Comprehensive clean energy and climate change legislation now before Congress could create 13,000 jobs in Montana by 2020 and would increase average household incomes in the state, according to research announced today by environmental groups.
The groups releasing the information include Climate Solutions and Montana Business Leaders for Clean Energy; CERES; the Clean Economy Network; and Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2).
According to the groups, “clean energy legislation would create 918,000 to 1.9 million new jobs nationally, and increase national GDP by $39 billion to $111 billion more than what would occur without the legislation.”
In Montana, passage of the legislation would increase the GDP by as much as $500 million a year, and could increase annual average household income by as much as $1,700, the study shows. (To read the study in full, go to E2’s list of individual states, and click on Montana.)
The research—a collaborative effort by the University of California, Yale University and the University of Illinois—looked at the impacts of the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, which is being heard this week in the U.S. Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee. The legislation calls for energy efficiency, renewable energy, and a cap-and-trade program for reducing carbon emissions.
Here are some highlights from the study, taken verbatim from the groups’ announcement:
–”Montana has significant and largely untapped potential renewable resources, particularly in wind power and biofuels.”
– “Energy efficiency provisions in the legislation will reduce the costs for transportation, heating, electricity, etc., saving households, farmers and ranchers, and businesses money—money they can spend on domestic goods and services and create jobs.”
–”Clean energy legislation will strengthen national security by reducing America’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.”
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Eco-Friendly Clothing To Save The Earth
Technology, industrialisation, plastic money etc, are terms generally associated with development but little do we remember that these same terms are also the cause of ecological degradation. A lot of natural products are exploited for all the modern amenities we enjoy in our day to day life, including our clothes. Today, Earth is endangered with constant exploitation of nature and thus, the term eco-friendly, has gained importance.
For most of us cotton clothes are the definition of eco-friendly clothing but the reality is different. In the process of growing cotton used in our clothes, a lot of pesticide are used which has an inverse effect on the agricultural land. It is also called green clothing and aims at using materials which do not harm the nature and is biodegradable.
Some of the regular products used to make eco-friendly clothing are -
Organic Cotton – There is no use of pesticides, herbicides or insecticides in the process of growing the crop. Plantation of organic cotton is gaining popularity in many parts of the world.
Bamboo Fabric – Such clothes are made out of Bamboo Pulp. It does not need chlorine to bleach it and can be dyed easily with the use of very less amount of water.
Natural Dyes – Usually, harsh chemicals are used to dye the dresses and the same waste is then disposed in rivers and land. This destroys the eco system. Natural dyes on the other hand uses natural products like heena, beet root, berries etc, to colour clothes. These do not have any bad effect on the environment and also has grown up to be a fashion trend.
Jute – Jute is yet another product used in eco-friendly clothing. The process of making jute clothes does not demand chemicals. Jute shoes are also a great alternative to leather. Leather, need a lot of chemicals to polish and a smooth finish, unlike jute.
Eco-friendly Clothing In India
Eco-friendly clothing has grown up to be a leading trend among people and specially with Top brands like Van Heusen, Benetton, Wills Lifestyle, Arrow etc, introducing green clothing, the trend is a hit among teenagers.
In India, this trend was heralded by designer Anita Dongre’s label Grassroot, in 2007. Van Heusen's, brand Mudura Garments, launched it's green clothing as an attempt and was an instant hit.
Levi's, famous for their organic jeans in US has now decided to launch the same in India. The jeans will be made out of organic cotton and natural dyes. The button, on the other hand will be made out of coconut shell.
If natural products are used for clothes all cross the globe, it can reduce the natural degradation to a large extent. So, go -green with your dressing, to save the Earth.
For most of us cotton clothes are the definition of eco-friendly clothing but the reality is different. In the process of growing cotton used in our clothes, a lot of pesticide are used which has an inverse effect on the agricultural land. It is also called green clothing and aims at using materials which do not harm the nature and is biodegradable.
Some of the regular products used to make eco-friendly clothing are -
Organic Cotton – There is no use of pesticides, herbicides or insecticides in the process of growing the crop. Plantation of organic cotton is gaining popularity in many parts of the world.
Bamboo Fabric – Such clothes are made out of Bamboo Pulp. It does not need chlorine to bleach it and can be dyed easily with the use of very less amount of water.
Natural Dyes – Usually, harsh chemicals are used to dye the dresses and the same waste is then disposed in rivers and land. This destroys the eco system. Natural dyes on the other hand uses natural products like heena, beet root, berries etc, to colour clothes. These do not have any bad effect on the environment and also has grown up to be a fashion trend.
Jute – Jute is yet another product used in eco-friendly clothing. The process of making jute clothes does not demand chemicals. Jute shoes are also a great alternative to leather. Leather, need a lot of chemicals to polish and a smooth finish, unlike jute.
Eco-friendly Clothing In India
Eco-friendly clothing has grown up to be a leading trend among people and specially with Top brands like Van Heusen, Benetton, Wills Lifestyle, Arrow etc, introducing green clothing, the trend is a hit among teenagers.
In India, this trend was heralded by designer Anita Dongre’s label Grassroot, in 2007. Van Heusen's, brand Mudura Garments, launched it's green clothing as an attempt and was an instant hit.
Levi's, famous for their organic jeans in US has now decided to launch the same in India. The jeans will be made out of organic cotton and natural dyes. The button, on the other hand will be made out of coconut shell.
If natural products are used for clothes all cross the globe, it can reduce the natural degradation to a large extent. So, go -green with your dressing, to save the Earth.
New innovations in Saving energy
Hotel offers free meal to guests who are willing to generate electricity >
The Crown Plaza Hotel in Copenhagen , Denmark , is offering a free meal to any guest who is able to produce electricity for the hotel on an exercise bike attached to a generator. Guests will have to produce at least 10 watt hours of electricity - roughly 15 minutes of cycling for someone of average fitness. They will then be given meal vouchers worth $36 (26 euros).
Disco pub gets electricity produced by people dancing at specially modified dance floor
All the flashing strobes and pounding speakers at the dance club are massive consumers of electrical power. So Bar Surya, in London, re-outfitted its floor with springs that, when compressed by dancers, could produce electrical current that would be stored in batteries and used to offset some of the club's electrical burden. The club's owner, Andrew Charalambous, said the dance floor can now power 60 percent of the club's energy needs.
Company creates a desktop printer that doesn't use ink nor paper
Who says printers only use paper to print documents? It's time for you to meet the PrePeat Printer then. Different from conventional printers, PrePeat adopts a thermal head to print on specially-made plastic sheets. These plastic sheets are not merely water-proof, but could be easily erased, just feed the sheets through the printer again, and a different temperature will erase everything or just write over it. Also claimed by the manufacturer, such one sheet could be used up to 1,000 times so that you'll reduce your expenses on paper for sure.
University constructs a green roof as a gathering place
Green design is an enormously popular trend in modern architecture, just take a look at this amazing green roof at the School of Art , Design and Media at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore . This 5-story facility sweeps a wooded corner of the campus with an organic, vegetated form that blends landscape and structure, nature and high-tech and symbolizes the creativity it houses. The roofs serve as informal gathering spaces challenging linear ideas and stirring perception. The roofs create open space, insulate the building, cool the surrounding air and harvest rainwater for landscaping irrigation. Planted grasses mix with native greenery to colonize the building and bond it to the setting.
Designer creates a sink that uses wasted water to grow a plant
Made of polished stained concrete, the Zen Garden Sink has a channel that allows the water used while washing your hands to water a plant. Created by young Montreal designer Jean-Michel Gauvreau the sink comes in single or double basin model. The sink is designed in a way you won't get your plants all soapy. There is a main drain at the bottom of the basin for soapy grime. Your little plant friend just gets whatever you choose to dole out.
Designer creates a shower that forces you to leave when you've wasted too much water
20% of our total domestic energy usage is from hot water for showering and bathing. That's over 6 times the energy usage of domestic lighting. So designer Tommaso Colia came up with his eco-friendly shower design that will force you to get out when you take too long and waste much water. The eco_drop shower features beautiful concentric circles that will rise to force you to stop showering when you take too long, and accordingly save water.
Designer creates light-switch that changes colors to teach children how to save energy
Teaching the importance of energy conservation is the goal of this design from Tim Holley. He calls it Tio, and it's a ghost-shaped light switch that gives kids a visual reminder of how much energy they've used by leaving lights on. Tio starts out green and smiling. If the light is left on for more than four hours, he turns yellow and looks shocked. And if you dare to leave that light on for more than eight hours, sweet little Tio turns into a raging red hulk, complete with frowny mouth and angry eyes. But he won't just visually remind your kids about their energy habits; information from the light switch is sent to Tio's computer program so the entire family can see how they're doing. In a brilliant piece of visual positive reinforcement, Holley's program lets kids grow a virtual tree which gets bigger and healthier the more energy they save.
Environmental company creates a staple-free stapler to avoid staple pollution
Staples are supposed to be so bad to the environment that a company decided to create a staple-free stapler. This product promises to make collation eco-friendly. Instead of using those thin metal planet-killers, the staple-free stapler "cuts out tiny strips of paper and uses the strips to stitch up to five pieces of paper together." You can even order them customized with your corporate logo so you can, you know, brag about what your company is doing to stop the staple epidemic.
Designer creates an iPhone charger powered by a hand grip
The Crown Plaza Hotel in Copenhagen , Denmark , is offering a free meal to any guest who is able to produce electricity for the hotel on an exercise bike attached to a generator. Guests will have to produce at least 10 watt hours of electricity - roughly 15 minutes of cycling for someone of average fitness. They will then be given meal vouchers worth $36 (26 euros).
Disco pub gets electricity produced by people dancing at specially modified dance floor
All the flashing strobes and pounding speakers at the dance club are massive consumers of electrical power. So Bar Surya, in London, re-outfitted its floor with springs that, when compressed by dancers, could produce electrical current that would be stored in batteries and used to offset some of the club's electrical burden. The club's owner, Andrew Charalambous, said the dance floor can now power 60 percent of the club's energy needs.
Company creates a desktop printer that doesn't use ink nor paper
Who says printers only use paper to print documents? It's time for you to meet the PrePeat Printer then. Different from conventional printers, PrePeat adopts a thermal head to print on specially-made plastic sheets. These plastic sheets are not merely water-proof, but could be easily erased, just feed the sheets through the printer again, and a different temperature will erase everything or just write over it. Also claimed by the manufacturer, such one sheet could be used up to 1,000 times so that you'll reduce your expenses on paper for sure.
University constructs a green roof as a gathering place
Green design is an enormously popular trend in modern architecture, just take a look at this amazing green roof at the School of Art , Design and Media at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore . This 5-story facility sweeps a wooded corner of the campus with an organic, vegetated form that blends landscape and structure, nature and high-tech and symbolizes the creativity it houses. The roofs serve as informal gathering spaces challenging linear ideas and stirring perception. The roofs create open space, insulate the building, cool the surrounding air and harvest rainwater for landscaping irrigation. Planted grasses mix with native greenery to colonize the building and bond it to the setting.
Designer creates a sink that uses wasted water to grow a plant
Made of polished stained concrete, the Zen Garden Sink has a channel that allows the water used while washing your hands to water a plant. Created by young Montreal designer Jean-Michel Gauvreau the sink comes in single or double basin model. The sink is designed in a way you won't get your plants all soapy. There is a main drain at the bottom of the basin for soapy grime. Your little plant friend just gets whatever you choose to dole out.
Designer creates a shower that forces you to leave when you've wasted too much water
20% of our total domestic energy usage is from hot water for showering and bathing. That's over 6 times the energy usage of domestic lighting. So designer Tommaso Colia came up with his eco-friendly shower design that will force you to get out when you take too long and waste much water. The eco_drop shower features beautiful concentric circles that will rise to force you to stop showering when you take too long, and accordingly save water.
Designer creates light-switch that changes colors to teach children how to save energy
Teaching the importance of energy conservation is the goal of this design from Tim Holley. He calls it Tio, and it's a ghost-shaped light switch that gives kids a visual reminder of how much energy they've used by leaving lights on. Tio starts out green and smiling. If the light is left on for more than four hours, he turns yellow and looks shocked. And if you dare to leave that light on for more than eight hours, sweet little Tio turns into a raging red hulk, complete with frowny mouth and angry eyes. But he won't just visually remind your kids about their energy habits; information from the light switch is sent to Tio's computer program so the entire family can see how they're doing. In a brilliant piece of visual positive reinforcement, Holley's program lets kids grow a virtual tree which gets bigger and healthier the more energy they save.
Environmental company creates a staple-free stapler to avoid staple pollution
Staples are supposed to be so bad to the environment that a company decided to create a staple-free stapler. This product promises to make collation eco-friendly. Instead of using those thin metal planet-killers, the staple-free stapler "cuts out tiny strips of paper and uses the strips to stitch up to five pieces of paper together." You can even order them customized with your corporate logo so you can, you know, brag about what your company is doing to stop the staple epidemic.
Designer creates an iPhone charger powered by a hand grip
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Google invests $38.8m in two US wind farms
Google invests $38.8m in two US wind farms
Internet search giant Google Inc has invested USD 38.8 million in two wind farms in North Dakota that generate enough energy to power more than 55,000 homes.
The investment in the wind farms, developed by NextEra Energy Resources, is Google's first direct investment in a utility-scale renewable energy project.
Google has so far invested in early-stage green start-ups such as solar thermal companies BrightSource Energy and eSolar.
"Through this USD 38.8 million investment, we're aiming to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in a way that makes good business sense, too," Rick Needham, Google's green business operations manager, wrote in a blogpost on Monday.
Google has pushed ahead in addressing climate change issues as a philanthropic effort through its Google.org arm.
The often-quirky company said in late 2007 that it would invest in companies and do research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy -- at a price less than burning coal -- within a few years.
Separately, NextEra Energy, a subsidiary of Florida utility FPL Group Inc, said on Monday that it has sold about USD 190 million of Class B membership interests in Peace Garden Wind, windfarms that produce 169.5 megawatts of power in North Dakota.
NextEra Energy is the largest owner of wind farms in the United States with more than 7,500 megawatts of installed wind capacity, according to the American Wind Energy Association.
Internet search giant Google Inc has invested USD 38.8 million in two wind farms in North Dakota that generate enough energy to power more than 55,000 homes.
