October 24, 2007

Investors are eyeing Canadian oil sands. It may well turn out to be black gold. But it may also spell environmental troubles.

Nations around the world are demanding ever increasing amounts of oil. But supplies are shrinking and causing crude oil prices to rise to record levels. The phenomenon has forced major energy giants to set their sights on unconventional oil supplies and specifically reserves flush with oil sands. Estimates are that in a decade at least 3 million barrels a day could be derived from Canadian fields, sharply cutting into foreign exports.

Just what's in that biofuel you just put into your tank?  A Kettering University researcher is working to standardize the bio-fuel industry, which will help level the playing field in fuel economy for consumers.

Dr. Stacy Seeley, associate professor of chemistry, says more checks and balances are needed for bio-fuels.

"Industry needs to know what is being put in the tank, how it will impact a car and whether or not it will meet EPA standards," Seeley said.

So she and husband Dr. John Seeley, an associate professor of chemistry at Oakland University, have been developing new analytical methods for characterizing the composition of alternative (bio) fuels to facilitate standardization.

Plan is a roadmap for San José to become the world’s Center of Innovation for clean technologies

SAN JOSE – Mayor Chuck Reed today released his Green Vision for San José, an ambitious and comprehensive 15-year plan to solve environmental problems and grow the local economy. Focused around three elements – Clean Tech Innovation, Sustainability, and Green Mobility – San Jose’s Green Vision is a roadmap for the City to become the world’s center of Clean Tech innovation.

October 12, 2007

American Electric Power's long legal battle has ended. It has agreed to pay billions to cut pollutants regulated under the Clean Air Act by two-thirds over the next decade. The $4.6 billion settlement comes amidst a U.S. Supreme Court decision last April - a ruling that now forces utilities with older coal fired plants to pony up for new technologies if they upgrade to produce more power.

The lower courts were mixed on this issue, with some ruling that the utilities were just performing routine maintenance and should not have to make expensive investments. The overall trend, though, has been against utilities. Now that the Supreme Court has weighed in against Duke Energy, the writing is on the wall. AEP's latest move will likely motivate the remaining utilities that have not reached settlements to do so before President Bush leaves office and a possible Democratic administration would enter.

October 5, 2007

Canada is changing course when it comes to dealing with climate change. Under Prime Minister Stephen Harper, it will quit participating in the Kyoto Protocol when it expires in 2012 and will join the Asia-Pacific partnership.

The two treaties both attempt to curb greenhouse gases that cause climate change. But the Kyoto Protocol is mandatory with definite timetables whereas the Asia-Pacific Partnership does not set any rigid requirements. The Canadian prime minister, a long time skeptic of Kyoto, made his announcement last week at a United Nations conference to extend and redefine Kyoto's requirement beyond 2012.