EU reaches landmark deal to cap airline emissions

ENN, June 27, 2008

BRUSSELS: The European Union reached a landmark agreement Thursday to cap emissions from aircraft, raising the stakes in an increasingly ferocious battle with the United States over how to regulate global greenhouse gases.
In the first requirement of its kind, all airlines arriving or leaving from airports located in the EU would be obliged to buy some pollutin credits beginning in 2012, joining other industrial polluters that trade in the European emissions market. That includes non-European carriers like American Airlines and Singapore Airlines. Read more...

Report shows EU emissions falling slightly in 2006

EurActiv, June 23, 2008

EU member states have made progress in cutting their greenhouse gas emissions to be on course to meet their Kyoto targets, according to data released for 2006. But the Commission is particularly concerned about emissions rises in the new member states.
The report , released by the European Environment Agency (EEA) on 18 June, shows emissions from the EU 27 fell by 0.3% from 2005 levels, and 7.7% from the base level of 1990. Total emissions amounted to over 5.1 billion tonnes of CO2 emitted in 2006, compared to almost 5.6 billion tonnes in 1990. Read more...

Germany and France Ban Pesticides Linked To Bee Deaths; Geneticist Urges U.S. Ban

ENN, June 25, 2008

In light of recent European bans of a pesticide linked to Bee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), at least one key bee expert is calling for a ban of the same pesticide in the United States. "In the United States, drastic action is needed," says Canadian geneticist Joe Cummins, explaining that U.S. farmers and beekeepers shouldn't have to wait for more evidence or for an air-tight explanation for the complex syndrome, which threatens one in every third bite of food in the United States. Now most apiarists and scientists realize that pesticides are a factor in CCD, he says. Read more...

Tokyo To Pass Cap-And-Trade Emissions Plan

Environmental Leader, June 25, 2008

Tokyo is the first city in Japan to pass legislation that, by fall of 2010, will require a cap-and-trade scheme for emissions from 1,300 of the biggest polluters there that are responsible for 20 percent of emissions in the capital city, AFP reports.
The bill will help Tokyo achieve its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 25 percent by fiscal year 2020, said Satoshi Yamashita, a director at Tokyo’s environmental policy planning section. Tokyo’s GHG emissions totaled around 60 million tons in 2005, or around five percent of the country’s total emissions. Read more...

Natural disasters contribute to rise in population displacement

ENN, June 23, 2008

There are now more than 11 million refugees worldwide, the United Nations refugee agency has warned as the world celebrates World Refugee Day.
A new report by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says conflicts, climate change and rising food prices are some of the factors leading to the rise in global displacement to 11.4 million refugees worldwide-up from 9.9 million last year. Read more...

Warming temperatures dangerously pushing bird migrations ever forward.

ENN, June 20, 2008

Many birds are arriving earlier each spring as temperatures warm along the East Coast of the United States. However, the farther those birds journey, the less likely they are to keep pace with the rapidly changing climate. Read more...

China leaps ahead of U.S. in gas emissions

ENN, June 16, 2008

China has now clearly overtaken the United States as the world's leading emitter of climate-warming gases, a new study has found. The increasing emissions from China - up 8 percent in the past year - accounted for two-thirds of the growth in global greenhouse gas emissions in 2007, the study found.
The report, released Friday by the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, is an annual study. Last year, for the first time, the researchers found that China had edged ahead of the United States as the world's leading emitter. Read more...

New eco-friendly car that runs on nothing but water

ENN, June 16 2008

It is claimed the Water Energy System (WES) developed by Genepax can generate power by supplying water and air to the fuel and air electrodes. The basic power generation mechanism of the system is similar to that of a standard fuel cell. The main feature of the new system is that it uses a membrane electrode assembly (MEA), which contains a material that breaks down the water to hydrogen and oxygen. Read more...

