Reviewing environmental taxes

Martin Baxter, Executive Director for policy at the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment wrote this blog for Sustainable Business in the Guardian. While it is about issues in Britain, it has relevance to all countries. Environmental taxes need review to stay relevant When environmental taxes change business behaviour, revenues will fall – something the … Continue reading Reviewing environmental taxes →

Now the insurance industry is starting to take climate change seriously

Kenneth Weiss of the Los Angeles Times writes about a new study undertaken by Evan Mills of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.  Evan has just written a column on the subject for eceee and this article complements that column well. Climate change taken seriously by insurance industry, study says Paying out billions of dollars here and … Continue reading Now the insurance industry is starting to take climate change seriously →

New eco-label for renewable energy

Green Economy describes a new voluntary label that certifies the share of electricity coming from renewable energy. 'WindMade' Eco-Label Now Covers All Kinds of Renewable Energy To encourage corporations to use renewable energy, last year wind-related organizations launched “WindMade” a label that certifies that 25% of their electricity comes from wind energy. Since businesses tend … Continue reading New eco-label for renewable energy →

New energy efficiency fund targeting business

James Murray for BusinessGreen describes a new corporate energy efficiency fund in the UK.  The bank is drawing on government’s Funding for Lending scheme to offer competitive loans to help businesses deliver energy efficiency improvements. RBS launches £200m corporate energy efficiency fund Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) will today launch a £200m (€246m) Carbon Reduction … Continue reading New energy efficiency fund targeting business →

Everyone knew there would be costs involved to meet energy goals but . . .

Conor Keane, Business Editor of the Irish Examiner reports on the estimated costs for Ireland to meet its legal obligations under EU Directives Meeting energy goals to cost €23bn Ireland needs to invest €22.8bn between now and 2020 if it is to fulfil its legal obligations under EU directives on the environment and energy efficiency … Continue reading Everyone knew there would be costs involved to meet energy goals but . . . →

Vestas looks to build world’s largest offshore wind turbine

With the help of the Japanese machinery maker Mitsubish, Vestas Wind Systems hopes to build the world's largest offshore wind turbine that would have a capacity of 8 megawatts – 30 percent more powerful than the largest turbine currently available, Bloomberg reported. Vestas is the world's largest maker of wind turbines, the article stated, and … Continue reading Vestas looks to build world’s largest offshore wind turbine →

bigEE launched

bigEE has now been launched. bigEE is an international initiative of research institutes for technical and policy advice and public agencies in the field of energy and climate, co-ordinated by the Wuppertal Institute (Germany). Its aim is to develop the international web-based knowledge platform bigee.net for energy efficiency in buildings, building-related technologies, and appliances in … Continue reading bigEE launched →

Turkish banks recognised for financing industrial energy efficiency and renewable energy projects

Finchannel.com from Tblisi, Georgia describes the recognition that Turkish banks have received from the EBRD for promoting energy efficiency.  The EBRD has been active in getting its member countries to take an active role in energy efficiency and it appears to be paying off. EBRD celebrates excellence in financing energy efficiency in Turkey The European … Continue reading Turkish banks recognised for financing industrial energy efficiency and renewable energy projects →

Making our cities more energy efficient

Cities are getting a lot of attention globally because of their high energy consumption and their potential to make significant savings.  Dr. Mayarani Praharaj from the Department of Architecture, College of Engineering and Technology, provides a detailed account of some of the issues and the initiatives underway Bhubaneswar for the Daily Pioneer in Delhi and … Continue reading Making our cities more energy efficient →