- Vijay Vaitheeswaran (part one)
- Vijay Vaitheeswaran (part two)
- Vinay Gupta
- Alyce Santoro
- Mathis Wackernagel
- Tom Price
- Martha Marks
- Paul Hawken
- David Suzuki
- Wal-Mart's Green Gurus
- Alisa Smith and James Mackinnon, authors of Plenty
- Bob Perkowitz of ecoAmerica
- Ed Begley Jr.
- The Weather Channel's Dr. Heidi Cullen
Entries for April 27, 2008 - May 3, 2008
Total this week: 167
The Amazon Jungle and a New York City Girl: The Natives
by Jessica Root - Brooklyn, NY on 05. 3.08
On a four-hour hike, Janu (pictured left), a native friend of Eugenio’s, uses his machete to chip off a few pieces of what look like ordinary tree bark. He hands me a sliver. Janu is way too cute to be the poisoning type and since I’m on a once-in-a-lifetime press trip in the Brazilian Amazon—I’m in an adventurous mood. I pop a piece into my mouth. It’s bitter and it tastes like tree. But when he says mosquito and “medicino” in the same sentence, I realize I’m chewing on something extraordinary, the source of malaria antibiotics. Just when I think Janu’s grand tour can’t get any wilder, we run into a snake—a huge, yellow snake.
I would later thank my lucky stars for Janu—who prevented us from ending up in Boa’s belly—and Projeto Saude e Alegria, who helps native folk and forest experts like Janu continue to thrive in their home, the Amazon. Until arriving in the jungle, I had always focused on helping save the forest’s threatened critters, never its human inhabitants. I realized that by not taking the natives into account, I hadn’t been viewing the protection of the Amazon as one huge holistic process. I started to wonder where else this incomplete outlook had crept up in my other efforts to live sustainably......
World's Biggest Consumer Goods Company To Use Certified Sustainable Palm Oil
by Kimberley D. Mok, Nomad on 05. 3.08
Image: Orangutan marooned on deforested oil palm concession in Central Kalimantan (Greenpeace)In another move that shows public pressure can have a positive effect on big companies and their suppliers, the world’s largest consumer goods company and buyer of palm oil has announced that it will start using palm oil from certified sustainable sources this year. In addition to an effort to have all its palm oil certified by 2015, Unilever’s CEO Patrick Cescau also called for a halt on rainforest destruction due to oil palm cultivation. "Now we need to take the next step. Suppliers need to move to meet the criteria, by getting certified both the palm oil from their own plantations and the palm oil they buy from elsewhere," Cescau said in a statement. "We also intend to support the call for an immediate moratorium on any further deforestation in Indonesia for palm oil." ...
James Howard Kunstler Takes on Stephen Colbert
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 05. 3.08
Waste Management To Fuel Altamont California Area Trucks With Landfill-Harvested Liquid Natural Gas
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 05. 3.08
California government agencies are supporting a large-scale project to better manage garbage and recyclables in a California joint venture between Linde North America , a Linde Group subsidiary, and Waste Management . The project - the first of several across the State - will create the world’s largest facility to convert landfill gas into clean vehicle fuel. Waste Management, North America’s largest waste management company, and Linde North America have announced a joint venture to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility, located at the Altamont Landfill near Livermore, California to convert landfill gas into a clean vehicle fuel. The project offers a unique opportunity to “close the loop” by fueling hundreds of collection trucks with clean fuel produced from garbage....
Berlin Mai Fest, the Good, the Green and the Ugly
by Christine Lepisto, Berlin on 05. 3.08
Here is a good test for whether green has really gone mainstream: just how green is Germany's famous May Day party? If you know anything about the international worker's holiday in Germany, the first color that pops into your head won't be green, but red. Green will sooner bring to mind the color of the police cars fleeing from the onslaught of rioting citizens than environmental causes. But sights like the band 12V arriving to perform in their three-man-bike-band rig, which operates on the eponymous voltage, leave hope that green is creeping in everywhere, even to a party better known for dancing in the streets until the riots start. Some reflections of green during the red holiday in Berlin, and more on 12V, can be seen overleaf....
Doors Closing Nau: Iconic Eco-Business Winds Up
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 05. 3.08
Today is a very sad day. For Nau announced they are winding up. The Portland, Oregon based outdoor lifestyle apparel company has been unable to secure the necessary venture capital to continue operations as a start-up business.
Having got off the phone today with Ian Yolles, one of the original founders, I doubt very much there has been a dry eye in the Nau house. Obviously as the capital investment market lost its courage in the face of current uncertain financial times in the US, things became, as Ian put it “tenser and tenser.” But he had nothing but praise for the staff of Nau who have shown, “an amazing commitment and spirit right up to the end. There has been this strong sense of hopefulness....” He pauses, then continues, the emotion palpable even down the phone, “... that something good would happen.”...
IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri Discusses How Climate Change Could Affect 21st Century Society
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 05. 3.08
Few speakers are as well-suited to tackling the challenges and potential risks posed by global climate change than IPCC Chairman Rajendra K. Pachauri. The recent talk he gave at MIT is well worth your time if you've never heard him speak before -- or are just curious about his perspective on the impact of climate change on 21st century society. Here's a short snippet about the key themes he addressed:
Here’s Rajendra K. Pachauri’s panic-inducing assertion: We have a window of seven years to stabilize CO2 at today’s levels if we are to limit our global mean temperature increase to around 2.40C. A world this hot would be a very unpleasant place to be. Pachauri lays out unequivocal” evidence of climate change, and describes how extreme precipitation events, heat waves and other natural catastrophes will become more frequent, endangering vast swaths of humanity. We stand to lose 20-30% of species if warming exceeds 1.5 to 2.5 0C. Pachauri also notes this “scary prospect”: the rapid loss of ice sheets on polar land, leading to sea level rises of several meters, and the flight of large populations in response....
AmTrak Carolinian: Slower But So Much Nicer
by Sami Grover, Carrboro, NC, USA on 05. 3.08
Some of us have already posted personal accounts of our AmTrak experiences, but even with AmTrak ridership at an all time high, in the US many folks we talk to still seem skeptical about taking to the rails. So when we took The Carolinian from Durham, NC up to New York for Thursday’s launch of the Natural Products Association’s Natural Standard, we thought it only right that we post on our experience.
The first thing to be said, when comparing AmTrak to rail travel in other parts of the world, is that it is slow. There is no denying that a rail journey of some 500 miles should not take eleven hours [from previous experience, the journey can also be considerably longer in the hot summer months due to slower speeds for safety reasons]. But other than that, we must say the experience was a dream. And considering that only half of the journey was electrified – from Durham to DC we were on slower diesel power – with some investment in upgrading the infrastructure, the journey could be both much quicker and considerably greener.
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Austria Not Pulling its Weight in Meeting Kyoto Objectives
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 05. 3.08
Image courtesy of yourbartender via flickr
Austrian states, or Länder, need to ramp up their efforts to slash their emissions production if they are to meet their obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, says Joseph Pröll, the country's environment minister. Austria has pledged to cut its emissions by 13% below 1990 levels during the 2008-2012 period. The country has already gotten off to a bad start: In 2006 alone, it emitted 91 millions tons of carbon dioxide -- 32% more than its emissions target. ...
What Do Members of Congress Drive?
by Andrew Posner, Rhode Island, USA on 05. 3.08
Image Credit: Michelle V. Agins/The New York Times
What you drive can say a lot about you, your lifestyle, your income, and even your values. The question, brought up in a recent NY Times article, is what would you choose to drive if the lease were entirely subsidized by taxpayers? The answer, it turns out, is revealing.
First of all, why do taxpayers subsidize the use of vehicles by members of the House of Representatives (the Senate does not provide this perk)? There's no real good reason why, but since the 1980s the benefit has been part of the money provided for their office operations. And the benefit, which 125 members of the House make use of, is quite handsome: "Not only does the federal government pick up the cost of the lease and the gas, but also general maintenance, insurance, registration fees and excess mileage charges." Of course, in this time of high gas prices and heightened sensitivity to environmental issues, it would be hard to justify the purchase of large, inefficient and expensive vehicles, right?
Some examples of what members of the House drive after the fold....
Doubletree Hotels and Arbor Day Foundation Kick Off "Tree Tag"
by Jenna Watson, Barcelona on 05. 3.08
David Yakes, general manager at Doubletree Hotels and Executive Meeting Center, helps second-grade students at Grace Abbott Elementary School play a game of "Tree Tag" in celebration of Arbor Day.
Doubletree Hotels with the Arbor Day Foundation kicked off a game of “Tree Tag” on April 24th to celebrate the world’s oldest environmental holiday. The month-long project, kicked off in Nebraska, will raise awareness about the importance of trees across both the United States and Canada. Students and teachers will work with team members from Doubletree Hotels to “tag” the prominent trees on school grounds and in their neighborhood. The over-sized, eco-friendly tags will have unique facts about each tree. Via: Environment News Service. Image courtesy: Cohn & Wolfe. Project website here.
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European Space Agency to Launch Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) Satellite
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 2.08
Knowledge is power. The European Space Agency is set to launch a new satellite that will give us more information about soil moisture all over our planet. Takeoff is planned for next fall.
Soil moisture directly affects the Earth's weather and climate, and better understanding it will lead to a better understanding of global warming. "Currently, weather forecasting models do not include real-time measurements of soil moisture content as part of their programs. Once scientists can better measure soil moisture, especially over large land masses such as North America, this missing piece can be included in weather prediction models, making for more complete and more accurate predictions, says Hornbuckle. And satellites can provide global coverage at the lowest cost." ...
US Department of Transportation Gives $153 Million to Chicago to Reduce Traffic Congestion
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 2.08
Your tax dollars at work. On one side, subsidize more roads, sprawl, and related infrastructure, on the other, subsidize various approaches to try to convince people to keep off the roads. The US Department of Transportation (DoT) is transferring $153 million to Chicago to help it reduce traffic via congestion pricing for street parking spaces and the implementation of a Bus Rapid Transit system.
"The federal funds will be used to support Chicago’s creation of four pilot routes of a new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) network. The new BRT routes will have their own dedicated lanes and the buses will be equipped with technology to help speed them through traffic with priority right of way at busy signalized intersections. In addition, the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) will be able to purchase new and cleaner hybrid engine vehicles." Congestion pricing for street parkings means raising the rates during rush hours, mornings and evenings.
How about doing like Portland and aiming for a Platinum Level in "Bicycle Friendliness"? ::DOT to Provide More Than $153M to Chicago to Reduce Traffic Congestion...
