- Emily Pilloton Discusses the Hippo Roller and other Designs for Humanity (Part One)
- Janine Benyus on Biomimicry in Design (Part Two)
- Janine Benyus on Biomimicry in Design (Part One)
- Andy Revkin - Climate in the Obama Age
- Fred Pearce - Confessions of An Eco-Sinner (Part Two)
- Fred Pearce - Confessions of An Eco-Sinner (Part One)
- Chris Goodall - Ten Techs to Save Our Butts (Part Two)
- Chris Goodall - Ten Techs to Save Our Butts (Part One)
Entries for June 4, 2006 - June 10, 2006
Total this week: 99
100 Days Carbon Clean-up Campaign
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06.10.06
About 500 organisations from the UK have signed up for the 100 Days of Carbon Clean-Up campaign run by the Chartered Institution of Building Service Engineers (Cibse) with support from the Carbon Trust. The first day of the challenge was June 5th and it ends on September 12th. Fulcrum Consulting is one of the participants and they have written a first diary entry to document their progress in reducing their carbon emissions....
Monday, June 12: Kelly Slater's "Letting Go" NYC Premiere
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06.10.06
Seven-time surf world champion (and "surfing genius" according to peers) Kelly Slater is launching his new surf movie in New York City on Monday, June 12th. He's going to introduce the film and do a Q&A session afterwards. All proceeds from the fundraiser are going to the Surfrider Foundation's NYC chapter. Surfrider is "a grassroots, non-profit, environmental organization that works to protect our oceans, waves, and beaches" via activism, demonstrations and education. You can learn more about them on their website (check out their mission & principles - very green). Doors open at 7:00pm, tickets are $25 and the location is: Pier 63 North River (Enter at the end of West 23rd Street and the Westside Highway)....
Paris Shopping: deux filles en fil Modular Salvaged Leather Accessories
by Kyeann Sayer, Nomad on 06.10.06
We like talking modular pillows, carpet tiles, and even Pallet-Houses. Now is the time for adjustable hand bags. My deux filles en fil bag (photograhped here by Jill Danyelle) makes me smile for different reasons multiple times daily. Its origins are scrap leather and vintage fabric, yes, but the modularity adds an efficiency/fun kick that I'm frankly not accustomed to experiencing in relation to accessories....
BicyTaxi Comes to New York City
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 06.10.06
From the BicyTaxi press release, “BicyTaxies will shuttle passengers to their destination, running scheduled routes in New York City as a Taxi, or operating at corporate, personal, sport or Convention Center events with an advertiser's message prominently displayed and attracting attention”. While the owners are US investors, the vehicles are manufactured in Germany, where the "advertising in motion concept" originated. Currently 50 units are available for the U.S. market through September, at which time the fleet will grow to 100 units through March 2007. Transportation costs for BicyTaxi are currently set at $1 per block with a $10 minimum per person in New York....
Organic Meat Sales Growth Drives Land Conservation
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 06.10.06
Today’s New York Times has an excellent story about the growth in US organic meat sales. Here’s the money quote: “According to the consumer research and consulting firm A.C. Nielsen, natural meat sales, which excludes fish, nearly doubled in four years, to $681.3 million in the year ended April 22” [2006]. Yeah we know: ‘tofu’. But hold off on the vegetarian to omnivore comparison until you read about how US natural beef producers have been channeling profits into conservation and land use preservation. If people are still going eat beef (which they arguably will), it's laudable to add the a boost to human health and conservation that is associated with organic or "natural" production. There's a tertiary benefti as well. When the organic meat market fully "mainstreams,", ranchers will realize that they have much more in common with Tree Huggers then they had realized. ‘The customer is always right’ paradigm translates then into political commonalities as well. More details from the NYT after the fold.
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Study Proves it Pays to Build Green
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06.10.06
We learn from Building Strategies, a new Canadian building trade rag, about an interesting study by Green Value, a consortium of governments and consultants, about the value of building green. The usual developer mantra has been to build it cheap and fast, have lower rents and let the tenant worry about the operating costs. Times are changing- after studying 300 reports and looking closely at 18 development projects in Canada, the USA and the UK. Green Value concluded that Green buildings lease up more quickly; get higher rents; reduce tenant turnover and improve worker productivity significantly. Read the executive summary or full report via ::RealPac...
BSkyB Goes Carbon Neutral
by Treehugger Interns on 06.10.06
It seems like not a week goes by without another major corporation announcing its “carbon neutral status”, the latest being BSkyB. The UK’s largest provider of multi-channel entertainment claims that this is “the first commitment of its kind by a major broadcasting company”. Like many treehuggers, I have mixed feelings about these announcements – on the one hand I applaud attempts to reduce carbon footprints, on the other, I worry about a situation where companies and individuals can excuse polluting behaviour by simply planting trees or paying for compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) in developing countries. There’s a fine line between “polluter pays” and “the payer can pollute”. However, it is important to note that most major carbon offset programs announced so far have featured offsets and carbon credits as part of a much wider program of environmental initiatives, and BSkyB is no exception. Not only is the company reducing waste, purchasing 100% renewable energy, and increasing energy efficiency in its buildings, it is also providing grants to employees that buy hybrid cars and is working to ensure that the set-top boxes that it places in people’s homes use less energy. Perhaps most significantly, BSkyB claims that these are a first step in a program designed to spread the environmental message to its viewers, currently numbered at 8.1 million, empowering them to make a difference in their daily lives. Another small step towards mainstream environmental awareness. [Written by: Sami Grover]...
Design Graduates 2006: Carbon Copies by Nadine Jarvis
by Petz Scholtus, Barcelona, Spain on 06.10.06
Beginning of June is the time of degree shows and like last year we visited Goldsmiths College’s BA Design & Eco Design show in London. We have picked out the greenest and coolest for you.
Let’s start with ‘a collection of urns for those who have died, and those who are left behind’ by Nadine Jarvis. Rest in Pieces is an urn designed to be hung in a place you want the ashes to be scattered. It’s beautifully tear-drop shaped and attached with a thin degradable thread which eventually falls apart. The thin urn breaks when it hits the ground, scattering the ashes naturally. The Bird Feeder is another urn which scatters the ashes after a certain time. These elegant urns are made from seeds at which birds pick away until it falls apart, leaving behind the perch which also contains information about the person who died. If you don’t like the idea of not being able to keep the urn, you can get Carbon Copies made. This is a lifetime supply of pencils made from the ashes of one body produced during cremation. To still have an urn after you’re done pencilling, the ash left after sharpening the pencils transform the pencil case into an urn over time. ::Nadine Jarvis...
Rice and Bamboo Power for Assam, India
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06.10.06
In some circles it’s known as ‘industrial ecology’, where the ‘waste’ process of one industrial action is successfully employed by another. In Assam, India they are planning to build a 16 megawatt power plant that will be fuelled by rice husks from food production (pics), and bamboo dust waste from paper fibre mills. India is said to the world’s second largest producer of bamboo, after China, and these power plants are expected to be amongst of the first to utilise bamboo for fuel. The bamboo power stations are expected to be operational by year end. The gasification of rice hulls to produce power is noted as being in use in several countries, such as the US, China, Italy, Thailand, and elsewhere within India. Aside from generating electricity, the rice husks can also power irrigation water pumping. But using such technologies the state of Assam hopes to be self sufficient for energy within 10 years. Currently much of their electricity is imported from surrounding states with hydro schemes but such reservoirs are now prone drying up. Via ::M&C, ::The Statesman and ::Web India
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Most Huggable
by Jacob Gordon, Nashville, TN on 06. 9.06
Hugg welcomes all our new readers and posters who continue to unearth amazing stories. Here’s but a small selection: The Watt’s weekly podcast features an interview with Bill Kemp, author of Biodiesel and Beyond… Portugal begins construction on what will be the world’s largest solar power plant… Soft drinks that come pre-mixed with carcinogen cocktails… McGraw Hill Construction launches GreenSource sustainable design magazine… How to build a fuel cell from Band-Aids and screen mesh (finally!)…...
LED Backlighting: Brighter, Energy Efficient Displays
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 9.06
LED technology is being used to make LCD displays brighter and more energy efficient. Previously, the cost of LEDs had limited their use in flat screen displays. A user would have to pay two or three times as much for an LCD TV that uses an LED backlight instead of a traditional cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) backlight, for example. But prices have come down to the point where most technologies start to break into the market, when specialists or enthusiasts are willing to pay. And once LED production rises, reaching heavier volumes, prices will come down -- and continue to come down as rivals in the industry expand factories and grab for market share.
In some devices, particularly smaller ones, LED backlights are already becoming common. Sony's PlayStation Portable (PSP) handheld gaming device, is one prime example, since gamers demand the best image quality possible. ...
Blame it on the Sand: Beijing's Fake Rain
by Alex Pasternack, New York, NY on 06. 9.06
While in Beijing last week, treehugger extraordinaire Lester Brown might have noticed that China’s capital is overrun with a lot of fake stuff. The latest Hollywood movie? Less than a dollar at the corner DVD shop. Your “official” Olympics mascot toy? Unofficial. This vegetable jiaozi I’m chewing on? Not exactly vegetable. That surprise rain shower? Not so real. The most recent rash of sandstorms to hit the Big Dumpling has left the Beijing municipal government with few options to keep the city sheltered and (relatively) clean. Enter rainmaking technology. After the worst of April’s tempests loosed 330,000 tons of sand on Beijing, sending air quality up to "hazardous" level five, the government fired back at the heavens with seven rocket shells and burned 163 pieces of “cigarette-like sticks” containing silver iodide from points around the city. State news agencies reported “the heaviest rainfall in Beijing this spring,” helping to clear the air and give the city a good wash.
