Category Archives: Green News
Oil spill responsible for corals death
“It reminds me of going to a family funeral,” said Charles Fisher, a biology professor at Penn State University, and chief scientist on a recent mission to study the impact of the Gulf oil spill on coral in the area.
Just like seeing extended family, “It’s always fun to go into the deep sea, and we saw a lot of life” he said. “But, on the other hand the reason you’re there is not a happy reason. Some corals have been severely slimmed. Some are dead or dying.”
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, Mass, led a nine-day mission this month to study the effects of the oil spill on life at the bottom of the sea. A team of scientists set out on a research vessel, spending just over a week in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico.
Equipped with both an autonomous submarine called Sentry, as well as a submersible called Alvin, the scientists photographed, mapped and collected samples from the Gulf nearly 24 hours a day. They completed six dives on Alvin, and set up a camera near the site of a dying coral reef, which will snap photos every hour for the next two months monitoring the coral’s heath.
The expedition follows on the heels of an earlier cruise in which many of the same scientists found dozens of coral species seven miles from the spill site that appeared to be dead or dying. The scientists revisited that same site, looked for other coral reefs, and took photos and samples from both the sick coral as well as another colony of reefs that appeared healthy.
“I probably had the happiest experience on the cruise,” said Chris German, chief scientist for deep submergence at Woods Hole. “I got to see the healthy coral.” More disheartening were the damaged and dying corals coated with a brown gooey substance. While German said the team was refraining from making any conclusions about the source of the brown goo before the analysis was complete, he said, “it doesn’t look like it is part of the natural system.”
The coral were “covered in brown goop that we haven’t seen anywhere else,” German said, describing the site as a “smoking gun” that may be representative of other impacted coral communities.
German said that the coral coated in brown goop was about seven miles southwest of the spill site. Based on the ocean currents and the dynamics of the gushing oil, scientists were able to predict where the oil plume was likely to spread. The dying coral was found in that area, while the healthy coral about 15 miles southeast of where the rig exploded was likely out of range of the plume, German said.
India plans to publish natural wealth accounts
India is to be the first country to publish accounts tracking its plant, animal, water and other ‘natural wealth’ alongside financial measurements such as GDP.
The announcement will be made in the next few days at a meeting of world governments in Japan to try to halt global destruction of biodiversity.
The World Bank will coordinate efforts to set common measures, such as the value of ecosystems and their ‘services’ for humans — from relaxation to clean air and fertile soil and hopes it can sign up 10 to 12 countries to publish their results by 2015 at the latest.
The move fulfils one of the demands of a UN report released on October 20 at the meeting in Japan, The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (Teeb). The report was commissioned by the G8+5 major nations in 2007 in the hope of repeating the success of the British economist Nicholas Stern’s report on climate change in persuading governments of the economic case for taking action to save the naturalworld. Pavan Sukhdev, an economist and the Teeb study leader, said, “Natural capital is a massive asset class, and developing nations’ biggest asset. For it to be missing from the balance sheet of the nation, or for failures not to be counted, does not make sense.”
The report did not put a specific value on the world’s biodiversity, though Sukhdev spoke of “the multi-trillion-dollar importance” of the natural world. It said there was plenty of evidence for national and local governments, businesses and individuals to radically review how they make decisions to take into account the damage or preservation of biodiversity.
The report recommends that countries and companies should publish accounts of their natural capital, and how much it has increased or decreased over the previous year, in parallel with traditional financial accounts. This should help to address current accounting rules, which, for example, measure the cleanup of a pollution spill as an increase in economic activity (by the clean up companies), but take no account of the long-term damage done. 
