Content related to Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Travels with the Climate Lab took me to Okinawa for the first (but hopefully not last) time. This Japanese prefecture (and former kingdom in its own right) is an absolute melting pot of cultures, disciplines, and functions in society. For someone who is regularly trying to break down silos in my own work, I was thrilled to see what lessons Okinawa had to offer.
The final leg of my Climate Lab took me to Japan. I consider Japan the site of my environmental awakening, but there was still plenty to learn on this trip about impacts from the climate crisis and how to be an effective leader while centering the priorities of those facing the worst impacts. This jam-packed week was as fun as it was challenging.
On this sixth anniversary of Radical Moderate, Pittsburgh’s signature manufacturing industry is at a crossroads. There is a path forward on which we can recognize the need for steel from an infrastructure standpoint, the need for jobs from an economic standpoint, the need for clean air from a public health standpoint, and the need for responsible decision-making to support all of those things.
Misconceptions abound when it comes to recycling, and a new technology called “chemical recycling” is being positioned as a major win for recycling hard-to-recycle plastics. No matter their intentions for the future, most chemical recycling facilities are currently turning plastics into fuel to be burned, not recycled plastics to replace virgin plastics. Perception is everything in the court of public opinion, and information matters.
After deciding to replace our gas-powered tank water heater with an electric tankless model, it took us about six months to actually make it happen. The process was reasonably easy and cheaper than it would have been otherwise, thanks to my husband’s DIY skill set. Now I’m thrilled that our hot water is coming to us thanks to renewable energy, not fossil fuels.
Limiting or shifting our electricity use benefits our wallets, but it can also help support a more reliable electrical grid and limit the amount of fossil fuels we use to power our homes, which in turn limits climate change. If you don’t know where to start, you’re not alone: some utility companies offer programs to help you save money as you adjust your use.
I recently learned that the global transformer shortage can limit how well we maintain our existing infrastructure and how quickly we can expand our supply with new sources of electricity generation. A constrained supply will impact demand, resulting in negative impacts that range from inconvenient to deadly. Better demand management can ease capacity constraints, but how do we manage that in a fair way?
I certainly didn’t notice any news about the global transformer shortage until there was a possibility we would need a new one on the pole outside our house and wouldn’t be able to get it. Demand is exploding for this critical piece of basic technology, but supply will be a limiting factor in how quickly we can bring new renewable energy projects online worldwide.
It’s been a while since electronics lab in college, but upgrading our electric service served as a good refresher course for me. Unfortunately, many people who want to move away from fossil fuel use in their homes often don’t know where to start or even what to ask a potential contractor. I’m hoping that detailing our journey – starting with our electricity upgrade – will help.
I was impressed when I learned about Hawaii’s goal of 100% renewable energy by 2045, but I was shocked to learn about some unintended impacts of wind energy development on Oahu’s north shore. Hearing from impacted residents was a great reminder that wind energy, like any tool, is not inherently good or bad – it comes down to how it is developed and used.