While many countries have seeded clouds since the 1950s, China’s recently become the self-proclaimed world leader in counterfeit rain, which, at a cost of $266 million over a decade it has used to stem drought, fight forest fires and now relieve the capital of its pollution. What all the cloud-seeding rockets cannot help of course is the real problem: poor land and water management in the north, where excessive farming and grazing, bad irrigation, and deforestation continue to loosen top soil, expose sand, and expand the Gobi desert. ...
Roger Ebert Says: Go See An Inconvenient Truth
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 9.06
There's been no shortage of coverage of An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore's documentary about the perils of climate change, either here at TreeHugger or in the mainstream press. We've covered the premiere at Cannes, the premiere here in the States, published our review and pointed to another; we really want people to go see it, and we're not the only ones. Roger Ebert, movie critic extraordinaire, had some pretty interesting things to say about the film. If you don't believe us when we say it's worth your time to go, believe him: "When I said I was going to a press screening of 'An Inconvenient Truth,' a friend said, 'Al Gore talking about the environment! Bor...ing!' This is not a boring film. The director, Davis Guggenheim, uses words, images and Gore's concise litany of facts to build a film that is fascinating and relentless. In 39 years, I have never written these words in a movie review, but here they are: You owe it to yourself to see this film. If you do not, and you have grandchildren, you should explain to them why you decided not to." It's almost the weekend. Find a theatre near you, invest a few hours in the future, and go. ::An Inconvenient Truth, ::Roger Ebert via ::Digg...
Green Home Environmental Store
by Erin Courtenay - Madison, WI on 06. 9.06
Some of the most common questions we get here at TreeHugger start with "How do I…" as in: "How do I know that a product is truly good for the environment?" "How do I find a hip eco-friendly gift?" or "How do I get my office to be more green?" Many of those questions can be answered by the good folks at Green Home Environmental Store. Green Home serves as on line resource for green products as well as a clearinghouse for advice and information on greening your home, business, or event. This one-stop shop takes a holistic approach to greening - going beyond product sales to actually guiding customers in their efforts to live more sustainably. Founder Lawrence Comras and his team are deeply committed to helping make greening easy and they take a friendly hands-on approach to demonstrating green alternatives to conventional processes. For example, during this year's LOHAS forum the Green Home team oversaw a near complete eco-transformation of the Fairmont Hotel - installing nontoxic cleansers, a comprehensive composting system and an extensive waste reduction program (among other eco-actions). Check out their super user-friendly web site to find everything from organic cotton sheets to LED patio lights. ...
Loomstate's Sure Shot Hoodie
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 9.06
When it comes to TreeHugger clothing, we're not sure it gets any better than Loomstate, so we're happy to add their Sure Shot Hoodie to a head-to-toe Loomstate ensemble that already includes shoes and jeans. Just like the rest of their foxy apparel, the hoodie is stitched with 100% organic cotton; they've added their signature character to it with an eagle print on the back, oversized cuffs and just enough edge to give it a leg up on your standard sweatshirt. Available in green (blue eagle) or black (red eagle), available at eLuxury.com, via ::Product Dose...
Book Review: Woody Harrelson’s “How to Go Further”
by Kara DiCamillo, Newport, Rhode Island on 06. 9.06
We really enjoyed reading “How to Go Further” as soon as we turned the first page. With its large color photos, simple steps to leading an organic life and Woody Harrelson’s anecdotes throughout, it’s hard not to think about what kind of footprint you are leaving on this earth. Told from the voice of Harrelson, the book covers a wide range of topics that Harrelson himself has learned about over the past few years, including organic food, alternative energy, yoga, and political activism. He explains how the book began with his “Simple Organic Living (SOL) Tour” in 2001 where he and his companions rode their bikes along the coastline of the West Coast (from Seattle to Santa Barbara). ...
Ecobrique – Building With Sewage
by Leonora Oppenheim, London, UK on 06. 9.06
While flicking or rather clicking through Core 77 the other day I came across the Ecobrique. It sounded interesting, but the explanation was vague at best, ‘bricks which incorporate waste treatment plant residue in the clay matrix.’ Unfortunately the company’s website is only in french, so being the curious TreeHugger that I am, and in the hope that I could explain the Ecobrique to you, the TH reader, I asked them for an English translation. And this is what I’ve understood so far : The french company vBc 3000 has patented a process of making ceramic products from sewage sludge. Partially dried sewage sludge is mixed with clay to create bricks or expanded clay aggregates, such as lightweight concrete. The bricks can be fired in traditional kilns and the clay aggregates made in the rotary furnaces that they use in cement factories. The resulting materials are lightweight and as durable as traditional building materials. ...
Book Review: Big Coal - The Dirty Secret Behind America's Energy Future
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 06. 9.06
While many writers may be capable of gathering mountains of facts on the role the coal industry plays in contemporary American life, and stringing them together into a coherent narrative, fewer likely have the ability to turn those facts into an engaging book that a reader literally can not put down. Jeff Goodell, a frequent contributor to Rolling Stone and the New York Times Magazine, has done just that in his new book Big Coal: The Dirty Secrets Behind America's Energy Future. Goodell proves that he's a meticulous researcher in this book, but the incredible stories he tells as he examines the role of coal in American growth over the past century and Chinese growth in the coming one make Big Coal a genuine page-turner -- no small feat in a non-fiction examination of an industry that many Americans probably consider a part of a bygone era. Goodell shares the experiences of miners, utility executives and global warming activists, and aptly demonstrates that coal still affects American lives in the most mundane, and the most dramatic, fashions....
Wind Power coming to Lake Ontario
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 9.06
Ontario's bucolic Prince Edward County is primarily a large island in Lake Ontario, settled by United Empire Loyalists running from the American Revolution and in a world of its own for much of the time since. Lately it has been discovered and has become trendy, with cheese factories, wineries, huge runups in real estate prices, turning into a Canadian Cape Cod. Thus we shuddered when we read about 142 turbines being installed there- will this be another Cape Wind disaster, with all the new second home types (half of them lawyers) ganging up to protest the project? Fortunately the Trillium Power Corporation has thought about this. "If you look out on the horizon, you'll barely see anything on the clearest day," said Trillium President John Kourtoff. They have also worried about fish habitats and bird flightpaths and declare it clean. We look forward to 700 megawatts of clean power soon. ::Tyler Hamilton in the Star and ::Renewable Energy Access...
An Electric Deal For Canada and Israel
by Karin Kloosterman, Tel Aviv on 06. 9.06
While Canadians waffle over where to put their crap, a new deal between Ormat Technologies and a private Canadian electric company shows that Israelis are helping Canada get their alternative energy shit together. The USD $29 million deal will translate to three power stations in Canada that will produce electricity from residual heat- the by-product of industrial processes. See story at YNetnews. ...
Barratt Boxes Go Green
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 9.06
We normally ignore or are critical of ugly suburban houses even if they are full of green goodies, thinking that sustainability should a) be well designed and b) change the way we live rather than just stick expensive bandaids on our current development and planning model. Barratt Developments, the UK's biggest tract builder, has built some Barratt Boxes with some interesting features: Rainwater harvesting. Ground source heat pumps. Wind Turbines. Sustainably harvested lumber. Photovoltaics. Too bad none of them are for sale- it is a demonstration of "how Britain’s leading housebuilder is confronting the challenge of climate change. It’s part of our contribution to a cleaner, safer, greener environment." Right. By building seven banal empty houses. ::Eco-Smart States, Pension Funds and Institutions Going after Exxon Mobil
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 9.06
It is probably a good thing that Exxon-Mobil past Prez Lee Raymond took the money and ran, because State Treasurers, pension funds and major institutional investors are coming after them. Together they own 85 million shares worth $5.6 billion and they want a meeting. Connecticut State Treasurer Denise L. Nappier, said: “ExxonMobil is making a massive bet—with shareholders' money—that the world’s addiction to oil will not abate for decades, even as its competitors are taking significant steps to prepare for a rapidly changing energy environment. As investors, we are concerned that ExxonMobil is not sufficiently preparing for ‘tomorrow’s energy’ and runs the risk of lagging significantly behind its rivals. As shareholders, we need to meet with the ExxonMobil board directly, to learn how it plans to safeguard long-term shareholder value in light of the serious challenges – and opportunities - presented by climate change.” The rest of us who drive should continue to drive right by Exxon/Mobil or Esso. ::PDF of Press Release...
