OAKLAND, Calif.


,


Feb. 13, 2023


/PRNewswire/ — Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is partnering with the

Angel Island-Tiburon Ferry Company

(

Angel Island Ferry

) to support the electrification of The Angel Island vessel, which plans to operate as

California’s

first zero-emission, electric propulsion short-route ferry beginning in 2024. The electrification project represents an important milestone for

PG&E’s Electric Vehicle (EV) Fleet Program

, expanding the program’s support of transportation electrification to include the marine sector.

“The Angel Island ferry is an important part of

California

history and Bay Area tourism, carrying hundreds of thousands of visitors to Angel Island State Park for nearly a half-century. We are excited to support and collaborate on its conversion to an electric propulsion vessel,” said

Lydia Krefta

, PG&E’s Director for Clean Energy Transportation. “For years, PG&E has been leading the way toward

California’s

clean energy transportation future and supporting our customers as they electrify their vehicle fleets. This partnership marks a significant expansion of our resources beyond land-based electric vehicles, and it demonstrates how we deliver for our hometowns and in support of

California’s

clean energy goals.”

PG&E’s EV Fleet Program helps medium- and heavy-duty fleet customers easily and cost-effectively install charging infrastructure via comprehensive construction support and financial incentives. Through the collaboration with

Angel Island Ferry

, PG&E plans to bolster electricity transmission to the ferry terminal and support the installation of charging infrastructure to help power the 59-foot, 400-passenger vessel for its ferry service, sunset cruises and chartered events.

“We are very excited that The Angel Island will be the first of the short-run ferries in

California

to be 100% zero-emission, as our company continues supporting the natural environment of the Bay and our beautiful state park,” said Captain

Maggie McDonogh

, fourth-generation owner and operator of The Angel Island ferry. “Getting adequate electricity to our ferry terminal is an essential part of this plan. We could not move forward with going electric without the important support we receive as a participant in PG&E’s EV Fleet Program. It shows that PG&E supports small family-owned businesses like ours that are trying to reduce emissions.”

California

-based

Green Yachts

has been selected to transform The Angel Island to an electric propulsion vessel.

“This electrification project wouldn’t be possible without sufficient electrical supply for fast charging between ferry runs. PG&E has been a great partner throughout the collaboration,” said

Graham Balch

, Managing Broker of Green Yachts. “An electric semi-truck requires 2 kWh to go one mile, and The Angel Island ferry requires 30 kWh to go one mile. The increased energy requirement per mile shows the significant challenge associated with electrifying the marine sector.”

“The electrification of The Angel Island vessel aligns with our core focus of proactively preparing the grid for the future, increasing access to charging infrastructure, and supporting electric transportation adoption through rates, rebates, tools, and education,” said

Aaron August

, PG&E Vice President, Utility Partnerships and Innovation. “PG&E is committed to providing easy-to-use and affordable clean transportation programs and incentives that help redefine the energy landscape to support

California’s

clean air and greenhouse gas emission reduction goals and collective action on climate change.”

As part of the 2030 clean energy goals outlined in PG&E’s

Climate Strategy Report

, the company is aiming to proactively prepare the grid for 12,000 GWh of EV-related electric load and improve processes to enable rapid, safe EV energization and interconnection. It is also working to enable 2 million EVs to participate in vehicle-grid integration applications, allowing EVs to be a cornerstone of both reliability and climate resilience. PG&E offers a wide variety of resources and programs to support its

commercial

and

residential

EV customers.

About PG&E

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of

PG&E Corporation

(NYSE:PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and

Central California

. For more information, visit

www.pge.com

/ and

http://www.pge.com/about/newsroom/

.

About

Angel Island Ferry

Angel Island Ferry

has been providing ferry service since 1959 and brings tens of thousands of visitors annually to Angel Island State Park from the

Town of Tiburon

in

Marin County

. It also operates sunset cruises and special events. For more information, visit

www.angelislandferry.com

or email

[email protected]

.

About Green Yachts

Green Yachts’ mission is to decarbonize the marine sector and advance the electric revolution on the water. It is dedicated to the sale and servicing of electric boats and converting commercial and recreational vessels to electric propulsion. It is the first marine sector authorized dealer in

California’s

CORE (Clean Offroad Equipment) program and an authorized dealer for EPTechnologies,, IPTechnology, and Salona Yachts. For more information, visit

www.greenyachtsales.com

.

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SOURCE Pacific Gas and Electric Company

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The product recommendations in this post are recommendations by the writer and/or expert(s)
interviewed and do not contain affiliate links. Meaning: If you use these links to buy
something, we will not earn a commission.

