ASERTTI News
Register Now for the
ASERTTI/NASEO State Energy Policy and Technology
Outlook Conference, February 1-4, 2010
The 2010 State Energy Policy and Technology
Outlook Conference will be held February 1-4, 2010
at the Fairmont Hotel in Washington, DC. The event
will be hosted by ASERTTI and National Association
of State Energy Officials (NASEO).
The 2010 ASERTTI/NASEO State Energy Policy and
Technology Outlook Conference will be held at the
Fairmont Hotel in Washington, DC. This year's
Conference comes as the States and the nation are in
the midst of an historic energy efficiency and
renewable energy transformation. New policies and
investments are moving rapidly and at an
unprecedented scale, with additional programs being
contemplated by Congress and the Administration in
the coming weeks.
Session Highlights
- A Look at States' ARRA Funded Clean Energy
Jobs Creation
- Vehicle Electrification – Cars,
Infrastructure Investments, and Consumer Demand
- Net Zero Energy Commercial Buildings
Consortium Update
- Transformative Renewable Energy Technology –
Innovation and Market Outlook
- ISO 50001 – The Future of Industrial
Efficiency
- National Laboratories – Advancing and
Transferring Emerging Technologies
Invited Speakers
- Energy Secretary Steven Chu
- EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson
- Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
- Congressman Steve Israel
- White House Office of Energy and Climate
Change Policy Director Carol Browner
- Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy
Efficiency Kathleen Hogan
- Deputy Assistant Secretary for Renewable
Energy Jacques Beaudry-Losique
Please
click here to visit the event website for more
information including an updated agenda and online
registration.
DOE to Invest $366M in Energy Innovation Hubs
U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu
outlined the Department's plans to invest up to $366
million to establish and operate three new Energy
Innovation Hubs focused on accelerating research and
development in three key energy areas. Each Hub, to
be funded at up to $122 million over five years,
will bring together a multidisciplinary team of
researchers in an effort to speed research and
shorten the path from scientific discovery to
technological development and commercial deployment
of highly promising energy-related technologies.
The three DOE Energy Innovation Hubs will focus
on:
- production of fuels directly from sunlight;
- improving energy-efficient building systems
design; and
- computer modeling and simulation for the
development of advanced nuclear reactors.
The Department will provide $22 million in the
first year for the establishment of each Hub and up
to $25 million per year for the following four years
to support the operations of each Hub—for a total
award of up to $122 million per Hub. Important
information on the DOE's Hub implementation plan and
strategy for managing the Hubs can be found on the
Energy Innovation Hubs website:
http://hubs.energy.gov. Please
click here for the full press release.
USDA & Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy Announce
Agreement to Enhance Sustainability, Cut Industry's
Greenhouse Gases by 25 Percent
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the
Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy agreed to work
jointly in support of the U.S. dairy industry's goal
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent
over the next decade. In a landmark memorandum of
understanding (MOU), the USDA and the industry wide
dairy group identified a variety of projects that
can help the dairy industry achieve those greenhouse
gas reduction goals and increase its financial and
environmental sustainability. Under the agreement,
USDA will take a number of steps to help farmers,
including supporting a strategic research plan to
help the industry further reduce environmental
impacts. Other initiatives would help the industry
develop future technologies, advance nutrient
management, support renewable energy, and improve
energy efficiency. Please
click here to read the full press release.
Corn Cobs Have Energy Use in South Dakota
As reported by the Wall Street Journal, Poet,
Sioux Falls, S.D., is readying production of a new
cellulosic ethanol plant that uses the corn waste
product, rather than corn itself, to make the
biofuel. The plant, located in Emmetsburg, Iowa,
where Poet already has a traditional corn-based
ethanol refinery, is expected to produce 25 million
gallons per year once it starts commercial
production in 2011. The plant, called Project
Liberty, could be a new revenue source for farmers,
proponents say, although the future for the
technology remains uncertain.
Currently, farmers have little use for the
stripped-down corn cobs. The industry is moving
toward cellulosic, as spelled out in the
Environmental Protection Agency's renewable-fuel
mandate. The mandate calls for cellulosic ethanol to
account for 16 billion gallons of the total 36
billion gallons of production by 2022. Unlike some
of the other corn residue, the cobs are seen as
having little if any value to the land and can be
removed without depleting the soil. And the cob,
unlike the grain, doesn't ignite the "food versus
fuel" debate. Poet said that it is quickly finding
ways to make cellulosic ethanol profitable. Since
the pilot project started, it has cut costs almost
in half, to $2.35 per gallon from $4.13, by reducing
energy usage and enzyme costs, among other expenses.
It costs roughly 50 to 80 cents more per gallon to
make ethanol from corn cobs than from the grain,
Poet said. For more information about Project
Liberty, please
click here. |
