee developed technology - just to name a few. Beyond the intellectual
property issues, testing technology under real world conditions can raise
challenges in the regulatory arena. For example, a</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">challenge can arise when an early stage innovator asks a
utility or a company in the extractive industry to modify an existing permit so
that they can test technology under unique parameters. In effect, the innovator
is asking the utility to put their permit or “stack” at risk, a scenario
referred to as “stack risk”, and asking the utility to accept the uncertainty
of the regulatory process. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It's further no surprise that access
to financing is often a barrier to these emerging companies. Power generation
and natural resource extraction are cost intensive industries. For some
technologies, the fully deployed cost could be $200-$300 million. A number of
energy related venture capital firms fund promising startup companies in energy
technology, materials and related businesses. Large corporations fund some of
these venture capital firms and many have created venture funds of their own. <a href="http://www.chevron.com/ctv/ctvi/"><span style="color: windowtext;">Chevron
Venture Capital</span></a> for example, finds and makes investments in
early-stage companies offering technology valuable to Chevron, then helps
Chevron business units implement that technology. Chevron Venture Capital
searches for technologies that will enable Chevron to operate more efficiently,
expand operations, or launch viable new businesses.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">More specifically, <a href="http://www.chevron.com/ctv/ctvi/areasofinterest/"><span style="color: windowtext;">Chevron</span></a> seeks investment opportunities in four critical
and broad categories, namely: the spectrum of oil and gas (including
infrastructure, enhanced oil recovery and water remediation to name a few),
emerging/alternative energy, advanced materials, communications and networking
to support industrial and remote applications and information technologies. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Shell created <a href="http://www.shell.com/global/future-energy/innovation/shell-technology-ventures.html%20"><span style="color: windowtext;">Shell Technology Ventures</span></a> to promote and
accelerate advanced technologies and game-changing innovation. The Shell
Technology Ventures team invests in companies across the energy sector to speed
up the development and deployment of new technologies that they foresee will
complement their business. Shell seeks to make investments in early-stage
technology companies that accelerate deployment of oil and gas technologies,
investments in early-stage technology companies and projects focused on future
energy technologies, as well as Shell spin-off technologies. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">For technology companies, the ultimate goal is to move from
proof of concept to market integration. There are a number of organizations
that were established to assist with market confirmation and to accelerate
deployment while also often providing additional access to capital. It is also
important to note that not all innovation involves new technology and sometimes
the fastest solution is adaptation of existing technologies. The <a href="http://oilandgasinnovation.com/about/"><span style="color: windowtext;">Oil
and Gas Innovation Center</span></a> was established to identify new technology
ventures that might apply to the oil and gas space. The Oil and Gas Innovation
Center also provides the opportunity for emerging technology to confirm with
industry a need for their technology solution another critical element to commercialization.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Another organization that recognizes
the importance of adaptation of existing technologies is the Research
Partnership to Secure Energy for America (</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://www.rpsea.org/mission/"><span style="color: windowtext;">RPSEA</span></a>),
a non-profit established to cooperatively find solutions to energy production
in the United States and offer funding opportunities in specific technology
areas. “Their mission is: to facilitate a cooperative effort to identify and
develop new methods and integrated systems for exploring, producing, and
transporting-to-market energy or other derivative products from ultra-deepwater
and unconventional natural gas and other petroleum resources, and to ensure
that small producers continue to have access to the technical and knowledge
resources necessary to continue their important contribution to energy
production in the U.S.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In summary, the energy industry
presents huge opportunity for new technology ventures. It is critical however,
for companies to protect their intellectual property, define ownership up-front
and confirm that their solution directly comports with the identified problem. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">At de la Torre Law, LLC we
understand intellectual property and the energy industry. We can help you
confirm opportunity and protect your interests. Contact us today to learn how.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-77523718181179153902013-04-03T11:15:00.000-06:002013-04-03T12:09:39.872-06:00Energy 101: Why do we need to fracture anyway?<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the first in a series of blog postings on the <a href="http://www.ucdenver.edu/academics/colleges/business/degrees/ms/gem/non-degree-certificate/Pages/Lifecycle-of-Oil-and-Natural-Gas.aspx">Lifecycle of Oil and Natural Gas</a> based on the certification course offered through The University of Colorado's School of Global Energy Management. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why do we need to fracture rock to retrieve oil and gas? <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The answer lies in where oil and gas is found – sedimentary rocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sedimentary rocks are rocks that comprise different
sediments like pieces of other rocks, shell material, and salts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sandstone, limestone and shale are
sedimentary rocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The key to
sedimentary rocks is how they formed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Over time, sediments were deposited in basins and layers of sediments built on top
of each other, resulting in thick accumulations of sediments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tens of thousands of feet of sediments
accumulated in some basins and the weight caused grains to compact, realign and
break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Compaction, combined with pressure
and fluids moving through sediment deposits worked to cement in between
grains to form sedimentary rock.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although the rock is compacted and cemented together, the
rock comprises sediments of different shapes that don’t fit together
perfectly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These irregular shapes create
holes or pores in the rocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These pores
house water, oil and gas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Permeability
is a measure of the rock’s capacity to move fluids through the pores.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more porous a rock is, the easier it is
to move fluid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> For example, in the photo below.</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.123rf.com/photo_17428805_weathered-sandstone-with-holes-near-train-station-nevsha-bulgaria.html"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWNzs3W7mvEpBen2UfSNsjl6p6XW1ylnEVbxmSMyLf0La3rMkDqWx0BEvqs8AfJAUqzpMrJQAdkJdhY1E0Vww0dgWxFl9reHwewPHi1kkyrgVpbhaj-ixLN26Sm2LquJWL9n0KfR4H2zrF/s320/17428805_s.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the other hand, the smaller the pieces of the sedimentary
rock, the closer these pieces can be compacted and the smaller the pores and
channels for fluid removal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shale, for
example, has tiny pores and the connections between the pores are also
tiny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Introducing open fractures,
however, dramatically increases permeability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Fractures are artificially induced in wells to increase the production
rate and ultimate recovery of gas and oil from shale rock. For example, see the picture of shale rock below.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.123rf.com/photo_9016137_a-background-texture-of-shale-rock.html"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifbvCrhU-twz3xKGTt0f11l-hsCFVlE3AtMr_sE7KQcDHTRp2ZRg9NQeZuvHXvYyXtTPwpD-KYCSIl5DLRgDdwg8yjOwFdhawDXPBhNL_nYfHKpm84VUgDOTx-qldoSqxSn1RK7gsSPWgq/s320/9016137_s.jpg" width="214" /> Shale Rock</span></a></div>
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<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What types of sedimentary rocks are geologists looking for?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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The two rocks of interest are reservoir rock and source
rock.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reservoir rocks have the ability
to store fluid and transmit the fluid held within pores in economic
volumes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is, these rocks are porous
and permeable, for example, sandstones and carbonates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Source rocks comprise fine grained sediments
that contain organic material that can become oil and gas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These rocks have tiny pores and low
permeability, for example, shale rock.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-weight: normal; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">America's rich oil shale
deposits likely hold </span><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aoZ7q9LhDrVs" target="_blank"><span style="color: windowtext;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1.5 trillion barrels of oil</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">,
according to Jack Dyni, a geologist emeritus at the U.S. Geological Survey. According
to the </span><a href="http://www.rockymountainenergyforum.com/topics/oil"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rocky Mountain Energy Forum</span></a><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">,
“that amount is 4 times the proven reserves of Saudi Arabia. And, it’s greater
than all 12 OPEC countries combined, which have proven reserves of about 911
billion barrels of oil.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To put it
another way, “</span></span></strong><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Colorado,
Utah and Wyoming have as much oil as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Venezuela,
Nigeria, Kuwait, Libya, Angola, Algeria, Indonesia, Qatar and the United Arab
Emirates combined.”</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
Oil and gas are less dense than water so as oil and gas
generates within the sedimentary rocks in the basin it moves upward through
fracture and pore systems until something stops or “traps” it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A trap is an impermeable layer of rock that
surrounds a permeable rock, either vertically or laterally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One type of trap is a structural trap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this mechanism, an impermeable rock seals
the oil and gas trapping it so it can’t escape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Another type of trap is a fault trap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In this mechanism, the plates in the earth shift up or down displacing
reservoir rock against impermeable rock so that the oil and gas can’t
escape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Geologists can locate these
traps and drill to access the trapped oil and gas.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How did the oil and gas get there?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
Although a common misconception, oil and gas does not originate from dinosaurs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plant matter and planktonic organisms were
deposited over time in deep oceans, swamps and lakes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These deposits are made of organic carbon molecules
containing carbon and hydrogen or hydrocarbons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Organic carbon exposed to high temperatures for a long period of time
will yield oil and/or natural gas depending on the temperatures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The type of hydrocarbon produced depends on
the type of organic matter that was deposited.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The role of the geologist, petrophysicist and geophysicist
is a critical component in identifying and validating resource plays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With technology, these experts can identify
areas of potential interest and characterize the reservoirs geometry,
continuity and variability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The data
collected is used to develop drilling plans and select locations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the next posting we’ll walk you through
the process involved in identifying the next big play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stand by!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
Image credit: </span><a href="http://www.123rf.com/"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">w</span><a href="http://www.123rf.com/"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ww.123rf.com</span></a></a><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-42845947775597573112013-02-08T15:19:00.000-07:002013-02-08T15:23:21.826-07:00Approaches to Global Resource Development with Spatial Terra and ICOSA: Addressing the Social Space<br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">A recent report by the Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI)
entitled “</span><a href="http://www.ceri.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=103:ceri-study-131-global-lng-now-never-or-later&catid=36:publication-pages"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Global LNG: Now, Never or Later</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">,” predicted that “Africa could be
considered a dark horse in gas production with the potential to increase
production dramatically over the long-term.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The report explains that while African producers have also had political
disturbances, the International Energy Agency (IEA) expects Egypt and Algeria
to increase development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“In addition,”
continues the report, “East Africa is expected to start developing gas reserves
of its own and there have been indications that Nigeria and Angola may increase
output as well.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">According to the IEA, “the factors that drive natural gas
demand and supply increasingly point to a future in which natural gas plays a
greater role in the global energy mix.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The CERI report, citing to the</span><a href="http://www.worldenergyoutlook.org/goldenageofgas/"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> IEA’s “Golden Age of Gas report</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">,” further
highlights the role of developing countries in this expansion and explains that
“g<span style="line-height: 115%;">lobal natural gas demand has
increased by over 30 percent since 2001, and amounted to 113.8 TCF in 2011.</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">By 2035, natural gas demand could exceed 180 TCF, with
developing countries accounting for the vast majority of incremental natural
gas demand growth.”</span> <span style="line-height: 115%;">According
to the Golden Age of Gas report, “the strongest centers of growth in natural
gas production are expected to be the Middle East, Russia, Caspian, North
America, China and Africa.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">While these
centers of growth have yet to be defined, one thing is certain – the Golden Age
of Gas presents opportunities for global resource development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These environments, however, can be
particularly challenging to companies when it comes to risk assessment and
mitigation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s where SpatialTerra
comes in and we had the opportunity to talk to Scott Kesterson and Pete
Gillette, co-founders of SpatialTerra Consulting Group, LLC, about their
business model on ICOSA radio.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">According
to Kesterson, organizations make
decisions based on traditional corporate competitive intelligence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To mitigate risk and maximize profits,
however, traditional competitive intelligence is not enough. To mitigate risk,
corporations must pay attention to a community’s social dynamics.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Gillette
goes on to explain that in the globalized economic, social and political
spheres, all problems are local. Hyper-networked communications have outpaced
even the most sophisticated government controls and corporate talking points. </span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">“Today, any organization is but one Twitter feed away
from crisis.”</span></i></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/Image%20credit:%20%3Ca%20href='http://www.123rf.com/photo_11126188_world-of-social-network-3.html'%3Ethomaspajot%20/%20123RF%20Stock%20Photo%3C/a%3E"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWxlmHdVB3YSdf06n3VIkP1rTFPPaSvAOUQXyToRb8YHbQSZsChYpNkI-SUs94UUlZLbSQO69x6ribEc-xmvRpdSIoP_v9sufUWBcwLD0Swn84smFaW-eTYoTMtH5x65OASurnZafazgEw/s320/11126188_s.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></b><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></div>
<span style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">In nearly
every global flashpoint crisis in recent years, be it commercial or governmental,
the core contention could be traced to social dynamics — impacts to individual
and collective health, welfare, traditions, security or justice. The factors
that have been dismissed as “soft science” were, in fact, the consistently and
immediately identifiable drivers in events as diverse as the uprisings in Libya
and labor disputes in Brazil to community pushback on the Keystone Pipeline in
Nebraska and hydraulic fracturing in western Pennsylvania. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Failure
to take into account consequences at the local level results in a gap between
the outcomes envisioned by the organization and the actual outcomes during
local implementation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The gap
highlights the unexplored understanding of the social space. This amorphous gray
space poses the most complex risks to corporate ventures, both overseas and
domestic.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">How
does this apply to the global natural gas market?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the next several decades, companies will
be entering new markets and every corporation entering an emerging market tells
a story – the key is to match this narrative with the local language.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Without a
grasp of the narrative and a sound exploration of the social sphere, a vast
gray space emerges. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If left unbridged,
the impacts to revenue and brand can be catastrophic. A quick examination of
domestic hydraulic fracturing or international energy operations reveals the
multitude of potentially devastating scenarios. In these and other cases, the
roots of dispute lie squarely in competing narratives. Corporations have
frequently failed to speak “the local language.”<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">
Every place in the world has a distinct local culture, with traditions and
values. There are common fears and desires that compel people toward or away
from potential outcomes. Collectively, these become the motivations that define
the community and form the local narrative. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">More
than language translation or historic ethnography, narrative sets the
conditions for an organization seeking entry into a community. The ability to
embrace and craft the evolving narrative determines whether innovative products
and services gain acceptance. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Spatial
Terra identifies the core motivations for the local narrative and shapes the
business environment to the client’s benefit by bridging the narrative gaps
that impede effective operations.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Consider the
hydraulic fracturing debate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In spite of
potential benefits to the US economy and security, energy companies face
significant resistance in some local areas. The scene is familiar: Concerned
residents rally, emotionally citing empirical evidence to reject hydraulic
fracturing outright. Energy firms dispatch world-class engineers to counter the
concerns using complex technical data and use other methods to undermine local
resistance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rather than acknowledging
the public’s concerns, lowering the tone of the debate and building cooperative
trust, these firms accelerate the collision. </span><br />
<div align="center" class="Body" style="margin: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">“Fueling contention does nothing to bridge
the narrative gap.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
<span style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Spatial
Terra has helped shape some of the most hostile and austere environments on the
planet. They believe the solutions, while not necessarily easy, are a very
simple sum of component parts. They have explored the gray spaces and bridged
the narrative gaps that determine the success or failure of technical
innovation and strategic objectives. That outcome depends on how one tells the
story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Join us on
ICOSA’s Driving Force radio for </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tL_6dlzN1H0&feature=youtu.be"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Part I</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> and </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RIirG_xh7c&feature=youtu.be"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Part II</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> and to listen to more about how Spatial Terra is
working with companies to tell their stories in a way that will mitigate risk,
and maximize profits.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-kesterson/"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">ScottKesterson</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>CEO of </span><a href="http://www.spatialterra.com/"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Spatial TerraConsulting Group, LLC</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is an
</span><a href="http://smallwarsjournal.com/author/scott-kesterson"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">award-winning</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> combat videographer/filmmaker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For the past 6-years, Kesterson has worked as a Subject Matter Expert
and Consultant for the Department of Defense, US Special Operations, Department
of State, and private corporations pioneering work in the areas of cultural
narrative, visual education and social media program development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has worked in the Middle East,
Afghanistan, and Europe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A graduate of
Oregon State University, he currently lives in Portland, OR.</span></span><br />
<div class="Body" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Pete
Gillette:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Founding partner at Spatial
Terra Consulting Group, LLC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is a
16-year veteran of military and government service, with experience as an Army
paratrooper, Foreign Service Officer for the Department of State and special
advisor for US operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pete has worked throughout the Middle East,
Asia, Africa and Europe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A graduate of
the University of Colorado, he earned his Masters in foreign policy from
Georgetown University. He lives and works in Washington D.C.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-29551768439608108952012-12-28T19:45:00.000-07:002012-12-30T17:57:49.935-07:00The Energy-Water Nexus: It's a Thirsty World and the Stakes Are High<br />
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<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“All the water that
will ever be is, right now.” With this simple sentence in 1993, National
Geographic summed up the challenge: How do we continue to supply 7 billion
people with enough water from a finite supply and satisfy the needs of modern
society with increasing population and demand? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Water and energy are the life’s blood of industrialization.
