by Heather Carr

When the National Park Service (NPS) decided to ban the sale of bottled water at concessions in the Grand Canyon, it was hailed as a smart way to reduce solid waste in the park. But according to a string of recently released emails, the plan was put on hold after Coca-Cola and other beverage industry representatives asked to be included in the discussions.

The emails (two sets of emails online here and here) involved discussions between various people at the NPS and were released through a Freedom of Information Act request by the group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

The plan was to ban sales of bottled water at the Grand Canyon concessions, but not to prevent people from bringing their own. Anyone who feels they need bottled water would still be allowed to bring their own from home.

Since visitors to the Grand Canyon spend time in a desert environment, access to water is important. To ensure enough drinking water for everyone, the park system spent $300,000 installing drinking fountains and filling stations throughout the park. Reusable water bottles are also for sale at the park.

Zion National Park and the Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park both banned bottled water sales with no ill effects.

It’s important to note that the emails are not from anyone in the bottled water industry – they’re all between NPS employees, although they contain references to conversation with industry people.

The notes indicate that Coca-Cola wanted to prevent the ban and offered to do things like install recycling bins, haul water to filling stations, and perhaps use a bottle made partially of plant products.

All are good ideas, but the problem remains that much of the Grand Canyon is inaccessible and once the plastic bottle garbage gets out there, it stays. The less garbage sold by the parks system, the less cost to the parks to clean it up, and the less damage done to the tourist views and the ecosystem.

The bottled water industry is highly profitable. Many brands of bottled water are simply tap water. The company pays as much for the water as the local citizens pay, usually pennies per thousand gallons, and charges $2 or more per twelve ounce bottle.

With accessible drinking fountains and reusable water bottles, an expensive disposable bottle of tap water is unnecessary. The NPS can meet the needs of the visitors. They shouldn’t have to be concerned with the profits of corporations.

by Timothy Hurst

The commercial aviation industry could go from being one of the dirtiest to being one of the cleanest in ten years, according to one of the industry's best-known figures.

Richard Branson says the world's 7,000 airlines could switch to low-carbon jet fuels much faster than other forms of transportation because airplanes have very few "filling stations."

"Unlike cars where there are millions of filling stations, there are only about 1,700 aviation stations in the world. So if you can get the right fuel, like mass-produced algae, then getting it to 1,700 outlets is not so difficult," Branson said in an interview with The Guardian.

Branson's Virgin Group, which owns a majority stake in Virgin Atlantic Airways, said the industry should aim for 50 percent sustainable fuels by 2020.

"Aviation fuel is 25-40 percent of the running costs of airlines so the industry is open to new fuels," said Branson, who also heads up the Carbon War Room, an effort to work with and reward businesses that lead reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Some airlines are way ahead of others in the quest to make biofuels a regular part of the commercial aviation fuel mix. Several European airlines have tested or incorporated low-carbon fuels, as required by the EU program to reduce emissions from the aviation sector. But in North America, in the absence of such laws, progress is much slower.

Last month, Alaska Air chairman and CEO Bill Ayer lauded sustainable biofuels as "key to aviation’s future,” at the start of Alaska Air's biofuel trial period of 75 regularly-scheduled commercial flights running on a biofuel blend. Alaska was on course to be the first airline in the U.S. to fly a commercial flight powered by biofuel but two days before they were scheduled to do so, United edged out Alaska Air to take the honors.

Unlike Alaska Air, however, United has no immediate plans to procure a long-term supply of biofuels for use in their domestic aviation operations.

by Zachary Shahan

Sorry, but this story is too funny not to share. Apparently, a mega-crash in Japan on Sunday (no worries, no one was killed or seriously injured) took down (i.e. crushed) 8 Ferraris, 1 Lamborghini, and 3 Mercedes. In other words, some of the 1 percent had a few of their toys damaged.

BUT, what caused the crash? Reportedly, the cause of the mega-accident was a Ferrari trying to pass a Toyota Prius and then hitting a guardrail. And, most interestingly, the Prius rode away nearly unscathed, only suffering a bit of rear bumper damage.

