I have covered this subject lightly before. Now to share the project I mentioned in the "Working Toward Paperless" article.

A great deal of paper used to be processed for job bids. Basically when a school district needs work done that will require a contractor, there is a bid process to ensure funds are used as prudently as possible. In this process, complete print outs of blue prints, plans, descriptions of work and any changes thereafter were prepared on paper for all participants. At the beginning of the process enough materials were prepared for all of the respondents plus a few extra copies. Work descriptions could have 2 or 3 hundred pages with all of our criteria spelled out for ADA, Fire Safety, Learning Environment Requirements, etc... The amount of paper and time to prepare these was huge. The cost of oversize prints for plans and blue prints was also very large. These steps were all necessary as we did not have a viable alternative.

Now we have an alternative. After I personally configured a computer here to be a web-server, our tech department made the machine accessible to the Internet. After this, I worked closely with our drafter who is also a very qualified website designer to create a space for making the process paperless. The drafter is involved with almost every step of the bid process as plans and blueprints for our records as well as county records are managed and maintained by her. Plans are generally very large CAD drawings accurate to the inch for the building and all of its systems including the grounds it is on, water lines, electrical wiring, communication wiring, ventilation ducts, etc... With the insight of the drafter, a very clear layout was created for conveying the material required. The best part is the bid materials can be updated instantly and all those who are participating can be notified and will be able to view the changes immediately.

Using historic costs, this project will save us close to $100,000 a year! This is a very smart step financially as well as a huge benefit to the environment by paper avoidance.

Currently there are only two bids in the system. You can take a peek if you like by following the related link.

There is an article on the best rechargeable batteries over on "MetaEfficient.com". To summarize, the Ni-MH batteries are the best. They break down the pros and cons of a few brands. To go a step further, they also rate a few of the "best" chargers for these batteries.

For me, the benefit is a relatively quick recharge time, 6 or 8 hours typically and most newer chargers go automatically to trickle mode when the battery is full. This means I can keep batteries in the charger and they are ready when I need them.

What I find typically is that you only need to recharge the batteries 3 times to break even on the cost of the battery itself. If you have a pack of 4 AA batteries and a 4 AA battery charger, the set will pay for itself after about 8 recharges. That is still pretty quick and it is very beneficial for the environment.

Use rechargeables wherever it is reasonable.

To see the article at MetaEfficient.Com, follow the related link below.

These myths are from the Mother Nature Network:

Myth 1: EVs don't have enough range. You'll be stranded when you run out of electricity.
-- FACT: Americans drive an average of 40 miles per day, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Most new battery electrics have a range of at least double that and can be charged at any ordinary electrical outlet (120V) or publicly accessible station with a faster charger.
At present, all it takes is planning for EV owners, who can travel up to 120 miles on a single charge, to use their cars on heavy travel days.

Myth 2: EVs are good for short city trips only.
-- FACT: Consumers have owned and driven EVs for seven years or more and regularly use them for trips of up to 120 miles.

Myth 3: The charging stations must be built before people will adopt EVs.
-- FACT: Most charging will be done at home, so public charging isn't a necessity.
And at least seven companies are competing to dominate the public-charging-station market, and a trade group representing the nation's electric utilities has pledged to "aggressively" create the infrastructure to support "full-scale commercialization and deployment" of plug-ins.

Myth 4: EVs take too long to charge.
-- FACT: The most convenient place and time to charge is at home while you sleep. Even using the slowest 120-volt outlet, the car can be left to charge overnight, producing about 40 miles of range.
Most new battery cars and plug-in hybrids will charge from 240-volt outlets providing double or triple the charge in the same amount of time. Charging stations that reduce charging time even more are beginning to appear.

Myth 5: Plug-ins are too expensive for market penetration.
-- FACT: New technologies are typically costly. Remember when cell phones and DVDs were introduced? Also, the government stimulus package includes a $2,500 to $7,500 tax credit for EVs and PHEVs. Some states are considering additional incentives ($5,000 in California and Texas).
And EVs require almost no maintenance or repair: No oil or filter changes, no tune-ups, no smog checks.

Myth 6: Batteries will cost $15,000 to replace after only a few years.
-- FACT: The battery is the priciest part of a plug-in, but costs will drop as production increases. The auto industry is expected to be purchasing up to $25 billion in advanced batteries annually by 2015. Some car makers plan to lease their batteries, so replacement won't be an issue.

Myth 7: EVs just replace the tailpipe with a smokestack.
-- FACT: Even today, with 52 percent of U.S. electricity generated by coal-fired power plants, plug-in cars reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and most other pollutants compared with conventional gas or hybrid vehicles. Plug-ins can run on renewable electricity from sources such as the sun or wind.
Plug-in hybrids will reduce greenhouse gases and other emissions, even if the source of electricity is mostly coal, a 2007 study by the Electric Power Research Institute and NRDC showed.

To find out more, follow the related link. The original article has many links to references neatly incorporated into the text.

I hope you had a great end of year with friends and or family. I know I did.

Even over my vacation, I watched for news and articles that would be of interest here. There were only a few. It seems lots of organizations are off during the holidays. We have a woman who is going to paddle a boat across the Atlantic, double sided solar panels, a new humanoid robot, and a bit of car technology.

As we begin the new year it is nice to think we are still making some type of progress. However, the real progress is made from the little things we do everyday as individuals. These little steps, recycling, turning off unnecessary lighting, avoiding waste, finding new uses for items instead of buying new are additively the real impact.

With this in mind, lets not resolve to do anything, lets actually do these things at every opportunity and encourage others to do the same.

I will get back to regular posting starting tomorrow.

I thought we could all use some good news this close to a major holiday. According to the Associated Press, the climate conference data reflects the US has reduced CO2 emissions 1.8% over the 1990-2007 time frame.

This is good, but we are not leading the pack, although we are one of the largest groups to make an improvement over that time frame. Lets keep up the effort and maybe even boost it a bit knowing that it does matter and it does get noticed.

You can view an interactive map and see how we compare by following the related link.