Cap and Trade Postponement Will Shift Emphasis to Conservation

While all of the goals of President Obama's budget have been honored by the Democrats in the House and the Senate appears to be poised to offer similar support, it is clear that the important structural aspects of Cap and Trade policy will not be a part of the budget.

This means that the lions share of Green funding within the budget and in any subsequent stimulus will focus on conservation.

While some may be disappointed with this, in actuality, it is probably the best approach anyway. A lot of savings and carbon reduction can be achieved through conservation measures which, in point of fact, are usually the most cost effective ways to go green.

Sadly, the Republicans remain "the party of no" - irrelevant to efforts to stimulate the economy or reposition the country to compete in the global economy. For those who are hard core partisans, this will come as good news. The further isolation of the Republican party will extend their period wandering in the wilderness.

We don't subscribe to this notion. We believe that a strong two party system is the engine of innovation in government and a dramatically weakened Republican party is bad for the country in the long run. In the short run however, given the level of intransigence from the Republican Leadership, it is essential to the success of the Green agenda that the Republicans remain weak until a core of them realize that it is time to desert the party for the good of the country and Obama can begin to try once again to build a post partisan majority.

Have You Ever Seen an Albino Moose?

An albino moose is an exceedingly rare sight. The person who spotted the fellow in this first photo was lucky enough to see two at once.

EXXON VALDEZ PHOTOS: 20 Years On, Spilled Oil Remains

EXXON VALDEZ PHOTOS: 20 Years On, Spilled Oil Remains

20 Years and Still the Oil Kills

Twenty years after the Exxon Valdez turned the Alaskan coastline into a toxic brew, the coastline continues to suffer, highlighting the need for a rapid response to future spills that is still elusive.

Elusive not because the technology is unavailable but because political leaders have still failed to hold industry leaders accountable for past actions and to demand preparedness against future ones.

If you have not read about the NH company offering a cradle to cradle green solution, click here.

LED-illuminated gas station sees higher traffic and reduced costs

From LED Magazine

Most of us are consumers of gasoline, whether we drive an automobile or use mass transit. We are also a society insisting on convenience – fast food, quick service and easy access. These two demands have been leading the charge for the approximately 164,300 stand-alone gas stations in the United States and 115,000 combination convenience store (c-store) and gas stations.
While demand is high, regardless of pump or shelf prices, profit margins are extremely tight in these industries, requiring c-store and petroleum operators to be astute. Owners need to realize customers are often drawn to their properties because of perceptions of cleanliness, safety and a friendly atmosphere. Given how important the company’s corporate identity and curbside look is to generating business, lighting choices should be carefully evaluated.

Previously thought about primarily for aesthetic purposes, lighting can have a tremendous impact on the bottom line. In an industry such as gasoline and c-store retailing, where competition is fierce and profit margins are increasingly shrinking, cost containment is vital to profitability. Advances in technology and engineering are now making it possible to use high-efficiency LED lighting for commercial applications. This new light source provides a way to reduce energy costs while still meeting properties’ lighting needs.

This article was published in the April 2008 issue of LEDs Magazine.
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Biochar Research Yielding Promising Results

By Roger Harrabin
Environment analyst, BBC News

Biochar brings benefits to soils, boosting plant growth

Green guru James Lovelock claims that the only hope of mitigating catastrophic climate change is through biochar - biomass "cooked" by pyrolysis.

It produces gas for energy generation, and charcoal - a stable form of carbon.

The charcoal is then buried in the ground, making the process "carbon negative".

Researchers say biochar can also improve farm productivity and cut demand for carbon-intensive fertilisers.

There's a flurry of worldwide interest in the technology, but is the hype justified?

Full Story from BBC

This story relates to the Carbon Negative Bio-Energy System described in a previous story on Greener Minds.

Green Oil Spill Remediation with MOP

One of the biggest challenges faced by green products is the common misperception that by creating a sustainable product you must, by necessity, leave something out that really makes it work. We call it the methyl-ethyl-bad-stuff argument - well we use a different word than stuff but not in a family environment.

Not so with Maximum Oil Pickup. In fact, we'd wager that MOP, and its compliment of deployment products, is the most effective, environmentally sound, invention to date for rapidly mitigating oil spills of any size from the Exxon Valdez to your garage.

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