These resources are inextricably intertwined and work together to quench our
thirst for power. Water is integral to resource extraction, refining,
processing, transportation and electric power generation. Conversely,
significant amounts of energy are needed to extract, transport, treat, and use
water in urban areas. The collision of these two resources is often referred to
as the energy-water nexus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It’s a thirsty world and the stakes are high. However, using
no energy uses no water at all and consumers and businesses alike can take
advantage of new technology to minimize energy use. According to<a href="http://www.sandia.gov/energy-water/nexus_overview.htm"><span style="color: blue;">Sandia National Labs</span></a>, “coal, the most abundant
fossil fuel, currently accounts for 52% of U.S. electricity generation, and
each kWh generated from coal requires withdrawal of 25 gallons of water. That
means U.S. citizens may indirectly depend upon as much water turning on the
lights and running appliances as they directly use taking showers and watering
lawns.” <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Fortunately, m</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">any new and proven critical
technologies with real solutions are currently jockeying for position to
strategically target market opportunities to reduce power use in the building
sector. These technologies can chip away at building power consumption and
improved policy could dramatically speed this process. For example, mandated
efficiency targets or on-bill recovery for retrofits could transform the industry
across the board. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Many of these technologies address
multiple problems. For instance, </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: MyriadPro-Regular; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ab9JtsM3Lrs"><span style="color: blue;">SolaRover</span></a>,
a Colorado company, offers a rapidly <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXjBSp2eTZk"><span style="color: blue;">deployable</span></a>critical-output
mobile solar power generator system that properly configured, can deliver up to
50 kW of continuous power. These generators can be plugged directly into a
facility and be used to reduce facility energy use and cost during times of
peak load demand—the time when energy costs are highest. At the same time,
these units reduce water use by reducing the facility’s power needs generated
off-site. In the event of an emergency, like Hurricane Sandy, these mobile
generators can be simply and quickly moved to where they are needed – without
the need for fuel. Thus, mobile solar generators can provide a lifetime of
energy and water savings. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: MyriadPro-Regular; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTbL1OXZuZY"><span style="color: blue;">Green
Power Resource Management</span></a> multifaceted solar powered air
conditioning unit can be further adapted to function as a virtual power plant
can further minimize building energy use by combining PV technology with DC
engineered air conditioning innovation. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">More and more
businesses are recognizing the potential to turn their company building,
previously a pure expense, into a power generation asset that can generate
abundant and clean electricity. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0O7EXazi-Q"><span style="color: blue;">Pythagoras
Solar</span></a>, a company focused on building integrated photovoltaics
(BIPV), provides building owners the opportunity to achieve “ubiquitous solar”
via integration of solar windows and solar skylights. T</span><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">he Pythagoras Solar window is a solar panel built around
two panes of glass which allows it to function as both a window and an
electricity generating source.</span><span lang="EN" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TR4RKijDGuM"><span style="color: blue;">New innovations</span></a> can further facilitate production
of potable water without using fossil fuel powered energy to power filtration. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Modern society is characterized by growth: Demand for energy
and water is increasing while our water resource is finite. We are at a
crossroads and the challenges that we need to address are daunting.
Fortunately, with challenge comes opportunity and policy makers, businesses and
consumers can take steps to reduce use by incentivizing a harmonized approach
to energy-water planning and by incentivizing deployment and integration of
technology that can reduce energy use and create a sustainable energy-water
infrastructure.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">As
a lead-up to </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://www.abudhabisustainabilityweek.com/"><span style="color: blue; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week</span></a></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">,
January 13-17, Masdar is sponsoring a blogging contest called “</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://masdar.ae/en/engage"><span style="color: blue; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Engage: The Water-Energy Nexus</span></a></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">.”
The winner will be invited to Abu Dhabi as VIP media to cover the week’s
high-profile events. Please vote for me here: <a href="http://masdar.ae/en/#adsw/detail/kelly-de-la-torre-the-energy-water-nexus-its-a-thirsty-world-and-the-stakes">http://masdar.ae/en/#adsw/detail/kelly-de-la-torre-the-energy-water-nexus-its-a-thirsty-world-and-the-stakes</a></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/'http://www.123rf.com/photo_10253804_a-world-map-with-water-droplets-forming-the-continents.html'%3EKrisdog%20/%20123RF%20Stock%20Photo%3C/a%3E">P<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">hoto</span></a></span> </div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-19628878911475792402012-12-11T17:48:00.001-07:002012-12-11T20:38:39.855-07:00Arzu Studio Hope: A Sustainable Business Model for Transformational Change<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">It isn’t enough to
talk about peace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One must believe in it.
And it isn’t enough to believe in it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One
must work at it.</i> – Eleanor Roosevelt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do you lift women out of poverty in a country where
women are marginalized and defined by their subordinate status?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Connie Duckworth, CEO of <a href="http://www.arzustudiohope.org/">Arzu Studio Hope</a> (Arzu)</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">,
you use the tools you have available to design and build a platform for
growth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“There is dignity in work and self –reliance,”
said Duckworth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Women are amazingly
resourceful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Women do the work of the
world and are also the face of poverty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They are peacemakers and mothers everywhere want the same things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We want our kids to have opportunities, to be
healthy and to have a future.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Arzu demonstrates that transformational change can happen
even in the world’s most horrible places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Each one of us holds the power of hope and change in our hands,”
continued Duckworth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a mentor to
countless women coming up through the ranks at Goldman Sachs and an advocate
for family focused policies like maternity leave, Duckworth has demonstrated a lifelong
passion for women’s rights and economic sustainability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Arzu is a reflection of that passion and with
Arzu, Duckworth has created a roadmap that could be replicated to impact women
globally. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“W</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">e’ve developed a successful business in
Afghanistan, a conflict zone with no infrastructure, no power grid, no
internet, no roads,” says Duckworth, “if we can do it there, we can do it
anywhere.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The concept is based on the mantra, “she who writes the check
controls the agenda.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Women that have an
income can have a sense of independence that they would not otherwise have; with
an income women gain authority.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea
for Arzu grew out of an identified need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Duckworth was asked to travel to Afghanistan as a business
representative of the US Afghan Women’s Council, a Council created to ensure
that in the restructuring of Afghanistan that women have a seat at the
table.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were the first delegation
allowed to overnight in the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
describes it as stepping back in time 2000 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kabul is a city devastated by civil war that
flattened whole sections of the city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On
the way back to the airport the group stopped by a bombed out Soviet-style
building and met dozens of women and children squatting for the winter with very
little in the way of clothing and no heat, electricity or water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many, if not all, of these women were widows
with no education and no way to support their children – and it is not uncommon
for women in Afghanistan to have 7 or 8 children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Struck by these images, Duckworth knew she was going to do
something to create a business to employ as many women as possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The challenge: start a business with no
access to electricity, in a war-zone, without a shipping infrastructure or
banking infrastructure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While she did not have these things, she did
have a vision.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She wanted to identify an
export product that would create enough cash to fund the back end of the
business including all the materials, all the social programs and provide for fair
wages.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here is where the process begins to emerge.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Step one in starting a business is to get as much
information as you can.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Duckworth hired
a woman at the UN to compile economic data.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One drawback was that the data was from 1975 but it still provided some
framework to work from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Afghanistan is extremely
poor, extremely dry and access to water is limited – thus, no opportunity for
agriculture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To set the stage, there are
really no employment opportunities for women or men. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Step two was to use this information to identify the
product.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Weaving is a culturally
acceptable activity for women, they can weave in their homes, and in theory the
business could be started that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, through trial and error, Duckworth essentially
backed into high quality Afghan rugs as the target product.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In life, success is
based partly on the cards falling your way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Bamyan Province has the first, and so far, only female governor, Habiba
Sarabi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was appointed in 2005 and
she invited Duckworth to start an enterprise in Bamyan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bamyan Province is home to the magical Buddha’s
and translated means <span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">‘The Place of
Shining Light.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bamyan is one of the
thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>According to the <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Regional Rural Economic
Regeneration Strategies (RRERS)</span>,</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Bamyan
is <i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">one of the poorest, most
mountainous, and agriculturally least productive areas </span></i>in the country.
