·:[ Environmental News Bits ]:·
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Read the press release.

The four state scientific surveys — the Illinois State Geological Survey, the Illinois Natural History Survey, the Illinois Waste Management and Research Center, and the Illinois State Water Survey — will become part of the U. of I. if a plan proposed by Gov. Rod Blagojevich is approved. The surveys, on the U. of I.’s Urbana campus, would be organized as a new unit, the Institute for Natural Sciences and Sustainability, under the university’s auspices beginning in Fiscal Year 2009. Blagojevich proposed transferring administration of the surveys to the university during his annual budget address today at noon.

Read the full story in ComputerWorld.

Green computing promises an enormous win for IT: a chance to save money — and the environment. Many companies are trying to go greener, but a few truly stand out. Here are the top 12 green user companies, as well as the green dozen IT vendors. For more on the winning users, see the profile stories on each.

Read the full solicitation.

Applications due Jun 19, 2008.

The ISE program invests in projects that develop and implement informal learning experiences designed to increase interest, engagement, and understanding of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by individuals of all ages and backgrounds, as well as projects that advance knowledge and practice of informal science education. Projects may target either public audiences or professionals whose work directly affects informal STEM learning. ISE projects are expected to demonstrate strategic impact, innovation, and collaboration.

Read the full solicitation.

Applications due Mar 31, 2008. 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting grant proposals from eligible entities to reduce incidences of childhood lead poisoning in low-income communities with older housing. Potential activities include outreach, training, ordinance development, and other activities that would result in reduction of childhood lead poisoning. This grant will support the partnership of national organizations with community-based organizations and local governments to improve the environmental health of a community regarding lead poisoning prevention. EPA is awarding grants that will provide approximately $2 million to interested entities. It is anticipated that approximately 6-8 awards will be made. The number of grants EPA will fund as a result of this announcement will be based on the quality of proposals received and the availability of funding.

Watch the video from News.com.

Carbon Sciences says it has come up with a relatively efficient way to turn carbon dioxide from smokestacks into chalk, which can then be used to make drywall or other products. CNET News.com’s Michael Kanellos checks out the company’s mobile prototype with CEO Derek McLeish.

Read the full column in Consulting & Specifying Engineer.

The author discusses his ethical responsibility toward environmental stewardship, a far broader concept than financial or technical responsibilities.

Read the full story in Consulting & Specifying Engineer.

What is the Intelligent Building Life Cycle Calculator? A Web-based tool, the Life Cycle Calculator allows users to choose, evaluate, view, and save customized reports for return on investment (ROI) of intelligent buildings. The tool includes the RSMeans Square Foot Models for initial construction costs, RSMeans Facilities Maintenance & Repair, Preventive Maintenance & Repair for operational costs, as well as building automation controls in Means Assembly databases.  Dept. of Energy energy usage guides are also provided to calculate energy costs in the building.

Read the full story in Consulting & Specifying Engineer.

Energy Star, the national energy performance rating system sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has undergone a significant revision effective October 2007. Commercial building owners and property managers who previously struggled with a low Energy Star score might be pleasantly surprised by recent changes in the rating calculations.

Read the full story in Consulting & Specifying Engineer.

By using chilled beam technology, this Washington, D.C., building takes on new life with a different HVAC system.

Read the press release.

In a pioneering effort, Henkel has announced a 3-year commitment to invest in Arizona State University’s (ASU) Global Institute of Sustainability to work on Life Cycle Impact Analysis (LCIA).

The Dirksen Congressional Center in partnership with Institute for Principled Leadership in Public Service at Bradley University are  holding an important public policy symposium entitled “Protecting the Illinois River…A Time for ACTION!” The symposium will be held on March 7, 2008 at the Gateway Building on Peoria’s riverfront from 1 to 5 p.m.  Additional financial support is being provided by the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission.

Congressman Ray LaHood is inviting the entire Illinois congressional delegation.  Lt. Governor Pat Quinn is inviting all state elected officials who serve the Illinois River Watershed.  Col. Robert Sinker is inviting Major General Don Riley the Director of Civil Works for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers national headquarters.  Additionally, all of the stakeholder groups that have been passionately working to protect the Illinois River from Chicago down to Alton are invited to attend..