If, like me, you are wondering why so many 1 percent cars were driving together, here’s the story from Yahoo!: “The group — which Japanese police officials called “a gathering of narcissists” — were driving to a supercar meet-up in Hiroshima, where about 100 vehicles were expected to show.” The cars were going about 80-100mph at the time of the crash.

What a world!

by Kerry-Ann Adamson

It is fair to say that when BIC, the Paris-based company known for lighters and shavers and pens, announced on December 2 that it has acquired Vancouver-based Angstrom Power, there was some surprise.

Angstrom has had a commercial portable fuel cell for some time now, unlike many of its rivals, but what does BIC see in the fuel cell industry that convinced it to pay a rumored $18.5 million in these times of economic austerity? And is this the first signal that 2012 will see a round of M&A in the fuel cell industry?

The companies involved in the fuel cell sector tend to be of two types. The first are daughter companies of large, stable, multinational companies, which can invest for a long term outlook and understand the time horizon to return on assets is longer for new disruptive products than for their traditional offerings. Companies such as UTC Power and Rolls Royce Fuel Cells clearly fall into this category. The other, much more common, company is the small startup, where a couple of engineers who’ve stumbled out of the lab after years of toil into the bright sunshine with their new technology. A company is formed, often at this stage supported by some form of government subsidy or angel investment, with the aim of taking the product to market. But many fuel cell startups have stubbornly stayed in the pre-commercial phase. A rule of thumb is that for every fuel cell company with a commercial product, there are another seven to 10 that are pre-commercial.

So why would a global multinational with a well-known product portfolio decide to sink many millions of dollars into a fledgling industry with a reputation for over-promising and under delivering? BIC’s answer is that it has been developing hydrogen cartridges for portable power devices for nearly a decade, and there are a number of complementary areas with Angstrom Power.

That being the case, will other multinationals look to acquire fuel cell companies? Almost certainly. I wouldn’t call them sharks circling, or wolves on the hunt, but large companies that have a history of forward-looking investment and feel the time is right to bring a fuel cell startup to the commercial product stage are likely to leap in. After all, when a company is bought outright not only is the IP transferred to the new owners, but they also control the route to market, marketing and distribution: three areas the fuel cell industry has almost completely failed at.

Looking at the three main sectors of transport, portable and stationary, we see that in transport most independent companies are in the supply chain, in portable there’s a mix between stack and system developers, and in stationary there is also a good mix of independent stack and system developers. With the increased global focus on clean energy and energy efficiency, the stationary sector is likely to see the highest interest from large corporations, at least for the next 12 – 18 months. Later, as we get closer to the roll out dates of volume fuel cell vehicles, it will make sense for a number of independent vendors to be rolled up into one end-to-end company. This transport M&A activity will likely kick off sometime late 2013.

The fuel cell industry for too long has been dependent on government handouts. Time to move on folks, get real and get commercial. And this is going to require selling up.

by Vivian Nelson Melle

The Christmas tree has become one of the staple holiday decorations for most homes but sustainable Christmas trees aren’t always available. Sometimes severe asthma and allergy sensitivities can leave you shunning the evergreen as well. Fear not my festive friends, if you don’t want a real Christmas tree you don’t have to settle for a traditional artificial replica. The following are a list of wonderfully eco-friendly alternatives to live Christmas trees.

Life Size Christmas Trees

1. The above tree spotted in Paris, France by majunznk on Flickr is made out of green plastic bottles with a few red ones thrown in for festive flare.
2. Apartment Therapy offers some great alternatives using items from around the house to construct life size Christmas Trees.
3. Vtoxic found a wonderful reuse of soda cans which could easily be done at home by stringing cans to an embroidery hoop hung from the ceiling. The bottoms could be tied to bricks wrapped as presents and placed around to flare the bottom of your “tree”.
4. Not Martha created a festive tree out of ornaments, talk about a two-for-one deal. This is a great option for homes with inquisitive babies and pets, just hang it out of their reach.
5. Pink Chalk Studio made a gorgeous quilted advent calendar which makes a superb seasonal wall hanging. A large enough size could easily become the centerpiece in the room, especially with Christmas gifts strewn below.

