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Subscribe- Seattle-based Amazon.com will list the EPEAT rating of all electronics on the Amazon site that carry the EPEAT rating, according to the company. EPEAT is a third-party rating system that analyzes products on 51 criteria. Products must meet 23 mandatory criteria, and they are awarded bronze, silver or gold ratings based on how many of the other criteria they meet.
- In other electronics news, the U.S. Department of Energy means business when it comes to Energy Star ratings for appliances. If it finds that a labeled appliance doesn't actually meet the standards, it will pull the label. That is exactly what happened when DOE discovered that 40,000 refrigerator-freezers manufactured by LG Electronics were using more electricity than allowed by Energy Star standards, a contention LG diusputed. This week, the courts sided with DOE.
- Not to be outdone by Microsoft and Google, tech giant Intel is getting into the home energy management business. The company launched a Web site dedicated to its Home Dashboard Concept, a touch-screen display designed to help families control and reduce energy use. Unlike Micrsoft's Hohm and Google's PowerMeter, Intel's doesn't rely just on tracking energy use. "The Atom-based device will let people record video messages to other family members and, through third-party applications, let people look up information on online yellow pages or track packages over the Internet," according to CNet.
- The Leonardo Academy announced seven new members of its Sustainable Agriculture Standard board today. The standard, which has been under development since 2008, is an attempt to use an ANSI process to define "sustainable agriculture," a term that proponents of GMOs are trying to be included in.
- In energy news, Snohomish Public Utility District filed an application to use the tides to generate power. The PUD north of Seattle wants permission to generate 100 to 200 kilowatts from the bottom of Admiralty Inlet.
- Shipping giant UPS isn't relying on just bikes to reduce its emissions. The Georgia-based company just rolled out 245 trucks that run on compressed natural gas in 5 markets in Colorado and California. The trucks are expected to reduce emissions by 15 percent over conventional trucks.
- To help fight global warming and preserve winter playgrounds, Clif Bar has developed the nation’s first guide for “green travel” to and from ski resorts, the company says. The Save Our Snow (SOS) site helps skiers and snowboarders find local ski bus services, arrange ridesharing and learn winter driving tips to reduce their carbon emissions.
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