Association of Energy Engineers
New York Chapter www.aeeny.org
May 2009 Newsletter Part 2
LETTER
Bloomberg and Wind Energy - Keeping the Mayor Honest
From: "Anthony Pereira" <> Tuesday - May 5, 2009 4:54 PM
YOU ARE CORRECT - In fact, one of my customers where we installed a 10kW wind system on a roof top (we are careful and it is safe) is being asked to take it down.
I also received a call from the PR team running his campaign and creating his ads looking for an employee who recently was hired to sit in on a commercial with him about PV and green jobs created by his policies. I told them straight out that the property tax abatement which came into effect in March has yet to create jobs and that in fact we have laid off some folks and will likely not hire until some policy starts to get things rolling.
I am in Spain right now. Last year they installed over 2,600 mWs of PV while NYS did 2MWs. We are so far behind it is a joke. And still energy efficiency is the low hanging fruit and should be primary in any effort and even there little progress.
We need intense amounts of incentives to change the economy around, not into a green economy but a healthy, secure and safe economy that is sane! The green things is killing me at this point, so much hype and little action.
anthony
-----Original Message-----
From: Richard Koral [mailto:
You're right, Fred. Now, what do you want us to do?
Fredric Goldner, C.E.M." <>
Look, in general, I truly think what the Mayor is doing is great, BUT I believe that he (and his team) need to be called out on this one:
I just for the 2nd time in as many days saw the following commercial on TV:
Intro to the commercial is: "From the streets to the rooftops, Mike's Five Borough Economic Opportunity Plan creates thousands of green jobs for New Yorkers by harnessing solar and wind power in new ways,
retrofitting buildings, and developing new green technologies." He then goes on to stand on a rooftop and state "what do you see when you look at these rooftops, I see solar and wind energy ..."
Watch a copy of the television ad here:
http://mikebloomberg.com/index.cfm?objectid=015A69B0-219B-8B95-7C452B8E4C7F05AD
The issue here is HIS Buildings Dept. (at least the one that reports to him), from what I'm told, will NOT allow wind turbines to be put up on any buildings they have authority over. Now we can have an internal discussion on the technical/economic viability of doing so, but the market & those who want to be innovators should be the arbiter of that. The real bottom line is he needs to be called out so he feels the need to use his executive force/powers to make the "our way or the highway"
beaurocrats at the building dept change their ways/rules.
By copy of this email to Anthony P., I'm requesting that he confirm my understanding of the Bldgs Dept "no wind" rule.
I'm not sure how we as a Board/organization push the Mayor on this, but I'm certain we need to.
Fred
PS: All that the Mayor is doing is laudable, and just his message to the general public provides the public awareness that can make a difference. We should not, however, let him take credit for something his Bldg Dept stands in the way of.
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NY State Grants for Energy Frontier Research Centers
State Investment Secures 10-to-1 Matching Funds from Federal Government.
Governor’s Clean Energy Agenda Continues to Spur Investment, Create Jobs, and Position New York as Leader in Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Technologies
May 22, 2009 - Governor David A. Paterson today announced that New York will commit $10.5 million in state grants to secure a federal investment of nearly $100 million to finance five energy research centers across the State. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has named five New York institutions Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC), and each has been awarded DOE grants between $2 and $5 million per year for a planned initial five year period. New York’s five centers were the second most awarded to any state, in large part due to Governor Paterson’s commitment of a 10 percent state match in funding and work to position New York as a national leader in clean energy technology research and development.
The EFRCs will bring together groups of leading scientists to address fundamental issues in fields ranging from solar energy and energy storage to materials sciences and superconductors. New York facilities were among 46 chosen nationwide, and include SUNY Stony Brook, Brookhaven National Laboratory on Long Island, Columbia University, Cornell University, and General Electric Global Research in Schenectady.
“We are seizing the opportunity to make New York the global capital of the new energy economy. The five laboratories being designated as Energy Frontier Research Centers clearly show that New York has been recognized as a national leader in alternative energy research,” said Governor Paterson. “We are laying the groundwork for the new economy based on research and technology, which will bring private industry into the State and create thousands of jobs.”
To secure the EFRC federal grants, Governor Paterson and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) provided letters of support and a promise to provide matching state grants to the projects at a ratio of one state dollar for every 10 federal dollars. Additionally, NYSERDA will provide a $250,000 grant to each academic center. This state-level commitment of matching funds provided a significant boost to the competitiveness of the proposals submitted by institutions in New York.
The awards are as follows (with the total five-year commitment):
· Columbia University: $16 million; $1.6 million state match; $250,000 NYSERDA grant
· Cornell University: $25 million; $2.5 million state match ; $250,000 NYSERDA grant
· General Electric Global Research: $15 million; $1.5 million state match
· State University of New York, Stony Brook: $17 million; $1.7 million state match; $250,000 NYSERDA grant
· Brookhaven National Laboratory: $25 million requested; $2.5 million state match; $250,00 NYSERDA grant
Significantly, three of the five awards in New York State are for energy storage technology research, complementing the Governor’s Battery and Energy Storage Technology Consortium (known as NY BEST). There were only six centers nationally that will focus on energy storage, and New York State is home to half of them.
Governor Paterson recently announced the creation of NY BEST to implement the “battery consortium” called for in his State of the State address. The State has committed $25 million to this effort, which will support research to advance the commercialization of battery and energy storage technologies within the State. This month, Governor Paterson stood with General Electric (GE) Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Immelt to announce GE’s plan to establish a new sodium battery manufacturing facility in New York that will create 350 new jobs. These two announcements, along with the State’s ability to attract Federal funding for three EFRCs demonstrates New York is already recognized as a leader in battery and energy storage technology that will support the transition to a clean energy economy.
