Numerous statistical figures demonstrate that in 2008, there were more than 922 international tourists, raising revenue to more than $900 billion globally. In numerous countries, the tourism industry accounts for a large percentage of the workforce. For example, in Egypt, the tourism industry workforce accounts for more than ten percent. Because of the importance of the hotel industry in the international economy, many have adopted a number of green technologies to assist in making the environment better. Here is what ten hotels are doing around the world to make the world greener.

1) Daintree Eco Lodge and Spa in Queensland, Australia, is located in the oldest rainforest in the world. This Eco Lodge and Spa uses a number of sustainable energy practices, including solar power, and low energy LED lights. The hotel even has its own personal organic farm that it uses to grow produce used in the meals at the hotel. This hotel is involved in ecotourism to preserve and protect natural properties, including mangroves, river systems, and the rainforest. They have developed a number of management systems to guarantee a number of best practices are carried out each day, including energy management, environmental management, and waste management. Daintree also works with the Australian Greenhouse Office and complies with international sustainable tourism standards set up by the World Conservation Union, World Tourism Organization, and the International Ecotourism Association.

2) Chumbe Island Coral Park in Zanibar, Tanzania was created on the island to showcase environmental protection, including the coral reef ecosystem. This park is known worldwide for its intense eco-tourism by using 100 percent solar power and water heating, composting toilets, rainwater collection and grey water systems. Chumbe Island Coral Park is known for having one of the healthiest reef ecosystems throughout East Africa. The hotel is listed as a Long Run Destination, meaning that it strives for high standards of sustainability through the complete balance of commerce and conservation.

3) Hotel Alexandra in Copenhagen, Denmark is more than one hundred years old but has been revamped to be more sustainable as Copenhagen is known for a number of green initiatives. The entire structure of Hotel Alexandra is completely carbon neutral. The hotel has been awarded the Green Key from the Green Key Eco-Rating Program, which is an international eco-label tourism organization. They won this award due to the large number of eco-friendly features, including an organic breakfast buffet and a floor that is 100 percent free of allergens.

4) Adrere Amellal in the Siwa Oasis, Egypt is located along the foot of the White Mountain and provides insight into the rigors and thrills of desert life. What is the most impressive feature of this rustic hotel is the fact that this 39 room hotel does not even have electricity. All lighting is done by beeswax candles and all meals are made strictly using organic ingredients. There is natural ventilation that uses the dry climate in the desert. This has decreased the cost of energy and maintenance plus completely reduces the carbon footprint to almost zero. They use bio-gas technologies and water comes from a natural spring that is on site. All food waste is composted and most items on site are biodegradable.

5) Devil’s Thumb Ranch in Tabernash, Colorado has received the Environmental Protection Agency Award for Responsible Development and Historic Preservation. Located on 5,000 acres of land, the structure only takes up about 8- acres, and the rest of the land is used as a preservation point for exotic wildlife. All the buildings at the ranch are heated using geothermal energy to reduce total dependence on electricity and natural gas. Duel flush toilets are used to conserve water and florescent light bulbs are utilized. The ranch has a number of recycling initiatives implemented, all cleaning and spa products are biodegradable, natural and organic, all restaurants on site use sustainable, organic, and locally grown produce and meats when they can, and linens are changed every three days (unless otherwise requested) to conserve energy and water.

6) Hotel Mocking Bird Hill in Port Antonio, Jamaica has practiced sustainability for over 15 years and has won a number of awards including the Green Globe Certification award and the American Express/CHA prize for most Environmentally Friendly Small Hotel. Some of the things the hotel does includes solar energy, rainwater harvesting, natural air conditioning, anaerobic wastewater treatment, low chlorine pool that runs on renewable energy, no pesticides and insecticides used on the gardens, and utilizing local organic items then they can. The hotel also promotes an active waste avoidance policy – whenever possible, the hotel minimizes, reuses, and recycles waste products.

7) Strattons Hotel in Swaffham, England is not only known for the multitude of activities it offers or its breathtaking location along the Norfolk coastline, but is also widely recognized for the number of energy efficient measures it has taken. The Strattons Hotel was the first hotel in the United Kingdom to receive the Queen’s Award for “Outstanding Environmental Performance.” Food, rooms, and services use natural products that are sourced locally and organically when they can to promote the environment and the earth. The Strattons Hotel continually monitors its energy use, water management, and waste reduction. Furthermore, guests that come to the hotel via public transportation are provided with a ten percent discount on their stay.

