Green Futures News Briefings

Transport of delight

18 August 2008, Aviation, Transport & travel

GF tastes airship technology at first hand over London

A cleaner, more civilised flying experience than frenetic jet travel? Green Futures went on one of the world’s largest airships to find out.

Bin bounty

Louise Vennells 18 August 2008, Local government, Policy, Waste & recycling

Councils to reward residents for recycling

Within months, UK residents could be cashing in on their recycling under a new scheme which has already encouraged Americans to go green on their rubbish.

Hydrogen takes to the water

Tom Bamford 8 August 2008, Freight, Hydrogen/fuel cells, Shipping

Barge breakthrough on zero emission shipping

When transport secretary Ruth Kelly addressed the International Maritime Organization on the subject of the shipping industry’s huge carbon dioxide emissions, she might have drawn inspiration from an unassuming canal boat in Birmingham.

Beefing up biomass

Susan Gransden 7 August 2008, Energy sources

Waste timber, sawdust, or even willow, could be powering your home in 2011 if you get some of your electricity from a new biomass power station in Lincolnshire.

Anaconda joins wave energy hunt

Julia Sussams 6 August 2008, Wave power/tidal

The world’s largest snake, which hunts its prey in water, has given its name to a pioneering new device for generating electricity from waves.

Coal out for carbon count

Polly Ghazi 29 July 2008, Americas, Carbon reduction, Energy issues, Fossil fuels

New plants “must set CO2 limits”, US court rules

In the latest salvo in the intensifying US battle over the future of coal-fired electricity generation, the state of Georgia has blocked construction of a major new power station...

Cool-off for coal

Jon Wallace 29 July 2008, Carbon sequestration, Climate change, Fossil fuels, Policy

Halt plans for 'unclean' coal power stations, say reports

With no fewer than six current projects proposing to build new coal-fired power stations in the UK, it would be a bad mistake to approve any of them now, says Matthew Lockwood of the Institute for Public Policy Research (ippr).

Old World wine

Hannah Bullock and Julia Sussams 25 July 2008, Corporate responsibility, Freight, Shipping

Sailing ship takes ‘slow cargo’ from France to Ireland

Tesco made a splash last autum transporting wine by barge. Now a French shipping company has taken ‘slow freight’ one step further...

Hailing the future

Julia Sussams 23 July 2008, Hydrogen/fuel cells, Mass transit/Public transport

Hydrogen taxis get the green light for 2012

London’s aim of organising the “first ‘sustainable’ Games” has been given a further boost after plans were unveiled for a fleet of zero-emission hydrogen taxis, to be on the streets in time for the start of the 2012 Olympics.

2020 vision

Hannah Bullock 14 July 2008, Energy sources, Solar energy/PV, Wind power

Government launches ambitious blueprint for alternative energy future

A government proposal to generate 15% of energy from renewables by 2020 paints a radically different picture of life in just 12 years’ time: solar panels on 7 million buildings, 3 million homes heated with biomass...

Bucking trends and breaking records

Jon Wallace 11 July 2008, Biofuels, Sport

Green powerboat takes on the world – and wins

Pulling into the Spanish port of Sagunto a full 13 days, 21 hours and 9 minutes ahead of the official circumnavigation record, it was a case of around the world in 60 days for the crew of Earthrace, the hawk-like biodiesel-powered trimaran.

Tomorrow's house today

Roger East 28 June 2008, Built environment, Housing

Volume housebuilder showcases the zero carbon home

The ‘zero carbon home’ has become concrete reality. The Barratt Green House is the first new home built by a mainstream housebuilder which measures up to the strict sustainability criteria they’ll all have to meet by 2016.

Wind among the Jewels

Roger East 26 June 2008, Wind power

Crown Estate reaches Round Three

Although Shell shocked the renewables industry by pulling out of the massive London Array project, a big future still beckons for offshore wind in the UK. The Crown Estate (which owns the seabed within UK territorial waters) has now launched Round Three of its site-leasing programme.

Uncontained delight

Tom Bamford 24 June 2008, Behaviour change, Consumption, Local food, Retail

Goods without wrappers catch on with shoppers

A shop in Islington is changing the way we look at packaging.

Bread rising

Giovanna Dunmall 24 June 2008, Health, Local food, Organics

Campaign backs 'real' baking, exposes factory failings

Good bread needs to be at the centre of our tables again, says organic baker, teacher and campaigner Andrew Whitley. So get ready for a nationwide Bread Campaign, due to launch later this year.

