Energy

A key committee has recommended a novel approach to distributing revenue from a forthcoming cap & trade scheme, the key strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by the CA Air Resources Board in order to meet the reductions mandated in AB 32.

January 19, 2010 - The New York Times - Environment

An interdisciplinary team of urban designers, architects, and analysts have proposed a neo-retro-futurist scenario for making downtown Portland nearly car-free by 2050.

January 18, 2010 - Hugeasscity

This piece from Urban Omnibus looks at ideas to counteract global warming by adding more trees to urban areas.

January 18, 2010 - Urban Omnibus

Thursday, the switch was flipped on a generator that will serve the heating needs of 16,000 residents of the Olympic Village in Vancouver. The generator transforms sewage into heat.

January 18, 2010 - The Vancouver Sun

A new report from the Health Effect Institute concludes that there is a strong correlation between exposure to traffic and heart ailments.

January 15, 2010 - The New York Times

The state of California has adopted the nation's first green building codes, including a provision that allows local jurisdictions to keep or approve even stricter environmental building rules.

January 13, 2010 - San Francisco Chronicle

A new study from the Boston Consulting Group concludes that gasoline powered-vehicles will predominate till at least 2020; doubtful of their ability to attract customers, contradicting brighter industry forecasts predominantly due to battery costs.

January 13, 2010 - The New York Times - Energy & Environment

Dongtan Eco City was planned for completion for the Shanghai World Expo in 2010. By that time, 5,000 people should be living there. However, the planned housing, water taxis, sewage‐recycling plant and energy park all failed to materialize.

January 12, 2010 - The Urban Reinventors Online Urban Journal

California is on the verge of approving the country's first state green building code, but some environmental groups are trying to stop it, arguing the code does not go far enough.

January 11, 2010 - Los Angeles Times

In a new working paper called “The Greenness of China: Household Carbon Dioxide Emissions and Urban Development,” Siqi Zheng, Rui Wang, Edward L. Glaeser, and Matthew E. Kahn rank 74 Chinese cities in terms of their household carbon footprints.

January 11, 2010 - NYTimes

Is twelve feet square enough room to live in? Designer James Stuart thinks so, and is practicing what he preaches in his own 12' cube house in Canada.

January 10, 2010 - This Big City

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer has come out as a strong proponent of bringing nuclear power back into the state's energy fold.

January 7, 2010 - The Arizona Republic

A 137-mile clean energy transmission line has been approved in the UK, connecting wind and wave power facilities near the coast. But some environmental groups are not happy about the plan.

January 7, 2010 - Guardian

After lobbying from two Native American tribes, the Nantucket Sound has been made eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, creating a possible further delay of a proposed wind farm off the coast of Cape Cod.

January 6, 2010 - The New York Times

Thorium is much cleaner, more efficient and safe than uranium, and doesn't leave any waste that can be weaponized. Could a thorium-based nuclear power industry save the U.S.?

January 4, 2010 - Wired

Change Observer interviews Casey Jones, the director of design excellence and the arts for the U.S. General Services Administration about green building and sustainability in urban design.

January 2, 2010 - Change Observer

Portland, Oregon planners are updating the city's zoning to make home improvements for solar panels and eco-roofing easier to do, but some developers think it will actually make things more difficult.

January 2, 2010 - Daily Journal of Commerce

The current means of generating hydrogen for fuel results in a release of carbon dioxide emissions. Researchers think aluminum may be the solution to the pollution.

December 31, 2009 - greentechmedia

This piece from Grist looks at electric-vehicle infrastructure in Denver, which may be a model for other cities looking to encourage the purchase and use of electric vehicles.

December 29, 2009 - Grist

Americans are driving less. Moreover, alternative fuels, be they electricity or biofuels, will become more common while efficiency of conventional vehicles increases. This article looks at the effect of the VMT reduction, et.al. on oil refineries.

December 28, 2009 - The New York Times