8 ) Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa in American Canyon, California is the first Gold LEED certified hotel in the world. The Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa utilizes a number of energy efficient techniques, including water usage reduction techniques, natural lighting via solatube tubular skylights, and organic cleaning products. All materials that are wood-based are Forest Stewardship Council approved and the carpeting is made using recycled materials. The hotel has been able to reduce water use by 40 percent through the use of a number of techniques, including DDLow flush toilets and the use of recycled water in the koi pond. Other features include energy efficient HVAC systems, low energy transmittable windows, a cool reflective roof, recycling bins in all rooms and throughout the property, and bulk soap dispensers to reduce plastic packaging associated with mini soap and shampoo bottles.

9) Soneva Fushi Resort in Baa Atoll, Republic of Maldives has won a number of awards for the green initiatives it has made, including winner of The President of the Maldives’ Green Resort Award for several years. In 2010, the hotel became 100 percent carbon neutral. Environmental initiatives include increasing energy efficient, reducing resource waste and consumption, preventing the release of harmful toxins throughout the environment, and island preservation. The hotel uses natural ventilation, sources materials locally, installed energy saving light bulbs, pools use filtered seawater, collects rainwater, has a waste management program, and the resort was designed to minimize the overall impact to the island’s natural environment.

10) Quarterage Hotel in Kansas City, Kansas started going green in 2007 with complete renovations and has not gone back. The eco-plan contains a number of points. The hotel only uses Energy Star products, including digital guestroom thermostats and florescent light bulbs, utilizes environmentally friendly cleaning chemicals, gets 100 percent post consumable recycled products for all tissues, toilet paper, paper towels, paper coffee cups and other items, puts recycling bins in every room, and has a number of water conservation techniques.

Article by Shawn Lesser, Co-founder & Managing Partner of Atlanta-based Watershed Capital Group – an investment bank assisting sustainable fund and companies raise capital, perform acquisitions, and in other strategic financial decisions. He is also a Co-founder of the GCCA Global Cleantech Cluster Association ”The Global Voice of Cleantech”. He writes for various cleantech publications and is known as the David Letterman of Cleantech for his “Top 10″ series. He can be reached at shawn@watershedcapital.com

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Every now and then we hear a specialist singing the merits of algae as the ideal solution for the fuel crisis. The idea of algae as a source of biofuel sounds wonderful, but detractors say it’s too expensive and impossible to scale up. But let’s hear for the optimists.

10 News has an interview with Dr. Stephen Mayfield, a San Diego researcher who believes that algae biofuel will be available to the public in ten years’ time.

Dr. Mayfield works at the San Diego Center for Algae Biotechnology, a leading hub of research in the U.S. The center last year received a $4 million state grant to train workers to join the biofuel industry.

The algae sell is enticing: 5,000 gallons of fuel per year; rapid growth and little water needed; it grows in the desert; it does not compete with food crops; and so on. It may sound too good to be true – but who knows?

Algae for hydrogen
Algae biodiesel is also news at MIT, which released a press release regarding breakthrough research in the field.

MIT said that Shuguang Zhang, associate director of MIT’s Center for Biomedical Engineering, and postdoc researchers Iftach Yacoby and Sergii Pochekailov, in a collaboration with Tel Aviv University in Israel and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado, have found a way to use bioengineered proteins to flip algae’s preference from sugar to hydrogen.

“The algae are really not interested in producing hydrogen, they want to produce sugar,” Yacoby said – the sugar is what they need for their own survival, and the hydrogen is just a byproduct. But a multitasking enzyme, introduced into the liquid where the algae are at work, both suppresses the sugar production and redirects the organisms’ energies into hydrogen production.”

The enzyme increases hydrogen production by 400% but sugar production is not completely suppressed otherwise the organism would die.

The potential application of the system is to produce hydrogen on a large scale using water and sunlight. The hydrogen would then be used in a fuel cell or to power a vehicle, or combined with carbon dioxide to make methane or other fuels in a renewable, carbon-neutral way.

A more detailed description of the work will appear online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The research was supported in part by a European Molecular Biology Organization postdoctoral fellowship, the Yang Trust Fund and the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

The researchers highlight the simplicity of the process as one of its selling points. Algae exists anywhere in the world so developing countries could benefit as well. Besides, no toxic materials are involved in this method.

Article by Antonio Pasolini, a Brazilian writer and video art curator based in London, UK. He holds a BA in journalism and an MA in film and television.

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There’s one big reason why making your home more efficient should be at the top of your spring cleaning list: your home is addicted to coal. Did you know the average home produces twice as many emissions as the average car?

