Posted by Greenbang on November 29th, 2007
Greenpeace has released the sixth issue of its ‘Guide to Greener Electronics‘ - scoring companies on their policies on toxic chemicals and recycling. Companies are given ratings out of 10.
Microsoft didn’t do very well with a score of 2.7, partly due to their long timeline for toxic chemicals elimination. They did, however fair better than Phillips who didn’t have a timeline.
Nintendo, though, are the first global brand to ever score a complete zero in every category, some of which included:
Reports on amount of waste electrical and electronic equipment collected and recycled.
PVC-free and/or BFR-free models
“The ranking criteria reflect the demands of the Toxic Tech campaign to the electronics companies. Our two demands are that companies should:
- Clean up their products by eliminating hazardous substances
- Takeback and recycle their products responsibly once they become obsolete.
The two issues are connected. The use of harmful chemicals in electronics prevents their safe recycling when the products are discarded. Companies score marks out of 30, which are then recalculated to give a mark out of 10 for simplicity.”
Sony Ericsson and Samsung came out on top, both with scores of 7.7
Posted by Greenbang on November 29th, 2007
Tetra Recart is a new form of food packaging, vying to replace the environmentally unfriendly tin can.
Weighing in at just 18g as opposed to the standard sized can, which is in a totally different weight division at 50g; Sainsbury’s will use the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) approved carton - for it’s own chopped tomatoes.
“The Tetra Recart carton reassures Sainsbury’s customers that the paperboard used comes from well-managed forests and controlled sources. The package’s rectangular shape also reduces carbon footprint, as it is highly efficient during transportation, storage and in distribution, using 33% less space than a can.”
“The carton is recyclable and can be recycled with over 70% of the UK’s councils. Sainsbury’s ready meals will also soon be moving to all-natural packaging that breaks down in garden compost heaps.”
Stuart Lendrum, Packaging Manager of Sainsbury’s says:
“We know from a recent LGA (Local Government Association) report that we’ve already made a lot of progress with our packaging, including a high proportion that can be recycled, but this now helps us to further reduce the weight of packaging. This will make it more efficient for us to transport to our stores, and much easier for our customers to carry home.”
Posted by Greenbang on November 29th, 2007
Pelamis Wave Power Ltd - is revamping its wave converter power generators.
The wave energy converters are intended to be linked together to form a “wave farm” on the ocean’s surface as seen here.
“Hydraulic rams resist the motion of the waves and pump hydraulic fluid through electricity-producing generators. A wave farm of 40 Pelamis machines, covering a square kilometer of ocean surface, is capable of generating electric power for 20,000 homes.”
Jon Benzie, senior engineer at PWP contributes:
“The PWEC is an extremely innovative machine for harnessing the ocean’s energy. ”
Posted by Greenbang on November 29th, 2007
At approximately 13:00 hours GMT (er yesterday), Greenbang received information from a reliable source that eco activists ‘Greenpeace’ were having a poll to decide the name of a whale.
It would seem, from viewing the data available online that they are doing everything in their power not to call the whale ‘Mister Splashy Pants’ - instead seeming to favour spiritual type bestowals.
The aforementioned reliable source left Greenbang with the words:”You know what to do”.
So please vote for this whale to be called
Mister Splashy Pants
Posted by Greenbang on November 28th, 2007
This is about the Americans blending biofuel into its standard supply of petrol…
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency set a new renewable fuels standard of 4.66 percent to meet a federal mandate that at least 5.4 billion gallons of renewable fuels be blended into transportation gasoline in 2008.
Under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the EPA is responsible for regulations to ensure that gasoline sold in the U.S. contains a minimum volume of renewable fuel.
A thousand thanks to the Matter Network for that…
Posted by Greenbang on November 28th, 2007
Bahhhhh.
It’s nearly Christmas time and the energy-saving gadgets are coming out.
The meter is a small, neat, stand-alone visual display device that allows the user to monitor exactly how much electricity he is using. The Efergy meter also has a sophisticated, built-in memory function which totals up and records consumption at the end of every day, week and month on a rolling basis. This means the user really can keep track of his own energy usage.
As the data on the screen of the Efergy meter is refreshed every six seconds, the impact on power usage of turning an electrical appliance on or off can be seen immediately – it’s amazing to see just how much energy an electric kettle actually uses!
The Efergy meter is perfect for home use but can work really well for businesses too. Having a visual display of exactly how much electricity is being consumed, means users can turn off what is not essential, such as little-used printers or fax machines on stand-by, switch off unnecessary lighting and start to install things such as low energy light bulbs and push-timer switches.
Armed with this kind of detailed information, the Efergy meter really can help change people’s lives at home and at work and enable them to become more energy efficient and less wasteful when it comes to using electricity, without drastic lifestyle changes.
Plus, as well ad doing your bit for the planet in terms of reduced CO2 emissions, it will save money too, reflected in lower power bills!
Installation takes just a few minutes. It does not require any tools or cable-cutting, nor is it necessary to call in an electrician. Once set up, the transmitter has a range of 40 metres which makes the Efergy meter suitable for every type of home or office.
The Efergy meter costs £42.95.
Posted by Greenbang on November 28th, 2007
Google - the search beast - is trying to build 1 gigawatt of renewable energy capacity that is cheaper than coal.
