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

As economic conditions continue to tighten this year, consumers have a great “green” option for turning old electronic products in their closets into new holiday gifts: by participating in Office Depot, Sam’s Club or NEXCOM electronics trade-in programs powered by ecoNEW(R).

For consumers who are looking for smart, efficient, and responsible ways to ease the burden of holiday spending, the ecoNEW program is an environmentally friendly, free, and convenient way to trade-in older, unwanted, small- to medium- size electronics and receive money back in the form of gift cards that can be used for holiday gift purchases at participating retailers. Items that do not qualify for trade-in value will be accepted for recycling.

Via Docuticker.

Decisions about Nature and Development Must Be Made at Same Table, WRI Report Finds
Source: World Resources Institute

Development and the environment have traditionally been managed separately, but a new report by the World Resources Institute (WRI) guides decision makers in how this can be reconciled to increase prosperity and protect the planet.

“Development and nature have traditionally been handled by separate academic disciplines, separate government agencies, and separate laws and policies,” said Janet Ranganathan, lead author of the book and vice president for science and research at WRI.

She added, “Development planners too often assume that the natural assets that development depends upon will always be there. Conservationists, on the other hand, are often preoccupied with minimizing the negative impacts of development on nature or putting it off limits to people.”

Ecosystem Services: A Guide for Decision Makers, released here today at the opening of the IUCN World Conservation Congress, uses ecosystem services – the benefits of nature – to make the link between nature and development.

+ Full Document

See also: Nature-Based Enterprises Can Help Rural Poor Adapt to Environmental Threats

Read the full story in Water & Wastewater News.

Nursery and greenhouse operations depend on the use of fertilizers, growth regulators, insecticides, and fungicides. Growers also rely on the use of soilless media, or substrate, in the production of container crops. Concerns arise when excessive irrigation of the container crops grown in soilless media leads to leaching and loss of nutrients and chemicals in runoff. The resulting runoff can escape from production areas and have a negative impact on surface and ground water.

Constructed wetlands (CWs) have been promoted as inexpensive, low-technology approaches to treating agricultural, industrial, and municipal wastewater to comply with increasingly stringent environmental regulations. CWs, or marshes built to treat contaminated water, incorporate soil and drainage materials, water, plants, and microorganisms. “Surface-flow” constructed wetlands resemble shallow freshwater marshes and generally require a large land area for wastewater treatment. More effective for greenhouse and nursery operations with limited production space and expensive land are a type of constructed wetland called “subsurface flow.” These wetlands consist of a lined or impermeable basin filled with a coarse medium, typically gravel, and wetland plants. Wastewater flows horizontally or vertically below the surface of the media to prevent exposure to humans or wildlife.

A new publication outlines national efforts to protect children from environmental risks over the last year. EPA’s Children’s Environmental Health: 2008 Highlights is the eighth in an annual series on work done in its programs, labs and regions.

EPA has funded research on how the environment affects children’s health, promoted the education of health care providers, published information about how climate change affects children’s health, and assembled data to quantify the extent of children’s health issues. EPA is addressing environmental health disparities, issues during pregnancy, the rebuilding of communities with children’s needs in mind and the health of children in our nation’s schools.

Issues in the report include childhood asthma, lead poisoning, exposure to the sun, children and chemicals, integrated pest management, Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units and research findings.

This year marks the 11th year of explicit attention to the health of children following the Executive Order of 1997, Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks.

More information on Children’s Environmental Health: 2008 Highlights: http://yosemite.epa.gov/ochp/ochpweb.nsf/content/2008_highlights.htm/$file/OCHP_2008_Highlights_508.pdf

Via Docuticker.

A last chance for coal: making carbon capture and storage a reality
Source: Green Alliance

In this collection of viewpoints, Green Alliance reveals the growing support for carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a means of tackling the twin challenges of climate change and energy security. CCS technology appears to be ready, but it must be demonstrated urgently at commercial scale if it is to be deployed more widely in the coming decades…

But financial support to kick-start a new CCS industry is not in itself sufficient. Europe must reduce carbon emissions and cannot risk the construction of new unabated coal plants while CCS is being demonstrated. This collection therefore also looks in depth at how Europe can follow California’s experience with emissions performance standards. Such an approach would provide regulatory certainty for CCS and secure the future of the EU emissions trading scheme.

+ Full Document (PDF; 301 KB)

Via Docuticker.

2008 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard
Source: American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
From press release:

Energy efficiency is the “first fuel” in the race for clean and secure energy resources. Faced with rapidly increasing energy prices, constraints in energy supply and transmission, and energy reliability concerns, states are turning to energy efficiency as the most reliable, cost-effective, and quickest resource to deploy. States are now investing two to three times as much as the federal government toward energy efficiency programs and resource. In the race for clean energy resources, states are adopting aggressive energy efficiency policies, increasing investments in efficiency programs, and improving efficiency in their own facilities and fleets. While some states have been making commitments toward energy efficiency for decades, others are just getting started, and still others fall far behind. We present here a comprehensive state energy efficiency scorecard to document best practices and recognize leadership among the states. The scorecard can serve as a means of benchmarking state efforts, with the goal of encouraging states to continue to raise the bar in efficiency commitments and providing a roadmap for states that want to catch up to the leaders.

