The American Wind Energy Association has announced the formation of “Wind Energy Works!,” a broad coalition of wind energy advocates designed to “engage in the public conversation over the merits of wind energy, educate the public about the many benefits of wind energy development, and act as a counterbalance to the misinformation being spread by wind energy opponents in communities across the country.” For more information, visit www.awea.org.

Maine Governor John Baldacci signed a bill in June 2005 establishing rebates for homeowners and business owners who install photovoltaic (PV) systems and solar thermal systems used to heat water or air. PV systems installed before 2007 qualify for a rebate of $3 per watt for the first 2,000 watts and $1 per watt for the next 1,000 watts, capped at a total rebate of $7,000 per applicant. Solar thermal systems qualify for a rebate of 25% of the system cost, including installation, up to $1,250. The bill is online at janus.state.me.us/legis/ (search for LD 1586).

Washington Governor Christine Gregoire has signed a bill that calls for paying individuals, businesses, and local governments 15 cents per kilowatt hour of electricity produced by off-grid solar panels, wind turbines, and anaerobic digesters. The incentive rises to up to 54 cents per kWh if certain components are manufactured in Washington. The incentive is capped at $2,000 per applicant per year. The State will extend the incentive to grid-tied systems once more utilities have adopted uniform interconnection standards. Denis Hayes, former director of the Solar Energy Research Institute and current president of the Bullitt Foundation, described the bill as “the most important solar legislation ever introduced in any American state legislature.” The bill took effect on July 1, 2005, and is slated to continue through June 2014. The bill is online at www.leg.wa.gov (search for bill 5101).

Gaylord Nelson, former governor and U.S. senator from Wisconsin and founder of Earth Day, died in July 2005 at age 89. “I wanted a demonstration by so many people that politicians would say, ‘Holy cow, people care about this,’” Nelson said. “That’s just what Earth Day did.” President Clinton awarded Nelson the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1995. “As the father of Earth Day, he is the grandfather of all that grew out of that event: the Environmental Protection Act, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act,” said the proclamation. Most recently, Nelson worked on land-preservation issues as a counselor of the nonprofit Wilderness Society.

The U.S. Department of Energy, Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Environmental Protection Agency have teamed up to create the Partnerships for Home Energy Efficiency, an initiative aimed at cutting household energy costs by 10% over the next decade. “It seems to me that one of the greatest untapped sources of energy we have in this country is the energy we currently waste,” says Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman. “So by making our homes more energy- efficient, we can go a long way to ensuring our nation’s future energy security, improving our greenhouse gas intensity, and, at the same time, taking some of the sting out of consumers’ utility bills.” The initiative is online at www.energysavers.gov.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has published detailed case studies of the energy performance of six buildings as part of its evaluation for the U.S. Department of Energy. Each case study compares measured energy use to the project’s design goals and identifies successes and lessons learned. The six projects are the Zion National Park Visitor Center, the Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies at Oberlin College, the NREL Thermal Test Facility, the BigHorn Home Improvement Center, the Cambria Office Building at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Philip Merrill Environmental Center. All six reports are online at www.nrel.gov/publications/ (search by project name). Case studies of all six projects are also included in the BuildingGreen Suite.

The nonprofit Healthy Building Network (HBN) has released a Guide to Plastic Lumber, rating the environmental and health performance of 38 types of plastic and composite lumber from 30 companies. Fourteen products were considered “most environmentally preferable” for containing only high-density or low-density polyethylene and 50% or more post-consumer recycled content. Four products—made of 70% or more virgin PVC or virgin polystyrene—earned the lowest rating, “not environmentally preferable.” The remaining products were categorized as “environmentally preferable,” “less environmentally preferable,” or “not environmentally preferable except for structural applications.” More information, including the rankings of individual products, is online at www.healthybuilding.net.

Perfluorooctanoic acid (also called PFOA or C8), a chemical DuPont uses to make Teflon^® and other products (see

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Vol. 13, No. 3), is “likely to be carcinogenic to humans,” according to a draft report from an advisory board to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). If EPA accepts the designation, it will conduct a full risk assessment to determine the levels at which it poses a threat. Meanwhile, two Florida law firms have filed a $5 billion class-action lawsuit against DuPont, claiming the company hid information about PFOA’s potential health threats. The plaintiffs want DuPont to replace the cookware, institute a Teflon warning label, and fund medical monitoring and additional research. “Consumers using products sold under the Teflon brand are safe,” says DuPont spokesman Clif Webb. “Cookware coated with DuPont Teflon nonstick coatings does not contain PFOA.” More information about PFOA is online at www.epa.gov/opptintr/pfoa/.

The Atlanta-based nonprofit Southface Energy Institute has broken ground on its Eco Office, designed to earn a LEED^® Platinum rating from the U.S. Green Building Council. Intended as a demonstration project to support Southface’s educational work, the Eco Office will incorporate a range of available green building systems and products. The three-story, 10,000 ft² (930 m²) building will feature photovoltaic panels, a green roof, composting toilets, dual-flush toilets that use harvested rainwater, daylighting and automatic lighting controls, and access flooring with displacement ventilation, among other green strategies. “When completed, the Eco Office will be one of the greenest commercial buildings in the world,” says Dennis Creech, executive director of Southface. The first phase of the Eco Office is set to be completed in the spring of 2006. More information is online at www.southface.org.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has announced a program to support the research and development of heating and cooling technologies for residential and commercial buildings. Eligible projects must yield energy efficiency or environmental performance in New York State. NYSERDA plans to award up to $750,000 through several awards of up to $250,000 each; projects are expected to match NYSERDA’s funding. Proposals are due September 22, 2005. For details, visit www.nyserda.org and search for PON 937.