Top Stories
A slushy shade of green.—reliability
high.
Feature on the efforts of the Vancouver Olympics organizers to make
the games as green as possible. "Overall, the David Suzuki Foundation,
a prominent Canadian environmental organisation, has awarded the
Vancouver games a symbolic bronze medal for its green achievements.
Among the reasons for not giving it gold is a sense that Vanoc has not
lived up to its own lofty aspirations." Gives some of the green and
not-so-green aspects of the games. Story in The
Economist. [Vanoc claims a
footprint of about 120,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases. But a quick
calculation reveals that the emissions from participants and visitors
traveling to and from the games could easily triple that number. It's
easy being green if you make someone else take the blame for emissions
you cause. Events like this usually cause their greatest climate impact
through the travel they require. We're not saying there shouldn't be
such events, just that their accounting should be honest.]
Wal-Mart Unveils Plan to Make Supply Chain
Greener.—reliability high.
Wal-Mart plans to cut some 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas
emissions from its supply chain by the end of 2015 "by focusing on
popular product categories with the highest embedded carbon — milk,
bread, meat, clothing — and by pressing its suppliers to rethink how
they source, manufacture, package and transport those goods.
Essentially, suppliers are being asked to examine the carbon lifecycle
of their products, from the raw materials used in manufacturing all the
way through to the recycling phase. . . . Also, as Michael T. Duke,
Wal-Mart's president and chief executive, said in a Web cast on
Thursday, 'We know we need to get ready for a world in which energy
will only be more expensive.'" See New
York Times story. Commentary from grist.
[It isn't
immediately clear if this means that Wal-Mart's supply chain will emit
20 million tonnes less GHG annually by 2015, but it
it does that is approximately the annual emissions of Jordan--less than
New Zealand but more than Estonia. Wal-Mart, by squeezing some carbon
efficiency out of just its suppliers, can have the same
impact as a whole nation going carbon neutral.]
Companies,
Industries, Markets and Supply Chains
Skepticism Meets Vt. Nuke Plant's
Cheap-Power Gift.—reliability high.
"The owners of Vermont's only nuclear plant on Tuesday offered a shot
of cut-rate power in an effort to help the state build jobs -- and were
immediately met by skepticism about their motives in making the pitch
on the eve of a Senate vote that could lead to the plant's demise. Curt
Hebert Jr., executive vice president of New Orleans-based Entergy
Corp., said at a news conference that the Vermont Yankee plant would
provide cheap electricity for economic development projects in the
state for three years -- but noted it was contingent on the plant being
able to operate beyond the expiration of its license in 2012." AP story
in The
New York Times. [The bribe wasn't
taken and the Vermont Senate voted against extending the license.
Vermont is the only state where the legislature, in addition to
regulators, has such a role. See Boston
Globe editorial.]
Energy audit sheds light on costly
appliances, electronics.—reliability high.
"PG&E brought my family an unwelcome gift in mid-November: a
SmartMeter. I was worried. Reducing my carbon footprint and protecting
the world from global warming hadn't gotten my attention quite the way
the SmartMeter, and more specifically the threat of losing money, had.
Never before had I considered auditing my energy consumption. I didn't
even realize that companies offered this service." One homeowner's
experience with a self-audit and the resulting savings. Story in Contra
Costa Times. [Smart meters are
contentious in some markets because consumers feel threatened. They
reasonably ask, "What's in it for me?" This story shows how they are
supposed to work, at least in these early days. A smart grid makes
smart consumers.]
Government and
Regulation
UK plans boost for electric vehicles.—reliability
medium.
"The incentives - up to £5,000 for the least polluting vehicles - will
come into force in January 2011, by which point the necessary plug-in
points to charge electric vehicles on the go should be more widespread.
The grant will cover up to a quarter of the cost of the vehicle, capped
at £5,000, and will be available for both individuals and companies. In
a separate announcement, London's Mayor, Boris Johnson, said that
funding is now in place to have 7,500 electric charge points in the
city by spring 2013, with 1,600 to be installed over the next 12
months." From edie.net.
However:
Electric vehicle grants scheme backfires as taxpayers subsidise £87,000
sports cars.—reliability high.
"Subsidising expensive sports cars is not the most obvious way to
fight global warming. But soon, anyone with £87,000 will be able to
claim a UK taxpayer-funded £5,000 grant to help them buy Tesla's
supercharged electric car, the Roadster, in the name of cutting carbon
emissions. The Guardian has learned the Tesla Roadster is one of just
two cars that will be available from the start of a new government
grants scheme announced today to encourage the take-up of greener cars.
Existing electric cars, such as the G-Wiz – the most popular consumer
electric car on UK streets – and the MEGA e-City will not be eligible
because they do not go fast enough." See story in The
Guardian.
[Crossposted from HaraBara.com courtesy of HaraBara, Inc. Copyright © 2010 HaraBara, Inc.]