Eco Factor: Green premium lounge to open at Singapore’s Changi Airport. Singapore’s Changi airport will soon have an eco-friendly premium lounge for environment conscious individuals. The Green Market will open June 7 in Terminal 2. The 2200sqf facility has been designed by Hong Kong designer Kinney Chan and uses a green terrace as its centerpiece. The lounge will be equipped with Oxyvital system to purify air at molecular level to make passengers healthier, happier and more productive. Serving Japanese, cooked-to-order meals for guests, the lounge will use fresh ingredients accompanied by sake. The lounge will be operated by Plaza Premium Lounge Management, which allows guests to pay for access regardless of the airline or class they’re traveling in. Via: The Independent

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Singapore’s Changi airport to have a ‘green’ lounge for eco-conscious travelers

Eco Factor: Sustainable stadium designed for 2010 FIFA World Cup. While architects are planning striking stadiums for 2022 FIFA World Cup, the 2010 event is about to commence in South Africa and most stadiums are undergoing final touch-ups. The Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban is ready for the event and promises a green setting. The majestic stadium is capable of holding up to 85,000 seated spectators along with extensive luxe VIP facilities spread over 6 floors. The structure creates a landmark that Durban could truly be proud of. The stadium features a 150m high arch, which provides the support for the cable net of the suspension roof structure. The PTFE-coated roof membrane allows 50 percent of all sunlight to filter through while protecting the bowl from sunshine glare and rain. The stadium provides stunning views across the city and out over the Indian Ocean. A cable car has also been included to transport visitors to the sky deck where they can enjoy these views. In an effort to better the eco-credentials of the stadium 30,000 cubic meters of the concrete demolition material was reused from the old stadium. Moreover, water-saving installation, rainwater collection, energy-efficient heating and cooling systems were included. To further reduce the energy consumption the stadium utilizes more of natural lighting and ventilation. Via: World Architecture News

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Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium will provide a green venue for 2010 FIFA World Cup

Andrew Sullivan shows us the world’s luckiest bicyclist, and writes that “it looks as if he barely notices.” It’s true…. Read the full story on TreeHugger

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The World’s Luckiest Cyclist (video)

Image: Bing screen grab. And Today It’s an Oil Pipeline… Statistically, most of you reading this are probably using Google to search the web, and so you haven’t seen the image above. It’s a screen grab of Bing , Microsoft’s search engine. Not quite a Google-killer, but it will soon power Yahoo search and has about 10% of the search market in the US. A couple days ago, Bing featured on its homepage a photo of solar panels, with links to articles explaining

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Microsoft Bing Features Solar Panels

China may launch a carbon trading market as soon as 2014, according to a Bloomberg report . According to the report, the government may ask companies to reduce carbon emissions per yuan of profit earned, rather than providing them with hard targets. To reach these goals, companies will be allowed to trade carbon credits in a market overseen by the government. The market will initially be limited to Chinese companies. It was also recently reported that China could launch a carbon tax as early as 2012. Meanwhile, carbon cutting initiatives in several more developed economies have stalled. President Obama’s climate bill is held up in the Senate , while Australia has halted progress on its climate goals in order to wait for action from other countries. The European Union also said this week it would only increase its carbon cutting targets if other nations moved first.

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China May Launch Carbon Market by 2014

Verdant Power , a U.S. tidal power developer, signed a memorandum of understanding with the China Energy Conservation Environment Protection Group (CECEP) to develop tidal energy project in China. The agreement is the first to involve U.S. marine and hydrokinetic power projects in China, according to an announcement by the company. The agreement came during the recent U.S. Clean Energy Mission to China headed by Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, who was on hand at the signing. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that the undeveloped hydropower potential of the U.S. is more than 250,000 megawatts. China’s Ministry of Water Resources and Electric Power estimates that the undeveloped hydropower potential of China is nearly double that of the U.S. at more than 475,000 megawatts. “Compared to fossil fuel plants, hydropower is clean and the ‘fuel’ is free,” said Trey Taylor, President of Verdant Power. “When people hear hydropower, they immediately think of large dams and other impoundments. Sustainable hydropower or marine hydrokinetics (MHK) is based on technologies now entering both the U.S. and Chinese markets that do not require dams.” Environmental Leader previously reported on Verdant’s plan to build out its first installation in New York City’s East River. The Roosevelt Island Tidal Energy (RITE) Project will be the first grid-connected project that will provide New York City and the metropolitan area with up to 500 megawatts of pollution-free electricity from a field of underwater MHK turbines.

