Energy and Environment News Roundup – 9.19.13

A daily roundup of the most important energy, environment, and climate news from around the world.

ENERGY POLICY 

Obama looks to fill fall scorecard with regulations, going small-bore (via The Hill)

German industry group seeks green energy overhaul after election (via Reuters)

COAL 

Three times more people working in green jobs than coal (via BusinessGreen)

On cost, new clean energy is beating coal (via EarthTechling)

Wyoming coal sale canceled by US on bid at 15-year low (via Bloomberg)

EMISSIONS 

China faces tough fight against air pollution (via Xinhua)

Business groups, GOP attack social cost of carbon on multiple fronts (via The Hill)

California clears way for use of offsets in carbon market (via Sacramento Bee)

RENEWABLES 

2.8GW solar PV capacity expected to be added in India in 2014 (via CleanTechnica)

Study flags UK’s offshore green jobs surge (via Recharge)

5 market innovations revolutionizing solar in the developing world (via Sustainable Industries)

Cost of US solar power 60% lower than in early 2011 (via CleanTechnica)

US charges 6 people, 3 firms with $100 million biofuels fraud (via Reuters)

Ten myths about geothermal heating and cooling (via National Geographic)

Google goes greener with 240MW wind power purchase (via Houston Chronicle)

New Era Wind will no longer pursue Goodhue wind farm in Minnesota (via Minnesota Public Radio)

Big solar comes to Utah with 300MW project (via SustainableBusiness)

NUCLEAR 

Japan’s Abe orders surviving Fukushima reactors scrapped (via Reuters)

DOE still seeks beneficiary for small modular reactor funding (via Aiken Standard)

CLIMATE 

Delaying climate action will triple costs (via Grist)

Study identifies 10 regions to target climate adaptation funding (via RTCC)

Global temperature trends and the IPCC (via Energy Collective)

Nation-to-nation peer pressure may be best hope for global climate deal (via NBC News)

Poland partners with coal and oil corporate sponsors for COP19 climate conference (via DeSmog Blog)

Obama climate change plan gets first airing in front of House skeptics (via The Guardian)

17 states accuse EPA of exceeding its authority with climate change plan (via The Hill)

Most US companies ignoring SEC rule to disclose climate risks (via InsideClimate News)

ENERGY EFFICIENCY 

Ranking reveals top US cities on energy efficiency (via USA Today)

A quest to prove the business case for installing big batteries at buildings (via GigaOm)

GM’s LEED Gold data center slashes electric bill by 70% (via EarthTechling)

Chicago passes energy benchmarking rules (via Greentech Media)

OIL 

The $1.5 trillion oil find in the Gulf of Mexico (via Christian Science Monitor)

Eagle Ford oil expected to surpass 1 million barrels per day (via Houston Chronicle)

One downside to more oil drilling? Wasted gas (via StateImpact Texas)

China finds resistance to oil deals in Africa (via New York Times)

TRANSPORTATION 

DOE advanced vehicle loan portfolio remains strong (via EarthTechling)

Ford adding 200 charging stations in next 15 months (via Autoblog Green)

ENVIRONMENT 

Environmental groups set for new fight over drilling on US-managed Utah land (via New York Times)

POLITICS 

Obama energy officials defend climate plan to Republicans (via Bloomberg)

Democrat Manchin’s opposition imperils Obama FERC nominee (via Bloomberg)

OPINION 

Time for Angela Merkel to fill the climate leadership vacuum? (via RTCC)

Carbon pricing levels playing field, reduces energy use (via Energy Manager Today)

Fracking may not be as bad for the climate as we thought (via Washington Post)

Clearing up a few myths about Brazilian biofuels trade (via Energy Collective)

Whether approved or not, Keystone XL has been a victory for lobbyists (via DeSmog Blog)

Naomi Klein “waging ideological war” instead of tacking climate change (via The Guardian)

What’s the climate change context behind Colorado’s floods? (via ClimateWire)

Water Conservation: A DIY Washing Machine

water conservation diy washing machine

Your washing machine is a big water hog, and finding alternative ways to wash your clothes is a great way to help with water conservation at home.

The average washing machine uses 40-55 gallons of water per load, and even the most efficient washers still require about 18 gallons to get your clothes clean. Reader Norman sent me a couple of videos where he demonstrates his DIY washing machine that uses only two gallons per load. Talk about water conservation in action!

The other cool thing about Norman's washer? It uses no electricity. When it comes to water conservation, cutting back on your electricity usage makes a big impact. That might not seem obvious, but it takes a lot of water to keep electrical plants running, because they use water as part of their cooling mechanisms. That means that every time you turn on the lights or the washing machine, you're indirectly using hundreds of gallons of water.

This DIY washing machine looks relatively simple to build, and Norman gives a very thorough tour of both his two gallon machine and the larger 20 gallon version that he created for bigger loads of laundry. Check them out!

Water Conservation: How to build a washing machine

You will need:

  • a bucket with a lid that's 5 gallons or larger. You'll see that Norman has done a couple of variations in his videos
  • 3 piece of wood that are 1x1.5, planed to a bow (you'll see what I mean about a bow in the video)
  • drill
  • sheet metal screws
  • castor wheels - preferably ones that don't swivel
  • 1/4" bolt that's about 4-5" long
  • 3 washers and 2 nuts for that bolt
  • piece of conduit to cover the bolt
  • another piece of conduit, about 10" long, from the look of it
  • one 2x4

And here's the video for building a 20 gallon tabletop washer:

Thank you so much for sharing these videos, Norman!

Image Credit: Screenshot from Norman's video