houston gets GREEN
You might say that Houston was "hard wired" to emerge as a leading hub for alternative energy sources.
With fossil fuel already in the city's DNA, Texas' largest metropolitan area is home to an employee base steeped in all aspects of the energy industry. The combination of that workforce and a favorable investment climate attracted both established companies and newcomers to set up operations around alternative and renewable energy sources.
Houston is home to a wide range of alternative and non-conventional energy businesses and organizations—everything from university-led research institutes to clean fuel plants, representing alternative energy technologies such as wind, solar, biofuels, geothermal, hydroelectric, hydrogen and fuel cells.
Although Chicago remains secure in its reputation as the "Windy City," Houston showed environmental leadership by committing to use wind energy to supply a third of its power needs. The commitment makes the city a national leader among local governments in the use of renewable energy.
Here's an overview of alternative and renewable energy activities in Houston.
Quick Facts
- Houston commits to use wind power for one third of its power needs.
- Houston plans to convert a substantial portion of the city's fleet of cars, pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles to hybrids by 2010.
- Houston opened its first ethanol (E85) fuel dispensing facility in 2004 at NASA's Johnson Space Center. JSC employees must use E85 in the 25 Flexible Fuel Vehicles in the GSA fleet assigned for employee use. Local grocery chains have added or plan to add E85 dispensing facilities.
- One of the top three states in wind-power potential and the nation's top wind energy producer, Texas' cumulative wind power capacity total now stands at 2,370 megawatts—enough to power more than 600,000 average American homes.
- Texas installed more wind power in 2003 than the entire United States had in any other year.
- Texas is leasing to Galveston Offshore Wind an 11,000-acre region of the Gulf of Mexico, seven miles off Galveston Island, for gigantic wind turbines that could eventually power 40,000 homes.
Alternative Energy Research Institutions
- Houston Advanced Research Center. HARC is dedicated to improving human and ecosystems through the application of sustainability science and principles of sustainable development.
- Center for Fuel Research and Applications: Part of HARC, the Center is a research consortium working to advance hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.
- Houston Technology Center: HTC enables and accelerates the growth of emerging technology companies
- Rice University's Energy and Environmental Systems Institute: EESI advances understanding of energy and environmental issues, facilitates development of technological solutions, and provides unbiased information for policymaking in the public and private sectors. EESI includes the Shell Center for Sustainability.
- University of Houston: The Cullen School of Engineering will lead a $24 million, Department of Energy wind turbine research project.