Την εμπορική παραγωγή αυτοκινήτου υδρογόνου ξεκινά η Honda

In.gr, 16 Ιουνίου 2008

Η ιαπωνική αυτοκινητοβιομηχανία Honda ξεκινά την εμπορική παραγωγή αυτοκινήτων με καύσιμο το υδρογόνο. Το τετραθέσιο όχημα με την ονομασία FCX Clarity θα κυκλοφορεί στους δρόμους της Καλιφόρνια από τον Ιούλιο και αργότερα εντός του έτους στην Ιαπωνία. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

New European Chemical Safety Law Has Global Impact

ENN. June 13, 2008

Europe this month rolled out new restrictions on makers of chemicals linked to cancer and other health problems, changes that are forcing U.S. industries to find new ways to produce a wide range of everyday products.
The new laws in the European Union require companies to demonstrate that a chemical is safe before it enters commerce -- the opposite of policies in the United States, where regulators must prove that a chemical is harmful before it can be restricted or removed from the market. Manufacturers say that complying with the European laws will add billions to their costs, possibly driving up prices of some products. Read more...

Read also: US eyes REACH-style law for chemicals

UK to give waterless washing machine a spin

ENN, June 10, 2008

A washing machine using as little as a cup of water for each washing cycle could go on sale to environmentally conscious Britons next year.
Xeros Ltd, which has been spun out of the University of Leeds to commercialize the technology, said on Monday the new machines would use less than 2 percent of the water and energy of a conventional washing machine. Plastic chips are used to remove dirt and stains from clothes, leaving them dry and reducing energy consumption as there is no need to use a dryer after the washing cycle, Xeros said in a statement. Read more...

Biotech Giants Demand a High Price for Saving the Planet

ENN, June 10, 2008

Summary: According to the report, conventional, non-GM breeding techniques are making remarkable progress in developing crops that can tolerate heat, floods and drought. A new Asian rice, due to go on the market next year, can stand being submerged for two weeks without affecting yields, while a new African one flowers early in the morning, escaping the heat of the day.
But, it says, "the patent grab is sucking up money and resources that could be spent on affordable, farmer-based strategies for survival". Read more...

Πόσιμο νερό από τα καυσαέρια της ΔΕΗ!

TA NEA, 09 Ιουνίου 2008

Στο νησί μας λειτουργεί εργοστάσιο της ΔΕΗ. Λειτουργεί με πετρέλαιο και έχει ισχύ 5,5 ΜW. Παρ΄ ότι οι πετρελαιομηχανές είναι καινούργιες, εκπέμπει αέριους ρύπους στην ατμόσφαιρα. Πρόσφατα μάθαμε ότι μπορούμε να τους εκμεταλλευτούμε » λέει στα «ΝΕΑ» ο δήμαρχος Αμοργού κ. Νίκος Φωστιέρης.
Στο νησί πρόκειται να υλοποιηθεί ένα πρωτοποριακό πρόγραμμα αφαλάτωσης, στο οποίο θα χρησιμοποιείται το διοξείδιο του άνθρακα από την καμινάδα της ΔΕΗ για να παράγεται νερό και βιομηχανική σόδα. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Εξαφανίστηκε από την Καραϊβική η φώκια μονάχους

In.gr, 7 Ιουνίου 2008

Η φώκια μονάχους της Καραϊβικής, στενός συγγενής της μεσογειακής φώκιας, ακολούθησε το δρόμο πολλών ακόμα ειδών και εξαφανίστηκε για πάντα, επιβεβαίωσαν ομοσπονδιακοί αξιωματούχοι στις ΗΠΑ.
Η φώκια μοναχός Monachus tropicalis εθεάθη για τελευταία φορά το 1952 ανάμεσα στη Τζαμάικα και τη χερσόνησο Γιουκάταν του Μεξικού. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Flying High on Algae - KLM Tests Algae-Based Kerosene for Airplane Fuel

ENN, June 5, 2008

Dovetailing nicely into my post last week about the work GreenFuel is doing with algae and their emissions-to-fuel process, air carrier KLM reported last week their intention to begin testing airplanes that run on an algae-based fuel.
In a pilot program with AlgaeLink, a Netherlands-based global manufacturer of algae growing equipment and “earth-to-engine” technology, KLM expects to conduct test flights this fall. AlgaeLink will also open two plants this year in the Netherlands and Spain. Read more...