Boris beds in

Jon Wallace 24 June 2008, Carbon reduction

Major tree-planting under way in capital as new research points to health benefits

Fresh from his victory in the London mayoral elections, Boris Johnson has announced a scheme to plant 10,000 new trees on the streets of the capital over the next three years.

Carbon pricing US style

Polly Ghazi 24 June 2008, Carbon reduction

San Francisco pioneers emissions levy for local businesses

In the first measure of its kind in the USA, companies in California’s Bay Area now face mandatory fees for their carbon emissions.

Fast lane to sane lane

Tom Bamford 24 June 2008, Carbon reduction, Cars

Local curb breaches German principle of limitless
autobahn speed

Fast cars are big business in Germany, but there are signs that the brakes are going on.

One down, but one to go

Jon Wallace 24 June 2008

Renewed optimism follows “bitter disappointment” over Lewis wind farm

It was a case of one door closing, another opening for renewable energy on the island of Lewis...

Hybrids by retro-fit

Andrew Williams and Roger East 24 June 2008, Cars

UK company's makeover approach could "convert conventional cars"

Can your current car boast the green credentials – and fuel economy – of a fuel/electric hybrid? If not, there may be a solution on the horizon, if a new conversion system lives up to its promise.

The national distrust

Roger East 24 June 2008, Green government, Toolkits/information packs

Environmental messaging bedevilled by 'greenwash'

“Only 10% of US and UK consumers trust green messages from businesses”. That was a year ago – and it’s getting worse...

Leaf service

Alison Winward 24 June 2008, Eco-products & services, Innovation

Indian leaves bring new life to disposable crockery

They’ve been used in rural India for countless years, but ‘disposable’ plates made from leaves are now becoming a big hit on British dining tables.

Redesign for living

Tom Bamford 24 June 2008, Recycling, Waste management, Waste minimisation

Student design rethink takes on the compost bucket

Where would you go for inspiration on sustainable design?

Coffin makers carry it off

Roger East 24 June 2008, Awards & grants

Awards fete UK's greenest companies

Another sign of the interest in ‘green exemplars’ – the new Sunday Times Best Green Companies awards.

Seagen tidecatcher makes its debut

Roger East 24 June 2008, Wave power/tidal

Largest tidal stream power device in the world ready to launch

The innovative tide-harnessing turbine known as SeaGen is securely in place, linked up to the grid, and almost ready to start turning the rapid ebbs and flows of Northern Ireland’s Strangford Lough into green electricity.

From cow to bag

Tom Bamford 24 June 2008, Packaging

Sainsbury's to sell milk in recyclable plastic ‘pouches’

The initiative, in partnership with milk supplier Dairy Crest, will only work if customers prove more green-minded than they were in 2001, when the supermarket chain’s first attempt to wean us onto pouches was abandoned due to lack of consumer interest.

Great wall of light

Tom Bamford 24 June 2008, Architecture, Built environment, Solar energy/PV

Chinese capital showcases solar powered LEDs

It might not be the biggest wall in China, but the Greenpix Zero Energy Media Wall in Beijing can lay claim to its own record.

The taming of the screw

Jon Wallace 24 June 2008, Hydro electric

Ancient technology finds new application

Thousands of years after it was invented for drawing water out of ship hulls, the ‘Archimedes screw’ has been rediscovered as an efficient, low-maintenance and ecologically sound hydropower generator.

Briefing: Ethics in the bag

Louise Vennells 20 June 2008, Entrepreneurship, Inspiration, Social enterprise

Indian co-op helps ditch plastic carriers

With disposable plastic bags under fire as the environmental bogeyman of the moment, businesses on the lookout for reusable alternatives might learn something from Paravur.

Best in show

Tom Bamford 19 June 2008, Cars, Hydrogen/fuel cells

Fuel cell power packs a punch in 'dream car' bracket

Three years in the making, the Morgan Lifecar is capable of doing 0 to 60 mph in a mere seven seconds – on a hydrogen fuel cell engine.

Farm food nation?

Polly Ghazi 21 April 2008, Local food

State law opens way for local farm food into US schools, low-income communities

So far, America’s booming local food movement has largely been limited to the farmers’ market loving middle class. But that’s starting to change.

Sun rises on US energy scene

Polly Ghazi 18 April 2008, Energy issues, Solar energy/PV

California’s “biggest ever” solar project follows record year for industry growth

America’s solar energy industry is coming of age. After a record growth year in 2007, pumping over $2 billion into the economy, the sector as a whole – manufacturers and distributors of photovoltaic, concentrating solar power and solar heating technology - is projecting that revenues will again more than double in 2008.

