Public Utilities Commission sends strong signal to Hawaiian Electric: More renewables, less waste, lower rates
In a stern decision on May 31, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) sent a clear message to Maui Electric Company (MECO) to change their operations to accept more renewable energy, reduce costs, and retire fossil fuel generating units.
Lab Develops Breakthrough ‘Superclean’ Hydrogen Fuel
Scientists at Livermore Lab have developed a process that fixes sea water that’s messed up by climate change and is killing reefs while producing hydrogen fuel at the same time.
Turning soda cans into solar heating panels
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Jim Meany has designed a solar space heater that uses old soda cans to increase the surface area for heat transfer inside of it, and in its most basic design, uses no external power to move the air.
University Uses Tesla Technology to Wirelessly Charge Buses
Utah State University presented a first-of-its-kind electric bus that is charged through a high-power, high-efficiency wireless power transfer system. By carefully applying a mix of modern advances in engineering and Nikola Tesla’s principles of induction, USU engineer Hunter Wu and his team have solved one of today’s vexing problems in WPT.
Free Two-day Rain Garden Workshop
A free two-day workshop on design and creation of Rain Gardens for K-12 Educators, School Garden Coordinators, County representatives, and the interested public will be presented at UHMC by the Sustainable Living Institute of Maui (SLIM), the Water Institute for Sustainability Education (WISE), and Roth Ecological Design International LLC.
On April 27 and 28, from 9am to 4pm, attendees will learn the ins and outs of rain gardens and how they can be applied as tools in the management of storm water. The second day will be completely hands-on, as attendees learn teaching strategies while helping with the installation of a rain garden in the new SLIM UHMC Community Garden at UHMC.
The instructor, Lauren Roth, of Roth Ecological Design International, works exclusively in creative water management. She has won numerous prizes for her innovative designs for beautiful and effective storm water harvesting.
The first day of the workshop will be held in a classroom, and the second day will be held in the SLIM Community Garden. Attendees can sign up for either day or both days. Call 984-3379 to register and for further information.
Building a Solar Economy: 4 Lessons from Hawaii
Electric companies and solar developers throughout the nation are watching Hawaii, which derives a larger fraction of its electricity from the sun than any other state.
Phone Book Recycling to Support Schools
Cash prizes awarded to the top five schools that receive most phone books.
The graphic lists the locations and times for Phone Book recycling.
Here’s a list of schools that signed up for the contest.
Please be sure to let the staff at the recycling center know which school you would like to have credited.
Emmanuel Lutheran School
Haiku Elementary School
Hana School
Kula Elementary School
Maui High
Montessori School of Maui
Pomaika’i Elementary School
Pukalani Elementary School
