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Weekly Energy Newsbriefs

Articles for September 7, 2009


ENERGY NEWSBRIEFS is a weekly current awareness service provided by the Washington State University Extension Energy Program Library and written by Angela Santamaria, WSU Energy Library Manager, to assist users in tracking developments in the energy field. To view past issues or to subscribe to receive an email notification of the publication of a new issue, go to Energy Newsbriefs archives at http://www.energy.wsu.edu/library/newsbriefs.cfm.


Please be aware that although every URL is checked for accuracy prior to the publication of Energy Newsbriefs, URLs are, for various reasons, subject to change. Further, servers sometimes fail to connect to working URLs.



BUILDING SCIENCE

"Tall ICF Walls: 9 Building Tips from the Experts" was authored by Dave Barista, Managing Editor, Building Design and Construction. Insulating concrete forms (ICF) are being used in buildings where walls exceed 100 feet in height. The author offers nine tips for using ICF walls; the tips are clearly written and to the point, but include enough detail to be valuable. View this article in Building Design and Construction, August 2009, at http://www.bdcnetwork.com/article/CA6676416.html.


HEALTHCARE FACILITIES

Several interesting articles about energy and health care facilities appeared in the August 2009 issue of ED+C (Environmental Design + Construction):

  1. "Choosing the Right Glass for Healthcare Buildings" was written by Chris Dolan, Director of Commercial Glass Products, Guardian Industries. The main point of this article is that windows located at different heights and on different sides of a building have to be fitted with different types of glass if the windows are to enhance daylighting and energy efficiency. See this article at http://www.edcmag.com/Articles/Article_Rotation/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000634207.

  2. "Design v. Impact" was written by John F. McCarthy Sc.D., C.I.H., President, Environmental Health & Engineering, Inc. The Brigham and Women's Hospital, Carl J. and Ruth Shapiro Cardiovascular Center, is located in Boston. Its design aimed for sustainability without compromising the sensitive and demanding requirements of patient care. It seems to have achieved both goals. See this article at http://www.edcmag.com/Articles/Article_Rotation/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000634326.

  3. "Greenwash -- Truth or Dare?" was written by Dale Anderson, AIA, LEED AP, CSBA, Principal, and Nichole Blake, LEED AP; both of BCRA. Group Health is a health care cooperative, based in Washington State. It has been very active in the development and use of green materials and furnishings for its facilities. Group Health hired BCRA to test the success of its sustainability effort. The authors report on their findings. In the article they cite their attention to the LEED-CI (Commercial Interiors) Green Interior Design and Construction Reference Guide, available for purchase at http://www.usgbc.org/Store/PublicationsList_New.aspx?CMSPageID=1518 , and the GGHC (Green Guide for Healthcare), which is available for free download with registration at http://www.gghc.org/. See this article at http://www.edcmag.com/Articles/Article_Rotation/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000635363.

  4. "On the Road to Recovery" was written by Myrrh Caplan, LEED AP, National Program Manager, Green Construction Group, Shanska. The author shows the many new tools and approaches that are available for the building of green health facilities. See this case study at http://www.edcmag.com/Articles/Article_Rotation/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000634133.

  5. "Optimizing Chiller Water Systems," by Catherine Luthin, President and Founder, Luthin Associates, reports on a project that involved the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and an engineering firm based in New York City. The project included chiller system transformations that saves two major hospitals over a million dollars a year with a simple payback of one year. See this case study at http://www.edcmag.com/Articles/Article_Rotation/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000634250.



POLICY

Three publications follow. The first two -- one in the draft stage, the other in final form -- are formal documents suggesting the importance of relying on energy efficiencies to supply most of the northwestern region's and the nation's new power needs. Both agree that energy efficiency is clean and is very much cheaper than power plant development. The third publication is an article about the superiority of energy efficiency and conservation over other alternatives such as biofuels, nuclear, etc. Efficiencies and conservation are cheap, carbon-free, and, the author emphasizes, available now. Here are the three publications -- the second one appeared in a previous Energy Newsbriefs, but appears to go well with the others which were more recently published:

  1. The draft Sixth Power Plan developed by the Northwest Power Planning and Conservation Council has been completed and is available for review and public comment on the Council's website. The Council has created a web page where there are links to the entire (full text) of the 287-PDF-page draft Plan as one PDF document (as well as to individually PDF'd sections/chapters), and other information including the September 3, 2009, press release inviting public comments. See this web page at http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/powerplan/6/default.htm.

  2. Unlocking Energy Efficiency in the U.S. Economy is a July 2009, 165-page, research report from McKinsey Global Energy and Materials, written by Hannah Choi Grenade, et al., all of McKinsey & Company. (McKinsey produced the report in collaboration with 13 government, corporate, and environmental groups, but McKinsey claims sole responsibility for its contents. McKinsey also states that the report is not meant to be a policy statement, but to serve as information for policy makers to consider.) McKinsey's research indicates the U.S. could reduce its energy consumption by close to a quarter, or save just over a trillion dollars in energy costs, by 2020, investing just $152 billion on energy efficiencies in the industrial, residential, and commercial sectors. The report discusses the barriers that stand in the way: structural constraints, behavioral challenges, and the lack of readily available efficiencies. The report also suggests ways to overcome those barriers. To see the report, go to http://www.mckinsey.com/clientservice/electricpowernaturalgas/US_energy_efficiency/
    and, from the right-hand frame, select either the Executive Summary or the Full Report (which includes the Executive Summary).

  3. "Seven Myths about Alternative Energy" is an article by Michael Grunwald, Senior Correspondent, Time Magazine. The author makes a case for efficiency and conservation as the only energy- and carbon-savers that are available now, in large supply, and at the lowest price -- one to five cents per kWh. This article was published in Foreign Policy Magazine and posted on the NPR website on August 28, 2009; see it at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112327040&sc=emaf. The NPR posting links to audio material, as well.



WORKFORCE

"The Engineering Dropout Myth" was written by Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed. Positions for engineers can be difficult to fill, a potentially serious problem in energy and related fields. The article discusses new research that attempts to determine why there is a shortage of engineers. The research suggests that engineering degree programs may fall short of the mark in the recruitment of new students. It appears that retention rates in the programs may not be any lower than in other majors so that retention may not be the important issue it once was considered to be. See this article in Inside Higher Ed, August 5, 2009, at http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/08/05/engineer#Comments.

"Laid-Off Workers Hope Turbine Careers Take Flight" was written by Libby Tucker. It shows, using the Northwest Renewable Energy Institute in Vancouver, Washington, as a case in point, how federal stimulus money is bolstering the wind industry. See this article in the Columbian, August 18, 2009, at http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20090818/BIZ/708189951/-1/RSS03.

Past issues of Energy Newsbriefs are available at http://www.energy.wsu.edu/library/newsbriefs.cfm.

Generally, subscription information for the journals cited above can be found at the home page of their web sites.

© 2009 Washington State University Extension Energy Program. This publication contains material written and produced for public distribution. Permission to copy or disseminate all or part of this material is granted, provided that the copies are not made or distributed for commercial advantage, and that each is referenced by title with credit to the Washington State University Extension Energy Program. Copying, reprinting or dissemination, electronic or otherwise, for any other use requires prior written permission from the Washington State University Extension Energy Program.