The investment in the wind farms, developed by NextEra Energy Resources, is Google's first direct investment in a utility-scale renewable energy project.
Google has so far invested in early-stage green start-ups such as solar thermal companies BrightSource Energy and eSolar.
"Through this USD 38.8 million investment, we're aiming to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in a way that makes good business sense, too," Rick Needham, Google's green business operations manager, wrote in a blogpost on Monday.
Google has pushed ahead in addressing climate change issues as a philanthropic effort through its Google.org arm.
The often-quirky company said in late 2007 that it would invest in companies and do research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy -- at a price less than burning coal -- within a few years.
Separately, NextEra Energy, a subsidiary of Florida utility FPL Group Inc, said on Monday that it has sold about USD 190 million of Class B membership interests in Peace Garden Wind, windfarms that produce 169.5 megawatts of power in North Dakota.
NextEra Energy is the largest owner of wind farms in the United States with more than 7,500 megawatts of installed wind capacity, according to the American Wind Energy Association.
Small Business Owners Go Green for Environment
Small Business Owners Go Green for Environment
Columbus, Ohio As consumer demand for environmentally responsible products and services continues to grow, businesses can't simply call themselves green–they must actually do their part. According to a survey by Manta, the largest website on and for small businesses, more than 90 per cent of small businesses selling green products/services or implementing green practices in the workplace genuinely care about the environment. Forty-six per cent of the 421 respondents also cited consumer demand as a major reason for "going green", the second most popular reason for doing so. These results also suggest that green initiatives have become part of everyday business.
In light of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day and considering that approximately 80 percent of U.S. companies have nine employees or fewer (U.S. SBA & Census,) the Manta survey sought to discover how small businesses view environmental consciousness. The business owners surveyed all employ 100 people or fewer and have identified green initiatives on their claimed Manta profiles. Manta found that:
·79 per cent implement green practices in the workplace and also offer green products or services.
·79 per cent recycle or compost.
·76 per cent conserve energy by turning off lights or cooling and heating systems when not in use.
·31 per cent encourage taking public transportation, carpooling, walking or biking to work.
Despite high participation rates in low-cost green initiatives, small businesses want to do more for the planet and believe they need the government to support the cause.
·Only five per cent feel the government does enough to support small businesses taking on green initiatives.
·72 per cent believe the government doesn't do enough.
·43 per cent would like to receive cost incentives or tax breaks for being green.
·23 per cent would do more if there were better resources to make being green easier, such as in-building or curbside recycling and compost pickup.
"It's not surprising that small businesses have gone green," said Pamela Springer, Manta president and CEO. "Being innovative is part of their nature, and innovative practices often result in the production of environmentally friendly products and services. They have the right attitude about caring for the environment, and given that most businesses in the U.S. are small, they're bound to make a big difference in the long run. Hopefully the government will be inspired to implement the incentives many business owners need to go a step farther in protecting the planet".
With profiles of more than 64 million businesses and organizations, Manta is the Web's largest free source of information on and for small businesses. Manta aims to provide a free Web presence and networking capability for small business owners who may not have the resources to operate their own websites. With hard-to-find information such as estimated revenue, number of employees, company contacts, business descriptions and more, Manta enables business professionals to promote their companies and connect with the more than 14 million monthly visitors.
Survey Methodology
Manta surveyed its users using Zoomerang from April 13 to April 19, 2010, via email. The survey received 421 responses from small business owners whose companies were identified as having 100 employees or fewer and as employing some kind of green initiative in their workplace.
About Manta
Manta (www.manta.com) is the largest free source of information on small companies, with profiles of more than 64 million businesses and organizations. Business owners and sales professionals use Manta's vast database and custom search capabilities to quickly find companies, easily connect with prospective customers and promote their own services. Manta.com, founded in 2005, is based in Columbus, Ohio.
Columbus, Ohio As consumer demand for environmentally responsible products and services continues to grow, businesses can't simply call themselves green–they must actually do their part. According to a survey by Manta, the largest website on and for small businesses, more than 90 per cent of small businesses selling green products/services or implementing green practices in the workplace genuinely care about the environment. Forty-six per cent of the 421 respondents also cited consumer demand as a major reason for "going green", the second most popular reason for doing so. These results also suggest that green initiatives have become part of everyday business.
In light of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day and considering that approximately 80 percent of U.S. companies have nine employees or fewer (U.S. SBA & Census,) the Manta survey sought to discover how small businesses view environmental consciousness. The business owners surveyed all employ 100 people or fewer and have identified green initiatives on their claimed Manta profiles. Manta found that:
·79 per cent implement green practices in the workplace and also offer green products or services.
·79 per cent recycle or compost.
·76 per cent conserve energy by turning off lights or cooling and heating systems when not in use.
·31 per cent encourage taking public transportation, carpooling, walking or biking to work.
Despite high participation rates in low-cost green initiatives, small businesses want to do more for the planet and believe they need the government to support the cause.
·Only five per cent feel the government does enough to support small businesses taking on green initiatives.
·72 per cent believe the government doesn't do enough.
·43 per cent would like to receive cost incentives or tax breaks for being green.
·23 per cent would do more if there were better resources to make being green easier, such as in-building or curbside recycling and compost pickup.
"It's not surprising that small businesses have gone green," said Pamela Springer, Manta president and CEO. "Being innovative is part of their nature, and innovative practices often result in the production of environmentally friendly products and services. They have the right attitude about caring for the environment, and given that most businesses in the U.S. are small, they're bound to make a big difference in the long run. Hopefully the government will be inspired to implement the incentives many business owners need to go a step farther in protecting the planet".
With profiles of more than 64 million businesses and organizations, Manta is the Web's largest free source of information on and for small businesses. Manta aims to provide a free Web presence and networking capability for small business owners who may not have the resources to operate their own websites. With hard-to-find information such as estimated revenue, number of employees, company contacts, business descriptions and more, Manta enables business professionals to promote their companies and connect with the more than 14 million monthly visitors.
Survey Methodology
Manta surveyed its users using Zoomerang from April 13 to April 19, 2010, via email. The survey received 421 responses from small business owners whose companies were identified as having 100 employees or fewer and as employing some kind of green initiative in their workplace.
About Manta
Manta (www.manta.com) is the largest free source of information on small companies, with profiles of more than 64 million businesses and organizations. Business owners and sales professionals use Manta's vast database and custom search capabilities to quickly find companies, easily connect with prospective customers and promote their own services. Manta.com, founded in 2005, is based in Columbus, Ohio.
Google searches for smart, green energy investments
Google searches for smart, green energy investments
LondonGoogle is looking to expand into the energy smart meters business and to invest in renewable generation projects in Europe, the head of green business operations at the internet giant.
Gulf Oil Spill
The aim of smart metering technology is to let customers view real-time electricity and gas consumption and allow them to optimize usage and therefore cut energy waste and save money by using energy during low demand periods.
Through Google.org, the philanthropic arm of the Internet firm, the company has developed a free web-based application called PowerMeter, which collects data from smart meters and displays the data on a customizable customer webpage.
"We're looking at getting more utility partners and more device partners. We're always looking for a broader reach and we're talking to utilities in all the major markets," Ben Kott told on the sidelines at a news briefing in London.
In partnership with British independent energy retailer, First Utility, Google is providing an opt-in service to the utility's 30,000 smart meter customers.
"I think in the UK, people are relatively open to this, not only focusing on cost but also efficiency. It is also a highly liberal energy market, so there are opportunities for companies like First Utility who wouldn't be able to operate in other markets," Kott said.
He said there were no plans to charge for the PowerMeter web application.
"There's no money going backwards and forwards," First Utility chief executive Mark Daeche said.
Google is also looking at investing in renewable power generation projects in Europe, following a $38.8 million U.S. wind farm investment in North Dakota in early May.
"We're newcomers in the field and we're quite aware of that. We're not yet ready for very risky investments, but it is something that could become very interesting in a few years. Now we're looking more at onshore wind and solar project," Kott said.
LondonGoogle is looking to expand into the energy smart meters business and to invest in renewable generation projects in Europe, the head of green business operations at the internet giant.
Gulf Oil Spill
The aim of smart metering technology is to let customers view real-time electricity and gas consumption and allow them to optimize usage and therefore cut energy waste and save money by using energy during low demand periods.
Through Google.org, the philanthropic arm of the Internet firm, the company has developed a free web-based application called PowerMeter, which collects data from smart meters and displays the data on a customizable customer webpage.
"We're looking at getting more utility partners and more device partners. We're always looking for a broader reach and we're talking to utilities in all the major markets," Ben Kott told on the sidelines at a news briefing in London.
In partnership with British independent energy retailer, First Utility, Google is providing an opt-in service to the utility's 30,000 smart meter customers.
"I think in the UK, people are relatively open to this, not only focusing on cost but also efficiency. It is also a highly liberal energy market, so there are opportunities for companies like First Utility who wouldn't be able to operate in other markets," Kott said.
He said there were no plans to charge for the PowerMeter web application.
"There's no money going backwards and forwards," First Utility chief executive Mark Daeche said.
Google is also looking at investing in renewable power generation projects in Europe, following a $38.8 million U.S. wind farm investment in North Dakota in early May.
"We're newcomers in the field and we're quite aware of that. We're not yet ready for very risky investments, but it is something that could become very interesting in a few years. Now we're looking more at onshore wind and solar project," Kott said.
Nokia unveils bicycle charger
Nokia unveils bicycle charger
New Delhi: Nokia unveiled its first bicycle charger targeting consumers with limited access to electricity.
The charger kit consists of a charger, dynamo and a holder to secure the phone to the bike. Priced at about 15 euros (Rs 860), the kit will be available later this year, said a company spokesman.
When the kit is installed, the dynamo - a small electrical generator - uses the movement of the wheels to charge the handset through the standard 2mm charging jack used in most Nokia mobile phones.
"Bicycles are the most widespread means of transport in many markets around the world, so this is just one more benefit to be gained from an activity people are already doing. This is a great solution to a real challenge, whether people will use it due to limited access to electricity, or to be more environmentally responsible," says Alex Lambeek, vice president at Nokia.
Designed for tropical climates the Nokia bicycle charger is humidity and dust resistant.
New Delhi: Nokia unveiled its first bicycle charger targeting consumers with limited access to electricity.
The charger kit consists of a charger, dynamo and a holder to secure the phone to the bike. Priced at about 15 euros (Rs 860), the kit will be available later this year, said a company spokesman.
When the kit is installed, the dynamo - a small electrical generator - uses the movement of the wheels to charge the handset through the standard 2mm charging jack used in most Nokia mobile phones.
"Bicycles are the most widespread means of transport in many markets around the world, so this is just one more benefit to be gained from an activity people are already doing. This is a great solution to a real challenge, whether people will use it due to limited access to electricity, or to be more environmentally responsible," says Alex Lambeek, vice president at Nokia.
Designed for tropical climates the Nokia bicycle charger is humidity and dust resistant.
Govt, UN initiative on encouraging 'green jobs'
Govt, UN initiative on encouraging 'green jobs'
New Delhi: Recognising the importance of jobs that contribute to environment protection, Government and the ILO have come together to organise the first national conference on 'green jobs' here next week to discuss emerging trends and policy options.
It will delve into issues relating to the creation of new green jobs, their adaptation in existing forms of employment and share inspiring cases from India and around the world, said an ILO official, adding the conference will be held on June 24 and 25.
According to the United Nations Environment Program, work in agricultural, manufacturing, research and development, administrative and service activities that contribute substantially to preserving or restoring environmental quality come under green jobs.
The conference will be organised by ILO in collaboration with the labour and employment ministry. ILO is already working with the government for supporting transition to a greener economy with decent jobs.
Other key elements of the conference's agenda, said the ILO official, include employment and labour market implications of environment-related measures and promotion of green jobs in the Indian policy framework.
Besides, the agenda would include promotion of jobs which help in transition to more sustainable economies and societies and sectoral discussions related to renewable energy, waste management and green buildings.
Participants from various government departments, employers' and workers' organisations, international agencies, private sector players, civil society organisations and research institutes are expected to attend the two-day conference, the official said.
New Delhi: Recognising the importance of jobs that contribute to environment protection, Government and the ILO have come together to organise the first national conference on 'green jobs' here next week to discuss emerging trends and policy options.
It will delve into issues relating to the creation of new green jobs, their adaptation in existing forms of employment and share inspiring cases from India and around the world, said an ILO official, adding the conference will be held on June 24 and 25.
According to the United Nations Environment Program, work in agricultural, manufacturing, research and development, administrative and service activities that contribute substantially to preserving or restoring environmental quality come under green jobs.
The conference will be organised by ILO in collaboration with the labour and employment ministry. ILO is already working with the government for supporting transition to a greener economy with decent jobs.
Other key elements of the conference's agenda, said the ILO official, include employment and labour market implications of environment-related measures and promotion of green jobs in the Indian policy framework.
Besides, the agenda would include promotion of jobs which help in transition to more sustainable economies and societies and sectoral discussions related to renewable energy, waste management and green buildings.
Participants from various government departments, employers' and workers' organisations, international agencies, private sector players, civil society organisations and research institutes are expected to attend the two-day conference, the official said.
Indian Hotels initiate green practices
Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces have launched EARTH (Environment Awareness and Renewal at Taj Hotels), a movement that works to minimise the impact of its businesses on the environment. The initiatives under this include environmental training for all employees, energy audits every three years, and a phased reduction of freshwater consumption.
Mentioned below are some measures that the group has taken for making their hotels and chains eco-friendly.
Waste management: In hotels where land is available, kitchen waste and dry leaves are converted into compost; waste paper from printing is reused as writing pads; pipe steel waste is used as safety railings or in barricades; and old bed sheets are used to make linen bags and cotton napkins.
Conserving energy: Taj hotels use CFL lights, which consume 78 per cent less energy; Taj Coromandel, Chennai, generates energy from windmills; solar water heating systems at the Taj West End, Bangalore, have saved over 51,000 litres of fuel over the last three years; a biogas plant at Rambagh Palace, Jaipur, helps in cutting energy cost.
