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Keep on Driving: The Greening of Texas' Tollways 07/02/2009
Source: Wall Street Journal, 7/1/09. So does eliminating toll booths really cut down on emissions? The answer appears to be a qualified "yes."
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Nokia, Samsung Lead Latest Greenpeace Green Electronics Survey 07/02/2009
Source: Greener Computing, 7/01/09. Greenpeace International today released the 12th edition of its quarterly Guide to Greener Electronics scorecard, ranking the 17 manufacturers on their achievement of environmental goals.
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Dumpster Diving: A Green Strategy That Pays Off for Retailers 07/02/2009
Source: GreenBiz, 7/1/09. Retailers that put green practices to work at their facilities can save tens of millions of dollars a year by managing resources and waste more aggressively, according to SSA & Company.
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DOI Designates Solar Energy Zones 07/01/2009
Source: SustainableBusiness.com, 6/30/09. The U.S. Interior Department Monday designated about 670,000 acres of land on Monday to be "fast-tracked" as potential areas for solar energy production.
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AASHE Releases Annual Review of Sustainability in Higher Education 07/01/2009
Source: AASHE, 6/25/09. The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) has announced the release of AASHE Digest 2008, which documents the continued rapid growth of campus sustainability in the U.S. and Canada.
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Yahoo! Abandons Carbon Offsets in Favor of Efficiency 07/01/2009
Source: Greener Computing, 6/30/09. Yahoo! today said it will no longer purchase carbon offsets for its operations, focusing its climate strategy on reducing the energy used by its data centers.
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E-Waste: When Landfills Are Not an Option 07/01/2009
Source: Greener Computing, 7/1/09. Headlines abound with stories of branded technology being fished out of rivers and landfills in developing nations leaking toxic metals into the water supply. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates roughly 400,000 tons of e-waste goes to recyclers every year, and that up to 80 percent of the materials sorted for recycling end up in operations in China, India, Southeast Asia and West Africa where it is disassembled and burned or dumped.
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President Obama Approves the Billion-Dollar "Cash for Clunkers" Act 07/01/2009
Source: EERE Network News. President Barack Obama signed into law last week a measure that directs $1 billion toward rebates for U.S. residents who trade in their cars or trucks for new, more fuel-efficient vehicles.
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House Narrowly Passes Climate Bill - Reaction Roundup 06/30/2009
Source: Environmental Leader 6/28/09. The House narrowly passed landmark climate change legislation (H.R. 2454) with a 219-212 vote, delivering a major victory for President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). The cap-and-trade bill, called the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which mandates reductions in carbon dioxide emissions and sets a national standard for renewable electricity, now heads to the Senate, where its prospects are uncertain.
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Obama Sets New Lighting Efficiency Standards 06/30/2009
Source: . President Barack Obama's administration on Monday laid out new efficiency standards for lighting used in homes and businesses, hastening measures to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, an official said.
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Dow and Algenol Partner for Algae-Based CO2-to-Ethanol Pilot Project 06/30/2009
Source: GreenBiz, 6/30/09. The Dow Chemical Co. will partner with a Florida-based company to turn carbon dioxide -- the most prevalent greenhouse gas -- into ethanol. Dow and Naples-based Algenol Biofuels Inc. could produce 100,000 gallons of ethanol per year for use in making plastics. The algae-based biorefinery will be built on 24 acres at Dow's site in Freeport, Texas, where it will use carbon dioxide produced at a nearby Dow manufacturing facility.
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Synthetic Tree Captures Carbon 1,000 Times Faster Than Real Trees 06/25/2009
Source: Fast Company, 6/24/09. Sure, trees are nice to look at, but they're also carbon-collecting powerhouses. Now Klaus Lackner, a professor of geophysics at Columbia University, is developing a synthetic tree that can collect carbon approximately 1,000 times faster than real trees.
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Ghana: Digital Dumping Ground 06/25/2009
Source: PBS Frontline, 6/23/09. On the outskirts of Ghana's biggest city sits a smoldering wasteland, a slum carved into the banks of the Korle Lagoon, one of the most polluted bodies of water on earth. The locals call it Sodom and Gomorrah.
It has become one of the world's digital dumping grounds, where the West's electronic waste, or e-waste, piles up -- hundreds of millions of tons of it each year.
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The Digital Television Transition: Don't Kick Your TV to the Curb -- eCycle Instead 06/25/2009
Source: U.S. EPA, 6/11/09. After June 12, 2009 all full power television stations will only broadcast in digital, over-the-air signals. EPA encourages all U.S. citizens who own an analog TV set and who receive free broadcasts (via rabbit ears or a roof-top antenna) to extend the life of their TV by subscribing to a paid TV service or connecting it to a converter box. Energy Star-qualified digital converter boxes are available for purchase.