Much of the land is barren and inaccessible, with acute water shortages, small
landholdings, extensive food insecurity, and poor soil quality characterizing
much of the region. While specific communities in Bamyan have benefited from
short-term relief efforts and some infrastructure improvements, substantial
need for well-planned initiatives remains.</span></span><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Duckworth made the
decision to start an enterprise around training and developing Afghan
talent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While still a segregated
society, the company is run by two production managers: one male and one female.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Step three is to negotiate or garner the support of family and community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To do this, Arzu went village to village and
house to house negotiating with the male heads of households to create a social
contract.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The deal was that in exchange
for fair labor wages, the company would pay for “A” quality product and add a
50% quality bonus. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are highly
skilled and talented artisans. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each year
Arzu formally sits down with each family to negotiate and they truly understand
what a job can do to transform a woman’s life and her social position in the
household.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">One story that Duckworth tells is
that of a widowed woman weaver named Fatima.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Arzu gives priority to widows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Before Arzu, Fatima was living in a refugee camp with her seven
children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Statistically, 25% of children
in Afghanistan die by the time they are 5 years old, 95% of women will never
have any medical care and Afghanistan has the second highest maternal death
rate globally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These women suffer from malnutrition
and illiteracy and 85% of them suffer domestic violence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If there is a history of being a sole wage
earner, however, that woman’s respect goes up dramatically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fatima is now reading at a fifth grade level,
supporting her family and is a shining beacon of hope for them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Why does this model work?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because, says Duckworth, these families are
being economically incented to support the model.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Follow the money,” says Duckworth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“We believe that for this to work, women need
to be empowered economically and also supported with an ecosystem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can’t just pull one end of the thread out
of a ball of yarn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You need to bring in
education and promote health.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Part of Arzu’s success is because
they consciously built an ecosystem of support that consists of three
components.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, the family must agree
that the women get released to Arzu for 2 hours a day for tutoring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One woman who realized this change in her
life commented that, “reading is like a blind woman getting her eyes.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is amazing that things that we take for
granted can make such a huge impact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second,
the family must agree that all children in the household go to school and Arzu
tracks compliance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Third, the family
must release the women for pre- and post-natal care health checks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
significant that since 2006 the community that lives within this ecosystem has
not lost a mother or baby in childbirth in a country with one of the highest
maternal death rates. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The difference is
that the families have bought into the business model.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are economically incented to do so and
their success is based on their own performance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“If you follow the money and
trace it back, you can figure out why people behave the way they do,” explained
Duckworth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, why do families
marry their girls off at the age of 12? Economics - <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the family gets money from selling the
daughter to the in-laws.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If, however, we
can figure out how to provide employment to teenage girls they are worth more
to their families earning a consistent income.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Whenever possible, Arzu employs teenage girls for part-time jobs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are the teachers for the women weavers,
they help in the garden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seventy female
students are attending college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
equation is simple: income = girls get to stay in college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Arzu demonstrates that if you can
show someone that they can be the catalyst to set their children on the path to
a better life, they will do what it takes to make that happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The message to us is that no change happens
if you don’t start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It doesn’t matter
what you do,” says Duckworth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Just
start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If each of us just did that one
thing that we are capable of doing there could be a tsunami of change.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Arzu has created between 700 and 1000 jobs in
a place where there are no jobs, scarce resources, cultural challenges and
overwhelming destitution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Change happens
with baby steps and celebrating small victories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Arzu is an inspiration for promoting
transformational change through sustainable business models.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">For more on Connie Duckworth’s
vision and journey, listen in to<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/ICOSAmagazine"> ICOSA’s Driving Force</a> radio and anyone can support by going to <a href="http://www.peacecord.org/">Peace Cord</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-6908607614696310432012-12-03T12:54:00.002-07:002012-12-06T11:37:03.257-07:00Living Better Electrically AND Efficiently – Elevations Credit Union and the Denver Energy Challenge Team Up<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It's almost unimaginable that consumers would have to be encouraged to use electricity to make their lives easier - but that's where we started. To explain, we can look to the visionary known as the Wizard of Menlo Park, Thomas Edison. It was Edison's vision to create a system to deliver electric light into private homes in the late 1800's and ultimately, his vision revolutionized our way of life.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">During the postwar era of the 1950s and 1960s, the power industry's growth transformed America and the American way of life. The opportunities provided by electricity seemed endless. Remarkably, in 1956, to keep demand high and increase public awareness, General Electric launched its "Live Better Electrically" campaign. The campain, supported by 300 power utilities and 180 electrical manufacturers across the nation, was designed to extol the benefits of "better living by living electrically!" The result was a revolution in the quality and ease of domestic life. Consumers now had electric-powered vacuum cleaners, clothes dryers, toasters, refrigerators, televisions, raido and even air conditioned movie theaters.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Decades
have passed since the “Live Better Electrically” campaign and with it
remarkable changes to our energy landscape. First and foremost however, today,
a campaign to encourage use is unnecessary. Indeed, our energy use has grown
exponentially.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For Americans,
electricity is both pervasive and essential. We love it and our appetite for it
keeps growing. The average household today owns 26 electronic gadgets.
Electricity consumption doubled since 1980 and is expected to grow by another
25 percent by 2030. We take for granted that when we flip a switch a light will
come on and when we plug in those gadgets they will recharge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One way to keep up with demand, however, is
to reduce our energy use and luckily, we can save money and live more comfortably
at the same time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the beauty of
energy efficiency upgrades.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all,
the cheapest energy is the energy that we don’t use.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Gone
are the days of Jimmy Carter and his red cardigan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Welcome to a new world of efficient buildings
that manage energy use and integrate new technologies to achieve huge energy
savings and vastly improved comfort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An
added bonus, potentially huge money savings to the bottom line for homeowners
and business owners alike. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s
no secret that I’ve taken steps to reduce energy use in my home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I talk about it on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cD7p4IKMT4">ICOSA Driving Force radio</a>
</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
and on this blog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, I have
all of our electronics on power strips so that they can be turned off at the
strip to prevent “phantom power” or the power drawn by gadgets and electronic
devices when they’re switched off or not in use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I installed a clothesline and hang our
clothes to dry outside in the sun (thereby also earning the nickname of Laura
Ingalls Wilder from my husband.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve
installed skylight blinds for the summer months and honeycomb blinds to help
insulate the windows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As my old “Edison”
light bulbs burned out I replaced them with energy efficient ones – which as I
explain below should have been expedited.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But what else can you do and what if there are upfront costs?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">These
challenges: the upfront cost associated with energy efficiency retrofits and identification
of the changes that will make the biggest impact, are two key hurdles for
consumers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Luckily, the <a href="http://www.denverenergy.org/">Denver EnergyChallenge</a> provides education, free support services through an energy advisor, along with financial assistance
to residents and businesses in the City and County of Denver.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The
Denver Energy Challenge was created to expand energy efficiency services to
residents and businesses in the City and County of Denver and its funding comes from the U.S. Department of Energy's Better Buildings Program (under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act). The fact is, decisions on energy efficiency
and investment can be time consuming and can be confusing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To address this, <a href="http://elevationscu.com/energyloans">Elevations Credit Union</a>
has teamed up with the Denver Energy Challenge and Energy Smart in Boulder County to bring <a href="https://www.elevationscu.com/energyloans/about#Denver%20Energy%20Challenge">Elevations Energy Loans</a> to eligible homes and
businesses in Denver City and County and Boulder County. This team of experts
provides access to energy advisors to help assess the business needs and make
retrofit recommendations, connect them with qualified contractors to make the improvements and
loan specialists to provide low interest loans (2.75% for homes and 3.75% for
businesses). </span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Under
this program, Elevations Credit Union is committing $35M in financing for
energy efficient and renewable energy upgrades for eligible homes and
businesses in Denver and Boulder Counties.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In-line
with the “Live Better Electrically” campaign, we each have some control over
our energy use even without implementation of smart grid programs or smart
appliances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I enlisted the help of the
Denver Energy Challenge and Elevations Credit Union to find out how.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What I learned was that I can make small
changes to my energy use and make a big impact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some of these fixes require minimal up-front costs like the following three
examples.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Lower the
temperature of your water heater.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It reduces standby energy
loss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The report recommended setting the
water heater to deliver at 120F or the lowest practical setting for your
preferences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“A good measure is if you
can take a shower using only hot water (not adding cold water).”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Estimated savings in my home: $60/year.</span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Replace lighting
with CFLs or LEDs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They use less energy and heat output is much
less which equates to less cooling required for hot summer months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the report, “Compact Fluorescent
Light bulbs (CFLs) use ¼ of the energy of regular incandescent light bulbs and
last 8 to 15 times as long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Replacing
them with CFLs will save significant energy and replacement costs over time.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Installed cost is estimated for my home at
about $60 and the savings estimated at $124 per year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I made these changes in the basement and my
kids say it now looks like a stadium!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brighter
light and less energy use. Can’t beat that.</span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: NimbusSanL-Regu;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sealing air leaks
can make a big difference and it’s an inexpensive fix.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Caulk between the object and the drywall on
all of the penetrations of walls and ceilings where you can see gaps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my home we found gaps in the outlets and
switch plates on exterior walls, bath fans, duct boots in the ceiling and the
exhaust vent over the microwave. According to the report,” a</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: NimbusSanL-Regu;">ir sealing is
typically the most cost effective improvement you can make to your home. To
properly seal out air leaks, a contractor will use a large fan called a blower
door to depressurize your house. When this happens, the contractor can easily
find the air leaks and take corrective measures. A good air sealing job will dramatically
increase the comfort of your home and help you save significant energy.”</span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: NimbusSanL-Regu;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: NimbusSanL-Regu;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Overall, it was estimated that
with simple fixes alone I could save about $220 per year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s $220 of warmer living with brighter
more natural light in the winter and cooler in the summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That doesn’t even include my other Laura
Ingalls Wilder type habits!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: NimbusSanL-Regu;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: NimbusSanL-Regu;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Thank you to Elevations Credit
Union, the Denver Energy Challenge, and Logan Faser (aka, “Saving Slick” from
the <a href="http://comfortcowboy.com/video-series">Comfort Cowboy video series</a>) </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">for
the thorough education, money saving tips and the increased comfort!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-70606589542234991282012-11-16T09:24:00.000-07:002012-11-16T09:30:14.887-07:00Sustainable Technology: What Can We Learn From the Military's Vision to Increase Mission Effectiveness<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #3d3d3d;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #3d3d3d;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">Think about the
military and it probably conjures up images of guns, ammo and tactical vehicles
- not energy and water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet these two
resources are critical in enabling the military’s continued operational
capabilities; including maneuvers, mission command, sustaining troops and
equipment and humanitarian services.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Implementing
ways to reduce the manpower required to deliver fuel and water and to reduce
the vulnerability to supply shortages are critical to improving readiness,
minimizing casualties and reducing operational costs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">Sustainable
technologies can enable significant reductions in fuel and water and their
efficacy is not lost on the military.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Indeed, the military recognizes the importance of implementation of
sustainable technologies to decrease future mission constraints, increase
flexibility and resilience, safeguard human health, improve Army quality of
life, and enhance the natural environment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>According to the Army’s Sustainability Report 2012, “the Army’s
innovative solutions in 2010-2011 lessened the logistical challenge of
providing water and fuel, reducing the number of convoys needed and thus
reducing the risk to Soldiers during combat operations.” <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The challenge is
to lighten the logistical burden on the Forward Operating Bases (FOBs).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Manpower focused on resupply is manpower not
focused on the mission.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">"We need to figure out how to enable our
Soldiers to go out on patrol, to set up camps, without this long logistical
supply train," said </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Assistant Secretary of the Army for
Installations, Environment and Energy Katherine Hammack.</span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> "We want to enable our Soldiers to go further with
less of a supply train so that they can really fight better."</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">Technology
Enables Soldiers to Focus on the Mission<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">The military is
testing technology that supports the operational base camp smart grid called
SAGE for Smart and Green Energy for Base Camps program.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>SAGE is using commercial off-the-shelf
technologies including, utility hardware and open source control software to
demonstrate and validate whether they can design a smart base camp microgrid
technical specification capable of reducing the need for JP8 fuel by 30 to 60
percent at basecamps for 600 to 3,000 Soldiers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">To test the
concept and the technology the Army launched the Base Camp Integration
Laboratory (BCIL) using sites modeled after forward operating bases in Iraq and
Afghanistan. The BCIL is split into two 150-person camps called “Force
Providers” that house energy-efficient shelters and structures within a 10-acre
compound to test a micro-grid, an energy storage system, a shower and laundry
water reuse system, a waste management system, a solar hot water system and a
power management system.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The BCIL also provides
a live Soldier environment where service members training at Fort Devens stay
at the BCIL and provide input on what is being tested there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">The solution envisioned conjures up images of a futuristic utopian society
– except that the future is now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>SAGE is
described as a holistic energy generation, storage, management solution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The SAGE microgrid interconnects easily
transportable purpose built shelters that consist of insulated structures as
well as integrated solar with solar water heating, plug-in charging stations,
integrated renewable energy, energy storage and optional interconnectivity to
the grid.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">Critical to understanding how this arrangement is possible is an
understanding of how these technologies work together to significantly reduce
fuel and water requirements.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One aspect
is energy capture, another is taking advantage of renewable resources that are
readily available at these remote locations, and yet another aspect is to not
use the energy to begin with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Energy
efficient technology such as lighting and insulation provide opportunities to
drastically cut the energy that is required to power the basecamp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, the cheapest energy is the energy
that is never used.<br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="color: #3d3d3d;"><br />
</span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">Water reduction is also a focus and water
reuse drastically reduces the logistical burden on units.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Within the Army, 70 to 80 percent of our
resupply weight or convoy weight is fuel and water,” said Hammack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once all of the security and logistics
factors are taken into account, the cost per gallon of water delivered can
range between $5 to $30 according to the Army.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One saving measure tested by the BCIL is the Shower Water Reuse System
(SWRS).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In simple terms, the SWRS uses a
series of filters, membranes and chemicals to recycle waste or gray water for
future use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Significantly, although the
water is only approve for reuse within the shower, the recycled water falls
within potable quality standards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
capacity of the system is also impressive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Of the 12,000 gallons of water that can be treated per day, 75% of it
can be reused which results in the potential savings of 9,000 gallons of water
per day or 3.2 million gallons of water per year in just one shower facility.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Army
evaluates technology in terms of force multipliers. In this case, use of SWRS
reduces the water required for transport which in turn, reduces the number of
water convoys and the Soldiers that would be on those water convoys are now
available to remain engaged in the mission.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The SWRS also impacts placement of new FOBs because strategic
considerations can weigh more heavily on location determination rather than
ease of resupply.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">"We need to figure out how to enable our Soldiers to go out on patrol,
to set up camps, without this long logistical supply train," said Hammack.
