Monday, August 31, 2009

Eco Friendly Luxury Property in the UK

This blog has always been a supporter of environmentally friendly homes - mega mansions too - as it believes that these have an aspirational value that could make a difference to smaller homes by imitation. If people imitate business tycoons and folm personalities' looks, they are also likely to imitate their living quarters to whatever extent they can afford to. This is a simple concept that sells clothes and shoes, perfumes and cars and it could also sell energy efficient homes.

Cut to this incredibly beautiful project in the UK on a farm as described in detail in http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/greenproperty/6105693/Eco-houses-down-on-the-eco-farm.htmlThe architect's detailed description of a huge home that uses less energy drawn from the grid than a two room apartment ought to set off celebrity architects and designers to compete for similarly efficient structures elsewhere in the world. Hopefully, this is exactly what will happen. In the meantime, will an Indian billionaire (or at least a multi-millionaire) please buy this property as it is on sale? Or a wealthy PAkistani businessman? Or someone else from the region . . . My hat will be off to you if you do, as you would be setting a most magnificent example for the region and for the world.

Logan Utah to Convert its Sewage Into Fuel and Fertilizer Using Algae

The Salt Lake Tribune has this excellent article with lessons for all of South Asia: http://www.sltrib.com/ci_13211659?IADID=Search-www.sltrib.com-www.sltrib.comUtah State University's research project will work on the technology to convert the region's sewage into both fuel and phosphatic fertilizer, killing two birds with one stone. This is hardly different from what this blog has proposed in the past - looking at converting the huge amounts of sewage that are generated in India into fuel and now fertilizer as well to help Indian farmers. And, of course, this would clean filthy sewage carrying waterways up. How much better could the whole thing get?

Anyone listening in the Government of India? Or in the Tamilnadu State Government? Please look at this - it would only be good for the country. Ditto for other countries in the region . . .

The Salt Lake Tribune link was received via Treehugger.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

BBC: India to Get its Own Green Party

I am grateful to Dr Mayraj Fahim, a strong supporter of this blog and a local government expert in the USA, for the following link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8221698.stm The idea for a Green Party in India is ripe - the country faces some of the worst environmental degradation that any region on earth does, and shortsighted governments and antiquated laws are almost entirely to blame for the mess. SO far, people like the founder of the proposed new party, have used the Indian Courts to get their way, and it is important that a political party manages to set an agenda and fight this battle from within the country's Parliament and State Legislatures.

That said, I am not convinced that this entire process is likely to be successful for mainly historical reasons (though my views are from the past and things may well have changed by now) that I shall detail. Some years ago, I saw an attempt during the worst of India's Socialist years under Indira Gandhi and later under her equally thuggish son Rajiv, to set an agenda that would take India to the brink of ruin. While that, fortunately, didn't succeed, neither did attempts by western minded Indians to politically import western concepts into India. Back then, leading Indian lawyer Sriram Panchu tried starting what he called the "Indian Labour Party," modelled upon the British Labour Party, in what could only be described as a total failure. The name was recently usurped by Andhra Pradesh film star CHiranjeevi for his own party though I have no idea what visions Chiranjeevi has for his own proposed political future. I do think that the new Indian green Party faces a similarly dismal future and that it is likely to end up forgotten in time, especially in a state like West Bengal, which has a powerful and well-entrenched Communist Party and a powerful opposition in the Trinamool COngress led by the charismatic Mamta Bannerjee.

I do wish that my views are proven wrong, though! A Green political movement is something that India sorely needs.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

American Solar Energy Society Feature on Heartbeat of America

I'll admit that I didn;t even know that a show like the Heartbeat of America existed until I received an e-mail from the American Solar Energy Society telling me about a feature cum interview on this show: http://ases.heartbeatofamerica.tv/index2.html The video is a brief description of the potential for solar energy in the USA and visitors here should have no problem using the information to point to the possibilities wherever they may be.

I don't know how I could embed the video here as there is no embed link, but the link takes you directly to the website. Do check it out!

