My Clean Break column/feature in today’s Toronto Star takes a look at the potential that low-temperature geothermal technology has to reduce the use of fossil fuels in the province, and in certain situations, also reduce electricity consumption. Now, there’s much debate over what these systems should be called. The Canadian GeoExchange Coalition prefers the name ”geoexchange,” but they’re also known as “earth energy” systems or simple ground-source heat pumps. The column focuses largely on some of the new financing models that are emerging to make these systems more affordable to homeowners and businesses. Marshall Homes, for example, offers them as an upgrade on new homes and allows buyers to roll them into their mortgages. NextEnergy Geothermal Solutions has worked out a deal with Waterloo North Hydro and rents the systems to homeowners under a 20-year contract that charges a fixed fee on the customer’s local utility bill. The benefits of offering low-interest financing can be seen in Manitoba, which has seen annual geothermal installations nearly triple over the last four years.

Still, there are barriers to adoption. One is a lack of skilled workers to install these systems as the market grows, and the other is a lack of standardized training. The Canadian GeoExchange Coalition is going to unveiled a national training program this fall that should help matters, but it will take some time before this industry gets itself organized. There’s also a shortage of drillers that can dig the vertical holes where tubing is laid, but as with any market, if the demand is there the drillers will come.

One more thing: This technology isn’t for everybody. It benefits those who use electricity for heating the most, and while it does offer benefits for those wanting to switch from natural gas, oil or propane, switching from these fuels means relying more on the grid during the winter times to power the geoexchange system. In the summer, the system would use less electricity than a conventional air conditioning system. Overall the energy savings are high — the net effect is quite positive — but the impact on the grid depends on the mix of homes that are switching. 

Happy Earth Day!

It’s been a year since I started this blog as a complement to my Toronto Star column of the same name. While it has kept me busy and up late many nights, I have to say I’ve been enjoying the experience of this personal project immensely. It’s a cherished hobby.

I’m also delighted I have so many regular visitors to this site, many of whom offer insightful comments and contact me directly through e-mail, often resulting in healthy debate. Funny, I find I go to some events now and people recognize me just as much as a cleantech blogger than a reporter for the Toronto Star. I’m discovering that many clean-energy executives, experts and investors I interview for my newspaper stories are regular readers of the Clean Break blog. It’s very encouraging. Thanks to all.

It seems from the rough statistics I do have that this site has a core readership of between 1,000 and 1,400 people who visit regularly. Visits, while up and down depending on the day, have as an average levelled off over the past few months. Over the course of a month I’ll get 30,000 to 40,000 visits. I’m quite happy with that, but of course would like to take that number higher over the coming year. Please spread the word.

Three of many observations over the past year:

* This area has heated up. Mainstream coverage has taken off. Investment has followed. While much of the spotlight continues to be on solar and wind energy, cleantech in general is capturing headlines. This is thanks to rising oil, natural gas and gasoline prices, the crisis on the grid, increased concern over global warming, and a sincere and growing desire of the public to learn about conservation, energy efficiency, clean energy and the technologies behind it all. Of course, you know all of that. It’s also because of folks such as Nick Parker at the Cleantech Capital Group, who have given shape to the sector and measured its growth. And adding to the awareness is a growing community of green and cleantech bloggers, many of whom I read regularly and have connected with on occasion.

* The rate of innovation is nothing short of awesome. Advancements in battery technology, solar PV design, materials, manufacturing, chemistry, etc… give me hope that the energy, pollution, climate and scarcity issues we face today will be overcome, or at the very least contained and managed. Market forces may be letting us down in some areas, but that’s where effective government policy is needed to spur things along.

* People care, and want change in their lives. Over the past few months, I’ve received an average of two or three e-mails a week from recent graduate students, engineers, computer programmers, lawyers, executives, accountants — you name it — looking for a way of putting their skills to work in the cleantech space. They want meaning. They want to contribute. They want what they do to matter, and at the same time they want to make a living out of it. So do I. It’s that double bottom line. Even investors are getting all touchy, feely. That’s why I created this blog, to help people discover cleantech companies, and to learn about trends and technologies in the market or bubbling out of labs. I’d love to directly help all who contact me, but lacking the time I hope this blog – despite its limitations — serves as a good starting point.

