Strange Thoughts

Watching a show on the Green network this morning. The host is bitching about Ford selling cars and trucks that are poor in MPG, and by doing so Ford is evil.
Hate to say this but if the cars and trucks were not selling Ford would not be making them.
The show went on to talk about how bad untilies are for using Coal. Excuse me what should they be using?
Lastly I love the way they use the word environmentalist like saying that everone agrees with their experts. Why do I think this show is a lot of hot air. Be so much better if the message was more in line of this is an issue this is what Mr/Group x thinks sort of thing.

PSA for Garden of Eating

Here a short PSA I did for the Garden of Eating in Racine

Acciona Energy North America Dedicates EcoGrove Wind Farm In Illinois

What can we do in Wisconsin to get wind moving forward?

Lena, Ill.-based Acciona Energy North America dedicated its first wind farm in Illinois with a ceremony and luncheon. The company also presented superintendents from Lena-Winslow and Warren school districts each with a $5,000 annual scholarship fund for deserving high school seniors planning to pursue a secondary education leading to a career contributing to sustainability.

The 100.5 MW EcoGrove Wind Farm, located in Stephenson County, Ill., uses 67 Acciona Windpower 1.5 MW wind turbines and is spread across approximately 7,000 rural acres. With the exception of the small footprint made by the 67 turbines, at less than one acre each, land use is dominated by farming, which coexists with the wind energy production, according to the company.

Stephenson County made an investment in the EcoGrove project earlier this year, when 14 taxing districts unanimously approved a tax abatement for the project. This tax abatement, a sales/use tax exemption and other incentives were part of the state of Illinois Enterprise Zone Act for which the EcoGrove project met the criteria.

The wind turbines used at EcoGrove were produced at Acciona's West Branch, Iowa, manufacturing facility. The project itself was constructed by 125 local trades people and numerous local and regional suppliers and service providers. Nine of the 10 service technicians filling the project's newly created jobs are from the local area and include volunteer firefighters, retired military personnel, welders, machinists and a racecar driver.

Construction of the wind farm, including turbine erection, was managed by The Morse Group. The project was acquired by Acciona from EcoEnergy LLC, which continued to serve the project in a development and consultative capacity through the completion of the project.

SOURCE: Acciona Energy

Action Plan Market Garden and Farmers Market

The more I look into the idea of the farm the more I know its the right thing to do. The Farm can in fact grow and sell produce at a Farmers market we ourselves set up in the inner city.
But why?

This is a untapped market there is a huge food desert and those living there would like the same opportunities to provide good food to their families just as much as we do ours.
With NO food stores no one to compete with we would be the only ones. When we then sell for less then the stores our base can get to our base will grow and become our fans.
We would also grow and sell what the ethic community wants to eat and can not find in the stores.

More to come

Ed Clingman Organic Experimental Farm

Ed Clingman Organic Experimental Farm exists so now what is the plan?

1) Grow crops to sell into stores and Farmer's Markets
2) Create a Composing operation using Worms selling both the end compost and surplus worms
3) Explore squire foot gardening efforts
4) Provide educational opportunities
5) Provide food to area food banks
6) Set aside an area for rental garden plots allow low income to receive plots for exchange for labor
7) Provide opportunities for Ex cons to get work experience
8) Bring Green Jobs to Racine County
9) Have fun

Ed Clingman Experimental Organic Farm

Ed Clingman Experimental Organic Farm well looks like this just get going. This Spring at the First Racine Urban Garden Network(RUGAN) meeting May 09. A local business owner came and told the group that he had 5 ac in the county he would be willing to rent for the cost of $1.00 and a sigh thanking the University of Wisconsin Parkside an easy thing one would think. Without getting into the politics of RUGAN no one ever called him to follow up. When it was made clear to me from CAA if I had no space for a composting area I could not get a job with CAA working on there ideas about a food network, I obtained the land owners phone number and called him.
Today I and Mr. Robert Beezat will be seeing this land with the aim to rent it.

