August 3rd, 2009
About half of the car trips in the U.S. are less than five miles—a distance easily navigated by walking or cycling. Reducing short-distance car trips has many benefits—it decreases car accidents, has positive benefits for the environment and increases physical health and activity, says communication professor Edward Maibach of George Mason University. An expert in climate change communication research, Maibach says that community leaders should make promotion of physical activity a priority.

“There are lots of proven low-cost options that communities can use to encourage people to get out of their cars and walk or ride instead,” he says. “Use of these options helps people remain healthy (by promoting physical activity and reducing obesity) and helps reduce heat-trapping pollutants that cause global warming.”
In a recent article in the journal Preventative Medicine, Maibach suggests that policy makers and government officials at all levels should look at communication, marketing and policy enhancements that can be implemented with relative ease to promote active transport.
Maibach cites the Web site Active Living by Design (http://www.activelivingbydesign.org/) as showcasing many examples of successful programs such as city-bike sharing, customized walking or cycling maps and grassroots campaigns.
“One of my favorite examples is ‘walking school buses’ in which children and a few parents walk together to the local school,” says Maibach. He also suggests policy changes such as reducing speed limits, giving cyclists priority at intersections and closing some roads to cars, can also encourage people to consider alternative ways of commuting.
“There is no one magic bullet. All of these examples can be effective here in the U.S., and all should be implemented in as many communities as possible. The more that are implemented, the more we will wean people away from sole reliance on their cars when they could be walking and/or riding, and improving their health as a result.”
Source: George Mason University

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“Whether you are logging big trail miles or beating gas pump prices, the X-Alp Mid is your go to shoe. Built for the long haul, the R&R plate allows you to drop the hammer on the pedals but has enough flexibility and traction for when you have to get off and push up the big hills. Quick drying, highly breathable mesh/synthetic upper. Endo-skeletal fit system securely wraps feet.”

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Pacific Northwest forests could store more carbon, help address greenhouse issues

July 2nd, 2009 PhysOrg.com

The forests of the Pacific Northwest hold significant potential to increase carbon storage and help mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in coming years, a recent study concludes, if they are managed primarily for that purpose through timber harvest reductions and increased rotation ages.

In the complete absence of stand-replacing disturbances – via fire or timber harvest – forests of Oregon and Northern California could theoretically almost double their carbon storage.

Although it isn’t realistic to expect an absence of disturbance, the estimates were based on average conditions up until now that include variation in forestbiomass, age, climate, disturbances and soil fertility. If all forest stands in this region were just allowed to increase in age by 50 years, their potential to store atmospheric carbon would still increase by 15 percent, the study concluded.

That would be a modest, but not insignificant offset to the nation’s carbon budget, scientists say, since this region accounts for 14 percent of the live biomass in the entire United States.

The findings were made by scientists in the College of Forestry at Oregon State University, as the result of almost two decades of analysis of 15,000 inventory plots in a large region, through several different projects, as part of the North American Carbon Program. The scientists, who said they have often been asked what the theoretical potential was for storing carbon in these forests, conducted the analysis using inventory data that captured current variation in biomass due to many factors

Read the whole article on PhysOrg.com

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June 24th, 2009
(PhysOrg.com) — UQ neuroscientists have, for the first time, been able to demonstrate that moderate exercise significantly increases the number of neural stem cells in the ageing brain.
In research published in Stem Cells, Dr Daniel Blackmore and his colleagues at the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) have shown that moderate exercise directly increases the number of stem cells in the ageing brain.
Despite the conventional wisdom that we only have a set number of neurons or brain cells, neuroscientists have known for some time that, in healthy brains, the creation of new neurons is an ongoing and lifelong mechanism.
However, it has also been known for more than a decade that the number of new neurons we produce slowly declines with age.
According to QBI neuroscientist Dr Blackmore, researchers are interested in finding ways to stimulate the production of neurons to negate any decline brought about by age or disease.
“Our findings suggest that moderate exercise, from early to late in life, can have a very positive effect,” Dr Blackmore said.
In controlled models of ageing, the number of neural stem cells produced by animals participating in voluntary exercise (running wheel) were significantly higher than in animals of the same age which did not exercise (no running wheel).
“Investigating the mechanism by which neural stem cell numbers are altered will undoubtedly increase our understanding of how the brain responds to its environment,” Dr Blackmore said.
“Ultimately, this should allow us to discover how to harness the brain’s regenerative capacity, and to bring about new and effective treatments for conditions caused by trauma, disease, or even normal ageing.”
“The brain’s ability, even at an advanced age, to respond in a positive manner is very exciting as it extends the time-frame in which manipulation is possible.”
QBI Director Professor Perry Bartlett FAA said the research represented another significant understanding of the why neural stem cells were so important to brain function.
“It is the first experimental data that shows how we can change the propensity of the brain to make new neurons through increasing the number of stem cells – even in the aged animal,” Professor Bartlett said.
“We can now show that exercise directly causes an increase in the number of stem cells in the brain.
“Stem cells develop into neurons and a good supply of neurons is essential for good mental health,” he said.
The research paper “Exercise increases neural stem cell number in a GH-dependent manner, augmenting the regenerative response in aged mice” by Dr Daniel Blackmore, Dr Mohammad Golmohammadi, Beatrice Large, Dr Michael Waters and Dr Rodney Rietze appeared in the 14 May online edition of Stem Cells.
Provided by University of Queensland (news : web)

