Yet when it comes to water, it seems that the “people” portion of the equation has gotten short thrift. Globally, thousands of children die each day from drinking unsafe drinking water and 890 million people don’t have access to clean water.

In addition to the social justice aspect of the water issue, the other half of the equation is water supply. Yes, we have to deal with peak oil, but don’t forget about peak water.

Wednesday morning at Sustainable Brands 09’ the panel on water included two organizations tackling the water issue from different perspectives: Peter Cleary from LifeStraw and Tim Carey, Director of Sustainability from PepsiCo.

LifeStraw is a small water purification device that purifies 99% of virus and bacteria out of water and can be used affordably in rural areas that lack clean drinking water. The LifeStraw, which comes in Personal and Family models, meets EPA guidelines for microbiological water purifiers.

Not many companies can get away with linking poop and clean water in a marketing message, but Carey’s presentation included a video clip of cow dung being added to water before it is filtered and slurped up by willing volunteers.

Tim Carey from PepsiCo tackled another aspect of the water issue. And no, he didn’t talk about bottled water. He spoke about the need to make water a business issue. He kicked things off by saying, “The issue is cost. When you think about it, we can deplete an aquifer, and at the same time pay pennies per thousands of gallons. That is remarkable.”

He had several ideas on how to include water in the business equation. One of the challenges he stressed is the difficulty of accessing detailed data on the water crisis.

To minimize risk, companies should consider the following: -- Understand your water footprint: Companies need to think about their water footprint and take this information into account when making decisions about agricultural practices, manufacturing and packaging.

-- Educate executives and staff: When a facility in Atlanta was threatened with only 90-days to cut water use before their aquifer went dry, staff was able to save 100,000 gallons of water in a few months without a single capital request. If senior executives and staff are better informed about peak water and the need to conserve, innovation and creative solutions can emerge before a crisis hits.

-- Get consumers and suppliers involved: Echoing the message heard throughout the conference, Carey urged the audience to engage consumers to be part of the solution. On the supply side of the equation, companies need to get their suppliers engaged. For example, Naked Juice, in partnership with Rainforest Alliance, told their suppliers they would only buy sustainably harvested bananas.

Deborah Fleischer is the principal and founder of the sustainability consulting firm Green Impact.

The conservation group WWF, along with the Fundacion Carlos Slim and the Mexican Federal Government, Thursday launched an initiative that aims to help Mexico protect its rich natural heritage, while promoting sustainable development within six priority regions that collectively represent 30% of the country.

The investment will be used to advance ongoing efforts at the local, national and global levels within Mexico. This work will include efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, develop comprehensive water management policies, strengthen civil society, develop innovative financial mechanisms, and invest in local sustainable economies.

“Mexico is home to 10% of the Earth’s species and this wealth of diversity is important not only for Mexico’s ecosystems, but for the people here who depend on these resources for their social, economic and physical well-being,” said WWF President and CEO Carter Roberts. “This alliance also underscores Mexico’s rising leadership in global negotiations on the design of new financial mechanisms to help developing nations confront and adapt to climate change.”

The goal is to support biodiversity conservation in areas of exceptional natural richness. An assessment of the major issues and recommended actions was developed based on consultation with more than 100 government and civil society experts across the selected regions: the Gulf of California, Chihuahuan Desert, Mesoamerican Reef of Mexico, Oaxaca, Monarch Butterfly Region and Chiapas (Lacandona Forests and El Triunfo).

“This is the largest private financial commitment from an individual ever made in support of conservation and sustainable development in Mexico,” said Omar Vidal, director of WWF-Mexico. “This alliance between the private sector, NGOs and government is exactly the kind of partnership that WWF sees as the model for transforming the way we conserve our special places and balance the needs of people and nature around the world.”

In 2009, the alliance is working in coordination with federal, state and municipal governments, civil society organizations, local communities and academia to establish the basis for the conservation of priority protected areas within the six regions by strengthening local organizations and communities and supporting management strategies for land and water conservation, threatened species protection and climate change adaptation.

Reprinted with permission from SustainableBusiness

Planning our literal after life procedures can be tricky, especially for the eco-conscious as burial and cremation processes tend to use large amounts of harsh chemicals.

If you are looking for a green life after death, consider an option offered by the Neptune Society. The Neptune Memorial Reef is owned and operated by a leader in cremation services and exists as "a unique option for cremated remains and provides an extraordinary eternal resting place for the departed," according to the Neptune Society.

Here's how it works: after cremation, ashes are taken to their final resting place in the Atlantic Ocean approximately three miles east of Miami to Neptune's rendering of the Atlantis, the Lost City, and placed within the cement structures.

The structures are made of cement and ashes provide habitat for coral and other sea life that inhabit reefs. This helps to rebuild lost reefs and so far, is quite a success. A December 2008 Department of Environmental Resources Management survey indicated that more than 1500 fish from 35 species were found at Neptune compared 1,000 fish from 29 species nine months before.

Rest assured, your remains will be enjoyed by all including scuba divers and biologists who are regularly visiting the reef. Additionally, the reef has earned certification by the Green Burial Council, an organization that ensures burial and cremations are conducted using sustainable materials so as not to impact Mother Earth.

For those love birds that can not imagine spending your green life after death without one another, you can arrange for a burial column, a concept similar to a family plot.

Planning a green after life is vital to any eco-minded soul. How can one practice a lifetime of environmentally safety and not consider post life procedures? Often, burial and cremation will add pollution, emissions, energy consumption, use of raw materials and so on, which in effect, start to unravel a life time of green living.

Cremation and placement in reef that is specifically built to maintain the environment is a tribute to the planet and to green living.