Bootlickery and Lies on a Big Green Blog - More Nonsense from Treehugger

When Treehugger, easily among the biggest "green" blogs on the net (and the quotes are here for a very specific reason) begins to slide towards drum-beating for pathetic personality cults, it is something to think seriously about. In the first place, this attitude gives those who are serious about the environment, Green Energy etc a bad name because we get tarred by association. In the second place, you begin to wonder what a blog that is run by a media outfit has to gain from its non-stop pamphleteering for politicians of a certain party instead of focusing on problems concerning the environment and on possible solutions. Take this post into consideration: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/08/ted-kennedy-green-tribute.phpA supposed "tribute" to a "Progressive Green Champion" finds its way onto this blog, with the gushing praise ignoring the late Senator's singlehanded opposition to an offshore wind energy plant off his beach home as he didn;t want to look at windmills in the distance while he had his evening coffee on the sands. Presumably, acid rain and filthy air for the rest of the world were not an issue to this great new Treehugger idol as long as his view wasn't affected.

Nice, I guess, after Treehugger tom-toms John Kerry as a great green intellectual, beats the drum for a completely fraudulent policy of cap and trade which would only put money into its hero, Al Gore's bank account, and gets a failed pollster like John Zogby to endorse its propaganda. With friends like Treehugger in the "green" blogs of the world, which really committed environmental activist or renewable energy proponent really needs enemies?

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

WSJ: Organic Farming Helps Farmers in India




They say that a picture is worth a thousand words - this short film from the Wall Street Journal's website is worth several million. Remember - this is from a dyed in the wool business journal and not from an activist of any kind. My hat's off to the WSJ for highlighting this and I hope that India's authorities look closely at this video from the website of the most influential newspaper in the USA seriously.

Monday, August 24, 2009

The Telegraph on China's Taking the Lead in Green Energy

I like this article in "The Telegraph," a Conservative British newspaper, a lot: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/6077374/China-powers-ahead-as-it-seizes-the-green-energy-crown-from-Europe.html As visitors here know, I like to check out articles in the mainstream media and discuss them here more than I do the blogs that I subscribe to, because the MSM has a wider reach as far as its message is concerned, though blogs are often more passionate about the subject of green energy, and they are also much faster in looking at developments in the field. However, there is a popular misconception among Renewable Energy supporters that Conservatives are not always in favor of RE. Earlier views suggested that religious groups were opposed to the idea, until churches in the USA, Muslim groups in several countries and Sikh and Hindu religious leaders in India all began to push hard on environmental issues and on urging their followers to look at RE. This Telegraph article is particularly interesting because it not only looks at the idea of grid parity, it also looks at dumping practices by the Chinese in selling solar panels to Europe and at the whole business as a profitable enterprise, not as some ideological aim.

This particular piece also throws out the idea of competing - a very good thing in my opinion - with the Chinese as far as RE is concerned. While the USA slowly moves towards this sector pushed by hard-nosed businesspeople who have now turned green entrepreneurs, Europe has been ahead of the game for some time. Germany has several advanced solar panel manufacturers, the Scandinavians and the Germans have both been building wind turbines for sale all over the world, and the Spaniards and Portuguese have been busy harnessing the sun and the wind over their countries as the British work on harnessing the energy of the sea. Now, the Europeans have a wealthy competitor who may not always play by the rules, in China. This is still fine, I think, because the more solar panels the Chinese sell, the less fossil fuels are going to be used. In the long term, the Europeans are also certain to respond by raising the stakes from a technological standpoint - they do have some of the world's top universities and engineering brains. Count on them to look at raising the efficiency of their offerings in this area in order to beat the Chinese. For a long time, supporters of that biggest celebration of the harnessing of fossil fuel, Formula 1 racing, used to argue thyat competition improved the breed. Now, that is happening on a much larger scale and with a much wider scope, in the area of Renewable Energy. This blog is happily celebrating!

Monday, August 17, 2009

The French Plant Their Collective Fist in Fossil Fuels' Solar Plexus

The Wall Street Journal did a very good thing several times while the Cap and Trade fraud was being touted by vested interests, in telling US politicians that if they had any courage, they would bring in a carbon tax, instead of coming up with a crappy proposal like Cap and Trade that was only going to make a few entrenched political bandicoots rich. Now a nation that has virtually no fossil fuel reserves of its own, has taken a powerful step in this direction - the French plan to impose a progressively increasing carbon tax on their country. Surprisingly, this has the support of a vast majority of Frenchmen and women: http://www.alternatives-economiques.fr/taxe-carbonne---vive-la-taxe-carbone-_fr_art_633_43699.html (Received Vide Autoblog Green).

