Top 5 Energy Stories of 2009
Posted by Sonja Ebron
This year has been a watershed for the U.S. energy industry. The environment and the economy have become linked to energy production and use like never before, and there’s no going back. Here, in no particular order, is my list of biggest energy-related stories this year:
- The EPA finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health, which would negate the need for climate change legislation and give the agency regulatory authority over every aspect of the economy
- New techniques for extracting natural gas found to threaten fresh water supplies
- The failure of U.S. oil companies to win bids on any Iraqi oil contracts, while countries opposed to the U.S. invasion met Iraq on its own terms
- The oil/economy merry-go-round that spun us from recession (due to high oil prices) to relief (lower oil prices due to slowing economy) back to recession (higher oil prices due to rising economy)
- Coal ash stored at the nation’s electric power plants labeled hazardous waste after dams broke at two separate ponds and released toxic sludge into nearby waterways
Next year promises to be even more exciting. See my 2010 energy trends in this month’s Atlanta Tribune, on newsstands now. Happy New Year!
Have an Energy Efficient Christmas
Posted by Wayne X. Young
Its that time of year again for holiday decorations. Have you picked up your Christmas tree yet? Are your X-mas lights and decorations “green”? The Rockefeller Center’s Christmas tree in New York City will be energy efficient this year. There will be 720 light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs on the Rockefeller tree’s star alone, each with the light output of a 100-watt bulb!
LEDs are extremely energy efficient and come in a wide variety of colors and styles. LEDs use on average 80% less power than a normal incandescent bulb and last up to 4,000 hours. Most of the energy output goes to light instead of heat thus reducing the chance for fires in your home. The cost of LEDs are about 10% more than standard lighting, but you may be able to find great discounts at local retail stores. Please shop around to find the item that best fits your families’ budget.
In an average home, the cost of using incandescent Christmas lighting decorations will increase your electric bill about $16 - $25/month during the season. In order to save money this holiday season, please consider using LED lighting in Christmas ornaments and outside lighting. Also, set your Christmas lights on a timer that is made to withstand the weather. Normally, people install lights the week after Thanksgiving and take them down after New Year’s Day. Please consider your personal finances to manage the utility costs associated with Christmas.
Happy Holidays!
Wayne Young
Super Tuesday Celebrates Atlanta’s Black Business Women
Posted by Sonja Ebron
The Atlanta Business League put on a fine celebration of the achievements of Black business women last week. ABL was established in 1933 as an affiliate of the National Business League, founded by Dr. Booker T. Washington. In 1984, under the leadership of Alice White Bussey (of Bussey’s Florist), ABL’s Women In Business committee created Super Tuesday to raise awareness of African American women business owners. Last week’s celebration marked the 25th anniversary of this sistah-fest, headlined by Radio One magnate Cathy Hughes. More than 1000 women (and quite a few men) gathered to meet and greet and do business with Atlanta’s best and brightest Black women leaders at the Atlanta Marriot Marquis.
Lisa Borders for Mayor of Atlanta
Posted by Sonja Ebron
Atlanta has earned its reputation as headquarters of the Dirty South. The city emits more than half a million metric tons of carbon dioxide, equal to the combined emissions of 150,000 households. Atlanta’s air pollution is one of the worst in the nation. Atlanta residents are projected to run out of water by 2030, and water quality declines every year. Urban sprawl and the need to commute lead to increasing greenhouse gas emissions throughout the city, and our street congestion is among the highest for any metro area. While state and federal governments play the major role in environmental outcomes, local policies and practices can set a tone for citizens that can lead to positive and lasting change. Lisa Borders has the most potential to set the right tone and the right example for a green Atlanta.
