Published on July 22nd, 2009
Let’s say you have a clothing company that supplies Walmart.
They’ve hinted for years that they are about to demand sustainably produced merchandise. And last week they announced it: Walmart’s new Sustainability Index.
Governments have been unable to change the world. But the planet’s shopkeeper is just so much more powerful.
Oh dear, you say. We can’t lose Walmart. Let’s answer the first question. 1. What is your carbon footprint?
Well, um…gee.
Let’s start with that one handbag we sell to Walmart: We make the handbag parts in 3 factories in 2 continents and an island. We receive the raw materials for the handbag…
1. by camel to that little handbag clasp factory outside Calcutta (5 miles X 120 days per year; camel eats 356,794 pounds of grain shipped by diesel ship 254,998 miles = carbon cost of 2 tons per year for inbound shipping costs),
2. by UPS to a factory in a business park in Seattle (2,900 miles X 340 days per year; using 57% diesel-hybrid trucks = inbound shipping carbon cost of 34 tons per year )
3. by airfreight to a little factory on Tuvalu (whatever…you get the idea)
and then we ship the finished product 3,900,798 miles by ship powered by… (and so on…)
…to say nothing of figuring out the carbon footprint at each of the factories:
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Published on July 19th, 2009
Rubber sidewalks are all grown up. Once perceived mainly as a safe surface for playgrounds, rubber sidewalks have developed into a means of preserving urban trees, reducing stormwater runoff, recycling tires, and curbing greenhouse gas emissions. A company called Rubbersidewalks (what else?) began installing the modular units in 2002, and its rubber sidewalk products now appear in almost 100 cities across the country. Even the U.S. military is getting into the act. Plans are in the works to install rubber sidewalks at Coast Guard Island in Alameda, California, and they’re being promoted by the Pollution Prevention Program at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland.
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Published on July 17th, 2009
OK, he’s not exactly a retired rocket scientist; he’s a retired airplane product development engineer - but Gary Reysa has built his own homemade very simple-tech solar hotwater system that is the functional and thermal equivalent of commercial systems costing 6 or 7 times as much!
This simple design has survived Montana winters with temperatures down to minus 30F with not even a hint of a problem, while providing an unusually high solar fraction of 94% (75% is typical of commercial solar hot water systems.)
For details and a picture of his solar thermal shed hit the fold:
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Published on July 12th, 2009
Researchers have developed an environmentally friendly, biodegradable lubricant based on castor oil and cellulose derivatives.
The new grease, which does not contain any of the pollutants that traditional petroleum and synthetic lubricants have, may lighten the toxic load from manufacturing and industry on our water and soil. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on June 28th, 2009
Now, I’m no Bob Villa, but as a new homeowner who has to replace his roof, I have been looking into environmentally friendly alternatives to either asphalt or “premium” wood. And Enviroshake definitely falls into the first category. Made primarily of reclaimed materials, Enviroshake might just be the answer. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on June 22nd, 2009
An astonishing new survey has revealed that more than 60% of Americans would refuse to stop using their iPods, even if they knew it was seriously damaging the environment.
The survey, which quizzed more than 1,000 people across the US, found that, whilst the majority of Americans are making efforts to buy greener products, most wouldn’t do so if it meant compromising on convenience or comfort. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 27th, 2009
There were many viewpoints this weekend at TIE’s annual ‘pow-wow’ TIEcon 2009 when it came to cleantech, but if I were to boil them down (in a electric stove running on renewable energy) I would say the essence can be summarized as this: the mundane matters.
I say this not because there was a lack of enthusiasm in the air-absolutely the opposite-rather I say it because a more zoomed-out perspective on cleantech has begun to crystallize, and with that everyone from VC’s to the entrepreneurs bootstrapping their way through the battlefields of innovation has recognized the value of niches within the ‘ecosystem’ of cleantech.
This, of course, is a fitting metaphor for the area of innovation hoping to save us from ourselves. The area of innovation slated to reinvigorate our intuitions about what it means to work alongside nature as opposed to taking it for granted. At the same time, the principles of business and innovation surrounding growth of capital via monetization requires these innovations to return deep profits for those invested. Here’s how that duality played out in real-time:
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micro-inverters,
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TIEcon
Published on May 13th, 2009
What’s wrong with wind power and solar energy and right with coal? 
Well, coal can burn around the clock, as long as you have enough of it. But the wind doesn’t blow all the time and the sun doesn’t shine all the time. Sure, you can store power in batteries, but how much?
How about enough to power an LED streetlight, without wires, that is sure to turn on every night?
There’s a French company called Windela that has crossed a streetlight with a vertical-axis wind turbine and a solar panel. It charges up during the day, when the sun is shining or the wind is blowing. At night, it shines.
It also can work as a Wi-Fi relay, similar to a solar streetlight known as Starsight. Imagine it: Wi-Fi, light at night, no coal required. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on April 14th, 2009
POWERleap is a brilliant new concept in city building, sidewalk and street design.
“Think Fifth Avenue powered by the stampede of commuters! By harnessing the inherent energy in routine and recreational activity, POWERleap generates a new form of alternative energy on-site for immediate use. “
You never know, this just may begin in green building design and work its way into public and city and town square planning. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on April 14th, 2009
An army travels on its stomach, and the U.S. military is no exception. The impact is evident in the packaging, especially plastic packaging, left over from MRE’s, Unitized Group Rations, and other packaged food supplies. That’s about to change, big time. Food waste composting is on the horizon for U.S. military bases and even field operations, and close on its heels is a compostable bioplastic for military use.
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