- Home
- Featured (Page 73)
Featured
WASHINGTON, DC, September 29, 2004 (ENS) – Environmentally related childhood diseases, such as asthma, lead poisoning and cancer, cost the United States nearly $55 billion annually. More than 2.5 million families live in substandard housing that is a springboard for these diseases. The solution is affordable housing that is environmentally friendly, and on Tuesday, the Green Communities Initiative was launched to supply more than 8,500 healthier homes. The initiative will offer financing, grants and technical assistance to developers to build affordable housing that promotes health, conserves energy and natural resources and provides easy access to jobs, schools and services. The five-year, $550 million commitment is a partnership of The Enterprise Foundation/Enterprise Social Investment Corporation (ESIC) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), along with the American Institute of Architects, the American Planning Association, as well as corporate, financial and philanthropic organizations. Five million dollars will be awarded as grants to assist in planning, designing and building Green Communities homes. Fifty million will go to low interest loans to enable developers to acquire sites and start construction. And $500 million will be used for equity investments to fund rehabilitation and construction through ESIC. “Too many Americans live in unhealthy, inefficient and […]
Read More
Just what makes a product "green"? A nutrition label would help us figure it out.
Read More
USGBC and LEED have come a long way, but the progress doesn't begin to describe the next wave.
Read More
When the Los Angeles Community College District embarked on a massive, 10-year, $2.22 billion modernization program two years ago, it decided to invest in a sustainable building program that concentrates on energy efficiency, recyclable and nontoxic materials. “The investment will result in life-cycle cost savings of about $20 million,” says spokesperson Lynn Corum. Money for the modernization came from two ballet measures approved by LA voters in 2001 and 2003. It includes 48 new buildings which will be designed to qualify for LEED certification. Another 75 older buildings will be renovated to meet or exceed California’s Title 24 energy efficiency building standards. Many of the new buildings will be powered by solar energy. In total, 453 projects will be completed by the end of the decade, with most work completed by 2008.Larry Eisenberg, executive director of Facilities Planning & Development at LACCD, said the district’s Board of Trustees has several goals in t adopting the policy: reduce energy use; include a teaching mission; and transform the marketplace.The district will have the opportunity to teach staff and students about the sustainable elements going into the buildings as they are being constructed, tailoring programs based on what is being built on each […]
Read More
In its continuing efforts to foster market-based solutions for the recycling and reuse of post-consumer carpet, the board of directors for the Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) announced winners of the organization’s second cycle of CARE grants. The companies awarded grants are: Environmental Recover & Consolidation Services (ERCS) in Massachusetts, NY Wa$teMatch and Carpetcycle in New York, and Blue Ridge Recycling in North Carolina. The winners received grants totaling $103,250. Nylon Board Manufacturing (Medford, MN.), makers of composite sheeting called Ny-Board and roofing shingles, which are made from recycled post-consumer carpet, was named Recycler of the Year.“CARE is in the process of laying a solid foundation for a new industry in the U.S. This new industry will be built by entrepreneurs. Through this program CARE is able to provide financial support to promising entrepreneurs,” says Robert Peoples, CARE executive director. “I fully expect to see a steep rise in the availability of quality feedstock as well as innovative products using the feedstock as we move forward in our challenge to divert 40% of carpet being landfilled by the year 2012,” he says. 93.7 million pounds of post-consumer carpet was diverted from landfill in 2003, an 87% increase from 2002. Carpet […]
Read More
Citing demand from project owners and the belief that it’s the “right thing to do,” Allied Waste Industries, Inc. is weaving the US Green Buildings Council’s LEED Rating System into its day-to-day operations. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, Allied Waste is the second largest waste management firm in the U.S. It is a member of the US Green Building Council and the Green Roundtable, based in Cambridge, MA. In the Great Lakes region, through SunSet Waste Services, and in the Northeast region, through BFI Waste Services, the company is implementing a copyrighted plan through which it takes on the responsibility of construction waste management. “We currently have several LEED Gold and Silver projects under our belts, plus a few Certified,” notes Brian Skehan, LEED consultant for BFI’s Northeast region. “Our waste management plan removes one of the big concerns for contractors doing LEED projects,” he says. Allied Waste examines the unique conditions of each project, including the green expectations for it. The team chooses between a source separation and a commingled recycling plan. At the beginning of each project, Allied coordinates and marks recycling containers and educates the work force on site. The team also begins documenting the weights and percentages […]
Read More
*News and Events Minnesota Utility to Award $22 Million to Renewable Projects Renewable Energy Powered the Republican National Convention Energy-Efficient Solar Homes Sprouting Up Nationwide NASA Releases Report on Crash of Helios Solar Plane U.S. Wind Power Industry Expects Meager Growth in 2004 California Utility Reopens Residential Energy Efficiency Program News and EventsMinnesota Utility to Award $22 Million to Renewable ProjectsXcel Energy announced last week its selection of 25 proposed renewable energy projects to receive $22 million from its Renewable Development Fund. The projects include seven efforts to draw on renewable energy in Minnesota, including two wind turbines, two anaerobic digesters, a biomass energy combined heat and power plant, a project to increase biomass use at a University of Minnesota steam plant, and a hydropower facility refurbishment. The remaining 18 projects are research efforts relating to biomass energy, solar cells, and hydrogen production. DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory is working with the University of Minnesota on two of the three solar-cell research projects. The Renewable Development Fund was established by Minnesota statute and is funded by the state’s ratepayers. The 25 selected projects are subject to final approval by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission. See Xcel Energy press release or […]
Read More
U.S. Organic product sales rose by 20% in 2003, reaching $10.8 billion.
Read More
Green Building legislation introduced, City of Vancouver mandates green buildings, resources for green remodeling.
Read More
An equity investment from GF-USA enabled BlueOrchard Finance and Developing World Markets to consummate a $30 million guarantee from Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) for a bond offering with proceeds used to fund MFIs. The anticipated $40 million in total bond proceeds will be the largest microfinance offering to date. JP Morgan Securities will service the guaranteed bonds. Because they are guaranteed, this capital is considered as safe of an investment as an equivalent U.S. Treasury Note (commonly called T-bills). The proceeds will make available affordable loans for more than 40,000 micro-entrepreneurs – mainly women – in Latin America, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia.“This is a solid investment for investors and a sound strategy for reducing poverty among the poorest people in the world,” remarked John Anderson, acting President of GF-USA. Microfinance has a desirable investment profile, offering lower risk than many might imagine. “Our statistics show that properly-managed microfinance loans average repayment of 97%, better than U.S. credit card and student loans, which experience default rates of 5% respectively,” disclosed Drew Tulchin, GF-USA’s manager of Capital Market Programs. GF-USA is a non-profit organization that combines microfinance, technology and innovation to help empower the world’s poorest to escape poverty by […]
Read More
Loading...