Vineyard Conservation Society's Conservation Almanac

ENERGY:
in the news

The Results of flipping the switch on Martha’s Vineyard
By Marnie Stanton, Vineyard Conservation Almanac

Lights Out Martha’s Vineyard was a dark success! Lots of Vineyarders who have already taken the reality of global warming and the need to be aware of individual energy use to heart participated in the worldwide effort to turn off all non-essential lights from 8-9 PM on Saturday, March 29th. For many others it was an eye-opener – an opportunity to learn about the issues and participate in a warm candle-lit hour with millions of people in countries world-wide. People not only turned off their lights but chose to pull the plug on their favorite TV shows and online video games in support of this worldwide demonstration.

NStar reported that at 7:52 PM that evening, the Vineyard was using 22.1 megawatts (a megawatt is 1 million watts) of electricity. Between 8 and 9 PM, that usage declined to 21.1 megawatts, and at 9:15 PM the reading was 21.00 megawatts. According to Kevin Galligan from Cape Light Compact, that the ONE-MEGAWATT HOUR of electricity that was saved is equivalent to 1,032 typical households shutting off their electrical power for that one hour. An impressive start for the Vineyard!

Earth Hour is an annual international event started in 2007, held on the last Saturday in March, that asks households and businesses to turn off their lights and non-essential electrical appliances for one hour in the evening. The event is promoted by the World Wildlife Fund and others. In 2008, 24 global cities participated in this campaign to encourage businesses, communities and individuals to take the simple steps needed to cut their greenhouse gas emissions on an ongoing basis. The goal is to achieve simple changes that will collectively make a difference – from businesses turning off their lights when their offices are empty, to households turning off appliances rather than leaving them on standby.

Earth Hour reports that, “Never before have people from so many different backgrounds, cultures, and geographies come together to press for urgent change. Never before have governments, NGOs, businesses and average people called upon each other and the world to find a new direction.”

We can all be proud that Martha’s Vineyard is now part of a gigantic global movement for change! Old habits are hard to break but with the support of millions it can be easier than you think. Just do it. Stay tuned; there is more to come!

We Can Act Locally
Brendan O’Neill, Executive Director
Vineyard Conservation Society

Controversy, primarily around land use and land development issues, has been a defining trait of the Vineyard community in recent years. So it is remarkable and gratifying to see signs that the Vineyard is uniting around the common goal of conserving energy, improving efficiency, and thinking about the future.

One catalyst is certainly the skyrocketing cost of fuel. But there is also a dawning awareness of the deadly seriousness of global warming. The report released last November from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change declared that human-generated global warming (caused largely by the release of greenhouse gases from fossil fuel use) is strongly affecting life on earth. Changes are impacting coastal wetlands and coastal flooding patterns, agriculture and forestry, and many aspects of human health.

For the Vineyard, the impacts could be profound. How we choose to respond is the challenge of our times. Rising sea levels will impact our natural habitats, coastal ponds, homes, businesses, and infrastructure. Hotter, dryer summers will affect energy use, food production, wildfire hazard, and the incidence of tick borne illnesses. More severe and more frequent storm activity will change the Vineyard’s real estate and resort economy.

We are urged to recognize this as a danger of global proportions, and we do. We are also frequently reminded to act locally, and we can. The Vineyard Conservation Society has been promoting energy awareness for decades. Now, more than ever, we believe that a radical recommitment to energy efficiency and conservation must be a centerpiece of our individual and collective response.

There are real, meaningful actions that we can take on both the personal and the community level, beginning by critically examining our individual energy use, and by finding ways to reduce it. Last year’s “Living Local” event showcased a range of strategies. An extensive list is available by going to the VCS Conservation Almanac site, http://almanac.vcsmv.org .

