MREA NEWS

• Clean Energy, Efficiency Key  to America's (and Montana's) Future
• Sage Mountain Center Wins Sustainable Education Award
• MAGIE Exhibit Generates Interest in Wind, MREA
• Pair Uses Renewable Energy to Live Lightly, Help Others Do Same
• First Steps for the Energy Consumer
• MREA Takes Part in Sustainability Fair
• Chris Daum Reports on the Midwest Renewable Energy Fair
• Chris Borton Shares His Energy Views with Whitehall Newspaper Readers
• Sage Mountain Center among Eco Star Award Winners

Dave Ryan, president of the Montana Renewable Energy Association, replied to a guest editorial that appeared in the June 16, 2003, issue of the Billings Gazette

Clean Energy, Efficiency Key to America's (and Montana's) Future
By Dave Ryan, President
Montana Renewable Energy Association

I represent a group dedicated to promoting renewable energy in Montana. We take issue with a June 16 guest opinion "Don't waste money on renewable energy."

Because the United States imports over half its oil we must find reliable, domestic sources of energy. Health concerns demand that we use clean energy.

Efficiency is the cheapest, cleanest and most reliable energy. High-efficiency equipment is available, and we should install it whenever replacing older, less efficient equipment.

Wind, solar and biomass energy are renewable, clean and local. These can contribute significantly to a reliable energy supply. Denmark and northern Germany supply over 20 percent of their electricity needs with wind. One reason they have so much wind power installed is they have public policy encouraging clean generation.

Renewable portfolio standards (RPS) are a part of this policy. According to a 2001 study done by the Energy Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy, a 20 percent RPS would cost the same as business as usual through 2006, would result in a 0.7 percent increase in energy prices by 2010, and would result in lower prices by 2020. 

Colorado policy
In 2001, the Colorado PUC ordered Xcel Energy (formerly Public Service Company of Colorado) to add wind power to its supply because the cost of wind power is cheaper than power generated using natural gas if the gas is more than $3.50 per MCF (thousand cubic feet). According to the EIA, the average gas price to utilities in 2001 was $3.77 per MCF. Gas futures were trading recently (June 19, 2003) on the New York Mercantile exchange at over $6.00 per MCF. Since 1978, the federal government has spent $11 billion of taxpayer money to encourage renewable energy.

This number compares to $5 billion dollars PER YEAR of federal subsidies for the petroleum industry from 1916 to 1978, and $145 billion for the nuclear industry since 1947. The current energy bill includes $16 billion in subsidies in the form of loan guarantees for nuclear in a single piece of legislation.

One benefit of creating electric energy from the sun or wind is that the fuel is free. Renewable energy can be a hedge against fuel cost increases. While the cost of natural gas has risen, the cost of renewables has fallen. It is true that wind and solar is intermittent, and siting wind power plants should avoid impacting views or wildlife. We support development of technologies able to follow electric loads on a utility scale. We prefer that these technologies use renewable fuels wherever possible.

According to the EIA, 8 percent of the electric energy generated in 2001 was generated by renewable sources, 2.1 percent with non-hydroelectric renewable energy. We believe strongly that these numbers will grow substantially before 2025.

According to the New York Times, the wholesale price of ethanol is less than of gasoline. Blended ethanol fuels should be cheaper at the pump than straight gasoline, and they are less polluting. Ethanol is replacing MTBE, a petroleum-based gasoline additive, increasing market demand for ethanol. 

Park uses biodiesel
Biodiesel, another clean fuel is used now in all diesel machinery in Yellowstone Park. Diesel engines can use 100 percent biodiesel. In Germany, biodiesel is available at gas stations.

London air in the 1600s was so polluted by the burning of coal that British scientist John Evelyn wrote that breathing problems "rage more in that one city than the whole earth besides." Though our air is now cleaner than London's in the 1600s, there is little debate over the source of global warming. Two thousand scientists on the International Government Panel on Climate Change agreed that human activity is altering global temperatures and weather patterns.

We believe that carbon emission credits should be traded. Because of the Kyoto Protocol, a global market has emerged for trading carbon emission credits. Many large companies engage in carbon trading on the Chicago Climate Exchange. A voluntary approach for carbon trading has been embraced by the Bush administration.

The effort advocating energy bill amendments to reduce greenhouse gases has the support of farmers, industry, environmentalists and economists. This broad support shows that the status quo contributes to our dependence on foreign oil. Suppose we got cut off from Middle East oil. Why wouldn't we explore clean and abundant energy sources existing here in the United States? Renewable energy can provide for electricity, heating, and transportation. Renewable fuels yield more than just energy, they create jobs and tax revenue and keeps our money in the United States instead of exporting it to the Middle East.

