Ozone layer depletion levelling off

European Space Agency, September 21, 2009

By merging more than a decade of atmospheric data from European satellites, scientists have compiled a homogeneous long-term ozone record that allows them to monitor total ozone trends on a global scale – and the findings look promising. Read more...

River Deltas Sinking

ENN, September 21, 2009

A new study led by the University of Colorado at Boulder indicates most of the world's low-lying river deltas are sinking from human activity, making them increasingly vulnerable to flooding from rivers and ocean storms and putting tens of millions of people at risk. The study concluded that 24 out of the world's 33 major deltas are sinking and that 85 percent experienced severe flooding in recent years. Read more...

Solar Heating Industry Review 2009

Renewable Energy World.com, September 21, 2009

In 2008, solar thermal heating and cooling solutions gained favour in more and more countries,’ says European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) president Olivier Drücke. ‘The solar thermal market in the EU and Switzerland grew by over 60% to 3.3 GWth of new capacity, that is 4.76 million m2 of collector area,’ he adds.
Indeed, the latest ESTIF annual statistics on European solar thermal markets show that while demand for solar thermal technologies increased strongly in Spain, Italy and France, the biggest push came from the German market, which more than doubled from 0.7 GWth to 1.5 GWth of newly installed capacity in 2008. Read more...

Δημοτική Αστυνομία με ηλεκτρικά οχήματα

Η ΚΑΘΗΜΕΡΙΝΗ, 25 Σεπτεμβρίου 2009

Ενισχύθηκε χθες ο «στόλος» της Δημοτικής Αστυνομίας Αθηνών με δέκα ευέλικτα ηλεκτρικά οχήματα, δωρεά της Τράπεζας Πειραιώς. Από σήμερα, οι περιφερόμενοι ένστολοι του δήμου θα μπορούν να περνούν από πεζοδρόμους, λόγω του περιορισμένου τους όγκου, και θα εξυπηρετούνται πολίτες χρήζοντες βοηθείας (έγκυες, άτομα προς αιμοκάθαρση, κ.ά.). Tα οχήματα είναι μικρά, φορτίζονται με ηλεκτρικό ρεύμα στο γκαράζ και σε συγκεκριμένες πλατείες, όπου έχουν τοποθετηθεί πρίζες. Εχουν αυτονομία 50 χιλιομέτρων, είναι απολύτως οικολογικά και μπορούν να εισέρχονται ακόμη και σε πολύ στενούς δρόμους. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

EU lists industries exempted from carbon trading

EurActiv, September 21, 2009

Experts from the 27-member bloc agreed on a list of industries ranging from plastics manufacturing to iron and food processing that will be largely exempted from CO2 trading after 2013 for fears that their inclusion would move production abroad.
National experts agreed on a list of 164 sectors deemed to be at risk of relocating their activities to foreign countries that have not adopted greenhouse gas emission restrictions similar to the EU's. The threat is dubbed "carbon leakage" because industries and their related polluting emissions would simply move abroad without any benefit for the environment. Read more...

Croatia and Hungary to establish Europe´s largest river protected area

ENN, September 17, 2009

Croatia and Hungary signed today a declaration to establish a Trans-Boundary UNESCO Biosphere Reserve that will protect their shared biodiversity hotspot along the Mura, Drava and Danube Rivers. This paves the way to create Europe’s largest river protection area. Read more...

Half Of Fish Consumed Globally Is Now Raised On Farms, Study Finds

ScienceDaily, September 08, 2009

Aquaculture, once a fledgling industry, now accounts for 50 percent of the fish consumed globally, according to a new report by an international team of researchers. And while the industry is more efficient than ever, it is also putting a significant strain on marine resources by consuming large amounts of feed made from wild fish harvested from the sea, the authors conclude. Their findings are published in the Sept. 7 online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Read more...

