11/29 in Indy: Urge IPL to move the city beyond coal to clean energy!. Click this link for the details!
Author Archives Laura Arnold
HEC Greening the Statehouse Forum 12/1/12 Keynote Speaker is Paul Douglas, meteorologist and Republican who gets climate change
Dear IndianaDG Readers:
There has been a lot of buzz lately about the upcoming Greening the Statehouse Forum and the keynote speaker, Paul Douglas. I don't know a lot about this guy but I have decided it is worth hearing the guy in person. I will let you decide for yourself if you attend.
It is clear that renewable energy advocates have a big problem with some Republican politicians who are climate change deniers. There are plenty of other reasons to support renewable energy and distributed generation. If you regularly read this blog then you are already know what they are.
It will be interesting to see if this guy gets an traction with our Republican members of the Indiana General Assembly. Let's see.
Laura Ann Arnold
HEC Greening the Statehouse Forum
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Schwitzer Student Center --UIndy Hall
University of Indianapolis
1400 E. Hanna Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46227
Final Agenda
8:30 to 9:30 a.m. Registration, Breakfast and Sponsor information tables
9:30 a.m. Welcome and Introduction of Keynote Speaker – Jesse Kharbanda
9:45 – 10:45 a.m. Keynote Address about Climate Change by Meteorologist Paul Douglas (45 minutes speaking; 15 minutes Q&A)
HEC's Keynote Speaker will be Paul Douglas, a nationally-known meteorologist. Douglas will share his journey from skeptic to someone convinced in human contributions to climate change. Douglas has been passionate about re-engaging Republicans, who once worked alongside Democrats on climate change issues, to show needed policy leadership on this far-reaching issue. Here's a recent piece about him in the New York Times.
10:45 – 11:00 a.m. Break
11:00 – 11:45 a.m. Water Panel Discussion –
Safeguarding Landowner Rights from Industrial Livestock Pollution
Kim Ferraro, Hoosier Environmental Council
Representative Jud McMillin (R-District 68)
Justin Schneider, Indiana Farm Bureau
Tom Young, Jay County resident
Warren Mathies, Indiana Trial Lawyers Association
11:45 – 12:15 p.m. Lunch, provided by Chipotle Mexican Grill
12:15 – 12:45 p.m. Recognizing Senator Richard Lugar (The Senator, who will be out-of-state, will provide HEC a videotaped message)
HEC Annual Awards Ceremony
12:45 – 1:30 p.m. Air Panel Discussion –
Opportunities for Expanding Clean Energy
Jesse Kharbanda, Hoosier Environmental Council
Representative Ryan Dvorak (D-District 8)
Representative Ed Clere (R-District 72)
Jeffrey Nemeth, EDP Renewables North America LLC
1:30 – 2:15 p.m. Land Panel Discussion –
Making a Vibrant Public Transit System a Reality in Indiana
Tim Maloney, Hoosier Environmental Council
Representative Todd Huston (R-District 37)
Representative Ed DeLaney (D- District 86)
Mayor Andy Cook, Westfield
2:15 – 2:25 p.m. Break
2:25 – 3:25 p.m. Rolling Up Your Sleeves: Action Plans for 2013
3:25 – 3:30 p.m. Closing Comments
* Subject to Change
Outgoing Ind. Gov. Daniels and incoming Purdue Univ. Pres. recommends “Energy for Future Presidents” by Richard Muller
Dear IndianaDG Readers:
In my email this morning I received Mitch's Final Christmas Book List. You might be interested in seeing the complete Christmas Book List but I am primarily concerned again with only the book on energy on his book list.
Last year Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels put another book on his recommended Christmas Book List. It was Robert Bryce's book entitled, Power Hungry: The Myths of "Green" Energy and the Real Fuels of the Future. This book doesn't even pretend to be objective in my opinion so that's why I am interested in this year's choice of a book on the subject of energy.
Please find below two different reviews on this book recommended by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniel's. Why is this of interest or importance? I think it is important because it gives some insight into the thinking of the next President of my "alma mater", Purdue University.
I have not read this book yet but I plan to do so if I can. If you have read this book, please share your thoughts with IndianaDG Readers.
Thanks!