Traffic goes electric green

Andrew Williams 15 April 2008, Cars

Wind-powered recharge grid on the horizon for Danish battery vehicles

It’s looking good for electric cars in Denmark – as a new scheme promises a network of renewably-powered recharging stations by 2011.

Cutting down with the Joneses

Tom Bamford 15 April 2008, Green government, Housing, Regeneration

Green Neighbourhoods scheme to turn existing communities into beacons of low carbon living

Who’s showing the way on cutting the carbon footprint of the UK’s existing housing stock? Under a new government initiative, 100 communities across Britain could become shining examples of what’s possible - and achievable by ordinary people in ‘bog standard’ homes.

Duty to disclose

Jon Wallace 15 April 2008, Benchmarking/Rankings, Business, Communications/Reporting, Corporate responsibility

Companies face obligation to report CO2 after amendment to Climate Change Bill

Binding rules on carbon disclosure will put companies on a level playing field, where consumers and investors alike can make meaningful comparisons between the leaders – and the laggards.

Ships take a blow

Jon Wallace 25 March 2008, Shipping, Wind power

Merchant shipping tries out carbon-cutting solutions as true extent of emissions emerges

Hybrid container ships have arrived on a commercial scale.
Hybrid, that is, as in partly wind-powered. In a world first for a container vessel, the 10,000-tonne MS Beluga SkySails has been fitted with a computer-guided kite to help blow it along – taking some of the load off its oil-powered engine.

Feeding our cars

Hannah Bullock 25 March 2008, Cars, Waste to energy

General Motors turns food waste into fuel

It seems that everybody wants a share of our household food waste. Over in the US, General Motors is planning to transform the stuff into ethanol to fuel cars.

The new mile high club

25 March 2008, Aviation, Carbon offset/neutrality, Recycling

Airlines get passengers offsetting and recycling

When’s the best time to get air passengers to sign up to carbon offsets? When you can prick their conscience the most – on the plane. Virgin Atlantic is now offering offsetting to customers in-flight, along with the duty-free.

Take-off for biofuels?

Hannah Bullock 25 March 2008, Aviation, Biofuels

First ever biodiesel flight launches amidst controversy

A Virgin Atlantic test flight has boosted biofuel enthusiasts’ belief in its technical viability as aviation fuel. Yet the breakthrough comes as European targets to raise overall biofuel use are called into question – over the environmental and food security implications of large-scale production

Who’s on message?

Julian Rollins 25 March 2008, Awards & grants, Communications/Reporting, Corporate responsibility

Reporting awards encourage focus on sustainability – not just CSR

BT’s 2007 sustainability report has been judged Britain’s best, and Unilever’s is runner-up. But the judges of accountancy organisation ACCA’s annual awards were disappointed to find that most of the contenders were still stuck in the language – and mindset – of ‘corporate social responsibility’ rather than ‘sustainability’.

High card, low carbon

25 March 2008, Culture, Young people

Top Trumps, the cult card game for kids, has had a makeover from the environmental charity Marches Energy Agency.

Sun down under

Julian Rollins 25 March 2008, Community energy, Solar energy/PV

Outback town plans world first in solar power

The Queensland town of Cloncurry is aiming to transform itself into the world’s first fully solar-powered community. The centrepiece of the plan will be a 10MW solar thermal power tower, generating around 30 million kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.

Cadbury boost for producers?

Julian Rollins 25 March 2008, Africa, Corporate responsibility, Farming/Horticulture, Poverty/social exclusion

Partnership approach backs cocoa farmers in sustainability drive

Our love affair with chocolate would have a pretty flaky future, if growers couldn’t make a livelihood out of the beans.

Patent clarity

Iain Aitch 25 March 2008, Innovation

Companies show less protective streak over IP to save the planet

Businesses usually fight tooth and nail to protect their intellectual property. But now IBM, Nokia, Sony and Pitney Bowes are taking part in what is being described as the Eco-Patent Commons.

Newsreel

Roger East 25 March 2008, Budget/Taxation, Policy

The biggest green stories in government - in bite-sized chunks

Lights! Camera! Climate action!

Chris Alden 25 March 2008, Climate change impacts, Culture, TV

Campaign to get better grip on London film industry’s emissions

You can’t accuse film-makers in London of being blind to climate change. Only last summer, the disaster movie Flood depicted what might happen if the Thames was overwhelmed by rising seawater

Two wheels better

Roger East 25 March 2008, Cycling

Heartening signs for cyclists and pedestrians

Hot on the heels of Sustrans’s success in winning
£50 million of lottery money for its Connect2 cyclepaths scheme comes the announcement of a £140 million three-year plan at the Department for Transport to boost cycle training for children, connect more schools to the National Cycle Network, and help towns run cycling pilot projects.