First Tesla Electric Car Store Opens in Santa-Monica
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 2.08
Another milestone for Tesla Motors, the maker of the Tesla Roadster Electric Car: Their Santa-Monica store has opened its doors yesterday. It should soon be followed by one in Silicon Valley.
Tesla has also been doing a PR tour in Europe lately, showing off the Euro-spec version of the electric Roadster (300+hp with a 13,000rpm red-line, instead of the 248 hp listed for the US version). Now all they need is for more cars to be coming out of the assembly line. As we previously reported, the first production unit was delivered to Tesla chairman Elon Musk. Number 2 should go to Tesla Motors co-founder Martin Eberhard. The more successful the expensive Roadster is, the brighter the future of the next two less expensive and more practical models of electric cars on the company's roadmap will be. ::First Tesla store opens in Santa Monica, now we just need some cars. See also: ::Location of First Tesla Store Revealed, ::Here's What Happens to a Tesla Electric Car Battery at the End of its Life...
Volkswagen Sharan BlueMotion 7-Seater Has Better Fuel Economy than Most Cars in the U.S.
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 2.08
Germans are now able to buy a minivan that gets better mileage than most cars in the U.S. Probably better than most compact cars, even. The VW Sharan BlueMotion is a diesel 7-seater that burns 6 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (38 mpg US) and emits 159g/km of CO2 (compared to 177g/km for the non-BlueMotion version, and 104g/km for a Toyota Prius hybrid).
Specifications for the VW Sharan BlueMotion
The engine is a 140hp 2.0L turbo-diesel (TDI) with a particulate filter at the exhaust. With its 70-liter fuel tank, range between fill ups could be almost 700 miles. Prices start at €32,200. Lets hope that Volkswagen will consider bringing it to North-America (with its new cleaner diesel technology). It would be a very practical vehicle for those who need to carry many people, and running on biodiesel (from waste cooking grease or algae, preferably), it would be fairly green (not a bicycle for sure, but better than a lot of what's on the road). ...
Goodbye for Nau: Groundbreaking Apparel Brand Closing Up Shop
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 05. 2.08
Nau is closing down
TreeHugger is very sad to report that Nau is closing its doors and winding down its business, effective immediately. One of our favorite brands, Nau combined high performance apparel with sleek design and thoughtful, green materials; their collections included everything from rain gear to shorts and organic cotton denim to polo shirts.
You can get your last piece of Nau, both at their five brick 'n mortar stores and online, at 50% off; it looks like the stores will only be open through tomorrow -- Saturday, May 3 -- and Nau is in the process of determining how long the website will remain open. Shop now and you'll be buying a piece of history....
Today on Planet Green
by Jessica Root - Brooklyn, NY on 05. 2.08
:: Extend the shelf life of your books by building a library in your office.
:: Cruise at a constant speed to save money and the planet.
:: Freshen up your complexion with a quick teabag facial.
:: Sink your teeth into a homemade batch of sweet potato rolls.
:: Analyze your hometown's air quality. ...
Most Huggable: Barbie Models Green, Seasonal Eating in May, America’s Sexiest Cities + More
by Team Treehugger, Worldwide on 05. 2.08
Is Mattel’s Barbie BCause line bogus?
One blogger recounts his challenge of eating seasonally during winter’s switch to spring.
The ten sexiest (and by sexiest, we mean greenest!) cities in America are announced.
Key players in the tech industry deepen their clean commitment.
GM continues to crank out ethanol.
Most Huggable is a regular roundup of some of Hugg's top green news stories. Why not submit your own green news?...
The Kansas Coal Battle
by Greg Haegele, Sierra Club on 05. 2.08
All eyes have been on the Kansas legislature this week as they look to override Gov. Kathleen Sebelius' veto of a bill proposing two coal-fired power plants in the state. The Kansas State Senate did override the veto, but the State House did not achieve an override. Think that's a success? Hold up – there's word that the State House will try again today to override a veto that has the state making a stand for clean energy.
It's been a long road thus far in this skirmish over two proposed coal-fired power plants in the state – all stemming from Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Rod Bremby in Oct. 2007 denying Sunflower Electric's air-quality permit request for two 700-megawatt generators near Holcomb, Kan., "citing concerns that carbon dioxide from the plants would exacerbate climate change and threaten human health."...
A Seat at the Roundtable: Green Insights From Members of Business Roundtable - Featuring Ursula M. Burns, President, Xerox Corporation
by Marian Hopkins, Business Roundtable on 05. 2.08
Guest Post By: Ursula Burns, president, Xerox Corporation
Introduction by: Marian Hopkins, Business Roundtable
We are thrilled to introduce a new series for our Business Roundtable guest posts, A Seat at the Roundtable: Green Insights from members of the Business Roundtable. These posts feature the perspectives of member company leaders – directly from the leaders themselves – on environmental initiatives personally important to them and to their business practices. We are excited to unveil our introductory guest post below featuring Ursula M. Burns, president, Xerox Corporation.
Xerox is a leading Roundtable member that and has made sustainability a serious business priority for more than 40 years. An active member of the Roundtable’s leading initiatives, S.E.E. Change and Climate RESOLVE, Xerox is a model case for how strong leadership and a commitment to sustainability can lead to success and a positive impact on the environment....