Besides, after all of that green living work, who wouldn't want to spend eternity in the warm waters of the southeast amongst tropical sea life?

If cremation is not for you, consider other green burial options.

{Photo from http://www.nmreef.com/}

However, Reuters reported this week that foreign wind turbine makers--such as Vestas (VWS.CO), Gamesa (GAM.MC) and Suzlon (SUZL.BO)--are complaining that despite efforts to meet state regulations, they are unable to win contracts in the fast-growing wind market. The government requires the turbine makers to source and build 70% of their equipment in China, but officials said there is no discrimination against foreign firms.

Siemens (NYSE: SI) also announced it is acquiring a 25% stake in German renewable energy developer BGZ AG. The company develops, finances and operates renewable power facilities like wind, solar and biomass power plants. In 200, BGZ generated about EUR 50 million in revenue and has installed more than 950 MW of wind power capacity. Financial terms were not disclosed. A new company jumped into the electric vehicle market this week. Coda Automotive announced plans to sell an all-electric, four-door sedan in California by the fall of 2010. The vehicle will be called the Coda, and the company said it will have a 100-mile range and sell for about $45,000 before federal and state incentives. It will be manufactured in China by state-owned Harbin Hafei Automotive, and it will be powered by lithium-ion batteries made by Tianjin Lishen Battery Joint-Stock Co. Coda Automotive said the vehicle will fully charge in six hours when plugged into a 220V outlet.

Sustainable business leader Herman Miller (Nasdaq: MLHR) is diversifying beyond furnishings. The company's subsidiary Convia, Inc. has developed a high-tech, flexible-use wiring system that aim to reduce real estate and building operating costs. The technology integrates a facility's power delivery and other infrastructure and technology applications, including lighting, HVAC, and occupancy and daylight harvesting sensors into an energy efficient, easy-to manage platform. The company announced a strategic partnership to embed the technology into wire and cable management systems designed by Legrand North America.

Danotek Motion Technologies opened a manufacturing center in Canton, Michigan for wind turbine generator. The company makes a uniquely designed, variable speed turbine generator that has drawn venture capital from the GE (NYSE: GE) and StatoilHydro (NYSE: STO), among others. The company says its Permanent Magnet Generators are more efficient and reduce wear-and-tear on equipment, saving $1 million dollars per turbine over the life of the system.

GE Energy Financial Services (NYSE: GE) has signed an agreement with EarthFirst Canada Inc. (TSX: EF, EF.WT) to consider purchasing the Dokie Ridge Wind Project, which is the largest wind farm project under construction in British Columbia. GE has agreed to form a partnership with Plutonic Power Corporation (TSX: PCC), which will own and operate the project. Phase 1 of theis partially build and will have a capacity of 144 megawatts (MW). The entire project is planned for 300 MW.

Lithium-ion battery maker Boston-Power, Inc., announced plans to build its first U.S. manufacturing facility in Auburn, Massachusetts. The facility is expected to create 600 new jobs. The company also unveiled a battery called Swing that is designed for Plug-in Hybrid and Battery Electric Vehicles (PHEV/BEV). The company currently manufactures batteries for electronics in China. Boston-Power is seeking approximately $100 million under the U.S. Department of Energy's advanced battery and cell manufacturing grant program, which was established as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Landis+Gyr, a company focused on smart grid solutions for utilities, announced a five-year advanced metering contract with AEP Texas, which is a unit of American Electric Power(NYSE:AEP). Under the agreement, Corpus Christi-based AEP Texas will deploy 700,000 of Landis+Gyr's Gridstream meters across its Texas service territory. The meters allow two-way connectivity with home area network devices and will allow AEP Texas to send energy consumption information and real-time pricing to consumers.

Reprinted with permission from SustainableBusiness

A waste heat recovery system originally used in industrial applications is now going underground. Last year, Electratherm installed its first Green Machine electrical generator powered by waste heat, and has now redirected their technology towards the capture of geothermal energy. The Green Machines' heat and pressure recovery technology uses relatively low heat (200 degrees Fahrenheit) to generate electricity.

Partnered with Gulf Coast Green Energy, Electrotherm will be rolling out Green Machines at two projects, one of which will be powered by heat off geothermal brine, hot water high in saline and heavy metals. Geothermal brine has also been harvested for commercial-grade zinc.

Low heat will be converted through the company's Green Machines, which previously were used to power generators with waste heat off devices as common as boilers or chillers. ElectraTherm has worked in the past with a Texas oil well firm to convert bothersome hot water from its wells into electricity.

The version launched last year at Southern Methodist University was 50 kW, and the technology's scalability has led the company to plan expanding the units to 500 kW, according to Bill Olson, senior vice-president at ElectroTherm. The device has been by the Geothermal Energy Association, the Geothermal Resource Council and Popular Science as a leading innovation.

Earlier this week, $50 million in DOE funding was designated towards geothermal heat pump deployment announced by Energy Secretary Stephen Chu in Fort Wane, Indiana, where he also toured WaterFurnace International, a local geothermal heating and cooling company.

The DOE is also offering funding towards the creation of a national certification and accreditation program for the GHP industry.

Recognition of ground-source heat pump efficiency is growing, reducing electric demand and maintenance costs, when compared to standard air source heat pumps. Efforts towards renewable heating and cooling have been remarkably innovative, such as thermal energy storage from Ice Energy, which can use air conditioners to create ice.

On Wednesday nascent auto-maker CODA announced a new electric car available in California in fall 2010. The fully electric sedan will have a range of 90-100 miles on a fully-charged battery.

