Philips, GE, Sylvania Showcase Newer, Greener Lightbulbs

The world’s largest lighting tradeshow, LIGHTFAIR International, is occurring this week in Philadelphia. While I was unable to go to the show this year, I have been glued to my computer reading about new product launches, each more amazing than the one I just read about.

Without a doubt, the theme of the show is new energy efficient bulbs. The new technologies are coming from leading manufacturers of lighting products that are showcasing bulbs in every shape, brightness level and price point imaginable.

The industry is really racing to provide more energy efficient alternatives to the 125-year-old incandescent lightbulb. A major catalyst for all this work is the new federal energy efficiency standards for lightbulbs that go into effect starting in 2012 that will update the energy-guzzling, 100-watt lightbulbs.

In the last year or so, we have seen more innovation in this space than in the last 50 years combined. Below are some examples of the new lightbulbs that consumers will soon see on the shelf:

New and improved incandescents. Earlier this year, each of the big three lighting companies -- Philips, GE and Sylvania -- "reinvented" the incandescent lightbulb and introduced new versions that use at least 28 percent less power to operate. These bulbs will comply with the new federal efficiency standards. We understand leading lighting companies like TCP, the biggest producer of CFLs sold in the United States, are hard at work at producing an even better incandescent that uses 50 percent less energy than conventional bulbs.

Brighter and better performing LED bulbs. LEDs use around 80 percent less energy than today's incandescent and last up to 25,000 hours (that's almost 25 years at around three hours per day). LED manufacturers have been working hard to make LED bulbs brighter, dimmable and able to distribute the lights in all directions. At LIGHTFAIR several companies announced new LED lightbulbs that only use 17 watts and are just as bright as the old 75-watt incandescent bulb.

Here is a picture (left) of the Philips EnduraLED, which is expected to hit the shelf later this fall. Not only is this bulb super efficient but several of the key components are likely to be manufactured in the US.

This week, I got a call from a colleague who was excited to share that lighting manufacturers had figured out how to make a LED that is as bright as a 100-watt incandescent. The news keeps getting better. At least three companies showed prototype LED bulbs that would replace today's 100-watt incandescent and only use 15 watts or so.

These bulbs are being shown by companies such as Lighting Sciences Group, Osram Sylvania (the bulb pictured to the right, in the left frame) and a new startup company called Switch Lighting (the bulb on the far right), which features this futuristic looking design.

Longer Lasting and Improved CFLs. Not to be lost behind all the buzz about LEDs, let's not forget the little ole spiral CFL. CFLs continue to be a very cost effective energy saving option for consumers. Today's CFLs are far superior to older versions and will save consumers $30 to $50 over their lifetime. Lighting manufacturers have also been working to extend the bulb lifetime and most of the bulbs now are rated 8,000 and 10,000 hours, up from 6,000 hours previously. CFL pricing has come way down and consumers can now find CFLs for $2 per bulb in multipacks at big-box retailers. In addition, retailers like Home Depot and Lowe's have stepped up to the plate and offer free recycling for the bulbs.

Based on all the points of bright light emerging from Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, this week, it's clear that consumer choice will increase as a result of the new lighting standards. Choices will include new energy saving incandescents, CFLs, LEDs and probably some new technology we have not even conceived of. Let there be light!

One arm of GE’s financial services is dedicated solely to energy loans and investments—it’s known as GE Energy Financial Services. More recently, GE has formed a joint venture called Energy Technology Ventures with companies Conoco Phillips and NRG Energy that’s solely focused on spurring new renewable energy technologies and ventures. If money speaks louder than words, than GE’s recent investments speak volumes: The company has put $150 million behind ventures in solar, biofuels and clean coal technology and $6 billion behind renewable energy projects, including what will be, when completed, the largest wind farm in the world, located in Oregon (with test runs happening this summer).

Here, Kevin Walsh, managing director and leader of power and renewable energy at GE Energy Financial Services, talks about GE’s plans to make renewable energy cost-competitive and drive a new era of energy innovation. 

E Magazine: So Energy Technology Ventures has already invested in three main areas—solar, biofuels and clean coal?
Kevin Walsh: We’ve been investing in clean tech for three or four years on our own—now we formed this venture to continue investing in this area with these two partners which allows us to play bigger, to leverage their expertise in this area, to see more deals, given all three of us are now looking for opportunities. We’ve invested 20-plus deals in this space on our own. The venture side of clean-tech is fairly new, fairly small dollars but we think highly impactful for GE in terms of the technology window.