Ecosensitivity: Located in a sensitive ecological zone, the Taj Exotica, Maldives, focuses on waste management. The use of plastic bags is restricted and hazardous substances such as lead acid batteries are sent to Thilafushi Island, a landfill area allocated for refuse. The Taj Coral Reef, located on a tropical atoll, takes great care to protect the delicate ecosystem of the coral reefs. Trees are planted near the beach and extraction of sand from the beach is not permitted. Organic wastes are processed and converted to fish food. Non bio-degradable waste products are either incinerated or routed to Thilafushi Island.
At Lake Palace, Udaipur, which stands in the middle of the famous Pichola Lake, the Taj takes care to avoid spoiling the lake water and harming its marine life. The hotel uses battery-operated boats instead of those powered by gasoline, and wastewater is recycled and used for irrigation.
The Taj Garden Retreat at Kumarakom, is located near the Vembanad Lake and the Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary that is a favourite haunt of several species of migratory birds. The hotel uses special lighting to reduce the glare so as not to disturb animal life, and wastewater is treated before being discharged.
Mentioned below are some measures that the group has taken for making their hotels and chains eco-friendly.
Waste management: In hotels where land is available, kitchen waste and dry leaves are converted into compost; waste paper from printing is reused as writing pads; pipe steel waste is used as safety railings or in barricades; and old bed sheets are used to make linen bags and cotton napkins.
Conserving energy: Taj hotels use CFL lights, which consume 78 per cent less energy; Taj Coromandel, Chennai, generates energy from windmills; solar water heating systems at the Taj West End, Bangalore, have saved over 51,000 litres of fuel over the last three years; a biogas plant at Rambagh Palace, Jaipur, helps in cutting energy cost.
Ecosensitivity: Located in a sensitive ecological zone, the Taj Exotica, Maldives, focuses on waste management. The use of plastic bags is restricted and hazardous substances such as lead acid batteries are sent to Thilafushi Island, a landfill area allocated for refuse. The Taj Coral Reef, located on a tropical atoll, takes great care to protect the delicate ecosystem of the coral reefs. Trees are planted near the beach and extraction of sand from the beach is not permitted. Organic wastes are processed and converted to fish food. Non bio-degradable waste products are either incinerated or routed to Thilafushi Island.
At Lake Palace, Udaipur, which stands in the middle of the famous Pichola Lake, the Taj takes care to avoid spoiling the lake water and harming its marine life. The hotel uses battery-operated boats instead of those powered by gasoline, and wastewater is recycled and used for irrigation.
The Taj Garden Retreat at Kumarakom, is located near the Vembanad Lake and the Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary that is a favourite haunt of several species of migratory birds. The hotel uses special lighting to reduce the glare so as not to disturb animal life, and wastewater is treated before being discharged.
Impact of climate change on India
Impact of climate change on India
Here are the main potential effects of climate change on a country, which is the world's seventh largest in area and is home to 1.1 billion people, a sixth of humanity.
Monsoon
Various studies show that surface air temperatures in India are going up at the rate of 0.4 degrees Celsius every 100 years, particularly during the post-monsoon and winter seasons. While mean winter temperatures could increase by as much as 3.2 degrees Celsius in the 2050s, summer temperatures could go up by 2.2 degrees Celsius in the 2050s, spurring climate variability.
Extreme temperatures and heat spells could alter patterns of monsoon rains, vital for India's agriculture and water needs. Scientists warn that India will experience a decline in summer rainfall by 2050. The monsoon accounts for almost 70 percent of the country's total annual rainfall. Winter rains are also predicted to fall by 10-20 percent. Higher temperatures also mean faster melting of Himalayan glaciers and as the melting season coincides with the monsoon season, any intensification of the monsoon is likely to contribute to flood disasters in the Himalayan catchment.
Agriculture
Agriculture will be adversely affected not only by an increase or decrease in the overall amounts of rainfall, but also by shifts in the timing of the rainfall. Higher temperatures reduce the total duration of a crop cycle, leading to a lower yield per unit area, especially for India's wheat and paddy crops.
Soil erosion, increased numbers of pests and weeds brought by climate change will also affect agriculture in India. For instance, the amount of moisture in the soil will be affected by changes in factors such as rainfall, runoff and evaporation.
Rising seas
A 10-year study in and around the Bay of Bengal points to the sea rising 3.14 mm a year in the mangrove swamps of the Sunderbans delta against a global average of 2 mm, threatening the low-lying area which is home to about 4 million people.
A trend of sea level rise of 1 cm per decade has been recorded along the Indian coast. The major delta area of the Ganga, Brahmaputra and Indus rivers, which have large populations reliant on riverine resources, will be affected by changes in water regimes, salt water intrusions and land loss.
Health
Rise in temperature and change in humidity will adversely affect human health in India. Heat stress could result in heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat stroke and weaken immune systems. Increased temperatures can increase the range of vector-borne diseases such as malaria, particularly in regions where minimum temperatures currently limited the spread of such diseases.
(Sources: Greenpeace, UNDP, Centre for Science and Environment)
Here are the main potential effects of climate change on a country, which is the world's seventh largest in area and is home to 1.1 billion people, a sixth of humanity.
Monsoon
Various studies show that surface air temperatures in India are going up at the rate of 0.4 degrees Celsius every 100 years, particularly during the post-monsoon and winter seasons. While mean winter temperatures could increase by as much as 3.2 degrees Celsius in the 2050s, summer temperatures could go up by 2.2 degrees Celsius in the 2050s, spurring climate variability.
Extreme temperatures and heat spells could alter patterns of monsoon rains, vital for India's agriculture and water needs. Scientists warn that India will experience a decline in summer rainfall by 2050. The monsoon accounts for almost 70 percent of the country's total annual rainfall. Winter rains are also predicted to fall by 10-20 percent. Higher temperatures also mean faster melting of Himalayan glaciers and as the melting season coincides with the monsoon season, any intensification of the monsoon is likely to contribute to flood disasters in the Himalayan catchment.
Agriculture
Agriculture will be adversely affected not only by an increase or decrease in the overall amounts of rainfall, but also by shifts in the timing of the rainfall. Higher temperatures reduce the total duration of a crop cycle, leading to a lower yield per unit area, especially for India's wheat and paddy crops.
Soil erosion, increased numbers of pests and weeds brought by climate change will also affect agriculture in India. For instance, the amount of moisture in the soil will be affected by changes in factors such as rainfall, runoff and evaporation.
Rising seas
A 10-year study in and around the Bay of Bengal points to the sea rising 3.14 mm a year in the mangrove swamps of the Sunderbans delta against a global average of 2 mm, threatening the low-lying area which is home to about 4 million people.
A trend of sea level rise of 1 cm per decade has been recorded along the Indian coast. The major delta area of the Ganga, Brahmaputra and Indus rivers, which have large populations reliant on riverine resources, will be affected by changes in water regimes, salt water intrusions and land loss.
Health
Rise in temperature and change in humidity will adversely affect human health in India. Heat stress could result in heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat stroke and weaken immune systems. Increased temperatures can increase the range of vector-borne diseases such as malaria, particularly in regions where minimum temperatures currently limited the spread of such diseases.
(Sources: Greenpeace, UNDP, Centre for Science and Environment)
Green Jobs
Top 10 green jobs
Here is a list of top 10 "green-collar" job.That combine technology with respect for our environment
1.) Eco-Tourism: Tourism is considered the largest employment sector in the world economy, so it’s no wonder that workers at all levels will become involved in greening the industry. Ecotourism is growing at three times the rate of the overall tourism sector itself. It purports to educate the traveller; provide funds for conservation; directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities; and foster respect for different cultures and for human rights.
2.)Organic Farming Specialist: With cutting-edge organic agriculture gaining popularity everywhere, a new type of farmer is emerging. Organic farming is the form of agriculture that relies on crop rotation, green manure, compost, biological pest control, organically approved pesticide application and mechanical cultivation to maintain soil productivity and control pests, excluding or strictly limiting the use of synthetic fertilizers and synthetic pesticides, plant growth regulators, livestock antibiotics, food additives, and genetically modified organisms.
3.)Environmental Engineers: Environmental engineering is the application of science and engineering principles to improve the environment (air, water, and/or land resources), to provide healthy water, air, and land for human habitation and for other organisms, and to remediate polluted sites.
4.) Sustainability Consultant:A sustainability consultant is someone who gives advice to businesses on how to make their products as sustainable (usually in an ecological sense) as is required or requested. In particular, they can give advice on the engineering challenges in meeting modern day building standards, such as the LEED Green Building Rating System. Sustainability consultants might also advise a business on how to achieve carbon neutrality.
5.)Urban Planning:Urban planning involves the construction, or sometimes reconstruction, of buildings, transportation systems and so forth. The environmental factor and you will find a number of jobs available.
6.)Solar Power Installer:New developments in solar technologies are now being fuelled by a number of factors such as the increased numbers of low voltage, energy efficient gadgets, mobile PCs and communicators as well as the rising demand for solar powered hot water heating. Installing solar-thermal water heaters and rooftop photovoltaic cells is a relatively high-paying job.
7.)Conservation Biologist: Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction. It is an interdisciplinary subject drawing on sciences, economics, and the practice of natural resource management
8.)Wildlife Management: Wildlife management is a general term for the process of keeping wild species at desirable levels which are determined by the wildlife managers. Wildlife management can include game keeping, wildlife conservation and pest control. Wildlife management has become an integrated science using disciplines such as mathematics, chemistry, biology, ecology, climatology and geography to gain the best results
9.) Emission Management: As companies shift to newer, greener ways of working, there will be a period of transition. The process includes an initial survey, analysis and presentation of recommendations, design and specification of reduction equipment, project financing support, installation, commissioning and ongoing energy monitoring.
10.)Recycling Specialists:As the public and private sectors of the recycling industry grow, it’s going to become more and more critical to be on the cutting edge of recycling techniques, That’s why it is essential that we recycle and reuse as much as possible, limiting waste and improving efficiency.
20 Simple Green Tips that "U" can follow in your day-to-day life
20 simple tips that you can follow in your day-to-day life. Every bit helps to save the earth.
1. Turn off computers at night - don't just put them to sleep.
2. Use Both Sides of Paper - You will save half of the amount of paper you would have normally used. Then when your done bring it to the recycle bin.
3. Don't get bottled water - Instead of bottled water get a reusable container to carry water. It is also very cost efficient.
4. Turn the water off when you brush - You will save almost 4 gallons of water doing this alone.
5. Shorten your shower - Every minute you cut from your shower is roughly 5 gallons of water.
6. Recycle Glass - If you do not recycle this, it will take a million years to decompose.
7. Don't Pre-Heat the Oven - unless needed, just turn the oven on after you put the dish in it.
8. Turn off your lights - Turn off your lights when you are not using them.
9. Get rid of junk mail - There are many services that can help you get rid of junk mail. That will lead to a lot less trees being cut down to take up room in your mailbox.
10. Use Matches instead of lighters - Lighters are usually considered disposable so they will most likely end up in landfills. You can use the cardboard matches, which are much more eco-friendly because they are made of recycled material.
11. Don't get a paper phone book – Instead use an online directory.
12. Go to a car wash - Going to a car wash is a lot more water efficient then washing your car at home.
13. Stop paper bank statements - Why waste paper getting your bank statement mailed to you when you can just check it out online.
14. Buy Rechargeable Batteries - Even though it will take a good investment to buy these you will find yourself gaining it back in no time.
15. Pay your Bills Online - This would save millions trees every year.
16. Use reusable bags - You can't recycle plastic bags, instead get yourself a reusable bag so that you won't have to worry about carrying your necessities.
17. Do Errands in Bulk - Make a list of the things you have to do, and see if you can fit a couple of those things together in one ride.
18. Turn down your Thermostat - Every degree lower in the winter or higher in the summer you put it is a 10% decrease on your energy bill
19. Plant a Tree - It's good for the air, can keep you cool, and can increase your property value.
20. Walk or Ride Your Bike When you can - If you have to go somewhere close consider riding your bike or walking there instead of your car. It's better on the environment and healthier.
1. Turn off computers at night - don't just put them to sleep.
2. Use Both Sides of Paper - You will save half of the amount of paper you would have normally used. Then when your done bring it to the recycle bin.
3. Don't get bottled water - Instead of bottled water get a reusable container to carry water. It is also very cost efficient.
4. Turn the water off when you brush - You will save almost 4 gallons of water doing this alone.
5. Shorten your shower - Every minute you cut from your shower is roughly 5 gallons of water.
6. Recycle Glass - If you do not recycle this, it will take a million years to decompose.
7. Don't Pre-Heat the Oven - unless needed, just turn the oven on after you put the dish in it.
8. Turn off your lights - Turn off your lights when you are not using them.
9. Get rid of junk mail - There are many services that can help you get rid of junk mail. That will lead to a lot less trees being cut down to take up room in your mailbox.
10. Use Matches instead of lighters - Lighters are usually considered disposable so they will most likely end up in landfills. You can use the cardboard matches, which are much more eco-friendly because they are made of recycled material.
11. Don't get a paper phone book – Instead use an online directory.
12. Go to a car wash - Going to a car wash is a lot more water efficient then washing your car at home.
13. Stop paper bank statements - Why waste paper getting your bank statement mailed to you when you can just check it out online.
14. Buy Rechargeable Batteries - Even though it will take a good investment to buy these you will find yourself gaining it back in no time.
15. Pay your Bills Online - This would save millions trees every year.
16. Use reusable bags - You can't recycle plastic bags, instead get yourself a reusable bag so that you won't have to worry about carrying your necessities.
17. Do Errands in Bulk - Make a list of the things you have to do, and see if you can fit a couple of those things together in one ride.
18. Turn down your Thermostat - Every degree lower in the winter or higher in the summer you put it is a 10% decrease on your energy bill
19. Plant a Tree - It's good for the air, can keep you cool, and can increase your property value.
20. Walk or Ride Your Bike When you can - If you have to go somewhere close consider riding your bike or walking there instead of your car. It's better on the environment and healthier.
