Author

Chris Tobias

Innovative Thai Architect Singh Intrachooto: “Focus on process, not products.”

Like many countries, Thailand has an issue with waste. From buildings, to manufacturing and agriculture, to consumer goods and tourism leftovers, mountains of garbage go to landfill each year. Agriculture alone in Thailand churns out 58,190,000 tons of refuse annually (Land Development Department, Government of Thailand). Think about that the next time you frolic on a Thai beach.

Throughput of industrial system today, from source to end consumer, ends up in landfills or incinerator. For every truckload of product with lasting value, 32 truckloads of waste are produced. On a finite planet, it doesn’t take a genius to realize this sort of system is totally unsustainable.

01/03/2010 1 comment

Renewable Energy

Hidden Truths About Energy: Why One Source Just Won’t Cut It

written by Chris Tobias

Energy involves many complex issues, from how it is sourced to where it is used. Crafting intelligent energy policy also means understanding how cultural, social, and political issues come into play.

Dr. Michael Quah is one of the well versed experts in this area. With qualifications from Harvard and Yale, a 20+ year career in as an engineer and consultant, his latest work is with Energy Studies Institute and Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. He also does research and development for the U.S. Army around energy technologies.

According to Dr. Quah, taking a systems-of-systems approach is advantageous. The bigger picture view, taking into account even some of the smallest details, is useful to understanding complex interrelationships.

With energy, nothing can be oversimplified. Beyond that, energy projects– whether from renewable or traditional energy sources– need to be carefully analyzed for lifecycle costs and long term impacts.

01/02/2010 5 comments

Renewable Energy

Developing vs. Developed Nations — A Climate Negotiations Dilemma

written by Chris Tobias

The upcoming climate negotiations in Copenhagen have highlighted an interesting dilemma. Nations worldwide are trying to shirk their responsibilities around emissions and their economies.

So called “developed” nations like the U.S., U.K., and Australia are having a difficult political time getting industries to swallow the fact that big changes need to happen. Industry needs to clean up its act. Of course, then the political dance begins:

“But what about xyz country? Are they going to do it too?” Yes, yes, always point the finger somewhere else. Someone else should be the leader, start things off, too risky for us.
“Developing countries should do their bit!” Undoubtedly the case, but perhaps those who have been polluting in droves since the start of the industrial revolution should take the first step.
“But it will RUIN industry! It will be a calamity! Jobs destroyed! Lives ruined! We simply cannot afford to change!” Unfortunately, the same logic was used at one point to justify slavery, and many other sad practices. It is a classic technique used to frighten and scare people away from the real issue at hand. In this case, the cost of climate change will pale all other costs by comparison. Can we really take that risk?

11/28/2009 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Energy Demand and Peak Oil: Global Economy With an Uncertain Future

written by Chris Tobias

As the keynote speaker at the Singapore Energy Lecture, Dr. Daniel Yergin was toeing his usual line of optimism on the subject of oil and energy. As the Founder and Chairman of Cambridge Energy Research Associate (CERA), Dr. Yergin has a long career in the energy industry, though one some challenge as upholding the status quo of business and industry.

“The century ahead of us will be defined by energy innovation,” he said in his keynote address. “We need availability and security of energy, and a depth and diversification of energy sources.”

He spoke of the odd timing of the Copenhagen agenda of lowering carbon emissions (of which fossil fuel energy sources are a key contributor) by 2050, as well as projections that by 2030, there would be a substantial growth of energy needs worldwide. Some 80% of which these energy demands are to be met by hydrocarbon sources. Indeed, humanity faces some difficult decisions and conflict in the years ahead: development at what cost?

11/27/2009 1 comment

Renewable Energy

Consumerism and the REAL Cure for Climate Change (+Videos)

written by Chris Tobias

Don’t expect climate change to get fixed by the governments of the world. Don’t expect that, however noble in intention, the efforts of Gore, McKibben, Stern, and their many cohorts will succeed either. Not on any large scale. It won’t be clean tech or green products saving the day either.

Climate change, like energy scarcity, water pollution, and other serious global issues is merely one symptom of a larger global problem. Tackle the symptoms individually, and at best you might get lackluster results. Tackle the source of the problem, and everything attached to it will be positively affected.

11/20/2009 1 comment

Energy Efficiency

Energy Efficiency And Its Hidden Dangers

written by Chris Tobias

A recent event sponsored by the British High Commission on climate change and low-carbon business drew out into the open a serious issue. As many are aware, should the temperature rise as much as 4 degrees Celsius (or about 7 degrees Fahrenheit) due to climate change, some serious problems for countries around the world will emerge.

