Wind is Clean Energy Production-Free Webinar

You may be interested in participating in this webinar being hosted by
the New England Wind Energy Education Project (NEWEEP), addressing
shadow flicker (even if you are not in New England). It is scheduled
for 1-2:30 p.m. ET on 2/10, is free of charge, and is geared to
inform:general public, local officials, state regulators, facility
siting decision-makers, policy-makers, and others interested in a
review of objective information on the impacts of wind energy.

The New England Wind Energy Education Project (NEWEEP) is pleased to
invite your participation in our upcoming Webinar on "Understanding
the Current Science, Regulation, and Mitigation of Shadow Flicker"
scheduled for Thursday, February 10, 2011 at 1:00-2:30 p.m. ET.

This is the fifth in a series of free Webinars funded by the DOE Wind
Powering America Initiative. The Webinar will include a panel of
experts in the fields of visual assessment, landscape architecture,
and environmental planning with a question and answer session.

The Webinar is designed for attendance by the general public, local
officials, state regulators, facility siting decision-makers,
policy-makers, and others interested in a review of objective
information on the impacts of wind energy.

Key Discussion Topics & Speakers

Speakers

* Thomas Priestley, Senior Environmental Planner, CH2MHill
* Matthew Allen, Principal, Saratoga Associates
* Richard Lampeter, Senior Scientist, Epsilon Associates

Discussion Topics

The presentations and discussion will provide Webinar participants
with an understanding of:

* What shadow flicker is, and how it is created;
* The methodologies used to forecast when, where, and how much
shadow flicker will occur;
* How forecasted data are analyzed to estimate the potential
impact on nearby receptors;
* The current landscape of state and local regulations, ordinances
and guidance documents, and their role in the wind project permitting
process;
* Available mitigation and management practices; and,
* Areas in need of additional research and analysis.

RSVP and Log-in Information
To register for the NEWEEP Webinar #5, please e-mail rsvp@neweep.com

To receive log-in instructions and dial-in phone number, you must
RSVP. Please include your name, organization, and state. Your RSVP
will ensure that we reserve the correct number of phone lines.

Background

Good decisions require good information; the goal of the NEWEEP
Webinar series is to provide the public with objective information on
which to make informed decisions about proposed wind energy projects
throughout the New England region by:

* Collecting and disseminating accurate, objective information on
critical wind energy issues impacting market acceptance of the
hundreds of land-based and offshore wind development projects proposed
in the region
* Encouraging the market's acceptance of appropriately-sited wind
energy generation

The New England Wind Energy Education Project is a project funded by
the U.S. Department of Energy Wind Powering America Initiative under a
two-year grant. NEWEEP is directed by a Steering Committee consisting
of New England state agencies, regional and national research
organizations and New England's regional grid operator, who have
committed to participate in the project. NEWEEP is neither
industry-funded nor industry-driven. The project consists of an 8-part
Webinar series and an in-person conference.

The objectives of the NEWEEP Webinar series include:

· Cutting through the clutter of competing, conflicting, and
sometimes misleading information on critical issues pertaining to wind
energy generation

· Helping to address concerns in communities where wind
projects are proposed

· Identifying areas for future research ("data gaps")

Find audio visual files and transcripts of past Webinars.

Upcoming NEWEEP Events

STAY TUNED for registration information on the 6th NEWEEP Webinar,
"Impact of Wind Turbines on Birds, Bats and Wildlife." Date and time
to be announced soon.

NEWEEP Conference - June 7, 2011, Best Western Royal Plaza,
Marlborough, MA. Registration information coming soon. Send inquiries
to info@neweep.com

Questions? Please email info@neweep.com.
We look forward to your participation.

Best regards,

The NEWEEP Team

Wind Powering America Initiative

Dwight Bailey, U.S. Department of Energy
Ian Baring-Gould, National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Steering Committee Partners

* National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
* Connecticut Clean Energy Fund (CCEF)
* Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (CEC)
* University of Massachusetts - Wind Energy Center (WEC)
* Maine Public Utilities Commission (MPUC)
* ISO-New England (ISO-NE)
* Utility Wind Integration Group (UWIG)
* Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)
* Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER)
* Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA)
* New Hampshire Office of Energy & Planning (OEP)
* Renewable Energy New England (RENEW)

Project Coordinators

* Sustainable Energy Advantage, LLC (SEA)

Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://scottscontracting.wordpress.com

Graphs Show- Nuclear Energy is not needed for Clean Energy Production

Renewable Energy Head-to-Head with Nuclear for Clean Energy Production.

