Friday, February 03, 2006

[Schools] B-schools earn an 'A' A new ranking of the top MBA programs with a sustainability focus is out. [SIJ News] 12:11:43 PM Google It!    [Fuel efficiency] Less fuel, more power at U.S. auto show Automakers in Detroit unveil more cars that use less fuel. [SIJ News] 12:10:34 PM Google It!    [Fuel efficiency] Planes, trains and automobiles Concerns over a future of sky-high fuel prices and stiff emissions regulations are spurring manufacturers around the world to build cleaner and more efficient transportation modes for people and goods. [SIJ News] 12:09:05 PM Google It!    [Electronics] Greener electronics A new age of recycling and cleaner office machines seems just beyond the visible horizon. [SIJ News] 12:07:17 PM Google It!    [Vermicomposting] Advocating for the worms A veteran vermicomposter spreads the gospel on recycling garbage. [Source: Ann Arbor News] 12:06:00 PM Google It!    [Biofuels] Senators Request Investigation into Whether Corporations are Restricting Access to Biofuels US Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and Charles Grassley (R-IA) today asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate whether big oil corporations are knowingly restricting consumer access to alternative fuels like ethanol and biodiesel. [Green Car Congress] 12:00:38 PM Google It!    [Cleaner transportation] Cleaner Emissions from Staten Island Ferry just the Beginning -- Northeast Diesel Collaborative Expands Efforts Your ride on the Staten Island ferry will not only be free, it will be clean - and that's just the beginning of a region-wide effort to clean up the ports in the Northeast, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPA today joined the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the New York City Department of Transportation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in highlighting the successful clean up of diesel emissions from one of the ferries that transports 19 million people to and from Staten Island each year. Retrofitting the ferry, Alice Austen, has already cut emissions of 16.5 tons of nitrogen oxides (NOx) per year and slashed particulate matter (PM) by 25 percent. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the New York City Department of Transportation also announced that they will build on this success and retrofit more ferries in the fleet. [U.S. EPA Air News] 11:57:40 AM Google It!    [Green building] EPA Joins Other Federal Agencies to Adopt High Performance and Sustainable Building Principles In order to save energy and protect our nation's environment, EPA and several federal agencies, including the Department of Defense and General Services Administration, agreed to a set of guiding principles for designing, building, and operating federal facilities. Energy efficiency is a key element of the principles, officially titled, "The Federal Leadership Memorandum of Understanding to adopt Guiding Principles for High Performance and Sustainable Buildings." [U.S. EPA Air News] 11:55:41 AM Google It!    [Schools] Dekalb County Public School System Honored for Their Efforts to Identify and Resolve Indoor Air Issues The DeKalb County Public School System in Decatur, Georgia has been awarded the EPA’s Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools (IAQ TfS) Leadership Award. The school system was recognized for demonstrating an awareness of IAQ concerns and proactively adopting methods to resolve and prevent future IAQ problems. [U.S. EPA Air News] 11:53:31 AM Google It!    [Energy efficiency] Energy-efficient, environmentally safe buildings win EPA recognition Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 2/2/06. Energy Star status was conferred on more than 2500 office buildings, schools, hospitals, and public buildings for superior energy and environmental performance in 2005 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The buildings, representing 482 million square feet, are saving an estimated $349 million annually in lower energy bills while meeting industry standards for comfort and indoor air quality. The buildings are preventing 1.8 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to emissions from 540,000 vehicles. [Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR) Environmental News] 11:51:29 AM Google It!    [Solar energy] OH: Lt. Governor announces $100,000 in grants for builders marketing solar energy systems Source: Ohio Department of Development, 2/1/06. Ohio Lt. Governor Bruce Johnson has announced the Ohio Department of Development will award $100,000 in grants funded through the Energy Loan Fund (ELF) for the installation of solar energy systems on model homes and newly built homes in the same development. [Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR) Environmental News] 11:50:17 AM Google It!    [Schools] Conference call: switch your school to safer cleaners Source: Healthy Schools Campaign, 1/31/06. To help school officials, teachers, facility managers, and parents learn more about switching to safer cleaning products, the Center for a New American Dream, in partnership with the Healthy Schools Campaign, is hosting a nationwide conference call on green cleaning, February 14 from 12:00 to 2:00 (Central Time). This interactive call will include green cleaning experts, school officials who have already successfully made the switch, and information on how to buy affordable, safer products from more than 50 manufacturers. The call with feature an Illinois school district, Lockport Township High School District 205. [Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR) Environmental News] 11:49:05 AM Google It!    [Meetings] National biodiesel conference goes green Source: National Biodiesel Board, 1/31/06. The National Biodiesel Conference & Expo, scheduled for February 5th - 8th in San Diego, has gone "green" for the first time. The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) has hired an agency to minimize the conference's environmental footprint. [Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR) Environmental News] 10:54:37 AM Google It!    [Coatings] Soy-based coatings have the pertroleum market covered Source: Biobased Solution, January 2006. Thanks in part to research and funding from the United Soybean Board (USB) and soybean checkoff, soy-based coatings have shown their versatility in new applications, including ultraviolet and electron beam curing, roof coatings and faux finishing in building artwork. [Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR) Environmental News] 10:51:57 AM Google It!    [CAFOs] Industrial Livestock Production Near Cities Often Damages the Environment Industrial livestock production in developing countries often causes severe environmental damages, especially when meat and dairy factories are crowded together around cities or close to water resources, FAO warned today. In a report entitled Livestock Policy Brief 02, Pollution from Industrialized Livestock Production, the UN agency urged governments to create incentives for more environmentally friendly dairy and meat production practices. [PR Newswire: Agriculture] 10:45:45 AM Google It!    [Environmental health] EPA's Hispanic Web Site Starts Second Year on High Note - Agency adds Hispanic environmental health page to site EPA has announced a new Hispanic environmental health page on its Spanish Web site. The new page discusses health and environmental issues associated with asthma, mold, and indoor carbon monoxide. The portal is part of the agency's continuing expansion of outreach to the Hispanic community. [U.S. EPA ~Other News Topics~ News] 10:42:39 AM Google It!    [Schools] Andover, Mass. Schools Awarded for Radon Program to Protect Children and Workers EPA has awarded the Andover, Mass. school district with a national award for effectively utilizing radon-resistant features in the construction of the new High Plain Elementary and Wood Hill Middle Schools. [U.S. EPA ~Other News Topics~ News] 10:39:55 AM Google It!    [Green building] Colorado a national leader in buildings with superior energy and environmental performance The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency welcomed 21 Colorado buildings to the 2005 Class of ENERGY STAR-Qualified Buildings, bringing Colorado’s total to 135 facilities recognized for superior energy and environmental performance. Only four states -- California, Texas, North Carolina and Virginia -- have more ENERGY STAR buildings than Colorado. [U.S. EPA ~Other News Topics~ News] 10:38:10 AM Google It!    [CAFOs] EPA Goes Ahead With Pollution Deals for Big Feedlots An EPA appeals board has approved the first of some 2,681 agreements with operators of large animal-feeding businesses that would grant amnesty for pollution in return for data that could help lower future emissions, the agency said Jan. 30. Environmentalists plan to challenge the deals in court, while agriculture groups praise them. John Heilprin filed the story for the Associated Press (via Seattle Post-Intelligencer) 1/30/2006. [SEJ Environmental Journalism Today] 10:35:17 AM Google It!    [Fuel prices] Clean-Diesel Phase-In This Year May Raise Prices Analysts expect that the price of diesel fuel will go up as EPA begins phasing in its requirements for lower-sulfur diesel beginning June 1, 2006. Matthew Robinson has the story for Reuters 2/2/06. [SEJ Environmental Journalism Today] 10:34:10 AM Google It!    [Sustainability] Sustainable Engineering, Defined We hear the term all the time -- "sustainable engineering." What is it, exactly, and why should we care? It's one of Carnegie Mellon Professor Cliff Davidson's passions. Find out more by listening to an interview with him at scienceandsociety.net, 1/24/06. [SEJ Environmental Journalism Today] 10:29:19 AM Google It!    [Energy efficiency] Coalition calls for fuel efficiency incentives for oil and gas customers HARTFORD, Conn. - A group of environmental and consumer advocates is calling on legislators to help create incentives that encourage residents and businesses to conserve heating oil, natural gas and propane. By By The Associated Press. [Stateline.org RSS - Energy] 10:23:30 AM Google It!    [Biofuels] Hoosier corn could ease country's 'oil addiction' President Bush's call for a nationwide shift toward alternative fuel sources could mean big business for Indiana, experts say, thanks to the state's place as one of the nation's top corn producers. By By Dan McFeely. [Stateline.org RSS - Energy] 10:21:32 AM Google It!    [Wind power] New data suggest Minnesota has more potential for wind energy Minnesota has more wind and more potential to transform it into electricity than previously estimated, state commerce officials said Tuesday. Large areas of northwestern, western and southern Minnesota have higher average wind speeds than the last study indicated in 2002, according to a new report. By By Tom Meersman. [Stateline.org RSS - Energy] 10:18:44 AM Google It!    [Wind power] Wind power plant planned in N.W. Mo ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Developers have announced plans for a wind energy project in northwest Missouri's Gentry County. By By The Associated Press. [Stateline.org RSS - Energy] 10:16:14 AM Google It!    [Fuel conservation] Don't drive alone if you can help it, ads urge In yet another bid to get gas-guzzling hogs off the roads, transportation officials have designed a batch of television commercials begging Oregonians to think twice -- actually, three or four times -- before making separate runs to the dry cleaner's, the hardware store, the supermarket and the video store. By By Lisa Grace Lednicer. [Stateline.org RSS - Energy] 10:14:56 AM Google It!    [Climate change] Illinois Creates First-Ever Program for Emissions Credits Trading Via Sustainablog: From the Illinois Government News Network via Black Bear Speaks, news that the state is taking a bold step forward with the trading of emissions credits: January 26, 2006 -- Today Illinois became the first state in the U.S. to offer farmers and other landowners the opportunity to earn and sell greenhouse gas emissions credits by adopting various conservation practices. These practices limit airborne levels of carbon dioxide and methane that are believed to contribute to global climate change. "This is a win-win project for both Illinois farmers and the environment, providing a little extra income, while reducing agricultural runoff impacting our lakes and streams and helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions," said Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director Doug Scott. The new project is called the Illinois Conservation and Climate Initiative (ICCI), and it is being implemented in partnership with the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX®), the Delta Institute, and an Advisory Committee representing Illinois agriculture and conservation groups. CCX is North America's only voluntary, legally binding greenhouse gas emission reduction and trading system. CCX allows the carbon benefits from these conservation practices to be quantified, credited and sold to its members, including large companies, municipalities, and institutions, that have made a commitment to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and wish to do so by purchasing carbon offset credits. The Delta Institute is a nonprofit organization that promotes environmental quality and community economic development. They are responsible for "aggregating" the credits from many different farmers and landowners in order to sell them in large blocks to CCX® members. State agencies, including the Illinois EPA and Illinois DNR, are conducting outreach and education to identify farmers who want to voluntarily participate. With our government's retiscence to even acknowledge climate change, voluntary measure like these provide the best means of demonstrating the economic potential of curbing greenhouse gases. Congrats to our friends across the river; let's hope Illinois' landowners recognize the opportunities that still confound our leaders in Washington. Categories: illinois, carbon, emissions, trading By noemail@noemail.org (Jeff McIntire-Strasburg). [sustainablog] 10:11:00 AM Google It!    [Corporate environmental responsibility] The 100 "Most Sustainable Companies," 2006 Edition The 2006 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations, the second annual such rankings, has just been released at the World Economic Forum conference in Davos, Switzerland. Despite its flaws, it's probably the best indicator of which large companies around the world are leading the race to the top. [Joel Makower: Two Steps Forward] 10:06:43 AM Google It!    [Corporate environmental responsibility] Timberland Reveals Its "Nutritional" Footprint Timberland, the often-maverick maker of footwear and apparel, last week unveiled a self-described "nutritional label" it plans to put on all of its shoeboxes in the coming year. It's the first time a footwear or apparel company has sought to label its products with information on their environmental and community impacts. It's a step in the right direction -- though it raises more questions than it answers. [Joel Makower: Two Steps Forward] 10:03:59 AM Google It!    [Biofuels] Biodiesel fuels oil heating sales Biodiesel is making headway in the home heating market as petroleum prices heat up. [Living] 10:00:22 AM Google It!    [Ecological restoration] City marsh set to get face-lift A $750,000 grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will help revitalize Hegewisch and the surrounding area. [Source: Chicago Tribune] 8:21:47 AM Google It!

© Copyright 2006 Laura L. Barnes. Last update: 3/6/2006; 11:32:04 AM.