March 31, 2016

US Taxpayers built this $43 Million Dollar Gas Station in Afghanistan

Nov 2, 2015: United States Inspector General is investigating what happened and why so much money was wasted.

How the Pentagon spent $43 million on a single gas station

November 2, 2015, WaPo



John Sopko’s team of investigators has uncovered all kinds of wasteful spending in Afghanistan through its work as a U.S. government watchdog. Now the group has uncovered a $43 million gas station, which Sopko calls “gratuitous and extreme”—and possibly criminal.

In a scathing report, Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, wrote that a similar compressed natural gas station in Pakistan cost $500,000, or about $306,000 at current exchange rates, meaning the Afghanistan station cost 140 times as much.

He wrote that the Pentagon’s program had “several troubling aspects,” including $30 million in overhead costs, and the lack of a feasibility study before the project began...
More: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2015/11/02/how-the-pentagon-spent-43-million-on-a-single-gas-station/

http://costofwar.com

March 29, 2016

The house that provides its own energy

Swissinfo.ch Mar 28, 2016

Construction is nearly complete on an innovative, multi-family house in canton Zurich that can collect and store enough solar power to fulfil the energy needs of its tenants.

The project has been aptly named “The House of the Future”, and it is claimed to be the world’s first energy self-sufficient apartment block. The dwelling is being built in Brütten, and by springtime it will be ready to house nine families...snip

...The engineering company behind the project estimates that only one hour of sunlight will be sufficient to power the entire building for 24 hours.

To ensure that surplus energy is available during bad weather days, a power-to-gas plant, which converts solar energy into hydrogen, has been integrated into the house. When insufficient energy is produced from sunlight alone, a fuel cell will use the hydrogen to generate the needed electricity.
Read More: http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/multimedia/sustainable-living_the-house-that-provides-its-own-energy/41918896

In der Schweiz Wasserstoff ist #1

March 29, 2016

While you’re charging your EV, BMW is preparing for a hydrogen future

Digital Trends | Ronan Glon | March 27, 2016

Digital Trends sat down with Merten Jung, BMW’s head of fuel cell development, to get insight on where the technology stands today, what will change in the coming years, and when we can expect to see a hydrogen-powered car in a BMW showroom.

Digital Trends: BMW sells the all-electric i3 and several plug-in hybrid models. Why are you investing in fuel cell technology?



Merten Jung: Because a fuel cell drivetrain combines zero-emissions mobility with the fast refueling time that’s needed for long-distance driving. Moving forward, electric vehicles will have longer ranges thanks to advances in battery technology, but the refueling time won’t be competitive with that of a hydrogen-powered model. It takes about three to five minutes to top up a hydrogen tank, and then you’re set to go. We expect that battery-electric vehicles and fuel cell-electric vehicles will co-exist in the future, and plug-in hybrids are a simply a temporary solution until we get to that point.

DT: The biggest issue currently facing fuel cell vehicles is arguably the lack of an infrastructure. How will you overcome that?

There are initiatives in various countries to set up an infrastructure. In Germany, the government has plans to install 100 hydrogen stations by 2018, which is sufficient to set up an initial network, and there will be up to 400 additional stations by 2023; the final number will depend on how many hydrogen-powered vehicles are on the road by then. The advantage is that you can convert existing gas stations to hydrogen stations, so you can build the network step-by-step.

---snip---

Which body style is best suited to receive a hydrogen drivetrain?

The bigger ones. The cost and the weight of an EV mainly depend on the size of the battery; if you have a small battery, electric makes more sense than hydrogen. The break-even point is 300-400 kilometers (186-248 miles). Beyond that, hydrogen makes more sense because you only need to make the tank larger. It’s not rocket science, and it’s not very costly. The cost is in the fuel cell itself.

With an electric vehicle, if you want to go beyond 300-400 kilometers you need to make the battery pack bigger, heavier, and more expensive, and you’ll reach a certain point where it won’t make sense anymore. The breakover point is pretty set in stone, too, because we’ll be making a lot of progress in both battery technology and hydrogen drivetrains over the coming years...snip more:
http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/bmw-is-preparing-for-a-hydrogen-future/

Drive Mag: BMW Fuel Cell Insights | an Interview with Merten Jung

Mar 15, 2016: In Geneva, we spoke to Mr. Merten Jung, Head of BMW's Fuel Cell Development Team, about the future of alternative fuels, and especially hydrogen, at BMW.