Last July we wrote about the North Carolina study that showed solar
power to be cheaper than power promised by planned nuclear
construction in that state.

It now seems that, on the national scale, renewable energy production
has practically caught up with nuclear. The December 2010 Monthly
Energy Review, published by the U.S. Energy Information
Administration, shows that each of these power sources was responsible
for some 11% of primary energy production during the first nine months
of 2010. The Review also shows that, while nuclear output dropped
during this period, non-hydro renewables increased their output by
over 11%.

U.S. Primary Energy Production, Jan-Sep 2010
renewables*…..10.9%
nuclear……………11.4%
fossil fuels………77.7%
*biomass/biofuels, geothermal, solar, hydro and wind
Article Supplied by: January 24,
2011-http://solar-nation.org/2011/01/24/renewable-energy-head-to-head-with-nuclear/#
A Program of the American Solar Energy Society
--
Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://scottscontracting.wordpress.com

Secretary Chu to Discuss President Obama's Clean Energy and Innovation Agenda

Energy Matters Live Chat

Online Town Hall

On Wednesday, January 26th at 12:45pm EST, Secretary Steven Chu will host the Department of Energy's inaugural Energy Matters online town hall to discuss President Obama's clean energy and innovation agenda as a follow-up to the State of the Union. Secretary Chu will answer questions from both an online and in-person audience. To submit questions, please email them to newmedia@hq.doe.gov, post them on DOE's Facebook page, or tweet @energy with the hashtag #chu.

--
Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://scottscontracting.wordpress.com

Re: Example of Solar Charging Station

If You Build It, Will They Charge?

By MATTHEW L. WALD

Tennessee Valley Authority Solar panels atop a charging station will generate electricity for cars in the spaces below.

A transition to electric cars isn't just a matter of the cars, but also of the infrastructure that goes with them, including public charging stations. The Electric Power Research Institute and the Tennessee Valley Authority plan to cut the ribbon on Tuesday on a prototype of a new kind of charging station, one that uses solar cells and batteries. But they do not work together in quite the way the public might expect.

The initial installation has six parking stalls, one of them extra wide for handicapped drivers, with carport roofs covered with solar panels. There are three refrigerator-size battery packs in a building that is heated and air-conditioned.

Under the program, called the TVA Smart Station Initiative, such charging stations are described as "solar assisted" because the panels generate only 12 kilowatts at noon on a sunny day, and the charging stations, when in use, draw 3.3 kilowatts for each vehicle, for a total of nearly 20 kilowatts. Cars will go three or four miles on a kilowatt-hour, and in Tennessee, where all of the charging stations will be installed, the cells atop each space will make enough electricity to move a car about 7,000 miles a year, according to John W. Halliwell, a senior project manager at the institute's research center in Knoxville.

Yet for much of the time, electricity from the cells will flow to the grid because no car will be there to charge. And to recharge the cars, the system draws power from the grid, so the sun does not have to be shining for a driver to charge up.

The batteries and the solar cells themselves are something like shock absorbers for the grid. If drivers want to charge their cars during peak periods on the grid, the charging station's batteries will meet part of that demand so that the impact on the grid is milder. Likewise, the solar cells will chip in with some energy, lessening the load on the grid.

"If with new technologies we can control these resources on the distribution side, we can eliminate the need for potentially very expensive upgrades to the distribution system," said James A. Ellis, the senior manager for transportation and infrastructure at the T.V.A.'s Technology Innovation Organization.

At the Electric Power Research Institute, which will be the site of the first charging stations, Mr. Halliwell said, the various elements could be used in any mix. The batteries, of an advanced lead-acid design, have a usable capacity of 30 kilowatt-hours. They will wear out if they get too hot and will not deliver much current if they get too cold, so one question is how much energy it will take to keep them at a comfortable temperature.

Years from now, Mr. Ellis said, batteries that began their life in electric cars but have lost some of their capacity might be suitable for use at the charging stations. In fact, one function of this program is to determine whether such batteries could be useful, although the batteries to be used in the initial trial are not the sort used in cars.

Researchers say they need to know a lot more about charging stations. Will drivers use them to get a full charge or simply park there for as long as they happen to be in the neighborhood, to add a few miles of range? (At 3.3 kilowatts, a typical car would add about 10 miles of range per hour of charging time.) Where are charging stations most likely to get used? Airports? Universities? Shopping center parking lots?

