Solar Exploratorium Opens on the American River

As you can see, the Exploratorium benefited from the artistic talents of Allen Carrozza whose Earth portrait exceeded our expectations by several parsecs! The Moon portrait is even more remarkable and the "Earthrise" behind the Moon is truly outstanding. You must see it. It is rare to find someone who is an expert in solar installation, an artist, a sculptor and who knows what else? Stay tuned for more surprises.


The "timeline" is the final touch as yet to be completed but, as the picture illustrates, certainly is not needed to make this space both entertaining and educational. It will decorate the ceiling and stretch from 4.5 billion years ago and the beginning of our solar system to the present, a span of roughly 60 lineal feet. Our Sun, a medium sized star, is the hero of this saga as the source of energy that has made it all possible. Interestingly, had the Sun been a giant star, it would have burned out ages ago, a victim of its own gravity. Although there is controversy over the exact time of the beginning of the saga, the longest period it can continue is more clear. The Sun will inevitably heat up, become a "Red Dwarf" and ultimately burn out approximately 650 million years from now, a relatively short time on this timeline but a long time by human standards.

If I remember my college biology correctly, the origin of life on Earth is placed on this timeline at approximately one third of its length, making each living species a genetic message and evolutionary legacy 3 billion years old. It is humbling to recall that humans appear in the last millimeter of this timeline. In fact, if the timeline were Mt. Everest, all of human history would be the last few snowflakes.

It is the legacy of "species diversity" that is currently disappearing at a rate that exceeds any known to have occurred in the past. This is in what is now being termed the "Sixth Great Extinction." For comparison, it is useful to recall that the Fifth Great Extinction was the disappearance of the dinosaurs and approximately one third of all species then living on Earth that occurred over 65 million years ago. This extinction took over a million years. By contrast, the Sixth Extinction, if current trends continue, will account for the disappearance of 50% of the all species on Earth by the year 2050. This extinction would be the first massive extinction caused by a single species....us! The primary mechanism is not global warming. Rather, it is habitat destruction, the majority of which is concentrated in the tropics where the greatest number of species on the planet lives.

We hope the "timeline" and the other exhibits will provide food for thought. As has been the case before, the Sun holds the key to many of the potential answers to these challenges. We look forward to your visit and are excited to share these solutions with you.

SEE you soon,
Scott, Allen, Danielle and the MaLode Crew

Photovoltaic Solar Green Energy to Power the SEE

Solar Energy Exploratorium Heats Up

Today we added PV (photovoltaics) to the Solar Energy Exploratorium! Notice the two new PV panels located just above the solar hot water heater that Greg and Charlie are standing next to. As we mentioned last week in this blog, the thermal hot water heater pictured here is capable of pumping out 28,750 BTUs of solar energy and we are pleased to report it is now successfully heating the water for both our kitchens and guide shower.

The addition of the photovoltaic (PV) panels is to provide electricity for the SEE. This PV system is linked to a highly efficient electrolyte "gel" based battery. The set-up has the advantage of being fully portable and truly being "off the grid" from the moment it is plugged in. Unlike a "grid linked system" that depends on external power, this system has no need to be connected to PG&E to provide electricity,

We will use the PV/battery system to power the SEE's computer that will allow our students to do such things as: Estimate the carbon footprint of their home, school or community; Explore educational websites such as the National Alternative Energy Lab; Fire off emails supporting their favorite solar power legislative initiatives; etc!

Needless to say, the excitement has been building around here as the UPS driver delivers new solar toys for the SEE almost every day. Our "hybrid" solar oven is a particularly interesting addition because it combines direct thermal solar heat concentrated by reflective surfaces with electrically generated heat. We can now run the electrical portion of it with our PV / battery system and be entirely solared powered even on cloudy days.

Our solar race cars have also arrived and are quite a hit with the guides who are, after all, just kids at heart. The photovoltaic cell powered image projectors are quite mesmerizing and remind some of us of the Avalon Ballroom during its glory days. We have also been busy using our new planetarium to demonstrate the effects of the seasons, the longitude of ones location, and the degree to which your solar panel faces south to estimate solar energy yields. So far our calculations reveal that based upon our latitude and weather, Californians can replace an average of 73% of their hot water heating energy with thermal solar water heaters. We can also demonstrate that a seemingly very small area of concentrating solar arrays or PV panels located in Nevada would provide enough energy for all the electrical needs of the USA. This is fun stuff!