We must also undertake community-wide action to meet the challenges ahead. We see a convergence of concerned citizens, town leaders, regional planners, non-profit organizations, and local business people, all working toward the common goal of increasing energy conservation and efficiency in transportation, appliances, homes, and public spaces. A number of efforts are already underway, with others in the planning stages:

Energy Committees in several Vineyard towns are working to develop policies to encourage energy conservation and efficiency.
The non-profit Vineyard Energy Project, with extensive community input, has created a 10-year energy plan aimed at substantially reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.
The MV Commission Island Plan is evaluating and highlighting opportunities for energy conservation and alternatives.
The Town of Aquinnah has secured the approval of the Martha’s Vineyard Commission to establish an Energy DCPC. This could become a model for the rest of the Island.
Cape and Islands Representative Delahunt has introduced a proposal to establish an Energy Research Area in waters southwest of Nantucket, which has the support of town leaders in Edgartown.
Active discussions among the Island’s waste management professionals are aimed at minimizing the shipment of solid waste off-Island, thereby reducing the consumption of fossil fuel and other costs.

Across the Island, people are pursing a range of ideas for exploiting renewable energy that vary widely in scope and scale. Some have already been implemented, others are proposed, and still others are highly theoretical, but all are the subject of vigorous debate, indicating an engaged and concerned community.

The proliferation of these initiatives and conversations is encouraging. We are confident that they will ultimately yield viable projects to reduce our energy footprint in ways that are consistent with protecting the Vineyard’s environment, character, and quality of life.

Meanwhile, we can start with a small gesture. We can all demonstrate our commitment to energy conservation by participating in the VCS co-sponsored "Lights Out Martha’s Vineyard" event, part of the national "Lights Out America" campaign. The goal of this action is to create a groundswell of support for a major shift in national energy policy by having citizens across the country turn off all non-essential lighting on Saturday, March 29, between 8 and 9 pm.

Yes, the challenges are global, and visionary leadership is needed at the State and Federal level. However, our responses must begin locally, where our actions can make visible, measurable differences in our own community. The Vineyard Conservation Society is committed to promoting energy efficiency and conservation here at home, as part of a global effort to conserve resources and limit the severity of climate change. We encourage you to join us.

Occupancy Sensors
Motion Sensor Switches automatically turn lights ON when you enter a room and OFF when you leave. In addition to the convenience of hands-free switching, motion sensors ensure that lights are not left ON unnecessarily for hours at a time. In rooms where the lights are frequently left on or rooms are left unoccupied for large periods during the day or night, an occupancy sensor can cut lighting costs by as much as 50%. According to the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) of the U.S. Department of Energy, in a small, private office, an occupancy sensor can reduce energy use by almost 30% shaving 100 kWh off the annual energy use. In a large open office area, energy use can be reduced by approximately 10%.

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ENERGY REALITY CHECK
By Peter Cabana

People need to understand and know that crude oil, natural gas and coal are non-renewable fuels. By definition they cannot be renewed. The United States and the world will run out of these fuels. It is just a matter of time.

CRUDE OIL REALITY CHECK

The United States crude oil tank (crude oil reserves) is running on empty. The United States has only 2 percent of the world’s remaining crude oil reserves.
The Middle East contains approximately two thirds of the world’s remaining crude oil reserves.
By 1970, the United States used up half of the crude oil in its tank. If the United States had not been importing crude oil since the 1970’s, the United States crude oil tank would now be dry.
The United States imports more than 50 percent of its oil, more than ten million barrels per day.
The United States is the world’s largest consumer of oil. While it contributes disproportionately to the world’s economic productivity, the United States consumes 25 percent of the world’s oil, with only 5 percent of the world’s population.
The world’s crude oil tank is either half empty or half full, depending on your point of view. Today, the world consumes crude oil at the rate of 42,000 gallons per second, that’s two and a half million gallons per minute, one hundred fifty million gallons per hour, 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. The world’s appetite for crude oil is increasing. It will not take the world a great deal of time to empty the last half of its crude oil tank.