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CO: Colorado's Club Commons II modular project awarded LEED-Silver certification by USGBC 06/24/2009
Source: Modular Building Institute, 6/8/09. The Club Commons II employee housing project has been awarded LEED-Silver certification by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). According to the USGBC registry, the project is the first affordable multi-family employee housing project in Colorado to be awarded the LEED-Silver as part of the LEED for Homes program.
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House Democrats reach deal on Climate Bill 06/24/2009
Source: Environmental News Network, 6/24/09. Democrats in the House of Representatives on Tuesday said they had reached a deal on difficult agriculture issues in a climate change bill, clearing the way for a vote and probable passage in the chamber this week.
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Power Management Project May Save Indiana University $500K a Year 06/24/2009
Source: Greener Computing, 6/17/09. The Bloomington campus of Indiana University (IU) found it can save money -- and reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions -- just by simply turning off computers not in use.
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DOE Awards $8 Billion in Loans for Advanced Vehicle Technologies 06/24/2009
Source: EERE Network News, 6/24/09. DOE announced $8 billion in conditional loan agreements on Tuesday for Ford Motor Company; Nissan North America, Inc.; and Tesla Motors, Inc. to fund the development of advanced vehicle technologies.
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DOE to Invest $49 Million in 24 Solar Projects and Solar Training 06/24/2009
Source: Environmental Resource Center, 6/22/09. DOE announced on June 11 its selection of 24 projects to research, develop, and design new manufacturing and product improvements that could cut costs for a substantial segment of the solar photovoltaic industry in the near future. The competitively-selected projects will be eligible for a total of up to $22 million in Recovery Act funds, which will be matched by more than $50 million in cost-shared funding from private partners.
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DOT Proposes New Tire Fuel Efficiency Ratings 06/24/2009
Source: Environmental Resource Center, 6/22/09. The U.S. Department of Transportation has proposed a new, consumer-friendly replacement tire label which would include, for the first time, information about the tire's impact on fuel economy and CO2 emission reductions. Tires with lower rolling resistance¬and proper inflation pressure¬can contribute to improved fuel economy.
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Senate Committee Takes Action to Restore Clean Water Act Protections Jeopardized by Supreme Court Decisions in 2007 06/24/2009
Source: Environmental Resource Center, 6/22/09. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved the Clean Water Restoration Act (CRWA), a landmark bill that reinstates Clean Water Act protections for a host of water bodies jeopardized by a pair of Supreme Court decisions. The bill, which would give EPA and the Corps of Engineers jurisdiction over all ground water in the United States, may soon be headed to the Senate floor after its recent passage in the House committee. The CWRA (Senate Bill. 787) will allow federal regulation of all waters of the U.S., a revision of the Clean Water Act which currently grants the federal government jurisdiction over navigable waters or any water that flows into navigable waters.
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TX: Governor vetoes TV recycling measure 06/23/2009
Source: KVUE.com, 6/23/09. Austin Democrat Kirk Watson says he's stunned by a veto from Governor Rick Perry of a bill that would have encouraged people to recycle their old TVs instead of throwing them out.
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EPA Honors CEM Corporation with the 2009 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award 06/23/2009
Source: U.S. EPA, 6/22/09. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) honored CEM Corporation of Matthews, North Carolina in Washington, DC as one of five winners nationally to receive the 2009 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award. For the 14th year, the EPA recognized chemical technologies developed by leading researchers and industrial innovators who are making significant contributions to pollution prevention through source reduction in the United States.
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EPA Issues Clean Energy Guidebook To Help States Save Money, Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions 06/23/2009
Source: US EPA, 6/18/09. EPA today released a first-of-its-kind guide to help states save money and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by adopting clean energy practices in their facilities, operations and vehicle fleets.
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Who is the Greenest PC Maker in the World? 06/23/2009
Source: Environmental Leader, 6/22/09. Analysts say going green has become a business plan for some of the biggest personal computer (PC) makers as a way to differentiate themselves from their competition, reports Reuters.
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Islands in Denver 06/18/2009
Source: Governing.com, 6/11/09. In sprawling metropolitan Denver, city and state officials are trying to restore wildlife to a nearly lifeless habitat. Washington Park's Smith Lake, in south central Denver, is the focus of a new pilot program where four, man-made islands have been set afloat in the hopes of attracting wildlife and improving water quality.
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CA: Calif. project would reduce hazardous waste from paint 06/18/2009
Source: Waste & Recycling News, 6/17/09. San Joaquin County, Calif., is working with state waste officials and the California Product Stewardship Council on developing a statewide program for reducing the amount of paint disposed of as hazardous waste.
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BAN to offer accredited electronic waste certification 06/18/2009
Source: Waste & Recycling News, 6/18/09. The Basel Action Network plans to offer an accredited certification program for electronic recyclers that will not allow the export of scrap to developing countries.
