Environmental News Network

A Better, Cheaper Way To Make Biofuels: Algae
GILBERT, Ariz. - An Arizona company says they've developed a better, cheaper way to make biofuels, and more of it, from algae. Diversified Energy Corporation has developed a "breakthrough algae production system". The system is called "Simgae", for 'simple algae'. It utilizes common agriculture and irrigation components to produce algae at a fraction of the cost of competing systems. At 1/2 - 1/16th the capital cost, profitable oil production costs at $0.08 - $0.12/pound, and low operations and maintenance requirements, the system offer the biofuels industry access to cheap and readily available oils and starches for the production of biodiesel, ethanol, and other renewable fuels. >> Read the Full Article
Japan cautions against resource nationalism
Japan's trade minister said Kazakhstan's move this week to suspend work on the huge Kashagan oilfield echoed Russia's row over the Sakhalin-2 oil project and he cautioned against the spread of global resource nationalism. >> Read the Full Article
Energy efficiency seen easy way to aid climate: U.N.
Energy efficiency for power plants, buildings and cars is the easiest way to slow global warming in an investment shift set to cost hundreds of billions of dollars, the United Nations said on Tuesday. A U.N. report about climate investments, outlined to a meeting in Vienna of 1,000 delegates from 158 nations, also said emissions of greenhouse gases could be curbed more cheaply in developing nations than in rich states. >> Read the Full Article
New Maine Wind Turbine Protects Seabirds
Appledore Island, Maine - It's a wind turbine, with a heart, some might say, and the ability to swing out of the way of migrating birds. This custom-designed tower by Robert Pechie, engineer and CEO of Northeast Wind Energy, has a counterbalance and a pivot-point built into the long mast that holds the turbine and allows operators to easily swing the turbine down for maintenance, educational inspections or to protect migrating birds. >> Read the Full Article
Engineers Perfecting Hydrogen-Generating Technology
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Researchers at Purdue University have further developed a technology that could represent a pollution-free energy source for a range of potential applications, from golf carts to submarines and cars to emergency portable generators. The technology produces hydrogen by adding water to an alloy of aluminum and gallium. When water is added to the alloy, the aluminum splits water by attracting oxygen, liberating hydrogen in the process. The Purdue researchers are developing a method to create particles of the alloy that could be placed in a tank to react with water and produce hydrogen on demand. >> Read the Full Article
Israeli Researchers To Investigate Ocean Energy Source
University of Haifa, Israel - The University of Haifa in cooperation with Stanford University, is embarking on a unique, wide-ranging research effort to investigate energy production using a gas lying just below the sea floor, as an alternative to oil. >> Read the Full Article
Department of Energy to Make Available up to $33.8 Million to Support Commercial Production of Cellulosic Biofuels
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) that will make available up to $33.8 million to support the development of commercially viable enzymes - a key step to enabling bio-based production of clean, renewable biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol. As part of the Presidentâ€™s Twenty in Ten Plan, DOE is pursuing a long-term strategy to support increased availability and cost-effective use of renewable and alternative fuels. Twenty in Ten seeks to displace 20 percent of U.S. gasoline usage by 2017 through diversification of clean energy sources and increased vehicle efficiency. >> Read the Full Article
China to spend $925 million on clean energy
China will this year launch a fund with 7 billion yuan ($925 million) to spend on energy-saving projects such as efficient lightbulbs as it seeks to curb soaring demand for power, Chinese media reported. The cash is part of a scheme unveiled by the country's top economic planner to tackle pollution and energy problems, which Beijing fears may fuel domestic unrest or international tension. >> Read the Full Article
BLM Launches Effort to Facilitate Renewable Energy Development on Federal Lands
In response to the increased national demand for clean renewable energy, the Bureau of Land Management today announced it will prepare a programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) analyzing areas with high potential for geothermal energy development. According to a notice published in todayâ€™s Federal Register, the PEIS will examine the environmental impacts of boosting geothermal leasing in areas with high potential for near-term exploration and development of geothermal resources. If deemed appropriate by the PEIS, the BLM will amend the land use plans in those areas to allow for expanded leasing. >> Read the Full Article
Astronomers Find Gaping Hole In The Universe, Dark Matter
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL - University of Minnesota astronomers have found an enormous hole in the Universe, nearly a billion light-years across, empty of both normal matter such as stars, galaxies and gas, as well as the mysterious, unseen "dark matter." While earlier studies have shown holes, or voids, in the large-scale structure of the Universe, this new discovery dwarfs them all. >> Read the Full Article