SustainAbility Campaign

APPROPRIATIONS: CONGRESS PASSES BILL FUNDING AGENCIES THROUGH FY 2012

2011-12-24T13:13:00.000-08:00

The week of Dec. 16, Congress passed H.R. 2055, an omnibus bill which funds the government through the remainder of the current fiscal year (FY) 2012, which ends Sept. 30, 2012. The bill passed the House by a vote of 262-121 and the Senate by a vote of 67-32. The majority of opposition in both chambers came from conservative Republican lawmakers as many of the riders included in the House appropriations bills were shaved in conference.

The omnibus bill incorporates the remaining nine appropriations bills that were not included in the "minibus" that passed earlier this year (P.L. 112-55). The new omnibus bill includes funding for the Departments of Interior and Energy as well as the Environmental Protection Agency.

Energy and Water

Overall, energy and water programs are funded at $32 billion for FY 2012, a $328 million increase over FY 2011. For Department of Energy science programs, the bill includes $4.9 billion, an increase of $46 million from FY 2011. The bill also includes $769 million for nuclear energy research and development, $43 million above FY 2011. For environmental management activities, the bill includes $5.7 billion, a $31 million increase over FY 2011. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is funded at $5 billion, a $145 million increase from FY 2011. The FY 2012 funding level for the Corps is also $429 million above the president's request, one of the few agencies to enjoy this distinction this year.

Interior, Environment and Related Agencies

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): $8.4 billion for FY 2012, $233 million below FY 2011.The conference agreement cuts $14 million (six percent) in clean air and climate research programs; $12 million (9.5 percent) in EPA's regulatory development office; and $14 million (five percent) to air regulatory programs. The bill also reduces the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund by $101 million.

Bureau of Land Management: $1.1 billion, $5 million below FY 2011.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: $1.5 billion, $28 million below FY 2011.

National Park Service: $2.6 billion, $32 million below FY 2011.

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement: $60 million (this agency was formalized in FY 2011).

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement: $76 million, including $15 million for oil spill research for this agency, formalized in FY 2011.

U.S. Forest Service: $4.6 billion for the Forest Service in FY 2012, $91 million below FY 2011.

Land and Water Conservation Fund: $322.8 million, a seven percent increase over FY 2011.

Clean Water State Revolving Fund: $2.39 billion, a 3.5 percent decrease from FY 2011.

Great Lakes Restoration Initiative: $300 million, a slight increase from $299 million in FY 2011.

Everglades restoration: $142 million, down from $155 million in FY 2011.

Chesapeake Bay restoration: increase to $57.4 million, up from $54.4 million in FY 2011.

Gulf of Mexico restoration: funding increase from $4.5 million to $5.5 million in FY 2012.

Department of Defense Research and Development: $72.4 billion, $2.5 billion below FY 2011.

Other Provisions

Congressional Republicans were successful in including language to halt new standards requiring light bulbs to be nearly 30 percent more energy efficient next year. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) authored the language in the original 2007 energy law that established the standards. The rider will prevent the Department of Energy from implementing the rules through Sept. 30, 2012, the end of the current fiscal year. The language would have to be renewed in an FY 2013 appropriations bill.

The bill also includes a one-year block preventing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from spending money on Obama administration efforts to rewrite federal rules so that environmental considerations are given greater weight when planning and designing levees, locks, dams and other flood control efforts. Scientists have cited the benefits of complementing such infrastructure with natural approaches to flood control, such as floodplain and wetlands restoration.

The omnibus bill also includes language that would overturn a decision by a federal appeals court in 2010 that would require Clean Water Act permitting for stormwater runoff on logging roads.

Court Upholds Endangered Listing for Cook Inlet Beluga Whales

2011-11-26T07:21:00.000-08:00

A federal judge Monday upheld the listing of Alaska's Cook Inlet beluga whales as endangered, rejecting a bid by the state of Alaska to overturn the listing by the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Chief Judge Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia wrote; beluga whales in Alaska's Cook Inlet were "nearly wiped out by a catastrophic spree of subsistence whaling between 1994 and 1998."
"More than a decade later, and despite the passage of a legislative moratorium on subsistence hunting in 1999, the population of Cook Inlet beluga whales has failed to show any appreciable signs of recovery. For this and other reasons, the National Marine Fisheries Service granted a petition to list the species as endangered under the Endangered Species Act," the judge wrote.

Beluga whale and her calf in Cook Inlet, Alaska (Photo courtesy U.S. Army)

The Service "grounded that decision in the best available scientific data," Judge Lamberth wrote. "The Service's decision is rational and is supported by the administrative record, and the defendants are therefore entitled to summary judgment."
In his decision, Judge Lamberth explained that to determine the probability of extinction, the Service developed a time-series model that extrapolated the negative population trend observed in Cook Inlet over 50, 100, and 300 years.
"The most realistic model resulted in a one percent risk of extinction in 50 years, a 26 percent risk of extinction in 100 years, and a 70 percent risk of extinction in 300 years," the judge wrote.
The State's six-count complaint alleges that the Service failed to consider the relevant statutory factors and did not conform to the required procedures for making a listing determination. Judge Lamberth rejected those claims.
The Alaska Center for the Environment, the Center for Biological Diversity, Cook Inletkeeper, Defenders of Wildlife, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the North Gulf Oceanic Society, represented by Trustees for Alaska, intervened in the lawsuit on the side of the federal government to defend the beluga listing against the state's attack.

Beluga whale, Turnagain Arm, Cook Inlet (Photo by Pashman)

While there are four other beluga whale populations in Alaska, Cook Inlet belugas are a genetically unique and geographically isolated population of whales and are considered a "distinct population segment" for listing purposes.

"The Cook Inlet beluga whale is one of Alaska's most iconic wild animals, and we need to do all we can to prevent its extinction," said Karla Dutton, Alaska director for Defenders of Wildlife. "A healthy beluga population in Cook Inlet is essential to the health of the inlet itself and the people and wildlife who depend on it. We're gratified that the court sided with the scientists and kept in place the vital protections these whales need."
"Today's decision again clarifies that the belugas are in serious trouble. Now it's time to get serious about finding solutions. Legal sideshows by the state are getting us nowhere," said Sue Libenson, executive director of the Alaska Center for the Environment.

Thirty years ago, the number of beluga whales in Cook Inlet, a glacial fjord stretching 180 miles from Anchorage to the Gulf of Alaska, likely exceeded 1,300, but now hovers around 350.

"Although the population dwindled steadily through the 1980s and early 1990s, its decline was accelerated between 1994 and 1998 by Alaska Natives, who depend to some extent on beluga whales for subsistence," wrote Judge Lamberth. "Aided by modern technology, Alaska Natives decimated the beluga population in Cook Inlet, harvesting nearly half of the remaining 650 whales in only four years. This unregulated harvest led to what could fairly be described in conservation terms as an emergency."

The whale's population decline has been so severe that in 2006 the International Union for Conservation of Nature placed the Cook Inlet beluga on its Red List of Threatened Species. The U.S. Marine Mammal Commission repeatedly requested that the Fisheries Service list the species under the Endangered Species Act.

Shortly after belugas were listed as endangered in October 2008, then Alaska Governor Sarah Palin announced plans to sue over the listing.
When Alaska Governor Sean Parnell replaced Palin, who quit in the middle of her term, it was July 2009, and the new governor carried out Palin's intent to block protections for the Cook Inlet belugas.

In addition to this lawsuit, on December 1, 2009, Governor Parnell objected to the National Marine Fisheries Service proposal to designate more than one-third of Cook Inlet as critical habitat for the endangered beluga whales.

"Listing more than 3,000 square miles of Cook Inlet as critical habitat would do little to help grow the beluga population, but it would devastate economic opportunities in the region," Governor Parnell said then. "The beluga whale population has been coexisting with industry for years. The main threat facing belugas was over-harvest, which is now regulated under a cooperative harvest management plan. Belugas are also protected under the Marine Mammal Act."

But the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has since designated 3,016 square miles of marine and estuarine environments considered by scientists to be essential for the whales' survival, including all upper portions of Cook Inlet, where whales concentrate in summer months and mid-Cook Inlet. These areas contain important biological and physical features for these cetaceans, such as feeding areas near the mouths of salmon streams.

This case shows once again that the state of Alaska's war on wildlife is a losing battle," said the Center for Biological Diversity's Alaska Director Rebecca Noblin. "The state is wasting taxpayer money on frivolous challenges to Cook Inlet beluga protections that are based on solid science."

What a Load of Crap!!!

2011-07-29T08:39:00.000-07:00

About 2.6 billion people use unsafe toilets or defecate in the open. Poor sanitation causes severe diarrhea, which kills 1.5 million children each year. Smart investments in sanitation can reduce disease, increase family incomes, keep girls in school, help preserve the environment, and enhance human dignity.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is leading a charge to reinvent the toilet! Sounds like a crappy job…but someone has to do it. This enormous problem is central to the overall of the Sustainability Campaign and an example of why it is important to adopt the ISC Principles of Sustainability.

