Top Stories
U.S. Dairy Industry Plans 25% GHG Emissions
Cut by 2020.—reliability high.
"The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Innovation Center
for U.S. Dairy are working together to help the U.S. dairy industry
reach its goal to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 25 percent
over the next decade. One part of the strategy is to turn methane gas
from livestock manure into electricity. Under a memorandum of
understanding (MOU), the USDA and the dairy group identified a variety
of projects that can help the dairy industry meet its greenhouse gas
reduction goals, while increasing its financial and environmental
sustainability." From
Environmental Leader.
U.K. Food Companies Cut CO2 Emissions 19
Percent, Make Progress on Waste, Water Goals.—reliability
high.
According to its own report, "Members of the U.K.'s Food and Drink
Federation (FDF) are well on their way to cutting their carbon
emissions, waste, packaging and more." "the companies reduced CO2
emissions by 19 percent by the end of 2008, compared to 1990." More on
actions of members and tools they have developed. See
GreenBiz. Access report here.
Companies,
Industries, Markets and Supply Chains
Silver Spring becomes the smart grid’s golden
goose with new $100M.—reliability high.
Silver Spring Networks has announced "it's secured $100 million
more in equity to continue expanding in the U.S. and overseas." "The
news also says a lot about which segments of the smart grid will grow
the fastest." Further discussion about various smart-grid segments and
their prospects. Other companies mentioned. See
GreenBeat. Press release here.
Cisco, NASA launch climate monitoring venture.—reliability
high.
Cisco Systems and NASA have launched a $100 million plan "to monitor
the earth's resources, aiming to boost transparency of national
commitments under a new climate treaty." The non-profit "Planetary Skin
Institute is to help existing public and private, academic and
government institutions share their data and analysis, for example
through new online resources." From
Reuters.
U.S. Smart Grid Market Projected to Double
by 2014.—reliability high.
"By 2014, the U.S. smart grid market is expected to double from its
2009 value of $21.4 billion to $42.8 billion, according to research
from Zpryme." More highlights of report. Also, "The Association of Home
Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) has laid out guidelines for establishing
a smart grid in a newly released white paper at the Copenhagen Climate
Conference." See
Environmental Leader. Zprime press
release; AHAM report PDF.
Government and
Regulation
DOE Adds Comprehensive Energy Web Site,
Building Energy Use Lab.—reliability high.
A new website funded by the Department of Energy "is making energy data
and resources more available to the public." From Open Energy site:
"Open Energy Info is a platform to connect the world’s energy data. It
is a linked open data platform bringing together energy information to
provide improved analyses, unique visualizations, and real-time access
to data." See
Environmental Leader. See site
here. [This
is an extremely cool and potentially useful site.]
Environmental Groups and EPA Reach Agreement
on Updating Nationwide Limits on Air Pollution from Oil and Gas
Drilling.—reliability high.
"WildEarth Guardians and the San Juan Citizens Alliance today announced
a legal settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that
promises to lead to a major overhaul of federal regulations limiting
air pollution from oil and gas drilling operations nationwide."
"Current regulations for oil and gas drilling have faced to keep pace
with science and technology. Some are more than 20 years old, and they
fail to limit emissions of several toxic chemicals or greenhouse gases.
Today’s agreement secures a commitment from the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency to review and, if appropriate, update these federal
clean air regulations." More on impact of outdated regulations. See
WildEarth Guardians site.
Technology
Energy-saving traffic lights blamed in
crashes.—reliability high.
"Cities around the country that have installed energy-efficient traffic
lights are discovering a hazardous downside: The bulbs don't burn hot
enough to melt snow and can become crusted over in a storm — a problem
blamed for dozens of accidents and at least one death." See
MSNBC from AP. [File under
department of not-thought-through consequences, or
we-hoped-it-wouldn't-be-a-problem department.]
[Crossposted from HaraBara.com courtesy of HaraBara, Inc. Copyright © 2009 HaraBara, Inc.]