Just because your home doesn’t have a tailpipe, doesn’t mean that all the electricity you use for lights, TV, phones and computers is carbon-neutral. In fact, nearly 50 percent of our nation’s electricity comes from burning coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel. If you’ve heard the word “fracking” then you know the natural gas you use for cooking and home heating also carries an environmental price tag. Likewise the water in our homes has to be treated and pumped — often hundreds of miles — and once it goes down the drain it has to be pumped back and treated again — all of which takes more coal-fired energy.

In fact, the average American home burns nearly three tons of coal a year. However, just by doing the easy stuff, you can improve your home’s efficiency by 20 percent or more. If everybody did it, America would save $40 billion a year, while creating jobs, improving health and reducing pollution.

So when you start your spring cleaning this year, do more than just clear out the dust and clutter. Take a few steps to kick out the coal too.

The good news is there are simple, easy, cost-saving ways to make your home more efficient. Focus on these four areas for making your home more efficient:

Lighting: Improved CFL bulbs, and new full-size LED bulbs are giving those 100-year old Edison light bulbs stiff competition. You can now replace a 60watt Edison bulb with a 20watt CFL or a 7watt LED that will screw into the same fixture and provide the same amount of light. Those dramatic energy savings mean cost-savings to you.

Put it this way: if you could buy a $100 bill for 20 bucks you would, right? Well that’s what you’re doing when you buy an LED light bulb. Even though the price of each bulb is higher, the cost to use them is much lower. Because the newer bulbs are both more efficient, and much longer lasting, they can save you anywhere from 50 to a 100 dollars over the life of the bulb. Which is why McKinsey calls LEDs the most cost-effective technology for fighting climate change. So swap those light bulbs and start saving money!

Electricity: The New York Times reports that the average American home today has about 25 consumer electronic products, compared with just three in 1980. Electronics now represent up to 15 percent of American power bills — the fastest rising slice of home electricity use. All that demand will require building hundreds of new coal-fired or nuclear power plants in coming years. Unless we can be more efficient with electricity.

Using smart strips to shut down devices you’re not using is one effective way to cut down your home’s coal habit. Buying EnergyStar appliances and TVs is another. Signing up for Green Power is a great way to get your home off coal, and send a clear signal you want a cleaner economy. Nearly 900 utilities across the country offer optional programs that allow you to pay a little bit extra to support investments in local clean energy. Find a Green Power program near you, and kick the coal habit today!

Water: Taking shorter showers is conservation. Taking your usual shower while using 50 percent less water is efficiency. Simple faucet aerators and low-flow showerheads can cut your water use from 2 to 5 gallons per minute down to 1 or 1.5 gallons per minute. These are dramatic savings that you won’t even notice while taking a shower or washing the dishes. And these simple devices will save you thousands of gallons of water, and hundreds of dollars in water bills. Because it takes energy to treat and transport water, every gallon you don’t use means less coal burned on your behalf.

Temperature: Half the energy in your home is likely used for heating and cooling, so anything you can do to stop air leaks will save energy. Even if you don’t have the money to replace windows or add insulation, there are simple things you can do to weatherize your home. Sealing cracks and drafts around doors and windows with caulking or weatherstripping is a good start. Sealing outlets and light switches with inexpensive foam gaskets is another way to block tiny holes that leak air. Regularly replacing the air filters on your heater and air-conditioner can keep these systems working properly and efficiently. As the weather heats up, opening windows for ventilation instead of using the AC can save energy and cut your home’s coal emissions as well.

Take the EnergyStar virtual home tour to find more ways to save in every room of your home.

Making your home more efficient will save you money that you would otherwise be spending on fossil fuels. So if you’re pissed off at the Koch Brothers, Halliburton, BP and the rest of the fossil fuel industry, making your home more efficient is the fastest, easiest way to cut into their profits.

This spring I’m creating a program that empowers young people to become Green Energy Agents and help their communities be more efficient. Together, we can all take a big bite out of coal!

Article by Andy Mannle, appearing courtesy Justmeans.

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As cleantech continues to make its mark around the globe, there are certain cities that are coming out as leaders in the global clean technology industry. These cities provide warm atmosphere for cleantech to expand and enable more to use renewable energy and energy efficient products. Provided here is a list of the top cities that are working to make an impact in the cleantech sector.

