Category Archives: Sustainability

Is exporting shale gas in the US national interest ?

In an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal (February 25,2013) , Andrew Livieres, CEO of Dow Chemical, suggests that permitting exports of shale gas, currently in abundant supply in the US, is not in the national interest. He argues … Continue reading

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Federal labeling standards for GMO foods ?

An article in the New York Times (January 31,2013) describes a move by food manufacturers and retailers like Wal-Mart to urge the FDA to propose labeling standards for food. Their reason, proposed state level labeling initiatives by 20 states. In … Continue reading

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Tracking lead batteries recycling supply chain from the US to Mexico

An article in the New York Times (February 9,2013) describes lax tracking of the recycling of lead batteries exported from the US to Mexico. In the absence of treatment of used batteries as hazardous waste, shipments into Mexico are not … Continue reading

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The overturning of E.P.A.’s mandate for biofuel use and associated questions

An article in the New York Times (January 26, 2013) describes the overturning of a mandate by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding use of “liquids made from woody crops and wastes in car a truck fuels”. But the lack … Continue reading

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“Earth’s Balance Sheet” discussion by Nestle

A discussion with Nestle’s Jose Lopez (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulB-ETDI2wA) focuses on the idea of the Earth’s balance sheet, a concept described by Solomon Darwin in (http://openinnovation.berkeley.edu/Solomon_Darwin_Balance_Sheet_Earth_Executive_Summary.pdf). The idea is to account for the assets that are removed from the earth and not … Continue reading

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The promise for US gas exports in the future and current plans – a dream or a likely outcome

An article in the New York Times (January 4, 2013) describes worries that the promise of US natural gas exports may falter. Currently, US natural gas prices are reported to be $3.30 per thousand cubic feet, while prices in Asia … Continue reading

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Regulate sulphur content of ship fuels or offer more incentives in Hong Kong?

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (January 14,2013) describes the low sulphur content fuel (0.5 percent sulphur), which is 14% of permissible limits, used by the Maersk shipping line. The Hong Kong port offers a 50% reduction in port costs, but that … Continue reading

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Should the US government permit recycling of scrap metal from nuclear sites?

An article in the Wall Street Journal (January 17,2013) describes a plan by the US government to release scrap metal from nuclear sites. The scrap is described as containing low enough levels of radioactivity – comparable to exposures in a … Continue reading

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The internet of things and supply chain impact

An article in Wired magazine (December 2012) describes the low price points to make physical objects wen enabled. A WeMo switch enables an outlet to be controlled through the internet, thus enabling a temperature triggered adjustment of cooling. Decentralized Geiger … Continue reading

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Setting up a supply chain of transformers to transmit power during a grid failure

An article in the New York Times (November 16,2012) describes a recently unclassified National Academy report describing the vulnerability of the US power grid. Solutions described include custom step up and step down generators to maintain transmission across the grid … Continue reading

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