GREENBUZZ NEWS:

Taking Care of Business

There's no stopping the greening of business. Two thousand eight seems to be off to a roaring start. Today, for examples, bring three significant announcements from six major companies (two of which, GM and IBM, are GreenBiz.com sponsors). The three demonstrate a range of sectors, partnerships, and approaches to the new green economy. To wit:

• General Motors this weekend announced an investment in a start-up company, Coskata, to commercialize the process of turning biomass, municipal trash, waste tires, wood chips, and other low-grade waste into ethanol -- at a price of under $1 per gallon. The plan is to build facilities that could produce 100 million gallons a year each by 2010.
  
  
• IBM, Nokia, Pitney-Bowes, and Sony today are releasing 31 patents into the public domain, aimed at addressing a range of environmental challenges. The companies hope this Eco-Patent Commons will spur innovation and create new business opportunities.
  
  
• Clorox is announcing a partnership today with the Sierra Club, as part of its launch of a new line of environmentally friendly cleaning products, the company's first new brand in 20 years. Sierra Club will help promote the cleaners, which are 99 percent derived from coconuts and lemon oil.

All three of these announcements, while different in form and substance, demonstrate the power of partnerships and innovation in the green business arena -- a topic underscored by Worldwatch Institute in the latest edition of its annual tome, State of the World. This year's edition is dedicated to highlighting new economic opportunities and actions by governments and businesses to better the world.

Not bad, for a single week in the greening of business. Two thousand eight: So far, so good.

FEATURED BOOK

True Green at Work: 100 Ways You Can Make the Environment Your Business
by Kim Mckay and Jenny Bonnin

True Green at Work is a definitive DIY manual for the working world, covering businesses, workers and day-to-day life at the office. Its variety of tips tell everyone who holds a job, from top executives on down the ladder, how to help minimize their company's carbon footprint. Each page contains a single tip for reducing waste, making it easy for anyone in any job to take small steps toward a healthier planet.

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FEATURED EVENT

IT360- Conference & Expo 2008

Host: Plum Communications Date: April 7 - 9, 2008
Location: Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Canada

IT360- Conference & Expo 2008 is an interactive experience for IT professionals and business executives. Faced with the challenge of shrinking budgets and limited time to test or evaluate, IT360- provides a conference of 80+ educational sessions and an informative exposition where professionals can compare applications and solutions while learning first-hand from leading companies and their experts in this immersive arena.

> SUBMIT YOUR EVENT

New on GreenBiz Radio:

Charting the Climate Course for the Next U.S. President

The Presidential Climate Action Project aims to give the next resident of the White House a running start on addressing the climate crisis. Longtime corporate sustainability leader Ray Anderson talks to GreenBiz Radio about what the president -- and U.S. businesses -- can accomplish.

You can listen to GreenBiz Radio online, download programs to your desktop, or subscribe to the GreenBiz Radio RSS feed.

Headlines

The Latest News on Business and the Environment

IBM Leads Program to Share Clean Technologies
IBM, Nokia, Pitney-Bowes and Sony are the first companies to join the newly launched Eco-Patents Commons, a coalition spearheaded by IBM to offer environmental technologies, processes and ideas to spur innovation around the globe.

Clorox and Sierra Club Announce Branding Partnership
The Clorox Company has formed a partnership with the Sierra Club as part of the company's launch of Green Works, a new line of natural cleaning products made from plant-based ingredients.

GM Launches Partnership with Start-up to Commercialize Biofuels
At the Detroit Motor Show, General Motors announced a partnership with Coskata to commercialize its process for creating low-cost ethanol from a wide range of feedstocks, including biomass, municipal solid waste, wood chips, even used car tires.

Banks Take Steps Addressing Climate Change but Long Road Ahead: Report
HSBC and ABN led the pack of 40 banks and financial institutions examined by Ceres on the steps undertaken to address climate change.

Scholastic Embraces FSC-Certified Paper
Children's publisher Scholastic made a commitment to boost the amount of recycled paper it uses and help educate kids about the environment through a new website.

Report: Green Investments Creating First Sustainable Economy
Worldwide Institute's latest report looks at the growth of investments in sustainable efforts while encouraging further efforts for the betterment of the world.

F.T.C. Kicks Off Green Marketing Hearings
The Federal Trade Commission is updating its green advertising guidelines a year before schedule because of the growing wave of environmental marketing claims. Its first target: carbon offsets.

GM, Ford Introducing Greener Cars, Engines
GM and Ford are using two premiere events this month to unveil their latest energy- and fuel-efficient auto technologies and concepts.

Aurora Organic Dairy Takes Aim at its Emissions
The milk and butter producer will join forces with the University of Michigan to measure and reduce its carbon footprint across the lifecycle of its product line.

Plan Aimed at Spurring E.U. Eco-Innovation
The European Commission plans to promote innovative, environmentally-focused markets with a new initiative targeting eHealth, sustainable construction, technical textiles, bio-based products, recycling and renewable energy.

China Bans Plastic Bags, Sets Tougher Fuel Standards
China banned the production of thin plastic bags Tuesday and outlawed their use in supermarkets and shops beginning June 1. Worries about pollution has also sparked the introduction of tougher fuel standards to improve air quality before the Olympics.

Archer Daniels Midland to Bury Carbon From Ethanol Plant
One million tons of carbon will be buried and monitored from 2009-2012 to test effectiveness of carbon sequestration.

Put GreenBiz news on your site for free! Learn more...

> MORE NEWS HEADLINES

Featured Resource

A Wealth of Hands-On Help

The Eco-Patent Commons
This project, launched by IBM with the World Business Council on Sustainable Development, is a first-of-its-kind effort to make patents relating to environmental processes and technologies open to innovators around the globe.

