|
|
ENERGY HOG VISITS CLASSROOMS
During Earth week this past April, Crow Wing Power visited elementary schools in Crosslake, Emily, Baxter and Pequot Lakes teaching kids to be energy hog busters. The children were very excited and interested in going home to stop any waste of energy they might find. For more information on how to become an energy hog buster and to play online energy conservation games go to www.energyhog.org.
Electrifying Babe
As a community leader, Crow Wing Power has chosen to support this summer's Oxtrot promotion. Our particular Ox was designed and painted by the Pequot Lakes school art instructor. He's called "Electrifying Babe". The project is geared to benefit the arts, the community and area tourism. It's a lakes area take on public art similar to the Peanuts character statues in St. Paul. There's supposedly 20 to 30 Ox to be located at various sponsors in our area.
The Oxtrot is sponsored by the Crossing Arts Alliance in partnership with the Brainerd Lakes Chamber and Avalon Studios. Oxtrot locations are featured on the chamber's 2008 Brainerd lakes area map which you can get in our office. People visiting all Oxtrot locations will be able to register for a lakes area getaway.
March/April 2008 Newsletter
(The March puzzle has one error- misspelled refrigerator - sorry for inconvenience)
Jan/Feb 2008 Newsletter
Nov/Dec 2007 Newsletter
Thursday, Dec. 20, 2007
Bush signs broad energy bill
President Bush signed into law Wednesday legislation that will bring more fuel-efficient vehicles into auto showrooms and require wider use of ethanol, calling it ''a major step'' toward energy independence and easing global warming. The legislation signed by Bush at a ceremony at the Energy Department requires automakers to increase fuel efficiency by 40 percent to an industry average 35 miles per gallon by 2020. It also ramps up production of ethanol use to 36 billion gallons a year by 2022. Bush was flanked by Democrat and Republican members of Congress who had ushered the legislation through. The House passed the energy bill Tuesday by a 314-100 vote after the Senate cleared it last week following lengthy negotiations and sometimes testy confrontations. Bush had vowed to veto the original legislation passed by the House because it included $21 billion in taxes. The tax provisions were dropped to get the bill approved.
''I firmly believe this country needs to have a comprehensive energy strategy,'' said Bush before signing the bill. He referred to the need for more nuclear energy and domestic oil production -- issues that the new energy bill ignores. Instead, the bill focuses largely on conservation, calling for more energy efficiency in ''light bulbs to light trucks'' as Dingell observed during the House debate on the legislation.
The bill also calls for improved energy efficiency of appliances such as refrigerators, freezers and dishwashers, and a 70 percent increase in the efficiency of light bulbs. It also calls for energy efficiency improvements in federal buildings and construction of commercial buildings. The new lighting standards alone are projected to lower consumers' annual electricity bills by $13 billion in 2020, remove the need for 60 mid-size power plants and reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas, by 100 million tons a year, said the advocacy group Alliance to Save Energy.
-New York Times
FAQ: The end of the light bulb as we know it
The incandescent light bulb, one of the most venerable inventions of its era but deemed too inefficient for our own, will be phased off the U.S. market beginning in 2012 under the new energy law just approved by Congress. Although this will reduce electricity costs and minimize new bulb purchases in every household in America, you may be feeling in the dark about the loss of your old, relatively reliable source of light. Here's a primer on the light bulb phase-out and what will mean to you:
Why are they taking my light bulbs away? Moving to more efficient lighting is one of the lowest-cost ways for the nation to reduce electricity use and greenhouse gases. In fact, it actually will save households money because of lower utility bills. Ninety percent of the energy that an incandescent light bulb burns is wasted as heat. And yet, sales of the most common high-efficiency bulb available--the compact fluorescent (CFL)--amount to only 5 percent of the light bulb market. Earlier this year, Australia became the first country to announce an outright ban by 2010 on incandescent bulbs. The changeover in the United States will be more gradual, not mandated to begin until 2012 and phased out through 2014. However, don't be surprised if some manufacturers phase out earlier.
I don't think that I like the color of the light from CFLs. When they first hit the market, CFLs had a limited range of tones. Now, manufacturers offer a wider variety, but there is not an agreed-upon labeling standard. The Energy Star program is working to change that. But for now, look for lower "Kelvin temperatures" like 2,700 to 3,000 for "redder" light, closer to old-fashioned incandescent bulbs, while bulbs with Kelvin temperatures of 5,000 and 6,500 provide more "blue" and intense light. A good photograph illustrating the difference is shown here.
-U.S. News & World Report
|
