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Michael Urie, from ABC's 'Ugly Betty' rides on a specially designed Snowmobike in the Duracell Power Lodge at the Charmin Restrooms, literally powering 2009

Duracell Batteries charged with Pedal Power will light Times Square this New Year’s.

Want to do more than just ring in the New Year?  How about actually helping to power the “2009″ lights in Times Square?  You can thanks to Duracell.

Duracell is putting out an open call, inviting energetic folks to the Duracell Power Lodge at the Charmin Restrooms at 1514 Broadway, Times Square to hop on a snowmobike to generate power. The snowmobikes operate through rotary technology very much like a windmill, turning kinetic energy into electrical energy. From there, power is routed into the Duracell Battery Center where it will be stored until New Year’s Eve and trusted to light the night’s most important moment.

“At Duracell we are always looking for new and innovative ways to store energy for consumers to power their important moments,” said Rick June, vice president and general manager, North America. “The Duracell Power Lodge is a giant example of the work we do every day. This time the battery is bigger and we’re storing people power to light up the 2009 display when the world famous New Year’s Ball drops in Times Square at midnight. Our guests in New York will truly be powering the New Year with Duracell.”

In addition to the bikes, the Lodge has recharging stations for your portable devices as well as video games set up for the kids.  Learn More

Duracell’s parent company Procter & Gambel has many sutainability iniciatives underway.

Northeast Acorn Drought
Enormous swaths of oaks in the Northeast are taking a year off from producing acorns, and scientists aren’t quite sure why. The nut shortage appears to be a periodic blip in the life cycle of oak trees, and one that is already beginning to have dire consequences for animals such as chipmunks and mice that feed on acorns. It is also bringing new annoyances for gardeners, as squirrels and chipmunks dig into gardens to get at bulbs or other protein sources.

This year’s acorn drought could mean that there isn’t enough food to go around. Researchers expect that many small animals will die from lack of food, and deer and bears may venture closer to houses looking for a meal. Already, scientists in New York are noticing a die-off of chipmunks and white-footed mice because of the lack of acorns there.  Full story at Boston.com

Leave a little extra birdseed outside this season in the Northeast to help the little critters through it helps balance the natural variation a bit.

Earth911.com 11/29/08 1:34 PM Francine Hardaway Uncategorized UNFCCC Comments

Environmentalists – Killing goats to spite the Galapagos ecosystem

Scientists from the Charles Darwin Research Center have undertaken what they call Project Isabela – a lovely name for a questionable project. Project Isabela is a massive endeavor to eliminate the ever-growing population of goats that were introduced to the islands as livestock. Since the project began over 150,000 goats have been killed. Although the killing methods have drastically improved with the use of sharpshooters wielding American-made rifles, many critics and animal rights activists are up in arms.

People involved in the project are quick to point out that the ecosystem of the Galapagos islands is arguably the most fragile in the world, and that the livestock are threatening the delicate balance that exists there. However, it’s hardly the goats’ fault for being shipped there by humans with good intentions but little forethought.

You can find out more from Treehugger.com.

Los Angeles to do yet another thing BIG – Solar Energy

Antonio Villaraigosa, mayor of Los Angeles, unveiled an ambitious plan that calls for installingsolar panels on residents’ rooftops to meet 10 percent of the city’s energy needs by the year 2020.

“Our solar initiative is the largest of any kind anywhere in the world. When it takes full effect, L.A. will have 1,280 megawatts more capacity — more than exists in the entire United States today,” said the mayor.

It is only estimated to cost LA residents two dollars a month! The project’s estimated completion will be in 2014. According to the mayor’s office, every 10 megawatts of solar power could potentially create 200 to 400 jobs.

For more info, check out the Environmental News Network at enn.com. The full article is here:

Washington approves EPA Coal Mining debris policy

According to the New York Times, the Bush administration, while pretending to extend the olive branch to the incoming Obama administration, has begun enacting policies Obamanites object to.

One of their first moves was to approve a new EPA regulation on coal mining which will allow coal companies to dump excess mining debris from the Appalachian Mountains into nearby streams. While the EPA has said that they have revised the rule to protect wildlife, environmentalists are loudly criticizing the policy, saying it will accelerate the destruction of the Appalachian area’s forests, streams, wildlife, etc.

The full article is here:

Today’s Feature Story
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be meeting for 12 days to try to nail down proposals for its 2009 Copenhagen meeting, at which an ambitious political agreement on how to deal with climate change is expected to be crafted.

This will be complicated. There are 183 Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (a treaty to the UNFCCC), which the U.S. did not sign. The UNFCCC itself has 192 Parties (the U.S. is a Party here).  In Poznań, new legistlation to replace the Kyoto Protocol once it expires in 2012 will begin to be determined.

We speak to Stuart Scott, Activist, Teacher, Climate Project Presenter, and Roving Reporter to give us a report on how things are going in Poznan.  Stuart has his own blog where he is keeping a journal of the conference as well.

Green Sprouts – Easy to Swallow Tips

HealthyToys.org : Press/Media.

Environmental Health Groups Hold Toy Testing Events Nationwide and Urge Manufacturers and Gov’t to Phase Out Most Harmful Chemicals Immediately

(Ann Arbor, MI — December 3, 2008) – The Ecology Center, a Michigan-based nonprofit organization, and partners across the country today released the 2nd annual consumer guide to toxic chemicals in toys at www.HealthyToys.org.  Researchers tested over 1,500 popular children’s toys for lead, cadmium, arsenic, PVC and other harmful chemicals in time for this year’s holiday shopping season.  One in three toys tested were found to contain “medium” or “high” levels of chemicals of concern.

We recommend buying domestically produced toys this Holiday.  Wood toys are all the better.  If you are looking for a supplier, our Green Goods affiliate carries these products as well as other children’s toys.

Up the Class

Ditch the plastic utensils and disposable napkins for you holiday party.  Silverware and cloth up the class and lets your friends and family know you care in more ways than one!

Au Natural

Get crafty this holiday and go with natural wreaths and trees forging the “Big & Large” plastic decorations.  Great for together time with the kids and reconnecting with you local environment, bringing some of it indoors.