What to Wear to the World Cup?
by Bonnie Alter, London on 06. 9.06
World Cup Football starts today and the air is thick with tension. England's flag is flying from every car, the pubs are covered with banners and the shops full of World Cup boxer shorts. The organisers have done a fine job of making the venues and transportation green (see Treehugger) but wearing a 100% plastic red England shirt still seems to be de rigeur. What does a green supporter wear to sprawl in front of the t.v. set for the next month? After much serious fashion sleuthing, the winner is: Philosophy Football tee-shirts. The creators are "fans of football as the peoples' game not as an extension of corporate power. Hence their outright opposition to shoddy sponsors' logos ruining classic kits, and as for bri-nylon they'll have no sartorial truck with that neither. 100% cotton, and proudly unoffical is how they like it". This is no multi-national enterprise. Whilst glued to the game, don't forget to serve FairTrade munchies. Some good organic beer such as Red Kite, brewed in Scotland, will quench your guests' endless thirst. And you can kick around a Fair Deal football, (sadly not being used as the official ball). Remember: "Everything has a reason, except possibly football." Pele
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Bicycle Film Festival 2006
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06. 9.06
Just like Arnie, the Bicycle Film Festival said it would be back, and it is, bigger than ever. Now gracing the screens of even more cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York and San Francisco. But also heading offshore to London, Milano, Sydney and Tokyo. A DVD of the festival’s flicks and features will be made available too. Last year over 17,000 pedal pushers were said to have queued up for a ticket to celebrate bicycle life, be that art, film, music or performance. For 2006 there will be an art show entitled Joy Ride, a film about five friends cycling for four months from Mongolia to Nepal, a inside look at New York’s bike culture, rare archival footage charting the 30 year history of BMX and where it’s headed today. Plus heaps more. Saddle up. The ride arrives in LA on 21 June. ::Bicycle Film Festival 2006....
Netherlands, UK & Germany Win Euro Eco-Biz Awards
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06. 9.06
In 2005 we were talking about spunky Dutch shoulder bags created from discarded Indian plastic bags, and mini wind turbines for British homes. Now a year on, Ragbags and Windsave are just two of the winners of the European Business Awards for the Environment 2006. Also garnering a place on the podium was Volkswagen, who have developed the SiCon Process to recover the elusive 20% of automobile waste known as ‘shredder residue’. This is the leftover, when the bulk of a car is sliced and diced into centimetre (half inch) sized pieces to extract the metals. Volkswagen expect they are on track to salvage 95% of automotive materials, as will be required by law from 2015. See the other winners at the ::European Business Awards for the Environment, via Earthvision....
Reader Question: Eco-Friendly Kitchen Gloves?
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 8.06
Reader Philip Miller Madeley from Arizona writes: "Do you know where I could start a search for eco friendly biodegradable restaurant kitchen gloves? Out health department requires that we wear them." We don't know, but we're sure at least on person out there in TreeHugger-land has a lead. Anybody? Please, if you have an answer to Philip's question, leave a note in the comments....
The Truth About Coconut Oil
by Mairi Beautyman, Berlin, Germany on 06. 8.06
Last night, chocolate chip cookies sparked a debate on coconut oil. Instead of butter or shortening, these cookies contained 100 percent natural Spectrum Organic Coconut Oil. "Isn't that bad for you?" I asked, after eating five. According to the master chef (my mother), coconut oil is the victim of an 80’s smear campaign against tropical oil producers, an attempt by domestic oil producers to eliminate the competition. ...
West Side Lofts: Toronto's New Hip Green Paradise
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 8.06
Here's good news for any TreeHuggers in Toronto considering some new digs: West Side Lofts are being built this year, and they'll be LEED-certified when they're up. Construction is set to begin in November on the 11-story project that will include 216 units; a second phase of the project will add another 134 lofts to the emerging neighborhood south of Queen St. W. All of the lofts will have balconies or terraces, 10-foot ceilings, exposed ductwork and exposed concrete ceilings and floors, translucent sliding-glass room partitions, six appliances, custom kitchen with halogen track lighting and cabinetry available in a range of coloured finishes, stone countertops in a selection of marbles and granites and a bathroom with contemporary vessel sink and soaker tub. Buyers can customize with finishes like cork flooring, hardwood, and stainless steel countertops. Further amenities include a yoga and pilates studio and roof garden. Hip, green and modern all together -- sounds like a TreeHugger paradise. ::West Side Lofts via ::Hugg...
Bank of America Offering Hybrid Reimbursement
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 8.06
One of the knocks on hybrid cars is that they're unaffordable, and, granted, they are more expensive than comparable conventional gasoline-burning cars. With some hybrid tax credits up in the air, employees of Bank of America Corporation are getting a bit of a break; the company has started a pilot program to reimburse eligible employees $3,000 for buying a new hybrid. 21,000 employees living within 90 miles of Boston, Charlotte, NC and Los Angeles will be eligible to start, with the possibility of the program expanding across the company pending evaluation of initial success. The program is very similar to the tax credit made available by the Internal Revenue Service, using the same "hybrid" vehicle definitions set by the IRS. Employees will be eligible for this reimbursement only once and are responsible for paying taxes on the reimbursement. All full-time and part-time employees working at least 20 hours per week in the three pilot cities are eligible. ::Bank of America via ::Green Car Congress...
Optimization Theory: Maximizing Your Use of Daylight
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 8.06
If you wake up when the sun rises and sleep when it sets, you maximum your use of daylight, and minimize the amount of artificial light you need. In addition, your body is kept in its natural circadian rhythm. There are clear patterns of brain wave activity, hormone production, cell regeneration and other biological activities linked to this daily cycle. As part of my Optimization Theory, I will be following this cycle myself, except when I'm attending an all-night party. At other times I will be using olive oil lamps to the light my house (see this previous post). The lamps have a pleasing, lambent glow to them....
Olive Oil Lamps: Petroleum-Free Lighting
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 8.06
Olive oil lamps are a pleasing way to light your home. Olive oil is a renewable, non-petroluem fuel which burns without fumes or odor. You can also burn any vegetable oil, or liquid fat or grease in these lamps. You can find them for sale at Lehman's, along with a book called "I Didn't Know that Olive Oil Would Burn!". Other vendors also sell ancient-style clay olive oil lamps.
Other non-petroleum fuel-based lighting options would be to use a Petromax lamp and burn biodiesel, or use an ethanol-based lamp....
Malta - 1 : Austria - 0 (If Greening Were An International Sporting Event)
by Erin Courtenay - Madison, WI on 06. 8.06
Although this matchup won't be taking place in the upcoming World Cup, by eco-standards, Malta scores a point. Recent news about the country's World Environment Day events, which included Environment Minister George Pullicino's participation in a water polo fundraiser for a nationwide tree-planting program, takes the lead against Austria's environmental concessions to the Paris Hilton sparkly wine publicity stunt. Helicopters are usually forbidden from the resort down Ischgl in Tyrol because of the noise and pollution, but Austrian authorities lifted the ban for the hotel heiress who didn't want to be driven to the PR event for a new sparkling wine drink in a can. Meanwhile, the Mediterranean island of Malta celebrated World Environment Day with an art exhibition on trees and the environment, an eco forum focused on economic opportunities arising from environmental protection, and a "biodiesel bucket" sale. (Though Malta apparently has a long way to go to get truly green - see 'comments' to learn more) Via: The Times of Malta and A Socialites Life...
StopGlobalWarming.org: March With Us!
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 8.06
TreeHugger needs you, dear reader! We have partnered with StopGlobalWarming.org to help them in their efforts to raise awareness about Global Warming and put pressure on politicians and corporations. But first, they must have the support of a large number of people so that they demands have weight. That's where you can help: Go to our partner page and join the virtual march! It takes about 10 seconds to fill the super-short form, then you get a confirmation email and that's it. So far 384,762 people have joined the march. Our objective is to have 200 people sign up from the TreeHugger-StopGlobalWarming.org page as fast as possible. Once that's done, we'll set new objectives. Please help us, and help this great cause. Related ::The 4 Stages of Global Warming Denial...
TH Blog Love – Our Favourite Greens Of The Week
by Leonora Oppenheim, London, UK on 06. 8.06
Dee's 'Dotes: Carnival Of The Green #30 by Deanna Taylor
This week’s carnival includes: Natural skin and haircare products, biscuit packaging, a Pet Waste Digester, ethical business and nasal congestion – variety is the spice of life they say!
DH Love Life: Emergency Update on the South Central Farm by Daryl Hannah. Daryl, John Quigley, Julia Butterfly-Hill and Joan Baez along with hundreds of other people are still protesting at South Central in order to save it from the bulldozers. Today is day 18!
FiftyRx3: J'aime Andrea Crews by Jill Danyelle
‘I was so pleased to find Andrea Crews this weekend. One part Swap-o-rama, one part Imitation of Christ, I have found my French love.’ Very cool images Jill! ...
Instant Survey: Do You Comment?
by Erin Courtenay - Madison, WI on 06. 8.06
Can Green Companies Keep Their Soul When Sold?
by Bonnie Alter, London on 06. 8.06
In the past year several iconic green companies have been bought out by large multi-nationals, keen to take advantage of the booming ethical market. Body Shop, Green & Black Chocolates, Rachel’s Organic and Tom’s of Maine toothpaste spring to mind immediately. The question is whether these companies can keep their ethical principles after they are absorbed into corporations not built on the same set of values. There was an uproar when the Body Shop was sold to L’Oreal. The company claims that sales of its products have not been affected but others feel that its ethical reputation has been besmirched. Ethical Consumer magazine rates companies and their products on their ethical credentials. They have dropped Body Shop’s rating from 11 (out of 20) to 2.5 since the sell-out. Tom’s of Maine, recently taken over by Colgate-Palmolive, has fallen from 16 to just 5 because of Colgate-Palmolive’s poor reputation. Green & Black organic chocolates are especially dear to many Treehugger's hearts. Taken over by Cadbury’s, it is run as a separate operation and according to its market director “it was a bit of an anticlimax because absolutely nothing happened”. However Ethical Consumer magazine has reduced its score from 16 to 6. ...
