EREN Network News

May 5, 1999

News and Events

• Religious Coalition to Promote Green Power
• Largest Solar Power System in Pennsylvania On Line
• California Collaborative to Test Fuel-Cell Vehicles
• World Resources Institute to Cut Energy Use, Emissions

Site News

• DOE's Bioenergy Initiative

Energy Facts and Tips

• Most U.S. Households Have Air Conditioners
• Consider Your Options for Air Conditioning

About this Newsletter

News and Events

Religious Coalition to Promote Green Power
Commonwealth Energy Corporation and the North American Coalition on Religion and Ecology (NACRE) announced April 27th that they have formed the "Greensmart Renewable Energy Project" to promote the benefits of green power. NACRE is encouraging the more than 30,000 religious organizations and other non-profit organizations in California to demonstrate their environmental commitment by switching to electricity generated from renewable energy sources. See the Commonwealth Energy press release.

The involvement of religious organizations in the green power market may seem unexpected, but it already has a track record in California. In October 1998, the Episcopal Diocese of California adopted a resolution instructing all 87 Episcopalian churches in California to buy clean, renewable power. On Earth Day, California's Renewable Energy Marketing Board announced that a total of nine churches, all in the San Francisco Bay area, had signed up for green power.

Largest Solar Power System in Pennsylvania On Line
On Earth Day, the largest solar generation facility in Pennsylvania was switched on at the BJ's Wholesale Club in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Green Mountain Energy and Sun Power Electric teamed up to install 1,400 solar photovoltaic panels on the roof of BJ's Wholesale Club. The 43-kilowatt array will produce 50,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity each year, enough to power roughly 10 typical U.S. homes. Partial funding for the system was provided by DOE's Utility Photovoltaic Group. For more information, see the Green Mountain Energy press release.

A similar system was installed on a BJ's Wholesale Club in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts, in December 1998. For more information, see Sun Power's "Current Events and Updates" page.

California Collaborative to Test Fuel-Cell Vehicles
The State of California is collaborating with several industrial leaders in a new effort to demonstrate and test fuel-cell powered vehicles in real-life operating conditions. The California Fuel Cell Partnership will team up state agencies (California Air Resources Board and California Energy Commission) with technology partners (DaimlerChrysler, Ford Motor Company, and Ballard Power Systems) and energy providers (ARCO, Shell, and Texaco). The partnership will place about 50 fuel-cell vehicles on the road between 2000 and 2003. Ford and DaimlerChrysler will each initially provide five fuel-cell powered passenger cars by 2001. The partnership will also work with California transit agencies to test approximately 25 buses. For more information, see the partnership's Web site.

World Resources Institute to Cut Energy Use, Emissions
The World Resources Institute (WRI), a Washington, D.C.- based environmental think tank, has committed to cut its net carbon dioxide emissions to zero by 2005. Its 125-person staff is including such items as office electrical use, business travel, commuting, and paper use in its accounting. As a first step, WRI moved into a new "green" office building that incorporates energy-efficient lights and appliances. WRI's plans include working to bring green power options to the Washington, D.C., area. For more information, see the WRI Web site.

Site News

DOE's Bioenergy Initiative
DOE's Bioenergy Initiative is "an integrated effort to facilitate technological advances that will foster an integrated and competitive bio-industry through partnering with industry, providing R&D funding to develop key technologies, coordinating government action, and working to reduce market barriers." The site defines key bioenergy terms and issues, and provides background information with bioenergy presentations delivered by Dan Reicher, DOE's Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The site also presents a draft action plan for a national partnership to develop an integrated industry, technology fact sheets that describe DOE's bioenergy projects and activities, a listing of meetings and events, related links, and contact information.

For this and other recent additions see the EREN Web site.

Energy Facts and Tips

Most U.S. Households Have Air Conditioners
According to DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA), nearly three-quarters (72 percent) of all U.S. households have air-conditioners. In 1997, U.S. households spent an average of $140 on air conditioning, using more electricity on average for air conditioning than for space heating. For more information, see "1997 Air Conditioning Facts" in the Consumption Briefs section of the EIA Consumption Page.

Consider Your Options for Air Conditioning
While air conditioning is pretty much a necessity in hot and humid areas, other options may suffice in other areas of the country. Natural ventilation or ventilation using fans will keep a house cool through most of the year in many northern states or areas at high elevation. For those living in arid climates, an evaporative cooler, also called a swamp cooler, is an effective and energy-saving alternative to air conditioning.

If you must use air conditioning, a central air conditioning system will cool your house more efficiently than room conditioners. However, if you only need to cool a small portion of your house (for instance, your bedroom), a room air conditioner may be the best choice.

We'll further examine these options and other ways to keep your house cool in future editions of this newsletter. For more information, see the "Cooling Your Home Efficiently" page on DOE's Office of Building Technology, State and Community Programs Web site.

About this Newsletter

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