EERE Network News
January 26, 2005
News and Events
Home Builders Set New National Guidelines for Green Homes
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has introduced new voluntary guidelines to help mainstream homebuilders build green but affordable housing. The NAHB also introduced the Green Building Initiative, a not-for-profit organization to promote green building.
California Government and Agencies Commit to Green Building
California's government has committed to following a Green Building Action Plan that will result in energy-efficient buildings that draw less power from the grid. The state's largest retirement funds have also committed to significant investments in energy efficiency over the next five years.
DOE and USDA Offer up to $15 Million for Biomass Projects
DOE and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a joint solicitation in late December for development and demonstration projects that lead to greater commercialization of biobased products, biomass energy, biofuels, and related processes.
Kansas, Vermont, and New Jersey Encourage Wind Power but Set Limits
While large wind power projects are not welcome (for now) in parts of the tallgrass prairie in Kansas, on state-owned lands in Vermont, and off the coast of New Jersey, those states continue to recognize the benefits of wind power and promote the development of wind power in appropriate locations.
First Utility-Scale Wind Plants Slated for New Jersey and Montana
A 7.5-megawatt wind plant in New Jersey and a Montana wind plant as large as 150 megawatts will soon be the first large- scale wind power plants in those states. Wind power projects are also underway in Washington, Oregon, Kansas, Texas, and Iowa.
Gamesa to Produce Wind Turbine Blades in Pennsylvania
Spanish company Gamesa, the second-largest wind energy company in the world, plans to build a high-tech plant to manufacture wind turbine blades in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania, about 75 miles east of Pittsburgh. Gamesa aims to install 1,000 megawatts of wind power in the state.
Energy Connections
Growth in Global Oil Demand to Slow in 2005, Says IEA
The global demand for oil surged up 3.3 percent in 2004, but the International Energy Agency expects growth to slow to an annual rate of 1.7 percent in 2005. According to a top executive at ExxonMobil, new daily oil production needed by 2020 will be equal to replacing all of today's daily production.