Speaking during a webinar, the company also formally announced a global joint venture between CODA and battery manufacturer Lishen Battery Co., located in Tianjin, China. Lishen is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of lithium-ion cells for companies like Apple, Motorola, Samsung, and Vodafone. CODA will maintain a 40% stake in the partnership.

CODA has also coupled with a European OEM engineering firm and major automotive assembly plant in China to design and build the chassis for the vehicle, allowing them to circumvent major manufacturing costs. CODA assured us that the electric vehicle will be safety certified for the US market.

The global battery partnership has also teamed up with a US company to file a DOE application for federal funding. Applications for Federal stimulus funds were due May 19th, and if selected, the partnership would build a battery manufacturing plant in the US.

CODA claims that the CODA 4-door Sedan will be the first mainstream all-electric vehicle available in the United States that will provide the type of utility needed for normal day-to-day tasks.

The 90-100 mile minimum range covers 94% of commuter trips in the United States according to statistics from the Bureau of transportation. Base price for the CODA sedan will be $45,000, but after State and Federal subsidies it should be closer to mid-$30,000s, putting it in the same ball-park as GM’s Chevy Volt.

"The Coda sedan is an all-electric vehicle for everyone. It’s a practical revolution for real drivers who need reliable transportation." --Kevin Czinger, President and CEO, Coda Automotive.

Details and Technical Specs of the CODA Electric Vehicle

The CODA will get 90-100 miles in on a charge, depending on driving style. The car will be powered by a 33.8 kwh lithium-ion battery pack.

The car ships with a 6.6 kw charger, which when plugged into a 220V AC input completes charging for a depleted battery in 6 hours. The typical commuter driving 40 miles a day (and one who has access to a 220V plug) would be able to charge in 2 hours per day. The car can also recharge more slowly from standard 110V outlets. The car will have a 3-year, 36,000-mile warranty, and an 8-year, 100,000 mile battery warranty.

CODA’s sedan is electronically limted to 80 mph, and accelerates 0-60 in less than 11s.

The company expects the sedan to achieve a 5-star impact safety rating based on early testing. They are working with top-tier parts suppliers for all the working parts.

CODA expects to begin priority pre-sales in fall-2009, when an unknown deposit amount will be accepted. No deposits are accepted yet but the company is accepting “indications of interest.” In, June 2010, CODA will launch a 200 car fleet-test in California. By fall of 2010 the company will begin customer delivery in California.

The company hopes to ramp uo to a 20,000 vehicle run rate in 2011, when it will expand to Reprinted with permission from Gas 2.0

The world got a new eco-label June 1 when UL Environment Inc. announced it validated the environmental claims Serious Materials makes for its product called EcoRock. It is the first product claim validated by Northbrook-based UL Environment, a wholly owned subsidiary of 115-year old Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a leading tester of product claims and safety standards.

For now, UL Environment is only validating specific and measurable claims that conform to Federal Trade Commission Green Guide requirements. It is not certifying products to independent standards. It says its focus will be on building products and personal electronics, the traditional strengths of UL. In the future, the company plans to create standards for products where none exist by using the claims of manufacturers to create draft standards, says Chris Nelson, director of global commercial development for UL Environment.

UL Environment validation is not meant to supplant existing eco-labels, though some could fall by the wayside. "There is a very confusing market space because there isn't a clear leader to define what a sustainable product is," Nelson says. "Some companies we work with are going through five certifications because they don't know what will resonate."

Some certifications, such as the U.S. Green Building Council's (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) by the U.S Green Building Council are more mature and understood by consumers. But Nelson notes LEED and other green building rating systems have created a demand for sustainable building materials. And that's where UL Environment validation will come in handy, he says, by certifying the materials going into buildings certified by USGBC and other certifying bodies.

With certification from UL Environment, EcoRock is validated as being made with 80 percent recycled content, http://www.matternetwork.com/admin/editor.cfm?id=newhaving low emissions of volatile organic compounds, being mercury free, and highly resistant to mold, making it more likely to help developers receive related LEED credits.

Reprinted with permission from Sustainable Industries

Funds from the Recovery Act are starting to raise solar spirits after the stock market slide of 2008 slammed many solar stocks, and new financing mechanisms are looking to make it easier to produce your own power.

Advanced Green Technologies is working with CTC Resources to put more solar panels in the hands of business owners. Together they are now offering an enticing 0-0-3 program, with no down payment and interest-free financing for three months.

The Tennessee Valley Authority has proposed adding nuclear reactors, but is also beginning to warm up to solar. TVA's Generation Partners program will provide a $1,000 incentive for smaller solar projects (up to nearly one megawatt) and guarantees a price for buying any excess energy produced.

Municipal solar financing efforts are delivering local government projects, spawned by California's AB811 bill.

Two California cities, Berkeley and Palm Desert, provide solar installation loans through a 20-year "special" property tax. Berkeley's FIRST (Financing Initiative for Renewable and Solar Technology) is working through its pilot phase with a small test group, already having a public tool to map solar potential.

FIRST has caused some increased demand but indeterminable until a larger program is implemented, according to JP Ross, VP of Sungevity, a participating solar installation company.

Renewable Funding, which works on the Berkeley program, is also rolling out another program, like FIRST, on a wider scale in Colorado.

The cost of solar can also be added to a mortgage when refinancing, and the current low interest rates will shorten the payback period. Colorado legislation has recently begun providing tax credits for 30-percent of residential and commercial solar installation costs. Between tax credits and a net metering policy (selling 'excess' solar energy to utilities), solar is an attractive option to residents of the Centennial State.