Drought in Texas

2011-07-26T16:17:00.000-07:00

According to the NASA, by July 2011, Texas and New Mexico had completed the driest six-month period on record. Average rain between January and June was more than eight inches below average in Texas and 3.5 inches below average in New Mexico. Record warm temperatures also persisted in Texas between April and June. The lack of rain and the warm temperatures added up to exceptional drought.

This image shows the impact of drought on plants throughout Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. Made with data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra satellite, the image compares plant growth between June 26 and July 11, 2011, with average conditions for the period. The image is dominated by brown, showing that plants were growing less than average throughout Texas and New Mexico.

The image supports an assessment by the U.S. Drought Monitor, which states that 94 percent of the range and pastureland in Texas was in poor or very poor condition in June 2011. In Oklahoma, 78 percent of range and pastureland was in poor condition.

Though drought is not a disaster that strikes all at once, it is nonetheless a devastating event that can cause death, disease, and loss of money and property. For these reasons, drought is termed the creeping disaster. So far farmers in Texas have lost 30 percent or more of their crops and pasture in 2011. The loss led the U.S. Department of Agriculture to declare a natural disaster in 213 Texas counties and additional counties in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. The declaration qualifies farmers in these regions for low-interest loans to cover their losses.

TPC Scottsdale Joins the Sustainable Landscapes Campaign

2011-07-07T06:45:00.000-07:00

The Tournament Players Club (TPC) of Scottsdale recently joined Audubon Lifestyles and the International Sustainability Council as a Platinum Member, and are active participants in the Audubon Lifestyles Sustainable Golf Facility Program.

TPC Scottsdale is located in Scottsdale, Arizona and only a half hour from Phoenix, TPC Scottsdale offers two legendary championship courses that are both open to the public to enjoy – the Stadium Course and the Champions Course. The Club is the permanent home to The Waste Management Phoenix Open (formerly The FBR Open), as well as the biannual host of the Champions Tour Q-School. TPC Scottsdale has been named “one of America’s best courses” by Golfweek magazine, one of the Top 50 Golf Resort Destinations in the World” by Condé Nast Traveler, and is consistently named one of the top courses in Arizona.

By joining as a Platinum Member, TPC Scottsdale has joined the growing network of golf facilities, businesses, municipalities, non-profits and others who are actively showing their support of Audubon Lifestyles and The International Sustainability Council. Audubon Lifestyles Platinum Membership was created to help foster sustainability by working with, and providing educational resources to individuals, businesses, organizations, universities, government entities, municipalities, communities, neighborhoods, and virtually anyone seeking assistance to balance the triple bottom line of people, profit, and planet where they live, work, and play.

In addition, their support and membership allows Audubon Lifestyles and the ISC to expand their efforts to promote sustainability on golf facilities worldwide.

R. Eric Dodson, CEO of Audubon Lifestyles said, “I feel that when TPC Scottsdale joined as a Platinum Member that it immediately speaks volumes to the PGA Tour’s continued commitment in advancing sustainability for the entire golf industry. We are very excited to welcome TPC Scottsdale into the Audubon Lifestyles family.” Mr. Dodson continued by saying, “TPC Scottsdale’s active pursuance of certification and their desire to earn a 5 star rating by participating in the ISC Sustainability Audit is simply tremendous. Through the discussions that I have had with Jeff Plotts, Director of Golf Course Maintenance at TPC Scottsdale, I feel certain that TPC Scottsdale will emerge as a leader and model upon which other golf facilities should seek to emulate.

Leading golf facilities like TPC Scottsdale are finding innovative ways to improve their environmental and social performance. And their actions not only contribute to a cleaner, healthier and safer planet, but they also result in significant business and financial benefits. Sustainability is not an asset that can be bought or sold; however it is becoming an integral part of the way that golf facilities are being managed and operated. Just as a golf facility’s management practices influence business value, so do their sustainability initiatives.

“We are excited to join Audubon Lifestyles and the International Sustainability Council as a Platinum Member.” said Jeff Plotts, Director of Golf Course Maintenance at TPC Scottsdale. “TPC Scottsdale is committed to promoting the Principles of Sustainability and would encourage other golf facilities to participate as well.”

Audubon Lifestyles Platinum Membership provides TPC Scottsdale with a vast pool of resources assisting them with all of their sustainability efforts, and also allows for participation in the Audubon Lifestyles Sustainable Golf Facility Program where they are actively working towards certification and seek to earn a Sustainability Rating through the ISC.

Listen to the Ocean

2011-06-10T06:56:00.000-07:00

The Obama Administration announced on June 2 the launch of a series of listening sessions to gather input from the communities that depend on and care for our ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes – continuing work to implement the nation’s first comprehensive ocean policy. Feedback and comments gathered through these public engagement opportunities will assist the National Ocean Council as it continues implementing the new National Policy for the Stewardship of the Ocean, our Coasts, and the Great Lakes.

The National Ocean Council will host a series of 12 public listening sessions across the country. EPA will be coordinating efforts with other federal agencies and partners to host a listening session in the Gulf of Mexico region and co-host a listening session in the Great Lakes region alongside the U.S. Coast Guard. Following the executive order issued by President Obama last July that established the National Ocean Policy and the National Ocean Council, these public engagement sessions mark the latest milestone in implementing an ocean policy that addresses critical issues facing our oceans.

In addition, the National Ocean Council has launched a month-long online public review period for strategic action plan outlines. The outlines and their corresponding action plans were drafted with input from a wide range of stakeholders. After public comment period, the outlines will be used to develop strategic action plans that will propose attainable goals and specific, measureable actions the federal government can implement to address key challenges facing our ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes.

To visit the National Ocean Council click: NOC

To review the latest recommendations offered by the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force click: Task Force

Free Enterprise-based Sustainability

2011-05-31T13:38:00.000-07:00

A viable local economy is essential to sustainability. A sustainable economy is the foundation upon which the environmental and social aspects of sustainability are built. This includes job opportunities, sufficient tax base and revenue to support government and the provision of infrastructure and services, and a suitable business climate. A sustainable economy is also diversified, so that it is not easily disrupted by internal or external events or disasters, and such an economy does not simply shift the costs of maintaining its good health onto other regions or onto the oceans or atmosphere. Nor is a sustainable local economy reliant on unlimited population growth, high consumption, or nonrenewable resources.

Land owners have the right to use their own resources pursuant to their own environmental and developmental policies, federal, state and local laws, and the responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment of other areas beyond their limits of jurisdiction.

Cooperation to promote a supportive and open economic system that would lead to economic growth and sustainable development to better address the problems of environmental degradation is essential. Trade policy measures for environmental purposes should not constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination or a disguised restriction on trade. Environmental measures addressing transboundary or global environmental problems should, as far as possible, be based on an international consensus.
Government, business, education, and the community should work together to create a vibrant local economy, through a long-term investment strategy that encourages local enterprise, serves the needs of local residents, workers, and businesses, promotes stable employment and revenues by building on local competitive advantages, protects the natural environment, increases social equity and is capable of succeeding in the global marketplace.

Communities and regions need a vision and strategy for economic development. Visioning, planning and implementation efforts should continually involve all sectors, including the voluntary civic sector and those traditionally left out of the public planning process.

Because each community's most valuable assets are the ones they already have, and existing businesses are already contributing to their home communities, economic development efforts should give first priority to supporting existing enterprises as the best source of business expansion and local job growth. Luring businesses away from neighboring communities is a zero-sum game that doesn't create new wealth in the regional economy. Community economic development should focus instead on promoting local entrepreneurship to build locally based industries and businesses that can succeed among national and international competitors.

Communities and regions should identify specific gaps and niches their economies can fill, and promote a diversified range of specialized industry clusters drawing on local advantages to serve local and international markets.

Publicly supported economic development programs, investments, and subsidies should be evaluated on their long-term benefits and impacts on the whole community, not on short-term job or revenue increases. Public investments and subsidies should be equitable and targeted, support environmental and social goals, and prioritize infrastructure and supportive services that promote the vitality of all local enterprises, instead of individual firms.

Enterprises should work as civic partners, contributing to the communities and regions where they operate, protecting the natural environment, and providing workers with good pay, benefits, opportunities for upward mobility, and a healthful work environment.

To minimize economic, social, and environmental costs and efficiently use resources and infrastructure, new development should take place in existing urban, suburban, and rural areas before using more agricultural land or open space. Local and regional plans and policies should contain these physical and economic development planning principles to focus development activities in desired existing areas.

