Anna Leonard's Blog Posts Tagged 'clean energy' (9)

Mount Airy, N.C., the birthplace of Andy Griffith and the basis for his popular show’s town “Mayberry,” has gone solar.

“Tens of thousands of people visit Mount Airy each year in search of a simpler time and place, but this is a city that is preserving the best of its past, while embracing its future,” said Olee Joel Olsen, managing director at O2 Energies. “The six-acre solar farm opening today will generate clean energy for the residents and businesses of Mount Airy for generations…

SALISBURY — With the looming state and local budget cuts, school systems across North Carolina are looking for cost-savings wherever possible. Some have already found success and want to energize other school systems to take similar actions.

EduCon, a Winston-Salem based energy conservation consulting company, works with school systems to reduce energy consumption and costs, which in most cases is the second highest line-item in a school system’s budget.

“Energy costs continue…

Solar energy is proving so successful in North Carolina that industry advocates want to double the amount of sun-powered electricity that is required by state law.

A bill introduced Monday in the General assembly would raise North Carolina's solar energy requirement to 0.4 percent of all retail electricity sold by electric utilities by 2018. The current requirement, set by the state's sweeping 2007 green energy law, is 0.2 percent.

But despite solar energy's…

   Last night, President Obama addressed the nation in The State of the Union. Most of this speech focused on the economy but there were numerous focus points on the future of clean energy in our nation. President Obama compared the research of clean energy to that of the space race stating,

"This is our generation’s Sputnik moment. Two years ago, I said that we needed to reach a level of research and development we haven’t seen since the height of the Space Race. In a few…

RALEIGH –North Carolina’s Utility Savings Initiative saved the state’s taxpayers more than $55.3 million in utility costs in the last fiscal year and avoided emitting more than 164,886 metric tons of carbon dioxide into our atmosphere, according to a report issued recently by the North Carolina Energy Office.  Since the Utility Savings Initiative was launched in 2003, the state has saved more than $325 million while investing $11 million into utility savings improvements in North Carolina…

National Wildlife Foundation report says state has “great potential” to harness wind energy.



North Carolina is poised to be an East Coast leader in offshore wind power. According to a report recently released by the National Wildlife Federation, “There is great potential for…

The results of today's (12/14/10) meeting are in!

The North Carolina Building Code Council decided Tuesday to order the increase in home energy efficiency and to consider changes to building standards that could cut building costs by 15 percent. Commercial buildings would be required to meet a 30 percent improvement in energy efficiency...

Read more and watch news story…

North Carolina residents attending a college, university, technical institute or community college have until Jan. 12, 2011, to apply for one of up to 65 paid state government internships available for summer 2011.

This summer, the State Government Internship Program is offering positions funded by the N.C. Student Energy Internship and Fellowship…

Southern Energy Management (SEM) announced today that it is making the commitment to go carbon neutral. As a company specializing in energy efficiency and solar power for residential, commercial and government clients, the company is in the business of helping others lower their impact on the planet, and is excited to be taking a leadership position in offsetting its own carbon footprint with this initiative. Read the article…