GLREA News
GLREA has revised its webpage. You can now join GLREA on line, use our business directory to find a product or service, or use the calendar to find a conference or event. Your friends can subscribe to this newsletter and you can link to our You Tube channel. Check it out at www.glrea.org.
GLREA Member Highlight
The PV industry has seen some consolidation on the manufacturing side over the last year, but South Bend, IN based Inovateus Solar continues to stay very busy in the design and construction of commercial, municipal, and utility projects. Inovateus Solar looks to double yet again in 2012 thanks to large PV projects predominantly in Maryland, New Jersey and Massachusetts. The company is excited about some wonderful prospects to build larger projects in Michigan and Indiana in late 2012 and early 2013. The company is slowly seeing more projects coming on line in its own backyard as installation prices continue to fall and utility rates increase. Inovateus is involved in 2 large projects with Ikea on the east coast totaling over 7.5 MW’s. The company also offers great distribution prices due to large volume orders placed with manufacturers. For more information, visit www.inovateussolar.com or call Tyler Kanczuzewski at 574-485-1401.
Michigan News
Michigan Bureau of Elections has certified that the 25 x 25 ballot proposal has enough valid signatures to appear on the November ballot. The initiative to increase the Michigan renewable energy mandate to 25% by 2025 had 419,636 estimated valid signatures. http://www.mlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2012/08/casinos_renewable_energy_home.html
74,000 or More Michigan Jobs will be created if the 25 x 25 ballot proposal passes in November, according to a new report from Michigan State University researchers. The study also found the higher renewable electricity standard would create more than $10 billion in new investments. The study says the proposal would create 31,513 jobs from construction and 42,982 jobs from operations and maintenance. The jobs are expressed in “job years” meaning each job represents one year of full-time employment for one person. The authors concluded there could be a range of additional job impacts including thousands of manufacturing jobs. All told, the initiative would create between 74,495 and 113,845 jobs in Michigan. http://www.environmentalcouncil.org/mecReports/MSU_Jobs_Report_25x25.pdf
Traverse City Light & Power customers interested in participating in a Community Solar project are now able to sign up through www.tclp.org. The proposed Community Solar project would allow customers to purchase a 100 kWh “sun block” which would replace 100 kWh’s of mostly coal generation. Based on estimated project costs, each “sun block” would cost the customer an additional $16 a month. The L&P board, at its July 10 meeting, approved moving forward with gauging customer interest in the project. L&P will need at least 59 customers to sign up for one “sun block” to cover the cost of the project.
Power Panel, a Detroit-based solar panel system manufacturer, has been selected as one of 2012’s innovative building products and will showcase the next generation solar panel system at the Architecture Boston Expo (ABX) Innovation Pavilion 2012. Power Panel systems are designed to circulate water though the panel in a non-pressurized, drain-back system. This process collects thermal energy within the panel while actively cooling the PV cells, which increases electrical output. Thermal energy is stored by Power Panel’s patented modular thermal storage tank. www.powerpanel.com
Check out MiGrid. MiGrid is developing an interactive map of Michigan’s renewable energy resources. A Clean Energy Roadshow will highlight the people and stories that drive Michigan’s clean energy economy. http://www.mi-grid.com/
Arbor Brewing Company’s Corner Brewery in Ypsilanti has recently installed a solar system that will produce 16.5 kW, which will be sold to the grid, and 64.8 kW of hot water, which will be used in the beer making process. The project is using Power Panel’s combined electric and thermal solar system and Renovo Power Systems Digiwatts PV inverters. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/8/prweb9796524.htm
Net Metering and Solar Pilot Program Report issued by the MPSC shows that the number of net metering customers in Michigan surpassed 1,000 for the first time in 2011. The report noted that the number of net metering customers increased from 628 in 2010 to 1,015 in 2011. The total size of the net metering program grew from 2,828 kW in 2010 to 6,166 kW in 2011. Solar proved the most popular with 3,176 kW added in 2011; wind followed with 162 kW added in 2011. The report is available at www.Michigan.gov/netmetering.