To protect the natural environment and increase quality of life, neighborhoods, communities and regions should have compact, multi-dimensional land use patterns that ensure a mix of uses, minimize the impact of cars, and promote walking, bicycling, and transit access to employment, education, recreation, entertainment, shopping, and services. Economic development and transportation investments should reinforce these land use patterns, and the ability to move people and goods by non-automobile alternatives wherever possible.

Communities should have an appropriately scaled and economically healthy center focus. At the community level, a wide range of commercial, residential, cultural, civic, and recreational uses should be located in the town center or downtown. At the neighborhood level, neighborhood centers should contain local businesses that serve the daily needs of nearby residents. At the regional level, regional facilities should be located in urban centers that are accessible by transit throughout the metropolitan area.

Having a distinctive identity will help communities create a quality of life that is attractive for business retention and future residents and private investment. Community economic development efforts should help to create and preserve each community's sense of uniqueness, attractiveness, history, and cultural and social diversity, and include public gathering places and a strong local sense of place.

Since industries, transportation, land uses, natural resources, and other key elements of a healthy economy are regional in scope, communities and the private sector should cooperate to create regional structures that promote a coherent metropolitan whole that respects local character and identity.

Affordable Housing Crisis

2011-05-24T14:51:00.000-07:00

The affordable housing crisis is most manifest in the gap between household income and housing costs for many Americans. This problem cuts across all boundaries: in no city, county, or other jurisdiction in the United States does a minimum wage job provide enough income for a household to afford to rent a two-bedroom home at the local fair market rate. This gap is growing: monthly housing costs grow 5-15 percent annually while the minimum wage has remained at $5.15 since 1997. In 2003, the national average wage needed to make the national average rent payment was $14.66—almost triple the minimum wage.

In the absence of enough affordable units, households pay more money than they can afford and are constrained from meeting expenses for other basic needs such as medical care, childcare, and food. High cost burdens affect 43 percent of all renters, and half of these pay more than 50 percent of their income for their housing costs. This problem becomes more acute at the lowest end of the income scale, where there are even fewer dollars left after the rent check is paid: two-thirds of all extremely low-income renters (those whose income is below 30 percent of the area median) pay more than 50 percent of their income for their housing costs. In the US, 30 percent of median income is $16,950.

The problem of substandard housing conditions is the cumulative result of the huge gaps between housing cost and household income. Families pay more than they can afford and are paying nowhere near fair market rent, the price at which standard housing and adequate housing conditions are expected to be available in their communities. Property owners collect rents at the level that the market will bear and try to maximize the bottom line or at least minimize their losses. In a tight market, decent housing conditions become a scarce commodity that no one thinks they can afford or expect. One in eight rental households has either moderate or severe physical problems in its housing unit, and half of these have high cost burdens and/or are overcrowded as well.

Historically, the federal government has provided rent subsidies, tax credits, and block grants to increase the availability of affordable housing. The annual federal investment in housing assistance has never come close to the subsidy provided to homeowners through federal income tax deductions for mortgage interest and local property tax payments. In 2001, the mortgage interest deduction provided a subsidy of $65.8 billion to primarily upper-income homeowners, more than twice the amount of HUD's entire budget.

Housing units are generally considered affordable if they rent for no more than 30 percent of household income for a low- or very low-income household. The federal 30 percent standard of affordability was established in 1982 (increased from 25 percent, the level created when the notion “a month’s rent should not exceed a week’s pay” was the prevailing wisdom).
Federally assisted affordable housing includes subsidized housing like Section 8 projects, public housing, and units supported by the Low Income Housing Tax Credit. Although increasingly rare, some unsubsidized affordable housing units exist in the private market in some communities. Because this housing receives no assistance, these units are not income-restricted.

Overall, the availability of affordable housing units is eroding, as subsidies and nonprofit ownership dwindle, operating agreements expire, and communities gentrify. Contracts governing more than one million units will expire in the next couple of years. Between 1997 and 1999, some 200,000 affordable units were lost from the private market alone. For renter households whose income is below 30 percent of the nation’s median, the shortfall between the need for affordable housing and supply is two million units.

China, Karst and Water

2011-04-28T07:56:00.000-07:00

The not-for-profit organization Circle of Blue reports on the vast, yet inaccessible underground waters in southwest Yunnan Province represent the front lines of Chinas freshwater crisis. Two openings in the earth, Shi Dong and Nan Dong caves, where the Yang Liu River slips into and out of the shadows, mark the point where a fluvial region rich with surface streams meets an unusual geologic formation of soluble rock layers known as a Karst landscape. It is also a fateful human dividing line, a place where Chinas challenges with water scarcity, land use, and pollution come into clear focus. See the full multimedia report online at http://www.circleofblue.org

8 Key Principles of Sustainability

2011-04-26T11:19:00.000-07:00

• Encourage resource use and management that has the greatest positive impact on plant and wildlife species, water and ecosystems that sustain life.
• Strive to use resources that are most easily renewed.
• Strive to eliminate or reduce the use of resources that are difficult or impossible to renew.
• Encourage activities that result in identifying new resources and technologies and enhance our current resource base in ways that will maximize positive impacts on the overall quality of life and the environment.
• Encourage human activities and practices that conserves water and protects or enhances water quality on a local and global basis.
• Encourage human activities, practices and land uses that support ecosystems and that maintain and enhance biodiversity.
• Make decisions and take actions within the geographic and ecological contexts in which our actions take place, and at the same time strive to manage resources within the natural limitations and opportunities defined by ecosystems and geographic boundaries of the region.
• Economic viability is the foundation upon which we address environmental and social aspects of sustainability.

General focus areas that must be addressed under those 8 Key Principles are:

• Site/region specific assessment
• Sustainable Soil
• Habitat sensitivity
• Sustainable landscaping & landscape management
• Water conservation and water quality management
• Waste reduction & management
• Energy efficiency and renewable energy sources
• Alternative transportation
• Planned open space and corridors
• Building design
• Community design

7 Billion People

2011-01-06T14:48:00.001-08:00

From our friends at National Geographic comes a series that everyone should be interested in. 7 Billion people and one planet!!

Dead Zones and Fish Habitat

2010-12-31T11:30:00.000-08:00

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) scientists teamed up with researchers from the University of Miami and The Billfish Foundation to study the West African “dead zone” and its effect on fish species.

This dead zone, off the coast of West Africa is reducing the amount of available habitat for Atlantic tuna and billfish species, reports NOAA in a study published in Fisheries Oceanography. The zone is growing due to rising water temperatures and is expected to cause over-harvest of tuna and billfish as the fish seek higher levels of oxygen in areas with greater fisheries activity.

Dead zones are areas of the ocean which are too low in oxygen to support many marine species. There are about 400 of these "hypoxic" regions throughout the world, many caused by human activities. Perhaps the most notorious, the New Jersey-size dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico is caused by fertilizer runoff released by the Mississippi which encourages oxygen-depleting algae to proliferate out of control. Another dead zone was discovered in 2007, off the coast of Texas, where the Brazos River empties into the Gulf.

Dead zones can also be caused by climate change. Increases in ocean temperature can change the course of currents, isolating certain areas from influxes of deeper, colder water. As the water in the area sits, it warms and releases its oxygen, making it inhospitable to many aquatic species. Three major dead zones are known to have been caused by climate change: one off the coast of Chile and Peru, one off the east coast of Africa, and another off of Africa's west coast. A new dead zone was reported off the US west coast in 2002. It occurs seasonally and is believed to be part of a continuum of South America's dead zone.

University Of Kentucky Launches $25 Million Energy Efficiency Retrofit

2010-12-11T07:04:00.000-08:00

The University of Kentucky has released details of an energy savings performance contract it signed with Ameresco and on what it will save after the yearlong, energy-savings retrofit of 61 campus buildings, totaling 5.2 million square feet.
The overall project is funded by UK-issued bonds valued at $25 million and will produce anticipated annual savings of $2,430,000. UK says these annual savings will more than pay the annual debt service on the bonds. Year one is a small positive savings over and above debt service. More savings take place over the next 12 years as the university’s energy rates increase.

Efficiency improvements will include lighting upgrades, water conservation, insulation, upgraded boilers, steam system improvements, domestic solar water heating, and HVAC system replacements. Along with the efficiency improvements to the buildings, the project will feature an energy education and awareness program for students, university faculty and staff.

When the project is completed next November, UK will have a smaller carbon footprint – an annual emissions reduction of about 23,291 tons of CO2. In addition, about 13,987,779 kilowatt hours and 37,673,020 gallons of water will be saved.
Under Kentucky Revised Statute 56.774, that covers energy savings performance contracting, energy service companies guarantee that utility savings generated by facility upgrades are sufficient to pay back the capital investment over a set period (generally 11 to 12 years). If the project does not provide these returns on the investment, the ESCO is responsible for the difference.

