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During the past decade, pharmaceutical and natural products companies have been probing indigenous peoples’ knowledge to develop products from medicines to shampoos, often under the banner of “saving the rainforest.” Yet, more often than not, indigenous peoples do not receive payment in exchange for sharing their “intellectual property”. As a result, The Philippines, Bolivia, Columbia, Ecuador and Costa Rica have passed intellectual property laws; Brazil,India, and Peru are considering similar laws. The Peruvian bill currently under consideration would require companies to pay a one-time licensing fee to the government for using native botanicals, and would require that .5 percent of company profits generated from their use go to a fund administered by and for indigenous groups. “That percentage is very reasonable,” says Steve King of Shaman Pharmaceuticals. “But it’s not clear what will actually go to the indigenous people.” Graham Dutfield, a researcher at Oxford University’s Working Group on Traditional Resource Rights, on the other hand believes, “Genocide has almost always been perpetrated by people acting for governments, not companies.” And once the laws are in place it can be very difficult for companies to get permits to study native flora and fauna. Since 1995, when the law was passed […]
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The Energy Policy Act mandates that by fiscal year 2000 federal buildings must use 20 percent less energy than 1985 levels. The feds beat the deadline by a year and have accrued $19 billion in savings. In addition, the Department of Energy reports they saved $2 billion in 1999 alone. The federal government is the single largest energy user in the U.S., accounting for almost two percent of total national consumption. Its annual energy bill runs at about $8 billion. The 20 percent savings translates into the energy needed to supply over 1.25 million households for a year. The departments that achieved the 20 percent reduction are: Departments of Energy, Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Justice, Transportation, NASA, Tennessee Valley Authority, and the US Postal Service. The agencies accomplished this goal through a variety of measures including purchase of Energy Star equipment, upgrading lighting and HVAC maintenance procedures. The Postal Service, for example, purchased 30,000 Energy Star exit signs resulting in $600,000 worth of savings from more efficient lighting.
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If your company is a technology based energy start-up, poised for strong growth and less than 24 months from market entry, it may be a candidate for a new incubator formed through a strategic alliance between the Austin Technology Incubator (ATI) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The incubator is open to a variety of energy conservation and renewable energy companies, from technology-based spin-offs and fledgling start-ups to research-based companies. ATI is a program of the IC2 Institute of The University of Texas at Austin, known for providing start-up companies with the strategic, financial and management services they need to get off the ground. It has graduated 50 companies since 1989, five of which have gone public. NREL brings its extensive relationships to the table – international institutions, venture capital, multi-lateral lending institutions and national, state and local governments. NREL plans to start similar incubator alliances around the country. Last year, Texas passed the most progressive electric utility restructuring law in the nation which mandates 2000 megawatts of new renewable energy generation by 2009. This makes Texas a very attractive market for renewable energy. “As we have seen with information and communications technologies, we believe the rewards are potentially […]
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40 Brazilian companies from industries such as furniture, packaging, printing, and flooring have signed on to the Brazilian Buyers’ Group of Certified Timber. The group will purchase wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), according to Friends of the Earth, the non-profit responsible for organizing the group. Its goal is to slow illegal logging, which now accounts for 80 percent of deforestation in Brazil, by not buying this wood. In Europe, competition is heating up between the environmental non-profit-backed FSC and timber industry-backed Pan-European Forest Certification (PEFC) agency. Nine million hectares (34,740 square miles) are FSC certified in Sweden. PEFC is about to certify its first three national programs in Finland, Norway and Sweden, in what could amount to 25-30 million hectares (96,500 to 115,800 square miles) by year end. EU NGOs questions whether PEFC certification provides meaningful improvement in forest management. “They are trying to give the image of a credible label of sustainable forestry, but are really just labeling the status quo,” says Ellen von Zitzewitz of the World Wide Fund for Nature. She notes that adequate certification cannot occur at the speed at which at which PEFC certification is progressing. PEFC wants to certify 25 million […]