E: It seems like a lot of that $6 billion going toward renewable projects is geared toward wind.
K.W.: Three-quarters of it is wind, and that’s not surprising given the penetration. We have a lot of wind in the U.S. in terms of megawatts installed. Wind is less expensive than solar. So it’s had more appeal in the marketplace. We’ve supported large-scale, utility-scale wind projects in the U.S. for several years and are leading the world in terms of installed megawatts. We do have some investments outside the U.S. as well, but a good chunk of that $6 billion is here in the U.S.

E: Is that beginning to change this year—is GE investing more in solar?
K.W.: Solar has become much less expensive because the price of the panels has come down dramatically with supply-and-demand dynamics and the improvements in efficiencies. We are looking at some very significant solar projects right now. Of course, GE Energy just announced its renewed foray into solar PV, a big announcement, so we expect to be supporting them in that effort with financial muscle for the projects. We did a very significant project in Kansas that we just closed on—it’s still being built, so we’ll put our funding in place later this year. But that was a $70 million transaction.

E: What can you tell me about Shepherd’s Flat Wind Farm—the world’s largest wind farm—being built in Oregon?
K.W.: It’s very noteworthy. The largest wind farm in the world, 850 megawatts, $2 billion project. We worked with a company called Caithness Energy to finish the development of it. It’s currently under construction, and will use GE’s 2.5-MW wind turbine. This will be the introduction of that turbine to the U.S. market [the turbines were launched in Europe a decade ago]. The project has garnered a number of awards, given the size and complexity of the transaction.

E: California recently raised its Renewables Portfolio Standard (the amount of state energy that must come from renewable sources) to 33% by 2020. Do you see that having an impact on the demand for renewable energy?
K.W.: California has upped the ante with the 33% target. That does drive a lot of demand. There’s some back pressure on renewables right now that we need to be straightforward about—where the economy is right now, with the budget struggles we see in Washington, and with natural gas prices being very, very low, renewables are up against some head winds right now. Without a price on carbon as well. Renewables continue to need some incentive support. That’s difficult in this budgetary environment. We continue to need the important long-term policy support to enable renewables to continue to maneuver down the cost curve and compete. Particularly against technologies that don’t have the carbon burden that many of us believe should be in place. [At GE] we continue to do what we can on the technology side and the cost side to enable renewables to compete as best they can in that context.

E.: What do you see as the most promising renewable energy ventures?
K.W.: On the venture side, a company called Ciris is innovating ways to accelerate the conversion of coal to methane both within the mine itself and with coal that’s already been extracted. We think that if it works would be an absolute game-changer to accelerate that process. We have invested in a number of smart-grid related companies: software, hardware, enabling the conversion of our grid to a more useful tool. We have invested in solar technology—companies that we think have a very compelling cost take-down story or efficiency story. Biofuels, energy storage—batteries and compressed air storage, ultracapacitors. We’ve invested in some wind technology, mainly a blade manufacturer and a permanent magnet generator for technology wind turbines. So we’re spreading our bets across what we think will be the most impactful and where we can see some real quantum gains. 

Special thanks to our great green friend Brita Belli

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Report: Toyota to make plug-in capability standard on Prius models debuting in 2014

Reuters July 27, 2011

The Nikkei reports that Toyota Motor Corp. (TMC) plans to make plug-in capabilities standard for Prius hybrid models slated to debut in 2014.

Prius hybrid models debuting in 2014 will come with plug-in capabilities as a standard feature. Around 2015, Toyota aims to lift global hybrid sales to around 1 million units a year, bringing the total number traveling the world’s roadways to 5 million. Since some 70% are expected to be Prius models, the automaker hopes to use the plug-in versions to tap replacement demand.

The future plug-ins will feature high-performance lithium ion batteries. Current models can travel a maximum 38km [24 miles] per liter. The fourth-generation offerings will be able to cover more than 60km [37 miles], including electricity-only mileage.

To offset the cost of the battery packs and keep pricing in line with current models, TMC will further cut prices on the high-performance motors and other core components, the report said.

From our great green friends at Reuters

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“I was expecting to find hexavalent chromium in some of the cities we checked, but I didn’t expect it to be so widespread,” said Rebecca Sutton, lead author of the study.

Study results released today by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) report that hexavalent chromium, the cancer-causing chemical made famous by the film “Erin Brockovich,” has been detected in the tap water of 31 of the 35 U.S. cities tested.

The highest levels were in Norman, Oklahoma, Honolulu, Hawaii, and Riverside, Calif. In all, water samples from 25 cities contained the toxic metal at concentrations above the safe maximum recently proposed by California regulators.

