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Starbucks opened a new store yesterday at Disneyland Resort in California as an effort to introduce a series of environmentally-friendly coffee shops worldwide. Located at Downtown Disney in Anaheim, the new LEED-certified shop was built totally from reclaimed wood with a large yard surrounded by a green wall with more than 1,000 plants. Customers will experience an interactive environment created by a 10-foot video installation with high technology and nice design.

Bear Republic is taking things a step farther: In January, it was the first brewery to buy Cambrian's EcoVolt system, which uses electrically active organisms to clean wastewater for reuse while creating a high-quality biogas that helps offset the heat and electricity needed for Bear's production process

Ecolab CEO says, water must be priced now. Water stress is already creating economic challenges.

Coca-Cola is using SafeWater electrolyzed water systems in its plants as part of the company's "Doing Good, Doing Well" mission to increase sustainability. The system creates a sodium hydroxide cleaning solution and hypochlorous acid sanitizer by adding a small amount of salt to potable water and applying an electrical current. The fluids can be used to clean and sanitize processing equipment at room temperature, which reduces energy use

The new Levi's Dockers Wellthread process creates a pattern for sustainability in clothing production

The Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), which counts more than 100 major companies among its members (including clothing brands such as Adidas and Hanes, as well as retail giants such as Target, H&M, and JCPenney), is working to create stronger standards for sustainable products

General Mills will obtain 100% of its 10 most-used ingredients from sustainable sources by 2020, setting a green goal for more than half of the company's total raw-material purchases. "General Mills is committed to creating long-term value for our business, and our society," says CEO Ken Powell

Sustainable packaging and design is helping beverage brands promote themselves as eco-friendly without appearing less luxurious, write Fiona Bennie and Barbra Wright. Recyclable packaging can help, but it's only a first step. "[I]f we consider packaging in isolation from the rest of the system we will only ever manage to create minimal impact both financially and sustainably," they write.

Bio-Tec Environmental has patented a method of creating a layered polymeric plastic or composite. The biodegradable-plastics company has been granted US Patent 8,222,316 and foreign equivalents for this process. Products that combine the patented method with Bio-Tec's patent-pending formulations are under development, the company says.

Retail giant Target has partnered with GoodGuide, the products-rating website acquired last year by Underwriters Laboratories, to create a rating systems for thousands of consumer products, the retailer has announced.

Siemens will invest $264 million to build production facilities for its 6MW offshore wind turbines in the UK. The facilities are expected to create over 1,000 jobs and begin producing rotor blades by 2016.

*Saved 50 million liters of water in 2013 through the use of DryDye fabric. *Introduced heel inserts for shoes that will divert 1,500 metric tons of polystyrene waste from landfills. *Incorporated sustainable components into 100% of Sport Performance footwear created for 2013. *Obtained over 23% of cotton from Better Cotton-certified sources.

CONTROVERSIAL £20million wildlife reserve at the mouth of the River Parrett has been dubbed "environmental vandalism". The Environment Agency and the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust were granted planning permission two years ago to create the wetlands at Steart.

In addition to putting programs into place to reduce waste, smart companies are identifying ways to repurpose waste into useful raw materials.

The wonderful world of Disney will soon include a piece of Bethlehem. The Walt Disney Co., whose fictional forests created cover for characters from Bambi to Snow White, has finalized an environmental deal involving the 20,000 acres of lush woods surrounding Bethlehem's water reservoirs.

From deforestation to irrigation to species loss, the expanding human population has been dramatically re-shaping the face of the Earth. These interactive maps bring together a wealth of satellite imagery and other data sets to create an atlas of humanity's influence on the planet.

The Dow Chemical Company today announced new sustainability goals, to be accomplished by 2025, which include creating products that offset three times more carbon dioxide than they emit throughout their life cycle and delivering $1 billion in cost savings or new cash flow by valuing nature in business decisions.

Skanska has turned its Elizabeth River Tunnels project in Virginia into an example of how civil construction can improve its environmental impact while augmenting modern infrastructure. The company has a recycling/reuse rate of 99% for the project, and its creative ways to benefit the surrounding environment include using concrete waste to create oyster habitats. 

Disneyland Resort was recognized today by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency with the 2014 Food Recovery Challenge award for its zero waste efforts, and the highest percent increase in food recovery of any theme park in the nation. "Disneyland is a model for food recovery efforts," said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA's Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest. "Disney has the potential to educate millions of people who visit the resort on zero waste, while doing its part to fight climate change and create a better environment for Southern California residents."

Rio de Janeiro became the first city in the world to fully comply with the Compact of Mayors. City leaders can achieve compliance by registering a commitment, identifying their municipality's current emissions, creating GHG reduction and adaptation targets, and establishing an action plan.