Table Top Trees

1. Yarn Trees from Troncas de Linhas are a great way to reuse scrap yarn and embroidery floss. You can use one color, as she did, or use up several for a colorful option.
2. Better Homes and Gardens has a great idea for reusing last year’s holiday cards into little Christmas trees. Embellish to your heart’s delight with sewing notions, fabric and yarn scraps.
3. The Long Thread used wool sweaters for her Christmas tree creations. You could use just about any material though, and further reuse the fabric after the holidays.
4. My Home My Style made simple, yet elegant, trees from wire using a cone for initial shaping. Use various gages at varying heights to create a striking centerpiece.
5. Crafting a Green World used sticks and an empty glass bottle to create a Christmas tree sure to please any nature-loving enthusiast.

Itty Bitties for Everywhere Else

1. The Wool Acorn made little trees out of embellished pine cones. This is a fun activity for the entire family.
2. Crate Paper Blog offered a cute option for reusing scrap paper into a colorful tree which could really be made into any size. I think an tiny one would be fun to make out of confetti from the paper punch. Just do one side using a matchstick as the base, throw a pin on the back and you have wearable Christmas gifts.
3. Julie Ree made adorable garland out of little pyramid box Christmas trees. Her idea as an advent calendar is marvelous but each little tree could be hidden around the house for extra fun seek and find adventures.
4. Scrapbooks, etc. made tiny trees out of thin strips of paper. You could also use curling ribbon scraps making use of those leftovers you hated to throw away. These could make nifty little gift toppers.
5. All Sorts made a sweet little paper tree decorated with buttons. You can also reuse yarn and embroidery floss scraps by rolling them into little balls with a little dab of glue. Allow to dry and then glue on the tree. They add some nice dimension along with buttons and other notions.

What kind of Christmas tree do you enjoy in your home? Which of these fun projects to do you plan on trying out this year?

By Michael Ricciardi

On Monday, the UN released the results of the first ever global study on the state of Earth’s land. The main finding: 25 percent of all land is “highly degraded” making it unsuitable for agriculture.

The implications of this finding are enormous; the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that farm output must increase by 70 percent by 2050 to accommodate the food needs of an estimated 9 billion humans.

That translates into another billion tons of grain foods and 200 million tons of livestock meat (note: as standards of living rise in developing nations, the demand for high-quality meat also rises).

The problem or challenge here is that most of the world’s arable land is already being farmed, and often using primitive or unsustainable farming practices. These practices (e.g., over-tilling) can lead to soil erosion, loss of surface water and loss of biodiversity.

Further contributing to the lack of available land for agriculture is land-use conversion to bio-fuel crops which directly competes with food crops (additionally, animal feed crops also compete with human food crops).

This, combined with poor farming practices, leaves “key food-producing systems” unable to meet human food needs by 2050.

Consequently, the UN report, ‘State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture’ calls for “sustainable intensification” of agricultural productivity on existing farmland.

In a recent public statement at the FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy, FAO director-general Jacques Diouf said:

“The consequences in terms of hunger and poverty are unacceptable. Remedial actions need to be taken now. We simply cannot continue on a course of business as usual.”

The report compares current food production rates to those following the ‘Green Revolution’ (which introduced new technologies, fertilizers, pesticides and high-yield crops) during the fifty year period from 1961 through 2009. During this time, though agricultural land increased just 12 percent, the total agricultural food output increased a remarkable 150 percent.

But that is not the case today where the rate of productivity in many areas is slowing, with some producing only half as much as was produced during the Green Revolution.

In additional to the ‘highly degraded’ rating of 25 percent of the world’s land, the report also found that another 8 percent is “moderately degraded” and 36 percent is “slightly degraded” or “stable”. Only 10 percent of the world’s land is ranked as “improving”.

