Electronic Gadgets a Rising Threat to the Environment

The world is doomed for sure and as per the International Energy Agency, even your iPod is contributing.

The stark reality is that we people are aware of the ill effects of greenhouses gases but, we still do not want to make a difference.

For those curious as to how we can contribute in saving our planet from this evil, even the judicious usage of electricity consumed by our doodads could help.

if we continue to ignore our role by 2030 the energy consumption coming from our beloved gadgets could triple, hitting a whopping 1,700 terawatt hours. And if that doesn’t scare you …

The world would have to build around 200 new nuclear power plants just to power all the TVs, iPods, PCs and other home electronics expected to be plugged in by 2030, when the global electric bill to power them will rise to $200 billion a year, the IEA said.

Needless to say that the increased need for energy would take the greenhouse gases level to … the next level.

Consumers alone cannot make a difference as the manufacturers also have to contribute by developing gadgets that could run on minimalistic specified standards. We are constantly being made aware of the ill-effects of gas guzzlers, the addition of consumer electronics is another surprise.

Imagine a world without commuters and gadgets! Even the thought is distressing. Don’t you think it’s better to play rational and be the good stewards Earth needs?

[via Timesonline] (Image courtesy of ibrotons)

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Concerns over the Internet’s carbon footprint are growing exponentially with the ever increasing demands of energy for the soaring online industry. The costs of maintaining and serving the billions of web pages on the Internet are rising and has swollen carbon emissions by 10-percent each year, to a level that’s overtaking the air travel industry.

Former Anti-atomic Shelter Becomes an Internet Datacenter

Apparently a study by Rich Brown— energy analyst at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab in California, for the US environmental protection agency, revealed that US servers consumed a whopping 61 billion KWh of energy in 2006. That’s quite enough to supply the whole of the UK for two months …

Among the first to take action, the largest Internet giant— Google, have been trying to contain the rising electricity costs and to lower their own carbon footprint by adding their own datacenters. And although Google have spent $2.3 billion to develop sustainable technologies and infrastructure, they’re not sure if the balance is in their favor. “You have exponential growth in demand from users, and many of these services are free so you don’t have exponential growth of revenue to go with it,” says Urs Hölzle, VP of operations.

So, are we in danger of getting things out of control? Because at the staggering rate of growth we’ve seen online in the last few years, unless something is being done to reduce the carbon emissions of these servers, the generated environmental degradation is only going to mount.

Source: Guardian

Coal will be German’s national king.  It’s not to be confused with that Nat King Cole. Despite its reputation for emission of harmful gases, Germany’s electricity, thanks to cleaner technology, will come from coal.

Germany's electricity (thanks to cleaner technology) will come from coal

image source

Germany is Europe’s biggest power market and in order to phase out nuclear power the Krauts must continue to focus on coal. Dependence on coal will also help Germany reduce its reliance on Russian gas.

“The planners are finding coal the more attractive option as opposed to gas, price-wise and in terms of availability,” said Manuel Frondel of the RWE research institute in Essen.

Germany gets half of its power output from coal which comes from reliable sources (friends) like Australia and South Africa.

The new technology – carbon capture and storage (CCS) is keeping environmentalists happy…until the storage bins become too fool, um, full.

Russia and Ukraine cut supplies to Europe in January throwing the reliability of gas as an energy source into doubt at a time when it was most needed. Russia can eat its heart out if the rest of the world learns to do without.

Germany’s cabinet already approved a CCS draft laws to develop the technology aimed at cutting coal plant pollution and burying CO2 underground.

CCS is coal-fired power generation’s only hope to play a role in the energy mix. In Britain, coal plants are already being forced to use CCS technology.

“Although CCS will take 10 to 15 years to develop and it is by no means certain that it will be applicable, passing the law will be one of the arguments in favor of the construction of new coal-fired plants,” said Claudia Kemfert of the DIW institute.

