THE GALLON ENVIRONMENT LETTER
Canadian Institute for Business and the Environment
Fisherville, Ontario
Tel. 416 410-0432, Fax: 416 362-5231
Editorial: editor@gallonletter.ca
Subscriptions: subscriptions@gallonletter.ca
Vol. 12 No. 12 December 10, 2007
SEASON's GREETINGS TO ALL OUR READERS
Honoured Reader Edition

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This is the honoured reader edition of the Gallon Environment Letter and is distributed at no charge: send a note with Add GL or Delete GL in the subject line to subscriptions@gallonletter.ca. Paid subscribers receive a more complete edition without subscription reminders and with extensive links to further information following almost every article. Organizational subscriptions are $184 plus GST and provide additional benefits detailed on the web site. Organizational subscribers also receive the monthly Sustainable Technology & Services Supplement. Individual subscriptions are only $30 (personal emails/funds only please) including GST. If you would like to subscribe please visit http://www.cialgroup.com/subscription.htm If you feel you should be receiving the paid subscriber edition or have other subscriber questions please contact us also at subscriptions@gallonletter.ca. This current free edition is posted on the web site about a week or so after its issue at http://www.cialgroup.com/whatsnew.htm. Back free editions from January 2007 are available at http://www.cialgroup.com/whatsnew-a.htm

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ABOUT THIS ISSUE
 
Information technology is often seen as a term describing computers, the internet, search engines, geographic positioning systems, and much more. However, IT may also be a set of technologies that can make one of the greatest contributions to the greening of society. In this issue we explore IT and the green revolution. Although our focus is on how IT can help green, we also recognize that IT has an environmental footprint of its own and that the footprint can include toxic substances as well as energy use. Germany's Blue Angel has developed an ecolabel program for some green IT equipment.

As we go to press the climate change gab fest in Bali continues. While intergovernmental conferences can play an important role, this one seems doomed to achieve very little, in part because of the intransigence of Canada and the United States. Our editorial suggests that the solutions to climate change may be something for which we should not be waiting for solutions from governments.

We have four letters to the Editor, including one from a Natural Resources Canada expert who tells us that some information we obtained from Environment Canada's website gives a perception of greater abundance of freshwater in the Great Lakes than it should. That is not a surprise - they are a big organization - but what is surprising that most of us probably thought that the original information was correct. How much of the world's water would you say the Great Lakes contain? Read on for the right answer.

Our bookshelf highlights a big book by a number of Canadian authors designed to save us from ourselves, as long as we do not drop it on our toes - it is 482 pages - and our 30 Second Summary congratulates Amory Lovins for a recently received award. UNEPs 2007 Global Environment Outlook is pretty depressing and may set you straight on some things you thought you knew - for example, the 2007 hole in the ozone layer over the Antarctic is the largest ever. Despite the gloom and doom, UNEP sees progress in some areas and an increasing effectiveness in the role of business.

The relevant Commissioners have been censuring both the federal and Ontario governments - the two Commissioner's reports make interesting reading and we deliver a summary of some of the elements of each. Recently an important consulting firm in the field of green product marketing published a serious attack on virtually all green products in Canada. GL looked behind the scenes and found a study lacking scientific credibility and doing something that the company itself describes as a 'sin'.
 
Finally, and partly in memory at this time of year of Gary Gallon and partly because it is something of a sad but funny story, we bring you the story of a little young person's book that conveys a number of important messages, or at least it will do so if a St. John's bookseller does not get his way. How unseasonal to ban a children's book just because it gives to the lives of baby seals.

If Canada's environmental reputation survives Bali there is another long-term issue that seems likely to further add to our country's international reputation as an environmental pariah. Next issue we will explore current developments in the field of asbestos.
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LET'S NOT WAIT FOR BALI TO ACHIEVE RESULTS

The current Bali conference of the United Nations' Framework Convention on Climate Change is attracting more media attention than many recent climate change conferences. This is likely because of the attempts by both Canada and the US governments to position themselves as something other than marginally reformed climate change denyers. Despite pressure from Europe and from environmentalists around the world, the reality is that the Bali conference is likely to achieve almost nothing and will be of very little significance to anything environmental or anyone except the most enthusiastic political junkies.

 
Gallon Environment Letter suggests we should be asking whether there is even hope for this big international agreement to play a significant role in solving the climate change problem. Member countries of the UNFCCC faced a major problem when trying to develop the enforcement section of the Kyoto Protocol. Canada's Conservative government showed how ineffective international agreements can be when it chose to ignore this international agreement even though Canada is fully and legally committed to comply. Unless Ecojustice is successful in its efforts to persuade the courts that the Harper government should be treated as a confirmed law breaker there seems little likelihood that Canada will suffer any consequences from its declared intention to become an international climate change outlaw.

Reference is often made to the Montreal Protocol on Ozone Depleting Substances to show that international environmental agreements can work. However, efforts to deal with ODSs were well under way even before the MP came into force, it was implemented more by industry than by governments, there was almost no impact on ordinary people, and economic impacts were small and almost all positive. Most other multilateral environmental agreements have been far less successful.

While international intergovernmental agreements can be successful, it is debatable whether the governments of the world will come up with any meaningful agreement for dealing with what is increasingly turning into an environmental emergency. GL suggests that the pro-Kyoto crowd, of which we consider ourselves a member, start seeking out alternative strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. North America needs a scheme for certifying low GHG products so consumers can make an informed choice. European countries might either ban the sale of, or add a carbon offset tax to, products from companies that have not committed to GHG emission reductions. The World Trade Organization could outlaw subsidies to fossil energy in world wide trade.

The big challenge is implementing existing solutions and developing the needed solutions not on the horizon. Canada might achieve its 20% by 2020 target, in part because the baseline has been advanced to 2006, though even that seems unlikely, but a 50% by 2050 will be tough without a major lifestyle change and the 80% that is required to give the developing world some room for economic development is nothing more than an improbable dream for governments without serious commitment to action.

GL suggests that the resources that everyone, governments, ngos and industry, is putting into gab fests like Bali should instead be put into a non-governmental program to develop a climate roadmap for the world. Going further, if the funds that are presently committed to the War on Terror and the war in Iraq were devoted to a War on Climate Change we would be likely to make some more effective progress. The War on Terror and the war in Iraq have immense support from the arms industry and indeed from other industry which benefits.

The IPCC has made it very clear that climate change is far more threatening to human populations and well-being than whoever it is we are fighting in the War on Terror. GL suggests that climate change will be addressed only when action has widespread support from industry. By redirecting our focus of attention beyond conferences like Bali and towards winning support from major businesses, we might come closer to getting commensurate resources committed.