The goal of the Farm is to create a site for composting using rows and European Earth Worms. The rest of the land will be used to do small scale organic farming to sell into area Farmers Markets and restaurants Some land to be used to help support area food banks and the rest small 10*10 plots one could rent. Latter I will expand on my idea and how I will overcome obstacles

My fear is that after all my work that at the last minuet I will get pushed aside and others will run the operation.
I put that fear in God's hands and take power over this issue.

Whole Foods

This is good news sure mosly PR but the investment helps get a Wind Farm going

AUSTIN, TX (Sept. 15, 2009) — Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFMI) today announced the completion of its 2009 landmark 776 million-kilowatt-hour purchase of renewable energy credits (RECs) from wind farms. The RECs are equal to 100 percent of the Company’s electricity use in its North American locations, and nearly 90 percent of this year’s purchase is helping to fund E.ON Climate & Renewables’ (EC&R) recently-completed Texas-based Panther Creek wind farm.

“Whole Foods Market is working hard to be a leader in environmental stewardship and to make sure that our investment drives new wind power growth for the country. Buying nearly all of our 2009 renewable energy credits from Panther Creek to help bring new power from the wind farm to the grid is a great example of that,” said Lee Matecko, Whole Foods Market global vice president of Construction and Store Development. “And as a Texas-based company, it also feels great to support a Texas-based wind farm. We appreciate Renewable Choice Energy for bringing this partnership together.”

Continuing its commitment to clean energy, nearly 90 percent of the RECs Whole Foods Market has purchased for 2009 came from a Big Spring, Texas-based wind farm, which is 50 miles east of Midland. The project is built and operated by EC&R North America, a renewable energy developer headquartered in Chicago, with development offices in Austin and Denver. The remaining RECs come from a number of different wind farms in locations across the U.S. and Canada. The total purchase of 776,115,000 kilowatt hours, the largest to date by a U.S. retailer, was made in partnership with Boulder, Colo.-based Renewable Choice Energy.

The Panther Creek wind farm began operating in its first phase in 2008, and its final phase of construction was recently completed. Whole Foods Market’s purchase of RECs from Panther Creek wind farm has provided valuable additional financing to the project to support its 2009 completion.

“Support from companies like Whole Foods Market with partners like Renewable Choice Energy creates a valuable revenue stream for us that helps make new wind farms like Panther Creek possible,” said Dean Tuel, vice president of Energy Marketing for E.ON Climate & Renewables North America. “EC&R is developing a number of large scale wind projects in the U.S. over the coming years. Extra funding from renewable energy credit sales will play a crucial role in this growth.”

Whole Foods Market has been a leading supporter of renewable energy development since 2006, when it became the first Fortune 500 Company to offset 100 percent of its electricity use with RECs from wind farms provided by Renewable Choice Energy. The continued purchase of RECs is part of the Company’s comprehensive energy commitment, which also includes plans to more than triple the number of stores with solar panels and to invest in energy-reduction opportunities while retrofitting existing stores with energy-efficient lighting, equipment and mechanical components.

“The Environmental Protection Agency commends Whole Foods Market for their continued commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by purchasing green power,” said Kathleen Hogan, director of the Climate Protection Partnerships Division at EPA. “As a partner in EPA’s Green Power Partnership, and by supporting renewable energy, Whole Foods Market is helping to move our nation into a clean energy future.”

The 2009 Whole Foods Market wind power purchase will help avoid up to 868 million pounds of carbon dioxide pollution. This has an environmental benefit that’s similar to taking more than 72,000 cars off of the roads for a year, or planting nearly 3.6 million mature trees.

“Our work with Whole Foods Market and E.ON Climate & Renewables North America is an example of how corporate responsibility initiatives are directly driving clean solutions to today’s energy and environmental challenges,” said Quayle Hodek, CEO of Renewable Choice Energy. “We’re excited to connect our forward-thinking customers with meaningful renewable energy projects across the country to help reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and create a new energy economy in the U.S.”

Learn more about environmental initiatives at Whole Foods Market at blog.wholefoodsmarket.com/category/green-action or download high resolution photos from the press room: wholefoodsmarket.com Read more about how RECs work at renewablechoice.com/business-about-renewable-energy.

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