See the ToughStuff story below.
Courts Issue 2 More Important Greenhouse Gas Rulings. By Jennifer Koons, Greenwire, October 19, 2009. “Less than a month after a federal appeals court in New York issued a historic ruling regarding citizen and government enforcement of greenhouse gas emissions, decisions in two similar cases have come down. Their divergent results could have immediate implications for future climate change lawsuits… Together, the rulings ‘represent mounting legal authority that the Constitution is not a barrier to climate tort litigation,’ said Bruce Myers of the Environmental Law Institute.”
Obama to Give Senate Climate Bill a Push With MIT Speech, NYTimes. President Obama will try to push the Senate climate bill forward Friday (October 23) with an energy-themed speech at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, just days before the start of a marathon series of hearings featuring testimony from top administration officials.. . . Also on Friday — U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson plans to release the agency’s economic and environmental analysis of the climate bill (S. 1733 (pdf)) from Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.).
With the EPA analysis in hand, Boxer is set to begin a three-day series of hearings in her Environment and Public Works Committee on Tuesday, Oct. 27, with testimony from Kerry, Jackson, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Jon Wellinghoff.
Germany Considers Reversing Law to Phase Out Nuclear Plants. By Judy Dempsey, NYTimes.”Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives want to prolong the life of Germany’s nuclear reactors by overturning a law aimed at phasing out atomic energy by the 2020s, according to a party working document. In a country in which the public is deeply opposed to nuclear power but obsessed with climate protection, [like the U.S., minus the "obsessed with climate protection" part] Mrs. Merkel will have to persuade even her supporters that prolonging the life of the 17 power plants is necessary until there are sufficient alternative sources of clean energy to replace the plants once they are closed.”
Iowa’s Wind Power Surging. By Yuliya Chernova, WSJ. “Iowa has become the second-largest producer of wind power in the U.S., and some credit an aggressive and supportive role played by local government… Last year, Iowa added 1,600 megawatts of wind capacity, jumping ahead of California for second place behind Texas. At the end of the second quarter of 2009, Iowa had 3,043 megawatts of total wind capacity, compared with 8,361 megawatts in Texas and 2,787 megawatts in California, according to the wind-energy association. Iowa’s wind now powers about 15% of the state’s electricity consumption, which represents a lofty goal for many other states.” It’s hard to believe that South Dakota and North Dakota are any less windy than Iowa. Or Kansas and Texas for that matter. Step it up, states!
Bringing Low-Cost Solar to the World’s Poor. By Jeffrey Marlow, NYTimes. “For decades, governments and non-governmental organizations have been trying to bring electricity to the world’s poorest and most isolated regions through million-dollar donations and large-scale projects. A small start-up company, headquartered in the Republic of Mauritius off the southeastern coast of Africa, is pursuing what it considers a different tack: a market-based approach, employing local villagers, selling rudimentary solar panels and focusing on small-scale, personal electricity use… ToughStuff ’s primary product is a 1-watt, thin-film solar panel that is flexible, waterproof, and about the size of a piece of paper. It has no glass and has nearly indestructible parts. Maintenance fees are nearly non-existent, and operation is easy and intuitive. The panel itself costs less than $15, and considering what villagers typically spend on kerosene, batteries, and generators, ‘the payback period is just about 12 weeks for the average person in the developing world,’ said Nick Sowden, the company’s director of business development in the United States… ToughStuff introduced its panels in Madagascar earlier this year, and villagers are using the devices to light small rooms, power radios and charge mobile phones… Pilot projects are under way in 26 other countries, and a full-scale marketing effort in eastern Africa is slated for later this year. While solar panels are the focus for the time being, Mr. Sowden said, ‘the biggest long-term value we are going to bring is in building distribution networks.’ ToughStuff employs local people to sell its products, which allows the company extensive reach in rural regions. Salesmen reap a 30% profit on each panel they sell.”
UN Reports 1 Billion People Hungry. AP. “A record 1 billion people worldwide are hungry and a new report says the number will increase if governments do not spend more on agriculture. According to the U.N. food agency, which issued the report, 30 countries now require emergency aid, including 20 in Africa. The trend continues despite a goal set by world leaders nine years ago to cut the number of hungry people in half by 2015. ‘It’s actually a world emergency that calls for action from both developing and developed countries,’ said Otive Igbuzor, the head of international campaigns for Action Aid International. ‘We know a child dies every six seconds of malnutrition,’ he said. Spiraling food prices have added to hardships, especially in the world’s most desperate countries where the poor could barely afford a single daily meal to begin with.”
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