Eggstra leg room

25 March 2008, Consumption, Farming/Horticulture

The Co-op is the latest supermarket to stop selling eggs from battery hens.

Following a consultation with its members, in which a quarter identified animal welfare as a priority, the retailer removed the offending items in February.

London charging ahead

Iain Aitch 25 March 2008, Congestion, Mass transit/Public transport

Congestion charging scheme and Paris’s free bikes share US award

Porsche drivers and mums in 4x4s on the school run might loathe both him and it, but Ken Livingstone’s congestion charge keeps winning plaudits.

Not just rearranging the loungers…

Alison Winward 25 March 2008, Construction, Health

Titanic Spa aims to set an eco-example

It says it’s “the UK’s first eco-spa”. It opened last year inside Titanic Mill, a luxury green apartment complex conversion in a former textile mill near Huddersfield.

Village greening

Jon Wallace 25 March 2008, Awards & grants, Community energy, Microgeneration

Locals press forward on waste elimination, parish hall retrofits

St Arvans, two miles outside Chepstow, has set itself the target of becoming the first zero-waste Welsh community. Residents already recycle an impressive average 77% of waste with the help of weekly collections by Monmouthshire Community Recycling, a social enterprise established by local people.

Cradle-to-cradle in North Carolina

Nick Hunt 29 February 2008, Housing

America’s first ‘restorative’ development planned by green design guru

Crops growing on landscaped roofs should quickly tell you there’s something green about Greenbridge...

Leaders and laggards

Julian Rollins 29 February 2008, Corporate responsibility

Businesses “must try harder” on sustainability and climate change, reports say

Leader businesses may be vying with one another to seize the opportunities of the sustainability agenda – but much of the business world is still in a state of doubt and confusion about it.

Wight turns to tide

Julian Rollins 29 February 2008, Carbon reduction, Wave power/tidal

'Eco Island’ plan combines carbon cuts with biodiesel, biogas and tidal turbines

Plans to harness the power of the tides are at the heart of an ambitious project to make the Isle of Wight carbon neutral within 15 years.

Chip maker goes low carb

Rikki Stancich 18 February 2008, Carbon reduction, Methane, Waste to energy

Who ever said that slime doesn’t pay?

McCain Foods is paring down its carbon footprint by harnessing renewable energy at its largest UK plant, out at Whittlesey in the Cambridgeshire fens.

Spot on Scots

Jon Wallace 18 February 2008, Energy conservation & efficiency

Politicians engage in competition on home energy front

There’s nothing new in politicians fighting their corner. But for five Members of the Scottish Parliament, the battleground is somewhat closer to home than their seat of government.

La Défense of the planet

12 February 2008, Construction, Solar energy/PV

Eco office block to give more than it takes

Planning is under way in Paris for the first large scale, sustainable office block that will produce more energy than it consumes.

PV good to go

David Howells and Jon Wallace 4 February 2008, Africa, Solar energy/PV, Telecommunications

Solar technology breaks new ground on cheap and durable chargers

A Cardiff-based company is about to ship the first of a new kind of solar charger, more durable than the conventional silicon cell type. The technology it uses has been a long time coming to market, but promises to be well suited to the needs of the developing world

Hempsulation

Jon Wallace 4 February 2008, Energy conservation & efficiency, Housing, Materials

Innovative insulation acts as carbon sink

Biological materials don’t get much more versatile than hemp. Its latest incarnation is as a building material with solid sustainability credentials.

Human warming

Giovanna Dunmall 4 February 2008, Construction, Energy sources

Swedes channel excess heat from people to positive use

Just think about the excess body heat of a crowd of commuters. A turn-off, or turn on? A quarter of a million people a day pass through Stockholm Central station, but it’s not a problem – they’re seizing this opportunity to heat an adjoining office, hotel and shopping mall.

Hydrogen first makes renewables last

Neil Wilks 1 February 2008, Hydrogen/fuel cells, Wind power

Yorkshire technopark pioneers green hydrogen as energy store

A business park in south Yorkshire should see the UK’s first commercial hydrogen mini-grid in operation by the end of the year.