"We want to enable our Soldiers to go further with less of a supply train
so that they can really fight better."<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">If successful, these technologies are immediately
rolled out to remote FOBs like Afghanistan and the return on investment is
almost instant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each SWRS system costs
roughly $170,000. If used to its fullest capacity, the Army could realize a
potential savings of millions of dollars per unit each year. It is this type of
innovation that the Army is banking on to enhance their capability and "do
more with less," according to Army officials.</span><span style="color: #3d3d3d;"><br />
<br />
</span><span style="color: black;">Ideally, like the Internet and GPS, both technologies that were
developed by the military and subsequently commercialized to transform the
consumer market, these concepts could be used to support resilient domestic
civilian communities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The recent strike
of Hurricane Sandy left 8 million people without power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Building sustainable communities that use
less power, mitigate risk and use more renewable energy resources could help
protect against increasingly complex and disastrous weather patterns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sustainable technology is not just about
being green.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ask the military – sustainable
technologies enable mission effectiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></span><br />
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</span><br /></span><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-23493201172436852722012-10-09T15:13:00.002-06:002012-10-09T15:16:15.376-06:00It's Not Easy Being Green: A New Infographic from CarInsurance.Org Urges Caution When Considering EV's to Lower GHG EmissionsIn the United States, we use 13 million barrels of oil a day. That number is staggering and indicates that we have choices to make when it comes to transportation. Those choices, however, have to be smart.<br />
<br />
The graphic below from CarInsurance.org succinctly demonstrates the issues that consumers and policy makers need to consider in making decisions with respect to transportation. As a practical matter, are we plugging our electric vehicle into a coal-fired generation facility or does the mix contain more renewable or clean energy? We posed this question to Bob Yuhnke of the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP) on ICOSA's Driving Force radio. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcWYk8WNuYQ&feature=plcp">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcWYk8WNuYQ&feature=plcp</a> The other environmental consideration is batteries. How are they made, how long do they last, can they be recycled? <br />
<br />
These issues and price appear to be holding consumers back as Dan Bigman noted in his Forbes article titled, "Who's Killing the Electric Car." Why aren't electric vehicles taking hold as precicted? According to Bigman, "<a href="http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1079631_more-electric-cars-not-charging-technology-key-to-mass-adoption">Is it the lack of charging stations</a>? Is it the batteries? Is it the range? Is it the price? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes." <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/danbigman/2012/10/05/whos-killing-the-electric-car-the-consumer/">http://www.forbes.com/sites/danbigman/2012/10/05/whos-killing-the-electric-car-the-consumer/</a><br />
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Transportation is a tough issue and our society is built on having the freedom to get where we need to be when we want to be there. The bottom line is that for every action there is a consequence and we need to carefully consider those consequences before we take action.<br />
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For a clearer image go to: <a href="http://www.carinsurance.org/green-cars">http://www.carinsurance.org/green-cars</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Lg-2cbCooUmSOp1PVVKxuHhW0RU7IsQuKWwo42ju65JJG3PBL2fDeezu7VqfW_TeIAtMnQtvxF2eIUnBos_bQch9r1uBeD14K1pmMAg2jB7vZ8r7AKiFIZvfMxusl_shvThmm1tjvU9W/s1600/120921GreenCarsFINAL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Lg-2cbCooUmSOp1PVVKxuHhW0RU7IsQuKWwo42ju65JJG3PBL2fDeezu7VqfW_TeIAtMnQtvxF2eIUnBos_bQch9r1uBeD14K1pmMAg2jB7vZ8r7AKiFIZvfMxusl_shvThmm1tjvU9W/s1600/120921GreenCarsFINAL.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-6220346817609309592012-09-19T11:16:00.001-06:002012-09-19T11:16:30.844-06:00ICOSA Driving Force Radio: Red, White & Green: The True Colors of America’s Clean Tech Jobs – a discussion with co-authors Nancy Pfund and Michael Lazar
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4NLQWQeEUHI_qSL9ZUeTkEbzdfIb_OpNaiqEDZiXB7hXpkeEje9UIK2izT2NCI_8ZbGx6c16VSLb9p3MU1REzMBVKDZhI9ElVibxs8j7B57jnL4C_96aU_0DuMWAYEhqutHILzRe9R36z/s1600/10264981_s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4NLQWQeEUHI_qSL9ZUeTkEbzdfIb_OpNaiqEDZiXB7hXpkeEje9UIK2izT2NCI_8ZbGx6c16VSLb9p3MU1REzMBVKDZhI9ElVibxs8j7B57jnL4C_96aU_0DuMWAYEhqutHILzRe9R36z/s320/10264981_s.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Clean tech isn’t partisan – except in Washington, D.C.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When it comes to clean tech, “we need to hear
less from Capitol Hill and more from Main Street” concludes a </span><a href="http://www.dblinvestors.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Red-White-Green-whitepaper-webresolution1.pdf" target="_blank"><span class="googqs-tidbit"><span style="color: #015989; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">report</span></span></a><span class="googqs-tidbit"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">by DBL Investors, a venture
capital firm located in San Francisco whose goal is to combine top-tier
financial performance with meaningful social, economic and environmental
returns in the region and sectors in which it invests.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The report titled, “Red, White & Green:
The True Colors of America’s Clean Tech Jobs,” (the “Report”) looks at the
disparity between Washington D.C.’s view of “green jobs” and the rest of the
country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On Capitol Hill, “in general,”
says the Report, “Democrats support them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Republicans oppose them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>End of
story.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This isn’t how it’s always been.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Indeed, some of the strongest pieces of
environmental legislation were enacted during the presidency of Republican
Richard Nixon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The polarized discussion
of the environment is a relatively recent phenomenon, and, perhaps sadly,
echoes the sharp divisions occurring throughout American political discourse,”
continues the Report.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the state
level, clean tech doesn’t appear to have a political party.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed, “many of the governors working the
hardest to bring clean tech jobs to their home states are not only Republican,
but are usually regarded as leaders of their party.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Governors are focused on creating jobs and
the data shows that they are using clean tech to bring high-quality jobs to
their states.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Clean tech is a significant part of the economic engine in
the U.S. contributing significantly more employment opportunities than the coal
industry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, even though the clean
tech portion of the economy is much larger than that of coal, clean tech
receives proportionally less attention in the national discussion of the
economic effects of environmental policies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Report explains it this way:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">According to the National Mining
Association, coal employs 136,000 people in the entire country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">See</i>,
National Mining Association, Fast Facts About Coal 2012) But three states all
by themselves each have more clean tech workers than all the coal mining
workers in the USA.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The total number of
Americans working in clean tech is many times the size of those in coal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This rarely-acknowledged statistic suggests
that we broaden the national discussion of the economic effects of
environmental policies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That discussion
often emphasizes their impact on the coal industry, without the much larger
clean tech portion of the energy economy receiving proportionally much less
attention.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Report bolsters its conclusion by highlighting the clean
tech efforts of five Republican governors: Mississippi Former Governor Haley
Barbour, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie,
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, and Texas Governor Rick Perry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It appears that while each governor
approached clean tech differently, the result was the same – job growth and a
higher voter approval rating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
example, Governor Christie moved New Jersey from second to the first largest
solar market in the U.S. by signing a law mandating solar purchases for state
utilities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the Report, at
the time of signing Christie commented that, “having renewable energy in our
state, having it be a larger part of our portfolio, creating jobs, is not a
Republican issue or Democratic issue. It’s an issue that the people of our
state demand we work on together.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In order to maintain momentum, the Report urges
implementation of policies that support long term investment including: (1)
keeping the Solar Investment Tax Credit; (2) redrafting tax legislation
affecting clean tech-related Master Limited Partnerships and allow for solar
REITs; and (3) extending the Production Tax Credit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The emphasis is that clean tech is recognized by both Parties
as a valuable tool for job creation at the local and state level. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“We all
need to understand that green jobs and clean tech are not merely the idle
dreaming of a small group of partisan activists and insiders, but a source of
livelihood for millions of Americans, literally in all parts of the
country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s more, their numbers are
growing every day.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Co-authors Nancy Pfund and Michael Lazar will join Jan
Mazotti and co-host Kelly de la Torre on ICOSA’s Driving Force radio (</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/ICOSAmagazine"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.youtube.com/user/ICOSAmagazine</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">)
next week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nancy Pfund is Managing
Partner of DBL Investors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nancy writes
frequently on matters relating to clean tech and “Impact investing.” Last year,
she co-authored a widely-cited study showing that contrary to popular belief,
current federal subsidy levels for alternative energy sources are in fact much
lower than they ever were in the early days of “traditional” energy sources,
such as coal, gas, and nuclear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Michael Lazar is an MBA candidate at the Yale School of
Management.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the summer of 2012,
Michael joined DBL Investors as a Summer Associate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prior to Yale, Michael worked for the Glover
Park Group, a strategic communications and political advocacy firm in
Washington, D.C.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Michael earned his BA
from Stanford University.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-77260742341447961742012-09-11T22:59:00.000-06:002012-09-12T08:59:28.042-06:00A Night of Sustainable Celebration with the Alliance for Sustainable Colorado, Former Governor Ritter and Vice Admiral McGinn<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5aV-4BzRfmnSe9g0RJ9auJAo2oI5YzhewnVd2eWq5upbNqR2S25TGQ-AtWenTcHhr7jC7tFuMCChxep6awDDAREvxdVe3jERys3xXGHxrG2LAlP9mdhyphenhyphen2jQyGUXZ5KdqINoaTHTYTZB_X/s1600/oildependent+(3).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5aV-4BzRfmnSe9g0RJ9auJAo2oI5YzhewnVd2eWq5upbNqR2S25TGQ-AtWenTcHhr7jC7tFuMCChxep6awDDAREvxdVe3jERys3xXGHxrG2LAlP9mdhyphenhyphen2jQyGUXZ5KdqINoaTHTYTZB_X/s320/oildependent+(3).jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Alliance for Sustainable Colorado (the “Alliance”) held
its Heroes of Sustainability event this evening at the Grand Hyatt in Denver,
CO.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The event was a Who’s Who of
sustainability in Colorado including a number of former Ritter administration
cabinet members including Jim Martin, current Administrator for EPA’s Region 8
Office and former executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural
Resources; and Alice Madden, Wirth Chair for the CU School of Public Affairs
and former Climate Change Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff to Ritter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Former Governor Ritter himself was there to
highlight the Alliance and introduce the Hero of Sustainability, Vice Admiral
McGinn, President of the American Council on Renewable Energy.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span><br />
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After a hearty standing ovation, Ritter started by saying
that, “being in this room tonight may be one of the most comforting things that
I’ve done since leaving office.” The people in the room share values for
quality of life for years to come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It
is with great pride that I stand up here.” In his new position as Director of
the Center for the New Energy Economy, Ritter works with people around the
country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ritter emphasized that 220
million Americans live in states with a renewable portfolio standard or
renewable energy standard and 240 million Americans live in states that have
efficiency standards. The take home message is that there is public support for
what the Alliance and for what Colorado is doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The people in this room are doing the things
that the public wants them to do.”<br />
<br />
This sentiment is echoed in an article by Mark Jaffe in the Denver Post (<a href="http://blogs.denverpost.com/thebalancesheet/2012/09/11/renewable-energy-red-states-blue-states-swing-states-green-states/6424/">http://blogs.denverpost.com/thebalancesheet/2012/09/11/renewable-energy-red-states-blue-states-swing-states-green-states/6424/</a>), titled, Red, Blue and Swing States are Green When it Comes to Renewable Energy. According to Jaffe's article:<br />
<br />
"Showing clean tech job growth in some of the blood-reddest of states and aggressive renewable energy policies by Republican governors, even Tea Party darlings like New Jersey’s Chris Christie, the analysis by Nancy Pfund and Michael Lazar contends 'clean tech and green jobs are only contentious inside Washington.'<br />
<br />
'It is almost universally appreciated as the important engine for job development and economic growth that it is,' says the study <a href="http://www.dblinvestors.com/documents/RedWhiteGreen_PfundLazar.pdf">Red, White & Green.</a>" </div>
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Following another standing ovation, true to his character, Vice
Admiral McGinn recognized that while this is an individual award he recognizes
that life is a team sport.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He then
proceeded to recognize Veterans Green Jobs (http://veteransgreenjobs.org/), a
non-profit organization that connects military veterans with training and
employment in the green sector economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is very important that we employ our veterans and use their skills to
make a more sustainable nation and a more sustainable Colorado.</div>
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The military gets it, said McGinn, and he explained why.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He served with other veterans – retired Generals
and Admirals with CNA, a research group that represents all of the military
services and the Coast Guard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>CNA
produced a report titled, “Climate Change and the Threat to National Security.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The title says it all, urged McGinn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Climate change is a threat because the
increase in global warming and weather events will increase the severity and
frequency of extreme weather events, like drought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this way, climate change acts as a threat
multiplier for instability and fragile governments will fail.</div>
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Even in the face of great science, however, some people just
don’t get it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may be that we are
afraid of believing in climate change because we may have to give something
up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The truth is that sustainability is
a way to live better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Increased energy
security, environmental security, economic security - all factors in making a
better life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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The military gets it, repeated McGinn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In another report by CNA, Powering America’s
Defense Energy and the Risks to National Security, the unambiguous conclusion
was that America’s energy posture, and in particular, America’s dependence on
foreign oil puts our country at risk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Those who wish to do us harm can exploit that vulnerability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Using September 11<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> as an
example, we can no longer believe in business as usual, emphasized McGinn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What we can do, however, is come together in
alliances like this one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can come
together in every town and village across the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can create opportunity for jobs and local,
regional and global environmental quality.</div>
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These problems won’t be solved in Washington but in states
around the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Referring to the
statistics offered by Ritter, McGinn emphasized that multitudes of people are
already living in states with RES and RPS standards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is just the beginning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This beginning is being led by the military
services.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From here in Fort Carson by creating
a net zero installation and prototyping microgrids coupled with traditional
forms of energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leading the way
technically and culturally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can
follow that lead and we can see the technology benefits.</div>
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Sustainable technologies have made a tremendous impact on
military personnel, especially at forward operating bases, by reducing the
number of fuel convoys that have to resupply these units to decreasing the
weight of the backpacks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is the
take away? The military gets it because sustainability comports with the bottom
line namely, operational efficiency and combat effectiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According
to McGinn, just like we benefit from GPS or the Internet and economic drivers
from investments that the military made decades ago, so too can we benefit from
their investment in renewable energy and efficiency.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We also can’t let political noise drown out
the signal that this country will be more secure and more prosperous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is good for business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>CO and the Alliance is a leader in showing
the nation how we can move forward.</div>
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The alliance is about being everyday heroes as part of this
team sport called life for our children and our children’s children for many
generations to come.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p> </o:p></div>
