Editor's Note: Stuart Cohen and Ann Cheng presented TransForm's GreenTRIP program during a webinar on January 11, 2012. This blog post follows up on several points and questions made during that presentation. You can find out more about Stuart Cohen and Transform, as well as sign up for updates about the program, at our Switzer Network News report page.
Thanks so much to the Switzer Foundation for supporting our...
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) released a report this week on the costs of California’s progress in generating more electricity from renewable power and there was good news. Prices of new contract bids submitted to utilities last year were about 30 percent lower than in 2009, according to the report, signaling a more competitive future for the renewable power industry in California.
Until now, the CPUC has released quarterly reports on the number of contracts signed by utilities toward meeting California’s goal of...
Editor's Note: Melissa Garren (2010) attended the Federal Policy Workshop offered by the Switzer Foundation working with colleagues from the David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellowship Program in Washington, D.C., January 11-13, 2012. It focused on the implications of national policy-making for conservation professionals. Ayana Johnson (2009), Eunice Blavascunas (2005) and Board member Jen Sokolove (2000) also joined the workshop. The following post is from an email Melissa wrote updating us about the experience.
I wanted to take a few minutes to outline some highlights from the experience that I found most helpful...
A recent national survey by the Northeast Recycling Council, Inc. (NERC) of the states and District of Columbia found that banning materials, rather than requiring recycling, is the solid waste management strategy of choice for most states. Almost every state* has at least something banned from disposal in its solid waste facilities—at a minimum lead acid batteries. By contrast, only 20 states have mandatory recycling of at least one commodity. When Bottle Bill laws are included in the definition of mandatory recycling, the number of mandatory recycling states increases to 26.
Interestingly, it is relatively unusual for the same material to...