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Verdant Power, China sign MOU

The U.S. could find itself falling behind China in the race to develop green energy technologies, according to comments made by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on Saturday. Locke was quoted in a Reuters article during his trade mission to China, during which he was joined by 24 U.S. green energy companies. In his prepared remarks , Locke highlighted the need for China and the U.S. to jointly lead the world in developing green energy technology. But many American companies are hesitant to make large investments due to a lack of coherent policy, while countries like China and Germany are surging ahead, he said. Locke’s comments were echoed by Florida Power and Light CEO Lew Hay III in an opinion piece published in The Lake Wales News on Saturday. Hay pointed out that China produced more wind turbines than the U.S. last year, and became the world’s largest producers of solar panels the year before that. Hay cited causes such as the lack of a carbon tax, renewable energy standards, and sufficient energy transmission infrastructure as being behind the nation’s decline in green energy innovation. China, meanwhile, could introduce a carbon tax as early as 2012. And China’s national assembly adopted a  law late last year that requires electricity grid companies to buy all the power produced by renewable energy sources , or face a fine. China has moved steadily up the ranking most attractive global locations to invest in renewable energy projects, according to Ernst & Young’s latest global renewable energy country attractiveness indices – from number four in 2008 and number six in 2007. China, which is ranked just behind the U.S., has moved ahead of Germany for the first time in the reports’ six-year history due to its increased commitments to reduce emissions through its carbon intensity reduction plans, according to the study. Last year, China announced the Golden Sun subsidy scheme that will support 500 megawatts (MW) of PV installations over the next two to three years, along with four other major solar projects that deliver 1.8 GW of installed capacity, according to the report. At 13,000 megawatts of new wind energy installed, China led all nations in adding wind turbine s in 2009. China is slated to spend about $7.3 billion in 2010, more than any other country on smart grid technology. China is also expanding its nuclear power generation capabilities.

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Commerce Sec’y Discusses US, China Energy Technology Race

Cotton Fleahopper – Heteroptera Miridae Image credit: Texas A&M University Authors of a 15-year long field study in China have reported that cotton “farms gradually become a source of mirid bug infestations, in parallel with the rise of Bt cotton. The bugs, initially regarded as occasional or minor pests, spread out to surrounding areas, “acquiring pest status” and infesting Chinese date, grape, apple peach and pear crops.” I re-read the source of this information, a SciDev… Read the full story on TreeHugger

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Genetically Modified Cotton Associated With Increased Plant Bug Attacks On Food Crops

The China telecommunications sector has prevented the emissions of 48.5 million tons of carbon dioxide in 2008 and 58.2 million tons in 2009 thanks to low carbon solutions such as telecommuting, electronic data interface and more efficient logistics from China Mobile, according to a study from WWF China and China Mobile, reports The Guardian. The report indicates the savings nearly match the total emissions of countries such as Sweden, Denmark or Finland in 2008 . In 2009, the savings were almost six and half times China Mobile’s emissions. Consulting firm McKinsey predicts that by 2020 the biggest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions could come from information and communications products and technologies including laptops and PCs, mobile phones, data centers, and telecommunications networks. The report, “ Low Carbon Telecommunications Solutions in China: Current Reductions and Future Potential ” (PDF), analyzed direct savings from 14 low carbon information communication technologies (ICTs) offered by China Mobile, which include smart logistics (such as matching truck deliveries to load needs), dematerialization (saving paper and other materials), smart work (reducing commuting and travel needs) and smart appliances (remotely monitored and controlled for energy savings). The report notes that the estimates are conservative because they don’t take into account indirect savings. As an example, when calculating the savings of shifting newspapers, brochures and invoicing online, it doesn’t account for reduced requirements for transport, storage and waste disposal, and other infrastructure implications. The report reveals that telecommuting offers the greatest potential for carbon emission reductions in China, estimating that it could save 340 million tons of CO2 emissions in 2020. However, the savings from virtual meetings will increase at a much greater rate, about 623 million tons of CO2 annually by 2030, reducing commercial aviation emissions by nearly 40 percent. The potential savings from smart logistics, dematerialization, and smart work (including smart meetings and smart commuting) is 399 million tons in 2010, 615 million tons in 2020 and 1298 million tons in 2030. “This would be a significant contribution to the global greenhouse gas emission reductions and an important contribution to China’s target to reduce the carbon intensity of its economy by 40 to 45 percent by the year 2020 ,” said Yanli Hou, the Director of Climate Change and Energy Programme of WWF China.

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China Mobile’s Low Carbon Solutions Cut Emissions by 58.2 Million Tons in 2009

Beijing is pouring billions of dollars into solar, wind, and other projects, but U.S. officials say the barriers to China’s clean energy market can be as big as the opportunities.

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U.S. urges China to keep an open tech policy