Copyright (c) The Billings Gazette, a division of Lee Enterprises.

Sage Mountain Center Wins
Sustainable Education Award
Sage Mountain Center of Whitehall recently received the Corporation for the Northern Rockies Sustainable Education Award. The award is given for "outstanding leadership in educating the public about sustainability and energy conservation."

The award ceremony took place at the annual Sustainability Fair in Livingston on July 13. The Fair drew several thousand visitors and the included 80 or so booths and displays set up by vendors, non-profits and government agencies in Rotary Park next to the Historic Depot Center in downtown Livingston.

The 2002 theme was "Shining a Light on Sustainable Choices." Fair-goers could learn how to cope with rising gas and energy prices and take the first steps toward energy independence by learning how to get off the grid. They sampled (or bought) fruits and vegetables from a sustainable garden, tasted produce and meat from local farms and ranches, strolled through native and drought resistant trees and shrubs, discovered healthful and environmentally friendly apparel, cosmetics, and home products, and viewed cutting-edge energy technologies and building materials.

The Education Award was one of four categories including: Trendsetter, Innovator, and Sustainable Agriculture.

Sage Mountain Center, a charter member of the Montana Renewable Energy Association, is operated by Christopher Borton and Linda Welsh and provides workshops, seminars, and tours dedicated to promoting deeper awareness of self and environment.

Sustainability Fair 2002 - MREA Snapshots

MAGIE Exhibit Generates 
Interest in Wind, MREA
Logan and Jenni Bryce of Pine Ridge Products in Great Falls spent three days at the MAGIE (Montana Agricultural Industrial Expo) Jan. 17-19 at the Four Seasons Arena in the Electric City.

Walking the walk: 
Sage Mountain Uses Renewable Energy
to Live Lightly, Helps Others Do Same
By Roberta Forsell Stauffer
The Montana Standard

Their dream car is an SUV that could run on either gas or electricity. The sport utility vehicle would start in 40-below zero weather and be equipped with four-wheel drive to navigate the rough roads along the Continental Divide. One deep charge of batteries would be power enough for the 40-plus-mile round trip to Butte.

For Chris Borton and Linda Welsh of Sage Mountain Center, that dream car represents a major "missing link'' in their quest to live with little impact on the planet and help others do the same.

• Details...

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First Steps for the Energy Consumer

We negate part of our need to consume resources if we practice conservation first. Efficiency in end-use applications is equivalent in increase in energy supply. We work with the customer to establish energy use. In other words, we complete an energy inventory.

We think, sometimes, that having said something a few times that it will nevermore need rehearsing. But clearly a realistic energy inventory take with the consumer is necessary, which means we have to tell customers either to have no kids or to install motion-sensor light switches, to replace inefficient appliances with high-efficiency appliances, to install energy-efficient lighting, etc. So, we do two inventories: one with no conservation (the consumer in the dark) and one with conservation features worked out with the customer (the illuminated consumer).

The result may be that some customers have plugged their cash leaks and will have no further need of us, except to purchase the occasional light fixture.

In this spirit, I suggest, as a first step, the adopting of high-efficiency lighting. For closets and pantries used less than 20 minutes at a time, install 40-watt quartz halogen lights. For area lighting, high-efficiency fluorescent fixtures yield about 5:1 efficiency improvement.

So much for the big; now for the small, namely "Phantom Loads." LED’s (light-emitting diodes) those little jewels of red, green and yellow light that pierce the darkness when all the others lights are turned off. One of those little guys will consume one amp-hour of current in 12½ days. Many appliances have them. Some LED’s are on all the time: clocks, VCR’s, telephones, smoke detectors, surge protectors, etc. A number of appliances (instant-on televisions, for example) use a lot of power when off but still plugged in. Some VCR’s use almost as much power when merely plugged in as they do when they’re in use. Outlet strips with on-off switches work great. Flat screens usually use less power than tube-type monitors. PIR motion detectors are effective light controls if several of them are connected to one power supply.

We can start small and be effective in reducing demand. By a little and a little are modern struggles won.

Mikey Strickland
Dearborn Solar Electric Co.
633 Dearborn River Rd.
Cascade, MT  59421
406-788-7023
 

MREA Takes Part in Sustainability Fair

Members of the Montana Renewable Energy Association staffed a table at the Sustainability Fair 2001 Aug. 25 in Livingston

Organized by the Corporation for the Northern Rockies, the Fair featured a full day of exhibits, activities, speakers and performances about everything from recycled building materials to strategies for cutting energy costs.