The Master ROI Table for Office and Building Products
This comprehensive chart lists the added costs, annual savings, 10 year savings, payback time and total return on investment for dozens of office and building products.

> MORE TOOLS > MORE WEB SITES

Columns and Features

Insight and Inspiration from the Experts

Pioneering a Sustainable Paper Industry
By Frank Marquardt
By adopting cutting-edge technologies and seeking to eliminate waste and increasing efficiency, Grays Harbor Paper has created a path to not only revive a struggling paper town, but one that also points the way forward for an industry that has only just begun to address its environmental impact.

Asia and The Age of Sustainability: Where The East Has an Edge
By Rick Seireeni
The Western world is in the throes of a green revolution that is slowly spreading around the globe. When the powerhouse Asian economies pick up speed, expect them to grow ever more powerful, and dramatically speed up the process of innovation to boot.

Renewable Energy Firms Strike Gold with Green Employee Benefits
By Dawn E. Dzurilla, RenewableEnergyAccess.com
Leaders of companies across industries -- but most noticeably in the clean energy field -- are providing eco-perks as a way of developing an environmentally sustainable company culture, and makes employees happier, healthier and more productive.

GreenBiz Blogs

Joel Makower's Two Steps Forward:
News Flash: 110% of Consumers Shop Green!
> More from Joel Makower

Marc Gunther on Corporate America:
Michael Jordan's "green" Sneaker
> More from Marc Gunther

David Wigder's Green Marketing Strategies:
Investing in Green Innovation
> More from David Wigder

Andy Savitz's Triple Bottom Line Blog:
The Sins of Greenwashing -- A Good Idea Pushed Too Far
> More from Andy Savitz

Wanna write for GreenBiz? GreenBiz is looking for guest and regular columnists and feature writers. We're seeking contributions from business leaders as well as the journalists who write about them. If you're interested, send a brief query to managing editor Matthew Wheeland, at editor@greenbiz.com | Read our editorial guidelines

> MORE COLUMNS > MORE FEATURES

Reasons to have hope on Global Warming & the environment:

Super Soaker Inventor Aims to Cut Solar Costs in Half

The Atlanta-based independent inventor of the Super Soaker squirt gun (a true technological milestone) says he can achieve a conversion efficiency rate that tops 60 percent with a new solid-state heat engine.

• TECH WATCH: Top Geek Sees PV Parity by 2012
• UPGRADE: Charge Your Gadgets With Solar Power

Green Living

PM's Ultimate Guide to Sustainability

From trends in alternative energy to products for environmental efficiency to tons of tips you can use, the best of what's right—right now.

Drive Green

Solving the Fuel Crunch

From plug-in cars to biofuels, MPG legislation to far-out test drives, check out all our coverage on the gas-saving future of cars.


PLUS: 5 Electric Cars Making History Around the Globe

Alaska Opens Its First Geothermal Power Plant

Chena Hot Springs, just outside Fairbanks, is the first geothermal power plant to come online in Alaska. Announced by Chena Hot Springs/Chena Power and ...
www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=45789 - 34k -

PR112906 PureCycle at Chena Hot Springs

The Chena Hot Springs Resort in Alaska has the first geothermal power plant ... geothermal resource (165°F) ever used for commercial power generation in the ...
www.utcpower.com/fs/com/bin/fs_com_Page/0,11491,0193,00.html - 17k -


Seeds to Save a Species
Around the world, scientists are risking their lives to retrieve seeds destined for a massive vault near the North Pole. Their work just might save mankind

PopSci's Best of What's New 2007

The company produces its PowerSheet solar cells with printing-press-style machines that set down a layer of solar-absorbing nano-ink onto metal sheets as ...
www.popsci.com/popsci/flat/bown/2007/green/item_59.html

Popular Science Blog - Innovation of the Year Winner Nanosolar ...

After years of development, Nanosolar has announced today that they have shipped their first batch of inexpensive solar panels to the site of their first ...
popsci.typepad.com/popsci/2007/12/innovation-of-t.html

Step 5: Switch on the Sun Lamp - Popular Science

Once the world’s largest solar-energy farm is completed, some 20000 dishes ... Stirling solar dishes can convert about 30 percent of the sun’s energy into ...
www.popsci.com/popsci/energy/70c6226d360ab010vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html



Blueprint for a Green Laptop
How to make one of our most ubiquitous gadgets—every part of it—environmentally sound.

8 Ways to Green Your Home

January 11, 2008 12:40 PM - , Earth 911

Energy Saving Program in Seattle Puts Consumer in Control

January 11, 2008 08:57 AM - , Environmental Graffiti

Today, the New York Times reports on such a pilot experiment involving 112 homes in the Seattle area. The project by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory of the Energy Department, showed that ”˜if households have digital tools to set temperature and price preferences, the peak loads on utility grids could be trimmed by up to 15 percent a year. Over a 20-year period, this could save $70 billion on spending for power plants and infrastructure, and avoid the need to build the equivalent of 30 large coal-fired plants.’

Ames Lab "Beefing" Up Magnets for Electric-Drive Cars

January 10, 2008 08:55 AM - Ames Laboratory

The Ames Lab senior metallurgist and Iowa State University adjunct professor of materials science and engineering is playing a major role in advancing electric drive motor technology to meet the enormous swell in consumer demand expected over the next five years. He and his Ames Lab colleagues, Bill McCallum and Matthew Kramer, have designed a high-performance permanent magnet alloy that operates with good magnetic strength at 200 degrees Celsius, or 392 degrees Fahrenheit, to help make electric drive motors more efficient and cost-effective. The work is part of the DOE’s Vehicle Technologies Program to develop more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly highway transportation technologies that will enable America to use less petroleum.

Australia to end plastic bags in supermarkets

January 9, 2008 10:37 PM - Reuters

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia has followed China in announcing it plans to end plastic bag use in supermarkets, with its new environment minister saying on Thursday he wants a phase-out to start by the end of 2008. "There are some 4 billion of these plastic bags floating around the place, getting into landfill, ending up affecting our wildlife, and showing up on our beaches while we are on holidays," Environment Minister Peter Garrett said on Thursday.

'Green' Energy Efficient Mobile Home Designed

January 9, 2008 09:45 AM - Wiley-Blackwell

But "green" is exactly what Michael Berk, F.L. Crane Endowed Professor of Architecture at Mississippi State, wants mobile homes to be. He hopes to toss traditional thinking about the structures into the recycling bin, salvaging the traditional "mobile home" perception one national award at a time. Working in the Carl Small Town Center--a part of MSU's College of Architecture, Art and Design--Berk created an award-winning, next-generation factory-built unit he calls the GreenMobile. Unlike other lower-end housing, Berk's applies sound construction methods, as well as energy-saving concepts for lower utility costs.

LED Lights may light homes in less than 3 years

January 9, 2008 09:29 AM - University of Glasgow

Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), already used in electrical equipment such as computers and mobile phones, are several times more energy efficient than standard light-bulbs. However, because of their structure and material, much of the light in standard LEDs becomes trapped, reducing the brightness of the light and making them unsuitable as the main lighting source in the home.

Switchgrass fuel yields bountiful energy: study

January 8, 2008 05:45 PM - Reuters

Switchgrass, a crop touted by venture capitalists and environmentalists alike as a next-generation ethanol feedstock, yields about five times more energy than it takes to grow it, making the plant a far more efficient fuel source than corn, a new study said. In addition, the life cycle of the switchgrass ethanol -- which includes growing the crop, making the fuel, and burning it in vehicles -- emits about 94 percent less of planet-warming carbon dioxide than the life cycle of gasoline, said the study, published on Tuesday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Beijing Introduces Strictest Fuel Standard Yet

January 7, 2008 03:26 PM - , Organic Consumers Association

On January 1, China’s capital city of Beijing introduced its toughest vehicle fuel standard yet. The rule requires that gasoline and diesel sold in the city must comply with the new China IV emission standards, equivalent to the European Union’s Euro IV standards. Under the elevated standard, motor fuels are permitted to contain only 50 parts per million (ppm) of sulfur, compared with the previous China III level of 150 ppm.

Pucker Up: Industry Sees Rise in Organic Makeup

January 7, 2008 03:23 PM - , Organic Consumers Association

Animal byproducts weren't something Holly Tashian wanted to smear on her face. But it was hard to get away from lanolin, a fatty substance secreted by sheep, which was in many of the cosmetics in her makeup bag. "I began to realize what I was putting on my face, and it's pretty bad stuff," says Tashian, a Nashville, Tenn., musician and a feng shui consultant. "I've just gotten turned off about what is going on in the cosmetics industry."

Energy Recovery Ventilation Systems Growing in Importance

January 7, 2008 10:29 AM - , Green Lodging News

PALO ALTO, CALIF.—Energy recovery ventilation (ERV) systems are becoming increasingly important in North America in light of the current drive to conserve energy, make buildings “green,” and enhance indoor air quality (IAQ). New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, “North American Energy Recovery Ventilation Market,” found that this market earned revenues of $324.6 million in 2006 and it is expected to reach $778.7 million in 2012. “ERV is a growing segment within the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) market, particularly in northern tier winter heating zones and areas with warmer and high humidity climatic conditions,” says Frost & Sullivan research analyst Jorge Moreno. “The focus on IAQ is another key trend benefiting ERV, as people become increasingly conscious of the importance to maintain air quality through properly designed and managed HVAC systems.”

21 Things You Didn't Know You Can Recycle

January 6, 2008 09:35 AM - www.coopamerica.org

Garbage. Americans produce more and more of it every year, when we need to be producing less. Even the most waste-conscious among us can feel overwhelmed by the amount of household waste that goes beyond what municipal recyclers and compost bins can handle. That’s why our editors spent the summer of 2007 investigating the state of waste management in our country, putting this list togther for you, explaining how we can get serious about the three R’s — reducing, reusing, and recycling — and divert more waste away from landfills.

Welcome to the Solar Century

January 4, 2008 08:42 AM - , Environmental Graffiti

New technology means solar power could one day provide all the world’s energy needs — but governments must do their bit. Until a few years ago the suggestion that solar power might provide the answer to the intertwined problems of long term energy security and climate change would have been dismissed as a pipedream. The high cost of solar cells, their inefficiency in converting the sun’s rays into electricity and the lack of state investment or assistance for renewable energy start-ups meant there was little hope.

India to provide subsidy for solar power plants

January 2, 2008 04:24 AM - Reuters

India will subsidize the running of solar power plants to help develop a renewable energy infrastructure, where high costs can be prohibitive, the minister for renewable energy said on Wednesday. Renewable energy accounts for about 7.5 percent of India's installed generation capacity of 127,673 MW, a rate that compares favorably with much of the rest of the world.

China responds to global wind turbine shortage
Private company in Guangdong agrees to supply 900 MW to United States

Opening doors to the US tax credit for wind power
Innovative financing structure opens up wind market to publicly owned utilities too

Galapagos Island clean energy evolution
Three wind turbines reduce reliance on risky imports of diesel oil

Quarterly update of wind market indicators
Data and commentary on the wind sector's share price performance over the past three months, plus country-by-country wind power capacity totals. Whether looked at in terms of share price performance, new issuance of company stock, or positive news flow, the past quarter was a beauty. Some would call it "the greatest ever." ... More

Virginia Commission Approves First Wind Farm in State

December 31, 2007

Google Aims to Make Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal Power

December 5, 2007

Largest Wind Farm in Minnesota, Associated Transmission Line Completed

December 3, 2007

NREL Report Sees Near-Term Supply Shortage for Renewable Power

November 14, 2007

To help meet America's increasing energy needs while protecting our Nation's energy security and environment, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is working with wind industry partners to develop clean, domestic, innovative wind energy technologies that can compete with conventional fuel sources. DOE's Wind Energy Program efforts have culminated in some of industry's leading products today and have contributed to record-breaking industry growth.