Environmental Calendar 2010
January
February
February 2-World Wetlands Day
March
March 21-World Forestry Day
March 22nd-World Water Day
March 23-World Meteorological Day
March 27-Earth Hour
April
April 2-April World Health Day
May
May 8 – International Migratory Bird Day
May 18 – Plant Conservation Day
May 21 – Endangered Species Day
May 22 – International Biodiversity Day
May 31 – No Tobacco Day
June
June 5 – World Environment Day
June 8 – World Ocean Day
June 15 – Global Wind Day
June 17 – World Day to Combat Desertification
July
August
August 9 – International Day of the World’s Indigenous People
September
September 4 – National Wildlife Day
September 16 – International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer
September 25 – International Coastal Cleanup Day
September 28 – Green Consumer Day
October
October 1 – World Vegetarian Day
October 1 to 7 – World Wildlife Week
October 4 – World Animal Welfare Day
November
November 6 – International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict
February
February 2-World Wetlands Day
March
March 21-World Forestry Day
March 22nd-World Water Day
March 23-World Meteorological Day
March 27-Earth Hour
April
April 2-April World Health Day
May
May 8 – International Migratory Bird Day
May 18 – Plant Conservation Day
May 21 – Endangered Species Day
May 22 – International Biodiversity Day
May 31 – No Tobacco Day
June
June 5 – World Environment Day
June 8 – World Ocean Day
June 15 – Global Wind Day
June 17 – World Day to Combat Desertification
July
August
August 9 – International Day of the World’s Indigenous People
September
September 4 – National Wildlife Day
September 16 – International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer
September 25 – International Coastal Cleanup Day
September 28 – Green Consumer Day
October
October 1 – World Vegetarian Day
October 1 to 7 – World Wildlife Week
October 4 – World Animal Welfare Day
November
November 6 – International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict
Silicon Valley all aglow on green lighting
Silicon Valley all aglow on green lighting
San Francisco: Silicon Valley has seen the light, and it's LED.
The incandescent light bulb has had the global lighting market in its grip for more than 130 years, building into a more than $100 billion industry.
But green concerns about efficiency spell an end to the era, and the U.S. technology capital sees light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, as the new king.
"Lighting is going to completely change over the course of this decade," said Alan Salzman, chief executive of Silicon Valley-based venture fund VantagePoint Venture Partners.
His firm has $4.5 billion in committed capital in startups across different sectors, but lighting is an area he is very bullish on.
"The largest sector in terms of companies in our portfolio is lighting," Salzman said.
While many love the look of the light cast by incandescent bulbs, none like the high-energy bills. Nations around the world, including the United States, are phasing in efficiency standards that will eliminate the incandescents if no major energy improvements happen.
Investors are betting on other technologies taking hold.
Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs so far have been the only real alternative to conventional bulbs but they contain mercury and many don't like the quality of the light.
LED lights, on the other hand, contain no mercury, have a long life and are very energy efficient.
LEDs, made of diodes or chips, have come a long way since the first practical LED was a developed in 1962. Its sole color was red. Now developers produce light colors across the spectrum.
They consume only about 20 percent of the energy used by incandescent bulbs. With about 20 percent of the world's electricity used for lighting, switching to LEDs would generate significant energy savings and cut greenhouse gas emissions while nations debate how to price carbon dioxide pollution.
Cost challenge
There is one major hurdle for mass adoption of LEDs -- they cost too much. Experts say that for the market to take off, good quality LED lights need to available under $10. Current bulbs cost many times that.
Investors are betting heavily the cost will fall quickly as LED start-ups achieve scale and the technology advances.
"The market really started shifting in the last 12 months," said Warner Philips, co-founder of LED start-up Lemnis Lighting and great grandson of the founder of Dutch electronics giant Philips Electronics.
Lemnis introduced its first LED bulb, called Pharox that can go into a standard light socket about four years ago. The latest version can last around 25 years, based on four hours of daily operation, but it costs $25.
The price has halved in a short time. Lemnis had been selling LED bulbs around $50 only about six months ago and Philips expects the price to fall below the crucial $10 level soon.
"That will be probably be in the first half of next year," he said.
Bullish growth projections
LEDs by 2020 will account for nearly half of the $4.4 billion U.S. market for lamps in the commercial, industrial and outdoor stationary sectors, predicted Pike Research, which tracks the market.
Even at the current high price, some commercial establishments and retailers are switching.
Late last year, retail giant Wal-Mart said it would install LEDs in 650 of its stores and picked Cree Inc, one of the few public companies in this space, to supply the lights.
Other companies switching to LEDs include coffee retailer Starbucks Corp, Red Robin restaurants and Yum! Brands Inc.
Cree's shares hit an all-time high of $83.38 this April, rising almost 49 percent from the start of the year, partly due to bullish expectations on the LED market. The global economic slowdown has ratcheted back expectations, though, and sent shares down toward $65.
In the first quarter of 2010, venture capitalists invested $100 million in 14 LED lighting companies, up from $14 million in the same quarter a year ago, according to Cleantech Group.
California's Bridgelux, which makes high-power LED chips specifically for the lighting industry, is in the process of opening a Silicon Valley plant and investors are eager to join in.
Bridgelux raised $80 million earlier this year and turned away some would-be investors.
"We had a lot of people pounding on our doors," said Chief Executive Bill Watkins.
San Francisco: Silicon Valley has seen the light, and it's LED.
The incandescent light bulb has had the global lighting market in its grip for more than 130 years, building into a more than $100 billion industry.
But green concerns about efficiency spell an end to the era, and the U.S. technology capital sees light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, as the new king.
"Lighting is going to completely change over the course of this decade," said Alan Salzman, chief executive of Silicon Valley-based venture fund VantagePoint Venture Partners.
His firm has $4.5 billion in committed capital in startups across different sectors, but lighting is an area he is very bullish on.
"The largest sector in terms of companies in our portfolio is lighting," Salzman said.
While many love the look of the light cast by incandescent bulbs, none like the high-energy bills. Nations around the world, including the United States, are phasing in efficiency standards that will eliminate the incandescents if no major energy improvements happen.
Investors are betting on other technologies taking hold.
Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs so far have been the only real alternative to conventional bulbs but they contain mercury and many don't like the quality of the light.
LED lights, on the other hand, contain no mercury, have a long life and are very energy efficient.
LEDs, made of diodes or chips, have come a long way since the first practical LED was a developed in 1962. Its sole color was red. Now developers produce light colors across the spectrum.
They consume only about 20 percent of the energy used by incandescent bulbs. With about 20 percent of the world's electricity used for lighting, switching to LEDs would generate significant energy savings and cut greenhouse gas emissions while nations debate how to price carbon dioxide pollution.
Cost challenge
There is one major hurdle for mass adoption of LEDs -- they cost too much. Experts say that for the market to take off, good quality LED lights need to available under $10. Current bulbs cost many times that.
Investors are betting heavily the cost will fall quickly as LED start-ups achieve scale and the technology advances.
"The market really started shifting in the last 12 months," said Warner Philips, co-founder of LED start-up Lemnis Lighting and great grandson of the founder of Dutch electronics giant Philips Electronics.
Lemnis introduced its first LED bulb, called Pharox that can go into a standard light socket about four years ago. The latest version can last around 25 years, based on four hours of daily operation, but it costs $25.
The price has halved in a short time. Lemnis had been selling LED bulbs around $50 only about six months ago and Philips expects the price to fall below the crucial $10 level soon.
"That will be probably be in the first half of next year," he said.
Bullish growth projections
LEDs by 2020 will account for nearly half of the $4.4 billion U.S. market for lamps in the commercial, industrial and outdoor stationary sectors, predicted Pike Research, which tracks the market.
Even at the current high price, some commercial establishments and retailers are switching.
Late last year, retail giant Wal-Mart said it would install LEDs in 650 of its stores and picked Cree Inc, one of the few public companies in this space, to supply the lights.
Other companies switching to LEDs include coffee retailer Starbucks Corp, Red Robin restaurants and Yum! Brands Inc.
Cree's shares hit an all-time high of $83.38 this April, rising almost 49 percent from the start of the year, partly due to bullish expectations on the LED market. The global economic slowdown has ratcheted back expectations, though, and sent shares down toward $65.
In the first quarter of 2010, venture capitalists invested $100 million in 14 LED lighting companies, up from $14 million in the same quarter a year ago, according to Cleantech Group.
California's Bridgelux, which makes high-power LED chips specifically for the lighting industry, is in the process of opening a Silicon Valley plant and investors are eager to join in.
Bridgelux raised $80 million earlier this year and turned away some would-be investors.
"We had a lot of people pounding on our doors," said Chief Executive Bill Watkins.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Copenhagen CityBike: Free Bicycles in Copenhagen, Denmark
The Bottom Line
In Denmark's capital Copenhagen, office workers and government officials are seen every day pedaling to work. The bicycle is a Danish favorite and you should definitely give this service a try!
Pros
* 110+ bike-parking stations
* Cycling is safe and regulated in Copenhagen
* It's free!
Cons
* Maybe not comfortable enough for longer tours
* City bikes aren't found as easily at Freeport Terminal
Description
* Just deposit a DKK 20 coin - it is returned upon drop-off.
* City Bikes is a green, eco-friendly form of transportation.
* Copenhagen has no hills - not too much exertion.
Guide Review - Copenhagen CityBike: Free Bicycles in Copenhagen, Denmark
Cycling is a popular form of transportation in Copenhagen - there are bicycle lanes beside most roads with their own traffic lights. Over 150,000 Copenhageners annually cross the city center boundary by bicycle, and the city of Copenhagen has made it possible for tourists to do the same. CityBikes is a free alternative transportation service available to everyone.
Denmark's capital has over 1,300 CityBikes which are parked in over 110 bicycle stations downtown. You get your deposit back when you drop off the bike at one of those stations.
Copenhagen expands the net of bicycle lanes and routes continually, making this free alternative form of transportation quicker than cars and busses. City Bikes are available all the time (limited or no availability during servicing January - March).
Fun fact: The City of Copenhagen gave one of the bikes as an official gift to the American president Bill Clinton, when he visited Copenhagen in 1997. His bicycle was called "City Bike One" (in reference to Air Force One).
why cant the same model be applied throughout the world???
In Denmark's capital Copenhagen, office workers and government officials are seen every day pedaling to work. The bicycle is a Danish favorite and you should definitely give this service a try!
Pros
* 110+ bike-parking stations
* Cycling is safe and regulated in Copenhagen
* It's free!
Cons
* Maybe not comfortable enough for longer tours
* City bikes aren't found as easily at Freeport Terminal
Description
* Just deposit a DKK 20 coin - it is returned upon drop-off.
* City Bikes is a green, eco-friendly form of transportation.
* Copenhagen has no hills - not too much exertion.
Guide Review - Copenhagen CityBike: Free Bicycles in Copenhagen, Denmark
Cycling is a popular form of transportation in Copenhagen - there are bicycle lanes beside most roads with their own traffic lights. Over 150,000 Copenhageners annually cross the city center boundary by bicycle, and the city of Copenhagen has made it possible for tourists to do the same. CityBikes is a free alternative transportation service available to everyone.
Denmark's capital has over 1,300 CityBikes which are parked in over 110 bicycle stations downtown. You get your deposit back when you drop off the bike at one of those stations.
Copenhagen expands the net of bicycle lanes and routes continually, making this free alternative form of transportation quicker than cars and busses. City Bikes are available all the time (limited or no availability during servicing January - March).
Fun fact: The City of Copenhagen gave one of the bikes as an official gift to the American president Bill Clinton, when he visited Copenhagen in 1997. His bicycle was called "City Bike One" (in reference to Air Force One).
why cant the same model be applied throughout the world???
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Environmental Education in Guinea Bissau
Environmental Education in Guinea Bissau
A hot topic for the classrom
Written by Tim
The Presidential Palace in Guinea Bissau lies derelict and burnt out. You can walk amongst the shards of broken crockery, blackened banisters and singed carpets. Its empty rooms are a fitting metaphor for this failing state.
Teachers in the public sector have not been paid in years. Portuguese, the official language, is hardly spoken by young people and the nation is reverting to a creole contributing to its international isolation.
In a country which ranks 10th from the bottom on the UN’s Human Development Index and where life expectancy is 47 there are perhaps more pressing concerns than educating people about climate change.
However, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is doing just that. Nelson Gomez Dias, Country Director in Guinea Bissau, described the mobile laboratory used to educate children in Guinea Bissau on one of its most pressing environmental challenges. Biomass fuel.
Biomass fuel (charcoal and wood) is the single greatest contributor to deforestation in the world. The rural roads of Guinea Bissau are lined with sacks of the stuff on sale to truck drivers to transport to urban markets. And there is great demand as 80% of Africans rely on biomass for energy.
The IUCN takes its laboratory to schools across the country. Climate change per se is not on the curriculum. They believe you can only encourage people to act sustainably if you offer them a tangible improvement to their quality of life.
They ask children to boil two litres of water, trialling three methods: the traditional three stone fire with charcoal, with wood, and a biomass burning stove made from termite mud, cow dung and rice stalks. The latter performs better against all criteria: time to boil, amount of fuel required, energy required to fetch fuel, cost of fuel and associated health implications.
The lesson encourages children to use their resources more sustainably, teaching them how to make the stoves, using materials available throughout Guinea Bissau. Children are also extremely effective agents of change, nagging their parents to adopt the new stoves.
The programme targets the most vulnerable members of society, reducing women and children’s daily chores, whilst bringing cost savings and health benefits. Effective environmental education in a country where formal education has gone up in smoke.
Source: http://www.atlanticrising.org/case-studies/view.asp?id=19
http://www.atlanticrising.org/gallery/photo-view.asp?id=21
A hot topic for the classrom
Written by Tim
The Presidential Palace in Guinea Bissau lies derelict and burnt out. You can walk amongst the shards of broken crockery, blackened banisters and singed carpets. Its empty rooms are a fitting metaphor for this failing state.
Teachers in the public sector have not been paid in years. Portuguese, the official language, is hardly spoken by young people and the nation is reverting to a creole contributing to its international isolation.
In a country which ranks 10th from the bottom on the UN’s Human Development Index and where life expectancy is 47 there are perhaps more pressing concerns than educating people about climate change.
However, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is doing just that. Nelson Gomez Dias, Country Director in Guinea Bissau, described the mobile laboratory used to educate children in Guinea Bissau on one of its most pressing environmental challenges. Biomass fuel.
Biomass fuel (charcoal and wood) is the single greatest contributor to deforestation in the world. The rural roads of Guinea Bissau are lined with sacks of the stuff on sale to truck drivers to transport to urban markets. And there is great demand as 80% of Africans rely on biomass for energy.
The IUCN takes its laboratory to schools across the country. Climate change per se is not on the curriculum. They believe you can only encourage people to act sustainably if you offer them a tangible improvement to their quality of life.