Colin Isaacs
Editor                                                                                      
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SEASONAL READER SURVEY RESULTS

The chance to win a seasonal gift of chocolate certainly encouraged readers to respond to the survey in our last issue. Winners were selected with the help of random.org, a site operated by Mads Haahr, a lecturer at Trinity College, Dublin, who claims to generate random numbers with the help of atmospheric noise. Debbie Fennell, Ernest Dyck, and Francois Bregha were our chocolate winners and packages are on their way with the assistance of Canada Post.

The survey indicated that most readers are happy with Gallon Environment Letter the way things are. Some 46% think the length is just about right and a further 44% reported that it is somewhat long. We are aware of this perception and will try to address it in our 2008 improvement program. 69% reported that they like the current frequency (monthly) with 20% preferring a return to the previous bimonthly frequency. When we combined the two issues of length and frequency, given that there is always much in the fields of environment and sustainable development to write about, 42% like the current combination of length and frequency while 40% would like to see a shorter GL coming out more frequently. Now your publisher will have to make the decision!

We asked readers about the topics that interest them most and the responses were divided almost equally over all of the topics we provided. In terms of email spam problems we asked for preferences among a bunch of distribution formats but again the largest group, 38%, supported the present format. 29% would prefer to read GL on a web site, either with an email containing links to individual stories (14%) or simply an email advising you that it has arrived (15%). 23% would prefer an Adobe Acrobat PDF format. We are going to work out how to accommodate all of these desires and will begin to implement your wishes early in the New Year.

Over 83% of readers responding to the survey indicated they were not interested in a print edition at any price and not surprisingly, most of our Honoured Readers do not want to have to pay for GL. We knew we were pushing the limits of credibility when we asked the question - does anyone ever want to pay if it is available for free - but we were pleasantly surprised that 20% of Honoured Readers indicated that they would pay up to $30 per year for the existing level of content. The reality is that Gallon Environment Letter is supported only by subscriptions and a small number of sponsored articles. We will have to review changes to the subscription system during 2008. Our readers include environmental professionals in government, industry, business, ngos, and many other sectors. Many have no particular connection to the environment but are interested in the eclectic mix of news and views about the environment and sustainable development.

We are planning to do everything we can to keep you as a reader, whether you are an Honoured Reader or a paid subscriber, and we thank you for your participation in our reader survey. If you have further comments or ideas please fell free to submit them either in a note to the editor, editor@gallonletter.ca, or through our survey form at http://www.gallonletter.ca/GLreaders.htm.
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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
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Information technology holds much promise as a tool for significantly reducing the environmental footprint of human activity. From conferences to culture, we can significantly reduce our footprint by reducing travel and material use. The idea of taking a two week vacation in a tropical resort without even leaving our home no longer sounds like a sci-fi dream. Though we are not yet quite able to live such a futuristic scene, some recent initiatives certainly point the way.

At the same time, IT is not free of environmental impacts. However, manufacturers and ecolabelling programs are working together to make IT greener than the somewhat toxic technology (lead, PBDEs, etc.) that it has been in the past. We bring you news of green IT.
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VIRTUAL MEETINGS: ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS

Bell Canada is one of the companies promoting audio and video conferencing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and travel costs as well as to save time. Bell also provides what it calls the Green Meeting Calculator to measure the savings in GHGs. Bell says that in 2006, "Bell's customers and employees held 2.53 million teleconferences in 2006, avoiding an estimated 1.7 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. That's equivalent to the annual emissions of 344,000 mid-size cars." Another statistic given is Canadians travel on average 5 million kilometres yearly for business and spend the equivalent of 1.2 million working days on planes each year. In British Columbia, Bell is working with the provincial government to help BC meet its GHG gas reduction targets.

GL thinks Bell's Smart Meeting Guide does help to determine whether meetings should be face-to-face or virtual, audio or video. The option of virtual meetings can increase productivity and reduce environmental impacts. However, for small-scale audio conferencing, GL has found that Bell is relatively more expensive and somewhat less flexible than some of its competitors.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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TECHNOLOGY TO SAVE WILDLIFE

A Canadian Geographic video aired on the SCN television channel on November 27, 2007 explored how different technologies are helping to save wildlife.

Thermal Imaging

One environmentally useful technology was the thermal camera, which some bat conservation groups have received as obsolete equipment from fire departments which are upgrading. Bats are difficult to inventory because they collect in large numbers in relatively few areas, tend to swirl when they exit caves or shelters and are hard to see in the low light or darkness. Thermal imaging of bats allows for better counting. The cameras, which show body heat, have helped researchers reveal the remarkable ability of bats to adjust their body temperature. When they hibernate they are sometimes as cold as the stone cave walls; as they wake up their body fat heats up variably throughout their body until they reach their normally high temperature. For their size, bats live longer than any other group of mammals. Bats live more than 20 years, thought to be remarkable for such a small mammal. In 2006, a male bat was found with a band from the 1960s in Siberia, Russia so that bat was at least 41 years old. It was reported in the Journal of Gerontology; bat research may provide some answers to age-related diseases in humans. The videos from the camera can be stored on a computer hard drive and used to obtain an inventory and a record of bat behaviour which may help determine how humans may be affecting them, for example whether bats are harmed by wind turbines.

DNA

The oldest information system began over 3 billion years ago; DNA provides the variations on which natural selection is based and stores information for life. Some predict that computers may eventually change and replicate on a silicon chip or other material to be so close to a life form as makes no difference. In the meantime, DNA and the technology to record and analyse it are being used to save the swift fox. The swift fox in the wild was eradicated in its natural habitat of the Prairies in Canada, designated as extirpated by the Canadian Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in 1978. Naturalist and artist Ernest Thompson Seton had described it as "the least cunning of our foxes," easily hunted, trapped and poisoned. The swift fox is called so because of its high running speed which can be as much as 60 km/hr. It is smaller than other foxes more like a house cat and uses underground dens all year around. It was reintroduced into its former range on the Prairies but remains endangered. Although most of the original released foxes have died, technology in the form of DNA testing and monitoring is showing some of the population is second generation completely raised in the wild and surviving. DNA can be collected from hair or from scat. Recovery of species such as the swift fox may also include radio collars which provide data on how the foxes use space combined with genetic analysis to see whether territory is shared or defended more or less vigourously if the neighbouring swift foxes are relatives; defending territory takes energy and carries risk such as injury or death.