The cities tested are:
Norman, Okla. – 12.9 ppb
Honolulu, Hi. – 2.00 ppb
Riverside, Calif. – 1.69 ppb
Madison, Wis. – 1.58 ppb
San Jose, Calif. – 1.34 ppb
Tallahassee, Fla. – 1.25 ppb
Omaha, Neb. – 1.07 ppb
Albuquerque, N.M. – 1.04 ppb
Pittsburgh, Pa. – 0.88 ppb
Bend, Ore. – 0.78 ppb
Salt Lake City, Utah – 0.30 ppb
Ann Arbor, Mich. – 0.21 ppb
Atlanta, Ga. – 0.20 ppb
Los Angeles, Calif. – 0.20 ppb
Bethesda, Md. – 0.19 ppb
Phoenix, Ariz. – 0.19 ppb
Washington, D.C – 0.19 ppb
Chicago, Ill. – 0.18 ppb
Milwaukee, Wis. – 0.18 ppb
Villanova, Pa. – 0.18 ppb
Sacramento, Calif. – 0.16 ppb
Louisville, Ky. – 0.14 ppb
Syracuse, N.Y. – 0.12 ppb
New Haven, Conn. – 0.08 ppb
Buffalo, N.Y. – 0.07 ppb
Las Vegas, Nev. – 0.06 ppb
New York, N.Y. – 0.06 ppb
Scottsdale, Ariz. – 0.05 ppb
Miami, Fla. – 0.04 ppb
Boston, Mass. – 0.03 ppb
Cincinnati, Ohio – 0.03 ppb

According to the EPA, hexavalent chromium is “likely to be carcinogenic to humans.” Yet, EWG reports, “Despite mounting evidence of its toxic effects, the EPA has not set a legal limit for hexavalent chromium in tap water nationally and does not require water utilities to test for it.”

The National Toxicology Program has said that chromium-6 (hexavalent chromium) in drinking water shows “clear evidence of carcinogenic activity.”

The EWG states that the total number of Americans drinking tap water contaminated with this compound is likely far higher than is indicated by EWG’s tests. At least 74 million people in nearly 7,000 communities drink tap water polluted with “total chromium,” which includes hexavalent and other forms of the metal, according to EWG’s 2009 analysis of water utility tests from 48,000 communities in 42 states (EWG 2009).

At least 74 million people in nearly 7,000 communities drink tap water polluted with “total chromium,” which includes hexavalent and other forms of the metal.

“I was expecting to find hexavalent chromium in some of the cities we checked, but I didn’t expect it to be so widespread,” said Rebecca Sutton, a senior scientist with the Environmental Working Group and the lead author of the study.

Sutton said there is a well-documented corollary between exposure to chromium-6 and a greater risk of stomach cancer in humans. Additionally, there is ample animal evidence showing a broad risk of gastrointestinal tumors in rats and mice exposed to the toxin, she said.
Drinking bottled water in place of tap water does not guarantee you’ll be protected.

“Bottled water is not necessarily any safer than tap water,” said Sutton. “We just don’t have any guarantee that hexavalent chromium isn’t in that water.”

So how can you protect yourself? Sutton says your best bet is buying an reverse osmosis water filter certified to remove this contaminant.

So how can you protect yourself? Sutton says your best bet is buying an reverse osmosis water filter certified to remove this contaminant.

“Getting the water filter is a great way to protect yourself and your family,” says Sutton. “It’s a step you can take yourself; you don’t have to wait for government action.”

Samples from the test provided a “one-time snapshot” of water systems that serve 26 million people, the Environmental Working Group said. But the organization said the results show that more federal regulation of the cancer-causing chemical is needed.

Brendan Gilfillan, an EPA spokesman, said that the agency was aware of the new study by the Environmental Working Group and that the findings will be considered as the agency reviews total chromium in drinking water, work that is expected to be completed next year.

Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, said that water utilities across the country are resistant to additional regulation.

“It’s not their fault. They didn’t cause the contamination. But if a limit is set, it’s going to be extraordinarily expensive for them to clean this up,” Cook said. “The problem in all of this is that we lose sight of the water drinkers, of the people at the end of the tap. There is tremendous push-back from polluters and from water utilities. The real focus has to be on public health.”

This report provided to Great Green Shopping from our friends at www.ewg.org.

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As the outdoor season approaches, many homeowners and outdoor enthusiasts look to ways of coping with mosquitoes. With all the publicity about the West Nile virus, mosquito repelling products are gaining in popularity. But many commercial insect repellents contain from 5% to 25% DEET. There are concerns about the potential toxic effects of DEET, especially when used by children. Children who absorb high amounts of DEET through insect repellents have developed seizures, slurred speech, hypotension and bradycardia.