Laura Ann Arnold
Energy for Future Presidents: The Science Behind the Headlines
Four years ago, I gave a very positive review to Richard Muller's "Physics for Future Presidents", despite his very lukewarm treatment of climate change which, in my opinion, had more than enough scientific gravitas by that time to be treated as a legitimate national and international issue. Because of his status as one of the most credible scientific skeptics (although not really a "denier"), Muller was able to get a sizable grant from the ultraconservative Koch Brothers to fund further studies on the subject by Muller. The study's goal was to extend backward in time the historical record of hand-measured temperatures, using data that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change had thrown out because it was poorly documented or otherwise unreliable. I am sure that the Kochs assumed that Muller would be reinforcing his prior conclusion, that climate change was too little understood to be worth a sizable national investment. However, Muller changed his position after his own very minimal contribution to the science reinforced the IPCC conclusion. Of course, that's not all that you will find in "Energy for Future Presidents", which includes topical information about the Fukushima accident, the Gulf oil spill, alternative energy sources, energy storage, and fission and fusion power, among other important issues. It is a shame that energy policy (other than some political questions about the Keystone XL pipeline and misleading statistics about investments in renewables) has not been featured in the campaigns. At least there is this year the presidential candidates responses to some of the key science policy questions, courtesy of Scientific American. You can read them at http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=obama-romney-science-debate. There is a lot of circumlocution there, but it is better than nothing.
Energy for Future Presidents: The Science Behind the Headlines
Richard A. Muller. Norton, $26.95 (288p) ISBN 978-0-393-08161-9
UC-Berkeley physicist Muller (Physics for Future Presidents), who made headlines for first criticizing and then vindicating global warming research, explores the contentious issues that will increasingly preoccupy politicians and citizens, in this no-nonsense scientific primer on energy policy. Muller brings fresh, often contrarian perspectives to topics that have been saturated in misinformation and hype, arguing, for example, that new techniques to extract the stupendous reserves of petroleum in shale and tar sands will eliminate all talk of peak oil; that wind power and photovoltaics will boom while corn ethanol, geothermal, and tidal power will fizzle; that household energy conservation is a great investment, while public transit is usually a bad one; and that China’s soaring carbon dioxide emissions will render America’s almost irrelevant—and that the best way to abate China’s emissions is by switching from coal to natural gas. Especially revealing is his positive assessment of nuclear energy, which effectively debunks the alarmism surrounding the March 2011 Fukushima accident. The author’s explanations of the science underlying energy production are lucid but never simplistic—and often fascinating in their own right. Policy makers and casual readers alike can benefit from Muller’s eye-opening briefing, which sheds lots of light with little wasted heat. Photos. Agent: John Brockman, Brockman Inc. (Aug.)
Reviewed on: 05/21/2012
IBJ.com: Indianapolis Airport could land second solar-energy farm; What’s the status of first solar farm? Status IPL FIT?
Dear IndianaDG Readers:
It is likely that many people missed this story by the Indianapolis Business Journal (IBJ) on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Although Chris O'Malley does not spell it out, this is all about proposed projects using the Indianapolis Power and Light (IPL) Rate REP or voluntary feed-in tariff (VFIT).
There has been considerable speculation that there is both a second and third possible solar farm at the Indianapolis Airport. Many of you have already shared with me the rumors you have heard about who might be involved and where. I can't or won't share those rumors here on this blog right now.
There is also considerable speculation and rumor about what is causing the delay in breaking ground to begin construction of the first solar energy farm at the Indianapolis airport. I will be writing more about the status of the IPL Rate REP program shortly.
I will share with you the rumors I have heard if you tell me the rumors you have heard. Deal? Contact me via Laura.Arnold@IndianaDG.net or call (317) 635-1701.
Laura Ann Arnold
Original article: Airport could land second solar-energy farm | 2012-11-21 | Indianapolis Business Journal | IBJ.com.
November 21, 2012
The Indianapolis Airport Authority is in talks that could lead to a second solar farm at Indianapolis International Airport.
Discussions are taking place even as the initial solar farm has yet to get off the ground near the Interstate 70 airport exit.
Airport officials won’t identify the firm or firms that would build a second solar farm.
“Negotiations are still in progress,” said authority spokesman Carlo Bertolini.
The authority did not invite requests for proposals that might give details about the second farm, and cryptically describe it as “more of a prospective tenant situation.”