The remainder of land is either barren of covered by in-land water sources.

High risks regions include:

Western Europe (due to intensive agriculture-linked pollution of soil and aquifers and a loss of biodiversity), the highlands of the Himalayas, the Andes, the Ethiopian plateau and southern Africa (mostly due to soil erosion coupled with increased intensity of floods), and in southeast and eastern Asia’s rice-based food systems (where land has been abandoned partly due to “a loss of the cultural value”).

Additionally, fresh water resources are becoming more scare and more salinated and groundwater is increasingly contaminated by toxins and agricultural run-off.

To meet world water and food needs by 2050, the report recommends more efficient irrigation systems (most are currently below capacity), new farming practices (e.g., “integrated irrigation” and increased fish-farming [aquaculture] to meet protein demands), and more investment in agricultural development.

The estimated cost of investment through 2050 is 1 trillion USD, with an additional 160 billion USD for soil conservation and flood control.

The UN report was released just ahead of the 2-week, U.N. climate change conference in Durban, South Africa, where delegates hope to reach some consensus on how to address curbing GHG emissions. Some media have called the meeting the “last chance” for salvaging the Kyoto Protocol.

Additionally, over-use of NPK fertilizers has damaging effects on the climate (via releasing of N2O and NOx molecules which can become aerosols and deplete ozone). Further, agricultural run-off damages fresh and marine ecosystems by creating hypertrophic conditions and algal blooms (which tend to choke other life forms and destabilize food webs).

by Kristy Hessman

Ever been wandering around outside and come across a beautiful bird and wanted to know what kind it was? Now, there’s an updated app for that to help give you the answer. The National Audubon Society, fresh off a successful social media campaign around bird watching, and Green Mountain Digital are introducing an update to their Audubon Birds – A Field Guide to North American Birds mobile app.

The new, updated app uses ebird to locate birds and in real time and access information about recent sightings. The app also allows you to track and journal your personal sightings by location and share with friends by email or Facebook. And it includes an updated library of images so you’ll be sure you’re identifying the right bird, even when its all dressed up in its seasonal plumage.

The mobile app is available for the iPhone, iPad, Andriod phones, the HP Touchpad and the NOOK. The app ranges in price from $9.99 up to $14.99 depending on device, but is on sale for a limited time for $9.99. The app makes a perfect Christmas gift for all the bird lover’s on your list this year.

“Now every birder can have the equivalent of a rare bird alert and comprehensive field guide wrapped into a single mobile app,” Gary Langham, vice president and chief scientist for Audubon said in a statement. “Real time access to bird sightings in eBird backed by the huge library of species information makes Audubon Birds the ideal app for every birder.”

by Joe Sibilia

Imagine having to contend with a force that can kill a target 3700 miles away in a little over half an hour. The United States Pentagon has test fired a new weapon which can travel at five times the speed of sound and reach a target with an accuracy of 10 meters in less than an hour.

During the same time as this weapon was being tested, the Federal Reserve secretly committed to $16 trillion to a long list of the world’s largest financial institutions, many based in other countries. When you have the guns to support your point of view and you can print money without accountability – you have a powerful combination. Welcome to the United States of America.

Don’t misconstrue my patriotism. I believe the precepts of representative democracy combined with shared capitalism makes the most sense for organizing a civil society. But what country is going to challenge our point of view? If we really decide to skip paying the Chinese, what happens?

In order to maintain this myth of hegemony, we need to keep making weapons to support our need to print more money. That’s great if you are a weapons contractor or a small machine shop that makes pins for the M-16. It’s also great if you are a recipient of some of the magic money being printed by Uncle Sam. But what about the rest of us – the 99 percent? The fact is, this is not a sustainable approach for the common good.

The United States is the largest global economy when measured by GDP at $14 trillion with China a close second at $10 trillion. In third position: Around $4 trillion for a whole host of other countries.

Further, the United States accounts for 43 percent of all global military expenditure and is the largest consumer of oil on the planet. Our military is one of the largest oil consumers within the U.S. at 340,000 barrels per day or 1.5 percent of all oil used, costing approximately $13.6 billion annually.