For more information and a building-by-building work schedule, visit http://energysavings.facilities.uky.edu.

Turf Feeding Systems joins ISC & Audubon Lifestyles as a Platinum member

2010-11-24T12:00:00.000-08:00

Turf Feeding System, Inc., headquartered in Houston, Texas, has joined The ISC and Audubon Lifestyles at the Platinum Member.

Turf Feeding Systems (TFS) is the world leader in the manufacturing of fertigation systems for the turf industry since 1986. TFS has more than 1,800 systems installed on golf courses around the world. There are also many systems located at various commercial landscapes including, parks, resorts, sports fields, and other green spaces. Their systems are versatile in capacities that service a quarter acre, up to the largest of golf courses and resorts. TFS systems are designed for worldwide applications that promote water efficiency and sustainable landscapes.

“We are very excited to welcome Turf Feeding Systems as a Platinum Member. Turf Feeding Systems has already shown that they are a global leaders and advocates of sustainable causes and are leading by example. Their commitment and efforts in promoting sustainable landscapes should be commended,” said R. Eric Dodson, CEO of Audubon Lifestyles.

“I consider myself fortunate to have learned about and to have joined with the International Sustainability Council and Audubon Lifestyles as a Platinum Member.” said Michael Chaplinsky, President of Turf Feeding Systems. “In addition to becoming a Platinum Member we are working with Audubon Lifestyles to gain the ability to create Certified Audubon Landscapes for our customers. It is a very exciting opportunity, and we are thrilled to be able to offer this as a service to our customers.

“The future is in sustainable golf, sports fields, landscapes, and resorts, and we can do it today. Sustainability is focused on reducing labor, chemicals, water, and energy, and it’s about saving money. It just makes sense,” concluded Chaplinsky.

World’s Rivers Are in Crisis, Global Report Says

2010-10-26T13:09:00.000-07:00

Eighty percent of the world’s population is at risk of water scarcity, as human activity across both developed and developing countries threatens the world’s freshwater systems and their biodiversity, a team of international scientists said in a study.

The report, published in the Sept. 30 issue of the journal Nature, is the first to assess threats to both human water security and freshwater biodiversity in river systems around the globe. It shows that nearly 80 percent of the planet’s population — 4.8 billion people in 2000 — live in areas where either the water supply is vulnerable, or aquatic life is under threat.

The international research team behind the report examined the effects on water security and biodiversity of 23 different human influences – ranging from hydro schemes to pollution. According to the Guardian, previous studies have usually looked at just one influence at a time.

The study says that engineering projects, such as dams and reservoirs, can be effective at protecting water supplies for people but often cause harmful effects to the environment and do not solve the underlying causes of water scarcity.

It also suggests that the use of more natural options like safeguarding watersheds and floodplains can protect water supplies while preserving biological diversity.

“If you analyze water-security issues from both a human and biodiversity perspective, you find that the threats are shared and pandemic,” University of New York civil engineer Charles Vörösmarty told Nature. Vörösmarty, an expert on global water resources, was a lead investigator on the study.

“Even rich countries, which you would expect to be good stewards of water, have some of the most stressed and threatened areas,” he added.

Both human water security and biodiversity are at high risk in developed countries in North America and Europe, particularly in regions with heavy agriculture and high population densities. Local problems are often carried downstream, with more than 30 of the world’s 47 largest rivers recording moderate threat levels or worse at the river mouth.

“Reliance of wealthy nations on costly technological remedies to overcome their water problems and deliver water services does little to abate the underlying threats, producing a false sense of security in industrialized nations and perilous water insecurity in the developing world,” the study says. “In addition, lack of comparable investments to conserve biodiversity, regardless of national wealth, help to explain accelerating declines in freshwater species.”

Even in different parts of the world, rivers face similar threats from stressors like agricultural and industrial development, which often have indirect effects. According to U.S. News & World Report, for example, mercury pollution — which results from electricity generation at coal-fired power plants – tends to pollute surface water via the atmosphere.

“We find a real stew of chemicals flowing through our waterways,” Vörösmarty told the news magazine.
He added that the study did not account for threats from factors such as mining operations and increasing numbers of pharmaceuticals that make their way into surface water.

Disaster-resilient Communities

2010-09-29T15:24:00.000-07:00

The economy, environment, and social well-being should be managed for the equal benefit of present and future generations. A sustainable community does not deplete its resources, destroy natural systems, or pass along unnecessary hazards to future generations. We should incorporate disaster resilience and mitigation into our decisions and actions. A community is resilient in the face of inevitable natural disasters like tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and drought if it takes steps to ensure that such events cause as little damage as possible, that productivity is only minimally interruptive, and that quality of life remains at (or quickly returns to) high levels. A disaster-resilient community further takes responsibility for the risks it faces and, to the extent possible, is self reliant. That is, it does not anticipate that outside entities (such as federal or state government) can or will mitigate its hazards or pay for its disasters.

Interdependence

2010-09-18T07:20:00.000-07:00

Every one of us should promote interdependence by being mutually responsible for and sharing a common set of principles with others. Interdependence means that we are mutually responsible for sharing a common set of principles with others. This concept differs distinctly from "dependence" in that an interdependent relationship implies that all participants are emotionally, economically, and/or morally interdependent. A vision of sustainability does not focus solely on environmental issues. More broadly, issues of sustainability encompass economic, environmental, social and human needs. Within this vision we should also strive to find solutions that are long lasting, supportive of research, and create involvement by everyone.

U.S. Forest Service Releases Climate Change Roadmap

2010-09-04T06:09:00.000-07:00

As part of a larger effort by the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Forest Service (USFS) has released its National Roadmap for Responding to Climate Change. The document is a direct response to goals set in the USDA 2010-2015 Strategic Plan, which calls for implementation of adaptation and mitigation strategies throughout the department, and builds on the Forest Service Strategic Framework for Responding to Climate Change, released in October of 2008.

The mission of the Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. Americans rely on their forests and grasslands for a wide range of benefits—for provisioning services such as water, wood, and wild foods; for regulating services such as erosion, flood, and climate control; and for cultural services such as outdoor recreation, spiritual renewal, and aesthetic enjoyment. These services are connected and sustained through the integrity of the ecosystems on these lands.

Climate change places those ecosystems at risk. Most of the urgent forest and grassland management challenges of the past 20 years, such as wildfires, changing water regimes, and expanding forest insect infestations, have been driven, in part, by a changing climate. Future impacts are projected to be even more severe. Managing America’s forests and grasslands to adapt to changing climates will help ensure that they continue to produce the benefits that Americans need while helping to mitigate the effects of a changing climate and to compensate for fossil fuel emissions through carbon storage in healthy forests.

Compostable Packaging

2010-08-19T11:21:00.001-07:00

Boulder Canyon Natural Foods claims that its compostable package for its All Natural Kettle Cooked Potato Chip line is the first developed for the natural snack food category. The 7.5-ounce bag is made from wood pulp sourced from plantations that have Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) or similar certification. The new packaging is currently available at select Whole Foods stores across the United States.
The compostable packaging is made from materials that are certified to meet the “Specification for Compostable Plastics” standards set by the American Society for Testing and Materials. They can be composted in home or industrial composters, recycled through approved organic recycling programs, or incinerated at modern incineration plants.

The compostable bag has a 180 days or less compostability measure per the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI). The bags were developed through a partnership using NatureFlex brand film from Innovia Films and Genpak.

DOE and DOI Pick Solar Demonstration Site in the Nevada Desert

2010-07-14T06:39:00.000-07:00

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) announced on July 8 that they will collaborate on a new "solar demonstration zone" to demonstrate cutting-edge concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies. DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) will facilitate all activities required to successfully implement the demonstration of advanced solar technologies in the area. The 25-square-mile demonstration zone is in the southwest corner of the Nevada Test Site, a former nuclear testing site, on land owned by the DOI's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and administered by DOE's National Nuclear Security Administration. Following planning and reviews, construction of demonstration projects is scheduled for September 2011. The demonstration zone will serve as a proving ground for new solar technologies, providing a critical link between DOE's advanced technology development activities and full-scale commercialization efforts.

CSP systems concentrate the sun's energy and capture that energy as heat, which then drives an engine or turbine to produce electrical power. The solar demonstration zone will complement BLM's establishment of 24 "solar energy study areas" on federal lands across the Southwest by helping to ensure that the most advanced CSP technologies are ready for commercial deployment. Plans are underway to create a new DOE funding opportunity for demonstration projects at the Nevada Test Site that will include matching investments from the private sector. DOE selected the demonstration zone after evaluating 26 locations for suitable solar conditions, terrain, and infrastructure to support solar energy projects. In addition to collaborating with each other, BLM and DOE are working closely with the U.S. Air Force to identify and address potential problems with operating the demonstration zone.