So what to do now? Well, mostly the same. I’m always on the hunt for new clean technologies or companies in the space, particularly Canadian ventures. But I don’t want to simply become a soapbox for fly-by-night companies looking to boost their penny stocks, so expect me to be selective and critical at times. Apologies in advance if I do occasionally get sucked in by hype. I should say that in addition to looking for new companies and technologies, expect me to update you on the progress being made by companies I have covered over the past year.

I’m looking at ways to organize the information on this site better, but I haven’t come to any conclusions. Suggestions are welcome. Starting today, I’ve got a new Clean Break logo at the top-left corner. Figured it was a good way to mark the site’s 1st birthday. Special thanks to Mike Papageorge, a “green” Vancouverite who works as a Web developer in Spain, who came to my call and designed the logo free of charge. Mike is also behind the alternative energy news site AlternativeSource.org, which is a terrific resource. Your help is sincerely appreciated, Mike.

You’ll recall I tried doing a Clean Break podcast with the Toronto Star a few months ago. After a few tries, I realized that simply reading my newspaper column was boring, boring, boring. I cancelled it, but hope to start up again next week. This time, I’m going to alternate the podcast with my bi-weekly column, and instead of being tied to the column, the podcast will be completely different. The plan is to invite a guest — a cleantech expert, entrepreneur or investor — into the newspaper’s studio every two weeks and just chat about current events, trends, technologies. It will be a free-flowing discussion that will tap the knowledge of the guest. I’ll make sure to provide the links to this new podcast from this site, assuming all comes together as planned.

Finally, I’m half-flirting with the idea of advertising. I’ve tried Google Adsense, which if I’m lucky pays for a large pizza every few months. And the Amazon.ca ads are more to promote books and dress up the site than to get credit on my next purchases. I was thinking about taking on a single advertiser, with what little money I would raise going to a “green” not-for-profit to support research and awareness campaigns that are consistent with the values supported by this blog. I have no advertisers in mind, nor have I been approached. Just thinking about it. Any suggestions or concerns, you know how to find me.

If you’ve read this far, you are a loyal reader. Once again, Happy Earth Day… let year No. 2 begin! (sound of knuckles cracking)

Happy Earth Day!

It’s been a year since I started this blog as a complement to my Toronto Star column of the same name. While it has kept me busy and up late many nights, I have to say I’ve been enjoying the experience of this personal project immensely. It’s a cherished hobby.

I’m also delighted I have so many regular visitors to this site, many of whom offer insightful comments and contact me directly through e-mail, often resulting in healthy debate. Funny, I find I go to some events now and people recognize me just as much as a cleantech blogger than a reporter for the Toronto Star. I’m discovering that many clean-energy executives, experts and investors I interview for my newspaper stories are regular readers of the Clean Break blog. It’s very encouraging. Thanks to all.

It seems from the rough statistics I do have that this site has a core readership of between 1,000 and 1,400 people who visit regularly. Visits, while up and down depending on the day, have as an average levelled off over the past few months. Over the course of a month I’ll get 30,000 to 40,000 visits. I’m quite happy with that, but of course would like to take that number higher over the coming year. Please spread the word.

Three of many observations over the past year:

* This area has heated up. Mainstream coverage has taken off. Investment has followed. While much of the spotlight continues to be on solar and wind energy, cleantech in general is capturing headlines. This is thanks to rising oil, natural gas and gasoline prices, the crisis on the grid, increased concern over global warming, and a sincere and growing desire of the public to learn about conservation, energy efficiency, clean energy and the technologies behind it all. Of course, you know all of that. It’s also because of folks such as Nick Parker at the Cleantech Capital Group, who have given shape to the sector and measured its growth. And adding to the awareness is a growing community of green and cleantech bloggers, many of whom I read regularly and have connected with on occasion.

* The rate of innovation is nothing short of awesome. Advancements in battery technology, solar PV design, materials, manufacturing, chemistry, etc… give me hope that the energy, pollution, climate and scarcity issues we face today will be overcome, or at the very least contained and managed. Market forces may be letting us down in some areas, but that’s where effective government policy is needed to spur things along.

* People care, and want change in their lives. Over the past few months, I’ve received an average of two or three e-mails a week from recent graduate students, engineers, computer programmers, lawyers, executives, accountants — you name it — looking for a way of putting their skills to work in the cleantech space. They want meaning. They want to contribute. They want what they do to matter, and at the same time they want to make a living out of it. So do I. It’s that double bottom line. Even investors are getting all touchy, feely. That’s why I created this blog, to help people discover cleantech companies, and to learn about trends and technologies in the market or bubbling out of labs. I’d love to directly help all who contact me, but lacking the time I hope this blog – despite its limitations — serves as a good starting point.

