Environment

Policy matters

Eu - Resource Efficiency

Tram depots: a blueprint for green building
12/12/2011
Five European cities define the cutting-edge in sustainable urban building with four innovative new tram depots A new series of tram depots offers an answer to the challenge of building new public infrastructure both essential for urban development and constrained by stringent environmental,...
Steel supply chain innovations deliver green benefits
19/09/2011
A better integrated supply chain and consumption-based accounting would enable more efficient use of steel and less waste, so helping reduce the industry’s environmental footprint. The steel sector needs to think about how it can provide the same services with less steel, Julian Allwood from...
Sweden sees big biogas potential in waste
28/07/2011
Anaerobic digestion of food waste could double Sweden’s biogas production and reduce environmental damage by cutting methane emissions from landfill suggests a government strategy. Swedish government agencies representing energy, agriculture and the environment have made a strong case for large...
28/07/2011
A report from the European Commission Joint Research Centre indicates that environmental improvements in residential buildings could result in overall greenhouse gas emission reductions of 7%. The JRC IMPRO-Building report suggests that such reductions could be achieved without incurring...
Cities setting standards in eco-innovation
02/05/2011
Curitiba is Brazil’s seventh largest city and ‘green capital’. One of the best examples of green urban planning, it shows a city can minimise its environmental impact and be attractive. Eco-innovation is usually applied to products, not cities. Yet the planning achievements of Curitiba and...
Nanotechnology and environmental performance: what lies beyond the shiny promises?
07/02/2011
The nanotechnology industry has over-promised and under-delivered according to Friends of the Earth, which proposes taking a precautionary approach to nanotechnology products. Nanotechnology has the potential to deliver novel approaches and transform the economy, although at a significant...
Reducing the environmental impact of agriculture through biotechnology
24/01/2011
Biotechnology can play a major role in helping farmers overcome challenges such as protecting crops against insects, weeds and disease, as well as battling vagaries of the weather. Much can be achieved without resorting to environmentally-harmful products and processes or over-reliance on...
Waste is food: going all the way on sustainability
27/10/2010
Ten European regions have created a network to share best practice in waste prevention and management by applying the cradle-to-cradle concept for sustainable development. The idea that there is no such thing as waste, only raw materials yet to be put to good use, underpins the cradle-to-cradle...
EU strategy on track for clean vehicles
21/10/2010
The European Commission has proposed a new strategy to address the EU’s fossil-fuel dependency, accelerate development of clean automotive technologies and promote mass-market uptake. Announced in April 2010, the strategy builds on the European Green Cars Initiative – one of three private-...
Laying the foundations for sustainable construction
28/04/2010
Reclaimed and sustainable construction materials could lead to a more eco-friendly building sector. By using such materials developers can reduce emissions and save energy. If Europe is to meet its goal of reducing emissions and energy consumption by at least 20% by 2020, the sustainability of...

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