As the Defense Department’s largest gas-guzzler, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) has challenged the biofuels industry to meet their production needs of several hundred million gallons of alternative fuels by 2016. In an effort to help wean the USAF off foreign oil, 50-50 blends of jet and synthetic fuels have been approved for flight. However,…
Last night President Obama made several references to the growing renewable energy industry. He began by noting that the U.S. is not alone in its pursuit of clean energy. China, President Obama explained, is currently home to the largest solar power research facility and world’s fastest computer. He announced these breakthroughs with a steady air…
By Valerie Kosheleff Still unsure what “natural”, “biodegradable”, “compostable” or “ecofriendly” truly mean? No worries, so is everyone else. Fortunately, 2011 shows great promise for integrity in environmental labeling. Not only has the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) taken steps this past year to revise its Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims (called Green…
By Valerie Kosheleff California Air Resources Board (CARB) moves forward this month by approving a Draft Resolution to the Cap-and-Trade rulemaking. Cap-and-Trade, also called Emissions Trading, in California is part of the state’s 2006 landmark climate change legislation, Assembly Bill (AB) 32. Cap-and-Trade is only one component of AB 32, but is perhaps the least…
Sandy Feet Events, the premiere athletic and social events company in San Diego, was started by owner Rachel Hiner. What makes Sandy Feet Events stand out as the best events company in town is a combination of Rachel’s experience in this industry (co-founder Sun Strides Foundation) and the commitment to sponsoring events with a conscience. …
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a measure to ban plastic bags at grocery stores and other shops in unincorporated Los Angeles County areas. The goal of the ordinance is to get people to use their reusable bags. It applies to grocery stores, drug stores, liquor stores and convenience stores. Customers would no…
Local business owners described the greening of their own operations — and how other companies can follow suit — at the recent Bright Green Future Conference, which was held at University of San Diego. Of the 50 speakers and panelists at the Nov. 5- 6 program sponsored by San Diego EarthWorks, about a half dozen…
A Solana Beach company says business is booming in connecting people with solar installers, energy auditors and green contractors. Greener Dawn operates hundreds of websites that give people information on solar installations and energy savings, collects their information, and then sells it to contractors and installers as sales leads. “We’re a technology company that does…
If you’re thinking about going solar, well, in a way, you already have. Most of the energy we use on Earth was created by the sun. Oil, coal, natural gas, wind, hydropower, even the heat from a wood-burning stove. (Big exceptions are nuclear and geothermal power.) By relying on fossil fuels, we’ve built a civilization…
TASIILAQ, Greenland — With a tense pilot gripping the stick, the helicopter hovered above the water, a red speck of machinery lost in a wilderness of rock and ice. To the right, a great fjord stretched toward the sea, choked with icebergs. To the left loomed one of the immense glaciers that bring ice from…