They ask children to boil two litres of water, trialling three methods: the traditional three stone fire with charcoal, with wood, and a biomass burning stove made from termite mud, cow dung and rice stalks. The latter performs better against all criteria: time to boil, amount of fuel required, energy required to fetch fuel, cost of fuel and associated health implications.
The lesson encourages children to use their resources more sustainably, teaching them how to make the stoves, using materials available throughout Guinea Bissau. Children are also extremely effective agents of change, nagging their parents to adopt the new stoves.
The programme targets the most vulnerable members of society, reducing women and children’s daily chores, whilst bringing cost savings and health benefits. Effective environmental education in a country where formal education has gone up in smoke.
Source: http://www.atlanticrising.org/case-studies/view.asp?id=19
http://www.atlanticrising.org/gallery/photo-view.asp?id=21
Monday, May 3, 2010
Adyar Poonga - Environmental Educational Activities
Chennai: School and college students, and members of the public who intend to take a sneak peak at the scenic Adyar Poonga before it is thrown open to the public in January 2011 can do so by participating in the environmental education activities organized at the eco park from May 3, 2010.
According to Tamil Nadu Urban Development Fund officials, several activities will be conducted as part of weekly summer camps to students of all ages and even to the public to raise awareness about environmental education. Those interested can contact the Adyar Poonga on 04428153103 and make registrations.
According to Tamil Nadu Urban Development Fund officials, several activities will be conducted as part of weekly summer camps to students of all ages and even to the public to raise awareness about environmental education. Those interested can contact the Adyar Poonga on 04428153103 and make registrations.
Future of Plastic Recycling
You’ve got a plastic cup from Starbucks in your hand. It’s empty, and you’re ready to throw it into your recycling bin – so what comes first?
You turn over the cup to see the chasing arrow symbol with #5 in the center, signifying the type of resin that makes up your cup.
Now, imagine a world where these numbered resin codes don’t exist. Instead, recycling is organized by the type of product or package. All you have to understand is that you’re holding a plastic cup, and it’s recyclable in your community program.
Today, 80 percent of Americans have access to a plastics recycling program. Photo: Ehow.com
Today, 80 percent of Americans have access to a plastics recycling program. Photo: Ehow.com
This could actually be the future of plastics recycling. Instead of using a resin identification coding system, we could be shifting to a system based on the type of product or package.
In 1988, the resin coding system was created to meet recyclers’ needs while providing manufacturers with a consistent, uniform system that was applicable nationwide.
But now that technology has become more effective at sorting different plastics and curbside programs have become more widespread, the resin coding system may eventually become a thing of the past.
Consumers may find product or package-based recycling easier because they won’t have to search for the number and wonder about its overall make-up. Many communities are already recycling this way.
On Board Yet?
If you’re still confused. Let’s break it down.
Earth911.com recently asked readers, “How is plastic accepted in your curbside program?” Of the readers who responded, 44 percent said it is accepted by number, while only 15 percent said it was accepted by product.
At the present time, many curbside programs still collect plastics using the resin identification system. However, the idea of a product or package-based collection system isn’t a new phenomena. According to Judith Dunbar, director of Environmental and Technical Issues for the American Chemistry Council (ACC), some communities started catching on to the idea in the late 90s when they began collecting “all plastic bottles.”
The ACC got on board and began encouraging other communities to accept recycling in this manner. Data collected by ACC and individual communities showed that it was actually easier for consumers to understand. In fact, the resin identification coding system was never meant to be used by consumers. It was put in place for recyclers to identify plastics, before more sophisticated equipment became available.
Today, product or package-based collection is used in many communities, including the District of Columbia and three major surrounding areas: Arlington County, Va., Montgomery County, Md. and Anne Arundel County, Md. Many cities and towns in California are also adopting this method of collection. About 60 percent of California’s collection programs accept “all bottles and household containers.”
Photo: Southernliving.com
In recent years, the number of U.S. plastics recycling business has nearly tripled. More than 1,600 businesses are involved in recycling post-consumer plastics. Photo: Southernliving.com
How Does It Work?
Dunbar says the key to getting any recycling program down to a science is educating consumers about what is specifically collected.
Successful collection is all about simplicity. Providing consumers with information that is detailed with photos of specific products and examples can help make the collection process even more successful.
So, let’s get down to what product categories can be collected for recycling:
* Plastic bottles – water and soda bottles, milk jugs, detergent bottles, anything with a “neck”
* Household containers – non-bottle items, such as butter tubs, yogurt cups, kitty litter buckets
* Plastic bags, product wraps, plastic film
* Tubs and lids
* Buckets and trays
(Note that not all communities currently accept all categories of plastics. Visit your municipality’s Web site or check out our recycle search to learn which plastics are collected in your area.)
Once product packaging goes to a material recovery facility, sorters already have a strong grasp on how to separate the materials without looking at the resin codes. Therefore, product-based collection does not slow down or hinder the service in any way.
As many communities go to a single-stream recycling system, “all bottle” recycling is often implemented as well. Because resin identification codes often confuse consumers, product-based recycling may encourage more participation since it requires less know-how
You turn over the cup to see the chasing arrow symbol with #5 in the center, signifying the type of resin that makes up your cup.
Now, imagine a world where these numbered resin codes don’t exist. Instead, recycling is organized by the type of product or package. All you have to understand is that you’re holding a plastic cup, and it’s recyclable in your community program.
Today, 80 percent of Americans have access to a plastics recycling program. Photo: Ehow.com
Today, 80 percent of Americans have access to a plastics recycling program. Photo: Ehow.com
This could actually be the future of plastics recycling. Instead of using a resin identification coding system, we could be shifting to a system based on the type of product or package.
In 1988, the resin coding system was created to meet recyclers’ needs while providing manufacturers with a consistent, uniform system that was applicable nationwide.
But now that technology has become more effective at sorting different plastics and curbside programs have become more widespread, the resin coding system may eventually become a thing of the past.
Consumers may find product or package-based recycling easier because they won’t have to search for the number and wonder about its overall make-up. Many communities are already recycling this way.
On Board Yet?
If you’re still confused. Let’s break it down.
Earth911.com recently asked readers, “How is plastic accepted in your curbside program?” Of the readers who responded, 44 percent said it is accepted by number, while only 15 percent said it was accepted by product.
At the present time, many curbside programs still collect plastics using the resin identification system. However, the idea of a product or package-based collection system isn’t a new phenomena. According to Judith Dunbar, director of Environmental and Technical Issues for the American Chemistry Council (ACC), some communities started catching on to the idea in the late 90s when they began collecting “all plastic bottles.”
The ACC got on board and began encouraging other communities to accept recycling in this manner. Data collected by ACC and individual communities showed that it was actually easier for consumers to understand. In fact, the resin identification coding system was never meant to be used by consumers. It was put in place for recyclers to identify plastics, before more sophisticated equipment became available.
Today, product or package-based collection is used in many communities, including the District of Columbia and three major surrounding areas: Arlington County, Va., Montgomery County, Md. and Anne Arundel County, Md. Many cities and towns in California are also adopting this method of collection. About 60 percent of California’s collection programs accept “all bottles and household containers.”
Photo: Southernliving.com
In recent years, the number of U.S. plastics recycling business has nearly tripled. More than 1,600 businesses are involved in recycling post-consumer plastics. Photo: Southernliving.com
How Does It Work?
Dunbar says the key to getting any recycling program down to a science is educating consumers about what is specifically collected.
Successful collection is all about simplicity. Providing consumers with information that is detailed with photos of specific products and examples can help make the collection process even more successful.
So, let’s get down to what product categories can be collected for recycling:
* Plastic bottles – water and soda bottles, milk jugs, detergent bottles, anything with a “neck”
* Household containers – non-bottle items, such as butter tubs, yogurt cups, kitty litter buckets
* Plastic bags, product wraps, plastic film
* Tubs and lids
* Buckets and trays
(Note that not all communities currently accept all categories of plastics. Visit your municipality’s Web site or check out our recycle search to learn which plastics are collected in your area.)
Once product packaging goes to a material recovery facility, sorters already have a strong grasp on how to separate the materials without looking at the resin codes. Therefore, product-based collection does not slow down or hinder the service in any way.
As many communities go to a single-stream recycling system, “all bottle” recycling is often implemented as well. Because resin identification codes often confuse consumers, product-based recycling may encourage more participation since it requires less know-how
Sunday, May 2, 2010
The Greenest Building…
…is the one that’s already built, according to the Trust for Architectural Easements (TAE), one of the largest preservation easement holding organizations in the nation. The organization protects over 800 historical buildings in the U.S. The “greenest building” concept was first described in these terms by Carl Elefante.
But what does this concept mean? Aren’t new green buildings the way of the future?
According to TAE, “The Pew Center on Global Climate Change estimates that 43 percent of carbon emissions in the United States are attributable to energy used in residential, commercial and industrial buildings, making the building sector the largest source of greenhouse gases in America. This figure does not even include the energy required to build new structures or to demolish established structures.”
As much as new green buildings are the boon to our continued interest in sustainable development, there is a great deal of misunderstanding in what is lost when older buildings are demolished in the name of progress. The main loss is what is known as “embodied energy,” the concept encompassing “the sum of all of the efforts in the building of the structure itself: the harvesting of organic resources plus the manufacturing development (making those materials into building materials), transportation and the building itself,” according to Lindsey Wallace, donor relations assistant for the TAE. “With new construction, you have to make all that, and it creates a lot of waste.”
The crucial element in the loss of embodied energy is that it cannot be regained. Granted, building salvage businesses are alive and well, but on the whole, a great deal of energy, carbon emissions, materials, time and labor are gone when a building is taken down.
According to Richard Moe, president for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, “Demolishing a 50,000 square foot building creates 4,000 tons of waste, enough to fill 26 box cars – a train one-quarter mile long.” Additionally, “Constructing a new 50,000 square foot building releases as much carbon as driving a car 2.8 million miles.”
TAE also reports, “The Brookings Institution estimates that, at current rates, one third of the existing building stock in the United States will be demolished in the next 25 years. The refuse from construction, primarily from demolition, represents approximately 25 percent of the waste added to our landfills each year.”
New Vs. Old
“We’re not completely forgetting that new construction is ‘green,’ but it should be pointed out that some studies show that the rehab of a historic structure achieves the same energy efficiency,” said Heather Massler, director of operations and stewardship for TAE. When it comes to the environmental benefits of rehabilitating and retrofitting older structures, you may be surprised at your energy savings.
According to Moe, “It takes approximately 65 years for a green, energy-efficient building to recover the energy lost in demolition of an existing building even if 40 percent of the building materials from the demolition are recycled.”
A classic example of a reused, rehabilitated building is when an old factory (for example) is converted into loft apartments. Rather than tearing down the older structure and replacing it with a new high rise, the integrity of the structure itself remains (many people, in fact, enjoy the scuffed, burned or nicked floors and walls of buildings like these for their “character”) and the resources used to complete it in the first place are intact.
Massler also pointed out that if you’re looking to update your existing home, reaching for older materials is also a savings in energy. “Your choices are about consumption. Can I live with what I have, or does this really need to be replaced? Why rip out old floors to replace them with new bamboo? Old buildings usually have really durable materials, and there’s a whole salvage world out there.”
One With Nature
Another important consideration for older buildings is their use of the site on which they were constructed, or as Wallace put it, “taking advantage of how people have built for thousands of years.”
“Historic buildings already use the natural resources as much as possible [...] Several studies have shown that with proper repair and upkeep, they can be just as energy efficient,” said Massler.
Historic buildings typically have high ceilings, transoms and large windows for light and ventilation. Site selection and placement on the site, as well as porches and the use of landscaping, contribute to the efficient use of energy, according to TAE.
“People used to think about the site more, because modern conveniences weren’t already in place,” said Massler.
Along these lines, TAE reports that, “Data from the U.S. Energy Information Agency indicates that structures built prior to 1920 are more energy-efficient than those built through the year 2000, when the concept of sustainability began to take hold.”
Additionally, the General Services Administration estimates that the utility costs for historic buildings in its inventory are 27 percent less than for modern structures.
Economic Centers
U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) found that utility costs for historic buildings were 27% lower than for more modern buildings. - Preservationnj.wordpress.com
Who knew older buildings used less average energy than their modern counterparts? Photo: Preservationnation.org
“As economist Donovan Rypkema has pointed out, preserving a building is equal to preserving land,” said Wallace. “When preserving buildings in an urban center, you’re discouraging sprawl. The focus on building rehab is about reinvesting in urban centers.”
“When we think of sustainable development, with preservation and rehabilitation, it also speaks to culture and economic sustainability which isn’t talked about as much, but is still as important,” said Massler. “If you are rehab-ing any building in a city, the labor costs are a lot more than the actual materials, helping provide jobs. For example, Rypkema said that if you spend more money on the labor, you’re spending more money for the economy, because the laborer will spend the money again.”
“The preservation community has been advocating for federal tax credits for rehab-ing for exactly this issue, especially for retrofits – using resources already there, specialized labor that pays better, they put people back to work,” said Wallace.
LEEDing on
The National Trust for Historic Preservation and a number of other organizations, are working with the U.S. Green Building Council (the council responsible for the LEED program) to incorporate more preservation aspects in LEED certification. In fact, the new 2009 LEED Green Building Rating Systems will reflect the sustainable benefits of historic preservation.
But what can you do in the meantime? Even if you don’t have a big preservation project in the works, little steps in your own home still make a big difference. According to Wallace, “small efforts like weather stripping, really do add to your energy savings.” Massler also added that, “Most people want to be green or want to help out in whatever way they can. Just thinking about it and being aware is the first step.”
But what does this concept mean? Aren’t new green buildings the way of the future?
According to TAE, “The Pew Center on Global Climate Change estimates that 43 percent of carbon emissions in the United States are attributable to energy used in residential, commercial and industrial buildings, making the building sector the largest source of greenhouse gases in America. This figure does not even include the energy required to build new structures or to demolish established structures.”
As much as new green buildings are the boon to our continued interest in sustainable development, there is a great deal of misunderstanding in what is lost when older buildings are demolished in the name of progress. The main loss is what is known as “embodied energy,” the concept encompassing “the sum of all of the efforts in the building of the structure itself: the harvesting of organic resources plus the manufacturing development (making those materials into building materials), transportation and the building itself,” according to Lindsey Wallace, donor relations assistant for the TAE. “With new construction, you have to make all that, and it creates a lot of waste.”