Lisa Borders
Lisa is a major advocate for the Atlanta Beltline, an alternative transportation program that will add 22 miles of light-rail transit and 1,200 acres of green space around the city while boosting the local economy. Mayor Shirley Franklin committed the city to reduce its carbon footprint to 7% below 1990 levels by 2012 and to be carbon neutral by 2030, and Lisa will follow through on that commitment. She is also a strong promoter of the Atlanta Sustainable Building Ordinance, which would reduce energy and water use in all city facilities.
Even the Borders campaign office is green. Staff are collecting food and paper waste in compost bins to fertilize gardens around town. There are recycle bins for glass, aluminum and plastic waste, and employees are encouraged to carpool or use MARTA. Just as Michelle Obama’s vegetable garden has inspired all Americans to rethink our food choices, Lisa Borders’ green office practices will challenge all Atlantans to treat our environment better. This is the leadership Atlanta needs and deserves.
Oil and Gas Industry Targeted Van Jones
Posted by Sonja Ebron
Van Jones finally made it to the top of the oil and natural gas industry’s hit list. His success at steering millions of dollars toward green jobs (in both stimulus funding and the House-passed climate bill) threatened a perfect storm for dirty energy.
Van’s brilliant idea was to marry the interests of labor, the environment and social justice. Taking on any one of those groups was a fight the oil and gas industry didn’t want, but a fight against all three was a sure loser. Alternet has the full story, but the short and skinny is that Van had to go. Here’s a breakdown of the takedown:
So let’s understand the stakes here and take heart. We are very close to changing the way we use energy in this country, and some folks can’t see themselves on the other side. That’s why they’re also targeting the Apollo Alliance, led by another “scary big ole black man,” former National Wildlife Federation chairman Jerome Ringo.
The Glenn Becks of the world didn’t wake up the other day and decide to equate green jobs with slavery reparations. They’re being fed this junk in an effort to divorce labor from the environment. You know you’re winning when an opponent resorts to these kinds of tactics. I think they made a big mistake in targeting Van, for two reasons. One, they’ve alerted us all to their weakness and fear and confirmed that we are on the right track. And two, Van is much more dangerous out here with the rest of us.
Our response is simple, and it’s one that honors the genius of Van Jones: We must push as hard as we can for the most progressive climate change legislation we can envision, one that includes green jobs with justice.
Atlanta Conference Aims to Increase Participation in the ‘Green’ Movement
Posted by Sonja Ebron
The green movement is taking on more color as professionals from coast to coast prepare to convene at a first-of-its-kind conference in Atlanta, September. 23-26. Top African-American, Latino, Asian and Native American professionals from around the country in the academic, government, business, recreation and nonprofit sectors will share their expertise at the event: Breaking the Color Barrier in the Great American Outdoors.
The conference will encourage participation in the “green” economy and showcase people of color engaged in sports, such as mountain climbing, skiing, sailing and scuba diving. It also will highlight the efforts of Americans of diverse ethnic and cultural heritage to protect the environment and the scenic treasures in the nation’s public parks, forests and wildlife refuges.
Audrey and Frank Peterman, conference organizers and long-time outdoor enthusiasts, have been promoting America’s natural beauty to communities of color for the past 14 years. When the Petermans took a cross-country trip in 1995 and discovered the Badlands, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Yosemite national parks, they saw very few other Black people in the parks. Inspired to alter that picture, they launched a campaign to publicize the parks to Americans of color.
The Next Big Thing … Solar Powered Cellphones
Posted by Wayne X. Young
A few of my friends asked what will be “the next big thing” to hit the public. Something that would generate a buzz or be a “must have” item. I mentioned solar-powered cellphones.
In Kenya, national telecommunications company Safaricom recently released a solar-powered mobile phone that costs no more than $40. This is especially beneficial in the country because electricity is so scarce. The country is under strict power rationing and their main source of energy is hydro-power. The demand is high for power and it is expensive for citizens to go to a third-party vendor to charge their cellphones. It is also difficult to find these vendors in rural areas of Kenya. “Initially, one had to use one’s phone and then the phone would go off and then you could not sell one’s vegetables and do your transactions,” said a Kenyan phone user. “But now with the new solar phone one can talk talk talk and deal with your business. It is much easier now.”