Such measures would be more likely to encourage other suggested changes, such as paying people to protect or restore ecosystems, refunding those who do not cut down forests and farmers who use fewer chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and better certification schemes so that those who produce products and services, such as food and drink, in more environmentally friendly ways can get recognition and charge higher prices to cover extra costs. The report calls for the reform of subsidies for damaging industries, such as mining and intensive farming, and tougher fines for polluters. The report team estimates that at present rates deforestation will cost the global economy $2-45 trillion a year by the middle of this century. The total environmental damage caused by the world’s 3,000 biggest listed companies in 2008 is thought to add up to at least $2.2 trillion.
Going Green Electric Car Conversion Tips
Have you heard that the US government offers tax refunds for anyone that converts their cars from gas guzzling to electric power? It is true. The IRS will give up to a thousand dollars in refunds to those who do a conversion. Wonder why? Gasoline prices are going up constantly. they sometimes go down for a short time and increase even more after. With an DIY electric car conversion you could start saving cash in green friendly way.
Most drivers do not realize that instead of getting a super expensive hybrid, you could instead enjoy a DIY electric car conversion. You will not even have to be an expert in cars, or know all about gas to electric conversions.
The advantages of having your own ev car are obvious, but what are the advantages of doing your own ev conversion – well, that’s a entirely different matter.
You do not have to get frustrated about doing a DIY electric conversion. With the mileage by itself, you will save a ton of money each year and you’ll be able to go do so much more because of not spending so much on gassoline. In an average car, one would get about 16 miles to a gallon on fuel but with the aid of an electric conversion kit, one could get up to 200 mpg with only a single charge which only costs one dollar. You’ll also prolong the life of your vehicle as there will not be internal combustion in the car now. The engine will be quiet and smooth but will still be able to run as much as 65 mph. Doing the conversion is worth the savings and not to mention the other perks. In addition to the tax cuts that the US government will give you, you’ll also be contributing to a cleaner environment. One month of having an ev vehicle will pay for the cost of the entire electric car kit!
Much different than gas-powered automobiles, the wearing down on electric autos is minimal, so when you begin on the ev conversion, you won’t even have to stock up extra parts. The most commonly replaced part is the battery, which is easily available. 
There are many different designs of the ev conversion kit to get. But of course, some are better quallity than the rest. The optimal way to pick is to be sure that you will get all the facts without all the junk. Some give really good instructions with info as to what is needed in the electric conversion in terms of tools and parts. In only few hours of time, you can have a totally new vehicle. So quit spending 1000s each year on gasoline; now you can start saving up for the trips you have been dreaming of for years. There’s no need to worry about building it all by yourself; with the information and easy instructions these provide, you can finish it in a snap.
Maintenance is going to be simple with an ev auto. Think – no more need for any tune-ups, This is great for the car and the pocket book.
Doing an electric car conversion isn’t as simple as appears. It is not as if you can just go and buy ev parts anywhere and replace them right away. You could need guidance, and thats why the kits are the best option. Well, if you do not buy a guide then you will have to hire a mechanic.
convert car to electric, electric conversion, electric car conversion
How Green Is Hydroelectricity?
Hydroelectricity is often presented as a green energy source, but how true is this? Hydro has several environmental and aesthetic drawbacks that make it less than ideal compared to the clean power provided by sources such as wind and sun.
The most visible environmental aspect of Hydroelectricity is its impact on the environment, as it requires the damming of rivers. This causes the flooding of low lying land behind the dam and while this is often not desirable, the reality is that it is just an alteration to the environment. If the dam was to remain filled with water all the time, this would have no environmental effect outside the dam area.
Why is it then that Hydroelectric installations are associated with high levels of methane production? When organic matter from plants and animals breaks down without oxygen present, methane is formed. This anaerobic process is very similar to the ones that resulted in the formation of the fossil fuels we use today.
Consider the following chain of events that unfold once the dam has been constructed.
First the land is submerged and the vegetation with it. The vegetation drowns and begins to rot. Since there is very little available oxygen, the plant material breaks down to form, among other things, methane that is absorbed by the water.
