Sustainability | I Commit to Green Blog

22 Feb 2012

February Frugal Feast, 5-Star Restaurant Style

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Sasha Lyutse, Policy Analyst, New York

Our last Frugal Feast host really threw down the gauntlet, creating a gorgeous home-cooked meal for a dozen of our friends for less than $5 a plate. But this month’s host was unfazed to say the least. I’ll let his menu speak for itself:

Saffron-popped corn, topped with olive oil and chile flakes
Chuko-inspired crispy kale salad with baked kale leaves, cannellini beans, homemade sweet potato chips and dragon sauce
Reverse winter risotto with butternut squash and parsnip cubes, Arborio rice sauce, green beans, baby portabellas, garlic confit and balsamic drizzle
Chianti poached bosc pears for dessert, with mascarpone, cinnamon, vanilla and brown sugar

All for $5 dollars a person. And almost entirely vegan. I’ll give you a moment to collect yourself.

Participating in this meal (and daydreaming about it ever since) made me think of a recent post in Grist that issues the following challenge to chefs: Make me a delicious vegetarian entree — or stop claiming to care about sustainability.

More and more restaurants are focusing on sustainability, even using how and where their ingredients are produced as major selling points. This includes boasting about the sustainably produced meats and dairy products used in their menus.

Don’t get me wrong, this is an awesome development. I believe it is absolutely critical that we as consumers support—and build healthy markets for—livestock farmers who are producing meats, cheeses, and eggs with real stewardship of their land and animals and respect for their workers. But even the most sustainably-produced meat dishes come with a greater environmental footprint than dishes made from ingredients that are lower on the food chain.

As the Grist piece points out, that’s why a key component of “conscientious omnivorism” (I prefer Mark Bittman’s “flexitarianism”) is eating meat sparingly. And with recent polls showing that a full one-third of Americans regularly eat meatless meals—on top of the 5% of Americans who are vegans or vegetarians—it’s high time for beautiful, healthful, and delicious vegetarian dishes to have their moment.

If our February Frugal Feast host can do it in a small Brooklyn kitchen, then New York City’s finest chefs can too. So I echo Grist’s call:

“You say you care about sustainability? Prove it. Add to your menu a vegetarian entrée so appealing that even omnivores won’t be able to resist. I dare you.”

And if you need inspiration, just let us Feasters know.

22 Feb 2012

NRDC Work on Apple Computer’s Supply Chain

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Linda Greer, Director, Health and Environment Program, Washington, D.C.

As Apple moves forward to address environmental problems in its supply chain, the opportunity is wide open to become a model for other companies to follow.

As USA Today reports, Apple is moving forward with the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (IPE), a Chinese NGO, to address environmental problems in factories in its supply chain in China. The company has already put corrective actions in place in more than a dozen factories and is gearing up to identify and then address other existing environmental problems elsewhere.

Cynics are probably right that none of this would have happened unless Apple got in trouble. IPE released a detailed report in September on more than a dozen factories in Apple’s supply chain that had been cited by government officials for environmental compliance problems, (The Other Side of Apple II).

As those of us who have worked in China heartily agree: by the time government cites a factory for environmental discharge problems, things are probably pretty bad. So this list of violators caught everyone’s attention, including Apple executives.

However, I think most people would also agree that if Apple can get this right, a lot of companies will follow.

That’s why we jumped into this with both feet. After four years of work in China in other sectors, I can tell you that it is not easy to find motivated and highly functioning international entities of any sort to solve the environmental problems caused by globalization.

As I have found to be the case with almost all companies, Apple’s corporate responsibility programs now fall short of what is necessary to effectively address egregious environmental problems. But the company is stepping up. It is too early to say what its effort will amount to, but I have found there a genuine desire to get on top of this problem and get the job done right starting now. And the company is certainly capable of taking this on and becoming a model for other multi-nationals operating in the wild, wild east (The Ugly Side of Globalization).

So, what does serious 2012-level work to curtail environmental supply chain problems look like?

Pay attention, other multi-national corporations, because few if any of you are doing this!! Your day of reckoning is probably not too far behind:

The multi-national corporation has mapped its supply chain and knows the factories that make its stuff – all the way from beginning to end. In this mapping exercise, it has identified the chemicals used and released and spotted the likely environmental “hot spots” – places that use large quantities of energy, water, and/or toxic chemicals – to concentrate focus where things matter the most.
The multi-national corporation is routinely tracking and monitoring environmental performance of these factories at scale. Not a pilot program of a handful of facilities – I’m talking about all, or at least a critical mass, of their strategically important suppliers.
The multi-national corporation requires that factories address violations or problems expeditiously and inspects improvements to verify they are really in place.
The multi-national corporation disqualifies repeat violators with significant violations from doing further business with the multi-national.
The multi-national corporation requires its factories to routinely disclose information on significant environmental matters to the general public, and to create a means of communicating back and forth with their local communities so that complaints are heard, recorded, and addressed promptly.

