It might be a marriage made on the farm .. with data centers being located in rural areas that have lots of farms using manure to power data centers is a way to be green

"Data centers need a lot of energy. Dairy farms create a lot of methane. … HP Labs has done the math to show that one could be used to support the other."

" … data centers … increasingly being located near existing power generation or cooling resources. … untapped source of energy, however, is the methane generated by manure on farms around the world."

" … HP … paper shows how a farm of 10,000 dairy cows could … power a typical modern data center and still support other needs on the farm."

" … turning data centers from being energy hogs into energy neutral facilities … goal … see if we can take the data center completely off the grid."

Via:  Hewlett Packard  LINK

Data Centers are moving to rural areas where land and labor are less expensive.  There are often farms and lots of cows … and therefore lots of cow manure.

A significant cost of operating data centers is the electric bill.

" … Hewlett-Packard …simultaneously help dairy farmers get rid of cow manure and help data center operators procure relatively cheap fuel: Use the manure to power servers."

" … data centers … building them in rural areas, which happen to have an excess of animal waste. The heat from a data center could be used to improve the process by which the waste turns it into methane, which can be used in place of natural gas or diesel, HP’s researchers maintain. "

"… average dairy cow, … produces approximately 120 pounds of waste a day. It would take 10,000 cows to produce enough energy for a data center big enough to support a bank.  "

Via:  Fierce CIO LINK

" … Wegmans, a supermarket chain … launched a fleet of 50 hydrogen fuel cell-powered pallet trucks using Air Products’ (NYSE: APD) … technology at its Pottsville, Pa. warehouse … the first commercial site in Pennsylvania … using hydrogen-powered material handling equipment."

" … environmental benefits … Because hydrogen is the fuel source, heat and water are the only byproducts.  …"

" …systems can be quickly refueled in less than five minutes, … Wegmans hopes to convert its entire lift truck fleet at the Pottsville facility to hydrogen fuel cells over the next few years. …"

"… fuel cell-powered equipment provides consistent power strength during use and does not experience decreased performance or wear down as traditional lead-acid battery units do … fuel cell forklifts are not adversely impacted by temperature or by operating in coolers and freezers, … fuel cell equipment is more environmentally friendly because it does not involve lead-acid battery storage and disposal issues."

Via:  Air Products and Chemicals  LINK

 "Air Products … conduct an engineering study and project plan to capture, concentrate and purify carbon dioxide (CO₂) emitted from industrial operations for use in enhanced oil recovery work. … will be among several to be evaluated in 2010 by DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory for potential additional funding of the overall project."

" … design and construct a state-of-the-art system to capture CO₂ from Air Products’ steam methane reformers (SMR) located at a refinery in Port Arthur, Texas.  … recover and purify the CO₂ for delivery via pipeline for enhanced oil recovery in Texas.  …"

" … Air Products has been involved in several carbon capture demonstration projects around the world, …information on Air Products’ CO₂ purification technologies can be found at: www.airproducts.com/CO2_capture "

Via: Air Products and Chemicals LINK

" … Philly plant in Lowville, NY … making to reduce our carbon footprint. … almost ¼ of the Lowville’s total energy use now comes from alternative sources."

" … converting the waste stream from Cream Cheese production (whey) into methane gas. … replaces about 1/3 of the natural gas usage and prevents virtually 100% of whey land-spreading. Annual energy savings are approximately 87,000 mm BTUs, or enough energy to heat around 1,100 average sized households for 1 year. … In early 2008, … Lowville … replaced its interior lights with energy efficient T-8 lighting fixtures. … saves 1,350,068 KWH of usage per year. That’s enough electricity to light 2,164 homes for a year."

" …  In 2008, … cut its total water use by 9%. … [and] sent 33% less garbage to the landfill. …"

Via:  Kraft  LINK

While driving through Chester County, Pa to pick my son up from a camping trip I saw an Amerigreen gas station and thought I should check it out … in addition to gas they sell diesel, propane and heating oil.  In addition to biodiesel and bio heating oil they have  E85.