Today we had confirmation of another exciting development. Soon we will be using our new PV panels to recharge a full size, for real, solar car! This four passenger car is entirely electrically driven, has highway capability, and has the very appropriate California license plate "PLUGRIN". We anticipate using the car to give our students rides on the property to demonstrate that powering a car with the sun really does work. I will make a special trip to Santa Barbara to pick up the car, which is generously being loaned by the famous solar energy enthusiast Dorothy Pierce. Thanks Nana!

Speaking of solar enthusiasts and heros, none of our solar projects would be possible without the expertise and generosity of Allen Carrozza, our solar guru who has loaned us all of the solar panels for educational purposes. Allen loves to share his vast knowledge of solar technology with others and is looking forward helping the River Center spread the word about solar power as part of the Sustainable Practices Institute. We also thank Daneille Fisher and the folks at Grange on Green for their support.

By the way, if you are a schoolteacher, keep in mind that students aren't the only ones that will benefit from our programs. We plan to "teach the teachers" about solar power too. If you would like to "bring on home" the solar energy buzz to your own classroom, what better place to attend a seminar than here on the American River where you can combine your learning with whitewater rafting, camping and other forms of recreation such as petting Charlie the River Dog.

Warm Solar Greetings from the American River,

Scott, Allen, Greg, Daneille and Charlie the River Dog

Permaculture: Sustainable Food for American River Eco Rafting

Growing Organic Food for Whitewater Eco Rafters on the South Fork of the American River

When we established our original garden twenty years ago it was small and located next to the main kitchen. Occasionally the garden thrived, mostly it died, but the herbs, basically a form of weed after all, took over.

In 2007, as part of our Greenhouse Gas Action Plan (GAP), we decided to reinvent the garden. Eating organic, locally grown food makes more "green" sense now than ever and Scotty, who is a gardening enthusiast and majored in Botany at San Francisco State, took the lead. Last season the new eco garden was planted in hay bales (you can see the remnants of these behind Sarah and Scotty in the picture). Given the poor quality of the soil, this turned out to be a brilliant innovation! It worked exceptionally well because it provided a raised surface that gophers did not penetrate, made for excellent drainage, and almost entirely eliminated the need for soil preparation. Sarah contributed her knowledge of green argiculture practices acquired at Humboldt State University where she was involved in their eco composting program. Tomatoes and squash did well, but the bell peppers got too much sun and went down hard.

Building on last year’s effort, this season we have set the long term objective of achieving a “permaculture”. This increasingly popular concept combines organic farming techniques, such as composting and integrated crop selection, with green landscape architecture and eco farming techniques to achieve sustainability. Permaculture is more of a process than a destination and it will take several seasons and a big team effort to achieve substantial results.

Scotty is the leader of our eco permaculture team which now includes allies from the Garden Valley “Grange on Green” (see our blog article on this group for details). Two particularly knowledgeable Grange participants are the owners of Redbud Farms, Martha Cox (Master Gardener) and Dr. Dave Cox(retired UC Davis Ag Professor) who are hosts of a gardening show on KFOK 95.1 FM on Saturdays and are local experts with decades of experience. They did a site visit/consultation and suggested the size of the garden be many times greater than last season and be located in a more favorable location on an area of "Auburn sandy loam soil" with a ph of 6.1 (who knew?). Pass the lime please. Martha donated some seeds as well- Thanks!

Another helpful suggestion was made by Allen Carrozza, our ever energetic solar expert from Grange on Green. He donated solar panels that will heat water and circulate it under the garden to warm the root zones of the plants. This can increase the rate of growth by 140%. If you look carefully at the "American River Gothic" picture of Scotty and Sarah above, you will notice a large, black, rectangular object behind Scotty and Sarah- this is a plastic solar panel of the type commonly used to heat swimming pools. The round black object behind the panel is the 600 gallon tank that will not only serve as our rainwater recapture reservoir next winter, it will store the water heated by the solar panels and help keep it warm both because of its mass and also due to its passive "black body" solar energy collecting properties.