Energy for Eigg

Hannah Bullock 1 February 2008, Community energy, Energy sources

Renewable energy gives Eigg power 24-hours-a-day for the first time

Having asserted their independence ten years ago by buying the island from an absent landlord, the people of Eigg won energy independence today too – with a combination of wind turbines, solar panels and low-head hydro.

Green uplift

Hannah Bullock 25 January 2008, Asia, Retail

Sri Lankan bra makers set eco-benchmark with M&S

If Marks & Spencer puts into practice its promise to work with suppliers on sustainability, set out in last January’s Plan A, it has a whopping 15,000 suppliers to green. So what better place for the chain store to start than at a lingerie factory in Sri Lanka?

Petrodollars fund solar showcase

Jon Wallace 25 January 2008, Construction, International, Solar energy/PV

Oil sheikhdom plans new zero carbon city

Abu Dhabi has big plans. It may sound an unlikely candidate for world leadership on solar power. But that’s what is coming into focus as plans take shape for an entire new city in the desert, powered almost completely by its most naturally abundant resource – not oil, but sunshine.

From here to Timbuktu

Hannah Bullock and Sean Frisby 18 January 2008, Biofuels, Cars

‘Chocolate-powered’ biotruck completes Saharan expedition

Two Brits reached Timbuktu on Boxing Day after an epic 4,568-mile journey powered almost entirely by waste chocolate.

Flight stimulator

Sean Frisby 7 January 2008, Aviation, Carbon reduction

Carbon consultants take airlines to task over low hanging fruit

A new report on cutting aviation’s unsustainable carbon footprint has some down to earth recommendations.

Educating meter

7 January 2008, Higher/Further Education

“There are fewer environmental regulations in education than any other sector,” says a fired-up Dan Glass, the driving force behind a new initiative to green higher education.

Risky business

David Howells 7 January 2008, Business services

Insurers act on climate change

Insurers are responding to the threat of climate change by offering a whole host of incentives for their customers to go green, according to a new report.

Car clamps

Hannah Bullock 7 January 2008, Cars, Regulation

Norway edits out the greenwash

The Norwegian advertising watchdog has introduced some of the strictest rules in the world, designed to clamp down on spurious ‘green’ car ads.

Plug and go

David Howells 7 January 2008, Carbon reduction, Cars, Hydrogen/fuel cells

In a big boost for all-electric cars (and the
new breed of plug-in hybrids), energy company EDF and charge-point manufacturer Elecktromotive are to help local councils install 250 recharging stations.

GM puts fuel cell cars to the test

David Howells 7 January 2008, Hydrogen/fuel cells

General Motors is testing the waters of the hydrogen car market by sending over 100 fuel cell versions of its Chevrolet Equinox out for public test drives.

Three wheels good

David Howells 7 January 2008, Cars

This space-age Aptera could take some beating in the green car stakes. And it’s on sale already in California – if not actually on the road quite yet. Even before Christmas, 400 people had put down a $500 deposit for one of these goody-goody bad-boys.

Petit point

Roger East 7 January 2008, Carbon reduction, Cars

New French point-of-sale taxes favour smaller, cleaner cars

France’s new ‘no-nonsense’ Sarkozy regime is rewarding low-carbon virtue in the country’s car showrooms, with a refreshingly direct approach to boosting the sale of lower emission models.

Second life for old chips

David Howells 7 January 2008, Recycling

Big Blue makes breakthrough on recycling semiconductors

IT giant IBM has a new technique for cleaning data off wafer disks, and it’s secure enough that the wafers can be sent back to work – taking some of the pressure off silicon supplies in computing and the fast-growing solar sector.
Made from silicon, about 250,000 wafer disks are produced every day worldwide.

Opening the pensions book

Julian Rollins 7 January 2008, Corporate responsibility

Friends Provident top of new ethical rating

Britain’s biggest fund management groups vary hugely in the degree to which they keep their customers informed about the environmental and social impacts of their investments. That’s the conclusion of a study by the campaign group FairPensions.

Devon gets the wind up

Sean Frisby 7 January 2008, Wind power

Planning approval boosts ‘greenest county’ bid

After multiple knock-backs and a spot of legal wrangling (including a four-week public enquiry) Devon’s considerable wind resources will soon have something sizeable to bite into.

Critical report

Roger East 7 January 2008, Climate change impacts

UN scientists settle the argument on climate change

The evidence is “unequivocal”. It’s mostly
our fault, the situation is getting worse, and
the consequences are potentially devastating. There is still a lot we can do to stop climate change getting out of hand, but that means reversing the upward trend in greenhouse gas emissions within a decade or so.