The second farm would consist of 60 acres, or the same amount as the first solar farm announced last year.
“Regarding the location, the plan is that the second farm would be in the same vicinity as the first, but the boundaries have not been finalized,” Bertolini added.
The first farm, announced in September 2011, has yet to show any signs of construction. ET Energy Solutions, a local consortium leasing 60 acres from the airport authority for the project, said last year that the 41,000 photovoltaic panels were expected to be operating in mid-2012.
Information posted on ET Energy's website said the farm had been expanded to 75 acres and construction would begin in early winter, pending approval from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. The IURC granted approval Sept. 5.
Airport officials referred questions to Kurt Schneider, vice president of ET Energy partner Johnson-Melloh Solutions, a local mechanical contractor.
Schneider did not return phone calls seeking comment about the delay for the proposed $35 million project, but sent an e-mail late Wednesday morning saying that construction would start March 31, and that financing for the project was not an issue.
Other ET partners are local companies Schmidt Associates and Telamon Corp.
The first farm is expected to become one of the largest airport solar farms in the country, capable of producing more than 15 million kilowatt hours of power, or enough to power 1,200 average houses for a year.
The power would be sold to Indianapolis Power & Light, with the airport authority expecting to collect about $316,000 annually in lease payments through its agreement with ET Energy.
It’s likely a second farm also would generate substantial revenue for the airport authority, which is itching to find additional non-airline revenues as passenger traffic remains sluggish.
A second solar farm operator might be under pressure to secure a contract sooner than later.
IPL said in July that, beginning next March, it would throttle back on buying power from new customers that generate it from renewable sources. The utility will honor existing contracts for the duration of their terms.
IPL pays from 7.5 cents per kilowatt hour for electricity from large wind turbines to 24 cents per kilowatt hour for solar projects. That’s effectively more than its own cost of generating power.
The utility noted at the time that ratepayers shoulder the cost of buying renewable power, and paying more for renewable power would put additional pressure on them at a time when rates are expected to rise due to new federal environmental compliance rules.
Solar Inverter Company Opens Facility in NW Indiana; Offers 4 Hour Fronius Technical Training 11/27/12
Dear IndianaDG Readers:
Sorry about the short notice on this event but I didn't receive this information until 11/18/12. Fronius has recently opened their new facility in Portage, IN. They expect to present similar programs in the future.
To register, please send an email to saucedo.tony@fronius.com including the following:
- Complete name
- Company name
- Title
- Phone Number
Thank you!
Still have questions or need additional information, contact:
Tony SAUCEDO | SE Division | Central States Regional Sales Manager
FRONIUS USA, LLC
Mobile: +1 (810) 772-8761
Thanks, Tony!
Laura Ann Arnold
P.S. Fronius makes inverters. 🙂
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Download flyer HERE: Fronius_2012TechnicalTraining-Portage-Nov2012
Training Location:
Fronius USA, LLC
6797 Fronius Drive
Portage, IN 46368
Training Date:
27 November, 2012
09:00AM to 2:00PM
Training Agenda Fronius 4 Hour Technical Training
· Introductions – Orientation
· Fronius Company History & Background
· What’s new for 2012
· Fronius Service Program (FSP)
· Fronius Quality Aspects
· Overview of Product Line-up
· Fronius IG Plus V: Residential & Small Commercial Applications
· Inverter Basics – Fronius Innovations – HF Transformer attributes - Fronius MIX™ Technology – Fronius MPPT –Fronius Power Plug System – Fronius Intelligent Ventilation Technology – String Fusing
· Fronius CL Central Inverter: 3-Phase & Small Commercial to Commercial Applications
· Inverter Basics - Fronius Innovations – HF Transformer attributes - Fronius MIX™ Technology – Fronius MPPT –Fronius Intelligent Ventilation Technology
· Connecting to the Public Grid – Overview of Commercial Building’s Electrical Services – Fronius CL ModularSystem Design – Easy Rack Replacement – Intelligent Cooling Fronius String Control
· Fronius System Monitoring
· Fronius DATCOM Components
· Fronius Configuration Tool
· Questions & Answer Session
· Course Evaluation
· Adjourn
Note: Pupils who complete this course may receive four hour of continuing education credits (4 CEU) from NABCEB