Lost world of fanged frogs and giant rats discovered in Papua New Guinea

ENN, Spetember 09, 2009

A team of scientists from Britain, the United States and Papua New Guinea found more than 40 previously unidentified species when they climbed into the kilometre-deep crater of Mount Bosavi and explored a pristine jungle habitat teeming with life that has evolved in isolation since the volcano last erupted 200,000 years ago. In a remarkably rich haul from just five weeks of exploration, the biologists discovered 16 frogs which have never before been recorded by science, at least three new fish, a new bat and a giant rat, which may turn out to be the biggest in the world. Read more...

U.N. Reports on Developing Nations’ Energy Needs

The New York Times, September 1, 2009

It will cost between $500 billion and $600 billion every year for the next 10 years to allow developing nations to grow using renewable energy resources, instead of relying on dirty fuels that worsen global warming, according to a United Nations report released Tuesday.
That astronomical estimate, far higher than any previously suggested by the United Nations, comes at a time when developed and developing nations are still deeply divided over who bears the responsibility for shouldering the expense of deploying cleaner energy resources, much less what the actual amount might be. Read more...

Παρελθόν οι λαμπήρες πυρακτώσεως

TA NEA, 02 Σεπτεμβρίου 2009

Από χθες απαγορεύθηκε στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση η παραγωγή και η εισαγωγή των λαμπτήρων πυρακτώσεως. Εκτός από το ενεργειακό και οικονομικό όφελος που θα προκύψει, η Ελλάδα θα εκπέμπει 1,63 εκατομμύρια τόνους διοξειδίου του άνθρακα λιγότερους ετησίωςόσο σχεδόν παράγουν μηνιαίως δύο μεγάλοι θερμοηλεκτρικοί σταθμοί της ΔΕΗ. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Γόπα εναντίον γόπας!

Ελευθεροτυπία, 30 Αυγούστου 2009

Σώστε τα ψάρια από το τσιγάρο! Χερσαία και θαλάσσια πανίδα κινδυνεύουν από τα χιλιάδες αποτσίγαρα, στις παραλίες και τις θάλασσες.
Ολη η χώρα είναι ένα απέραντο σταχτοδοχείο, υποστηρίζει η επιστημονική ομάδα του Ινστιτούτου Θαλάσσιας και Περιβαλλοντικής Ερευνας Αιγαίου, «Αρχιπέλαγος».
Υπερβολές; Μάλλον όχι. Οι άνθρωποι της περιβαλλοντικής οργάνωσης μας ενημερώνουν ότι τα σκουπίδια που σχετίζονται με το κάπνισμα αντιστοιχούν στο 45% του συνόλου των θαλάσσιων απορριμμάτων της χώρας μας για την περίοδο. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

California to Mandate Recycling for Businesses, Apartments

Earth 911.com, August 24, 2009

by Lauren Hasler

California residents not living in permanent housing may no longer have to deal with the frustration of searching for recycling options. The state’s Integrated Waste Management Board (IWMB) is formulating a program meant to encourage businesses, apartment complexes and mobile home parks to institute recycling. The mandatory recycling directive would most likely set goals for cities and counties, allowing them to implement individual programs as long as they comply. A draft proposal will be released this year, and state law requires the plan to be implemented no later than Jan. 1, 2012. Read more...

Axolotl verges on wild extinction

BBC News, Augut 26, 2009

The amphibian that never grew up is on the verge of going extinct in the wild.
New survey work suggests that fewer than 1,200 Mexican axolotls remain in its last stronghold, the Xochimilco area of central Mexico. The axolotl is a type of salamander that uniquely spends its whole life in its larval form. Its odd lifestyle, features and ability to regenerate body parts make it a popular animal kept in labs, schools and as pets. But in the wild, the future is bleak for this "Peter Pan" of animals. Read more...

University of Colorado at Boulder Tops Sierra’s Ranking of Green Colleges

Environmental Leader, August 21, 2009

The University of Colorado at Boulder, University of Washington at Seattle, Middlebury College, University of Vermont and College of the Atlantic are the top five “green” colleges, according to Sierra Magazine’s third annual ranking of environmentally responsible colleges. The Princeton Review and GreenReportCard.org also recently released their green school rankings.
Sierra’s “cool schools” were ranked by eight categories: efficiency, energy, food, academics, purchasing, transportation, waste management, and administration. Schools could earn up to ten points in each category, and up to five bonus points if they had additional green initiatives. Read more...