Russia! Ukraine! Are you reading?!

The mysterious Baghdad Battery is arguably mankind’s very first device to produce usable levels of electricity, similar to a battery. But it’s true, an inefficient battery.

While many believe Benjamin Franklin to be the father of electricity, history goes back more than two thousand years when Ancient Greeks discovered that rubbing fur on amber causes an attraction between the two.

But did humans actually discovered electricity long before history books tell us?

Probably created in Mesopotamia during the Parthian or Sassanid period (around 200 – 250BC), the Baghdad Battery is comprised from a number of artifacts that include a five-inch-long (13 cm) clay jar with a copper cylinder that encases an iron rod.

All shrouded in myth, the Baghdad Battery is actually an odd thing, an enigma.

However there is a hypothesis that when the jar is filled with water that contains a common acidic agent like lemon juice or vinegar to surround the iron rod, it would form an electrochemical pair and the acidic agent could help produce an electric current. But a very weak electric current.

Actually, speculations have it that a priest or a healer sensed the electrical tingle, didn’t understood it but still used it for electro-acupuncture. And also for religious purposes, because it was discovered that when linked in series, the cells indeed had sufficient power to electroplate a small token.

So could that be the first sign to electricity?

Jones Soda employees pedaling for energy

We’re pedaling to power 10 laptops, three cellphones and one printer in our office

To celebrate Earth Day the right way, Jones Soda— the company that makes odd tasting flavored beverages, decided to get off the power grid and installed 9 bicycles for their Seattle headquarters, where employees spent time pedaling.

Both a healthy alternative and green solution to the company’s energy needs, pedaling at a comfortable pace could generate about 200 watts an hour for each “cyclist”. And the interesting thing is not only Jones Soda employees get to pedal, but everyone that wishes to.

“This is pretty typical Jones Soda. We do fun, innovative things here, and this is just an example,” said Susan Rozewski, a Jones employee.

So if you’re trying to lose some weight, do your good deed for the environment and not pay a dime, how about paying these guys a visit. It’s graet how it makes people aware that we can actually do something when it comes to energy consumption. And it’s so easy! And so healthy! [via SeattleTimes]

Russia has a lot of nerve to say the least.

The Russian government wants financial and technological assistance from Japan to build a pipeline and LNG export terminal for the Sakhalin I oil and natural gas development project.

If I remember correctly, Japanese companies Mistui and Mitsubishi helped build Sakhalin I hoping to cash in only to have Moscow change the laws in Gazprom’s favor leaving M&M out in the cold – literally.

Now, Moscow realizes they have the technology to export the LNG and they want Japan’s help again to cover the $5 billion costs invoved in the project. For that Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit Japan next month to beg for money.

Gas reserves at Sakhalin I are estimated at 485 billion cu. meters and Sakhalin II has 480 billion cu. meters.

Some 60% of Sakhalin II’s output is to be shipped to Japan to supply about 8% of the Japan’s needs … until Moscow changes the law again.

Fighting over the Earth’s natural resources! exploiting one another over the Earth’s natural resources!! Look no further than Russia!!!

Image courtesy of StephenMitchell

Yesterday I wrote about homes having their own wind power. Today, I came across an article where Toyota is planning to develop batteries for homes to run off of.  Now if, the wind power could charge the batteries, we might really be on to something.

Toyota Motor Corp. is working with Toyota Home to devise a power storage system to be used by as early as 2011. A home power system will be more practical for plug-in hybrid cars due out by 2010.

Their goal is to

1. design a device that costs hundreds of thousands of yen
2. is small enough to fit in the home or be placed outside
3. can store electricity during off-peak night hours
4. can store power generated by solar cells
5. can make power available for lighting and other uses in the home during the day
6. be a high-speed charging device that can power up plug-in cars.

Toyota’s prototype uses lithium ion batteries and can store some 5 kilowatt-hours of electricity. This is enough to meet the daytime energy needs of the average household.

