How was your summer weather?

Been a rough week, no rain to speak of, just hotter than all getout and lots of wind, but we made it so far….
How about you?

We have had so far approx. 75 straight days of over 100 degree weather since June 1, 2011. Approximately 30 days of over 105 degrees. I know that the southwest region is used to these type of temperatures but Texas only has this during August.

Needless to say, it has been a very long, hot summer. For all other parts of the country that has had rain, please remember that sound as we here have not heard it in a while. The weathermen are predicting that the rain is coming, possibly this weekend. Oh yeah, a possible cold front to move through here on Monday.

Whether we like it or not, there is a climate change going on. Look at hurricane Irene. She was huge over water until she hit land and started to down size but there was damage along the east coast and is still being felt in the northeast.

As we move on into the fall season, we will most likely experience a warm winter. I could be wrong but with all of the indicators of this summer, who knows.

Weather … as the green future unfolds.

How Many Gadgets Do You Have?

I am sure that if you sat down and counted all of the gadgets you have in your home today, you would be amazed.  So listed below is the latest facts on how gadgets affect your lives.

1,400: The dollar amount the average American household spends on new electronics annually.

20-40: Number of gadgets the average American keeps on stand by, that suck up energy even when turned off. Televisions, computers, electric toothbrushes, phones, radios are more all use up energy and money when they aren’t even in use. (more…)

Unbelievable What IS Happening to Sea Turtles

For all of you who have heard about global warming causing the decline in sea turtles. Aha… maybe we have discovered why the sea turtle is becoming extinct; and it is not global warming!

COSTA RICA
(more…)

Energy Department Applauds World’s First Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Station in Orange County

The U.S. Department of Energy today issued the following statement in support of the commissioning of the world’s first tri-generation fuel cell and hydrogen energy station to provide transportation fuel to the public and electric power to an industrial facility, located at the Orange County Sanitation District’s wastewater treatment plant in Fountain Valley, California. The fuel cell commissioned today is a combined heat, hydrogen, and power system that co-produces hydrogen in addition to electricity and heat, making it a tri-generation system. The hydrogen produced by the system is sent to a hydrogen fueling station that will be open to the public and can support between 25 and 50 fuel cell electric vehicle fill-ups per day. The fuel cell also produces approximately 250 kW of power for use by the wastewater treatment plant. This on-site approach to hydrogen production advances hydrogen infrastructure technologies that will accelerate the use of this renewable fuel.

“Innovations like this demonstrate how American ingenuity and targeted investment can accelerate breakthroughs in the hydrogen and fuel cell industry while driving the clean energy economy forward,” said DOE’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for Renewable Energy Steve Chalk. “By providing the added value of electricity and heat, this approach provides a significant step in overcoming economic challenges with hydrogen refueling infrastructure.”

Background Information
The Fountain Valley tri-generation fuel cell and hydrogen energy station uses biogas from the municipal wastewater treatment plant as the fuel for a fuel cell. The system is integrated with a hydrogen purification system to recover approximately 100 kg of hydrogen per day. The project was developed as a partnership between the U.S. Department of Energy, California Air Resources Board, the Orange County Sanitation District, and private industry. The project is managed by Air Products and additional partners include FuelCell Energy, Inc. and the National Fuel Cell Research Center at the University of California, Irvine.

The Fountain Valley fuel cell system could offer a pathway to low-cost hydrogen and also demonstrates the versatility of fuel cells to utilize multiple feedstocks, such as biogas and natural gas, to produce power and renewable hydrogen that can be used to fuel light duty vehicles such as forklifts or as backup power in applications such as cell phone towers. Primarily running on biogas, the system can also use natural gas to sustain a consistent feedstock in the case of any disruption in biogas availability or quality.

DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy invests in clean energy technologies that strengthen the economy, protect the environment, and reduce dependence on foreign oil. Find out more about DOE’s support of research, development and deployment of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.

… as the green future unfolds.

Rapid Concrete Infrastructure

Concrete Canvas manufacture a ground breaking material technology called Concrete Cloth that allows concrete to be used in a completely new way. Concrete Cloth was originally developed for the award winning Concrete Canvas Shelters, a building in a bag that requires only water and air for construction.

CCS have a range of applications in both civil and military sectors, as emergency key infrastructure for distaster relief or frontline operations.

Pretty neat idea and is available now!

… as the green future unfolds.

All counties in Texas are in burn ban mode due to heat wave!

It has been so hot here in Texas, that all heat records are being broken. Not only day by day but consecutive days over 100 degrees! Currently, in East Texas, we have had 41 consecutive days of over 100 degrees and still counting. The hottest has been 112 and let me tell ya, this little RV’s a/c cannot handle that level of heat!

This heat is also affecting every facet of life on this state. The electric companies are starting up old power stations to handle the load on the grid. Many pleas are going out over the news networks to shut down everything that is not essential during the hours of 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. (i.e. lights, tvs, etc.). No watering of lawns which are dead anyway. Those who are trying to save their lawns may be burning them up by watering in the afternoon which is like placing a magnifying glass on each blade thus the burn mode. There are so many water pipes breaking across the state that until they are fixed folks need to boil their water.

The animals are suffering. For instance, deer are abandoning their young due to not being able to produce milk and/or keep themselves hydrated. Racoons look pretty scrawny and are raiding dog and cat dishes to keep themselves alive.

(Nacogdoches PD)

NASA has confirmed that a spherical artifact found in a drying lake in Nacogdoches (Lake Nacogdoches) was part of space shuttle Columbia, which broke up over Texas in 2003 when its heat shield failed.

The tank was part of the shuttle’s electrical power system which as the name suggests consists of the equipment and reactants that produce electrical power for distribution throughout the orbiter.

Speaking of lakes… Most boat launches are closed due to the drying up of the lakes. They tend to drop off past the concrete. Not good.

The firefighters are really busy for the grass fires that were accidently started or some idiot decided he needed to burn his trash and created an out of control grass fire. Needless to say, he got fined.

A drought has left the OC Fisher Reservoir in San Angelo State Park in West Texas almost entirely dry. The water that is left is stagnant, full of dead fish — and a deep, opaque red.

So, is it bad? Yes! Hopefully, doing a rain dance here locally will bring thunder storms or just plain ol rain! We need it!

Latest saying – Satan called and he wants his weather back! … as the green future unfolds.

The EVOLUTE™ has world leading water efficiency, using less than 1 liter of water, whereas a conventional toilet uses approximately 6-12 liters per flush.

Recently, Australian inventors Tom Trainor and Mark Hutton came up with a product that they claim uses up to 90% less water than a regular toilet. The EVOLUTE is still in the development phase, and is not expected to be available to the public until 2012.

Not a bad idea, eh? I think these guys will be very successful!

…. as the green future unfolds.