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Can we keep lumber out of the landfill?

Anna Lamb-Yorski

July 08, 2021 |

Living Here |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Canada

Pollution caused by demolition is expected to be 2.2 billion tons by 2021. However, up to 75 percent of materials in a demolition can be recycled. An alternative method to demolition is deconstruction or unbuilding. The method always for lumber and other materials that are recyclable to be salvaged. Cities like Vancouver that have passed ordinances encouraging recycling saw results. One company, "Unbuilders," that specializes in deconstruction shows that using methods like tax receipts and appraisals can lead to both profit and better results for the environment.

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State employees work from home when threat of bad air quality looms

Sydney Glenn

June 22, 2021 |

KSTU-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

Under 3 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Salt Lake City, Utah

Although work-from-home was mostly a reaction in response to the pandemic, in Salt Lake City, Utah, the strategy has developed the potential to improve air quality. Most state employees are now required to telework certain days in order to help curb bad air quality days, and are given at least a 48-hour notice. During the pandemic, having close to 9,000 state employees stay home reduced pollution by 40 tons over the course of April 2020 to May 2021.

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Cleaning up Cambodia's kitchens could curb deforestation, climate change

Marissa Carruthers

June 22, 2021 |

Mongabay |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Cambodia

In Cambodia 2.5 million people use stoves fueled by forest biomass; charcoal and wood. The emissions caused by using biomass are extremely harmful not only to people but also to the environment. The emissions caused by biomass globally are equal to those of the aviation industry. To counter the problem, several organizations and companies are providing alternatives for Cambodian families like electric stoves. One company, Khmer Green Charcoal, created stoves that run on “clean” charcoal made from coconut shells. More than 6,500 households across the country have made the transition.

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Boise Is Tapping Into Free, Sustainable Energy - and Other Cities Could Follow Suit

Shiva Nagaraj

June 03, 2021 |

Next City |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boise, Idaho

In the late 1800s a local water company found hot springs in Boise. They decided to build pipes and transport the water to some nearby homes and towns to heat them, creating a geothermal heating system. In the 1980s, the city replicated this model at a larger scale. Water from a naturally hot aquifer flowed through pipes heating 100 large buildings Downtown, equivalent to more than 6 million square feet. Geothermal heating is completely clean, it requires no fossil fuels. Currently, there's only 23 geothermal districts in America. However, one study estimates that by 2050 there could be 17,500.

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A ski company built a power plant fueled by methane. It's a success, but can it be replicated?

Annie Gowen

May 28, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Somerset, Colorado

A ski company and oil and gas executive were able to work out a deal to turn the Elk Creek Mine into a power plant that puts out 24 million kilowatt hours a year and prevents hundreds of billions of methane each year from escaping into the atmosphere. The plant hasn’t made a profit yet for its investors and regulatory red tape could make it difficult to implement in other places, but officials say the plant has been successful and could be a way to combat climate change.

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Chiredzi-Mwenezi rural communities burn biogas to save trees

Lungelo Ndhlovu

May 19, 2021 |

The Chronicle |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Zimbabwe, Chiredzi

Rural communities in Bandama and Dungwe villages in Chiredzi and Mwenezi are using biogas technology to cook instead of cutting down trees for firewood. The technology relies on fermenting cow dung and using the material in biogas-specific stoves.

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How to Start (and Run) a Bank That Puts People and Planet Over Profits

Oscar Perry Abello

May 17, 2021 |

Next City |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

San Francisco-based New Resource Bank was launched with environmental sustainability lending as its niche. But it pursued easier profits for a time, risking its survival and mission until a new CEO turned its fortunes around with a laser focus on the original mission, bolstered by learning its borrowers' businesses intimately. The bank doubled in size and merged with a larger bank, making itself a model for mission-driven lending in such businesses as solar, wind energy, and organic foods – and by attracting institutional depositors and investors as interested in social change as they are in profits.

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‘Solar For All' Brings Clean Energy to Low- and Middle-Income DC Residents

Ambika Chawla

May 14, 2021 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

An initiative to bring solar power to public housing in D.C. is helping residents of Jubilee Housing. Community solar, which shares the electricity generated amongst multiple households, makes solar energy an affordable option. Solar credits can provide a significant relief to households that need it most.

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Turning oil platforms into reefs

Celestina Olulode

May 11, 2021 |

BBC |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Louisiana

After oil and gas platforms reach the end of their working lives, some are being turned into artificial reefs that can create new ecosystems in the ocean. Since the 1980s, 550 platforms have been reefed in the Gulf of Mexico and programs are springing up to help industry make the switch. These reefs can be home to fish and birds, and studies have shown that some species prefer these structures over their natural habitats. While not all environmentalists agree with leaving the platforms in the water, scientists are working to understanding how similar programs can be implemented in other parts of the world.

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The world's first 'infinite' plastic

Katherine Latham

May 11, 2021 |

BBC |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom

There are several chemical recycling methods being tested throughout the world, including one of the latest ones in the United Kingdom. Mura Technology is building the world’s first commercial-scale plant that can recycle all kinds of plastic and turn them into oil. Their method aims to process 80,000 tonnes of plastic waste every year once the plant opens in 2022. While some criticize that the chemical recycling process is very energy intensive and is not always profitable, the new Mura plant already has partnerships lined up with some plastic manufacturers.

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