1) Copenhagen, Denmark. Copenhagen has made it public that by 2025, they want to be the first carbon-neutral capital. This goal is doable based on Copenhagen’s long-standing tradition of research, development, and investment in clean technologies. It is home to the Copenhagen Cleantech Cluster, one of the largest global clusters dedicated to providing necessary business conditions to aid in cleantech research, development and implementation, the “Sundial,” which is the first fully-carbon neutral building in Denmark, and the International Solid Waste Association. There is also the mandatory green roof policy and Copenhagen Climate Council.

2) Stockholm, Sweden. In 2010, Stockholm, Sweden was awarded the European Green Capital of the Year Award, and it is not hard to see why. The ambitions of Stockholm have led it to try to become the first fossil-fuel free city by 2050. It has already lowered carbon emissions by 25 percent by 1990 levels, 70 percent of energy is run by renewable sources of energy, and more than 25 percent of all its waste is recycled. Stockholm has a number of energy efficient buildings, environmentally friendly transportation systems, and new innovations, such as utilizing excess warmth from the train station to heat an office building located nearby. Stockholm is also home to Hammarby Sjostad, the largest eco-friendly town in the world.

3) Boston, Massachusetts. Boston is said to enjoy some of the most supportive policies in the United States for energy efficiency and renewable energy. After California, Boston is second in clean technology venture capital investments. With an environment that is ripe for cleantech startups, numerous companies are moving their business to Boston. The MIT Clean Energy Prize is a venture and innovation creation competition that encourages clean energy innovation. Its objective is to provide educational opportunities and supply incentives to ventures demonstrating the clean energy affordability. As well, the development of MIT’s cleantech incubator will provide Boston with more access to cleantech flow.

4) Zurich, Switzerland. Zurich has been extremely instrumental in making Switzerland a global cleantech leader due to the large number of sustainable transportation projects, waste management programs, green buildings, and advancements in renewable energy. Zurich is known for its advancements in clean technologies. The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, for example, is devoted to the research and development of reliable, secure, and cost effective sustainable energy systems. More support from Zurich can be seen by the Swiss Energy Program, which seeks to provide the platform necessary to reduce carbon emissions and fossil fuel usage. Zurich is also home to some of the top cleantech companies, including MyClimate, Sustainable Asset Management, Swiss Re, and ABB.

5) Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo, capital of Japan, is on the list as having one of the largest carbon footprints. Because of the increasing need to lower greenhouse gas emissions, Tokyo has implemented a number of projects, programs, councils, and initiatives to limit its dependence on fossil fuel sources. This includes the Tokyo Green Building Program and Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies. Tokyo also takes the lead in innovation as a Tokyo manufacturing company created an energy generating floor – it absorbs the energy of foot traffic and converts it into energy used for small energy appliances within the subway, including automatic ticket counters.

6) Berlin, Germany. As the capital of Germany, Berlin has been a global leader within the cleantech economy. It is the main cleantech exporting country and provides an environment that is ripe for cleantech companies, including a favorable exit market, top research centers, and a large number of engineers. The Berlin Solar Atlas Project, Berlin Impulse, and Berlin Energieagentur are just a few of the initiatives Berlin provides. They also have a large number of cleantech industries, including Daimler.

7) San Jose, California. Everyone knows that San Jose is home to the famous Silicon Valley, and has, therefore been very attracting to many cleantech companies. Because of the leadership in know-how, engineers, as well as nanotechnology, optics and semiconductor research and development, San Jose has provided Silicon Valley with a new initiative in renewable energy development, especially in the application of solar energy. A success story out of San Jose’s Silicon Valley cleantech initiative is Sun Power. San Jose is also home to the Environmental Business Cluster, which assists cleantech startups including NuEdison.

8 ) Austin, Texas. Austin, Texas is one of the major American locations for both solar and wind power, as well as research and development into fuel cell and energy-saving technologies. Austin has created numerous initiatives to increase the research, development, and implementation of clean technologies. The Texas Clean Energy Park is housed in Austin and is dedicated to the creation and improvement of cleantech business, education, training, and research. The Pecan Street Project, a partnership between the City of Austin, Austin Energy, University of Texaas, and Austin Chamber, was established to produce a system for energy management that would produce energy equal to a regular power plant using only renewable sources within Austin. Austin showcases a large number of innovation, talent, venture funding, support services, and entrepreneurial culture. According to The Wall Street Journal, Austin ranks third as most inventive city. The incentives Austin provides are numerous, including the Emerging Technology Fund and Texas Enterprise Fund.

