EREN Network News

September 15, 1999

News and Events

• DuPont Commits to Emissions Reductions and Renewables
• Green Power Market Spurs Commercial Solar Power Plant
• California to Promote Neighborhood Electric Vehicles and Examine Ethanol's Potential to Replace MTBE
• DOE Announces Native American Grants
• Earth Day Network Publishes Its "Clean Energy Agenda"

Site News

• Lighting Research Group

Energy Facts and Tips

• Study Shows Traffic Exhaust and Cooking Poison Home Air
• Saving Energy and Other Resources in Businesses

About this Newsletter

News and Events

DuPont Commits to Emissions Reductions and Renewables
DuPont committed on Monday to reduce its greenhouse-gas emissions 65 percent (compared to 1990 levels) by 2010. As part of that commitment, DuPont will hold its energy use at 1990 levels through 2010, by which time it will also draw on renewable energy for 10 percent of its energy use. DuPont estimates that meeting its renewable energy goals will require 300 megawatts of electric generating capacity from renewable energy sources. The goals were announced by Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Dennis Reilley during a conference sponsored by the Pew Center on Global Climate Change.

"We want to show that we are serious about the need for renewable energy to be a part of our future, and to provide a strong 'market signal' that there will be at least one major energy consumer ready to buy," said Reilley. "We also want to indicate that we are prepared to work with energy suppliers and others to develop renewable energy."

Reilley also noted that DuPont has already spent more than $50 million to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent by the year 2000. For more information, see the speech on the DuPont Web site.

See also the Web site for the Pew Center on Global Climate Change.

Green Power Market Spurs Commercial Solar Power Plant
Greenmountain.com announced September 7th that a new 132-kilowatt solar photovoltaic electric facility will be built in Hopland, California, to help meet California's demand for green power. Green power -- electricity generated from renewable energy sources -- is the preferred choice of California consumers who choose to switch their electricity provider. Greenmountain.com has agreed to buy the power generated by the solar electric system, which will be located at the Real Goods Solar Living Center and will be built, owned, and operated by GPU Solar. For more information, see the press release on the Real Goods Web site.

California to Promote Neighborhood Electric Vehicles and Examine Ethanol's Potential to Replace MTBE
The California Energy Commission (CEC) and Los Angeles' Mobile Source Reduction Review Committee have launched a program to demonstrate Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEVs) throughout the state. NEVs are designed for neighborhood errands and non-highway commutes, or for use in controlled locations such as college campuses. The new program is providing up to $400,000 for NEV demonstration programs.

California is also beginning to examine the potential to build an in-state ethanol industry to replace MTBE as a gasoline additive. The CEC has prepared a draft report on generating ethanol from such biomass sources as plants, wood chips, trimmings, rice straw, municipal trash and other solid waste, and held a public workshop on the subject last week.

For more information on both these subjects, see the CEC Web site.

For more information on generating fuels from biomass, see DOE's National Biofuels Program Web site.

DOE Announces Native American Grants
DOE announced September 9th the award of nearly $230,000 for five renewable energy projects in Native American communities. The awardees include three projects to install solar photovoltaic electric systems, one to install wind turbines, and one to install a cooling system that uses cold groundwater. The renewable energy systems will be installed at three schools, a medical center, and other facilities, at locations in Alaska, Arizona, and California.

DOE also announced the award of two grants totaling $50,000 to two tribal colleges in New Mexico and South Dakota. The colleges will investigate Quickfill wall technology, which uses inexpensive high-performance construction materials to insulate walls.

For more information, see the DOE press release.

Earth Day Network Publishes Its "Clean Energy Agenda"
The Earth Day Network, an international organization coordinating Earth Day 2000 events worldwide, has published its "Clean Energy Agenda." The agenda supports the organization's "Clean Energy Now!" campaign, which is setting the theme for Earth Day 2000. It includes such goals as producing one-third of the U.S. energy needs from renewable energy sources by 2020, while doubling the energy efficiency of homes, buildings, transportation, and industry. See the agenda on the Earth Day Network Web site.

Site News

Lighting Research Group
Funded primarily by DOE, the Lighting Research Group at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researches and develops fixtures, controls, and software that employ energy- efficient lighting. The site features lighting advice for your home or office and information about the group's test facilities and ongoing research projects. In addition, visitors can download lighting-design software developed at the center.

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

Energy Facts and Tips

Study Shows Traffic Exhaust and Cooking Poison Home Air
Two subjects that are usually discussed separately -- indoor air pollution and pollution from vehicles -- turn out to be closely linked, according to a new study by the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. Studying a cancer-causing class of organic pollutants called PAHs, researchers found that traffic was the primary outdoor source of the pollutants in homes. Cooking was also found to be a major source of PAHs within the home. The study was published in the August issue of the Journal of Exposure Analysis and Environmental Health. For more information, see the press release on the Johns Hopkins Web site.

Saving Energy and Other Resources in Businesses
If you own or manage a business, or are in a position of responsibility at a school, library, or other organization, there are probably many opportunities for you to save energy at work. To help you along, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has posted a selection of resource-efficiency success stories from various businesses and organizations throughout the state. Although the Web site examines waste minimization in general, many of the success stories are related to energy efficiency improvements. See the DEQ Web site.

For other energy-saving tips, see the publication, "Energy- Saving Tips for Small Businesses: Hands-on Solutions to Improve Your Productivity," on the EREN Web site.

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