Inspired by such initiatives, Oregon is considering adopting Berkeley-esque legislation (HB 2181) that supports the property tax assessment model and is taking strides to integrate more solar into the grid.

Solar bills aren't a slam dunk for approval, however, as Texas legislators failed to approve a $500 million solar construction rebate program,

With recent photovoltaic oversupply and increasing third-party assistance, alongside continued legislative endeavors, solar is expected to recover from the economic battering it has received.

This week Sao Paulo, Brazil is hosting one of the world’s largest gatherings of the international biofuels industry.

The Ethanol Summit 2009 was kicked off in part by President Bill Clinton who noted that Brazil is known for producing the most energy efficient and cost competitive ethanol in the world using sugarcane. The downside, though, says Clinton, is that the country’s increase in ethanol production is a precursor to the continued destruction of the rainforests.

The issue of rainforest destruction (which many experts say is NOT a primary result of increased biofuels production) segues in to the debate of “good biofuels versus bad biofuels”. A bad biofuel may be one that uses food crops, excessive land and too much water. A better biofuel uses biomass, or waste, little water and little to no land.

Recently there has been a spate of companies announcing new technologies to convert biomass to sugar without enzymes. Eliminating this step speeds up the conversion process, lowers costs and improves net energy. In recent months, purse strings have been soldered shut, but Superman may have opened the purse a crack.

Khosla Ventures and Burrill & Company announced their joint investment in HCL CleanTech, a start-up that has developed a process using concentrated hydrochloric acid to efficiently convert lignocellulosic biomass to fermentable sugars.

Greg Young, Director at Burrill & Company summed up the problem, “Accessing cheap sugar locked in biomass is one of the greatest challenges now faced by those pursuing renewable fuels and chemicals.” And his company is banking on having found the answer.

My real point is that we need more alternative vehicles on the road, such as flex-fuel vehicles (or hybrid FFVs) with engines that are tweaked to be most effective using higher blends of biofuels, not gasoline. FFVs are one of the best options we have today of weening ourselves from fossil fuels. But if we don’t get these vehicles to market now (there are people who hope that now that GM has filed for bankruptcy and the government is taking over some operations, this may actually happen) and develop the infrastructure, there is no point in developing advanced biofuels as there will be no consumer market.

It’s high time that our country stops taking the easy way out and really, truly commits to developing and bringing to market not only advanced biofuels but also advanced auto technologies.

Reprinted with permission from Gas 2.0.

As I write this, I have a bag of SunChips I just bought at my side. The list of ingredients on the label includes sugar, artificial color and one obscure ingredient I had to Google (Maltodextrin).

A Model Chip?
I was surprised to see Adam Werbach of Saatchi and Saatchi S, after promoting community supported agriculture (CSA) during his presentation yesterday, proclaim on Twitter today “SunChips rocks—solar powered, biodegradable bag…” To be a truly sustainable, nourishing snack, they are going to have to push the envelope beyond whole grain goodness, less fat and one solar powered plant to live up to the tagline "good for me and the planet."

Yet, if you hold SunChips up to many of the ideals presented at the conference, they hit the mark on many of them: commit to an ambitious goal, educate and empower your customers, begin with baby steps, be transparent, don’t wait for perfection and create strategic partnerships.

Their baby steps included converting a portion of its Modesto, California plant to solar energy. The move was positioned as “a small step towards a healthier planet.” According to the agency, teehan+lax, the idea was to open the conversation to consumers and ask, “What small steps would you take?” The ad campaign, which used Facebook to engage customers in a conversation, won a 2009 Effie Award this week for the green category.

Their latest advertisements include a print ad with the claim “my chips are made with solar power.” This claim seems a bit misleading given the fact that only one of their seven plants currently incorporates solar, and what percentage of this plant gets its energy from solar is not clear. But they are headed in the right direction, with plans to add solar to their Arizona plant next.

A Compostable Bag
Responding to consumer concerns around packaging, their ambitious goal is a commitment to transform their packaging by creating a 100% compostable bag by Earth Day 2010. The day before Earth Day 2009, they ran a 14-second ad after American Idol showing the process of a bag decomposing over 14 weeks.

The ad, which ran only once, generated 115,000,000 media impressions, including a Twitter post by Demi Moore that generated significant conversation. Today, a third of every 10 1/2 oz. SunChips bag is made with renewable plant based materials, their first step toward reducing the amount of non-renewable materials they use for packaging.

The bag you will find of the shelf today cannot be composted, but does have a smaller carbon footprint because it uses less petroleum-based plastic. The bags are made with a bio-based plastic known as Polylactic acid or PLA. PLA is a fully biodegradable, compostable corn-based polymer made by NatureWorks. At their plant in Nebraska, locally harvested corn is broken down into corn sugar (also known as dextrose). The dextrose is then fermented and distilled into a substance called lactic acid, which is transformed into PLA pellets. But the green bag and the solar plant are old news.

Increasing Awareness of Composting
The new story is their commitment to educating consumers on the value of composting and working with strategic partners, such as the U.S. Composting Council, to increase municipal compost programs. They also have a new partnership with TerraCycle, where consumers will be able to drop off their SunChips bags at collection points for commercial composting.

Greener, Better and Happier—One Idea at a Time
And their most recent program, Green Effect, is a creative partnership with National Geographic to engage consumers to be part of the solution. Anyone can submit a short “business plan” on a simple idea that will inspire others to take a small action. The five best green ideas will receive $20,000 in funding. They developed a great ad clip around the idea that the planet needs a small favor—one idea to make it greener and happier.