Spending on Sustainability

2010-07-07T06:30:00.000-07:00

A new poll by Harris Interactive finds that despite tough economic conditions and an unpredictable future, the vast majority of consumers who purchase sustainable products said that the economic conditions either did not change their purchasing behavior, or actually drove them to purchase more sustainable products.

Of the over 2,000 adults surveyed, 67% reported that their purchasing behavior has not changed over the past 2 years when it comes to sustainable consumer products. A surprising 25% of respondents reported that they have actually increased their spending on sustainable products, while only 8% reported that their spending has decreased.

The survey also polled to discover consumer preferences on sustainability communications, with some surprising results. 28% of respondents prefer to receive product information via store shelving displays, 19% prefer visual communication such as flyers and posters, while only 9% of respondents prefer to receive information on brand sustainability via a company’s website.

The Network for Free Enterprise-based Sustainability

2010-06-23T08:39:00.000-07:00

The International Sustainability Council, in partnership with Audubon Lifestyles and other ISC Strategic Partners recently launched The Network for Free Enterprise-based Sustainability! The Network for Free Enterprise-based Sustainability is a membership based effort to link universities, governmental agencies, businesses, not-for-profit organizations and citizens in a collective effort to accelerate the adoption of sustainability into the fabric of the United States. From the basis of “Free-Enterprise-based Sustainability” the ISC believes that it will be on the foundation of economic sustainability, that as a society we will be able to address the environmental and social aspects of sustainability. To join the Network for Free Enterprise-based Sustainability: Click Here

Goal 1
Collaborate with, and create a network of universities, businesses, governmental agencies, not-for-profit organizations and citizens to maximize capacity and leadership, for successful “sustainability change management,” that will enhance profitability for collaborators and their stakeholders, generate social benefits and improve the quality of the environment.

Goal 2
Link the resources of higher education with the resources of business, government, not-for-profits and citizens to foster interdisciplinary, action-based learning, research and economic opportunities.

Goal 3
Convene talented people and provide supportive environments for peer learning and professional development.

Goal 4
Coordinate multidisciplinary, educational and consultative resources to support leaders in business, government and not-for-profit organizations.

Goal 5
Cultivate best practices and innovation to position business and their clients, and universities and their students to achieve success in the changing global marketplace and within the context of engagement with local economies and ecosystems.

FORD TO ENGINEER, ASSEMBLE HYBRID BATTERY PACKS AND TRANSAXLES IN MICHIGAN, ADDING 220 NEW JOBS

2010-06-02T07:29:00.000-07:00

Ford is investing $135 million to design, engineer and produce key components for its next-generation hybrid-electric vehicles that go into production in 2012 in North America.

Ford is adding green technology jobs in Michigan as the state becomes its center of excellence for vehicle electrification, including a combined 170 jobs at the Rawsonville and Van Dyke Transmission plants, and more than 50 electric vehicle engineers.

Ford’s Rawsonville Plant will assemble battery packs for the next-generation hybrid vehicles, moving work to Michigan that is currently performed by a supplier in Mexico.

Ford’s Van Dyke Transmission Plant will produce a new electric-drive transaxle for the new hybrids, moving work to Michigan that is currently performed by a supplier in Japan.

The new hybrids are part of Ford’s plan to launch five electrified vehicles in the U.S. by 2012 and in Europe by 2013.

$30 Million to Accelerate Weatherization Innovation

2010-04-21T17:53:00.000-07:00

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced today that it will provide up to $30 million to fund DOE's new Weatherization Innovation Pilot Program to accelerate innovations in whole-house weatherization technologies and services.

The program is looking to fund new projects that will deliver measureable improvements in the cost, scope, and energy savings of low-income weatherization programs across the country. The competitive funding opportunity is open to collaborative partnerships that can include the private sector, colleges or universities, utility companies, non-profit organizations, or existing weatherization providers.

DOE plans to select applications that can leverage federal funding with other private or public financial resources to grow and sustain the total funding available for low-income home weatherization. In addition, projects under the program should develop new delivery models, materials, technologies, or processes that can lead to long-term improvements in the efficiency of the weatherization market and in DOE's Weatherization Assistance Program. These projects will be funded with fiscal year 2010 annual appropriations.

The pilot projects will be evaluated based on the improvements they can deliver in the number of homes weatherized, annual energy savings per home, average costs to weatherize homes, jobs created, and average annual emissions reduced. Each pilot project will operate independently of established local providers in the Weatherization Assistance Program and should be designed to be replicated in other communities.

DOE anticipates making between 10 and 15 awards under this announcement and anticipates grants to be between $2 million to $3 million each. Projects are tentatively expected to begin in October 2010 and will run for up to two years.

UPenn Tops EPA’s Ranking

2010-04-20T13:26:00.000-07:00

The Ivy League, led by the University of Pennsylvania, topped the Environmental Protection Agency’s College and University Green Power Challenge that recognizes collegiate athletic conferences with the highest combined green power purchases in the nation.

The Ivy League’s combined annual usage of more than 225 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) has the equivalent environmental impact of avoiding the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of nearly 31,000 vehicles. Contributing schools include the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University, and Yale University/School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. This is the fourth year in a row that the Ivy League won the championship crown.

To be listed, a conference must have at least one Green Power Partner and an aggregate green power purchase of at least 10 million kWh across the conference.
Spread across 26 athletic conferences, 54 universities competed in this year’s challenge. The challenge’s total annual green power usage of more than 1 billion kWh prevented the CO2 emissions equivalent to nearly 160,000 vehicles.
The EPA plans to kicked-off the 2010-2011 Green Power Challenge this week (April 19).

Individual Conference Champions for 2009-2010 include the following:
– University of Pennsylvania (Ivy League)
– Pennsylvania State (Big Ten Conference)
– Carnegie Mellon (University Athletic Association)
– Oregon State University (Pacific-10 Conference)
– University of Utah (Mountain West Conference)
– University of California — Santa Cruz (Association of Division III Independents)
– Colby College (New England Small College Athletic Conference)
– Southern Oregon University (Cascade Collegiate Conference)
– Adelphi University (Northeast-10 Conference)
– Western Washington University (Great Northwest Athletic Conference)
–Dickinson College (Centennial Conference)
– Santa Clara University (West Coast Conference)
– University of Oklahoma (Lone Star Conference)
– University of Denver (Sun Belt Conference)
– Syracuse University (Big East Conference)
– St. Mary’s College of Maryland (Capital Athletic Conference)
– The Catholic University of America (Landmark Conference)
– University at Buffalo (Mid-American Conference)
– Pacific Lutheran University (Northwest Conference)
– American University (Patriot League)
– Rowan University (New Jersey Athletic Conference)
– Duquesne University (Atlantic 10 Conference)
– University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference)
– Drexel University (Colonial Conference)
– Oberlin College (North Coast Athletic Conference)
– University of Colorado at Boulder (Big Twelve Conference)

Rain Barrels

2010-03-25T11:33:00.000-07:00

We all know that when it rains, it pours; and with the right rain barrel, all that rainwater can be saved. Rain water harvesting is important because it decreases the high demand for domestic water in which residential irrigation can account for up to 40% of consumption. By collecting rain water and storing it a rain barrel you’ll have water for future use, whether it’s for watering the garden or just keeping it handy for emergency situations.

$150 Million Provided For New Sustainability Grant Program

2009-12-18T08:27:00.000-08:00

House and Senate conferees reached an agreement on provisions of the FY 2010 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations conference report. Funding for five additional agencies was added to the THUD language as Congress races to wrap up the FY 2010 funding bills before the current continuing resolution expires on December 18. Included in the so-called "minibus" package will be funding for Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies; Financial Services and General Government; Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies; Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies; and State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs. Combined, the six bills total $446.8 billion in discretionary budget authority.

The THUD provisions totaled $122.1 billion, including $67.9 billion in discretionary funds, a $13.4 billion increase over the fiscal 2009 level. Following the lines of the administration's request, the transportation package includes $41 billion for federal highways, $10.7 billion for the Federal Transit Administration, and $1.6 billion for Amtrak. The agreement includes $2.5 billion for high-speed rail, which is $1.5 billion more than the White House had requested. This final agreement also left out language regarding the National Infrastructure Bank because the bank has not yet been legislatively authorized.

The spending package includes $4.45 billion for Community Development Block Grants, including $150 million for the Sustainable Communities Initiative. The sustainability funding includes $100 million for planning grants. Details on the grant program, including eligible uses and the application process, will be released in early 2010.

The package includes a key funding change for HOPE VI and Choice Neighborhoods: It appropriates $200 million for HOPE VI and $65 million for Choice Neighborhoods. The Obama administration has proposed overhauling and expanding the scope of HOPE VI by establishing the Choice Neighborhoods program. Congress has yet to authorize the new program, although draft language is now circulating. The Senate allocated $250 million for Choice Neighborhoods, with the intention of replacing HOPE VI. The House allocated $250 million for the existing HOPE VI program with the understanding that the funds would be transferred to Choice Neighborhoods upon the program's authorization.