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</span><br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-22649655870007084862012-09-07T21:14:00.002-06:002012-09-08T08:10:30.472-06:00Vice Admiral Dennis McGinn – Alliance for Sustainable Colorado 2012 Hero of Sustainability <br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Many people understand the direct link between oil and
America’s enemies. But what they may not understand are the realities of our
oil dependency as a nation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a 35-year
veteran of the Navy and President of the American Council on Renewable Energy
(ACORE), Vice Admiral McGinn understands these realities because he’s
experienced them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The good news is that
his knowledge and experience puts him in the ideal position to change our
dependency on traditional energy sources by creating opportunities for
Americans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Better yet, he’s leading the
charge.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In addition to his ACORE presidency, Admiral McGinn lends
his expertise to, among other energy and climate boards, the CNA Military
Advisory Board.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The CNA Board comprises
11 recently retired three- and four-star generals and admirals, examining the
national security implications of climate change and the nexus of energy,
climate change and national security.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">McGinn believes America’s heavy dependence on fossil fuels
poses significant security risks to the country and our military.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is not a new issue for him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He became interested in national energy
security issues during the OPEC oil embargo in the 1970’s when there were long
lines at the gas pumps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“We were relying
too heavily on imported oil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I realized
then how vulnerable we really were, and I haven’t lost focus on the critical
link between energy and America’s economy and national security,” recalls
McGinn in CNA’s Voices of Experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Further, he believes, “our dependence on fossil fuels comes as a cost
that is not fully reflected in the amount paid at the gas pump,” says
McGinn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Every time we fill up, we need
to understand the costs involved, especially the high price we pay with the
lives of the men and women in the armed forces.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our dependence on oil undermines our national security on
multiple levels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Vice Admiral McGinn
explains that oil’s pervasiveness in America’s energy policy forces the country
to engage at various levels with hostile and unstable regimes, weakening our
international leverage and putting our economy in a precarious position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to one CNA report, “The United States
consumes 25 percent of the world’s oil production, yet controls less than three
percent of an increasingly tight supply.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The trouble is that oil is traded on a global market, a market that is
vulnerable to manipulation by those who control the largest shares.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Without bold action now to significantly
reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, our national security will be at greater
risk,” testified Vice Admiral McGinn, before a U.S. Senate panel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Fierce global competition and conflict over
dwindling supplies of fossil fuel will be a major part of the future strategic
landscape.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>America’s goal should be, he
believes, to relieve our oil dependency by diversifying our fuel supply, increasing
the efficient use of fuel and increasing our use of low carbon technologies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Moving toward low carbon energy sources and technologies
also helps confront the challenge of global climate change.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Climate change poses a serious threat to
America’s national security, acting as a threat multiplier for instability in
some of the world’s most volatile regions, adding tension to stable regions,
worsening terrorism and likely dragging the united States into conflicts over
water and other critical resource shortages,: testified Admiral McGinn before a
Senate Committee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The truth is, climate
change aside, our energy choices have a direct bearing on our economic
well-being,” he says.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“If we’re not
economically strong and stable we aren’t going to be militarily stable.” To
address these challenges, there needs to be recognition that “climate change,
national security, and energy dependence are a related set of global
challenges.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Security, infrastructure, and climate threats are more than
challenges-they are opportunities-opportunities to create industries around
energy efficiency and renewable and low carbon technologies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Notes Vice Admiral McGinn, “One of ACORE’s
guiding principles is that we are for all kinds of renewable energy, and
against none.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>ACORE is about building a
more secure and prosperous America with clean renewable energy because that is
part of the solution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We need to apply
every technology and efficiency to solve our energy challenges. There is no ‘one
size fits all’ energy solution.” The energy platform can’t be rigid. The
platform needs to evolve depending on variables like need, geography and
availability of resources, to name just a few.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For example, solar might be the best resource for Arizona while wind is
better in the Midwest. We are looking at an integrated system of variable parts
and we need to look for solutions to fit with that system.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Alliance for Sustainable Colorado (sustainablecolorado.org)
will celebrate Vice Admiral McGinn as the 2012 Hero of Sustainability on
September 11, 2012 in Denver, CO.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According
to Vice Admiral McGinn, “we can be the ‘Next Greatest Generation’ in the 21<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">st</span></sup>
Century by taking on the new challenge so today that are threatening our way of
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can do something about these
challenges.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The beauty is that to do so
doesn’t mean sacrifice – it means more jobs, more national and energy security,
and more economic security.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s get
over the fear of the future and do something now to shape a better future for
all of us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Business as usual is not the
answer.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This article is a truncated version of the article from
ICOSA Magazine (</span><a href="http://www.theicosamagazine.com/vice-admiral-dennis-mcginn"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.theicosamagazine.com/vice-admiral-dennis-mcginn</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">)
written by Kelly de la Torre.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For more
on Vice Admiral McGinn go to </span><a href="http://www.acore.org/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">www.acore.org</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsBMblTvE1k&feature=plcp"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsBMblTvE1k&feature=plcp</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
and </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trgRvoiPz5E&feature=plcp"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trgRvoiPz5E&feature=plcp</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-44643380405042714712012-08-23T12:09:00.003-06:002012-08-23T12:09:29.051-06:00ICOSA Driving Force Radio: Improving the Bottom-Line Through Energy Efficiency Technologies and Creating Unique Finance Mechanisms to Facilitate Investment
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">The least expensive power is the power that we don’t have to
create.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only that, but not having to
create that power can be an economic engine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“In Colorado alone, the energy efficiency industry provides over 14,000
jobs and creates more than $1 Billion in local economic development, according
to the State of the State, a report produced by the Energy Efficient Business
Coalition (</span><a href="http://energyefficiencybusinesses.org/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">http://energyefficiencybusinesses.org</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">To introduce this concept from the perspective of a business
owner, ICOSA invited Tim Heaton, Vice President and co-founder of Coolerado,
Inc. (</span><a href="http://www.coolerado.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">www.coolerado.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">) to talk about
his experience with energy efficiency, both the successes and the
challenges.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Energy is the single largest
controllable business expense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The
commercial real estate industry spends approximately <b><i>$24 billion</i></b>
annually on energy -- typically a third of variable expenses,” according to
statistics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of that, lighting and
cooling account for 80% of that cost.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">The biggest impact is in the retrofit market because new
construction accounts for only 1% of market activity. In fact, 73% of our
commercial buildings are 20 years or older.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The benefits of reducing energy costs are huge and represent big
opportunity, according to Heaton.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A 10%
decrease in energy use could lead to a 1.5% increase in net operating income
(NOI). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is money that goes directly
to the business’ bottom line, emphasizes Heaton.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">As we take a deeper dive on the
show, however, we see that the benefits exceed those that are directed towards
a business’ bottom line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Studies have
shown that conserving 1 megawatt of energy:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>creates 22 new jobs; generates an increase of $2,230,572 in annual
economic output for the region; provides $684,536 in new wage income; produces
$125,000 in new business income for local businesses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is yet another time on the show that we
see the impact of market failures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
this case, if numbers show that energy efficiency is an economic engine, why
isn’t the energy efficiency industry growing in-line with its potential?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">One market challenge is the
upfront cost associated with energy efficiency retrofits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To understand the challenges and some
solutions in this area we talk to Sharon Procopio, P.E. Commercial Energy
Program Administrator, City and County of Denver Department of Environmental
Health.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sharon manages the Denver Energy
Challenge for Businesses, which provides education, free support services, and
financial assistance to businesses in the City and County of Denver.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(</span><a href="http://www.denverenergy.org/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">http://www.denverenergy.org/</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Denver Energy Challenge was created to
expand energy efficiency services to residents and businesses in the City of
County of Denver and its funding was derived under the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">Because energy is a business
cost and not necessarily associated with a business’ core objective, decisions
on energy efficiency and investment are time consuming and can be
confusing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To address this, Elevations
Credit Union (elevationscu.com/energyloans) has teamed up with Energy Smart and
the Denver Energy Challenge to bring Elevations Energy Loans to eligible homes
and businesses in Denver City and County and Boulder County.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This team of experts provides access to
energy advisors to help assess the business needs and make retrofit
recommendations, qualified contractors to make the improvements and loan
specialists to provide low interest loans (2.75% for homes and 3.75% for
businesses).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Under this program, Elevations
Credit Union is committing $35M in financing for energy efficient and renewable
energy upgrades for eligible homes and businesses in Denver and Boulder
Counties.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boulder and Denver Counties
have set aside $8M of grant funds to create a finance program to improve energy
efficiency of existing buildings and stimulate local economic growth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Businesses and residences can find more
information by looking at this video </span><a href="http://youtu.be/xzkW_wpstJk"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">http://youtu.be/xzkW_wpstJk</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #1f497d;"> </span>or going to the Denver Energy Challenge website<span style="color: #1f497d;"> </span></span></span><a href="http://denverenergy.org/content/energy-loans"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">http://denverenergy.org/content/energy-loans</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #1f497d;">.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Join us for a more detailed
discussion on ICOSA’s Driving Force radio with Jan Mazotti (</span><a href="http://www.talkzone.com/shows/199/icosa.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">http://www.talkzone.com/shows/199/icosa.html</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">)
and co-host for Energy 101, Kelly de la Torre.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-45957992812879550452012-08-23T09:33:00.000-06:002012-08-23T09:38:09.918-06:00Jon Powers, Federal Environmental Executive in the White House council on Environmental Quality: Leading by Example<br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Example isn’t another way to teach, it is the only way to teach.”</span></i><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- Albert Einstein<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Jon Powers, the Obama
Administration’s </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Federal Environmental Executive within
the White House Council on Environmental Quality recently </span><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">addressed a packed
room at the Alliance for Sustainable Colorado (http://sustainablecolorado.org/).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As Federal Environmental Executive, </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jon
is responsible for promoting environmental and energy sustainability across
federal government operations. D</span><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">uring this meeting Powers
emphasized the Obama Administration’s commitment to lead by example as directed
by Executive Order 13514 that sets sustainability goals for Federal
agencies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These goals are closely tied
to environmental and economic performance as well as to our energy
security.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While the scope of the Order
is daunting - the Federal government occupies nearly 500,000 buildings, operates
more than 600,000 vehicles, employs more than 1.8 million civilians, and
purchases more than $500 billion per year in goods and services – the results
that can emerge and are emerging by this lead by example strategy are
staggering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">A movement and culture
shift of this size needs leadership, passion and determination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fortunately, these are skills that Jon Powers
brings to the table. Powers told a story about his first days in the Army when
his Platoon Sargent took him aside and said there are two types of leaders:
those that lead by rank and those that lead by example.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Powers took leading by example on as a value
and draws upon his intimate understanding of the impact of energy and
sustainability on our security to focus on the initiatives under Executive
Order 13514.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">More than leadership, Powers demonstrates a commitment to
learning about what is working and it is a goal of the Council to use that
knowledge to replicate success stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
example, on his tour</span> </span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">of Denver, Powers also visited with leaders at the U.S.
General Services Administration (GSA) to discuss a joint federal/local
government leadership team that created a sustainability challenge to</span> <span style="font-size: large;">increase
conservation awareness, save natural resources and reduce greenhouse gas
emissions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The team consists of the
Department of Energy (DOE), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 8 and the City of
Lakewood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sustainability challenge
engaged employees with the goal of reducing carbon dioxide and educating local
communities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of their successes
include a 1 MW Denver Federal Center Grid (DFC)-Tied Photovoltaic Solar
Park.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The 6,192 panel site generates
about 1,600,000 kWh per year – approximately 10 percent of the DFC's entire
electrical demand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Retrofits for
interior lighting have reduced electrical demand by 3,765 kWh per year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is these types of strategies and
partnerships that the Council on Environmental Quality is seeking to replicate,
according to Powers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">For the federal government to meet mandates for reductions
in energy use, water use and GHG emissions, however, mechanisms are
needed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The government can leverage its
buying power but there still need to be functional mechanisms to finance
improvements and funding available for research and development and according
to Powers, there are barriers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Federal funding supports research and development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As one example, the Internet and GPS came out
of R&D projects under the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
(DARPA), an agency created to develop technology beyond immediate requirements
of the military.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Recognizing the need
for transformational energy research “where success would drive dramatic benefits
to the nation,” ARPA-E was funded in 2009 with funds from the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These funding
opportunities can also leverage partnerships with the Department of Defense and
enable investment in high risk/high reward energy research.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A current challenge however, is that</span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> the
House Republican Budget currently proposes a </span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: large;">19% cut to
funds for clean energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These budget
cuts would undermine the findings in the 2007 report, “Rising Above the
Gathering Storm: Energizing and</span> <span style="font-size: large;">Employing America for a Brighter Economic
Future,” the same report that recommended creation of ARPA-E.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The report found, in part:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div style="margin-left: 0.5in;">
<span style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The United States takes deserved pride in the vitality of its
economy, which forms the foundation of our high quality of life, our national
security, and our hope that our children and grandchildren will inherit
ever-greater opportunities. That vitality is derived in large part from the
productivity of well-trained people and the steady stream of scientific and
technical innovations they produce. Without high-quality, knowledge-intensive
jobs and the innovative enterprises that lead to discovery and new technology,
our economy will suffer and our people will face a lower standard of living.