"TreeCycle" Cyclist To Travel India End-to End For Pledge of 10 Million Trees
by Kimberley D. Mok, Nomad on 05. 2.08
The TH Interview: Stephanie Meeks of The Nature Conservancy (Part One)
by Jacob Gordon, Nashville, TN on 05. 2.08
Immersed in the nifty slickness of “environmentalism 2.0” it’s sometimes easy to forget about the patient progress of the groups like The Nature Conservancy. At 56-years old, The Nature Conservancy is a granddaddy eco-org, and was doing its leafy green thing before it was cool. As the acting president and CEO, Stephanie Meeks sits at the front of this ship, navigating through policy, politics, big business, and controversy. ::TreeHugger Radio
Listen to the podcast of this interview via iTunes, or just click here to listen, right-click to download....
From the Forums: Help Save a Tree
by Alan Graham on 05. 2.08
New member babs is wondering if you can help her:
Can anyone please advise on how I can fight my local township authority from taking down a beautiful oak tree that is over 60 feet high. The tree is within the 15 foot easement and they say it has to come down as they are replacing lines. I just can't imagine taking this gorgeous, healthy tree down! I am meeting with the foreman on Monday morning to hopefully come up with an alternative. Any advice would be grealy appreciated.jcoffman empathizes:...
Greensburg, Kansas Resident Offers Insider's View
by Daniel Wallach on 05. 2.08
View from a grain elevator in Greensburg. Nearly all of the town's buildings were destroyed or heavily damaged by the May 4, 2007 tornado.
The middle of nowhere and the center of everything. That is how it feels in Greeensburg, Kansas right now. May 4 (Sunday) is the anniversary of the storm that destroyed the town. It is a bit surreal all that has occurred in the past year. And this week just seems reflective of that year. A multitude of media outlets from around the world is in town and the President is coming to speak and acknowledge the success of the recovery. There are over 30 buildings being rebuilt to exemplary levels of energy efficiency and green building standards (it will be the largest concentration of LEED certified buildings in the country). The power supply for the town is planned to be 100% renewables and there is a green industrial park being developed to create many green collar jobs. Many houses are also exceptionally green and many more are planned. Without a doubt (from me anyway) Greensburg will be “America’s greenest city”....
Free Green Turns House Design Business On Its Head
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 2.08
There is an entire industry of stock plan books and plan sites. Some are created by architects and designers with talent; others are full of the usual faux manors. Very few are modern designs and fewer still are what one might call green. All of them are ripped off constantly by every builder and client who isn't willing to hire an architect and isn't even willing to pay a couple of hundred bucks for a set of plans.
David Wax and his team at Free Green turn the home design business model on its head. They are charging exactly what most people are willing to pay for design: Nothing.
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Pop Quiz: How Fresh Is Your Water?
by Dominic Muren, Philadelphia, USA on 05. 2.08
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Airlines Save Gas By Slowing Down, Just Like Drivers
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 2.08
credit a73700 Creative Commons
The airlines aren't in the best of shape these days with sky-high fuel prices, and are trying everything, except barrel-rolls to shake change out of our pockets, to save money. Now they are learning tricks from the hypermilers and slowing down to save fuel. Southwest Airlines will save $42 million in fuel this year by adding one to three minutes to each flight. Northwest Airlines cut their speed 10 MPH on a flight from Minneapolis to Paris and saved $535 in fuel, but added 8 minutes. Just what we needed: more time in the sardine can.
Soon they might be down to turboprop speed and we might have to re-think this whole short-haul flying thing. ::New York Times...
EWG Reveals Who Benefits Most from Direct Subsidy-Laden Farm Bill
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 05. 2.08
Image courtesy of Hellsgeriatric via flickr
It's not often we find ourselves agreeing with President Bush's viewpoint but, in the case of the subsidy-larded farm bill, we'll make an exception. As Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, notes in his always informative blog, Bush is -- for once -- right on the money with this issue. Here's what he had to say about it at a recent Rose Garden appearance:
"The bill Congress is now considering would fail to eliminate subsidy payments to multimillionaire farmers. America's farm economy is thriving. The value of farmland is skyrocketing. And this is the right time to reform our nation's farm policies by reducing unnecessary subsidies."...
Survey: Do You Eat At Your Desk?
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 2.08
In some countries, cars don't have cup-holders; a car is not a kitchen. Neither is an office, yet one often sees people eating at their desks. We have noted before that fire retardants are fat soluble, so you shouldn't type with greasy fingers; We also just learned that keyboards can be full of bacteria from food particles rotting away. Some people, like Michael Pollan, say that a key to healthy eating is to sit down at a dining table and have a real meal; others will eat anything anywhere.
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Natural Products Association Launches The Natural Standard
by Sami Grover, Carrboro, NC, USA on 05. 2.08
Last year we got a good response from readers and colleagues when Mike Indursky of Burt's Bees talked in a TreeHugger interview about developing The Natural Standard - an attempt to specify exactly what is, and is not, meant when a company describes its products as "all natural". At TreeHugger we get inundated every day with press releases for products that use terms like all natural or sustainable, yet in reality there can be a huge disparity between what is meant by such definitions (you only have to look at the recent Dr Bronner's law suit to see how controversial this stuff can get!). On the one hand, many companies are working hard to produce the most natural, sustainable and transparent personal care products they possibly can, yet other companies are continuing to make the same-old-same-old - formulations that are made up of 95% petrochemicals, with a good measure of parabens and other goodies thrown in, and then adding a few randomn herbs for the purposes of claiming them as an all natural product. And unfortunately there's been little in the way of regulation to discourage such behavior.