Clean Energy Coalition has received DOE funding to support community planning for PEVs and their charging infrastructure. They have partnered with Next Energy, Greater Lansing Area Clean Cities and over 40 other stakeholders statewide to develop the Plug-In Ready Michigan Plan. The Plan, due out this fall, will address barriers to PEV and include planning tools, such as sample ordinance and master plan language. http://www.concentratemedia.com/
Food Field, a 4-acre urban farm in Detroit, will be run on solar power thanks to a grant from an online magazine. Food Field was the top vote getter in the Good Magazine Use Technology for Good Challenge. On July 31, farm owner Noah Link learned he had won $2,500 to go toward the $8,000 PV system. http://www.freep.com/article/20120818/NEWS01/308180111/Detroit-urban-farm-to-use-grant-for-solar-power-system?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE
Floating Research Platform in the middle of Lake Michigan has been collecting data on wind speeds high above the water and has begun feeding the information to researchers involved in the $3 million project. Data from June showed an average wind speed of 22 mph 410 feet above the water. Arn Boezaart, director of the Michigan Alternative & Renewable Energy Center at GVSU, has indicated that “Based on our early assessments of the average data that we’re gathering, there clearly is a very robust wind resource out over Lake Michigan.” http://www.jsonline.com/business/lake-michigan-gets-look-from-wind-researchers-a66jjsb-167914605.html
Beyond Michigan
Worldwatch Institute Research indicates that renewable energy received about $66 billion in global subsidies in 2010 compared to $775 billion for fossil fuels. http://www.renewablesbiz.com/article/12/08/global-fossil-fuel-subsidies-dwarf-renewables-aid&utm_medium=eNL&utm_campaign=RB_DAILY2&utm_term=Original-Member
U.S. Dept. of the Interior (DOI) on August 9 announced it will begin reviewing a proposal to build what would be the nation’s first floating wind farm. DOI’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is proceeding with an assessment of Statoil North America’s Hywind Maine project. The proposed wind farm, located about 12 nautical miles off the coast in water about 500 feet deep, would have a 12 MW capacity from four wind turbines. http://www.doi.gov/news/pressreleases/Interior-Announces-Next-Steps-for-Commercial-Wind-Leasing-Offshore-Maine.cfm
NREL Renewable Electricity Futures Study indicates that renewable energy technologies that are commercially available today — combined with a more flexible electrical grid — are “more than adequate” to supply 80% of the nation’s projected electricity demand in 2050. NREL is careful to point out that the study is a technical assessment, and it does not address the state and federal policies needed to usher in such a system. The changes to the electrical grid alone would require a substantial mechanical and operational makeover. http://www.circleofblue.org/waternews/2012/world/study-80-percent-of-u-s-electricity-from-renewables-is-technically-feasible-but-faces-significant-barriers/
Chicago’s South Side got a new landmark last year. A 250-foot 750 kW wind turbine was installed by Testa Produce who has built the first LEED Platinum food distribution facility in the nation. The facility in the brownfields that used to be the old Union Stock Yards also has a green roof, solar panels, and electric charging stations. http://chicagoist.com/2012/08/25/testas_turbine_triumph.php#photo-1
Northeast Sustainable Energy Assoc. Building Energy Masters Series is a web-based professional development curriculum for the renewable energy and high performance building industries. Over several weeks, each course will explore in-depth a single topic. Starting October 1, there will be courses on Zero Net Energy Homes and Passive House: The Future of Building in the US? http://nesea.cammpus.com/
Events
Michigan Energy Forum will host a panel discussion on the 25 x 25 Renewable Energy Ballot Initiative on Sept. 6, 5:00-7:00 p.m at Ann Arbor Spark, 330 East Liberty, Lower Level. http://www.annarborusa.org/events/details?e=11317
IEEE Smart Tech Workshop will be held at Sterling Inn Conference Center in Sterling
Heights on Sept. 7-8. There will be 8 hour tracks on: Introduction to the Smart Grid, Computer Engineering: Embedded Systems, Software Engineering Essentials, Electric Vehicle Engineering, and Career Assistance. This two-day intensive workshop offers parallel, all-day track sessions that allow attendees to immerse themselves in a given technology. www.ieee.org/membership_services/mga_maw_detroit.html
LEED Core Concepts & Strategies – Earn the LEED Green Associate credential with a full-day workshop and online exam question study tool. This is the first step to becoming LEED AP. Full day 8:30 – 5:00 workshop held September 10th in East Lansing & October 23rd in Ann Arbor. http://www.alliancees.org/education-and-events
Understanding LEED for Homes – Full day workshop on the green rating system for single and multifamily buildings. Held 8:30 – 5:00 September 11th in East Lansing & October 24th in Ann Arbor. http://www.alliancees.org/education-and-events
When Green Meets Black: How Sustainability Creates Profitability for Business! will be held by the Southeast Michigan Sustainable Business Forum on Sept. 14, 8:00-6:00 at the U of M, Rackham Graduate School, 915 E. Washington St. At 4:30 Bill McKibben, one of America’s preeminent environmentalists, authors, and journalists, will speak on “350: The most important number in the world.” http://www.smsbf.org/events/
Boiler Room Design, a free workshop for engineers and facility managers, will be held on Sept. 18, 10:00-2:30 at Oakland University, Shotwell-Gustafson Pavilion, 2200 N. Squirrel Rd. in Rochester. Register with Michael Collen at mcullen@prenticeco.com or 248-658-9252.
