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Nike opened a waterless dying facility in Taiwan that requires 60% less energy than traditional factories.

Delta Air Lines has joined oil industry trade groups in fighting the US biofuel mandate. Through its refinery unit, Monroe Energy, Delta has filed a lawsuit in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit challenging the EPA's 2013 renewable fuel requirements, FuelFix reports.

Environmentalist and shareholder advocacy groups have filed resolutions urging Monsanto, DuPont de Nemours and Dow Chemical Company to stop using corporate funds to fight a referendum in Washington that, if it passed, would require special labels on raw and processed foods made from genetically modified crops.

H&M, Unilever, Nestlé and several other leading companies and investors have committed to reporting climate change through the Climate Change Reporting Framework or other comparable frameworks as a matter of fiduciary duty, whether or not required by current regulation.

First Statewide Mattress Recycling Program Launches Connecticut has launched the country's first statewide mattress recycling program. The program - which has become a model for other states - requires retailers to collect a small ... 

By the end of the century, scientists say, megafires-conflagrations that chew up at least 100,000 acres of land-will become the norm. Which makes them of critical interest to researchers. These infernos, once rare, are growing to sizes that U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell describes as "unimaginable" two decades ago. Five alone have consumed more than five million acres in central Alaska since June. Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado also experienced their worst wildfires in the past seven years.

Rising temperatures are increasing the number of "megafires" in the forests of the western U.S., experts say. Tackling and preventing such fires could require a significant shift in firefighting and forest conservation strategies. "These stresses are going to become more widespread," warned Craig Allen, a U.S. Geological Service forest ecologist. National Geographic News (free registration) (8/9) 

The clock for corporates looking to get a handle on supply chain conflict minerals is starting to tick much louder. With just one year to go before stricter reporting is required by the Securities and Exchange Commission, many companies are still struggling to trace their sources for metals such as gold, tungsten, tantalum and tin, according to an analysis of reports submitted for the most recent reporting period.

The Obama administration's rule leans heavily on renewable energy to meet its goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 32 percent by 2030, which is an increase of 2 percentage points from the draft it released in the summer of 2014. While states have two additional years until they must begin cutting emissions - 2022 instead of 2020 - they are expected to start devising ways to improve their environments, which will focus on shifting to cleaner burning fuels and away from carbon-heavy ones. "The trend we are on will get us there," says Rob Gramlich, senior vice president for government affairs at the American Wind Energy Association, in a phone interview. "As the nation moves from coal to gas, and as it adds more wind, solar and energy efficiency, we will reach that 32 percent target."

The Obama administration's Clean Power Plan rule will require states to begin cutting carbon emissions by 2022. "The trend we are on will get us there. As the nation moves from coal to gas, and as it adds more wind, solar and energy efficiency, we will reach that 32% target," said Rob Gramlich of the American Wind Energy Association. To comply, states can choose among options including boosting renewables, improving heat rates for coal-fired steam generators, and using more nuclear energy and lower-emitting natural gas. Forbes (8/4) 

All of these high-profile technology companies are harvesting new revenue out of discarded and end-of-life gadgets, rather than looking at them just as liabilities that require responsible recycling. What's more, all three are among the roughly 100 organizations using Hong Kong's Li Tong Group (aka LTG) to get the job done.

The Obama administration is poised to announce the first federal rules mandating reductions in methane emissions. The proposals would require 40% to 45% reductions in methane emissions from 2012 levels over the next decade

The French Government passed legislation to cut the country's energy consumption 50% by 2050, reduce nuclear power production to 50% of the energy mix, and increase renewable energy to 32% of total energy consumption by 2030. The law also requires the country to reduce its carbon emissions 40% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels.

Pension funds, insurance companies and other institutional investors in France will be required to disclose how they are managing climate change risks. The announcement was made by France's finance minister Michel Sapin at the Climate Finance Day conference in Paris on May 22.

The proposed Pebble Mine in southwestern Alaska is a project of almost unfathomable scale. The Pebble Limited Partnership intends to excavate a thick layer of ore - nearly a mile deep in places - containing an estimated 81 billion pounds of copper, 5.6 billion pounds of molybdenum, and 107 million ounces of gold. The mine would cover 28 square miles and require the construction of the world's largest earthen dam - 700 feet high and several miles long - to hold back a 10-square-mile containment pond filled with up to 2.5 billion tons of sulfide-laden mine waste. All this would be built not only in an active seismic region, but also in one of the most unspoiled and breathtaking places on the planet - the headwaters of Bristol Bay, home to the world's most productive salmon fishery. Composed of tundra plain, mountain ranges, hundreds of rivers, and thousands of lakes, the greater Bristol Bay region encompasses five national parks and wildlife refuges, and one of the largest state parks in the U.S.

California legislators are considering tough emissions proposals that would double buildings' energy efficiency, require 50% renewable energy use by state utilities and halve gasoline consumption by 2030. The oil industry is launching a major PR offensive to derail the effort, but Gov. Jerry Brown says he's determined to implement the policies. "It's absolutely necessary if we are to have any chance of stopping potentially catastrophic changes to our climate system," he said. 

The Environmental Protection Agency published its final Clean Power Plan rule on Monday. Under the rule, the U.S. will be required to reduce its carbon emission 32% below 2005 levels by 2030. The solar and wind industries have praised the rule. "American wind power can do this. Low-cost wind energy reduced carbon emissions by 5% in 2014, and we're capable of doing a lot more," said American Wind Energy Association CEO Tom Kiernan. 

The European Union is requiring certain businesses to report on environmental strategies and programs. Here are 5 things you need to know

When the drivers of deforestation are buried deep in the supply chain, innovative and collaborative solutions are required. Many companies have made big commitments toward solving the problem, but upholding them has been almost as difficult as gaining transparency into the supply chains themselves. For many companies, the hope for making good on their promises may come in the form of powerful partnerships.

Kellogg is planning to require its suppliers to curb their greenhouse emissions as part of a broader push to reduce the company's environmental impact. The company also announced new plans to expand its net-zero deforestation pledge to include crops such as soy and sugarcane