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Global Warming's Grapes of Laugh: Swedish Wine And A Fish Called Goby
by April Streeter, Gothenburg, Sweden on 05. 2.08
Photo courtesty G. Almqvist at Havet.nu
Lots of Swedes grew grapes through the last 300 years - inside their "orangerie" or glassed-in greenhouses. But now grape-growing has come out of the glass closet on the Swedish Baltic islands of Öland and Gotland as well as a dozen other Swedish locations, helped by warmer summers and longer growing seasons.
The fruit of the changing Scandinavian climate is being made into local organic wine at Öland's Wannborga farm, which now constitutes part of the Northernmost wine region of the world. Wannborga is making reds, whites, brandies and also distilling an award-winning white-lightning grappa called DruvDigestiv. And though the different wines can be sampled at the farm, Sweden's strict liquor monopoly makes it impossible to buy any bottles to take home. Yet while a Baltic wine region may sound great, warming temperatures also constitute a dire threat to the former thriving Baltic cod and salmon fisheries. Warmer water and lack of dissolved oxygen are problems but now there's another possible problem: an ugly Black Sea fish called Goby....
Yoav Kotik's Recycling Between the Garbage and the Flowers
by Karin Kloosterman, Jerusalem, Israel on 05. 2.08
Exhibiting last Fall with Design Boom in Tokyo, Israel's Yoav Kotik is not afraid to try new things. From an industrial designer to working in the insurance industry, and now back to the world of Art, Kotik at 50, is now exhibiting his recycled flowers "Spring" at Tel Aviv's Periscope Gallery.
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Which Community Has The Greenest Power?
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 05. 2.08
USEPA has a list of Top Green Power Communities - 16 of them. A "Partner" community for green-power purchasing gets on the EPA list by any combination of (1) Renewable Energy Certificates, (2) On-site generation, and (3) Utility green power products.
(Purchase figures are based on annualized Partner contract amounts (kilowatt-hours), not calendar year totals.)
For absolute amount of green power, the hands-down green power winner was Bellingham, Washington, with 81,000,000 "green" KwH purchased annually. For portion of total demand met with green power (14%) , it's Swarthmore PA, home of Swarthmore College.
In the run-up to the 2004 US elections, DC pundits divided the US into "Red States" and "Blue States." Now we have Green communities; and eventually we'll have Green States. The color thing gets pretty muddled when you consider that three of the sixteen communities on the list, Alta, Moab, and Park City, are in the State of Utah, which, overall, gets 93% of its power from coal!
Image credit::Mobile Data Force blog, Bellingham WA USA...
YKK Recycled and Biodegradable Zippers
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 05. 2.08
YKK of Japan are huge, last year having net sales of $6,300 million USD (if my currency conversions are correct). They make the zippers which appear on most quality brands the world over. Well, they do have over 250 plants in nearly 70 countries. And they have a well earned reputation for quality. It is pleasing to note that most other major multinationals YKK are making some effort to green their operations.
On the product side they offer the Natulon zipper (left) made from recycled PET polyester. Then there is the ReEarth zipper which is comprised of corn and other plant materials. Placed in an appropriate composting environment the zipper will begin to biodegrade. This image on the far right is the result of about 140 days snuggling up to soil micro-organisms....
Architect's Pavillion For Sale
by Bonnie Alter, London on 05. 2.08
If you missed out on buying a bullet-ridden prefab house from the Congo by famous architect Jean Prouvé at $5M, then here is your next chance. A wood-composite prefab by famous architect Shigeru Ban, for only $1.2M--a snip by any standards. Called "the Space of Silence", it will be offered at auction in the summer and the proceeds will be donated to charity. It is made of a wood plastic composite of recycled materials--mainly self-adhesive labels of paper and plastic. The labels are surplus and the composite, called ProFi, is tough and humidity resistant. It can be recycled back into the production process.
Looking like a giant shed, it is comprised of a module (roof, wall and structural elements) which is repeated 21 times. The entire pavilion is 40 meters long and 5 meters wide and can be taken down and re-assembled easily. It was pre-built and assembled in Finland, in association with the Finnish furniture company Artek and UPM, a forest products company. The building is a bit of a nomad, having been displayed in Milan, Miami and Helsinki already. Next stop: your back yard. :: ArchNewsNow.com...
The TH Interview: Paul Wimbush, Cofounder of Lammas Ecovillage, UK
by Jesse Fox, Tel Aviv, Israel on 05. 2.08
Paul Wimbush with model of Lammas.
About a month ago, we announced, with some fanfare, the approval of Lammas, the UK's first planned ecovillage. The Welsh village was to be a 74 acre model settlement, planned according to permaculture principles and completely sustainable from an economic, environmental and social standpoint. As it turns out, Lammas had not yet cleared all of the planning hurdles that it had to pass, and was still waiting for the final word from UK planning authorities. However, despite the mixup, the founders of Lammas told us, "It was great to see the good news there for a moment - a glimpse of things to come!"
In order to set the record straight, and to hear more about the Lammas project, TreeHugger sat down this week with Paul Wimbush - cofounder, project coordinator and future resident (plot 6) of Lammas.