CNR is a Livingston-based nonprofit providing education and technical support to sustain the Northern Rockies landscape and way of life. "The intent of the Fair is to bring sustainability in all its facets to Montanans," said Lill Erickson, CNR Executive Director.

The Fair featured some 60 vendors and eight speakers covering a variety of topics including sustainable ranch management, local food, drought tolerant landscaping, alternative building materials, and the newest electric hybrid cars.

MREA members who helped at the Fair included Mikey and LuMarie Strickland of Dearborn Solar Electric; Dave Ryan of Montana Power Company; and John Walden and Jim Tracy of the National Center for Appropriate Technology. MREA enjoyed the use of a solar pumping demonstration system from Sunelco, a "sunflower" canopy from Solar Plexus and a wind turbine from Pine Ridge Products.

Other MREA members who participated in the Fair included Bob and Hopie Stevens of the Fanwood Foundation, Linda Welsh of Sage Mountain Center, and William von Brethorst of Planetary Systems.

Report from the Midwest Renewable Energy Fair
WHAT IS MREF? Many years ago, in central Wisconsin, there was a pocket of farms, an Amish community. When electrical power was put in to the region, it was not provided to this patch of farms. After a while, many of the Amish moved elsewhere--and the people who bought their places largely decided to put in off-grid power systems. As time went by, they decided to have an educational celebration to show folks what they were doing and how. Thus the Midwest Renewable Energy Association, http://www.the-mrea.org was born, and their annual celebration of renewable energy technologies is now the present fair. This year's renewable energy fair near Amherst, WI, was June 22nd through June 24th. So much to see and so little time....

Read more about Chris' impressions of the fair at the Oasis Montana, Inc.  website.

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The following two-part interview with MREA board member Chris Borton appeared in the June 20 and June 27 (2001) issues of the Whitehall Ledger. It is used here with permission of publisher Glenn Marx.

Renewable Energy Makes Economic Sense, 
Says Sage Mountain Center Founder 
Chris Borton and partner Linda Welsh have owned and operated Sage Mountain Center, located in the Toll Mountain area west of Whitehall, since 1991. Sage Mountain Center offers training in personal inner growth, physical health and sustainable living. The sustainable living portion of the Sage Mountain experience offers a wide variety of advice and courses on a range of topics, including solar home design, alternative building materials, solar electricity and more. Borton, a Georgia native, is the fourth generation of his family to work in construction.

A: I think conservation is generally seen as deprivation, or having to do without. If we think in a larger context, part of being an American is independence, and having abundance…having as much as we want when we want it.

We’re huge consumers. We consume more energy than any other country in the world. Anytime a word comes into our vocabulary that has to do with changing our life and having to do with less, our tendency is to immediately resist that.

A: I think the first thing is for people to make the connection…to connect the energy we use with where that energy comes from. In other words, when we turn on a light, think…where is that power coming from, how is it produced, how much does it cost to produce? People seeing the connection of our everyday living and seeing how it relates to the bigger picture of our community, our state and our country.

A: I think generally in the past, coming out of the 1980s, there was a lot of idealism about solar energy and wind power and how it would save us with of all of us living happily ever after.

But what we’re seeing now is kind of interesting because it is starting to hit us in our wallets. I believe it is our wallets that are going to cause us to change and think differently about conservation.

A: My gut feeling is we already know there are going to be increases – 50 to 100 percent – and as it looks now it’s going to be stuck on us. Energy costs are going to get a little higher, and we’ll get used to that, and a little higher and we’ll get used to that…

Our power bills are definitely going to be going up. I think all that will increase our awareness of our connection with where we get our power from and how we use our power, and it is going to make us generally more conscious. And I think if we are conscious of these things we’re more inclined to act on them.

A: It needs a lot of work. Right now, I believe the government is seeking comment about where renewables are perceived by the general public. I think it’s crucial we do provide feedback to increase the usage of renewable energy in his energy plan.

Obviously there is a strong tendency toward fossil fuels in the plan. I think that’s very bogus. It’s going in the wrong direction.

A: I just read where Governor Judy Martz is encouraging state agencies to conserve, and I see that as a positive gesture. I think what we really need – what the general public and small businesses really need – are education and incentives. Two simple terms.

