Uconn beefing up staff for energy programs

UConn is spending $4 million to hire new faculty for their energy program. They are also looking for a director for the Connecticut Global Fuel Cell Center.

Sustainability Forum this Friday

If you have any interest in supporting renewable or sustainable growth in South Central CT, then this is the forum for you!!

Gateway Community College and

the Regional Growth Partnership

invite you to a

Regional Sustainability Forum

“The Sustainable Economy:

South Central Connecticut’s Green Future”

Friday, September 21, 8:00-10:00am

Gateway Community College

North Haven Campus

88 Bassett Road

The Forum is an opportunity for all those involved in sustainable industries in South Central Connecticut to help formulate a regional strategy for promoting the growth of these industries as part of the region’s new Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy.

• Help identify the needs and priorities of sustainable industries

• Identify needed public investments and policy changes

• Identify opportunities for growth and new business

• Network with others involved in sustainable industries

You should attend if you are engaged in:

• Renewable Energy

• Alternative Transportation

• Green Building

• Environmental Services

• Clean Energy Development

PLUS, the forum will include a panel with State Representative Steven Fontana, Bill Leahy from the Institute for Sustainable Energy and Erik Robie from UTC Power who will share their insights into the current state of Connecticut’s sustainable industries. Dr. David Cooper will also speak about Gateway’s “Center for a Sustainable Future” initiative to train the workforce needed for the new sustainable economy.

For more information or to RSVP, contact Peter Stein at (203) 782-4389 or pstein@rgp-ct.org.

CT gets kudos for efficient homes

The EPA has commended CT for leading the country in the building of energy efficient homes. Energy Star homes are said to be 20-30 percent more energy efficient than standard homes. Connecticut, with 23% of new homes built to this standard, is second only to Vermont with 24%.

Paint fumes into energy

Torrington's FuelCell Energy will increase production by the end of this year by more than double. Part of this anticipated demand comes from Ford Motor Company's move to capture fumes from their painting facilities and turn them into energy.

Islander East gas pipeline gets corked

The Islander East pipeline would carry offshore Canadian Natural Gas across the Sound into Long Island.

"For now -- and hopefully forever -- this decision means that we have conquered an environmental and economic catastrophe," Blumenthal said in a statement.

This gas is very important to people in the Hamptons who need to keep their pool pumps and patio-heaters running.

ConocoPhillips asks CT residents to speak up about energy

(Update 8/20/07) Due to hurricane activity in the Gulf of Mexico, THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED UNTIL 10/23/07. Click here for more info.

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ConocoPhillips is holding a series of community meetings across the US. New Haven's will be this coming Tuesday, Aug 21, at 7PM in the Omni Hotel.

From the ConocoPhillips website, "...the company will engage area residents and energy users, and local community and business leaders, to discuss energy solutions that are reliable, available and environmentally friendly. Local citizens are invited to ask questions and offer suggestions, while discussing supply/demand issues and energy alternatives with industry experts. "

New Haven's panel of speakers wilThe panel of speakers will include :

• Bob Ridge, ConocoPhillips’ vice president of health, safety and environment
• Sabrina Watkins, the energy company’s manager of environmental technology, ConocoPhillips
• Eric Brown, associate counsel for the Connecticut Business & Industry Association
• John A. Mengacci, undersecretary with the state Office of Policy & Management’s Energy Policy Unit
• Robert B. Wall, director of energy market initiatives for the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund.

Don't forget to RSVP if you plan to attend. Click here to read some of ConocoPhillips' responses to selected questions from the community.

The Rebound Effect

Someone recently suggested to me that by conserving energy and boosting efficiency, we are likely to lower prices to the point that we will end up using more energy resources than we do now. This is actually an extreme condition of a well-known phenomena called the "rebound effect". The concept is that if we increase efficiency by 50%, we will not see a 50% reduction in fuel consumption because people will tend to use more (rebound). Jevons Paradox goes further to say that final consumption could actually be higher than initial consumption in some cases.

Here is a table of typical rebound effects for different markets.


The theory that boosting energy efficiency will inevitably end up increasing energy demand is, in my opinion, unrealistic. One reason is that energy markets are much more complicated than simple supply/demand. Some energy markets seem largely unaffected by cost -- people continue to use what they want regardless of the cost. For example, if our cars could get twice as many miles per gallon, would we really drive twice as much as we do now? There aren't enough hours in a day. Conversely, when gas prices doubled recently, did people use half as much fuel? Of course not, we kept buying more and more and just lived without other less necessary things (food, clothing, etc.).




The graphs above show the effect that gasoline prices have on fuel consumption. Doesn't seem to really make any difference what it costs -- we just keep buying more. Cost is normalized to 2006 dollars and all data comes from EIA. I'll post some electricity graphs in a bit, but they show the same story.