On the typical American roadway, it is not uncommon to see large advertising billboards. Even looking out my office window, I see two of them: one for an insurance company, and the other with a scantily clad woman (not exactly sure what that ad is for). These types of billboards have been around for a long time, but are slowly being replaced with new flashy
I have three predictions for 2011:
- When it comes to energy policy, austerity will be in.
- Therefore, energy efficiency will become a favored choice among mayors, governors, state lawmakers and Congress, as government becomes increasingly edgy about the cost of
In a move that could significantly decrease US energy use and associated emissions, building officials voted on the first of November to increase the efficiency of typical buildings 30% by the year 2012. By making this improvement to the International Energy Conservation Code,
The average American household uses the same amount of energy it did in the early 1970s, despite significant improvements in the efficiency of household appliances, according to a report in the Washington Post. Even though appliances such as dishwashers and refrigerators now use half the amount of energy that they did several decades ago, average household energy
A Seattle-based company says that it has developed an inexpensive do-it-yourself solar power technology that will enable homeowners to install solar panels on their roofs and then connect them to their power supply by simply plugging a cord into a regular electrical outlet. The company, Clarian Power, is touting its Sunfish system — with prices beginning at $799 — as a
When businesses consider strategies to increase energy efficiency, they look for the sweet spots where actions that shrink their company’s energy use also lead to boosting the bottom line. The key is to find upgrades and retrofits that will achieve a quick payback by lowering energy costs,
The owners of the Empire State Building have unveiled plans to improve it’s energy efficiency by turning it into a green building.
Malkin Holdings have invested $13 million this year into the structure with the aim of putting it ‘back on the map’.
According to the Guardian, the makeover
Investing in energy efficiency is a critical piece of the climate change puzzle. Given that the built environment accounts for 39 percent of total energy use in the US, real estate investment represents one of the most effective ways to implement energy efficiency strategies. A recent report from Ceres and Mercer, reviewed in Environmental Leader, outlines the business case that investing in energy efficiency enhances value in real estate portfolios. The report draws on key industry and academic research on building efficiency’s economic impacts and outlines steps and best practices for leveraging efficiency in real estate investments, including pertinent case studies about TIAA-CREF and CalPERS.
A state panel recommended that most of the proceeds from a proposed carbon tax in California, set to take effect in 2012, should be given back to consumers. The 16-member Economic and Allocation Advisory Committee, charged with figuring out the most cost-effective way to implement a tax on carbon emissions, threw its support behind a so-called “cap-and-dividend” approach.
Such a plan would set a steadily decreasing limit on CO2 releases by major emitters, place a price on carbon dioxide emissions, and then give most of the revenue back to citizens.
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