9) London, England. London has long since vied to be the European cleantech leader. It is home to Eco Connect – one of the top cleantech clusters around the globe due to its diligence as being a center for cleantech innovation, collaboration, investment, and achievement. London has decided to show off its cleantech aspirations by trying to outdo Vancouver, British Colombia by holding the “greenest Olympics ever” as host of the 2012 Winter Olympics. London has also set up numerous organizations to promote awareness for the use of renewable energy and energy efficiency throughout the country. Renewable Energy Association represents producers of renewable energy and is a voice to the industry, while Renewable Energy Foundation raises awareness within the public sector to use renewable energy and energy efficient products.

10) Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Vancouver is one of the leading cities for cleantech funding, including the Innovative Clean Energy Fund which provides funding for technologies that may be utilized on a commercial level, BioEnergy Strategy which is based on biofuel production, and the Green Infrastructure Fund, which addresses a number of cleantech sectors, including power generation, water and wastewater, and power generation. Vancouver, through a push to become greener, is looking to create more than 20,000 new cleantech jobs by 2020 and reduce landfill waste by over 50 percent. The city has the smallest carbon footprint in North America. Along with strong academic support and its push on creating green buildings, it will soon become one of the greenest cities in 2020.

Article by Shawn Lesser, Co-founder & Managing Partner of Atlanta-based Watershed Capital Group – an investment bank assisting sustainable fund and companies raise capital, perform acquisitions, and in other strategic financial decisions. . He is also a Co-founder of the GCCA Global Cleantech Cluster Association. He writes for various cleantech publications and is known as the David Letterman of Cleantech for his “Top 10″ series. He can be reached at shawn@watershedcapital.com

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Richard Bruton TD, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, announced recently that An tSlí Ghlas – The Green Way, Ireland’s first Green Economic Zone, has been accepted as the Irish representative of the Global Cleantech Cluster Association(GCCA).

Membership in GCCA will provide Irish companies with greater opportunities to major sources of international funding and expertise in the growing green tech sectors, such as energy efficiency, renewable energies, green transport, building materials and waste management. Membership will also attract foreign investment in clean tech to the country.

Clean-tech companies employ new technology and related business models to offer resource-efficient solutions to global problems, and at the same time provide competitive returns for investors and customers.

GCCA links more than 20 top clean-tech clusters across the globe, connecting more than 300 universities and 10,000 companies.

The 10 Irish Companies shortlisted for GCCA
An tShlí Ghlas – the Green Way has chosen the following 10 Irish companies to represent Ireland in the Best in Class GCCA ‘Later Stage’ awards. The winning companies will be actively promoted to a leading hand-selected investment community across the globe.

Crowley Carbon Ltd is based in Delgany, Co Wicklow, and takes the guesswork out of saving money. It answers the following questions: What energy efficiency products are available? Will they work for us? How much will we save? How much do they cost? What does it take to install? How can we be sure we got the projected savings?

Imperative Energy is a Maynooth, Co Kildare-based company which provides purpose-built biomass plants to provide heat, steam and power at a client’s site.

Liberator.aero is located in Swords, Co Dublin, and aims to reduce fuel consumption by 2pc for airlines, reducing associated carbon emissions at the same time.

The Rediscovery Centre, based in Ballymun, Dublin, upcycles materials, such as textiles and furniture.

Treemetrics is a Cork-based company which informs foresters which trees are ready to be cut down in a forest.

Solarprint, which is based in Dublin, has patented technology to produce better energy efficiency within buildings, by exploiting energy output from indoor light to power wireless sensors. It can reduce a building’s energy bill by 25-40pc.

Openhydro, based in Dublin, designs and manufactures marine turbines to generate renewable energy from tidal streams.

Ecocem Materials Ltd is a carbon-neutral company located in Ringsend, Dublin, which manufactures and supplies eco-friendly cement to the construction industry. It is a carbon-neutral company. Ecocem’s green cement has been used on the Dublin Convention Centre (the world’s first carbon-neutral convention centre).

Wavebob Ltd, based in Maynooth, Co Kildare, is considered one of the heading wave-energy companies globally, with offices in US. Analysts suggest 10pc of entire global energy demand could be met by wave energy.

Ikonsemi Ltd (Ikon Semiconductor) is a fabless semiconductor company based in Dublin focused on developing innovative, highly integrated and efficient solutions for the rapidly growing LED lighting industry.

An tSlí Ghlas – The Green Way combines existing businesses, academic institutions and local authorities in north Dublin, with the hope of expanding nationally and cross-border. Its founders include Ballymun Regeneration Ltd, Dublin Airport Authority, Dublin City Council, Dublin City University, Dublin Institute of Technology, Fingal County Council and North Dublin Chamber.

Article by Doireann McDermott, appearing courtesy Silicon Republic.