This combination of forces – increased military spending to support our dollar, competition over oil, secret money printing, supporting a huge consuming economy, interest on our debt, entitlements and the threat of a trade and military war with China – puts us on a precarious path.

On the other hand, we (myself, Telma Sullivan and Erik Thompson) are compiling the most comprehensive report on the business case for sustainability and will continue to offer alternatives to the military/industrial complex created casually to benefit a few rich men. 

Reason and sustainability must prevail and it will take a coordinated effort – by all of us.

Photo by Beverly & Pack/flickr/Creative Commons

On December 2, the U.S. International Trade Commission voted unanimously to move forward on a full investigation of China's solar imports to the US.

The ITC will examine whether Chinese solar imports have harmed US solar manufacturers and whether there should be a penalty for Chinese companies that illegally dump products.

If they decide to implement tariffs, the cost of solar panels could rise 10 percent. ITC could decide on preliminary remedies as early as Jan. 12.

The move is in response to the SolarWorld led complaint against Chinese "dumping" of low-priced solar panels on the US market, which has made it hard for US solar manufacturers to stay afloat and resulted in several bankruptices, including the high profile Solyndra case.

59 members of Congress, from both sides of the aisle in the House and Senate, sent a letter to President Obama on December 2, supporting the investigation.

"We cannot strengthen our energy security, or create jobs and economic growth, by replacing Middle East petroleum imports with unfairly traded clean energy technologies imported from China," they write.

China-based PV industries expressed their strong opposition to the petition, saying it distorts the situation and that any trade restrictive measures be imposed would seriously impair further development of the industry and are not in consumers' interests.

The Coalition for Affordable Solar Energy (CASE), a group of US solar manufacturers that oppose the SolarWorld-led group (CASM), are urging the ITC to quickly find an equitable resolution to CASM's trade complaint.

They believe the rapid price reduction of solar panels has opened new markets in the US, and that lower costs are pushing the industry forward.

"The solar industry is uniting in its opposition to SolarWorld's actions, which threaten to stall decades of solar industry growth and development," says Jigar Shah , co-founder of CASE and founder of SunEdison. We cannot prioritize 3 percent of American solar industry jobs over the remaining 97 percent."

Here's background on the US solar trade dispute, how it's dividing the US solar industry, and recent developments.

Photo by Anthony Crider/flickr/Creative Commons

Who doesn’t love a cookie during the holidays? Unfortunately, many people don’t have the time to mix cookies up from scratch so they opt for pre-made dough in a refrigerator tube, or a boxed mix.

Not only are these processed versions of the classic holiday cookie boring, but they’re also unhealthy: containing about a thousand preservatives and chemicals that you’d never find in a regular cookie recipe.

So why not give your friends a chance to mix up your favorite healthy cookie recipe with a few time-saving short-cuts?

Mason Jar Cookie Kits are a great gift idea for neighbors, teachers, the UPS delivery person, or relatives that live on the other side of the country.

All you need are a few mason jars (but any glass jar will do–check the thrift stores!), the dry ingredients from your favorite cookie recipe, 6 – 8 inches of festive fabric or ribbon for each jar, some craft paper, and a hole punch.

Once you’ve filled the jar with the dry ingredients from your desired recipe, it’s time to decorate! One idea is to drape fabric over the lid. Cut the fabric into a circle by using the top of a small bowl. Place the top of the lid onto the jar, drape the fabric over it and screw on the lid. You can also experiment with glue and glitter, stickers, recycled wrapping paper, gift bows, and more!

Print or hand write the entire recipe for the cookie mix on your craft paper. Then punch a hole in the corner, and thread the ribbon through it. Tie the ribbon around the jar’s neck, and you’ve got a container of instant holiday cheer!

Reprinted with permission from Insteading

When most people think of saving the planet, dental health is often left out of the equation, but taking care of your teeth can actually become a very green endeavor. From your own personal oral hygiene to your dentist’s office, you can ensure your teeth make a good impression.

