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Could LED Lightbulbs Eliminate the Global Hunger Crisis?

Jill Ettinger — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 08:26:55 +0000

Global attention to food waste has illuminated a major problem with the world's food supply: more than 40 percent of the world's food is ending up in landfills instead of being routed to people who desperately need it. Efforts are underway to decrease food waste—from the urban dumpster diver to international campaigns and policies—and a new discovery may help supermarkets reduce their massive amounts of wasted food. The answer is as simple as changing a light bulb. Literally. LED lights may keep food fresher, cites new research.

Los Angeles Getting LED Street Lights

Gerald "Gerry" Pugliese — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 11:13:10 +0000

Getting the seal of the approval from former President Bill Clinton, Los Angeles, California has announced plans retrofit 140,000 of its residential city street lights with eco-friendly LEDs.

President Clinton hailed the initiative, saying "This is the best place in the world, in the U.S. at least, to lead this." He equated the retrofit to taking 6,000 cars off the road.

According to city hall the project will cut emissions by 40,500 tons and save $10 million annually.

And Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said making Los Angeles the greenest city in the United States would be building a bridge to a sustainable future. Projections claim the LED street lights drop energy usage from 197 million kilowatt-hours to 132 million kilowatt-hours during the next 10 years.

Clinton added money from new President Barrack Obama’s $787 billion federal stimulus package will be used to fund environmental efforts similar to the Los Angeles LED street light program; MSNBC reports.

Hey, pay me enough money and I’ll live by candlelight!

Via Earth First.

Brooklyn Rooftop Goes Solar

Gerald "Gerry" Pugliese — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 11:16:36 +0000

In Brooklyn, an old building, originally constructed in the 1880s and newly renovated into 25 commercial spaces, gets a green overhaul.

The Nassau Brewery, once called the Budweiser Brewery until a lawsuit by the more well-known Budweiser forced a name change, is the first commercial net-metered solar power array in New York City.

Net-metering allows customers to use their own power generation systems to offset energy costs, by sending excess electricity back into the grid, i.e. spinning their electric meters backwards.

Green builders Big Sue, LLC renovated the Nassau Brewery, located at 925 Bergen Street in Brooklyn. In addition to its 40 kilowatt solar panel system, the building features radiant heating, a 4,000 square foot green roof and locally salvaged materials, such as lights and sinks.

Nassau Brewery’s sister building at 1024 Dean Street, once used as an ice house, now houses 6 residential apartments and also sports a green roof, solar system, radiant heating and recycled amenities.

Actually, New York has really taken the green bull by the horns, other eco-innovations:

Statewide recycling program for plastic bags.

New Year’s ball with 2,256 LED lights.

Green MetroCard subway rides.

Via TreeHugger.

New York City’s LED Ball Drop

Gerald "Gerry" Pugliese — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 13:25:16 +0000

It looks like an intergalactic super brain, but it’s actually the ball that dropped last night during New York City’s New Year’s Eve celebration. And, it’s a marvel of green engineering! For starters, all the lights are LED. It’s covered with 2,256 Philips Luxeon Rebel LEDs and at 12-feet wide, weighs nearly 12,000 pounds. And the green innovation doesn’t stop there. Despite being twice the size of any other ball ever dropped in Times Square, this LED masterpiece is 20% more energy efficient than last year’s ball. Here’s the cool part. All the lights can make 10 million different colors and generate billions of unique patterns. Check out this video in case you missed it. Now, since the ball is so awesome, the city will leave it up year-round. So it’s bound to attract tourists from all over the country. Via inhabitat.