This symposium will have three major sessions:

1. A look at the progress that has been made in the Illinois River Watershed over the last decade by various stakeholder groups;
2. How can the Illinois River be elevated to the level of national importance of restoration efforts like the Everglades;
3. How can our federal and state elected officials work together in a coordinated effort to secure the $1.72 billion in ecosystem restoration monies authorized under WRDA 2007, which passed Congress in an overwhelmingly bipartisan manner.

The link to the symposium’s webpage is http://www.bradley.edu/continue/river/index.html where you can register online.   Please feel free to contact me via e-mail at bmcmillan@bradley.edu or by phone at (309) 677-4408 (work) or (309) 256-7222 (cell).

Read the full story in the Los Angeles Times.

Low-income community groups in five California cities launched a statewide campaign Tuesday to “fight at every turn” any global-warming regulation that allows industries to trade carbon emissions, saying it would amount to “gambling on public health.”

Read the full story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

In his quest to make San Francisco the greenest city in the nation, Mayor Gavin Newsom recently created a $160,000-a-year job for a senior aide and gave him the ambitious-sounding title of director of climate protection initiatives.

The latest issue of Renewable Energy Weekly is now available. Highlights include:

• Nanowire-Embedded Fabrics Generate Electricity from Motion
• Sandia and Stirling Set Solar-to-grid Conversion Efficiency Record
• Free Power from the Earth 24/7
• New Name, New World
• Funding Tips for Solar Entrepreneurs
• Minnesota Feed-In Tariff Could Lower Cost, Boost Renewables and Expand Local Ownership

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

A containment system collects dense non-aqueous phase liquid contaminants from a closed industrial site

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

A coalition of more than 80 organizations announced plans for “Good Jobs, Green Jobs: A National Green Jobs Conference” to be held March 13-14 in Pittsburgh, Pa. This first national forum will bring together diverse stakeholders to discuss the economic and employment benefits of a clean energy future.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

Forty percent of technology executives claim the green movement creates significant market opportunities for their companies, according to a recent study conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers titled Technology Executive Connections: Going Green: Sustainable Growth Strategies. Additionally, 60 percent of respondents cite energy savings as one of the most important factors in their company’s environmental decision-making process.

Read the full story in NIST Tech Beat.

The same chemicals that keep food from sticking to our frying pans and stains from setting in our carpets are damaging the livers and impairing the immune systems of loggerhead turtles — an environmental health impact that also may signal a danger for humans.

Read the full story in E: The Environmental Magazine.

During the last week of January, the University of Vermont became one of more than 1,500 institutions to participate in Focus the Nation (FtN), the largest national teach-in on global warming solutions. Though considered an educational initiative, Focus the Nation was also a mass organized effort of civic engagement, promoting action as well as awareness. There are lots of global warming solutions, but one clear goal: 80 percent cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

What are the human health and environmental risks and benefits of nanoscale chemical products? EPA will examine that very question with its Nancoscale Materials Stewardship Program, launched last month. Today at 1 p.m. EDT, James Gulliford, assistant administrator for Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances will host the online interactive forum Ask EPA and discuss this new voluntary program.

This online interactive forum, patterned after Ask the White House (http://www.whitehouse.gov/ask), allows you to interact with agency officials on a wide range of environmental and human health issues. When a chat is announced, questions submitted online will be answered by EPA officials during the one-hour live session and posted to the Web site as a transcript so that others may also benefit from the discussion.

For more information or to receive e-mail alerts on upcoming hosts and topics, visit the Ask EPA page on our Web site: http://www.epa.gov/askepa

EPA’s Clean Energy-Environment Municipal Network is offering a series of free webcast trainings in 2008, aimed toward local governments. The first webcast will focus on navigating the grant process, with a focus on EPA energy- and environment-related grants.

Webcast # 1 Navigating the Grant Process
February 28, 2008, 2:00-3:30 PM (Eastern Time)

Presenters will discuss:

• Where to look for grants (EPA/federal),
• Grant requirements,
• Typical timeframe for the grant process,
• Evaluating grants,
• Challenges and ways to overcome them, and
• Tips for writing strong proposals.

To register for the webcast, send an e-mail to CleanEnergyWebcast@icfi.com. You will receive a confirmation email with registration information within 24 hours.