The French are already working in a big way to fund alternative energy research and elecxtric transport. They also have a huge nuclear industry with the world's safest record of operation. I think this new carbon tax will prompt their engineers to take up the challenge of working in the area of clean energy and bring in some very interesting products and ideas in the future. This will be a pleasure to watch, considering this blog's raison d'etre.

Native American Tribe Shows the Way Ahead in Doing Business with Biofuels

The New York Times has this very interesting piece about the Southern Ute Indian community and their foray into biofuels as well as into extracting the vast natural gas reserves under their reservations: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/17/business/energy-environment/17algae.html This is a project of the kind that takes after my heart. The SOuthern Ute are not greenies living in la-la land like some who have been arguing with me on some of the blogs that I post on, as well as in one of the posts here. They are a tribe who are looking at making money for the long term for their people and they are interested in doing this in an environment-friendly manner. They are among the wealthiest Native American tribes and this shows that they have the acumen to run a successful business. This project should succeed - it has all the right ingredients that should work as they are fine-tuned to business perfection.

There is a lesson in this for South Asia. The region produces enormous amounts of sewage which only pollutes its ever dwindling fresh-water reserves. There is severe vehicular and powerplant based pollution in the region and the CO2 component in this could go towards feeding algal cultures which would then be refined into fuel. Need I leave out the fact that this would help the nations of the region retain their money instead of sending it overseas to buy fossil fuels? There is some positive interest these days in Solar Power with both India and Pakistan working to bring about a policy to introduce more and mroe solar powered equipment in the future. Hopefully, both of them and the other nations of South Asia will come up with policies that take resources like sewage into account and process them into useable products.

Solix Biofuels, the company that has the business arrangement with the SOuthern Utes has a very interesting website at: http://www.solixbiofuels.com/

Blue Cross of India Wins Important Environmental Listing

While this is not an issue that is strictly related to Renewable Energy, many of the friends who are in touch with me on this and related subjects are friends whom I met as a volunteer at a fantastic animal welfare organization - The Blue Cross of India. Yes, my best four legged buddy whom you see with me in my Profile Picture, came to be a part of my family from their shelter in Chennai, India, and now lives proudly at my place in the Chicago suburbs. The Blue Cross have a fun approach to animal welfare that is second to none. The numerous adoptathons and healthy mongrel shows that I have attended in the past (and which continue with ever more people joining these days because they enjoy themselves as much as I did) testify to their success in finding how much fun it can be to work with animals. And this has been recognized by Radford University VA in an entry into their Environment History Timeline with the following entry:

https://php.radford.edu/~wkovarik/drupal/?q=node/26

Quote [1959 -- Formation of the Blue Cross of India. Cofounder Chinny Krishna in 1964 introduced the first neuter/return program for street dogs in the world, which he called "ABC," short for "Animal Birth Control." In 1997 the Indian goverment accepted the recommendation of the Animal Welfare Board of India that ABC should become national policy, and endorsed the goal of abolishing animal control killing throughout India by 2005.(M. Clifton, 2007)] End Quote

Mr S Chinny Krishna, the Co-founder, still puts in long hours at thier shelter and in advising other branches of the Chennai group that have sprung up across other parts of India, as original volunteers move from Chennai for various reasons. The good work begun in 1959, therefore, is being spread across India in a systematic and happy way. Now, some supporters who have moved to the USA, have formed a 501 C trust here to support the Blue Cross's activities in India: http://www.krupa-usa.org/ Their website is well worth a visit and of support by anyone who is interested in supporting not just animal welfare, but also environmental casues. Please note that Radford recognized the Blue Cross for the overall beneficial impact their work had on the environment of the cities that they work in, and not just on their animal neutering program which has been working since 1964.

I would like to salute this great organization and convey my congratulations again to Mr Chinny Krishna and everyone at the Blue Cross. And this request is to whoever wishes to support a charitable cause - please support the Krupa USA trust. My personal thanks are due to anyone who supports them.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Chennai Corporation Makes Positive Promises - Hope They Keep Them

This link was sent by my old friend Kulasekaran, who often comments here: http://beta.thehindu.com/news/cities/Chennai/article1913.ece Like Kulasekaran, I am cautiously optmistic about this proposal. When the Chennai Corporation does decide to do something, it does it well. I remember growing up on Broadway (then known as Popham's Broadway) as a boy and of the squalor that became a part of the road in the 1980s and thence through the 1990s. Loansquare Park which I would walk past as a boy became a public toliet and trucks ("lorries" in the quaint Raj Era English that Indians speak) would be illegally aprked over there all the time. But, shortly before I moved to the USA, seven years ago, I chanced to ride through the road right from the Old Jail Road / Stanley Hospital end through NSC Bose road and I was surprised at how well it had been cleaned up. It was still more crowded than when I was a boy, four decades ago, but that is inevitable - India has a lot more people now than it had back then. What was surprising was how clean the place had become after the filthy mess that it had become in the 80s and 90s.

