Environmental News

Scotts Miracle-Gro today said it has achieved its goal of removing phosphorus from its Turf Builder brand lawn food maintenance products. Source: Environmental Leader, 5/13/13

The European Union bans nearly 1,400 chemicals from personal care products because they are carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic to reproduction. But in the United States, the Food and Drug Administration entrusts safety regulation of cosmetics to a private entity that is housed and funded by the industry's trade association. To date, this entity has found only eleven chemicals to be "unsafe for use in cosmetics." Source: Washington Monthly, 5/6/13

The federal agencies and departments of the Great Lakes Interagency Task Force today announced opportunities for the public to provide input to a planned update of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Action Plan. Source: U.S. EPA, 5/13/13

Illinois law requires that, if possible, renewable energy should come from Illinois or surrounding states. However, unless a municipality or business explicitly has stated it wants local renewable power, the power it receives is probably from outside Illinois, where energy credits are cheaper. Source: Chicago Tribune, 5/13/13

Customers' defection to other suppliers, language in Illinois law are hindering investment in green electricity Source: Chicago Tribune, 5/13/13

Sustainability is steadily becoming strategically integrated into all departments at hospitals and health care systems. Source: GreenBiz, 5/10/13

For years, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse pollutants have been closely monitored around the planet by stations on the ground and in space. Last week, worldwide levels of carbon dioxide reached 400 parts per million at a Hawaii station that sets the global benchmark -- a concentration not seen in millions of years. Now, some scientists are eyeing large cities -- with LA and Paris as guinea pigs -- and aiming to observe emissions in the atmosphere as a first step toward independently verifying whether local -- and often lofty -- climate goals are being met. Source: Associated Press, 5/13/13

Capital Bikeshare -- the Washington,D.C.-area bike sharing program -- has long been the darling of the bicycle community as the largest program of its type in America. But in a few weeks, it'll lose that title twice over, when Chicago and New York are both scheduled to launch bike shares of their own that are even bigger. Source: Governing, 5/10/13

Along the shores of New York Harbor, scientists are investigating whether this ubiquitous bivalve can be grown in urban areas as a way of cleansing coastal waters of sewage, fertilizers, and other pollutants. Source: Yale360, 5/9/13

ISTC is now accepting applications for a Director to lead the Center in the execution of its mission and in maintaining and enhancing its tradition of excellence. Source: ISTC, 5/8/13

The world needs water. Milwaukee not only has lots of it, but it also has transformed itself into a hub for water research and technology. Source: Governing, May 2013

Getting a sustainability project approved takes more than just having a positive financial ROI. Initiatives also need to improve a company's brand and keep risks at bay. Source: GreenBiz, 5/6/13

Nike, NASA, U.S. Agency for International Development and the U.S. State Department have launched a challenge to create new, sustainable materials. Source: GreenBiz, 5/7/13

The city's Department of Aviation is expected to announce Wednesday that it has awarded a contract to Central Commissary Holdings LLC -- operator of Lincoln Park restaurant Butcher & The Burger -- to bring about 25 goats onto airport property, helping the airport launch its pilot vegetation-management program. Source: Chicago Tribune, 5/8/13

On April 30, 2013, U.S. Department of Energy's Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Kathleen Hogan, announced the launch of the Better Buildings Residential Network at the ACI National Home Performance Conference and Leadership Summit in Denver, Colorado. The Better Buildings Residential Network connects energy efficiency programs and partners to share best practices and learn from each other to dramatically increase the number of American homes that are energy efficient. Source: Environmental News Bits, 5/7/13

Have you considered how employee engagement can drive your sustainability strategy and how you can also leverage sustainability initiatives to engage your employees and create a values-driven culture of collaboration and creativity? Source: Environmental Leader, 5/7/13

The global market for water and wastewater treatment and equipment within the pulp and paper industry will grow from $983.9 million in 2012 to $1.569 billion in 2020, according to analysis from Frost & Sullivan. The market is expected to experience a 6 percent compound annual growth rate as rising water prices and tightening environmental standards force the pulp and paper industry to install high-end equipment to treat wastewater and reduce consumption, Frost & Sullivan says. Source: Environmental Leader, 5/7/13

The White House Council on Environmental Quality, in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has announced the winners of the 2013 Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators. Eleven teachers from around the country are being recognized for their exceptional work as leaders in the field of environmental education in formal school settings. Award recipients and their local education agencies will receive commemorative certificates and monetary awards to help support and encourage their use of environmental education in their classrooms and schools. Source: U.S. EPA, 5/7/13

As President Obama's health care reform prepares to rollout this year, all eyes are on whether it will actually lower health care costs. One area that deserves attention is the health system's costly environmental footprint. Source: SustainableBusiness.com, 5/2/13

An effective corporate climate change strategy requires a detailed understanding of a company's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Until recently, most companies have focused on measuring emissions from their own operations and electricity consumption, using the GHG Protocol's Scope 1 and Scope 2 framework. But what about all of the emissions a company is responsible for outside of its own walls -- from the goods it purchases to the disposal of the products it sells? Source: GreenBiz, 5/3/13

It takes many actions by many people and organizations to make whole systems change -- and every action, no matter how small, is essential. Source: GreenBiz, 5/6/13

Solar trash compactors, rechargeable batteries and paperless medical records systems are among the projects that will receive funding at Southern Illinois University Carbondale in the coming months. Source: The Southern, 5/2/13

A Denver-based company finds alternate uses for unusual materials destined for the landfill. Source: GreenSource, 5/1/13

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said on Thursday that more than 100 New York City restaurants, including haute cuisine temples like Le Bernardin and chains like Pret a Manger, have pledged to reduce the food waste they send to landfills by 50 percent. Source: New York Times, 4/25/13

Electronic Recyclers International (ERI) has launched a new tracking and transparency system that gives customers complete real-time access to the status of their organizational recycling efforts, the company says. Source: Environmental Leader, 5/1/13

Cosmetics companies need to address the environmental consequences of consumption if they are to significantly reduce their ecological footprints, Sustainable Cosmetics Summit organizers say. Source: Environmental Leader, 5/1/13

Properly managing value chain, or Scope 3, emissions is a critical survival tool companies must use to gain competitive advantage in a resource-constrained future, the Carbon Trust says. Source: Environmental Leader, 5/1/13

Echoing the growth in corporate social responsibility reporting, a growing number of mostly small- and medium-sized companies are taking environmental and social stewardship further and becoming benefit corporations -- companies that are legally bound to have a positive effect on society -- according to a report by Worldwatch Institute. Source: Environmental Leader, 5/1/13

Product stewardship legislation has been proposed and considered in a number of states. Legislation is often used to compel various product manufacturers and industries to participate in a qualified program. However, hurdles stand in the way of enacting laws that would be beneficial for the environment, business, communities and future generations of people who will be affected by the outcome. Source: Environmental Leader, 5/1/13

Kaid Benfield outlines his 16 principles for smart urban development. Source: Atlantic Cities, 5/1/13

Source: Environmental Health Perspectives, 5/1/13

From methanol to formaldehyde -- this reaction is the starting point for the synthesis of many everyday plastics. Using catalysts made of gold particles, formaldehyde could be produced without the environmentally hazardous waste generated in conventional methods. Just how the mysterious gold catalyst works has been revealed by theoretical and experimental researchers at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum in a cooperation project. In the international edition of the journal Angewandte Chemie they report in detail on what happens on the gold surface during the chemical reaction. Source: R&D Magazine, 5/1/13

How two mayors of small towns in right-wing America are showing the way to energy and climate progress: through local action. Source: SmartPlanet, 5/1/13