·:[ Environmental News Bits ]:·
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Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

Americans misunderstand key phrases commonly used in environmental marketing and advertising, giving products a greater environmental halo than they deserve and creating a growing risk of backlash. At the same time, a majority of Americans support government regulation of such messages.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

Energy efficiency improvements in the U.S. electric power sector could reduce the need for new electric generation by an additional 7 to 11 percent more than currently projected over the next two decades, according to a preliminary analysis of potential energy savings released April 21.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

There is a huge shift taking place in the way corporate America is using and thinking about energy, according to the latest survey findings from ChangeWave of Rockville, Md.

The March survey of 1,400 individuals knowledgeable about their company’s energy spending, shows more than one-in-five (22 percent) say their company is very concerned about reducing its corporate energy usage and 35 percent say they are somewhat concerned.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell on April 21 led more than a dozen governors from across the country in signing the Governors’ Declaration on Climate Change at the 2008 Conference on Climate Change at Yale University.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

Aramark of Philadelphia, Pa., has committed to help preserve the world’s oceans and fisheries through a new partnership with Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program.

The aquarium will help the company develop practices to guide the supply, purchase, and consumption of sustainable seafood for as many as 180,000 U.S. employees and potentially tens of millions of consumers in businesses, universities, schools, sports and entertainment facilities, parks and other locations the company operates.

Read the press release.

EPA and the National Weather Service challenge all Americans to improve their knowledge of the Air Quality Index (AQI) during the annual “Air Quality Awareness Week” that takes place this year from April 28 to May 2, 2008. As warm weather approaches, using the AQI will help reduce exposure to ground-level ozone pollution. The Air Quality Index is EPA’s color-coded tool for communicating air quality to the public. The most common AQI forecasts range from “code green,” – a good day to engage in outdoor activities, to “code red” – when everyone should use caution.

Read the full story in the Los Angeles Times.

Here’s a simple solution to global warming: vacuum carbon dioxide out of the air.

Klaus Lackner, a physicist at Columbia University, said placing enough carbon filters around the planet could reel the world’s atmosphere back toward the 18th century, like a climatic time machine.

Read the full story at News.com.

Think of it as the future of today’s paper.

The Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) and parent company Xerox are experimenting with a type of paper and a complimentary printer that would produce documents that fade away after 16 to 24 hours. A restaurant, for instance, could print its daily specials on a piece of paper, attach the pieces of paper to menus, and then collect the sheets of then-blank paper in the morning to run through the printer again.

Via ResourceShelf.

Top Ten Greenest Colleges in the U.S., 2007

The Sierra Club selected the top ten most environmentally friendly colleges and universities in the country. Results are based on clean-energy purchases, green-building policies, bike facilities, food served in dorms, recognition by environmental organizations, among other factors

Source: Sierra Club (via Infoplease.com)

Via Docuticker.

Polluted Pets: High Levels of Toxic Industrial Chemicals Contaminate Cats And Dogs
Source: Environmental Working Group

They are trying their best to warn us.

In the first study of its kind, Environmental Working Group found that American pets are polluted with even higher levels of many of the same synthetic industrial chemicals that researchers have recently found in people, including newborns.

The results show that America’s pets are serving as involuntary sentinels of the widespread chemical contamination that scientists increasingly link to a growing array of health problems across a wide range of animals—wild, domesticated and human.

+ Full Report

Via Docuticker.

Since You Asked – Bisphenol A
Source: National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH)

+ What is BPA?

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical produced in large quantities for use primarily in the production of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins.

+ Where is bisphenol A found?

Polycarbonate plastics have many applications including use in certain food and drink packaging, e.g., water and infant bottles, compact discs, impact-resistant safety equipment, and medical devices. Epoxy resins are used as lacquers to coat metal products such as food cans, bottle tops, and water supply pipes. Some polymers used in dental sealants or composites contain bisphenol A-derived materials. In 2004, the estimated production of bisphenol A in the United States was approximately 2.3 billion pounds, most of which was used in polycarbonate plastics and resins.

In the latest Bag Monster video,  the Bag Monster gets arrested and then escapes. He heads east to Berkeley in search of tolerance and new prey. Watch out for the bag monster . . . he is dangerous and spawning (in your cabinets and under your sinks). The complete collection of Bag Monster videos is available on YouTube.

Read the full story in Interior Design.

Milliken & Company continues to draw alternative energy from an unlikely source: landfills. Approved this week, just in time for Earth Day (April 22), the textile and chemical manufacturer has entered into its second methane harvesting initiative.

Read the full story at News.com.

Microsoft Research has given out $500,000 to four universities doing research in more energy-efficient computing.

Read the full story at News.com.

The rising price of soybeans is putting the squeeze on biodiesel producers, leading some to close down operations.