This week, there was big news in the energy sector right here in the U.S. of A. as California-based Bloom Energy announced their new fuel cell technology that could provide affordably, relatively clean energy. Large corporations including Bank of America, Wal-Mart, and Google have been testing the device that has been eight years in the making and finally unveiled on Wednesday.
(In fact Green Chip's own Chris Nelder shared some interesting insight this week regarding the Bloom Box and the quest for energy's Holy Grail, as he calls it. This is an important development in the energy sector, no doubt, and Chris gives us some things to ponder as we continue to search for methods and resources by which to balance energy supply and demand in the next few years and beyond... )
Also on U.S. soil, Texas-based utility TXU Energy announced they would be making rooftop solar panels available for purchase and lease for Dallas and nearby residents. TXU currently provides to two million customers, and will partner with SolarCity, a start-up from Silicon Valley, for this initiative. SolarCity CEO Lyndon Rive says of the initiative, "Our vision is to supply solar power to millions of homes and businesses... [and] the only way to achieve this is by partnering with companies that are providing power today. If we can partner with energy providers, adoption will happen much faster."
And on the international stage, Jimmy Mengel covered the latest in genetically-engineered foods as India is introduced to the first "Frankenfood" the nation has ever seen: eggplant. The GM eggplant — named Bt brinjal — is modified with a soil bacteria gene, making it more resistant to many of the pests responsible for the crop failures... but public outcry has forced the crop's release to be halted until the eggplant can be proven safe and gains support from consumers, environmentalists, and farmers.
The United Nations released the results of a report conducted by Trucost, a London-based consulting group, that assessed the environmental use, damage, and loss by 3,000 of the world's largest corporations. The report, which will be officially published in May, pegged the price of corporations' toll on the environment at $2.2 trillion a year.
While the heated debate regarding the taxation of environmental damage by firms continues behind closed doors, the UN plans to release another report later this year that will attempt to put a monetary value on the damage corporations have done to the environment, as well as offer suggestions to prevent and improve these kinds of practices.
Finally, Green Chip Living posed the question to ever-battling business and the environment this week, "Is it time for a truce?"
A report from the Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEP) claims that we are poised to enter a new era of "natural capital." As the report states, "Evidence presented here shows pro-conservation choices to be a matter of economic common sense." Numerous countries in Europe and around the globe have begun implementing practice supported by this notion of natural capital.
Feel free to catch up on what our editors have been writing about this week, and as always, look for GCL coverage of the green sector next week.
Enjoy your weekend,
Brigid
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