Kenya's lions could vanish within 10 years

ENN, August 20, 2009

Kenya has been losing 100 lions a year for the past seven years, leaving the country with just 2000 of its famous big cats, says the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) — which concludes the country could have no wild lions at all in 20 years. Conservationists have blamed habitat destruction, disease and conflict with humans for the population collapse.
But Laurence Frank, a wildlife biologist at the University of California, Berkeley, thinks the KWS estimate is optimistic. "Lions are disappearing so fast from Kenya, as well as the rest of Africa, that I think they will disappear [from Kenya] in less than 10 years if action is not taken very quickly," says Frank, who runs several lion conservation projects in the country. Read more...

Seining Salmon in the Seine?

ENN, August 14, 2009

Salmon are returning to the Seine after an absence of almost a century as water in the river that runs through Paris has become cleaner in recent years, French scientists said.
Once numerous in the river, Atlantic salmon disappeared from the Seine in the early 20th century, partly due to pollution from Paris sewers.
But scientists celebrated an improvement in water quality in the Seine that has tempted the protected species back to Paris. Read more...

China starts building first 10-GW mega wind farm

ENN, August 11, 2009

China started construction of the country' s first 10-gigawa wind power base in Jiuquan of northwest Gansu province on Saturday as Beijing seeks more clean power to fuel its fast economic growth.
China, the world's second-largest energy user, has said it would bring its total wind power capacity to 100 GW by 2020 from the current 12 GW, part of a broad energy target to generate 3 percent of total electricity from non-hydro renewable energy. Read more...

Is organic food no 'better' than conventional?

Grist, August 11, 2009

A recent UK report found that organic foods offer no nutritional advantages over conventional. That conclusion is probably flawed, reports Tom Philpott. And moreover, the UK study acknowledges that conventional food has significantly higher levels of nitrogen--a known health menace. Read more...

Το περιβάλλον της Ελλάδας στο Διαδίκτυο!

WWF, 18 Αυγούστου 2009

Οι ηλεκτρονικές διαδικτυακές εφαρμογές που εμπεριέχουν χάρτες πάσης φύσεως ολοένα και πληθαίνουν στον παγκόσμιο ιστό. Τι ισχύει όμως για τους χάρτες περί της ελληνικής φύσης; Το WWF Ελλάς, με τη δημιουργία του Οικοσκοπίου (http://www.oikoskopio.gr/), μιας φιλόδοξης χαρτογραφικής εφαρμογής, έρχεται να συμπληρώσει ένα κενό στο χώρο της περιβαλλοντικής πληροφορίας στην Ελλάδα. Δείτε το ΟΙΚΟΣΚΟΠΙΟ...

ΟΗΕ: Στα 300 δισ. δολάρια το κόστος της κλιματικής αλλαγής

Ελευθεροτυπία, 12 Ιουλίου 2009

Η μείωση των εκπομπών αερίων του θερμοκηπίου με στόχο την επιβράδυνση της υπερθέρμανσης του πλανήτη και η προσαρμογή στις επιπτώσεις, όπως ξηρασίες και άνοδος της στάθμης της θάλασσας, θα κοστίσουν πιθανά περί τα 300 δισ. δολάρια ετησίως, εκτιμά ο επικεφαλής της Γραμματείας του ΟΗΕ για την Κλιματική Αλλαγή, Ίβο ντε Μπερ. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Imperiled Fisheries Make A Comeback, Study Shows

NPR, July 30, 2009

by Richard Harris

There's no question that the world's fish are in trouble. Fishermen are pulling fish out of the seas far faster than these populations can grow back. Some fisheries are heading toward collapse or even extinction. But a major new analysis of this grim picture shows that fisheries aren't doomed. In fact, some are on the mend. Read more...