All of this is basic stuff for companies still operating in America; those who have not ventured abroad likely find this list to be a ho-hum, obvious set of cornerstones of a basic environmental compliance program. However, this agenda is far, far, far from the scope of the Corporate Social Responsibility/Sustainability departments in most if not all multi-national firms today. (More on that in a future blog).

So, headline news: Apple is stepping forward to take the first bites of this work. (I hereby knight the Apple logo with an important second meaning.) The company already has 14 in-depth audits of factories that IPE reported with problems and has required corrective actions. From there, Apple says it will scale up its routine audit processes to find any other existing problems and put policies and programs in place to prevent new problems from arising. The company is even willing to engage in investigating paths forward for public disclosure.

If we succeed, it could be a real game changer for environmental protection in China.

So, fingers crossed, wish us luck. I’ll be in touch on how it goes.

22 Feb 2012

Can US communities learn from this European suburban retrofit?

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Kaid Benfield, Director, Sustainable Communities, Washington, DC

In 2008, the substantially updated town center of Plessis-Robinson, a suburb of Paris, was named “the best urban neighborhood built in the last 25 years” by the European Architecture Foundation. A composite of six connected districts ranging in size from 5.6 to 59 acres, the revitalization comprises public buildings, retail, market-rate and subsidized affordable housing, parks, schools, gardens, sports facilities, and a hospital. Construction was begun in 1990 and took a decade to complete.

From the beginning, the concept was to develop a highly walkable environment, while using locally sourced materials as much as possible, and preserving wetland habitat. The town as a whole now contains seven parks and gardens amounting to over 120 acres of protected green space. (There are also three industrial and technology zones housing many of the town’s 240 companies and 11,000 employees.) Architecturally grounded in traditional French forms, the rebuilt sections look much as if they have been there for years.

The Eco Compact City Network, a European forum for municipalities, developers, architects, and other practitioners interested in green urbanism, describes the intention behind the transformation:

"The construction of the new urban centre is part of a particular town planning policy which the Municipality of Plessis-Robinson developed at the beginning of the 90s in order to start a virtuous process of transformation of a typical suburban settlement into a true urban environment. The project of [master planner] François Spoerry develops an attitude towards the creation of a hierarchy-oriented urban fabric in a regional style which strongly contributes to establish a clear identity in an suburban settlement which has chaotically grown up in the periphery of a large metropolis like the Franch capital.

"Being conceived as a model for future similar interventions of urban renaissance, the re-urbanisation plan has proven to be highly successful among the residents. While the reduced budget of [subsidized affordable] housing settlements did not allow the use of marble and stone, the extreme attention paid in the design process has led to a remarkable result of balance between the richness of details and the global coherence of the whole."

I first wrote about Plessis-Robinson back in 2009, after it had won top honors in the Phillipe Rotthier European Prize competition, selected by a jury of international architects and urbanists. I cited one of my fellow travelers in urbanist circles, Laurence Aurbach, who had previously written this about the project’s green features:

“Plessis-Robinson’s style of sustainability emphasizes parks and flowers, clean water, recycling, compact and walkable urban design, transit, nonpolluting vehicles, and green technical and administrative procedures for city government.”

The town is now not only significantly green but, as you can see, also immensely photogenic. American suburban communities currently contemplating transformative updates, such as Dublin, Ohio, parts of Prince George’s County, Maryland, and parts of Silicon Valley in California might do well to take note.

Under French law governing municipalities, Plessis-Robinson is a commune, sitting about 6.5 miles from the heart of Paris. In the satellite images, you see the town in relation to central Paris (with the centrally located Cathedral Notre Dame and Eiffel Tower marked for reference). And you see the area covered by the commune (about 1.3 square miles total), along with the more central revitalized portion. Its population was estimated at 26,581 in 2009.

Plessis-Robinson is served by bus transit and, about a mile from the center of town, the RER, the excellent regional rail system that serves Paris and its surroundings (there is a shuttle from P-R). Residents of the northeastern portion of the town are within comfortable walking distance to the rail station. Several new tram lines are also reportedly in the works.

Aurbach writes that, as of 1989 when a progressive mayor was elected (you see him in the video below), “three-quarters of the city’s residential stock was dilapidated public housing.” Some of the housing was renovated and some was demolished to make way for the new development, which continues to include affordable housing but now within a mixed-income, mixed-use community.

