The Last Frost

Great news. 

Hybrid Engines Make it to 18-Wheelers – [Gizmodo]

"Ten Things You Can Do to Help Save the Earth" -[Howstuffworks]

40% Efficient Solar Cells: They Are Being Used Back On Earth – [TreeHugger]

A Green Hummer? It Runs On Biofuels – [TreeHugger]

El Hierro island, part of the Spanish Canary Island's just off the coast of Morroco, is claiming to be the world's first island to be powered by purely renewable energy. The primary source being hydroelectric power and the secondary source coming from wind turbines. 

No El Hierro doesn't mean 'the hero' in Spanish either, I checked and it appears to translate to 'the iron' but I took French in school so what do I know?

Interestingly you might have heard of this island before. I remember seeing a Discovery channel documentary about potential future natural disasters a couple years ago, and this island was featured in one of them. Apparently the island has the potential to break in two, with one half sliding into the Atlantic Ocean. It's said to have the potential to cause a devastating Tsunami capable of wiping out the East coast of the United States. Let's hope they're doing this whole renewable energy thing to appease the gods, because being over here in NY, I don't want to wake up to their wake anytime soon.

Island powered solely by Renewables – [Development Crossing]

If there's one thing airports know about, it's the power of the wind and how to harness it. Philadelphia International Airport is dropping nearly a quarter million dollars every year for the next five, towards the purchase of environmentally friendly wind power. The power will amount to about seven percent of the total power consumption for the airport. 

Philly Airport to Spend $1 Million on Wind Power [Environmental Leader]

A new solar powered street lamp may help cities curb energy consumption while sprucing up the neighborhood a little. The lamps have a retro design, except for the modern solar panels adorning the side the lamp post.

I'm not sure what a regular street lamp wholesales for but this lamp is estimated to cost up to 8K for the 2000+ lumen version. Still it's a great solution to a necessary albeit wasteful safety feature for our roads.

Aesthetic Street Lights: 19th Century Design, 21st Century Solar Power – [Green Options]

California is considering it but Australia is announcing it.

They're releasing legislation in 2009 to ban the sale and use of incandescent light bulbs. Compact florescents and LED bulbs will be the more energy efficient replacements.

The move will save massive quantities of energy. 

World First? Australia Switches Off Incandescent Bulbs [TreeHugger]

Image from: ServiceLighting.com 

Not all, but most can be used to reduce energy consumption and thus greenhouse gas emissions. Some are simple, actually all are simple, it's a good thing… check it out.

100 Ways to Save the Environment [SEQL.org]

The Svalbard International Seed Vault is a bunker of sorts that will one day safely store every known strain of agricultural seed in case of global catastrophe. The vault will be built deep inside a mountain in one of the Svalbard islands. The location was chosen for it's projected long term stability.

'Doomsday' vault design unveiled – [BBC]