Manufacturers ‘Freaked Out’ about Climate Guidelines
Manufacturers are “very freaked out” by new climate change standards that President Obama will reportedly issue in the coming weeks, Bloomberg reports. According to the news agency, Obama will set...
View ArticleRGGI Auction Raises $106m
The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative cap-and-trade program raised $105.9 million for green reinvestment from its latest allowance auction, the program has announced. Some 37,835,405 CO2 allowances...
View ArticleHow Microbes Around Plants Translate Into Energy Savings
Some air purifying technology originally developed by NASA could eventually purify the air in buildings so much that it would drastically reduce the need to replace air, which in turn would result in...
View ArticleAquafil, Star Sock to Turn Fishing Nets into Socks
Nylon polymer manufacturer Aquafil, sock company Star Sock, and the European Centre for Nature Conservation Land & Sea Group have launched an initiative to remove marine litter — in particular used...
View ArticleDr Pepper Donates $300,000 for Recycling Bins
Dr Pepper Snapple Group has donated $300,000 to Keep America Beautiful to put recycling bins in public parks. The Public Park Recycling Grant program is part of a one-year collaboration between the two...
View ArticleStandards & Compliance Briefing: Building Automation, ISO 140001 Changes, BPA...
ASHRAE, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, has published ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 135-2012, BACnet – A Data Communication Protocol for Building Automation and...
View ArticleAccenture, CGI, Deloitte, IBM Top Green Technology Services Poll
Accenture, CGI, Deloitte and IBM have emerged as leaders in the global market for the design and implementation of IT systems that support energy and environmental management, according to a Verdantix...
View ArticleVehicles Sold in 2012 Most Fuel-Efficient Ever
Fuel economy values increased 16 percent between 2007 and 2012 while CO2 emissions dropped 13 percent, according to the EPA’s annual report that tracks the fuel efficiency of vehicles sold in the US....
View ArticleWhy We Need Building Science
Building science, like any other variety of science, is largely about comparing one set of performance numbers to another. We want to know how much air, how much moisture or how much heat passes...
View ArticleAmerica’s Infrastructure Receives D+ Grade
America’s infrastructure will need an estimated $3.6 trillion in total investment by 2020, leaving a funding shortfall of $1.6 trillion, according to an assessment by the American Society of Civil...
View ArticlePatagonia ‘Disappointed’ not to Make Most Ethical Companies List
Patagonia — which made the World’s Most Ethical Companies list six years running before being dropped from the 2013 edition — told Environmental Leader it’s disappointed it wasn’t included and has...
View ArticleHigh-Mast LEDs Cast Plenty of Light on Highway
The goal of an Idaho highway lighting project was to light a new interstate interchange with LED fixtures and utilize high-mast poles to minimize the number of poles needed in the design. State...
View ArticleFEMA Mandatory Flood Insurance ‘Not Effective,’ Report Says
The Federal Emergency Management Agency should not extend its mandatory flood insurance program to areas without levees and needs a more modern approach to analyzing and managing flood risk behind...
View ArticleReusable Textiles Greener Than Disposables
Reusable shop towels, food service napkins and healthcare isolation gowns have a lower impact on the environment and performed better than disposal products in lifecycle assessments, according to...
View ArticlePolicy & Enforcement Briefing: Soot Suit, Water Project Act, Nuclear Approval
The National Association of Manufacturers has filed a lawsuit in the US Court of Appeals challenging EPA rules, issued in December, that would lower the annual soot exposure standard from 15 to 12...
View ArticleVerizon MAGIC Buses Cut CO2, Save Gas
Verizon has rolled out a fleet of 25 buses in New York City that will reduce CO2 by more than 645 metric tons, compared to the older trucks, and save the company more than 70,000 gallons of gasoline...
View ArticleNRC: Car Petroleum Use, GHG Emissions Could Drop 80%
The US could reduce petroleum use and cars’ greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050 compared to 2005 levels by using more efficient vehicles, alternative fuels and implementing strong government...
View ArticleInnovation and Sustainability
(Or creating “new” value) In one of my previous articles, the subject of externalized costs was dealt with in some detail — the idea that we are not really paying for the true expenses associated with...
View ArticleStarbucks Expands $70m Sourcing Program
Starbucks Coffee Company is expanding its $70 million ethical sourcing program with a new farming research and development center in Costa Rica intended to help coffee farmers around the world mitigate...
View ArticleNike Supply Chain to Use Bluesign Sustainability Tools
Nike has partnered with Bluesign Technologies in an effort to use more sustainable materials and chemistries in its products. The partnership makes available Bluesign’s assessments tools and data to...
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