The word "Lammas," by the way, translates literally from Old English as "first loaf," and refers to the old Celtic harvest festival that takes place on the 1st of August (the date on which the ecovillage endeavor happened to be founded)....
Native Seeds Fight Food Shortage and Global Warming
by Tim McGee, Helena, MT, USA on 05. 1.08
A perfect storm of research and technology has emerged that when taken together may provide part of a solution to food production and global warming. The key ideas are:
1. Biodiversity increases the ability of an ecosystem to capture carbon, says Brown University.
2. There are 100's of economically important native seeds according to Lee and Maggie Arbuckle.
3. Native perennial grasses can be used as food, according to The Land Institute.
4. Harvesting perennial grasses is getting easier, with the Arbuckle Native Seedster.
Together these innovations change the framework for how we can turn sunlight and water into food. Incorporating these ideas could sequester carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, provide economic growth, improve soil health, reduce fossil fuel use, and provide sustainable and resilient food production....
93.5% of Cars in Europe Have Under-Inflated Tires, Wasting 2.14 Billion Gallons of Fuel Each Year
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 1.08
We just wrote about hypermiling and mentioned that one of the tips to improve gas mileage was making sure your tires are properly inflated. Well, we weren't kidding. A study done by Bridgestone Europe found that 93.5% of cars in the European Union have under-inflated tires. "Softer tires increase rolling resistance, forcing the engine to work harder - and burn more fuel. The U.S. Department of Transportation says being down just 5 to 7 pounds per square inch can decrease fuel economy by two to three miles per gallon."
It all adds up to quite a big waste. Pretty disgusting, in fact, considering that inflating tires is the closest thing you can get to a free lunch. Bridgestone calculated the extra fuel burned to amount to 2.14 billion gallons per year, and 18.4 million tons of extra CO2. Just for Europe. Wired did some back of the envelope math and found that the numbers for the whole planet are "42.32 million tons of carbon dioxide generated by under-inflated tires, or slightly less than Connecticut emitted in 2005." So check your tire pressure, and tell your friends about it! It's also important for your safety (better handling). ::Bridgestone Europe, ::We Can Cut Global CO2 By 42M Tons For Free...
GM Puts Up LIVE GREEN Grants for Teachers
by Kenny Luna, North Babylon, NY on 05. 1.08
If you're a great, green middle school teacher with an idea to help inspire students to live a greener life there just may be a grant with your name on it coming from GM and Discovery Education.
In fact, they'll be handing out 40 of the $1K grants along with a healthy dose of online professional development and a free digital camera to to the teachers who come up with the best ideas so they can implement and document their projects and share the magic with the rest of us.
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25 Years Into Restoring a Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystem in Costa-Rica
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 1.08
A project of the Ithaca-based Tropical Forestry Initiative aims to restore a tropical rain forest ecosystem that had been clear-cut over 50 years ago in Costa-Rica. In 1993, they started working on worn-out pasture land. "For 50 years the soil had been compacted under countless hooves, and its nutrients washed away. When it rained, Leopold said, the red soil appeared to bleed from the hillsides."
The group planted local species of trees, collecting seeds directly from nearby native flora. Finding those seeds wasn't always easy, and they had to work with the locals: "When a farmer reported a tree producing seeds, Leopold and his wife would ride out on horses to collect the seeds before hungry monkeys beat them to it." But their efforts are bearing fruits and and recent studies show that 100s of species are now present, and some fast-growing species of trees are even averaging 2 meters a year. It might take many more decades for a full restoration, but this is showing that it can be done, and that's something. ::Restoration Of A Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystem Successful On Small-scale. See also ::Costa Rica Leads Latin America in Certified Sustainable Tourism Industry, ::Costa Rica Plants 5 Million Trees to Combat Climate Change...
The TH Interview: Randy Fulton, Principal of Greensburg High School
by Kenny Luna, North Babylon, NY on 05. 1.08
When I called Principal Randy Fulton and asked for an interview he was as busy as any Principal might be on any given school day; particularly if they were in the process of planning the new high school to be built to LEED platinum standards and the President was scheduled to visit in just a few short days to give the commencement address at graduation not so long after the entire town had been swept away by a huge tornado.
But he closed the door and sat down for a few moments to give me his insights into the process of rebuilding Greensburg High School, the effect it’s had on his students, and the simple truth about how he copes with the enormous task of rebuilding not only his own life but that of the school as well.
TreeHugger: Where did the desire to rebuild Greensburg High School in a green fashion come from?
Randy Fulton: Well, once the disaster happened one of the things the governor of Kansas has really stressed is building back in an environmentally sustainable manner, and I think that’s where that came from. And the leaders and commissioners and administrators, all of us got together and said “Let’s do this right. Let’s build back a town that is green and takes care of the environment.”
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TNT Express Becomes First Australian Company with Diesel-Hybrid Truck Fleet
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 1.08
In the grand scheme of things, it's a small step: 10 diesel-hybrid trucks to replace conventional ones, saving about 1,600 KG of CO2 emissions per year, per truck. But as the first company to operate such a hybrid truck fleet in Australia, it's worth mentioning to encourage them to keep going, and encourage others in the country to follow suit.