Τα γαϊδουράγκαθα κάνουν καλό... στον ΑΗΣ Καρδιάς

Ογδόντα αγρότες της Κοζάνης καλλιεργούν αγριοαγκινάρες που θα χρησιμοποιηθούν ως «καθαρό» καύσιμο από τη ΔΕΗ

H ΚΑΘΗΜΕΡΙΝΗ, 09 Αυγούστου 2009

Του Θαναση Τσιγγανα

Μια φορά την εβδομάδα, μόλις ο ήλιος κάνει την εμφάνισή του πάνω από τα φουγάρα των εργοστασίων στο λεκανοπέδιο της Πτολεμαΐδας, ο 42χρονος Κυριάκος Τσανακτσίδης ανακατεύει το χώμα στη νέα του καλλιέργεια για να δει αν τα φυτά θέλουν πότισμα.
Ο γεωργοκτηνοτρόφος από την Ακρινή Κοζάνης είναι ένας από τους 80 καλλιεργητές του νομού, που φέτος δεν φύτεψαν καλαμπόκι, σιτηρά ή ζαχαρότευτλα στα χωράφια τους, αλλά επέλεξαν να σπείρουν (και να επενδύσουν σε...) γαϊδουράγκαθα ή όπως τα λένε οι ειδικοί των ενεργειακών φυτών, αγριοαγκινάρες.
Τέσσερις χιλιάδες στρέμματα στους δήμους Ελλησπόντου, Δημ. Υψηλάντη, Αγίας Παρασκευής, Μουρικίου, Πτολεμαΐδας και Κοζάνης αποτελούν το φιλόδοξο πείραμα πράσινης οικονομίας στη Δυτική Μακεδονία, μια επανάσταση κατά τους εμπνευστές του, μια ανατροπή στο καλλιεργητικό κατεστημένο των κατοίκων της περιοχής. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

MICROMERIA ACROPOLITANA: Τη θεωρούσαν χαμένη, την ξαναβρήκαν στην Ακρόπολη!

ΟΙΚΟ της Καθημερινής, 08 Αυγούστου 2009

ΤΟΥ ΛΕΩΝΙΔΑ ΝΤΙΛΣΙΖΙΑΝ

Εθεωρείτο εξαφανισμένο είδος από την ελληνική και την παγκόσμια χλωρίδα για περισσότερο από έναν αιώνα. Κι όμως, η Micromeria acropolitana, το ενδημικό φυτό της Ακρόπολης που ζει μόνο εκεί και πουθενά αλλού στον κόσμο, ανακαλύφθηκε ξανά στον Ιερό Βράχο! Ο Ελληνας βιολόγος Γρηγόρης Τσούνης, ο οποίος εντόπισε το «φυτό-φάντασμα», μοιράζεται με το ΟΙΚΟ την ανακάλυψή του. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Carbon tariffs falling out of favour as trade war looms

EurActiv.com, July 26, 2009

A majority of European countries are reluctant to pick up on current debates in France and the United States about carbon tariffs designed to fend off competition from countries which have not committed to reducing emissions, for fear of triggering a green trade war.
So far, France has been the only member state to openly rally for the introduction of border measures to secure the competitiveness of European industry against emerging economies. It put the measure on the table in 2008 when the EU was immersed in discussions on a revision of its emissions trading scheme (EU ETS). Read more...

Fertile Crescent 'will disappear this century'

ENN, July 27, 2009

Is it the final curtain for the Fertile Crescent? This summer, as Turkish dams reduce the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to a trickle, farmers abandon their desiccated fields across Iraq and Syria, and efforts to revive the Mesopotamian marshes appear to be abandoned, climate modellers are warning that the current drought is likely to become permanent. The Mesopotamian cradle of civilisation seems to be returning to desert.
Last week, Iraqi ministers called for urgent talks with upstream neighbours Turkey and Syria, after the combination of a second year of drought and dams in those countries cut flow on the Euphrates as it enters Iraq to below 250 cubic metres a second. That is less than a quarter the flow needed to maintain Iraqi agriculture. Read more...

