Report guardian (UK): Smart businesses will act now to reduce their environmental impact
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- Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Africa review (Kenya): Give them bread: Feeding the hungry no longer a science
- Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Reuters AlertNet: Kenya: Scratch-Card Solar Brings Clean Energy to Kenyas Poor
- Back to Menu ============================================================= Other Environment News
- Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Reuters: Obama takes on power plant emissions as part of climate plan
- Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Financial Times (UK): ‘Climate bomb’ warning over China coolant release
Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Deutsche Welle (Germany): UNEP report sees slowdown in renewable energy investments 12 June 2013 Global demand for renewable energy has continued to rise steadily, a fresh United Nations report has shown. But the study also pointed out that lower prices had prompted a reduction in revenue in the sector. For only the second year since 2006, global investments in regenerative sources of energy in 2012 failed to top levels of the previous year, a report by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) showed Wednesday. The world geneterate more power from renewable sources than ever before, however, pointing to improved efficiency in the sector. Year-on-year investments drooped by 12 percent, largely due to dramatically lower prices for solar panels and weak US and EU markets, the survey claimed. The report pointed out, though, that despite a lower increase in resources spent on extending the use of renewables, overall investments last year totaled $244 billion (183.7 billion euros) worldwide, the second largest annual amount ever recorded for the sector. Major employer UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said the uptake of renewable energies continued globally, with a dramatic surge in current projects. DW.DE
A solar power project in Buenos Aires is providing electricity for some of the city's poorest households. Volunteers are hoping to create Argentina's first green community - one rooftop at a time. (07.06.2013) "There have been sharp falls in manufacturing costs of wind turbines and solar panels, contributing to a shake-out in the industry in 2012," Steiner said. "This is not only normal in a rapidly growing industry, but is also likely to lead to even more competition with even bigger gains for consumers." Total renewable power generation capacity hit another record last year at 115 GW of new capacities installed globally and totaling 1,470 GW, up 8.5 percent from 2011. The UNEP study said an estimated 5.7 million people worked in the sector last year. But it added that although a growing number of nations invested in renewables, the bulk of employment remained concentrated in Brazil, China, India, the EU and the US. Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Africa review (Kenya): Give them bread: Feeding the hungry no longer a science 24 June 2013 Over 500 government ministers and diplomats from around the world were among guests invited for a sumptuous meal during a meeting held in Kenya's capital Nairobi on February 19, 2012. On the menu of the five-course meal was yellow lentil commonly known as dal, grilled sweet corn and a variety of vegetables including French Beans. Only this time, something about the meal was different. It had been prepared using ingredients that had been rejected by various UK supermarkets because they were not beautiful enough. Tristram Stuart, the author of Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal and founder of Feeding the 5000, had earlier visited several farmers across Kenya to collect the 1,600 kilos of “unwanted” fruit and vegetables and used what he got to prepare the meal that was used to feed the VIPs, who included Kenya’s permanent secretary for Environment, Mr Ali Mohamed. “The waste of perfectly edible ‘ugly’ vegetables is endemic in our food production systems and symbolises our negligence,” says Mr Stuart, who has been campaigning to reduce food wastage. Some of the food he collected was also given as donation to local charities such as Msedo School in Nairobi’s Mathare slums. According to Mr Siago Benedict who runs the school, learners only get a meal a day at the school, but when Mr Stuart made the donation, the school was able to provide a balanced diet of two meals that day. Because the school did not have sufficient storage capacity, students were allowed to carry some of the food home to share with their families. Mr Staurt says that apart from the cost implications and environmental impact, food wastage also increases pressure on the already strained global food system. “It’s a scandal that so much food is wasted in a country with millions of hungry people; we found one grower supplying a UK supermarket who is forced to waste up to 40 tonnes of vegetables every week, which is 40 per cent of what he grows,” Mr Stuart says. Use the ‘leftovers’ But rather than wring their hands in despair or throw away the rejected food, farmers have learnt to use the ‘leftovers’ to feed pigs, cows and other domestic animals, which are a source of livelihood and which also produce meat or milk which supplement family diets. In recent