If the Chennai Corporation does a good job of using the energy of the sun in one of the hottest and sunniest places in India to power government buildings, I think it could do a superb job. Chennai does have some of the best educated people in India and its educational institutions are second to none in India. I would urge the Corporation to look not just at Corpration buildings but also to look at the Police Quarters in Egmore and at Broadway, the new wholesale market at Koyambedu etc. The State Transport Corporation could also use this form of lighting at the various bus terminii and at the Moffusil Bus Stand at Koyambedu. There are many places in Chennai which could use clean energy.

With my fingers crossed, I would like to invite visitors here to please watch this space!

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Why India Needs to Look at Renewable Energy RIGHT NOW

Treehugger has this sad piece that speaks about how bad things are in India and how much worse they are getting, environmentally speaking: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/08/india-carbon-emissions-land-degradation-increase-groundwater-declines.php While there are some positive attempts being undertaken at growing more trees etc, the country's huge demand for energy to power gadgets for an increasingly wealthy population has caused more than a few problems. India is building more and more coal fired powrplants - the NLC complex at Neyveli seems to come out with new tenders for mroe and more large coal fired powerplants by the day. And huge quantities of coal get imported from Australia, Indonesia etc. The coal burning plants need water ajnd this drains the country's already meager supply of clean water. This forces the people to draw ground water for drinking, washing, agriculture etc and depletes ground water supply.

As visitors here know, wind turbines do not require water to be drawn, greatly reducing the quantity of water used up because of its use in power generation. And, the use of solar water heaters, as is mandatory in some parts of India, could help significantly in reducing power consumption from those filthy coal-burning powerplants by redcing the amount of electricity that is used, reducing the use of water even further. A win-win situation? Of course! And, best of all, one that shows fossil fuel the fist!

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Improving Diesel Engine Efficiency - Calling Tata!

Gizmag has a very interesting piece about a new fuel injection system mod that has been developed at the University of Wisconsin, that promises to offer a thermal efficiency of 53%: http://www.gizmag.com/diesel-spark-plug-gasoline/12484/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers&utm_campaign=9224d606ed-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email This is an amazing gain as the article explains and the US Department of Transportation is offering to fund further research into this promising area in a big way.

I would hope that someone at tata is watching - as the biggest manufacturers of diesel trucks in India and a company who export their trucks and cars to many other countries, they would be a fantastic fit to this technology. The technology has been tested on caterpillar diesel engines - don't Tata have the Indian representation for Caterpillar and Poclain? Someone please correct me if I am wrong here!

In any case, this blog aims to watch this development and look at where it is implemented. If the Tatas don't care for it, maybe someone else could license it in India. I am not sure if Mahindra would - they have a long relationship with AVL. Please watch this space. I shall post any information that I get over here.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Energy Facts: India Vs China

Forbes has this interesting slideshow showing comparative energy consumption in India and China: http://www.forbes.com/2006/11/27/china-india-energy-biz-energy-cx_pm_1127energy_slide.html

While both the energy consumption and the impact that India makes on the world's environment is smaller than China's, the fact is that India's rapidly growing population and relative prosperity is causing problems. I do think, though, that the fact that India is relatively underdeveloped compared to China could actually be an advantage. This means that by focusing on conserving energy and investing in more efficient designs than the Chinese did during the crazy 1990s and the first eight years of the 21st century, India could lay the groundwork for a much more efficient energy utilization infrastructure for the future. The technologies are available and there are more being developed by the day as the many blogs on this subject show. It is a question of will now. China is changing its ways after beginning with a disastrously old-world approach. Will India start with a modern, high-tech approach to energy planning? Watch this space - this blog will keep an eye on what happens.

