Daily Green Wrap-Up 23.May, 2012

In a historic vote Wednesday, the L.A. City Council voted overwhelmingly to enact a ban on plastic bags — becoming the most largest city in the United States to push towards more eco-friendly alternatives.
It’s that time of year again: time for the 2012 Safe Sunscreen list from Environmental Working Group. I look forward to seeing this new list each year, as I want to make sure I am still using some of the best and safest sunscreen products available.
Algae fuel and other biofuels have gained popularity in recent years to the point that even the US Military has adopted it as jet fuel. Given its recent rise to prominence, it’s not particularly surprising to learn that Arizona-based algae biofuels company Heliae has decided to harness the growth of algae on a commercial scale so that it can be used as transportation fuel.
As more and more of us are cutting back on using petroleum-derived, plastic-based products, here’s a timely new toothbrush whose handle is made of Ingeo, a plant-based material that, under ideal circumstances, will biodegrade in roughly six months – rather than sit in a landfill for decades.
What you see here is a zombie-ready Suzuki Carry pickup, complete with four wheel drive, stabby bumpers, a roof-mounted minigun, and a downright miserly 3-cylinder engine that (if the rest of Suzuki’s recent offerings are any indication) delivers massive MPG numbers and the ability to run on several different fuels.
Cogenra Solar, the California startup that uses mirrors and solar cells to generate electricity and hot water, has expanded internationally, broken into a broad range of industries and landed a number of big name commercial customers in the past year, including Facebook, Kendall-Jackson Winery and the U.S. Department of Defense. The company has now added solar cooling to the mix, a product tweak well-suited for the data center, hotel and food and beverage industries.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *