Top Stories
Sony Sets Goal of Zero Environmental
Footprint by 2050.—reliability high.
"Taking the long view, Sony is instituting its 'Road to Zero' plan,
which would see the company have zero environmental footprint by 2050.
The company is looking at not only reducing its waste and emissions,
but also at its use of materials such as petroleum-based virgin
plastics. Generally, Sony is aligning its goals in four areas: climate
change, resource conservation, control of chemical substances and
biodiversity. To get the company started, it has set short-term goals
for the end of FY 2015 (March of 2016), against a 2008 baseline". From Environmental
Leader. [A
new standard? Could your company do this?]
Why PepsiCo is Changing its Renewable Energy
Strategy.—reliability medium.
PepsiCo's director of energy and resource conservation posts: "This
month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will release its
quarterly Green Power Purchasers list. After a long run as a top
purchaser of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), PepsiCo will
not be on the list. ... After thorough review at the highest levels of
our company, we have made the strategic decision to reduce our
participation in the RECs market in order to focus on direct
investments that will accelerate our use of alternative energy sources
to power operations at the facility level throughout the PepsiCo
network. As part of this, we will be investing more than $30 million
dollars in the next three years to develop new renewable energy
projects in the U.S. ... This decision emphasizes our commitment to
reduce our environmental footprint through direct actions and
investment in our own facilities and where possible, those of our
suppliers." See GreenBiz
blog. [PepsiCo
is coming to grips with the underlying problem of greening via RECs:
Can you claim carbon reductions or carbon neutrality based on REC
purchases? PepsiCo says it has decided that it can reduce its
environmental impact more by investing in carbon-reducing technologies
at its own facilities rather than spending that money on RECs. Also,
maybe it thinks the price of RECs will increase. (More about RECs in
this earlier
post.)]
Companies,
Industries, Markets and Supply Chains
Malaysian Loggers Try to Improve Their Image.—reliability
high.
"Malaysia is working to become the first country in Asia to sign a
voluntary agreement with the European Union guaranteeing that all
timber exports to the bloc have been harvested legally. The Union says
the agreement is likely to give Malaysia, and other countries that sign
similar pacts, a competitive advantage as the bloc pushes for tighter
regulation of timber imports because of environmental concerns. Last
year, countries in the 27-member Union imported wood, wood charcoal and
cork worth an estimated €8.5 billion, or $11.4 billion, 4.6 percent of
it from Malaysia. ... The Union has no region-wide law preventing the
importation of illegally logged wood products, although in response to
consumer demand, some companies voluntarily buy timber from sources
certified by various groups as sustainable. The Union is considering
legislation that would require all importers in the bloc — from
furniture companies to those buying raw materials like boards — to
conduct due diligence to show that the timber they bought had been
legally harvested." Story in The
New York Times. [The market at
work.]
Greener Restaurants National Recognition
Program Pilot Launches.—reliability high.
"The National Restaurant Association has launched the pilot of Greener
Restaurants—a new national program to recognize restaurants'
environmental sustainability efforts. A limited number of restaurants
have signed on to participate in the pilot that will open to
industrywide participation in the next few months. Greener Restaurants
will show operators how to save money while 'going greener' and share
their successes with guests." See Green
Lodging News. [Another
certification developed by the industry, for the industry. No wonder
consumers are confused by all these seals, certificates and badges.]
65% Say Americans Not Willing To Make Major
Lifestyle Changes To Help Environment.—reliability high.
"The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that
only 17% of adults believe most Americans would be willing to make
major cutbacks in their lifestyle in order to help save the
environment. Most (65%) say that’s not the case. Another 18% are not
sure. ... But 51% of adults believe major lifestyle cutbacks are
necessary in order to help the environment. Thirty-two percent (32%)
disagree, with 16% more undecided. The number of adults who see this
need is up from 49% in July and 42% in May of last year." Other poll
results. From Rasmussen.
Cost of Driving Up Almost $400 for 2010.—reliability
high.
The most recent AAA analysis of the cost of car ownership shows a
sharp rise over the past year. "The 2010 edition of AAA’s annual “Your
Driving Costs” study estimates the overall cost of owning and operating
a typical new sedan at 56.6 cents per mile, up 2.6 cents compared to
2009. For a car driven 15,000 miles a year, that amounts to $8,487
annually. That’s $392 more than last year’s estimated cost of $8,095.
AAA estimates driving costs based on an extensive list of factors
including gasoline, maintenance, tires, financing, depreciation and
insurance. Gas prices in the study are based on the late 2009 AAA Fuel
Gauge Report price per gallon of $2.60". From AAA
site. [Gas
prices are now over $3.00 in California, according to AAA, which will
drive ownership costs higher than this estimate. Part of this increase
is from the more rapid depreciation being suffered by large,
inefficient vehicles. As the costs of owning and driving a car
increase, the value of homes at the end of long car commutes may
decrease.]
North American investors support BP oil
sands resolution.—reliability high.
Press release from Boston Common Asset Management says "Top U.S.
pension funds including CalPERS, CalSTRS, Connecticut Retirement Plans
& Trust Funds (CRPTF), New York State Common Retirement Fund, the
Vermont Pension Investment Committee, which is responsible for the
investments of the Vermont State Teachers' Retirement System, the
Vermont State Employees' Retirement System, and the Vermont Municipal
Employees' Retirement System, have today declared that they are voting
in favour of the BP oil sands resolution. ... Through the PRI
Clearinghouse, international investors joined together to publicly
support a vote in favour for the oil sands risk assessment resolution
tabled for BP's annual general meeting on April 15th as well as for
Shell’s upcoming meeting in May." See CSRWire.
[The market at
work.]
Science and
Economics
French study says land use may cut biofuel
benefits.—reliability high.
"Changes in land use linked to the growing of crops like soybeans and
palm oil may cancel out the benefits of biofuels in terms of emissions
savings, according to an official French study released on Thursday.
Biofuels may even have a worse emissions profile than traditional
fossil fuels, said the authors of the study commissioned by French
energy and environment agency Ademe. Factors such as the clearing of
forests to grow crops could cut the emissions benefits of both
non-European biofuel production, and also output in Europe through the
indirect effect of importing biofuel components, they said." From Reuters.
[Crossposted from HaraBara.com courtesy of HaraBara, Inc. Copyright © 2010 HaraBara, Inc.]