To help us get an earlier start next Spring, Danielle Fisher, the sparkplug of Grange on Green, has helped us locate a used 8' x16' solar greenhouse that we are planning to install on an old plywood living platform we had laying around. We plan to adapt this unit to use the recirculating solar hot water technique to extend the growing season this Fall.

For this season, Scotty has already begun raising seedlings from the seed Martha donated in egg-crates at his house. Colleen (who spent the Winter in Antarctica and is definitely ready to warm up) and Sarah are both enthusiastic to help Scotty get started and I've used the Kybota tractor to begin breaking ground for the expanded garden. We expect that soon our outdoor education students will benefit from seeing a working garden on campus and our rafters will enjoy its bounty as well. We will keep you posted as the project progresses. Feel free to visit the garden when you visit the River Center this season. It’s going to be fun to watch the garden grow!

See you in the River Center Permaculture Garden,

Scott, Scotty, Sarah, Martha, Dr. Dave, Danielle, Allen, Greg and the MaLode Green Team

Alternative Energy Education on the American River

28,750 BTU Solar Hot Water Heater at MaLode

Solar Energy Exploratorium: Alternative Energy Education on the American River

The purpose of the Solar Energy Exploratorium (SEE) is to provide our students hands-on opportunities to encounter the many ways solar energy impacts our daily lives and the phenomenal potential solar power has to transform our society in positive ways. Our food, the weather, the hydrologic cycle that provides and purifies the water we drink, even the fossil fuels we burn in our cars, all ultimately derive their energy source from the sun.

Today, the United States currently employs among the lowest percentages of solar power use in the industrialized world, less than 1%. Yet solar is one of the fastest growing and potentially the most promising type of energy that provides an environmentally sensible alternative to the fossils fuels that are creating so many problems for our society. In fact, if properly developed, solar energy could provide 65% of our total energy needs by the year 2050 (Scientific American January 2008 issue). Unfortunately, the type of solar power that has the greatest potential to achieve this, concentrating solar, is largely unknown to the American public and benefits from virtually no public policy support. At the Exploratorium you will have an opportunity to understand how this can and should be changed.

Another solar option we are all familiar with, photovoltaic cells, have quadrupled in energy efficiency from 3% to 12% in the past decade and will undoubtedly also contribute significantly to the coming solar transformation. While concentrating solar is installed as “solar farms”, PV cells are easily installed in a decentralized or “distributed” fashion that allows individuals and even whole communities to go “off the grid”. Our students learn that the belief that PV cells aren’t effective in cloudy weather or in Northern locations such as Seattle is simply incorrect. In fact, the American Institute of Architects estimates that by devoting one south facing wall to PV, the average building in Seattle has 6 times the sun exposure necessary to provide for all its electrical needs. This is using current efficiencies of 12%. Imagine how the 28% efficient panels currently being constructed in research labs will increase the ability of individuals to become energy self-sufficient!

Another realization our students will share is that the most efficient type of solar technology of all is not concentrating solar or photovoltaics, rather it is the thermal solar hot water heater. All too frequently neglected because it lacks technological sex appeal and is less profitable to install, solar hot water heating can replace the approximately 33% of one’s domestic energy which is used to heat water with a cheap, reliable, simple solar solution that you can construct from salvaged materials and install yourself. Doing the math gives some surprising results.

You may know that the performance of thermal solar systems is measured in British Thermal Units (BTUs) while photovoltaic solar electric systems are measured in kilowatt hours (kW/hrs). One of the four solar thermal systems we have installed at the River Center uses a progressive tube 50-gallon water filled heat exchanger that produces 28,750 BTUs. Converting this to Kilowatt-hours, we multiply by .0002931 resulting in 8.43 Kilowatts. An 8.4 Kw photovoltaic system would cost approximately $10,000 per kW or $84,000. This compares with the $3,500 to $4,000 retail value of our solar thermal system. Clearly, for heating water the solar thermal system is approximately 20 times more cost efficient. From an energy standpoint it is also six times more efficient than PV and three times more efficient than concentrating solar!