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If you’ve been searching for an environmentally friendly excuse to head to the pub for a pint, a group of scientists from Cornell University may be able to help. The scientists looked at over 400,000 gene sequences from brewery wastewater. Uncovered, were the genes of the microbes best suited to converting the wastewater into biofuel.

Anheuser-Busch InBev provided access to wastewater from nine U.S. breweries. Inside million-gallon bioreactor tanks used to process the wastewater, some of the microbes produce methane, not unlike a cow. The methane produced provides for 20% of the heating needs at the breweries, providing significant cost savings for Anheuser-Busch InBev.

Each bioreactor was cultivating both common and unique bacteria. Some of the bacteria were hardy and other populations too small. Like Goldilocks, the scientists found the microbes that were just right.

The communities of microbes best suited to producing methane are being investigated further. The scientists hope to learn more about how changes in environment, such as temperature, affect the microbes. Ultimately the hope is to “shape” the microbial communities to produce, not methane, but the basic building blocks of carbon fuels.

Biofuels suffer from several flaws. While it is not the case here, the use of food crops, such as corn, to produce biofuels is damaging to the global food system and a dubious use of water and other resources. Fossil fuels are used in the production of biofuels, adding to their emissions footprint.

Biofuels are a carbon fuel at their base. When biofuels are burned they produce carbon dioxide. Compared to emissions from fossil fuels biofuels burn clean. Referred to as “carbon neutral”, in a best case scenario, biofuels are the equivalent of treading water. Treading water alone will not save you and biofuels alone will not save the planet.

Brewing beer produces wastewater. By capturing and using the methane produced, Anheuser-Busch InBev uses what would otherwise have gone to waste. Additionally they reduce their consumption of other fuel, which may have been more damaging. The process may not be perfect but it certainly steps in the right direction.

So the next time you sidle up to the watering hole, give some consideration to the wastewater brewing beer produces. Anheuser-Busch InBev is using their wastewater to act sustainably. Regarding the wastewater produced by consuming beer, it appears water conservation would be the central issue, making the adage of “if it’s yellow, let it mellow” seem like a good place to start.

Article by Adrian King, appearing courtesy Justmeans.

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And the award for first carbon neutral media company in the world goes to? Drum roll please! News Corp. Yes, you read right. The parent company of Fox News, home to some of the worst climate misinformation in the media, is a leader when it comes to climate change.

News Corp made the announcement yesterday. They achieved carbon neutrality through a combination of increases in efficiency and use of renewable energy as well as carbon offsets.

While the discord between the views espoused through Fox News and other News Corp outlets and the company’s carbon neutrality might have caught some off guard, there’s one group it hasn’t. The Carbon Disclosure Project has been getting companies to voluntarily report their carbon emissions annually since 2000.

News Corp has consistently ranked high in the Carbon Disclosure Project’s annual reports. Last year it was the leader in the consumer discretionary category and second compared to all companies in the S&P 500 who disclosed their emissions.

The Carbon Disclosure Project is committed to accelerating solutions to climate change. The idea is that companies provide information about their emissions and investors, corporations, policymakers, and others can make informed decisions on where to put their dollars.

And the Carbon Disclosure Project represents people with a lot of dollars. They represent 551 institutional investors who manage over $71 trillion in assets. In other words, they have some clout.

If you’d like to hear about their future efforts and how they drive companies like News Corp towards carbon neutrality, you can catch their Executive Chairman Paul Dickinson at the Integrated Reporting and Measuring Sustainability Conference on March 25th at The Brewery in London.

Article by Brian Kahn, appearing courtesy Justmeans.

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Costa Rica has made the public commitment to become the first carbon neutral country in the world by the year 2021. The current Costa Rican president has also made a promise to deliver between five and seven percent GDP growth to future generations by going forward in the pursuit of a high technology economy created on principles surrounding environmental sustainability. The conditions to do cleantech business in Costa Rice are ripe as many government policies have been created to encourage outside clean technology companies bring their goods and services to Costa Rica as there are many resources available.

1) Study Abroad Programs to Costa Rica to Learn about Renewable Energy. Many universities, such as Utah State University and their energy programs and physics programs have done numerous study abroad programs to study renewable energy in Costa Rica because of the use of renewable energy sources, including geothermal, sugar cane waste, sun, wind, and biomass, its implementation and the research and development into further sources.

