Sustainable in Suburbia


Heating and Cooking Energy
March 15, 2008, 2:11 pm
Filed under: Uncategorized

Making dinner

Originally uploaded by GeoWombats

Heating and Cooking Energy - this is divided into 3 categories, gas, wood and oil. Your household probably uses one of these, and they are not interchangeable. If you use an electric stove or electric heat, this goes under electric usage. Natural Gas (this is used by the vast majority of US households as heating and cooking fuel). For this purpose, Propane will be calculated as the same as natural gas. Calculations in therms should be available from your gas provider.

US Average Natural Gas usage is 1000 therms PER HOUSEHOLD, PER YEAR. A 90% reduction would mean a reduction to 100 therms PER HOUSEHOLD PER YEAR
Heating Oil (this is used by only about 8% of all US households, mostly in the Northeast, including mine).

Average US usage is 750 Gallons PER HOUSEHOLD, PER YEAR. A 90% cut would mean using 75 gallons PER HOUSEHOLD, PER YEAR. Biodiesel is calculated as equivalent.

Wood. This is a tough one. The conventional line is that wood is carbon neutral, but, of course, wood that is harvested would have otherwise been absorbing carbon and providing forest. There are good reasons to be skeptical about this. So I’ve divided wood into two categories.

Locally and sustainably harvested, and either using deadwood, trees that had to come down anyway, coppiced or harvested by someone who replaces every lost tree. This is deemed carbon neutral, and you can use an unlimited supply. This would include street trees your town is taking down anyway, wood you cut on your property and replant, coppiced wood (that is, you cut down some part of the tree but leave it to grow), and standing and fallen deadwood. You can use as much of this as you like.
Wood not sustainably harvested, or transported long distances, or you don’t know. 1 cord of this is equal to 15 gallons of oil or 20 therms of natural gas.

http://www.riot4austerity.org/blog/?page_id=13

Starting with gas…

Like most Darwin homes we have a gas stovetop. Much better than electric both for the food and for the pocket. One tank [42 l of LPG] tends to last over 3 years.

Other cooking takes place in a convection microwave oven. The old one recently died so I replaced it with the current model. A few things that I don’t like - when the oven goes off a fan starts to cool the oven. At this point I usually shut the whole thing down at the powerpoint and open the door. And who is the wally who didn’t allow for oven racks! Some of us do make biscuits! BAD design fault.

I also have a breadmaker, jaffle maker and crockpot. These actually aren’t that bad re energy consumption.

Heating? Ding, ding we have a winner! None required. Sure it gets “cold” during the Dry but nothing extra clothes or a blanket can’t fix.

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Electricity
March 13, 2008, 1:21 pm
Filed under: 90% Reduction, Electricity

shocking

2. Electricity. Average US usage is 11,000 kwh PER HOUSEHOLD, PER YEAR, or about 900 kwh PER HOUSEHOLD PER MONTH. A 90% reduction would mean using 1,100 PER HOUSEHOLD, PER YEAR or 90 kwh PER HOUSEHOLD PER MONTHSolar Renewables are deemed to have a 50% payback - that is, you get twice as many watts.Hydro and Wind are deemed to have a 4 to 1 payback over other methods - you get 4 times as many.

Riot 4 Austerity » 7 Categories

So we average 30 kWh per day?

When I started this I was averaging about 17 kWh. That probably was at the low point of the year as it was the middle of the Dry. In the Wet fan use goes up considerably.

When I do my Coolmob readings every week I tend to be between 12-14 kwH.

The single biggest contributor is the spa pump. Especially if the water is threatening to go green. My pump is electrically powered. I wonder if a solar pump/generator option exists?

The next one is the fans and lights. So it is a case of everyone trying to remember to switch things off.

The other thing is all of those little things we forget to switch off. Like rechargers.

I’ve taken to switching off the house at the fusebox when I go out. All except the fridge/freezer circuit.

Doing cold washes as opposed to hot washes in the front loader also makes a considerable difference.

Now where does Darwin’s power come from? Is it coal-fired or is it something else?

This report suggests that most of it is sourced from the natural gas of the Mereenie gas field in Central Australia. Given there are offshore supplies of natural gas soon to come on line this is reasonably positive. It also has an ammonia thermal storage system which avois the need for a refrigeration plant and is a much greener option.

Elsewhere you might find the odd diesel powered turbine but solar options have been quietly replacing these.

A methane gas powered plant can be found at the Shoal Bay tip.

While this sounds pretty good [and it is compared to a lot of places] there is a lot of pressure on the system as we seem to be in a transition phase:

  • 14 February 2008
    Power and Water to ‘power through’ gas field supply transition    Power and Water Corporation confirmed today that due to the expected decline in gas supply from the Mereenie and Palm Valley gas fields, it is currently supplementing gas supplies with diesel for power generation at the Channel Island Power Station.

    The Darwin grid is currently only requiring about 15% diesel supplementation and while Channel Island usually runs on gas it is designed to run on ‘dual fuel’ if necessary. The amount of diesel being used to top up gas supplies is equal to approximately 30MW of the total capacity of 240 – 300MW to meet peak requirements. Generally, gas is used as much as possible as it is the cleanest of fuels available and more cost effective overall.

    General Manager, Generation, John Linton said

    “For the past 20 odd years the Mereenie and Palm Valley gas fields have supplied gas to generate electricity for the Territory and as they come to the end of their lifespan, variation in supply from these fields is expected and has been planned for.

    “A number of our power stations, in particular Channel Island, are designed to run on a combination of gas and diesel when necessary and can readily meet the peak loads we experience during the hotter months.

    “Power and Water has secured a new, 25 year gas supply via the Blacktip Field and supplies, via the Bonaparte Gas Line, are scheduled to come on line in late 2008, early 2009.