If you or your students would benefit from learning such information about solar energy, plan a visit to the SEE. You can take home some plans to build your own thermal “box” hot water heater that can be constructed for less that $300. Remember, it always helps to conserve energy (go lean) first, choose an alternative energy source (go clean) second, and finally, save some green by choosing the most cost efficient as well as the most environmentally responsible solutions to your energy needs. More often than not, solar is a great choice!

Eco-Rafting on the South Fork of the American River

For the 2008 season we are pleased to announce dramatic progress toward meeting the goals of our Greenhouse Action Plan. Our "Eco-Bus" is the first 100% waste vegetable oil (WVO) powered bus on the South Fork of the American River, will reduce carbon emissions profoundly each and every time it carries passengers down the highway. On the Chili Bar Run we will achieve up to an 80% reduction from our baseline carbon emissions.

Over a year ago we announced a first for the rafting industry, Mother Lode's Greenhouse Gas Action Plan (GAP). In that plan we committed to reduce our overall carbon emissions 20% by 2012, 40% by 2040 and 80% by 2050 with 2006 serving as our baseline. It was then, and remains now, a tall order, our new Eco-Bus is a giant step towards reaching our goal.

How We Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
Vegetable oil represents one example of renewable solar energy converted by plants through photosynthesis into liquid form. Although there is little or no carbon savings using virgin vegetable oil due to the petrochemicals used to till, harvest, manufacture and transport it to the point of use, "waste" vegetable oil (WVO) is a different matter. By reclaiming WVO from restaurant garbage we are recycling and reusing a resource. Additionally, its usual manner of disposal produces more carbon emissions than our using it as fuel. An added bonus is the fact that vegetable oil produces fewer air pollutants than either petroleum diesel or gasoline. Remarkably, using WVO reduces air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions simultaneously!

Step 1: Collecting Vegetable Oil
To maximize the environmental benefit we get our waste vegetable oil locally to reduce the cost in carbon and our time.

Step 2: Returning to the Farm: Making Bio-Diesel
Dr. Diesel's purpose in inventing the diesel engine in 1897 was to allow farmers to use 100% vegetable oil to run their farm machinery. Although we initially successfully made blended bio-diesel, we realized that to use vegetable oil to full advantage one needs to commit to using it 100% pure. Anything less dilutes its beneficial effects. Dr. Diesel, the "full veggie" please!

Step 3: Refining 100% WVO: Accept No Substitutes.
Our 100% WVO system includes two electrical heaters to thin the oil, three electrical pumps to move it, two steel barrels to contain it, an aluminum canister housing a bag style filter, and a centrifuge to extract the last bit of water. The system is permanently installed it in a retired bus, which also serves as our storage facility. We control the system through a breaker panel and 3 timers all connected to a RV style electrical hookup. This set-up is fully mobile and ready to visit the next World's Fair.

Step 4: The Right Bus.
An unmodified diesel bus will not run on 100% WVO. A conversion must be performed, the expense of which can easily exceed the cost of the bus. The right bus is therefore mandatory. We shopped for over eight months to find ours, a supercharged and turbocharged 1987 Gillig Phantom with only 106,000 miles, a perfect body, and a silky smooth "air ride" suspension. Jim Stepp, our head driver, and I went to Los Angeles and outbid several disappointed fellows whose vision was to turn our bus into a mobile condo in Mexico. We christened her "Eco-Bus" and drove 400 miles north to Coloma. Thanks Ron and Jim! This fall the bus got a paint makeover in MaLode earth-tone tan and forest green and she looks great.

Step #5 A 100% WVO Conversion - Not for Amateurs.
Unlike a Mercedes or Volkswagen, "big rigs" are not easy to convert yourself. Each system is customized to the vehicle that uses it. As it turned out the two major U.S. vendors are both located east of the Rocky Mountains.

Fortunately we found a kind of "alternative energy mad scientist" quietly inventing sophisticated counter-current exchange, continuously heated, precision welded aluminum, 100% WVO systems that are efficient, reliable and operate well at all temperatures. Based upon what I knew about other systems, I was amazed to learn our bus would transition to WVO within two minutes or less of engine start-up, thus keeping our use of "Dino-diesel" to an absolute minimum.

