Greasy racers hit finishing line
by David Masters
The first ever Grease to Greece Rally has finished with eight teams completing the eco-friendly race from London to Athens in cars powered solely by used chip fat. Carbon conscious competitors in the race had to beg for waste cooking oil from local chip shops, burger bars and restaurants every time they needed more fuel. Organiser Andy Pag, 34, sees the race as a way of having fun without damaging the environment ...
Arctic ice set to hit another record low
by Alan Harten
The Arctic ice is a kind of temperature gauge for the global climate, and U.S. measurements this summer show that the ice is now at its second lowest level since the beginning of the satellite measurements of the ice fields began. The National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NSIDC) in Boulder, in the U.S. state of Colorado, reported on Wednesday the ice was in decline down to 2.03 million sq ...
Green homes could boost housing market
by David Masters
Research by the Energy Saving Trust has revealed that making homes energy efficient would help boost the sluggish housing market. In a survey of over 2,000 householders by the EST, 53% of homeowners said they would be willing to pay an average of £3,350 more for homes with green features. Half of those surveyed believe green homes are easier to sell, while three quarters said that a 'poor' rating on a ...
Irish company emits more CO2 than Luxembourg
by David Masters
A single company in Ireland is responsible for more CO2 emissions than the whole nation of Luxembourg. Construction firm CRH is the most valuable company listed in Ireland, worth an estimated €9 billion. With external factors such as partner businesses, transport, and electricity supply included, CRH emits almost one third of Ireland's total carbon footprint, with total CO2 emissions of 20.5 million tonnes. This is almost double Luxembourg's CO2 emissions of 11.27 million ...
Ireland champions reverse vending machine
by David Masters
Ireland is set to have 150 'reverse vending machines' installed across the country by the end of this year. Reverse vending machines - branded Reuse Reward machines - give users points for depositing used cans and bottles. Points can then be exchanged for prizes, including mobile phones and mp3 players, whilst the used cans and bottles are recycled. 55 machines have already been placed around Ireland, and plans are afoot to install at ...
China better than UK for renewable investors
by David Masters
China has overtaken the UK as one of the most attractive countries for renewable energy investment. Ernst & Young, who have compiled the Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Indices for the past five years, now rate the UK in sixth place, behind the US, Germany, India, China and Spain. Previously the UK held fourth place. Ernst & Young say China's higher rating is largely due to government policy, which aims to produce 15% of ...
Farmers risk irrigating crops with sewage
by David Masters
With food shortages threatening billions of people around the world with starvation, millions of acres of agricultural land in developing countries is being watered using wastewater and sewage. A 53 city study by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) found that 85% of water is discharged from cities without appropriate treatment, often to be reused on agricultural land. In more than 70% of the cities surveyed, over half of the agricultural land ...
Beijing continues Olympic pollution controls
by David Masters
Beijing's air quality met the standards required to host the Olympic games according to city officials, and measures put in place to improve air quality during the games are likely to stay in place. The city's deputy director of environmental protection, Du Shaozhong, told journalists in a press conference that the city's air quality was the best it had been in a decade. He added that for nine days of the Olympics, ...
Arsenic in US drinking water causing adult diabetes
by Alan Harten
Arsenic, a poison and a carcinogen commonly found in groundwater, is strongly linked with the onset of diabetes in adults, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday. Dr. Navas-Acien and colleagues at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore found an association they consider to be "relatively strong" between levels of arsenic commonly found in urine and type 2 diabetes, in a study of adult Americans. Navas said that it seems that there ...
Google Powered Green Search Engine Plants Trees
by Alan Harten
Click4Carbon.com is a new search engine kid on the very large search block. But this new kid may have come up with a winning formula that may attract many people to use its search facilities. This new kid has a trick up its sleeve - it's an environmentally conscious search engine and online community. Click4Carbon, like many other search engines, uses Google’s technology for searches. But this engine wants to help ...