RADARSAT

Canada's RADARSAT Satellite from 798 kilometers above the Earth uses Synthetic Aperture Radar to take images through all weather, through cloud cover, smoke, haze and darkness. The Canadian Space Agency uplinks requests from clients for specified data to RADARSAT-1 and data is downlinked to receiving stations in Gatineau, Quebec, Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and Fairbanks, Alaska. RASARSAT-1 analyzes ice for identifying changes in the Arctic due to climate change and monitors marine oil pollution. Oily wastes produced when ships illegally dump ballast water can be tracked and reported to Transport Canada which sends DASH-8 aircraft to confirm the spill and collect evidence linking the spill to the ship. About 300,000 birds are oiled annually just in the Atlantic waters. The next generation RADARSAT-2 is to be launched in December. This technology will improve ice data and detection and identification of ships.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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SUSTAINABLE AFRICA: FROM LIBRARIES TO NETWORKS

In the early 1900s, Andrew Carnegie, the US industrialist who among other business dealings founded a company which eventually became US Steel, gave a lot of his money to establish libraries not only in the US but also in Canada. Many Canadians, in both cities and small towns, might have missed opportunities for self-betterment if not for those "Carnegie" libraries. The Carnegie Foundation of New York was created in 1911 by Carnegie with a mandate to promote "the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding." One of his quotes is "Only in popular education can man erect the structure of an enduring civilization."

The Carnegie Corporation now only supports library buildings in Africa but in that continent it is also supporting initiatives to improve access to and use of information and communication technology as well as increasing internet access in libraries.

The Sustainable Africa Internet Channel is a digital commons project supported by the AllAfrica Foundation with funding from the Rockefeller Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The channel covers topics comprising environment, sustainable development, aid and assistance, debt, trade, water, climate, food and agriculture, urban issues, wildlife, ecotourism and women from 100 African content partners.

Uganda: Lake Victoria Reserve

Among the many stories posted is a positive step forward for Uganda. Uganda has designated a reserve, the first ever on Lake Victoria, to be called Commonwealth Lake Reserve in honour of the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting which was held last month. The marine park, encompassing 100 square kilometres of the lake's total 34,800 sq. kilometres and including some islands, will be established this month and is intended to protect endangered and threatened fish such as the Nile perch. Economic benefits are seen to be tourism due to an increase of birds and animals such as hippos and otters and possibly a five-fold increase of fish in the reserve which would move elsewhere to repopulate commercial fisheries. There will be no commercial fishing in the reserve but some sport fishing will be permitted. Government officials say they consulted for three years before making the declaration. GL noted in our last issue (GL V12 N11) that Canada made an announcement of an intention to create the first-ever marine reserve on Lake Superior after ten years of discussion.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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DENSO: ADVANCED ELECTRONICS IN WORLDSKILLS COMPETITION

The Japanese company DENSO Corporation established a Technical Training Centre for developing employee skills in advanced electronics in 1954. Today this has evolved into the DENSO Engineering and Technical Skills Training Center Corporation which develops skilled technicians for manufacturing expertise for future generations. This year DENSO won four medals at the 39th WorldSkills Competition, an international forum held in Japan for recognizing skills in 47 key trade and technology categories. There were 813 young people competing and Denso won gold medals in Mould Making and Mobile Robotics and silver in Manufacturing Team Challenge and CNC Turning (the computer programming and work setup for numerically controlled (CNC) lathes for cylindrical metal or hard plastic cutting e.g. pulleys.) Also in the 7th Abylimpics, open to people with disabilities, held together for the first time with the WorldSkills Competition, DENSO won gold medals in Electronic Assembly and Testing and Electronic Circuit Connection Techniques. Denso employs 12,000 people in 32 countries with global sales of about $30 billion (March 31, 2007). The 40th WorldSkills Competition will be held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada September 1-6, 2009.

Advanced Electronics for Environmental Benefit

Energy Efficiency: DENSO announced in October that it has developed an injector system for air conditioning installed in Toyoto's Land Cruiser sold throughout the world. It improves the energy efficiency of the refrigeration cycle. The system was installed in 2003 in refrigerated vans and in carbon dioxide refrigerant heat-pump water heaters used in homes. Power Control Units installed on two hybrid Lexus models boost output power; more power, however, means more heat so new cooling structures for the PCUs improve cooling performance.

Intelligent Transportation Systems ITS: Electronics, information and telecommunications technologies are used to improve safety and reduce congestions. Examples include sensing systems, pre-crash safety and driver assistance systems. For example, blinking detection is used to assess sleepiness and blast the driver with cold air. Radar detects obstacles and warns of potential collision or damage; if collision is inevitable, the seat belts are tightened automatically. At night, pedestrians and animals are highlighted in infrared on the windshield to warn the driver.

GL notes that these advanced systems often need to be associated with driver trainer. We used to tease the owner of a talking car which told its driver, "The door is ajar" by complaining, "No, it isn't, it's a door." But the joke is even less funny when renting a car which has warning lights and beeping to distraction with no hope of understanding what is going on: some rental car agencies have manuals but these are starting to be an inch thick and hardly amenable to reading before driving away from the car rental depot .

Power train: DENSO develops control systems for gasoline and diesel engines as well as hybrid vehicles. Systems for diesel rail engines improves fuel efficiency, higher power, cleaner emissions and less noise.

Greener Car Components: DENSO makes the Electronic Control Unit for the battery for the Toyoto Prius, which "achieves double the fuel efficiency and half the CO2 emissions of a conventional car." The battery ECU calculates the state of charge of the main battery, maintains the fan which cools the battery, monitors the battery for abnormality to avoid over- or under-charging and monitors the ground fault. This information is transmitted to the hybrid system controller and computer. The hybrid also uses technologies to monitor conditions to improve efficiency during a stop, for example shutting off the gasoline engine.

Robotics: Automation for industrial application links robots with computer networks, quality control and technology information systems. One of the issues to ensure that robots and people can work safely together during manufacturing processes.

Expansion in Canada

In June DENSO announced that DENSO Manufacturing Canada located in Guelph Ontario would almost double its size through an investment of US $63.7 million with production to begin in January 2009. Radiators, condensers and electric fans for radiators will be made and integrated into engine cooling modules as well as the current air conditioning units.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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DATA CENTRES: BIG ENERGY GUZZLERS

Data centre facilities contain electronic equipment for data processing and storage as well as networking; almost every sector has data centres. Examples of growth are in:
A US Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star report released to Congress in August identified the opportunities for energy efficiency improvements for government and commercial computer servers and data centres in the United States. The report estimates that data centres consumed 60 billion kilowatt-hours in 2006 or 1.5% of total US electricity consumption. This is double what it was five years ago and is expected to double again in another five years to more than 100 billion kWh, with a cost of $7.4 billion. Existing technologies could reduce typical server energy use by 25%, with greater reduction through advanced technologies.