Celebrate World Ocean Day 2006
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 06. 8.06
June 8th was designated World Ocean Day at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. While the UN doesn't recognize the celebration officially, organizations and cities around the world have a whole range of activities planned to honor the value of the Earth's oceans, and to promote efforts to conserve them as a vital natural resource. If you're looking for a event in your area, or simply want to take time to learn more about the contributions oceans make to our well-being, a wide range of resources are available today and year-round:...
The Organic Garden as Classroom
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 06. 8.06
We're very excited about the fact that so many colleges and universities are implementing sustainability programs on campus, but we also know that if we want children to grow into full-blown Treehuggers, we have to start early. So, we're encouraged by a new pilot program in Stanford University's Teacher Education Program that's taking elementary-aged students out into local organic gardens owned by restaurateur Jesse Cool for a full day of activities that include digging in the garden, harvesting food, and cooking it for lunch. The pilot is a test run of a curriculum developed by two students in the teacher education program, and everyone involved hopes it not only exposes kids to the whole process of food production, but also creates a legion of new teachers committed to getting their students out of the classroom and into the compost pile:...
Wal-Mart, GE, and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 06. 8.06
Wal-Mart has submittted an 11-page position statement to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). You read that correctly. Wal-Mart formally commented on a regional governmental project designed to find acceptable means of setting and achieving greenhouse gas emission reduction limits over a large portion of the US. From the RGGI website: “The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI or "ReGGIe") is a cooperative effort by 9 Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states to discuss the design of a regional cap-and-trade program initially covering carbon dioxide emissions from power plants in the region. In the future, RGGI may be extended to include other sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and greenhouse gases other than CO2”. The list of organizations sending comments to the RGGI is lengthy, but does not include USEPA or USDOE. As the US Federal government does not yet “do” climate, it falls upon consortia of states and local government, industries, and NGO’s to do the heavy planning....
Victory With Pole Beans
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 06. 8.06
A few weeks back we wrote about a resurgence of Victory Gardens . The herb Rosemary was the first plant discussed, because anybody can grow it, even in a container. Then we showed how a bamboo cucumber trellis is made . Now comes the ultimate climber: the pole bean. Line up the bamboo or wooden poles in a row, fat ends into the ground; “weave” in a few horizontals and plant the pole bean seeds at the base of each upright. A week later they start climbing. Uultimately, the bean vines may drape off the top, depending on variety. Make sure to pick beans early, before they lighten in color, turning stringy. Flavor and texture is always best before the bean seeds become fully developed. At the end of the season, let a few beans on the vines to turn yellow and dry up for next year’s planting.
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Not All Ethanol is Created Equal
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 8.06
In a recent post regarding the production of ethanol, a commenter requested "please stop writing about ethanol production as if it is and will always be based upon the fuel and foodstock intensive processing approach"- we don't- we ooohed about Iogen's cellulosic ethanol here and here, and ahhhed over switchgrass here. Unfortunately most of what we read still indicates that a lot of ethanol is being produced using coal and natural gas as fuel, and corn grown with synthetic fossil-fuel based fertilizers. There is also more to life than just having fuel for our tanks and more to the environment than just greenhouse gases. Alternet recently covered the subject, discussing an Archer Midland Daniels plant's effect on the environment: "A single ADM corn processing plant in Clinton, Iowa generated nearly 20,000 tons of pollutants including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds in 2004, according to federal records. The EPA considers an ethanol plant as a "major source" of pollution if it produces more than 100 tons of any one pollutant per year, although it has recently proposed increasing that cap to 250 tons." The report goes on to suggest, like our commenter, that there is a slight reduction in greenhouse gas generation from ethanol, but that the other environmental effects of intense corn farming outweigh the gain. What is the true cost to the taxpayer, the air and the rest of the environment? It is not just about making fuel. ::Alternet...
Bamboo Architectural Design Competition
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 8.06
Goodness knows we love good design, bamboo and architectural competitions, so try your luck at the Bamboo Living International Bamboo Building Design Competition (hereinafter known as the BLIBBDC) "created to develop new award winning designs for bamboo buildings, raise awareness of the use of certified structural bamboo for building code approved structures, and introduce architects, designers and builders to working with bamboo as a structural material." Open to architects, builders, designers, students anywhere in the world. Registration deadline is December 31, 2006. Ugly website but interesting jury, including TreeHugger faves like Jennifer Siegel. Read more at ::BLIBBDC via ::architectnophilia...
Antipodeans Hot Under the Collar on Climate Crisis #1
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06. 8.06
It may be winter down in the Antipodes, but things are sure warming up. Australia, for one, is set to have a governmental inquiry into whether the country should go down the nuclear power route. A ‘robust debate’ they like to call it. The ‘independent’ chairperson heading the review is a(n impartial) nuclear physicist, who resigned as a board member from our key nuclear research facility to take up the post. At least we should take some solace that the government says it recognises climate crisis is a real issue and something needs to be done. Of course that doesn’t include signing up to Kyoto, no siree. Nor does it mean increasing the Mandatory Renewable Energy Targets (MRET). Inertia that is worrying proponents of the fledgling wind, and once robust solar industry. The MRET is due to remain at a mere 2% of energy being sourced from renewables by 2010. And the Victorian State government can’t understand what all the fuss is about. They carried out their own nuclear review recently, and concluded that nuclear would be twice the price of coal-based energy, aside from the issue of waste disposal. But the media noise over nuclear and global warming has seen snippets of ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ screen on national TV (and to give equal time, even those scary ‘Carbon Dioxide - we call it Life’ adverts as well!) And just today our old pals with the Hot Rock idea were back in the news, saying, “Hey, wattabout us, we can do energy without toxic waste or security probs.” May the robustness continue....
Antipodeans Hot Under the Collar on Climate Crisis #2
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06. 8.06
Yet over the Tasman Sea, in officially nuclear-free New Zealand, one group is still suggesting that global warming is a figment of fervent imaginations. The New Zealand Climate Science Coalition reckons the Kiwi government is misleading schoolkids about the causes of climate change. In particular they claim it’s ‘unbalanced’ to suggest that global warming might be the result of human activity. One of the key spokespersons for the Coaltion is Dr Vincent Gray, who is variously described as a “well known, outspoken contrarian”, a “chemist who's worked in the coal and petroleum industries”, having held positions “... studying petroleum, plastics, coal, ....” and “a contributing writer” to the Tech Central Science Foundation, which has received $95,000 USD in funding from Exxon-Mobil. I suppose such a background might give the Coalition an impartial and 'balanced' point of view. :-) Though may I humbly suggest (bereft, as I am, of any scientific qualifications) that even in the unlikely event of global warming ever being proven as a load of hooey, this search for a culprit is a massive red herring. ...
Most Huggable
by Jacob Gordon, Nashville, TN on 06. 7.06
More goodies from the frontlines of the modern sustainability movement at Hugg: A concept nightclub for Rotterdam that generates energy from dancing feet, and toilets flush with rainwater… ZipCar, the car-sharing company, secures $20 million financing from GE… Microsoft vs. Google: Who's greener? (Google’s tent office prototype in pic above)… Tomberlin’s new street legal, low-speed electric vehicle line… Grist’s reports on the environmental impacts of unauthorized border crossing, and Mexico’s proposal to build a 300 miles “green wall” to that could help discourage it… Stay tuned to Hugg for planting, harvesting, and voting on the freshest green....
U.S. Allowing Illegal Mahogany Imports, Lawsuit Says
by Mairi Beautyman, Berlin, Germany on 06. 7.06
Mahogany—fast becoming an endangered species—is just one of those materials TreeHugger considers suspect. Chances are it is just not sustainable—or legal. A new lawsuit filed in New York's U.S. Court of International Trade against the Department of Homeland Security and two other federal agencies suggests illegal imports from Peru continue to infiltrate the U.S. market. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)—a U.S.-based conservation organization—and indigenous groups state nearly all of Peru's mahogany exports are logged illegally. From that timber, more than 80 percent ends up in the United States. ...
Pollution in China Costs 10% of GDP
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 7.06
The Shanghai Daily, via ChinaDaily, reports that the deputy chief of the State Environmental Protection Agency, Zhu Guangyao, estimates that environmental damage and pollution are costing the government roughly 10% of China's gross domestic product each year (around US$200 billion right now) and that the country's worsening environmental picture "allows for no optimism". China probably doesn't listen to our advice, but just in case it did: You have to realize that opposing "economic development" to "environmental protection" is not necessary and will inevitably lead to a worsening situation. You are in a position to get it right the first time (leapfrog directly to sustainable technologies), unlike the Western world, and develop with the carrying capacity of the ecosystems that keep us alive in mind. Of course, this is not only China: Every country must do that, especially the rich ones that have the resources and technology to move fast in that direction if they wanted to. It's not a matter of choice, they - and we - can't go in two opposite directions at once and hope that we'll be able to superficially clean up the symptoms of deeper problems later. That kind of thinking has proved ineffective so far and things are just getting worse now that population increase, the industrialization of more regions of the world and technological development are increasing our impact on nature to unprecedented levels; we need to replace broken systems instead of just applying duct tape. Albert Einstein said: "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." China, and everybody else, needs to understand that. ::ChinaDaily...
