Environmental | News & Views

Eco Picture of The Day – July 2010 Top 10 Eco Pic’s

Below we have listed the Eco Pic of The Day July Top 10 Eco Pic’s.

Click the link to see the picture;

1 - The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

2 - Plastic bottle catamaran crosses Australian finish line

3 - Scrapped taxis in India

4 - Ecover factory recycle bins

5 - Dead whale found pinned to alaska cruise ship

6 - Creating art out of plastic debris

7 - Heathrow Terminal 1 recycling bins

8 - Fight for your right to clean air emissions equality

9 - Ecover orginal advertising

10 - Dead Oystercatcher killed by plastic waste

London Cycle Hire – Jenny Jones Investigates

Jenny Jones, Green Party member of the London Assembly, investigates the London Cycle Hire scheme. Filmed on Monday 26th July.

Please send Jenny your feedback on the new scheme and your experiences of it: Jenny.Jones@london.gov.uk

Electrolux Turns Ocean Garbage Into New Vacuums

Plastic is a material with many advantages. But when plastic ends up in the wrong place it becomes a problem. To raise public awareness about this issue, Electrolux aims to gather plastic debris from vulnerable marine habitats – and produce a limited number of vacs out of it.

Check out the ‘Vac from the sea’ video here.

The maker of various home appliances is creating a limited number of vacuums made with plastic gathered from oceans and seas, through its Vac From The Seainitiative, to bring attention to how much plastic is ending up in floating around in marine environments and harming animals.

Not only does plastic that is in oceans kill birds and other creatures, but plastic out in the sea breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces over time, bringing with it worries that as fish and other animals eat the bits of plastic, that trash works its way back up the food chain until it ends up on our plates.

The issue of plastic waste in the ocean has now been documented and tracked by a number of groups and awareness initiatives, like 5Gyres and the Plastiki expedition, but this is the first time a company has fused that issue with its products.

Along with awareness of plastic in the ocean, Electrolux is using the campaign to note that the supply of recycled plastic on land is much lower than the demand, noting that is that plastic staying out of the waters, it would more easily find its way into recycled-content consumer products.

Related Eco Pic’s, Articles & Video

Emissions Equality – The need to improve air quality

VOLVO ANNOUNCES THREE-POINT PLAN TO HELP THE CAR INDUSTRY IMPROVE UK AIR QUALITY.

Volvo Car UK has launched a three-point plan aimed at providing all motorists with a broader range of emissions information when they buy their next car – irrespective of marque – to help combat the UK’s rising problem of poor air quality.

With the UK facing a fine of up to £300m for its poor air quality and the Environmental Audit Committee predicting 50,000 premature deaths* through air pollution, Volvo believes it’s time to educate drivers of a car’s complete emissions picture rather than just CO2 in isolation.

Automotive emissions other than CO2 (NOx, Hydrocarbons and Particulates**) are the key contributors to poor air quality, particularly in urban areas, and are one of the main reasons why the UK suffers from one of the highest recordable asthma rates in the world***.

Volvo is proposing:

1. Volvo Car UK will encourage the Department for Transport and the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders to mandate a second environmental label covering non-CO2 emissions for all new and used cars up to five years of age. This would sit alongside the current CO2 label on all cars displayed.

The CO2 and other emissions information shouldn’t be combined in one single label as drivers still need to understand CO2 emissions for tax purposes. All of this information is readily available on the VCA website but needs presenting in an easier to understand format such as www.CleanGreenCars.co.uk and be made more accessible to all drivers.

Volvo believes there is room for a new environmental label similar to the one in the United States of America, run by the US Environmental Protection Agency which scores the environmental impact of vehicles, including both air quality and CO2 emissions.

2. Volvo Car UK is launching a phone/PC App in the next few weeks to make all air pollution and CO2 emission information readily available to drivers for when they visit a showroom to choose their next car.

3. Volvo Car UK will create an Emissions Equality Automotive Air Pollution Think Tank to move the subject of emissions and air quality further up the agenda of the automotive industry over the coming 12-24 months.

The Think Tank already has a number of high-profile members covering all sides of the debate, including Environmental Protection UK’s Policy Officer Ed Dearnley, environmentalist andTV naturalist Chris Packham, Professor of Environmental Health from Kings College London Frank Kelly, the automotive environmental commentator Jay Nagley from www.CleanGreenCars.co.uk and Volvo’s own environmental consultant Don Potts.

To support the campaign they have developed a great animation which helps explain the issues in an easily to understand way. You can watch this great eco video here.

Further discussion and debate will also be directed to facebook and twitter, where conversation will be tagged #EmissionsEquality.

Additional Information;
*Source: Environmental Audit Committee
**The Vehicle Certification Agency’s description of non CO2 emissions is as follows:
CO – Carbon monoxide reduces the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood.
HC – Hydrocarbons contribute to ozone formation. Some kinds of HCs can also be carcinogens and are also indirect greenhouse gases.
NOx – Oxides of nitrogen react in the atmosphere to form nitrogen dioxide (NO2) which can have adverse effects on health, particularly among people with respiratory illness.
***http://www.asthma.org.uk/news_media/media_resources/for_journalists.html

Is it a surprise that the Copenhagen Accord may not work?