The report does not include custom servers by large internet companies such as Google as no data was found although the number was thought to be small compared to the total number of US servers in 2006. However, the rapid growth of Google and other companies may lead to significant increase in future energy use by US data centres.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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BEST PRACTICES FOR DATA CENTRES

Data centres can be 15 times and as much as 40 times as energy intensive as typical office buildings. A guide to best practices posted by the US Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory outlines best practice technologies including "improved air management, emphasizing control and isolation of hot and cold air streams; rightsizing central plants and ventilation systems to operate efficiently both at inception and as the data center load increases over time; optimized central chiller plants, designed and controlled to maximize overall cooling plant efficiency, central air-handling units, in lieu of distributed units; 'free cooling' from either air-side or water-side economizers; alternative humidity control, including elimination of control conflicts and the use of direct evaporative cooling; improved uninterruptible power supplies; high-efficiency computer power supplies; on-site generation combined with special chillers for cooling using the waste heat; direct liquid cooling of racks or computers; and lowering the standby losses of standby generation systems."

Because data centres operate all the time, they contribute to peak utility system demand. Benchmarking includes peak power savings as well as energy savings in general as well as maintaining and improving reliability as well as non-energy benefits.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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GREEN GRID: EARLY DAYS FOR ENERGY-EFFICIENT DATA CENTRES INITIATIVE

Green Grid, based in Beaverton, Oregon, is a consortium of information technology companies and professionals in the industry working to reduce energy use by data centres worldwide. Most of the detailed information is available only to members (annual dues $5,000) although some summary reports are public. GL couldn't find enough information to draw any inferences as to whether the 102 members are making any real progress. Green Grid was founded only in 2007. Links to member web sites provide more access to what the companies say they are doing in energy efficiency.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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IBM: BIG BLUE GOES BIG GREEN

In May, IBM, nicknamed Big Blue, unveiled Project Big Green, a $1 billion investment to promote energy efficiency in data centres using IBM products, expected to result in energy savings of 42% for an average data centre. The project is led by Rich Lechner, IBM's Vice President of IT Optimization. A view of the IBM's virtual data center is posted in Second Life, an online virtual world where participants create an avatar, a virtual replica of themselves but as Adrienne Arsenault, CBC broadcaster, said when she explored that world, slimmer and better looking.

Among the tools IBM is providing for Big Green are:
IBM is collaborating with Pacific Gas and Electric Company. IBM will participate in PG&Es Energy Efficiency Incentive Program, one of the initiative to encourage customer to remove underused computing and data storage equipment thereby reducing energy use. In turn, PG&E will reduce energy use of its data facilities which cover 40,000 square feet in three locations in California by:
IBM's Mobile Measurement Technology MMT was used to survey the physical space of PG&E's facilities in 3-D images including identification of air leaks, hot spots and inefficiencies. The MMT can survey a 10,000 square foot facility in a few hours doing a job which would take a number of people weeks to do. The data was analysed in thermal and energy models to find solutions to correct the problems.

New IBM Data Center

In June, IBM announced it would expand its Boulder, Colorado data centre to make it the largest IBM data centre in the world adding 80,000 square feet. The expansion will serve as a model for the Project Big green with Cool Blue energy efficient power and cooling technologies and high density computing systems.

ISM has 8 million square feet of data centre space worldwide and announced in August it would consolidate 3,900 computer servers to 30 System z mainframes running the Linux operating system. Energy savings are expected to be close to 80% and over five years, considerable savings are expected in energy, software and system support costs while having the benefit of providing more flexibility. The 3,900 servers will be recycled through the IBM Global Asset Recovery Services. IBM projects that 50 cents is spent on energy for every dollar spent on hardware and this is likely to increase to 71 cents in four years.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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GOOGLE SEARCHES FOR GREEN

Google was a leader in forming the Climate Savers Computing Initiative in 2007 to support the design and use of energy saving computers and servers. The CSCI states, and we can believe, that the average computer wastes half of the energy delivered to it. A catalog of computing equipment, such as power supply monitoring, controllers, switchers, desktops, and laptops, can be searched by product category, manufacturer and Region (North America, Asia, etc). For many products the catalog lists energy labelling such as Energy Star qualification or EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment) level, hazardous chemicals issues such as whether the equipment meets the EU RoHS (Restriction on Hazardous Substances ), cooler operation, and less noise.

Google also announced on November 27, it would help to develop electricity from renewable sources rather than coal under an initiative called RE<C. Google committed to going carbon neutral in 2007 and has taken steps to invest in energy efficient technology for power and cooling in its data centres, generating electricity at its Mountain View location with a 1.6 Megawatt solar panel made operational this year, and adoption of plug-in vehicles. More natural light and replacement of light bulbs with higher efficiency lighting are among the steps taken to reduce energy use. In the new announcement Google says that it is assembling a research and development group to build 1 gigawatt of renewable energy capacity that is cheaper than coal.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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VIRTUAL AND REAL WORLDS

Not-quite-a face-off between UBC Professor John Robinson and environmental titan David Suzuki was held live in Heritage Hall in Vancouver hosted by CBC's Shelagh Rogers and aired on the radio program Sounds Like Canada on November 27. One of the topics discussed was the value of virtualization. John Robinson sees the potential for new information and communication technology to engage millions of people interactively to explore possible futures; the medium itself would attract people who would reject attendance at, say town hall meetings. Robinson views the progression to a sustainable future more as a political process where people have to deal with uncertainty and ambiguity and move forward to making what seems to be impossible, a reality. David Suzuki has entirely different views. He said that people need to experience the natural world, get out into it so that they will protect what they love. The planet is a sacred place. Even though he worked in television, he is concerned that news and his own show The Nature of Things misrepresents the real world. For example, the show might send a camera person to the Arctic who would sit there for hundreds of hours photographing whatever wildlife came along and then the film would be edited to a few minutes. People watching get the false idea that animals are there in considerable more density than they really are and may even find the cyberworld more attractive than the real world. A virtual world provides no context and no history, no depth and no profundity.

John Robinson is Professor, Sustainable Development Research Initiative (SDRI) in the Institute of Resources, Environment and Sustainability, and Department of Geography, University of British Columbia in Vancouver. GL's editor met him when he was a Professor at the Department of Environment and Resource Studies at the University of Waterloo in the early 1990s. He is lead author of Working Group II and III of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2004-2007 among many other things. As the IPCC won the Nobel Prize, he is one of the scientists who can claim a share of that award.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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FEDEX: LOGISTICS

Fred Smith, Chair and CEO of FedEx was interviewed on Fox TV on December 2 suggesting that government could take some lessons from Fedex which uses technology to manage costs effectively. His view is that governments are too risk averse, too conservative, too resistant to change so that there is too much time and effort spent on preventing mistakes rather than managing costs while delivering the goods. Fedex delivers 6 million packages a year and while it is facing profit challenges as the price of fuel rises and the economy in the US slows, it is developing a risk strategy rather than trying to avoid risk all together.