Preserve Jr Endangered Species Toothbrush
by Erin Courtenay - Madison, WI on 06. 7.06
Parents can get a triple bang for their eco-buck with the latest project from the good people at Recycline, makers of 100% recycled content Preserve toothbrushes, razors and tableware. They've teamed up with the National Wildlife Federation to create the Preserve Jr Endangered Species Toothbrush, an eco-friendly product for children that encourages teachable moments not only about health and brushing, but also about conservation, recycling and wildlife. A portion of the sale from each toothbrush is donated to the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) to help protect endangered species. To help educate kids about the importance of wildlife conservation, Recycline and NWF are sponsoring "Bring an Endangered Species into the Spotlight", a contest that gives kids a chance to select the next endangered species to be featured on the next series of toothbrushes. (And don't forget the golden rule of eco-brushing - shut the water off while you brush!)....
Block Island: Nature's Treasure
by Kara DiCamillo, Newport, Rhode Island on 06. 7.06
It is the working together of man and nature that has led The Nature Conservancy to label Block Island one of the "Last Great Places." It is truly one of nature’s treasures. Located 12 miles off the Rhode Island coast (we can give them a wave from here in Newport) Block Island has remained one of the most pristine islands. Unlike Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, getting dressed up means changing from your bathing suit to your shorts. ...
Throwplace.com: Take What You Need, Throw What You Don't
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 7.06
Though nobody really likes to admit it, we all have extra stuff. Junk, garbage, paper weights, dust collectors; call it what you will, we've all got it, and, even though we aren't using it, we still don't want to just pitch it. Enter Throwplace.com, a Freecycle-type network that can help everyone have alternately less stuff (if you've got it to give) and more stuff (if you need it for free). You may think it's worthless, but someone may want it, and if you need just about anything, go look for it. Take from/give to US charities, international charities, businesses and individuals. Everything's free, and it beats chucking it in the nearest landfill (especially if it's old electronics with nasty stuff hiding inside). So clean out your basement (or fill it up), keep stuff out of landfills, and help people (and yourself) with stuff that deserves a home. ::Throwplace.com via ::Gizmodo ...
Alonovo.com Launches Fair Trade and Organic Feature
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 7.06
Alonovo.com, the online marketplace that helps you buy things that match your social values, has added a new feature supporting shopping by "Fair Trade" and "organic" product labels. We're glad to see that they're growing; when we first covered them, they were young and vivacious but small and full of potential, and it appears that they've begun to fulfill that potential. Said George Polisner, CEO of alonovo.com, "We are accelerating our effort toward catalyzing a social values-led free market economy. The promise of such a shift will benefit society in America and beyond as consumers develop affinity for businesses such as Seventh Generation, Green Mountain Coffee, Interface, HP and other companies that have taken a courageous leadership role in the new sustainable economy." Alonovo.com shares a minimum of 20% of its shopping revenue with over 75 organizations that are working to protect our environment, addressing socio-economic justice, and generally improving the quality of life for everyone. Each alonovo.com registered member selects their beneficiary organization which then benefits from that individual's shopping activity. This results in recurring funding for many great local, national and global causes. Keep it up! ::alonovo.com via ::CSRwire...
Eco-Tip: Choosing Green Clothing
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06. 7.06
A while ago we had a comment suggesting £90 ($170 USD) was a significant hit to the wallet/purse for a pair of jeans. Even if they were fair-traded, and crafted from organic cotton. The perceived financial cost of going green has been a reoccurring concern we’ve copped since TreeHugger began. Our response has always been: we cover the modern+green lifestyle, regardless of socio-economic background. We’ve done stories on dumpster diving through to high-end designer furniture; from certified organic restaurants through take-away pizza onto free food gleaning. From mega-thousand dollar bicycles to those donated to African communities. So if we have been remiss in the clothing department our apologies. Let’s redress that now, with a discussion on how to choose green apparel (without taking out a mortgage)....
Hemp Company Is One of Canada’s Fastest Growing
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06. 7.06
A few months ago Justin observed that Manitoba Harvest was booming. Profit publications have just confirmed that, announcing that the hemp foods company was the 58th fastest growing Canadian company in the past 5 years (based on revenue growth). Their fiscal growth was a staggering 1,057% from 2000-2005. Not bad given that it based on products which are grown free of pesticides and herbicides. And a portion of their line is also certified organic to boot, such as the hemp seed oil seen here, which is claimed to be “nature’s richest source of the Essential Fatty Acids (76%).” In this case it is made from 100% Certified organic, raw cold pressed hemp seed oil, and contains no additives or preservatives. 25 farmers, shareholders in the company grow their hemp on 5,000 acres of Canadian soil. ::Manitoba Harvest, via NPI....
Bear on the Lam in Bavaria
by Mairi Beautyman, Berlin, Germany on 06. 7.06
The good news: Germany has seen its first brown bear in 170 years. The bad news: He’s on a homicidal rampage in Bavaria, and is now wanted dead or alive. A trail of chickens, prize sheep, and honey leads to the elusive “JJ1,” who reportedly enjoys killing. Several of his victims were left uneaten. Now a Finnish team has taken on the task of hunting him down—if they get to him first, JJ1 could potentially live a long bear life in a local wildlife park (sturdy fencing will end this honey and lamp chop diet). The team will be armed with anaesthetic darts fired from a gun or a blowpipe—but won't arrive on the scene for at least a week. Cross your fingers for JJ1…...
In Israel, a Little Oil Goes a Long Way
by Karin Kloosterman, Tel Aviv on 06. 7.06
The Irish call it "the troubles"; over in Israel, we euphemistically call political problems "the situation". As sad and complicated as the situation may be for every human being involved, a few individuals have risen above the crowd, like oil on water, and banded together to make business over a much-loved Middle Eastern commodity: olive oil. And converts to organic farming are emerging from unlikely places. Thanks to the help of the environmental group Green Action and the braveness of some entrepreneurial Palestinian farmers, organic and fair trade olive oil is now available in Israeli shops. See full story. ...
Berkeley's Greek Theatre Going Carbon Neutral
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 06. 7.06
Some of us here are big enough geeks to have read the headline for this announcement and thought, "Oh, they're offsetting productions of Medea... how cool!" Not quite, but UC-Berkeley's Greek Theatre is the home to a great summer concert series, and when musical acts ranging from Radiohead to Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris to Death Cab for Cutie take the stage this summer at the Greek, they'll be playing at the first major music venue to commit to offsetting the carbon emissions of the whole concert season. Clif Bar, Inc. has partnered with Another Planet Entertainment to purchase carbon credits and to implement a whole range of environmentally-conscious practices at the outdoor amphitheatre:...
live|work: You Are Welcome To Your SUV
by Tamara Giltsoff, United Kingdom on 06. 7.06
Transforming transport services to improve the access to health and care for the elderly in isolated rural communities in the North of England proves to be an unexpected source of inspiration for those with an alternative vision of mobility. ...
The Cavalry Rides
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 06. 7.06
In April of 2005 Uncle TreeHugger wrote here that “When the cavalry rides, and it will eventually, there's going to be thundering hooves, just like the first Earth Day". As of May of 2006, the hook and bullet crowd is saddled up. Celebrate the occasion. City cousin visits to the country are going to be a bit more peaceful. Just check out the guest editorial in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel titled “Sportsmen sound global warming warning.” The big metrics quote: “…according to a first-ever survey of sportsmen on their attitudes about global warming, three-quarters of hunters and anglers nationwide said they've witnessed at least one of these telltale signs. The majority believes the changes are related to global warming”....
Major Toronto Export: Crap
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 7.06
Ontario, Canada is big, really big- a million square kilometres, over twice the size of Texas. Not too many people in it, either. Surprisingly, there is nowhere in this big place to put our garbage, so we export it to Michigan. Toronto is also big, and its inhabitants go to the bathroom regularly. This crap is treated and reduced to sludge, which also has no home in Canada but our American neighbours have kindly accepted it, so we truck it to Michigan as well. Now the Michiganers are getting uppity and say they don't want our shit, and as of August 1st we are all going to have to hold it in as there appears to not be a dump, field or hole in the ground in Ontario in which to put it.
It is worth thinking about banning flush toilets and making composting toilets mandatory. We rarely think about where this stuff goes, other than....away. Until we have to deal with the fact that the stuff does not actually disappear when we flush the toilet we will continue to have a bizarre system where we truck sludge across borders, dump it on farmers fields and just pour it into rivers. The whole system stinks. ::Yahoo News...
