If it weren’t for such rough winds right now – gale-force winds in Charleston Harbor and 14-foot swells offshore – every shrimp boat captain alive would be pulling out of Shem Creek, McClellanville, etc. right now, especially with the reduced [sic] fuel prices.

Those that do make it out will be rewarded with a nice catch – assuming everything goes according to plan – because SCDNR officials say shrimp have been keeping their own out in the ocean – the question, “is how many boats are gonna be out there to catch them?”

SCDNR also says that the in-water catch rate of immature loggerheads has been increasing, which at first sounds alarming, but then you realize it means management efforts such as nest protection and the required use of Turtle Excluder Devices (TED’s) in commercial shrimp trawl nets may be paying off.   Read more...

I guess all things are best when looked at from Mother Nature’s point of view.

A week or two ago I was reading about GE’s wind turbine manufacturing facility UpState, and this morning I read about IBM stepping up to the plate for the future of water management across the globe, so here’s a few things to look at if you’re interested in them too:

• GE wind-power
• IBM’s Advanced Water Management

To be honest, I can’t think of any two companies that would be better at tackling these global problems:

the energy crisis and water management.

Now, what’s left:

Earth, Fire, and whatever other elements you can throw in…

From wind resource maps, you can determine if an area should be further explored.
Credit: U.S. D.O.E.

In a study you know didn’t appear over night, the DOE has put together a nationwide map of wind currents as they move across the country 50 meters off the ground. From this wind resource map, you can determine if an area should be further explored for maximum wind power.

After enlarging the map above, you can easily see that the whole coastline of S.C. is rated either ‘good’, ‘excellent’, or ‘outstanding’ as a source of wind power. So when you hear that South Carolina’s potential state tax credit for the development of an off-shore wind farm is $1,063,333, it’s a no-brainer that we head in this direction.   Read more...

Well I’m back after a week of housekeeping on another site, but it was good to read last week’s “S.C. must kick costly coal habit” from the Post & Courier.

My take away from the article was this piece I feel we are really missing out on here in S.C. – offshore wind power:

Now is not the time for South Carolina to beg off from meeting expected federal renewable energy standards. Wind alone has the potential to bring ten to twenty thousand manufacturing jobs to South Carolina, according to a study conducted by former Clemson professor, Dr. Nick Regas. He estimated that offshore wind could supply 20 percent of the state’s energy at a cost of $3 million to $5 million per megawatt of installed capacity. That figure compares favorably against a new coal plant — $1.8 billion for 600 megawatts of wind versus $1.3 billion for 600 megawatts of dirty coal for a new plant.

  Read more...