Ο Μπους έκρυβε τα ντοκουμέντα για το λιώσιμο των πάγων

ΤΟ ΒΗΜΑ, 02 Αυγούστου 2009

Η θερμοκρασία του πλανήτη ανεβαίνει, οι πολικοί πάγοι λιώνουν, το κλίμα, το περιβάλλον και η άγρια ζωή βρίσκονται πλέον σε άμεσο κίνδυνο. Το δυσοίωνο αυτό σενάριο, που εδώ και χρόνια ακούγεται ως θεωρητικολογία από τα χείλη διάσημων περιβαλλοντολόγων, επαληθεύουν μια σειρά από φωτογραφίες που έχουν ληφθεί από αμερικανικούς κατασκοπευτικούς δορυφόρους την τελευταία δεκαετία. Μέχρι πρότινος ελάχιστοι γνώριζαν την ύπαρξή τους καθώς ο Τζορτζ Μπους τις είχε χαρακτηρίσει «απόρρητες» και άρα «κομμένες» για τα ΜΜΕ. Μετά τον αποχαρακτηρισμό τους από τον Μπαράκ Ομπάμα βγήκαν από το συρτάρι και κάνουν τον γύρο του κόσμου αποκαλύπτοντας τη ζημιά που έχει κάνει η υπερθέρμανση του πλανήτη σε πολλές περιοχές υψηλού γεωγραφικού πλάτους. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Ενα βουνό ξαναγεννιέται στην Κοζάνη

Η ΚΑΘΗΜΕΡΙΝΗ, 02 Αυγούστου 2009

του Θαναση Τσιγγανα

Ενα βουνό από χώμα, συνολικά 435.000 δένδρα και θάμνοι, 430 χιλιόμετρα αρδευτικού δικτύου, δεκάδες σκαπτικά - χωματουργικά μηχανήματα, εκατοντάδες χιλιάδες εργατοώρες, ειδικές μελέτες και περισσότερα από 30 εκατομμύρια ευρώ συναποτελούν την «ταυτότητα» του μεγαλύτερου έργου περιβαλλοντικής αποκατάστασης που βρίσκεται σε εξέλιξη τα τελευταία χρόνια στην Ελλάδα. Ολο το εγχείρημα μπορεί να συνοψιστεί στη φράση «ένα βουνό ξαναγεννιέται». Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Illegally Shipped Waste to Return to U.K.

ENN, July 23, 2009

When Brazilian port workers began inspecting the contents of a cargo ship from the U.K., they were surprised to find more than 1,400 tons of waste, labeled as recyclable plastics, included with the cargo.
The waste, packed in 89 shipping containers, was unloaded in three southern Brazilian ports and was said to contain batteries, computer parts, DVDs, cleaning product containers, clothes, shoes, old toys, baby diapers, food remains and medical waste, among other items. Read more...

«Εμπάργκο» επιβάλλει η Ευρώπη στα προϊόντα φώκιας

In.gr, 27 Ιουλίου 2009

Την απαγόρευση εισαγωγής προϊόντων που προέρχονται από φώκιες ενέκριναν τη Δευτέρα οι υπουργοί Εξωτερικών της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης, επικρίνοντας το «βάρβαρο» κυνήγι τους.
Τα προϊόντα αφορούν γούνες, κρέας και λάδι φώκιας, αλλά από την απαγόρευση εξαιρούνται όσα προέρχονται από παραδοσιακές μεθόδους κυνηγιού, όπως εφαρμόζονται από τους αυτόχθονες Ινουίτ του Καναδά και της Γροιλανδίας. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Air Pollution Linked to Diminishing IQ of Children

ENN, July 21, 2009

A new study published in the August 2009 edition of Pediatrics shows a possible disturbing correlation between increased urban air pollution and decreased IQ points in children. The study sites polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), or "chemicals released into the air from the burning of coal, diesel, oil, and gas, or other organic substances such as tobacco" as the major perpetrators of inner- city air pollution, with a particular focus on motor vehicle use. Read more...

