Sustainability News and Resources

WASHINGTON, DC — Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham announced today that the Department of Energy (DOE) will provide $17,390,442 for 187 energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in 48 states, the District of Columbia and one territory. Funding is being provided through DOE’s State Energy Program Special Projects competitive grants.

“President Bush’s National Energy Policy recognizes the important role states play in promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy strategies,” Secretary Abraham said. “These special energy projects will help conserve energy, provide jobs, increase our national energy security and reduce the need for new electricity generating plants.”

State energy offices will use these funds to improve the energy efficiency of schools, homes and other buildings; promote energy-efficient industrial technologies; and support renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, geothermal and biomass. Some projects will create opportunities for distributed energy resources.

States, territories and the District of Columbia competed for these DOE awards which provide specialized funding in addition to annual formula grants given to each state energy office. While actual award dates will vary, DOE anticipates making the awards in September.

Secretary Abraham launched the Department of Energy’s Smart Energy Campaign, a public awareness campaign to educate businesses, homeowners and consumers on ways they can cut energy bills, on July 9 due to lower-than-normal natural gas stocks and higher demand for the popular energy source.

Additionally, Secretary Abraham called on state energy officials to join DOE’s Smart Energy Campaign, stating, “The Bush Administration is looking for ways to lead by example in saving energy and, in particular, natural gas at our country’s federal facilities. I would encourage state governments to do the same.”

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IRS Publishes Updated Registration and Reporting Forms

The IRS has published updated versions of Form 637 and Form 720. These forms are available by going to the Forms and Publications page of the IRS website, www.irs.gov. A direct link to that page is: http://www.irs.gov/formspubs/lists/0,,id=97817,00.html.

Form 637 is the registration application that all biodiesel producers and blenders must complete. (Note: Becoming officially registered may take a considerable amount time. Planning accordingly to meet the deadlines proscribed by the IRS is critical. For information about the registration process and timing, contact your local IRS Field Office.)

* Biodiesel producers:
o Two new activity letters are included to reflect your activity.
1. Activity letter ABis for producers and importers of agri-biodiesel.
2. Activity letter NBis for producers and importers of biodiesel (other than agri-biodiesel).
o An entity can register under multiple activity letters to accurately reflect their activities.
o Current producers must have their Application reviewed and approved by the IRS by July 1, 2005. New production facilities coming on-line must have their Application reviewed and approved by the IRS before commencing production.
* Blenders:
o The updated Form 637 deletes the current Activity Letter T. Blenders must now utilize the Activity Letter M. Current Tregistrants will be accepted as Mregistrants until June 30, 2005. After that date, existing Tregistrants who are blenders must be re-registered using Activity Letter M.
o New blenders must also be registered with the IRS. They must have their registration officially approved by the IRS prior to commencing any blending activities.

The Full Text of this excerpt came from the National Board for Biodiesel - Read it Here…

DOE launched a Disaster Recovery and Building Reconstruction Web site on November 22nd as part of its continuing effort to support hurricane victims in the Gulf Coast. The new Web site encourages cost-effective, durable, and energy-efficient reconstruction in areas devastated by recent hurricanes. It provides resources and information for consumers, builders, contractors, and state and local officials, and also links to a wide range of guidelines, fact sheets, and case studies developed by DOE and other federal agencies and organizations. See the new Disaster Recovery and Building Reconstruction Web site.

Go to DOE website to read the full News post…
More Information on Solar Power and Sustainability…

New Site up. VitaminHealth.info is now part of our network of websites.

Remember when it was a counter culture thing?

There was a time when the words “organic farming” made most folks think of a counter culture stereotype. People with long hair, and maybe a sympathetic bone for communal doings.

The USDA has put up $750,000 for research to help set the stage for long-term organic farming efforts at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln.

The project will expand research on organic farming, allow more collaboration with growers and develop more information on producing organic food.

The project’s overall goals include setting up NU’s first certified organic research plots, incorporating organic farming concepts into UNL Extension and classroom education, and developing an ecological index of different farming methods.
Read full post about organic farming

Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, November 16: The Imphal Regional Centre of Organic Farming under National Centre of Organic Farming, Ghaziabad has invited applications for Service Providers.

Interested organisations/ bodies may apply, informed a DIPR release.

It also stated that Capital Investment Subsidy Scheme under the National Project on Organic Farming has been launched keeping in view the importance of organic farming.

Eligible organisations for the scheme included bio-fertilizer units, vermiculture hatcheries, fruit and vegetables waste compost units.

Details can be had from the Assistant Director, Regional Centre for Organic Farming, State Agriculture Farm, Mantripukhri, the release added.

There will be a one-day seminar on Gardening the Organic Way on Dec 4 at the YMCA in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur.

Topics for the event, which includes an exhibition on organic fruits and vegetables, include an overview on organic farming, starting an organic garden, controlling pests and diseases without chemicals, composting and recycling household waste, commercial aspects of organic farming, and health benefits of organic farming.

Speakers are from the Malaysian Agriculture Research and

ENVIRONMENT: COLDIRETTI, BIODIESEL BEFORE AN EMERGENCY HAPPENS

(AGI) - Rome, Italy, Nov. 28 - With biodiesel emissions are halved and we save the planet. Coldiretti is gathering signatures in support of an initiative to produce one million tons of biofuels from crop production, which will reduce emissions of hydrocarbons by 80 pct and of subtle particles by 50 pct. Thus announced chairman of Coldiretti Paolo Bedoni at the opening of the UN Conference on climate change in Montreal. Recent Coldiretti studies have showed how an acre of cultivated land can capture between 0.75 and 1.85 tons of carbon dioxide, or 300-700 litres of diesel.

The initiative to produce a million tons of biodiesel, integrated in petrol stations at 5 pct can assure 10 million cars 20,000 km per year. The initiative is part of a project to reduce costs for business and make more resources available for Italian made goods. Coldiretti states that to fight pollution and expensive oil it is necessary to invest in alternative energies such as biofuels obtained from crops like sunflower and that the increase in oil prices makes these fuels more competitive, and therefore making it easier to reach the aims of the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gas emissions. (AGI) .

Fuel Quality Information

MGR writes “National Geographic is reporting that Japanese scientists have discovered a way to convert vegetable oil into biodiesel with a much less expensive catalyst (between 10 and 50 times cheaper) than what is currently used. From the article: ‘Any vegetable oil can become fuel, but not until its fatty acids are converted to chemical compounds known as esters. Currently the acids used to convert the fatty acids are prohibitively expensive. Michikazu Hara, of the Tokyo Institute of Technology in Yokohama, Japan, and his colleagues have used common, inexpensive sugars to form a recyclable solid acid that does the job on the cheap.’”
This news thread…
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11/28/2005, 2:21 p.m. ET
By ELISABETH WALDON
The Associated Press

CARSON CITY, Mich. (AP) — The exhaust from most diesel engines smells like diesel.

Justin Keiffer’s 1984 Volkswagen Rabbit smells like doughnuts. A 2002 Carson City-Crystal High School graduate, Keiffer, 21, first became interested in biodiesel fuel when writing a paper on the subject in teacher Mike Steere’s high school class.

Now a senior at Kettering University in Flint, where he is majoring in mechanical engineering, Keiffer is immersed in the study of biodiesel fuel. He purchased a 1982 Volkswagen Rabbit pickup truck for $100 and later the ‘84 maroon car for about the same price on eBay. Keiffer began using vegetable oil free thanks to the Carson Village Market bakery in Carson City in March and says he has saved more than $1,600 in fuel costs since then.