Welcome to the April 2008 Green InSight eNewsletter!

"... as biological knowledge grows, the ethic will shift fundamentally so that everywhere ... the fauna and flora of a country will be thought part of the national heritage as important as its art, [and] its language ..." E.O. Wilson 1984

This insightful and progressive newsletter is concerned with present energy issues and technologies as well as the future of energy. The information is brought to you in living color, on widescreen digital HD format, and sparing paper use with our long shelf-life, greedy little electrons to deliver the latest from the far corners of the alternative and renewable energy empire to foster sustainable development. We exalt your feedback and contributions of your latest experiences and reactions to our content. Sustainability is not just our mission, it is our passion.

Can Biomass Save The Planet?

Would the widespread adoption of biomass-derived transportation fuels really help the environment?

By: David Schneider
Source: SCIENCE OBSERVER

The nation is abuzz with talk of replacing imported oil with "biofuels" produced from homegrown materials. This past April, for example, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency honored singer Willie ("On the Road Again") Nelson for his efforts to promote the use of biodiesel through his "BioWillie" brand, which is now being distributed at filling stations nationally. Clearly, many hurdles stand in the way of making such biofuels commercially competitive with traditional sources. Indeed, it remains very difficult to forecast whether powering our vehicles with crop derivatives will ever be a truly economic proposition. Still, it's not too early to ponder what the widespread adoption of biofuels would mean for the environment and to take a hard look at the best strategy available, which may require tapping a very unconventional crop.

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Biodiesel, Petroleum Diesel and Free Markets

By: Mark Vermeer – March 2008
Source: BIODIESEL MAGAZINE

Many politicians and free-market advocates have a disdain for mandates or subsidies for biofuels and maintain that free-market economics should determine their use. I was born and raised in Iowa and have lived there my entire life, so I have a stake in Iowa and correspondingly in biofuels since Iowa is the largest biofuels-producing state in the nation.

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Future Of Green Materials “Green Carbon”

By: Jon Dougal – April 9, 2008

Many of us know that green building is about the reuse of materials made, at least partially, from elements in specific waste streams—redefining what is “waste.” Many states have very stiff waste reduction mandates, which create a pool of potential materials to recycle or even down-cycle—from rugs and carpet to used tires and construction debris.

Maybe someday in the not-too-distant future, we’ll have a mandated label to show what materials are mixed into a finished product to help facilitate its cradle-to-cradle manufacturing.

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Coal is the Enemy of the Human Race: Begging the Question Edition

You can't begin an argument about coal's future by assuming coal's future

By: David Roberts – Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Source: GRISTMILL

I swear, I don't mean to just rant about stupid coal articles every day. But people keep writing stupid coal articles. I'm like Pavlov's dog at this point -- they say stupid things, I bash them. Good boy!

The latest is this interview in Wired's Planet Earth blog with Jeremy Carl, who researches how to clean up coal. Consider the very first bit of the intro:

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ASHRAE and USGBC Cosponsor Washington Fellowship

Source: ASHRAE
Date:March 26, 2008

ATLANTA – The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) have joined forces to sponsor a one-year fellowship in Washington, D.C., that will allow the participant to work in the federal government in a technical advisory role. Members of ASHRAE or USGBC may apply.

Possible placement areas include Congress, a federal agency such as the Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency or the General Services Administration, or the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

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GreenMotion chooses Ambit Energy Green-e Certified Renewable Energy Program in Texas and New York

By: Tim Grollimund, eCommerce Manager, GreenMotion

GreenMotion is in the energy business. Yes, that’s right. If you live in Texas or selected areas of New York, you can switch your electric service to Ambit Energy. Natural gas service is also available in New York. By switching to Ambit Energy as your service provider, not only will you have the opportunity to enroll in a competitively-priced Green-e Certified program, you will also be supporting GreenMotion.

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Interested in sponsoring our next eNewsletter issue? Contact Jon Dougal at (415) 798-1933 or editor@greenmotion.org.