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by Press on September 3, 2009
In 2008, more than 1.4 billion tons of metals were produced globally--double the quantity of the late 1970s and more than seven times as much as in 1950. Trends since the late 1990s have been driven by the dramatic growth of the Chinese economy, according to the latest Vital Signs snapshot of metals production worldwide.
by Press on August 27, 2009 Four new Worldwatch Institute Blogs are now online: Dateline: Copenhagen, Nourishing the Planet, Green Economy, and Transforming Cultures feature regular contributions from Worldwatch researchers and staff tracking global environmental issues, from upcoming climate change negotiations to how we'll feed a growing population sustainably.
by Press on August 20, 2009 Solar thermal heating-which harnesses the sun's energy for domestic water heating, space heating, and other industrial processes-expanded by 19 gigawatts of thermal equivalent (GW th) to reach 147 GW th of capacity in 2007. Solar thermal energy produced enough energy globally in 2007 to meet the equivalent heating needs of 15 percent of U.S. households.
by Press on August 13, 2009 The United States throws away a
staggering amount of energy that could be cheaply and easily captured and used,
according to the latest issue of World Watch magazine.
Waste-energy recycling-which captures smokestack waste and other wasted
energy and puts it to work-currently contributes about 10,000 megawatts of
electric power to the U.S. national total each year.
by Press on August 6, 2009
Water scarcity is increasing in many regions as factors including population growth, climate change, and pollution restrict the amount of water available relative to demand. In 2008, 1.4 billion people lived in "closed basins"-regions where existing water cannot meet the agricultural, municipal, and environmental needs for all. This number is expected to grow to 1.8 billion by 2025, according to the latest Vital Signs Update.
by Press on July 8, 2009
The Worldwatch Institute is launching a two-year project to point the world toward innovations in agriculture that can nourish people as well as the planet, supported by a $1.3 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The project will focus specifically on sub-Saharan Africa.
by admin on July 1, 2009 In 2008, the steady rise in ethanol consumption reduced U.S. demand for motor gasoline by an estimated 5 percent and accounted for 20 percent of the increase in domestic corn prices, according to a new assessment of U.S. biofuels by the Worldwatch Institute. Concerns over energy security and climate change, as well as a range of government incentives, fueled the production of an estimated 9.5 billion gallons of biofuels in the United States last year alone, a 39 percent increase over 2007.
by Press on June 17, 2009 A perfect storm in the Rocky Mountains driven by population growth, a warming climate, and economic development has put both the region's ecosystems and its economy in jeopardy, according to the latest issue of World Watch magazine.
by admin on June 3, 2009
As health officials scramble to develop a vaccine for the H1N1 virus, commonly referred to as swine flu, there is reason to believe that the current swell is merely a sign of the larger pandemic to come. We should regard the current outbreak of H1N1 as a bad dress rehearsal for opening night. It is not a question of whether the virus will reemerge, but when, and we are woefully unprepared.
by admin on June 2, 2009 Innovations in food production and land use that are ready to be scaled-up today could reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to roughly 25 percent of global fossil fuel emissions and present the best opportunity to remove greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere, according to a new report by the Worldwatch Institute and Ecoagriculture Partners. As the price of carbon rises with new caps on emissions and expanding markets for carbon offsets, the contribution of land-based, or "terrestrial," carbon to climate change mitigation efforts could increase even further.
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