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As the seasonal ritual of spraying, weed killing, fertilizing and gardening gets underway, a group of 26 professional landscapers formed the first U.S. organic landscapers’ association, the Long Island Organic Horticultural Association. “We are going to change the market,” says Neil Lewis, executive director of the Long Island Neighborhood Network, the group that initiated the effort. The Network is also working to make Long Island the home of the first organic golf courses. It won a lawsuit last year which mandates that all new public golf courses in Suffolk County (the eastern half of Long Island) must consider organic methods in their plans. In Westhampton, Long Island, Jeff Frank of the Lyceum teaches organic methods to landscapers. “We are the only school in the country teaching these methods, which is the saddest thing I could tell you.” Part of his curriculum focuses on long term management; using organic methods initially costs more, but in the long run they cut expenses and restore landscapes to greater natural health. Organic landscaping is backed by numerous environmental and breast cancer organizations on Long Island. The Huntington Breast Cancer Action Coalition hands out “I am Fed Naturally,” pink flags for homeowners to proudly display […]
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First Home Depot agreed to stop sourcing wood from endangered forests, and was followed by Wickes and HomeBase, other major home improvement retailers. Now, the focus has moved to home builders, which consume 72 percent of U.S. lumber to build 1.2 million homes annually. As March closed, Centex Homes and Kaufman & Broad, two of the nations largest homebuilders, agreed to eliminate wood from endangered forests, phase in certified wood, implement wood-use efficiency measures in new home construction, and identify non-wood alternatives. The two companies combined build over 40,000 new homes each year. Centex Homes nets $5 billion in annual sales and has constructed 400 developments. The average new home uses well over 16,000 board feet of lumber. Most new homes contain dozens of wood components that originate in the world’s last remaining old growth forests: Cedar planks and shingles; Douglas Fir lumber; Hemlock molding and trim; Lauan hollow-core doors, plywood and paneling; Mahogany exterior doors. In a letter to Rainforest Action Network, the leader of the grassroots coalition behind this effort, Andrew Hannigan, Centex President, wrote, “As an industry leader committed to saving the world’s endangered forests, Centex Homes will, by the end of 2002, eliminate from our product […]
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A new study, “Wasting and Recycling in the United States 2000,” by the GrassRoots Recycling Network shows that while Americans are setting new recycling records (28% in 1997), product and packaging waste is simultaneously increasing. Last year, Los Angeles achieved a 47 percent reduction in the city’s waste-stream and Falls Church, Virginia reached a 65% residential recycling and waste-prevention rate. But in general, landfill and incinerator waste increased by 4.4 million tons between 1996-1997 after several years of leveling off. “We need to redesign products and packaging to minimize and more efficiently use materials,” the authors conclude. “We need to aim for a zero-waste economy.” They point to fact that “all landfill liners eventually leak, polluting nearby groundwater,” and that landfill monitoring systems to detect groundwater pollution are inadequate. [sorry this link is no longer available]
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Updated appliance energy efficiency standards would save $14 billion a year – 5.3 percent of current residential and commercial energy consumption in 2020 – while reducing power plant emissions according to “Opportunity Knocks: Capturing Pollution Reductions and Consumer Savings from Updated Appliance Efficiency Standards,” a new report by the Appliance Standards Awareness Project. The report displays how appliance standards benefit people and the environment state-by-state. While the most populous and warmest states see the greatest savings and pollution reductions, all states benefit. The report states the U.S. Department of Energy is running years behind schedule in setting new performance standards for water heaters, fluorescent light ballasts, central air conditioners and clothes washers. It set two new efficiency standards in the past eight years – one for room air conditioners that takes effect this October, and one for refrigerators that comes into effect in 2001. [sorry this link is no longer available]
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The AGORES website is a gateway to information on renewable energy activities and information in Europe. You can find European and national policies, a directory of “Who’s Who” in the European Community, statistics, sources for financing, market studies, and summaries of successful projects across Europe. http://www.agores.org
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Earth Day themes abound in the media lately. Some of these dates have passed, but you might be interested in knowing about them. * April 12-21, 3:00 PM ET: Cartoon Network USA airs a Captain Planet Climate Change Marathon. * April 14, NBC 8:00 PM ET: a special episode of Providence with Earth Day themes. * April 16-21: CNN Special ongoing Earth Day Reports cover topics such as Clinton’s Environmental Legacy, Recycling Reality Check and a Big Picture Look at 30 Years of Environmentalism. * April 16, CNN 10:00 PM ET: CNN & Time profile three Heroes of the Planet. * April 17, CBS 10:00 PM ET: in a special Earth Day episode of Family Law, series star Kathleen Quinlan trades in her gas-guzzling SUV for a hybrid Toyota Prius. * April 17, ABC 10:00 PM ET: The series Once and Again airs an Earth Day episode. * April 19: the Earth Day edition of Time magazine hits the newsstands internationally. * APRIL 21, TBA: ABC News special program on global warming hosted by Leonardo DiCaprio, Chair of EarthFair 2000 on the National Mall in Washington DC. * Earth Day, April 22: CNN features live reports from Earth Day events […]
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