The ideas will be rated by an “A-team” of green judges, including actor Edward Norton, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, the new Chief Executive Officer of Green For All, and Jayni Chase, Founder of the Center For Environmental Education. As of today, over 1,400 submissions have been entered. The deadline for the competition is June 8th. This is a great program for engaging consumers and supporting them to think creatively about potential solutions.

Deborah Fleischer is the principal and founder of the sustainability consulting firm Green Impact.

So, we have been called out as the fast food nation, living off of the quick greasy burger, large salty fry, and my favorite, a Diet Coke to balance out the calorie intake. And, due to recent flak by the health industry, the big fast food corporations have been beefing down their menus by introducing some color like fruit into kids meals and ready-made salads for the parent-on-the-go. One other color now found at some fast food restaurants: green.

Leading the way is McDonald's with purchasing fish products from sustainable fisheries. Hey, if mega food suppliers like McDonalds can do this, are there really any excuses left for other suppliers?

McDonald's is sending its frying oil for conversion to biofuel. Of greatest significance, corporate social responsibility executive, Bob Langert, is trying to rally others in the beef industry to pressure farmers, transporters, and others in the cow to burger process to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions associated with raising cattle as well as pollutants that may runoff into waterways, according toFast Company). McDonald's is greening their buildings across the world with solar panels, waste energy recovery and reuse, and in Canada and the USA, achieving various LEED ratings. The best I can say about McDonald's is that I can go on and on about their many green initiatives- including their transit-friendly facilities-and no other fast food corporation is achieving anything close to the home of Ronald McDonald.

The other major fast food chains like Burger King and Wendy's have not shown themselves to be as green. In fact, in twenty minutes of searching throughout Wendy's web site, I was unable to find any green initiatives (although, I found some valuable community initiatives).

Burger King is also lacking and if I had to rate them on their shade of green, I'd say a very pale lime. If we can really have it our way, how about a burger in a recycled content package, or some free range chicken?

Unfortunately for Burger King, a few franchises in Tennessee owned by Mirabile Investment Corporation got in some hot water for displaying signs claiming that "global warming is baloney," contradicting the official company policy (as reported by the Sustainability Ninja).

There was mention of downsizing-- as opposed to supersizing-- new restaurants to limit the amount of energy needed to cool or heat establishments, a tankless water heater, and a specialized burner that cycles heat instead of powering on and off wasting residual heat.

These are decent starts to approaching energy efficiency, but, because these features are only installed in 110 out of more than 10,000 facilities, it is rather like a cold, soggy fry: a disappointing appetizer. While not all of the big names have introduced environmental policies into their daily routines, a few are well on their way, and that, inspires me to grab a large Diet Coke and maybe a to-go bowl of fruit.

Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEV) is the relatively new official classification of battery electric vehicles that are speed limited. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration created the NEV classification in 1998, launching a new market of vehicles. In essence, there are two key parts to the definition of an NEV: speed limited (meaning that they cannot travel on freeways, and therefore do not require crash testing and safety features of traditional vehicles) and they are electric. Licensing is required for NEVs (a driver's license is required to operate it, and most states require a license plate for operating on public streets). Their use is limited to streets where the speed limit is 35 mph (in most states) and their speed is limited to 25 mph.

The NEV market has been quietly growing over the past few years according to IMS, and it is likely to continue for the next couple of years (11.5 percent growth per year). Helping to spur this growth has been the development of U.S. communities centered around these vehicles (places like Peachtree, GA, Celebration, FL, Playa Vista, CA, and others). Local governments and corporations have also been discovering the usefulness of NEVs. NEVs are being utilized for neighborhood patrolling and parking enforcement by police and for working around corporate campuses by maintenance crews.

There is substantial competition in the NEV market from a variety of manufacturers. Global Electric Motorcars (GEM) is the market leader (and is a division of Chrysler Corp.), producing and selling approximately 40,000-50,000 units since 1998. GEM has recently made a lot of news with its iPod-esque new Peapod. There are a variety of other small manufacturers and importers, including ZENN, Miles EVs, and Clubcar (the golf cart maker that makes not only electric vehicles, but also gas powered carts). Most NEV manufacturers likely selling between 500 to 3,500 vehicles per year in the U.S. currently.

There are also several new low-speed city cars that are more familiar to European and Asian consumers, including the Think City Cars, REVA, and Aixam (from France which recently acquired NICE from the U.K. - no news about either NICE or Aixam coming to the U.S., though). However, these low-speed city cars are slightly different classification than NEVs, as they will travel at a top speed of somewhere between 40 and 70 mph.

Overall, the market influences on NEVs are very different from that of automobiles, and NEVs are likely to follow a very different trend due to lower costs. Urban planning and development of communities focused on these vehicles is likely to have a much larger impact on the market than the forces that impact the automobile industry. As cities and planners work to develop urban centers that reduce congestion, the market for NEVs is likely to grow in appeal. Urbanites are likely to be drawn to high design (like the Peapod), and overall acceptance is likely to grow as plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles become more available to the mainstream automobile market. While the market will see substantial growth, it will likely remain significantly smaller than the U.S. automobile market (or even the potential EV market) and is likely a slight addition to the market rather than a competitor to traditional automobiles.

Dave Hurst is an industry analyst at Pike Research

Summary of primary solar provisions in AB 522:
* Extends and enhances sales and property tax abatements for wholesale renewable energy projects in Nevada above 10 MW in size.
* Establishes a fund for low interest loans to build renewable energy projects authorized by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Summary of primary solar provisions in SB 358:

* Requires that the state’s investor-owned utility generate 25 percent of its energy from renewables by 2025 (increased from 20 percent by 2015).
* Requires that 6 percent of the RPS come from solar resources beginning in 2016, an increase from 5 percent.
* Establishes a 30 day application approval process for the state’s SolarGenerations rebate program. Eligibility capacity and categories for the program remain at 1 MW for schools, 760 kW for public buildings, 1 MW for residential and small commercial under 30 kW).
* Establishes additional rebates for 2 MW of solar at schools.