years, drought, low grain stocks and speculation in food stocks have been blamed for widespread hunger across the globe. However, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) says food waste could worsen the situation in coming decades if not checked. According to the Unep, food loss and wastage refer to the decrease in mass or nutritional value of food throughout the supply chain that was intended for human consumption. According to a recent study by FAO, about one third of all food produced worldwide gets lost or is wasted in either production or consumption stages, amounting to 1.3 billion tonnes annually. Unep and FAO estimate this to cost about $1 trillion. The report says that retailers and consumers discard around 300 million tonnes that is fit for consumption, around half of the total food squandered in industrialised countries. This is more than the total net food production of Sub-Saharan Africa and would be sufficient to feed the estimated 900 million hungry people worldwide. About 239 million of the starving population is to be found in Sub-Saharan Africa. “Wasting food makes no sense — economically, environmentally and ethically,” Unep executive director Achim Steiner said early this year. “To bring about the vision of a truly sustainable world, we need a transformation in the way we produce and consume our natural resources.” However, not all the food is lost in the production process or in the supply chain; consumers also contribute to rising global hunger and food insecurity through improper storage. Many are the times when they throw away good food. Preservation According to Think. Eat. Save. Reduce Your Food website, simple actions by consumers and food retailers can dramatically cut the amount of food lost or wasted each year. The campaigners call on consumers to avoid impulse-buying of food, eat food that is already in the fridge before buying more, keep fresh produce in freezers, cook and eat what is bought first, be creative with leftovers for instance using chicken to make sandwiches and donating non-perishable food to children’s homes or shelters. As experts renew their calls for increased production to stem hunger in Kenya and other developing countries, the World Hunger Education Service points that the world produces enough food for everyone. Their data indicates that agriculture alone produces about 17 per cent extra calories per person today than it did 30 years ago, despite a 70 per cent growth in population globally. Indigenous food Unep is also urging families in Africa to use indigenous food preservation methods. For instance in Nigeria, garri, which is produced from cassava tubers is peeled, washed then grated or pounded. It is later fermented and roasted for long-term storage. In western Kenya, maize is dried then stored using ash to keep it free of weevils and aflotoxin. Such methods are particularly effective in areas without constant supply of electricity or with a high supply of food that can be preserved using these methods. Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Reuters AlertNet: Kenya: Scratch-Card Solar Brings Clean Energy to Kenya's Poor 20 June 2013 At Sibanga market, 10 km (6 miles) outside the town of Kitale in western Kenya, Timothy Nyongesa walks into the Mibawa Suppliers shop to collect a gadget that he hopes will brighten his children's studies and his family's health. In exchange for an initial payment of 1,000 Kenyan shillings (about $12), Nyongesa walks out with a kit that will generate solar energy at his home. He jumps on his bicycle and snakes along a footpath to his village of Sinyerere, 6 km farther into the countryside. Nyongesa's family is one of more than 3,000 in the Kitale area who since 2011 have switched to solar power instead of using kerosene lamps to light their homes. "I cannot have my children study using a kerosene tin-lamp when those in the neighbourhood are using electricity from the sun," he said. The solar kits, which aim to scale up access to solar power for Kenya's poor, are marketed using an instalment plan that puts the 10,000-shilling (about $120) pack within reach of people with modest incomes. After an initial deposit of 1,000 shillings, the user makes weekly payments of 120 shillings ($1.40) for 80 weeks before fully owning the system. Scratch cards with codes enable the purchaser to make their payments securely from home via SMS - using their mobile phone that can be kept charged with the solar kit. Ashden Award The innovative effort, by Azuri Technologies, a UK-based company that developed and manufactures the IndiGo solar kits, on Thursday was named a winner of the 2013 Ashden Awards, considered the world's leading green energy prize. The awards recognise innovations that promote sustainable energy to reduce poverty and tackle climate change. "It has been tremendous to see the appetite for IndiGo," said Simon Bransfield-Garth, chief executive officer of Azuri Technologies. "At the same time, we are acutely aware of the scale of problem we are attempting to tackle and so all our effort is on growing to reach as many customers as possible." In a statement at the launch of a new report on markets for renewable energy, Achim Steiner, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, said that uptake of renewable energies was continuing to increase globally as countries, companies and communities