The UK playing catchup to China?

Interesting to see the UK is weeks behind China on its vehicle eco-labelling policy… Scroll down for more info.

Insulating glaciers and re-icing the arctic

Yes, it’s all part of Popular Science’s “5 duct tape methods to save the Earth” and it makes for compelling reading, rather than a late April Fools’ joke. On the list are schemes to mass-produce genetically modified forests to undercut the market for rainforest timber, or tame super-storms

Week 1 on the Australian Climate Exchange

It’s one week on since the Aussies launched their first emission trading platform, the Australian Climate Exchange. Prices launched at A$8.50 (about £3.60) on the first day, with a modest 1,600 tons of Voluntary Emission Reductions changing hands. This compares with about €19.50 (£13.

Nanosolar CEO on solar biz: "take a pass"

There’s a great interview on Earth2Tech with Nanosolar CEO Martin Roscheisen, in which he gives his views on the current solar industry. When asked about whether he’d get into the solar business in 2007, he thinks not, as it’s moved into being a high-volume, low-cost industry. Q)

UK gov launches car efficiency ranking

The UK government has just launched an index ranking cars according to their fuel efficiency. It is designed to help people decide what new vehicle to buy, allowing them to search according to categories such as supermini, family, estate, and so on, alongside specifics such as transmission and fuel type.

Politicians to regulate carbon offsetting?

Fiona Harvey wrote in the FT last week of how MPs are seeking to make airlines and other “carbon-intensive” businesses offer ways for customers to offset their environmental impact. But earlier this year, the paper “uncovered numerous examples of companies selling at a high price offsets that were effectively worthless,

China labels vehicles with eco tag...

CHINA WATCH China is introducing a labelling system to help inform people how green their cars are. As the State Environmental Protection Administration revealed a week or two ago, the first of the Motor Vehicle Emission Standards will come into effect as of this year, othes following in 2010. According

UN bids to be carbon neutral

The UN has promised it will try to be carbon neutral within a few years. According to a Reuters report, it claims the UN hasn’t really set the example it perhaps should have. “We are behind. We’re obviously not the first. We can make a difference with the

Could China's future eco-cities fail to deliver?

CHINA WATCH Earlier this year, this Greenbanger excitedly read a story in Wired about a new eco-city that was being developed from scratch in China. The place, Dongtan, has been billed by its engineers, Arup, as the “world’s first sustainable city”–and the concept is truly compelling. This description

UK biofuel tax cuts

The UK Treasury recently dropped taxes for anyone using less than 2,500 litres of biodiesel or vegetable oil in their vehicles. A guest blogger on Earth2Tech (from non-profit co-op BloomingFutures, which converts cars to use biodiesel) believes the change will help boost take up and innovation in this area.

The green guide to making an eco-friendly laptop

Popular Science has a fantastic article on its site that details what laptop-makers could do to create their products far more eco-friendly. The piece covers a range of ideas, from chopping the toxic chemicals typically used in the manufacturing process to incorporating a photovoltaic cell into the design, to reduce

In the dark: Blackle may not save as energy as hoped

The Numbers Guy at the Wall Street Journal has done a little digging around to investigate the real impact of switching Google’s white background to black (ala Blackle) in order to reduce power consumption. On the plus side, there really is a power saving from switching to black. On