UK unveils CO2 footprint standard.
| UK unveils CO2 footprint standard. A new standard that allows UK firms to measure the size of their goods’ carbon footprints has been launched. |
| University Team Helps Nissan Unveil its Green Future We all are familiar with the reality of fossil fuels, their side effects, soaring prices and their impact on common man who cares to drive an automobile.A Sunderland University team is working tirelessly to create a hydrogen powered car. It will be a significant step forward in developing a mass produced green vehicle. It [.] |
| New Conservation Incentives for Private Forest Owners Private forest owners and farmers here in North Carolina recently got some good news. Landowners who manage their lands for wildlife and conservation benefits can now enroll those lands at the same lower tax rate paid by landowners engaged in commercial forestry, agriculture or horticulture. The tax inequity ended this past summer when North Carolina’s General Assembly approved House Bill 1889.That’s good news for all of us, not just forest owners and farmers. North Carolina leads the nation in the loss of farmland, and 100,000 acres of forests disappear annually from the state. Property tax relief means fewer landowners will be forced to sell their land because of high tax bills. Keeping these lands in the hands of conservation-minded owners provides public benefits, including more wildlife habitat and improved water quality.Other good news goes beyond North Carolina. Thanks to the work of the Forests in the Farm Bill Coalition—which our CCI staff helped create—private forest owners nationwide are getting some overdue attention in the new Farm Bill. The new bill allows up to 1.2 million acres of forests to be enrolled in the Conservation Stewardship Program, a program previously off limits to forest owners (and known as the Conservation Security Program). Changes to other USDA programs increase conservation incentives opportunities by expanding forestland eligibility, raising funding levels in some programs and offering new initiatives. Britt Lundgren summarizes these changes in another article in this issue.  One of many ecosystem services that forests provide is clean water. (Photo: Will McDow/EDF) With growing concern about climate change, forest landowners are looking at new markets for sequestering carbon and the use of biomass as an energy source. CCI staff are actively engaged in creating meaningful carbon offset standards that reward family forest owners for sequestering carbon. We are testing some of these standards through place-based projects in the field with the goal of helping forest landowners, protecting the climate and bolstering conservation through the emerging carbon market.Finally, forest landowners in some regions of the South are already taking part in the emerging wood biomass energy market. These landowners aren’t yet getting much financial return from wood biomass, but they do get cleaner harvest sites and lower site preparation costs. CCI staff are working to ensure that this emerging market rewards landowners, protects water quality, enhances wildlife habitat and contributes to new carbon neutral energy sources.CCI has been hard at work the last few months creating new conservation incentives for forest landowners. With these new tools in the conservation toolbox, we look forward to more opportunities and rewards for farmers and forest owners who protect wildlife, enhance water quality and help solve our climate crisis.Will McDow |
| Denver Recycles Begins Residential Compost Pilot Denver Recycles is asking Denver residents to sign up for a new residential composting pilot program for yard debris, food and soiled paper. The program will test collection services at 3,300 Denver homes. Each home will be provided with a green, 65-gallon composting cart and a small kitchen pail to collect organic material inside the home. Carts will be serviced biweekly through the winter. Learn more. |