In 2005, the United States installed more new wind energy capacity than any other country in the world. The new capacity, totaling 2,431 megawatts (MW), was worth more than $3 billion in generating equipment, and it brought the total national wind energy capacity to 9,149 MW. That's enough electricity to power 2.3 million average American households. In 2006, an additional 2,454 MW were installed, bringing the Nation's total installed capacity to 11,603 MW.

The following links will provide you with more information about wind energy and the Wind Energy Program's research and development efforts. Some of the documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.

Selected Wind Energy Topics

• Wind Energy Basics
• Low Wind Speed Turbine Technology
• Distributed Wind Energy Technology
• Wind Powering America
• Federal Wind Siting Information Center
• Systems Integration
• Wind Energy Program Multiyear Program Plan 2007 - 2012
  (PDF 2.3 MB)
• Wind Power Today (PDF 2.1 MB)
• Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends: 2006 (PDF 2.4 MB)
• Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends: 2006 (A presentation from Ryan Wiser and Mark Bolinger, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (PDF 2.9 MB)
• Wind Energy Program 2006 Peer Review Report
  (PDF 535 KB)

Regulations to Increase Energy Efficiency in New Federal Buildings by 30%

December 21, 2007

U.S. and China to Cooperate on Biomass Research and Development

December 13, 2007

DOE Invests $7.7 Million in Biomass Gasification for Biofuels

December 04, 2007

The Cheapest Way to Power Your Car

If you had the right ride, hydropower could lop 2/3 off your gas bills. 12.18.2007

Green House vs. Greenhouse

To save the environment, imitate mobile homes and go pre-fab. 11.29.2007

Solar Power, At Last?

The long-sought mechanism for a superior solar cell may now be at hand. 11.16.2007

Wave Energy

Can a mechanical snake that surfs the ocean squeeze enough watts from water? 12.02.2005

Energy

Who needs oil or coal or gas when the world is full of plain old algae? 10.24.2005

The Mangrove Man
By Matthew Shaer
The Christian Science Monitor

http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/083007EA.shtml


Go to Original

Thursday 30 August 2007

Abdoulaye Diame is on a crusade in his native Senegal to save a plant crucial to curbing floods, filtering seawater, and regulating tides.

Fayako, Senegal - First the old man traces a slow, sprawling circle in the sand. Then gingerly, like a master painter, he fills out his portrait: a dozen triangles for waves, a smattering of rectangles for buildings, and a jagged line for the shore. "A few years ago," he says, "the water was down there."

For emphasis, he turns in his chair, and points at the beach. It is an unusually hot day, and half of the 50-odd residents of this small island are huddled under a small grove of palms at the center of the island. "We lived in those buildings for a while," he says. "The tide came up, so we pulled back to here." He marks the middle of a circle.

"The mangroves were a barrier against the water," explains Abdoulaye Diame, peering down at the old man's illustration. "When the mangroves started dying, the water started rising."

Mr. Diame, a Senegalese scientist, is a liaison between Fayako and the mainland. But in this part of Senegal, he is known mostly as a tireless advocate for the mangrove tree - one of the earth's vital and unheralded natural resources. With their thick copses and interconnected roots, mangroves are essential for purifying sea water, regulating the tides, balancing underwater ecosystems, and mitigating the effects of floodwater damage. For many West Africans, they are also a source of fuel and a support to marine life.

They are regarded locally with almost spiritual reverence.

But they're disappearing rapidly. By most estimates, more than half the world's mangroves have already been destroyed. The remaining plants, which grow in tropical and subtropical zones from India to Southeast Asia, die at a rate of 1 to 2 percent a year - largely because of pollution and the increasing salinity of some coastal waters.

In Fayako, a town located deep in Senegal's verdant Sine Saloum Delta, the effects are clearly visible. As the mangroves have vanished, locals are finding fewer fish to eat and no firewood to burn. More ominously, the tide rises a bit higher each year.

So Diame is trying to halt the destruction through a combination of reforestation and grass-roots activism. Each week, he pilots a boat around the serpentine tributaries of the delta, stopping at small towns to inspect progress on planting sites and help residents manage the remaining mangroves. He harangues village elders about proper tending. He works to introduce new agricultural techniques.

If he turns out to be successful, his program could become a model for other mangrove conservation efforts around the globe.

---

Diame is a tall man with broad shoulders and a steely stare that reflects the deeply personal nature of his work. He maintains roots in the region, where he was born and where he graduated from high school. In 1993, he traveled to Russia to attend Moscow State University, earning degrees in physical oceanography and geography. When he returned to Senegal, he set about using his new skills to help solve some of the delta's most pressing ecological problems. Chief among them: the precipitous drop in the mangrove population, caused in part by the polluting runoff from luxury resorts in the area.

"We tried to approach it in two different ways," Diame says. "We wanted to begin replanting the mangroves, but we also wanted to teach people here about how they could help."

The first step was to establish a center in Foundiougne. By the late 1990s, Diame had secured enough funding from Western organizations to begin work on a small complex outside town. He also began working with the Mangrove Action Project (MAP), a US-based nongovernmental organization with offices around the globe. Today, Diame acts as an advisor for MAP and a coordinator for the Western African Mangrove Network, which has staff in Nigeria and Ivory Coast.