With the Chevy Volt hybrid and the Nissan Leaf all-electric vehicle just hitting the streets, the question remains open.

Another question is economics: there is no mechanism at the moment for charging the driver for the electricity. Because the project is expected to cost $50,000 to $100,000 per space, some purpose beyond electricity sales will probably be needed to make it work, Mr. Halliwell said.

The institute and the T.V.A. hope to have about 125 parking stalls in place, most of them by the end of this year and mainly in the Knoxville, Nashville and Chattanooga areas.

Tennessee Valley Authority A Chevy Volt at a charging station at a Electric Power Research Institute lab near Knoxville, Tenn.

--
Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://scottscontracting.wordpress.com

Re: Solar Panel Mounts and Trackers

 Increase a Solar Panels Electrical Output-

Solar Trackers

Solar Mounts

Solar Trackers and Solar Panel Mounts

Roof Mounts for Solar Panels

Ground Mounts for Solar Panels

Side of Pole Solar Panel Mounts

Top of Pole Solar Mounts

RV & Specialty Solar Panel Mounting

Active Solar Trackers

Passive Solar Panel Trackers

Selecting Your Solar Panel Mounting

Mounting solar panels correctly is part of maximizing power production, and it is also an important way to protect your investment from the force of wind. The proper solar panel mounting provides stability and the proper directional and latitudinal orientation for the solar array.

Solar Panel Trackers

Although solar panel trackers are expensive, (several thousands of dollars) they can produce more power in a day than a fixed array as they "track" the sun's path. Solar trackers are often used in water pumping applications to maximize daily production (30-40% improvement over static solar panel mounting). They are generally custom built and take one to three months to manufacturer. One drawback to trackers is that they are subject to failure, as is any mechanical device, and could possibly get stuck in one position until fixed. Trackers are best suited for a handy individual. Each manufacturer provides a sizing sheet according to the number of modules you have and the configuration. These sizing sheets are often found in the Product Documentation tab of each product's specification page.

Solar Panel Mounting

When it comes to solar panel mounting options, you really have many from which to choose. Plenty of people opt for simple solar panel roof mounts, but if you live in a heavily wooded area or different kind of climate, rest assured you have other options. If you have solar power panels or solar arrays and you want to maximize their efficiency by gathering the most power possible, you'll want to consider a solar tracker. By using a sun solar tracker you'll help your solar panel get the most sun possible throughout the day as it automatically points your solar array to a perpendicular line with the sun. This type of active sun tracker uses a special sensor and is motorized so that you can walk away but your solar panel is adjusting all day long. If you are ready to mount your solar panel, make sure you investigate all of the options available. Set up the appropriate ground mounted solar panel system, roof system or pole mounted system and save money while you generate your own power. Enjoy the freedom of the road and powering your RV with solar panels rather than expensive fossil fuels.

--
Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://scottscontracting.wordpress.com

Solar Panel Mounts and Trackers

 Increase a Solar Panels Electrical Output-

Solar Trackers

Solar Mounts

Solar Trackers and Solar Panel Mounts

Roof Mounts for Solar Panels

Ground Mounts for Solar Panels

Side of Pole Solar Panel Mounts

Top of Pole Solar Mounts

RV & Specialty Solar Panel Mounting

Active Solar Trackers

Passive Solar Panel Trackers

Selecting Your Solar Panel Mounting

Mounting solar panels correctly is part of maximizing power production, and it is also an important way to protect your investment from the force of wind. The proper solar panel mounting provides stability and the proper directional and latitudinal orientation for the solar array.

Solar Panel Trackers

Although solar panel trackers are expensive, (several thousands of dollars) they can produce more power in a day than a fixed array as they "track" the sun's path. Solar trackers are often used in water pumping applications to maximize daily production (30-40% improvement over static solar panel mounting). They are generally custom built and take one to three months to manufacturer. One drawback to trackers is that they are subject to failure, as is any mechanical device, and could possibly get stuck in one position until fixed. Trackers are best suited for a handy individual. Each manufacturer provides a sizing sheet according to the number of modules you have and the configuration. These sizing sheets are often found in the Product Documentation tab of each product's specification page.