The tube is my office

7 January 2008, Re-use/refurbishment, Recycling, Urban

When it dawned on him that tube trains were perfect ready-made workspaces, furniture designer Auro Foxcroft phoned London Underground. “They said they could get me some old carriages,” he says. And thus was born the Village Underground ‘cultural space’ in Shoreditch, where the enterprising Foxcroft is now project director.

Turbine-driven telecoms

Roger East 7 January 2008, Carbon offset/neutrality, Wind power

BT builds up its own green power

Showing a lead to business, BT is investing in zero carbon electricity generation – with plans to put a hefty £250 million into its own suite of wind farms. The company plans to have 125 up and running by 2016, providing a quarter of its electricity needs.

Carbon? Who’s asking?

Esther Maughan McLachlan 6 January 2008, Carbon reduction

More companies disclose their emissions to CDP

If you’re a major corporation and someone asks for the intimate details of your carbon footprint, are you inclined to respond positively? If the request comes from 315 investment companies managing assets of $41 trillion, then it’s probably unwise to refuse.

On the rails

6 January 2008, Hydrogen/fuel cells, Mass transit/Public transport

The world’s first diesel hybrid railcar speeds through the mountainous green landscape of Nagano Prefecture, Japan.

‘We’re the problem’ says cement industry

6 January 2008, Carbon reduction

Industry acknowledges scale of challenge, promises progress

Cement is a sector that pollutes on a grand scale, but manages to do so mostly without registering on the public’s radar. Until now. The Cement Sustainability Initiative has taken the unusual step of telling the world that the industry represents a major hurdle on the road to a low-carbon future.

Less power, more money

Esther Maughan McLachlan 6 January 2008

US opens energy service route to reward power companies for selling less

Raising profits by reducing sales has become a paradoxical reality for US energy companies, as deals with the regulators in many states ‘decouple’ their bottom lines from their energy production.

20 years of progress, or….?

Julian Rollins 21 December 2007, International policies & agreements, Natural world & resources

UNEP charts performance since ‘first sustainability report’

Twenty years ago, the Brundtland Commission published Our Common Future – widely seen as the launch of the modern sustainability debate. It called for sweeping, urgent changes to safeguard that future. So have we done what’s required?

Doing property properly

Hannah Bullock 21 December 2007, Built environment, Socially responsible investment

Investment fund to boost green offices

A sustainable property investment fund due to hit the market next year is aiming to outdo conventional building portfolios by “future-proofing” its stock

Street cred

Hannah Bullock 21 December 2007, Banking, Eco-products & services

Green reward cards hit the mainstream

It all started last summer with Barclycard launching its Breathe credit card, offering a special low APR on bus and train tickets, alongside discounts on bikes, efficiency products and green electricity.

Mobile phones to count carbon

Nick Hunt 21 December 2007, Carbon offset/neutrality, Telecommunications

New device tracks impact of every mile travelled

Carbon Hero is a new key-ring sized device that uses the signal from your mobile phone to identify which forms of transport you have taken – to help calculate the carbon footprint of every journey you make.

Fudging the future

Roger East 21 December 2007, Climate change, International policies & agreements

A lot was at stake

The UN climate change conference in Bali came close to complete failure. That would have spelled the death of the Kyoto process, the only known route to global agreement on shared responsibility for carbon cutting.

A win on the wild side

22 November 2007, Marine/coastal, Wetlands

Wallasea Island site reverts from wheat to wetland

A swathe of arable land in south-east Essex, hard won from the sea for farming four centuries ago, is being bought back for the birds.

Green power share portfolio

19 November 2007, Banking, Energy sources

HSBC launches tradeable Climate Index

Fighting global warming can be a profitable business. This was the unmistakable message sent out to banks and investors with the launch of the HSBC Global Climate Change Index.

Breakthrough in cool glass

13 November 2007, Innovation, Materials

Smart foil technology could cut need for air-con

Rich rewards surely lie in store for innovations that cut down the demand for air conditioning – and hold down its spiralling energy use and carbon cost.

Neighbourhood watch on heat

13 November 2007, Energy conservation & efficiency, Fuel poverty, Housing

Birmingham’s eco-scheme champions energy saving

An award-winning Birmingham City Council scheme is tapping into the power of community action to help homeowners cut energy waste in older properties.

Street life revival

2 November 2007, Regeneration, Urban

’DIY streets’ schemes balance traffic with community needs

Britain’s city streets should put pedestrians and cyclists on an equal footing with motor vehicles. So says Sustrans – and it’s not just rhetoric.

Hungry for change?

