The U.S. Department of Energy gets serious about hitting windpower goals; new scrubbers can trap up to a ton of carbon dioxide daily; and smart meters hold the key to capping new power plant construction. It’s your Tuesday edition of The Daily Five.

Energy Dept creates wind-turbine research group: The U.S. Energy Department and six major windpower companies have a signed a two-year deal to research turbine development. The collaboration will target more reliable turbine components, address cost control and certification, and mitigate environmental concerns. DOE Assistant Secretary Andy Karsner says his department and the private consortium are committed to expand windpower’s total share of the enrgy market from 2 to 20 percent by 2030. (Reuters)

Air Scrubber Can Soak Up One Ton of Carbon Dioxide Daily: A Columbia University “scrubber” can capture up to a ton of carbon dioxide each day. A group headed by Klaus Lackner has set their sites on Richard Branson’s $25 million bounty for the bext way to remove CO2 from the environment. The scrubber contains ion exchange membranes similar to those used to refresh air in space capsule — but far more efficient. The scrubbers don’t look as if they be cheap: about $200 thousand dollars per unit. (Good Clean Tech)

New Chevy compact to be built alongside Cobalt starting in 2009: On the heels of disastrous truck and SUV sales — and with the possibility of $5 per gallon gasoline not too far over the horizon — GM is bringing a gas-burning compact to market with performance that rivals current hybrids. Spy pics show a new small sedan out for road testing. The car appears to be built on GM’s supple new Global Car platform, and is rumored to be powered by a turbo 1.4L engine with direct fuel injection. Analysts say 40 mpg is achievable with the efficient new GM powerplant. (Autoblog Green)

Reforestation Using Exotic Plants Can Disturb Fertility Of Tropical Soils: Well-intentioned refroresation with fast growing, exotic trees such as eucalyptus may do more harm than good. Surveys taken during 2005 in Senegal and Burkina Faso show that non-native bacteria which accompanies the trees stresses local soils. Analysis shows that transplantation of exotic trees can fundamentally alter the composition of host soils in a matter of years. (Science Daily)

Texas Utility Spends $690 Million on Smart Meters: If you’ve ever used a wattmeter around your home, you know what a dramatic effect such feedback can have on the way you use electric appliances on consumer goods. That’s not lost on Texas utility Oncor, the greener successor to TXU Electric. They’re splurging on $690 million worth of smart meters for their customers. Oncor will put 3 million Swiss-made units in the field by 2012. The company says the potential energy savings will pay for themselves by reducing the need for new power plants. (Treehugger)

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