Dry skin is a bummer. And we have bad news: it gets worse as you age. Over time, the body produces fewer natural oils. That, plus the cumulative effects of sun damage, can lead to skin that’s itchy, scaley, and patchy. However, you don’t have to sit back and suffer. Just because your skin might be scratchier in your seventh decade doesn’t mean there aren’t fixes that can help you find relief. Here, we chatted with dermatologists and beauty experts to learn the key ways to mitigate dry skin over 60. From lifestyle changes to skincare upgrades, these tips will make you feel brand new.

READ THIS NEXT: 5 Reasons You Should Add Petroleum Jelly to Your Skincare Routine After 50.

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If you need another reason to slather on sunscreen, you should know that skipping it could negatively impact how your skin looks and feels. “Sun damage makes your skin drier,” says Brenda Dintiman, MD, board-certified dermatologist at DermUtopia. “Use sunscreen to prevent further dryness.”

And remember: not all SPFs are created equally. To get the desired plump, bouncy effect, you’ll want to select one for dry skin. Choose a cream formula with ingredients like aloe, hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and ceramides. That, plus an SPF 30 or higher, will moisturize the skin while protecting it from future damage.

DimaBerlin / Shutterstock

One of the top fixes for dry skin hardly has to do with the skin at all—it has to do with the air. “Use a humidifier to add moisture to the living areas around your home,” says Marie Baker, FNP-C, president and medical director of DermaCrush Medical. The device is even more critical in the summer and winter when heating and air conditioning remove moisture from the indoor air.

So, how does a humidifier help? “When your skin’s protective barrier is damaged (read: dry), it creates small cracks in the skin, causing moisture to escape,” Marina Peredo, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in New York, told Real Simple. “Running a humidifier pulls moisture back into the air to improve dry, itchy skin and help it retain that hydration.”

If you don’t have a humidifier, boil a pot of water on the stove (you’ll have to watch it for safety reasons).

READ THIS NEXT: Goldie Hawn Swears by This Grocery Store Product for Perfect Skin at 76.

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If you have a preference for steamy hot showers, you might be exacerbating your dry skin. “These cause transepidermal water loss, which strips moisture from the already delicate skin,” says Baker. Fortunately, there’s an easy fix: turn down the heat and shorten your shower routine, especially when dealing with a dry-skin flare-up.

iStock

A targeted skincare routine is the final component for fixing dry skin over age 60. “As we age, our skin dramatically decreases its natural production of collagen, elastin, and sebum,” explains Georgia Smith, cosmetic chemist and founder of Skin Sister.

Her best tip is to mitigate that by using lipid-rich skincare products. (The three classes of lipids include ceramides, fatty acids, and cholesterol; they’re each found in oils). “This will help replace the lost sebum that your skin is no longer producing like it used to; lipids will nourish your skin and reduce that dry and tight feeling.”

Look for a moisturizer with ceramides, fatty acids, or cholesterol (or a combination!) and apply it diligently morning and night.

For more beauty news sent directly to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.

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This is the hero ingredient for hydrated skin. “Hyaluronic acid is an amazing ingredient that helps the skin to maintain moisture and prevent moisture loss,” says Baker. “Products like SkinMedica’s HA5 Rejuvenating Hydrator incorporate hyaluronic acid, among other moisture-retaining ingredients, to produce more supple and youthful skin with immediate and long-term benefits.” Swipe it onto damp skin before your moisturizer and SPF for an instant lift.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb

iStock

Your final skincare step should be a petroleum jelly product like Vaseline or Aquaphor. “Occlusives are great as they are thickened formulations designed with oil and water—exactly what our skin is not naturally producing [at 60] as it used to,” says Smith.

They’re especially useful to seal in your skincare at night. “When applied to the skin, petroleum jelly creates a barrier that physically prevents water from evaporating from the skin into the environment,” Arash Akhavan, MD, FAAD, owner of the Dermatology and Laser Group in New York City, previously told Best Life. “As a result, the water content of skin increases, yielding skin that is more hydrated.” Put it on after your moisturizer to reap the benefits.

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Every day, the buildings we shop in, work in, or socialise in make a difference in our lives.

It comes as no surprise that we spend 90% of our time indoors. However, the very foundation of how our buildings work is dependent on the safety, security, and well-being of those who use them.

Since the beginning of 2020, the way we use our offices has changed dramatically. We’ve become more adaptable, often only coming into the office when there’s a clear purpose and benefit to doing so. The building itself is not different; however, we must now develop the way our buildings operate to meet our new requirements. However, they are not performing as well as they should.

According to McKinsey Global Institute research, data and analytics could create value worth $9.5 trillion to $15.4 trillion per year if embedded at scale, demonstrating the true impact that silos are holding across industries. As a result, we must begin to value and comprehend our data. Only then will we be able to improve occupant safety and comfort while also saving money and meeting sustainability goals.

