Ethical | News & Views

Eon installs first turbine on MoD land

The first wind turbine to be used on Ministry of Defence (MoD) land has been installed by Eon at the Duke of York’s Royal Military School in Kent.

Over the 20-year lifespan of the turbine, it will save 114 tonnes of carbon emissions and will help contribute to the MoD’s target of generating ten percent of power from renewable sources.

The Duke of York’s Royal Military School is used to educate the children of serving army personnel and the turbine is also intended to teach pupils about renewable energy.

Colin Grenville, Eon’s microgeneration sales manager, told BusinessGreen: “Up to now, wind energy was seen as a bit of a no-go for MoD sites as there had been a number of issues with radar interference. This project shows what can be done even where there has been historic opposition.”

Mr Grenville added that the energy company was in talks with the MoD about installing more turbines.

The UK generated 6.7 percent of its electricity from renewable sources in 2009, statistics released recently by the Department of Energy and Climate Change show.

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Branches of low carbon restaurant chain to open in the UK

The low carbon restaurant chain Otarian is to open its first UK branches in London this week.

Based on the principle of vegetarianism, the chain will be the first to include information on carbon footprints to internationally recognised standards on all of its menus .

Restaurants in Wardour Street, Soho, Shaftesbury Avenue, and Covent Garden are due to open on August 20th.

Otarian operates a no air freight policy, meaning all products are delivered by road and if a reliable supply cannot be obtained the dish is altered.

Some 98 per cent of waste from the restaurant is either composted or recycled and sustainable building products, such as floor tiles made from recycled glass, are used throughout the building design.

Radhika Oswal, said that vegetarianism is the most sustainable way of living as it has “a lighter ecological footprint, reduced resource impacts, and lower carbon emissions than non-vegetarian equivalents”.

A report released earlier this year by the Centre for Alternative Technology entitled Zero Carbon Britain suggested that an 80 per cent reduction in livestock in the UK would contribute to the country producing zero emissions by 2030.

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FSB: Green improvements must be economically viable

The government must do more to help small businesses in the UK improve their energy efficiency, a new report by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) concludes.

Entitled Making Sense of Going Green – Small Businesses and Low Carbon Economy, the report claims that the coalition must provide incentives for small firms to make their buildings more eco friendly and expand the current system of loans to make going green economically viable.

As 44 percent of small businesses in the UK rent their premises, the FSB said steps must be taken to make energy efficient improvements beneficial to both the company and the landlord.

This could be done by encouraging private sector providers to pay for the upfront cost of works, linking pay-as-you-save repayments to the building – which would “overcome the landlord/tenant divide” – and waving increased fees for those who improve the rateable value of their property through green improvements.

John Walker, national chairman of the FSB, said: “If the correct policies are put in place now, then small businesses will have the potential to significantly reduce carbon emissions while also delivering the substantial economic growth that the UK economy desperately needs.”

There are currently around 4.8 million small businesses operating in the UK which provide around half of the annual UK turnover.

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Green investment ‘covers a wide range of techniques’

Green and ethical investments no longer centre around leaving some companies out of a stock portfolio, one expert has suggested.

Penny Shepherd, chief executive of UKSIF – the sustainable investment and finance association, said that sustainable investment now covers a wide range of investment techniques and is “fundamentally about making a positive choice”.

Ms Shepherd said that this could include choosing the most responsible company in the sector, working with fund managers that encourage companies to improve their performance or investing in new “sunrise industries rather than sunset industries”.

“We are in a situation where the new coalition government says it will be the greenest government ever [and] that should make a difference both to companies managing their social and environmental impact and those who provide them with the tools to do that better,” she added.

The comments come after figures from the Investment Management Association showed that net retail sales of ethical funds in the second quarter of 2010 were at their highest level since the final three months of 2007.

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Young people ‘must be attracted to energy industry’

More must be done to attract young people to careers within the energy industry, it has been claimed.

Zoe Robinson, ethical development manager at Warren Evans, said that the government and private sector must work in partnership to provide opportunities within the sector for school leavers and the long-term unemployed.

She added: “The UK can only be world leaders in the green energy revolution if we have world-leading skills.”

The comments come after energy firm Centrica warned of an emerging skills gap as many undergraduates are shunning employment opportunities in the industries that will contribute to low carbon growth.

One in four parents that took part in the survey said they would not actively encourage their children to enter the science, technology and energy sectors.

Ms Robinson warned that with the government cuts taking place in the Department of Energy and Climate Change, the coalition will have to “find new ways of delivering the green agenda”.

“While the public can do its part, the government’s responsibilities to deliver on this agenda will obviously not be met by telling us all to switch off our TVs,” she added.

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Majority of UK businesses ‘not measuring carbon footprint’

The majority of UK companies do not measure their carbon footprint yet, the Carbon Trust has claimed.

Britain’s largest business and public organisations now have less than 50 days to sign up to the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) Energy Efficiency Scheme, which is intended to help the country meet its carbon reduction target.

However, a survey conducted by the trust revealed that just 26 per cent of firms make the effort to measure their emissions, Bloomberg reports.

Some 38 per cent of the 200 finance directors who took part in the poll said that they planned to begin monitoring their carbon footprint in the next five years.

Harry Morrison, general manager of the Carbon Trust, said that finance departments are playing a greater role in monitoring emissions. Earlier this year, Mr Morrison said that the key to implementing a successful CRC strategy lies within the internal audit and data collection processes.