This is all normal so far, as this would occur with any permanent flooding. But a Hydroelectricity dam is usually both a power supply and an urban water source and so the water levels in the dam tend to rise and fall a great deal. In dry times the water level will drop to its lowest levels which will expose land around the edges of the water and possibly at the bottom of the dam itself.
This exposed land is ideal for growing plants and so it blooms with new life. As most dams are shallow, the amount of land exposed at the edges as the water drops can be very large. The shallower the dam, the more land is exposed annually.
After a time the rains return and the dam fills up again. The new vegetation is then also covered with water and so rots anaerobically and so more methane enters the water of the dam.
This continues year after year, resulting in a slow but steady increase in the amount of methane absorbed in the water of the dam. This is a problem because methane is not very soluble in water. When the water passes through the dam’s turbines it escapes the water and enters the atmosphere.
Methane is a dangerous greenhouse gas. It is approximately 21 times more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than Carbon Dioxide. This means that electricity from a Hydroelectric plant can be up to three times more polluting per energy unit than the same power from a coal or oil fired plant. This figure depends on the climate and geography the Hydro plant is located in, as these factors determining the amount of vegetation added to the dam each year. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has recognized this issue and now includes methane from Hydroelectricity in national emissions totals. 
Hydroelectricity may be a renewable energy source but it is not an environmentally friendly one. When looking at whether a new Hydro plant is warranted, methane emissions must be taken into account. A cleaner and greener solution is to build solar and wind energy stations as once constructed these have no emissions associated with them at all.
For more information on electricity generation and its issues, visit the Fossil Fuels section of Roger Vanderlely’s website. There you can also find out about getting a good deal on cheap solar panels to become more power independent and do your bit for the environment.
This article is brought to you by George Zalcman. George Zalcman has always had a passion for green technologies, and believes that we should all get on the boat before natural resources become limited. George Zalcman is part of an air to water technology hoping that this will eventually bring an end to the water crisis as well.
Paris hosts sustainable fashion show
Ethical fashion is riding the recession in style, with a major show opening in Paris on September 25. The Ethical Fashion Show, the world’s largest event devoted solely to sustainable fashion, is now in its seventh year. Over a hundred brands represented the four-day long fashion show that has outgrown its humble origins in disused ware-houses to occupy the new Docks en Seine building, home of the French Fashion Institute.
The clothes on display ranged from the impressive but quirky — a jaw-dropping couture dress made from recycled film stock — to the more wearable and commercial, like 50s-style skirts in organic cotton and silk from French/Vietnamese brand All, and British company Terra Plana’s recycled leather shoes.
This year the show was taken over by Messe Frankfurt, the world’s largest trade show organiser — a sign that despite the recession, ethical fashion is still a growth market. “It’s become more professional, it looks a lot more like a trade show now,” said Gilles Richard of childrenswearbrand La Queue du Chat, who have been exhibiting here for four years. 
Several brands from Britain also made the trip. Sarah Ratty of Ciel, who was showcasing a stunning new digital print, colour-fixed with algae, said she had been lured here for the first time by the involvement of Messe Frankfurt. “It’s nice to be able to have a platform abroad to showcase great British design with a green twist,” she said.
Other highlights included an ingenious dress by Danish company Diffus, embedded with tiny lights that visibly react to the CO2 levels in the environment around it. Celebrating the UN’s Year of Biodiversity, there was also a particular focus on sustainable fabrics, including loose-knit scarfs and jumpers made from nettle, pineapple and super-soft banana fibres.
Worlds largest offshore wind farm
The world’s largest offshore wind farm which cost over 750 million pounds to build is poised to open off the coast of Kent with 100 turbines producing enough electricity to supply heat and light for 200,000 homes.
The Thanet facility which is going through final testing by Vattenfall, its Swedish power company operator, arrives as the National Grid revealed that at one stage last week 10 per cent of the UK’s electricity came from wind farms.
But industry experts’ claim that the wider green revolution needed to meet European Union (EU) renewable and climate change targets imposed by EU is still in danger from proposed spending cuts.
