All Posts Tagged With: "solar panels"

Gasoline production is never actually going to be "green" but to show they really care, British Petroleum has been going the extra mile for the environment in other areas. A Los Angeles BP , Helios House, is the nation’s first station to operate with high "green" standards which includes low-flow toilets, solar panels, a rain-catchment system and floors made from recycled glass, everything green (except its product.) The station also hands out tips on being green and seeds you can plant in your home garden.

Here in Baltimore we have our very own "growing" equivalent. The BP station across from the Museum of Industry off Key Highway has a greenroof on both the convenience store and the car wash. This roof was was planted in spring, 2007 by me, your GOforChange contributor, while working for Furbish Co . The easiest — and probably the only — way to see it is if you have any friends with roof-top decks in South Baltimore. Although most of us can’t see it, it is helping improve air, lowering the urban heat-island effect, and slowing storm water run-off.

Is BP acting "Beyond Petroleum" or is it closer to greenwashing? Listen to NPR news story.

Greenwash is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as “disinformation disseminated by an organization so as to present an environmentally responsible public image.” View a list of America’s 10 worst offenders from The Green LIfe.

We have two new programs starting up, including the Green Website Adventure Tour, which begins the week of July 13. Join me on a F*R*E*E phonecall to find out more: Friday, July 3 at 11:00 a.m. EST.

B-more Productive was the title given to one of this year’s Urbanite projects . This particular project asked the question: what could a typical Baltimore homeowner or renter be doing to increase the use of small open space for the production of food and energy? I was fortunate enough to work with Catherine Pancake and Dru Schmidt-Perkins to help visualize this idea by taking an existing row-house and illustrating various opportunities of adding solar panels to the sides of a houses, cultivating edible weeds and taking up beekeeping. Watch a video interview with each Urbanite Project team and if this doesn’t make sparks fly, see a video about a 300-year-old 2-acre food garden in Vietnam. Both examples fully define sustainability and doing a lot with a little can absolutely be the gift that keeps giving.

In other news:

Cafe Hon just bought wind power and they did the math and figured they would save $11,000. on their utility bill in one year! Read more from WJZ.

There are two new green renovation companies in Baltimore; Shelter and Green Building Alternatives.

Article mentioning Transition Towns for DC. There is talk about bringing the idea to Baltimore. Check back soon for more info.

Sun Edison LLC provides renewable solar energy solutions all around the world and we’re fortunate enough to have their headquarters right here in Beltsville, MD. Some of their projects have included an 8,700 solar panel installation at the White Marsh, Maryland GM plant . They’re also a lead sponsor of the City Tour for Solar which is a “mobile photovoltaic (PV) solar educational event that will travel across 50 cities in 100 days, educating citizens and city leaders on the benefits and viability of solar power.” Although the company has extensive experience in large solar system installation they also provide renewable power to smaller venues without ever having to actually own solar panels.

A few weeks ago, GOforChange visited the Furbish Company headquarters to tour their newly-renovated Lucky’s building, a green office space south of downtown. This Brooklyn warehouse was originally used as a wood mill, then became a convenience store warehouse in the late 1970’s. It is now home to several sophisticated systems and practices of ecological design and efficiency. As the developer and owner of Furbish Co., Michael Furbish approached the project by honoring the building’s existing integrity. He added only what was needed to update and enhance the structure’s inherent environmental sustainability.

Working with a hydraulic engineer revealed that the building was sitting on 8-feet of water, which quite often would spring up through the floor in the basement. Most people would see this as a problem, but with careful calculation and several hundred feet of tubing, a geothermal system was installed to assist with more than 70% of the building’s cooling needs.

Heat for the building is provided by a solar hot water system that transfers heat gain from the sun to a storage cistern that sits on the roof. Continued

Now on view in the courtyard of PS1 Contemporary Art Museum in Queens, NY is Public Farm 1. The winners of the ninth annual MoMA/P.S.1 Young Architects Program were Amale Andraos and Dan Wood of WORK Architecture Company. The design is something PS1 has named "a flying carpet farmer’s market."

Viewing this piece myself I was reminded of James Wines’ SITE projects for the BEST stores done during the early 80’s, which questioned the role of architecture and ecology in a suburban setting. Although I would have loved to see Public Farm 1 in front of a Walmart this project focused more on the role of ecology and self-sufficency in an urban setting. To highlight this idea I was fortunate enough to see the garden with one of the biggest bank buildings in the U.S. as its backdrop. The courtyard also housed a number of live chickens, the roof of which collected rainwater and a solar PV system which powers fans, lights, your cell phone and that’s not all.

Solar Panels Plus is a Apricus solar systems distributor located in Chesapeake, VA. Apricus is a global dealer with it’s U.S. branch in Branford, CT and it’s manufacturing plant in Nanjing, China. Solar Panel Plus offers extensive heating and cooling options, as if purchasing panels just to heat your home wasn’t enough you can also consider a solar pool heater, fancy!