Death Be Not Proud
by Bonnie Alter, London on 06. 7.06
Amidst the hustle of daily life, the death of a loved one makes friends and relations stop and reconsider. The question of how to honour and respect the individuality and beliefs that were central to their life can get lost with the shock. A green and eco-friendly funeral company, Green Endings, will organise highly personalised funeral ceremonies in parks, woodlands, or your own back garden. Coffins are made of natural materials such as bamboo, local woven willow, or cardboard, with rope handles. The most eco-friendly one is made of recycled newspapers. The director, Roslyn Cassidy, sensed an unmet need: "death has been taken out of our hands, not only do the majority of deaths occur hidden in hospital, but funeral directors have accepted responsibility for the whole funeral." Woodland burials are growing in popularity. Not only are they cheaper than traditional funerals, but they are more environmentally friendly. (The formaldehyde in embalming fluid can contaminate watercourses, coffin handles are often plastic and smoke from crematoriums compounds the greenhouse effect). Woodland burials use biodegradable coffins, and a tree is planted on or near the grave. Some sites are meadows where bulbs or wildflowers are planted as a marker. "In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer" Albert Camus....
Book Review: The Way We Eat- Why Our Food Choices Matter
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 7.06
We loved The Omnivore’s Dilemma; It was a fast moving, engaging read that opened our eyes. We just finished Peter Singer and Jim Mason's The Way We Eat- and when it comes to writing, Peter Singer is no Michael Pollan. However, when it comes to grabbing you by the lapels, shaking you until you realize the seriousness of the issue and the scale of the problem, Michael Pollan is no Peter Singer, your eyes are not just opened, they are bug-eyed and popping right out of your skull. ...
South Africa To Phase Out Incandescent Bulbs
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 6.06
South Africa has plans to phase out certain types of incandescent bulbs and replace them with more efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. Malebo Mahape, a spokeperson for the Minerals and Energy Department, said the project would first be looking to phase out more readily replaceable bulbs like the 60 watt and 100 watt incandescent bulbs currently widely used in South Africa. “It will not be possible to phase out all kinds of incandescent or halogen type bulbs until readily available alternative fluorescent ones are on the market,” Mahape said. She said the department of trade and industry had been approached to start drafting regulations to prohibit the import of certain classes of bulbs. ...
The Tyee Interviews John "Dr. Sustainability" Robinson
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 6.06
John Robinson is a professor at the Institute of Resources, Environment and Sustainability at the University of British Columbia. He's involved with the Center for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS), a "bleeding-edge lab dedicated to sustainability research and, by extension, the challenge of global warming" that will be completed in Vancouver in 2008. The building itself deserves its own article and will be "one of the greenest structures on Earth", eventually producing surpluses of energy and being a research test bed for sustainable building technologies and services. Back to John Robinson, you can read The Tyee's interview here....
New Prius to Get Turbo Boost?
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 6.06
There's all kinds of fun things to do with a Toyota Prius, and we've covered a lot of them: give it a solar boost, hack it to go into "stealth mode," and even plug it in for greater efficiency. Now, according to the UK’s AutoExpress, the next model could have a turbocharger built in to the 1.8 liter engine, which, along with more efficient lithium ion batteries, would give the Prius a little more pop when you step on the gas. Rumors also persist that the next generation will get double the gas mileage of the current model, so the waiting game is on, but we're content to twiddle our thumbs until it hits the road. ::AutoExpress via ::Jalopnik...
Ricoh's Plant-Based Plastic Printers
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 6.06
Following the lead of NEC's cellphone, Sony's Walkman and HP's printer, Ricoh has entered the wonderful world of bioplastics. The Japanese company has become the first manufacturer to use plant-based plastics as part of a multifunctional printer. They're presently testing two black and white and one color printer with over 50 percent plant-based plastic in Japan. According to Tadakatsu Harada, of Ricoh's Research and Development Group, we may be on the verge of plastic revolution: "Just three years ago plastics made from plants were considered unsuitable for copiers due to inadequate heat resistance, poor impact resistance and limited formability. We have worked together with a materials manufacturer to develop a plastic that works. Our effort is the first step in the right direction." ::Australian IT via ::Gizmodo...
Pallet-House: Modular Refugee Housing
by Leonora Oppenheim, London, UK on 06. 6.06
Emergency shelters should always be an important and prescient subject for designers. However the need for efficient shelters to help house displaced people seems more urgent than ever after the series of natural disasters over the last year and very recently again in Java. The work being taken on by groups such as Architecture For Humanity and Habitat For Humanity is on an unimaginable scale and they need all the help they can get. Various design solutions have been put forward time and again over the years, some with more success than others. Today we learnt of a proposal by I-Beam Design called The Pallet-House, which uses wooden shipping pallet as a modular construction material....
New Yerba Mate Energy Drinks by Guayaki
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 6.06
Guayaki, a company featured previously, is now launching their Organic Yerba Mate Energy Drinks nationwide. The drinks are made with organic rainforest-grown yerba mate and 100% organic cane juice. Mate is something of an acquired taste — it has an earthy flavor and a woodsy aroma. The drinks will come in three varieties: EmpowerMint, Raspberry Revolution, and Traditional.
Yerba Mate (Ilex paraguariensis) is a shrub from the holly family, native to South America, whose leaves are dried and made into a tea. It is very popular in South American, where it is consumed in a similar way to coffee or black tea. Yerba Mate is known for its effects of sustained energy, mood elevation, mental clarity and appetite control. The plant contains 196 active compounds, including 24 vitamins and minerals and 15 amino acids. It is also contains a category of phytochemicals called saponins that have been found to stimulate the immune system....
Sage Baby Connects Parents to Healthy Products
by Kara DiCamillo, Newport, Rhode Island on 06. 6.06
With so many organic and all-natural products out there today, it’s sometimes hard to decide what to purchase, especially when it comes to your children. Sage Baby is a new online resource dedicated to helping new and expectant parents make the right organic and healthy choices for a green lifestyle. From the nursery to toddler, Sage Baby wants to share great products and advice by teaching parents one step at a time, one choice at a time, that they can make sound, eco-conscious choices that are good for their families. Sage Baby’s website is very organized and easy to click through, making online shopping a breeze. Sage Baby's wide range of product categories includes stylish organic clothing, bedding, sheets and mattresses and natural skincare products that avoid harmful chemicals and preservatives. We really like the “Healthy Room” section, where they even have all-natural cleaning products, air purifiers (shown here) and furniture made especially for the little one. See Bonnie's post from earlier today for more ideas on healthy baby products. ::Sage Baby...
Instant Survey: Are You Crafty?
by Erin Courtenay - Madison, WI on 06. 6.06
The Facts About Global Warming Denial
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 6.06
1. Global Warming doesn't exist. It's not happening.
We've all heard people claim as fact, without citing sources (or at least not credible ones), that "actually, the Earth is cooling" and such things.
Facts: Every year since 1917 has been warmer than 1917. Here's a report by NASA with this choice cut about record-breaking 2005: "Record warmth in 2005 is notable, because global temperature has not received any boost from a tropical El Niño this year."...
US Colleges' New Green Activists
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 06. 6.06
For many, the idea of a college environmental activist probably still conjures up images from the late 60s and early 70s involving long hair, bell bottoms and peace signs. Well, the times, they are a changin'... ENN profiles what it calls "the new face of the environmental movement" on college campuses, and while some of these students certainly hold sit-ins, others are busier turning either wrenches or compost:...
IKEA UK Will Charge For Plastic Bags
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 06. 6.06
We've just read that "IKEA is to become the UK's first major retailer to regularly charge customers for plastic bags,..." Add this news to the overall retail store green trend list: selling organic food and clothing, fashionable green interior designs, solar panels on roofs, buying carbon credits, installing wind mills in parking lots, and, now charging for disposable plastic bags. According to reports, "The Swedish firm will charge shoppers 5p for every bag with immediate effect, rising to 10p in September". The plan is to simultaneously switch to biodegradable bags and reduce the price of its iconic reusable “Big Blue Bag” (pictured here) to 25p. The anticipated result will be to cut total disposable bag use by 20 million.
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Strawjet Machine Gleans Waste and turns it into Building Materials
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 6.06
The Bible instructs that gleanings should be left in the field for the poor; " neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger" (Leviticus 23:22) David Ward has a better idea that may help the poor even more. He just won $ 25,000 from the History Channel for inventing the "Modern Marvel of the Year" and we think it fabulous that such a low-key but possibly very important idea won the prize. "StrawJet harvests straw in the field before it has been crushed or damaged, orients the stems so they are all parallel, adds a clay based binding material, compresses the bundle and binds it into a continuous length of 2 inch cable using a polyester yarn. Once the clay has dried, the cable becomes a rigid cylinder." Result: a sort of prefab straw bale building material. Put a few together with a bit more cement and you get beams and panels.
UPDATE: Oops! TreeHugger is so fast on breaking news that we did not realize that Warren wrote about this earlier and better. The breaking news here is that It won! ...
Is your Boiler Room Powered by Ethanol?
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 6.06
We keep writing about how corn ethanol is a subsidy business, not an energy business, and that it takes more fuel to grow the corn and make the fertilizer and move it to the plant than you get out of it in useable fuel. We learn also from the Wall Street Journal that because of its chemical composition, it cannot be transported in the existing pipline network so it will have to be trucked. That isn't stopping a gaggle of IPO's from companies like VeraSun Energy, Hawkeye Holdings and Aventine Renewable Energy Holdings. Robert Wilder of the Wilderhill Clean Energy Index says "The fast growth of the ethanol industries over the next few years is going to face many obstacles, including the difficulty in transporting it, ramping up corn production, and the difficulty in splash-blending ethanol as a product for the consumer." Guard your wallet and look for real solutions, not panaceas. And watch ::Boiler Room. via ::Wall Street Journal and ::Paul Kedrosky Read also R-Squared....