Labs have to create dentures and tooth implants, and while these things are often necessary and helpful, you can still take steps to avoid them and prevent these labs from using more of the earth’s resources than necessary. Even the best-laid dental plans can still fail, especially if your teeth are naturally prone to decay, but taking care of your teeth can help you avoid the majority of oral health problems.

Green Dental Products

Fluoride has been the center of many debates in recent years. Since fluoride is a toxin and therefore should not be ingested in large quantities, many companies provide all-natural products that clean your teeth without the chemicals or toxins. These include ingredients like cranberry extract (helps block bacteria), strawberry extract (helps scrub teeth and wash away plaque), peppermint (freshens breath) and cinnamon (freshens breath and provides antiseptic).

Several companies use only local, all-natural ingredients with minimal processing for their toothpaste and mouthwash. By using natural ingredients, companies can eliminate the extensive processing system required for artificial ingredients. Some even use sustainable packaging for their products. Find a company that lists all its ingredients and sources to ensure the highest quality and the smallest carbon footprint. Some good brands to try are Tom’s of Maine, Burt’s Bees, Jason Natural Products and Dr. Ken’s. Brushing and swishing with green products can go the extra mile in protecting our planet and boosting your oral health at the same time.

Green Dentists

It’s not just the patients. Dental offices have the potential to do either great damage or great good based on how they run their practices. Some dentists have decided to make their offices environmentally friendly in several ways:

- Use recycled products (or products made from recycled materials) in their offices
- Purchase reusable instruments and equipment that are safe to sterilize rather than replace every time
- Use biodegradable cups, seat covers, etc.
- Keep electronic records on patients rather than using scads of paper
- Communicate with patients electronically through e-mail and text messages
- Separate amalgam for fillings, which keeps harmful mercury from escaping into the environment
- Reduce landfill contribution by recycling the office’s waste
- Locate the office near a bus stop or other public mode of transportation
- Take digital X-rays rather than using extra plastic, lead and chemicals to develop traditional X-rays
- Replace fixtures with things like energy-efficient light bulbs and insulated windows.

by Pete Danko

GE is making a go at the offshore wind turbine market, and has found a home for its new 4-megawatt (MW) offering. The company said installation had begun for its 4.1-113 Offshore Wind Turbine in Gothenburg Harbor. The project with Goteborg Energi is the first commercial application of GE’s 4.1-113 technology, which the company says “will bring a new level of reliability to the offshore wind industry.”

GE is a turbine titan on the ground, of course, having installed more than 17,000 turbines. In 2010, it held 9.3 percent of the world market and nearly 50 percent of the U.S. turbine market, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) 2010 Renewable Energy Data Book [PDF]. But offshore has been a different story.

In September, Forbes reported that the company was “scaling back efforts to expand its presence in the offshore wind power market.” The 4.1-113 turbine, developed in Norway, “performs very well in shallow waters, but leaves a lot to be desired in deeper waters,” Forbes said. “As a result, GE has shifted its focus in the deep-water space to developing a 10-15 MW turbine using superconducting magnets, which has received addition funding support from the DOE.”

The trade publication North American Windpower (NAW) said that even with the Gothenburg Harbor installation, observers remained uncertain of GE’s offshore future. NAW quoted Dan Shreve, a principal at MAKE consulting, saying: “GE has fallen behind other turbine manufacturers, such as Siemens, Vestas, REpower and Alstom, all of which are quickly moving toward commercializing offshore wind turbines exceeding 6 MW.”

by Priti Ambani

A new law came into effect in San Francisco last week that bans toy giveaways in kids’ meals that are high in fat, salt and sugar. The Healthy Food Incentives Ordinance was passed by the Board of Supervisors last fall.

Chain restaurants no longer will be able to give away free toys with Happy Meals and other children’s meals that don’t meet the city’s strict nutritional standards.

