P2 News Digest
Focusing on issues in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming. Search for Archived Stories
Support for Green Building, LEED Slip Slightly But Remain Strong Despite Downturn
03/11/2010
Source: GreenerBuildings, 3/11/10.
Support for green construction and LEED certification dipped slightly in 2009 but remains strong across the past three years despite the recession, according to the latest green building survey by Allen Matkins, Constructive Technologies Group and the Green Building Insider.Original Story
Proposed Energy-Efficiency Metric Named After Industry Pioneer
03/11/2010
Source: Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, 3/8/10.
Pioneering French physicists Marie and Pierre Curie have the curie, a unit of radioactivity, named after them. Renowned inventor Nikola Tesla is honored with the tesla, which measures a magnetic field. And now, the Rosenfeld, proposed as a unit for electricity savings, will be named after the man seen by many people as the godfather of energy efficiency, Arthur Rosenfeld.Original Story
Applications open for Campus Sustainability Case Study Awards, Student Sustainability Leadership Award, and Student Research on Campus Sustainability Award
03/10/2010
Source: AASHE.
AASHE presents two Campus Sustainability Case Study Awards, one Student Sustainability Leadership Award, and one Student Research on Campus Sustainability Award annually. The awards are presented at an AASHE conference or other major gathering of the campus sustainability community. The deadline to apply for the 2010 Awards is July 1st, 2010.Original Story
E-Waste Gets Its 15 Minutes of Fame
03/10/2010
Source: GreenerComputing, 3/10/10.
Call it the anti-"Amazing Race." Unlike the CBS reality show, which last October had its contestants dismantle electronics in the local fashion in Vietnam, the BBC program Inside Out this week offered the latest exposé of e-waste hazards.The program, along with the launch of an e-waste redesign competition, mark the beginnings of what will likely become a flood of e-waste events and announcements in the run-up to the 40th anniversary of Earth Day on April 22.
Original Story
Restaurants go green for looks, not savings -- report
03/10/2010
Source: Greenwire, 3/5/10.
American restaurant owners are concerned with environmental sustainability, but a report shows that they are more motivated by their public image than anything else.Original Story
Best Buy starts E-cycling program
03/10/2010
Source: Environmental News Bits, 3/9/10.
Electronics giant Best Buy is attempting a new green feat by offering a recycling service for all customers, no matter where you bought your old electronics.Original Story
U.S. greenhouse gases fell 2.9% in 2008 -- EPA
03/09/2010
Source: Greenwire, 3/9/10.
U.S. greenhouse gas emissions fell 2.9 percent in 2008, according to a draft report that U.S. EPA opened for public comment today.Original Story
How Ocean Bacterium Turns Carbon Into Fuel
03/09/2010
Source: Science Daily, 3/8/10.
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. We hear this mantra time and again. When it comes to carbon‹the "Most Wanted" element in terms of climate change‹nature has got reuse and recycle covered. However, it's up to us to reduce. Scientists at Harvard Medical School are trying to meet this challenge by learning more about the carbon cycle, that is, the process by which carbon moves from the atmosphere into plants, oceans, soils, the earth's crust, and back into the atmosphere again.One of the biggest movers and shakers is the lowly cyanobacteria, an ocean-dwelling, one-celled organism.
Original Story
Health Groups Oppose Effort to Overturn EPA Greenhouse Gas Ruling
03/09/2010
Source: American Public Health Association Legislative Update, March 2010.
Twelve health organizations joined together in sending a letter to all members of the United States Senate urging Senators to oppose a Resolution of Disapproval that has been introduced by Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) that would overturn the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) December 7, 2009 final endangerment finding on greenhouse gases.Original Story
More, Better Biodiesel
03/04/2010
Source: Science Daily, 3/4/10.
Yields of biodiesel from oilseed crops such as safflower could be increased by up to 24 percent using a new process developed by chemists at UC Davis. The method converts both plant oils and carbohydrates into biodiesel in a single process, and should also improve the performance characteristics of biodiesel, especially in cold weather.Original Story
Homebuilders make green, efficient features standard
03/04/2010
Source: USA Today, 3/2/10.