Hannah Bullock 30 October 2007, Agriculture & Food

Food and industry to play catch up on the environment

The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) is gearing up to use “peer pressure” to green the laggards in the UK’s biggest manufacturing sector.

Shop your clone town

29 October 2007, Urban

Shop your clone town

Survey to measure the spread of identikit high streets

Pure and simple?

Hannah Bullock and Roger East 26 October 2007, Freight, International trade, Organics, Overseas development

Soil Association takes complex stand on air freighted organics

Keen not to be seen as promoting organic ‘air miles’, the Soil Association is setting extra conditions for approving produce that’s grown overseas and flown in to the UK.

Passing the buck on CO2

Roger East 26 October 2007, Asia, Climate change, International trade

Emissions ‘made in China’ are down to consumers, say reports

Fully 23% of China’s carbon emissions are attributable to the manufacture of goods for the Western market, according to a study by the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research.

Who minds the boss’s footprint?

26 October 2007, Business

Survey highlights scope for greener office culture

We’re gradually getting more green-aware at home – so why not at work too? Good question. But a new study suggests we’re abandoning our environmental concerns at the threshold of the office – and just leaving all that to ‘the company’, the facilities manager or the office manager.

Keeping the peace

26 October 2007, Housing, Planning, Urban

Countryside needs more protection from urban sprawl, show new maps

‘Peace and quiet’ – it’s the most valued feature of the countryside. That’s according to 72% of respondents in a poll carried out by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), compared with just 19% who chose ‘nature’.

Village hall vision

26 October 2007, Local government, Microgeneration

Parish pioneers use of green energy funding powers

Grassroots energy action at village level has just got a big boost. At Kirkburton, southeast of Huddersfield, the parish council has become the first in the country to take advantage of new powers to spend parishioners’ money on promoting renewable micro-generation and energy efficiency.

Mythbuster

Irma Allen 24 October 2007, Chemicals, Eco-products & services

Mythbuster

The cynic’s guide to……eco-washing powder

Q Doesn’t really work, does it?
A It does now. Even the Good Housekeeping Institute has given its stamp of approval to the stain-removing powers of two leading brands.

New energy for old Edinburgh

David Howells 12 October 2007, Architecture, Energy sources, Heritage

Scottish capital’s redevelopment scheme features ground source heating

Controversial plans for a major redevelopment in part of Edinburgh’s historic old town are set to include one of the UK’s largest ground source heat pumps.

Shelter from the storm

12 October 2007, Climate change impacts

Architects weigh in with innovative dwellings for the dispossessed

What might life be like in an old oil tanker? Scott Wilson consultancy’s ‘Ark’ concept [right] envisions converting these sea monsters into offshore, self-sustaining communities – complete with deck gardens and sports pitches.

Woodlark ascending

11 October 2007, Wildlife

One of England’s most critically endangered birds is making a dramatic comeback

Rags to riches

8 October 2007, Materials

Government has designs on sustainable clothing

With the growing popularity of ‘vintage’ clothing, the rise of ‘charity shop chic’ and the spread of clothes-swap ‘swishing’, it’s a shock to discover that used clothing is the fastest growing waste stream in the country.

Pole-to-Pole emissions free

20 September 2007, Climate change, Transport & travel

Sussex pair walk on thin ice

Not content with being the youngest Britons to climb Everest (at age 18) in 2006, two explorers from Sussex set off last April on a man-powered pole-to-pole expedition.

Premises promises

Hannah Bullock 20 September 2007, Architecture

Low carbon offices raise the bar for refurb and newbuild

Great premises can speak louder for a company’s green credentials than any CSR report. Especially for architects – as witness Sheppard Robson’s £350,000 makeover of its Manchester offices earlier this year.

Soft soap saves forests

Martin Wright and Oliver Balch 20 September 2007, Conservation, Eco-products & services, Retail

Body Shop leads switch to sustainable palm oil

Palm oil has been in the dock of late, as concerns intensify about the loss of crucial forest resources to dramatically expanding palm plantations in Southeast Asia – and the climate implications of the clearance work involved.

Zip through London

Roger East 20 September 2007, Business, Cars

High-tech gloss sharpens appeal of car hire by the hour

Slick, up-market branding is repositioning the old ‘car club’ idea. Congestion charging, the price of parking, and smart technology for charging users and tracking availability, have all helped the likes of Streetcar make its mark in London.

Designer farming

Ruth McCance 20 September 2007, Agriculture & Food, Farming/Horticulture, Urban

Urban food projects take to the skies and the water

It’s not just a huge floating hydroponic glasshouse, it’s “a metaphor for us and for the future of this planet.”

