Food vs. Fuel

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The global food supply crisis is causing many countries to rethink the biofuel mandates. Crop production for bio-fuel means reductions in grain and soy growing, which (along with market speculation) leads to an increase in prices.
New attention is being given to affordable grains versus the need for renewable energy from biofuels.

Cost of air travel

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Greenhouse gas emissions from international air travel are not restricted under the Kyoto Protocol. Yet air travel is a large carbon dioxide producer.

Terrapass is one of the carbon offset companies funding clean energy and other projects designed to decrease carbon emissions in other industries. It funds projects throughout the U.S., including wind farms, biomass energy, and electricity from animal and plant material.

Will you help Mother Nature save the Earth?

Environmental advocacy is going beyond the activists rallies. Individual responsibility and contribution to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change is being recognized. Will
consumer behaviour change to reduce consumption? Reducing the consumption of goods and services is a goal of environmentalists to achieve sustainability. What is the economic impact of the reductions? Who will set the global greenhouse gas budget? Will it be based on today's consumption per country or some future ideal "equitable" allocation of carbon dioxide equivalents.

Will we be forced to purchase carbon offsets as a new tax? Will the do-it-yourself crowd be allowed any thoreauvian-lifestyle deductions for their vegetarian diet or backyard garden?

Biofuel

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We have hit a few bumps during the race for alternatives to fossil fuels. First generation biofuels have limitations including threatening food supplies and biodiversity.





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Lifecycle analysis of the production of ethanol from corn and biodiesel from soy shows only modest net energy gains when you subtract the energy costs of fuel production, pesticide use, transportation, and by-products that remain.

Second generation biofuels are being developed to attempt a transition to producing more sustainable feedstocks. Cellulosic ethanol made from grasses like switchgrass, prairie grasses, or Sugarcane bagasse waste is emerging as the favorite to overcome the environmental and economic challenges.

Green Imagery Overdone?

Eco-friendly images previously used to prove "green" credentials are loosing their impact. "Natural icons have become cliched icons for the environment" with all of the "greenwashing." http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7251380.stm