The agreement also resolved a difference over funding for HUD's brownfield and economic development initiative (BEDI). Both the Obama administration and the Senate proposed eliminating funding for the program while the House allocated $35 million. The compromise includes $17.5 million for BEDI. Also included are $25 million for the Rural Innovation Fund, $50 million for the Energy Innovation Fund, and $8.5 million for Section 8 Project-Based Vouchers. Congress is expected to adopt the appropriations package before the holiday recess.

Apollo Alliance Clean Energy Job Creation Plan

2009-12-04T11:11:00.000-08:00

The Apollo Alliance released a clean energy investment plan today that will create up to 1.2 million domestic jobs while increasing U.S. energy security and climate stability. The release of Apollo’s 5-point plan coincides with today’s urgent White House jobs summit and amid intensified talk by Congressional leaders of an emergency jobs bill.

“America is facing twin crises of economic instability and a global clean energy race that is quickly leaving us behind,” said Phil Angelides, chairman of the Apollo Alliance. “By making targeted investments in our transportation infrastructure, energy efficiency and renewables, and domestic clean energy manufacturing, we will create jobs, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and help restore America’s leadership in the global clean energy marketplace.”

Apollo’s job creation recommendations - for inclusion in a larger Congressional and administration plan to spur economic recovery and create jobs - include:

1. Creating 255,000 jobs by driving short-term investment in efficiency and renewables in ways that will leverage private capital in the long term.

2. Creating 278,000 jobs by laying the groundwork for a 21st century transportation system.

3. Creating 700,000 manufacturing jobs (and an additional 1.9 million indirect jobs in related industries) by supporting American manufacturers in retooling and expanding their operations, and positioning domestic clean energy manufacturers to compete in the global marketplace.

4. Creating a large-scale financing mechanism that drives investment and creates jobs researching, developing, and manufacturing the technologies and products of the clean energy economy.
5. Creating 31,000 jobs by putting Americans back to work serving their communities and preparing a workforce to build the clean energy economy.

We are interested in what you think of this plan.

To view the Apollo Alliance Plan: Click Here

Thirty-Six U.S. States to Face Water Shortages in the Next Five Years

2009-12-01T18:08:00.000-08:00

At least 36 states are expected to face water shortages within the next five years, according to U.S. government estimates. Available freshwater supplies are dwindling across the country due to rising temperatures and droughts, while increasing sprawl, population and inefficient resource usage are leading to rising demand.

"Is it a crisis? If we don't do some decent water planning, it could be," said Jack Hoffbuhr, executive director of the American Water Works Association. Rising temperatures due to global warming have increased evaporation rates across the country and reduced the availability of important water sources. One of these is the Sierra Nevada snowpack, which supplies a significant portion of California's water. Across the West, similar trends are expected to reduce flows of the Colorado River, which supplies water for seven states.

Meanwhile, rising sea levels are expected to cause saltwater to infiltrate freshwater aquifers in coastal states, rendering that water unusable.

California uses about 23 trillion gallons of fresh water per year. The United States as a whole uses more than 148 trillion gallons for all purposes, including agriculture, manufacturing and other uses.

Other threatened regions include the Midwest, where the Great Lakes are shrinking, and upstate New York, where reservoir levels have fallen to record lows. Georgia's crisis has already arrived, and Florida's is expected to hit soon.

While Florida has no shortage of rainfall, widespread draining and paving of the region's natural wetlands has left the water unable to drain back into the soil. As a consequence, the state is forced to flush millions of gallons of water into the ocean per year to avert floods. The state's environmental chief, Michael Sole, has asked the Florida legislature to increase the use of reclaimed wastewater. Other states are encouraging measures such as desalinization, but it is widely accepted that conservation is the cheapest alternative.

Even with such measures, the forecast is not expected to improve. "Unfortunately, there's just not going to be any more cheap water," said Randy Brown, utilities director for Pompano Beach, Fla.

Sound Environmental Management Critical to Poverty Reduction

2009-11-29T08:39:00.000-08:00

With poor countries much more dependent on natural resources as assets than rich countries, policy changes that affect the natural environmental are critical to reducing poverty.

Understanding Linkages between resource use and poverty at the household level, is important to understand how countries rely on the environment. This is true in the United States as well is poor countries of the world.

For example, the ratio of people to forested land is over three times higher in low-income countries compared with high income. This gives an indication of the pressure on forests, and the outcome is visible in the adjoining table.

While forested lands are growing at 0.1 percent per year in high-income countries, they are shrinking at 0.5 percent per year in low-income countries.
Access to "environmental infrastructure" in the form of improved water and sanitation shows a similar divide. The result is that mortality rates for children under the age of five are nearly 18 times higher in low-income compared with high-income countries, the report added.

"Looking at the distribution of health outcomes and access to environmental infrastructure across different classes within developing countries, the same general picture can be seen: wealthier households within these countries have greater access to environmental infrastructure and better health outcomes," said Kirk Hamilton, environmental economist associated with the World Bank.

Policy changes that affect the natural environment can have direct and indirect impacts on household welfare. These include poverty alleviation and an increase in a household's economic welfare, as well as better nutritional and health outcomes.
According to study issued by the World Bank, reforms with positive environmental and welfare impacts do not always originate from the environmental sector.

Some reforms, such as the creation of common property rights, incentives for better management of natural resources, or creation of new markets for environmental services, pertain directly to environmental resources.
In other cases, policies intended to improve other aspects of the economy may also have environmental and welfare benefits, for example, strengthening of private property rights.

In particular, the last two decades have seen reforms in environmental management that put community participation and economic development as core goals.

"Unsafe water, lack of sanitation and poor indoor air quality are major killers of children," said Warren Evans, Director of Environment, World Bank, "An important finding is that the extent of coverage of communities to safe water and sanitation is a significant contributor to child health. This means that targeting poor communities for access to water and sanitation can yield real benefits."　

People Blamed for Sinking Deltas

2009-11-25T19:34:00.000-08:00

New research reported in the November issue of “Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment” suggests that most of the world’s river deltas are sinking as a result of human activity. “Our work shows that river deltas are going down, sometimes many times faster than sea level is rising, because of climate change,” says lead author James Syvitski (University of Colorado, Boulder). Deltas are therefore at greater risk of flooding from oceans, rivers, and heavy rainfall, and are thus likely to become increasingly vulnerable places to live.

Present-day river deltas worldwide began to form about 7000 years ago, when sea levels and global climate stabilized after deglaciation. Because deltas have rich soils, humans have relied heavily on deltas throughout history, for both food and livelihoods. Now, half a billion people live on or near deltas, and 10 million of those people are already experiencing flooding every year, just as a result of storm surges.

Livable Communities Act

2009-11-13T13:29:00.000-08:00

Livable Communities Act Gains Momentum

HOUSE BILL EXPECTED SOON

The Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs committee plans to take up the Livable Communities Act (S. 1619), with action scheduled before the end of the year. A House version of the bill is expected before the Thanksgiving recess. Committee action in both the House and Senate has been delayed by debate and action on financial regulatory modernization and reform.

S. 1619, introduced by Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) in August, would create competitive planning grants for creating comprehensive long-term plans that integrate transportation, housing, land use, and economic development, as well as challenge grants for projects in public transportation, affordable housing, complete streets, transit-oriented development, and brownfield redevelopment. Additionally, the bill would establish a federal Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities at the Department of Housing and Urban Development to administer and oversee the Livable Communities grant programs. It would also authorize the federal Interagency Council on Sustainable Communities, which would include representatives from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other federal agencies to coordinate federal sustainable development policies.

On The Brink!

2009-09-29T10:03:00.000-07:00

According to the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment(MA)over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable period of time in human history, largely to meet rapidly growing demands for food, fresh water, timber, fiber, and fuel. This has resulted in a substantial and largely irreversible loss in the diversity of life on Earth.

The changes that have been made to ecosystems have contributed to substantial net gains in human well-being and economic development, but these gains have been achieved at growing costs in the form of the degradation of many ecosystem services, increased risks of nonlinear changes, and the exacerbation of poverty for some groups of people. These problems, unless addressed, will substantially diminish the benefits that future generations obtain from ecosystems.

The degradation of ecosystem services could grow significantly worse during the first half of this century and is a barrier to achieving the ISC Sustainable Community Development goals.

The challenge of reversing the degradation of ecosystems while meeting increasing demands for their services can be partially met under some scenarios that the MA has considered, but these involve significant changes in policies, institutions, and practices that are not currently under way. Many options exist to conserve or enhance specific ecosystem services in ways that reduce negative trade-offs or that provide positive synergies with other ecosystem services.

