This month we have focused on alternative energy again, and we hope to shed some light on different applications of clean tech. Recent events have made it even more clear to us the need for a stronger renewable electricity standard. With the BP oil spill disaster we have been left to deal with one of the worst environmental catastrophes in history. I don't want to get too focused on that path, but do want to highlight how our dependence on fossil fuels needs a new direction. In addition to the spill, this week sees the American Wind Energy Association holding its annual conference. Both of them, while very different entities, come together to form the same conclusion.

According to a blog post I read this morning, around 20,000 people showed up for the wind event in Dallas. A record-setting number for any in-person conference to be sure. What this proves however, is that there is strong support for the growth of the clean-energy industry. It seems baffling that around half of the states we live in require renewable energy in some form or capacity, while a national requirement still eludes us. Combine this with the fact that we only receive around 3.5 percent of our electricity from renewables other than dams, and we have some work to do. What will it take for such a system to be put into place?

Yesterday state utility regulators approved a new California Solar Initiative Thermal Program that will offer $350 million in rebates to encourage it’s residents to install water-heating systems powered by solar energy.

Funding for this program is broken down into three areas, with $250 million to replace natural gas powered water heaters and an additional $25 million set aside for low income residents.  Additional monies to the tune of $100.8 million will be used to fund the exchange of electrically powered water heaters.  Federal tax credits are also available and can be coupled with the state rebates for 30% of the value of new water heaters.

Recently revealed emails suggest that climate change experts may have exaggerated science data to overstate claims for geologic climate change.  Does this mean green building and innovation will be tossed out the window?  Will we return to the status quo - which I’ve seen in the last year to include businesses failing, foreclosures and bank bail-outs.  This can’t possibly be related to climate change can it?

When I think of climate change, I imagine rising temperatures, melting of the ice caps, lack of water in many parts of the world, but I don’t associate it with green building.  After reading multiple news reports and op-ed’s I get the feeling that most people lump climate and sustainability all together. 

Right now the UC Extension website has open enrollment for Winter Quarter 2010. A particular highlight is a course being offered on energy and its future within the State of California. It continues the Environmental Studies x489 series, which began this past fall quarter with a course on sustainability and green building concepts. It was headed by Lindsey Taggart, an energy specialist with the Community Environmental Council (CEC), and I had the pleasure of taking it. This new course covers a broad range of topics related to both energy and energy consumption and is held on the UCSB campus.

I wanted to say a little bit about the course that recently finished and why I recommend this next class. The lecture presentations are general in order to provide an overview with students. Through site visits and guest speakers the topics covered in class are explored in more depth. This past quarter was concerned with green building and specifically the LEED rating system. However there were one to two guest speakers a week that spoke on a variety of topics: building, waste management, sustainable sites, water efficiency, and green materials to name a few. It was this speaker series that really made the class worth it to me, not to mention the group project I was assigned which got me into contact with an interior designer, environmental scientist, and fellow UCSB student. That's another aspect of the class I like, in that individuals from a variety of fields took the course to learn and engage in positive discussion.