A: Education, which is part of what we do at Sage Mountain Center, is to teach people that they don’t need to use as much energy as they’re using. They can do their dishes, do their laundry and heat their house all to the comfort level they are used to, but using a tremendous amount less of energy by using more energy efficient appliances.

Incentives could be as simple as something like rebates for appliances and light bulbs. It’s easy for states to plop down $100 million in tax breaks for the development of fossil fuel power plants. Why not take the $100 million and distribute compact fluorescent bulbs to an entire state, and watch the power consumption drop tremendously. Then we wouldn’t have to build new polluting power plants.

A: We’re doing a collection of seminars geared toward education on solar electricity…how and why to incorporate that into your business or your home. We’re looking at passive solar home design, energy efficiency in building and construction techniques. We also offer free tours of the facility here at Sage Mountain Center, where people can see these super energy efficient measures.

A: The first thing is the orientation of the building. It’s oriented to take maximum advantage of the sun’s heating capabilities in the winter. We are creating a very well-insulated shell of the house. We’re using plastered straw bale construction, which has an R-value of about 40. It’s a very renewable material…we get it fifteen minutes away at the Smith ranch. We can see our walls grow one season and the next season we’re building with them.

After building a very well-insulated home we include systems in the home, and we try to use the sun and wind as much as possible for electricity and heating.

We’re in the process of putting up a wind generator. We’ve been living on 100 percent solar electricity for the last ten years. Sage Mountain Center has never paid a power bill.

We’ve gone with an in-floor central heating system, also called radiant floor or radiant heat system, for the central heating system. That system circulates hot water through tubing in the floor, and that hot water is heated from the sun. Pumps circulate the water throughout the floor, and it is the cleanest and cheapest form of central heating you can have right now when it is put in during new construction.

Our solar electric system consists of a solar array outside. Sunlight hits those panels and excites electrons, and the electrons get channeled into a battery bank, and the battery bank is used for nighttime electricity. And in the daytime it’s recharged by sun.

All the lights throughout the house are new compact florescent lights. When you say florescent lights most people think of white, pasty, buzzing, flickering lights. The new generation of compact florescent lights has not one of those unpleasant features. We also use LEDs (light emitting diodes) which is the absolute most efficient lighting right now.

A: Generally, for appliances, the more efficient the appliance is, the more expensive it is up front. But the operating cost over the life of that appliance will be much, much lower than a standard appliance. An energy efficient appliance will save you a tremendous amount of money in the long run.

For example, a compact fluorescent bulb will cost about seven dollars, and last about seven to ten years. One bulb will save about forty bucks over the life of that bulb. One, because you won’t be changing light bulbs as much. Incandescent bulbs last only a year or so. Two, these bulbs use much less electricity than incandescents. I call incandescent lights "heaters," not lights. Ninety-percent of an incandescent light bulb is heat, and ten percent is light.

For construction of a new home, generally energy efficient measures add about ten percent to the cost of a home. But they can save as much as forty percent on the operation of the home.

(Next week: Borton talks about the "How to’s" of solar power, his vision of energy use in America and sources for more information of renewable energy.)

A: First, we need to make the distinction between the types of solar energy. There are three types of solar energy available to homes. One is passive solar space heating. That’s the heating of air.

Second is solar electricity. That’s the creation of electricity from sunlight.

Third is solar hot water. That’s where water is heated from the heat of the sun.

Q: Do solar panels work for all three of those functions?

A: It depends on what kind of panels you’re referring to. Solar hot water panels can help offset your heating bills, whether it’s forced air, natural gas or propane.

Solar space heating or passive solar home design can also offset heating bills.

Solar electricity cannot help offset home heating bills. It can only help offset your electric bills. A lot of people think that if they put some solar panels on their house, their heating bill’s going to go way down. Won’t happen. Solar electricity can never be used in conjunction with electric heat, because it takes so much electricity to create heat that it would be extremely inefficient to use solar electric panels for heating. So solar electric panels should only be used to offset electric bills as it relates to lights, appliances, power tools, things like that.

A: First step is to talk to us at Sage Mountain Center (laughs). We teach a lot of classes, we have a lot of resources and a lot of connections for people who are interested in learning more about this stuff. The Internet is flooded with information about every type of solar power. There are lots of great books and videos out there for people interested in learning more about solar or wind power.

A: The best website right now is www.montanagreenpower.com. That’s a new website, and it is the most comprehensive site for the state. It has all kinds of renewable energy information, and also has the latest news from around the country, and keeps you up-to-date on legislative actions and grants that are available, and has links to several other good renewable energy sites.