But Diame is most devoted to the Sine Saloum Delta, an area where most of his family still lives. His office, which started as a single concrete building, is now a full research facility - with conference rooms, a dining hall, and thatched bungalows for visitors. Diame keeps many local residents on retainer to help with everything from fieldwork to cooking.

"One of the really important things is getting local people involved in the process of restoration," says Alfredo Quarto, the executive director and cofounder of MAP. "They have to own it."

Mangrove preservation efforts became something of a cause célèbre in the years following the 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake. The temblor triggered a deadly tsunami in Southeast Asia, and many groups began focusing on the plant's effectiveness in limiting floodwater damage. Former President Bill Clinton, for instance, has become involved with an initiative called Mangroves for the Future, and every year a host of NGOs pour money into restoration efforts.

"Mangroves have so many functions: They filter out impurities; help prevent hurricane damage; they can sequester enormous amounts of carbon in their roots," says Mr. Quarto. "It's obvious that we need to save them. But the efforts have largely been a failure."

One reason, says Roy R. Lewis III, a scientific advisor to MAP, is that many groups simply dump money into affected areas, without monitoring how it's being spent. "It's a waste," says Mr. Lewis. "We're not dealing with applied management. The funding agencies are not facilitating local education. They're not even following up."

---

On a warm, cloudy summer morning, Diame drives through the center of Foundiougne, stopping his jeep near the town's dock. Dozens of children dart around his legs; he jokes with them in a mixture of French and Wolof, the local tribal dialect. He chats with a store owner. When the crowd dissipates, Diame walks to the edge of the dock and points to a small grove of mangroves on the shore. A few signposts poke out of the water, each marked with a large red X.

"This is an education project," he says. "It is different from actual reforestation - these were planted to sensitize people to the mangroves. We tell them, 'You can't use these for firewood anymore. You can't trample them, or play in them. You have to take care of them.' "

This is Diame's big gambit: If he can teach people to respect the plants, he will have taught them how to save their villages. So with the help of a handful of villagers, he compliments reforestation efforts with the creation of small displays around the delta. He brings residents of Fayako to tour the replanting sites. He teaches them to find alternate sources of wood.

So far, he's been moderately successful. The destruction along the delta, he says, has leveled off, and some of the reforestation efforts have taken root. But more important, Diame has succeeded in creating a practical approach to conservation. He has raised a general awareness of the plight of the Sine Saloum Delta - an awareness that originates in the local community.

"It's a start," says Diame. "For the people here, it's a good start."

---

Go to Original

Flooding Risk From Global Warming Badly Under-Estimated: Study
Agence France-Presse

Wednesday 29 August 2007

Global warming may carry a higher risk of flooding than previously thought, according to a study released on Wednesday by the British science journal Nature.

It says efforts to calculate flooding risk from climate change do not take into account the effect that carbon dioxide (CO2) -- the principal greenhouse gas -- has on vegetation.

Plants suck water out of the ground and "breathe" out the excess through tiny pores, called stomata, in their leaves.

Stomata are highly sensitive to CO2. The higher the level of atmospheric CO2, the more the pores tighten up or open for shorter periods.

As a result, less water passes through the plant and into the air in the form of evaporation. And, in turn, this means that more water stays on the land, eventually running off into rivers when the soil becomes saturated.

In a paper published in February 2006, British scientists said the CO2-stomata link explained a long-standing anomaly.

Over the last 100 years the flow of the world's big continental rivers has increased by around four percent, even though global temperatures rose by some 0.8 degrees Celsius (1.35 degrees Fahrenheit) during this period.

Today, as a result of the unbridled burning of oil, gas and coal, levels of CO2 in the atmosphere are around a third more than in pre-industrial times in the middle of the 18th century.

The new study takes the 2006 discovery an important step further by projecting what could happen to water runoff in the future.

If CO2 levels double compared with pre-industrial concentrations -- a common scenario in climate simulations -- the effect on plants alone would lead to an increase of six percent in global runoff, it says.

Until now, scientists have generally estimated an increase in runoff of between five and 17 percent compared with the pre-industrial era.

But this is based only on one yardstick, called radiative forcing. In other words, it only measures the warming effect that greenhouse gases have on the water cycle and not the indirect impact that CO2, the biggest culprit, has on vegetation.

The "radiative forcing" yardstick also predicts that higher temperatures will increase evaporation, causing greater water stress and longer droughts.

Both forecasts are offbeam, says the new paper.

By widening the picture to include the CO2-stomata factor, the likelihood is that the risk of flooding will be worse than thought, but the risk of drought rather less so.

"The risks of rain and river flooding may increase more than has been previously anticipated, because intense precipitation events would be more likely to occur over saturated ground," it says.

"In contrast, the risks of hydrological drought may not increase as much as expected on the basis of meteorological changes alone."

Flooding is a major problem, especially in poor countries that do not have the money to upgrade drainage systems to cope with runoff from saturated soils.

Since June, nearly 3,200 people in South Asia have been killed by heavy monsoon rains and snow melt. More than 20 million people have been affected in the eastern Indian state of Bihar alone.