The town’s official website (in French) highlights its commitment to sustainable development, including walkable architecture, low-emission vehicles, water recycling, green space, a municipal tree registry, and accountability to the public.

There is reported history in the area now known as Plessis-Robinson dating as far back as 839, according to the town’s Wikipedia entry. The building that is now the Town Hall was built in the 17th century. Plessis was a popular weekend getaway for Parisians in the nineteenth century, and a more recent building boom took place after the turn of the 20th century.

Below is a terrific video showing the town’s progress. It’s in French but has great visuals and is highly informative even if you don’t speak the language. It looks like a great place to live:

Le Plessis-Robinson : Cœur de ville, l’école ANATOLE FRANCE (359) - kewego

Move your cursor over the images for credit information.

Kaid Benfield writes (almost) daily about community, development, and the environment. For more posts, see his blog's home page. Please also visit NRDC’s Sustainable Communities Video Channel.

22 Feb 2012

China Environmental News Alert

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Greenlaw from NRDC China, NRDC China Program, Beijing

NRDC has been working in China for over fifteen years on such issues as energy efficiency, green buildings, clean energy technologies, environmental governance and public participation, and green supply chain issues. This China Environmental News Alert is a weekly compilation of news from around the world on China and the environment.

February 14, 2012 – February 22, 2012

Chinese Electric Car Pollution More Harmful to Humans Than Gas Cars: In China, an electric car revolution may have actually worsened air quality

Chicago Tribune (February 14, 2012)

In China, where there are more than 100 million electrically-powered scooters and cars, alternatively-powered vehicles may be worse for the environment than gasoline-powered vehicles, according to a report released Monday by a team from the University of Tennessee. The problem in China comes from the way most electricity is generated--more than 75 percent of power in China is generated by coal. So, rather than look at vehicle-emissions alone, where electric cars easily beat gas- and diesel-powered cars, the researchers studied the environmental impact of the whole power chain.

Urumqi to invest heavily to cut air pollution

Xinhua (February 15, 2012)

China's northwestern city of Urumqi plans to invest 4.45 billion yuan this year to curb air pollution. The money will fund 16 projects which include a major overhaul of the city's heating system -- especially the demolition of 5,000 small coal-firing furnaces for winter heating -- and improving air emission treatment for 30 big polluting factories, according to a proposed budget submitted for approval at the ongoing local congressional meeting.

Worsening air pollution costs China dearly: study

Reuters (February 15, 2012)

China's worsening air pollution, after decades of unbridled economic growth, cost the country $112 billion in 2005 in lost economic productivity, a study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has found. The figure, which also took into account people's lost leisure time because of illness or death, was $22 billion in 1975. The study, published in the journal Global Environmental Change, measured the harmful effects of two air pollutants: ozone and particulates, which can lead to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

South Pole protection law to be introduced

Xinhua (February 16, 2012)

A regulation covering human activity in the Antarctic, to protect the fragile environment, is set to be introduced. Activities, including scientific research, tourism, exploration, fishing and transportation in the South Pole must get government approval, according to a draft regulation by the Chinese Arctic and Antarctic Administration. The draft rule also bans nuclear and military activities as well as mineral mining. Any application must be accompanied with an assessment report of the possible environmental consequences and polluting the South Pole could result in hefty fines or travel bans to the region and any environmental damage must be corrected, if possible.

China, US join hands to tackle climate challenges

China Daily (February 16, 2012)

As part of the business delegation led by visiting Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping, Yonker Environment Protection Institute (Yonker EPI) signed three memorandums of understanding (MOU) with US entities at Monday's ceremony in Washington. The three US entities, Milwaukee Water Council, Hazen and Sawyer, and Ze-Gen, that signed MOUs with the Yonker EPI are US leading providers of services that resolve environmental issues not simply from an end treatment approach but from a sustainable approach.

Inner Mongolia halts 467 mining projects

China Daily (February 18, 2012)

Authorities in North China's resource-rich Inner Mongolia autonomous region halted 467 illegal mining projects last year in a region-wide overhaul mainly aimed to ensure work safety and environmental friendliness of the mining sector. The regional land and resources bureau checked about 9,000 mining projects in the months-long overhaul, halting 467 illegal projects, ordering 887 mines to suspend operations and permanently shutting down 73 mines. In a bid to build "harmonious mines," the government defused 100 disputes between local herders and mining companies last year while establishing an effective mechanism among the government, mines, and local residents to settle mining disputes through dialogue.

