Tetra Pak: ‘The ideal package of the future is made solely from renewable or recycled materials, is 100% recyclable, and supports a low-carbon circular economy’

Read the full story at Beverage Daily.

Tetra Pak has set out its aspirations for creating the ideal package of the future – but how close is it to achieving this goal?

EIA: Coal’s share of U.S. electricity generation through July 2020 down to 17.9%

Read the full story from IEEFA.

U.S. generation inched [up] 0.2% year over year in July, driven by growth in gas-fired and renewable generation but offset by decreases in coal-fired and nuclear generation.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s latest “Electric Power Monthly” released Sep. 24, utility-scale generation net of hydroelectric pumped storage increased to 413.3 million MWh from 412.2 million MWh in July 2019.

Marine mammalogy must battle against unpaid work, argues petition

Read the full story in Nature.

Scientists in the discipline and elsewhere say that uncompensated internships and work placements create barriers to inclusion and diversity.

Webinar: Lead Action Plan Research Update

Wednesday 10/21/2020, 2-3 pm CDT
Register here.

Lead is a potent developmental and adult toxicant that affects multiple human organ systems.  It is present in air, water, soil, consumer products and food and is regulated in all these media. Regulation of lead since the 1970s has resulted in steep drops in population blood lead levels (BLLs), but lead exposure remains a problem in many of America’s communities, where an estimated 3.6 million American homes with at least one child have significant lead paint hazards and many as 500,000 US children under 6 years have BLLs ≥5 µg/dL. EPA is working with state and community partners to support actions to reduce lead exposures and related health risks as part of the Federal Action Plan to Reduce Childhood Lead Exposures and Associated Health Impacts

This presentation will highlight EPA  research that is improving:

  • Blood lead models to strengthen the scientific basis of the Agency’s lead-related actions
  • Approaches using national, state and local data for identifying locations of high exposures and blood lead levels to target remaining lead sources for mitigation
  • Drinking water quality with research and consultation on corrosion control and identification of lead service lines
  • Methods for cleaning up Superfund and other contaminated sites
  • Evaluation of the impacts of lead mitigation efforts

About the presenter: Dr. Andrew Geller is ORD’s Executive Lead for Lead Research and Principal Associate National Program Director for EPA’s Sustainable and Healthy Communities research program.

For registration questions, please contact tools_resources_webinar@epa.gov

The journey to 100% rPET bottles

Read the full story at Beverage Daily.

Danone brand evian is introducing 100% rPET bottles to the UK this week; the latest in a series of recycled plastic commitments from PepsiCo’s Naked Smoothies, Nestlé’s Buxton bottled water, and Coca-Cola GB. We explore how the move to rPET is progressing in the UK – and how brands hope to overcome the challenges they face.

Study finds spreading ghost forests on NC coast may contribute to climate change

Read the full story from North Carolina State University.

A new study found the spread of ghost forests across a coastal region of North Carolina may have implications for global warming. Ghost forests are areas where rising seas have killed off freshwater-dependent trees, leaving dead or dying white snags standing in marsh.

Associated journal article: Lindsey S. Smart, Paul J. Taillie, Benjamin Poulter, Jelena Vukomanovic, Kunwar K. Singh, Jennifer J. Swenson, Helena Mitasova, Jordan W. Smith and Ross K. Meentemeyer (2020). “Aboveground carbon loss associated with the spread of ghost forests as sea levels rise.” Environmental Research Letters 15(10). http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/aba136

Environmental, social & governance goals emerge as top priority for investors in food & beverage

Read the full story at food Navigator.

The idea of “doing good” as a company is quickly evolving from “nice to have” to “must have” for fundraising food and beverage businesses as investors and industry strategics increasingly integrate and place more weight on environmental, social and governance issues when seeking and evaluating opportunities, according to several venture capitalists.

U.S. solar generation grows 22.2% even through coronavirus pandemic

Read the full story at Solar Power World.

Notwithstanding the coronavirus pandemic, renewable energy sources continue to expand their share of the nation’s energy production and consumption as well as electricity generation, according to a SUN DAY Campaign analysis of data in two reports just released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The latest issue of EIA’s “Electric Power Monthly” (with data through July 31, 2020) reveals that solar and wind both showed continued, strong growth, expanding faster than all other energy sources.

Lean’s role in business development

Read the full story in the Fabricator.

How lean manufacturing can be a powerful marketing asset.

Greenlight Planet raises $90M to sell solar-powered electricity kits to sub-Saharan African countries

Read the full story at ChicagoInno.

A solar startup with roots at the University of Illinois just raised $90 million to sell electricity kits to people in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. 

Greenlight Planet, the maker of Sun King solar-powered, pay-as-you-go electricity kits, raised its new debt and equity funding from investors such as CDC Group, FMO and Norfund. ResponsAbility, SIMA Funds, Symbiotics, Global Partnerships and ARCH Emerging Markets Partners’ Africa Renewable Power Fund also participated.