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Emerald Empire Adventures is proud to wholeheartedly support Al Gore’s Repower America campaign for 100% renewable energy in 10 years.

The content below is reproduced here from http://www.repoweramerica.org/state/california/ as a public service.

You are here: Home » In The States » California

We’re more than 262,031 members strong in California

Click here to see specific cost savings and job creation information for California.

Did You Know?

• California is the leading producer of renewable energy in the United States. It ranks 1st in the nation for solar PV, solar thermal, geothermal, and bio-power capacity.It also ranks 3rd in the nation for installed wind capacity.
• California is home to the largest single source of solar energy in the world: a 354 MW solar thermal facility in the Mojave Desert.The state will shatter its own record in 2011 when a 553 MW solar thermal facility built by Solel begins operation, also in the Mojave Desert.According to researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, California’s total solar thermal potential is equal to 12 times the state’s current electricity capacity.
• California’s potential geothermal resources can power every home in the state.The state’s potential unconventional geothermal resources could power another 54 million homes.

To submit clean energy news happening in your state, click here

Clean energy jobs in California

California is at the forefront of electricity generation from non-hydroelectric renewable energy sources, and its policies and investments encourage strong job growth in a clean energy economy. A few companies are already taking part in this new economy by providing ‘green’ jobs.

For example, FPL Group is set to operate its 250-megawatt solar thermal energy plant near Kern County, which will employ roughly 1,000 workers in its operation. And reports estimate that more jobs could be on the way. One study says that $12.7 billion investment on deploying renewable energy and energy efficiency in the Golden State can create 235,000 jobs over two years. And, this study only captures a portion of the service, construction, and technology jobs that will be created in the state by truly Repowering America.

Sources: Center for American Progress, Energy Business Review

Featured story

Aitan Grossman, a 6th grader from California, is using his love for music to help solve the climate crisis. Aitan wrote the song, “100 Generations,” to raise awareness about the dangerous effects of climate change. He has sent his song to schools around the world and is asking children everywhere to add their voices to the chorus.

The result is a global music project with contributions from children in France, Botswana and Taiwan. The song can be downloaded from iTunes or Amazon, and is featured on Aitan’s KidEarth website. Aitan is donating all profits from the song to his favorite environmental charities, including the Alliance for Climate Protection.

This map shows 13% of our membership in California

Take Action

• Write a letter to the editor

Additional resources

• The Repower America campaign aired an ad in California pushing back on opponents of clean energy, click here to watch.
• Join Repower California on Flickr

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Fire Mitigation Work In Western US Misplaced, Says New Study

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PhysOrg.com May 28th, 2009

Policies that turn forests into valuable carbon storage units would likely preserve forests and lower costs of cutting atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Cutting down forests for agriculture vents excess carbon dioxide into the air just as industrial activities and the burning of fossil fuels do. But whether policies to stabilize greenhouse gases in the atmosphere should include this terrestrial source of carbon dioxide is under debate. According to a new study this week in Science, failing to include land use changes in such policies could lead to massive deforestation and higher costs for limiting carbon emissions.

The results also suggest improved agricultural technology will be as important as new energy technologies in a carbon-limited future.

To understand the effects of economic forces from climate policy on terrestrial carbon and land use changes, researchers with the Joint Global Change Research Institute in College Park, Md., a collaboration between the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland, used an integrated assessment model called MiniCAM to compare different scenarios. This computer model incorporates economics, energy, agriculture, land-use changes, emissions and concentrations of greenhouse gases in order to understand the way that human decisions interact with natural processes that control climate.

For this study, the researchers set the highest concentration that carbon dioxide could reach. Then they compared two ways to stay within that limit: in one, they taxed terrestrial carbon emissions and industrial and fossil fuel emissions all at the same rate. In the other, they only taxed emissions from industry and fossil fuels.

