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Today in Green IT

Pedro Hernandez
Friday, November 13, 2009

Proving that even small data centers can save big on energy costs, The Green Grid helped the EPA improve energy efficiency by 20 percent at its modestly-sized data center near Washington, DC. For the EPA, that translates into $15,000 a year in savings and all it only required cheap, easy-to-implement measures. Now, think of all those small businesses and startups that are better served by putting that money into growing their businesses. Seems like reason enough to embrace Green IT to me.

Tesla’s sporty Model S will accelerate faster than a Porsche 911 Carrera

When Tesla releases its Model S luxury Sedan next year, it'll release a special Signature Series version with a 300 mile plus range that does 0-60 faster than Porsche 911 Carrera. No word on pricing for this special edition.

Submitted by Adam Lesser
Concentrated solar power market volatile through next decade

Pike Research is projecting that the concentrated solar power market will rise to $5.1 billion in 2013 before dropping to $2 billion by 2016. CSP is facing tough times as the dropping price of solar PV panels makes it increasingly attractive to build solar farms with PV panels rather than CSP.

Submitted by Adam Lesser
Facebook scores LEED gold for Oregon data center

LEED certification focuses on the conservation qualities of the entire building, including the materials used, the environment in which the building is built, and its energy footprint. Most data centers are just focused on reducing their energy use but Facebook's Oregon data center looks at sustainability concerns in the building itself.

Submitted by Adam Lesser
Out of Africa: Big solar farms

Making loans to countries ranging from South Africa to Morocco, the World Bank is stepping up support for renewable energy in Africa.

Submitted by Adam Lesser
In Rio, making cities smarter

The figures on the rate of urbanization are staggering (2008 was the first year more people lived in urban areas than rural areas). And many are looking at the developing world as the best test case for smart cities because there aren't legacy bureaucracies and infrastructures to overcome. A blank slate could be very powerful if there's cooperation between government and corporations.

Submitted by Adam Lesser