The new Clean Air Quality Package is the result of an in-depth review of EU's air quality policy. Steam rising from the Nesjavellir Geothermal Power Station in Iceland Geothermal energy (from the Greek roots geo, meaning earth, and thermos, meaning heat) is energy made by heat inside the Earth's crust.[1] It's clean and sustainable. Although the Sun does heat the surface of the Earth, heat from inside the Earth is not caused by the Sun. The geothermal energy of the Earth's crust comes 20% from the original formation of the planet, and 80% from the radioactive decay of minerals.[3] The Earth is hottest at its core and, from the core to the surface, the temperature gets gradually cooler. Resources of geothermal energy range from the shallow ground to hot water and hot rock found a few miles beneath the Earth's surface, and down even deeper to the extremely high temperatures of molten rock called magma. It has been used for bathing from Paleolithic times, but is now better known for making electricity.

All over the world, geothermal energy has been used to make about 10 gigawatts of electricity in 2007, and give 0.3% of the electricity needed around the world. When used to generate electricity, geothermal power plants typically offer constant output. Geothermal energy is also used directly for district heating, or in other heating and cooling applications. Buildings in Iceland are heated in this way from the country's many geothermal sites. Power plants and thermal applications of geothermal energy are mature technologies, whereas enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) projects are a new type of application. Almost everywhere, the shallow ground or upper 10 feet (3m) of the Earth's surface maintains a nearly constant temperature between 50° and 60°F (10° and 16°C). Geothermal heat pumps can tap into this resource to heat and cool buildings. A geothermal heat pump system consists of a heat pump, an air delivery system (ductwork), and a heat exchanger - a system of pipes buried in the shallow ground near the building.

In the winter, the heat pump removes heat from the heat exchanger and pumps it into the indoor air delivery system. In the summer, the process is reversed, and the heat pump moves heat from the indoor air into the heat exchanger. air purifier uv lightThe heat removed from the indoor air during the summer can also be used to provide a free source of hot water.portable air duct cleaning equipment for sale Geothermal energy escapes as hot water at many hot springs or as steam at geysers.best spray carb cleaner In the United States, most geothermal reservoirs of hot water are in the western states, Alaska, and Hawaii. Wells can be drilled into underground reservoirs for the generation of electricity. Some geothermal power plants use the steam from a reservoir to power a turbine / generator, while others use the hot water to boil a working fluid that vaporizes and then turns a turbine.

Hot water near the surface of Earth can be used directly for heat. Direct-use applications include heating buildings, growing plants in greenhouses, drying crops, heating water at fish farms, and several industrial processes such as pasteurizing milk. Hot dry rock resources occur at depths of 3 to 5 miles (5-8 km) everywhere beneath the Earth's surface and at lesser depths in certain areas. Access to these resources involves injecting cold water down one well, circulating it through hot fractured rock, and drawing off the heated water from another well. Currently, nobody uses this method commercially. Existing technology also does not yet allow recovery of heat directly from magma, the very deep and most powerful resource of geothermal energy.Growing up on a ranch in south Florida I was captivated by the beautiful air plants decorating the  oak and cypress hammocks. Like many people I assumed these air plants were found only in the South. I am now aware they can be found far and wide from the Southern U.S. to South America and everywhere in between.

Air Plants or Tillandsia include approximately 540 species and many more hybrid varieties. Air plants can be found in the swamps of Florida, the jungles of Costa Rica, arid deserts of South America and the high mountain regions of the Andes. Most air plants can tolerate temperatures from the forties to the nineties and thus are found from sea level to high in the mountains. Tillandsia Usneoides or Spanish Moss can tolerate an even wider temperature range and withstand frost from freezing temps. Xerographica can withstand temperatures over one hundred degrees and needs less water than most air plants.Xerographica is endemic to Mexico, El Salvador and GuatemalaBulbosa air plants are associated with Belize and GuatemalaSpanish Moss inspires visions of Oak trees in the southern U.S. but also ranges far and wide through Mexico, Central and South America. Most of the Ionantha air plants are native to Central America and Mexico.Bergeri, Juncea and Stricta varieties are found in Brazil.Funckiana and Paucifolia are natives of Venezuela.Aeranthos, the “Carnation in Air”, can be found in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.