There are new DEET-free mosquito repellents on the market today which offer some relief to those venturing outdoors in mosquito season. But there are also certain plants which are easy to grow and will have some effect in repelling mosquitoes from areas of your home and garden.

Here are five of the most effective mosquito repelling plants which are easy to grow in most regions of the US:

1. Citronella

Citronella is the most common natural ingredient used in formulating mosquito repellents. The distinctive citronella aroma is a strong smell which masks other attractants to mosquitoes, making it harder for them to find you. Although citronella is used in many forms, such as scented candles, torches and citronella ‘scented’ plants, the living plant is more effective because it has a stronger smell.

Citronella is a perennial ‘clumping’ grass which grows to a height of 5 – 6 feet. It can be grown directly in the ground in climate zones where frost does not occur. If grown in the garden or near the patio, it should be planted in the ‘background’, behind small decorative flowers and shrubs. In northern climate zones citronella can be grown in a large pot or planter, ideally with casters, so it can be rolled indoors during winter.

Gardening centers usually sell citronella as small plants in pots, ready to transplant to a larger pot or into ground beds. Once established, new plants can be propagated in early spring by splitting large clumps into smaller sections and replanting the new ‘starts’ in pots or other areas of the garden. Citronella plants are considered low maintenance, like most grasses, and they do best in full sun and well-drained locations. Periodic applications of nitrogen-rich fertilizers will ensure vigorous growth, but this treatment only needs to be applied once a year, preferably in early spring.

When purchasing citronella, look for the true varieties, Cybopogon nardus or Citronella winterianus. Other plants may be sold as ‘citronella scented’, but these do not have the mosquito repelling qualities of true citronella.

2. Horsemint

Also known as Beebalm, Horsemint is an adaptable perennial plant which repels mosquitoes much the same as citronella. It gives off a strong incense-like odor which confuses mosquitoes by masking the smell of its usual hosts.

Horsemint is a fast growing, shade-tolerant and drought-resistant plant which reaches a height and width of 2 – 3 feet. It does well in dry, sandy soil and can tolerate salty conditions, which is why it is often found in coastal and beach areas. Horsemint seeds can be sown indoors in trays for later transplanting, or sown directly into the ground in late summer in colder climate zones. Midwest and Eastern growing zones are favoured for growing horsemint.

Mature horsemint plants can be divided in spring and fall by dividing into small sections and transplanting into permanent locations. Horsemint can also be planted in pots for moving indoors in cold climate zones.

Horsemint leaves can be dried and used to make herbal tea. Its flowers will also attract bees and butterflies to your garden.

3. Marigolds

Commonly grown as ornamental border plants, marigolds are hardy annual plants which have a distinctive smell which mosquitoes, and some gardeners, find particularly offensive. Marigolds contain Pyrethrum, a compound used in many insect repellents.

Marigolds prefer full sunlight and reasonably fertile soil. Although marigolds can be planted from seed, starter plants are inexpensive and readily available at most garden centers. Although an annual, marigold will often reseed itself in favourable conditions, or the gardener can easily collect seeds for future germination. Established plants will need to be thinned, and flowers should be dead-headed to promote additional blooms.

Potted marigolds can be positioned near entrances to your home and any common mosquito entry points, such as open windows. The smell may deter mosquitoes from going past this barrier. While marigolds can be used as border plants around the patio, we do not advise putting marigolds on the patio table since the bright blooms may attract wasps.

Besides repelling mosquitoes, marigolds repel insects which prey on tomato plants, so you may want to plant a few marigolds in your tomato bed for added protection.

4. Ageratum

Also known as Flossflowers, Ageratum emits a smell which mosquitos find particularly offensive. Ageratum secretes coumarin, which is widely used in commercial mosquito repellents.

Ageratum is a low-lying annual ornamental plant which reaches heights of 8 – 18”, and is easily recognized by its blue flowers, although there are varieties with pink, white and violet blooms. This plant will thrive in full or partial sun and does not require rich soil. It is often displayed in rock gardens where low-lying plants are favoured.

Although the leaves of Ageratum can be crushed to increase the emitted odor, it is not advisable to rub the crushed leaves directly on the skin.

5. Catnip

Catnip is a natural mosquito repellent. In August 2010, entomologists at Iowa State University reported to the American Chemical Society that catnip is ten times more effective than DEET, the chemical found in most commercial insect repellents. According to Iowa State researcher Chris Peterson, the reason for its effectiveness is still unknown. “It might simply be acting as an irritant or they don’t like the smell. But nobody really knows why insect repellents work.”