GL thought that Smith's idea of using information technology more effectively could have been applied to a council meeting at our closest big city, Hamilton Ontario. There were so many amendments to a proposal to reduce garbage collection to one container per household that some councillors and the mayor complained the next day they didn't know what they were voting for. Now that's scary. Think of what a computer tracking of current status of the wording could do!

The US Fedex annual report outlines some of the information technologies Fedex uses:
Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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GERMANY'S BLUE ANGEL ECOLABEL CERTIFIES ELECTRONIC ITEMS

The German ecolabel Blue Angel (Blauer Engel), the oldest ecolabel in the world, will be celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2008. GL visited there a decade or so ago confirming a view that the marketplace is one of the levers to make environmental change. In Germany, the structure of the labelling process also reduces potential conflict of interest. The criteria development is done by the Environmental Jury Panel appointed by the Federal Environment Minister, the administration is done by the Federal Environment Agency but the quality assurance and product labelling is contracted to RAL Deutsches Institut für Gütesicherung und Kennzeichnung e.V. All the technical demand is set by the independent Jury. In one of the Angel's newsletter last year, Professor Helmut Horn managing director of the Institute of Materials Science and Welding at the University of Applied Sciences Hamburg found the label acceptable to environmental groups as it leads to environmental improvement. He represents Friends of the Earth (BUND). He feels that the criteria could be formulated in a stricter way but the final criteria are acceptable. One measure of the success of the ecolabel is the extent to which public institutions have switched to recycled paper. Energy savings and avoidance of pollutants are other achievements of the label.

Andreas Fusser, representing the German Society for Nature Conservation on the Jury, described what GL thinks is a key role for eco-labels, raising the bar for all products in the market even those which are not eco-certified, "The Blue Angel is the first and surely the most effective sign of eco-friendly products. It has laid the groundwork for many imitators that have since entered the market." Fusser said that the old controversies are no longer relevant as environmental groups "accept the Blue Angel as a sign identifying the relative environmental advantage of one product over others designated for the same purpose." In years past, when an ecolabel was proposed, say for a lawnmower, environmental groups demanded that the label only be acceptable for the most eco-friendly device, a scythe. A spokesperson for the German Consumer Association also suggests that the entire paint and solvent market in Germany has been changed for the better due to the Blue Angel label. About 3,600 products and services from about 580 label users in Germany and elsewhere are entitled to bear the Blue Angel. The Angel has a reciprocal agreement with the Chinese Ecolabel with the intention of working on toys and other products.

The future direction of the label may be towards innovations in service to increase dematerialisation in consumption and linking energy savings from manufacturing associated with secondary material use such as recycled paper. One of the biggest issue is that consumers do not find enough of environmentally improved/eco-labelled products when they go for their daily shopping: textiles, shoes, cosmetics, toys, and so on should all be represented on the market with ecolabels. Blue Angel labels on these products can push innovations in the marketplace. More promotion in discount stores such as do-it-yourself stores to raise awareness is planned. The label is sometimes perceived as old-fashioned so the promotion for the 30th anniversary is to connect it more to people living a modern life with a theme, "Be an angel and still of this world."

Blue Angel: Electronic Equipment and Services

Blue Angel has certified electronic equipment for some time but Horn thinks that the two year process is too long for "devices with short innovation cycles, such as in the field of communications technology." Cooperation with other labels such as the Nordic Swan and the Austrian Ecolabel could speed up the process and enhance the attractiveness of the Blue Angel.

In 2006, Blue Angel combined three different catalogues of criteria for printers, copiers and multifunctional devices into on designation RAL-UZ122 under the single "office devices for printing function'. The new criteria included new detailed performance requirements depending on the expected function and demands on emissions from colour-printing devices. Multifunctional equipment criteria are under review with amendments on requirements for energy, packaging and batteries. Five manufacturers use the label for 26 devices with 11 applications received from others.

The computer catalogue of criteria were revised to include portable computers but can also be awarded to separate system units, keyboards and displays. New standard were set for lower noise levels and lower power consumption for the energy-saving mode.

The criteria for mobile phones was developed in 2006 but the first mobile phone with an eco-label went on the market only in mid-2007. Three quarters of Germans even children have mobile phones more than have landline phones. The phones are used to take photos and send them to people, to access the Internet, to locate services, restaurants and entertainment. The ecolabel certifies a very low radiation level. Manufacturers refused to have their models eco-labelled even though about 30% met the strict requirements of the Blue Angel label. A Munich-based company Kandy Mobile AG is the first mobile telephone to be labelled beginning with sales September 2007.

Hartig + Helling is the first company to receive the Blue Angel for wireless baby phone devices because it is low on radiation, high in energy savings, contains no problematic materials such as halogenated flame retardants.

The German Federal Environment Agency provides active guidance, for example, when the Jury was considering four electronic services. Online yellow pages and electronic invoice services reduce environmental burden of paper and transport of paper but the agency warned that the net savings might be less than expected depending on user behaviour. If the user prints out the invoice to save and file it, the environmental benefit would be small.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

            Subject: Correction on Your Latest Issue GL V12 N11

Thank you for all the good work you do with GL and in particular for the recent issue on the Great Lakes Basin.

I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the Editor's note on basic data about the Great Lakes is somehow inaccurate. The Editor's note indicates that "The four upper lakes (Superior to Erie in the aforementioned list) contain almost one-fifth of the world's fresh water and all '"

It is estimated that the renewable freshwater in the World is nearly 12 Millions km3 of freshwater; this number does not include glaciers or water frozen in the North and South Poles. Out of the 12 M km3, 10.7 M (ca 90% of total) is groundwater; the rest is surface water. That is, all the rivers and ALL lakes of the world, account for less than 10% of total. On the other hand, the five Great Lakes together contain 22656 km3 of freshwater, but that is surface water. These numbers mean that the Great Lakes contain circa 2.7% of the World's freshwater as surface water only; or circa 0.2% of the total freshwater in the world (if you include both surface and groundwater). Those numbers are far from the 20% written in the Editor's note.

The volume of groundwater (in aquifers) in the world is by far much larger than all the lakes and rivers of the World. Let's take just one aquifer, the Guarani aquifer in South America (shared by Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay: the freshwater contain in that single aquifer is 40000 km3, that is nearly two times as much as in all five Great Lakes, in one single aquifer!