2) Costa Rica to become first Carbon Neutral Country. Costa Rica has made the pledge to run its country’s electric grid exclusively using renewable energy sources by the year 2021. This government sponsored strategy will make it the first carbon neutral country throughout the globe. Germany has actually been a top supporter of Costa Rica’s goal stating that the economic stability along with Costa Rica’s financial security make it attractive for international investment. One wind company, Juwi Wind GmbH, who has been responsible for helping increase the wind energy in Costa Rica, said that the country has great wind potential, and its overall goal is something that Germany can stand behind.

3) United States and Costa Rica Partnership. The United States and Costa Rica have long had a sustainable partnership in creating an Energy Efficiency Center in Costa Rica. The center is to assist in the advancement of Costa Rica’s sustainable energy future. The center “will develop an advanced train the trainer program that will certify professionals in several clean and efficient technologies and will establish a regional base of knowledge in mechanisms and state of the art technologies in the energy efficiency field by promoting regional public and private public sector’s abilities.”

4) Solar Energy Capabilities. Because of Costa Rica’s devotion to renewable energy, many small, impoverished villages are finally enjoying electricity through the use of solar panels. In many far and impoverished areas, electricity, telephones and cooking mechanisms have been introduced using solar panels. Through the United Nations Development Program, thousands of dollars were funded to assist in the formation of a national solar power network. This funding assisted in breaking the financial limitations hoisted on Costa Rica because of the expensive cost of equipment. According to Hanz Kurz, resident representative of the UNDP, the benefits that families receive from this project are numerous as “they [previously] used candles and petrol to light their homes, just as the rest of Costa Rica did a hundred years ago.”

5) Wind Energy Capabilities. Wind power has real potential growth in Costa Rica because of the high winds that travel throughout the country. In most locations, average wind speed is between 15 and 20 miles per hour, and only nine miles per hour winds are required for favorable rates of energy efficiency. Much more funding is starting to go into wind energy as it is being looked as a more favorable alternative since solar power is expensive and the dry season affects the amount of hydroenergy created. The World Bank has provided funds for three various wind projects from its Prototype Carbon Fund, and other companies, such as The New World Power Corporation, Global Energy Concepts, and the International Finance Corporation have provided aid, research, development, and training.

6) Financial Incentives to get to Renewable Energy. Costa Rica has created a number of financial incentives to promote further renewable energy business in the country. In 2010, for example, an amendment was made to the tax exemption act, to further promote the use of renewable energy by getting rid of 13 percent of the tax burden that had been previously levied on solar-powered kitchens and solar panels, as well as heaters, refrigerators, and other products that run on renewable sources of energy. As part of the Costa Rican Energy Plan, the Costa Rican Institute of Electricity will provide further incentives for companies and residences that elect to install solar panel as well as biomass generation systems.

7) Costa Rica Green Building Council. The Costa Rica Green Building Council is a non-profit organization that looks to certify sustainable businesses, hospitals, schools, neighborhoods, and homes. This organization is dedicated to expanding all green building practices throughout the country and provides education on renewable energy sources. The council follows the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System, which encourages as well as accelerates the global adoption of sustainable green development and building practices.

8 ) Boston Scientific Plant to be First Sustainable Building in Costa Rica. In 2010, the Boston Scientific Plant, a company which employs over 1,700 individuals has become the first building to be completely eco-friendly in Costa Rica. The floors are made from cork and the framework was constructed from recycled building materials, and even the paint used contained no toxic chemicals. The plant employed the use of solar panels for its power source and has numerous windows to supply the plant with natural light. The United States Green Building Council recognized it as the nation’s first fully sustainable building and it has received LEED certification.

9) Costa Rica Joins World Green Building Council. Because of its efforts in adopting clean technologies and its goal to be completely run by renewable energy, Costa Rica was inducted into the World Green Building Council. It has been not only their goal that got them this induction, but the necessary steps they have taken to ensure that this goal is achieved. According to Craig Williamson, a member of the CRGBC, “It provides Costa Rica real estate developers the tools and information needed to make sustainability and carbon neutrality an attainable goal.”

10) Sustainable Eco-City. Alouatta, a Costa Rican city, has numerous “green house” residences, designed by architects that have “engineered a city of freehold residences and condo clusters in the jungle. The designs demonstrate that a community can be both beautiful and sustainable in the midst of large tracts of native vegetation that allow for riparian protection areas.” Based on the use of water conservation techniques, materials selection, energy efficiency, and indoor environmental air quality the developers are asking for LEED certification.