Economic studies conducted even before the information-technology revolution
have shown that as much as 85% of measured growth in US income per capita was
due to technological change.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Another challenge is lack of data necessary to design
appropriate funding mechanisms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Powers noted
Green Button as an innovative program directed towards data collection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to www.greenbuttondata.org, “</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Green Button
is an industry-led effort that responds to a </span><a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/09/15/modeling-green-energy-challenge-after-blue-button"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">White House call-to-action</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">: provide
electricity customers with easy access to their energy usage data in a
consumer-friendly and computer-friendly format via a "Green Button"
on electric utilities' website.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Accurate energy information can not only empower consumers to make
educated choices around managing their energy use but also provide data that
innovators can use to produce new consumer applications that address energy
management needs.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">In short, one
important take away message was that the federal government is leading by
example and at the same time, this work is creating data that we can use to
innovate and educate from the ground up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Having access to critical data is key in removing barriers to
innovation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Innovation is closely tied
to our energy security – and thereby our national security, and to me, nothing
is more compelling.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-88531064610706205542012-06-08T12:38:00.002-06:002012-06-08T12:38:32.074-06:00Energy From Thorium – An ICOSA Interview with Kirk Sorensen and Member of the House of Lords, Baroness Worthington<span style="font-size: 12pt;">What is the potential for the
use of thorium as an energy resource? I just traveled to Huntsville, Alabama
with Jan Mazotti for ICOSA magazine to find out directly from Flibe Energy.
Liquid fluoride thorium reactors or LFTR (pronounced "lifter"), have
the potential to revolutionize the energy industry by providing clean,
reliable, and continuous power generation while using a fuel that we have in
abundance. Remarkably, however, it's not just about power. It's also about
creating a reliable supply of isotopes for medical treatment, rocket fuel, and
other useful by-products. In short, LFTR is about taking a fresh look at a
proven technology so that we can move securely into the future.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In our interview with Flibe,
we discuss how it works, the state of the technology, what needs to happen to
integrate LFTR into America's energy generation portfolio and more specifically,
what that might look like. What struck me, however, is the similarity of
Flibe's story to some of America's greatest success stories and greatest
leaders. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">"To alter the course of
an industry requires a very special and rare partnership between one who knows
why and those who know how," says Simon Sinek in his book entitled,
"Start With Why."<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why is the
vision and the how is the processes and systems that make the vision a reality.
"In nearly every case of a person or an organization that has gone on to
inspire people to do great things, there exists a special partnership between
why and how . . . Bill Gates, for example, may have been a visionary who
imagined a world with a PC on every desk, but Paul Allen built the
company," observes Sinek. According to Sinek, "the why types are the
visionaries, the ones with the overactive imagination, whereas how types live
more in the here and now." They build the structures and processes needed
to get things done. Success requires both.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Flibe Energy was co-founded
by Kirk Sorensen and Kirk Dorius, former college roommates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both were students in mechanical engineering.
Sorensen went on to study aerospace engineering and Dorius went to law school.
The match pairs Sorensen's infectious enthusiasm, charisma and vision with
Dorius' tenacious determination and practicality needed to lay to the
foundation to turn vision into reality. According to Sinek, this is the
beginning of a recipe for success. "A shared upbringing and life
experience increases the probability of a shared set of values and
beliefs." Sinek provides several examples of why/how partnerships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Walt Disney and Roy Disney were brothers. Bill
Gates and Paul Allen went to high school together. Herb Kelleher was Rollin
King's divorce attorney and friend (Southwest Airlines). Martin Luther King Jr.
and Abernathy both preached in Birmingham.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak were best friends in high school. Kirk
Sorensen and Kirk Dorius were college roommates. If history is any indication,
Flibe is on solid footing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Pessimists are often right,
but it's the optimists that change the world, says Thomas Friedman, author of "The
World is Flat." In his book, Sinek demonstrates that American's have had
great success in making a vision a reality when we understand why. The process
starts with the vision and charisma of the leader - something Sorensen clearly
demonstrates. Each tangible demonstration of success that the vision became a
reality strengthens the foothold and encourages acceptance. The energy
landscape is transitioning. With LFTR technology and Flibe Energy, we may very
well be at the beginning of another great American success story. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">You will be able to listen to
the radio show on <a href="http://www.talkzone.com/shows/199/icosa.html"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.talkzone.com/shows/199/icosa.html</span></a>
and ICOSA's YouTube station <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/ICOSAmagazine"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.youtube.com/user/ICOSAmagazine</span></a>
soon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Watch Simon Sinek’s TEDX talk
here: <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-72655860146504034982012-05-03T10:47:00.000-06:002012-05-03T10:47:10.796-06:00ICOSA Driving Force Radio – Monday, May 7th – Interview with Denis Hayes, President & CEO of the Bullitt Foundation: Seeking High Risk, High Potential Payoff Opportunities to Exert Unusual Leverage www.talkzone.com/shows/125/icosa.html
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Clean technology now promises to
make the region [Cascadia] the next locus for industrial innovation in such
fields as smart and renewable energy, biotechnology, and nontechnology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Companies will conceive and manufacture
products with an unprecedented array of environmental benefits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Obviously, some may also pose unprecedented
environmental hazards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is important
that new products be scrutinized with an eye to the precautionary principle to
ensure that unexpected problems don’t cause whole industries to die
stillborn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>– Bullitt Foundation<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
On Monday, May 7<sup>th</sup>, Jan Mazotti, host of ICOSA’s
Driving Force radio and I will be interviewing Denis Hayes, a seasoned veteran
of many legislative, cultural, and courtroom battles relating to energy and
sustainability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mr. Hayes is probably
still best known for having been National Coordinator of the first Earth Day
when he was 25.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What many don’t know is
that he directed the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, was a professor of
engineering and human ecology at Stanford University, and a Time magazine “Hero
of the Planet.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During his career Mr.
Hayes has received the John Muir Award, the Rachel Carson Medal, and a National
Jefferson Award.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
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Now, with the Bullitt Foundation, Mr. Hayes leads an effort
to mold the American Pacific Northwest into a global model of sustainability,
applying ecological principles to the design of “human ecosystems.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Bullitt Foundation seeks to catalyze the
changes necessary to align our obligation to sustain healthy natural systems
with our human activity and understandable desire for health, convenience,
creativity and prosperity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Bullitt
Foundation is leading by example.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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The Foundation seeks to fix the cause, not the symptom. That
is, they focus on preventing problems – not fixing problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Hayes, to do this, the
Foundation seeks to “promote policies and actions to harness the
entrepreneurial power of business to create competitive industries built on
ecological principles and sustainable technologies.” The critical element to
progress is private industry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By
identifying impediments to development we can create opportunities for private
industry to achieve these goals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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The Bullitt Foundation has prioritized its objectives:<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.75in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Secure adoption and implementation of
far-sighted regional energy and climate policies.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.75in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Attain dramatic reductions in industrial energy
use through conservation and efficiency.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Accelerate and maximize the installation of
renewable energy technologies.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Instill an ethic of zero waste practices that
result in “reduce, reuse, recycle and compost” for all materials.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Eliminate to the degree possible the production
and use of toxic materials and biologically active pollutants, and seek to
contain and safely recycle any essential toxics.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Advance the field of “green chemistry” to
demonstrate credible and viable alternatives to substances that harm human
health and the environment.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.75in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Promote innovative systems, fuels, and
infrastructure for commercial transportation systems.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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<o:p> </o:p>To see a webcast of the show: <a href="http://www.talkzone.com/shows/125/icosa.html"><span style="color: blue;">www.talkzone.com/shows/125/icosa.html</span></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Click on the listen button near the xx logo
and it should load live.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For Denver and
the surrounding areas, the show rebroadcasts Saturday, May 12<sup>th</sup> on
710 AM KNUS from 10:00 to 11:00 AM.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Please join us to hear from Mr. Hayes the critical role of private
industry in catalyzing the necessary changes.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-26481247774881329652012-04-27T21:35:00.000-06:002012-04-27T21:54:17.487-06:00Could Gamification Accelerate Energy Reduction for the DoD?<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On March 29, 2012 Dr. Robyn, the
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment, testified
before the House Armed Services Committee about what the Department of Defense
is doing to reduce facility energy.
During the testimony, Dr. Robyn provided the following statistics:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The DoD has a
footprint three times that of Walmart and six times that of the General
Services Administration – 300,000 buildings and 2.2 billion square feet of
building space.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Facility energy
represents 20-25 percent of DoD’s energy costs and nearly 40% of DoD greenhouse
gas emissions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To reduce these costs the DoD is
working to leverage advanced technology and reduce the demand for traditional
energy through conservation and energy efficiency. One of the biggest challenges to achieving
energy reduction goals has been lack of good data on building energy
performance. According to Dr. Robyn,
“high quality data in building energy performance is the building block for
investment and innovation. The biggest opportunity lies in coupling these data
streams with advanced modeling technologies and emerging diagnostic tools that
can both identify cost effective opportunities to retrofit our buildings and
improve their use of energy during operation.”
In response, the office issued an updated metering policy and Dr. Robyn
expressed a need to budget for new meters.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The question is, however, are there ways to further accelerate energy reduction? One of the leaders in corporate sustainability, McDonald's Corporation, found that success is accelerated with employee engagement. "There is a synergistic relationship between sustainability and employee engagement, in that they support and advance one another. Corporate sustainability is a common goal that employees can share, no matter where they are on the totem pole. It encourages them to better their situations and enables them to feel as though they are contributing to their organization on a profound level." http://corporatesustainabilitytraining.com/sustainability-motivates-employees/</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Applying the McDonald’s
philosophy of engagement, gamification could provide another avenue to use to
motivate people. A Boulder based company,
Simple Energy, is doing just that. www.simpleenergy.com. They
“designed an online platform that helps users understand their energy use with
actionable insights, that scores them against their Facebook friends and that
rewards them with real prizes.” The
platform does not need smart grid meters. Simple Energy is a software as a
service platform and uses energy use data from the utility. A critical component to the energy transition
that is underway at the DoD is improving use of energy during building
operation. By following the McDonald’s
model and integrating gamification platforms to engage DoD personnel,
the DoD may be able to demonstrate even greater reductions while building
personnel engagement at the same time.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Under the leadership of Dr.
Robyn, the office has been leading the development of an Enterprise Energy
Information Management (EEIM) system that will facilitate the automated
collection of standardized facility energy and cost data. The EEIM will further provide advanced analytical
tools that will allow energy professionals at all levels of the Department both
to improve their existing operations and identify cost effective
investments. By using the EEIM vision
statement and capability requirements, industry can adapt its commercial
off-the-shelf solutions to meet the DoD needs.