Google News Alert for: hydrogen,wind,power

Fitial wants CNMI to be green energy hub
Saipan Tribune - Saipan,Northern Mariana Islands,Micronesia
"This is an ambitious project that involves windmill, biodiesel, hydrogen, and geothermal energy from the volcanoes north of Saipan," Fitial said. ...
See all stories on this topic

Maine should stop burning and develop true alternate energy sources
MaineToday.com - Portland,ME,USA
These are hydropower, wind energy, solar energy, and nuclear power. Currently, all of these sources combined supply a minority of the electric energy we ...
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Google Blogs Alert for: hydrogen,wind,power

Introduction
By Ian Banerjee
Good introduction into issues of renewable energy, especially hydrogen and fuel cells. Drawings for children - very educative. http://www.hyweb.de/index-e.html. Facts about renewable energy sources: Biogas, Hydrogen, Windpower etc. ...
Growing Ideas - http://growingideas.wordpress.com/

Google News Alert for: hydrogen,wind,powerInfinite...
By Daniel(Daniel)
Wind-generated Electricity to Power Hydrogen Refueling Station One of the first United States-based hydrogen fueling stations to use electricity from wind power to produce hydrogen from water is under way in North ... SOLAR TODAY - Home ...
The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind... - http://www.whizzyrds.com/Windblog.html

Wind Power Create Hydrogen Fuel in North Dakota
By kate
Business Week reports Senator Byron Dorgan will... [[ Visit WindEnergyInvesting.com to read the full article. ]]
Wind Energy Investing - http://www.windenergyinvesting.com

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Google News Alert for: hydrogen,wind,power

Infinite Energy
IcelandReview - Reykjavik,Iceland
Infinite. Geothermal, solar, hydrogen and wind. It's endless and as a person who reaps the benefits of renewable energy I must confess it rocks.
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Study: Emerald Coast could take on water if global warming trend ...
The Northwest Florida Daily News - Fort Walton Beach,FL,USA
Sisskin said Florida is set up perfectly to take advantage of renewable energies such as solar and wind power. With the amount of wind that comes off the ...
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Google Blogs Alert for: hydrogen,wind,power

Tourists get a glimpse of secret nuclear pastTimes...
By Daniel(Daniel)
BP Headed for Greener PasturesMotley Fool - USAThis suggests that BP's strategy to become a leader in wind power -- as evidenced by its acquisition earlier this year of Orion Energy's 1300 MW of wind ...See all stories on this topic.
The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind... - http://www.whizzyrds.com/Windblog.html

Geothermal can produce hydrogen?
By CarlR
"Hydrogen can be produced using diverse, domestic resources including fossil fuels, such as natural gas and coal (with carbon sequestration); nuclear; and biomass and other renewable energy technologies, such as wind, solar, geothermal, ...
DoItYourself.com Community Forums - http://forum.doityourself.com

Google Web Alert for: hydrogen,wind,power

Offshore Windpower
Using electricity costing 3.5 pence / kWh. from a variable source such as offshore wind power, the cost of producing hydrogen by the electrolysis of water ...

Researchers envision a hydrogen economy, fueled by wind and new ...
The cost of making hydrogen from wind is $1.12 to $3.20 per gallon of ... at the effects of converting all power plants to hydrogen fuel-cell power plants. ...

Hydrogen Storage in Wind Turbine Towers
wind turbine tower as a pressure vessel to more traditional hydrogen ..... Also, the power electronics and wind turbine control equipment normally ...

June 25, 2003: Wind Power Set to Become World's Leading Energy Source
Wind power is now a viable, robust, fast-growing industry. Cheap electricity from wind makes it economical to electrolyze water and produce hydrogen. ...

Spare wind turbine power to fuel hydrogen cars
GIANT wind turbines will be used to power a new breed of environmentally friendly cars that run on hydrogen gas under a pioneering scheme by Scots ...

Wind Hydrogen System
Large Scale Wind Hydrogen Systems. Sept, 2003. Ellen Liu. GE Global Research. g. GE Global Research. Wind Power and Large Scale Hydrogen Production ...

Wind-generated Electricity to Power Hydrogen Refueling Station
One of the first United States-based hydrogen fueling stations to use electricity from wind power to produce hydrogen from water is under way in North ...

SOLAR TODAY - Home
Producing hydrogen with wind power can improve the dispatchability of electrical power systems and balance transmission loads, the major limitations ...

Hydrogen Appliances Wind turbines generators sustainable energy ...
Wind Turbine Mounting Brackets and Tails - Build your own wind turbines. ... Continuous Duty Relays - 400 Amp Rated - Big relays for switching BIG power! ...

Xcel Energy
"Today we begin using our cleanest source of electricity - wind power - to create the perfect fuel: hydrogen," said Richard C. Kelly, Xcel Energy chairman, ...

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Tourists get a glimpse of secret nuclear pastTimes Online - UKA wax figure holding a wind-up telephone depicts the general who had to call Zhou Enlai, the Prime Minister, to tell him of China's success. ...See all stories on this topic
BP Headed for Greener PasturesMotley Fool - USAThis suggests that BP's strategy to become a leader in wind power -- as evidenced by its acquisition earlier this year of Orion Energy's 1300 MW of wind ...See all stories on this topic

RE: BP's plans to dump mercury and ammonia in Lake Michigan from Whiting, IN (Between Chicago & Gary) just so millions of us in the Great Lakes region can have more diluted toxins in our drinking water.

Rebecca D. Stanfield, Environment Illinois State Director wrote:

Hi Daniel,

I just wanted to send you a quick note to remind you about our BP Day of Action tomorrow. Here are the details for people in the Chicago area:

WHAT:  Flyering at BP stations to let consumers know about BP's dumping plan.
WHEN:  Tomorrow!  Saturday, August 11, 2007, starting at noon
WHERE:  Environment Illinois office, 407 S. Dearborn, Suite 701, Chicago, IL 60605 ph. 312-291-0696

You can meet us here in the office for a short how-to session, or just print the flyer and go to your neighborhood BP station.  If you're doing the latter, please let us know when and where.