Solar advocates from the Vote Solar Initiative, the Solar Alliance and the Large-scale Solar Association (LSA) said that AB 522 represents a great step forward for Nevada, but the groups said improvement need to be made to SB 358 before Nevada can take full advantage of solar energy.

"Through the process of passing SB 358, Senator Horsford, Senator Schneider, Assemblywoman Kirkpatrick and Assemblyman Conklin demonstrated that building a new solar economy in Nevada is a clear priority," said Julia Curtis of Sharp Solar, elected Solar Alliance's lead for Nevada.

"Unfortunately, the bill in its final form falls short of creating a robust rooftop and small scale solar market. The 5 percent distributed solar carve-out we supported would have created upwards of 6,700 jobs in the state by 2020. We look forward to working with policymakers to ensure a more comprehensive solar program in the future."

Reprinted with permission from Renewable Energy World

"Green Boot Camp: Recovery Through Retrofitting" brought together over 120 senior officials and experts with the promise of training and networking efforts towards a green economy. Organized and sponsored by Living Cities, who recently released the "Green Cities" report, the conference was designed to ensure the right strategies are employed to tackle problems related to cost, workforce size and knowledge.

According to Living Cities, cost-effective residential and commercial building energy efficiency improvements could lead to 500 megatons of potential emission abatement, and a slew of green jobs. Every $1 million invested in structural energy efficiency creates nearly 22 new jobs, per the Apollo Alliance.

The program is also sponsored by the Project on Municipal Innovation, a partnership between Living Cities and Harvard, coordinated by the Institute for Sustainable Communities. Seeking to answer the question presented by rising energy costs and economic strife, the boot camp is intended to complement and focus efforts to create jobs and reduce carbon emissions.

The boot camp agenda pursued the issues that confront the implementation of an integrated structural energy retrofitting initiative: sustainable finances, support for the resulting green jobs and increasing citizen participation. Building support for efficient retrofitting is sought through policy, marketing and community action.

Confirmed via his Twitter feed, Ron Sims, Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, spoke at the boot camp. Another keynote speaker, Auden Schendler, author of the recent book "Getting Green Done," talked about how vital a massive building retrofit program is to "save the planet."

Director of Sustainability for Aspen Ski Company, Schendler has been vocal about the difficulty in really greening your company, an impossible task, he said in an interview with BusinessWeek. Green initiatives are all about making the insurmountable possible- one of the attendees, Cathy Polaski, Minneapolis Director of Economic Development, said that stimulus funds have provided for "unprecedented partnerships," reported USA Today.

These unlikely collaborations have been forged by the boot camp, bringing state and city officials, utilities, energy efficiency providers, university extensions, along with a variety of private sector professionals together.

One of the issues that Living Cities highlighted in their “Green Cities” report was a lack of initiatives towards low-income families, an issue that will inevitably need to be addressed in any mass retrofit initiative. Such concerns may have received attention, as Anne Keeney was in attendance, Executive Director of the Seattle Jobs Initiative, which trains and supports low-income individuals.

Director of energy efficient homes for the Baltimore City Department of Housing and Community Development, Ken Strong, and Ted Atwood, city energy advisor also attended, from a city that is implementing green changes, like LED traffic lights, and has completed a greenhouse-gas inventory.

Mark Alan Hughes, Chief Policy Advisor and Director of Sustainability for Philadelphia, attended, bringing insights from a city that may soon reap benefits from it's university development of an exterior insulation, aptly-dubbed “Exolation.” Exolation was designed with low-income rowhouses in mind, after determining that existing exterior-wraps were inefficient.

Energy efficiency and conservation grant deadlines for $3.2 billion are rapidly approaching, paving the way for later funding towards green jobs and low-income home weatherization. As these deadlines loom closer, efforts like this boot camp that work towards implementing an infrastructure to support soon-to-be flourishing areas, like green jobs, are vital.

The Business Case for Going Green
Arbogast spent some time discussing the business case for going green. Some of the key points he made included:

Tips: Lessons Learned from Dell
Arbogast offered the following tips for implementing a successful sustainability plan:

Challenges Moving Ahead
What keeps Arbogast up at night? Top on his list of concerns is that regulation is going to force his industry to implement a carbon-based label that will add layers of complexity and cost, but not be a product differentiator nor change consumer purchasing behavior.

Deborah Fleischer is the principal and founder of sustainability consulting firm Green Impact

This bill, currently making the rounds through the House of Representatives, extends the federal government’s commitment to lowering emissions through alternative fuels and electrification. Waxman and Markey led markups of HR 2454 starting on May 18 with the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming voting 33-25 in favor of its provisions on May 21.

The American Clean Energy and Security Act’s first section is the most important for green vehicle advocates. Title I requests an EV infrastructure plan from every utility in the United States to cover every aspect of mobilization from charging stations to billing.

Waxman and Markey also included a provision in Title I that would require every EV charging system to accommodate every vehicle regardless of manufacturer. HR 2454 recognizes the financial challenges to regional utilities by requiring automakers to include instrumentation in each vehicle to handle billing and electrical usage.

American automakers struggling to make ends meet would receive help through a financial assistance program established under HR 2454. In recognition of the costs of EV production, Waxman and Markey want the federal government to supply money for changes to traditional manufacturing facilities that would be used for EV development.

