Sustainability


Texas (Yes, Texas) Hosts One of the Biggest Earth Day Festivals in the U.S.

With more than 200 Earth Day festivals annually logged by the Earth Day Network – the leading organization that mobilizes the green movement across the world – across the country on April 22, the second largest was in Dallas.

Sustainable Landscape Design For Your Property is Easier Than You Think (With Video)

Making your property more sustainable is a trend that seems to get more interest from homeowners every year. Many small changes can greatly improve sustainability and can be fairly simple to do.

Noise-quenching Curtains are Now on the Market

Swiss researchers have developed lightweight, translucent curtain materials, which are excellent at absorbing sound.

Students Build Living Village for Math Credit

Students learn math behind environmental engineering as they build a living village and design an efficient transportation system for food delivery.

LEDs Could Replace Mercury Lamps in UV Sterilization Devices

Though they currently require more electricity to emit UV light, LEDs could soon replace mercury lamps in sterilization devices.

IKEA Powers Up Solar Array at Brooklyn, N.Y., Store

<p>Con Edison and New York City commissioned and certified the solar energy system on the Brooklyn, N.Y., IKEA store. As one of the largest commercial rooftop installations in the city’s five boroughs, the 200 kW array occupies 19,000-square feet, with four module types, totaling 1,104 panels. The array will generage 240,000 kWh of renewable electricity annually for the store, the equivalent of eliminating the emissions of 32 cars, or providing electricity for 20 homes yearly. This effort reinforces the company’s commitment to sustainable business practices in addition to reducing its carbon footprint.</p><p> “We are very excited about enhancing the sustainable contribution IKEA Brooklyn continues to make in the local community by generating electricity through solar panels atop our store,” said Mike Baker, the store’s manager. “This initiative helps improve the environment and contributes to our vision of creating a better everyday life for the many.”</p><p> Other IKEA U.S. sustainable building initiatives include a solar energy systems operational in two stores and under construction in nine others. Additionally, both a solar energy and geothermal system were incorporated into the Denver-area store opening this year in Centennial, Col. IKEA Brooklyn additionally has 70,000 square feet of green roof, a 6.5-acre waterfront esplanade, multiple transit options and has been certified as a brownfield redevelopment. The store also has been certified LEED Silver.</p><p> The 346,000-square-foot Brooklyn store opened June 18, 2008, on 22 acres along the Erie Basin waterfront in Red Hook, south of the BQE/Gowanus Expressway and southeast of the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel. </p><p>

Solar Plane Attempts First International Flight (With Video)

Solar Impulse, under the patronage of the European Commission, has selected Brussels as its first international destination.

Breakthrough Water Cleaning Technology Could Lessen Environmental Impacts from Shale Production

A novel water cleaning technology currently being tested in field demonstrations could help significantly reduce potential environmental impacts from producing natural gas from the Marcellus shale and other geologic formations.



NIST Prototypes Framework for Evaluating Sustainability Standards

NIST researchers have prototyped a framework to help organizations sort through the welter of choices and evaluate and implement sustainability standards most appropriate for their operations and interests.

Fuel-Efficient Car Sales Growing Nearly Three Times as Fast as Auto Market

High gas prices and a recovering economy led to a 46 percent increase in hybrid and clean diesel sales in March 2011 compared with March 2010, a jump that was about three times higher than the increase in the overall car market last month, according to auto analyst firm Baum and Associates.

Virginia to Use Asphalt Recycling in I-81 Repair project

Virginia is rehabilitating a stretch of I-81 through the use of several types of asphalt recycling methods.

U.S. Treasury to Retire Paper Check for New Recipients of Social Security

The U.S. Department of the Treasury is retiring the paper Social Security check for millions of baby boomers and others applying for federal benefits, a move that will save taxpayers $1 billion over the next 10 years.

Survey Finds Many Working Americans Want to Improve Green Practices on the Job

According to OfficeMax's 2011 Green Workplace survey, companies are making strides in adopting environmentally responsible business practices, and many employees make it their personal mission to be mindful of the environment at the office.

Concrete Recycling May Cut Highway Construction Cost, Landfill Use

Purdue University civil engineers are working with the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) to perfect the use of recycled concrete for highway construction, a strategy that could reduce material costs by as much as 20 percent.

Photovoltaic Systems Boost Sales Prices of California Homes

New research by the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory finds strong evidence that homes with solar photovoltaic systems sell for a premium over homes without solar systems.

Villanova Launches Sustainable Engineering Research Center

Villanova's center will house multi-disciplinary research and teaching in a number of emerging areas and seeks to protect and restore the environment through the systems-based integration of sustainability principles into engineering solutions.

Leftovers Reborn as Compost

At Sandia's largest cafeteria, a leftover burrito will be sent off to eventually help some backyard garden bloom. When someone leaves a bit of lunch behind at Thunderbird Café, employees send it out for composting.

Japan Remains Atop ICT Sustainability Index

The index was created using data sources that reflect energy creation, consumption, and ICT spending among the G20 nations over the past two years. Events from 2011 – including the Japanese earthquake and tsunami – were not taken into account in generating this year's scores. </p><p>

Boeing Site to Operate as 100-Percent Renewable Energy Site

Boeing and South Carolina Electric & Gas have announced an energy partnership that will enable Boeing South Carolina to operate as a 100-percent renewable energy site.

Turning Windows into Powerplants (With Video)

Someday the entire surface area of a building’s windows could be used to generate electricity — without interfering with the ability to see through them.