Wednesday, July 13, 2005

[Schools] High School Trades Textbooks for iBooks Empire High School, part of the Vail Unified School District of Arizona located outside of Tucson, will open its doors next week to welcome 350 new students who will participate in the state's first all-laptop, all-wireless public high school. [Source: PC Magazine] 12:42:06 PM Google It!    [Corporate sustainability] $1 billion for the greening of Wells Fargo Wells Fargo & Co. said Monday that it will put its money where its mouth is, bolstering a 10-point environmental responsibility plan with a commitment of $1 billion over the next five years. [Source: San Francisco Business Times] 12:38:45 PM Google It!    [Landfills] As urban landfills close, garbage travels further Article in Newsday chronicles the journey of garbage from large urban areas to landfills hundreds of miles away. 12:28:01 PM Google It!    [Invasive species] 'Invasive' species explored in eye-opening odyssey A review of Out of Eden: An Odyssey of Ecological Invasion, a new book by Alan Burdick, the senior editor for Discover magazine. [Source: Houston Chronicle] 12:24:04 PM Google It!    [Green building] APS grant helps build 'green' NAU building A half-million-dollar grant from Arizona Public Service Co. will help pay for the "greenest" building to date on the Northern Arizona University campus. The money will go toward construction of the university's Applied Research and Development building, with the goal of qualifying it for a "platinum" rating from the U.S. Green Building Council. [Source: Arizona Republic] 12:01:52 PM Google It!    [Energy efficiency] Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for Homes, Businesses and Industry A nice set of energy efficiency resources from the Vermont Department of Public Service's Energy Efficiency Division. 12:00:33 PM Google It!    [E-waste] Out with the old phone, in with the cash RipMobile is one of many companies willing to pay in cash or merchandise for old cellphones. Prices vary depending on the phone's continued utility and the demand for it; some can be worth $100 (U.S.) or more. Popular Motorola and Nokia phones will typically bring $2 to $20; the hottest models, like Motorola's Moto Razr V3, seem to fetch the most. Instead of dollars, RipMobile gives points that can be converted to gift certificates at Circuit City, MSN Music, KarmaLoop (for clothing) and RingToneJukeBox.com (ring tones, games and screen savers for cellphones). [Source: Toronto Globe and Mail] 11:58:46 AM Google It!    [Wind energy] PSC approves state's largest wind farm Wisconsin regulators approved plans Friday to build the largest wind farm in Wisconsin. The 200-megawatt project across 50 square miles would be located just east of the Horicon Marsh - a state and federal refuge that has long been a mecca for birds and other wildlife. [Source: Milwaukee (WI) Journal Sentinel) 11:53:16 AM Google It!    [Wind energy] South Farms may get wind turbine The University of Illinois may put a wind turbine on the South Farms, with the help of money generated from a student clean energy fee. [Source: Champaign-Urbana (IL) News-Gazette] 11:48:48 AM Google It!    [Green building] Building support for 'green' housing Article from the Boston Globe about the Massachusetts Green Communities Initiative, a multimillion-dollar collaborative effort designed to encourage more affordable and energy-efficient public housing. 11:46:33 AM Google It!    [Solar energy] Seeing the Holographic Solar Answer A new company believes holographic technologies might be next promising frontier for increasing energy efficiency from solar photovoltaic modules. [Source: RenewableEnergyAccess.com] 11:40:07 AM Google It!    [Climate change] Summary of G8 Summit: Climate Change While the recent bombings in London greatly overshadowed the G8 Summit held July 6-8, in Gleneagles, Scotland, there wasn't much to note regarding climate change. According to the Pew Center for Climate Change, the event concluded with no major binding initiatives to limit greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. [Source: RenewableEnergyAccess.com] 11:39:13 AM Google It!    [Alternative energy] Vermont Adopts Unique Approach to Promote Renewable Energy With a signature from Governor Jim Douglas, Vermont has joined the steady procession of states adopting their own mandates for the use of renewable energy. The state's new renewables portfolio standard (RPS) law requires utilities in the state to meet any new load growth in the next seven years with renewable energy resources. [Source: RenewableEnergyAccess.com] 11:38:02 AM Google It!    [Parts cleaning] Keeping It Clean: Automotive Industry Drives Standards for Machined Part and Assembly Cleanliness World-class manufacturing emphasizes repeatable specifications and manufacturing standards for components through machining, assembly and final test. Uniformity provides the capability to develop a true “net” cost for a component or assembly, leading to informed decisions for capital investment in line with requirements. The preferred process allows that parts are “ready to use” when received for just-in-sequence and lean-manufacturing methodologies. [Source: CleanTech] 11:35:47 AM Google It!    [Cleaning] Going Green: Improved Grease and Oil Cleaning with Protein-Enhanced Surfactants Effective cleaning of oil- and grease-related soils is a slippery issue in industrial, commercial and consumer uses. The performance of cleaners must be balanced with environmental and personal safety issues with today’s products. This article discusses the environmental and safety issues of protein-enhanced surfactants. [Source: CleanTech] 11:34:46 AM Google It!    [Hybrid cars] The Marketplace Report: Ford's Hot Hybrid SUV Ford's new gas-electric hybrid SUV, the Ford Mercury Mariner, went on sale Monday. The vehicle costs $4,000 more than the equivalent gas-only version, but sales are hot. Madeleine Brand talks with Tess Vigeland of Marketplace about an endorsement from the Sierra Club that might be helping sales. [NPR Topics: Technology] 11:13:16 AM Google It!    [Biofuels] Turning Waste to Wealth Advancing at Farms RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- Jim Voss hopes his company will make a fortune out of garbage - specifically the methane gas produced when tons of trash decay in landfills across the nation.  [AP Top Science News At 10:28 a.m. EDT] 11:11:09 AM Google It!    [Pollution prevention measurement ] Comparative Plant-level Analysis of Three Voluntary Environmental Programs EPA Project conducted by: Resources for the Future Project start date: 01/01/2003 Project end date: 12/31/2005 Project objective: Over the past decade, voluntary programs have played an increasingly important role in environmental management and pollution control. Recent plans by the government to enhance the nation’s voluntary greenhouse gas registry suggest that this trend may be accelerating. Yet existing voluntary programs -- several of which have a track record dating back a decade or more -- have been subject to only limited empirical evaluations. Among these evaluations, most rely on gross comparisons of emission outcomes between participants and non-participants that are likely to be biased: the decision to participate may not be random (e.g., exogenous) and, in particular, may be correlated with the outcomes. For example, firms in declining industries might be disproportionately represented among participants in a voluntary emission reduction program-but it would be inappropriate to attribute emission reductions related to an industry’s decline to the voluntary program. This research will identify several factors influencing the success of voluntary programs. [Recent EPA Catalog Records.] 11:09:24 AM Google It!    [Mercury] Bowling Green State University Mercury Collection Program The Bowling Green State University Mercury Collection Program was established following the report of young children who had contaminated themselves and several buildings with elemental mercury. Participants in the program include Bowling Green State University, Ohio EPA District Offices (Division of Emergency and Remedial Response), Rader Environmental Services, the Ohio Spill Planning, Prevention, and Emergency Response Association (OSPPERA), and Toledo Environmental Services. The Wood County Emergency Management Agency and the Wood County Health Department have also assisted in this effort. The program involves the collection of uncontaminated elemental mercury from a variety of sources. These sources include thermometers, manometers, barometers, sphygmomanometers (blood pressure measurement devices), mercury-containing heating thermostats, mercury switches, as well as individual containers of elemental mercury. The program is available and FREE to individuals, academic institutions, small businesses, industries, medical and dental facilities, emergency response and other governmental agencies, spill response companies, and any additional entity having unwanted, uncontaminated elemental mercury. Although this service is free, a Foundation account has been established for tax free donations to help defer the costs of running this program. The program, begun in 1998, has been successful in removing over 11,700 pounds of elemental mercury from through Ohio, Indiana, southern Michigan, western Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Texas, and Nebraska. The mercury, once consolidated, is sent for reclamation to either Bethlehem Apparatus Products in Hellertown, PA or Mercury Solutions in Grove Port, WI. [ChemAlliance Environmental News] 11:03:41 AM Google It!    [Schools] Environmental Media Northwest EMN is a Washington state-based, non-profit organization that produces public service announcements for radio, television, and movie theatres. They promote hydrogen as an alternative energy source, and provide a directory of hydrogen Internet links. EMN also created a youth ecology program and fictional ecologist, Captain Ozone. Site offers a VHS-quality documentary about Captain Ozone that can be burned to a CD for your library. [SEJ: Useful links] 11:02:20 AM Google It!    [Biotechnology] Biotech Bugs: A Look at the Science and Public Policy Surrounding the Release of Genetically Modified Insects Genetically Modified Insects Source: Pew Intiative on Food and Biotechnology Biotech Bugs: A Look at the Science and Public Policy Surrounding the Release of Genetically Modified Insects "Genetically modified insects -- insects that have had genes engineered into them or their symbiotic bacteria -- may offer enormous benefits in protecting public health and agriculture.... As with other areas of biotechnology, however, questions are being raised about the safety of these uses of genetically modified insects. GM insects could pose environmental, agricultural, or public health risks. In general, the introduction of genetically modified organisms to the environment is likely to be a sensitive political, ethical, ecological, and economic issue.... This two-day multidisciplinary workshop will provide an exploration of the potential benefits and risks of genetically engineered insects and the public policy and ethical implications of releasing them." Conference held September 20-21, 2004 at The George Washington University Cafritz Conference Center. Site includes: + Archived Webcast + Proceedings (PDF; 924 KB) Also available in Spanish and French. + GM Insect Research Poster Abstracts and Presentations [ResourceShelf's DocuTicker] 10:58:08 AM Google It!    [Alternative fuels] Renewable Fuels Legislation Impact Analysis Renewable Fuels Source: Energy Information Administration Renewable Fuels Legislation Impact Analysis "On March 29, 2005, Senator James Jeffords requested that the Energy Information Administration (EIA) analyze the near- and mid-term potential price and supply effects of enacting S. 606, the Reliable Fuels Act, or S. 650, the Fuels Security Act of 2005, relative to a case without either legislation.1 Senator Jeffords also requested an analysis of regional impacts for the Northeast and the Southwest. On May 23, 2005, EIA responded to Senator Jeffords' request with an analysis based on an extension of the ethanol supply curve in our model to allow for enough ethanol production to meet the requirements of S. 650. Subsequently, in the course of preparing to analyze H.R. 6, the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which also contains ethanol provisions, EIA staff discovered a mistake in implementing this extension that lead us to underestimate projected baseline ethanol use and overestimate the gasoline price impact of the ethanol mandates in the two Senate bills. This analysis provides an update of the May 23, 2005 analysis, with revised ethanol production and cost assumptions." [ResourceShelf's DocuTicker] 10:56:22 AM Google It!    [Environmental advocacy] Green Groups Look to Build Minority Support National environmental groups have a very small percentage of members who are ethnic or racial minorities. Part of the problem is the lack of connection between the grassroots environmental justice issues that are often focused in minority neighborhoods, and the more global agendas of the national organizations. [NPR Topics: Environment] 10:55:30 AM Google It!    [E-waste] E-Waste Helps First Responders First-line emergency services responders are reaping the benefits of e-waste recycling. The Department of Energy, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security, has developed a nationwide program that allows old and excess equipment to be used by first responders such as the police, firefighters or paramedics who arrive first at emergencies. [ENN Business Headlines] 10:54:33 AM Google It!    [Biofuels] North Carolina Power Program Will Convert Manure, Garbage into Energy Renewable-energy advocates have discovered electricity in some unlikely places: Pig manure and decaying garbage. Both types of waste are dirt cheap, readily abundant and loaded with energy. That's because as waste decays, it emits methane, an odorless, flammable gas that can be burned to run a generator. [ENN Business Headlines] 10:53:58 AM Google It!    [Energy efficiency] Industrial Efficiency Alliance The Industrial Efficiency Alliance helps Northwest industries gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace through strategic, broad-based energy management. [EERE Network News] 10:53:24 AM Google It!    [Wind power] New National Coalition to Promote Wind Power As a broad national coalition of wind energy advocates prepare to launch a new pro-wind organization, a new large wind plant is operating in Oklahoma, and more large wind plants are slated for California, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. [EERE Network News] 10:52:41 AM Google It!    [Hybrid cars] Mariner Hybrid on Sale as Honda Unveils Improved Hybrid System Ford Motor Company began selling its second hybrid sport utility vehicle, the Mercury Mariner Hybrid, on July 11th. Hybrid sedans will soon have a new contender as well, as Honda is preparing to launch a redesigned Honda Civic Hybrid that features a new, improved hybrid powertrain. [EERE Network News] 10:52:07 AM Google It!

© Copyright 2005 Laura L. Barnes. Last update: 10/25/2005; 12:11:16 PM.