EC Environmental Policy

Tropical dry forests make up nearly half the world's tropical forests and support people and iconic wildlife, just as their humid counterparts do. But they have yet to capture the attention of the public or policymakers as the world's rainforests have, putting them at risk of mismanagement and overexploitation.

The potential for new laws governing the use of forest resources this year in Cameroon promises an opportunity to stem the rapid loss of forest in the biologically diverse country. But the changes may ultimately not be what's needed to save Cameroon's forests. Read more at http://news.mongabay.com/2014/0625-gfrn-cannon-cameroon.html#w6L2jPe1cgOgqGYr.99

APRIL Group said today it has joined the effort to set industry standards for conserving carbon-rich forests. The pulp and paper manufacturer added that it will adopt those standards in future forestry planning.

ESA's Clean Space initiative is looking at developing a satellite that can rendezvous with space debris and render it harmless by netting it like fish. According to ESA, there are 17,000 trackable objects larger than a coffee cup orbiting the Earth and many more down to the size of paint chips. This may not seem like anything very dangerous, but at orbital velocity, even a paint chip can hit like a bullet and a steel nut has the impact of a hand grenade.

The nation's largest companies are rapidly embracing renewable energy sourcing and greenhouse gas emissions reduction efforts, according to a new report from Calvert Investments, Ceres, David Gardiner & Associates, and World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

The nation's largest companies are rapidly embracing renewable energy sourcing and greenhouse gas emissions reduction efforts, according to a new report from Calvert Investments, Ceres, David Gardiner & Associates, and World Wildlife Fund (WWF). 

The Board of The Consumer Goods Forum today called on heads of state across the world to engage and act with determination, leadership and ambition to secure an ambitious and legally binding global climate deal.

President Barack Obama today announced a major expansion of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, rendering large areas of the central Pacific off-limits to fishing and energy exploration. The move will expand the marine sanctuary to more than 780,000 square miles.

A new poll from Bloomberg shows that by nearly a two-to-one margin, 62 percent to 33 percent, Americans are willing to pay more for their energy to achieve reductions in carbon pollution, and a majority who plan to vote are more likely to support candidates who endorse policies to fight climate change.

Staples earned the World Packaging Organization's Gold Award for implementing packaging that reduced the company's carbon footprint by 25,000 metric tons per year and cut corrugated cardboard consumption 20%. Staples worked with Packsize International to develop and implement the new packaging.

Ford and H.J. Heinz are working to incorporate bioplastics made from dried tomato skins into various vehicle components. The plant-based materials are expected to replace traditional plastics derived from petroleum.

The processes developed by AirDye, ColorZen and DyeCoo - the latter's process is being used by Adidas - differ greatly, but their results are similar: water use is cut to near zero sharply cutting pollution, the quantity of chemicals used is greatly reduced and faster drying cycles cut energy consumption.

The adidas Group, whose brands include adidas, Reebok and TaylorMade, has partnered with bluesign technologies and committed to being 90 percent perfluorinated compound (PFC) free by June 15 and 99 percent PFC free by Dec. 31, 2017. The company has already committed to phase out the use of long-chain PFCs by no later than Jan. 1, 2015.

Staples Canada has set a goal to divert 100,000 kilograms of batteries from landfills in 2014 and says it, with partner Call2Recycle, has collected and diverted 30,295 kg of batteries in the first quarter this year. The company also says, in the first two months of 2014 alone, it reduced emissions by 3,572 metric tons of CO².

Electric car maker Tesla Motors is handing over the keys to its technology in an unusual effort to encourage other automakers to expand beyond gasoline-burning vehicles.

A 19-year-old Dutch student had a bright idea for ridding the sea of floating trash -- and now he's built a team of 100 people and is raising $2 million to fund his invention. The system uses long, floating barriers to passively guide floating trash to collection areas and is said to be capable of eliminating all waste larger than 1 millimeter

One good place to start when deciding which program to look into is the comprehensive list of sustainability-focused masters programs from The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. It includes some 450 programs that offer training in sustainability, providing an excellent portal to get started. The list is also helpful for those looking to drill deeper into specific fields of sustainable study, with programs that hone in on design, entrepreneurship, policy, sustainable agriculture and more.

Mondelēz International released a sustainable palm oil action plan that requires its suppliers to achieve full traceability by the end of 2015. The policy also requires suppliers to publish their sustainable sourcing practices and implementation timelines.

Groups say workers could be exposed to more than three times the amount of chemicals of US workers. Consumers take action with new mock "App;" 20,000 have so far signed petition urging action by Apple.

A new form of green cement developed in France has the potential to reduce the carbon footprint of concrete by as much as 40 per cent.

We Mean Business describes itself as "a coalition of the world's most influential businesses calling for ambitious climate policy and bold climate action." The new group - a coalition of coalitions, really - aims to fill a void to counter well-heeled trade groups, think tanks and corporate lobbyists aimed at maintaining the status quo.