Resources
NHSEA Consumer Resource Guide
We've built the Consumer Guide to support New Hampshire residents in their efforts towards greater sustainability. Our guide includes a directory of regional businesses that provide services in renewable energy and green building. This directory is organized by business name as well as grouped by types of services. We will regularly update and post the Consumer Guide here. Download the guide by clicking the link below. Please contact us if you have any questions.
NHSEA Consumer Resource Guide (PDF 47KB).
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We also now have an online version of our Consumer Resource Guide. Please check it out and let us know what you think.
Carbon Footprint
Want to know what your carbon footprint is? Go to this calculator at Bonneville Environmental Foundation and enter your use of electricity, heating, auto travel and air travel to see how much CO2 you put into the air yourself. If you feel inspired, buy some green tags to compensate for your activities. Bonneville Environmental Foundation is giving out 2 CFL bulbs to everyone who participates this April.
Renewable Energy Publications
RenewableEnergyAccess.Com
Based in Peterborough, NH, this is the internationally recognized website
for Renewable Energy news and information.
www.RenewableEnergyAccess.com
Home Power Magazine
A bi-monthly magazine full of useful tips on self-built and created power for anyone interested in getting their own renewable energy system.
www.homepower.com. Also available at your favorite newsstand.
Solar Today
The official publication of the American Solar Energy Society. Free with ASES membership. 303-443-3130,
www.solartoday.org. Also available at your favorite newsstand.
Northeast Sun
The official publication of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association, NHSEA's parent organization. Free with NESEA/NHSEA membership. 413-774-6051,
Web Resources For Sustainable Energy
Buildings
Buildings account for up to 40% of this nation's energy use and carbon emissions. Nearly half of that is from residential buildings. While it is critical to convert over to clean, renewable sources of energy to heat and power our homes, it is equally critical to make our homes much more efficient and sustainable.
Making your home more energy efficient, or building an Energy Star home from scratch, will save you money as well as energy, and should provide healthier indoor air quality through adequate mechanical ventilation. Green Building generally involves a more comprehensive approach to sustainable construction and development in general. Green building emphasizes energy efficiency and air quality within the home, but also considers the kinds of materials used, water conservation, minimizing site disturbance, reducing construction waste, and more.
It can be confusing to sort out all the lingo and various definitions. As a primarily volunteer association, NHSEA offers as many workshops as possible to help our members understand the options. The web offers a tremendous amount of information so we have selected the following organizational links for their ease of use and comprehensive and independent information to exploring sustainable building and renewable energy options.
- Best of Building Science
- Energy Federation Incorporated
- L.E.E.D. Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design
- Residential Energy Performance Association
- Rocky Mountain Institute
- Sustainable Energy Resource Group
Appliances & Lighting
Renewable Energy
- Biodiesel
- National Biodeisel Board (www.biodiesel.org)
- Biodiesel America (www.biodieselamerica.org)
- Biodiesel Now (www.biodieselnow.com)
- UNH Biodiesel Group (www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel)
- Geothermal
- geoexchange.org
- Hydro power
- www.microhydropower.net
- Canyon Hydro (www.canyonhydro.com)
- Earthbound Services (www.earthboundservices.com)
- Solar
- www.homepower.org
- Wind Energy (large scale)
- www.windenergy.com
- Windustry (www.windustry.com)
- Clean Power Now (cleanpowernow.org)
- If Not Wind (www.ifnotwind.org)
- New England Wind Forum (www.eere.energy.gov)
- Wind Powering America (www.eere.energy.gov)
- American Wind Energy Association (www.awea.org)
- European Wind Energy Association (www.ewea.org)
- World Wind Energy Association (www.wwindea.org)
- Canadian Wind Energy Association (www.canwea.ca)
- Wind Energy (small scale)
- Small Wind section of Windustry (www.windustry.com/SmallWind)
- Small Wind section of AWEA (www.awea.org/smallwind/)
- Small Wind section of Wind Powering America (www.eere.energy.gov)
- Wood
- www.forestsociety.org
- New England Wood Pellets (www.pelletheat.com)
- Pellet Fuels Institute (www.pelletheat.org)
- TARM USA (www.woodboilers.com)/
- Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency
- www.dsireusa.org
Transportation
Many of us in New Hampshire depend on our cars for getting, well, just about everywhere. For most of us, driving a car accounts for as much, or more, of our carbon footprint than our homes. We are finally beginning to have some options in terms of cleaner cars and we can expect to see more options in the future. Certainly, driving less is the greenest option, but not always possible. Buying a Prius is not always a possibility either. But GreenerCars.com scores all vehicles in terms of their "greenness". So if you're considering purchasing a car, new or used, bring this info along to help you make the cleanest, most efficient selection possible.
Ecological Footprint
The United States has about 5% of the global population, but consumes over 30% of the resources used annually and produces over that amount of the world's carbon emissions. These figures are so huge, its easy to forget sometimes that it is each of us who contributes to those overwhelming percentages! The following links are great tools to find out what your environmental impact is—and ways to walk more lightly.