It’s a formidable decision and exactly the kind of innovation that all the big tech companies should undertake.
“Our new initiative isn’t just about Google’s energy needs; we’re seeking to accelerate the pace at which clean energy technologies are developing, so they can rival the economics of coal quickly.
We’ve gained expertise in designing and building large-scale, energy-intensive facilities by building data centers that lead the industry in efficiency. We want to apply the same creativity and innovation to the challenge of generating inexpensive renewable electricity at scale.
Promising technologies already exist that could be developed to deliver renewable energy cheaper than coal. We think the time is ripe to build rapidly on the tremendous work on renewable energy. For example, I believe that solar thermal technology provides a very plausible path to generating cheaper electricity. By combining talented technologists, great partners and large investments, we have an opportunity to quickly push this technology forward. Our goal is to build 1 gigawatt of renewable energy capacity that is cheaper than coal. We are optimistic that this can be done within years, not decades. If we succeed, it would likely provide a path to replacing a substantial portion of the world’s electricity needs with renewable energy sources.
To lead this effort, we’re looking for a world-class team. We need creative and motivated entrepreneurs and technologists with expertise in a broad range of areas, including materials science, physics, chemistry, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, land acquisition and management, power transmission and substations, construction, and regulatory issues. Join us. And if you’re interested, read about our previous work toward a clean energy future
Posted by Greenbang on November 27th, 2007
Jason from the Ethical Directory sends us this:
Dear Dan,
One of the Ethical Directory family, Rex from Cook’s Delight, is petitioning Number 10, Downing Street and he needs your signature.
I’ve signed it and I think you’ll agree with his cause.
His petition is at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Notolandfill/ and reads:
“We the undersigned, petition the Prime Minister to make Local Councils responsible to collect small businesses waste for re-cycling.
At this time up and down the country Small Businesses are struggling to re-cycle their waste resources. Councils are collecting some and putting them all in landfill. This is unacceptable behaviour and they should be required to re-cycle all the compostable waste and products that householders at present get recycled.”
Many thanks for your help in this matter.
Kind regards,
Jason Elliott
www.ethicaldirectory.co.uk
Posted by Greenbang on November 27th, 2007
Hello there
A chief sustainability officer yesterday told Greenbang about some of the meetings he’s been having with his peers from other companies.
He, who shall remain nameless, said while all the FTSE companies are looking at climate change, the big question for everyone is how they are structuring their staff.
Many of the tech companies, HP for example, are employing people to ensure the supply chain is in order. HP has someone to audit its supplier factories, working conditions and for things like where metals are mined and how hazardous chemicals are disposed of.
From Greenbang’s point of view, many of the big UK PLC companies seem to be looking internally at what they can do. Some are just a bit scared of saying anything for fear of blowing open holes they don’t want us journos poking around in.
But the most interesting point this chap made was how it’s the financial companies taking the biggest steps towards carbon neutrality and better transparency.
Greenbang’s been banging on for ages about how he hopes that tech companies will lead the way in combating climate change. He’s really wanted Bill Gates or someone similar to stand up and give it the attention it deserves.
Tech companies are the biggest innovators with some of the best resources on the planet. But what Greenbang hears is that it’s the financial companies who are trying the gain ground on thought leadership.
This is odd. For institutions that have long histories of avoiding risk and change, such quick, dramatic steps, such as HSBC’s to go carbon neutral and employ Nick Stern, writer of that big report that hit the headlines last year.
So Greenbang’s conclusion is this isn’t just a PR stunt. There’s either a lot of money to be made here or the banks have seen much bigger risks to their business in failing to act.
That act could be a cost-cutting exercise. It could be a genuine love of the world (?) or it could be something we’ve yet to see – perhaps it’s linked to the new energy and technology indexes the banks are pushing…
Posted by Greenbang on November 27th, 2007
There are two ways of looking at this:
1 - Toshiba is helping customers to offset the carbon from the manufacture and use of their laptops
2 - It’s helping itself pass the carbon buck and freeing any guilt from customers…
Toshiba today launched a new scheme through which its customers can offset the carbon dioxide produced during the manufacture and lifetime use of their laptops. For a small donation of £1.18, Toshiba customers now have the option of making their laptops a ‘Carbon Zero’ purchase through a tree planting scheme at dedicated Toshiba woodland, delivered in partnership with co2balance, Toshiba’s carbon offset partner.
The trees planted as part of the Toshiba Carbon Zero scheme will be native broad-leafed trees, in a new developing woodland called Sand Martin Wood in Cumbria. Trees are an effective, natural means of absorbing carbon dioxide emissions as part of the carbon cycle, with each tree absorbing around one tonne of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide during its lifetime.
Announcing the new scheme, Tom Nickson, Environmental Manager, Toshiba Computer Systems said: “The Carbon Zero scheme is an important one for Toshiba, because we’re allowing our customers to make a positive environmental choice when buying one of our products. This scheme is an important part of Toshiba’s wider commitment to improving the value, eco-efficiency of its products and business processes, as well as reducing emissions of carbon dioxide related to the manufacture and use of its products. The fact the cost to the consumer to offset one of our lap-tops is so low, demonstrates the progress made so far.”
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