The trucks are Dutro Hybrids made by Hino. The engine is a 4.0-liter, 110 kW (134 hp) turbodiesel that develops 392 Nm (289 lb-ft) of torque at 1,600 rpm with a 23 kW, 143 Nm electric motor and a six-speed transmission. The battery pack is a 273V, 6.5 Ah NiMH system. Where this diesel-hybrid system shines is in the smog-forming emissions: "The hybrid vehicle reduces NOx emissions by almost half and PM by 98.9%." We encourage TNT Express to look into biodiesel if they can get the truly green kinds (from waste cooking oil or from algae). ::TNT Launches Australia’s First Hybrid Truck Fleet. See also: ::Diesel-Hybrid Pickup Coming to U.S....
Hypermiling Becoming More Popular as Gas Prices Rise
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 05. 1.08
It's really no surprise that the combination of various gas-saving techniques known collectively as 'hypermiling' are getting more attention these days with oil hitting record highs (though part of it is because of the weakness of the US dollar).
Some hypermilers do it for sport, like that team that achieved 110 mpg, driving 47 hours and 1,397 miles on 12.87 gallons of gasoline, in a regular Toyota Prius. Or the DIY 'AeroCivic' that gets 95 mpg. Others do it to save money, or help the environment, and some are motivated by the 'national security' angle, like Wayne Gerdes who started hypermiling after Sept. 11, 2001. He says he gets 40-70 mpg out of his Ford Ranger pickup truck, about double the EPA rating....
Dr. Bronner's Sues "Organic" Cosmetics Companies
by Jasmin Malik Chua, Jersey City, USA on 05. 1.08
Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps filed a lawsuit on Monday accusing several popular cosmetic manufacturers of deceptive marketing. Filed in San Francisco Superior Court, the lawsuit targets brands such as Estee Lauder, Kiss My Face, Hain Celestial, and Stella McCartney America, several of which are members of OASIS, a new but controversial organic beauty label.
In the lawsuit, the good doctor charges the firms of false advertising by labeling their lotions and soaps "organic," even though they contain relatively little organic material, comprise synthetic chemicals, and use petrochemicals in processing.
"This is the corrosive marketing of the cosmetics industry that hollowed out the meaning of 'natural' and now is doing the same with 'organic'," David Bronner, president of the 60-year-old company, tells the San Francisco Chronicle. ::San Francisco Chronicle...
Today on Planet Green
by Jessica Root - Brooklyn, NY on 05. 1.08
:: Zap zits the all natural way with tips from Summer Rayne Oakes.
:: Wine and dine without the added weight.
:: Wise up on wasted water in Lloyd's Peak Everything series.
:: Get nifty with old newspapers using these ten clever ideas.
:: Skip the greasy Chinese take-out for Kelly's at-home 'n healthy pork buns....
At Cairo Recycling School, Students Learn the Business of Plastic Reuse
by Eliza Barclay, Nomad on 05. 1.08
We recently heard a piece on National Public Radio's Weekend Edition about a school in Cairo's Manshiyet Nasser slum community where the city's young garbage collectors are learning the business and economics of recycling and using solar energy to do it.
The school is called the Mokattam Non-Formal Education Project, and has received funding form UNESCO and Procter & Gamble, a company whose products like shampoo are sold in the plastic bottles that end up on Cairo's streets....
Cooler Climate Could Prevail in Europe and North America Next Decade: Is Global Warming Over? (UPDATED)
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 05. 1.08
Image courtesy of Richard Simmon/NASA
To put it succinctly: not a chance. Just because I know there are those who will gleefully point to this study as proof that global warming is all a big hoax (*cough* Senator James Inhofe *cough*), let me start off this post by quoting one of the study's authors, Noel Keenlyside: "We want to make very clear that we don't want to say that [anthropogenic] global warming is not here."
He followed up by noting that the cooling trend, if it does occur, will likely only be a baseline natural fluctuation -- one that will have no impact on the prevailing global warming trends. Now, to get back to the actual meat of this study, Keenlyside predicts that Europe and North America could soon experience a cooler climate due to natural variations in the North Atlantic's and tropical Pacific's ocean currents....
Complaints Against Greenwashing Quadruple in the UK
by Sami Grover, Carrboro, NC, USA on 05. 1.08
The UK-based Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is a body that regulates truthfulness in advertising. We’ve already seen the authority step in to a number of disputes regarding sustainability claims – including banning a deceptive Lexus ad; a greenwashing campaign for conventional cotton, and claims from Ryanair that aviation accounted for only 2% of global greenhouse emissions. But it’s not just corporations that the ASA has on their toes – it also waded in to criticize erroneous claims made by a pamphlet for an anti-wind farm group recently. What could be behind this sudden flurry of concern around irresponsible advertising on environmental issues – well it seems that public complaints on this matter are up. Way up:
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Electric Uno Bike: A Clean Commute?
by Justin Thomas, Virginia on 05. 1.08
A young Canadian inventor named Ben Gulak has created an innovative new electric motorbike that takes some of the lessons learned from the Segway device, but implements them in cooler package. The bike, called the Uno, looks from its profile like a strange powered unicycle but actually employs two wheels side-by-side. Riders lean forward to accelerate -- a feature used by the Segway, and can hit a top speed of 25 mph in its current configuration. The Uno also makes use of a set of gyros to enhance ease of balance, and the wheels are independently operated making turning much more precise.
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Tommy Lee and Ludacris Take The Stage at Green Apple Fest
by Summer Rayne Oakes on 05. 1.08
“Go easy on me,” Tommy Lee said in a whisper. “You know I’m a green virgin.”