With well over 500 species, air plants can be found far and wide in the New World. From sea level to high mountains they have adapted to many environments and climates. On your next trip to Latin America you may want to plan a hike to try to spot a few of these unique and exotic air plants in the wild. Our Air Plants Grab Bag page offers Visit our Air Plants page to see our entire collection of air plants. The Air Plants Gift page provides beautiful air plant display options & home decor. plants are exotic, unique and easy to care for. They don’t require dirt so the display options are almost endless. Air plants enjoy indirect sunlight, need only occasional watering, get much of their nutrients from the air and will help clean the air in your home. September 7, 2016 - EPA finalized an update to the CSAPR ozone season program for the 2008 ozone NAAQS by issuing the CSAPR Update. February 26, 2016 - EPA issued a ministerial action affirming changes to CSAPR that align the dates in CSAPR’s rule text with its revised implementation schedule.

November 16, 2015 – EPA proposed the CSAPR Update to address interstate transport of air pollution under the 2008 ozone NAAQS July 28, 2015 - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued its opinion on the remaining issues raised with respect to CSAPR. EPA is pleased that the court decision keeps CSAPR in place. We are reviewing the decision and will determine appropriate further course of action once our review is complete. On July 6, 2011, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule that protects the health of millions of Americans by helping states reduce air pollution and attain clean air standards. This rule, known as the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR), requires states to significantly improve air quality by reducing power plant emissions that contribute to ozone and/or fine particle pollution in other states. In a separate, but related, regulatory action, EPA finalized a supplemental rulemaking on December 15, 2011 to require five states - Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin - to make summertime NOX reductions under the CSAPR ozone season control program.

CSAPR requires a total of 28 states to reduce annual SO2 emissions, annual NOX emissions and/or ozone season NOX emissions to assist in attaining the 1997 ozone and fine particle and 2006 fine particle National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). On February 7, 2012 and June 5, 2012, EPA issued two sets of minor adjustments to the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR). The timing of CSAPR's implementation has been affected by a number of court actions. On December 30, 2011, CSAPR was stayed prior to implementation. On April 29, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion reversing an August 21, 2012 D.C. Circuit decision that had vacated CSAPR. Following the remand of the case to the D.C. Circuit, EPA requested that the court lift the CSAPR stay and toll the CSAPR compliance deadlines by three years. On October 23, 2014, the D.C. Circuit granted EPA's request. Accordingly, CSAPR Phase 1 implementation is now scheduled for 2015, with Phase 2 beginning in 2017. This rule replaces EPA's 2005 Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR).

A December 2008 court decision kept the requirements of CAIR in place temporarily but directed EPA to issue a new rule to implement Clean Air Act requirements concerning the transport of air pollution across state boundaries. This action responds to the court's concerns. In November, EPA proposed the CSAPR Update Rule to address interstate transport of air pollution under the 2008 ozone NAAQS *Impacts avoided due to improvements in PM2.5 and ozone air quality. (see EPA's Regulatory Impact Analysis.) The CSAPR will help avoid tens of thousands of premature deaths and illnesses, achieving hundreds of billions of dollars in public health benefits. Pollution reductions will also lead to improvements in visibility in national and state parks, and increased protection for sensitive ecosystems including Adirondack lakes and Appalachian streams, coastal waters and estuaries, and forests. The final rule yields $120 to $280 billion in annual health and environmental benefits, including the value of avoiding 13,000 to 34,000 premature deaths.

This far outweighs the estimated annual costs of CSAPR. The $800 million in annual projected costs of this rule, along with the roughly $1.6 billion per year in capital investments already under way as a result of CAIR, are improving air quality for over 240 million Americans. This rule will not disrupt a reliable flow of affordable electricity for American consumers and businesses. Health benefits will be achieved at a very low cost, and while the effect on prices for specific regions or states may vary, they are well within the range of normal electricity price fluctuations. Any such costs will be greatly outweighed by the benefits. Click on the map to see a larger image | View this map as a table The rule requires significant reductions in sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOX) emissions that cross state lines. These pollutants react in the atmosphere to form fine particles and ground-level ozone and are transported long distances, making it difficult for other states to achieve NAAQS.