Let's Talk Baby Talk
by Bonnie Alter, London on 06. 6.06
Responsible new parents are looking for ways to reduce the impact of disposable diapers. They want green clothes that are made of organic cotton and are free of chemicals but are still adorable. In response some small companies have started to create FairTrade clothing. Green Baby is an English company, set up by a Canadian who couldn’t find washable diapers when she moved to England. She soon expanded from selling a full range of diapers, and baby wipes (with aloe vera), to designing bright and colourful organic cotton clothing for babies to toddlers. It is produced by FairTrade partners—a community project for poor women in South India which runs a school for deaf girls and an organic clothing factory to provide jobs. Greenfibres is another small company based in Devon, which is community based and guided by ethical principles. They use local labour, no chemicals, minimal packaging and support local textile farms to minimise air miles. Little babies need good organic food too. Plum Baby is the first babyfood to carry the Fairtrade Mark, contains no salt or preservatives,is full of superfoods, like blueberries and sold in recycleable pots. :: via newconsumer...
WeAreWhatWeDo Change the World for a Fiver
by Petz Scholtus, Barcelona, Spain on 06. 6.06
• Learn basic First Aid
• Spend time with someone from a different generation
• Put your gum in the bin
• Grow something with a child
• Have a bath with someone you love
• Decline plastic bags whenever you can
• Learn to be friendly in another language,...
50 actions like these to change the world and make you feel good and all just for £5 in We Are What We Do's fantastic book Change the World for a Fiver. We Are What We Do is a Community Links project and they believe in acting local and thinking global. They are not a charity but 'a new kind of movement - a movement with attitude.' Their mission is not to raise money but to shift attitudes and day-to-day behaviour. And that's exactly what this book does to you, it charms you and makes you feel good by making you do good. Plant a tree! Learn one good joke! Shop locally! Don't overfill your kettle! Buy the book! Tell them your ideas! ::We Are What We Do via ::Camí del Canvi...
Solar-Powered Car Vents - A Lot of Hot Air?
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 06. 6.06
I’m not a big fan of cars, but years ago went to live in a small, rural village with limited transport options, so ended up with a compact hatch. Excellent fuel economy, but lacking niceties like air conditioning. And it’s not uncommon in the height of an Australian summer for the temps to hover around 40oC (104oF). A closed car interior left sitting in the sun in these conditions can easily turn into a furnace. (I’ve had to wear gloves, on occasion, just to hold the steering wheel!) In a new car this oven effect can increase the levels of nasty VOCs being emitting from the phthalates in the ever abundant plastic trim and fittings. Aeons ago I spied little vents, like those pictured above, and wondered if they might be a partial solution to the dilemma. You perch them atop a door window, face the solar panel outwards and wind the window up tight. The small photovoltaic cell powers a fan, which is said to expel the hot glasshouse-type air from within the car, drawing in cooler air. But I’m yet to try one. Has any TreeHugger used these gadgets? Do they work? Would be a great way for cars to reduce air conditioning use, thus increasing fuel economy, if they did. ::Digital Kitchen, via CNET....
United Nations: World Environment Day 2006
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 5.06
Today, June 5th 2006, is the UN's "World Environment Day". This year they chose to highlight something we don't hear about often enough: Natural deserts and drylands also need to be protected. These areas that most people consider to be almost "dead" are in fact vital ecosystems. Of course, we must fight the desertification of non-dryland areas, but we must also help preserve natural deserts. "In a landmark report issued today, UNEP notes the threats and opportunities in the world’s 12 desert regions ranging from the Sahara in North Africa, the planet’s largest, to the Atacama in Chile in South America to the Sonora in the United States to the Kizil Kum in Afghanistan to the Gobi in China and the Great Victoria desert in Australia. 'The world’s deserts are facing dramatic changes as a result of global climate change, high water demands, tourism, and salt contamination of irrigated soils,” the Agency said in a statement summarizing the report'". ::World Environment Day 2006 official website, ::UN marks World Environment Day with focus on preventing desertification, ::Global Deserts Outlook summary, ::Global Desert Outlook full report...
Most Huggable
by Jacob Gordon, Nashville, TN on 06. 5.06
More of the best reader-generated green media from Hugg.com How to turn a defunct computer monitor into a trash can… Winners of the Portable Classroom Design Challenge… Satellite evidence of pollution migrating across borders in Asia… BMW and Total team up to bring hydrogen ICE cars to Europe… Video of Samsung’s low-consumption, high-rez LCD flat panel monitors illuminated by LEDs…...
2 Interviews With Al Gore & Box Office News
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 5.06
Gristmill points us to two Al Gore interviews where he talks a lot about his new movie An Inconvenient Truth and global warming. The first is a TV interview by George Stephanopoulos at ABC (you have to watch an ad before the interview starts), and the second is a radio interview on NPR's Fresh Air. In related news, An Inconvenient Truth was the #9 movie in the US despite being in only 77 theaters, grossing $17,615 per theater, the highest average in the top 100. And while we talk a lot about the movie, lets not forget the book. See also ::An Inconvenient Truth - Off to a Good Start...
TreeHugger Picks: Biodiesel-Buying Celebs
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 5.06
TreeHugger likes biodiesel a lot. We're glad to see that it's been getting some increased press lately, but we can't promote it all by ourselves, so we're always happy when celebrities and other high-profile people put their time, passion and names behind it. Here are our picks for biodiesel-boosting celebrities:
1) Whether she's driving her 1983 El Camino or just licking the gas cap, Daryl Hannah digs biodiesel in a big way.
2) Willie Nelson likes the stuff so much, he created his own brand of Made-in-the-USA biodiesel.
3) What's better than Daryl Hannah or Willie Nelson? How about Daryl Hannah and Willie Nelson together, as they were at the 2006 National Biodiesel Conference.
4) Mandy Moore has also jumped on the bandwagon, and even had a straight-veggie-oil conversion done to her ride.
5) Not to be outdone, Jack Johnson powered all his tour buses and trucks with biodiesel.
6) Woody Harrelson went on The Late Show with David Letterman and touted his addiction to the alternative to oil....
TreeHuggerTV - Plug-In Hybrids
by Leonora Oppenheim, London, UK on 06. 5.06
BioTown USA: Going Off the Grid
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 5.06
The New York Times brings us the story of Reynolds, Indiana, a corn, soybean and hog farming town smack dab in the middle of America's breadbasket. The town, whose population has dwindled to just 533 residents, wants to secede from America's energy grid and power itself entirely with renewable sources, like its corn and pigs. The State of Indiana first brought the idea to Reynolds last year, calling it BioTown, in an experiment Gov. Mitch Daniels acknowledged could be viewed as a bit of "a stunt." But in the ensuing months, as the price of gasoline soared, Reynolds adopted the notion as its own, and residents began speaking passionately of an end to their reliance on foreign oil and of the potential electricity they could envision in the more than 150,000 pigs raised nearby. Since last November, nearly 100 of the community's residents have begun driving cars that can run on ethanol-based fuel, as has the employee who drives one of the town's three vehicles. The other two town cars have been replaced with diesel vehicles, so they can run on biodiesel....
Haze LED Luminaire
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 5.06
Designers are coming out with some great looking LED lamps these days. This "Haze LED Luminaire" won an award in the "Lights of the Future" design competition at the Light+Building trade fair held in Frankfurt, Germany. The award singles out energy-saving luminaires and energy-efficient lighting systems distinguished by extraordinary design. Industrial Micro Systems (IMS), a Swiss company designed the light. The Haze luminaire contains rows of different-colored LEDs under its circular top section, allowing the stem to be illuminated with various shades.
Via: LED Magazine...
How To: Build Your Own 1000 Watt Wind Turbine
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 06. 5.06
The latest project over at DIY site Instructables (the same place we found Microwave Mitten Warmers) is a 1000 watt wind turbine. Complete with pictures of the construction, from the magnet disks to coils and other necessary parts to a home-made wind turbine, it looks like a work in progress, so we're interested to see how it turns out. For anyone interested in the technical details, it's a permanent magnet alternator, generating three-phase AC, rectified to DC, and fed to a charge controller; if you can't decode the last sentence, beware that this project is for mechanically-inclined DIYers only. It's still fun to look at and track its progress, though, and is worth a look. ::Instructables via ::Digg...
Off-Grid Man Jailed For Confronting Utility Company
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 5.06
In the Pittsburgh area, a man went to jail rather than let the local power company run an electric line through his property. He's also in some hot water for refusing to connect to the local sewer system. Although he’s repeatedly lost in criminal court, William Williams, 76, of Cecil, vows to continue removing the guy wire and its anchor in his yard each time the power company replaces them. For Mr. Williams, it’s all a matter of civil disobedience. He said he refuses to surrender his property rights to the utilities. ...
