wind power

Windpower 2008 Conference & Exhibition
WINDPOWER 2008 Conference & Exhibition will be held June 1 - 4, 2008 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas.

EXHIBITION
The Exhibiton at WINDPOWER 2008 will be an impressive display from close to 500 of the leading companies from all facets of the wind energy industry. Exhibitor reservations are currently being accepted - book now to ensure a prime location!

CONFERENCE PROGRAM
The WINDPOWER conference program includes 300 speakers and moderators, 150 poster presentations, and over 50 sessions on leading wind energy topics organized into tracks with policy, business, and technical focuses. There is no better place to learn the latest industry developments and new technology than WINDPOWER 2008. Attendees can also participate in several day-long pre-conference seminars for more in-depth education on various topics. The Call for Papers will be available in the summer of 2007 for anyone interested in becoming a speaker or poster presenter at WINDPOWER 2008. For more information, contact Sakura Emerine at semerine@awea.org or (202) 383-2540.

NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES
Whether you are an industry veteran, or a newcomer to this exciting field, interaction with over 7,000 wind energy professionals is key to advancing your business interests. With various receptions, a

Wind Energy Institute 2008
Tue Feb 19, 2008 7:30 AM - Wed Feb 20, 2008 6:00 PM
Presented by The University of Texas School of Law and The Oil, Gas and Energy Resources Law Section of the State Bar of Texas

Austin Convention Center

Standard Registration - $495 | $545 after Feb. 8, 2008
State Employees - $325 | $375 after Feb. 8, 2008

Exhibitor Space Available!
For more information call 512-475-6700.

AWEA Wind Power Project Siting Workshop

Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:30 AM - Fri Feb 15, 2008 1:00 PM

With wind power development expanding and with new participants entering the wind development business, this workshop will look at the various ways wind power projects affect - and don't affect - elements of the human and natural environment.

This regionally-focused program will include presentations on emerging issues of project siting, such as bat interactions and wildlife research, wildlife survey techniques and radar concerns, and updates on siting processes.

Topics to be covered include:

* Regulations, Permits & Guidelines – from
stormwater permits to siting guidelines
* Wildlife Issues and Research Results – the latest
on today’s wildlife issues and on-going research
* Technical Issues – radar and military impacts, hunting impacts,
and other considerations
* Community Relations – how to work effectively with communities
and deal with opponents
* Transmission Siting – the Texas CREZ process and other regional transmission initiatives

What attendees will learn:

* Attendees will gain an understanding of the latest wind project
siting issues and developments
* Attendees will hear field research results on regional wildlife
issues such as bats and prairie chickens
* Attendees will learn ways to work with advocates and address

Recently I wrote a diary discussing global warming, indicating the overwhelming evidence that it is happening and suggesting that we can do something about it. Many of the comments I got were negative and, looking over the various sites I posted it, include a.) global warming is a scam; b.) we are not technically advanced enough to make any real changes; c.) our society won't do anything, so we have to act as individuals and forget about societal action; and, worst of all, d.) fine, you can do what you want about global warming as long as it doesn't inconvenience me.

I want to address these negative comments because, quite simply, they are all wrong and all of them interfere with our ability to mitigate global warming.

Who am I to discuss global warming? Well, my wife and I are scientists. Although I am a biologist, I keep up with the scientific literature in a variety of fields and I understand scientific thinking and the scientific process. My wife is actually an atmospheric scientist, studying climate dynamics, and works at GISS, the institute run by Jim Hansen, the man who came out on 60 minutes exposing the Bush administration's censorship of global warming science (which lead to a diary I wrote that was top of Daily Kos rec. list!). I hear from my wife aspects of the global warming debate that few outside of the field would hear. I hear what the experts are saying and how their discussions have shifted. It is also a subject I have been aware of and keeping up on for more than 25 years.

Sometimes things just come together and several individual items that don't quite add up to a story unite into a really good one.

This last week, a discussion with someone who grew up in Iowa, this month's issue of Catalyst, the newsletter of the Union of Concerned Scientists, and a press release from Nancy Pelosi all synergized to remind me that Democrats have been pushing for a real, American, practical energy policy since the Carter administration and all the Republicans advocate for are oil, oil, oil.

On October 26th, in response to the release of record profits by the bloated oil company Exxon/Mobil, Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement:

"Today’s record oil company profits remind Americans that Republicans’ energy policies, which were written in secret by the Cheney Task Force and the energy industry, are an abject failure for the American people. Their six-year record of heaping subsidies on oil companies reaping record profits while leaving consumers to pay the bill, has brought us record dependence on foreign oil.

“Under President Bush and the Republican Congress gas prices are 75 percent higher than in 2000, consumers will pay an average $2,300 more in energy costs than they did in 2000, and we are sending nearly $800 million a day to the Middle East and other oil producing countries.”