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Yes, I noticed
that. Very efficient of them in central California’s abundant sunshine, while
the Googleplex on the mighty Columbia River will rely on Pacific NW hydropower
from the abundant drizzle we get. The AP’s
version added “The solar energy industry
expects to grow from $11 billion in 2005 to an estimated $51 billion in 2015.” It’s also very good news that some hospitals are going green, both to
cut toxins and reduce waste, as well as some college campuses, like the one in
Maine that plans to completely offset its carbon emissions, I added to last week’s
Casey Report. Let’s hope these are Johnny Appleseeds. kwc Note that Google is going solar.... ----------------------------- Google Campus to Get Solar Power As Alternative
Fuels Gain Interest By Kevin J. Delaney and Jim Carlton 484 words 17 October 2006 Google Inc. plans to install a massive
solar-power system at its headquarters, committing to one of the largest
corporate solar installations in the country at a time when technology
companies' support for alternative energy is on the rise. The search company says the system, which
is expected to be operational in early 2007, will supply about 30% of the peak
energy needs of six buildings in and around its Mountain View, Calif.,
headquarters. The system is being installed at an undisclosed price by Energy
Innovations Inc. of Pasadena, Calif., which says such solar installations
typically pay for themselves in power-cost savings in five to 10 years and last
about 25 years. "Thirty percent of our peak power in
a short period of time will essentially be free," said David Radcliffe,
vice president of real estate at Google. Mr. Radcliffe said Google was
motivated primarily by environmental concerns, and was considering installing
solar systems on its facilities elsewhere. Google's solar installation will use
9,212 solar panels and have a capacity of 1.6 megawatts, or enough electricity
to supply about 1,000 average California homes. Google is a major consumer of energy and
in recent years has been scouring the country for large supplies of cheap power
to run the massive computer data centers that host its online services and use
many times the electricity of its headquarters. Google also has adopted a
series of environmentally friendly policies, including giving $5,000 to any
employee who buys a hybrid car, using organic ingredients in its cafeterias,
and buying office furnishings made of recycled materials. The Google announcement comes amid
heightened Silicon Valley interest in pursuing alternatives to fossil fuels.
Yesterday in San Jose, Calif., about 200 executives met at the first "CEO
Summit on Alternative Energy," on the campus of chip-equipment maker
Novellus Systems Inc. Novellus officials said they organized the event to help
apply more corporate pressure to wean the U.S. off foreign oil supplies. With so much oil sitting in politically
unstable countries, "we are extremely vulnerable to a supply disruption
and it could happen any day," said Sasson Somekh, president of Novellus.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California also told the executives their help was
needed to help prod Congress into taking a more aggressive stance on addressing
global warming. Holding up a fuel cell developed by Silicon Valley start-up
Bloom Energy, the Democratic senator said, "This is the future. And this
is what we ought to be supporting big time." Afterward, about 85 CEOs and others signed
a pledge to promote clean energy. Some have already taken steps, including
adopting more solar energy. Besides Google, other Silicon Valley facilities
that have agreed to use more solar panels include the campuses of Microsoft
Corp. and Cypress Semiconductor Inc. |
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