“In many companies, the finance team in their internal audit function are best placed to have a robust view of carbon and environmental data than the energy and climate teams may have done in the past,” the news provider quoted him as saying.

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New standards for eco products

The development and global implementation of a new environmental ratings system could make product comparisons easier for consumers across the world.

The US-based Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) announced on August 10 that it had partnered with Canadian Standards Association and international US-based group UL Environment, two leading standards organizations. The three groups intend to develop a series of new standards which can be used by governments, retailers and consumers worldwide to identify and promote environmentally responsible products.
The new standards of environmental efficiency will take into account not just the energy consumption of the product, but also its ecological impact across its lifetime. In a press release, the American and Canadian companies stated that they intended to develop a “metric that will instill consumer confidence.”

Increased transparency in environmental standards is needed as consumers become increasingly ecologically aware and manufacturers begin responding to their demands; it is not yet known when the firms will have completed drafting the new standards, or when they will be implemented.
Currently low environmental impact products are awarded under the Energy Star system and are available throughout America and Europe; energy-efficient EU products also carry a green flower symbol.

Consumer websites such as www.energystar.gov in the United States, www.energysavingtrust.org.uk in the UK and www.ecolabel.eu in Europe provide environmental ratings and information on a number of household appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines.

It is hoped that development of a new system of environmental ratings could lead to a comprehensive global standardized environmental rating system, simplifying product comparisons for consumers and allowing them to avoid “greenwashing” or misleading ecologically oriented marketing.

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Galapagos dropped from UNESCO endangered list

UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee said it has removed Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands from its list of endangered sites, due to Quito’s protective efforts in the Pacific archipelago.

“By a vote of 14 to five, with one abstention,” the committee removed the islands from its endangered environments list, where it was included in 2007, said Brazil’s Culture Ministry, which presides over this week’s committee meeting in Brasilia.

“It’s important to recognize the Ecuadoran government’s effort in protecting and preserving this heritage site,” Brazilian Heritage Institute president Luiz Fernando de Almeida said in a statement.

Brazil had requested that the Galapagos be removed from the endangered list.

Located 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) west of Ecuador’s coast, the Galapagos archipelago of 13 main islands and 17 islets has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1978 for its rich plant and animal life both on land and in the surrounding sea.

In 2007, the organization declared the island chain’s environment endangered due to the increase of tourism and the introduction of invasive species.

Some 10,000 people, mostly fishermen, live on the volcanic archipelago, which rose from the Pacific seabed 10 million years ago and became famous when Darwin visited to conduct research in 1835.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s List of World Heritage in Danger includes 31 cultural or natural sites around the globe at imminent risk of degradation or destruction.

The 34th annual meeting of the World Heritage Committee this year takes place in the Brazilian capital from July 25 to August 3.

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CITROËN DS3 ‘ECOMEDY TOUR’: TWO COMEDIANS, FIVE NIGHTS, FIVE HUNDRED MILES, ONE TANK OF FUEL

Citroën’s DS3 is going on tour – transporting comedians Dan Adams and Christian Ancliff to their first ever Edinburgh Fringe Festival (6th to 30th August). The Citroën DS3 Ecomedy Tour will see the two stand-ups piloting a DS3 DStyle 99g and gigging all the way from London to Edinburgh – a journey of over 500 miles – all on a single tank of fuel.

The pair will put in a performance each night during the tour, playing in London, Oxford, Stratford-upon-Avon, Manchester and Glasgow before reaching Edinburgh in time for the start of their Fringe run. The DS3 Ecomedy Tour runs from 1st to 6th August and is supporting Oxford-based hospice, Helen & Douglas House.

To allow members of the public to follow all the action, Dan and Christian will be updating a special tour microsite, www.ecomedytour.com every day with videos, images and words.

Christian Ancliff commented; “It’s our first Fringe appearance, so understandably we’re fantastically nervous and very excited at the same time. Trying out our show material right across the UK during the tour will give us a great warm-up and a brilliant experience.”

Dan Adams added; “We’re testing our humour against the public and Citroën’s technology against the elements. I only hope we can match audience laughs per gig with DS3’s miles per gallon. This should be a terrific adventure for a very worthwhile cause. We look forward to sharing it with the public.”

For more information on each performance or to follow the tour activity, visit www.ecomedytour.com.

Tour updates will also be published on Citroën’s official Twitter and Facebook pages: www.twitter.com/citroenuk & www.facebook.com/CitroenUK

>>> Details: Kicks off in London on the 1st August and finishes in Edinburgh on the 6th August

>>> Visit the website here for more information

>>> For information on Helen & Douglas House click here

Green cleaning: There’s the scrub

Our products harm the environment. They are not environmentally friendly. We never say they are environmentally friendly.” Who is saying this? BP’s Tony Hayward, perhaps?

Actually these are the words of Mick Bremans, chief executive of Ecover, the biggest-selling brand of “ecological” cleaning and laundry products in Britain. Despite celebrating 30 years in the business of selling greener, cleaner household products, Bremans’ team at Ecover has not yet discovered a dishwasher tab or laundry liquid that is what the consumer with a conscience is looking for – environmentally friendly.

In fact, Bremans is making the point that no product, be it a lavatory cleaner, a hybrid car or a locally sourced punnet of strawberries, is technically environmentally friendly. Everything we make takes its toll on the planet in production and leaves its mark when disposed of. Instead, Ecover describes its products as “ecological”, to communicate that they are kinder to the environment than comparable products.

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