saw the opportunities to capitalize on low-carbon economies and the potential for future energy security and sustainable livelihoods. Nyongesa's interest in the solar system, however, has as much to do with his children's health as anything else. Health experts say kerosene lamps produce fumes that are hazardous to breath, and Nyongesa says some of his children complain about eye irrigation, which he associates with prolonged use of the lamps. The 51-year-old Nyongesa, who has three wives, is coy about exactly how many children he has ("Let's put it at 15"), but says that 11 of them go to school and use lamps at home for at least two hours a day to study. Kerosene lamps are also bad for the environment. The British Air Transport Association calculates that each tonne of kerosene burned produces 3.15 tonnes of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that is largely responsible for atmospheric warming, which contributes to climate change. Nevertheless, a recent study by the U.S. National Institutes of Health estimated that 500 million households globally still rely on kerosene or other liquid fuels for lighting and consume 7.6 billion litres annually. The new solar lighting system is the second Nyongesa has bought for his family in three months. He gave the first to his first wife to provide light for studying and other domestic needs. The IndiGo kit consists of a 3-watt solar panel, a battery, two LED lamps, a phone charging unit and connection cables. The device is designed to serve needs of the poor, particularly in Africa. Apart from Kenya, it is also marketed in Malawi, South Sudan and Zambia. So far, the Mibawa Suppliers shop in Kitale is the only place in Kenya where the IndiGo kits are sold, said Edward Namasaka, who is the sole supplier in the country. However, Namasaka says he has already identified five more traders in other towns in Western Kenya and intends to begin supplying the gadgets to them soon. Cheaper than kerosene? Although raising the weekly payment may be a challenge for many people who survive on less than 100 shillings ($1.15) a day, many people prefer it to the high cost of purchasing kerosene and charging mobile phones, Namasaka said. The biggest incentive is that once the payments are done, the customer owns the IndiGo kit and can continue to access power without cost. There are measures in place in case a user defaults on a payment. The battery charging system contains a microchip that links it to a central server: if a weekly payment is missed, the system can be automatically disabled. But Namasaka tries to be lenient, giving those who cannot service their loans a window period of up to one month to pay the belated instalment. Emmanual Siboe, one IndiGo user, called the system "a revolution." Apart from previously paying nearly 100 shillings a week for kerosene for lighting, he explained, "every time I needed to charge my phone, I had to walk all the way to the shopping centre, and pay 20 shillings for the service." Siboe reckons that the cost of charging his phone, along with those of his wife and daughter, used to be 180 shillings ($2.25) a week. "But with this gadget that harvests energy from the sun, I now charge it free of charge," he said. Back to Menu ============================================================= Other Environment News AFP: Indonesia steps up firefighting, Malaysia still in smog 24 June 2013 Indonesia stepped up aerial operations on Monday to extinguish forest fires raging on Sumatra island as Malaysia remained smothered by smog and Singapore enjoyed sunny skies thanks to favourable winds. Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for Indonesia's national disaster agency, said a fourth helicopter was deployed Monday for "water bombing" sorties in addition to two airplanes conducting cloud-seeding runs to induce rain over the parched island. "We have carried out 14 water-bombings, dropping a total of 7,000 litres (1,820 gallons) of water onto the fires. To boost the operation, we have deployed an extra helicopter for water bombing today," he said in a text message to media. Local police in Sumatra's Riau province said a landowner and a smallholder had been arrested for causing more than 400 hectares (988 acres) of peat land to catch fire. Firefighters earlier said they were having difficulty fighting fires on such soil. Smog from Sumatra is a recurring problem during the June-September dry season, when plantations and smallholders allegedly set off fires to prepare land for cultivation despite a legal ban. So far, attempts by Indonesia to induce rain have had little success. "The cloud-seeding technology is meant to speed up rainfall, but with few clouds, there's little we can do. The rain was more like a drizzle," Indonesian disaster agency official Agus Wibowo told AFP. Officials in Singapore, which bore the brunt of the smog last week, warned against complacency, saying the situation could deteriorate again if monsoon winds carrying smoke and particulates from Sumatra changed direction. Malaysia called on Indonesia on Monday to stop "finger-pointing" after its larger neighbour claimed several Malaysian companies are also responsible for forest fires. "They are saying Malaysian companies are involved but Indonesian companies are also involved," Malaysia's natural resources and environment minister, G. Palanivel, told reporters. Foreign