Priority for registration will be given to local and regional government staff and officials. If multiple staff from your agency wish to participate, we ask that you share a computer and phone line, as space is limited. EPA plans to record and post these webcasts on its Clean Energy website. For more information, contact Eva Wong at wong.eva@epa.gov.

Read the full story in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

A Wisconsin state task force has made proposals to confront global warming.

For a full-color, graphic version of this newsletter, go to
http://www.greenbiz.com/enewsletter.

Staples Fires Paper Supplier with Questionable Green Track Record
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55572
Staples Inc. reportedly canceled all contracts with a Singapore-based paper company because of concerns over its deforestation practices.

DHL Completes More Eco-Friendly Ship Voyage as Industry Comes Under Fire
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55596
A cargo vessel that uses a towing kite system to achieve better shipping fuel economy completed its first shipment this week as the industry found itself under fire from U.S. and international regulators.

Nike Makes Shoes From Trash, Nokia Envisions Remade Cell Phones
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55595
Nike’s Trash Talk shoe is made with scrap or environmentally preferred materials, while Nokia’s concept Remade phone is completely recycled.

CSR Practices Can Lead to Increased Profits, Two New Reports Find
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55586
More companies are taking CSR practices to heart, Not only are more companies taking CSR practices seriously and implementing them across operations, those companies are more likely to see their value grow, according to two new reports from IBM and and the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Health Insurance Company Highmark Tops List of Green IT Users
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55605
Computerworld surveyed and ranked the top companies implementing green IT equipment and practices, shining a light what’s available and what works.

Xcel Energy, PG&E Among Utilities with Leading Energy Efficiency Programs
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55580
The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy released its second survey of the country’s best utility-based efficiency programs, finding that a handful of companies are significantly stepping up efforts to reduce their customers’ energy usage.

Green Paper Mills See Sales Boost
From GLOBE-Net
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55602
A new report released by Markets Initiative, an environmental publishing organization, shows a dramatic increase in recycled paper sales in 2007, despite difficult economic conditions for Canada’s paper mills.

Jewelers Join to Oppose New Alaskan Gold Mine
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55589
Tiffany & Co., Helzberg Diamonds and three other prominent jewelers signed  pledge opposing a planned Alaskan gold and copper mine near the site of the globe’s most prolific sockeye salmon run.

Michelin to Spend Millions Developing Fuel Efficient Tires
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55590
Michelin plans to spend millions researching ways to make its tires deliver improved fuel economy.

Exelon Plans to Cut, Offset all CO2 Emissions by 2020
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55582
The country’s largest nuclear energy generator plans to further reduce emissions from its buildings and supply chain as well as create new, low-carbon-emitting energy plants.

Most Global FT500 Companies Address Climate Change in Non-Financial Reports
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55579
The vast majority of the world’s largest companies issued stand-alone non-financial reports addressing climate change, according to CorporateRegister.com.

Lawyers Focus on Climate Change Implications, Greening Operations
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55578
Former New York Gov. George E. Pataki is spearheading a climate change law practice to help clients deal with the legal and economic effects of a warming planet. Meanwhile, lawyers in New England are teaming to reduce the environmental impacts of their operations.

New Sustainability Program Launches Comprehensive Push to Green Campuses
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=55574
The Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS), developed by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, will bring attention to everything from buildings to food programs to education.

How To Operate as an Environmentally Aware Organization and Reduce or Eliminate Your Carbon Footprint
http://www.greenbiz.com/toolbox/reports_third.cfm?LinkAdvID=97242
The report is a step-by-step guide helping companies evaluate their operations, calculate their carbon footprint and take action.

WebEx’s Green Guide to the Office
http://www.greenbiz.com/toolbox/reports_third.cfm?LINKADVID=97275
This report looks at the many ways that businesses of all sizes can contribute to combating climate change, from employee-level recycling programs to solutions from the IT department like collaborative working.

Strategies for Ensuring Environmental Compliance
http://www.greenbiz.com/toolbox/reports_third.cfm?LINKADVID=97274
This report from IHS examines the growing impact of environmental regulations — around the world, from China to California to the E.U. — on supply chain sourcing, and how companies can ensure and enforce compliance with environmental standards.