"E85 Ethanol (85% ethanol, 15% gasoline) is a clean fuel with superior performance characteristics. It burns cleaner than gasoline, is renewable, and environmentally safer."

 "… we became one of the first oil companies in the United States to provide our customers with 100% North American made fuel–drilled, refined, and sold exclusively in North America. …"

Via:  Amerigreen  LINK

My brother and his girlfriend sent photo’s of her new Ford Fusion Hybrid.  They and the car live in the Research Triangle Park area in NC … 

Buying a hybrid can help you as an individual take action and be greener … here is a real word experience.

They report …"We went to the beach week before last and got about 39mpg averaging 70mph.  The Fusion has an LCD dashboard display for everything except the speedometer, and uses a “growing  vine” to show how well you are managing the hybrids capabilities."

That is some pretty good MPG … stay tuned for more updates on the Fusion.

Via:  Greentechnolog and ES  LINK 

MIT has designed two airplanes that are more environmentally friendly … quieter and with fewer GHG emissions.  Based on work from a NASA research contract these may provide planes of the future …

"MIT … two new airplane designs … create more environmentally friendly planes … quieter … can take off from shorter runways … …"

" … “D” or “double bubble,” would use 70 percent less fuel than a Boeing 737, according to MIT. Note the long, skinny wings and the small tail."

" … the H, would replace the Boeing 777 for international flights. It’s closer in design to current planes and would burn 50 percent less fuel."

"NASA will pick two of the six teams to move forward, probably within the next few months. … these planes won’t be ready to fly until 2035. …"

Via:  SmartPlanet LINK

About a week ago I wrote about the cool roof project in Philadelphia [LINK].  The winning block was just announced … the 1200 Block of Wolf Street.

The residents on this block showed tremendous enthusiasm and community spirit in their quest to become the ‘Coolest’. Plus, every roof on the block is suitable for a ‘cool roof’ coating! 

"In the coming weeks, … this block … receive its prize-an energy audit and energy-efficient upgrades, such as insulation, air sealing and a ‘cool roof’! And we’ll celebrate with a block party in June!"

" …  check out their winning essay!"

"Cool roofs reflect the sun’s heat … are about 50-80 degrees cooler than typical asphalt roofs and come in a variety of colors.  White is the "coolest" because it most efficiently reflects the sun’s rays. "

Via:  RetroFit Philly LINK

In a recent daily email from my college – Lafayette College, Easton, PA – there was a link about green graduation gowns.

Seems more colleges and universities are going green and using gowns made from recycled materials … typically plastic bottles.

" … University of Texas students … saving 23 water bottles from landfills just by donning their cap and gown."

"GreenWeaver graduation regalia are being introduced to graduates at several universities nationwide this year as part of the growing movement to make graduation ceremonies more eco-friendly."

" … Michigan State University is printing diplomas and graduation programs on recycled paper in addition to using recycled caps and gowns. Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas will be using artificial flowers to decorate the stage … Lafayette College … is offering biodegradable robes that will easily degrade after one wear."

Via:  ABCNews LINK

With Google Earth you can "Tour 3D models of Green Buildings around the United States. … includes campus buildings, parks, offices, homes, and schools that were designed and constructed using environmentally sensitive design techniques … start the tour, double-click the "Start tour here" link in the Places panel and make sure the "3D Buildings" layer is checked. The models are also located in the Google 3D Warehouse at http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse "

Via:  Google  LINK

Idling buses  and trucks waste lots of fuel and add to pollution.  Can technology provide a solution ?

You bet !

" …  The Provider, a school bus operator in Brentwood, N.H., … first embraced wireless navigation technology from Navman Wireless … thinking that it could helps with better tracking the mileage and hours related to individual busing contracts."

" … realized that excessive idling … could be addressed and controlled with the technology. …  When an alert is triggered, dispatchers call the driver in question … because idling wastes fuel. …"

" … Navman Wireless, says his company … tracking 110,000 vehicles. … Navman Wireless estimates that it saves about 552 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions across the fleet it manages. Most of those savings are calculated based on reduced fuel consumption."

