Biofuels On The Brink in Europe
Indirect land use change, or ILUC, dictates that the conversion of land into farms for biofuel crops must account for its carbon emissions-and the policy is dividing the EU.
Indirect land use change, or ILUC, dictates that the conversion of land into farms for biofuel crops must account for its carbon emissions-and the policy is dividing the EU.
Beginning on January 17, Ryanair will charge a €0.25 fee on every seat to cover what the company says will be a €15 to 20 million bill. And the airline is complaining loud and clear.
Clouds may be forming above Paris and Washington as voters become restless. In the sustainability world, the conventional wisdom states that European companies on environmental, governance, and social (ESG, or across the pond, CSR) issues, they are far more advanced than American firms. At a first glance, that appears true. But a comparison is besides the point.
One sign of a maturing industry is that the Mafia start “investing” into the business. Tony Soprano, Don Corleone, nor any of the Goodfellas ever showed any interest in wind, but now renewable energy advocates have to deal with the headache, albeit a small one, with which the rest of the business world sometimes deals: Italian “eco Mafia” groups have found their way into the wind power industry.
To Americans who trend left, Europe is a civilized utopia full of sophisticates and intellectuals where all is well with health care, environment, and society. To the right, Europe is a socialist purgatory where folks suffer from over-regulation and marginal opportunities. Neither assumption is correctly accurate.
While most European Union member states are flummoxed in trying to reach that 20% renewables goal by 2020, Spain is quietly a leader in the race. The country aims to have 30% of its electricity needs met by renewables by the end of 2010. Spain is only second behind Germany in sourcing wind energy, and [...]
The country in Eastern Europe to which I’d move in a heartbeat is Slovenia. I’ve never seen so many shades of green, and for a nation smaller than New Jersey, Slovenia offers much for the visitor: countless hiking opportunities, enchanting lakes such as Bled, a slice of the Adriatic coastline, and once you learn how [...]
I’m a huge fan of Ingmar Bergman. How could you not be smitten by his searing examinations of the human psyche? His films’ direction, often featuring one of his favorite actresses, Liv Ullmann, are a must for any film fanatic. One of my favorite Bergman projects was his epic Scenes of a Marriage, where Bergman [...]