Pickens Plan District Group OH-17

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Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 22, 2009 at 8:15am

NEO Clean Energy Network Meeting in Trumbull County
Tuesday, November 24, 2009, from 7-8:30 p.m.

Energy Efficiency's Role in Green Building

Michael Hein and Jason Clark of The Green Building Pros are the main speakers for a Clean Energy Network Meeting in Trumbull County on Tuesday, November 24, 2009, from 7-8:30 p.m. The meeting will be held in Room 117 of the Kent State University Trumbull Campus Technology Building. The meeting is free and open to the public.

Hein and Clark will discuss "Energy Efficiency's Role in Green Building" and will deal with topics such as what makes a building "green," why energy efficiency is important to homeowners and small business owners, and energy audits. To make existing buildings more energy efficient, an energy audit is the place to start. The speakers will explain what is involved in an energy audit and the reports produced to help determine the steps needed to reduce energy use while maintaining a comfortable and healthy building. A question/answer session will follow the presentation. Also, attendees will discuss future meeting topics.

The Green Building Pros (GBP) is a collaboration of energy efficiency and sustainability experts dedicated to bringing their expertise to the marketplace in Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania. The staff at GBP has decades of experience in the construction industry and hold advanced degrees and certifications in sustainability and green building. This experience and education – coupled with memberships and accreditation by leading organizations in green building and energy efficiency organizations such as the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET), and the Building Performance Institute (BPI) – position GBP to be a leader in the growing green building market. GBP is on the Web at http://thegreenbuildingpros.com/.

Clean Energy Network in Trumbull County is a group dedicated to increasing awareness in sustainability, green building and renewable energy technologies by bringing together like-minded people in the area. The Clean Energy Network in Trumbull County is a regional affiliate of Green Energy Ohio.

For more information about the Clean Energy Network and the Trumbull County meeting, contact Dave Ambrose at 330-647-3666 or dambrose1@neo.rr.com.

Green Energy Ohio is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting environmentally and economically sustainable energy policies and practices in Ohio. GEO is the Ohio Chapter of the American Solar Energy Society. GEO promotes renewable energy (solar, wind, biomass and low-impact hydro) statewide by acting as a clearinghouse to inform Ohioans on sustainable energy. The GEO Web site is http://www.greenenergyohio.org.

Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 18, 2009 at 2:51pm

This was sent to me by Kenneth Prendergast, Executive Director of All Aboard Ohio!

As we ponder the removal of urban rail transit systems that anchored walkable neighborhoods, the abandonment and destruction of many U.S. cities over the past 50 years, the isolation of the urban poor, the nation's immobilized elderly population, the creation of sprawling car-dependent suburbia where transit cannot effectively serve or survive, our depletion of our once-world leading domestic oil reserves and thus ever-worsening dependence on imported oil, as well as dangerously high carbon emissions, consider these issues in the context of the eye-opening Harper's article by Jonathan Kwitney from February, 1981, "The Great Transportation Conspiracy."

The article, scanned column by column, was uploaded to a friend's web site as a series of JPGs displayed by an html file. A text search won't stumble across it; one has to know where to look. Well here it is:

http://robertpence.com/streetcars/streetcars.html

From time to time, interviews and articles surface where some current or retired transit official claims it never happened. That's not too surprising, considering that when Kwitney researched his article he found "no more than three" such people who claimed to have any knowledge of the events. Probably a lot of former execs and employees from that era had already died off, and I speculate that some who denied any knowledge were trying to conceal their own complicity.

Kwitney presents such a thoroughly-researched, detailed narrative that it's pretty hard to believe the claims of those who deny it ever happened.

KJP

Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 15, 2009 at 11:04am

This was sent to me by Kenneth Prendergast, Executive Director of All Aboard Ohio!