Minister Anifah Aman added that whoever was responsible should be brought to book regardless of nationality and called it a problem for Southeast Asia, which suffered its worst smog outbreak in 1997-98 and a recurrence in 2006. Much of Malaysia continued to wheeze under a shroud of smoke Monday with its southern half hit particularly hard. In the capital Kuala Lumpur, the pollution index neared the "very unhealthy" 200 level for the first time during the current outbreak. Schools in Kuala Lumpur and several states were ordered to close and authorities advised parents to keep children indoors or make them wear face masks outside. In one district close to Singapore, a state of emergency was declared after the Air Pollutant Index rating soared to 746 on Sunday, the country's highest recording since the 1997-1998 crisis. Pollution levels in Malaysia's south eased Monday but generally worsened elsewhere, with the city of Port Dickson, which lies on the Malacca Strait across from Sumatra, hitting the "hazardous" 335 level. Conditions in densely populated Singapore first began to improve from "harmful" on Saturday and the pollutant index at mid-afternoon Monday was between 50 and 100 -- within the "moderate" air-quality bracket. "We must expect the haze to come back," Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned on his Facebook page. The elderly, ailing people, pregnant women and young children are the most vulnerable to the effects of what is referred to as "the haze" in Southeast Asia. Singapore Environment Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on Sunday that "the improvement in the air quality is due to a change in the direction of the low-level winds over Singapore". "However, we must remain prepared for further fluctuations depending on weather conditions," he added. Organisers of an international conference in Singapore on reducing the threat of nuclear weapons, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, said the event has been postponed "due to increasingly hazardous weather conditions". Singapore Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam as well as former US secretary of state George P. Shultz and former US defence chief William J. Perry were among the scheduled speakers at the 18-nation meeting. "We are disappointed that we won't be able to host this historic gathering in Singapore this week," said Joan Rohlfin, president of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, one of the organisers. Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Reuters: Obama takes on power plant emissions as part of climate plan 25 June 2013 President Barack Obama will attempt to kick-start a global climate agenda on Tuesday with proposals including a plan to limit carbon emissions from existing U.S. power plants that is sure to face opposition from the coal industry, many business groups and Republican lawmakers. Obama, whose first-term attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through a "cap and trade" system was thwarted by Congress, promised in his second inaugural address to tackle the issue again. Environmentalists and Obama's political base have been anxious for action, but the first months of his second term have been dominated by immigration reform, a failed attempt to pass strict gun control measures, and a series of political scandals. Republicans, in turn, have been emboldened by Obama's stumbles. Many also question climate science and oppose regulatory actions they say could hurt the economy. The Democratic president aims to address those concerns and make good on his inaugural promise with a speech, scheduled for 1:55 p.m., that lays out a new plan to reduce emissions, boost renewable fuels, and lead the world in tackling global warming. The key proposal involves the thousands of power plants, many of them coal-fired, which account for roughly one-third of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Obama will direct the Environmental Protection Agency to draft a plan setting carbon emission limits on existing power plants by June 2014, finalizing those rules a year later, according to senior administration officials who briefed reporters before the speech. "We already set limits for arsenic, mercury and lead, but we let power plants release as much carbon pollution as they want," one official said. The proposals are likely to draw criticism from segments of the energy industry and some Republican lawmakers that they will cost jobs and hurt the U.S. economic recovery. In addition, they could be tied up in court for years. The administration officials did not give details of what the limits for existing plants would entail. Separately, the EPA would finalize overdue plans for carbon limits on new power plants by September, they said. Environmental groups that had early word of the administration's plans cheered. "Tackling carbon pollution from power plants is the greatest opportunity and should be at the core of any serious approach to reduce U.S. emissions. For the first time, a U.S. president is taking such action," Andrew Steer, president of the World Resources Institute, said in a statement. "This announcement will have ripple effects that will increase the urgency of action around the globe." KEYSTONE OVERHANG, INTERNATIONAL FOCUS None of the president's proposals, including plans to reduce emissions from heavy duty trucks