General Motors, Ford and Chrysler would be able to offset up to 30% of adaptation costs for developing EV models like the Chevy Volt. The federal government will focus these funds on auto technology that meets new emissions standards and reduces oil dependence.

The Department of Energy would be tasked with testing, implementing and overseeing EV infrastructure from region to region if HR 2454 is passed. Energy Department officials would conduct studies of existing transportation including light rail, busing and neighborhood EV programs before initiating EV mobilization.

The federal government would work with automakers, utility companies and local authorities to surmount technological and bureacratic obstacles that could delay EV implementation. HR 2454 casts a wide net over electric vehicle development including hybrids, plug-ins and fast-charging capabilities.

The overwhelming majorities for Democrats in the House and the Senate should keep HR 2454 moving smoothly through Congress. Waxman and Markey anticipated questions about utility billing, EV development and infrastructure implementation in this thorough piece of legislation.

Even as HR 2454 moves into federal law, questions remain about the speed at which electric vehicles can be delivered to American consumers. The Big Three automakers have the technology but have been surpassed by Japanese and South Korean automakers in the alternative fuel market.

Smaller automakers like Tesla Motors may be gaining momentum but their production capacity is still relatively limited. HR 2454 would take America in the right direction but the mobilization of EVs and accompanying infrastructure could take a considerable amount of time.

Reprinted with permission from HybridMile

Zoe and Zac uses natural fibers like organic cotton, hemp, jute (plant), and recycled products like rubber and plastic for elastic banding, as well as water-based glue. In addition to eco fashion, and like any true green company, shoebox packaging consists of 100 percent recycled boxes and soy-based ink.

In using natural fibers, cleaner inks and glues, products are made without metals like buckles, without pesticides (for organic cotton pieces), and without requiring excess raw material extraction.

Payless has said selling eco fashion is important because it shows that being green can be affordable. No argument there. But, maybe an expansion of ideals is really in order. That is, selling eco fashion is more than being part of the trend and making that trend affordable so that middle America, the majority of retail shoppers, will purchase at Payless.

Selling eco fashion is about converting corrosive and destructive manufacturing practices into products that do not take away from the environment, but, dare I dream, enhance it? Thanks to Zoe and Zac, Payless is planting one billion trees as part of its initiative to green the Zoe and Zac product line.

This is true environmentalism. Additionally, how about selling more than one eco brand? Maybe not all customers are looking for a cotton shoe. Maybe, to reach the plethora of customers, the company will need to find and sell an eco brand that offers boots made from recycled leather, or a stiletto made using cork. In this case, more really is less.

Payless, you have an opportunity here to be a world-class business. So many eco brands are misunderstood by customers and are out of the reach of consumers who are now turning to discount department stores due to the state of the economy. For some, eco fashion is understood as a bland beige product infused with specks of unknown recycled product, sort of a one size fits all concept. However, the Zoe and Zac brand is proving that eco fashion can be colorful, and much more.

Again, an expansion of eco brands can be the answer as it will continue to close the misunderstood cycle of eco products and make eco fashion much more interesting to consumers. The more interest, the lower prices can go and the more profits for Payless.

With a total of 17.3 megawatts (MW) of new installed capacity, consumer demand for clean energy options is on the rise, the Association said.

U.S. manufacturers sold about half of all small wind turbines installed worldwide last year. U.S. market share amounted to $77 million of the $156 million global total. (Worldwide, about 38.7 MW of new small wind capacity was installed in 2008.)

“The U.S. wind industry is a growing bright spot in our domestic economy, and the small wind sector is no exception,” said AWEA CEO Denise Bode. “Strong federal policies like the federal investment tax credit for small wind are critical to future growth, just as adoption of a federal renewable electricity standard (RES) is essential to growth in the utility-scale market.”

Growth in the small wind sector is largely attributable to increased private investment that has allowed manufacturing volumes to increase, particularly for the commercial segment of the market (systems 21-100 kW). The still-largest segment of the market, residential (1-10 kW), was likewise driven by investment and manufacturing economies of scale, AWEA said, but also rising residential electricity prices and a heightened public awareness of the technology and its attributes.

“Consumers are looking for affordable ways to improve their energy security and reduce their personal carbon footprint,” said Ron Stimmel, AWEA’s Small Wind Advocate. “Small wind technology can be an answer to that search. As government policies have caught up with consumer interest, we’re seeing people all across the U.S. take advantage of this abundant, domestic natural resource and U.S. manufacturers have been able to meet this increasing demand.”

The study included a poll of small wind manufacturers, who project a 30-fold growth in the U.S. small wind market within as little as five years, despite a global recession. Much of this estimated growth will be spurred by the new eight-year 30% federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) passed by Congress in October 2008 and augmented in February 2009.

Reprinted with permission from Sustainable Business

The photovoltaic plant was inaugurated Sunday at Masdar City by Sheikh Diab bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA).

The 212,000 square meter (55 acre) solar system is comprised of 87,777 photovoltaic modules and will produce 17,500 MWh of clean energy each year that will be used in the initial construction activities of Masdar City.

Enviromena CEO Sami Khoreibi commented “This represents a major milestone in the development of Masdar City and Abu Dhabi’s decision to achieve a 7% renewable energy target by 2020.”

Enviromena Vice President Sander Trestain, who managed the construction and startup of the solar power system, commented “This facility proves that utility scale grid connected renewable energy projects are feasible in Abu Dhabi and the wider region.”

Masdar City, is planned to be the world’s first carbon neutral, zero waste city fully powered by renewable energy. The city’s development is part of the Masdar Initiative, a multi-faceted Abu Dhabi initiative wholly owned by the Mubadala Development Company (Mubadala) to advance the development, commercialization, and deployment of renewable energy.