In Deutschland - H2 is #1

March 28, 2016

You may want to contact this person as well

Mike Strizki was the subject of a 2008 Scientific American article called

Inside the Solar-Hydrogen House: No More Power Bills--Ever

A New Jersey resident generates and stores all the power he needs with solar panels and hydrogen
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hydrogen-house/

He's done the work, and his hydrogen house is still working like it did in 2008, but the entire system is cheaper because Solar panels and electrolyzers are cheaper. He stores hydrogen in old propane tanks.

His website: http://hydrogenhouseproject.org/

March 27, 2016

^

Toshiba and Japan are leading the way to clean green hydrogen.

H2One, an Independent Energy Supply System Utilizing Renewable Energy and Hydrogen





The US could have led this field but the neo cons thought bombing and invading the rest of the world was more important.

March 26, 2016

"Maybe you weren't educated properly enough"

Ten year old British girls teach the BBC's "Daily Politics" presenter Andrew Neil how to do an interview.

"Don't patronize me Mr. Neil, with respect"

"We've done our research"

The smirk @ 1:00 is absolutely fabulous

March 22, 2016

Hydrogen car smashes world records in six-day demonstration around London's M25

Government-backed group last week drove a Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell car for 6,096 unbroken miles around the M25

Business Green | Madeleine Cuff | 22 March 2016

A new world record has been set for the longest-ever continuous journey in a hydrogen car, after the London Hydrogen Network Expansion project (LHNE) spent six days driving more than 6,000 miles around the M25 in a Hyundai ix35 fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV).


The six-day challenge saw the Hyundai ix35 FCEV complete 50 laps of the M25

The LHNE project also broke the world record for the longest distance travelled on a single tank of hydrogen, with the Hyundai FCEV hitting the 400-mile mark without running out of fuel.

The six-day demonstration, which ran as part of Hydrogen Week, saw a team of drivers complete around 50 laps of the M25 motorway outside London, as well as travelling to four of the UK's hydrogen refuelling stations to top up on fuel.

Diana Raine, European Business Manager for Hydrogen Energy Systems at Air Products, the firm which has led the LHNE project, said the record-breaking performance demonstrates the "viability and usability" of FCEVs...snip
Read More: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2451982/hydrogen-car-smashes-world-records-in-six-day-demonstration-around-m25

Hydrogen fuel-cell record-breaker

Telegraph.co.uk 21 March 2016


Erin Baker with the record-breaking Hyundai ix35 that's powered by a hydrogen fuel cell stack

Our columnist helps set a record for the longest continuous distance driven in a hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle

Ever since the sightseeing tour of the M25 run by Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach Company closed in 2012, I’ve felt something was missing in my life. So it was with no small amount of excitement that I partook of my own lap of the M25 (clockwise, naturally - only a fool would do otherwise) last Friday.

I was doing my bit to set a new record for longest continuous journey in a hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle (FCV) - the Hyundai ix35 FCV, to be precise. We did it - 6,060 miles covered by midday on Sunday (6,024 was previous record), thanks to a team of drivers going through the night and a few journalists doing a lap each.

The car was allowed to stop for refuelling only. Here’s how it went:

9.30am I get in the increasingly dirty ix35 at one of the six hydrogen filling stations the UK currently has (there’s a target of 65 by 2020), on the Heathrow perimeter road. Pure glamour, this job sometimes....snip
Read More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cars/news/hydrogen-fuel-cell-record-breaker/


If the US can build a Compressed Natural Gas station for $500,000 a Hydrogen station can be built for approximately the same amount- less than half the amount usually stated ($1-2 Million dollars/station).




