News Digest 12 – 27 March 2008

Companies
Samsung, Toshiba top green electronics list
Energy efficiency top concern of executives
US electric companies may store power in giant batteries
EU retailers pledge to cut energy consumption 20%
Greenpeace alleges EU illegal logging

Research
Researchers isolate hydrogen-producing bacteria

Policy
UK budget includes environment measures
US EPA tightens emissions regulations for transportation

Companies

Samsung, Toshiba top green electronics list

Toshiba and Samsung have obtained the highest score in Greenpeace’s Green Guide to Electronics, which ranks the top 18 electronics manufacturers based on their policies on toxic chemicals and product recycling. Nokia, Sony, Dell, and Lenovo were all tied for the second-highest score in the rankings, which consider how companies dispose of hazardous substances from their products, and whether outdated products can be safely recycled.

Energy efficiency top concern of executives

Energy efficiency is a top concern of business executives, according to a new survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit, which reported 52% of over 1,200 respondents calling energy efficiency one of their priorities among corporate sustainability practices. Fifty-seven percent of executives also said that sustainable practices would offer their companies more benefits than costs, particularly in the area of energy expenditure.

US electric companies may store power in giant batteries

American utility companies are beginning to explore the merits of using giant batteries, some up to the size of double-decker buses, to store power from renewable energy sources and become less dependant on backup plants. The power stored in the batteries can be retrieved with no delay and no emission of greenhouse gasses. Ohio-based American Electric Power installed a 1 MW battery in West Virginia almost two years ago, and hopes to have 1,000 MW of storage within the next decade.

EU retailers pledge to cut energy consumption 20%

Fourteen of the EU’s largest retailers have announced a collective commitment to reduce energy use by at least 20% per square meter on their commercial premises, and work toward exceeding the EU’s target of having 20% of energy come from renewable sources by 2020. The retailers are members of the European Retail Round Table, and include Wal-Mart, Ikea, H&M, Marks & Spencer, Tesco and others.

Greenpeace alleges EU illegal logging

A cargo ship entering the French port of Caen was blocked when five Greenpeace activists went aboard the vessel to keep it from unloading its cargo of timber, which the organization says has links to companies with illegal Amazonian logging operations. A new Greenpeace report estimates that up to 80% of timber from the Amazon is logged illegally, and the organization says that tropical deforestation accounts for about one-fifth of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Research

Researchers isolate hydrogen-producing bacteria

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur say they are making significant steps toward isolating a strain of hydrogen-producing bacteria, Enterobacter cloacae, that can generate 40% more hydrogen than other strains: nearly 4 moles of hydrogen from a single mole of substrate. The researchers feel that using the bacteria to act on sewage waste could have significant implications for energy production and waste disposal, and an 800-liter pilot plant for fuel generation has been constructed at the institute.

Policy

UK budget includes environment measures

Several environmental proposals are included in the UK’s 2008 budget, delivered last week by Chancellor of Exchequer Alistair Darling, and with one stated aim of equipping Britain to “confront climate change”. Among key points are: reforming the vehicle tax (high-polluting vehicles will pay up to £950 by 2010); postponing a 2p fuel duty increase until later this year; raising amounts airlines must pay to green their industry; requiring new non-domestic buildings to be carbon-free beginning in 2019; setting aside £26 million to help green UK homes; and considering raising the UK’s emissions reduction targets to 80% by 2050.

US EPA tightens emissions regulations for transportation

Trains, tugboats, ferries, barges and recreational boats will be forced to meet strict new emissions standards by 2015, in accordance with new regulations that came from the US Environmental Protection Agency last week. Via cleaner fuel and new engine technology, soot must be reduced 90% and nitrous oxide (a climate change causing gas) by 80% in the next seven years, though it could take some engines more than 20 years to be refurbished and able to meet the requirements.