y for International Development (USAID), which have stimulated the development of forestry management capacities, product quality and marketing in Mexico.
Group Sets Site on Energy Independence, Job Growth
An unusual alliance of labor, environmental, civil rights, business and political leaders today laid out a vision for a "New Apollo Project" to create 3.3 million new jobs and achieve energy independence in ten years. Named after President Kennedy's moon program, which inspired a major national commitment to the aerospace industry, the Apollo Alliance aims to unify the country behind a ten-year program of strategic investment for clean energy technology and new infrastructure.
The Alliance also announced that it has received support from 17 of America's largest labor unions, including the United Auto Workers, the Steelworkers and Machinists, as well as a broad cross section of the environmental movement, including the Sierra Club, the NRDC, the Union of Concerned Scientists, and Greenpeace.
Dr. Ray Perryman, a corporate economist from Texas who prepared a detailed economic analysis of the proposal for a New Apollo Project said, "If economists agree on anything it's that inventing new technologies and creating whole new industries is what America does best. We are a creative economy, not a commodity economy. The New Apollo Project would keep us on the cutting edge of manufacturing emerging technologies and secure our long-term prosperity."
Perryman concluded that the proposed tax credits and investments would create 3.3 million new, high-wage jobs for manufacturing, construction, transportation, high-tech, and public sector workers, while reducing dependence on imported oil and cleaning the air. Perryman's analysis shows that a New Apollo Project would also position the U.S. to take the lead in fast-growing markets, dramatically reduce the trade deficit and more than pay for itself in energy savings and returns to the U.S. Treasury. Perryman's study was based on an input-output analysis of impacts on key industry sectors, using a highly regarded economic model and extensive survey data.
Zero-Energy Home Appears at Builders' Show
Homebuilders attending the 2004 International Builders' Show saw a new kind of home -- a highly energy-efficient Zero Energy Home that produces as much electricity as it uses over the course of a year.
A Zero Energy Home combines renewable energy technologies with advanced energy-efficient construction. Like almost all homes, a Zero Energy Home is connected to the utility grid. Because the home produces about as much energy as it consumes during a year, it is considered to achieve "net zero" energy consumption.
Called the Ultimate Family Home, the whopping 5,300-square-foot custom home was built by Pardee Homes and designed by Bassenian/Lagoni Architects. The National Association of Home Builders selected it to serve as a show home for the annual builders' convention and show in partnership with Builder Magazine and Home Magazine.
"The Ultimate Family Home shows that energy efficiency and solar energy can be incorporated into attractive homes that come with all of the features homebuyers are looking for," said Tim Merrigan, Zero Energy Homes program manager at NREL.
The location of the 2004 show -- Las Vegas -- is ideal for building a home powered by the southwestern sun. Photovoltaic panels on the rooftop provide electricity, and a solar water heating system provides hot water. A highly efficient air conditioning system combined with good insulation, air sealing and advanced windows keeps the home comfortable. The home will use 90 percent less energy than a similar home built strictly to code.
Pardee already constructs all of its homes to exceed Energy Star® standards through the ComfortWiseSM program developed by ConSol.
DOE started the Zero Energy Homes initiative to bring the latest research out of its national laboratories and into homes. NREL scientists and engineers are working with four teams to introduce the Zero Energy Homes concept into the single-family, new-home construction industr