Chris Huhne, the energy and climate change secretary will open the facility which is 12 km off Forness point on September 23. 
The Thanet farm, which will be able to produce 300MW of electricity, will be the biggest offshore facility of its kind until the even larger London Array, which has an eventual goal of 340 turbines is completed. It will dwarf the Kentish Flats facility off Whitsable also run by Cattenfall and using similar Vestas turbines.
“We are expecting to see the contribution of electricity from wind gradually increase over the next decade to around 30 per cent of the UK’s total consumption. This news confirms that not only are the wind farms we have built so far starting to deliver but that UK wind farm yields are the best in Europe and comparable with established technologies such as hydro,” said Maria McCaffery, chief executive of Renewable UK.
- The Guardian
Top Electric Cars for 2010
Tesla is the first company to sell 1,000 electric cars in the U.S. The manufactured cars can go from zero to sixty in less than four seconds. Tesla 
is on its way to make a new model called S hatchback which has a starting price of $57,400 and is roomy and half the price of Roadster. The new Model S will have an amazing 300 mile per charge range.
Nissan is planning to become the first auto maker to put 10,000 electric cars on U.S. road. Nissan LEAF costs around $32,780 with a range of 100 mile per charge. This hatchback has 5 doors and 5 seats and is ideal for people who drive under 100 miles daily.
Toyota Prius Plug in Hybrid (PHV) will build on the million car success of Toyota hybrids. Toyota is planning to deploy 5kWh
battery for a 14 mile electric range to cut costs initially but will expand it to include a pure battery electric FT-EV.
General Motors is also in the race with Chevy Volt, a plug in hybrid with 40 miles range and an added 300 miles if one gasoline engine is added as a generator. GM plans to deliver 10,000 units in 2011.
Ford is planning to sell at least three electric cars by 2011. The most anticipated one is Ford Focus EV an electric car that is expected to compete with Nissan Leaf.
Mitsubishi is already a huge electric car manufacturer in Japan. It is planning to launch the US version of iMiEV which is the best selling green cars in Japan. The price range is expected to be around $30,000. This car has 5 doors and 4 seats hatchback with a wheel base of 5 inches for the US market. The more powerful version of this car for US will have a 16kWh Lithium battery with an electric range of 50 to 80 miles.
Fisker Karma is a sports plug in hybrid costing around $90,000 with $528 million DOE conditional loan. It is expected to arrive in the market in late 2010 and more affordable family cars is planned to be released in 2012.
Think is a well known brand in Europe and sells small battery electric city cars. Most of the reputed delegates in Copenhagen Climate summit were transported with Think EV. It plans to be on the U.S. highways by the end of 2011.
Chrysler has about 40,000 of GEM 25-mph light electric vehicles in the U.S. roads in towns, university, fleets and retirement communities. A sub compact electric Fiat 500 EV is expected to been seen on US in 2012 with the price range around mid thirties.
BYD is financed by Warren Buffet ($200 million). BYD is selling its plug in hybrid and E6 battery electric car in china.
Wind energy to power Google data centre
Google Inc’s energy unit has entered into a deal to buy wind power from NextEra Energy Inc for the next 20 years to power data centres. The deal comes less than three months after the giant Silicon Valley Internet search company invested $38.8 million in two wind farms in North Dakota, developed by NextEra Energy Resources, that generate enough energy to power more than 55,000 homes.Google Energy LLC will begin buying wind power from July 30 from NextEra’s facility in Iowa at a predetermined rate, Urs Hoelzle, Google’s senior vice presi- dent of operations, said in a blog on Google’s website. “Incorporating such a large amount of wind power into our portfolio is tricky, but this power is enough to supply several data centres,” Hoelzle added. 
Google has pushed ahead in addressing climate change issues as a philanthropic effort through its Google.org arm. The often-quirky company said in late 2007 that it would invest in companies and do research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy — at a price less than burning coal — within a few years. The company’s Google Energy unit, formed in December, allows the company to buy large volumes of renewable energy from the wholesale power market.
