geoengineering
Is it true? Could Bjørn Lomborg — long a favourite of climate change sceptics for his view that the fight against global warming was too costly to be worth the effort — now have joined the Al Gore/James Hansen “We must act now” camp? Colour us highly sceptical. We’ll give
waste-to-energy
The Government today approved plans for a 95-megawatt power plant, to be built at Ince in Cheshire, that will generate energy from about 600,000 tonnes of waste each year. The waste, which would have otherwise gone to landfill, will instead be used to generate electricity to power a new
green cement
A UK firm working to develop carbon-negative cement recently announced that it’s raised more than £1 million equity funding. Cement manufacturing is currently highly carbon-intensive, making the global industry a major contributor to rising levels of greenhouse gases. The annual production of over 2.5 billion tonnes of Portland
global warming
Tinkering with the Earth’s climate systems to minimise climate change — a process known as “geoengineering” — could have unintended consequences, including possible major disruptions to the planet’s water cycles, according to recently published research. Writing in the journal Science, climate scientists Susan Solomon of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
global warming
Sea ice cover in the Arctic was at its third-lowest ever this past month, and unusually clear weather and warm winds are continuing to promote ice melt, according to the US National Snow and Ice Data Centre. It remains to be seen whether this year’s ice extent will set
biomass
MGT Power announced plans today for a second major biomass facility in the UK’s North East. The company already has Government approval for a plant at Teesport which will be fuelled by some 2.4 million tonnes of clean wood chip fuel per year and provide up to 295
green chemistry
Researchers say they’ve found a new way to analyse large numbers of novel marine microbes, a technology that could help lead to greener, more efficient manufacturing of new drugs and agrochemicals. Scientists at Heriot-Watt University and Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML), working in collaboration with the Edinburgh-based company Ingenza Ltd,
waste reduction
The retailer Tesco announced this week that it’s now diverting 100 per cent of the waste produced by its entire UK business away from landfill, a milestone reached almost a year ahead of the firm’s original target date. Tesco attributed the achievement to a “massive logistical exercise in
green inventions
The following is a guest column by Dave Croston, patent attorney and advanced engineering sector specialist at Withers & Rogers LLP: A new “green channel” for fast-tracking patent applications for environmentally-friendly inventions is already winning the support of British inventors. But while the benefits of faster processing are considerable, in
Jurdy realises this is one problem that can’t go ignored …
Irish grasslands could prove to be an important sink for carbon dioxide, according to a research report from Ireland’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The report results are based on analysis of measurements carried out by University College Cork and Teagasc over a five-year period at sites in the south-east
Starting next week, London will offer a little extra support to commuter cyclists as part of an initiative to encourage people to ride their bicycles to work each Friday. “Cycle Fridays,” an initiative launched by London Mayor Boris Johnson and Transport for London (TfL), kicks off next Friday — 14 August
