Tuesday, August 23, 2005

[Computer industry] Bioplastics used in new line of laptops Three Japanese companies team up to produce a bioplastic case for notebook computers. [Breaking News] 12:19:53 PM Google It!    [CAFOs] Environmentalists question state's plan to double pork production An agriculture plan that calls for Indiana to double its pork production by 2025 has worried some environmentalists who fear that adding all those extra hogs - and their excrement -- will worsen the state's air and water quality. By By The Associated Press. [Stateline.org RSS - Environment] 12:18:35 PM Google It!    [Lawn care] Danger In The Grass? It's happening in Canada, and there's a move afoot in this country, too, to make lawns both attractive and environmentally friendly. More from the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Fran Henry, 8/22/05. [SEJ: Environmental Journalism Today] 12:16:14 PM Google It!    [Hybrid cars] Pumped-Up Incentive For Hybrids The Houston Chronicle's David Ivanovich reports gas-electric cars are gaining in popularity, but it could take more than record-high fuel and a new tax credit to convert the holdouts, 8/21/05. [SEJ: Environmental Journalism Today] 12:15:40 PM Google It!    [Sustainable product design] Birth of a 'Cradle-to-Cradle' certification The McDonough Braungart design duo has created a certification for products that can be recycled indefinitely. [Recycled Markets] 12:07:20 PM Google It!    [Peak oil] "Peak Oil:" Welcome to the media's new version of shark attacks Excellent critique of the cover story of the New York Times Sunday Magazine written by Peter Maass about "Peak Oil" from the author of Freakonomics. 12:06:39 PM Google It!    [Hybrid cars] The Promise and Politics of Plug-In Hybrids Via sustainablog: I'm not the first to notice this short article from Wired on plug-in hybrids, but I want to pass it along as it gives a nice overview of a technology that could serve as the next generation of cleaner personal transportation. A couple of interesting things about plug-ins and the buzz growing around them: There's a sort of grassroots movement on the rise to convert standard hybrids to plug-ins, and the big automakers are taking notice: Toyota officials who initially frowned on people altering their cars now say they may be able to learn from them. "They're like the hot rodders of yesterday who did everything to soup up their cars. It was all about horsepower and bling-bling, lots of chrome and accessories," said Cindy Knight, a Toyota spokeswoman. "Maybe the hot rodders of tomorrow are the people who want to get in there and see what they can do about increasing fuel economy." The extra electrical charge is generally only good for "the first few miles of driving, but according to engineer and plug-in enthusiast Ron Gremban, "The average for people's usage of a car is somewhere around 30 to 40 miles per day. During that kind of driving, the plug-in hybrid can make a dramatic difference." Finally, security hawks like James Woolsey and Frank Gaffney are plugging plug-ins as an important element of weening the US from foreign oil: Gaffney, who heads the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Security Policy, said Americans would embrace plug-ins if they understood arguments from him and others who say gasoline contributes to oil-rich Middle Eastern governments that support terrorism. "The more we are consuming oil that either comes from places that are bent on our destruction or helping those who are ... the more we are enabling those who are trying to kill us," Gaffney said. Of course, this article doesn't mention one of the other promising aspects of the plug-in hybrid: in time, they'll be able to put power back into the electrical grid. According to HybridCars.com, Someday, the larger battery packs used in plug-in hybrids could juggle power back and forth from the car to your household current. If adopted on a widespread basis, a fleet of plug-in (a.k.a. "gridable" hybrids) could offer what are called "regulatory services" (keeping voltages steady, etc.) to a modernized electric power grid. It is estimated that what's called "V2G" could benefit individual car owners by as much as two to three thousand dollars per year for the use of their energy storage capacity—offsetting their purchase and operating costs. [sustainablog] 12:02:56 PM Google It!    [Sustainable communities] Grand Rapids forms Sustainability Partnership Via sustainablog: I've discussed on a number of occasions how states and local communities in the US are doing a much better job of addressing environmental concerns than our national government. The city of Grand Rapids, MI, is proving this the case again with the formation of it's Community Sustainability Partnership: [Grand Rapids Mayor George] Heartwell, who made sustainability the centerpiece of this year's "State of the City" speech, was to announce today that top officials from the city's public schools and several colleges are joining the city in forming a "Community Sustainability Partnership." Partners scheduled to attend this morning's signing ceremony included: # Bert Bleke, Grand Rapids Public Schools superintendent # Juan Olivarez, president of Grand Rapids Community College # Harry Knopke, president of Aquinas College # Mark Murray, president of Grand Valley State University "We're all convinced this is about the future of not only our organizations, but the entire community," Heartwell said. "It's about leaving a better community for our children." The three-year partnership will create a framework and measurements for their sustainability programs. While the article doesn't mention specific goals of the partnership (I'm guessing that's a part of the three-year program), it does demonstrate that strategic partnerships like this are possible at the local level. I'm inspired by the fact that Mayor Heartwell is pushing the concept of sustainability itself and attempting to bring citizens together to make it a part of Grand Rapids' community life. Hopefully, this will lead to a larger discussion of the issue within the city's educational community, and perhaps even more attention in school and college curriculums. [sustainablog] 12:01:16 PM Google It!    [Persistent organic pollutants] Sperm Whales Bear Testimony to Worldwide Pollution Sperm whales across the Pacific, even in midocean areas thought to be pristine, are accumulating humanmade chemicals called persistent organic pollutants. Author: Dan Ferber [Science: This Week's News] 11:59:15 AM Google It!    [Ecology] Re-Wilding the Great Plains Should there be camels in Kansas? Elephants roaming Illinois? A new paper published in the journal Nature proposed "re-wilding" North America, by introducing populations of large animals related to ones that roamed the Great Plains during the Pleistocene era. [NPR Topics: Environment] 11:58:07 AM Google It!    [Schools] Neighborhood science lessons for teachers Some teachers say today's students know very little about where their food comes from, or why they should worry about the health of local fish and wildlife. And they say that makes subjects like biology and ecology boring. It also reduces students' interest in protecting the environment. These teachers are finding a way to bring science home. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium's Linda Stephan reports. 11:57:19 AM Google It!    [Green building] Return of the cordwood house Article in Mother Earth News about a family who constructed a house from cordwood. 11:56:15 AM Google It!    [Environmental health] REACHing balance: Europe weighs health vs industry. BRUSSELS (Reuters) - What price Europe's health? The question lies at the heart of a debate over a draft chemicals law that detractors say could cost Europe its dominance of the lucrative sector. [Reuters: Science] 11:42:43 AM Google It!    [Biofuels] Ontario pays to convert forest waste to fuel Natural Resources Minister David Ramsay says the government will provide $771,000 for an alternative energy project to help northern Ontario communities. [Source: National Post, Canada] 11:41:51 AM Google It!    [Biofuels] Green Mountain Power Trucks to Run on Green Fuel The next time you pass a Green Mountain Power linetruck on the highway, you may notice a slight smell of French fries. That's because Green Mountain Power's fleet of linetrucks will begin using biodiesel fuel, an alternative fuel made from animal fat and vegetable oil, primarily soybean, as a result of a new fuel arrangement with Champlain Oil Company. [ENN Business Headlines] 11:40:24 AM Google It!    [Energy efficiency] Several Airports Conserve Energy by Installing Power Efficiency Controllers Power Efficiency Corporation announced that a leading elevator and escalator manufacturer has sold and installed EcoStart controllers in the escalators and elevators at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. [ENN Business Headlines] 11:39:38 AM Google It!    [Toxic chemicals] New Version of TOXMAP Available Resources, Reports, Tools, Lists, and Full Text Documents Toxic Chemicals--United States--Databases Source: NLM New Version of TOXMAP Available "TOXMAP is an interactive web site from the National Library of Medicine that shows the amount and location of reported toxic chemicals released into the environment on maps of the United States. TOXMAP allows users to visually explore information about releases of toxic chemicals by industrial facilities around the United States as reported annually to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)." [ResourceShelf] 11:38:23 AM Google It!    [Biofuels] The Onion on biofuels (humor) Amusing, as always. [Gristmill] 11:36:58 AM Google It!    [Garbage] Landfills become learning experiences Smelly sludge sewage fields and landfills aren't the usual stuff of tours in a city that likes to show off its architecture and lakefront parks. But people are paying $7 to see some of Chicago's less desirable spots on a "Down in the Dumps" tour of more than a dozen garbage sites including a waste water treatment plant, recycling center and landfills. [Source: Associated Press via the Peoria Journal-Star] 11:34:55 AM Google It!    [Recycling] Too good to just toss Nearly 12 million used cans are shipped out of Tallahassee each year to be recycled and filled with new beverages. [Source: Tallahassee Democrat] 11:33:16 AM Google It!    [Dental mercury] Mercury disposal by dentists becomes focus of DEP review Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection has entered the debate over the safe disposal of mercury. In partnership with the Pennsylvania Dental Association, the DEP has issued voluntary guidelines for how to dispose of mercury, which is highly toxic, especially in its basic form. [Source: Philadelphia Inquirer] 11:31:09 AM Google It!

© Copyright 2005 Laura L. Barnes. Last update: 10/25/2005; 12:11:34 PM.