after 2018, require congressional approval. That alone is likely to spark howls from Obama's opponents on Capitol Hill. "(Obama) made it very clear that his preference would be for Congress to act and move comprehensive energy and climate legislation forward," the official told reporters. "At this point ... the president is prepared to act." Some environmentalists fear that Obama will use new climate measures to head off criticism if his administration approves the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry oil from Canada to refineries in Texas. A senior administration official said the decision on Keystone has not been made. Green groups want Obama to reject the pipeline. Republicans and many businesses say it will help the economy, and some unions support the project because of the jobs likely to be created during the pipeline's construction. The president's allies abroad will be watching, too. In 2009, Obama pledged to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by roughly 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020 - cheering partners in Europe, who were frustrated by less ambitious promises made by Obama's Republican predecessor, George W. Bush. Obama will stand by that pledge on Tuesday, and officials said Washington wants to take the lead in international efforts to seek a new agreement to reduce emissions after 2020. "We will be seeking an agreement that is ambitious, inclusive and flexible," the White House said in a written version of Obama's climate plan. As part of its global efforts, the White House would propose World Trade Organization talks on free trade in environmental goods and services, officials said. The United States would also plan to end its support of public financing for new coal power plants overseas unless they used carbon capture technology. Very poor countries would still get support. Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed this month to cooperate in fighting climate change by cutting the use of hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs. The White House plan includes measures to tackle HFCs as well as emissions from methane, another potent greenhouse gas. Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Financial Times (UK): ‘Climate bomb’ warning over China coolant release 23 June 2013 A “climate bomb” of potent greenhouse gases 15,000 times more damaging to the climate than carbon dioxide is set to be released by some of the world’s leading producers of refrigerants following a ban on climate credits. The companies, the majority of them in China, argue that a ban on trading of climate credits for the incineration of HFC-23 makes it no longer financially viable to destroy the gas, which is a byproduct of a substance used in air conditioners and refrigerators. A warning by the Environmental Investigation Agency in a report to be released on Monday will raise the pressure on China to ban such gases and end economic incentives for their production in multilateral talks. Some 19 factories – 11 in China – making HCFC-22 have been receiving climate credits under the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism for installing and operating incinerators to burn HFC-23 that is created during the manufacturing process, instead of venting it into the atmosphere. Facilities in developing countries can sell emission reduction credits to buyers in developed countries to allow the latter to meet their targets under the Kyoto protocol. However, the European Emissions Trading Scheme, the world’s largest carbon market, banned trading in those credits last month after finding that the financial incentive drove companies to produce more HFC-23 instead of curbing it. Other climate exchanges have said they will follow, causing substantial revenue streams for the producers to dry up. The EIA said an investigation had shown that most of China’s non-CDM facilities were emitting HFC-23 already. “If all of these facilities [under the CDM] join China’s non-CDM and vent their HFC-23, they will set off a climate bomb emitting more than 2bn tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions by 2020,” it said. People involved in the sector in China said this was likely to happen. “If there is no more funding, the CDM plants could start venting as well,” Mei Shengfang, deputy secretary-general of the China Association of Fluorine and Silicone Industry, said. He added that authorities were considering offering support. An executive at China Fluoro Technology, one of the largest Chinese CDM plants, said: “Our company is still incinerating the HFC-23 now. If the money is used up, we can stop incineration. We can’t go on doing this, we can’t afford it and we have no duty to do it.” Releasing HFC-23 into the atmosphere is not illegal. China has been blocking proposals for a ban as part of multilateral talks under the Montreal Protocol to phase out hydrofluorocarbons, which continue on Monday in Bangkok. China raised hopes this month when President Xi Jinping and President Barack Obama of the US said at a summit that they had agreed to work together to reduce the production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons. “This is a reversal of China’s attitude, and all eyes are on China now to see if it’s for real,” said Alexander von Bismarck, executive director at EIA. 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