Thirty years ago a group of intrepid energy wonks realized the solution to our energy needs was not building a bunch of expensive nuclear power plants, but to aggressively capture the cost effective energy-efficiency measures available at a fraction of the cost, risk and environmental impact. These champions of truth, justice and the Northwest way continue their struggle. Few know them: they do their work in the meeting spaces of government commissions, utility boardrooms and wherever ..continue reading
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"Try mass transit if you can't walk or bike."  We Need Your Help!
Ever borrow a tool from your neighbor?
Ever wish they had a better selection?
Sustainable West Seattle has won a grant from the City of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods and has set up a tool lending library. You can find out more information or check out our inventory!
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by Andy Silber
Not All Superheroes Wear a Cape:
Energy Wonks in Seattle for NWEC’s Fall Conference
Why building coal export ports in Washington is about the dumbest thing we could do
By Andy Silber There are two proposals to build coal-export terminals in Washington: one in Longview and the other just north of Bellingham. Building these terminals is akin to building a road through a wilderness area to a bridge you just torn down. Washingtonians didn’t pass I-937 (the initiative that requires utilities to increase their use of renewable resources) so that we could export more coal to China. Our state legislature didn’t ..continue reading
You are invited to help build Community Solar today! How can one person help build a sustainable energy future? Seattle City Light is inviting you to make that difference today — by becoming a Founding Member of Seattle’s first Community Solar project. Community Solar is an innovative, shared resource approach for using clean, renewable solar energy for power. As a Founding Member ..continue reading
Take a deep breath. How clean is the air you just inhaled? It all depends on where you call home. The Sierra Club Beyond Coal campaign has launched an online air pollution map that shows how much air pollution there is where you live, how many people are at risk for health problems from coal pollution, and how many asthma attacks and premature deaths are caused by coal-fired power plants.
How big is your footprint and what can you do to make a difference? King County EcoConsumer Waste Calculator – ..continue reading
It was recently reported that the Northwest power grid operators (primarily the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA)) plan to instruct wind farm operators to turn their turbines off occasionally this spring, because our grid can’t handle all of the power. Why are we turning off wind farms now and not shutting down Washington’s only coal power plant until 2025? We often hear ..continue reading
What does Earth Day mean? Pardon my rambling; I just have some thoughts on the environmental movement on the 41st anniversary of Earth Day that I want to share with you. There’s a homework assignment at the end. Don’t worry, only the fate of our civilization depends on the answers. You will be graded. In many ways the movement has come a long way: rivers don’t catch on fire; the manufacture of ozone depleting chemicals have been stopped; ..continue reading
In the last week I’ve attended two talks: a breakfast meeting hosted by the Washington Green Tech Alliance on the Smart Grid and a talk by Amory Lovins founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute on their Reinventing Fire plan. These talks reminded me of the opening of one of Dickens great novels (great as in big), not because one ..continue reading
I am so tired of having these huge ideas floating around my head and no one to share them with….so here we go. I’m opening my book to you, the sustainable community. Let’s see what happens when I turn on the idea faucet! Who’s got a bucket? Idea 1: Non-profit, Community Owned Photovoltaic FactoryDon’t you dare scoff! Read on! The gist is this; you can’t compete with China when it comes to manufacturing anything ..continue reading By Andy Silber The Poorest County in the Country is in the middle of the Saudi Arabia of Wind
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