Dr. Hermann Scheer estimates that the world will run of crude oil somewhere between 2040 and 2050. Dr. Scheer is a member of the German Parliament, President of the European Association for Renewable Energies, and General Chairman of the World Council for Renewable Energy. The oil and natural gas industry claims, as shown in an April 24, 2007 Boston Globe full page advertisement, that they can ensure America’s energy future for generations to come. Whether you believe Dr. Scheer or the oil and natural gas industry, you will have to figure out for yourselves what will happen in the United States and the rest of the world, after the supply of crude oil is depleted.

NATURAL GAS REALITY CHECK

The United States used up half its natural gas reserves by the mid 1970’s.
The United States cannot produce all the natural gas it consumes.
According to the Energy Information Administration, the United States will run out conventional and unconventional forms of natural gas by 2020.
The United States has 4 percent of the world’s remaining natural gas reserves.
80 percent of the world’s remaining natural gas reserves reside in Russia and the Middle East ( 35 percent in Russia and 45 percent in the Middle East).

Dr. Scheer estimates that the world’s natural gas reserves will be depleted sometime between 2050 and 2065.

Once again, I would ask you to figure out for yourselves what will happen in the United States and the rest of world, after the supply of natural gas is depleted.

COAL REALITY CHECK

The average American consumes about twenty pounds of coal a day.
At the other end of the wire connected to your electric wall outlet you will find that coal is now used in power plants to generate 50 percent of the electricity consumed in America.
Coal is responsible for nearly 40 percent of U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide.
Coal supplies in the United States will last 250 years only IF our consumption of coal does not increase.
Coal consumption will increase because coal will be used to make synthetic gas and diesel fuel as our supplies of natural gas and oil dwindle. Coal supplies could be gone in 50 years instead of 250 years.

OTHER ENERGY RELATED REALITY CHECKS

Coal, oil and natural gas must be ignited to release their energy. The flame created when coal, oil, and natural gas are burned releases carbon dioxide each and every time these fuels are ignited.
Approximately 86 percent of the energy consumed in the United States is produced by burning coal, oil, and natural gas.
Since 1990 U.S. CO2 emissions from burning coal, oil, and natural gas has been responsible for a nearly constant 80 percent of Global Warming Potential.
Coal oil and natural gas are used to generate 75 percent of the electricity in the United States.

We in the United States and the rest of the world need to come to grips with some of our energy realities. We should determine whether we want coal as a replacement fuel for our dwindling supplies of oil and natural gas. The United States has a unique responsibility. The United States is the largest energy consumers in the world and has been the world’s largest polluter. We need to decide if we want to wait on a future technology gene that somehow will solve the world’s energy problems or embark on a program to immediately take advantage of renewable fuels. The solution is simple. The world needs to make a massive shift to replacing the nonrenewable fuels, coal, oil, and natural gas with renewable fuels like the sun and the wind. We in Massachusetts can lead in this effort by insisting that our most abundant renewable fuel, offshore wind, is made available for generating large amounts of carbon-free, low-cost electricity.

Peter Cabana is a Tisbury resident who chairs the MVC's Regional Island Plan Energy and Waste Core Group. He is also a Cape Light Compact representative and a member of the Tisbury Renewable Energy Committee. He has worked in the energy and engineering fields for 30 years.

Ideas on Community Supported Energy
By Peter Cabana, Cape Light Compact Representative
Posted March 26, 2007

