·:[ Environmental News Bits ]:·
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I picked up four relatively new green business books at my local Barnes & Noble last week and decided to write mini-reviews of each.  I have skimmed through them all, but have not read them in depth yet. Each appears to have it’s own unique spin on the topic (which is why I bought all of them). The books are:

101 Ways to Turn Your Business Green : The Business Guide to Eco-Friendly Profits by Rich Mintzer (ISBN: 9781599182636)
For those who your advice in list form, this is a good one. It’s readable and easy to pick up and put down. Includes a section on social responsibility more generally, as well as a glossary.

Green Business Practices for Dummies by Lisa Swallow (ISBN: 9780470393390)
Written in the standard For Dummies format. Includes sustainability planning as a key component and addresses it before more specific actions. Also has good sections on involving stakeholders in sustainability and on measurement and reporting. The Complete Idiots Guide to Greening Your Business is due out in June. We’ll have to see how that compares.

Green Your Work: Boost Your Bottom Line While Reducing Your Carbon Footprint by Kim Carlson (ISBN: 9781598699050)
Covers all the bases including motivation to help you get started. Includes checklists and and surveys in the appendices. Appears very readable.

Greening Your Business: The Hands-On Guide to Creating a Successful and Sustainable Business by Daniel Sitarz (ISBN: 9781892949462)
Blurbed by Joel Makower of GreenBiz.com, which gives it a lot of credibility. Excellent worksheets and questionnaires to aid with decision making, which seems to be lacking in most green business books. Excellent resource guide at the end of the book.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

A University of Maryland-led team has compiled the first decades-long database of aerosol measurements over land, making possible new research into how air pollution affects climate change.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

Many state and local officials and private organizations are basing decisions — such as how to build bridges or manage water supplies — on the assumption that current climate conditions will continue, but that assumption is no longer valid. To produce the climate information these decision makers need and to deliver it to them effectively, federal agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency should expand their activities in these areas, according to a new report announced on March 12 by the National Research Council.

Via Librarians’ Internet Index.

This website features a “combination of tips, case studies, expert Q&A articles and regional directories of products and services.” Browse by area or feature of the home, such as bathrooms or flooring. Product directory (covering San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, and New York City) contains a detailed description of the process of selecting and approving products for the directory, noting “only a minority of products are approved.” From the U.S. Green Building Council.

Green Cleaners

This article presents options for avoiding home cleaning products that are toxic and harmful to the environment. Includes recipes for general cleaners, laundry soap, bathroom and kitchen cleaners, carpet deodorizers, stain removers, furniture polish, and other household cleaning products. Also provides a listing of ingredients for alternative cleaners, shopping tips and other less-toxic household tips, and information in Spanish. From Metro Regional Government, Portland, Oregon.

Green Your Spring Cleaning

This tip sheet offers ideas for environmentally responsible house cleaning, such as using old clothing and sheets for dust rags, avoiding cleaners that contain phosphates, and replacing mothballs with a more natural alternative. Includes links to a related article on making your own nontoxic cleaning products and to cleaning product listings in a screened green business directory. From Green America (formerly Co-op America), a nonprofit membership organization.

Spring/Summer Cleaning (Yes, It’s Time Again)

This collection of resources offers ideas for reducing the environmental and health effects of cleaning, noting that “common cleaning products are hazardous — to your health if you ingest or touch them, to the environment when flushed down the drain or otherwise disposed of.” Features cleaning projects for specific rooms in the house, an article about anti-bacterial products, and tips for reducing clutter, reading product labels, and outdoor cleaning. From the nonprofit New American Dream.

Via Librarians’ Internet Index:

Collection of materials relating to garden plants and potential global warming impacts. Click on the map to find out “if your official State Trees or State Flowers may be affected,” view an interactive USDA hardiness zone map for 1990-2006, see a list of not-wanted invasive plants, and take a gardener’s pledge to help fight global warming. Includes links to related material, such as a 2007 report of the same name. From the National Wildlife Federation.