One of the keys to keeping carbon emissions, and therefore climate change, in check is getting reductions in place. One of the easiest and most palatable ways to sell this to business is through energy efficiency measures.

11/18/2009 7 comments

Energy Efficiency

Power to the People: Green Mobs Take Hold

written by Chris Tobias

Mob mentality is being used to convince businesses to combat global warming. How? Through Carrotmob, a “reverse boycott” phenomenon taking hold worldwide.

According to their Web site, Carrotmob is “a network of consumers who buy products in order to reward businesses who are being socially responsible.” It uses consumer buying power as leverage to convince businesses to act more responsibly and to improve the way their business operates in relation to environmental impacts.

A good example is their first ever action, which happened in San Francisco (see the video below). Founder Brent Schulkin visited bottle stores in his neighborhood and asked them to pledge a certain amount of their daily takings to “greening” their business.

09/29/2009 0 comment

Renewable Energy

On Energy, We’re Finally Walking the Walk

written by Chris Tobias

The United States has entered a new energy era, ending a century of rising carbon emissions. As the U.S. delegation prepares for the international climate negotiations in Copenhagen in December, it does so from a surprisingly strong position, one based on a dramatic 9 percent drop in U.S. carbon emissions over the past two years and the promise of further huge reductions.

Prominent among these carbon-cutting initiatives are stronger automobile fuel-economy standards, appliance efficiency standards, and the potential to heat, cool and light buildings with carbon-free sources of electricity.

On the supply side are efforts supporting the development of U.S. wind, solar and geothermal energy resources.

09/27/2009 1 comment

Recycling & Waste Mgmt.Renewable Energy

Waste-to-energy Incineration Fly Ash Reborn As Semakau Landfill Island

written by Chris Tobias

Singapore is a bustling city state at the southern tip of peninsular Malaysia. Independent from Malaysia since 1965, it has a dense population of 4.7 million people crammed into 269 sq. miles (697 sq. km)— that’s roughly 3.5x the size of Washington D.C.

In spite of its lacking land mass, the tiny country is a major economic hub in Southeast Asia and boasts one of the best standards of living of any Asian city, and even rivals many metropolis overseas.

It’s a city that is well planned, tightly regulated, visually attractive, and thankfully lacking the woeful pollution that afflict other centers like Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Waste and the City

All the economic activity and large population of course is not without its downside: waste. In 2008 the total volume of solid waste had reached 5.97 million tons. Luckily, according to government figures, roughly 2.24 million tons (approx. 56%) of this was recycled. That still left a lot left to deal with.

08/18/2009 4 comments

Renewable Energy

Waste to Energy — What Can We Learn From the Dutch?

written by Chris Tobias

The Netherlands has a reputation for being progressive, from the environment to social initiatives. About twice the size of New Jersey, a large proportion of its landmass is below sea level. Protected (at least for the moment) by an elaborate system of dikes, the country is a center of creativity, efficiency, and diversity. It’s a place that is open-minded and broad thinking on everything from social programs to wind energy. A recent trip to Amsterdam also unveiled it is equally creative with its approach to waste management and water reclamation.

Waste management in the Netherlands is tricky. With limited land area available to landfill, conventional waste is either incinerated to produce energy or exported elsewhere for disposal. In the way of waste-to-energy (W2E), Amsterdam has created an incredibly efficient Afval Energie Bedrijf (AEB) plant capable of producing 1 million MWh of electricity annually. Beyond the energy factor, the plant is also being used to create district heating for several communities around Amsterdam, and produces 300,000 gigajoules of heat annually.

08/14/2009 2 comments

Energy Efficiency Green Building

Green Building the Buddhist Way — the Po Ern Shih Temple in Singapore

written by Chris Tobias

One year after opening, and about two years after construction began, the Poh Ern Shih Temple (or Temple of Thanksgiving in English) is looking great. I’m dropping by to visit the temple and check out progress on this green Buddhist sanctuary.

The place is bustling with activity, and thankfully the first phase of construction has now been completed. On the day of my visit, several different religious study groups are in session upstairs, catering to the younger members of the Buddhist congregation. I locate Boon, the temple president, just before lunch and we sit down for a chat.

“The building performance has been great,” he tells me. “We’ve generated 15 megawatts of power from our first phase PV systems so far in the first year, and we’re going to install another set in our second phase of construction.”

08/13/2009 3 comments