The journey to data value

When we have data we can’t understand or contextualise, we may as well have no data at all. Siloed data is dumbing down our smart buildings, but the challenge is that we need to manage the combination of operating technology, bringing together multiple data sources and different systems together to drive value. Right now, the data from each of these point solutions is siloed and disconnected. This is preventing building managers, developers, and owners from seeing the bigger picture, limiting them to small, incremental changes that don’t help realise the full potential of their investment in smart.

From here, it is then possible to move up the data value ladder, unlocking the true benefits of ‘smart’. On the surface level, data can be descriptive, telling us what is happening now. This insight then informs how we move up the levels; diagnostic, predictive, prescriptive and finally, the zenith of cognitive data where AI and automation come into their own.

There needs to be a link between the building and the data, as it provides invaluable insights into how the building is used. You can take a snapshot of the energy in a building and understand its performance, but this won’t help until you have the context of other data, and how that influences the building as well – it’s all interlinked. Understanding siloed data as a connected network means we can approach each building differently, to make recommendations that are more energy efficient and cost saving. By connecting the siloes, we can enrich the data to provide the diagnostic data as well as the descriptive data that will help climb the stairway to value.

What’s more, many buildings house multiple occupants, with various needs and expectations. This is especially true as we are working in a new hybrid world, with flexibility as the focus for many. Needs will vary from building to building, and data averages in the industry aren’t applicable because it’s about the individual building’s requirements. However, some things will remain consistent: the need to drive down energy usage, move towards carbon net zero, improve indoor air quality and provide an impressive and comfortable experience for occupants. All of this is harder to achieve when a building’s data is sitting in siloes, underutilised and unable to provide a 360-degree view of what a building can really offer.

Using technology to increase the potential

To reach this potential, we have to get deep below the surface level of smart technologies to unlock the insights they generate. This happens when we connect smart technology systems together to create an ecosystem or platform for smart solutions, looking at the bigger picture. The data and insights this creates can then be analysed to make vast improvements across a building, and even the whole enterprise.

To make this a reality, the data needs to be connected and easily accessible in the cloud. Then decision makers can analyse the data in its entirety and identify areas of improvement. They can focus this analysis on processes such as maintenance, energy savings and sustainable development – wherever needs attention at that time. Then, they can pinpoint the smart technologies that can make these adjustments autonomously and improve the experience that tenants receive. From these foundations, building and office decision-makers can create something which is truly smart.

Once the building data is embedded and utilises technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), we can truly reap the rewards and increase occupant safety and comfort, while saving on costs and achieving sustainability targets.

Data measurement, tracking, and action

Our buildings can make predictions with smart algorithms by utilising technology such as data and tracking software with AI and intuitive dashboards that monitor indoor air quality and energy consumption.

Algorithms predict load profiles as well as plant and equipment-level energy performance under various operating conditions based on historical patterns. Every major piece of equipment, such as chillers, boilers, pumps, cooling towers, and energy storage, has an energy model that predicts how the equipment will perform under various operating conditions. Every 10-15 minutes, the optimisation algorithms run to make ‘dispatch decisions.’ It determines which equipment to turn on or off, as well as which system level setpoints to use, for a wide range of cooling, heating, and power generation systems. This continuously reduces costs and energy consumption.

Historically, analytics and AI solutions have focused on achieving a single goal at a time, whether it is clean air, energy efficiency, safety, or even comfort and experience. Measuring, tracking, and acting on data, on the other hand, gives us control over every single goal we want to achieve.

Democratising data during economic insecurity

Because the UK is experiencing ongoing economic insecurity, businesses are doing everything possible to keep costs low and returns on investment high. However, we must keep in mind that lower costs, energy efficiency, and clean air can all coexist. With AI, machine learning, and democratised data, we can begin to see changes in our buildings that will improve our future.

About the Author

Mark Bouldin is Clean Air Expert at Johnson Controls. At Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI) we transform the environments where people live, work, learn and play. As the global leader in smart, healthy and sustainable buildings, our mission is to reimagine the performance of buildings to serve people, places and the planet.

Featured image: ©Eugenio Marongiu

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MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The air quality in the South Memphis neighborhood of Mallory heights has residents and activists furious at the risk it poses to the health of a predominantly Black community.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said a chemical called ethylene oxide has been present in the air around Sterilization Services of Tennessee’s building since the 1970s. According to the Union for Concerned Scientists, it has led to 82% of cancer in Mallory Heights.

The risk of cancer in this area is four times higher than the national average.

It’s been over half a year since this has come to the public’s attention, but not much seems to have been done about Sterilization Services of Tennessee’s practices.

People have been demanding faster action from local officials for months now, and they are fed up with how long it’s been taking to reduce emissions.

