Christina Erickson: Substance is the new Sexy in our Nation's Capital: Echoes from Inaugural Parties

On Inauguration night, our new Energy Secretary Stephen Chu- a guy who trapped atoms for a living before he came to Washington - was mobbed by a crowd trying to get a photo with him. I know he won a Nobel Prize, but that is not what had guests trailing him out the door as he left the evening's festivities. This fan club was filled with policy wonks and folks whose company valuations will rise and fall with the direction he sets at DOE.
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Lisa Jackson, Obama's nominee for the top EPA post, was able to move a little more quietly through the same ball at which Secretary Chu welcomed his new fan club. Similarly, both she and Nancy Sutley - Obama's pick to become Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality - were left mainly to themselves by fellow partygoers in the VIP section of Green Ball 2009 on Inauguration Eve. Perhaps partygoers did not yet recognize these two green sirens as they mingled through a crowd that included Senator-in-waiting Al Franken and environmental activist Bobby Kennedy, Jr. When queried on why he chose to attend Al Gore's festivities that night over other events, he indicated that it was because of the critical place that the environment held on his state and our national agenda.

Gelling biodiesel causes Minnesota school closings - AutoblogGreen

Anyone who's experimented with running waste veggie oil in their diesel vehicles knows that it doesn't work so well in cold weather. Even using refined biodiesel causes problems because of the higher paraffin content compared to petro-diesel. Unfortunately for school districts in Minnesota, the state requirement to run a minimum of 2 percent biodiesel in school buses and other vehicles is causing problems this winter. Below 10°F, the fuel begins to gel up and causes the engine to not run. Petro diesel doesn't have a problem until about -30°F. In some cases, the gelling issue has caused Minnesota schools to cancel classes.

In the future, things could be even worse. Between now and 2015, the state's requirement is going up to 20 percent biodiesel concentration. Given that Minnesota is not exactly known for its balmy winter weather, it seems odd that no one one considered this issue before. Some districts are currently trying to get a waiver to use straight petro-diesel until the weather warms up.

Heliogenic Climate Change: EU ETS shifts coal plants east -- carbon leakage

"RWE CEO Juergen Grossmann has announced that the company will not build any new coal-fired power plants in Western Europe. As reason for RWE's decision Grossmann cited the cost of the EU emissions trading scheme. There won't be any retreat from coal, however: the power plants will be built in Eastern Europe instead.
--Premium News, 22 January 2009"