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TransAlta, a utility located in Alberta, Canada has reduced its net greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels, cutting them by about 4.8 million tons in 1997 alone. That’s the equivalent of taking 3,000,000 cars off the road. Its greenhouse gas action plan involved developing co-generation facilities, purchasing renewable energy including wind and small-scale hydro power from independent producers, promoting greater energy efficiency on the part of its customers, and buying “offset” projects in other countries or provinces.
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A coalition of leaders from religious, labor, consumer, civil and human rights, indigenous, and investor groups sent an open letter to David Glass, CEO of Wal-Mart, calling on the company to take specific steps to improve its social and environmental performance. “As the largest retail corporation in the world with over 3400 stores, Wal-Mart is a key player in the global economy,” states Rev. David Shilling, director of ICCR’s Global Corporate Accountability Programs. “If Wal-Mart pays low wages and perpetuates abusive conditions through inaction, other companies will do the same. But if Wal-Mart acts to raise labor and human rights standards in the world, the company will set a positive example for other retailers to follow.” The letter calls on Wal-Mart to: — Exert leadership in community relations wherever it has stores — Participate in diversity programs and public disclosure regarding these programs — Establish policies on Indigenous issues with leaders of that community — Endorse environmental performance and disclosure in accordance with the CERES principles — Pay wages that enable employees and vendors’ employees to meet basic needs and provide discretionary income — Implement an independent monitoring process for supplier plants to eliminate sweatshop labor By the way, Wal-Mart […]
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Two subsidiaries of California-based PG&E Corporation, U.S. Generating Company and PG&E Energy Trading, will transfer greenhouse gas reduction credits to the Barnard/Columbia Earth Coalition through Natsource Inc., an environmental emissions brokerage. This is the first sale between private industry and an environmental nonprofit and is one of a handful of greenhouse gas transactions that have been performed worldwide. The New York City-based student coalition will retire the credits, ensuring they can’t be used to allow future emissions. The group raised funds to pay for the transaction and the companies agreed to invest the proceeds in greenhouse gas emission reduction measures. The companies will transfer 10,000 greenhouse gas reduction credits to the non-profit. Each tradable unit is equal to one ton of carbon dioxide or CO2 equivalent reduced. USGEn earned the credits by taking voluntary actions under the federal government’s Climate Challenge program. These actions include improvements to the efficiency of the company’s power plants, operational changes such as fuel switching, and other efforts such as methane recovery and a carbon sequestration forestry projects in Malaysia.
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Kyocera Corporation’s (NYSE: KYO) subsidiary, Kyocera International, has acquired Golden Genesis Company (NASDAQ: GGGO), creating the largest PV company in the world. Its projected annual sales total more than $1 billion. Kyocera, headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, is the world’s leading producer of photovoltaic cells; Golden Genesis (formerly Photocomm) integrates and distributes solar systems globally through 1000 dealers. Kyocera has been involved in manufacturing PV systems since 1975. [sorry this link is no longer available]
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This is the name of a program just launched by the largest municipal utility in the U.S. – the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power. Customers can sign onto renewable energy sources for their power for about a 6 percent rate increase, or about $3 a month for the average home. But with energy efficiency rebates, customers can quickly make up the difference and lower their energy bills. Rebates are available for efficient lightbulbs, air conditioners, and refrigerators, and the department will perform free energy audits. In the month since the announcement, the Dodgers, Playa Vista developers, and Robinsons-May department stores – all large energy users – have signed up. And community organizations will be paid to recruit customers. The current energy mix is the dirtiest in the state; 60 percent of its electricity comes from coal. The department will use the income to develop new sources of solar, wind, biomass and hydro. Until then, small hydropower will be used. [sorry this link is no longer available]
