2nd Green Revolution - Part 12

“World’s Best Cat Litter”: A Review (and Coupon)

by Guest Author on December 6th, 2011

By Guest Author Christine Manger

There are many products in today’s marketplace that claim to be healthy, safe and green, including products for our pets. Recently, I was given a bag of World’s Best Cat Litter (WBCL), a 100% all natural litter made from whole kernel corn, for my cat Peaches to test and “review”. At 10 years old, Peaches is somewhat set in her ways so I wasn’t sure she would adapt to a new brand of litter, especially one with a different texture, larger pellets and a corn-like smell. Initially (as suggested on the package), I gradually mixed in WBCL with her current brand and there was no negative reaction. After a couple of days I was using just the new litter. Peaches’ first reaction was to sniff and walk away but after doing this three times in a half hour, she decided to give it a try and used WBCL without hesitation.

World’s Best Cat Litter has several positives. It clumps extremely well and is easy to scoop and I really liked the fact there was less sticking to the sides of the litter box. Odor control is very good, with less ammonia smell. I noticed less dust in the air also; no silica dust (like clay litters) for your pet or you to breathe. WBCL is biodegradable and claims to be septic safe and flushable but I did not test this aspect of the product.

Cost could be a negative for some in using this product. The initial cost is higher than most litter brands (more than twice the cost per pound of Peaches’ current litter). But, one 7 pound bag claims to last up to 30 days for one cat, much longer than most other clumping litters. Clumping on contact helps keep the rest of the litter dryer for a longer period of time.

So, if you are looking for

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Despite Sluggish Economy, Global Carbon Emissions Reach Record High

by Eric Wilson on December 5th, 2011

The New York Times is reporting that the worldwide carbon dioxide emissions “from fossil-fuel burning jumped by the largest amount on record last year, upending the notion that the brief decline during the recession might persist through the recovery.” This report follows news from earlier this year about the increase in US based emissions, which were up from 2009, but still below 2005 levels.

The Times cites a recent study from the Global Carbon Project (GCP). For a copy of the media summary from GCP, click here. Among the findings, GCP noted the “annual growth rate of atmospheric CO2 was 2.36±0.09 ppm in 2010 (ppm = parts per million), one of the largest growth rates in the past decade.” This growth rate was nearly 25% higher than the average for the first decade of the millennium, and roughly 33% higher than the last two decades of the preceding century.

GCP’s report covers the following topics:

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Save Money, Not the Planet

by Justin Manger on December 4th, 2011

How many times, in how many ways, and with how many examples do we need to say it? The focus on any green agenda should not be carbon reductions or global warming or  – dare I say it – saving the planet. The planet will be fine. We may not be, but the earth will keep spinning and various forms of life will survive despite what happens to us. Let’s talk about something we all feel more acutely and more directly than a 1 degree rise in average global temperatures – money. 

With most of the developed world mired in a debt swamp of their own making, the impetus to focus on the cost savings of going green should be first and foremost in any debate. As a recent NY Times piece points out without really saying it (again, the focus being on “global warming” and costs of green policy not the cost savings of such policy), the United Kingdom is considering pulling back on some of its carbon cutting agenda. They cite not being able to afford it as a main reason. This is short-sighted. In the story, officials comment that they can’t afford to undertake the measures to cut carbon because they are presumably too expensive. Long term expenses due to climate change would likely be greater than any upfront cost but these are rarely considered. There is of course focus on helping the economy in the short term, and one strategy here is to reduce expenses through energy conservation measures and upgrading equipment.

The phrase “global warming” is problematic in the first place. It fails to capture what is happening. Yes, the overall average global temperature is rising but “global warming” invites ridicule when events such as the Washington DC blizzard of 2010 erase all signs of “warming” from the minds of the people who are experiencing the extreme event on a local scale. It’s global warming, not localized warming and cooling. We simply fail to see the global aspect, through our limited daily interactions on a smaller scale in a local area. Climate change is more accurate as the effects of 7 billion fossil fuel consuming humans causing erratic and more extreme weather and climate variations experienced on the local scale, not simply warming across the planet. That said, there is so much confusion, political bickering, and various types of misinformation that come with a “carbon cutting” or “stopping climate change” agenda that progress is often frustratingly slow, or nearly non-existent. It’s more effective to talk of the tangible cost savings that result from implementing energy efficiency measures, cutting energy use, and even subsidizing new technologies that, when mature, will provide more abundant energy at cheaper costs and – here’s the kicker -

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Presidents Obama and Clinton Join Forces to Save Energy

by Eric Wilson on December 3rd, 2011

Being as they are from the same political party, it might not be a huge surprise that former President Bill Clinton is joining current Commander in Chief Barack Obama in an effort to reduce energy costs. However, given the fact that the former leader’s wife lost in her bid for the Democratic presidential bid to Obama in 2008, their partnership may be considered news in and of itself. This being a news site, not a political one, the more pertinent information is the nature of their work.

The Associated Press is reporting that the president’s plan will save $4 billion. Perhaps most importantly, the “effort to increase the energy efficiency of government and private sector buildings, aiming for fuel savings and job creation [comes] at no cost to taxpayers.” According to a press release from the White House “60 CEOs, mayors, university presidents, and labor leaders [yesterday] committed to invest nearly $2 billion of private capital into energy efficiency projects; and to upgrade energy performance by a minimum of 20% by 2020 in 1.6 billion square feet of office, industrial, municipal, hospital, university, community college and school buildings.” In order to achieve the goal of “no cost to taxpayers” the $4 billion will be recouped through the energy savings. This process is referred to as performance contracting, mentioned here by former Colorado Governor Bill Ritter.