More homebuilders in the United States, especially the largest ones, are including green features in their standard packages as buyers demand energy efficiency.Original Story
Walmart Announces Goal to Eliminate 20 Million Metric Tons of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Global Supply Chain
03/04/2010
Source: Walmart.com, 2/25/10.
Walmart announced a goal to eliminate 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from its global supply chain by the end of 2015. This represents one and a half times the company's estimated global carbon footprint growth over the next five years and is the equivalent of taking more than 3.8 million cars off the road for a year.Original Story
HolidayLEDs.com extends light recycling program
03/03/2010
Source: Waste and Recycling News, 3/2/10.
The holiday-light recycling program offered by HolidayLEDs.com has been extended past its original Feb. 28 cut off date.Original Story
U.S. Wind Energy Potential Larger than Previously Estimated
03/03/2010
Source: EERE Network News, 3/3/10.
The maximum potential to generate wind power in the United States is more than three times greater than previously estimated, according to a new study by DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The new analysis, developed in collaboration with AWS Truewind, LLC, is based on updated computer models and examines the wind potential at wind turbine hub heights of 80 meters and 100 meters.Original Story
Detroit Automakers Invest in Energy-Efficient Engines
03/03/2010
Source: EERE Network News, 3/3/10.
The three major Detroit-based automakers--Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation (GM), and Chrysler--recently announced significant investments or changes as they move towards more efficient engines and vehicles. With an eye towards reducing fuel consumption and emissions, the companies are retooling some factories and redesigning vehicle powertrains.Original Story
Indonesia Rejects E-waste Shipment From US
03/02/2010
Source: PC World, 3/1/10.
A Massachusetts recycler of electronic waste is disputing reports from an environmental group that a recent shipment to Indonesia was illegal and contained computer monitors with hazardous materials. A press release issued Monday by environmental watchdog Basel Action Network (BAN), accusing CRT Recycling of illegally shipping CRT (cathode ray tube) computer monitors to Indonesia is inaccurate, said Peter Kopcych, general manager at CRT Recycling.Original Story
Recycle Your Gear to Help Combat Global E-Waste
03/02/2010
Source: PC World, 2/23/10.
The UN says global e-waste is growing by about 40 million tons every year, and some countries will see a 500 percent increase in e-waste by 2020. With so many discarded gadgets and devices already in landfills across the world, you may be wondering what you can do to get rid of your old computer monitors or that flip phone sitting in your desk drawer.Original Story
How Colorado Takes the Green Economy to a Higher Altitude
03/02/2010
Source: GreenBiz, 3/1/10.
Is the political malaise about climate change getting you down? Take a trip to Colorado, a clean energy hotbed that is creating thousands of new green jobs despite the climate cold war in Washington.Original Story
The battle over biofuel made from algae
03/02/2010
Source: World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 2/24/10.
Proponents claim that algae, like some crops grown for fuel, would reduce pollution because it absorbs carbon dioxide while it grows. They want algae-based fuels to qualify for use toward meeting volume-based targets for biofuel use in the European Union. Opponents say the benefits of using algae are unproved. They point to a recent study showing that the need for additives, in particular fertilizer, would give algae an unfavorable carbon footprint.Original Story
EPA Announces Environmental Justice Video Contest: Faces of the Grassroots
03/02/2010
Source: U.S. EPA, 3/1/10.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is sponsoring an environmental justice video contest that challenges professional or aspiring filmmakers to create videos that capture the faces of the environmental justice movement. The Faces of the Grassroots contest is an opportunity to publicly exhibit creativity with environmental justice stories, and connect with others working to raise awareness of the movement.Original Story
CO, WY, UT: City of Denver, Northern Cheyenne Tribe, and Salt Lake City receive grants to combat greenhouse gases
02/25/2010
Source: U.S. EPA, 2/25/10.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that the City of Denver,the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, and Salt Lake City will receive grants to advance greenhouse gas reduction activities as part of the Agency's Climate Showcase Communities initiative. These Region 8 grantees are among 20 U.S. communities, including two Indian Tribes, receiving a total of $7.8 million for projects that will reduce greenhouse gases (GHG). The funds will help communities increase energy efficiency, saving consumers money and reducing harmful greenhouse gas emissions.Original Story
Participants sought for survey on home energy use
02/25/2010
Source: Environmental News Bits, 2/24/10.
