NewsRack: newstrust/Green-Technology/Specific_Tech/Building

Griff Rhys Jones on 'desecration' of countryside - Guardian: Environment

Adam Vaughan — Tue, 21 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

The comedian says renewable energy projects are subsidy-hunting free enterprise, despoiling 'pristine landscapes' The comedian Griff Rhys Jones has accused the government of "random desecration" of the countryside and despoiling "pristine landscapes" through its subsidies to wind turbines and solar power. Responding to criticism of his objection to a solar farm near his home in Suffolk last week , he said it was "not really a Nimby issue," that he was not a climate sceptic and he thought the UK should be powered by new nuclear reactors, not renewable energy. "We surely need better solutions to global warming than randomly scattered whirly-gigs [sic], and thousands of acres of glinting solar panels, however soothing to our consciences," he wrote in a letter to the Guardian . Jones has criticised wind turbines as "green tokenism" in the past but his new broadside ups the temperature and broadens his criticism to taxpayer support of green energy, the planning system and the ...

MPs blast failure to quantify success - Guardian: Environment

Fiona Harvey — Tue, 21 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Select committee report accuses ministers of failing to set clear goals for what they hope to achieve from flagship energy policy The green deal , the flagship environmental policy of the UK's coalition government intended to make the country's homes more energy efficient, has received a fresh blow after an influential committee of MPs blasted the government on Wednesday morning for failing to quantify what could be counted as a success for the policy. The parliamentary select committee on energy and climate change accused ministers of failing to set clear goals for what they hoped to achieve from the green deal. That failure would make it harder to achieve substantial outcomes from the policy , the group of MPs said. Tim Yeo, former Conservative minister and current chair of the committee, said: "It is unacceptable that, three years into the life of this parliament, ministers are unable to explain what success would look like from one of the coalition's flagship policies." The ...

South Sudan initiative aims to keep young girls in primary school | Mark Tran - The Guardian -- World Latest

Mark Tran — Tue, 21 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

A UK-backed project in Western Equatoria state seeks to ensure domestic and social factors don't deny girls an education Bridget Nagomoro used to get up at five in the morning to fetch water from the stream, cook breakfast for the family, then walk the five miles to school. In the evening, she would eat at 10pm having cooked dinner, done the household chores and completed her homework. It's a familiar routine for girls in South Sudan, but Nagomoro was a trailblazer. She was the first girl from Ibba county – a community of 90,000 people – in landlocked Western Equatoria state to finish primary school. Being the only girl at her school was hard. "Some of the boys used to threaten me because I got better results than them," said Nagomoro last week during a visit to Britain. Now a local government commissioner in Ibba county, she wants to make it easier for girls to get an education by setting up a boarding school for girls aged 10 and above – the point at which most drop out because of ...

Bruce S. Fowle - New York Times - google news

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Bruce S. Fowle New York Times We know that we can make buildings at least 50 to 60 percent more efficient than they are now — and that's by everything from the type of lighting fixtures, the efficiency of the mechanical equipment to alternative energy wherever it's possible. It's ... ...

Green heating payments to double for householders - Guardian: Environment

Adam Vaughan — Sun, 19 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Rates for one-off payments will be increased to support the market as renewable heat incentive delays continue Payments to help householders switch from heating their homes with oil to greener systems such as biomass boilers and solar thermal will double in most cases, the government is to announce on Monday. The grants were intended as a stopgap measure until the start this summer of the government's bigger renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme – ongoing payments akin to the feed-in tariff for solar panels but for generating low-carbon heat . But in March, the RHI was postponed until 2014 , in a delay that industry said it was "bitterly disappointed" with. From today, rates for the one-off payments, the Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) scheme , will be increased to support the market through the limbo imposed by the delay. Energy and climate change minister Greg Barker said: "I want to kickstart this exciting new market for consumer renewable heat technologies. This time ...

Twin Cities solar energy system firm born of frustration - Twincities.com: News

Sat, 18 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Dan Williams was born during the summer solstice -- the day when the Earth's Northern Hemisphere receives the most hours of sunshine. Appropriate, he says, given what he does for a living.

Center School study wins OK - Boston Globe: Massachusetts

Sat, 18 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Center School study wins OK

Patent filing claims solar energy 'breakthrough' - Twincities.com: Nation

Sat, 18 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

WASHINGTON -- In a U.S. patent application, a little-known Maryland inventor claims a stunning solar energy breakthrough that promises to end the planet's reliance on fossil fuels at a fraction of the current cost -- a transformation that also could blunt global warming.

Ancient history gets new digs - Durango Herald

Sat, 18 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

MESA VERDE NATIONAL PARKNo more artifacts moldering in the x201cTin Shed.x201d No more storing archives in nooks and crannies. No more driving a long, narrow, winding road to learn what Mesa Verde National Park has to offer. After decades of fundraising and lobbying, and five months after a x201csoftx201d opening,...