That’s how New York’s parks commissioner Adrian Benepe sees the vegetable-growing Science Barge moored off Manhattan’s West Side.

The sun in Spain makes power for the plain

Martin Wright 20 September 2007, Europe, Solar energy/PV

World’s largest solar plant under construction

On the plains of Andalusia, a solar plant is taking shape which will supply electricity to up to 200,000 people.

Bin wins

19 September 2007, Local government, Recycling, Urban, Waste management

Buttcatchers are capturing the imagination of councils around the UK

Invented to keep cigarette butts and chewing gum off the street, the pod-shaped ‘Smartbin’ has already sold itself to 17 local authorities.

Coke goes easy on the water

19 September 2007, Agriculture & Food, Corporate responsibility, Water

Companies sign up to save rivers

Stung by accusations of water profligacy – and worse – Coca-Cola has joined other leading brands in pledging to cut consumption and save key aquatic habitats.

Paper power

19 September 2007, Innovation

Printable lightweight cellulose batteries on the horizon

Batteries have come a long way – and could have a lot further to go. Our lifestyles demand ever more, smaller, lighter portable power – without the pollution penalty of toxic metals.

Bottles get smashed in pub

19 September 2007, Recycling

Compact crusher boosts glass recycling

Q. What happens to that empty wine bottle after your candlelit dinner in the high street restaurant?

Alma greener

Martin Wright and Oliver Balch 19 September 2007, Construction, Higher/Further Education

Universities rated, ranked on environmental performance

The most important index for prospective students used to be the cost of beer at the university bar. Now school leavers are being encouraged to consider the environmental footprint of their future alma mater.

Pulling together on organics

19 September 2007, Marketing

Organic businesses could soon be punching at the same weight as other sectors thanks to a new Organic Trade Group

Light years ahead

19 September 2007, Energy conservation & efficiency, Local government, Recycling

Gateshead is showing other local authorities what to do with redundant lighting

Greening the greenbacks

Hannah Bullock and Ruth McCance 19 September 2007, Finance, Socially responsible investment

Banks launch billion dollar initiatives

International mega-bank HSBC is spending $100 million on a scheme to promote “action – not apathy” among its 300,000-strong global workforce.

Brave old world

Roger East 19 September 2007, Asia

Dinosaur time in a Saudi dome

Fancy a wander through a prehistoric landscape of mosses and ferns? Want to walk from the Devonian period 400 million years ago, all the way up to the pollinators of the Pliocene and the more familiar flora of today?

Small change, big difference

Hannah Bullock 19 September 2007, Finance, Overseas development, Socially responsible investment

City investors bank on the world’s ‘unbankable’

$108 million was raised in a Morgan Stanley bond – to be turned into microfinance. That’s the truly exceptional thing about the ‘BOLD-2 transaction’. The money, raised in May this year, will be loaned to microfinance institutions in 12 developing countries.

Hemp on the hub

Hannah Bullock 19 September 2007, Cars, Materials

Plant-based brakes to reduce pollution

Britain’s motorists get through a not-so-cool 80 million sets of brake pads every year, leaving a dusting of heavy metals which end up in water run-off from roads, and in our lungs when we take the tube.

Climate change ‘not due to the sun'

Martin Wright 19 September 2007, Climate change

Key argument of sceptics shot down by new study

Global warming is happening despite – not because of – solar cycles.

That’s the conclusion of an extensive new study published by the Royal Society, the UK’s leading scientific academy.

Solar sparks cheaper

19 September 2007, Architecture, Solar energy/PV

German company promises ‘whole-house’ photovoltaics

It’s the stuff of dreams, a futuristic house where every external part is put to work as a miniature solar power plant.

Where’s the beef tomato?

19 September 2007, Health, Organics

Research reignites ‘healthy organics’ debate

Is organic food better for you? The argument is an old one, but some newly published research has spiced it up, putting tomatoes in the front line.

A greener dragon's den

Iain Aitch 19 September 2007, Business services, Finance

New network matches environmental entrepreneurs with investors

Matching bright green entrepreneurs with sources of investment capital has always been a challenge. It’s one which the newly launched Environmental Investment Network (EIN) aims to overcome.

Gaddafi goes green

Martin Wright 19 September 2007, Africa, Conservation

Leader’s son heads Libyan sustainability drive

He may have written the (misleadingly titled) Green Book, but Colonel Gaddafi hasn’t exactly made oil-rich Libya a beacon of sustainability. That may be about to change.