When representatives of 192 countries converged in Copenhagen at the end of 2009, it was thought to be a seminal step forward in the world’s fight against climate change.

Out of this conference emerged the Copenhagen Accord and the agreement that a two degree limit would be the benchmark by which the international community would measure global warming.

However, no firm agreement was made about how this would be achieved.
Just six months later, researchers at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research have said that the pledges made in Copenhagen may not be enough to keep global warming within the agreed limits.

Published in the journal Nature, the research suggests that current emission levels could see the earth heat up by more than three degrees by 2100. It estimates that there is a 50 percent chance of this happening.

Currently the UK is pledging to cut carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2050, although this may change depending on the result of the upcoming election.

The researchers said that even if all nations reduce the amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere by half by 2050, there is still a 50 percent chance that global temperatures will rise by two degrees C.

In fact it was found that it’s possible that global carbon emissions could increase by 20 percent by 2020.

According to the Times, the report concluded that the nations which signed up at Copenhagen were simply putting off difficult decisions.

The United Nations has also pointed out recently that it is very unlikely that the targets set out in the Copenhagen Accord will be met.
And is it really a surprise that such vague pledges may not bring about the changes needed?

In brief, those who signed the accord agreed that action must be taken on climate change and agreed to the provision of certain levels of funding, both long term and short term.

Developing countries will be required to report their efforts every two years, although no similar clause was included which applies to developed nations.

Perhaps, most significantly no sanctions were identified for those who fail to meet their targets.

So, in light of this new research, is it time for the world to accept that the Copenhagen Accord was just a vague idea and we’re still waiting for the real action to tackle climate change to begin?

>>> Please read the full article here

Copenhagen Summit – Day 11 Summary

After the Danish COP presidency was forced to give up on creating consensus around a draft text for a political climate deal, negotiations broke the deadlock Thursday and continued on a two-track basis.

Sarkozy: Failure in Copenhagen would be a catastrophe - European leaders expressed themselves in no uncertain terms when addressing fellow heads of state and governments attending the penultimate day of the UN climate conference in Copenhagen.

Brown urges Copenhagen to overcome obstacles to a deal - Prime Minister Gordon Brown will deliver an impassioned plea this morning to fellow world leaders to ‘make the desirable possible’ by overcoming their differences.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown addresses climate summit – ‘In these few days in Copenhagen, which will be blessed or blamed for generations to come, we cannot permit the politics of narrow interest to prevent a policy for human survival.’

Kyoto proponents win first round - The Copenhagen negotiations broke the deadlock on Thursday and are now moving forward on a two-track basis that maintains the integrity of the Kyoto protocol.

Uphill struggle for ambitious deal - The Danish Presidency has given up on its ambition to create consensus on a text that would form the basis of a global political deal to combat global warming, reports a Danish daily.

China willing to detail emission effort – According to Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei China is ready for “dialogue and cooperation that is not intrusive, that does not infringe on China’s sovereignty”.

The US insists on transparency – In partnership with other countries, the US will try to mobilize 100 billion dollars a year for climate aid by 2020, according to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The US insists that funding will only be granted if developing countries allow for full transparency of their emissions.

China signals hope for deal - China was reported to signal an operational accord out of reach. Now China’s climate change ambassador says China has not given up hope for a deal.

COP15 agree on procedure - At Thursday noon, the delegates at the UN climate conference decided to continue the climate talks in two tracks, one on the Kyoto Protocol, another on the Climate Change Convention.

Obama won’t break new ground at summit – US officials stressed Wednesday that when Obama travels to the climate conference in Denmark this week he won’t bring anything to the talks beyond Washington’s already stated goals.

Emissions pledges do not match needs - Emissions cuts offered so far at the Copenhagen summit will lead to global temperatures rising by an average of three degrees, a confidential UN analysis obtained by The Guardian reveals.

>>>Full in depth article visit COP15 and Act on Copenhagen

>>> View other MoreEco News & Views Summit Summary’s

Copenhagen Summit – Day 5 Summary

COP15 After two days of intense negotiations and bargaining, EU leaders gathered in Brussels agreed on funding to help poor countries cope with climate change. Meanwhile, a UN working group at the Copenhagen conference produced the first official draft for a global climate deal.

EU putting more money on the table - EU leaders say they have agreed to commit 2.4 billion euro (3.6 billion US dollars) a year until 2012 to help poorer countries combat global warming. On Friday, EU leaders also agreed to reduce their emissions by 30 percent from 1990 levels. 

Yvo de Boer: EU billions a boost to talks – The European Union’s decision to fund 7.2 billion euro for tackling global warming over the next three years is “hugely encouraging” for the climate conference process, says the UN climate chief. 

First official draft on climate deal – A key working group under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) came up with a six-page text Friday. The draft may form the core of a new global agreement to combat climate change beyond 2012, when the present framework, the Kyoto Protocol, expires. 

Russia sets conditions for climate deal – A new global climate change deal should take Russia’s low greenhouse gas emissions in recent years into account, a Russian presidential adviser insisted Friday.