    “In the meantime, it’s business as usual and the cost of any periodic, increased use of diesel for peak generation is offset by less gas being purchased.”

    The gas sale agreement between the Power and Water Corporation and Eni Australia will see Power and Water purchasing around 750 petajoules of Blacktip Filed gas, which will be used to run power stations in all regional centres from Alice Springs to Darwin.

    So it is no wonder that PowerWater are encouraging people to reduce their consumption.

    So where is all of the power going?

    Air conditioners make up 70% of peak load with the worst occurring around 2 pm. Think of all of those shops and offices that have you shivering when you walk in the door. The workplaces where you take a cardigan to keep you warm because the aircon is too cold. The newer houses with dubious hot box tropical design.

    Urban Ecology Australia has some suggestions. They aren’t necessarily that pleasant so we really need to do behavioural changes. Turn the aircon down a couple of degrees. Use the timer functions. Switch the thing off especially if there is noone in the room. Use fans instead. Dress for the climate.

    Any other suggestions?

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    Eco Options - Darwin
    March 13, 2008, 12:33 pm
    Filed under: Uncategorized

    Nice to see a Darwin business aiming at the green market…

    eco options is a passionate company committed to providing viable cost and eco-effective building solutions to make Top End tropical homes more comfortable and energy efficient.Here at eco options we specialise in providing sustainable solutions for your home including natural lighting, roofing, ventilation, heat reflective coatings, environmentally responsible decking, screening, composting toilets and waterless urinals.What’s more, our skylights and ventilation products are deemed to comply with Darwin’s stringent cyclone code.Starting some 15 years ago as Darwin Skylights, the business rebranded in 2005 to encompass all its other eco friendly services. With a team of fulltime installers supported by highly efficient administration and management, our mixture of experience, youthful energy and total commitment to quality makes eco options the eco nomical and eco logical choice for you.

    Eco Options

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    Transport
    March 12, 2008, 11:00 am
    Filed under: 90% Reduction

    1. Gasoline. Average American usage is 500 gallons PER PERSON, PER YEAR. A 90 percent reduction would be 50 gallons PER PERSON, PER YEAR.No reduction in emissions for ethanol or biodiesel.Public transportation and Waste Veggie Oil Fuel are deemed to get 100 mpg, and should be calculated accordingly.

    Riot 4 Austerity » 7 Categories

    This one is hard, very hard. I am lucky in that there is a bus stop on the next street and another a short walk away so I can catch the #4 and #10 buses relatively easily. So that makes buses a timing issue.

    The local shopping centre is within coo-ee so it isn’t that far to walk to it for small trips like milk runs.

    The main reason to take the car is to carry all the people we carry. And when I restart work, to get to work.

    Our household quota of petrol is 200 gallons yearly or 757 litres. That’s 14.02 tanks per year as the CR-V takes 54 litres. So if I can keep it down to one tank per month with the occasional extra one…

    The good news is that is exactly what is happening at the moment while I am on maternity leave. The bad news is that work beckons in 3 months time. If I get to work where I want to work then I can keep this up. Otherwise I will be on the other side of town which will add 15 km per day. Public transport would not be an option :(.

    So how can I extend that tank of fuel?

    I already keep my revs down as much as possible.

    I’m buying the E10 blend which theoretically is a tad friendlier for the planet [and cheaper as well :)]

    I’m overdue for a car service because I’m expecting the next service to cost about $1000 as it is the 100,000 one. But I am expecting the baby bonus payment any day now so that should sort out that issue.

    Keeping the tyres pumped up helps.

    Getting the kids to walk to the markets/shops whenever possible on the weekends. This works for the dairy and the organic shop. The supermarket is a bit far away still for the 3 year old. The kids can bike as far as the park near the pool which is a good start. And I have taken them to the local water gardens on the bikes with DD32 in the stroller.

    I need to work on having a minimalist approach to stuff in the car to lessen the weight. At the moment that just isn’t happening.

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    ACF - Take action on Garnaut!
    March 11, 2008, 5:11 am
    Filed under: Uncategorized

    A new report by respected consultants McKinsey & Company has found Australia could reduce emissions to 30 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020, and it would cost Australian families less than $1 a day. ACF’s executive director Don Henry said “the Australian public should be assured emission reductions of at least 30 per cent by 2020 – the sort of cuts science is saying we need – are achievable and affordable”.The Federal Government has not set a target for 2020 yet and is waiting for advice from the Garnaut Review. The review will be similar to the UK Stern review in 2006, but will focus on Australia. It will weigh up the costs of climate change impacts if we don’t reduce emissions versus the costs and benefits of reducing emissions to avoid dangerous climate change.The 2002-03 drought cost Australia $A10 billion. The total cost of a 30 per cent cut in emissions by 2020 would be less than a third of this. However, if we fail to reduce emissions, the CSIRO says Australia will experience drought 20 per cent more often by 2030 than we do now.Don Henry said the McKinsey report confirmed that these emission cuts are achievable and affordable… and they are in Australia’s national interest.The report also found Australia could reduce its emissions by 60 per cent by 2030 – a full 20 years ahead of the Federal Government’s commitment of a 60 per cent cut by 2050. What’s more, these targets can be achieved without having to resort to expensive, dangerous nuclear power.The report did not consider the emission reductions that can be achieved by a big shift towards public transport, or lifestyle changes. Don Henry said “this makes the report conservative and suggests we could reduce emissions even further than 30 per cent – something we’ll need to do in order to give the Great Barrier reef a fighting chance of survival”.Every Australian can make a submission to the Garnaut review and call for strong greenhouse pollution targets for 2020.You have until 11 April to let Professor Garnaut know you support a healthy environment for future generations.

    ACF - Take action on Garnaut!

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