Friday, August 7, 2009

An Interesting French Electric Car Rental Idea That Could Be Modified and Used in South Asia

Businessweek has an interesting write up over a French plan for an electric car rental service for the beautiful city of Paris: http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/aug2009/gb2009087_330677.htm While the system is still being designed with 2000 electric cars initially available for pick up and drop off at various points around the city of Paris and with an equal number available in the suburbs, the project could be expected to become an example for other countries. French approaches to transportation and to the use of energy reflect that country's extremely poor fossil fuel reserves - France has virtually none. That is why the country uses nuclear power in a big way, has been working on renewable Energy since the 1970s, and, that is also why it has developed, arguably, some of the best systems of public transportation in the world especially in its ultra-high speed railways. As visitors here are aware, I pay a lot of heed to business magazines and their pieces on environment-friendly projects because these guys look at the economic viability of these projects first. They have little room for emotion in looking at these projects, a good counterbalance, if you ask me, to the environmental idealists of the world.

So where would this be of use to South Asians? I think a similar project using electric scooters would be a very interesting idea if someone attempts it. There are several manufacturers of electric scooters in India now, and some of the big names in manufacturing conventional motorcycles and scooters like Hero Motors are also joining this field as we talk. If the technology and methods used by the French to rent electric cars are modified to allow the renting of electric scooters for a reasonable price in South Asia, I do think that this would give the autorickshaw / tuk-tuk sector and the taxi sector good competition, reduce the use of gasoline, and of the filth that pollutes the air in that part of the world every single second.

I have found some websites of Indian electric scooter manufacturers - I have no idea how good their products are as I do not have any experience with them - but I am hoping that some of the visitors to this blog from India would respond with their views in case they have any experience with any of these:

1. YO Bikes http://www.yobykes.in/

2. Ultra Motors India: http://www.ultramotor.com/in (I understand the Ultra group has some kind of tie up with Hero Motors in India though I have no idea how this works)

3. Eko Vehicles http://ekovehicle.com/

4. Vijaya Electric Scooters http://www.vvelectricscooters.com/

There are posts on the net about TVS and other Indian electric scooters but these companies don't seem to have enough confidence in their own products to as much as talk about them on their websites. Oh well, they have had their day in the sun - maybe it is time for new people to succeed now! In any case, if visitors here have any information about other manufacturers of electric two wheelers in India, I would love to hear from you.

Of course, if you want to get the latest information on the finest electric motorcycles available anywhere in the world, sign up at the Electric Motorcycle Forum: http://electricmotorcycleforum.com/ You won't find a better place to hang out, I can assure you!

Another Beautiful LEED Platinum Certified Home

While there are some experts who believe that the LEED standards do not go far enough, they are a good beginning towards persuading builders to get the maximum efficiency out of new constructions and this home on Inhabitat is a lovely example of something that could easily be replicated across South Asia: http://www.inhabitat.com/2009/08/07/the-sage-residence-super-high-scoring-leed-platinum-home/ Somehow, with the attention on new Indian billionaires and their huge Indian MacMansions being talked about even over here in the West, I wonder if someone could sell these people the idea of building aesthetically designed, energy-efficient homes? Somehow India's architectural community seems less than interested in this idea for reasons that only it knows. I do wish that India would look more at these homes - I am a big believer in the aspirational value of fancy, efficient homes and I do think that more such homes, if built and occupied by celebrities, could help in showing fossil fuels the fist.

The website of Arbor South, the Oregon firm that designed this particular house, is: http://www.arborsouth.com/ Three cheers for them!

Positive Change of Heart at "The Hindu"

While I have often been critical of "The Hindu" in the past on the issue of Renewable Energy, especially on this blog, today's editorial in that grand old newspaper is a very positive one: http://www.hindu.com/2009/08/08/stories/2009080853241000.htm While this piece speaks about the need to focus on Solar Energy in India due to India's contribution to climate change out of an increasing dependence on fossil fuels, I can only hope that the tremendous clout that this newspaper enjoys among the powers that be in India, and particularly in the South, listen to this opinion. There is one point that I would like to stress, though, because "The Hindu" does not - Renewable Energy can be a viable method of power generation considering how fast the technology is advancing these days. And, in a country like India which spends something like half the money that it earns on imprting coal and crude oil, any savings from using the abundant energy of the sun would make the country that much richer.

Thank you, Hindu. I hope this change of heart is a positive one and that you continue to fight the good fight now that you have joined it as enthusiastically as you have!