First ISC Chartered University

2009-06-14T11:29:00.000-07:00

Urbana University, Ohio - Founded in 1850, with the ground work for its creation being laid in part by John Chapman, who is better known as Johnny "Appleseed" was the second institution in Ohio to admit women and the first nontraditional degree completion program of its kind in Ohio. The liberal arts University became the first (and at present the only) University to become a Charter Member of the International Sustainability Council. To see a copy of the Urbana University Sustainability Charter visit:

http://www.thesustainabilitycouncil.org/charters/Urbana.pdf

Steve Jones, President of the University and an ISC Council member has reported that several Charter related projects are already underway on the 128 acre campus, including a habitat restoration project, a full campus energy audit and several other initiatives that will be reported on in future posts on this blog.

Take a virtual visit to Urbana University by visiting:

http://www.urbana.edu/index.php

The International Sustainability Council

2009-03-15T10:12:00.000-07:00

The ISC http://thesustainabilitycouncil.org/ is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing understanding of the relationships among environmental, social and economic systems for the mutual benefit of people and the environment today and for future generations. In a nutshell that means that the ISC advocates sustainable development that is based in the ISC Principles of Sustainability and we will accomplish this through the Sustainability Campaign.

This will be achieved by forging partnerships with governmental agencies, universities, businesses and not-for-profit organizations that will result in the development of an accepted set of Principles of Sustainability. In addition activities supported will be continuing research, education and the production of various forms of educational and literary works that will be used as the basis of the creation of sustainable demonstration projects that are connected to the various aspects of sustainable community planning, development and management.

Mission Statement

Promote the ISC Principles of Sustainability as an advocate for Sustainable Development. To serve as a clearing house of research and information connected to sustainability and to create partnerships between universities, businesses, governmental agencies and not-for-profit organizations and to serve as a catalyst for moving toward a more sustainable society.

Vision Statement

We visualize a more sustainable society and Planet Earth that will result from a coordinated approach to creating positive partnerships with others who embrace the ISC Principles of Sustainability and take actions that are based in improving the quality of life, the quality of the environment in ways that make economic sense.

DOE & HUD Team Up to Support Weatherization

2009-03-06T14:16:00.000-08:00

DOE and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced last week a major partnership designed to streamline and coordinate federal weatherization efforts. DOE and HUD have created a high-level interagency task force to leverage roughly $16 billion in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to spur growth in the home energy efficiency industry in the United States. HUD's funding includes $4.5 billion to renovate and upgrade public and tribal housing and $250 million for energy retrofits of privately owned, federally assisted housing, while DOE's funding includes $5 billion for weatherization assistance; $3.2 billion for new block grants that states, local governments, and tribal governments can use to retrofit homes; $3.1 billion for the State Energy Program; and more.
The new interagency task force will coordinate the expenditure of the new funds in local communities and will develop guidelines and specifications for retrofitting public housing and privately owned, federally subsidized rental properties. The task force will also evaluate home energy disclosure and audit standards and develop new financing tools for home energy efficiency efforts. In addition, the task force will lead a government-wide effort to develop a common baseline for measuring home energy use and documenting gains from energy efficiency improvements. See the DOE press release.

Acid Rain Harms Streams in Western Adirondacks

2009-01-02T10:05:00.001-08:00

A new scientific study of streams in the western region of the Adirondack Mountains has found that two-thirds of them have been harmed by acid rain produced by the burning of fossil fuels. This equates to 450 miles of acidified streams. The western Adirondacks receive some of the highest levels of acidic deposition in the United States
This study is the first-ever regional assessment of Adirondack streams since the early 1980s and the only assessment conducted in the United States to characterize episodic acidification on a regional level. For this study, 200 headwater streams were sampled in five surveys conducted from 2003 to 2005.
Streams are more acidic than lakes because of the water they receive from shallow rivulets, which often cannot neutralize acids. In addition, streams cannot dilute periodic acid deposits with less-acidic water the way that lakes can. Streams also are more directly affected than lakes by nearby vegetation and soil processes.
The study, conducted jointly by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation, and the University of Texas at Arlington, also showed the negative effects of acidic episodes on aquatic insects. Findings confirm that healthy macroinvertebrate communities are not likely to be found in headwater streams of the western Adirondack Mountains, where acidic deposition has resulted in long-term chronic and/or episodic stream acidification. Generally, species richness decreases, with certain acid-sensitive species replaced by more tolerant species.

Results from the 2003-2005 Western Adirondack Stream Survey

Habitat for Cerulean Warbler Conserved In Ozarks

2008-12-28T08:37:00.000-08:00

A coalition including American Bird Conservancy, the state of Missouri, The Nature Conservancy, and the Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation has protected 80 acres containing important floodplain habitat in the watershed of the Current River, one of North America’s most biologically diverse streams. The parcel links together federal and state protected lands and provides breeding habitat for the Cerulean Warbler, whose population is declining throughout its range.

Approximately 37 acres of the tract are in riparian flood plain and have been identified as Cerulean Warbler breeding habitat. American Bird Conservancy committed $35,000 to the purchase price of the tract because it is in an area of the Ozarks where there are high densities of Cerulean Warbler in the floodplain forests of the Jack’s Fork and Current River.

“While the Horse Creek tract was cleared a few decades ago, it has transitioned back into a mature bottomland forest with characteristics that Cerulean Warblers prefer: well-developed canopy layers and canopy gaps where tall trees, like sycamores or cottonwoods, emerge above the tops of other trees,” said Dr. Jane Fitzgerald, Central Hardwoods Joint Venture coordinator for American Bird Conservancy.

She also added that by protecting this property, it would prevent the land from being cleared, which allows Brown-headed Cowbirds to increase. The Cowbirds is a brood parasite that can impact the Cerulean Warbler population, which has declined by approximately 70% since the mid-1960s.

Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation committed $55,500 through the Stream Stewardship Trust Fund. “MCHF through its Stream Stewardship Trust Fund was eager to help protect the Horse Creek Tract. This property was important for us because it closed a three-sided inholding on public land, contained a high-quality aquatic resource that was vulnerable to adverse private development, and occurs in a Conservation Opportunity Area as identified by the Missouri Department of Conservation,” said Rick Thom, executive director of the Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation.

In addition to preserving excellent habitat for declining bird species, this land acquisition preserves three springs and over half a mile of Horse Creek, a beautiful Ozark stream. While assessing the property, biologists discovered a healthy blooming population of the rare Tall larkspur growing along the creek banks. This handsome wildflower is a popular nectar source for Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.

This acquisition is part of American Bird Conservancy’s Cerulean Warbler conservation program that is restoring and protecting breeding habitat, reducing threats, and developing and providing habitat management recommendations for landowners to optimize conditions for Cerulean Warblers and associated forest species. The project has protected lands for the Cerulean Warbler and critically endangered birds in Latin America, including the creation of the first Cerulean Warbler Reserve in Colombia, protecting 252 acres of wintering habitat.

“This land purchase is the first acquisition in the United States by American Bird Conservancy, and the first in the Central Hardwoods Bird Conservation Region specifically to protect habitat for a high-priority terrestrial bird species,” said Jane Fitzgerald. “This year, American Bird Conservancy also helped reforest abandoned mine lands in Ohio and Virginia as part of the Appalachian Regional Restoration Initiative to support populations of declining bird species including the Wood Thrush, Cerulean, Blue-winged, and Hooded Warblers.

American Bird Conservancy (ABC) works to conserve native wild birds and their habitats throughout the Americas. ABC acts to safeguard the rarest bird species, restore habitats, and reduce threats, while building capacity in the conservation movement. ABC is a 501(c)(3) membership organization that is consistently awarded a top, four-star rating by the independent group, Charity Navigator.

EPA Recognizes Water Efficiency Leaders

2008-12-18T09:27:00.000-08:00

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently recognized a collection of utilities, individuals, corporations, NGOs, and government for their contributions in reducing, reusing and recycling water through leadership, innovation, and water saved.

The top Water Efficiency Leaders in each category:

Pinellas County Utilities - the most water-efficient utilities per capita at 89 gallons per person per day (gpd), versus the national average of 100 gpd.

PepsiCo - for improving water efficiency across its brands and being on target to reduce water consumption per unit of production by 20 percent by 2015.

Acequia - which has sustained measured reductions of irrigation water across its 70 commercial property clients by 54 percent since 2002.

Commissioner Robert J. Hunter - who helped Atlanta’s 50 largest water customers cut their water consumption by 45 percent and promoted water saving options and high efficiency toilet rebate programs to users and plumbers.

Homewise, Inc. - an NGO that as of May ‘08 had helped 595 households reduce water use by an estimated 64 percent via a mix of consumer information, on-site homeowner installation assistance, marketing, and consumer lending.