Step #6 Fast Forward to the Year 2050
With the Eco-Bus up and running, it was time to find the way to use it most efficiently to reduce carbon emissions for the introduction of "Eco-Rafting". The Chili Bar Run was the most energy efficient choice by far with an estimated carbon savings of 80% from our 2006 baseline! This means we can meet the 2050 goals of our GAP on the Chili Bar Run in 2008, approximately 42 years ahead of schedule!

Rest assured, the Eco-Bus project is only one aspect of Mother Lode's overall effort to complete our GAP. Nevertheless, it is a very encouraging start and if you take a shower at our camp this season the hot water will come from a solar "box" heater, photovoltaic power is on its way, and many other changes are anticipated as elements of our evolving Sustainable Practices Institute- but that's another story. To learn more about our Eco-Bus.

We cordially invite you to "Eco-Raft" this season and take this opportunity to reconnect with Nature, have fun, and enjoy an exciting whitewater adventure with your friends and family, all for $99! Click to find out more about these specially priced Eco-Rafting Trips on the South Fork American River.

We look forward to seeing you on the river.
Scott Underwood and the MaLode Extreme Green Team
Aaron, Allen, Ron, Jim, Richard, Greg, Rich, the Mystery Painters, and Charlie the River Dog

California's American River has Water!

American River Whitewater Assured for 2008

Those of you who have visited Lake Tahoe recently know that something exciting is happening in the Sierras. Whether you were chaining up and crawling along in traffic, hunkered down waiting out a blizzard, sliding over a slope, or like my Dog Charlie, just sitting enjoying it, snow is happening up here! For those of us who are anticipating the spring thaw, the recent snow survey just pegged the water content at 125% of normal. It is going to be a great season for whitewater somewhere on the American River in 2008.

The North, South and Middle Forks of the American River all benefit from one of the heaviest annual snowfalls in the Sierras. Blue Canyon, their primary watershed, averages among the highest annual precipitations in John Muir’s “Range of Light”. Combine this with a system of large reservoirs on the South and Middle Forks of the American and you have the most reliable source of whitewater fun on the West Coast.

In 2006 the Sacramento Municipal Utility District finished a re-licensing process on its Upper American River Project (UARP) on the South Fork that made recreational flows a mandated priority for the first time. What this means is that the snow we are currently enjoying is more than sufficient to provide reliable, exciting flows on the South Fork from Memorial Day to Labor Day- guaranteed! This will be true most years in the fifty-year duration of this license.

The Middle Fork of the American also has a large upstream reservoir, Oxbow, which will also provide reliable, flows if the current trends continue. I would be willing to bet a lot on it being a great season, but unlike the South Fork, there is no formal agreement that guarantees it. We will have to wait a bit longer to be absolutely certain.

The North Fork of the American has no reservoirs upstream of the whitewater runs. The melt on the North Fork is notoriously fickle and anyone betting heavily on the outcome now should probably stay away from the gaming tables. Nevertheless, all indications are this river will have a good season too.

What about the other rivers in the Sierra? They need to be addressed on a river-by-river basis depending on the location of their drainage, whether there are large upstream reservoirs or not, etc. Suffice it to say that if the snow keeps falling, it stays cold and the pineapple express doesn’t show up- it looks good.

So if you are interested in boating on the Forks of the American this spring and summer, Mother Nature has just refilled your prescription of aqua-Prozac. Make sure your gear is ready; the rate limiting factor is not going to be water this season!

We look forward to seeing you on the river this season,

Scott, Greg, Penny, Scotty, Colleen, Sarah, Katie, Seth, Lindsey, Kyle
and of course, Charlie the River Dog

PCL Honors South Fork of the American Heroes

PCL Honors South Fork of the American River Heroes
P.S. That probably includes you!

The annual meeting of the Planning and Conservation League (PCL) held on January 10, 2008 in Sacramento was a gala event involving 330 activists, planners and attorneys with the theme ”A State of Change: How Californians Can Change the World”. Featured speakers included California’s Lt. Governor John Garamendi; Attorney General Jerry Brown; and State Senator Darrell Steinberg. Founded in 1972, this organization is one of the most prestigious and respected organizations dealing with environmental issues in our State. I recommend membership!