Top 10 worlds greenest cities
Going green seems to be the new fad and there are whole countries that have upped their efforts to reduce their impact on the environment. Here are 10 countries that have set the stage to creating a ‘Greener’ Earth. All of these countries have found ways to reduce their carbon and sulphur emissions which leads to cleaner air and water. This list is based on each country’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI) rating provided by Yale University.
10. Colombia (76.8): It is said Colombia is home to 10 percent of various species found throughout the world. Scientists have also discovered it may be home to as many as 10 new amphibians species. The Colombian government has made efforts to turn the country into one that is eco-friendly. TO do so, numerous national parks, some including native medicinal plants, have been opened, like the Orito Igni-Ande Medicinal Flora Sanctuary. Also, architects in Colombia have started to use bamboo, which they say is just as durable and reliable as a means to building structures. Even fashion has gone green in Colombia – designer Maria Nubia Ayala has created a line of clothing using leaves and flowers.
9. Cuba (78.1): Cuba has never been a country that has been extremely harsh to the environment. Most who live in the country either travel by bicycle or foot, and many make their money by selling crops and raising livestock. However, there have been times when illegal pesticides were used as well as land that was abandoned. To fix this, the country has put forth effort to reuse farm land, decrease the use of harmful pesticides, and to lower the sea level to ensure that salt from the water does not ruin the rich soil. Cuba has also decided to only use organic products on all farms. Cuba has decided to put a lot of effort and money into using hydroelectric energy. In 2008, it began connecting many homes and businesses located in Guamá to a hydro-electric power station. Once it is all said and done and the 30 rivers located near or in Guamá are used, almost 7,000 people will have clean electricity.
8. Austria (78.1): The 2010 Winter Olympics were just one place where Austria planted its green footprint. To house the Austrian Olympic Committee as well as several broadcasters, the country built a ‘passive house’ in Whistler, BC. The passive house is self-regulatory and is able to heat and cool when necessary. Austria has teamed up with the Czech Republic in order to plant eco-friendly gardens across the border between the two countries. There are already 330,000 gardens in Austria and 6,800 of them are natural and eco-friendly.
7. France (78.2): France is earning a reputation as an eco-friendly country. It now gets 80 per cent of its electricity from the use of nuclear power. Alès, a commune in France, is said to be one of the greenest locations in the country. The commune is home to one of only three buildings that utilizes solar panels as a means for energy. To encourage the use of solar panels, the country offers a reduction in taxes if a home-owner decides to use solar energy in their home. France as a whole has decided to utilize more wood and straw bales to construct. It is said that straw bales are very sturdy, eco-friendly, renewable, and even provide for great thermal insulation.
6. Mauritius (80.6): Mauritius is an island off the coast of Africa and east of Madagascar. The country wants to focus on recycling and finding ways to reuse items. This includes burning solid waste instead of storing or dumping it. Finance Minister Rama Sithanen wants to rely on renewable and cleaner types of energy. The country is focusing on wind power and using sugar cane plants to create fuel, especially for boilers.
5. Norway (81.1): By 2030, Norway hopes to be a country that is carbon neutral. This means the country plans to find ways so that there are no green-house gases emitted. But, before 2030, the country also plans to cut its total emissions to 40 per cent. Norway has also planned to set aside large amounts of money to put towards other green-friendly ideas. For example, it wants to focus heavily on utilizing railroads more, as well as finding an alternative source for fuel. Those who use diesel fuel will have to pay a higher fee for it. Norway hopes to have all businesses in the country run with flexible energy systems and from 2009 on, the use of oil-powered heating systems has been banned. The country also hopes to cut down on the amount of deforestation. 