Institute Studies Clash Between Wind and Raptors

MatterNetwork, July 16, 2009

A new group is attempting to better reconcile high velocity wind power development with its impact on avian victims.
Wind power has come a long way from technology employed earlier this century, but according to Dr. Judd Howell of the American Wind and Wildlife Institute, more research is needed
Recently named the first Director of Research at the AWWI, Howell's background is a combination of wind energy impacts and raptor studies, which culminated in extensive work in the Altiplan.
Raptors, as birds of prey and top predators, are fewer in number than other species and could be threatened by any excessive damage to their numbers. Read more...

Exxon to Invest Millions to Make Fuel From Algae

ENN, July 14, 2009

The oil giant Exxon Mobil, whose chief executive once mocked alternative energy by referring to ethanol as "moonshine," is about to venture into biofuels.
On Tuesday, Exxon plans to announce an investment of $600 million in producing liquid transportation fuels from algae — organisms in water that range from pond scum to seaweed. The biofuel effort involves a partnership with Synthetic Genomics, a biotechnology company founded by the genomics pioneer J. Craig Venter. Read more...

Exxon Mobil biofuel program

U.S. power plant emissions fall

ENN, July 8, 2009

U.S. power plant emissions of sulfur dioxide dropped sharply in the first half of the year as the electricity industry prepared for tighter regulation in 2010, Genscape said Monday.
Sulfur dioxide emissions were down 24 percent compared to the first half of 2008, much more than would be expected due to the recession and lower electricity demand, the power industry data provider said in its quarterly review of energy trends. Read more...

Tropic zones expanding due to climate change

ENN, July 6, 2009

MELBOURNE: Climate change is rapidly expanding the size of the world's tropical zone, threatening to bring disease and drought to heavily populated areas, an Australian study has found.
Researchers at James Cook University concluded the tropics had widened by up to 500 kilometers in the past 25 years after examining 70 peer-reviewed scientific articles. Read more...

New Russian Arctic Park to protect key polar bear habitat

ENN, June 17, 2009

The 'Russian Arctic' park is located on the northern part of Novaya Zemlya, a long island that arcs out into the Arctic Ocean between the Barents and Kara Seas. It also includes some adjacent marine areas.
WWF has long been lobbying for the park, which is also a key area for walrus, wild reindeer and bird population. The park creation excludes all industrial activities.
"This is exactly the sort of thing we need to see from Arctic governments," says Neil Hamilton Director of WWF International’s Arctic Programme. Read more...

Urban frontrunners — cities and the fight against global warming

EEA, June 15 2009

Barcelona is becoming a leader in solar energy use, Malmö is developing a carbon neutral residential area and London is setting ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets. Cities are joining in the fight against climate change.
As concentrations of human activity, Europe's cities and towns account for 69 % of the continent's energy use and thus most greenhouse gas emissions. Seen another way, however, the characteristics of urban settings offer important opportunities for sustainable living. Already, population density in cities means shorter journeys to work and services, greater use of public transport, and smaller dwellings requiring less lighting and heating. As a result, urban dwellers consume less energy per capita than rural residents. In some cities, policy-makers are now going further, implementing a variety of measures to combat greenhouse gas emissions. Read more...