In 2007, ACEEE released The State Energy Efficiency Scorecard for 2006, which was the first of its kind to provide a comprehensive approach to scoring and ranking states on the adoption and implementation of energy efficiency policies and programs. This is a 2008 update to the scorecard, ranking all fifty states and the District of Columbia on energy efficiency policies and programs. The scorecard examines eight state energy efficiency policy areas: (1) utility-sector and public benefits programs and policies; (2) transportation polices; (3) building energy codes; (4) combined heat and power; (5) appliance efficiency standards; (6) Lead by Example in state facilities and fleets; (7) research, development, and deployment; and (8) financial and information incentives. States can earn up to 50 possible points in these eight policy areas combined, with the maximum possible points in each area weighted by the magnitude of its potential impact on energy savings.

+ Executive Summary (PDF; 228 KB)
+ Full Report (PDF; free registration required)
+ Webcast (237 MB; Windows Media Player)

A full-color, graphic version of this newsletter is available online at:
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/enewsletter

Minimizing Legal Risks for Green Building
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/09/29/minimizing-green-building-legal-risks
By Leslie Guevarra
As a relatively new industry, green construction has its own set of legal risks and those who build, market and sell eco-friendly structures need to know how to minimize their vulnerability, attorneys told an audience at the West Coast Green Conference.

Driving Change in Energy Efficiency: A Carrot or a Stick?
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/column/2008/10/09/energy-carrot-or-a-stick
By Brandi McManus
Despite rapid advances in technology, we still use 16 percent more energy than we did 25 years ago. We’ve made improvements in efficiency yet have invented more ways to burn energy. Here’s a look at how to drive the change.

Federal Judge Puts Albuquerque’s Green Building Code on Hold
By Leslie Guevarra
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/10/07/federal-judge-puts-albuquerques-green-building-code-hold
Saying its measures infringe on areas preempted by federal law, a U.S. District Court judge has barred enforcement of Albuquerque’s green building code pending the outcome of a lawsuit brought by a group of HVAC and water heating equipment trade organizations, contractors and distributors.

DOE Awards $15M in Tech Help to Zero-Net Energy Building Program
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/09/30/doe-awards-15m-tech-help-zero-net-energy-building-program
The U.S. Department of Energy will provide $15 million in technical assistance to its Net-Zero Energy Commercial Building Initiative and has selected 21 firms to work with two national labs to help create prototypes for the program.

Green Roof and Maze Open Atop APA Building
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/10/03/green-roof-and-maze
A green roof with a labyrinth as its centerpiece has opened atop an eight-story office building owned by the American Psychological Association and shared with the World Resources Institute.

Jewel-Osco Opens New Green Store in Chicago
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/10/01/jewel-osco-green-store
Supermarket firm Jewel-Osco is seeking LEED certification for a new green store – the company’s first – that has opened in Chicago.

Newell Rubbermaid HQ, Colorado School Earn Green Globes Ratings
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/09/26/newell-rubbermaid-hq-colorado-school-earn-green-globes-ratings
Newell Rubbermaid’s new headquarters in Atlanta has become the first building in Georgia to attain an eco-friendly Green Globes rating and a Colorado elementary school was recognized for outstanding green building achievement under the environmental assessment system.

USGBC Seeks Green Building Experts to Review Courses
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/10/02/usgbc-green-building-experts
The U.S. Green Building Council is calling for experts in eco-friendly construction and design to serve as course reviewers for the organization’s Education Provider Program.

Design Contest Offers $10,000 Prize to Up and Coming Innovators
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/09/25/design-contest-offers-10000-prize-up-and-coming-innovators
Metropolis magazine is looking to the next generation of designers and architects to solve one of the today’s bigger problems: soaring energy consumption – and the periodical is offering a $10,000 prize to the person or team with the best solution.

AT&T, Constellation Wines, Gap to Each Host 1- to 1.2-MW Solar Power Systems
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/10/08/att-constellation-wines-gap-host-solar
Gap Inc. has unveiled a 1-megawatt solar power system, and Constellation Wines U.S. and AT&T are each working with strategic partnerships of their own to host comparably large systems that will harness the power of the sun.

Chipotle Builds Two Eco-Friendly Restaurants
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/10/07/chipotle-green-restaurants
Chipotle Mexican Grill is adding two restaurants created according to green designs to its chain of 775 outlets.

Kohl’s Opens 45 New Green Stores
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/news/2008/10/06/kohls-opens-45-new-green-stores
Kohl’s has opened 45 new U.S. stores built to according to green designs that were pre-certified at LEED silver standards.

GreenWorks Book Club
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/resources/resource/greenworks-book-club
This new online book club created by the U.S. Green Building Council and Island Press offers books on green building for industry professionals. Recommended titles change every month. Discounts up to 40 percent for USGBC members.

The Green Collar Economy
http://www.greenerbuildings.com/resources/resource/the-green-collar-economy
By Van Jones
Provocative, personal, and inspirational, The Green Collar Economy is not a dire warning but rather a substantive and viable plan for solving the biggest issues facing the country-the failing economy and our devastated environment.