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Now, Imagine These Plants Along the Long Indian Coast . . .

Its funny how the video in this post took me back to my schooldays and to one of my favorite teachers, now sadly deceased, Mrs Gozmao. She taught Geography and one of the best memories that I have is of a class where she discussed the long Indian coastline and the potential for India to use the many inlets along the coast to shelter small vessels. It was obvious why Britain, a seafaring nation, had become India's biggest colonial power - the country offered the British ample opportunity to build past centuries' equivalent of naval bases at Madras, Calcutta and Bombay (which they acquired from the Portuguese.) The other major seafaring nations of Europe were there as well - the Danes, the French and the Portuguese.

But this long, peninsular coast, now has something else that could become as relevant as the numerous ports and trading and naval inlets were historically: as a boy who grew up in the seaside town that in now called Chennai, I can see where the many beaches that dot the coast could be locations for solar powerplants like this one: http://ecogeek.org/component/content/article/2890 The water required for cooling would easily be extracted from the sea and reduce the need to draw river water unlike most current powerplants in the country. And with fishermen and fishing communities dying by the day, literally, because pollution and depleting catches have wiped out fish populations in much of the region, these projects could provide valuable employment opportunities for fishermen who could be trained to work at these plants in various capacities. This technology could be applied equally successfully in countries across the region - Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and so on. I can see where this could be an amazing new direction as far as generating clean power and also helping with chronic employment shortages in coastal communities across the region is concerned.

eSolar's website is http://esolar.com/ Congratulations to them on their success and thanks to EcoGeek for announcing the news on their website!

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

India Hits Back Over Western Demands That it Cut its Emissions

It was bound to happen - constant harangues on several talk radio shows and on Fox television against India and China on emissions were expected to bring a tit for tat statement and here it is: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/5977599/India-attacks-British-and-Western-hypocrites-over-cutting-emissions.html As someone who lived just overlooking the Vadapalani Bus Terminus at Gowri Chitra Gardens, I have a somewhat different take on this, however. Let us not kid ourselves - India's air is filthy. And if a "better lifestyle" is what India is aspiring to, then that should include cleaner air and water. It does not make sense if Indians can buy Rolls Royces or Bentleys and if they have to breathe in filth the moment they step out of them and no longer have air filtered through carbon filters available to them. There is also the matter of health, and when I last checked, that was also a lifestyle issue - recent reports suggest that as many as 70% of Kolkata residents may have lung infections of some kind. The percentages in other cities should be similar.

While this is not going to be easy under any circumstances, I do think that India would be able to do both - work towards implementing more Renewable Energy projects (especially solar power) and advance towards a better lifestyle for Indians at the same time. Fossil fuel resources are currently held by a few nations that have been fortunate to have them located on their territory. And these are running out. Countries like India have access to abundant sunlight and they need to focus on this as a resource and develop a model that works in this context. It is not an impossible task. Some positive steps are being taken in this direction, no doubt. I wish that there would be more, and that they would be taken faster.

Let us not forget that a full 50% of all the money that India earns goes towards paying for fuel. All of this could, technically, be available for other "lifestyle" projects if it were not sent out of the country to pay for coal and crude oil.

Another Very Interesting Utility Scale Solar Power System

One more technology that could be a very interesting one for South Asia - the website says that the company has distributors around the world, but I could not find any list: http://www.pyronsolar.com/index.html Would be an interesting daylight system for a new installation. An interesting website and I hope this gives some business ideas to potential entrepreneurs among those who visit here. I'll try and find out more about this system and also find out if the company has any clients with working installations in the USA. This could be an interesting tech to follow up on.

Religious Institutions in India Compete in Implementing Renewable Energy Solutions

While I am almost always as suspicious of religious outfits as I am of politicians, here is one of a few instances where I could agree with the religious outfits involved: http://tinyurl.com/n3xynr The Shirdi and Tirupati shrines have both installed solar water heating systems to help with cooking for devotees who go there to worship. I'll go one step further and hope that there is not just more competition in this area, but also that the worshippers at these centers get sufficiently inspired to buy their own solar cookers and use less fossil fuels at home. I can think of hugely popular centers like Ajmer which is popular with Muslim worshippers, Vailankanni and Chalakudi which are popular with Catholics and more in India who could go renewable.

Let's hope this is the beginning of a trend!