The state matching grants for the EFRCs come from NYSTAR, through an appropriation of $5 million every year to leverage larger federal grants. NYSTAR’s obligation to these projects is approximately $1.96 million this year. NYSERDA’s grants are in addition to the NYSTAR funding, and amount to $250,000 per project for four of the five projects, totaling $1 million.
Congressman Timothy Bishop said: “These funds will make our communities more energy efficient, create jobs, and reduce energy costs in the future. We are delivering on our promise to invest in green jobs and clean energy technologies that will help turn our economy around while making America energy independent.”
Congressman Maurice Hinchey said: “This new energy research center that's being funded with federal money at Cornell University will provide extraordinary opportunities for academic research and economic growth. I commend Governor Paterson for providing the state resources needed to establish this energy research center and for his commitment to making New York a leader in advanced battery technology. This energy research partnership will leverage the academic resources at Cornell University and combine them with industry partners throughout the region and state, including those in the solar sector. This will enable New York to promote advanced battery research and develop the commercial outlets needed to create jobs and grow the economy.”
Congressman Charles B. Rangel said: “Creating a cleaner, more energy efficient America is not going to happen overnight. We have to invest in the technologies that will help us reduce our dependency on foreign oil and make environmental necessities affordable to the average consumer. These centers, and the commitment of the State and federal government to fund them, will go a long way in ensuring that promise of this green revolution is seized by all.”
Congressman Paul D. Tonko said: “I applaud Governor Paterson for recognizing the importance of research to our energy future in allocating state funds to maximize the outcome of this important federal program. When you add GE Global Research’s designation as an Energy Frontier Research Center to last week’s announcement by GE of a new advanced battery manufacturing plant in the Capital Region, it’s clear that Tech Valley is quickly gaining the reputation as a leading alternative energy corridor.”
Senator Darrel J. Aubertine, Chair of the Senate Committee on Energy and Telecommunications and the Legislative Commission on Rural Resources, said: “This state and federal partnership will advance important new technologies to help support our economy’s energy needs and create jobs throughout the State. With the advance of alternative energy research and development, New York’s agriculture, open space and rural resources will continue to play an increasingly large role in our energy future. This investment shows our State’s commitment to being a leader in clean energy technologies and rebuilding our economy.”
At May 2009 Past Presidents Night - From left to right: Walter P. Bishop, P.E., Fellow ASHRAE, 1975-1976 President, Albert M. Nicholas, 1992-1993 President, William F. Ryan, Jr., P.E., 1996-1997 President,
Om Taneja, Ph.D., P.E., 2008-2009 President, Alfred C. Finger, Ph.D., P.E., 1985-1986 President, John J. Stiles, 2002-2003 President, Gene Geyer, 2001-2002 President, Mitchell Merdinger, 1999-2000 President, Christopher O. McHugh, P.E., 1998-1999 President, Michel Rimpel, 2007-2008 President, Richard E. Batherman, 1977-1978 President, Joseph F. Azara, Jr., 1988-1989 President.
Green Promise Seen in Switch to LED Lighting
By Elisabeth Rosenthal and Felicity Barringer, NYTimes, May 30 09
Jeffrey Sauger for The New York Times
LED streetlights in Ann Arbor, Mich., are expected to cut maintenance and electricity costs.
TO CHANGE THE BULBS in the 60-foot-high ceiling lights of Buckingham Palace’s grand stairwell, workers had to erect scaffolding and cover precious portraits of royal forebears.
So when a lighting designer two years ago proposed installing light emitting diodes or LEDs, an emerging lighting technology, the royal family readily assented. The new lights, the designer said, would last more than 22 years and enormously reduce energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions — a big plus for Prince Charles, an ardent environmentalist. Since then, the palace has installed the lighting in chandeliers and on the exterior, where illuminating the entire facade uses less electricity than running an electric teakettle.
In shifting to LED lighting, the palace is part of a small but fast-growing trend that is redefining the century-old conception of lighting, replacing energy-wasting disposable bulbs with efficient fixtures that are often semi-permanent, like those used in plumbing.
Studies suggest that a complete conversion to the lights could decrease carbon dioxide emissions from electric power use for lighting by up to 50 percent in just over 20 years; in the United States, lighting accounts for about 6 percent of all energy use. A recent report by McKinsey & Company cited conversion to LED lighting as potentially the most cost effective of a number of simple approaches to tackling global warming using existing technology.
LED lighting was once relegated to basketball scoreboards, cellphone consoles, traffic lights and colored Christmas lights. But as a result of rapid developments in the technology, it is now poised to become common on streets and in buildings, as well as in homes and offices. Some American cities, including Ann Arbor, Mich., and Raleigh, N.C., are using the lights to illuminate streets and parking garages, and dozens more are exploring the technology. And the lighting now adorns the conference rooms and bars of some Renaissance hotels, a corridor in the Pentagon and a new green building at Stanford.
LEDs are more than twice as efficient as compact fluorescent bulbs, currently the standard for greener lighting. Unlike compact fluorescents, LEDs turn on quickly and are compatible with dimmer switches. And while fluorescent bulbs contain mercury, which requires special disposal, LED bulbs contain no toxic elements, and last so long that disposal is not much of an issue.
“It is fit-and-forget-lighting that is essentially there for as long as you live,” said Colin Humphreys, a researcher at Cambridge University who works on gallium nitride LED lights, which now adorn structures in Britain.
The switch to LEDs is proceeding far more rapidly than experts had predicted just two years ago. President Obama’s stimulus package, which offers money for “green” infrastructure investment, will accelerate that pace, experts say. San Jose, Calif., plans to use $2 million in energy-efficiency grants to install 1,500 LED streetlights.