What CO2 levels are power plants releasing worldwide?

Read the full story at SmartPlanet.

Have you ever wondered what emissions company plants are producing in your locale, and which countries are making an effort to keep pollution minimal? A new web tool lets you find out.

The Carbon Monitoring for Action (CARMA) tool, produced by the Center for Global Development, tracks the greenhouse gas emitted by over 50000 power plants and 4000 power companies worldwide. The Washington-based firm’s online tool tracks not only how much CO2 a plant produces, but users can search by country, state, province, county, metro area, city, power company, power plant, or zip code.

 

Turning Forests Into Carbon Banks

Read the full story in Governing.

More and more cities are using forests to absorb carbon dioxide and offset greenhouse gas emissions.

 

Obama Administration Approves 285,000 Acres of Utility-Scale Solar Power Across 6 Western States

Read the full story at Inhabitat.

Last week, the Obama Administration approved a plan that will make way for utility-scale solar developmenton 285,000 acres of public land in the Western US. The plan encompasses areas of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah and will create 17 “Solar Energy Zones.” It provides strong economic incentives for development within these zones, with allowances for faster and easier permitting as well as improved mitigation strategies.

 

Dow Jones adds Hershey to sustainability index

Read the full story in the Central Penn Business Journal.

The S&P Dow Jones Indices has added Dauphin County-based The Hershey Co. to its Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, an investing index that reviews the performance of some of the largest companies driven by sustainability measures.

 

Newsweek’s 2012 Green Rankings

Today, Newsweek released their latest rankings of the most and least sustainable companies.

 

Extended producer responsibility: 10 proposed EU golden rules

Download the position paper.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), if well applied in combination with other policy instruments, is a useful business model to promote sustainable production and consumption, enhance waste management performance, and thus move towards a resource-efficient society. While EPR implementation remains the responsibility of Member States, EU governance guidelines are needed to (i) ensure fair competition among stakeholders throughout the value chain in line with EU public procurement rules; (ii) enhance the efficiency and get the best economic and environmental benefits out of the existing EPR schemes; (iii) support the development of EPR schemes where needed, building on existing best practices without imposing additional burdens to industry or the company specific schemes. Companies* proposes 10 EU “golden rules” for the design and governance of EPR schemes.

 

A Little Less Cardboard Can Save You Millions

Read the full post at Huffington Post Business.

Using sustainability as strategy can drive change within a company’s supply chain by engaging suppliers and service providers with the resulting savings running into the millions of dollars a year.

A case in point: one of Canadian Tire’s most popular products is a six-foot folding utility table, selling many tens-of-thousands a year. The company collaborated with its supplier on product redesign and packaging to use less raw materials to make and package the product. Now, the tables use 11 per cent less plastic in their construction and occupy 15 per cent less volume for shipping. The annual savings for Canadian Tire: more than $375,000 a year as a result of reduced material, packaging and shipping costs.

 

Analytical Options for Biochar Adsorption and Surface Area

Download the white paper (free registration required).

Adsorption is a pivotal property that distinguishes biochar from other carbon-rich natural products. Adsorption also distinguishes superior biochars from less effective “agricultural charcoals”. Since biochar is so new, there are no analytical methods developed specifically to measure adsorption in biochar, nor any experience base to relate adsorption to biochar impact when added to growing systems.

Micromeritics Analytical Services and Soil Control Labs, representing the commercial options for surface area testing and soil property testing, have performed the available traditional analytical methods for adsorption and surface area on a suite of “standard biochars”. In addition, a research technique known as “Gravimetric Adsorption Capacity Scan” has been performed on the same standard biochars.

 

Biochar: Soil Amendment of the Future

Two-part post on biochar from the Minnesota Nursery and Landscape Association.

1. Biochar: Soil Amendment of the Future
2. Biochar: Part II