McDonald’s owners in the San Francisco area have come up with a crafty way to evade the law. Instead of reducing fat, salt and sugar in children’s meals and offering more fruits and vegetables, stores will adhere to the law Thursday by making customers pay an extra 10 cents for a Happy Meal toy, so they are not offering the toys “free”!

San Francisco drew nationwide scrutiny for passing the ban, with some calling it a good move to combat childhood obesity, while others mocked it as nanny-state politics.

Ok, so where do the 10 cents go?

Proceeds from the toy sales will be used to help build a new Ronald McDonald House to temporarily house families with sick children at the new UCSF Hospital under construction at the Mission Bay campus.

Sound good? What do you all think? Are the McD’s in the San Francisco area right in evading the ban, even if the revenue from the toys is going to a good cause?

by Jo Borras

The powersports specialists at Polaris are expanding their electric capabilities yet again, this time by buying the French commercial EV specialists Groupil. Groupil is one of the companies behind the tiny electric delivery trucks that see service in cities across Europe – like the urban delivery train developed by the Hoek company that debuted earlier this year.

For those of you keeping score at home, that means the Polaris now has an equity stake in NEV-builders GEM, electric motorcycle company Brammo, Austrian car/motorcycle builder KTM, Groupil, and (of course) Victory Motorcycles. Polaris CEO, Scott Wine, seems pretty excited about the acquisition. ”As Polaris continues to deliver outstanding performance and gain market share in our core business, we are excited to acquire Goupil and add to our growing small electric vehicle lineup. We are eager to pursue the natural synergies between their commercial light duty work products and the more people-mover oriented offerings from our GEM business.”

You can tell CEOs are excited when they talk about “synergy”.

For the moment, Polaris plans to keep Groupil’s staff and factory in operation “as-is”, which is probably a smart move, considering the light truck maker brought in $25 million in revenue last year alone, with Wine hoping some of that small-EV know-how “trickles down” to the GEM division. ”We see tremendous, long term growth in the global small electric vehicle market, and Goupil, with its established product line, history of profitable growth, and segment-leading European presence, will be an integral part of our strategy to realize that potential.”

by Chris Keenan

Many of us are doing our part to protect the environment while reducing our impact as well. There are more people than ever embracing environmentally friendly, green technologies. There are solar powered garage doors, mobile device chargers, and even chargers installed into one’s backpack.

There are hand crank, bike powered and other human-powered electronic devices. We have good green building codes that ensure efficiency – in the design of the building itself and once it is in use. LEED is the accepted standard for building in an environmentally sound manner and there are now tens of thousands of LEED-certified buildings across the country.

However, nature cannot be kept up to speed, so to speak, about changes in the designs of our buildings. Some of the things we do to make our buildings more sustainable – and thus eligible for the LEED designation – are not necessarily bird friendly. Bird enthusiasts have, for a long time, complained of the problems birds have with wind turbines.

Countless birds are killed every year because they happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. The biggest problem with environmental design for birds is, however, not wind turbines, it is windows. Many builders are now taking advantage of passive solar lighting, which utilizes the natural light and heat from the sun for the building.

The problem is that birds cannot differentiate between an open space and glass. Birds are well known to fly straight into glass windows, severely injuring or killing themselves. There is concern that as more buildings are built to employ passive solar lighting, the more birds will be in danger. This is where the pilot program from LEED comes in.

Credits are given to determine the overall “score” of a building, which determines its certification. Credits are being given to buildings that take this understanding of birds into account. Methods being used on windows include so-called “noise” that allows the bird to differentiate between the window and the open air. This includes changes in the UV, different coatings, and other technologies.

These bird credits help meld together nature conservation with green building design. This allows us to continue building more efficient and environmentally friendly buildings without having to worry about indirect losses to wildlife. These simple changes in design can make a big difference without reducing the efficiency of the building in any way, but saving a lot of birds in the process.

by Chang-Ran Kim and Christiaan Hetzner

Toyota Motor Corp and BMW AG agreed on Thursday to join hands on a broad range of environmental technologies, forging a partnership between two engineering stalwarts in the increasingly competitive auto industry.