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FTC Calls Companies Out for 'Biodegradable' Claims 06/18/2009
Source: Environmental Protection, 6/18/09. The FTC has charged Kmart Corp., Tender Corp., and Dyna-E International with making false and unsubstantiated claims that their paper products were "biodegradable." Kmart and Tender have agreed to settle the cases against them; the case against Dyna-E will be litigated.
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Cities Spend Stimulus Funds to Retrofit Lighting 06/18/2009
Source: Environmental Leader, 6/16/09. Several U.S. cities are planning to use federal stimulus funds to retrofit streetlights with energy-efficient technology.
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Experts call for standardized 'green' label 06/18/2009
Source: Detroit News, 6/16/09. Major corporations, even those with the best environmental intentions, are hamstrung by a wide range of labels that connote "greenness." Without national or global standards for what should be labeled an environmentally friendly product, consumers won't know whom and what to trust, according to a panel of experts at today's National Summit session on Sustainable Business Solutions.
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$10 Million in First EPA Grants to Develop Climate Change Showcase Communities 06/17/2009
Source: US EPA, 6/15/09. EPA is announcing the availability of up to $10 million in first of its kind, "Climate Showcase Communities" grants to local and tribal governments to establish and implement climate change initiatives that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The agency expects to award approximately 30 cooperative agreements, each one ranging from $100,000 to $500,000. Approximately 5 percent of the funds ($500,000) are set-asides for tribal governments.
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Powering Up Energy Efficiency in Schools 06/17/2009
Source: GreenBiz, 6/15/09. About a year and a half ago, Ron Wilcox, the superintendent of schools in Madison County, North Carolina, had a big problem. Electricity bills for the district were 38 percent higher than budgeted. Apparently the local utility had been burning oil to make power, and oil prices were way up back then. Wilcox went to the county commissioners to ask for more money and got it -- along with a lecture about energy efficiency.
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Google Helps Consumers Get Smart About Energy 06/17/2009
Source: Greener Buildings, 9/16/09. Imagine if you walked into a grocery store, chose the food you want (no price tags), took it home and then, at the end of the month, got the bill in the mail. "That's essentially what we are doing with electricity and natural gas right now," says Dan Reicher, who heads energy and climate policy at Google, which is aiming to change that. Instead giving energy consumers a monthly bill that arrives after the fact and is hard for even a geek to decipher, Google wants to give them a way to track their electricity use in real time, or close to, through a free, open-protocol piece of software called Google's PowerMeter.
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Top 25 Green Energy Leaders 06/17/2009
Source: Scientific American, June 2009. It is no longer enough to just conserve energy. More and more corporations, government agencies and entire cities are making large, long-term commitments to ensure that the power they do use comes from renewable sources. To recognize these trendsetters, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency publishes a quarterly list of the top American users of green power: organizations that generate their own renewable energy, buy it from suppliers, or purchase offset credits to compensate for their traditional energy use.
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EPA: Agency joins 'sustainable communities' initiative 06/16/2009
Source: Greenwire, 6/16/09. U.S. EPA has teamed up with other federal agencies to create "sustainable communities" by linking transportation planning with housing development and environmental protection in communities nationwide. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson announced today that the agency has entered the initiative announced earlier this year by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan.
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Lawmakers: What's Green and What's Greenwash? 06/16/2009
Source: Green Biz, 6/12/09. A "virtual tsunami" of products touting environmental attributes is flooding the marketplace with little, if any, evidence to help consumers determine what is green or greenwash. That's the assessment of a panel of product and certification experts who visited Capitol Hill this week to offer lawmakers their opinion of the state of green marketing in the U.S.
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Digital TV Transition May Create Tons of E-Waste 06/16/2009
Source: Green Biz, 6/12/09. The long-awaited digital TV transition began today, leaving millions of Americans without a signal unless they secured a set-top converter box.
Many will replace their older analog TVs with new flashier models, creating a mountain of e-waste that some TV manufacturers are ill equipped to recycle. Some estimate one in four households will throw out a TV this year, which could mean millions of TVs ending up in landfills.
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Ford on Track to Cut Vehicle Emissions, Lags on Energy Efficiency 06/16/2009
Source: Green Biz, 6/15/09. New engine technology and releasing more electric and hybrids vehicles are some of the ways Ford is aiming to meet its goal of cutting the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of its new U.S. and European vehicles by 30 percent by 2020.
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U.S. Mayors to Support Global Guidelines for Sustainable Tourism 06/16/2009
Source: Green Biz, 6/15/09. he U.S. Conference of Mayors has agreed to support global guidelines for sustainable tourism and will urge its member cities to adopt the criteria developed by a coalition of organizations that includes the United Nations Environment Programme, the United Nations Foundation and the United Nations World Tourism Organization.
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