Via:  SmartPlanet  LINK

Check out this video on ways to recycle cell phones, batteries and more. Specifically Best Buy will take back most consumer electronics …

Via: SmartPlanet LINK

Intel’s new design center in Haifa, Israel is LEED Gold certified.  It opened in June.

Some of the highlights …

"…received LEED Gold certification … for … Intel Design Center – IDC 9 – … in Haifa, Israel …"

" … Intel’s first certified green facility, IDC 9 is the first building in Israel to receive LEED Gold-level recognition."

" … was built on land previously occupied by a parking lot to not damage any natural resources. … "

" …  rooftop garden to enhance thermal insulation and prevent the building from retaining excessive heat … A method for capturing and recycling condensate water from the air conditioning system for irrigation. …"

Via:  Intel  LINK

Sunday, April 25th, 2010, I picked up several packages of CFL at my local Costco at a great price.  In fact the price made it close to impossible to pass up.

$0.99 bought a four pack of 13 Watt CFL  (60 Watt replacement) after instant rebate taken at the register.

$1.79 bought a four pack of 23 Watt CFL  (100 Watt replacement) after instant rebate taken at the register.

The package label indicates the 13 Watt last 13 times longer; save $369 per pack of 4.

The package label indicates the 23 Watt last 10 times longer; save $225 per pack of 4.

Nice deal – great way to save  on your electric bills. 

>>>>> Remember Home Depot collects CFL for safe recycling.

Via: Costcp LINK

"UPS … became the first small package carrier to offer its customers the ability to offset the carbon dioxide emissions generated by the transport of their packages within the United States."

" … offer U.S. shippers the option of paying a small fee to calculate and offset the climate impact of the shipment of each of their packages. information about UPS carbon neutral services is available at ups.com/carbonneutral."

" … To encourage customers to participate … UPS will match the offset purchases, effectively doubling the offsets purchased in 2009-2010, up to $1 million."

" …  the carbon offset process is … certified by The CarbonNeutral Company. "

Via:  UPS  LINK

UPS " … put 200 additional hybrid electric delivery trucks to work in Austin, Houston, Philadelphia, Washington, New York, Minneapolis and Louisville. … had 50 of these vehicles in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and Phoenix; … another 20,000 low-emission and alternative fuel vehicles throughout its fleet … In all, about 1,000 of the fleet is hybrid while the rest are low emission types."

" … will cut its fuel consumption by 176,000 gallons annually, compared with putting an equivalent number of new diesel trucks on the road. .. reduction in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions is about 1,786 metric tons, …"

Via:  Smart Planet  LINK

Wonder how plastic bags get recycled? You see the recycling bins in most grocery stores that take #1 and #2 plastic bags and newspaper sleeves. Watch the video to see how they are recycled back to plastic material.

Trex recycles 2 billion bags / year and turns then into "plastic lumber" and recycles most of the other non PE that comes in with the plastic bags when they are recycled.

Via: Clean Skies LINK

Amtrak is experimenting with a bio-diesel fueled train … called the Heartland Flyer.  

" …  nation’s first-ever test of a cleaner and renewable biodiesel fuel blend to power a daily interstate passenger train between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth … research project … on the daily Heartland Flyer train operated by Amtrak … biodiesel blend includes beef byproduct and is provided by a Texas-based vendor."

" … the biodiesel blend known as B20 (20% pure biofuel and 80% diesel) reduced hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide each by 10 percent, reduced particulates by 15 percent and sulfates by 20 percent. … measurements will be taken … at the end of 12 months so any impact of the biodiesel on valves and gaskets can be measured…."

Via:  Amtrak LINK

Happy Earth Day !!

 Today is the  40th anniversary of Earth Day !!

– What will you do today, and going forward for Earth Day?
– Use a reusable cup instead of a throw away one use cup ?
– Take public transportation or walk rather than drive by car?
– Car pool rather than drive alone? 

To learn more about Earth Day 2010 and things ** YOU ** can do … LINK

Via: Earth Day 2010  LINK