Solar Panel Mounting

When it comes to solar panel mounting options, you really have many from which to choose. Plenty of people opt for simple solar panel roof mounts, but if you live in a heavily wooded area or different kind of climate, rest assured you have other options. If you have solar power panels or solar arrays and you want to maximize their efficiency by gathering the most power possible, you'll want to consider a solar tracker. By using a sun solar tracker you'll help your solar panel get the most sun possible throughout the day as it automatically points your solar array to a perpendicular line with the sun. This type of active sun tracker uses a special sensor and is motorized so that you can walk away but your solar panel is adjusting all day long. If you are ready to mount your solar panel, make sure you investigate all of the options available. Set up the appropriate ground mounted solar panel system, roof system or pole mounted system and save money while you generate your own power. Enjoy the freedom of the road and powering your RV with solar panels rather than expensive fossil fuels.

--
Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://scottscontracting.wordpress.com

Example of Solar Charging Station

If You Build It, Will They Charge?

By MATTHEW L. WALD

Tennessee Valley Authority Solar panels atop a charging station will generate electricity for cars in the spaces below.

A transition to electric cars isn't just a matter of the cars, but also of the infrastructure that goes with them, including public charging stations. The Electric Power Research Institute and the Tennessee Valley Authority plan to cut the ribbon on Tuesday on a prototype of a new kind of charging station, one that uses solar cells and batteries. But they do not work together in quite the way the public might expect.

The initial installation has six parking stalls, one of them extra wide for handicapped drivers, with carport roofs covered with solar panels. There are three refrigerator-size battery packs in a building that is heated and air-conditioned.

Under the program, called the TVA Smart Station Initiative, such charging stations are described as "solar assisted" because the panels generate only 12 kilowatts at noon on a sunny day, and the charging stations, when in use, draw 3.3 kilowatts for each vehicle, for a total of nearly 20 kilowatts. Cars will go three or four miles on a kilowatt-hour, and in Tennessee, where all of the charging stations will be installed, the cells atop each space will make enough electricity to move a car about 7,000 miles a year, according to John W. Halliwell, a senior project manager at the institute's research center in Knoxville.

Yet for much of the time, electricity from the cells will flow to the grid because no car will be there to charge. And to recharge the cars, the system draws power from the grid, so the sun does not have to be shining for a driver to charge up.

The batteries and the solar cells themselves are something like shock absorbers for the grid. If drivers want to charge their cars during peak periods on the grid, the charging station's batteries will meet part of that demand so that the impact on the grid is milder. Likewise, the solar cells will chip in with some energy, lessening the load on the grid.

"If with new technologies we can control these resources on the distribution side, we can eliminate the need for potentially very expensive upgrades to the distribution system," said James A. Ellis, the senior manager for transportation and infrastructure at the T.V.A.'s Technology Innovation Organization.

At the Electric Power Research Institute, which will be the site of the first charging stations, Mr. Halliwell said, the various elements could be used in any mix. The batteries, of an advanced lead-acid design, have a usable capacity of 30 kilowatt-hours. They will wear out if they get too hot and will not deliver much current if they get too cold, so one question is how much energy it will take to keep them at a comfortable temperature.

Years from now, Mr. Ellis said, batteries that began their life in electric cars but have lost some of their capacity might be suitable for use at the charging stations. In fact, one function of this program is to determine whether such batteries could be useful, although the batteries to be used in the initial trial are not the sort used in cars.

Researchers say they need to know a lot more about charging stations. Will drivers use them to get a full charge or simply park there for as long as they happen to be in the neighborhood, to add a few miles of range? (At 3.3 kilowatts, a typical car would add about 10 miles of range per hour of charging time.) Where are charging stations most likely to get used? Airports? Universities? Shopping center parking lots?

With the Chevy Volt hybrid and the Nissan Leaf all-electric vehicle just hitting the streets, the question remains open.

Another question is economics: there is no mechanism at the moment for charging the driver for the electricity. Because the project is expected to cost $50,000 to $100,000 per space, some purpose beyond electricity sales will probably be needed to make it work, Mr. Halliwell said.

The institute and the T.V.A. hope to have about 125 parking stalls in place, most of them by the end of this year and mainly in the Knoxville, Nashville and Chattanooga areas.

Tennessee Valley Authority A Chevy Volt at a charging station at a Electric Power Research Institute lab near Knoxville, Tenn.

--
Scott's Contracting
scottscontracting@gmail.com
http://www.stlouisrenewableenergy.blogspot.com
http://scottscontracting.wordpress.com