Top Stories
Puma Commits Strategic Suppliers to
Sustainability Reporting.—reliability medium.
"Puma says 20 of its strategic suppliers –which account for more
than two thirds of all Puma products – will receive GRI-certified
training on transparent measurement and reporting of their
sustainability performance using the GRI G3 Guidelines. ... 'Supply
chain sustainability reporting is a key part of Puma’s overall
sustainability strategy,' says Dr. Reiner Hengstmann, Global Director
of puma.safe supply chain". From 2Sustain.
Press release here. [From press
release: "The Sportlifestyle company PUMA expands its project in
cooperation with The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the
Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) in GRI’s GANTSCh
program which supports supplier factories to report on their social and
environmental initiatives and agreed with 20 key suppliers in South
East Asia and other major sourcing regions to issue their own
sustainability reports from 2011 on."]
Sales of European green goods set to double
by 2015.—reliability high.
"The emerging European market for green consumer goods is set to
double in value to €114bn (£95bn) during the next five years as the
price premium on sustainable products begins to fall. That is the
conclusion of a new study commissioned by the Centre for Retail
Research on behalf of online comparison site Kelkoo.co.uk, which found
that while sales of green goods currently account for just 2.5 per cent
of the entire European retail market, the sector is set to expand
rapidly." More highlights of report. See BusinessGreen.
Companies,
Industries, Markets and Supply Chains
Investors Urge More Tech Firms to Follow
Intel's Lead and Embrace Green.—reliability high.
"Cisco, Microsoft and Oracle were among the 23 firms removed from the
Nasdaq Global Sustainability 50 Index last fall for failing to meet at
least 40 percent of the Global Reporting Initiative's metrics for
transparency. Harrington Investments has responded to these firms'
removal by filing amendments that would empower the boards of directors
to create sustainability committees dedicated to reducing environmental
impacts at those firms. ... Earlier this year, Harrington Investments
worked with Intel to amend that company's corporate charter to include
sustainability commitments, and making it a fiduciary duty of Intel's
directors to address green issues." See Greener
World Media.
Barclays buys Swedish carbon trader for £98m.—reliability
high.
"The UK bank said today that it was acquiring the Stockholm-listed
carbon developer in a cash deal via its Swedish subsidiary TAV AB.
Barclays has offered to pay SKr8 (£0.70) for each share in
Tricorona – 40 per cent more than what they were worth on the closing
price in Stockholm on Tuesday. Tricorona specialises in the sourcing,
development and trading of carbon emission reduction credits from
greenhouse gas reduction projects in developing countries." From GreenWise.
Thomson Reuters to Buy Point Carbon.—reliability
high.
"Thomson Reuters Corp. said it will acquire Point Carbon A/S, a
Norwegian provider of energy and environmental information, to bolster
offerings in this field." See Bloomberg Businessweek.
Google throws offset funding at landfill
energy project.—reliability high.
"The search giant, which runs a datacentre in Berkeley County, South
Carolina, signed an agreement with Berkeley County Water &
Sanitation (BCWS), carbon offset specialist Blue Source and local
energy provider Santee Cooper to purchase all of the carbon offsets
created by the Berkeley Green Power Project from autumn this year
through to 2013 - an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 metric tonnes of
carbon offsets in total. ... The offset deal is the latest in a long
line of moves from the search giant designed to make good on its pledge
to become a carbon neutral company". See BusinessGreen.
Government and
Regulation
Maryland County First in Nation to Impose
Carbon Tax.—reliability medium.
"Maryland’s Montgomery County gave preliminary approval Tuesday to a
tax on carbon emissions, the first such tax by a county nationwide. ...
The tax of $5 per ton of CO2 applies to emitters of one million tons or
more of CO2 each year, which, in Montgomery County means one company:
the local coal-fired power plant, run by Mirant. ... Inspiration for
the landmark bill may not only be based on environmental stewardship,
however. Montgomery County, like many, many other parts of the country,
is facing a severe budget shortfall this year, and it is estimated that
the tax could raise $15 million". From triplepundit.
[Crossposted from HaraBara.com courtesy of HaraBara, Inc. Copyright © 2010 HaraBara, Inc.]