Chinese official: Stern “irresponsible” – In unusually blunt language, China’s Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei said on Friday that he was “shocked” by US climate envoy Todd Stern’s comments earlier this week that China shouldn’t expect any American public climate aid money, and that the US was not in any debt to the world for its historically high carbon emissions. 

G-77 chief negotiator walked out in anger – Chief negotiator for 130 developing countries believes that the UN climate change conference “will probably be wrecked by the bad intentions of some people”.

>>>Full in depth article visit COP15 and Act on Copenhagen

>>> View other MoreEco News & Views Summit Summary’s

Copenhagen Summit – Day 4 Summary

COP15 It’s day five of the negotiations and UK Ministers are starting to arrive, gearing up for the Ministerial segment of these crucial negotiations. Ed Miliband has joined the UK negotiating team and will today go into a series of bilateral meetings with key counterparts including the United States, China, South Africa and Denmark.

Yesterday the overarching plenary was suspended, but the negotiations have continued in other sessions on issues such as technology, finance, and adaptation.

As always the team at MoreEco have summarised the events of Day 4 for your.

Capping temperatures is ‘achievable’ says AVOID scientist - Carbon emissions must start to fall within the next 10 years to keep the rise in global temperatures below the 2 degree C level that would trigger environmental devastation, one of the UK Government’s leading climate scientists says.

US is determined to achieve strong agreement – Stern – The chief negotiator for the United States says that Washington is determined to get the ’strongest possible agreement’ in Copenhagen. Todd Stern said he was under no illusion that success would be easy but said that there was a strong political commitment to an agreement from the US Government.

A message from Global Agenda Council Members to World Leaders - More than 200 senior figures across business, finance and academia have called on world leaders to agree a ‘bold new deal’ to curb global warming and generate low carbon growth. The signatories, who are members of the Global Agenda Council on climate change of the World Economic Forum, an independent body, warned that climate change threatened to put ‘our very society at risk’.

Sweden pledges 800 million euro for climate change fund – Sweden says it will give 800 million euro (1.2 billion US dollars) to help developing nations fight climate change.

G-77: Personal call on President Obama - The Group of 77, representing the majority of the world’s developing countries, urges the US to join the Kyoto Protocol and commit to emission reductions comparable to those of other industrialized nations.

>>>Full in depth article visit COP15 and Act on Copenhagen

>>> View other MoreEco News & Views Summit Summary’s

Copenhagen Summit – Day 3 Summary

COP15 The third day of the UN climate conference in Copenhagen saw another political argument between the two biggest players – and polluters – China and the United States.

China: the US and EU must present deeper cuts – The United States and the European Union (EU) are expected by the Chinese delegation to bring more notable emission reductions targets to the Copenhagen climate talks. At a press conference Tuesday, the Deputy Head of the Chinese delegation, Su Wei (photo above), said neither the US, the EU, nor Japan had offered sufficient cuts in their greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.

US fires back at China – Statements by Su Wei, Deputy Head of the Chinese COP15 delegation, on lack of ambitions from the US were opposed by Todd Stern, President Barack Obama’s climate change envoy, as he arrived Wednesday at the conference in Copenhagen.

Developing countries split on demands – Small island states and poor African nations on Wednesday wanted the climate conference to aim at a legally binding deal tougher than the Kyoto Protocol. Richer developing countries opposed the proposal.

EPA chief: US will regulate CO2 with common sense – The United States for the first time outlined a dual path toward cutting greenhouse gases that would involve both President Barack Obama’s administration and the US Congress to reduce greenhouse emissions.

Denmark ready to pay its share – Denmark – the host country of the ongoing UN climate change conference – has put money on the table for adaptation to climate change in developing countries.

COP15 Video Highlights – Watch highlights from day 3 of the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 (COP15) – recorded on December 9, 2009.

DECC Delegate Update -DECC delegate gives an update from day three of the Copenhagen negotiations

>>> Source & full articles visit COP15 website

Play the Oxfam Climate Challenge with Heather Graham and Mackenzie Crook

Climate change is happening now. It is already costing the lives of the poorest and most vulnerable people; those who suffer first and worst. This is a problem that can be solved.

In December, in Copenhagen, the world’s leaders will meet to discuss a united response to the problem of climate change. This conference offers the world its best chance yet to agree a solution. The solution must be fair and safe for all – and it must be binding.

Think you know about climate change?

Well here’s your chance to prove it. Take Oxfam’s climate challenge quiz. Play along with Heather Graham and Mackenzie Crook. Test your knowledge. Challenge your friends. And to find out more about Oxfam’s climate change campaign, head to http://www.oxfam.org/climate

Games include: Boiling Point; Trains, Planes and Bananas; and Pollution Solution.

There’s a button to sign an Oxfam petition on climate change and an option to share the game on your Facebook account. Oxfam have also hooked the climate challenge up with Nokia phones, so it’s available as an Ovi app.

Don’t forget you can do all your eco christmas shopping at Oxfam to support their causes and still earn 8% MoreEco cash back.