Barack Obama Rejects 98% of Scientists' Clean Energy Research Proposals

I'll say this for Treehugger - after offering John Kerry's ridiculous defense of the Cap and Trade fraud yesterday, they have been objective in showing where the Obama Idol has feet of clay: http://tinyurl.com/l6h8k5 One would think that an administration that promised a lot would stop trying to sell fraud schemes like Cap and Trade that would only enrich select members of the Democratic Party and focus on supporting scientists and encourage genuine research.

Surprise, surprise! Barack Obama is no messiah or savior! He is just another lying politician who says something in order to get votes and then conveniently forgets his promises. Here is a lesson for everyone who looks at expecting a state or a particular politician to do something of value - don't be foolish!

Monday, August 3, 2009

Exactly the Kind of Nonsense that Makes All Pro Environment People Look Like Idiots

I have a longstanding affection for the dedication with which the Treehugger blog is produced and I have regularly used material from it ever since I started blogging about possible ways of reducing the consumption of fossil fuels. However, this post sort of broke the camel's back with its sheer ridiculousness: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/07/there-will-be-no-financial-monkey-business-senate-cap-and-trade-john-kerry.php I can understand the Treehugger lot beating the drum for Obama and the Democratic Party. Many of my friends who are concerned about the environment believe that the Republican Party is too tied in with the oil companies and with coal miners to do anything meaningful about reducing the USA's dependence on oil and coal. However, the whole business of Cap and Trade is a fraud and it is a devious step that Treehugger have taken in taking the word of a lying loser like John Kerrry to promote this scheme to keep some politicians rich.

Let this be clear - Climate Exchange PLC, the company that owns three of five of the world's carbon exchanges, has huge investments by Al Gore's Generation Investment Management company. It also has a huge investment by Goldman Sachs, the financial services group. Don't try to sell me the BS that these guys are out to sell carbon credits to make the world a better place! Follow the money that this will generate - at a 3% transaction fee for credits traded on these exchanges and possibly trillions of dollars that would pass through them, guess who is going to become rich? John Kerry is one of a tiny, select band of American politicians who can occasionally make Joe Biden look intelligent. What a magnificent personality Treehugger have chosen to sell Cap and Trade as one of their pet solutions! Let's all accept this as Gospel Truth, sit down and drink locally made green tea made in water boiled in a solar heater and hold hands and sing kumbayya!

I am NOT a scientist but there have been enough scientists who are concerned about the environment and global warming who have called this Cap and Trade business for the fraud that it is. On this issue, they stand shoulder to shoulder with the skeptics of this proposal on the Republican side as well as with independent people who can think. Treehugger are welcome to support whatever agenda they would like to - the unfortunate fact, though, when they pound the drums to sell Cap and Trade, is that when the fraud gets widely exposed, (and get exposed it will, because of the strong lobbies that oppose everything that the pro-environment groups believe in) all pro-environment people and groups would end up getting tarred with the same brush. In this, Treehugger does the entire environmental movement a terrible disservice.

The websites of Climaye Exchange PLC is: http://www.climateexchangeplc.com/ That of the Chicago Climate Exchange is: http://www.chicagoclimatex.com/index.html Generation Investment Management's website is: http://www.generationim.com/ Goldman Sachs's website is: http://www2.goldmansachs.com/

Visitors to this blog are mostly from the journalist community and I would urge you folk to please check on all of these entities and derive your own conclusions. As a community that I was once a part of, I am sure that you would reach the same conclusion that I have - it is unfortunate when those who are concerned about the environment have to step up and criticize a blog like Treehugger, but when one of us decides to replace skepticism with adulation for a fraudulent scheme, it is neccessary to be critical of them.

Congratulations! India looks to the sun for ambitious surge in green power - Times Online

This piece in The Times makes for lovely reading early in the morning: India looks to the sun for ambitious surge in green power - Times Online

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Personally, I think that the plans (or hopes as some of my friends see them) are excellent. The implementation is not going to be easy, though. That said, if this is done right, I cannot see any reason why this project to use solar power across India cannot succeed. In fact, I would hope that, in the spirit of friendly competition, this is carried to the rest of the region - much of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and to a smaller extent Nepal and Bhutan have the same kinds of climatic conditions that India has. All of these countries could benefit from using the light of the sun instead of burning fossil fuels and squandering away their hard-earned money on fuel purchases from the Gulf, Indonesia and elsewhere.