AECP will sponsor its 4th annual Energy Expo on September 12 and 13 at the Roanoke Civic Center. The Expo is a continuing effort to provide energy education to the general public about why it is important to save energy and then – through interactive exhibits, demonstrations, and workshops – show how this can be achieved in the home and/or business. Admission to the Expo is free. Exhibits will include weatherization, hybrid cars, fuel cell technology, green building, solar energy, wind energy, recycling, water conservation, indoor air quality, insulation products and services, geothermal heat pumps, energy efficient equipment, products, appliances, and services, energy efficient lighting, land conservation, rainwater harvesting, and much more. Times are 10 to 8 on Friday and 10 to 6 on Saturday.
This year we will be providing the following workshops and seminars:
- Friday, September 12 from 1-5 in the afternoon: “Partnering for Sustainable Design”. Richard Price, a nationally known architect and a partner with the Folsom Group will be leading an interactive discussion on developing a successful integrated design process using green building guidelines. There is a fee of $30 for AECP members and a $35 fee for non-members. Please contact VaHEN at 703-486-2966 or pam-vahen@mindspring.com for additional information and/or to register.
- Saturday, September 13 from 10 to noon and from 2 to 4: “Come Home to Health”. Chuk Bowles, a nationally recognized expert, will present on indoor air quality; making your home healthier; how to address moisture and mold problems; and improving your home heating, cooling, and ventilation systems to be safer and more efficient. These sessions are Free to the general public and are being sponsored by the American Lung Association, AECP, and the Virginia Housing and Environment Network (VaHEN).
- Ongoing on both days: A demonstration featuring the “Energy Cycle”, which is an interactive workshop that uses bicycle power to illustrate energy production and use.
- Ongoing on both days: “The House of Pressure”, with nationally recognized expert, Anthony Cox, will be displayed and will show the energy and health problems related to pressure differentials that exist in every home.
On Friday, September 12, AECP will be sponsoring a special presentation on renewable energy presented by James Madison University that will be given to public school science classes. The presentation will help satisfy Science Standards of Learning requirements and we expect a total of 500 students and teachers from three different school systems to participate. After the presentation the students and teachers will spend time enjoying the many exhibits at the Energy Expo. Roanoke City will also be conducting their annual Hazardous Material Collection Day on September 13 in the Roanoke Civic Center parking lot in front of the Exhibit Hall where the Expo will be taking place. So it will be a very active event this year and we expect a great improvement in attendance.
So mark your calendars, plan on attending the Expo and please spread the word to friends, family, and co-workers about this important event.
EPA PLANS TO REPEAL A KEY SECTION OF THE CLEAN AIR ACT
The Bush Administration, in defiance of Congress, is on the verge of ordering the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to repeal a section in the Clean Air Act called the “New Resource Review” – that will in effect allow thousands of industrial sites, which includes hundreds of old coal fired power plants to make major upgrades without installing new pollution controls, as currently required by law. Emissions from these old coal fired plants are responsible for massive amounts of pollutants that increase global warming, cause smog and acid rain, and create fine particulates in the air that cause severe respiratory problems and even death.
THERE IS A SOLUTION TO POWER SYSTEM BLACKOUTS
President Bush hit the nail on the head when, in response to the massive blackouts on August 14, he declared, “It’s a wake-up call”. Although he was referring to modernizing the electric delivery system – the true wake up call is that as a nation we must be more efficient in how we use our energy resources. This is the only real solution to an increase in electricity demands and an overloaded electric grid. If everyone used compact fluorescent lights in their high use lamps, kept their heating and cooling systems maintained for maximum efficiency, purchased Energy Star appliances, increased home insulation levels, and demanded that their local utilities provide electric power from renewable resources – guess what? There would be no overloaded systems, everyone would still be able to satisfy their electric power needs, the environment would be better off, and slowing the demand would slow the rising costs. A wake up call indeed!