U.S. retailers chase a solar panel deadline

Darkfrog submitted, created time 3 months 2 weeks (www.nytimes.com)

U.S. retailers might consider floor space to be the number one claim on their attention, but they're finally putting those big, flat roofs to work toward the bottom line. No, they're not doing cheery rooftop displays of their merchandise; they're installing solar panels. If they do so before December 31 of this year, they will receive a generous tax write-off.

So far, the big chains like Wal-Mart, Kohls, Whole Foods, and Safeway have outfitted about one in ten stores with rooftop solar panels, but we can expect more if Congress renews their offer for 2009 and beyond

1 comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: economics alternative energy alternative fuels fuels energy solar panels solar power science and culture politics thin-film solar panels solar panels solar power solar energy

Biofuel blends not as green as they seem

wugongliang submitted, created time 8 months 2 days (environment.newscientist.com)

Despite their green intentions, buyers of blended biofuel may not be getting quite what they are paying for.

5 comments | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: fuels alternative energy energy agriculture alternative fuels biofuel production fossil fuels biodiesel biofuela

If Life Gives You Methane, Make Methane Energy

Deep-ocean vents are a source of oil and gas

sumsung submitted, created time 10 months 22 hours (www.nature.com)

Undersea thermal vents can yield unexpected bounty: natural gas and the building blocks of oil products. In a new analysis of Lost City, a hydrothermal field in the mid-Atlantic, researchers have found that these organic molecules are being created through inorganic processes, rather than the more typical decomposition of once-living material.

Submit comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: energy thermal vents oceans fuels fossil fuels gas oil sea vents deep-ocean vents