FEATURES AND NEWS
Using safer chemicals and improving chemical reporting has become a top priority for companies as the federal government moves closer to chemical reform legislation and consumers increasingly demand safer products and product transparency. The last few years has seen retailers and manufactures including Target, Walmart and SC Johnson take steps ... Read more »
The US Postal Service, Commonwealth Edison and Toyota were among those recognized by the EPA as the top waste reducers in 2014. The EPA recognized the waste reduction accomplishments of 29 participants in and endorsers of its WasteWise program and Food Recovery Challenge. These collaborative initiatives apply sustainable materials management ... Read more »
Tetra Pak is making its Tetra Rex Bio-based, the world’s first fully renewable package, available to customers worldwide. Finnish dairy producer Valio piloted the packaging for its lactose free semi-skimmed milk drink and now plans to expand use of the renewable package for some of its other products. Tetra Rex ... Read more »
A wastewater treatment plant in New York has reduced its noise with sound-absorbing panels, which can help industrial plants increase productivity and improve environment, health and safety conditions, according to a case study published on Water & Wastes Digest. The Coney Island Wastewater Treatment Plant’s acoustic levels exceeded safe levels, ... Read more »
Xerox has released products that reduce paper waste and simplify processes for the insurance industry and human resources departments. Xerox’s new offerings mean faster claims and new business processing for the insurance industry, the company says. Additionally, HR departments can speed the management of employee paperwork and data such as ... Read more »
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Research shows that energy efficiency is important – but not paramount – to building owners and operators and that implementation of measures to cut energy use are inconsistent in both existing structures and new building design. In late October, Honeywell and KRC Research released a study that looked at the priorities ... Read more »
The Turlock (CA) Irrigation District is increasing rebates as a way to cut energy use by business and residential users, according to the Turlock Journal. The story says that the LED energy rebate program for 2016 will rise from $0.05 per kWh to $0.08 per kWh for the first year. ... Read more »
Invenergy has signed a 100 MW wind power purchase agreement with Equinix to provide the company with renewable energy for its data centers across North America. The deal comes the week after Invenergy said it will provide 125 MW of wind power to Owens Corning. Fuel Fix reports that the deals will ... Read more »
This article is sponsored by Workiva. Achieving and maintaining compliance with safety regulations is an unquestioned duty for any organization, but even companies that have compliance under control sometimes struggle to rise to the next level in occupational safety. EHS professionals can elevate their programs—and improve work habits, safety culture, ... Read more »
In my practice, the most difficult problem I face is the skepticism of property owners and managers when it comes to the savings potential of energy upgrades. When dealing with fellow engineers and scientists, simply explaining the options and benefits is enough for them to have confidence that the technology ... Read more »
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As we sharpen our lens on climate in advance of the COP21 Summit in Paris, we all await whether or not agreements reached will result in transformative changes and ultimately in how businesses operate. But some changes in business operations are already under way as companies are recognizing how responsible ... Read more »
Four years into California’s historic drought, a $1 billion desalination plant is being built by Poseidon Water. The Carlsbad Desalination Project, 12 years in the making, will convert up to 56 million gallons of seawater daily into drinking water for San Diego County. It’s the state’s first major desalination plant ... Read more »
Ford is the first automaker to test autonomous vehicles at Mcity, a simulated real-world urban environment at the University of Michigan. The 32-acre facility is part of the university’s Mobility Transformation Center. Ford has been testing self-driving vehicles for more than 10 years and is now expanding testing on the ... Read more »
The energy storage industry is growing quickly. It is being driven, according to experts, by the parallel growth of on-site energy generation and an increasingly attractive list of operational and financial benefits. Research of batteries for electric vehicles – by Tesla and others – and incentives from utilities completes the ... Read more »
A new, efficient method of treating sludge from municipal waste treatment facilities or pulp and paper operations could improve phosphorous recycling efforts, reduce the problem of how to dispose of toxic waste sludge — and produce an economic benefit for industry, says Bio4Energy. The clean tech company’s researchers are developing ... Read more »
The owners of the Brant Colony hope to make its egg laying barn energy neutral. Producer.com says that 410-foot by 80-foot structure was constructed with energy efficiency in mind. For instance, the concrete base is farther below ground than traditional egg-laying barns and the sides of the concrete structure are insulated ... Read more »
The U.S. Department of Energy has unveiled The Standard Energy Efficiency Data (SEED) Collaborative. The initiative is a three-year partnership of selected cities and states that will work using a number of different techniques to improve the DOE’s SEED Platform. The platform, according to Builders.com, is a one of the ... Read more »
Without carbon capture and storage (CCS), it will cost an additional €1.2 trillion ($1.3 trillion) to reach the European Union’s CO2 reduction target for the power sector, according to a new report from European Technology Platform for Zero Emission Fossil Fuel Power Plants (ZEP). The report, Modeling the Lowest-Cost Route ... Read more »
Demilec, Publix and The Recycling Partnership (TRP) have been selected by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) to receive Innovation in Plastics Recycling Awards for 2015. The awards recognize companies and nonprofits that successfully bring new technologies, products and initiatives to communities and the marketplace that advance plastics recycling. Demilec converts ... Read more »
Major players in the corporate reporting field joined forces this week to help businesses navigate the complex sustainability reporting landscape. In a move that they say will “revolutionize” reporting, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) and Ecodesk created the Reporting Exchange, a ... Read more »
Seventy four percent of executives at companies with more than $1 billion in annual revenues, and 61 percent of all respondents, see a long-term agreement in Paris as critical to unlocking private-sector investment in climate solutions. The concern about policy action comes as two thirds (66 percent) of business leaders ... Read more »
Solar Sal, a 40-foot, solar-powered delivery vessel, has completed its voyage from Lockport, New York, to Mechanicville, New York, without the use of any fossil fuels. The maritime transport vessel carried four tons of recycled cardboard bales 300 miles along the Erie Canal. When the sun is shining, Solar Sal’s ... Read more »
Public and private fleet operators can save money by switching to natural gas vehicles and employing the business model that energy service companies (ESCOs) apply to energy efficiency projects, according to a report published by the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES). The report’s findings are part of a two-year ... Read more »
ElectraTherm says is new technology offers an emissions-reducing flaring alternative for oil and gas, wastewater treatment and landfills. The distributed, waste heat to power generation company completed a project in the Bakken oil field demonstrating how its Power+ Generator reduces flaring while generating low-emission electricity. ElectraTherm partnered with the Environmentally ... Read more »
EnergyScorecardsMinnesota was a Web-based energy and water benchmarking and tracking initiative that focused on managers and owners of multifamily premises. More than 550 buildings participated. The goals of the study were to demonstrate benchmarking, study its impact on the buildings and explore how property owners and managers used the data. ... Read more »