Archive for November, 2008
« Previous EntriesMinas Releases Its Own Greenhouse Gas Inventory
Sunday, November 30th, 2008Earlier this year the Brazilian state of MInas Gerais (MG) released an inventory of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2005. I found this inventory interesting and this you might too. MG has a more diverse economy than most Brazilian states, being a leader in agriculture, mining and industry, all with different impacts on GHG emissions. […]
Wal-Mart Brasil Provides Discounts for Not Using Plastic Bags
Saturday, November 29th, 2008Wal-Mart Brasil is pursuing an interesting strategy to achieve its announced target of a 50% reduction in plastic bag use in its 340 stores by 2013. It just launched a campaign in its nine Bompreço stores in the northeastern capitals of Recife, Pernambuco and Salvador, Bahia, whereby it gives an automatic discount to customers that […]
¿Se recupera el aire bogotano? / Is Bogotá’s Air Recovering?
Friday, November 28th, 2008Bogotá’s environment authority, SDA, just issued a release declaring that the city’s air is getting better. Their evidence that is so? First, that the sulfur content in diesel fuel sold in the capital has fallen from 500 parts per million (ppm) this past July to 231 ppm in October. They attribute the drop to the […]
A Green Report Card for São Paulo’s Cities
Thursday, November 27th, 2008Yesterday São Paulo state (SP) Secretary for the Environment, Xico Graziano, revealed the environmental rankings of the state’s municipalities and rewarded the mayors of cities with the highest grades. This quasi “green report card” and honor roll is a fruit of the state’s “Green Municipality” (Município Verde) Program, one of the governor’s “21 strategic environmental […]
LAC Legislators Lay Out Common Position on Climate Change / Legisladores de ALC establecen posición común sobre el cambio climático
Wednesday, November 26th, 2008Seventy senior legislators from across the Americas, meeting last week in Mexico City under the aegis of GLOBE International, agreed on a number of key points about climate change that they will take back to their respective legislatures and promote in the context of international negotiations for a post-2012 global climate change regime. Among other […]
Recyclables for Electricity Program Catches On
Tuesday, November 25th, 2008When the 10 winners for 2008 of the biennial World Business and Development Awards were announced a few weeks back, the Spanish energy conglomerate Endesa was one of the recipients for a program its subsidiaries run in two Brazilian states. The program helps people pay for their power bills while promoting recycling. While an interesting […]
Helping Belize Clean Up Its Act
Monday, November 24th, 2008From the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB): Belize will improve Solid Waste Management with IDB Support Program will build new waste disposal facilities in the country’s Western Corridor Belize will receive a US$11,150,000 loan from the Inter American Development Bank (IDB) to improve solid waste management practices, reduce environmental pollution and enhance the image of Belize […]
Targeting Key States in Brazil’s Battle vs. Amazon Deforestation
Monday, November 24th, 2008The Norwegian government is funding, and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) is administering, a US$4.3 million pilot project by Brazil’s Environment Ministry (MMA) and the governments of three states — Acre (AC), Mato Grosso (MT) and Pará (PA) — to combat deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. As I’ve noted here in the past, MT and […]
Further IDB Support for Peru’s “Water for All” Program / Mas Apoyo del BID para el Programa Peruano “Agua para Todos”
Monday, November 24th, 2008From the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB): IDB supports the second phase of Peru’s water and sanitation reform program US$130 million policy-based loan linked to measures that will expand water and sanitation coverage in low-income communities The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a US$130 million policy-based credit to the Peruvian Government, as part of an […]
Paraná Bans Smoking in Areas Intended for Children
Monday, November 24th, 2008Synopsis in English: The governor of the southern Brazilian state of Paraná just signed a law that bans smoking inside vehicles transporting children or at any commercial establishment or event intended for children. The new instrument is considered a complement to Paraná’s 2005 law on smoking in public places. In all probability other Brazilian states […]
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