“Sorry Tommy,” I said with a smile. “I like to go deep.”
Earth Day celebration in San Francisco is probably the perfect place to give Tommy Lee and Ludacris the Green 101. The artists, (both who are participants in Planet Green’s Battleground Earth), paid a visit to the Bay Area during the Green Apple Festival. They may have well been on another planet though, because you know how freaky cool San Francisco can get around Earth Day *wink, wink*.
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Your Keyboard Could Be Dirtier Than a Toilet Seat
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 1.08
RichardMasoner Creative Commons
And people think blogging is a safe job. A microbiologist working for Which? Magazine has found keyboards with 150 times the recommended limit of bacteria. It was also five times as filthy as a toilet seat swabbed at the same time.
"[It] was increasing the risk of its user becoming ill," said the microbiologist, James Francis. "I haven't seen a reading like that in a very long time - it was off the scale."
The main cause appears to be eating lunch at your desk and filling it with crumbs, which encourage the growth of bacteria. The design of keyboards creates nice warm spaces safe from disturbance and easy cleaning, except the occasional pounding down; it would be interesting to find out if the bacteria count is higher under the tilde key than under the e or a. Another source may be from not washing your hands after going to the toilet.
Sarah Kidner of Which? says "Most people don't give much thought to the grime that builds up on their PC, but if you don't clean your computer, you might as well eat your lunch off the toilet." ...
Mother's Day Gift Guide
by Jessica Root - Brooklyn, NY on 05. 1.08
Despite its bad rep as a Hallmark Holiday, Mother’s Day has historic significance that pre-dates the sappy greeting cards, flowers, and candy: During the American Civil War, social activist Julia Ward Howe organized it as a way to unify women against war and promote nonviolence. To honor the day’s original mission and say "Thanks Mom!" we've compiled a list of treats that will leave every type of mama—including Mama Earth—feeling peaceful and proud....
From the Forums: Buy a New Car or Keep Old One?
by Alan Graham on 05. 1.08
BAF is caught in a difficult position:
I have a 1996 nissan minivan, 21 mpg, paid off, runs great. I drive about 10,000 miles a year, so that's roughly 475 gallons of gas per year, and about $1750 a year spent on gas (at $3.60 a gallon).I know that economically it is better to hold on to my old car...if I doubled my gas milage I save about 800$, which is a lot less than a new car payment. But what about the environmental impact of an older car? If I want to REDUCE, I won't dump a working car just for something shiny and new. I can also REDUCE by walking/biking etc when possible. But in terms of driving,is my carbon impact bigger if I buy a new car (impact of manufacturing, etc) or bigger if I drive my older car (less mpg)....
Andrea Zittel Show in Switzerland
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 1.08
Gore Investment Vehicle Closes $683m Fund Demonstrating That Green Is Fundamental Finance
by George Spyros, New York City, USA on 05. 1.08
Green Investing Part of the Ginormous Step From High-Carbon to Low-Carbon Economy
In addition to putting his money where his mouth is, Al Gore and the investment vehicle he heads has closed a new $683m fund to invest in early-stage environmental companies. For the new Climate Solutions Fund to raise such money in the face of an economic slow-down demonstrates that confidence in green investing remains strong. The fund will focus on equity investments in small companies in four sectors: renewable energy; energy efficiency technologies; energy from biofuels and biomass; and the carbon trading markets. Wait << Rewind << Biofuels? "Crime-against-humanity" biofuels? ...
Pop Quiz: Federal Bike Investigation
by Dominic Muren, Philadelphia, USA on 05. 1.08
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Beijing Tries a Smoking Ban
by Alex Pasternack, Beijing, China on 05. 1.08
Superconducting Cables Beat Back NIMBY
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 1.08
One can dream about nuclear power or a hydrogen economy, but the best way to deal with a shortage of energy is to eliminate waste. Seven to ten percent of electricity is wasted through transmission losses, and the North American transmission infrastructure is a creaky, leaky mess. But it is almost impossible to get approval for new transmission lines; between aesthetics and EMF, nobody wants them in their backyard.
Superconducting cables to the rescue: they lose almost no electricity, radiate almost no EMF and can be discreetly buried. "This will be a way to move massive amount of power without disturbing the surrounding environment,” said Greg Yurek, chief executive officer of American Superconductor, in an interview. “It’s like putting an energy superhighway in the middle of a city.”
The Long Island Power Authority just opened a half-mile long test project....
Achitectural Hordes Invade Inner Mongolia
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 1.08
So much for yurts. Cai Jiang has made zillions digging coal and other resources out of the Inner Mongolian ground, and ordered up 100 architectural firms to design monster homes with servant's quarters and indoor pools in a billion-dollar "cultural district" in the new city of Ordos. Money is not an issue; the workers are paid $115 a month to leave their farms and live in dormitories, so construction costs are only $30 per foot.
The New York Times notes that "Many of the architects seemed almost giddy to be freed from the constraints they face in their home cities, where historic preservation laws combined with the scarcity of building sites means that they seldom get to design buildings from the ground up."
Others felt they were there almost as performers for a man "who clearly relished the chance to conduct an orchestra of 100 architects-of-the-moment." He pointed out that Mongolians are settled now, but “These days, it’s the architects, dressed in black, who are the tribe of nomads.” ::New York Times...