The Obama administration is now considering stream-lining the approval process for export license applications for liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals. The change is due to the Russian invasion and takeover of Crimea. The President hopes that exports of American natural gas to Europe and Asia will reduce their economic dependence on Russia. However, once US…
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Are You Flushing Money Down the Drain?
An average renter uses 100 gallons of water a day. If that renter has a toilet with a leaking flapper, they could be using 300-500 gallons a day and not even know it. With the average cost of water and sewer charges approaching a penny a gallon nationally, that’s a lot of money flushed down the drain. …
Wireless charging for electric vehicles hits the road
Forget building costly charging stations for residents; forget the charging cable: breakthroughs in inductive charging for electric vehicles (evs) means drivers just park over a pad in the road to get more juice With no need to plug in to charge, it’s a breakthrough that should speed up the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EV)…
Is Multifamily Energy Management Finally Going Mainstream with Nest at the Center?
New advancements around thermostats, wireless, Bluetooth lighting, apartment automation appliances and more are energizing the energy management market. The big news is that Nest Labs announced a developer program for integration with other manufacturers’ products—through Nest’s cloud—and its first partner is Control4, so users of that energy management control systems can see the temperature on a…
2014 Smartest Energy and Sustainability Decisions
Lighting leads the way! Lighting retrofits were the smartest investment made in 2013. When you consider the substantial capital support for LED lighting made available through utility incentive programs, it is no surprise that lighting tops the list―with savings beginning almost immediately! Other smart investments that topped the list included energy management systems, building controls…
The Largest Solar Plant in World Opens
The Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, a $2.2 billion solar complex, has come on-line in the sunny Mohave desert. The project, owned by NRG Energy, Inc., Google Inc., and Brightsource Energy, and constructed by Bechtel Corp. , uses solar-thermal technology, which means that 350,000 large mirrors concentrate sunlight on boiler towers to create electricity. The cost to…
Energy Benchmarking results are in for early adopter – Seattle
Seattle, Washington, has joined the growing list of U.S. cities that are publishing detailed reports on building energy use in an effort to motivate property owners to make their buildings more efficient, and to ultimately save energy and money. The Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment released a report in January 2014 that details energy…
What’s Up Whistle Pig? (The Weather Stylings of Groundhogs and Action You Can Take)
I was super excited that Punxsutawney Phil and Staten Island Chuck (our nations more formidable marmot meteorologists) concurred that we would have six more weeks of winter. This means that our residents will continue to be frustrated by their heating costs. Even in Sunny California with our heat wave, residents have seen their bills go up and…
What the acquisition of NEST by Google could mean for apartment owners
Google’s recent acquisition of intelligent thermostat and fire alarm-maker Nest could be a major disruption to the status quo in apartment automation. For decades, the dream of a “smart apartment” has been just that: a dream. The concept of an interconnected, intelligent apartment and common areas has been relegated to science fiction. Owners have not…
Wherever You Go, There You Are
“The wealth was nearer to you than you realized.” Hindu parable A man from India told a story of a rich man with many jewels and a lot of money in his pockets who is taking a long journey. As he begins his journey a thief begins to follow him, and the thief has set…