Top Stories
South Korea to invest $1.3 billion in green
fund.—reliability high.
"The South Korean government said in a statement on Tuesday state-run
Korea Finance Corp (KoFC) would invest 1.5 trillion won ($1.25 billion)
to set up a fund in August to help environmental businesses. ...
Spending from the fund will be directed mainly toward businesses
involved in emissions reduction and promoting energy efficiency." See Reuters
story.
Accounting rules could force businesses to
disclose environmental impact.—reliability high.
"Companies could be asked to publish details of their environmental
and social impacts alongside their financial accounts under new rules
being discussed with the organisations that set accounting standards.
News of the initiative – which would mean that businesses have to
account for the impacts they have on local water quality, plants and
animals – emerged as a major report for the UN is published today. ...
the study leader, Pavan Sukhdev, said he was discussing with both the
International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the UK accounting
organisation, new regulations requiring companies to publish
information about their environmental and social impacts – such as
freshwater use and pollution, or the destruction or improvement of
habitat for species – and standards for doing this." Se story in The
Guardian. Another story on this report, "Biodiversity Inches Up on
Corporate Agenda", in The
New York Times Green blog. Access the report itself here.
Companies,
Industries, Markets and Supply Chains
With a Boost from Innovation, Small Wind Is
Powering Ahead.—reliability high.
About "a new wave of technology innovation sweeping through the small
wind industry. This innovation combined with national, regional and
local incentives, as well as significant cost reductions in
installations and products, is driving fast growth for small windmill
makers. In 2009, despite an abysmal economy, the U.S. small wind market
(turbines with rated capacities of 100 kilowatts or fewer) grew by 15
percent, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). That
growth included an increase of 20.3 megawatts of new capacity and $82.4
million in sales. ... 'You can add the federal credit on top of state
level rebates that can be 20 percent to 25 percent and that pushes the
effective price of installing a small residential wind system down to
$15,000 on average,'" See Yale
Environment 360. [$15,000 would buy
a lot of utility-generated electricity. Those who install these units
must have a very long view, or get additional psychic or commercial
benefits from displaying a wind turbine. Even at 100kW (the largest
that qualifies as a "small wind" system) and at high electricity
prices, say $0.20 per kWh, the system would have to run flat out 24/7
for 75,000 hours (8.5 years) before you broke even. Installing such a
system is more than an economic decision. Sort of like a Prius on top
of your building.]
Solarcentury and GE team up to launch solar
UK schools financing model.—reliability high.
"Under the new agreement, GE Capital, the financial services arm of
GE, will cover the bulk of the cost of installing solar technology
under Solarcentury's Solar4Schools programme with schools or local
authorities providing a small deposit of between £1,000 and £2,000. The
school will then lease the solar panels from GE Capital for 15 years
using savings on its energy bills and funds raised through the
government's feed-in tariff renewable energy incentive scheme. At the
end of the 15-year period the school will take ownership of the solar
panels, providing it with a further 10 years of revenue from the
feed-in tariff." See BusinessGreen.
[Schools have
roofs, and there are lots of them. This scheme depends on them becoming
net generators of electricity, selling power to the grid to make the
lease payments. Next: railway stations, military bases? What happens
when government is forced to economize by reducing feed-in tariff?]
Greener palm oil arrives in the United
States.—reliability medium.
"AAK, a vegetable oils and fats manufacturer based in Malmo, Sweden,
announced the arrival of the first shipment of segregated
RSPO-certified palm oil to its refinery in Port Newark, New Jersey.
Segregated RSPO-certified palm oil has been kept separate from
conventional palm oil throughout the supply chain. Most "sustainable"
palm oil users don't actually use segregated certified sustainable palm
oil (CSPO), Instead they offset conventional palm oil buy purchasing
the equivalent amount of GreenPalm certificates, which represent real
CSPO sold elsewhere as conventional palm oil." From Mongabay. [Certified
sustainable palm oil has reached a few percent of total production, but
complexity of the supply chain means it is not reliably available to
European or North American manufacturers. Segregated, identity
preserved channels have been established for specialty uses where the
substantial additional cost can be passed on to consumers. Palm oil is
generally used because it is cheap, so segregated CSPO will probably
only be used for applications, such as some margarines, where palm oil
is technically required (because of its fatty acid composition, melting
point, etc.). It certainly won't go into biodiesel in the near future.
See previous
post.]
Bridgestone to Partner with the World
Agroforestry Centre to Assist Rubber Tree Farmers in Indonesia.—reliability
high.
"Bridgestone Corporation today announced that it has entered into an
agreement with the World Agroforestry Centre in which the parties will
provide small-scale farmers in Indonesia information and guidance on
best practices in connection with the cultivation of rubber trees. The
parties will also conduct joint research intended to help stabilize the
region's agricultural rubber industry into the future. The agreement,
which was signed on April 29 at the Centre's regional headquarters for
Southeast Asia in Bogor, approximately 50 km south of Jakarta, was
accompanied by a donation of ¥2 million to the World Agroforestry
Centre from Bridgestone. Bridgestone's subsidiary in Sumatra, P. T.
Bridgestone Sumatra Rubber Estate, will work with Centre
representatives in connection with these initiatives." From Bridgestone
press
release. [Investing
in its supply chain. Following what cocoa
companies have done to assure supply and, perhaps, avoid charges of
exploitation and unsustainability?]
Government and
Regulation
Government to track UK contribution to palm
oil deforestation.—reliability high.
"The coalition government is commissioning a major new piece of
research to establish the extent to which British firms and consumers
are contributing to deforestation in South East Asia, through growing
demand for palm oil. ... The Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs (Defra) said that bids for the research project have already
been received and a decision on a contractor is due next week. Work
will then get underway with the report's findings due for release next
month." From BusinessGreen.
[What sort of
analysis can be completed in one month? They must be talking about
buying a study which has already been done.]
Pondering what the recent heat waves
have to do with climate issues? See the latest
post to sister blog A Very Different Earth.