Dilma Rousseff inaugurates Brasilia stadium - New Kerala: India News

Sat, 18 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), May 18 : Brasilia's Mane Garrincha National Stadium, one of six stadiums that will host the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Football competition was officially inaugurated on Saturday morning.

Editorial: Climate Warnings, Growing Louder - NY Times: Editorials

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD — Fri, 17 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Editorial: Climate Warnings, Growing Louder

IRS 'Scandal' Appears Nearly as Phony as Shirley Sherrod, Van Jones, ACORN 'Scandals' - BradBlog

Fri, 17 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

"Listening to the nightly news, this appears to be just the latest example of a culture of cover-ups -- and political intimidation -- in this administration," declared the opportunistic Republican Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee during a hearing today on the "scandal" related to the IRS use ...

Royal Society Young People's Book Prize shortlist announced | @GrrlScientist - Guardian: Science

GrrlScientist — Thu, 16 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Finally, what I know you've all been waiting for: the six shortlisted young people's science books have been selected and are now in the mail to hundreds of children across the UK who will select the winner of the 2013 Royal Society's Young People's Book Prize! Are you a scientist who was inspired by a children's book to pursue your passion? As a member of this year's panel of judges, I freely admit that I am jealous of children today – jealous because when I was a child, I had nothing close to this wealth of science books to read. In fact, I cannot remember reading any children's science books in my youth. As it was, from almost the moment I learned to read, I was reading science fiction. The only science-y book I remember reading as a child was Alfred Russel Wallace's engaging The Malay Archipelago , a book that strongly influenced my career choice and inspired my lifelong passion for the flora and fauna of the South Pacific. (I still own that book; it is a treasured friend that has ...

Cupertino: De Anza College's MLC wins award for design, energy efficiency - San Jose Mercury News: San Jose/Valley

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

De Anza College's new Media and Learning Center has won a citation for energy performance from the San Francisco chapter of the American Institute of Architects and the Pacific Gas & Electric Company. The award honors built work that demonstrates how deep reductions in energy use are essential to good design in the 21st century.

'Green News Report' - May 16, 2013 - BradBlog

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Hysterical Fox 'News' flip-floppery on Tesla; Consensus strikes again: 97% of climate scientists say global warming is man-made, but the public thinks it's evenly split; CO2 levels pass 400ppm; You're already paying a 'disaster tax'; PLUS: Thanks to renewable energy, one town now has too much ...

A powerful use for spoiled food - LA Times: Business

By Tiffany Hsu — Wed, 15 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

A powerful use for spoiled food

Horses as Farm Equipment - NYT: Home Page

By ANNE RAVER — Wed, 15 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Horses as Farm Equipment

Endangered Species Act: On 40th anniversary, time to rethink how we protect wildlife - San Jose Mercury News: Opinion

Tue, 14 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Laura E. Huggins and David Currie argue that the act is expensive and ineffective in its reactive approach to conservation, which tends to penalize property owners once a species is already in a tailspin. A system of positive incentives for environmental stewardship, before formal listing under the ESA, could enhance species conservation by motivating more effective and less expensive habitat management.

How to build a Mars colony that lasts – forever - New Scientist: Health

Tue, 14 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

How to build a Mars colony that lasts – forever

Green Column: Clean Energy Learns to Compete - NY Times: Business

By STANLEY REED — Tue, 14 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Green Column: Clean Energy Learns to Compete

'Green News Report' - May 14, 2013 - BradBlog

Tue, 14 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Sequester budget cuts hit federal firefighting response during an early wildfire season; More good news for Tesla Motors, bad news for loser Mitt Romney; Scientists accidentally discover new way to make cleaner steel; Another city votes for solar on all new construction; PLUS: Sec. of State ...

Renewable energy fund lacks power to fulfill purpose - Chicago Tribune: Business

By Julie Wernau , Chicago Tribune reporter — Sun, 12 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Renewable energy fund lacks power to fulfill purpose

St. Paul Forever Challenge picks 30 semifinalists: Which great idea would you award $1M? - Twincities.com: Local

Thu, 09 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Play is serious business for Tom Evers, as serious as a million dollars. His idea to make play more meaningful is one of 30 semifinalists in the St. Paul Forever Challenge contest to use $1 million to make St. Paul a better city.

St. Paul Forever Challenge picks 30 semifinalists: Which idea would you award $1M? - Twincities.com: Local

Thu, 09 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Sold! Buyers go ga-ga for this extreme green home - Star Tribune: Business

Thu, 09 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

This earth-sheltered house in Maplewood got three offers and sold for more than the list price