DIY Green Data Centres
by Alan Harten
For many organisations making energy usage cuts has become a top priority. However many are not taking these green issues seriously enough and are adopting a do-it-yourself approach, argues data centre consolidation specialists RichardsoNEyres. According to their research most energy conscious companies are using all kinds of ad-hoc approaches to their environmental policies and lack a real plan or structure for what they are trying to achieve. The data centres exist for ...
Ireland bans old-style loos
by David Masters
Traditional loos are being banned in Ireland from November in a bid to conserve water. All new buildings and refurbishments will have to be installed with dual flush toilets, a move that is expected to save 500 million litres of water every year. Toilet flushing accounts for around 10% of the drinking water used in Ireland. Old style toilets use six to nine litres of water per flush, while dual flush toilets give ...
Government criticised for ignoring business waste
by David Masters
Members of the House of Lords are calling on the government to do more to tackle commercial and industrial waste, rather than focusing on household waste. The 'Waste Reduction' report by the House of Lords Science Committee concludes that the government should restructure the way local authorities deal with rubbish to allow them to address the high volumes of waste produced by the commercial and industrial sectors. It added that ministers must ...
Bush wants to protect tiny Pacific islands
by Alan Harten
In a very isolated area of the Western Pacific are a tiny group of picture postcard perfect islands and Atolls that make up the Line Islands. In the “same” area, relatively speaking, are the Northern Mariana Islands and the American Samoan chain. On Monday, US President Bush announced that he proposes to protect these tropical paradise isles in a massive marine conservation area. The Bush cabinet has apparently received memos from the President ...
WRAP: Send UK’s recycling waste to China
by David Masters
A Government-funded company claims that sending used plastic bottles and paper to China for recycling causes less damage to the environment than putting them into UK landfill sites. According to research by the Waste & Recycling Action Plan (WRAP), less CO2 is produced by sending waste products 10,000 miles to China than by burying them in landfill and making brand new items. WRAP's study was commissioned to assess the environmental consequences of ...
How much energy is saved switching off PC at night?
by Alan Harten
Do you leave your PC switched on 24 hours a day? Is it left on permanently just in case you need to hop online? In the big scheme of things it does not use that much power to leave a computer running idly overnight. A company called Cobweb Solutions wanted to challenge that idea and persuaded 58 of their customers to participate in a “switch off” to demonstrate just how much ...
Big Apple re-named The Big Windmill
by Alan Harten
The famous skyline of New York could change with the prospect of a new power system according to proposals by its mayor, Michael Bloomberg, including the possibility of placing wind turbines on top of skyscrapers and bridges of the Big Apple. Many New Yorkers awoke yesterday to front page fake pictures showing the Empire State Building or the Brooklyn Bridge with windmills generating wind power. During his tenure, which began ...
Scottish church celebrates new eco-building
by David Masters
A dedication service for a new eco-friendly church building took place in Scotland last night. The service, led by Rt. Rev. David Lunan, was held at Bridge of Allan Church to dedicate the new church building to God. Four years ago two churches in Bridge of Allan merged, and the new congregation pledged to build an extra hall for local church groups and the wider community. The new hall, now complete, incorporates a ...
New Zealand eco-labels win Defra endorsement
by David MastersA labeling scheme in New Zealand, that helps consumers choose eco-friendly paper and furniture, has been acclaimed as an international model of best practice by the UK government. Shoppers often find it difficult to distinguish between greenwash and genuine green credentials, and a government endorsed labelling scheme can be a big help to consumers who are looking to be eco-friendly in their shopping habits. The UK's Department for Environment, Food and Rural ...
Oil addiction puts lives at risk
by David Masters
Safety chiefs have warned that hydrocarbon gas leaks on Britain's offshore platforms present a serious safety threat that could prove disastrous. A report by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the number of dangerous incidents on offshore platforms in 2007/08 increased on year to 571, 32 more than in 2006/07. Serious injuries in the offshore industry also increased 13% to 44. On a positive note, there were no fatalities in the ...