<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are on the ACORE’s military
defense advisory committee working to facilitate interaction between private
industry and the military and smooth the transaction space to expedite
procurement processes so that we can help companies interface with the military. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-65368430343995999262012-04-05T00:22:00.000-06:002012-04-05T00:22:12.427-06:00Loren Burnett - Founder of US e-Chromic and Speaker at the Global New Energy Summit in Colorado Springs, Colorado April 9-11: Use of Electrochromic Technology on Windows to Cut Energy UseFor the Department of Defense (DoD), installation energy represents a significant cost. In fiscal year 2009, electricity accounted for 63.64% of DoD energy use, $3.8B (28% of total DoD energy costs) and a disproportionate share of greenhouse gas emissions. It is critical to the DoD to cut electricity use, not only for cost but for national security. “Installation energy management is key to mission assurance.” Dr. Robyn, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense Installations and Environment. <br />
<br />
The DoD is actively seeking solutions to reduce its energy use and advanced window technology could play a critical role. According to ENERGYSTAR, heat gain and loss through windows can account for up to 50% of a facility’s heating and cooling needs. Advanced energy technologies can be used to reduce the need for heating and cooling.<br />
<br />
Loren Burnett is founder of US e-Chromic (a Boulder based company) and speaker at the Global New Energy Summit. US e-Chromic was founded to commercialize electrochromic technology developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to deflect sunlight in the summer and reduce the need for air conditioning. According to Burnett, “the electrochromic technology used by US e-Chromic LLC uses an electric field to change the tint of a window, allowing users to control the transparency based on the time of day, temperature, or exposure to sunlight. Today, the current supply of electrochromic windows turn darker in color when activated, consequently absorbing heat. In contrast, the technology being developed by US e-Chromic LLC reflects sunlight, keeping buildings cooler. They can be retrofitted to existing windows, potentially reducing cooling costs by 25-30 percent for commercial buildings during air conditioning months.” <br />
<br />
According to studies by NREL, windows that can dynamically change color or reflectivity based on changes in the sun’s intensity or temperature potentially could save 2% to 4% of the nation’s entire energy budget. These savings are recognized by the DoD. “Energy efficiency is not just the low-hanging fruit; it’s the fruit lying on the ground, which is all about retrofitting – more efficient boilers, HVAC systems and windows, daylighting and so forth. It’s all that not very sexy stuff, but that’s the name of the game.” Dr. Robyn, DoD’s Evolving Energy Revolution - An Interview with Dorothy Robyn, PhD, by Rosemarie Calvert (<a href="http://livebettermagazine.com/eng/magazine/article_detail.lasso?id=162&-session=user_pref:42F947961d9df34905nxpt32434F">http://livebettermagazine.com/eng/magazine/article_detail.lasso?id=162&-session=user_pref:42F947961d9df34905nxpt32434F</a>).<br />
<br />
In addition, the DoD recognizes that they can play a role in proving and helping to commercialize technology. ”DoD is one of the few organizations, like Wal-Mart, large enough to create energy technology test-beds for its self-interest, which will, simultaneously, speed deployment and commercialization for national benefit. It’s a test and evaluation function with a twist because of its capability to begin a US energy revolution – and it’s already begun thanks to DoD’s keen understanding that national security cannot be separated from energy security.” Id.<br />
<br />
Within DoD there are operational and regulatory challenges to commercialization. With challenge however, comes opportunity. We are working with ACORE to address some of these challenges in order to streamline the transaction space. Our country needs to be able to implement advanced technologies and we look forward to learning more about US e-Chromic and next steps for commercial scale deployment at the Global New Energy Summit in Colorado Springs, Colorado, April 9-11, 2012. To find out more go to <a href="http://www.globalnewenergysummit.org/">http://www.globalnewenergysummit.org/</a>. <br />
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-18889649796421764442012-04-03T13:29:00.000-06:002012-04-03T20:01:47.759-06:00Kirk Sorensen Co-Founder of Flibe Energy and Speaker at the Global New Energy Summit, April 9-11, in Colorado Springs, Colorado – Are Liquid Thorium Fluoride Reactors the Key to Affordable, Sustainable Energy?<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Even during the latest political wrangling’s, there is one area where American’s generally seem to agree:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We love our access to energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The average household owns 26 electric gadgets that we recharge without a second thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But where we get that energy? Well, that’s where viewpoints diverge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Several years ago Newsweek columnist Roger Samuelson summed it up this way:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>"We Americans want it all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Endless and secure energy supplies; low prices; no pollution; less global warming; no new power plants (or oil and gas drilling, either) near people or pristine places. This is a wonderful wish list, whose only shortcoming is the minor inconvenience of massive inconsistency."</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: black;">Is our desire for an endless supply of clean energy enough to open our eyes to new business models and new technologies?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ask Kirk Sorensen, Chief Nuclear Technologist for Teledyne Brown Engineering, Co-Founder of Flibe Energy (“Flibe”), and speaker at this year’s Global New Energy Summit (</span><a href="http://www.globalnewenergysummit.org/"><span style="color: black;">www.globalnewenergysummit.org</span></a><span style="color: black;">) in Colorado Springs, and I believe that he’d say that we should keep an open mind about nuclear power and in particular, Thorium.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flibe was founded on technology to use Thorium as a nuclear fuel to create energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thorium is natural, abundant and inexpensive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed, Thorium is common in the Earth’s crust, approximately three to four times more common than Uranium.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thorium energy can be inexpensive and clean if made by a liquid-fluoride thorium reactor (LFTR), pronounced “lifter.”</span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The primary concern with the traditional approach to nuclear power generation is the use of low-enrichment uranium (LEU) in solid-uranium-oxide-fueled light-water reactors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These reactors produce significant plutonium from the uranium-238 that makes up 95-97% of the original fuel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Irradiation produces by-products including other isotopes of plutonium called transuranic nuclear waste.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After years of irradiation, spent fuel rods are stored in repositories to move towards stability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reducing the amount of transuranic waste is critical for nuclear power generation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Sorensen, by using Thorium in a fluoride reactor as opposed to uranium in a solid-oxide reactor, it is possible to reduce the amount of transuranic material generated by a very large factor.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: black;">Thorium and the fluoride reactor present an entirely different model.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The primary difference is that the thorium is in the liquid fluoride form and is therefore chemically stable. Only products that are generated during operation are removed and the fluid can be continually reused. The ability to reuse is a profound advantage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: black;">Nuclear energy however, can’t be mentioned without addressing safety concerns. So how does Thorium compare? Sorensen is very outspoken about the safety record of the nuclear industry and emphasizes that the safety record in the nuclear industry is unparalleled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That safety record, however, is purchased at a price because the safety systems are engineered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>LFTR on the other hand, is passively safe in case of an accident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In simple terms, the LFTR is equipped with a frozen plug, kept frozen by an external cooling fan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the event of failure, the freeze plug in the reactor melts and allows the core salt to drain into a passively cooled configuration where nuclear fission and meltdown are not possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Flibe Energy is currently leading the charge in the design of LFTR technology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have proposed to design, develop and demonstrate a small modular liquid-fluoride thorium reactor (SM-LFTR) for the U.S. Military having a design power level of 20-50 MWe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Sorensen, “the SM-LFTR is the precursor to much larger, utility-class LFTRs operating at the 250-300 MWe power generation scale.” Flibe further envisions production of modular units with capital costs in-line with gas turbines. </span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The benefits to implementation of LFTR technology are seemingly overwhelming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The technology has relatively small land use footprint compared to energy output, Thorium is abundant and we don’t need much (according to Sorensen a small grain silo of Thorium could power North America for a year and known Thorium reserves could power society for thousands of years), and the technology has built in passive safety – just to name a few benefits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In addition, however, while LFTR can produce safe, sustainable electricity, lifesaving medical radioisotopes, desalinated water and ammonia for agriculture and synthesized fuels are produced in the process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, LFTR technology could have other impacts in global energy, medical, agricultural and industrial sectors.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">What I haven’t mentioned is that this work is based on Alvin Weinberg’s vision of our energy future as director of the Oak Ridge National Lab from 1955 to 1972.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not a new concept.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Moreover, the Department of Energy has put the burden on </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">industry to lead in the design, development, and implementation of new nuclear energy according to market principles.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As attorneys that work with industry to overcome barriers to successful commercialization of emerging technology, we recognize that there are challenges - whether regulatory or otherwise, to deployment and market integration, no matter what the solution is and what the benefits are. We look forward to learning more about Flibe Energy and next steps for private industry at the Global New Energy Summit in Colorado Springs, Colorado, April 9-11, 2012.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To find out more go to <a href="http://www.globalnewenergysummit.org/">http://www.globalnewenergysummit.org/</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-91044863076491418682012-03-30T00:36:00.001-06:002012-03-30T00:38:10.956-06:00The DoD is Seeking Private Industry Collaboration to Enhance Our Energy and National SecurityThe DoD needs private industry help to reduce the Armed Forces’ reliance on fuel and enhance our national security. Leaders from the Department of Defense (DoD), and each branch of the military testified about the defense energy challenge before the House Armed Services Committee on March 29, 2012. “Over reliance on fossil fuels and connection to a vulnerable electric power grid jeopardize the security of Army installations and mission capabilities. Investment in energy capabilities, including renewable energy and energy efficient technologies will help ensure the Army can meet mission requirements today and into the future.” The Honorable Katherine Hammack, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and the Environment. <br />
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Energy impacts every mission in the DoD. To protect the security of our nation, our armed forces require secure and uninterrupted access to energy. Key to private industry is that the armed forces have a history of energy innovation and with innovation comes opportunity. The Navy transitioned from sail to steam in the middle of the 19th Century, stem to oil in the early 20th Century and pioneered nuclear power in the middle of the 20th Century. “At each of those transitions, there were those who questioned the need, challenged the cost or simply opposed change of any kind,” testified the Honorable Jackalyne Pfannenstiel, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and the Environment.<br />
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For the DoD, energy security is tied to facility energy. Facility energy is important for two reasons: (1) cost and (2) mission assurance. The DoD energy bill is $4 billion annually. DoD installations support combat operations and serve as staging platforms for humanitarian and homeland defense missions. “These installations are largely dependent on a commercial power grid that is vulnerable to disruption due to aging infrastructure, weather-related events and a potential kinectic or cyber attack.” Dr. Robyn, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense, Installations and Environment.<br />
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The first step is to reduce demand through conservation and improved energy efficiency. “We share Energy Secretary Chu’s view that ‘Energy efficiency is not just the low-hanging fruit – it’s the fruit laying on the ground,” says Dr. Robyn. The DoD’s budget for FY13 includes more than $1.1 billion for investments in conservation and energy efficiency. Under Dr. Robyn’s leadership, the DoD is developing the Enterprise Energy Information Management (EEIM) system that will facilitate the automated collection of standardized facility energy and cost data. The EEIM vision statement and capability requirements is scheduled for release this spring “so that industry can adapt its commercial off-the-shelf solutions to meet DoD needs.”<br />
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Secure energy for installations is another initiative. DoD is increasing supply of renewable and other forms of distributed (on-site) energy on DoD installations. “On-site energy is critical to making our bases more energy secure.” To expand energy generation, the DoD is relying on third-party financing. “Third party financing makes sense because private developers can take advantage of tax incentives that are not available to federal agencies.” The Army Energy Initiatives Task Force was established in September 2011 to execute 10+ MW projects at Army installations. “The Army hopes to develop around one gigawatt of renewable energy on its installations by 2020, and it has solar energy projects underway at Fort Bliss, TX (1 MW), White Sands Missile Range, NM (4.5 MW) and Fort Carson, CO (2 MW).<br />
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The DoD is further looking to “next generation microgrids” to address the need for greater energy security directly. According to Dr. Robyn, “we envision microgrids as local power networks that can utilize distributed energy, manage local energy supply and demand, and operate seamlessly both in parallel to the grid and in “island” mode.” <br />
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"Advanced microgrids are a ‘triple play’ for DoD’s installations. First, they will facilitate the incorporation of renewable and other on-site energy generation. Second, they will reduce installation energy costs on a day-to-day basis by allowing for load balancing and demand response – i.e., the ability to curtail load or increase on-site generation in response to a request from a grid operator. Most important, the combination of on-site energy and storage, together with the microgrid’s ability to manage local energy supply and demand, will allow an installation to shed non-essential loads and maintain mission-critical loads if the grid goes down."<br />
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The vision for microgrids is still evolving and the opportunity for companies to participate in the discussion is now. The DoD has commissioned 3 studies from outside experts relating to microgrids. One, Business Executives for National Security (BENS), a non-profit, is analyzing alternative business models for the deployment of microgrids on military installations. As part of that analysis, BENS is looking at the appropriate scale and scope for an installation microgrid (e.g., should it stop at the fence or include critical activities in the adjacent community?) and at the challenges to widespread deployment. <br />
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The DoD is further looking to leverage advanced technology relevant to facility energy. “Emerging technologies offer a way to cost effectively reduce DoD’s facility energy demand by a dramatic amount (50% in existing buildings and 70% in new construction) and provide distributed generation to improve energy security.” Under Dr. Robyn’s leadership, the DoD created the Installation Energy Test Bed to help firms overcome the barriers that inhibit innovative technologies from being commercialized and/or deployed on military installations.<br />
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The DoD intends to rely heavily on third parties to finance its investments in energy efficiency (ESPCs and UESCs) and renewable energy (PPAs and Enhanced Use Leases). There are, however, clear challenges to using these models. The American Council of Renewable Energy (ACORE) is holding a series of military forums to identify and work around road blocks and to ensure that the expectations from the private industry side and the DoD side are clear. The objective is to enable our armed services to embark on projects much earlier than if they had to go through normal planning and budgeting systems. The ability to remove roadblocks lies within discussions between ACORE, DoD, related and supporting agencies and the private sector. Through collaboration these challenges can be addressed and ACORE and the DoD is seeking private industry input.<br />