The crucial element in the loss of embodied energy is that it cannot be regained. Granted, building salvage businesses are alive and well, but on the whole, a great deal of energy, carbon emissions, materials, time and labor are gone when a building is taken down.
According to Richard Moe, president for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, “Demolishing a 50,000 square foot building creates 4,000 tons of waste, enough to fill 26 box cars – a train one-quarter mile long.” Additionally, “Constructing a new 50,000 square foot building releases as much carbon as driving a car 2.8 million miles.”
TAE also reports, “The Brookings Institution estimates that, at current rates, one third of the existing building stock in the United States will be demolished in the next 25 years. The refuse from construction, primarily from demolition, represents approximately 25 percent of the waste added to our landfills each year.”
New Vs. Old
“We’re not completely forgetting that new construction is ‘green,’ but it should be pointed out that some studies show that the rehab of a historic structure achieves the same energy efficiency,” said Heather Massler, director of operations and stewardship for TAE. When it comes to the environmental benefits of rehabilitating and retrofitting older structures, you may be surprised at your energy savings.
According to Moe, “It takes approximately 65 years for a green, energy-efficient building to recover the energy lost in demolition of an existing building even if 40 percent of the building materials from the demolition are recycled.”
A classic example of a reused, rehabilitated building is when an old factory (for example) is converted into loft apartments. Rather than tearing down the older structure and replacing it with a new high rise, the integrity of the structure itself remains (many people, in fact, enjoy the scuffed, burned or nicked floors and walls of buildings like these for their “character”) and the resources used to complete it in the first place are intact.
Massler also pointed out that if you’re looking to update your existing home, reaching for older materials is also a savings in energy. “Your choices are about consumption. Can I live with what I have, or does this really need to be replaced? Why rip out old floors to replace them with new bamboo? Old buildings usually have really durable materials, and there’s a whole salvage world out there.”
One With Nature
Another important consideration for older buildings is their use of the site on which they were constructed, or as Wallace put it, “taking advantage of how people have built for thousands of years.”
“Historic buildings already use the natural resources as much as possible [...] Several studies have shown that with proper repair and upkeep, they can be just as energy efficient,” said Massler.
Historic buildings typically have high ceilings, transoms and large windows for light and ventilation. Site selection and placement on the site, as well as porches and the use of landscaping, contribute to the efficient use of energy, according to TAE.
“People used to think about the site more, because modern conveniences weren’t already in place,” said Massler.
Along these lines, TAE reports that, “Data from the U.S. Energy Information Agency indicates that structures built prior to 1920 are more energy-efficient than those built through the year 2000, when the concept of sustainability began to take hold.”
Additionally, the General Services Administration estimates that the utility costs for historic buildings in its inventory are 27 percent less than for modern structures.
Economic Centers
U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) found that utility costs for historic buildings were 27% lower than for more modern buildings. - Preservationnj.wordpress.com
Who knew older buildings used less average energy than their modern counterparts? Photo: Preservationnation.org
“As economist Donovan Rypkema has pointed out, preserving a building is equal to preserving land,” said Wallace. “When preserving buildings in an urban center, you’re discouraging sprawl. The focus on building rehab is about reinvesting in urban centers.”
“When we think of sustainable development, with preservation and rehabilitation, it also speaks to culture and economic sustainability which isn’t talked about as much, but is still as important,” said Massler. “If you are rehab-ing any building in a city, the labor costs are a lot more than the actual materials, helping provide jobs. For example, Rypkema said that if you spend more money on the labor, you’re spending more money for the economy, because the laborer will spend the money again.”
“The preservation community has been advocating for federal tax credits for rehab-ing for exactly this issue, especially for retrofits – using resources already there, specialized labor that pays better, they put people back to work,” said Wallace.
LEEDing on
The National Trust for Historic Preservation and a number of other organizations, are working with the U.S. Green Building Council (the council responsible for the LEED program) to incorporate more preservation aspects in LEED certification. In fact, the new 2009 LEED Green Building Rating Systems will reflect the sustainable benefits of historic preservation.
But what can you do in the meantime? Even if you don’t have a big preservation project in the works, little steps in your own home still make a big difference. According to Wallace, “small efforts like weather stripping, really do add to your energy savings.” Massler also added that, “Most people want to be green or want to help out in whatever way they can. Just thinking about it and being aware is the first step.”
Saturday, May 1, 2010
The Hottest Trend in Eco Housing
Old shipping containers may not be the first resource that comes to mind when thinking of sustainable living options, but as an up-and-coming green manufacturing company has already proven, they just might be a viable option for those seeking to live in an eco-friendly environment.
Upcycle Living, a Phoenix-based construction firm, provides affordable ecological housing for residential communities around the world. In November 2009, a demonstration project at the Green Street Festival showed off what could be accomplished with four remodeled shipping containers.
“We have many ways that we can treat the exterior, and most of them involve putting an exterior skin on the container and concealing the steel from any direct radiation from the sun and also concealing it from view," says co-founder Jason Anderson. Photo: Upcycleliving.com
The display contained two floors, two bedrooms and two-and-a-half bathrooms, with stylish bamboo cabinets, dual-flush toilets, ENERGY STAR appliances and low-flow showerheads to boot.
“The inspiration for Upcycle Living came from our desire to create a quality housing project that was sustainable yet affordable, durable and mobile in nature,” says Ashton Wolfswinkel, co-founder of Upcycle Living.
As to why shipping containers are his company’s choice of material, he explains, “Shipping containers are very abundant, especially in our country where we import so much more than we export.”
“We thought they would be a great platform for us to start from since they are extremely durable and are designed to be shipped with heavy loads and to withstand the rigors of ocean travel,” he adds. “And because the shipping containers are so plentiful, we are able to get them at a reasonable price, thus allowing us to shift costs, to improve quality and make our homes more sustainable.”
The company’s innovative designs have already attracted a handful of clients throughout Arizona, with one couple now residing in the very first home that Upcycle Living constructed. In addition to these private projects, the firm is currently working on a larger-scale development, which entails providing affordable housing units for a Native American tribe.
Though Upcycle Living is a for-profit organization, Wolfswinkel hopes that once the company becomes a bigger presence in the world of sustainable living, it will be able to pursue nonprofit projects, such as donating housing units to low-income families.
With high hopes and big dreams for the future, Upcycle Living continually looks to better the quality and sustainability of its products by implementing smart and innovative designs. Photo: Upcycleliving.com
But even in an economy that is less than ideal, Upcycle Living is working hard to expand into a successful business.
“The only way we will be able to do this is to offer a superior product at a competitive price point,” Wolfswinkel explains. “We want to stay flexible enough to fulfill our customers’ wants and needs, yet still fit within their budget.”
“We hope to engage our customers in a way that makes sustainable living accessible to anyone who has the desire to live more consciously and become more aware of how we live and the impacts that we have on our environment,” co-founder Jason Anderson adds.
In light of the disaster in Haiti, Upcycle Living has already reached out to a number of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) on what the company can do to help.
“Shipping containers are a very versatile platform which we can convert into almost any type of structure that is needed,” Wolfswinkel says. “From medical operating rooms to basic shelter, we would like to offer our services to design and build structures that would help in the rebuilding of Haiti.”
Upcycle Living, a Phoenix-based construction firm, provides affordable ecological housing for residential communities around the world. In November 2009, a demonstration project at the Green Street Festival showed off what could be accomplished with four remodeled shipping containers.
“We have many ways that we can treat the exterior, and most of them involve putting an exterior skin on the container and concealing the steel from any direct radiation from the sun and also concealing it from view," says co-founder Jason Anderson. Photo: Upcycleliving.com
The display contained two floors, two bedrooms and two-and-a-half bathrooms, with stylish bamboo cabinets, dual-flush toilets, ENERGY STAR appliances and low-flow showerheads to boot.
“The inspiration for Upcycle Living came from our desire to create a quality housing project that was sustainable yet affordable, durable and mobile in nature,” says Ashton Wolfswinkel, co-founder of Upcycle Living.
As to why shipping containers are his company’s choice of material, he explains, “Shipping containers are very abundant, especially in our country where we import so much more than we export.”
“We thought they would be a great platform for us to start from since they are extremely durable and are designed to be shipped with heavy loads and to withstand the rigors of ocean travel,” he adds. “And because the shipping containers are so plentiful, we are able to get them at a reasonable price, thus allowing us to shift costs, to improve quality and make our homes more sustainable.”
The company’s innovative designs have already attracted a handful of clients throughout Arizona, with one couple now residing in the very first home that Upcycle Living constructed. In addition to these private projects, the firm is currently working on a larger-scale development, which entails providing affordable housing units for a Native American tribe.
Though Upcycle Living is a for-profit organization, Wolfswinkel hopes that once the company becomes a bigger presence in the world of sustainable living, it will be able to pursue nonprofit projects, such as donating housing units to low-income families.
With high hopes and big dreams for the future, Upcycle Living continually looks to better the quality and sustainability of its products by implementing smart and innovative designs. Photo: Upcycleliving.com
But even in an economy that is less than ideal, Upcycle Living is working hard to expand into a successful business.
“The only way we will be able to do this is to offer a superior product at a competitive price point,” Wolfswinkel explains. “We want to stay flexible enough to fulfill our customers’ wants and needs, yet still fit within their budget.”
“We hope to engage our customers in a way that makes sustainable living accessible to anyone who has the desire to live more consciously and become more aware of how we live and the impacts that we have on our environment,” co-founder Jason Anderson adds.
In light of the disaster in Haiti, Upcycle Living has already reached out to a number of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) on what the company can do to help.
“Shipping containers are a very versatile platform which we can convert into almost any type of structure that is needed,” Wolfswinkel says. “From medical operating rooms to basic shelter, we would like to offer our services to design and build structures that would help in the rebuilding of Haiti.”
Friday, April 30, 2010
Traditional Inuit Knowledge Combines With Science to Shape Weather Insights
April 2010:
Using skills passed down through generations, Inuit forecasters living in the Canadian Arctic look to the sky to tell by the way the wind scatters a cloud whether a storm is on the horizon or if it's safe to go on a hunt.
Thousands of miles away in a lab tucked in Colorado's Rocky Mountains, scientists take data measurements and use the latest computer models to predict weather. They are two practices serving the same purpose that come from disparate worlds.
But in the past 20 years, something has run amok with Inuit forecasting. Old weather signals don't seem to mean what they used to. The cloud that scatters could signal a storm that comes in an hour instead of a day.
Now researchers are combining indigenous environmental knowledge with modern science to learn new things about what's happening to the Arctic climate.
"It's interesting how the western approach is often trying to understand things without necessarily experiencing them," said Elizabeth Weatherhead, a research scientist with the University of Colorado at Boulder's Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences. "With the Inuit, it's much more of an experiential issue, and I think that fundamental difference brings a completely different emphasis both in defining what the important scientific questions are, and discerning how to address them."
For years, researchers had heard reports of unpredictable weather coming in from Arctic communities. But the stories didn't seem to match up with the numbers. By scientific measurement, weather around the world appeared to be growing more persistent with less variation. The disparity left scientists scratching their heads, said Weatherhead.
"I had been hearing about this problem from other environmental statisticians for a number of years," said Weatherhead, who also works closely with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, Colo., and who is chief author on a new study on the subject. "But the Inuit used a different language than what we statisticians used, and none of us could really figure out what matched up with their observations."
That's where Shari Gearheard, a scientist with CU-Boulder's National Snow and Ice Data Center, also part of CIRES, comes in. Gearheard lives in Clyde River, Nunavut, Canada, an Inuit community on eastern Baffin Island, and for the past 10 years has been working with Inuit hunters and elders to document their knowledge of the environment and environmental change.
Weather has a special importance in Arctic environments, where a reliable forecast can mean the difference between life and death. There are members of the Inuit community who possess the skills to predict the weather, but that knowledge is dying off as both the culture and climate change, according to the scientists.
"The impacts of that are a loss of confidence in those forecasters and concerns about incorrect forecasts," said Gearheard. Forecasters don't want to send somebody out to go hunting if they're going to be unsafe and be in poor weather conditions."
Gearheard meticulously collects the stories told to her by the Inuit and makes systematic records of indigenous environmental knowledge. Through this, patterns begin to emerge, she said.
Of special importance were changes experienced by the Inuit during the spring, a time of transition for many environmental processes. During spring, the Inuit would notice that the top layer of the snow melted during the day and then would refreeze at night, forming a crust.
"In fact, in a lot of places, the season is named after a particular process by the Inuit," said Gearheard. "In cases like this where the Inuit are not seeing that process anymore, it is an indicator to them that something had changed."
Gearheard's records created a resolution of detail for Arctic weather observation that, by bringing the two studies together, gave Weatherhead the information she needed to bridge indigenous knowledge with scientific knowledge. "What was incredibly helpful was Shari's detailed description of what they were experiencing on what sort of timescales," said Weatherhead. "That really allowed us to start focusing on our statistical tests and try to find exactly what matched their observations."
Statistical analysis of day-to-day temperatures at Baker Lake, Nunavut, showed that in May and June the persistence of temperature had recently declined, matching Inuit reports of greater unpredictability at that season. "People hadn't previously looked at persistence in this way," said CIRES fellow Roger Barry, also director of the World Data Center for Glaciology at the National Snow and Ice Data Center at CU-Boulder and a study co-author along with Gearheard.
What they found was a scientific story more in line with what people were witnessing on the ground. Weather along the Arctic latitudes was behaving more unpredictably than in other parts of the world.
"That's an incredibly important parameter to care about," said Weatherhead. "The way I try to describe it to some people is if we get an inch of rain out at my house in the month of July, I don't need to turn on the sprinklers. But if we get an inch of rain on July 1, and no rain after that, my lawn is dead.
"Ecosystems have evolved under a certain type of pattern. So if that is changing, that could be just as important as a small increase in temperature or some of the other changes we're talking about," Weatherhead said.
The new study helps scientists refine and test climate models, while also providing such models with a new category of information to consider, said Weatherhead. And Gearheard's work with the Inuit is demonstrating the value of indigenous environmental knowledge to modern climate science.