China plans faster growth in western regions

Xinhua (February 20, 2012)

The State Council said Monday that it has approved a plan aimed at accelerating development in the western regions through the end of 2015, a move to further narrow the country's development gap among different areas. The development plan for western regions set development goals concerning economic growth, infrastructure construction, ecological environment, public service, and people's living standards that are much higher than that of the economically-developed coastal and eastern regions.

Apple plans environmental audits of China suppliers

USA Today (February 20, 2012)

Apple has told prominent environmental activists in the U.S. and China that it will soon allow independent environmental reviews of at least two suppliers' factories in China. The reviews come as Apple faces rising criticism about toxic pollution and factory injuries at overseas suppliers' factories. Environmental examinations would be separate from an independent probe of working conditions at the Chinese factories of Apple suppliers including Foxconn Technology that began last week.

Measuring China's pollution from space

The Guardian (February 20, 2012)

A team of researchers at Yale and Columbia Universities, along with Battelle Memorial Institute, recently used satellite readings to produce data on fine particulate concentrations in Chinese provinces. While these satellite measurements are not perfect, they provide the first estimates of ground-level annual average concentrations of the pollutant PM 2.5 for all of China over the last decade. Scientific instruments aboard the satellites assess Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) in order to measure PM 2.5.

Chinese manufacturer to open bear farm to quell criticism

China Daily (February 22, 2012)

A Chinese manufacturer of bear bile products said Tuesday that it will open one of its bear farms to the media Wednesday morning, a move aimed at quelling public criticism of its operations and planned initial public offering (IPO). Guizhentang Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, which makes medicine using bile extracted from live bears, has been attacked over the last couple of weeks for what animal rights activists have referred to as "brutal bile extraction." Founded in 2000 and based in east China's Fujian province, Guizhentang is among the country's largest producers of bear bile products, according to the company's website.

(CENA prepared by Christina Whang)

* The links and article summaries in this post are provided for informational purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Natural Resources Defense Council.

See our bilingual (English and Chinese) blog dedicated to discussion of China's environmental law, policy and public participation at http://www.greenlaw.org.cn

21 Feb 2012

New York Takes First Step to Help Protect Shark Populations Worldwide

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Sarah Chasis, Senior Attorney and Director, Ocean Initiative, New York

Today, New York Assembly Members Alan Maisel and Grace Meng announced the beginning of an important effort to help restore shark populations worldwide. Their bill, A.7707a/S.6431, which is sponsored in the Senate by Senator Grisanti, would end New York’s contribution to the global shark fin trade. Like the bills signed into law this past October in California and other West Coast states, it will help stop the devastating decline in shark populations.

Sharks have swum in the oceans for over 400 million years, and yet our actions now are pushing many species to the brink of collapse. The demand for shark fins, traditionally viewed as a symbol of status and wealth, drives the practice of finning, which accounts for the slaughter of between 26 and 73 million sharks every year. Shark finning, the practice of cutting the fins off living sharks and dumping them back into the ocean, often while they are still alive, is wasteful and cruel and it occurs because the shark fins are vastly more valuable than the rest of the shark. Existing laws that ban the practice of finning in U.S. waters are not enough to address the harvest of shark fins, most of which are taken from sharks around the world, processed in Asian, then shipped to their destinations – including New York. The best way to stop this practice is to reduce the demand for shark fins.

The global decline of sharks has serious implication for the health of marine ecosystems. As an apex predator, when shark populations plummet, overall ocean health can be dramatically affected in negative and unpredictable ways. California, Oregon and Washington, along with Hawaii and the Territory of Guam have already acted to ban the shark fin trade and help stop the unsustainable killing of sharks. With the introduction of A.7707a/S.6431, New York takes a first step towards similar protection.

NRDC applauds the work of the Assembly and Senate members and the coalition that has come together in support of this bill. Sharks need immediate protection from the fin trade, and we are eager for New York to join the growing list of states that have taken action.

21 Feb 2012

Burning trees for power in the Southeast would increase carbon pollution for decades

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Sasha Lyutse, Policy Analyst, New York

A new study examining the climate impacts of using biomass to produce electricity in the Southeast adds to a growing body of science challenging the notion that all biomass is carbon-neutral, concluding that burning trees in the region's power plants would increase carbon emissions for decades.

The study, conducted by the Biomass Energy Resource Center in partnership with the Forest Guild and Spatial Informatics Group, looks at the energy demand of 22 39 existing and proposed biopower facilities in the Southeast and asks how the carbon emissions impacts of meeting that demand by burning biomass would compare to using coal or natural gas.