I imagine most whitewater boaters are like myself, they wouldn’t recognize the movers and shakers of Sacramento politics if they bumped into them head-on. It was a shock to me, as I paid the steep admission fee for my daughter, Adriane, and myself, that I recognized a host of familiar faces. It was like a “Who’s Who” of river conservation in California.

First I noticed the lanky and silver bearded Jerry Meral, a legendary boater and one of the founders of (FOR) Friends of the River and (TRPT) the Tuolumne River Preservation Trust. Jerry played a key role in saving the “T” from being dammed, hence the name of the put-in: “Meral’s Pool”. Jerry later became President of PCL and played a vital role in crafting the series of California bond initiatives that have provided funding to preserve our riparian watershed and other environmental treasures. It is possible you’ve seen Jerry on the South Fork yourself without knowing it.

Next to Jerry was my neighbor on River Road in Coloma, Jonas Minton, another frequent floater of the South Fork, who successfully mediated the California State Water Plan and has since mediated water issues in China. Then I bumped into another Coloma native, Traci Sheehan, current Executive Director of PCL, who cleans up very nicely I must say. I usually see her wearing a kayak skirt. The list went on including Doug Lindsey, now a well-respected Environmental Consultant, who recalled how he met his wife while guiding at Mother Lode years ago. It was truly old home week.

It only got better though, because the prestigious “California Environmentalist of the Year” award was presented to another Coloma native Bill Center, owner of Camp Lotus, who was accompanied by his charming wife Robin and increasingly famous kayaker son Charlie. Bill, in the words of the award’s presenter, was “the person most responsible for helping bring SMUD’s Upper American River Project re-licensing on the South Fork of the American to a conclusion that favored wildlife, fisheries and recreational boating.” Many of you may recall this is the agreement that mandates recreational flows for whitewater boating for the next 50 years. Historic!

Those of you who wrote letters during 2006 on Mother Lode trips should feel honored too. In fact, you were honored! Bill mentioned you that night and has thanked you for your efforts multiple times since the agreement. He even has a code for you, “the Chinese water torture”. That’s probably how it felt to the SMUD Board of Directors as the MaLode guides and I appeared at meeting after meeting presenting the seemingly endless stream of letters you wrote (over 1300) supporting the “Alternative Proposal” that had initially been rejected by SMUD. That proposal ultimately greatly influenced the re-licensing agreement. It was the right thing to do, and the resulting compromise agreement was a true “win-win” for both SMUD and the river community. Yet it took your voices, Federal and State Agencies, and the voices of many others passionate about this river, to turn the tide.

That evening I reflected over the thirty plus years and the more than twenty thousand letters Mother Lode participants have written, the over one dozen California rivers that are still rivers instead of lakes, over the thousands of rafters that have been enchanted by the magic of these special places, and I couldn’t help but smile. We thank you, our participants and friends, for your vital role in this struggle. You are members of a very special family.

As the meeting closed, Bill Center was installed as the new President of PCL and as Bill, Robin, Jonas, Traci and I followed each other home to the little town of Lotus/Coloma, I reflected on what a great place this is and what a treasure the South Fork truly represents. I am honored and humbled to be in the company of such a great collection of friends and colleagues and to be able to share this special place with you all. Remember, the Stanislaus River still lives in our hearts.

Hoping to see you “Eco-Rafting” on the river this season,

Scott Underwood
The River Doc

FALL WHITEWATER!

Calling all RAFTERS!

Thanks to your valuable letters written last season to the Sacramento Municipal Utility District(SMUD), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) decided to guarantee recreation water flows on the South Fork of the American River for the next 50 years! Not only do we have guaranteed water in the Summer, we also have guaranteed water on the weekends all the way through next year!

(this is the first time in history that we have had guaranteed water this time of the year)

So, if you missed your chance at whitewater rafting this Summer, or if the idea of cooler weather, better views, smaller crowds and even smaller prices sounds good, come on over to Mother Lode!

AS A BONUS: We'll throw in free wetsuits and paddle jackets to anyone who needs them on our trips.

Since there is a lower volume of rafters in the off-season, we cannot always accommodate groups with smaller numbers of participants.

*If you have only two or three guests in your group, we ask that you be flexible in scheduling your trip date to coincide with existing trips.