Britain planning laws may be revised to make it easier for micropower generation.
In an interview with The Observer, Planning Minister, Yvette Cooper said, “It is patently absurd that you should be able to put a satellite dish on your house, but have to wrestle with the planning process for small-scale micro-generation, which is no more obtrusive and can have a real impact on tackling climate change.”
Check out Gusse.org, a website where everything having to do with urban sustainability is at your fingertips in an Amazon-like searchable form. According to the info sheet: “Gusse is an online place where the world can collectively discuss, review and… Read More »Gusse.org
Style Will Save Us. A great declaration and a new digital magazine featuring stylish, eco-friendly, socially responsible products. Read up on their featured items, or discuss the latest topic (such as: What’s your most treasured vintage item and where did… Read More »Style Will Save Us
SustainableBusiness.com reports that the U.S. natural products industry grew 9.1% in 2005 totalling $51.4 billion (USD). This includes increases in purchases of organic foods, green cleaning products, and cosmetics. Natural products retailers account for half the sales at $25.5 billion… Read More »Natural Products Industry in U.S. Booms
African leaders are hoping to spur a “Green Revolution” in their countries, similar to that of Asia and Latin America in the 1950’s and 1960’s. They have proposed to eliminate taxes on fertilizer and have introduced a funding mechanism to make fertilizer more affordable to farmers who are often forced to abandon their lands and clear natural vegetation elsewhere because of soil depletion.
“Population pressure now compels farmers to grow crop after crop thereby mining the soil of nutrients,” Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo told heads of state and farming ministers from across Africa at a summit to address the crisis… [I]n Africa, where many farmers cannot afford fertiliser, yields per person have fallen over the last 40 years and experts warn that if soil depletion continues unabated, they will decline by up to 30 percent over the next 15 years. To avoid this, the heads of state pledged to reduce the cost of fertiliser by harmonising taxes and tariffs across the continent by mid-2007…
Read More »African countries make strides toward “Green Revolution”
A recent Canadian study gives a boost to green building. The study highlights case studies in the U.S. and Canada that provide further evidence that it does pay to build green.
Here are a few success stories from the executive summary:
Pennsylvania Power and Light noted a conversion’s electricity savings amounted to a payback in 4.1 years with a 24% return on investment. However benefits from lower absenteeism and higher productivity meant a simple payback of just 69 days, a 540% return on investment.
At Wal-Marts Lawrence, Kansas, Eco-Mart skylights were installed to reduce lighting costs. Employees asked to be moved to the daylit part because sales were higher there.