Interestingly enough, performance contracting, also known as Energy Savings Performance Contracts, was originally implemented during Clinton’s administration. However, the AP mentions that it has been used infrequently. “The proposal, to be announced by Obama and Clinton on Friday, would upgrade buildings over the next two years with a goal of improving energy performance by 20 percent by 2020.” The story cites Gene Sperling, director of the White House National Economic Council, who claims that the program “could generate about 50,000 jobs over two years.”

The White House announcement “builds on a commitment made by 14 partners at the Clinton Global Initiative America meeting in June to make energy upgrades across 300 million square feet, and to invest $500 million in private sector financing in energy efficiency projects.” The June commitment by CGI is part of the Better Buildings Challenge. “The Challenge is part of the Better Buildings Initiative launched in February by President Obama, and is spearheaded by former President Clinton and the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness to support job creation by catalyzing private sector investment in commercial and industrial building energy upgrades to make America’s buildings 20 percent more efficient over the next decade, reducing energy costs for American businesses by nearly $40 billion.” Capitalizing on reducing energy consumption represents not only a fiscal savings for the short term, but one that will continue to pay dividends after the initial investment is paid off.

[Image source]

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Five Friday Facts: A History of Water

by Eric Wilson on December 2nd, 2011

The following facts come from Elizabeth Royte’s history of water in Bottlemania. These facts focus on the history of human water use.

  • The Egyptians, Persians, and Chinese figured out how to dig deep wells as early as 2500 BCE.
  • Sophisticated water-storage systems were built in the Mesa Verde region of the American Southwest and in Syria by 2350 BCE.
  • As early as 3000 BCE, the ancient Egyptians used aqueducts to move water to cultivated fields and to villages for drinking, washing, and controlling fires.
  • The Romans began building their waterways in the ninth century BCE. Over the next five hundred years, they constructed eleven aqueducts that ran for nearly 260 miles above and below Rome, delivering twenty-five million gallons of water a day.
  • Today, the Italians drink the most bottled water per capita, followed by the United Arab Emirates.

These previously published Five Friday Facts have also come from Bottlemania:

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December 2011 Clean Energy and Sustainability Events

by Eric Wilson on December 1st, 2011

As often happens around the end of the year, the number of conferences seems to dwindle. However, given our newest writer’s interest in food security and a recent guest post on corporate social responsibility, there are a few key events listed below that pertain to recent stories on 2nd Green Revolution.

In addition, new events are added all of time to the calendar. Next week, in Washington DC, there is a conference that just came to our attention called “Phase II National Policy Conference: ‘Renewable Energy in America – Creating Security and Prosperity.’” The last conference on the list below is also a timely look at resilience and post-disaster reconstruction in the wake of the nuclear issues facing Japan. The tsunami and earthquake led to supply chain concerns earlier this year, which served as a great example of the need for resilience.

Let us know of any conferences, events, or festivals in your area. We will gladly add them to our green events calendar. Please send us an email with the event’s name, date, location, description, and website.

Here are a few of the events happening around the world:

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Chinese Power Plants Fined for Sulfur Pollution, False Data

by Chris DeArmond on November 30th, 2011
Although China has faced harsh criticism for its lackadaisical enforcement of environmental regulations, the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) recently issued fines to eight large coal-fired power plants. In each case, they were found to have exceeded the permissible limit for sulfur dioxide, and six of them disabled monitoring equipment or falsified emissions data. China likely is stepping up enforcement in response to international doubt that it will meet many of the optimistic pollution reductions touted in its 12th Five-Year Plan, including an 8 percent drop in sulfur dioxide by 2015.“Violating emissions limits has been a long-lasting problem among coal-fired power plants’ due to technical difficulties, funding, and local protection,” according to an article describing MEP’s statement. The relatively small amounts polluters pay in fines probably doesn’t help either. By law, the penalty for falsifying data is capped at 50,000 Yuan ($7,900), and sulfur pollution is capped at 100,000 Yuan ($15,700). Though paying the (unspecified) fines will almost certainly not be an issue, the eight power plants must quickly reduce sulfur dioxide emissions by the end of the year. They will also lose subsides received under China’s desulfurization program.

According to Xinhua, China’s official press agency, some of the violators are affiliated with the country’s largest power companies—namely, China Power Investment Corporation, China Guodian Corporation, China Huadian Corporation, and China Datang Corporation. As part of China’s Big Five power producers, the four companies mentioned above produce roughly 40 percent of China’s energy. In total, 70 percent of China’s power comes from

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Large Investment in “Small Nuclear” Power Industry

by Justin Manger on November 29th, 2011

Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) are getting a second life through a large investment by little know U.S. based Fluor, a big engineering and construction company. NuScale Power in Corvalis, Oregon was the beneficiary of the $30 million investment. NuScale Power designs SMRs and is aiming to have its first reactor up and running by 2020. The money will allow them to continue their licensing effort with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. As opposed to traditional reactors that produce over 1,000 megawatts, SMRs produce around 40 megawatts.

Whether the nuclear industry, beset by a plethora of obstacles in its path toward revival, will once again become a growth industry is uncertain. Aside from the recent safety concerns brought about by the Fukushima accident, nuclear plants are troubled by long construction time frames, extremely high start-up costs, and myriad regulatory barriers. In addition, an energy market with plentiful cheap coal and increasing amounts of cheap natural gas does not make it easy for nuclear power to be cost competitive.

For proponents of nuclear power, an investment in the technology for these small, less expensive reactors may be a sign of faith in and viability of the industry. Modular reactors are made at

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