PES Environmental News

Solar Paint Technology May Revolutionize the Renewable Energy Industry

phoslab — Fri, 18 May 2012 16:00:13 +0000

Lowering your carbon footprint and reducing greenhouse gasses may become as simple as painting your home or office, thanks to breakthrough research from the University of Notre Dame. The researchers, led by Professor Prashant Kamat, have created a new solar paint dubbed Sun-believable, which is laced with power producing nanoparticles capable of producing electricity. With the ability to generate renewable energy from this new, less invasive method, bulky solar panels as we know them today may soon become relics destined for the museum.

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Radiation and DNA

phoslab — Fri, 18 May 2012 16:00:12 +0000

Radiation exposure is not too good for one’s health and well being. But how much is enough and how much is deadly? A new study from MIT scientists suggests that the guidelines governments use to determine when to evacuate people following a nuclear accident may be too conservative. The study, led by Bevin Engelward and Jacquelyn Yanch and published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, found that when mice were exposed to radiation doses about 400 times greater than background levels for five weeks, no DNA damage could be detected.

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European Airlines provide early data on carbon emissions, show slight reduction

phoslab — Fri, 18 May 2012 04:00:24 +0000

Airlines operating in and out of European airports have complied with the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) and handed over data despite the refusal of carriers from China and India.

The airlines have provided emission information ahead of the introduction of mandatory reporting.

And according to the latest information provided by Member State registries released today, emissions of greenhouse gases from all installations participating in the ETS decreased by more than 2% last year.

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Wind, Solar…Coconuts: Small Island Developing States Commit to Renewable, Sustainable Energy for All

phoslab — Fri, 18 May 2012 04:00:22 +0000

Typically heavily reliant on the cost of high and volatile diesel and fossil fuel imports, small island developing states are also on the front line when it comes to having to cope with climate change. Now they’re realizing there’s a lot in the way of cleaner, more efficient and less costly power and fuel resources right at home. They’re increasingly, if belatedly, establishing ambitious renewable energy programs and setting aggressive targets to employ local renewable energy resources to reduce CO2 and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, working with a range of international development agencies, public and private sector partners domestic and foreign, in doing so.

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Wind, Solar…Coconuts: Small Island Developing States Commit to Renewable, Sustainable Energy for All

phoslab — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:00:13 +0000

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Forest-sourced biofuel is bad for the environment, new study warns

phoslab — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:00:12 +0000

A new study from the University of California, Davis, provides a deeper understanding of the complex global impacts of deforestation on greenhouse gas emissions. The study, published this week in the journal Nature Climate Change, reports that the volume of greenhouse gas released when a forest is cleared depends on how the trees will be used and in which part of the world the trees are grown.

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Bill To End Fossil Fuel Subsidies Introduced Into Congress

phoslab — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:00:17 +0000

The End Polluter Welfare Act would end fossil fuel subsidies, and save over $10 billion a year and more than $110 billion over 10 years. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Keith Ellison announced they would introduce the bill to Congress during a press conference with 350.org. The bill would specifically end tax breaks for fossil fuel companies, plus eliminate special financing, end taxpayer funded R&D, and set fair royalties policies.

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Forest-sourced biofuel is bad for the environment, new study warns

phoslab — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:00:16 +0000

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Expect the Unexpected to happen with Climate Change

phoslab — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:00:16 +0000

An increasingly common fallback position once climate change “skeptics” accept that the planet is warming and humans are the dominant cause is the myth that climate change won’t be bad. In fact, this particular myth comes in at #3 on our list of most used climate myths. It’s an ideal fallback position because it allows those who reject the body of scientific evidence to believe that if they are wrong on the science, it’s okay, because the consequences won’t be dire anyway.

One of my colleagues, Molly Henderson recently completed a Masters Degree program class on scientific research which focused on climate change, which she aced (way to go, Molly!). For her final research paper, she examined the consequences of climate change on the prevalence of water-borne diseases in the US Great Lakes region.

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US consumers willing to pay 13% more to support a clean energy standard

phoslab — Wed, 16 May 2012 04:00:27 +0000

The average US citizen is willing to pay 13 percent more for electricity in support of a national clean-energy standard (NCES), according to new research published by Yale and Harvard researchers. Americans, on average, are willing to pay $162 per year in higher electricity bills to support a national standard requiring that 80 percent of the energy be clean, or not derived from fossil fuels. Support was lower for a national standard among nonwhites, older individuals and Republicans.

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