In Monday's New York Times there was a story about the reliability of the power grid due to the increased use of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind energy. The North American Electric Reliability Corp. has released a report concluding that measures need to be taken to improve the transmission of electricity. The report also concluded that the addition of natural gas generated electricity to the power grid could cause problems due to supply disruptions.
Washington is one of 27 states that have rules requiring the increased use of renewable energy sources to reduce carbon emissions. The concern is over the potential closure of coal plants close to major load centers. The renewable energy sources usually require electricity to be transmitted over longer distances, something the national power grid was not built to do.
This could pose many problems in the future, especially if the fossil fuel powered automobiles are replaced with rechargable electric cars.
The article was carried by many newspapers, including the Seattle Times: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008371544_greenenergy10.html
One problem not specifically mentioned in the article is the loss of electricity when transmitted over great distances. Any electrical conductor has a certain resistance to the flow of electricity, and transmitting electricity across longer distances increases the energy loss. Transformers are designed to minimize the losses when transmitting electricity (by increasing voltage and reducing current).
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Online Records Assignment
1. Who are the plaintiffs in Whitman County civil case no. 08-2-00181-2?
Scotty Cornelius of the Sierra Club
2. How many WSU sites are on the Department of Ecology’s most recent hazardous sites list?
5
3. Who is the Washington state public records coordinator for nuclear waste?
Lynn Noah
4. Who owns tax parcel no. 35093.2006 in Spokane County?
Avista
5. What landmark borders the property to the east?
A river
6. How many well logs are registered for Chevron in Whitman County?
56 total
7. Who received the most amount of money in federal farm subsidies in Whitman County in 2006?
Wheatlife
8. Using the EPA’s EnviroFacts database, identify the number of hazardous waste sites that are part of Superfund in Shoshone County, Idaho?
12
9. Which agency manages HazDat and what does it track?
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. This agency tracks hazardous material from superfund sites.
10. Where can we find the Five-Year Review for the Bunker Hill Superfund site?
http://www.cfpub.epa.gov/
Scotty Cornelius of the Sierra Club
2. How many WSU sites are on the Department of Ecology’s most recent hazardous sites list?
5
3. Who is the Washington state public records coordinator for nuclear waste?
Lynn Noah
4. Who owns tax parcel no. 35093.2006 in Spokane County?
Avista
5. What landmark borders the property to the east?
A river
6. How many well logs are registered for Chevron in Whitman County?
56 total
7. Who received the most amount of money in federal farm subsidies in Whitman County in 2006?
Wheatlife
8. Using the EPA’s EnviroFacts database, identify the number of hazardous waste sites that are part of Superfund in Shoshone County, Idaho?
12
9. Which agency manages HazDat and what does it track?
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. This agency tracks hazardous material from superfund sites.
10. Where can we find the Five-Year Review for the Bunker Hill Superfund site?
http://www.cfpub.epa.gov/
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Effects of Climate Change on Municipal Water Supplies
The Washington Department of Ecology's report on the economic impacts of climate change are inconclusive about the effects on municipal water supplies in eastern Washington. While no changes in total annual precipitation are expected, more will fall as rain during the winter months. This is due to an expected 2 F increase in average annual temperatures by 2020. By 2040, the average temperature increase is expected to be 3 F.
This will mean snowpack will melt earlier in the spring, which will increase the amount of water flowing into rivers and streams during the winter and early spring, but flows will decrease in the summer months.
Spokane, and much of eastern Washington, relies heavily on aquifers for the water supply. The study points out that the changes in snowpack melting will affect groundwater recharge, which is how the aquifers replenish. But the study stops short of any estimates as to the potential impact that it will have.
Spokane's Water Department website describes the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer (commonly called the Rathdrum-Spokane Aquifer) as one of the most productive aquifers in the United States, with a total volume of about 10 tillion gallons.
The aquifer covers 332 square miles from eastern Washington to the Bitterroot Mountains, where considerably more precipitation falls (about 70 inches per year compared with about 17 inches in Spokane).
Since the Department of Ecology study only measured the impacts in Washington state, I am concerned the principal source of water for the Rathdrum-Spokane Aquifer was left out of the study.
This will mean snowpack will melt earlier in the spring, which will increase the amount of water flowing into rivers and streams during the winter and early spring, but flows will decrease in the summer months.
Spokane, and much of eastern Washington, relies heavily on aquifers for the water supply. The study points out that the changes in snowpack melting will affect groundwater recharge, which is how the aquifers replenish. But the study stops short of any estimates as to the potential impact that it will have.
Spokane's Water Department website describes the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer (commonly called the Rathdrum-Spokane Aquifer) as one of the most productive aquifers in the United States, with a total volume of about 10 tillion gallons.
The aquifer covers 332 square miles from eastern Washington to the Bitterroot Mountains, where considerably more precipitation falls (about 70 inches per year compared with about 17 inches in Spokane).
Since the Department of Ecology study only measured the impacts in Washington state, I am concerned the principal source of water for the Rathdrum-Spokane Aquifer was left out of the study.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Cook Agronomy Farm
The class took a trip to the Cook Agronomy Farm Tuesday to discuss the Climate Friendly Farming project with Dr. David Rhys Huggins of Washington State University. Onew of the project's many goals is to test the potential of direct seed, no till farming to return carbon to the top soil. This carbon sequestration could play an important role in the fight against global climate change, as agriculture accounts for about 7% of the carbon released into the atmosphere.
Modern methods of farming have reduced the levels of CO2 in the soil by 30%, Huggins said. He said the situation is even worse on the Palouse because tilling the fields adds to wind and water erosion. The Palouse is the second most erosive area in the country.
No till farming increases carbon in the ground because micro-organisms feed on the residue left in the ground after harvesting. This prevents the carbon from being released into the air as CO2.
Huggins has been working at the farm since 1999, and expects to have hard data on the effects
of no till farming on top soil carbon levels next year. He said only about 10% of the farmers on the Palouse have adopted the method because of the expense of the equipment and the risk required to change farming methods.
Huggins hopes the project will double the levels of carbon in the soil over a ten year period.
Information about other terrestrial carbon sequestration projects can be found at a Department of Energy website: http://cdiac2.esd.ornl.gov/terrestrial.html
Modern methods of farming have reduced the levels of CO2 in the soil by 30%, Huggins said. He said the situation is even worse on the Palouse because tilling the fields adds to wind and water erosion. The Palouse is the second most erosive area in the country.
No till farming increases carbon in the ground because micro-organisms feed on the residue left in the ground after harvesting. This prevents the carbon from being released into the air as CO2.
Huggins has been working at the farm since 1999, and expects to have hard data on the effects
of no till farming on top soil carbon levels next year. He said only about 10% of the farmers on the Palouse have adopted the method because of the expense of the equipment and the risk required to change farming methods.
Huggins hopes the project will double the levels of carbon in the soil over a ten year period.
Information about other terrestrial carbon sequestration projects can be found at a Department of Energy website: http://cdiac2.esd.ornl.gov/terrestrial.html
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