Ο τόνος κολυμπά προς την εξαφάνιση

TA NEA, 13 Ιουνίου 2009

Στη Βρετανία ο τόνος είναι το ψάρι με τη δεύτερη μεγαλύτερη κατανάλωση (πρώτος είναι ο σολομός). Στους Αμερικανούς αρέσει επίσης πολύ. Στην Ιταλία είναι ένα συνηθισμένο φαγητό, το ίδιο στην Ισπανία, στη Γαλλία και στη Γερμανία. Οι Γιαπωνέζοι όμως είναι οι μεγαλύτεροι λάτρεις του τόνου και ιδιαίτερα του κυανόπτερου, που στις ψαραγορές του Τόκιο φτάνει τα 150 ευρώ το κιλό. Και αυτή η λαιμαργία της Ιαπωνίας για τον πιο σπάνιο και πιο εκλεκτό από τους τόνους είναι που έφερε φέτος την πρώτη μεγάλη κρίση στο είδος. Η υπεραλιεία έχει οδηγήσει τον κυανόπτερο του Ατλαντικού στα πρόθυρα της εξαφάνισης. Θα έχει εξαλειφθεί μέσα σε μόλις τρία χρόνια, σύμφωνα με το Παγκόσμιο Ταμείο για τη Φύση (WWF). Εντούτοις την περασμένη εβδομάδα η αγγλοαμερικανική αλυσίδα εστιατορίων Νobu αρνήθηκε να τον βγάλει από το μενού της. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Train can be worse for climate than plane

ENN, June 08, 2009

True or false: taking the commuter train across Boston results in lower greenhouse gas emissions than travelling the same distance in a jumbo jet. Perhaps surprisingly, the answer is false.
A new study compares the "full life-cycle" emissions generated by 11 different modes of transportation in the US. Unlike previous studies on transport emissions, Mikhail Chester and Arpad Horvath of the University of California, Berkeley, looked beyond what is emitted by different types of car, train, bus or plane while their engines are running and includes emissions from building and maintaining the vehicles and their infrastructure, as well as generating the fuel to run them. Read more...

Κτηνωδία με αλλεπάλληλα περιστατικά βασανισμού σκύλων μέχρι θανάτου στην Κρήτη

in.gr, 12 Ιουνίου 2009

Σκυλιά βασανισμένα μέχρι θανάτου, κρεμασμένα με σκοινί από δέντρα και φράχτες να αργοπεθαίνουν.
Τρία πρωτοφανή περιστατικά βασανισμού σκύλων έχουν σημειωθεί το τελευταίο διάστημα στον Τρυπητό και τα Έξω Μουλιανά Σητείας, καθώς και στην περιοχή Μαλλίων Κρήτης.
Τα τοπικά φιλοζωϊκά σωματεία έχουν υποβάλλει καταγγελία στην αστυνομία και απευθύνουν έκκληση σε όποιον έχει πληροφορίες για τους δράστες της απίστευτης κτηνωδίας να επικοινωνήσει με τις αρμόδιες Αρχές. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Floating wind turbine launched

BBC News, June 5, 2009

The world's first floating wind turbine is to be towed out to sea this weekend.
Statoil's Alexandra Beck Gjorv told the BBC the technology, the Hywind, to be put off Norway's coast - "should help move offshore wind farms out of sight".
And it could lead to offshore wind farms eventually being located many miles offshore, away from areas where they cause disruption, Ms Gjorv added. This would benefit military radar operations, the shipping industry, fisheries, bird life and tourism. Read more...

Beavers return after 400-year gap

BBC News, May 29, 2009

A total of 11 beavers have been released into the wild in Argyll as part of a reintroduction programme. Four more may join the Scottish Beaver Trial being run in Knapdale Forest.
The beavers have been brought to Scotland from Norway and their release marks a return to the UK after a 400-year absence.
The release will be studied to determine whether the trial should be extended and beavers reintroduced across Scotland. Read more...

EU greenhouse gas emissions fall for third consecutive year

EEA, May 29, 2009

European Union emissions of climate-changing greenhouse gases (GHG) declined for the third consecutive year in 2007, according to the EU's GHG inventory report compiled by the European Environment Agency. The EU-27's overall domestic emissions were 9.3 % below 1990 levels, which equalled a drop of 1.2 % or 59 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent compared to 2006. The EU-15 now stands 5 % below its Kyoto Protocol base year levels. Read more...

EU votes to criminalise pollution at sea

EurActiv, May 6, 2009

The European Parliament yesterday (5 May) adopted a new directive that forces EU countries to introduce criminal penalties for maritime pollution, whether caused deliberately or by negligence. At their plenary session in Strasbourg, MEPs adopted the new directive by 588 votes in favour and 42 against, amid three abstentions.
The directive introduces compulsory criminal sanctions for serious cases of maritime pollution, and also forces member states to impose stringent penalties for minor cases if they are repeated, deliberately caused or the result of serious negligence. Read more...