The 20% you wrote on your note is not new, it is often written officially as a "fact" and that is regrettable. It conveys a feeling of "abundance" and it is simply wrong. I hope in a future issue you may be able to spotlight a bit more of these numbers for which scientific references abound.

Best regards 

Alfonso Rivera, Ph.D.
Chief Hydrogeologist and Program Manager/Chef Hydrogéologue et Gestionnaire de Programme
Geological Survey of Canada / Commission géologique du Canada
Natural Resources Canada / Ressources Naturelles Canada
Quebec (Quebec) G1K 9A9, Canada
Visit the program's site at: First Phase (2003-2006): http://ess.nrcan.gc.ca/2002_2006/gwp
Second Phase (2006-2009): http://ess.nrcan.gc.ca/gm
[GL appreciates the fact that readers pay so much attention. We should have qualified the number as "surface" freshwater but the one fifth figure is from Environment Canada for example, "The Great Lakes - Erie, Huron, Michigan, Ontario and Superior hold 20 percent of the world's surface
fresh water." http://www.on.ec.gc.ca/greatlakes/default.asp?lang=En&n=FC147FA0-1]

            Subject: Great Lakes GL V12 N11

Dear Colin

It warms my heart to see the Great Lakes discussed. Why has there been so little change after so much dedicated effort? Although without the effort, based on how bad Lake Erie actually got in the 60's how bad things could be without vigilance science and some action!.

Thank you for your continuing effort
Doug Hallett dhallett[@]heatgroup.com To send email remove the two brackets []

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            Subject: Editorial on CFLs GL V12 N11

Dear Colin,
   I was most pleased to see the article stating that, regarding economies that could be made with lighting, leadership is necessary. However, the concept of substituting fluorescent bulbs or LEDs everywhere for incandescent lights is naive and skirts the problem. Having lived in a house equipped with several inductive dimmers for incandescent lighting, I find that the dimmer is a most effective economy device, providing a refuge from glare and enabling you to obtain the intensity you want, which cannot be easily done with fluorescents. Therefore a mix of incandescent lights on dimmers and fluorescents not on dimmers is a good combination. There are many misunderstandings about electrical lighting. In winter, when heating is required, it makes rather little difference whether 70 percent of your light bulb's energy emerges as heat and 30 as light or vice versa, whereas any heat put into your home or office in summer may find itself adding to the cooling bill. [In summer one can economize almost 100 percent in electrical lighting by getting up early and going to bed early, so as to make maximum use of daylight!] So where is the real wastage, since it need not be much in these petty details?
   In the cities I see three major wastages in lighting:
1) the street lights shine in all directions except vertically upward, but enough goes sideways and somewhat upwards that there is at least fifty percent saving to be made by changing reflector designs, and likely a much greater saving by changing the technology as well. A further saving can be achieved by switching the street lights off once the daylight has reached the intensity that is provided at night by the street lights. The question of just how much illumination is needed might also be revisited;
2) offices are still illuminated at night despite the electrical wastage and the knowledge that birds collide with illuminated office windows and are generally injured and die as a result. What makes this a major concern is that most bird species are declining, the total number of birds that die from flying into windows is huge, and there are two other major causes of bird deaths resulting from the huge human population and the way it does things. Therefore office illumination is related to biodiversity in a way most people are not yet aware of.
3) Lighting is regarded by most householders and by people staying at hotels, etc., as such a minor matter that they don't bother to switch lights off when they are not needed. I studied the habits of one individual recently and came to the conclusion that, if everyone were like him, it would require an 800 Megawatt power station in Ontario (and proportional amounts elsewhere) just to provide domestic lighting that such wastage requires. Some of this lighting was fluorescent, and some incandescent. Multiplying to the whole population of Canada, this potential source of wastage could amount to over two gigawatts.

In addition to all of the above, I find that lighting is poorly arranged in many places, for example to look pretty, or make things look pretty rather than to provide light exactly where you need it.

Best regards,
Derek Paul Toronto, Ontario
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            Subject: Lighting GL V12 N11

Editor

Thank you for your comments on reducing Christmas lighting.

Talking lighting I am concerned that many news house feature what I will call decorational lighting; numerous lights installed under the eaves which serve no other purpose than to show off the house. What a wonderful environmental statement to see houses in up-scale neighbourhoods with 8 or 10 lights burning all night long.

Bob McClelland
Cantley Quebec
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THE BOOKSHELF

Do you have a favourite or inspirational environment book (fiction or non-fiction) or magazine or have you written a book, report or article you would like to draw attention to? It can be electronic or hard copy. Let us know what it is and in 50 words or less why it appeals to you from an environmental point of view and a few words on who you are. We'll select one for printing in each issue over time in the next year or so. Send email to editor@gallonletter.ca with subject line: Fav Env Book.

Readers might notice that quite a few if GL readers are writers on environmental topics. This Bookshelf item written and recommended by: Colin Soskolne Website: http://www.ualberta.ca/~soskolne

Sustaining Life on Earth: Environmental and Human Health through Global Governance" by Colin Soskolne et al

A new 482-page book, just released, is entitled "Sustaining Life on Earth: Environmental and Human Health through Global Governance". It is now available from the publisher, Lexington Books, http://www.LexingtonBooks.com/ISBN/0739117297. The book is an interdisciplinary collaboration with a broad array of disciplines, from law, to health, ecology, biology, economics, social sciences, and ethics, all concerned with the sustainability of living systems. It is anchored in the Earth Charter with its set of values and principles to which, if we both individually and collectively subscribed, would lead us from a path with catastrophic consequences to one of sustainability. The book is designed to save us from ourselves. By clicking on, or pasting the above URL into your browser, you could order the book for $38.21 (soft cover).

Editors of the book are: Colin L. Soskolne is professor of epidemiology at The University of Alberta. Laura Westra is professor emeritus of philosophy at University of Windsor. She also holds a doctorate of law from York University. Louis J. Kotzé is associate professor of environmental law at North-West University in South Africa. Brendan Mackey is professor of plant ecology at the Australian National University. William E. Rees is professor of population ecology at the University of British Columbia. Richard Westra is assistant professor of political science at Pukyong National University in South Korea.
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30 SECOND SUMMARY

Congratulations to Amory Lovins, founder and now chairman of the Rocky Mountain Institute located in Old Snowmass, Colorada who received the Volvo Environment Award November 1 in Stockholm, Sweden. He has for years promoted energy efficiency. At the US Embassy in Stockholm honouring his award, he told the audience that there would be enough energy in the world for everybody to enjoy a comfortable life if we would stop wasting energy. Ambassador Wood presented Lovins with a package of high efficiency light bulbs which are similar to those the US Government will use at the Embassy and 18 other buildings in Stockholm. Lovins also won the Japan-based Asahi Foundation Blue Planet Prize.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT OUTLOOK NOT SO GOOD

The United Nations Global Environment Outlook shows many clouds on the horizon, rapid environmental change which includes climate change, water shortages, degraded land and loss of biodiversity. In themselves, these global environmental threats are serious enough but they also undermine progress towards dealing with poverty and jeopardize international peace and security due to conflict about natural resources.