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After reaching an agreement with Baxter, investors withdrew a shareholder resolution calling on the company to phase out use of PVC materials in its intravenous health care products. In exchange for shareholder withdrawal of the resolution, Baxter will identify all PVC-containing products it manufactures and provide a timetable for replacement with non-PVC IV bags. The company will update shareholders on its steps to replace all PVC products with suitable alternatives. Baxter will also request that the Vinyl Institute, American Plastics Council and Chlorine Chemistry Council refrain from using its name in their public ad campaigns. Baxter maintains that it is already supplying many products without PVC, and that as viable alternatives arise they plan to use them. The sponsors, ICCR’s (Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility) International Health Issue Group and health care activists, argue that chemicals used to manufacture PVC products include suspected carcinogens, hormone disrupters and reproductive toxicants. Research shows one such chemical, DEHP, leaches out of PVC medical devices and into the fluids they carry, and has been linked to adverse effects in premature infants and other vulnerable persons, such as dialysis and AIDS patients. When incinerated, PVCs produce dioxin. 90 percent of dioxin exposure to humans comes […]
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The Global Environmental Facility (GEF) approved over $18 million to support Suriname in its creation of one of the world’s largest tropical forest wilderness reserves. The funding will support the management of the four million acre (1.6 million hectare) Central Suriname Nature Reserve and create conservation- based economic opportunities such as ecotourism. “The Suriname project is an outstanding example of the kind of visionary, yet practical, partnership the GEF seeks to support,” said Mohamed T. El-Ashry, CEO and chairman of the GEF. “It underscores Suriname’s initiative and commitment to making conservation part of its economic development strategy, as well as the important role of non-governmental organizations at the community level.” Part of the forest area within the reserve was formerly targeted by international logging companies, which sought concessions in some 11 million acres. Suriname harbors more rain forest than all of Central America combined. The Central Suriname Nature Reserve is part of the Guyana Shield, one of the world’s most undisturbed tropical wilderness areas extending across the southern Guianas, southern Venezuela and adjacent parts of Brazil. These forests have at least 75 percent of their original forest cover and many, like Suriname’s, are still in pristine condition, virtually uninhabited and […]
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In response to sustained negative European response, foods giant Unilever UK has decided to phase out genetically engineered foods, a move that was closely followed by a similar announcement by Nestle UK. Unilever sells over 1,000 brands of foods through 300 subsidiaries in 88 countries, and Nestle, with 495 factories, is the world’s largest food production company. Nestle UK production facilities manufacture for the entire European market. Over the past month’s, a number of large supermarket chains including the UK’s Iceland Stores and Marks and Spencer banned all GM ingredients from their private label products. Prince Charles commented, “I suspect that planting herbicide resistant crops will lead to more chemicals being used on our fields, not fewer. But this isn’t the whole story. Such sterile fields will offer little or no food or shelter to wildlife, and there is already evidence that the genes for herbicide resistance can spread to wild relatives of crop plants, leaving us with weeds resistant to weedkiller.” UK law requires GM seed firms notify the public prior to planting. The first farm to take part in the UK government’s farm scale trials of GM crops may be forced to plough up seed because the company […]
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A recently passed law in India requires all buildings to have solar-assisted water heating. The law affects all states, and includes hospitals, lodges, colleges, military barracks, railway terminals, community centers and other institutions, and in larger residential buildings.
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Daniel Quinn’s book, Ishmael, is an environmental fiction classic. He’s produced a thought-provoking video, “Food Production & Population Growth” to address the many questions he receives on population. One of the subjects he explores is the relationship between food surplus and population growth. Fred Elbel, who produces the EcoFutures website, reviews the video. “We make food a commodity and reward producers for higher output. The surplus allows our population to grow even more. The presenters contend we need a systemic change – one that rewards producers for their work, but not by the pound. We also need to tie food production to local areas of sustainability. Original Native American tribes were restricted to the food supplies of their own geographic areas and could not infringe on food sources in the territories of neighboring tribes. Similarly, areas such as Houston could become sustainable if they included a regional area sufficient to produce food for their residents, necessarily enforcing population to remain in equilibrium with available food supply.” http://www.ecofuture.org [sorry this link is no longer available]
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