And attend our Sage Mountain seminars.

A: They will be at some point.

Right now, the cost of solar electric panels is still pretty expensive. That’s why most people aren’t using it now…because of the initial investment. The analogy I like to use, however, is the comparison between solar panels and a new SUV. We’ll go out and spend $20,000 to $40,000 for a new car or SUV, and if you think about it, that automobile is probably the worst investment you’ll ever make. It costs thousands of dollars a year in fuel, it costs us for insurance, and as soon as it leaves the lot the price drops immediately. So as an investment, a vehicle is a real bad choice.

Let’s compare that to a solar electric system. The cost is anywhere between $7,000 and $17,000. It’s an investment. But this investment can offset all or almost all of your electric bills for at least fifty years.

One thing to keep in mind about renewable energy is that the United States is basically still in the Dark Ages. When we look at places like Europe, they are so completely advanced and ahead of us, it’s embarrassing. Even if we compare ourselves to developing countries in places like Africa, the United States is still way behind. Because developing countries don’t have the (energy) grid, these remote forms of energy are clean and self sufficient and just springing up all over the place.

A: Wind power is extremely practical in Montana. We are the fifth windiest state in the country, and Montana has some of the windiest areas in the country.

The reason it isn’t popular right now is basically because the whole energy market has been dominated by coal and hydro.

As far as wind is concerned, that’s changing very rapidly. I know of a number of site assessments taking place for wind farms in Montana. And wind power is going to happen here. The first one is already going up right now on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. That’s one of the windiest spots. Livingston is another key area, of course, as are places like Anaconda.

A: Yes. Absolutely.

A: The Montana Power energy audits are an excellent way for customers to have their house assessed. It’s free, and everyone should have it done, for sure. There’s nothing to lose.

A: Fuel cells operate somewhat like a regular car battery. They require hydrogen, which is transformed into electrical energy and some heat.

Right how, of course, there is a lot of research being done on fuel cells, mostly for vehicles. There are fuel cell vehicles out there. They’re starting to be made on the commercial market, and we’re going to see them more in the residential market. They’ll be treated something like a generator. A fuel cell, however, isn’t considered a renewable or clean form of energy, unless the hydrogen comes from a clean source. Right now, the majority of fuel cells that are out there can use propane or natural gas. They extract the hydrogen from a fossil fuel.

There’s a lot more work being done now to extract that hydrogen from water. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, and we can extract hydrogen from water. And that’s going to be the future of energy production from a hydrogen source, in my opinion.

A: I’m not a chemist or a physicist, this is just stuff I’ve learned over the years. But yes, people think of hydrogen as something blowing up, like the hydrogen bomb.

However, we’re dealing with very explosive, very flammable materials every day when we use gasoline for our cars, propane in our barbecues, natural gas for cooking. Those are potentially very dangerous materials.

Hydrogen is sort of a new fuel for us, and the more we’re exposed to it, the more comfortable we’ll be with it.

A: I can imagine the home being predominately built from recycled materials…recycled from anything…tires, plastics, metals, and you might see paper and cardboard created into lumber. There have been some big advances there.

I can imagine the home being built in harmony with its environment, where the water that comes in is monitored and the water that goes out is monitored to make sure it’s just as clean as when it came in. The fuel heating the home and supplying electricity for the home will also be clean from the sun, and from hydrogen extracted from water. Our vehicles will be zero emissions, and will be powered by the water and sun. Incidentally, this is happening now, only on a small scale.

A: The first cheapest and most effective thing you can do is change out your light bulbs. Any light bulb you have on for more than one hour per day…change that light bulb to a compact fluorescent. It’s a small investment you’ll make initially (usually about $100 to replace all the light bulbs in a home), but you’ll see immediate results in your power bill.

The second thing is seal up cracks in your house. Infiltration is a big energy waster…heat and cold going in and out around doors and windows. The typical door that you feel the air coming in and blowing around the seams of the door is the equivalent of a six-inch round hole in your wall. So with every door and window that is the equivalent of a six-inch hole you are essentially heating the outdoors, or cooling the outdoors if you run an air conditioner.

The third thing is a cliché, but you should turn off lights when you’re not in the room, and replace your inefficient appliances with new ones.

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Sage Mountain Center among Eco Star Award Winners
MREA member Sage Mountain Center near Whitehall is one of 22 small businesses throughout Montana that have qualified to receive special EcoStar recognition from the Montana State University Extension Service for its efforts to reduce waste.

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