In this the 20th anniversary of the report by the World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future which promoted the concept of sustainable development, Achim Steiner, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme introduces the report by calling for nations of the world to unite in a common cause not only to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but to re-engage with core objectives and principles of sustainable development. Climate change, he writes, "cannot be compartmentalized into one ministerial portfolio, a single-line entry in corporate business plans or a sole area of NGO activism. Climate change, while firmly an environmental issue is also an environmental threat that impacts on every facet of government and public life - from finance and planning to agriculture, health, employment and transport."

GEO-4 has ten chapters which provide an overview of social, environmental and economic trends and their effects on human well-being over the past 20 years. Chapter themes include

The report explores vulnerability of people especially in the developing world. Over the past 20 years, more than 1.5 million people have died and 200 million people affected each year by natural disasters; 90% of these people have been in the developing world. The high use of the Earth's function by the rich affects the poor. In 2004, the total impact of the 1 billion people in the richest countries was 15 times greater than that of the 2.3 billion in the poorest. Concluding messages address how to develop new policy approaches and diversified toolboxes to help change direction in the face of catastrophic potential.

A biologist once suggested to GL that a mass extinction wouldn't mean the end of the earth, just a possible end to humanity and other species. He speculated that cockroaches would survive, a reasonable projection given the discovery of a fossil cockroach in 2001 in eastern Ohio dated at 300 million years old, millions of years before the dinosaurs existed. Another biologist Gary Piper, at Washington State University commenting on this discovery said, "There is no concern about any cockroach species being placed on an endangered species list anytime soon."

The Role of Business

In the Foreword, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon reserves a paragraph to talk about importance of the role of business: "Increasingly, companies are embracing the Global Compact not because it makes for good public relations, or because they have paid a price for making mistakes. They are doing so because in our interdependent world, business leadership cannot be sustained without showing leadership on environmental, social and governance issues."

Among the issues specifically related to business are:
This 572-page report, full of fascinating information and detail, sure gives one pause to think that the cockroach scenario might become believable. For this reason, GL recommends this book as essential reading for every business student and business leader. It sets the stage for why it is critical that business play a key role in environmental protection, not just as a generous gesture but as an imperative.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.
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AUDIT: CANADA'S DEPARTMENTS SD STRATEGIES MOSTLY UNSATISFACTORY

In 1995, Parliament required that designated federal departments (currently 32 departments and agencies) prepare sustainable development strategies every three years and table them in Parliament. The intent was to ensure that environment and sustainable development are integrated into objectives and action plans, including benchmarks and measurable results.

This year the acting Commissioner of Environment and Sustainable Development, Ron Thompson, (the appointment of the new CESD is not expected until "next spring") prepared an annual audit report on the latest strategies, on implementation of the 2004-2006 strategies, and on followup of the previous audit recommendations.

The overall conclusion is that little progress has been made by departments in applying principles or in setting benchmarks. The term "unsatisfactory" describes the failure of the all except one department to present substantive SD plans, never mind acting on those plans.

The strategies were intended to address important environmental issues such as threats to biodiversity and climate change. All major departments, not just Environment Canada, were supposed to determine how to contribute to the solution of these problems. The idea was to ensure that every department is a sustainable development department. The failure of the federal government to develop a federal sustainable development strategy promised by mid-2006 means that the department strategies have no coherence or coordination. The goals keep changing; the lack of continuity makes it difficult to assess what long term outcomes the strategies are aiming for; assessing this hodgepodge s like assembling a complex jigsaw puzzle of disjointed strategies without a picture on the box. Although Environment Canada did provide guidance for the fourth round of strategies in mid-2006, there are no indicators, common measures, baselines or targets which departments could use to monitor or report on their progress. The key aim is to "catalyse, focus and maintain government-wide action". The 2007 federal goals (albeit without numbers) are sustaining natural resources, clean water, clean air, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, greening government operations and sustainable communities.

Some satisfactory audit results for different time periods:
Canada. Office of the Auditor General. The Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development. 2007 Report. October 2007. http://www.oag-bvg.gc.ca/domino/media.nsf/html/c200700pr_e.html
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GREENWASH ACCUSATION UNSUPPORTED BY TRANSPARENT INFORMATION

Recently a normally reputable consulting company published, and obtained much media coverage for, a report claiming that of 1,018 products which they found making environmental claims on Canadian store shelves, only one met required standards for environmental labelling. The company refused to provide any supporting data, how the claims specifically infringed standards, and what process was followed in regard to assessment of claims. Data gaps and uncertainties were left undescribed.

GL asked for science-based information beyond the populist piece of opinion that was published. Opinion can still be very useful but shouldn't be misrepresented as scientifically valid study. Neither GL nor some mainstream media to whom GL's editor spoke were provided with supporting information. The products came from relatively easily identified stores (six category-leading big box stores). The study claim (GL notes, unsubstantiated claim) is that "Of the 1,018 products examined, all but one made claims that are demonstrably false or that risk misleading intended audiences."

Canada has a Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act which makes it illegal to mislead the consumer with false information, whether that information is about environmental aspects or not. Guidelines on various issues such as textiles, jewelry, furniture, pet food, environmental and other claims and practices are also provided but the main act applies no matter what category the claim is in. Both the existence of the law and its enforcement at times keeps some order in the marketplace. We know there are always infringements sometimes deliberate, sometimes unintentional, some may be flaws in labelling itself but with real environmental improvement nevertheless. GL has even seen some poorly formulated claims associated with events held by the environment industry. The value of green products is the potential to change the market to prefer less environmentally harmful products. This is one tool; many others are needed such as reducing consumption and paying greater attention to stop products which cause harm to people and the environment.

GL would even have found believable some relatively high percentage of claims being less than they should be but only one out of more than 1,000 not being outright fraud, is a wholesale accusation of illegal activity on consumer labelling which is just not credible, even more so when an Ecologo is improperly used on the cover of the report.