The conclusion is clear:

“Based on current trends….biomass energy in the Southeast is projected to produce higher levels of atmospheric carbon for 35 to 50 years compared to fossil fuels.”

It is important to note that this is the amount of time it takes for the biopower facilities to pay back their initial carbon “debt” relative to fossil fuels. It is only after this payback period that biopower results in lower atmospheric carbon than fossil fuel alternatives.

A 50-year carbon debt is unacceptable. And this finding is not an outlier. The study’s conclusions are consistent with a comparable analysis in the Northeast conducted by the Manomet Center for Conservation Science, which found that between the release of carbon when trees are burned and the slow re-absorption of carbon out of the atmosphere as new trees re-grow, biopower production would increase emissions compared to coal for 40 years.

Like giant lungs, our forests absorb vast amounts of carbon out of the atmosphere every day. This makes forests one of our best defenses against global warming—one Americans rely on to offset 13% of our annual greenhouse gas emissions.

Unfortunately, energy policies have largely ignored this vital benefit, instead identifying forests as a source of supposedly “renewable” fuel for power production. This is based on the false assumption that all biomass is carbon-neutral—meaning that it eventually re-grows and so completely balances the production and use of carbon, resulting in zero net emissions. As a result, demand for biomass is growing rapidly as power companies come under increased pressure to find alternatives to fossil fuels. [To get the basics on biomass and the risks of burning our forests to produce electricity, check out our fact sheet and video animation.]

So why does this matter? And why does it matter right now?

It’s critical that we transition quickly from burning dirty fossil fuels like coal to clean, renewable energy resources like wind, solar, and low-carbon sources of biomass that can scale up sustainably and deliver real carbon savings soon. Near-term reductions in carbon emissions are needed to stabilize atmospheric GHG concentrations at 450 parts per million (in carbon dioxide equivalent units) and limit expected global warming to 2 degrees Celsius. Beyond that, we risk crossing so-called “tipping points”, at which point scientists increasingly believe that dangerous impacts may become inevitable. This means we simply cannot afford to wait multiple decades for biopower systems to start delivering carbon benefits.

This new study comes at a time when policies regarding accounting for biomass carbon emissions are front and center. As part of its Clean Air Act permitting of large GHG-emitting facilities, the EPA is developing a framework for accounting for the carbon emitted when large power plants burn biomass. As we discussed here, the expert science panel charged with advising EPA in this process issued a clear and unequivocal rejection of the idea that biomass can automatically be treated as carbon-neutral. It also reinforced the notion that EPA must evaluate the incremental carbon impact of a given biomass-burning facility from the perspective of the atmosphere rather than just giving facilities carbon credit “on spec” for biomass re-growth they claim will happen in the future.

Here, the analytic methods used in both the Southeastern and Manomet studies are instructive. To examine the atmospheric effects of regional biopower generation, both developed a “business-as-usual” baseline and then projected the carbon emissions impact of different scenarios in which electricity was created either from woody biomass or fossil fuels.

In contrast, instead of evaluating the incremental carbon emissions impact of biomass-burning facilities, EPA’s proposed accounting framework evaluates carbon emissions from bioenergy production against a single reference point baseline set according to regional, land-based carbon stocks. If written into policy, this approach would do little to tell us what would have happened to carbon in the atmosphere or on the land absent bioenergy—and so could not accurately reflect the carbon impact of bioenergy production.

The authors of the Southeastern study speak to this issue directly:

“This is a more dynamic approach than was recommended in EPA’s accounting framework for biogenic sources released in September 2011. Although, EPA acknowledged the “comparative” approach used in this study as a more comprehensive accounting method, it chose a “reference point” approach because of the perceived difficulties and challenges in applying a more dynamic approach to actual situations in the field. This study provides an example of how more dynamic accounting can be accomplished and should be considered by EPA in its carbon accounting deliberations.”

With a rapidly growing bioenergy industry adding substantial new demand for biomass to the existing market for forest products, the pressure on our forests has never been greater—particularly in regions like the Southeast. This new study highlights the dangers of burning whole trees for energy and underscores the importance of sound biomass carbon accounting if we are to address the challenges posed by climate change. It’s critical that these scientific advancements be reflected in bioenergy policies at the state and federal level.

The bottom line is that we need to change course now to avoid locking ourselves and future generations into a dangerously disrupted climate. This means finding every way we can to promote clean, homegrown energy sources that maximize climate benefits. This includes supporting investments in the 21st century biopower plants that help create jobs and protect our air and forests instead of destroying them. But regulations that ignore the carbon released when biomass is burned distort the marketplace towards highly unsustainable sources of biomass like whole trees that will increase carbon emissions for decades. We can’t afford it.

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