"When we first started talking about this, indigenous knowledge didn't have the place it does now in research," Gearheard said. "It's growing. People are becoming more familiar with it, more respectful of it."
Weatherhead and Gearheard said they are intrigued by the insights that incorporate indigenous knowledge and climate studies, but they don't want to stop there. The new study has sparked an interest in the type of environmental knowledge other communities could provide to climate scientists, from ranchers and farmers to indigenous groups. "When you treat these perspectives as different forms of evidence or knowledge and see where that takes you, that is when exciting stuff happens," said Gearheard.
The study appears this month in the journal Global Environmental Change. The National Science Foundation and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada provided funding for the study.
Story Source:
Adapted from materials provided by University of Colorado at Boulder.
Journal Reference:
1. Weatherhead et al. Changes in weather persistence: Insight from Inuit knowledge. Global Environmental Change, 2010; DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2010.02.002
Using skills passed down through generations, Inuit forecasters living in the Canadian Arctic look to the sky to tell by the way the wind scatters a cloud whether a storm is on the horizon or if it's safe to go on a hunt.
Thousands of miles away in a lab tucked in Colorado's Rocky Mountains, scientists take data measurements and use the latest computer models to predict weather. They are two practices serving the same purpose that come from disparate worlds.
But in the past 20 years, something has run amok with Inuit forecasting. Old weather signals don't seem to mean what they used to. The cloud that scatters could signal a storm that comes in an hour instead of a day.
Now researchers are combining indigenous environmental knowledge with modern science to learn new things about what's happening to the Arctic climate.
"It's interesting how the western approach is often trying to understand things without necessarily experiencing them," said Elizabeth Weatherhead, a research scientist with the University of Colorado at Boulder's Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences. "With the Inuit, it's much more of an experiential issue, and I think that fundamental difference brings a completely different emphasis both in defining what the important scientific questions are, and discerning how to address them."
For years, researchers had heard reports of unpredictable weather coming in from Arctic communities. But the stories didn't seem to match up with the numbers. By scientific measurement, weather around the world appeared to be growing more persistent with less variation. The disparity left scientists scratching their heads, said Weatherhead.
"I had been hearing about this problem from other environmental statisticians for a number of years," said Weatherhead, who also works closely with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, Colo., and who is chief author on a new study on the subject. "But the Inuit used a different language than what we statisticians used, and none of us could really figure out what matched up with their observations."
That's where Shari Gearheard, a scientist with CU-Boulder's National Snow and Ice Data Center, also part of CIRES, comes in. Gearheard lives in Clyde River, Nunavut, Canada, an Inuit community on eastern Baffin Island, and for the past 10 years has been working with Inuit hunters and elders to document their knowledge of the environment and environmental change.
Weather has a special importance in Arctic environments, where a reliable forecast can mean the difference between life and death. There are members of the Inuit community who possess the skills to predict the weather, but that knowledge is dying off as both the culture and climate change, according to the scientists.
"The impacts of that are a loss of confidence in those forecasters and concerns about incorrect forecasts," said Gearheard. Forecasters don't want to send somebody out to go hunting if they're going to be unsafe and be in poor weather conditions."
Gearheard meticulously collects the stories told to her by the Inuit and makes systematic records of indigenous environmental knowledge. Through this, patterns begin to emerge, she said.
Of special importance were changes experienced by the Inuit during the spring, a time of transition for many environmental processes. During spring, the Inuit would notice that the top layer of the snow melted during the day and then would refreeze at night, forming a crust.
"In fact, in a lot of places, the season is named after a particular process by the Inuit," said Gearheard. "In cases like this where the Inuit are not seeing that process anymore, it is an indicator to them that something had changed."
Gearheard's records created a resolution of detail for Arctic weather observation that, by bringing the two studies together, gave Weatherhead the information she needed to bridge indigenous knowledge with scientific knowledge. "What was incredibly helpful was Shari's detailed description of what they were experiencing on what sort of timescales," said Weatherhead. "That really allowed us to start focusing on our statistical tests and try to find exactly what matched their observations."
Statistical analysis of day-to-day temperatures at Baker Lake, Nunavut, showed that in May and June the persistence of temperature had recently declined, matching Inuit reports of greater unpredictability at that season. "People hadn't previously looked at persistence in this way," said CIRES fellow Roger Barry, also director of the World Data Center for Glaciology at the National Snow and Ice Data Center at CU-Boulder and a study co-author along with Gearheard.
What they found was a scientific story more in line with what people were witnessing on the ground. Weather along the Arctic latitudes was behaving more unpredictably than in other parts of the world.
"That's an incredibly important parameter to care about," said Weatherhead. "The way I try to describe it to some people is if we get an inch of rain out at my house in the month of July, I don't need to turn on the sprinklers. But if we get an inch of rain on July 1, and no rain after that, my lawn is dead.
"Ecosystems have evolved under a certain type of pattern. So if that is changing, that could be just as important as a small increase in temperature or some of the other changes we're talking about," Weatherhead said.
The new study helps scientists refine and test climate models, while also providing such models with a new category of information to consider, said Weatherhead. And Gearheard's work with the Inuit is demonstrating the value of indigenous environmental knowledge to modern climate science.
"When we first started talking about this, indigenous knowledge didn't have the place it does now in research," Gearheard said. "It's growing. People are becoming more familiar with it, more respectful of it."
Weatherhead and Gearheard said they are intrigued by the insights that incorporate indigenous knowledge and climate studies, but they don't want to stop there. The new study has sparked an interest in the type of environmental knowledge other communities could provide to climate scientists, from ranchers and farmers to indigenous groups. "When you treat these perspectives as different forms of evidence or knowledge and see where that takes you, that is when exciting stuff happens," said Gearheard.
The study appears this month in the journal Global Environmental Change. The National Science Foundation and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada provided funding for the study.
Story Source:
Adapted from materials provided by University of Colorado at Boulder.
Journal Reference:
1. Weatherhead et al. Changes in weather persistence: Insight from Inuit knowledge. Global Environmental Change, 2010; DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2010.02.002
Massive Arctic Ice Cap Is Shrinking, Study Shows; Rate Accelerating Since 1985
Close to 50 years of data show the Devon Island ice cap, one of the largest ice masses in the Canadian High Arctic, is thinning and shrinking.
A paper published in the March edition of Arctic, the journal of the University of Calgary's Arctic Institute of North America, reports that between 1961 and 1985, the ice cap grew in some years and shrank in others, resulting in an overall loss of mass. But that changed 1985 when scientists began to see a steady decline in ice volume and area each year.
"We've been seeing more mass loss since 1985," says Sarah Boon, lead author on the paper and a Geography Professor at the University of Lethbridge. The reason for the change? Warmer summers.
The High Arctic is essentially a desert with low rates of annual precipitation. There is little accumulation of snow in the winter and cool summers, with temperatures at or below freezing, serve to maintain levels. Any increase of snow and ice takes years.
This delicate equilibrium is easily upset. One warm summer can wipe out five years of growth. And though the accelerated melting trend began in 1985, the last decade has seen four years with unusually warm summers -- 2001, 2005, 2007 and 2008.
"What we see during these warm summers is the extent of the melt is greater," says Boon about the results of a five-year remote sensing study that ran between 2000 and 2004.
The white surfaces of snow and ice reflect heat -- a process known as the albedo effect. Retreating ice exposes dark soil and gravel, which absorb heat and increase the melt rate of ice along the periphery of the cap. But it's not only the edges of the cap that are losing ice. At lower altitudes the ice is thinning as well.
Changes to the Devon ice cap, which covers approximately 14,400 sq. km, could have multiple impacts on everything from ship traffic to sea level.
There has already been an increase in the number of icebergs calving off from outlet glaciers that flow into the ocean. Boon explains that melt water runs between the bottom of the glacier and the ground, creating a slippery cushion that allows the glacier to slide forward more rapidly than it would in colder conditions.
"There are a lot of things we need to consider. One is the iceberg calving and its implications for shipping. These things don't just go away, they float out into the ocean," says Boon. A second area of concern is the contribution of increased glacier melt to rising sea level.
The work of Boon and her colleagues demonstrates the importance of long-term research. Work on Devon Island began in 1961 with researchers from the Arctic Institute of North America, including long-time Arctic scientist Roy 'Fritz' Koerner, who was part of the current study until his death in 2008. This ongoing research, which is continuing thanks to federal International Polar year funding, has created a comprehensive dataset that contributes to the understanding of the complex play between the ice cap, the atmosphere and the ocean.
"We all know long-term studies are important but they are really hard to pay for."
Story Source:
Adapted from materials provided by Arctic Institute of North America, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
A paper published in the March edition of Arctic, the journal of the University of Calgary's Arctic Institute of North America, reports that between 1961 and 1985, the ice cap grew in some years and shrank in others, resulting in an overall loss of mass. But that changed 1985 when scientists began to see a steady decline in ice volume and area each year.
"We've been seeing more mass loss since 1985," says Sarah Boon, lead author on the paper and a Geography Professor at the University of Lethbridge. The reason for the change? Warmer summers.
The High Arctic is essentially a desert with low rates of annual precipitation. There is little accumulation of snow in the winter and cool summers, with temperatures at or below freezing, serve to maintain levels. Any increase of snow and ice takes years.
This delicate equilibrium is easily upset. One warm summer can wipe out five years of growth. And though the accelerated melting trend began in 1985, the last decade has seen four years with unusually warm summers -- 2001, 2005, 2007 and 2008.
"What we see during these warm summers is the extent of the melt is greater," says Boon about the results of a five-year remote sensing study that ran between 2000 and 2004.
The white surfaces of snow and ice reflect heat -- a process known as the albedo effect. Retreating ice exposes dark soil and gravel, which absorb heat and increase the melt rate of ice along the periphery of the cap. But it's not only the edges of the cap that are losing ice. At lower altitudes the ice is thinning as well.
Changes to the Devon ice cap, which covers approximately 14,400 sq. km, could have multiple impacts on everything from ship traffic to sea level.
There has already been an increase in the number of icebergs calving off from outlet glaciers that flow into the ocean. Boon explains that melt water runs between the bottom of the glacier and the ground, creating a slippery cushion that allows the glacier to slide forward more rapidly than it would in colder conditions.
"There are a lot of things we need to consider. One is the iceberg calving and its implications for shipping. These things don't just go away, they float out into the ocean," says Boon. A second area of concern is the contribution of increased glacier melt to rising sea level.
The work of Boon and her colleagues demonstrates the importance of long-term research. Work on Devon Island began in 1961 with researchers from the Arctic Institute of North America, including long-time Arctic scientist Roy 'Fritz' Koerner, who was part of the current study until his death in 2008. This ongoing research, which is continuing thanks to federal International Polar year funding, has created a comprehensive dataset that contributes to the understanding of the complex play between the ice cap, the atmosphere and the ocean.
"We all know long-term studies are important but they are really hard to pay for."
Story Source:
Adapted from materials provided by Arctic Institute of North America, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
New Material for More Ecological, Efficient and Economic Refrigeration Systems
Two teams based at the Barcelona Knowledge Campus, one from the University of Barcelona (UB) and one from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), have worked with a group from the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany) to develop a new solid material that produces a caloric effect under hydrostatic pressure (solid-state barocaloric effect). The work was carried out using a high-pressure system developed by the UPC, which is the only one of its type in Spain.
he research is described in an article published in the scientific journal Nature Materials and was inspired by guidelines in the Kyoto protocol on renewing current refrigeration systems based on the compression of harmful gases.
Research into materials showing large caloric effects close to room temperature is one of the areas currently being explored to develop new refrigeration systems. Until recently, the most promising materials for applications in this field were giant magnetocaloric materials, which change temperature under the influence of an external magnetic field. The authors of this new study show that application of a moderate hydrostatic pressure to a nickel-manganese-indium alloy (Ni-Mn-In) produces results comparable to those achieved with the most effective magnetocaloric materials.
According to Lluís Mañosa, a professor with the Department of Structure and Constituents of Matter at the UB and principal investigator of the study, "the aim of this field of research is to identify materials that are efficient, economic and environmentally respectful, and the advantages of the alloy used in this study is that all of the component materials meet these requirements."
In addition, Antoni Planes, a professor with the same UN department, explains that, "this type of material can produce much greater caloric effects with only slight variations in pressure, which makes it ideal for domestic refrigeration systems (refrigerators, air conditioning, etc.)." When these alloys are submitted to an external field, either magnetic or pressure, the material undergoes a solid-state phase transition, and Lluís Mañosa explains that, "this phase change generates a considerable latent heat exchange." The physical principle involved is the same as the effect observed when an ice cube is placed into a glass of water: the ice absorbs heat from the water, lowering its temperature.
The experiments were carried out using a unique high-pressure system developed by the Materials Characterization Group at UPC, directed by Josep Lluís Tamarit, a professor with the Department of Nuclear Physics and Engineering. The system was designed to measure the temperatures during state changes according to the pressure and heat exchanged in the process.
According to the researcher Maria Barrio, who works for the same UPC department and co-authored the study, "studying the behaviour of materials under different pressures has a wide range of uses in many fields," and applications include various types of refrigeration systems, such as domestic refrigerators and air-conditioning systems, food storage facilities, industrial machinery and supercomputers. Scientists have understood the magnetocaloric effect for some time, and it has been used extensively in work requiring extremely low temperature, but it was not until the 1990s that experts discovered materials capable of producing a large magnetocaloric effect close to room temperature, or giant magnetocaloric effect.
In 2005, an article in Nature Materials presented the inverse magnetocaloric effect, under which the temperature of a material submitted to an external magnetic field decreases instead of increasing, which is the standard response of most magnetic materials.
The study, carried out as preparation for the doctoral thesis of Xavier Moya, under the direction of Lluís Mañosa (UB), was awarded the 2009 Ramon Margalef Prize by the UB Board of Trustees.
In addition to the barocaloric effect described above, the Ni-Mn-In alloy also exhibits the inverse magnetocaloric effect. As such, the magnetic field can be combined with exertion of hydrostatic pressure to produce the caloric effect, which can be modulated with a series of parameters to control the temperature. With this new material it is possible to observe the pressure and the magnetic field to control the state change at a desired temperature.
he research is described in an article published in the scientific journal Nature Materials and was inspired by guidelines in the Kyoto protocol on renewing current refrigeration systems based on the compression of harmful gases.
