Aid agencies can’t cope with climate change disasters
by Alan Harten
Unless the world readjusts the way it handles natural disasters the amount of people who die in climate related catastrophes is expected to rise dramatically by over 50% more in the year 2015. It is estimated that over $11 billion more will be have to spent each year, compared with $14 billion spent in 2006, in order for the deaths that accompany climate related disasters to remain the same. Due ...
Government injects big cash into bee research
by Alan Harten
Environment changes have been threatening mankind for the last several decades, but now bees and other small insects are feeling the effects of a polluted planet as well. Recent studies report that there are now 12-15% less bees in Britain than in previous years due to a medical condition known as “colony collapse disorder”. While the economic recession is on most people’s minds, the threat of adding bees to the endangered ...
CBI calls for green action
by Alan Harten
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has criticised the Government for failing to act fast enough to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. The Government cannot blame the recession, only its own inaction, the CBI said. The CBI will today unveil an energy paper, which will blame poor assistance for carbon reducing systems, lack of information about EU carbon pricing and trading and bad planning for the fact that some major players ...
Water meters springing up in every home?
by Alan Harten
Global warming and population explosion are affecting the water balance of the world, to such an extent that, very soon, the demand for drinking water will be far greater than the availability of it. The worst hit area to date is the South East of England, and Wales is not far behind. If nothing is done now, as the demand continues to rise by as much as 50% in the ...
Government Plans for Disease Fee ‘Unfair’
by Alan Harten
West Country farming leaders are in an uproar over government plans to charge farmers a levy to help pay the cost of handling animal diseases, such as Avian Flu and Foot and Mouth Disease. The controversy has arisen following the announcement by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) that farmers must begin sharing the cost of disease outbreaks. Government ministers say it's only “right” that farmers help ...
Sustainable investments ‘the answer’ to global downturn
by David Masters
WRAP offers more assistance to recyclers
by Alan Harten
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) announced this week a range of new initiatives and finance aimed at increasing regional recycling capability. WRAP, which is backed by the government, said that it had furthered business expansion throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland so that it can provide small and medium-sized recycling firms with more free assistance and guidance. The director of market development at WRAP, Marcus Gover, said ...
National Ethical Investment Week names 2009 sponsors
by David Masters
National Ethical Investment Week (NEIW) 2009 will be sponsored by CCLA, Co-operative Financial Services and Henderson Global Investors. NEIW was set up in 2008 by UKSIF (UK sustainable investment and finance association) to raise the profile of sustainable investment and ethical finance. This year's campaign will build upon the strength of the 2008 event when over 100 organisations were involved. Charities, faith groups, finance firms, community groups, NGOs and financial advisors all took ...
China wants the world to pay for its pollution
by Alan Harten
China will reduce pollution from its manufacture of exports provided the richest countries of the world pay for it. The head of China's department for the climate, Li Gao, said on Monday in Washington D.C. that this is part of his country’s plan to cut greenhouse gases in a fast growing economy. The gases are said by scientists to be responsible for increasing temperatures. He was addressing the all party ...
Support fairtrade with ethical investments
by David Masters
Fairtrade is more than simply buying ethical produce, price comparison website Fairinvestment.co.uk- is encouraging people to support Fairtrade by investing their money in ethical companies. Ethical banks, such as Triodos or the Co-operative Bank, support Fairtrade through the companies they invest in and through microfinance. Ethical investments involve not investing money in companies that support the arms trade, animal cruelty, or environmental degradation. Companies that ignore the human rights of workers are also ...
Minister Says Global Warming Just A Tax Scam
by Alan Harten
Sammy Wilson, Northern Ireland's Minister for the Environment, believes that the Labour Government is increasing taxes and introducing stringent requirements, while using global warming to justify the measures. Mr. Wilson said he is against the view that global warming is caused by the actions of mankind. He also rebutted critics during his appearance at the Stormont Environment Committee yesterday. Mr. Wilson denied blocking government adverts, which encourage people to work ...
Co-operative updates ethical investment guidelines
by David Masters
The Co-operative Bank this week updated its ethical investment policy, making lending guidelines at the bank more stringent than ever. Following a survey of 80,000 customers, the Bank has updated its policies on biofuels, fossil fuels, the arms trade, and animal testing. The bank will now decline business in connection with biofuels that have high global warming potential, and companies that distribute fossil fuels. Previously, the bank had only excluded companies extracting or ...
Green Money To Boost US Economy
by Alan Harten
Companies all over the USA are anxiously creating environmentally friendly projects in an effort to secure themselves part of President-elect, Barak Obama's, 'Green Pot'. This pot is a $100 billion incentive for companies to create jobs and invest in projects that are both ecologically and financially beneficial. The target for Obama and his team, when they take office early in the New Year, is to use this pot to provide ...
Worldwide recession crunches recycling
by David Masters
The lagging global economy has created a huge problem for recycling firms and local authorities - no one wants to buy rubbish any more. Councils across the UK have reported lower prices and less demand for recycled materials. As industries across the world enter a downturn, the demand for raw materials has declined - knocking down the price of waste resources and scuppering waste management strategies which until now had seemed well ...
Recession will dent ethical shopping
by David Masters
Shoppers are set to shun organic food for cheaper alternatives during the economic downturn. Researchers at Mintel predict that around half of organic food shoppers will switch to non-organic alternatives in the oncoming recession, as they seek to stretch every penny spent. Organic food and drink is big business in the UK, worth £1.6 billion per year. The sector has grown at an annual rate of 16% over the past five years. The tightening ...
UN: Green economics will tackle financial turmoil
by David Masters
A new report from the UN has said that a commitment to environmental sustainability must be placed at the heart of any plan to recover the world's economies after the financial crisis. The green 'New Deal' proposed by the UN said economies in both the developing and industrial world must be weaned off their dependency on oil and encouraged to invest in clean and sustainable energy sources. The 'Green Economy Initiative' published ...
$ Billions For Countries That Preserve Forests
by Alan Harten
Gordon Brown has revealed details of a report that he commissioned into how to best pay for the preservation of the world’s forests. The reality at the moment is that the cleared land and the cut down trees are very often worth far more to individual land owners, companies and governments in developing nations than a bunch of trees that cannot provide them with an income. The Prime Minister is seeking ...
Norway Offer Brazil $1 Billion to Save the Amazon
by Alan Harten
The prime minister of Norway, Jens Stoltenberg, has announced a donation of $1 Billion by 2015 to the International Fund for the preservation of the Amazon, created in August by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The Norwegian government has decided to contribute $1 Billion to the Amazon Fund, over the next few years, and payments will begin this year, explained the Norwegian prime minister. Successive contributions to supplement ...
Credit crunch hits ethical investment
by David Masters
Boom times are over for ethical funds, with the credit crunch and economic instability hitting ethical investments particularly hard. The last year has seen a reversal of fortune for ethical funds, which until 12 months ago had been strongly outperforming non-ethicals. Research by Investment Life & Pensions Moneyfacts found that in the year ending 1st September 2008 the average ethical investment portfolio fell 9.1%. This is compared to a much smaller ...
Fuel protest in London
by Grant Draper
The heat continues to boil, as over 300 owner operated lorry drivers protest against the cost of diesel, which is now in excess of £1.25 in some areas. The main route to and from the west to central London, the A40, had a lane closed to accommodate the drivers on their way to deliver the petiton. The protest, which was held in London, hopes to achieve the scrapping of Alistair Darling's proposed, ...