So what to do now? Well, mostly the same. I’m always on the hunt for new clean technologies or companies in the space, particularly Canadian ventures. But I don’t want to simply become a soapbox for fly-by-night companies looking to boost their penny stocks, so expect me to be selective and critical at times. Apologies in advance if I do occasionally get sucked in by hype. I should say that in addition to looking for new companies and technologies, expect me to update you on the progress being made by companies I have covered over the past year.

I’m looking at ways to organize the information on this site better, but I haven’t come to any conclusions. Suggestions are welcome. Starting today, I’ve got a new Clean Break logo at the top-left corner. Figured it was a good way to mark the site’s 1st birthday. Special thanks to Mike Papageorge, a “green” Vancouverite who works as a Web developer in Spain, who came to my call and designed the logo free of charge. Mike is also behind the alternative energy news site AlternativeSource.org, which is a terrific resource. Your help is sincerely appreciated, Mike.

You’ll recall I tried doing a Clean Break podcast with the Toronto Star a few months ago. After a few tries, I realized that simply reading my newspaper column was boring, boring, boring. I cancelled it, but hope to start up again next week. This time, I’m going to alternate the podcast with my bi-weekly column, and instead of being tied to the column, the podcast will be completely different. The plan is to invite a guest — a cleantech expert, entrepreneur or investor — into the newspaper’s studio every two weeks and just chat about current events, trends, technologies. It will be a free-flowing discussion that will tap the knowledge of the guest. I’ll make sure to provide the links to this new podcast from this site, assuming all comes together as planned.

Finally, I’m half-flirting with the idea of advertising. I’ve tried Google Adsense, which if I’m lucky pays for a large pizza every few months. And the Amazon.ca ads are more to promote books and dress up the site than to get credit on my next purchases. I was thinking about taking on a single advertiser, with what little money I would raise going to a “green” not-for-profit to support research and awareness campaigns that are consistent with the values supported by this blog. I have no advertisers in mind, nor have I been approached. Just thinking about it. Any suggestions or concerns, you know how to find me.

If you’ve read this far, you are a loyal reader. Once again, Happy Earth Day… let year No. 2 begin! (sound of knuckles cracking)

What a fruitful — and somewhat bizarre — day in the land of green. First it was announced that retail leviathan Wal-Mart had entered a three-year agreement to purchase 39,000 megawatt-hours of green power from Bullfrog Power. It’s being touted as the largest commercial purchase of green power in Ontario’s history. Wal-Mart and SAM’s CLUB stores in Pickering, Collingwood, Cambridge and Toronto (St. Clair and Runnymede) are the locations to benefit from the purchase, which, even as a PR move, is more than welcome if it lends momentum to Bullfrog’s business plan. Still, in the grand scheme of things this purchase is a drop in the bucket. We’ve got a long way to go.

Second, former prime minister Brian Mulroney, of all people, was recognized in Ottawa this evening by environmentalists as the greenest prime minister in Canadian history. Huh? Making this event even less credible was a comment to reporters from Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who summed up Mulroney’s recognition as follows: “I believe the reason he’s regarded that way is that he didn’t pursue grandiose schemes and unworkable arrangements and the kind of problem we got into on Kyoto.”

Grandiose? Unworkable? Other than making a promise, did Canada even try? This, coming from a prime minister who in his infinite wisdom recently cut more than a dozen climate change programs while at the same time calling our Kyoto targets impossible to achieve. Thanks for the inspiration, buddy, but Kyoto isn’t the problem. Canada is the problem. Though I’ll admit the One-Tonne Challenge was a dud.

Given Harper’s boneheaded comment, it was perhaps fitting that 400 or so kilometres away in Toronto federal NDP leader Jack Layton was introducing Tim Flannery, the Australian author of global warming wake-up book The Weather Makers, at a University of Toronto event hosted by science journalist Bob McDonald of CBC’s Quirks & Quarks.

Layton used the opportunity to question Harper’s commitment to tackling climate change. “I’m saying to Mr. Harper it’s very important that you read this book,” Layton told the audience, which thanks to a ticket from Bullfrog included yours truly.

