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San Francisco Garbage Trucks Going Green

The City of San Francisco announced that its entire fleet of garbage and recycling trucks now run on alternative fuel. As of March 19, over 400 garbage collection vehicles have been running on alternative fuels, said a Norcal Waste System Inc. spokesman, resulting in a 21% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions. The three companies that work under the umbrella of Norcal Waste System Inc. – Sunset Scavenger, Golden Gate Disposal & Recycling and S.F. Recycling & Disposal, Inc. – began experimenting with alternative fuels in 2001 when they built a liquefied natural gas filling station. In March, they switched over the rest of the fleet, which now run on liquefied natural gas or biodiesel B-20.

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Lennar Bay Area Inaugurates 275 Solar-Powered Home Development

Lennar Bay Area Homebuilding announced that three San Francisco Bay Area developments would be solar-driven communities. All 275 homes will come equipped with a roof integrated solar electric system from PowerLight, a subsidiary of SunPower Corporation (Nasdaq:SPWR) as a standard feature. The three Windemere communities, Paloma, Escalante and Stafford Place, are the latest addition to Lennar’s solar-electric program. The company introduced their solar home program in February, when it unveiled the 77-home Milano community in Danville, at the time, the largest solar-driven community in the Bay Area. Unfortunately, the homes are outsized, ranging in square footage from 2,600 to 4,300. In 2006, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill 1, legislation which put the finishing touches on his Million Solar Roofs Plan. It provides incentives to builders and homeowners who install solar power in new homes and convert to solar energy in existing homes. Although the incentives from the program will not take effect until 2011, Lennar has started building with solar now. “The SunTile® systems we are providing to these communities feature the world’s most efficient solar cell, ensuring that homeowners achieve maximum savings on their utility bills each month, while contributing to clean air and a better environment,” said […]

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Insurance Companies Commit to Climate Change Disclosure

Calvert, one of the nation’s largest families of socially responsible mutual funds, has withdrawn climate change shareholder resolutions filed with two leading insurance companies: The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc. The two companies agreed to improve their public reporting and disclosure regarding the potential financial risks they face from climate change and strategies for mitigating those risks. “As a responsible corporate citizen and as a major underwriter of risk, it’s appropriate for The Hartford to address the issue of climate change rigorously and comprehensively,” said Neal Wolin, Executive Vice President and General Counsel of The Hartford. The Hartford and Prudential Financial responded positively to shareholder resolutions filed by Calvert. Both insurers agreed to respond to a climate risk disclosure questionnaire sent to companies each year by the Carbon Disclosure Project. They also committed to disclose their assessment of the business impacts of climate change. “Prudential Financial recognizes the importance of addressing the business impact of climate change,” said Kathleen Gibson, Vice-President and Corporate Governance Officer at Prudential. “Our company is not in the property and casualty line of insurance, nor does the company have high greenhouse gas emissions. Nevertheless, we will be including on our website […]

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