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Ocean acidification is set to cost us $1 trillion by 2100 as it eats away at our tropical coral reefs. The world's oceans have seen a 26 per cent increase in acidity - a result of the oceans absorbing about a quarter of our carbon dioxide emissions.

The cost of electricity from wind farms in the U.S. dropped in 2014 to the lowest point yet, according to the Energy Department. Prices for utilities with power purchase agreements have declined two-thirds since 2009. Falling costs and continued advancements are ensuring that wind remains a reliable source of renewable energy, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said. The Hill (8/10), ReNews.biz (U.K.) (8/11) 

Every year, the world produces more than two billion tons of waste - enough to fill a fleet of trash trucks to circle the world 24 times, according to sustainability project the World Counts. The World Bank estimates the yearly global cost of dealing with waste is more than $200 billion and predicts annual waste will exceed 11 million tons per day by 2100 if current trends continue.  But where does it all go? Whether it's an island built as a landfill or the outskirts of historic monuments, the world's waste is piling up with no end in sight. The following images offer an acute reminder of the seriousness of waste management and the desperate need to address it. It's simply not sustainable.

Arizona State University Professor Peter Lammers and researchers at New Mexico State University are developing an energy-positive wastewater treatment method using a special kind of algae. The researchers believe that the algal systems ultimately could eliminate sewage farms' electricity bills, which can account for anything up to 60 percent of operating costs today, or even generate a surplus. 

The solar-powered compactor packs 16 yards of loose trash into just 4 yards, reducing waste pick-up at the busy property to just once per week, thus slashing hauling costs by 50 percent, reducing CO2 emissions by more than 14 tons annually, and importantly limiting garbage truck noise to guests and neighboring residents.

The researchers contend in the paper published in the journal Nature that the social cost of carbon on the global economy is actually about $220 for each ton of carbon dioxide emitted, a far cry from the $37 calculated by the U.S. government.

According to Kobori, the waterless jeans are as good for the environment as they are for Levi's bottom line - they cost less to produce than a standard pair because they consume less water and energy. In 2014, Levi's saved an estimated $1.6 million in costs of goods sold from the program.

California could ditch fossil fuels altogether by midcentury at a cost of $1.1 trillion, and would earn back most or all of that price tag through climate benefits and fuel savings, a new report suggests. Going 100% renewable would also save 10,000 lives and $100 billion in health care costs due to reduced pollution, the report found

Toxic toys, contraband cigarettes and old sunglasses are among the waste products being burnt to manufacture cement by Holcim, Bloomberg reports. Holcim - the world's largest cement manufacturer - is increasing its use of waste in place of coal to heat cement kilns as a means of cutting costs. Holcim sites from India to Vietnam are now using waste in this way, the news service reports.

This month, General Electric announced that it is developing a desalination technology that freezes seawater to separate salt crystals from water, at a 20 percent lower cost compared to conventional thermal evaporation approaches. Meanwhile, Veolia and Masdar unveiled a new renewable energy-powered pilot facility that also reduces the costs of desalination.

"The payback for resilience efforts can be measured in many ways," ULI noted, "including cost savings from preventing damages and reducing operating costs, as well as revenue enhancements from improved marketing, company brand and project image."

Steve Davis is a climate energy scientist at the University of California Irvine. He and his colleagues wanted to see whether outsourcing manufacturing to China--which happens to be good for our wallets--is also good for the planet. Spoiler alert: doesn't look like it.

Thirty years ago, natural disasters cost about $14 billion annually, while today that number is closer to $40 billion, a report by World Bank's Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery reveals. Experts point to climate change as one cause of increased instances of natural disasters.

Climate change and other hurdles mean it will take more water - and potentially more taxpayer money - to save the Everglades, according to new scientific findings released Thursday. The report to Congress warns that rising seas and warming temperatures are threatening to worsen damage already done by decades of drainage and pollution, caused by development and farming overtaking the Everglades. A recent report showed that climate change, pollution and other factors could increase the cost to restore the Florida Everglades. So far, restoration costs are pegged at $16 billion, but additional efforts, such as proposed reservoirs, could add to that cost.

Deep learning AI has been put to work in intelligent drones, sequencing genomes, learning the tactics of the ancient Chinese board game Go, and even keeping cats off the lawn. Now, Google has set its DeepMind system loose on its massive data centers, and drastically cut the cost of cooling these facilities in the process.

Finelite, a manufacturer of high-efficiency lighting systems, cut its waste production by 84 percent between 2005 and 2012 through using reusable packaging, Sustainable Plant reports. Through such innovations as replacing bubble wrap used to protect products with crinkled paper and so-called lean packaging, the company saved about $27,000 a year in garbage disposal costs, the article says.

Derive Systems, an automotive fleet engine software developer, announced today its partnership with Clean Fuels Ohio as part of the Midwest DRIVES Initiative.

Producing the meat that goes into US pet foods results in 64 million tons of greenhouse gases each year, according UCLA's Gregory Okin. The geographer's newly published study encourages less-meaty or plant-based pet foods.

As an ever-expanding group of U.S. businesses commit to using more renewable energy to power their operations, a new study has found that for many companies, cost savings is the single most important reason for doing so. This is according to results of the first major survey of large electricity users since President Donald Trump announced his decision to pull the U.S. out of the 2015 Paris climate agreement, conducted by SED Research. The Sept. 13 report, "Post-Paris: the State of Corporate Renewable Energy Sourcing," analyzes responses from executives at 94 companies and institutions, more than 40 of which are in the Fortune 500.

A solar distillation system uses vacuum tube solar collectors to mimic nature's process and produces clean water from nearly any source at low cost. The system by WaterStillar Water Works functions even on cloudy days, although at a slower rate, and can be scaled up to produce as much as 2,642 gallons of drinking water per day.