WARM Training’s 4th Annual Energy Champion Awards Breakfast will be held on Sept 20, 8:00-10:00 AM at the Masonic Temple- Crystal Ballroom, 500 Temple Ave. Detroit. Help celebrate Energy Efficiency and Sustainability in Southeast Michigan with Keynote Speaker Jerome Ringo, a National Leader in the Green Jobs Movement and Former President of the Apollo Alliance. For more information and to purchase tickets visit www.warmtraining.org or call Alicia Miller at 313-894-1030.
Joint Meeting of the W. MI Bioenergy Consortium, W. MI Wind Manufacturing Network, and W. MI Solar Supply Chain Group will hear Valerie Brader, Senior Policy Advisor to the Governor, on Sept. 20 at noon at Varnum in Grand Rapids. Email chaplar@rightplace.org
Advanced Materials for Clean Energy will be held by the Energy Innovation Business Council on Sept. 24, 9:30 am at Saginaw Valley State University. www.mieibc.org
Michigan IPL Annual Sustainability Conference will be held on Oct. 4, 9:00AM-4:00PM, in partnership with Madonna University. http://www.miipl.org/conference2012/
Solar Home Tour will be held on Saturday, October 6 at various locations in Michigan including Ypsilanti, Chelsea, East Lansing, and Southwest Michigan. http://ases.org/solar-tour/
Lawrence Tech announces its 8th annual Seminars On Sustainability Conference, SOS2012-Sustainable Urbanism to be held at Lawrence Tech on October 5-6. This conference explores sustainable solutions to the problems of 21st century shrinking cities. A storm water trail and electric vehicle charging station will be dedicated. The SOS2012 Green Expo boasts several electric and hybrid vehicles, some available for test drives. Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s sustainability film, “Home” will be shown free of charge to both conference attendees and the general public. For more information, to submit an abstract or become a sponsor, please go to www.sos2012.ltu.edu
Oakland University SBA-SECS is offering an Energy Management Certificate Program, a six week intensive program designed for busy professionals held October 5 thru Nov. 4, on Fridays, noon – 4 pm & Saturdays, 8:30 am- 4 pm. Optionally, all sessions also offered on-line. Visit www.oakland.edu\energymgmt or contact Maureen Callaghan, Professional Development Coordinator at 248-412-3235.
Live Green Fair will be held on October 6-7 in downtown Ferndale. Join MI Green Team and 100+ exhibitors, presenters, performers, media and sponsors for the event. http://migreenteam.wildapricot.org/lgf
Great Lakes Bioneers-Detroit will be held Oct. 19-21. GLBD promotes collaboration and networking among SE Michigan individuals and organizations working on sustainability and eco-justice issues. http://www.glbd.org/
Great Lakes Bioneers in Traverse City will also be held Oct. 19-21. http://www.glbconference.org/
2012 International Conference on Sustainability, Transition & Culture Change: Vision – Action – Leadership will be held on Friday, November 16 – Sunday, November 18 at the Prince Conference Center at Calvin College. Save the date.
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Source/Prepared by: John Sarver for Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association (GLREA)