Please RSVP if you haven't yet to let us get a good count on how many people to expect:

https://www.environmentillinois.org/action/protect-lake-michigan/bpdayofaction?id4=ES

If you're reading this message from beyond Illinois and can't make it to Chicago this weekend, please check out the BP Day of Action events that our sister organizations Environment Michigan and Wisconsin Environment are running:

BP Day of Action in Michigan:
https://www.environmentmichigan.org/action/protect-lake-michigan/bpdayofaction?id4=ES

BP Day of Action in Wisconsin:
https://www.wisconsinenvironment.org/action/clean-water/bpdayofaction?id4=ES

If you still need to print out the flyer, you can download it here:

https://www.environmentillinois.org/action/protect-lake-michigan/bpflyer.pdf

And remember, even if you can't make it to the event this weekend, stay tuned because we're planning more events in different locations in the future.

Sincerely,

Rebecca D. Stanfield
Environment Illinois State Director
RebeccaS@environmentillinois.org
http://www.environmentillinois.org

P.S.  Thanks again for your support.  Please feel free to share this e-mail with your family and friends.

UW-Madison News Release--Organic field day

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
07/30/07

CONTACT: Erin Silva, (608) 890-1503, emsilva@wisc.edu; Bill Stangel, (608) 846-3761, wstangel@wisc.edu

UW ORGANIC FIELD DAY SLATED FOR AUG. 30 AT ARLINGTON STATION

MADISON - The University of Wisconsin-Madison's Arlington Agricultural Research Station will hold its first field day devoted to organic agricultural production on Aug. 30 from 3 - 7 p.m.

Field crops, processing vegetables and market vegetables will all get some attention at the event, which will include information on organic weed management, cover and companion crops, soil quality, variety selection, vegetable crop trials, and no-till organic production.

The event will begin with field tours featuring ongoing research on fertility management strategies, organic soybean variety trials, organic corn seed treatments, cover crop options, and no-till organic production using crimped rye.  Following the tours, there will be additional presentations on research projects involving organic processing vegetables, organic vegetable variety selection, cover crops for organic vegetable production, and weed management strategies.

A highlight of the tour will be a discussion of research using a roller-crimper for no-till production of soybeans with a rye cover crop.

"The idea is to lodge the rye severely enough so it doesn't stand back up," explains Bill Stangel, assistant superintendent of the Arlington station, who has been working with UW-Madison agronomists Josh Posner and Dave Stoltenberg to evaluate the effectiveness of various crimping strategies.

"We use it as a weed control tool," explains Stangel. "The rye serves as a mulch. It also has an alleopathic affect - the cover crop releases a compound that reduces the vigor of germinating weeds. Rye works especially well on small seeded weeds like foxtail, pigweed and lambsquarter. It also provides crop residue to protect the soil."

The presentations won't be limited to research being conducted at Arlington. Organic production specialist Erin Silva will talk about organic vegetable variety trials that she is conducting in conjunction with cooperating farmers at several locations around the state. Those trials include varieties of organic green beans, carrots, beets, edamame, cucumbers and cantaloupes.

The Arlington Research Station is located on Hwy. 51, about 5 miles south of Arlington and 15 miles north of Madison. Dinner will be available for a moderate charge at 6 p.m. Watch for Field Day signs.  For more information, contact Erin Silva at (608) 890-1503 or emsilva@wisc.edu.  In the event of rain, presentations will be held inside.
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Phone: (608) 262-3571
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Concert Replay!
http://liveearth.msn.com/artists
If you missed the Live Earth Concert, or would like to relive your favorite moment, pick the artist you want to watch.

Premiering on the Sundance Channel TONIGHT (07/10/2007) at 9:30pm local - Five Disasters Waiting To Happen:

Have you ever wondered what the face of Global Warming-induced sea level rise will look like? What the human costs could be, or who would be affected?

Well tune in to Five Disasters Waiting To Happen on the Sundance Channel tonight at 9:30pm your time and you'll get a very good look at where it's likely to start.

Who will be swimming, and who will cook? Who will be the largest group of nation-less people in Earth's recent history? Maybe ever? Could YOU be on the list?

Find out where Paradise will soon be lost in Five Disasters Waiting To Happen TONIGHT.

Dan Stafford

Two Simple, Easy Ways To Save On Your Electric Bill And Help Save The Planet

Learn about and use Compact florescent lighting. This is good sense and a relatively easy conservation method.

There are even a new type of such bulbs mentioned in the current issue of Popular Science magazine that have a softer yellow glow more like incandescent bulbs instead of the harsh blue light of common CF bulbs, for about $4.00 - one of the main objections of most people to using CF bulbs.

There is another very simple means of conservation of electricity that is also relatively painless. Install surge strips on all TV, stereo, and computer equipment and turn the surge strip off after shutting down these devices.

All such devices nowadays go into a "stand by" mode so that they come back up quickly when a person pushes the "on" button. They never truly shut off when people think they've been turned off - and so still draw power whether in use or not. This is why modern TV's no longer need to "warm up" before displaying a picture when you turn them on - they never really turn off.

The same is true of any device using those small black transformers to convert wall outlet AC power into low voltage DC power. As long as they are plugged into the wall they use the same amount of power regardless of whether or not the device they operate is in use.

Putting a surge strip between such devices and the wall outlet allows you to truly disconnect them from the electrical supply.

Regards,

Dan Stafford
Publisher
The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy & Hydrogen Journal
http://www.whizzyrds.com/Windblog.html

Dead In The Water - airs June 19th at 9:30pm local time on The Sundance Channel:

This documentary shows the long and clearly devastating history of the privatization of public waters systems around the world at the urgings of large corporations and the IMF.

Obviously and clearly a gross failure to the people of the affected regions, many countries following down this dead end trail have suffered from massive disease outbreaks as those too poor to pay for water are able to find it only in questionable sources or die of thirst. In many cases, riots and massive public uprisings result after many deaths, and the water companies are booted out in abject failure, leaving the water supplies again under municipal control.