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As a member of the ACORE committee I am working with ACORE and the DoD to identify challenges and develop strategies to streamline the transaction space for private industry. Feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss. I can be reached at <a href="mailto:kellydlt@algattorneys.com">kellydlt@algattorneys.com</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-47384344726383347352012-02-10T10:41:00.000-07:002012-02-10T10:41:40.275-07:00ICOSA Connect+Collaborate Radio Monday February 13 – A Discussion with David Blivin, Director and Founder, Global New Energy Summit<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Join us for ICOSA Connect+Collaborate Radio Monday February 13 – A Discussion with David Blivin, Director and Founder, Global New Energy Summit; Carl Huslig, Executive Director Grid Development for ITC, Dr. Doug Kothe, Director, Consortium for the Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors (CASL) <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The 4<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> annual Global New Energy Summit (Summit) will be hosted at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado April 9-11<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Summit, the vision of Summit Director and founder David Blivin, brings together world-renowned leaders across science, industry, policy and finance to discuss the various facets of the energy landscape and the solutions that are needed to address energy demand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Summit provides platforms for energy experts to debate about the latest innovations in technology, finance and the marketplace and through these debates form new partnerships and new ideas to address our energy challenges.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>New to the Summit this year is an International Expo designed to highlight advances in Asia, Europe, and North America.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The strong participation by the Council on Competitiveness (“Council”), this year’s co-producer of the Summit, underscores the importance of energy to our economic prosperity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the Council, it is critical to competitiveness that manufacturing firms have access to low-cost, dependable energy supply.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Energy, really, is everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the lifeblood of the economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It cuts across every activity, it also has a huge impact on how we make things, how we transport things, how we use things, and, quite frankly, that has been true since the beginning of human civilization.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the innovation machine that we need to stimulate and grow and maintain in this country is more important than ever given the challenges of climate change and environmental stewardship and scarcity as well,” says Wince-Smith President and CEO of the Council on Competitiveness.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Also critical to our competitiveness is an educated and skilled workforce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jamai Blivin, President and CEO of Innovate+Educate, so strongly believes that industry alignment for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and workforce development is critical to solve the issues the U.S. faces to develop an innovation economy, that she partnered with Intel and Lockheed Martin Corporation to work towards advancing effective education transformation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As another critical element to maintaining our competitiveness, STEM plays an important role at the Summit.</span></span></div><div class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 3pt 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We will be discussing the Summit with David Blivin on ICOSA Radio’s Connect+Collaborate segment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In addition, we will be highlighting two panels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first panel is Transmission Integration with Carl Huslig, Executive Director, ITC Grid Development for ITC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Huslig, “our nation’s grid is governed by a combination of state, regional and federal agencies created to deal with mostly local-level incremental changes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s an archaic and outdated regulatory structure that’s fractured across multiple jurisdictions at the local, state and federal levels.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A 2010 report by the Department of Energy found that electricity disruption cost the country $150 billion dollars a year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That equates to roughly $500 for every man, woman and child in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Huslig will be discussing what needs to be done to turn this situation around.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div><div class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 3pt 0in; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 3pt 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The second panel highlighted on the show will be Energy Hubs with Dr. Doug Kothe, Director, Consortium for the Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Doug led a multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary team known as “CASL” (Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors; www.casl.gov) in winning a $122M, five-year award from the U.S. Department of Energy for its first <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Energy Innovation Hub</i>. As a result of this award, Doug is now Director of CASL and the CASL Division Director at ORNL. CASL was called out (indirectly) by the President in his Jan 2011 State of the Union Address: “At Oak Ridge National Laboratory, they're using supercomputers to get a lot more power out of our nuclear facilities".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These hubs are designed to accelerate research and shorten the path from scientific discovery to technological development in key areas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are intended to bridge the gap between basic scientific breakthroughs and industrial commercialization of technology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dr. Kothe will be discussing the tangible benefits that the consumer can expect from this project.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 3pt 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To listen in over the web:</span></div><div class="MsoPlainText" style="margin: 3pt 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://radiotime.com/station/s_33938/The_Source_560.aspx"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: blue;">http://radiotime.com/station/s_33938/The_Source_560.aspx</span></span></a></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
</span></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In Denver we’ll be on Monday morning at 11:20 on 560 AM.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-8008471105684176772012-02-03T11:23:00.000-07:002012-02-03T11:23:55.976-07:00Connect + Collaborate with ICOSA Radio Energy 101 - Kathleen Sgamma discusses the Blueprint for Western Energy ProsperityListen to Kathleen Sgamma, Vice President Government Affairs for Western Energy Alliance discuss the Blueprint for Western Energy Properity by following the link below. The segment starts 20 minutes in.<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><a href="http://www.podcast-directory.co.uk/episodes/creative-vs-pragmatic-energy-experience-pros-radio-show-16940103.html" target="_self" title="Creative vs Pragmatic Energy - Experience Pros Radio Show"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Creative vs Pragmatic Energy - Experience Pros Radio Show</span></span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Connect + Collaborate with ICOSA features Energy 101, with Kathleen Sgamma and the Blueprint for Western Energy Prosperity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-6984431967375684332012-02-03T10:02:00.000-07:002012-02-03T10:02:35.180-07:00ICOSA radio talks energy efficiency with Steve DePalo - Director of Energy for McDonald's USA<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ICOSA Radio's Connect and Collaborate Energy 101 segment - a discussion with Steve DePalo, Director of Energy for McDonald's USA. We talk to Steve about the great strides that McDonald's USA has made with their efficiency efforts. Steve provides insight into how the changes made by businesses can have positive impacts that go beyond just energy savings and extend into other areas such as the environment.</span> </span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To listen to the discussion, click the link below, the segment starts 20 minutes in.</span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://www.podcast-directory.co.uk/episodes/mcdonald-s-usa-and-energy-experience-pros-radio-show-16940095.html" target="_blank" title="McDonald's USA and Energy - Experience Pros Radio Show"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">McDonald's USA and Energy - Experience Pros Radio Show</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 2012/01/23, 17:00<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-81193216566202944302012-01-12T13:47:00.000-07:002012-01-12T13:47:08.022-07:00Secure Affordable Energy Future Impacts All Americans: The Blueprint for Western Energy Prosperity<div style="text-align: center;"> <span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">“We can't solve problems by using the same kind of</span></i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;"> thinking we used when we created them.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>-</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;"> Einstein.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In March 2011, the Obama administration released “The Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future.” (Obama’s Blueprint can be found here: </span><a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/blueprint_secure_energy_future.pdf"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/blueprint_secure_energy_future.pdf</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>This report calls for the development of America’s energy supplies through the use of innovation and technology emphasizing that safe responsible development of our domestic energy supplies is necessary to position the United States as leaders in the global energy economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A critical element to reaching these goals: “Expand safe and responsible domestic oil and gas development and production.”</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">While meeting our energy needs is one of the most fundamental issues for the economy, often there is a gap between public expectations and the realities of exploration, production and development.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The lack of certainty over rules, politics and expectations defines the reality of our energy landscape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This affects the consumer because due to the complexities of the energy landscape, over burdening one industry can cause a ripple effect and negative consequences to the environment, our energy security and our economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is therefore beneficial for the consumer to understand the impact that certain regulations have on development.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Natural gas is a key resource in reducing U.S. energy dependency because we have the supply, it generates low air emissions (natural gas electricity generation produces virtually no mercury emissions, no sulfur-dioxide emissions and no lead emissions), and it is affordable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The good news is that unconventional gas discoveries have increased total undiscovered recoverable natural gas resources by 100% since 1999.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This statement is truly remarkable because a little more than a decade ago, the nation’s leading energy analysts believed that the United States’ supply of natural gas would be depleted in 57 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With that sort of supply outlook, there was no way to broadly integrate natural gas into American markets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“This revolutionary increase in natural gas supply means that by 2035, less than 1% of the nation’s overall natural gas usage is projected to come from foreign imports.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Importantly, our domestic natural gas supply directly impacts our energy security.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The bad news is that while western independent oil and natural gas producers are able to help solve some of our nation’s problems,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>there are significant impediments to domestic production that negatively impact the full promise of western energy production.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Some of t</span>hese challenges are explained in the Blueprint for Western Energy Prosperity, a report prepared for Western Energy Alliance by EIS Solutions. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Blueprint identifies key findings (</span><a href="http://westernenergyalliance.org/blueprint/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://westernenergyalliance.org/blueprint/</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">) relating to the benefits of western production:</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The West is projected to generate 1.3 million barrels of domestic oil and condensate production a day by the year 2020, an amount that exceeds the current daily oil imports from Russia, Iraq, and Kuwait combined.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The West has the potential to produce 6.2 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas annually by 2020, an additional one Tcf from 2010 levels.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Combined, western oil and natural gas is projected to produce more energy on a daily basis than the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">total U.S. imports from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Venezuela, Colombia, Algeria, Nigeria, and Russia.<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Investment in western energy development could increase to $58 billion annually by 2020.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This prospective growth is more than double the investment made in 2010.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The number of direct, indirect and induced jobs in the oil and natural gas sector is projected to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">increase by 16% to 504,120 by 2020.</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Annual state severance tax collections in the West are projected to increase from $2.1 billion in 2010 to $5.6 billion by 2020, generating a significant revenue windfall for schools, infrastructure and other basic services.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">According to the report however, government policies are significantly undermining these projections of growth, investment and expansion by increasing risk, uncertainty and regulatory burden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“New regulations implemented in the last two years have added three additional layers on top of a process that already involved five layers of burdensome regulations.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Policies and regulations should be clear and reasonable to prevent introduction of uncertainty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Uncertainty prevents economic growth, job creation and government revenue. The report recommends </span>specific actions that must be taken if America is to reap the full benefit of western energy:</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A thorough review and comprehensive reform of the entire federal onshore process, including leasing, project environmental analysis, and permitting is needed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A moratorium on new and expanded layers of regulation is needed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The industry is committed to continued environmental improvements and best management practices, but through a more efficient, predictable means than the current and ever expanding maze of haphazard federal regulation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In particular, legislative and administrative efforts to take jurisdiction for regulating hydraulic fracturing away from the states and impose federal restrictions should be rejected.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Measures must be taken to limit litigation that unreasonably obstructs domestic energy productions and economic growth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Renewable portfolio standards should be amended to allow natural gas to compete for electricity generation capacity on the basis of fuel-neutral performance criteria such as cost and emissions profile.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">State and federal governments should adopt market-based alternative transportation policies that are fuel and technology neutral to remove barriers that prevent natural gas from fully competing as a transportation fuel.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">By working together to identify barriers to energy development in Colorado and the west, we can develop a path forward to the benefit of all Americans.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b>Kathleen Sgamma,</b> Vice President of Government Affairs for Western Energy Alliance, will be discussing the Blueprint for Western Energy Prosperity on ICOSA radio’s Connect and Collaborate segment with Jan Mazotti <span style="color: #376092;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://www.theicosamagazine.com/icosaradio"><span style="color: #376092;">http://www.theicosamagazine.com/icosaradio</span></a></span>, Kelly de la Torre and Experience Pros radio <span style="color: #1f497d;"><a href="http://www.experiencepros.com/"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.experiencepros.com/</span></a> </span>on Monday, January 16<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> at 11:20 AM on 560 AM in Denver. A webcast of the show can be found here: <b> </b></span><a href="http://radiotime.com/station/s_33938/The_Source_560.aspx"><span style="font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://radiotime.com/station/s_33938/The_Source_560.aspx</span></span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-65642325647772461832011-12-15T09:40:00.000-07:002011-12-15T09:40:31.373-07:00McDonald's USA - A Model that Focuses on Energy Efficiency as Part of its Strategy<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Energy costs are going up. For example, on November 22, 2011, Xcel Energy Inc. filed a request for a $141.9 million electric rate increase for its Colorado customers. It is anticipated that the rate boost will increase customer bills by approximately 4%. Because energy is one of higher operational costs of running a business, rate increases can hit businesses especially hard. Businesses can however, take steps to cut their energy use and control their costs.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">More and more companies are recognizing that they can do more with less and the result is a positive impact on the balance sheet and the environment. One company at the forefront is McDonald’s USA. This is not a new concept to McDonald’s either. November 20, 2010 marked the 20th anniversary of a groundbreaking partnership between McDonald’s and the Environmental Defense Fund. The McDonald’s approach to energy can be broken down into two disciplines: energy procurement (how they buy it) and energy efficiency (how they use it). <o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In our upcoming show on ICOSA radio, we plan to focus on McDonald’s efficiency efforts. We want to highlight how the changes made by businesses can have positive impacts that go beyond just energy savings and extend into other areas such as the environment. For example, a fryer is not just a fryer to McDonald’s. McDonald’s has developed a next-generation low oil volume (LOV) fryer that uses about 40% less cooking oil and 4% less energy than standard fryers. That translates to lower operational cost, less waste, less transport cost and less overall energy use.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">McDonald’s USA has sought to: (1) Increase adoption of energy efficient equipment and technology in the restaurants. (2) Improve tracking of restaurant energy consumption data. (3) Increase energy awareness and education across the business to continue to realize savings to the bottom line and benefits to the environment. <o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We are excited to discuss McDonald’s energy strategies in more detail with Steve DePalo, Director of Energy for McDonald’s USA on Monday, December 19th at 11:20 MST on ICOSA’s Connect and Collaborate Segment with Experience Pros Radio on 560 AM in Denver or archived shows can be downloaded from the Experience Pros website: </span><a href="http://www.experiencepros.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">www.experiencepros.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">. Check out ICOSA radio at <span style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.theicosamagazine.com/icosaradio"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.theicosamagazine.com/icosaradio</span></a></span>.<span style="color: black;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5369245272378291560.post-84500734115900724842011-12-01T16:25:00.000-07:002011-12-01T16:25:25.901-07:00Colorado Task Force on Transmission Siting and Permitting Issued Report to Governor and the Legislature Today<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">In compliance with Senate Bill 11-045, the task force on statewide transmission siting and permitting issued its report today. The report provided three recommendations:</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">1. Increase local government coopeation and collaboration. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">2. Change the appeal process for decisions by the Public Utility Commission (PUC).</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">3. Open a PUC docket to consider improvements to the backstop process and consider a transmission siting and resource center. Specifically, "the task force recommends that the PUC open a docket to consider a range of backstop-related issues, including using mediation for dispute resolution, providing advice to the PUC, and considering the possibility of establishing a resource center for the benefit of local governments, transmission providers, the public and the PUC.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">As originally introduced, the bill would have created a seven-member electric transmission facility siting commission consisting of three utility regulators, three members representing the local governments in which a plannned facility is proposed to be located, and one member representing the public at large. After significant amendments, the bill was modified to create the task force resulting in the three recommendations above.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">A copy of the task force’s full report can be viewed from the PUC website at <a href="http://www.dora.state.co.us/puc/index.htm">http://www.dora.state.co.us/puc/index.htm</a>.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">•RSS 2.0: http://blogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss</div>Rocky Mountain Energy Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02636873474085627605noreply@blogger.com1