Under the agreement, the two will work together on lithium-ion battery research that is seen as key to electric cars, while the German premium brand will also supply 1.6 and 2.0 liter diesel engines to Toyota from 2014 in Europe. They will also identify possibilities for other projects.

The deal, announced at a news conference in Tokyo, comes as global automakers face ballooning research and development costs to meet tougher emissions and fuel-economy standards around the world. Car makers must also meet consumers' varying preferences for vehicle powertrains across different regions.

Those needs have accelerated cooperation deals among carmakers, including between Toyota's and BMW's main rivals, Nissan Motor Co and Daimler AG, along with Nissan French partner, Renault SA.

"Fundamentally we are both engineering companies, so in many aspects we have found we speak the same language," Toyota Motor Europe President and CEO Didier Leroy told the news conference.

"It is interesting to see what can be achieved when Japanese engineering meets European engineering and when the cooperation really works," he said.

Many alliances in the auto industry have ended in failure due to the clash of corporate cultures, such as the two-year-old equity tie-up between another German-Japanese pairing, Volkswagen AG and Suzuki Motor Corp.

Toyota executives said the discussions with BMW started in April as its European business sought to shore up its diesel car line-up.

Toyota's decision to seek a diesel supplier represents a reversal in strategy after it scrapped plans two years ago to develop 1.6-litre diesel engines with Japanese truck maker Isuzu Motors Ltd, in which it owns a 5.9 percent stake.

Two and a half years ago, President Akio Toyoda told his first news conference that Toyota would shift its focus in Europe to hybrids and away from diesel so as not to get "lost in the crowd."

But Toyota has lost market share in Europe, partly due to a dearth of diesel cars, which make up about 55 percent of sales in Western Europe. Diesel engines use less fuel and emit less carbon dioxide than gasoline engines.

In the first 10 months of this year, Toyota's sales in Europe fell 9.5 percent to about 430,000 vehicles, although that was partly due to supply constraints after Japan's March 11 disasters. After peaking in 2007, Toyota's sales have fallen in Europe, also hit last year by a recall crisis.

NO EQUITY EXCHANGE NOW

While virtually all carmakers acknowledge that hybrid technology will be necessary when regulations become stricter, it has never accounted for more than 2 percent of global vehicle sales and Toyota has not been able to leverage its strength in the technology to gain traction in Europe.

Toyota has diesel engines of its own, including 1.4 liter, 2.0 liter and 2.2 liter engines produced in Europe. Toyota said it would start using BMW's 2.0 liter engine on one model first, in 2014, and expand the line-up thereafter. It gave no further details.

The agreement to collaborate on next-generation lithium-ion batteries meanwhile, will give BMW access to Toyota's experience in the field. Toyota's R&D chief, Takeshi Uchiyamada, said the partners will divvy up the fields of research to speed up research and save costs.

The two companies have not discussed swapping equity, another Toyota executive said, but added that if that became necessary at later stages of cooperation, it could be considered.

Under Akio Toyoda, Toyota has forged numerous partnerships, including with Aston Martin, Tesla Motors Inc, Microsoft Corp, Salesforce.com and Ford Motor Co.

Toyota shares rose 2.3 percent on Thursday in Tokyo, in line with gains in the benchmark Nikkei average.

A new map released by U.S. scientists illustrates a steep drop in groundwater levels across much of Texas and other southern states following record-breaking drought conditions. Using groundwater calculations based on satellite observations and other meteorological data, scientists at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and the University of Nebraska have shown that ground moisture in some regions of the U.S. — including much of Texas — has dipped to levels significantly lower than the long-term average since 1948, when levels of soil moisture and groundwater were first recorded. In eastern Texas, for instance, the ground has been as dry as it currently is only 2 percent of the time over the last 63 years. According to scientists, groundwater supplies are “extremely depleted” across more than half of Texas and parts of New Mexico, Louisiana, Alabama, and Georgia. The map is based on data from the twin satellites of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), which detects small changes in Earth’s gravity field that are caused by the redistribution of water on and beneath the land surface.