An island wide community owned public electrical utility is an option the island of Martha’s Vineyard must investigate if Martha’s Vineyard really wants to become a “renewable energy island”. We need to make the energy we use and not have to depend on the mainland for virtually all our energy needs. We need to figure out how we will generate 50 megawatts of electricity utilizing renewable energy sources. One option available is forming a public utility. At one of our MVC meetings Cape Light Compact representative Maggie Downey explained Cape Light Compact’s status in forming a cooperative, the next to last step in forming a public utility. Owning the “poles and wires” is the final step. Up until now, NSTAR has refused and continues to refuse to sell any of their “poles and wires” to anyone. This is part of the reason why a public utility has not been formed in over 70 years. Maggie indicated that it might be easier for the island of Martha’s Vineyard to become a public utility, because it might be easier for Martha’s Vineyard to purchase the “poles and wires” from NSTAR because of our island’s remote location and difficulties NSTAR encounters in servicing our electrical needs. For the Cape Light Compact to get NSTAR to sell the “poles and wires”, for all of the Cape and Martha’s Vineyard, will be a challenge at best because, once again, a public utility has not been able to form in over 70 years. Joe Soares explained the direct relationship in the rising cost of oil and natural gas and electricity prices. In January 2006 our electricity bills showed a spike in the cost of generating electricity of over 80% due to the interruption of oil and natural gas supplies in the Gulf of Mexico caused by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina in the summer of 2005. Electricity generated using offshore wind is now competitive with electricity generated using oil and natural gas. Martha’s Vineyard has an abundance of offshore wind that can be used to generate electricity. Martha’s Vineyard should be generating its own electricity using offshore wind. The next generation of hybrid vehicle will be the “plug in” hybrid vehicle. Using lithium ion batteries in these new vehicles, batteries similar to those used in our cell phones, these new car batteries can be charged by simply plugging into any electric outlet in our home. At night when Martha’s Vineyard demand for electricity is lower, the new hybrid plug in battery cars can be charged using the carbon free electricity generated from Martha’s Vineyard’s renewable fuel offshore wind. By taking this step, Martha’s Vineyard could and should become a renewable energy island. Martha’s Vineyard can produce the electricity to meet our daily demands and provide the energy (electricity) needed to power our automobiles. Martha’s Vineyard needs a paradigm shift in its thinking concerning energy. Martha’s Vineyard must produce the energy Martha’s Vineyard consumes. Martha’s Vineyard goal should be to produce the 100% of its energy utilizing renewable sources of energy. Martha’s Vineyard needs to take the first step by finding out what is required to become an island wide community owned public electrical utility. The MVC should start the process by establishing a unique energy subcommittee to specifically address what has to be done to become a community owned public utility.

Peter Cabana, Cape Light Compact

Offshore Wave Energy

May 2005 - OPD announces that it has secured the first order for Pelamis wave energy converters

OPD has signed an order with a Portuguese consortium, led by Enersis, to build the initial phase of the world's first commercial wave farm. The initial phase will consist of three Pelamis P-750 machines located off the North coast of Portugal, near Póvoa de Varim. The €8m project will have an installed capacity of 2.25MW, and is expected to meet the average electricity demand of more than 1,500 Portuguese households.

http://www.oceanpd.com/default.html

Cape Light Compact eyes co-op model

By DAVID SCHOETZ STAFF WRITER
February 24, 2006

BARNSTABLE - The Cape Light Compact will spend as much as $100,000 to determine whether creating an electricity cooperative would benefit residents and businesses on Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard.

LINK TO STORY

Pilgrim owners apply for license renewal

By KEVIN DENNEHY - STAFF WRITER
February 1, 2006

Entergy Nuclear Operations, owners of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, have submitted a 2,000-page application to operate the Plymouth plant another two decades. The federal review, which will focus on environmental effects and the company's ability to maintain aging infrastructure, could take 22 to 30 months.

LINK TO STORY

It takes an Island to change a light bulb

December 15, 2005
By Martha Shaw
Martha's Vineyard Times

If every household and business were to change 15 incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs), we would lower the Island's electrical demand by seven percent, according to the "Vineyard Lighting Challenge." The Challenge is a strategy recommended in the recently developed Vineyard Energy Action Plan, which claims that switching to CFL bulbs is the easiest, most cost-effective opportunity for electric efficiency. It could amount to a total of almost $3 million saved on Island electric bills in one year.