Research into materials showing large caloric effects close to room temperature is one of the areas currently being explored to develop new refrigeration systems. Until recently, the most promising materials for applications in this field were giant magnetocaloric materials, which change temperature under the influence of an external magnetic field. The authors of this new study show that application of a moderate hydrostatic pressure to a nickel-manganese-indium alloy (Ni-Mn-In) produces results comparable to those achieved with the most effective magnetocaloric materials.
According to Lluís Mañosa, a professor with the Department of Structure and Constituents of Matter at the UB and principal investigator of the study, "the aim of this field of research is to identify materials that are efficient, economic and environmentally respectful, and the advantages of the alloy used in this study is that all of the component materials meet these requirements."
In addition, Antoni Planes, a professor with the same UN department, explains that, "this type of material can produce much greater caloric effects with only slight variations in pressure, which makes it ideal for domestic refrigeration systems (refrigerators, air conditioning, etc.)." When these alloys are submitted to an external field, either magnetic or pressure, the material undergoes a solid-state phase transition, and Lluís Mañosa explains that, "this phase change generates a considerable latent heat exchange." The physical principle involved is the same as the effect observed when an ice cube is placed into a glass of water: the ice absorbs heat from the water, lowering its temperature.
The experiments were carried out using a unique high-pressure system developed by the Materials Characterization Group at UPC, directed by Josep Lluís Tamarit, a professor with the Department of Nuclear Physics and Engineering. The system was designed to measure the temperatures during state changes according to the pressure and heat exchanged in the process.
According to the researcher Maria Barrio, who works for the same UPC department and co-authored the study, "studying the behaviour of materials under different pressures has a wide range of uses in many fields," and applications include various types of refrigeration systems, such as domestic refrigerators and air-conditioning systems, food storage facilities, industrial machinery and supercomputers. Scientists have understood the magnetocaloric effect for some time, and it has been used extensively in work requiring extremely low temperature, but it was not until the 1990s that experts discovered materials capable of producing a large magnetocaloric effect close to room temperature, or giant magnetocaloric effect.
In 2005, an article in Nature Materials presented the inverse magnetocaloric effect, under which the temperature of a material submitted to an external magnetic field decreases instead of increasing, which is the standard response of most magnetic materials.
The study, carried out as preparation for the doctoral thesis of Xavier Moya, under the direction of Lluís Mañosa (UB), was awarded the 2009 Ramon Margalef Prize by the UB Board of Trustees.
In addition to the barocaloric effect described above, the Ni-Mn-In alloy also exhibits the inverse magnetocaloric effect. As such, the magnetic field can be combined with exertion of hydrostatic pressure to produce the caloric effect, which can be modulated with a series of parameters to control the temperature. With this new material it is possible to observe the pressure and the magnetic field to control the state change at a desired temperature.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
'Missing' Heat May Affect Future Climate Change
ScienceDaily (Apr.2010) — Current observational tools cannot account for roughly half of the heat that is believed to have built up on Earth in recent years, according to a "Perspectives" article in this week's issue of Science. Scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) warn in the new study that satellite sensors, ocean floats, and other instruments are inadequate to track this "missing" heat, which may be building up in the deep oceans or elsewhere in the climate system.
"The heat will come back to haunt us sooner or later," says NCAR scientist Kevin Trenberth, the lead author. "The reprieve we've had from warming temperatures in the last few years will not continue. It is critical to track the build-up of energy in our climate system so we can understand what is happening and predict our future climate."
The authors suggest that last year's rapid onset of El Niño, the periodic event in which upper ocean waters across much of the tropical Pacific Ocean become significantly warmer, may be one way in which the solar energy has reappeared.
The research was funded by the National Science Foundation, NCAR's sponsor, and by NASA. A Science Perspectives piece is not formally peer-reviewed, but it is extensively reviewed by editors of the journal. Science had invited Trenberth to submit the article after an editor heard him discuss the research at a scientific conference.
Trenberth and his co-author, NCAR scientist John Fasullo, focused on a central mystery of climate change. Whereas satellite instruments indicate that greenhouse gases are continuing to trap more solar energy, or heat, scientists since 2003 have been unable to determine where much of that heat is going.
Either the satellite observations are incorrect, says Trenberth, or, more likely, large amounts of heat are penetrating to regions that are not adequately measured, such as the deepest parts of the oceans. Compounding the problem, Earth's surface temperatures have largely leveled off in recent years. Yet melting glaciers and Arctic sea ice, along with rising sea levels, indicate that heat is continuing to have profound effects on the planet.
In their Perspectives article, Trenberth and Fasullo explain that it is imperative to better measure the flow of energy through Earth's climate system. For example, any geoengineering plan to artificially alter the world's climate to counter global warming could have inadvertent consequences, which may be difficult to analyze unless scientists can track heat around the globe. Improved analysis of energy in the atmosphere and oceans can also help researchers better understand and possibly even anticipate unusual weather patterns, such as the cold outbreaks across much of the United States, Europe, and Asia over the past winter.
There's more to climate change than warmer air
As greenhouse gases accumulate in the atmosphere, satellite instruments show a growing imbalance between energy entering the atmosphere from the Sun and energy leaving from Earth's surface. This imbalance is the source of long-term global warming.
But tracking the growing amount of heat on Earth is far more complicated than measuring temperatures at the planet's surface. The oceans absorb about 90 percent of the solar energy that is trapped by greenhouse gases. Additional amounts of heat go toward melting glaciers and sea ice, as well as warming the land and parts of the atmosphere. Only a tiny fraction warms the air at the planet's surface.
Satellite measurements indicate that the amount of greenhouse-trapped solar energy has risen over recent years while the increase in heat measured in the top 3,000 feet of the ocean has stalled. Although it is difficult to quantify the amount of solar energy with precision, Trenberth and Fasullo estimate that, based on satellite data, the amount of energy build-up appears to be about 1.0 watts per square meter or higher, while ocean instruments indicate a build-up of about 0.5 watts per square meter. That means about half the total amount of heat is unaccounted for.
A percentage of the missing heat could be illusory, the result of imprecise measurements by satellites and surface sensors or incorrect processing of data from those sensors, the authors say. Until 2003, the measured heat increase was consistent with computer model expectations. But a new set of ocean monitors since then has shown a steady decrease in the rate of oceanic heating, even as the satellite-measured imbalance between incoming and outgoing energy continues to grow.
Some of the missing heat appears to be going into the observed melting of ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, as well as Arctic sea ice, the authors say.
Much of the missing heat may be in the ocean. Some heat increase can be detected between depths of 3,000 and 6,500 feet (about 1,000 to 2,000 meters), but more heat may be deeper still beyond the reach of ocean sensors.
Trenberth and Fasullo call for additional ocean sensors, along with more systematic data analysis and new approaches to calibrating satellite instruments, to help resolve the mystery. The Argo profiling floats that researchers began deploying in 2000 to measure ocean temperatures, for example, are separated by about 185 miles (300 kilometers) and take readings only about once every 10 days from a depth of about 6,500 feet (2,000 meters) up to the surface. Plans are underway to have a subset of these floats go to greater depths.
"Global warming at its heart is driven by an imbalance of energy: more solar energy is entering the atmosphere than leaving it," Fasullo says. "Our concern is that we aren't able to entirely monitor or understand the imbalance. This reveals a glaring hole in our ability to observe the build-up of heat in our climate system."
"The heat will come back to haunt us sooner or later," says NCAR scientist Kevin Trenberth, the lead author. "The reprieve we've had from warming temperatures in the last few years will not continue. It is critical to track the build-up of energy in our climate system so we can understand what is happening and predict our future climate."
The authors suggest that last year's rapid onset of El Niño, the periodic event in which upper ocean waters across much of the tropical Pacific Ocean become significantly warmer, may be one way in which the solar energy has reappeared.
The research was funded by the National Science Foundation, NCAR's sponsor, and by NASA. A Science Perspectives piece is not formally peer-reviewed, but it is extensively reviewed by editors of the journal. Science had invited Trenberth to submit the article after an editor heard him discuss the research at a scientific conference.
Trenberth and his co-author, NCAR scientist John Fasullo, focused on a central mystery of climate change. Whereas satellite instruments indicate that greenhouse gases are continuing to trap more solar energy, or heat, scientists since 2003 have been unable to determine where much of that heat is going.
Either the satellite observations are incorrect, says Trenberth, or, more likely, large amounts of heat are penetrating to regions that are not adequately measured, such as the deepest parts of the oceans. Compounding the problem, Earth's surface temperatures have largely leveled off in recent years. Yet melting glaciers and Arctic sea ice, along with rising sea levels, indicate that heat is continuing to have profound effects on the planet.
In their Perspectives article, Trenberth and Fasullo explain that it is imperative to better measure the flow of energy through Earth's climate system. For example, any geoengineering plan to artificially alter the world's climate to counter global warming could have inadvertent consequences, which may be difficult to analyze unless scientists can track heat around the globe. Improved analysis of energy in the atmosphere and oceans can also help researchers better understand and possibly even anticipate unusual weather patterns, such as the cold outbreaks across much of the United States, Europe, and Asia over the past winter.
There's more to climate change than warmer air
As greenhouse gases accumulate in the atmosphere, satellite instruments show a growing imbalance between energy entering the atmosphere from the Sun and energy leaving from Earth's surface. This imbalance is the source of long-term global warming.
But tracking the growing amount of heat on Earth is far more complicated than measuring temperatures at the planet's surface. The oceans absorb about 90 percent of the solar energy that is trapped by greenhouse gases. Additional amounts of heat go toward melting glaciers and sea ice, as well as warming the land and parts of the atmosphere. Only a tiny fraction warms the air at the planet's surface.
Satellite measurements indicate that the amount of greenhouse-trapped solar energy has risen over recent years while the increase in heat measured in the top 3,000 feet of the ocean has stalled. Although it is difficult to quantify the amount of solar energy with precision, Trenberth and Fasullo estimate that, based on satellite data, the amount of energy build-up appears to be about 1.0 watts per square meter or higher, while ocean instruments indicate a build-up of about 0.5 watts per square meter. That means about half the total amount of heat is unaccounted for.
A percentage of the missing heat could be illusory, the result of imprecise measurements by satellites and surface sensors or incorrect processing of data from those sensors, the authors say. Until 2003, the measured heat increase was consistent with computer model expectations. But a new set of ocean monitors since then has shown a steady decrease in the rate of oceanic heating, even as the satellite-measured imbalance between incoming and outgoing energy continues to grow.
Some of the missing heat appears to be going into the observed melting of ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, as well as Arctic sea ice, the authors say.
Much of the missing heat may be in the ocean. Some heat increase can be detected between depths of 3,000 and 6,500 feet (about 1,000 to 2,000 meters), but more heat may be deeper still beyond the reach of ocean sensors.
Trenberth and Fasullo call for additional ocean sensors, along with more systematic data analysis and new approaches to calibrating satellite instruments, to help resolve the mystery. The Argo profiling floats that researchers began deploying in 2000 to measure ocean temperatures, for example, are separated by about 185 miles (300 kilometers) and take readings only about once every 10 days from a depth of about 6,500 feet (2,000 meters) up to the surface. Plans are underway to have a subset of these floats go to greater depths.
"Global warming at its heart is driven by an imbalance of energy: more solar energy is entering the atmosphere than leaving it," Fasullo says. "Our concern is that we aren't able to entirely monitor or understand the imbalance. This reveals a glaring hole in our ability to observe the build-up of heat in our climate system."
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Milk and Juice Carton Recycling Made Easy
Milk and Juice Carton Recycling Made Easy
Tropicana and Waste Management recently announced they are joining forces to launch a national initiative to increase the rate of juice and milk carton recycling. The initiative kicks off the long-term goal to increase beverage carton recycling nationwide, a program being promoted through the Carton Council.
Milk and juice cartons are made largely from paper sources and fall under the material category of paperboard. Though not accepted by all municipal curbside programs, more than 85 percent of the U.S. population has access to paperboard recycling.
Though 85 percent of the U.S. population has access to paperboard recycling, not all paperboard recyclers will accept milk and juice cartons. Photo: G-can.net
Waste Management will be accepting juice and milk cartons at all its recycling processing facilities across the country in order to increase their recycling rate. Waste Management separates the cartons from the other recyclables and sends them to a secondary mill for recycling.
Recycled through a process called hydropulping, which recovers a material’s paper fibers, the cartons are recycled into paper towels, tissue and other paper products. A typical Tropicana carton is made of 85 percent paper and 15 percent polymer, making the product largely recyclable.
“We are proud to be working with Waste Management to promote the expansion of carton recycling across the country and finding new ways to recycle our products into environmentally beneficial products,” says Andre Hartshorn, senior marketing manager for Tropicana Products, Inc.
This national carton recycling program builds off a successful pilot program in Tampa, Fla., where Tropicana and Waste Management, along with the Carton Council and Dean Foods, successfully expanded carton recycling availability and educated consumers about carton recycling.
Tropicana and Waste Management recently announced they are joining forces to launch a national initiative to increase the rate of juice and milk carton recycling. The initiative kicks off the long-term goal to increase beverage carton recycling nationwide, a program being promoted through the Carton Council.
Milk and juice cartons are made largely from paper sources and fall under the material category of paperboard. Though not accepted by all municipal curbside programs, more than 85 percent of the U.S. population has access to paperboard recycling.
Though 85 percent of the U.S. population has access to paperboard recycling, not all paperboard recyclers will accept milk and juice cartons. Photo: G-can.net
Waste Management will be accepting juice and milk cartons at all its recycling processing facilities across the country in order to increase their recycling rate. Waste Management separates the cartons from the other recyclables and sends them to a secondary mill for recycling.
Recycled through a process called hydropulping, which recovers a material’s paper fibers, the cartons are recycled into paper towels, tissue and other paper products. A typical Tropicana carton is made of 85 percent paper and 15 percent polymer, making the product largely recyclable.
“We are proud to be working with Waste Management to promote the expansion of carton recycling across the country and finding new ways to recycle our products into environmentally beneficial products,” says Andre Hartshorn, senior marketing manager for Tropicana Products, Inc.
This national carton recycling program builds off a successful pilot program in Tampa, Fla., where Tropicana and Waste Management, along with the Carton Council and Dean Foods, successfully expanded carton recycling availability and educated consumers about carton recycling.
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