Memphis and Shelby county leaders agree, but they say they’re hands are tied because of the federal government.

According to the Shelby County Health Department, while they do have the ability to enforce the clean air act by the EPA, Sterilization Services of Tennessee do meet the current regulations for ethylene oxide emissions.

Still, some people aren’t buying this and say something still needs to be done now

In fact there’s an ordinance ready to go, according to Justin Pearson, the District 86 State Representative.

“You can look at section 9-12 a and 9-12 b of our municipal code that empowers the shelby county health department to do something when there’s an imminent threat,” Pearson said. “60 times more cancerous? That is more more imminent a threat to public health as I have ever heard.”

The Health Department does say that the EPA is working to expand the regulations for the Clean Air Act to reduce the ethylene oxide emissions in places like South Memphis. 

Still, it is not known when that will be able to take place.

The health department says once it is, the department will enforce those regulations as quickly as possible.

In the meantime, emissions haven’t stopped and too much exposure to it can cause cancer, which has unfortunately been the case for several Memphians living in the Mallory Heights neighborhood.

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Cheryl Shuffler
Burke County Public Schools

From something as small as a lightbulb to something as large as a heating and air system, going green has paid off for Burke County Public Schools.

Since 2009, the school district has teamed up with Cenergistic to partner in energy conservation. And over the past 13.5 years, the savings have added up to more than $30 million.

BCPS Energy Specialist Charles Cooke has been in his role with the district since the inception of the program.

“We submit our database to Cenergistc every month and they analyze our data for accuracy to maintain the integrity of the results we report,” he said. “Through December 2022, a time frame of 13.5 years, we have now saved a total of $30,110,153, which equates to a savings percentage overall of 47.5%. These savings are a combination of electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, water and sewer which we still track and record in our database.”

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By installing tankless water heaters, controlling water output and thermostats over summer and holiday breaks, and installing LED lighting the district has drastically cut its utility budget. And that’s not all. Cooke said the savings equate to a cumulative Greenhouse Gas Reduction of 117,793 metric tons of CO2 being released into the atmosphere or the equivalent of 24,000 vehicles being removed from the roads for one year. The overall cost for the last 12 months for all utilities for the district is $.96 per square foot.

“To remain at an overall cost of less than $1 per square foot in today’s energy climate is proof of the strength of our program,” Cooke said.

Looking back on the program, Cooke said in the beginning much of the district’s effort was behavior based training, meaning training students and staff to turn off lights at the end of the day, reporting water leaks and recognizing HVAC systems running unnecessarily. Later in the program, the district applied for and received money from the North Carolina Energy Office, which was utilized for many lighting projects throughout the district. The district also applied for and received rebates for energy saving projects in schools served by Duke Energy.

“In addition, we continue to shut down the district for all of the breaks in the school year such as the holiday seasons and in the summer,” Cooke said. “We maintain HVAC support and any other necessary systems for departments that operate during these times, but a very large part of our overall savings are generated by shutting down for the summers and utilizing the four-day work week during that time.”

Cooke said the program has come a long way since its inception.

“Back in 2009, much of our effort was to recognize and change our habits as far as using energy unnecessarily,” he said. “Once we were on the correct path to understanding how to save, we began to utilize energy efficient equipment when equipment failed and had to be replaced. In the last few years, we have been able to continue to replace worn out equipment with new, modern equipment, therefore increasing efficiency and making saving easier. We have improved not only the conditions in the schools by replacing thermostats with several new control systems, but have improved overall comfort and indoor air quality as well.”

The program has garnered the district several awards, including the Chairman’s Sustainability Award in 2017 and the Cenergistics’ Energy Pacesetter Award in 2013.

“The Burke County School district has done a tremendous job in this endeavor and as always, steps up to the occasion to manage our resources to the greatest extent possible,” Cooke said.

BCPS Superintendent Dr. Mike Swan praised Cooke and his team for the program’s success.

“Mr. Cooke and our auxiliary services team have done a great job not only training students and staff on ways to save energy but also by being proactive in replacing old equipment with modern, energy efficient equipment to reduce our carbon footprint,” Swan said. “Even the smallest of efforts from our team, such as turning off a light when leaving a room or shutting down computers at night, have added up to make a big difference. I am proud to be a part of this effort and am proud of everyone’s commitment to make a positive impact on the environment.”

Cooke tracks energy consumption — including electricity, water, sewer, natural gas and fuel oil — for the school system using energy-accounting software. He compares current energy use to a baseline period and calculates the amount of energy that would have been used had conservation and management practices not been implemented. By tracking consumption and analyzing energy use, he can quickly identify and correct areas that need immediate attention, which is good for the coffers and the environment.

Here are a few ways to save money while drying laundry at home.

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