But, can you drive the house?

Only then would Toyota REALLY have something.

Source: Nikkei (sub req)

Made from the world’s excessive dependency on oil for energy— largely thanks to their huge oil exports, the gulf nations today have arguably some of the highest GDP on the planet. But with a green wave spreading across the planets and nations calling for a cut in relying on oil for energy, the Gulf countries are now worried about the implications of the eco-friendly movement in their economies. And they … should.

Gulf Nighttime - The dunes, the ocean and oil rigs

As more and more people are turning away from gasoline, conventional power and crude oil products and head towards solar, wind and hydrogen fuel cells, the economies of the Middle East nations could take a hit of around 5 to 20 percent. Some say, even more!

At an OPEC energy conference, Mohammad al-Sabban of the Saudi Ministry of petroleum expressed his growing concerns in this regard and said that if the trend continued, then the nations of the Gulf had a huge share of international wealth to lose out on. And already, nations like Saudi Arabia are thinking of tapping into the solar industry to avert future ‘disasters’.

Is it time to understand that relying on oil is not going last forever? Those wells WILL eventualy dry. And it could be pretty soon …

Original image by chriscpk214

Although they didn’t announce a new Favicon change, Google came out with a huge announcement. They’ve just creating a free software tool that allows all users to monitor their home’s energy consumption and carbon footprint.

Image by missha

Dan Reicher, Director for Climate Change and Energy Initiatives Google, confirmed and also mentioned that the new software is being developed as we speak and will be ‘open source’.

This will allow you to understand how much energy each gadget in your home is consuming, how much energy is being wasted and which gadgets need to be thrown out in order to cut down on excessive carbon emissions. Also, studies revealed that this helps a home slash off about 5 to 15 percent of its electricity bill each month.

There are many gadgets out there in the market today that do the same, but with Google stepping in with a free tool like that, one can only expect more efficient and energy-savvy households to take shape. Isn’t it?

So when are we going to get our hands on this new green tool? Google has not given a set deadline as yet for that, but ‘soon’ is good enough of a promise for now.

[Reuters via Ecofriend]

Hey Army!

We’ve had some big news in the past few weeks and I wanted to share some of the biggest news with you today. American Electric Power Company, one of the major suppliers of electric energy in the United States, has signed on to the Pickens Plan to help us push for a 21st Century transmission grid.

AEP operates in 11 states and owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system — so they are a key part of realizing our vision for wind. To bring more renewable energy to market, we must have transmission.

The Chairman, President and CEO of American Electric Power is a good friend and a very smart guy named Mike Morris. I want to introduce him to you because he gets it. And, because AEP has over 5 million customers, they get it, too.

Mike, say a few words to the 1.4 million members of the New Energy Army.

Thank you Boone. At American Electric Power we support a more diversified and domestic-based energy supply mix, increased energy efficiency and greater investment in new energy technologies. Energy will play a central role in our economic recovery and support for modernizing our electric system is stronger than ever. We know that as alternative energy sources continue to come to be harnessed, we will need a smarter, modern and more efficient transmission system that can move that energy from where it is being produced, often in remote locations, to where it is needed at any given time. Imagine meeting the high demand for electricity on a hot summer day in New York with power that includes wind from Kansas and a few hours later shifting that power to meet the same needs in southern California. We can’t do that today. We will only be able to do this if we modernize our transmission grid.

We want to be able to continue to deliver electric power where it is needed, when it is needed as efficiently and cleanly as possible. This is not only good business, for AEP, but it is good for America as we all work together to rebuild our economy. Boone?

Thank you, Mike. The Pickens Plan is much stronger for having partners like AEP. The Army is marching forward along a broader front because AEP is on board.

-T. Boone Pickens and Michael Morris

P.S.  AEP and the Pickens Plan are partners in the Virtual March on Washington that will take place April 1-3. Will you join us?