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Rick Fedrizzi of USGBC on the Sustainable Wood Rating Debate

Rick Fedrizzi (right) with Brad Pitt TreeHugger has been covering the intense discussion at the US Green Building Council over the treatment of sustainably harvested wood in the LEED rating system (see Rumble in the Lumberyard). Rick Fedrizzi, President of the USGBC explains the issue and how the USGBC is working to solve it in this guest post. Over the course of the past 18 months, the 18,000+ member organizations that are the U.S. Green Building Council and countless other stakeholders have been engaged... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 304

British Summer Arrives 18 Days Sooner Than It Did Half a Century Ago

photo: Thor via flickr. Based on an examination of the first blooming dates of summer flowering plants and the first instances of typical summer temperatures, despite what the calendar my say, summer is arriving in Britain more than two weeks early than it did 50 years ago. That's the word coming from Professor Grant Bigg and Amy Kirbyshire of the University of Sheffield.... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 342

Concord, MA to be First U.S. Town to Ban Bottled Water

Last week residents of Concord, Massachusetts voted to ban the sale of all bottled water by next January, making it the first U.S. town to take such action. The effort was lead by Jean Hill, an 82-year old activist, who lobbied neighbors and officials alike on the consequences of plastic bottles filling landfills and polluting local waters. "All these discarded bottles are damaging our planet, causing clumps of garbage in the oceans that hurt fish, and are creating more pollution on our streets,'' says Hil. "This is a great achievement to be the first in the country to do t... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 325

Organic Seaweed Farm Powers Bio-Hydrogen Airship

Called the Hydrogenase and designed by Belgian architect Vincent Callebaut, the semi-rigid airship is powered by an algal-based bio-hydrogen in conjunction with inflatable photovoltaic cells and wind propellers that double as turbines. W... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 384

Do Household Tasks While Asleep To Save Energy

Off-peak dishwashing. Photo by Kevin Dooley Want to do a load of "green" laundry at 3 a.m. to ease pressure on the power grid and save money? If you live in Canada that could happen sooner than you think. Canadian broadcasters, CBC Radio and Quebec's Radio-Canada, are partnering with E-Radio Inc., a wireless network, on developing technology that could significantly decrease power usage during heavy times by scheduling home appliances to turn on while you're asleep. Just ... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 299

Another Major Blow for Carbon Capture, This Time It Involves the "C" Word

Mongstad industrial area at night. Photo Tøssekaien via flickr. The Norwegians have been big supporters of carbon capture and storage, and the government helped get the public to go along with building of a gas-fired plant near an existing oil refinery in Mongstad partly by promising the new facility would have carbon capture. Norwegians generally consider themselves to be environmentally friendly (over 90% of their electricity is produced from renewables, and they've pledged to be carbon neutral in 2030), so it is a significant blow that the government has decide... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 415

15 Green Apps For Your New Apple iPad

Photo via nDevilTV If you know us here at TreeHugger, you know how we feel about smart phone apps. We love them. They're often just so darn handy for living a greener life, from helping out with transportation to shopping to home energy management. And so, you'll probably guess that we're excited to watch iPad apps slowly roll out so that this new gadget has a green purpose. There are already a good handful we like, and they're listed here, including th... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 27

Rare Bee Species Lives Alone, Makes Nest Out of Flower Petals

When we think of bees, we often think of those cartoon-like swarms that populate a giant hive. But a rare new species observed in the Middle East is about to change all of that. The Osmia avoseta is a solitary bee that constructs its nest from petals and mud creating a cocoon-like dwelling for a single larvae. ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 41

Canadian Environment Minister Gloats While Gulf Oil Spill Spreads

Canada's so-called Environment Minister is about as sincere as Inspector Renault who was "shocked, shocked" to see gambling going on in Rick's Cafe. Jim Prentice is "appalled and horrified" to find that a leaky well is causing so much damage in the Gulf of Mexico. But not too appalled to use it as a pitch for the oil sands, suggesting that they are safer than drilling offshore. ... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 45

BP Proposes Plugging the Oil Leak With Garbage

Photo via ABC News With the failure of BP's dome solution to stopping the oil leak, which continues to pump 5 thousand barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico every day, the latest idea is to plug the leakage with a pile of trash. Apparently, the technique is called "a junk shot" and involves injecting garbage at high pressure into t... Read the full story on TreeHugger read full article ...
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Tuesday,11 May, 2010 | Hits: 69