In the laboratory, Peterson put groups of 20 mosquitoes in a two-foot glass tube, half of which was treated with nepetalactone, a biologically active characteristic constituent of catnip. After 10 minutes, only an average of 20 percent – about four mosquitoes – remained on the side of the tube treated with a high dose (1.0%) of the oil. In the low dose test (0.1%) an average of 25% – five mosquitoes – stayed on the treated side. When the same tests were conducted using DEET (diethyl-meta-toluamide), approximately 40 to 45% – eight to nine mosquitoes – remained on the treated side. A ten-fold higher concentration of DEET was required to obtain results similar to those of the Catnip.

Catnip, Nepeta cateria, is very easy to grow. This perennial herb is related to mint, and grows readily both as a weed and a commercially cultivated plant in most areas of the US.

While catnip will repel mosquitoes in close proximity to the plant, some people apply crushed catnip leaves or catnip oil for more robust protection. Bear in mind, however, that cats will respond to you similarly as they would respond to the plant itself. Cat owners may want to choose an alternative plant for repelling mosquitoes.

While the plants mentioned in this article have been shown to have mosquito-repelling properties, there are environmental variables that can mitigate their effectiveness. A breeze may direct odors in the opposite direction if advancing mosquitoes, reducing the plant’s effectiveness. New formulations of non-toxic mosquito repellents are commercially available, and are advised for people who want to enjoy the outdoors without the annoyance of persistent mosquitoes.


Brought to you by our great green friends at Eartheasy.com

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With the Wikileaked news that Saudi Arabia may have overstated oil reserves by as much as 40%, speculation about peak oil has been rampant. Peak oil is the principle that once half of oil reserves are gone (the peak), scarcity will increase and prices rise as the remaining reserves become more difficult to reach. The result is more like a slow bleed than a sudden catastrophe—and the resulting record-high pump prices are already being felt.

While the U.S. hit peak oil in the 1970s, global reserves have proven unexpectedly high (at least until now). The problem with cheap oil, though, is it leads to more use, hastening the day when we really do hit peak oil. Thus the surge in highway building and automobile use in China, speeding us to peak oil and beyond. Two possible reactions to the increasing difficulty of meeting the world’s oil needs are to go further afield in the search for oil and to find alternatives. (A third necessary though often overlooked alternative is to reduce personal transportation and other oil-consuming activities.)  Unfortunately, we seem to be careening toward the first option. Which brings up another element: the environmental cost of oil. This tends to increase as oil supplies run out.

Deeper, and Riskier

The Deepwater Horizon disaster is one result of the search for oil in ever more inaccessible regions, in this case 35,000 miles beneath the ocean’s surface. Another is the expansion of tar sands oil, notably in Canada. Difficult to extract from the earth, such oil has been estimated to emit 10% to 45% more greenhouse gas by the time it’s finished burning in your car, although another estimate puts it at only 6% more. Either way, it’s more emissions at a time when we desperately need to be cutting back.

Tar sands oil has numerous other nasty environmental effects: extraction uses large amounts of water, blights landscapes, destroys habitat, and might cause cancer. It’s also expensive.  Nevertheless, we’re moving ahead with plans to build a 1,660 mile pipeline to Canada to make bring this dirty oil to the US.

With global climate change apparently moving ahead faster than anticipated, replete with unintended consequences, we should take whatever action is needed to quell it.  Instead, our biggest fear seems to be running out of gas, and we’re taking whatever action is needed to squeeze a bit more oil out of Mother Earth. Why not, instead, work harder to move alternatives forward?

Waiting for Weaning

It’s true that alternatives are expensive and technically difficult, but so is pumping oil from ever more remote, isolated, environmentally sensitive and politically dubious regions. Instead, we should be working harder on some combination of electric cars and biofuels. While corn ethanol has a high environmental cost, due to the input of oil products in agriculture plus the use of land, ethanol from sugar is far more efficient—Brazil has declared energy independence on it. Unfortunately, the U.S. continues to impose a tariff on foreign ethanol while subsidizing our far less efficient version. Other biofuel sources, such as algae or jatropha, need to be developed. Powering up to electric cars depends on battery technology—much improved but still expensive—and will take time. Of course we can also reduce our automobile use through improved public transit.

Weaning ourselves off oil, then, is a challenge, but continued reliance on oil is also technologically difficult. The oil will eventually run out anyway and we’ve already wasted 35 years since the last energy crisis. Perhaps we’ve internalized our short-term consumerist beliefs to the extent that we can no longer change our ways? Perhaps it’s just easier to choose not to believe in climate change or decide that we can’t affect it in any case? Whatever the reasons, it looks as though we will continue to treat oil not as an environmental menace but as precious black gold that’s “good to the last drop.”


From our great green friend Eathan Goffman.

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