The study, which is being conducted by a research team at the University of California, is interested in your observations and experiences of your home energy use as well as any feedback devices you may have used. The study has been approved by the Institutional Review Board at University of California, Irvine. (Online survey; 10-15 minutes to complete.)Original Story
Green Chemists Pull Out Catalysts for Reuse
02/25/2010
Source: Environmental Protection, 2/22/10.
A nanotech catalyst developed by McGill University chemists Chao-Jun Li, Audrey Moores, and their colleagues offers industry an opportunity to reduce the use of expensive and toxic heavy metals, according to a press release from the Canadian university.Original Story
Google Can Sell Power Like a Utility
02/25/2010
Source: GreenTech Media, 2/19/10.
The Federal Regulatory Energy Commission has granted Google Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of the search giant, the right to behave like a utility. The order grants Google Energy the power to sell energy, capacity and services at market rates.Original Story
EPA, NREL Partner to Develop Renewable Energy on Potentially Contaminated Sites Clean energy project
02/25/2010
Source: U.S. EPA, 2/23/10.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are evaluating the feasibility of developing renewable energy production on Superfund, brownfields, and former landfill or mining sites.Original Story
Biofuel Options Expand as Science Taps New Sources
02/25/2010
Source: EERE News, 2/24/10.
Scientists are making progress in developing biofuels with a range of methods and an assortment of feedstocks. Among the promising clean energy alternatives is an algae photo-bioreactor that grows algae in municipal wastewater to produce biofuel.Original Story
Why Bringing Employees on Board Helps Sustainability Projects Succeed
02/22/2010
Source: GreenBiz, 2/22/10.
Getting employees engaged and educated on sustainability practices and a company's specific green goals can save millions by boosting efficiency and making those goals more likely to succeed. That is the top-level finding of a new study by the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF), which finds that environmental and sustainability (E&S) employee education and engagement initiatives can boost the bottom line, reduce environmental impacts, and help retain and attract talent.Original Story
HP Sets Strict Policy on E-Waste Export
02/19/2010
Source: SustainableBusiness.com, 2/16/10.
HP updated its policy on electronic waste last week, banning its export to from developed countries, like the U.S., to any developing country.Original Story
Sustainability Practices: Employees Are Generally Disappointed
02/19/2010
Source: SustainableBusiness.com, 2/18/10.
Most employers have only just begun interacting with employees around sustainability, and their efforts leave room for improvement, according to a recent survey conducted by start-up carbon offsetter Brighter Planet.Original Story
Delta, Virgin Airlines Best At Recycling, But Entire Industry Wastes
02/19/2010
Source: SustainableBusiness.com, 2/18/10.
Which airlines are taking steps to reduce the vast amount of waste generated each year by the industry? Delta (NYSE: DAL), Virgin America, Virgin Atlantic and Southwest (NYSE: LUV) are doing the best job, according to the new report.Original Story
Photosynthesis: A New Source of Electrical Energy? Biofuel Cell Works in Cactus
02/19/2010
Source: Science Daily, 2/18/10.
Scientists in France have transformed the chemical energy generated by photosynthesis into electrical energy by developing a novel biofuel cell. The advance offers a new strategy to convert solar energy into electrical energy in an environmentally-friendly and renewable manner.Original Story
First Electronics Recycling Certification to Regulate Toxic Exporting
02/19/2010
Source: Earth911.com, 2/16/10.
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has announced its endorsement of the first-ever certification program for the recycling of electronics. Guiyu is one of the largest e-waste centers of the world. More than a million tons of e-waste is dismantled in this Chinese village every year. The e-Stewards Certification and Standards program, held by the Basel Action Network (BAN), is touted as a giant step forward in an effort to slow the tide of overseas shipment of hazardous electronics.Original Story
EPA Increases Transparency of Proposed Regulations
02/19/2010
Source: U.S. EPA, 2/18/10.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is launching a new Web site giving the public additional opportunity to participate in the agency's rulemaking process.Original Story
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--Albert Einstein
