From Kevin Bullis in MIT’s Technology Review blog:
Because of its generous incentives program, Germany, a country that gets about as much sun as the darkest parts of the United States, has become the largest market for solar power in the world. That in turn has helped create a thriving solar manufacturing industry in the country. Because of its success, the German system has been imitated around the world in places such as Spain and China. At renewable energy conferences, industry experts plead for a similar system in the United States.
But even as it’s hailed as an example, Germany’s federal government has started to cut back on the program, and plans to cut it even more by April. If that happens, it could devastate the German solar industry, and send shockwaves through the industry around the world. It could also reveal what could be the inherent weaknesses of the approach–it doesn’t address the fact that it’s cheaper to manufacture solar panels in China.
…
One thing seems clear, fostering a solar market in the U.S. or Germany is not enough in itself to create and maintain solar manufacturing jobs in these countries. To compete, companies in these countries will need to find ways to make cheaper solar panels. And they’ll probably need strong government incentives to build factories in their home countries.
For the full post…
A review of the literature by H. Charles J. Godfray, John R. Beddington, Ian R. Crute, Lawrence Haddad, David Lawrence, James F. Muir, Jules Pretty, Sherman Robinson, Sandy M. Thomas, Camilla Toulmin in Science for 12 February 2010:
The past half-century has seen marked growth in food production, allowing for a dramatic decrease in the proportion of the world’speople that are hungry, despite a doubling of the total population. Nevertheless, more than one in seven people today still do not have access to sufficient protein and energy from their diet, and even more suffer from some form of micronutrientmalnourishment. The world is now facing a new set of intersecting challenges. The global population will continue to grow, yet it is likely to plateau at some 9 billion people by roughly the middle of this century. A major correlate of this deceleration in population growth is increased wealth, and with higher purchasing power comes higher consumption and a greater demand for processed food, meat, dairy, and fish, all of which add pressure to the food supply system. At the same time, food producers are experiencing greater competition for land, water, and energy, and the need to curb the many negative effects of food production on the environment is becoming increasingly clear. Overarching all of these issues is the threat of the effects of substantial climate change and concerns about how mitigation and adaptation measures may affect the food system.
Link to the article…
Link to an overview of the complete food security special issue in the 12 February 2010 Science...
Two US public broadcasting news programs, The NewsHour and WorldFocus, have recently aired a report from British ITN television about recent action by China to restrict its export of rare earth minerals essential for the manufacture of green technologies including wind turbines and hybrid automobile engines. Some of these minerals are also essential in the manufacture of mobile digital technology such as cellular telephones. This development turns out not to be so new, however. Reports were published by The Age and The New York Times at the beginning of September on China’s new policy on rare earths. Click the newspaper titles for the respective stories.
For the ITN report as broadcast on The Newshour…
From Megan R. Schwarzman and Michael P. Wilson in Science for 20 November 2009:
By placing conditions on access to European markets, REACH has set what may become a de facto global standard. The influx of chemical information expected under REACH, as well as the potential for countries outside Europe to become markets for toxic substances prohibited in the EU, presents other regions with an opportunity, and imperative, to retool their chemicals policies.
In the fall of 2009, the Obama Administration unveiled principles for U.S. chemicals policy reform, proposing that chemical producers be required to submit sufficient hazard, exposure, and use data for EPA to determine that chemicals meet a health-based safety standard (21). The principles further acknowledge the EPA’s need for authority to act on priority chemicals, reducing risks they pose to sensitive subpopulations. These principles could influence development of TSCA reform. If implemented, they could improve EPA’s ability to protect public health and the environment, while also providing the necessary incentive to move the chemicals market toward green chemistry, with the ultimate goal of placing the U.S. chemical industry on a more sustainable footing.
For more (subscription required)…
Core Distinctions between Chemicals Policies of the United States (TSCA) and the European Union (REACH)
Bitu-man. A scarecrow in a "tailings pond" helps keep birds out of toxic mine water. CREDIT: MAGNUM PHOTOS
From Sam Kean in Science for 20 November 2009:
Environmental law says that tar sands companies must restore tailings ponds and pit mines back to “equivalent land capability,” but that phrase is contentious. Ecologists and environmentalists would prefer that every square meter of disturbed boreal forest or wetland be restored to its original state. In practice, companies can perform a sort of eco-alchemy: Pit mines can be converted to either new land, like a forest, or a lake, while tailings ponds can become either a lake or new land. Each transformation has its own challenges and controversies.
For more (subscription required)…