According to Layton, he sent a copy of the book earlier this year to Harper, who agreed to give it a read. More recently, he met Harper in his office. The prime minister acknowledged that he received the book, and pointed to a copy that was sitting on his desk. He confessed to Layton that he hadn’t yet read it. Layton, among other things, said this evening he was going to keep urging Harper to fulfill that promise. He also issued a challenge, calling on Harper to take the $2 billion in subsidies that go each year to the highly profitable oil and gas industry and redirect it to renewable energy and energy efficiency programs and investments.

As for the book itself, which Layton says he read over the Christmas break, “I have never read such a powerful call to action,” he said, which explains why he feels it so important for Harper to read. ”About two-thirds of the way through you need a stiff drink, or something, if you have soul… it’s tough.” He said the final chapters of The Weather Makers, which you can find on Amazon.ca through a link at the bottom-right corner of this blog, do provide some hope if we can start making meaningful change over the next 10 or so years.

I just bought the book tonight, so I can’t offer much commentary, other than to point out a few comments that the jet-lagged Flannery made this evening.

* He basically said that if we don’t take quick and aggressive action within the next decade to reduce greenhouse gases, we’ll be past the point of no return once we hit the mid-point of the century. At that point, global warming will become an unstoppable steam train. “The next 10 years are really critical,” he said.

* He predicted by 2050 there will be no polar ice cap in the summer, and that by 2030 he wouldn’t be surprised if polar bears were extinct. In 6 of the last 15 years the Fraser River has been so warm that salmon have not been able to breed. Sea birds are dying out, and California squid are showing up off the coast of British Columbia because of warmer waters. “These are severe warning signs people should know about, and I’m surprised they’re not making front-page headlines across the country,” Flannery told the audience.

* Pointing to the Alberta oil sands, which I touched on in a column two weeks ago, he said they’re the main reason Canada hasn’t been able to meet its Kyoto obligations. “The rest of Canada is doing just fine,” he said, though I think he’d be safer to say the rest of Canada is doing relatively better.

* He said Canada, which presides over the next Kyoto talks taking place this month in Bonn, Germany, is being counted on internationally to lead the way morally during the talks. Not doing so, he said, would “be a tragedy for the world and Canada.”

* He said clean coal, even if it does eventually prove doable, comes with enormous cost and uncertainty and wouldn’t be able to have any meaningful impact until mid-century, which is far too late. “I used to be quite anti-nuclear,” he said. “I must say now I’m a little less convinced.” Acknowledging that the world and our energy choices are all imperfect, he said nuclear compared to coal is the lesser of two evils, explaining that nuclear safety and waste issues are manageable and that emissions from coal plants are creating a measurable climate and health crisis today.

It’s a conclusion I can support, though I’m personally still grappling with the issue. Flannery’s comment raised a few eyebrows among anti-nuke folks in the crowd, though I’m sure it will please Ontario premier Dalton McGuinty, who hinted this week that the province is likely to go with more nuclear as it phases out coal plants. To be fair, Flannery said nuclear is only part of the solution, and that nuclear should only be relied on after renewable alternatives and efficiency strategies have been exhausted. But he’s a realist by appreciating that nuclear has to play some role.

Some role. Not dominant role. For example, Ontario may need to stick with nuclear, but why does nuclear have to remain 50 per cent of the mix? There’s no convincing reason for this figure, and nobody has been able to tell my why we can’t operate the province with a much lower baseload of nuclear.

Anyway, the points above are just a sample of Flannery’s comments. If you want more details, I suggest you read the book, which is already a #1 National Bestseller. Flannery didn’t say much at all about clean technologies as a partial solution to the problem, but as a scientist and professor of evolutionary biology, I wouldn’t expect it from him. That’s for readers of this blog to discuss.

UPDATE: Flannery, speaking at a press conference in Ottawa on Friday morning (a day after his Toronto visit), urged Harper to take political and moral leadership on Kyoto and the climate change issue. He calld on Harper to invest more in renewable energy, increase vehicle fuel efficiency standards, improve energy efficiency across the country, and better regulate emissions from large industry.

I’ve been talking about this trend for a while now — high-profile entrepreneurs and investors from the dot-com and high-tech worlds who are now focusing more of their attention (and money) on opportunities in the cleantech space. The Washington Post follows this theme by pointing to some of the green and clean investments being make by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, AOL founder Steve Case and VC extraordinaire John Doerr. While these figures haven’t jumped into the deep end, they are getting their feet wet, yet another sign that “greentech” is going mainstream.

So also this Seattle Post-Intelligencer story.