
Oil giant
Chevron
is installing 7,700 solar panels that will produce about 740 kilowatts
of power at one of its former California refineries. Chevron is using
this opportunity at "
Project Brightfield"
to test solar panel sizes and technologies from seven different solar
companies. Power generated by the panels will be used to provide
electricity to the grid and to production operations at nearby Chevron owned Kern
River Field in the Bakersfield area.
Founded by utilities, technology, consumer electronics companies, retailers and consumer advocates, the
Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative was
created to "better understand consumer needs" in the coming roll-out of
smart grid products and features. A potential PR battle is brewing as
consumers in Bakersfield, CA and Dallas, Texas who have recently had smart
meters installed, are questioning the accuracy of their utility bill. Utilities
investigating these claims have not found any irregularities with the accuracy of
the meters. The Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative intends to help
consumers understand the changes expected with smart grid technology.
In case you missed it, March 22 was
US World Water Day.
National Geographic has created a page of freshwater photos to celebrate the day. The need for ground water by the agricultural industry is
affecting California.
The loss of groundwater in California's Central Valley is happening at
an unsustainable rate. One of the largest companies using water management
technology is
IBM. If you want to learn more about water issues, check out Annie Leonard's
The Story of Bottled Water
to understand how this industry is impacting our world. (You may
recognize Annie's name as she is the creator of The Story of Stuff,
also a great video on the site.)