What's not discussed here is the stealth privatization of municipal water supplies happening in various areas of the US, which has not had first hand experience with this disaster-in-waiting with some notable exceptions in California. Needless to say, those exceptions are quite enlightening, but not of the burden people will bear, literally, having to carry water home in plastic jugs right here in the USA regardless of income level.

Dead In The Water features many common-sense arguments, and direct interviews with people "served" by first public, then private water systems. You'd love to think this can't happen in first world countries, but guess what...it STARTED with a first world country of major proportions. Beyond that, there are decades of historic examples clearly exposed here.

In what I think is the most eloquently simple paraphrase of the best line in this movie, "Markets are driven to serve those with money, not those without. It's a failure of reason and logic to expect market driven systems to honestly and effectively serve the disenfranchised and destitute at the expense of their bottom line, which the obvious reason why services that peoples very lives depend on are best left in the public sector." ( In my mind, this also speaks volumes as to what is the missing chapter in classic Libertarian theory, which utterly fails to account for people in this position. Heads up, you Libertarian think-tankers, get on it if you want to get relevant. This issue gives a glaring example of what market forces will do to life-essential services. )

Watch Dead In The Water June 19th at 9:30pm local time on The Sundance Channel to learn the birthplace of the Water Barons - and what water privatization could do to, uhhhm, I mean FOR you and your family!

This film is an essential education for anyone who requires daily water to survive or thrive.





Look for my review of "Five Disasters Waiting To Happen" next week to appear at The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy and Hydrogen Journal, and at The First Church of Healing The Earth.

Meanwhile, take a good solid look at this must-see presentation of what we all need to work together on at 9:30pm June 19th on The Sundance Channel.

All the best,

Dan Stafford
Co-Chair, Progressive Democrats of Illinois
http://www.illinoisprogressives.org

Owner and Publisher
The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy and Hydrogen Journal

Founder
The First Church of Healing The Earth

Trouble in Hawaiian Islands Marine Monument on World Ocean Day

By Sunny Lewis HONOLULU, Hawaii, June 8, 2007 (ENS) -

Out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, environmentalists say all is not well in America's first national marine monument on World Ocean Day, observed each year on June 8. They are outraged at the recent decision of the Hawaii Board of Land and Natural Resources, BLNR, to allow bio-prospecting in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument.

Conservationists and native Hawaiians are attending the BLNR meeting today in Honolulu to demand a moratorium on all research permits in this far-flung island chain that stretches for 1,400 square miles north and west of the main Hawaiian islands.

"The BLNR's decision is unacceptable," said Vicky Holt-Takamine, president of the 'Ilio'ulaokalani Coalition and a member of the Congressional commission developing a bio-prospecting policy for the state. Bio-prospecting is the theft of natural resources from native peoples. It should not happen in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands or anywhere in Hawaii," she said.

The conservationists argue that the BLNR should not grant rights to bio-prospectors when a law on the issue is being drafted. On the BLNR agenda today are several permits for a University of Hawaii research mission through the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology. These researchers are seeking to collect thousands of samples of living organisms with the possibility of patenting the biological material they find.

The Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology received $2.3 million in federal funding for this research project last summer, but the permit applications were made public only last week.

The ship for this research mission, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Hi'ialakai, is requesting permission to dump human waste in the monument waters. According to the permit application, the ship's waste system is broken and unable to separate grey water from black water, so the institute says it must dump both types of waste into the ocean on a daily basis. But dumping waste is prohibited in both the state and federal waters of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.

"This is not the way to treat a fragile and unique marine environment," said Marti Townsend of KAHEA: The awaiian-Environmental Alliance. "Dumping waste water onto ancient, pristine coral reefs is inexcusable, especially when it is the federal government doing...

Full Story: http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jun2007/2007-06-08-04.asp

The Refugees Of The Blue Planet - airs June 12th @ 9:30pm on The Sundance Channel:

The Refugees Of The Blue Planet is a beautifully shot environmental documentary that lays bare the fate that has already befallen tens of millions of people around the globe, and stands poised to overwhelm hundreds of millions of people as global warming and environmental degradation takes off with a vengeance.

This film does a wonderful job of laying bare the results of sacrificing environment and community for the sake of convenience and profit, without the usual requests for funding and projection of the producers' favored solutions that accompany so many documentary films focused on specific issues. In the end, the reader is left with a clear understanding of the nature of the beast, yet left to draw their own conclusions as to what actions to take - or not take, as they might believe best.

Shot on location around the globe, The Refugees Of The Blue Planet shows the direct human results of environmental catastrophes and exploitation in no uncertain terms. Whether the tragedies are engendered by run-amok weather or rampant environmental degradation as a result of industrial activities, the point is clearly driven home.

In some cases, the victims or refugees are who you would expect, but in many cases they are not. The viewer is left without the artificial sense of insulation from potential disaster that our disconnected-from-nature industrialized society is so good at fostering. There is a clear impression that anyone could be the next Refugees Of The Blue Planet.

The Refugees Of The Blue Planet is the lead of a series of environmental documentaries scheduled to air on The Sundance Channel this June and July. The next feature will be titled "Dead In The Water" and will air on June 19th at 9:30pm. This will be followed by "Five Disasters Waiting To Happen" at 9:30pm on July 10th.

Look for my review of "Dead In The Water" to be published early next week, followed by a review of "Five Disasters Waiting To Happen" the following week to appear at The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy and Hydrogen Journal, and at The First Church of Healing The Earth.

Meanwhile, take a good solid look at this must-see presentation of what we all need to work together on at 9:30pm June 12th on The Sundance Channel.

All the best,

Dan Stafford
Co-Chair, Progressive Democrats of Illinois
http://www.illinoisprogressives.org

Owner and Publisher
The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy and Hydrogen Journal

Founder
The First Church of Healing The Earth