In a recent issue on carbon credits, GL mentioned the surprising use of a religious term "indulgences" applied by CBC's Rex Murphy and others to the concept of carbon offsets. Now we have the "sins of greenwashing", Sometimes eye-catching terms can be justified to communicate to the consumer but under the circumstances here it seems reasonable to make  more science-based information publically available. However, in that populist vein, GL wonders why we should take what this company says on faith when they are committing one of their failures to meet criteria, what they call, "The Sin of No Proof."

The company is not an ad watchdog, as some media described it, but a consulting company in the business of green marketing. One of its activities is holding the license for Environment Canada's Ecologo. In fact, by putting Canada's Ecologo on the cover of their report they implied that the attack on green labels in the marketplace was an Ecologo activity, something that is clearly not the intention of, and almost certainly will bring some level of discredit to, the Ecologo program. GL would like to see the license used only to achieve the aims of the EcoLogo not the business wants of its contractor.

Paid subscribers see links to original documents and references here.

Disclaimer: GL's parent company, the CIAL Group, consults with and has consulted for a range of companies including food and alcohol, retail, restaurant, packaging, agriculture, office supply, transport, utilities, fuel, and others on development of environmentally improved products and services and their environmental claims.
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CITIZEN APPLICATIONS TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSIONER OF ONTARIO

Under the Ontario Environmental Bill of Rights, citizens can participate in government decisions by commenting on proposals which are posted on the Environmental Registry website, seeking leave to appeal a ministry decision or asking a ministry to review a law or investigate harm to the environment. Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, Gord Miller, released the latest environmental report called Reconciling Our Priorities December 4. GL has extracted from his remarks the issues he highlighted from applications received from the public.

EXTRACT FROM REMARKS ON THE RELEASE OF THE 2006/2007 ANNUAL REPORT
by Gord Miller, Environmental Commissioner of Ontario

Flowing from the applications we receive from the public, I have again this year highlighted some of particular interest. There was a request to review the need to eliminate the exemption from Environmental Protection Act requirements for road salt applications. I have made a recommendation to develop a province wide road salt
management strategy because I think the time is right. Certainly the Ministry of Transportation has implemented some quite remarkable road salt management initiatives and technologies on the 20% of the roads they are responsible for. These need to be expanded across the remaining 80% of the road network, which is serviced by
municipalities.

The results of a long awaited review of the aggregate resources program were reported this year. The review confirmed that there are problems in the regulation of the industry, especially with rehabilitation of old pits and quarries, and laid down the bases for reforms to be implemented.

Strangely, the MOE denied an application which asked for a review of the standards governing the quality of sewage biosolids. It is odd that they would refuse to consider having a category of pathogen free sewage sludge like the USEPA does, in light of the difficulty finding suitable utilization sites for sewage biosolids.
 
And, an application regarding the Portlands Energy Centre was received. It highlighted the problems that occur when the MOE approves a new air pollution emitter in a highly urbanized area already burdened with the accumulating effects of neighbouring existing emitters.

Miller, Gord, Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. Remarks on the release of the 2006/2007 Annual Report - "Reconciling Our Priorities". Legislative Media Studio, Queen's Park Toronto, Ontario: December 4, 2007. http://www.eco.on.ca/english/newsrel/2007/Remarks-annual-0607.pdf
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ANTI-SEALING BOOK FROZEN OUT OF ST. JOHN'S

A craft and book store in St. John's, Newfoundland won't sell an anti-sealing children's book written and self-published by Morgan Pumphrey. Littleseal is the story of a baby harp seal who survives various dangers but is killed by a sealer. According to a CBC News report, the President of Downhome Inc, Grant Young, said, "We're pro-sealing and this is an anti-sealing book. Maybe some people could call it censorship, but we call it standing by our beliefs." Pumphrey hopes to sell the book on the mainland and use the profits to support the International Fund for Animal Welfare IFAW in developing eco-tourism.

The book which is about 56 pages is not a picture book although it has a few line drawings. It has large print and lots of space for ease of reading. GL doesn't know what the intended audience of over 9 years old is reading these days but the book captures the life of a seal pup in the North Atlantic while also being a fairy tale (before fairy tales were sanitized so nobody ever got killed or harmed). Littleseal meets a wily walrus who is cooking up a big chowder pot and invites him and other sea life to 'Come and have a look' at the Mermaid Stew. Littleseal says no thanks but a crab and octopus are intrigued and the walrus tips them in. The walrus warns Littleseal, 'Beware of man, young seal. He is the enemy of all sea creatures.' In the end, death comes quickly as two sealers strike down both Littleseal and his friend Sniffy, to die bleeding on the ice. One sealer complains of the low price of pelts ($50 per seal) and the other answers as his sharp knife cuts into a seal pelt, 'Yes, b'y. It's the damn global warming. You'd cook in a fur coat in this heat.'

GL thought to share this story with our readers in celebration of the tenth anniversary of the publishing of the Gallon Environment Letter. Gary Gallon began publishing the Gallon Environment Letter in 1997 and when he died in 2003, we took it over with the aim to retain the informed but edgy approach. When Gary was alive, we didn't always agree with each other but that didn't stop our friendly relationship and ongoing often passionate discussions. It is that tolerance of a certain amount of opposing views that we try to continue to foster while pushing towards the goal of environmental protection. The reason this story caught our attention is that in 2001 Gary prepared a report on the economics of sealing in Newfoundland for IFAW who funded the work. The conclusions were that it was time for Newfoundland & Labrador and Atlantic Quebec to make the transition from seal hunting to information and high-tech industries, environment industries and tourism.

To order the book ISBN 0-921713-63-0: Morgan Pumphrey 61 Quidi Vidi Village St. John's, NL Canada A1A 1E9 Tel: 709 576-1136 email: mopumphrey[]yahoo.com To send email remove [] and replace with @

CBC News. St. John's store bans local author's anti-sealing children's book - November 28, 2007.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2007/11/28/book-sealing.html

Gallon, Gary. The Economics of the Canadian Sealing Industry Montreal, Quebec [no longer at this location]: CIBE, 2001. http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/dfiles/file_226.pdf
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All rights reserved. The Gallon Environment Letter (GL for short) presents information for general interest and does not endorse products, companies or practices. Information including articles, letters and guest columns may be from sources expressing opinions not shared by the Canadian Institute for Business and the Environment. Readers must verify all information for themselves before acting on it. Advertising or sponsorship of one or more issues consistent with sustainable development goals is welcome and identified as separate from editorial content. Subscriptions for organizations $184 + GST = $195.04 includes monthly Sustainable Technologies and Services Supplement STSS ; for individuals (non-organizational emails and paid with non-org funds please-does not include monthly STSS): $30 includes GST. Issues about fifteen times a year with supplements. http://www.cialgroup.com/subscription
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