Reprinted with permission from Sustainable Business

During the opening session, some of the key messages included:

1. Do or die: Companies who stick their heads in the sand and ignore sustainability will not survive. If you are following, rather than being a market leader, your brand value is at risk. Jez Frampton of Interbrand stressed that if you are not leading your industry, you will get left behind.

2. Doing good: Owen Rogers of IDEO presented some key principles that make a brand sing, including passion, creating a point of view and expressing it honestly, integrating many voices and continuing to evolve. He proposed the idea that what sells and gets people’s attention is the idea that if you buy a product, you are doing good and helping to make the world a better place.

3. Authenticity: A common thread was the reminder to walk the talk. If you are going to use sustainability as a product differentiator, be sure you have done all you can to be authentically green. This does not mean you have to be perfect. Consumers want honesty and transparency, not perfection. But with today’s social media tools, it only takes a moment on Twitter for someone to accuse you of greenwashing.

4. Innovation: Sustainable brands are about evolution, innovation, movement and possibilities. The final speaker, Lauralee Alben of Alben Design, pushed the mainly corporate audience out of their comfort zone as she spoke about sea change moments—moments that have a deep, profound and lasting transformational impact on your brand. Perhaps it was the reception downstairs calling to folks, or her delivery and language (do they really use the word "sacred" now in the corporate world?), but the audience started to slowly dwindle during her presentation.

Sustainable brands influence behavior and choices, generate demand and increase brand value by integrating sustainability. They are about bringing people together, encouraging conversations and looking at issues in the broadest context possible. Speakers used a variety of companies to illustrate their points, ranging from Starbucks, IBM, Nokia, Patagonia and New Leaf Paper.

Dell, Procter and Gamble, Hewlett-Packard, Better Place and Tririga have received the 2009 AMR Research Leadership Awards for their leadership in sustainability and corporate social responsibility.

To determine the list, AMR Research surveyed roughly 50 companies, many of which are part of the Fortune 500. Leaders where chosen based on the following categories of environmental and social stewardship: corporate social responsibility, supply chain innovation, and sustainable leadership including sustainability and innovation, operational sustainable performance, and clean technology.

Dell won under the sustainability category for innovative measures taken to be the first global technology company to become carbon-neutral. That is, they have invested in enough clean energy to offset 100 percent of their global electricity use as a company. (An even tougher stance on carbon neutrality would be to offset the energy use by consumers of their products. Dell provides consumers with the option to pay to offset the carbon emissions from one year of computer use when purchasing a computer ). To offset other environmental impacts, Dell is working with other international organizations to preserve the forests of Madagascar. Dell has also accomplished many other green innovations.

Procter and Gamble won the corporate social responsibility award for their commitments to the global community. Employees participate in lopping off their locks for cancer patients, donating to education around the world, sending infant supplies around the world, donating to UNICEF for vaccinations and participating in safe drinking water programs.

For Hewlett-Packard, reducing environmental impacts is nothing new. They have reduced and recycled since the 1970s, like their unwanted technology collection and recycling projects. They help to research climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, and energy efficiency. One of their best innovations is a partnership with their suppliers and freight carriers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Better Place is creating change through a recharging and battery exchange service for electric cars. The company is building infrastructure to support the emissions-free vehicles, and is expanding all over the world.

Tririga is showing how real estate can be green without having to be a LEED project. The software helps building managers decrease energy and operate at more efficient levels supplying a wealth of data to managers.

Each of these companies is proving that green is the wave of the future. Companies are saving money in a recession through sustainability and corporate responsibility efforts, and they are also answering to their shareholders with proven costs savings, and they are winning customers who want to purchase products from companies that care about their long term impacts, and the communities in which they operate. Thanks to AMR, companies now have a new market to compete in for recognition and bragging rights, the green market.

The building will capture and store all of the water it needs and harness energy from wind turbines or solar panels. The Living Learning Center will have a roof that will catch rainwater, which will be filtered and stored in a 3,000-gallon tank underground.

The Learning Center will monitor all building processes as well as displaying avoided emissions. The Center's specifications seem fit for Bruce Wayne, complete with a "bat house" for research, though the composting toilets might not be mansion-worthy.

The Living Building Challenge measures sixteen stated characteristics, including the use of nontoxic materials, habitat exchange and beauty. "In order to be certified as a Living Building, it must be fully operational for at least twelve consecutive months; this program demands proof that the occupants engage the project as anticipated. After all, an empty building serves no purpose," said Eden Brukman, research director at the Cascadia Region Green Building Council. Buildings are also required to use materials within 500-miles to reduce transportation-related emissions.

The Cascadia Region Green Building Council launched the Living Building project three years ago, and over 60 proposed structures have been registered since. The International Living Building Institute was recently created to serve international needs, and plans to triple the number of international registered projects in the next year.

One such project is expected to become the first recipient of the Living Building designation, the Omega Center for Sustainable Living (OSCL) in New York, which will house an Eco Machine, wastewater treatment facilities and classrooms. Another living building due to finish by the end of the year is the Energy Lab at the Hawaii Preparatory Academy, which will be almost entirely naturally circulating; the system will use air to chill water at night which is then later used to provide air-conditioning.

According to a study earlier this year, living buildings are cost efficient and in areas with high utility costs, payback periods were estimated to be shorter. The study also cited a university classroom building in Oregon, which was modified to the rigorous standards of a living building for "basically no cost."

Living buildings are a step beyond current green building requirements such as LEED certification, and are expected to be the high performance buildings of tomorrow.