Taking the Sweat out of Shop in Tel Aviv
by Karin Kloosterman, Tel Aviv on 06. 5.06
Hipsters from the Comme Il Faut fashion house have opened their own mini-mall, an anti-mall they say, in Tel Aviv's port. It is one which encourages creativity over mass-consumption. Tel Aviv is a fast and furious place. Days after Gaultier and Gucci release new collections, knock-offs are already on the streets being peddled every which way. To combat blind consumerism, Comme Il Faut ("As it should be") has intervened and invented its own chic line of clothing which makes use of local talent not sweatshops. ...
Declaration of Interdependence
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 5.06
A blast from the past, this Declaration of Interdependence was written for the United Nations' Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 by a team of 5 people from the David Suzuki Foundation, including Dr. Suzuki himself. It is still as relevant today as it ever was, and we encourage you to read it and share it with family and friends. You can read it here, download a PDF version here, or just read it below....
Solar Power Coming to Northern China
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 06. 5.06
As the evidence of global climate change continues to show us that we're not just facing a warming world, but one warming more quickly than we thought even a few years ago, all eyes are on China. While the Chinese have invested heavily in coal and nuclear power, they've also demonstrated that they're moving aggressively into renewables as well. On Friday, ChinaDaily.com reported that the country has formed a partnership with German-based Solar Millennium AG to build China's first large-scale commercial solar plant:...
Trashformaciones Furniture and Instalations
by Paula Alvarado, Buenos Aires on 06. 5.06
The art of recycling is something we TreeHuggers love: like, how difficult is it to turn garbage into something appealing, and make people pay for it? Very. Trashformaciones (something like Trashformations) is another group of entrepreneurs that’s giving it a try. It was started by brothers Blas and Pablo Montoya in 2002, when they began taking advantage of their family business: an iron scrap deposit. Now they make lamps from washing machine’s cylinders, recycled aluminium tables, installations with washbasins and benches from bathtubs. The benches shown here dress the Ribalta park in their home city, Castellón (Valencia, Spain), and the installation with more than 200 washbasins in the extended was shown in the beach. These creations can be purchased through their website, where there’s also more on their activities. ::Trashformaciones...
Maybe We Won't Say It With Flowers
by Bonnie Alter, London on 06. 5.06
Sending flowers has become the easy way to respond to every social situation: thank you’s, apologies, birthdays, seductions, mother’s day, valentine’s day... But when you start to think about where the flowers come from and at what cost, this begins to sound like a bad idea. The first problem is the vast amount of water that these huge flower farms use—more than 80,000 litres a day. Many of the growers are in African countries, such as Kenya, where the local people are suffering from droughts and lack of pure water, whilst the farmers are diverting it to grow over 52 million tons of flowers. Then there are the pesticides—since we all want pure, unblemished flowers to send to our sweeties, farmers are using lots of toxic chemicals and fumigants to kill off bugs. These chemicals may end up as poisoned groundwater and contaminated subsoils. ...
Construction Materials- Buy New or Use Recycled?
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 5.06
Karen, when she is not gathering waters, is fixing her house and asks: "Should we go to the local ReStore and by leftovers and recycled materials, or should we research the greenest, most eco-friendly, socially responsible products and buy those - thus encouraging that market sector?"
Our instant reaction was that recyled materials are always better-
-waste disposal of building materials is a huge problem and re-using eliminates that;
-the embodied energy required to make them and transport them is already invested;
-even the most eco-friendly materials have some carbon footprint in their manufacture and transport;
-the money you spend goes to a good cause;
-in many cases, they don't make'em like they used to- doors, trim and other building components are heavier and better than the stuff made today. Even bricks can be made from wonderful clays no longer available, fired longer and harder.
-cleaning old building materials is labour rather than equipment and energy intensive- people have to pull the nails and chip the mortar. Instead of paying MegaCorp and Home Depot to make and move huge quantities great distances, you are supporting the local economy and creating entry-level construction industry jobs.
On the other hand, in some cases it is better that they don't make them like they used to....
Joystiq Ask Readers About Leaving Game Consoles on Standby
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 06. 4.06
Recently, Joystiq, a popular gaming blog, asked their readers the question "Do you leave your game console on standby?" The poll provoked a lively discussion with many comments, and also inspired this follow-up post, which examined how manufacturers might make some simple energy-saving improvements to the consoles. :: Joystiq...
SustainLane Responds
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 06. 4.06
We received a couple of responses from SustainLane to our coverage of their 2006 City Rankings. Many of you likely saw marketing communications manager Abendigo Reeb's comments here at Treehugger -- he noted, among other things, that "Some cities just do certain things better than other cities, and other cities should know about it, because they just might be able to do it too." We agree that SustainLane's efforts to promote the work of certain US cities is a positive contribution -- we should all hold up cities like Portland, San Francisco and Seattle as models of possibility for other urban areas struggling with environmental problems (which is all US cities, I'd imagine).
SustainLane's Chief Strategy Officer Warren Karlenzig, the director of the US Cities Rankings, also dropped us a note:...
Deborah Milner and Aveda Launch "Ecoture" Fashion Collection
by Erin Courtenay - Madison, WI on 06. 4.06
What do you get when you take one part fashion design, one part environmental advocacy and combine it with a bit of beauty industry magic? Probably something that looks a lot like the Deborah Milner/Aveda EcotureTM collection - a sophisticated line of sustainably crafted couture.
Fashion designer Deborah Milner is on a quest to give high fashion an eco-friendly makeover. "Right now, it is very difficult to find couture quality sustainable textiles and dyes," says Milner. She points out that eco-friendly fabrics exist, but unfortunately most do not meet the exacting standards called for in high fashion design. Like a green building architect engineering new eco-friendly construction materials, Deborah and her team are 'engineering' luxurious textiles that are easy on the planet....
Michael Shermer on Global Warming: "data trumps politics"
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 4.06
Michael Shermer was a well known global warming skeptic until he publicly changed his position in the June 2006 issue of Scientific American. He says: "Nevertheless, data trump politics, and a convergence of evidence from numerous sources has led me to make a cognitive switch on the subject of anthropogenic global warming. My attention was piqued on February 8 when 86 leading evangelical Christians--the last cohort I expected to get on the environmental bandwagon--issued the Evangelical Climate Initiative calling for 'national legislation requiring sufficient economy-wide reductions' in carbon emissions."...
Michael Pollan On Organics at Wal-Mart
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06. 4.06
We raved about Michael Pollan's Ominvore's Dilemma; Kara discussed Walmart going organic. Here is a mashup courtesy of the New York Times: Michael Pollan discussing Wal-Mart going organic. "Let's hope Wal-Mart recognizes that the extraordinary marketing magic of the word "organic" — a power that flows directly from our dissatisfaction with the very-cheap-food economy Wal-Mart has done so much to create — is a lot like the health of an organic chicken living in close confinement with thousands of other chickens in an organic CAFO [Confined Animal Feeding Operation], munching organic corn: fragile." read more in ::New York Times...
Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel Coming to the USA
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 06. 4.06
June 1 was the first day of implementation of the new "Ultra Low Sulfur" diesel fuel standards in the USA, but the new fuel and emission control systems won't be everywhere until 2010. By then, sulfur will be down to 15 parts per million (ppm) from its current 500 ppm, a 97% reduction. As far as we know, the major problem with having high quantities of sulfur in diesel fuel is that it makes emission-control equipment fail much faster and keeps automakers from installing the latest technology of pollution-control systems on their vehicles. This means that recent diesel vehicles that don't have the latest emission technology won't be much cleaner, but they won't degrade as much with time, and old diesel vehicles that have already been affected won't see much improvement. It is with 2007 model-year diesel vehicles that the difference will be seen (and smelled): They will have to meet the new EPA Tier 2 emissions specifications and be refuelled only with ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD). But lets not rejoice too fast, diesel - even ULSD - is still dirtier than gasoline. This new "clean" diesel is only clean compared to the old version. We'll breathe better when we start seeing diesel cars and trucks that meet SULEV and PZEV emission standards (or at the very least ULEV). The best way to reduce diesel pollution is still to ship less stuff over long distances - produce more locally - and to use trains instead of trucks. ::NRDC, ::Green Car Congress...
We Already Own Eco-Machines – How To Use Your Car More Efficiently.
by Leonora Oppenheim, London, UK on 06. 4.06
In an ideal world none of us would need to drive cars, or at least only zero-emission cars, but in the real world this not yet possible for the vast majority of people. There are a lot of people out there who can’t afford a hybrid or don’t have a decent public transport network to get them around. The fact is many need to use the cars they already own. So it was interesting to see an article published in the Independent earlier this week which, rather than lecturing on the evils of car pollution, gave constructive advice about how we can use our cars in the most eco-efficient way possible. Although the title overstretches the point, I don’t think anyone can claim that a normal car is an eco- machine, Vince Yearley does give some simple and easy-to-do advice; such as servicing your car regularly, checking tyre pressure, and reducing the drag factor by taking unnecessary loads out of the car to save fuel. He tells us that ‘Research by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) has shown that an average-mileage motorist (12,000 to 15,000 miles a year) could save at least £50 a year on petrol, and help reduce CO2 emissions, without changing cars. That's because advanced driving techniques, fuel efficiency and "eco-driving" go together.’ As Bonnie Alter wrote last month 'Britain will be introducing aspects of green driving into the driving test by 2008.' via:Pecha Kucha ::Independent
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