The Oil Situation Is Really Bad
by Dave Cohen

Published Nov 12 2009 by ASPO-USA, Archived Nov 12 2009


On the eve of the International Energy Agency’s release of its annual World Energy Outlook (WEO), a whistleblower at the IEA claims the agency “has been deliberately underplaying a looming [oil] shortage for fear of triggering panic buying” in the world markets. As the young fan said to “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, who was wrongly convicted of helping to throw the 1919 World Series, but knew the fix was in, say it ain’t so, Joe.

Ah, but apparently it is so. Another dose of disillusionment for the naive. A second Guardian informant went so far as to say the situation is really bad—

The senior official claims the US has played an influential role in encouraging the watchdog to underplay the rate of decline from existing oil fields while overplaying the chances of finding new reserves.

The allegations raise serious questions about the accuracy of the organization’s latest World Energy Outlook on oil demand and supply to be published tomorrow – which is used by the British and many other governments to help guide their wider energy and climate change policies…

A second senior IEA source, who has now left but was also unwilling to give his name, said a key rule at the organization was that it was “imperative not to anger the Americans” but the fact was that there was not as much oil in the world as had been admitted. “We have [already] entered the ‘peak oil’ zone. I think that the situation is really bad,” he added.

READ MORE AT:
http://www.energybulletin.net/node/50688

READ IEA'S WEO REPORT AT:
http://www.worldenergyoutlook.org/

READ THE GUARDIAN ARTICLE AT:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/nov/09/peak-oil-international-energy-agency#history-byline

Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 15, 2009 at 9:48am

Posted on “Trucking & the Pickens Plan” Group:

Rail-truck intermodal shipping containers are the most cost-effective inland transportation system on the market. Fifteen years ago I was able to save $300-400 per "48x102" trailerload, using intermodal shipping containers to supply my customers in New York, shipping from Tupelo, MS through the Memphis, TN intermodal rail terminal. Diesel fuel retailed for about $0.75 per gallon back then, so intermodal cost savings have multiplied with the cost of imported oil.

Since returning to Ohio, I have been advocating the construction of a regional rail-truck intermodal shipping container terminal in the Youngstown area. This idea has gained support with our regional transportation planning and economic development organizations, and I am now involved with discussions about site selection, engineering, and funding.

Railroads must play a central role in restructuring our economy for energy independence, using a network of strategically-placed rail-truck terminals. Trucking would still be essential for local/regional deliveries, and for express-delivery "hot freight," but we need to use railroads as the standard for long-haul tonnage.

If CNG would not be feasible for railroad engines, we could use bio-diesel, processed from soybean oil and/or algae. Soybeans enrich the soil in which they are grown, and algae can be grown from waste water treatment plant effluent. Ultimately, we would be using our own sustainable resources to stop the energy trade deficit that has devastated our economy and weakened our national security for almost four decades.

Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 7, 2009 at 11:17am

Green Energy Ohio Tu-24-Nov-2009 (7-8:30pm)

To the Pickens Plan Army:

You are invited to Green Energy Ohio’s presentation "Sustainable Buildings" by Michael Hein of the Green Building Pros on Tu-24-Nov-2009 (7-8:30pm) at the Kent State University-Trumbull Campus, on Ohio Route 45 north of the Warren Route 5 Bypass. This presentation will include:

- What is a Green Building?
- Energy Efficiency Basics.
- Home Energy Audits.
- Questions/Answers.

J. Jay Pirko
OH-17 District Leader

Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 7, 2009 at 10:37am

To the Pickens Plan Army:

"Sustainable Buildings" presentation by Michael Hein of the Green Building Pros:
- What is a Green Building?
- Energy Efficiency Basics.
- Home Energy Audits.
- Questions/Answers.

Green Energy Ohio will meet Tu-24-Nov-2009 7-8:30pm Technology Bldg Room 117, KSU-Trumbull Campus, on Ohio Route 45 north of the Warren Route 5 Bypass.

J. Jay Pirko
OH-17 District Leader

Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 1, 2009 at 1:32pm

To the Pickens Plan Army, especially the OH-17 Group:

Once again, we should be proud of, and grateful to, our Congressman Tim Ryan, who has signed on as a co-sponsor of HR 1835, commonly called The Natural Gas Act of 2009.