Article by Shawn Lesser, president and founder of Atlanta-based Sustainable World Capital, which is focused on fund-raising for private equity cleantech/sustainable funds, as well as private cleantech companies and M&A. He is also a co- founder of the GCCA Global Cleantech Cluster Association, and can be reached at shawn.lesser@sworldcap.com

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Biomass generation plants primarily burn waste wood, but as their role in clean energy is expanding, more wood will be needed. Where will it come from?

Xcel energy has developed a demonstration project to test which tree species, soils and climates will be most conducive to “biomass plantations” – trees grown to be used as fuel. In partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension, the project includes two newly planted, 10-acre test plots. Each has been planted with a variety of trees, including poplar, larch, aspen, willow and red pine – all genetically crossed to be fast-growing.

When used as a power generation fuel, trees are considered carbon-neutral because they absorb carbon while they grow; then they release what they absorbed when they become biomass fuel.

Agroforestry: New revenue opportunities for farmers
The partners in the pilot are tracking the development costs (ground preparation, weed control, etc.) because they’ll provide budget estimates to farmers who are interested in creating their own plantations. Many farmers in the area are not using their low-yield land, and the trees would provide incremental revenue.

Most of the trees in the pilot will be harvested in about 10 to 15 years when they reach six to eight inches in diameter. Willows, which grow more like shrubs, could be ready in as little as three years.

Until the trees are large enough to form a canopy, the pilot partners are planting grains in the rows between the trees, providing yet another source of income.

This is not your uncle’s ethanol
When ethanol was hailed as a replacement for gasoline, farmers around the world switched their crops to corn to capitalize on the ethanol boom. The unintended consequences became apparent when rice, beans and other nutritional staples were in short supply.

The biomass plantation test plots are located on vacant, “marginal” agriculture land that’s not conducive to growing high-yield food crops.

Another aspect of the test is to see how well the trees grow without irrigation. The plots are located in different climates and planted in different soil types, which will add more helpful data points to the test.

All of the wood from the plots will be chipped and delivered as fuel for Xcel Energy’s Bay Front plant.

The table below shows the power Xcel Energy purchases from generation plants that use waste as fuel. Xcel Energy also owns four others that use waste wood or refuse-derived fuel: Bay Front, French Island, Red Wing and Wilmarth.

My personal favorites are the landfill gas-to-energy and the poultry waste (a.k.a. turkey “litter”).

Article by Sheila Knudtsen, appearing courtesy Xcel Energy Blog.

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France will soon join other European countries like England, Scotland, and Denmark in generating electricity from offshore wind projects free from the environmental impacts associated with carbon or nuclear energy. This week French officials are announcing a plan to install six hundred wind turbines capable of producing 3,000 megawatts of energy. These turbines will be distributed across five sites between Saint-Nazaire and Dieppe/Le Treport, and will help achieve the French government’s goal of generating 23% of France’s electricity from renewable energy sources by the year 2020.

The recently announced wind farm will be France’s first offshore wind project. However while the country has been slower than some of its neighbors to get on the offshore wind band wagon, it now appears poised to make up for lost time. The six hundred turbines will take France halfway to its official goal of producing 6,000 megawatts of electricity from offshore wind by 2020. In fact there is a very real possibility France will easily exceed that national goal. About thirty offshore wind projects are in various stages of development or proposal in France—and if all are actually built they will generate 8,000 megawatts.

Interestingly at least some French officials are concerned because while France has a lot of potential for developing offshore wind, there are no French companies prepared to build offshore wind farms themselves. Thus the newly announced project will probably be build by companies based out of Germany, Denmark, and other countries that dove into offshore wind earlier. The situation underlines the importance of nations bolstering their ability to produce clean energy infrastructure if they want to enjoy the full benefits of the renewable revolution. The United States might do well to take heed, as failure to invest early in renewable energy means the US risks have to import solar panels and wind turbine parts from other countries. Both France and the US will benefit if they can become producers of renewable energy equipment and build their wind and solar farms with domestically based companies.

To draw another parallel with the United States, France’s offshore wind sector has been slow in getting off the ground in part because of complex regulatory hurdles that have kept projects in the proposal stages since 2005. The situation is reminiscent of the United States where Cape Wind, which will probably become the first US offshore wind project to begin construction, has been delayed for years by litigation and red tape.

Now both France and the US are nearing the point where they can soon start building their first offshore wind farms, and this will hopefully clear the way for other such projects in future. As offshore wind takes root in countries around the world, more and more people in Europe, the United States, and elsewhere will be able to flip a switch and call on carbon-neutral electrons generated from the windy skies above the worlds’ great oceans.

Article by Nick Engelfried, appearing courtesy Justmeans.

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