Wind Power Increase in 2008 Exceeds 10-year Average Growth Rate

WorldWatch Institute, May 7, 2009

Global wind capacity increased an estimated 27,051 megawatts in 2008, ending the year at 120,798 megawatts. With cumulative installations up almost 29 percent, the growth rate exceeded the annual average of the past decade. Wind power accounted for 42 percent of new capacity additions in the United States (second only to natural gas for the fourth year running) and for 36 percent of new installations in Europe. The wind now generates more than 1.5 percent of the world's electricity, up from 0.1 percent in 1997. Around the world, 80 countries are now using wind power on a commercial basis. Read more...

Australia delays emissions scheme

BBC News, May 4, 2009

The Australian government says it will push back a planned carbon emissions trading scheme (ETS) by a year. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the delay was necessary because of the poor economic climate.
Australia has the highest per capita emissions in the developed world and coal is its biggest export. Read more...

Grey Wolf Taken Off Endangered List

ENN, May 5, 2009

The grey wolf was Monday taken off the U.S. list of endangered species, making a comeback 35 years after it virtually disappeared and can now be hunted in most states, officials said.
"We have recovered a wolf population," said Ed Bangs, wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service, based in Montana.
"The populations are viable, they are in great shape, they have extreme genetic diversity and so the endangered species act did its job to bring wolves back." Read more...

EU seal ban raises trade tensions with Canada

EurActiv, May 6, 2009

The European Union and Canada clashed on Tuesday after EU lawmakers voted to ban imports of seal products into the 27-nation bloc, prompting Ottawa to threaten action in the world's top trade court.
"If the ban adopted by the European Parliament fails to exempt humane and sustainable sealing, Canada pledged to launch a challenge at the World Trade Organisation, the global trade watchdog. If the EU imposes a trade ban on seal products it must contain an exemption for any country, like Canada, that has strict guidelines in place for humane and sustainable sealing practices," Canada's Trade Minister Stockwell Day said. Read more...

Have a look at Canada's 'humane...sealing practices'...

Καθαρότερα καύσιμα στην Καλιφόρνια

ΕΡΤ, 24 Απριλίου 2009

Ένα ιστορικό νόμο για την περικοπή των εκπομπών διοξειδίου του άνθρακα από τα καύσιμα των αυτοκινήτων με παράλληλη ώθηση της αγοράς προς τα καθαρότερά εναλλακτικά καύσιμα, υιοθέτησε η Καλιφόρνια. Στον πυρήνα της ρύθμισης είναι οι νέες προδιαγραφές που απαιτούν από τα διυλιστήρια, τους παραγωγούς και τους εισαγωγείς των καυσίμων κίνησης να μειώσουν την περιεκτικότητα του άνθρακα κατά 10% έως το 2020 και περισσότερο αργότερα. Διαβάστε περισσότερα...

Pet Trade Introduces Diseases, Costs

Discovery Channel, April 30, 2009

by Emily Sohn

April 30, 2009 -- Invasive species are putting major strains on our environment, our pocketbooks and our health, new studies suggest, and our nation's demand for exotic pets may be to blame.
Between 2000 and 2006, the United States imported nearly 1.5 billion live animals from 190 countries, mostly for sale as pets, according to a paper published today in the journal Science. Eighty percent of those animals came from wild populations. And nearly 70 percent of them came from Southeast Asia, a known hotspot for emerging diseases that, like the swine flu, can jump from animals to people. Read more...

U.S. Wind Power Industry Installs More Than 2,800 MW in Q1 2009

ENN, April 30, 2009

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The wind energy industry in the United States installed 2,836 megawatts of new generating capacity through the end of March, bringing total installed generating capacity in the country to 28,206 MW, the American Wind Energy Association announced. Read more...