In the UK- H2 is #1

March 18, 2016

General Mills to start using GMO labeling nationwide, Doubles Organic crops

With Vermont's labeling law looming, the company said it needed to find a cost-effective solution.
By Mike Hughlett and Jim Spencer, Star Tribune March 18, 2016

General Mills will begin labeling products nationwide that contain genetically modified ingredients after the failure of Congress to reach a national labeling law, a “watershed” development, according to one consumer group.



The Golden Valley-based company said Friday that since it will be forced by July 1 to begin labeling for GMOs in Vermont — the result of a state law there — it will extend GMO labeling nationwide.

“We can’t label our products for only one state without significantly driving up costs for our consumers, and we simply won’t do that,” Jeff Harmening, head of General Mills’ U.S. retail operations said in a post on a company blog Friday. “The result: Consumers all over the country will soon begin seeing words legislated by the state of Vermont on the labels of many of their favorite General Mills food products.”

Labeling for genetically modified ingredients has been a contentious topic the past few years. The food industry claims that such labels are unnecessary because GMOs were long ago approved by federal food safety regulators. Consumer groups have pushed for labeling, saying consumers have a right to know what’s in their food.

“By any measure today’s development is a watershed moment in the fight for more transparency,” said Scott Faber of the Environmental Working Group. “I applaud General Mills..snp
Read More: http://www.startribune.com/general-mills-to-start-using-gmo-labeling-nationwide/372580101/

General Mills: Why we’re doubling our organic acres

Mar 09, 2016 • By Grant Moos



General Mills will accelerate its commitment to more than double the organic acreage from which we source our ingredients for brands like Cascadian Farm, Annie’s and Muir Glen.

In 2015, we sourced from 120,000 organic acres, and we expect to be sourcing from 250,000 acres by 2019.

Consumer interest in organic is growing, which means we will need more organic ingredients to make our products.

Since 2009, General Mills has increased the organic acreage it supports by 120 percent and is now among the top five organic ingredient purchasers – and the second largest buyer of organic fruits and vegetables in the North American packaged food sector...snip
http://www.blog.generalmills.com/2016/03/why-were-doubling-our-organic-acres/

VICTORY is sweet. Thanks General Mills! Now for the rest...

Do You Have a Right to Know What is in Your Food?
http://americanintelligencereport.com/general-mills-to-start-labeling-gmos-nationwide-doubles-organics

March 17, 2016

Bernie Sanders’ Political Revolution Still Can Triumph and Transform America. Here’s How.

Truthdig, by Alan Minsky 17 March 2016

The Bernie Sanders campaign has shown that traditional left-wing politics are far more popular among the American public than anyone realized a few months ago. Indeed, Sanders’ surprising success suggests that American left progressives are the most underrepresented constituency in the country. And given that Sanders’ campaign was probably the first time millions of Americans encountered these ideas, it’s reasonable to think they will become even more popular with greater familiarity.



Thus, the 2016 Sanders campaign for president, however the second half of the primary process plays out, should be a starting point, not the end game. But given the sorry history of left politics in America, there’s every reason to think nothing will come of it. So the salient questions for left progressives are:...SNIP

...In other words, socialism (or at least social democracy) all but conquered the Democratic Party in 2016, and the future looks much brighter. Let’s make sure that massive and growing constituency has representation. If we do so, we can change the world and improve the lives of us all.

Now is no time to feel despondent. There’s a world to win. Let’s not take our eyes off the prize.

And, oh yeah, if Bernie doesn’t take the lead on this, we’ll do it ourselves.
Read Full Article: http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/bernie_sanders_political_revolution_still_can_transform_america_20160317

March 17, 2016

Happy Valley Series 2 on Netflix US now

Sarah Lancashire and Siobhan Finneran (Downton Abbey's Miss O'Brien) deliver another 6 brilliant episodes. It's must see TV. Kevin Doyle (Abbey's Molesley) puts in a great performance too as a bent copper.



https://www.netflix.com/title/80007225
https://www.reddit.com/r/BritishTV/comments/4arfoh/happy_valley_season_2_on_netflix_in_the_us/

And while you're at it Series 1 was just as good if not maybe a bit better. You don't need to see the first before the 2nd (it would help though)

A great place for British Telly
https://www.reddit.com/r/BritishTV/