Αλήθειες πράσινες, μα ενοχλητικές

TA NEA, 7 Ιουνίου 2008

Κι αν τα βιολογικά προϊόντα βλάπτουν το περιβάλλον; Αυτήν την αιρετική άποψη και ακόμη εννέα «ενοχλητικές αλήθειες» για την οικολογική ορθοδοξία παρουσίασε το «Wired», ένα από τα πιο παρεμβατικά και καινοτόμα περιοδικά στον κόσμο σε θέματα επιστήμης και τεχνολογίας.
Απέναντι στην «Ενοχλητική Αλήθεια», το βραβευμένο ντοκιμαντέρ του τιμημένου με Νόμπελ Αμερικανού πρώην αντιπροέδρου Αλ Γκορ, το περιοδικό «Wired» παρουσιάζει έναν δεκάλογο «πράσινων αιρέσεων» υπό τον τίτλο "Ενοχλητικές Αλήθειες". Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Toyota develops improved hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle

ENN, June 6, 2008

Toyota Motor Corp said on Friday it has developed an advanced fuel-cell vehicle that can run for 830 km (516 miles) on a single tank of hydrogen and in temperatures as low as 30 degrees Celsius below freezing (-22 F).
The zero-emission FCHV-adv will be leased to government agencies, among other possible users, in Japan starting later this year, a spokeswoman said. Read more...

China builds plant to turn coal into barrels of oil

ENN, June 4, 2008

ERDOS, China (Reuters) - With oil prices at historic highs, China is moving full steam ahead with a controversial process to turn its vast coal reserves into barrels of oil.
Known as coal-to-liquid (CTL), the process is reviled by environmentalists who say it causes excessive greenhouse gases. Yet the possibility of obtaining oil from coal and being fuel self-sufficient is enticing to coal-rich countries seeking to secure their energy supply in an age of increased debate about how long the world's oil reserves can continue to meet demand. Read more...

Desert is claiming southeast Spain

ENN, June 3, 2008

FORTUNA, Spain: Lush fields of lettuce and hothouses of tomatoes line the roads. Verdant new developments of plush pastel vacation homes beckon buyers from Britain and Germany. Golf courses - 54 of them, all built in the past decade and most in the past three years - give way to the beach. At last, this hardscrabble corner of southeast Spain is thriving.
There is only one problem with this picture of bounty: This province, Murcia, is running out of water. Spurred on by global warming and poorly planned development, swaths of southeast Spain are steadily turning into desert. Read more...

See also: Desertification in Europe, a presentation

EC pursues legal action in the Campania and Lazio regions of Italy

Waste Management World, May 16, 2008

The European Commission is continuing legal action against Italy over two cases involving violations of EU waste legislation. The Commission is taking Italy to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) over the waste crisis that has plagued Naples and the Campania region. It is also sending Italy a first written warning for failing to comply in the Lazio region with an ECJ judgement that found it in breach of its obligations to adopt regional waste management plans. In this second case the Commission has the power to ask the Court to impose fines if Italy does not comply. Read more...

MEPs reject watered-down airline emission targets

EurActiv, May 28, 2008

MEPs have declared a de facto war against national governments by maintaining their demands for strict emission reduction targets for Europe's rapidly growing aviation sector, despite ministers' insistence on a more industry-friendly approach.
The report, backed by members of Parliament[s environment committee in a second reading vote on 27 May, states that airlines operating in Europe should not be allowed to continue emitting the same levels of greenhouse gases as the period 2004-2006 after 2012 – as was proposed by the Council last April. Instead, it demands a 10% cut by 2011. Read more...