Tim Ryan has been on the leading edge of our nation's efforts toward technology development and a sustainable energy policy. Serving on the House Appropriations Committee, Tim Ryan worked on the “Stimulus Bill,” with its investment in energy that was supported by the Pickens Army earlier this year.

Tim Ryan is working with his colleagues in our neighboring Congressional Districts, including Jason Altmire (PA-4) & John Bocceiri (OH-16) & Charlie Wilson (OH-6) to develop a Cleveland-to-Pittsburgh “Tech Belt.” Our delegation of legislators have been working to build a regional sustainable energy industry, using wind, solar, geothermal, and LEED-certified “green-buildings.”

Natural gas is another regional solution for our nation’s energy demands, and Tim Ryan is taking the lead as a co-sponsor of HR 1835. Our region is in a unique position to benefit from the development of the massive gas reserves in the Marcellus shale deposits running from the southern tier of New York, through the western portion of Pennsylvania into the eastern half of Ohio and through West Virginia.

V & M Steel is preparing to invest approximately one BILLION DOLLARS to expand its facility in Youngstown to produce the seamless steel pipes needed for gas & oil drilling. Youngstown is strategically located to provide one-day delivery to any location in the Marcellus shale region.

Energy costs are a major obstacle to economic development in this area, according to the Economic Development Action Team of our Regional Chamber of Commerce. Developing local energy production resources is essential to building our regional economy, and Congressman Tim Ryan is working on solutions.

Comment by J Jay Pirko on November 1, 2009 at 11:09am

Having managed freight shipping (trailerload contract carriers, LTL common carriers, UPS, and intermodal truck-rail-ocean) for a manufacturer, I have experienced the impact of imported oil prices on our economy.

Freight transportation is the bloodstream of our economy, moving raw materials and products to where they are needed. Without a self-contained, sustainable fuel supply, we are bleeding our wealth, like a punctured artery, every day we convert imported oil into diesel fuel. Price spikes add cost to everything that everyone buys, and have put too many truckers in debt, or out of business.

The volume of foreign oil used for freight transportation must surpass every other category combined. We need to make truck fuel a priority, whether investing in home-grown biodiesel, or new CNG technology and infrastructure.

Comment by J Jay Pirko on October 26, 2009 at 5:28pm

As Chairman of the Citizen's Advisory Board of Eastgate Council of Governments, I am inviting any interested Pickens Plan Activists to attend the EASTGATE ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITTEE meeting on Thursday, October 29th (2:00 to 4:00 PM) at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) meeting hall 4550 Research Parkway NW, Warren, Ohio, near the Kent State University Trumbull campus.

The purpose of the meeting is to review alternative energy projects going on in the Mahoning Valley and it will include a tour of IBEW's facilities. IBEW has a "state of the art" facility that is used to train electricians how to work with Geothermal, Solar, and Wind equipment.

Please e-mail Rachel McCartney (rmccartney@eastgatecog.org) if you plan to attend.

Agenda:

1. Welcome & Introductions

2. Local Updates

3. Food Policy Council, Vince Trinckes, Mahoning Soil & Water

4. TBA—Local electrical contractor on alternative energy projects in the Valley

5. IBEW tour of facility (Geothermal, Solar & Wind)

6. Other Business

7. Adjourn

Comment by Veronica Gold, OH State Leader on October 26, 2009 at 3:55pm

Hello Everyone,
I've been a member of the Pickens Plan almost from its inception and plan to hang on to the end. I wanted to tell you that your Congressman Patrick Ryan is one of two members of the Ohio Congressional Delegation to cosponsor HR 1835. As state leader, I monitor that kind of data. We're in the process of working with the Congressman's Communication Director to submit thank you letters to his favorite news outlets. Thank you all so very much for your efforts to convince Representative Ryan to sign on as a cosponsor. Sincerely, Veronica Gold, Ohio State Leader, The Pickens Plan

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