Ignoring terrestrial carbon led to nearly complete loss of unmanaged forests by 2100, largely as a result of massive expansions of bioenergy crops — those planted to reduce the use of fossil fuels — replacing forests. However, placing a value on terrestrial carbon emissions led to increased forest cover, while bioenergy still expanded considerably compared to today.

“When society tries to limit carbon dioxide concentrations, if terrestrial carbon emissions aren’t valued but fossil fuel and industrial emissions are, economic forces could create very strong pressures to deforest,” said PNNL scientist Marshall Wise, the study leader.

In addition, the cost to reduce global emissions in a world that valued terrestrial, fossil fuel, and industrial sources dropped to half that of the world in which only fossil fuel and industrial entities paid to emit carbon. This suggests that storing carbon in forests, agricultural areas, and other ecosystems is an important and cost-effective part of a bigger carbon dioxide emissions control strategy that includes dramatic changes to the global energy system.

This study also shows that continual improvement in agricultural crop productivity for crops like corn, wheat, barley, and rice will be required to best make use of limited cropland. This suggests improvements to agriculture technology could be as important as improvements to energy technology in controlling carbon emissions.

Read more on PhysOrg.com

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JAN 29 2009

PG&E CONNECTS WITH WAVE POWER

California’s renewable energy outlook caught a rising tide today as the California Public Utilities Commission approved $4.8 million in funding for a major program to develop and demonstrate emerging wave power technology.

The study, called WaveConnect, will be led by PG&E off the coast of Mendocino and Humboldt counties. The program will receive an additional $1.2 million from the Department of Energy.

PG&E’s first step will be to conduct meetings with local stakeholders and agencies to learn about their issues and concerns. After completing appropriate environmental reviews and permit applications, which could take a couple of years, PG&E then plans to build an undersea infrastructure, including power transmission cables, to support wave energy demonstration projects. The utility will then invite manufacturers of wave energy devices to install them offshore for testing and comparison.

Ultimately, the demonstration will help promising technology companies find funding and guide PG&E (and other utilities) in choosing which wave power developers to partner with.

Finavera AquaBuoy

There are many different approaches to choose from. Some systems take their power from surface waves, others from pressure changes below the surface. Some bob up and down with the waves, others let waves wash over them. Some even rest on the sea floor. WaveConnect will help sort out the technology whales from the minnows.

read more on The Next 100 PG&E’s blog site.
PG&E corprate headquarters

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ScienceDaily (May 19, 2009) — The answer to the looming fuel crisis in the 21st century may be found by thinking small, microscopic in fact. Microscopic organisms from bacteria and cyanobacteria, to fungi and microalgae, are biological factories that are proving to be efficient sources of inexpensive, environmentally friendly biofuels that can serve as alternatives to oil, according to research presented at the 109th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology

“We have been charged to develop the next generation of cellulosic biofuels. When we successfully supply sources of energy to the grid from non-food, cellulosic, parts of plants we will mitigate the food versus fuel debate,” says Tim Donohue of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, one of two directors of Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Centers who spoke today in a session at the meeting.
When it comes to alternative fuels, currently ethanol is king. Almost all ethanol produced in the United States is fermented from readily available sugars in corn starch or corn kernels. Producing ethanol from corn has also come under much criticism lately, accused of being responsible for rising food prices.

Researchers are looking at alternate biomasses as food for microorganisms to ferment into ethanol. The most attractive are known as lignocellulosic biomass and include wood residues (including sawmill and paper mill discards), municipal paper waste, agricultural residues (including sugarcane bagasse), dedicated energy crops (like switchgrass) or the non-edible parts of corn like cobs, stalks or stover. The problem is, unlike corn starch, the sugars necessary for fermentation are trapped inside the lignocellulose part of this plant biomass. The key to ending the food versus fuel debate is unlocking the sugars trapped in cellulosic biomass.

Read More
, Bioufuel research and development, South San Francisco

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Source: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council

The research team of professor Linda Nazar, graduate student David Xiulei Ji and postdoctoral fellow Kyu Tae Lee are one of the first to demonstrate robust electrochemical performance for a lithium-sulphur battery. The finding is reported today in the on-line issue of Nature Materials.
The prospect of lithium-sulphur batteries has tantalized chemists for two decades, and not just because successfully combining the two chemistries delivers much higher energy densities. Sulphur is cheaper than many other materials currently used in lithium batteries. It has always showed great promise as the ideal partner for a safe, low cost, long lasting rechargeable battery, exactly the kind of battery needed for energy storage and transportation in a low carbon emission energy economy. Read More at PhusOrg.com
Research Center; University Of Waterloo

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