The Orange County Water District - for its system of replenishing groundwater can generate enough water to meet the needs of 500,000 people.

Invasive Species

2008-12-16T10:52:00.000-08:00

According to the Ecological Society of America, http://www.esa.org invasive species often succeed in new environments because they can out compete native species within an area for some resource, such as food, mates or habitat. What’s less clear is exactly what gives them this edge over local species that should be experts at living in their home territory.

A study by Joshua King and Walter Tschinkel published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences investigates just what gives a common southern pest, the invasive fire ant, the ability to muscle out local ants seemingly everywhere there’s a human disturbance. Notorious for their huge nests (as many as 100,000 ants per colony on average), aggressive swarming behavior and painful stings, these red ants have become a major menace in the U.S., Australia, the Philippines, China and Taiwan.

Because the ants are usually found in highly disturbed areas, such as roadsides, parking lots, strip malls and subdivisions, the authors wondered if the ants’ success depends on their environment. The authors compared the success of native ant populations in areas that were recently disturbed by humans to natural areas where fire ants were introduced.

Somewhat surprisingly, the fire ants by themselves had less of a negative effect on native ant populations than simple plowing. The ecologists suggest that fire ants may not be so much an invasive species but a “disturbance specialist,” with the ability to capitalize on an open niche when they see one – a description that might fit other invasive species as well.

Alaska Sustainability Blog

2008-12-07T17:06:00.000-08:00

December 7, 2008 - Fairbanks, Alaska

The School of Natural Reources and Agriculture has many research and education programs that are connected with the Sustainability Campaign. The have now created a Sustainability Blog, which is a great portal to ongoing projects within the University as well as providing links to other information connected with living and lifestyles in the near Arctic.

Check it out: http://snras.blogspot.com/

Green Roof In The Winter

2008-11-19T14:30:00.000-08:00

A Green Roof seems to be all the rage these days. But, did you ever wonder how a Green Roof might make out during the cold winter months?

What better place to take a look at that topic than Fairbanks, Alaska. The University of Alaska, Fairbanks based Cold Climate Housing Research Center has constructed and is monitoring a Green Roof on their facility.

Take a read through their report on how their Green Roof made out in the seriously sub zero temperatures of Fairbanks:

http://www.cchrc.org/App_Content/files/snapshot07-10grh.pdf

Energy Star Dishwashers

2008-11-17T08:48:00.000-08:00

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced more stringent energy efficiency and water use criteria for dishwashers carrying the ENERGY STAR® label. This is the first time that ENERGY STAR criteria have addressed water use for dishwashers. The change could save American families more than $25 million in energy and water bills in the first 6 months the criteria are in effect.

The criteria will go into effect in two phases. The first set of criteria will apply on August 11, 2009, and the second will apply on July 1, 2011. DOE estimates that by 2012, the new guidelines will save Americans 671 billion Btu and 1.13 billion gallons of water per year. With the new water saving requirement, consumers using ENERGY STAR dishwashers will save more than a gallon of water with each dishwashing cycle. Manufacturers are also eligible to receive tax credits for the production of dishwashers that meet the new ENERGY STAR dishwasher criteria under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008.

In the first phase, ENERGY STAR qualified dishwashers will be required to be at least 48% more efficient than federal energy efficiency standards require, saving the nation over 71 million kWh of energy and more than 500 million gallons of water per year. Stricter federal energy efficiency standards take effect January 1, 2010. In the second phase, ENERGY STAR qualified dishwashers must be at least 13.5% more efficient than the 2010 federal energy efficiency standards, saving the Nation over 95 million kWh of energy and more than 830 million gallons of water per year. The ENERGY STAR criteria for dishwashers were last modified on January 1, 2007.

ENERGY STAR is a joint DOE and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program, formed in 1992 as a voluntary, market-based partnership that seeks to reduce air pollution through increased energy efficiency. DOE and EPA work to offer businesses and consumers energy efficient solutions to save energy and money, while also helping to protect our environment. More than 9,000 organizations have joined ENERGY STAR as partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes, and businesses. The ENERGY STAR label appears on more than 40 kinds of consumer products. To learn more about ENERGY STAR, and to view the revised program requirements, visit the ENERGY STAR Web site

Missouri Renewable Energy Requirement

2008-11-13T16:16:00.000-08:00

Missouri voters have approved a measure that will require the state's investor-owned utilities to draw on renewable energy for 15% of their electricity supply by 2021. The Missouri Clean Energy Initiative, or Proposition C, passed easily, garnering approval from 66% of the state's voters and passing in every county but one. The statutory ballot measure defines renewable energy as wind power, solar thermal power, solar photovoltaic power, small hydropower, a variety of biomass energy sources, and fuel cells powered by hydrogen from renewable energy sources, but it also allows the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to designate new renewable energy sources. The measure requires at least 2% of the requirement to be met with solar energy, and it requires the utilities to offer their retail customers rebates of $2 per watt for customer-owned solar power systems, up to a limit of $50,000. The ballot measure also allows utilities to buy their renewable power from out of state and to meet up to 100% of the requirement through the purchase of renewable energy credits (RECs), which can be bought from renewable energy facilities throughout the country. However, utilities cannot meet the requirements through the voluntary purchase of renewable energy by their customers, an approach known as "green pricing." Utilities that fall short of the requirement have to pay twice the going rate of the RECs needed for compliance, and the state will use that money to buy RECs and to support renewable energy and energy efficiency requirements. And to limit the impact of the measure on consumers, the cost impact of complying with the renewable energy requirement is capped at a 1% cost increase. The renewable requirement starts at 2% of sales in 2011 and gradually ratchets up to the 15% requirement by 2021. According to the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE), 28 states and the District of Columbia now have a mandatory requirement for renewable energy use.

Reduce the Impact of Climate Change

2008-11-10T08:27:00.000-08:00

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released a report that can help reduce the potential impact of climate change on estuaries, forests, wetlands, coral reefs, and other sensitive ecosystems. The report, entitled Preliminary Review of Adaptation Options for Climate-Sensitive Ecosystems and Resources, identifies strategies to protect the environment as these changes occur.
“People always say ‘Don’t just tell us what will happen – tell us what we can do about it,’” said Dr. George Gray, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Research and Development. “By using the strategies outlined in this document, we can help managers protect our parks, rivers, and forests from possible future impacts of a changing climate.”
To develop this assessment, scientists studied national parks, national forests, national wildlife refuges, wild and scenic rivers, national estuaries, and marine protected areas – all protected by the federal government. The report takes a unique approach by using the management goals set for each protected area to understand what strategies will increase the resilience of each ecosystem – in other words, increase the amount of change or disturbance that an ecosystem can absorb before it shifts to a different ecosystem. Using these strategies, managers can maintain the original goals set for these ecosystems under changing climatic conditions. The strategies will be useful to federal agencies and can also be broadly applied to lands and waters managed by other government or nongovernmental organizations.
The report finds that climate change can increase the impact of traditional stressors (such as pollution or habitat destruction) on ecosystems, and that many existing best management practices to reduce these stressors can also be applied to reduce the impacts of climate change. For example, current efforts to reverse habitat destruction by restoring vegetation along streams also increase ecosystem resilience to climate change impacts, such as greater amounts of pollutants and sediments from more intense rainfall. Our country’s ability to adapt to climate change will depend on a variety of factors including recognizing the barriers to implementing new strategies, expanding collaboration among ecosystem managers, creatively re-examining program goals and authorities, and being flexible in setting priorities and managing for change.
The peer-reviewed report provides the best-available science to date on management adaptations for ecosystems and resources. It was developed following the guidelines developed by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program.
The Global Change Research Program in EPA’s Office of Research and Development led the development of the report. It is one of 21 synthesis and assessment products commissioned by the CCSP. The CCSP was established in 2002 to provide the Nation with science-based knowledge to manage the risks and opportunities of changes in the climate and related environmental systems. The program is responsible for coordinating and integrating the research of 13 federal agencies on climate and global change.

See the EPA report: http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/cfm/recordisplay.cfm?deid=180143

Sustainable ReInvestment in America

2008-11-07T11:36:00.000-08:00

The time is past that we start re-investing in America's failing infrastructure. Not only do we see falling bridges, crumbling roads and rolling brown-outs, we are not in the least prepared to deliver the proposed new alternative sources of energy to the American public.

The International Sustainability Council (ISC) and partners are promoting sustainability as a way of life. That means personal life and business life. Sustainability must become the basis for the way that we live, work and play. The public seems ready for changes and a major shift toward more "green" or sustainable lifestyles. We must make certain that there are no road blocks between those that have the desire to move toward a more sustainable society and the ultimate goal.

Re-investing in your home, your business, or your community with a focus on becoming more efficient with the use of natural resources makes good economic, environmental and social sense. And...those are the 3 pillars of sustainability. The time to start is now!