Paul Wolff at his house on Tybee Island
said air practically whistles through open electrical plugs,
so stopping those up saves a lot on heat and air conditioning.
Here’s the video:
Electric outlet plugs —Paul Wolff @ Tybee Island 2012 02 17
renewable energy,
Paul Wolff, The Volta Collaborative (TVC),
Tybee Island, Chatham County, Georgia, 17 February 2012.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
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Continue readingWe can only prosper as a society if we work together. Despite the differences we might have, we share so much more in common. Yet it seems that we prefer to fall into separate camps, that we seek to view issues in black and white, and that we like to belong to those who have “got it all figured out”. Just pick your side (liberal, conservative) and you “know” who got it all wrong.
I have been humbled by the wide-ranging support WACE received to stop a biomass plant that was once considered a done deal. In the end what mattered was the realization by people across all ages, racial and ideological lines that we want to breathe clean air, and that we don’t want to waste millions of tax dollars on a project that will lead to increases in respiratory illnesses, heart diseases, and cancer. Thus the people spoke up, and with the help of elected representatives and the Industrial Authority “no biomass” became the consensus.
In the last couple of months I noticed another issue many agree on.
Jade Bulecza writes for WALB, Valdosta wants your input on energy conservation
There’s two surveys one on goals to save energy and the second one is your thoughts on the planning phase and projects already using energy saving measures. Some of those changes are the timing at traffic lights in a high accident prone areas that allows traffic to move more smoothly and efficiently.Here’s the city of Valdosta’s survey page.They’ve also had energy audits on municipal buildings at no cost from Georgia Power and added motion detector light sensors through a community block grant that’s also paying for the surveys.
“It’s not only important as a local government to take steps to conserve energy because we see energy prices going up but we need to protect our natural resources and our environment and we want to encourage our citizens to do the same,” said Mara Register, the assistant to the city manager. “This helps heighten that awareness.”
The last day to submit the surveys is Friday.
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Dear Lowndes County Commissioners.Continue readingMy sincere thanks for letting me present my concerns at yesterday’s meeting. It is very much appreciated.
Please understand that what I presented is based on facts. I have worked for ten years at VSU as an educator, and my students and colleagues know me as a straightforward person. I may ruffle some feathers at times, but I clearly was brought up in a no-nonsense household.
If Mr. Lofton would not continue to ignore our concerns (as he again did at the BOE meeting), to misrepresent organizations such as the Sierra Club (an organization I happen to support), or to keep bringing up names of those who endorse the biomass plant (yet conveniently overlooks a conflict of interest), I probably would have never brought this up. However, during these past couple weeks, and particularly with his behavior at the BOE meeting, Mr. Lofton has added insult to injury, and enough is enough.
To substantiate the comments I made yesterday,
This is an open letter with a few questions for the Industrial Authority on the proposed biomass incinerator. Simple answers will do, as we have heard enough confusing verbiage by now:Continue reading1. Isn’t it correct that annually the proposed biomass incinerator will emit 247 tons of sulfur dioxide (SO2), 247 tons of nitrogen oxide (NOx), 247 tons of carbon monoxide (CO), 135 tons of particulate matter (PM), 113 tons of PM10, 87 tons of PM2.5, 60 tons of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and 14 tons of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs)?
2. Isn’t it true that the American Lung Association states that pollutants such as NOx, SO2, and PM can have “severe impacts on the health of children, older adults, and people with lung disease”?
3. Isn’t it correct that the “baghouse filtration technology” in connection with the proposed incinerator cannot capture PM10 (particulate matter smaller than 10 microns) much less PM2.5 (particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns)?
I’m not sure this is what the Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce wanted to hear, but it’s something that could benefit all of us:
Bruce Bailey, energy conservation advisor for Colquitt EMC, said, “Conserving energy and making things more energy efficient is much more cost effective than having to build a new power plant to supply more power, so we are recommending that as a leading public policy. If our future does include more and more conversions to renewable energy sources, it’s going to be very important that we don’t short-circuit our economy in the short term.”Story by Matt Flumerfelt in the VDT, 15 Oct 2009.Bailey said it’s important that any policies implemented utilize proven and effective technologies, and he warned that the price for doing nothing could be high.