4. Sweden (86): Sweden has a plan to phase out the use of fossil fuels by 2020; however, these efforts didn’t just begin. The change started in 1980s during the oil crisis and today 28 per cent of the energy and resources used in Sweden are renewable and eco-friendly. The country has focused on the use of hydropower, nuclear power, and wind power to provide electricity and other necessities throughout Sweden. One major way Sweden is going green is by using every piece of their forests. Though the trees are often used for various lumber projects, there is usually sawdust left behind. The government has decided sawdust can be manufactured into wood pellets, which are sold to homeowners to generate heat. Sweden has also decided to cut back on the amount of fuel needed for transportation. Many citizens in Sweden now power their cars using methane, which is taken from the entrails of cows.
3. Costa Rica (86.4): By 2021, Costa Rica hopes to be one of the few, if not the only country in the world that is carbon neutral. For decades, Costa Rica has been plagued with deforestation. Because the country is very agricultural and known for its export of food, including corn and bananas, there is a great need for land to farm and produce these crops. However, the country has made use of the forest land and actually began to utilize the shade that is created by the canopy to successfully grow the necessary crops. This not only saves space, but reduces the amount of pesticides used to protect the produce. Now Costa Rica is focusing on reforestation and building up the land that was ruined. In fact, the country planted over 5 million trees in 2008.
2. Switzerland (89.1): Switzerland has a long, proven record of being eco-friendly and protecting the environment. For instance, in 1914, it created the first Alpine park located in the Alps, and the tradition has carried on, as it plans to build at least 20 more of these parks. Not only has Switzerland added eco-friendly parts to their country, they’ve also taken a few things away. In some cities, cars are not allowed. While it may seem a little strict, the country has even imposed a fee for disposing of trash in the country. There are also fees for using waste management services. The governments pushing for eco- friendly living, but even hotels are joining in with hopes to show that going green does have its benefits. For example, Badrutt’s Palace Hotel offers discounts to those who arrive in a hybrid car. It had an entirely new heating system installed which is said to reduce its carbon output by 80 per cent each year. The new heating system gets all of its energy from a nearby lake, as do many other hotels and even schools.
1. Iceland (93.5): Because of its location, Iceland has focused on using its geothermal landscape to utilize clean electricity and heat. The most commonly used source for heat and electricity is hydrogen, and the country hopes to become the first to be entirely reliant upon this energy source. Not only will the hydrogen energy be used by homeowners and those who occupy buildings, it is also used for transportation. The government of Iceland has provided hydrogen-powered buses to ensure people can get to their destinations in an eco-friendly way. To go along with the buses, Iceland has put a lot of focus on the Mercedes Benz A-Class F-Cell. This car is also fuelled by hydrogen and can go up to 100 miles on a full tank. Today Iceland can proudly say only 18 per cent of its energy sources come from coal, the other 82 per cent is pure hydrogen and geothermal power.
charge your iphone with solar power
The very concept of keeping an iPhone fully charged? Laughable. But using the sun as a power source? That’s positively preposterous.
Apparently crazy is on the menu over at Dexim HQ. Their new solar- powered P-Flip, promises to juice an iPhone’s talk time up to eight hours. The rigging basically looks like a bulky black and camouflage case. You slide the iPhone in and the panels soak up sunlight and transfer it over to the phone’s power-hungry battery.
While the P-Flip manual claims a full solar charge takes 10-12 hours, Dexim’s website says 15 hours. It doesn’t matter if it’s cloudy, foggy or smoggy — the battery charges up at the same rate no matter the conditions. 
The side button and an array of three LED mini-lights tell how much energy is left. The middle light also keeps informed if a solar or USB charge is taking place.
The P-Flip is also digitally ambidextrous, flipping both horizontally or vertically — cool for hands-free viewing of videos in either direction. There’s an included USB cord too that can used to sync the phone with iTunes on a PC or Mac.
In any event this solar charging case isn’t a bad idea. Anyone who needs their phone charged and won’t be near an electrical outlet for a while would be smart to get one.