Results tagged “Renewable Energy” from Ultimate Politics

Program to Relocate and Assist Environmental Refugees We seek to to promote awareness about Environmental Refugees and petition the UNHCR and Industrialized nations to recognize the legal status of those displaced by Climate Change so that they may seek asylum as refugees. www.praer.org

In parts 1-3 of this 'blogumentary' we covered the amount of renewable energy just waiting for us to tap, how local governments and people are getting involved, and how we need the federal government to change the laws to support renewable energy. (and a good bit of information from Dcoronata on Geothermal energy. Now for the bread and butter issue: jobs. With the economic forecast showing a continued housing slump and general signs of a recession, a decade long approach of offshoring jobs, bad unemployment numbers, and no real growth in any job sector except service jobs, there seems to be a lot wrong with our country's economic health. Fortunately, there is a solution for these problems, the emergence of green collar jobs. In this installment, we are going to be listening to Richard Eidlin from the Apollo Alliance, and Carmen Rhodes from FRESC.

Question - How do we get good jobs from Renewable energy and what does the Apollo alliance do? A- (Richard Eidlin) The Apollo alliance (whose slogan is: Good Jobs, Clean energy, Freedom from Foreign Oil) is a coalition of business, labor and environmental groups focused on growing the economy in a substainable prosperous way by investing in clean energy that will result in MILLIONS of good jobs across the United States. This includes jobs in the automotive industry, building and infrastructure, construction, engineering... that would impact electrical engineers, contractors, construction workers, marketing people, installation techs, bringing new jobs to the market.

(me) One of the tings you are hoping to do is to go into the urban sectors where jobs have been lost, and retrain and re-employ workers to make solar panels or intricate parts for wind turbines... (Richard Eidlin) Yes, particularly in the industrial midwest, there is a tremendous opportunity to create a manufacturing base once again. There are a lot of facilities lying dormant, many skilled workers - what we need now is the political will and capital to bring those jobs back. For instance, parts to wind turbines could be manufactured in parts of Ohio or Michigan if legislators would act on this.

Carmen, what is FRESC and what do you do? FRESC (whose slogan is Good Jobs, Good Communities) is a Colorado organization looking to create and retain good paying jobs, create and maintain low income housing with environmental sustainability in mind, and we really believe in connecting environmental sustainability with economic sustainability with workers. But, it is not going to 'just happen'. We have to be systematic and strategic about how that happens, so that people building things (like electric) light rail sysytems, that the work is done by construction workers who are making good wages and have health care. (me) you mentioned the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) in Denver moving in this direction. (Carmen Rhodes) Organized labor, like the building trade, are really training the next generation of construction workers to have the skills necessary to build with environmental sustainability. Here at the IBEW, they have installed solar panels as a training opportunity for their workers and now have also saved hundreds of dollars in energy costs.

Remember Millions of new jobs, and not jobs serving coffee or mopping floors, but engineering and manufacturing jobs, jobs that have been outsourced and that took a lot of the middle class livelihood with them. Get in touch with these individuals at www.apolloalliance.org and www.fresc.org.

Part 2: Local Energy Initiatives: This will cover some of the ways citizens have gotten involved in passing laws to change their options for energy use, effectively giving a level playing field fo renewable energy. Now, although this post seems to be Colorado focused, the fact is, in part due to the location of the National Renewable Energy lab in Golden,Colorado combined with an active progressive community, Colorado has been leading the nation in embracing renewable energy. Here to tell us more about this and the Clean Energy Progress Fund - an initiative to be voted on this fall in Colorado, is Professor Thomas McKinnon, a Chemical Engineer,who has worked both with the NREL and with the School of Mines and now heads up the drive to support the Clean Energy Progress Fund. Part 2: local energy initiatives

"we have cost effective solutions"

Question - Tell us, Professor McKinnon, what is the Clean Energy Progress Fund? A - The Clean Energy Progress Fund is a way to support Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency and promote carbon sequestration in agricultural soils and forests. It is a triple win, it will help us with our economy, with our energy security, and will strengthen our environment. We really need to have a more secure energy source and the Clean Energy Progress Fund will promote solar power, especially Concentrating Solar Power, which focuses the sun through mirrors on a trough, like the one in Las Vegas, which generates 64 megawatts. Through Concentrating Solar Power, we could easily generate all the electricity for Colorado, just in the San Luis Valley, and at a cost that is competitive with a coal powered plant. Many of the things we are proposing,the only way for them to happen is for the government to get involved. For Transmission lines and other upgrades, that is where the Clean Energy Progress Fund would provide money from the people. We are also helping to create community action. For instance in Boulder, (first city in the U.S. to pass a carbon tax in November 2004) we have communities that are getting together to talk about how to save energy and the environment. Because we can see changes in the environment, and there are dangers, increased droughts, wildfires, new problems like beetle infestations, and so on. Global warming is a global issue, so Colorado could eliminate our heat trapping emissions to zero and there would still be an issue, but collectively through this Clean Energy Progress Fund, Colorado can be a leader, passing the first of bill of this kind nationally.

People all around the country should get involved in this bill. Just like in 2006, when Colorado passed the first law of its kind, the first time in the Nation's history that a renewable energy portfolio standard was put directly before voters rather than processed through a state's legislature there are the naysayers that say we can't do things like this. In that campaign, the 'smart people' said it would be impossible to make Xcel energy and other large utilities to commit to making at least 3% of their energy portfolio renewable energy by 2007 and 10% by 2015. Not only were they wrong, but Xcel reached 6% by 2007, and now leads the country in renewable energy. That makes ripples, that will effect everyone, and will put pressure on the other Utilities to follow suit. Clean Energy Progress Fund will take Colorado and the Nation to the next step by raising 200 million through this fall's ballot, for renewable energy in Colorado, and as an example for the Nation. They need your help to change our future. Get involved. Go to www.cleanenergyprogress.org and get involved, contribute and help (and tell Professor Thomas McKinnon where you heard of them) because this issue, and global warming, can't wait.

Question: Why are you running for County Commissioner? Answer: The main reason I am running is to put an end to the corruption that has plagued this county for years. My opponent, Kevin McCaskey joined with Jim Congrove last year and they used taxpayer money to hire a private investigator to follow around Jefferson County citizens who were critical of the government. An Adams county District Attorney nearly indicted them - I tell people these stories and they can't believe me but they all have been reported in the Newspaper. Question: What is your vision for economic development in Jefferson County? Answer: We have the National Renewable Energy Lab in Golden, the School of the Mines, we have a Governor, Governor Ritter who is very pro-renewable energy. There is no reason that Jefferson County shouldn't be the epicenter of the renewable energy industry in this country. We've got the expertise, the resources, you could bring your company here to Jefferson County and have experts to real experts at NREL and the School of Mines and that is something that I am going to do if elected is to bring these companies here and bring these good jobs and that fits into the theme of responsible growth that preserves open space and growing this county with good jobs give back to the community and give back to the Earth with these renewable energy companies. Now that sounds like real leadership for Jefferson County, for our state, and for our nation. It is time that this part of the country, the place that has been the long neglected area of focus in our country - Renewable Energy, have new leadership, that is not Republican and is looking forward to a new era of Energy solutions. Visit Mr. Bane's website at http://www.votebane.com/ or www.jasonbane.org

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3