The phone does appear to be the first of its kind to be available commercially in Africa. Who knows when it’s coming to the US.
Some in the mobile phone industry have suggested accessory solar-powered phone chargers are the best avenue to address the phone charging issue in developing regions of the world. Such chargers have been available for a while but have been limited in their reach by a lack of uniformity. The solar-powered cellphone was created by ZTE Corporation from China. A similar phone was also released in June by Samsung in India.
Can you just imagine the impact a phone like that would have in the US? Studies have shown appliances on standby (such as TVs, computers, DVD players, cellphone chargers, game systems like XBOX and Wii) can account for 10% of a home’s total energy consumption. The International Energy Agency even estimated that standby power consumption accounts for 1% of the world’s annual greenhouse gas emissions. Some may say that the power use is negligible, but over time and multiplied by the millions of cellphone users, it could have a major impact. A solar powered phone for the “green” energy-conscious community would go over BIG across the globe.
– Wayne X. Young
Hurricanes are coming! Is gas gouging far behind?
Posted by Wayne X. Young
Although its starting late, the US Hurricane Season is finally here. We are currently getting hit with three at once. Although categorized as tropical depressions first, the intensity may increase to storms and eventually hurricanes.
There are 3 active storms currently being monitored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA). Tropical Depression Ana is currently over the Dominican Republic and will possibly make its way to the Gulf of Mexico by Thursday. Tropical Storm Bill is out in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and might hit the Mid-Atlantic region (VA, DC, NJ, MD) coastal states in another week or so. Tropical Storm Claudette is scheduled to hit Panama City Monday morning and cross into Alabama and Tennessee.
Already we have seen a 10 cent increase in gasoline prices since last week. Gas prices have jumped 10% or more since the last month. Last year, pipelines and platforms in the Gulf of Mexico were severely damaged due to hurricane force winds. Distribution of gasoline was affected. The Southeast faced a gas drought of major proportions because we get our gas from the companies who owned the platforms in the Gulf. Weeks went by with little or no fuel in major cities. And the gasoline that was available nearly reached $6/gallon. Lines were around the block!
Are we prepared to accept another “wave” of gas gouging based on greed and desperation? Have we, the consumer, maintained our vehicles to utilize as little gas as possible? Is your tire pressure up to standards? Are we making less non-essential trips? Have we taken the excess weight out of our vehicles? Be prepared people, because it will get worse before it gets better.
– Wayne X. Young
When You Don’t Know What To Do, Do The Right Thing
Posted by Sonja Ebron
Like most people, I find the Golden Rule an indispensable companion to living well. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” and “wish for your brother what you wish for your self” are among countless expressions of the Ethics of Reciprocity found in all religions. The trouble comes when we feel we need something and believe we can’t get it fairly. At those times, the temptation is to rationalize a double standard, but it always comes out wrong in the long term.
American history is replete with such examples, from genocide of the original inhabitants and enslavement of African people to the coups, assassinations and general warmongering of the last 60 years. We are so blinded by our past that we can’t adequately gauge our future. That’s what so dangerous about our continuing misadventure in Iraq.
Getting back to living in season
Posted by Lisa Gilbride
When I was growing up in North Carolina, we ALWAYS opened the windows as soon as the weather would break in the spring. We did not have central air, only window units in the bedrooms and one on the main floor that was large enough to cool the dining room, living room and kitchen. The den was below the foundation and that area was always cool and where we spent most of our time when not outside.
Anyone who lives in the south can tell you it can get pretty hot during the summer months. However, my parents were into keeping the electric bill down and we only ran the air conditioning after the sun went down.
Then later in life I moved to Buffalo, NY where most houses have no air conditioning because heating is more important. Heck, up there you are really lucky to see two 90-degree days in a row. Summer does not last long if it comes at all.