Eagle Quest Properties

The new congress center for the 4th World Solar Cities Conference, which takes place in September 2010, is now complete. Located in Dezhou of the Shandong Province, the 75,000 square meter (807,293 square feet) center includes exhibition centers, scientific research facilities, meeting and training facilities, and a hotel. It'll be a showcase of solar design, solar desalination, and, of course, about 50,000 square-feet of solar panels on the exterior.

With advanced roof and wall insulation, the conference center is supposed to be about 30% more efficient than China's national standard. And, notwithstanding its size, renewable energy will power 95% of the center's energy needs.

via Massive Solar Powered Sundial Building Now Complete in Dezhou, China.

Snowmass, Colo.

A quarter-century ago, in the wake of America’s first energy crisis, a young scientist named Amory Lovins came to the Rocky Mountains and built himself a radical house based on a radical idea. The country could save both energy and money, he believed, by combining common sense and unconventional technology.

Mr. Lovins did achieve substantial energy savings, and many of his innovations, from better insulation to multiple-pane windows to more-efficient refrigerators, eventually became familiar fixtures in American homes.

But on the second part of Mr. Lovins’s ambition — saving money — the calculus has been more complicated. The advances that allowed him to create a roomy home with a tiny carbon footprint came with a hefty upfront cost.

via Homely Costs of Energy Conservation – WSJ.com.