News on Climate Change, Hybrid Cars, Solar Power, Alternatives & Renewables, and Green Living
RunsOnSun is a news aggregation website for environmental and climate change topics. Edited by humans, not machines.
To make a difference in your world, you need to know what is going on in your world. RunsOnSun is a mix of resources on important ideas for a greener lifestyle, blended with the ever-changing landscape of latest scientific studies, breaking news, and popular opinion.
Everything you do makes a difference for us all. Whether it is buying a hybrid car, discussing climate change and global warming with friends, finding green power in your neighborhood, or looking for kindred spirits, RunsOnSun has collected articles and postings from around the world. You can even search the archives for past wisdom.
From YouTube, Sir Charls Shults shows us how he can make 6 kw Solar Systems for a fraction of today’s PV solar panel costs. Power your home & Electric Car for $6,000 instead of over $50,000 for PV systems!
See original at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_Ctw3zA2F4
Written by Ariel Schwartz
According to researchers at Columbia University, peridotite rocks could be harnessed to capture carbon dioxide in large quantities, potentially offsetting billions of tons of CO2 emissions each year. The rocks, found in Oman, California, New Guinea and elsewhere, produce calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate rock (both solids) upon contact with CO2. More »
Even as General Motors is caught in a storm of plummeting sales and rising costs, the Detroit based manufacturer is keen to continue development of a range of plug-in hybrid vehicles.
Currently, GM’s most publicized effort in the plug-in hybrid arena comes from the Chevrolet Volt, which is expected to help GM turn its fortunes around with a truly green car. However, the plug-in technology used in the Volt will not be restricted to the small car segment, or even the Chevrolet brand, as GM is keen to capitalize on its investment in the technology by implementing it in a number of vehicles that span its brand range.
A GM spokesman signaled that while GM was keeping tight lipped about any other possible plug-in hybrids for now, the plug-in hybrid technology itself is “not a niche product” and that “the architecture is flexible”, reports Reuters.
For full article see http://www.motorauthority.com/volt-plug-in-technology-to-be-used-widely-at-gm.html
By Mary Hamilton, Local News 8 Reporter
The state of Idaho and the Idaho National Laboratory are teaming up to find viable, alternative energy sources.
They have developed an agreement to find diverse, green energy resources that are cost-effective for consumers.
The partners will look at energy options such as:
Clean coal technologies
Oil sands and oil shells
Petroleum
Natural gas
Uranium mining
Wind power
Agricultural and forestry biomass
For full article see http://www.localnews8.com/Global/story.asp?S=9308152&nav=menu554_2_10
By TOM KNUDSON - McClatchy Newspapers
RENO, Nev. – U.S. Forest Service Chief Gail Kimbell Friday unveiled a new agencywide effort to tackle the problem of climate change, saying it poses the greatest danger yet to the nation’s woodlands.
“This issue is so big,” Kimbell said in an interview at the national convention of the Society of American Foresters in Reno, Nev. “The health and resilience of America’s forests affect everyone.” More »
JENNIFER PARRISH - SPECIAL TO THE SENTINEL
When the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco calls itself the greenest museum in the world, you should take it literally. In addition to its many sustainable design features, the museum now blends in nicely with the surrounding verdancy of Golden Gate Park thanks to the presence of a “green” or “living” roof. Accessible to visitors, this extensive 2.5 acres of undulating vegetation is more than just a rooftop garden. Instead, it forms part of the roof itself, which is comprised of 7 inches of soil and 1.7 million native plants atop a concrete base.
To construct the living roof, architect Renzo Piano designed a patented system of biodegradable trays made from tree sap and coconut husks. Filled with soil and planted with native plant species, 50,000 of these trays were laid side by side in a tapestry of rooftop “tiles,” which grow increasingly interlocked and stable as the roots of the plants from adjacent tiles grow together. This roof is impressive!
For full article see http://www.mercurynews.com/centralcoast/ci_10934467
BY JAMES DULLEY
Q: My 17-year-old refrigerator still works. I am remodeling my kitchen and I heard I should get a new, more efficient one. What style and size of refrigerator/freezer is most efficient and functional?
A: New refrigerator/freezers are much more energy-efficient than a 17-year-old model. Energy Star-qualified models are 20 percent more efficient than the most recent federal energy-efficiency standards.
This means a new superefficient model may use less than half as much electricity as your old one. This also reduces the amount of heat given to the kitchen during summer.
The energy savings from a more efficient compressor and insulation should pay back the cost of a new model over its lifetime.
When selecting a new refrigerator, the size is the most important factor affecting its electricity usage. Select as small a model as will meet your requirements. You can base the size requirements on your existing refrigerator size and how full it typically is, not on the few holiday occasions when you are making dinner for the entire extended family.
For full article see http://www.kansas.com/living/home_garden/story/589549.html
As the prices of crude oil and other energy commodities made their historic rise in recent years, alternative energy became an increasingly attractive area for investors looking for big gains. However, the slowing global economy and collapsing oil prices resulted in a massive pullback in expectations for the near-term potential of the formerly red-hot sector, along with huge declines in share prices.
But with dozens of attractive energy names — from SunPower (SPWRA Quote - Cramer on SPWRA - Stock Picks) to Quanta Services(PWR Quote - Cramer on PWR - Stock Picks) — trading more than 50% off their former highs, it may be time for investors to start thinking about some speculative names that have significant upside potential over the next year. More »
SAN FRANCISCO — The fig tree and the philodendron are the first things that meet the eye in the repair bay of Luscious Garage. Then the two Toyota Priuses come into focus — one with a slightly dented rear door, the other on a lift with two tires off and rusty brake rotors exposed. Then comes the eerie sense that something is missing: grime.
“You could eat off her floor,” said Sara Bernard, the customer in need of brake repair. More »
Barack Obama’s historic election as president brings with it the likelihood of more government involvement in business and the reeling economy.
An Obama presidency has many implications for business. It may signal good times for the sustainability industry — solar power, electric cars and the like — but a new burden on utilities and other industries if the new president makes good on campaign promises to put caps on emissions.
The health-care industry and employer-based health insurance also are likely to see more government involvement — both financial support and regulatory controls — under Obama’s presidency.
The Illinois senator was projected to win key battleground states such as Ohio and Pennsylvania on Tuesday night. He also was projected by several news organizations to be the winner in Florida, where the Democratic Party had faced bitter disappointment in the recent past elections.
For full article see http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2008/11/03/daily56.html