EarthShare

Four Major Food Companies to Tackle Climate Change

EarthShare — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 15:16:43 -0400

4 Major Food Companies Fight Climate Change

Four of the nation's largest food companies have launched the Sustainable Food Policy Alliance, a new organization focused on driving progress in public policies that shape what people eat and how it impacts their health, communities, and the planet. Founding member companies include Danone North America; Mars, Incorporated; Nestlé USA; and Unilever United States.

The four founding member companies have already made broad updates to their portfolios in recent years, collectively and voluntarily advancing issues like sodium reduction, responsible marketing and transparency, and reducing their impact on the planet, including cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

As the Sustainable Food Policy Alliance (Alliance), member companies will prioritize U.S. public policy advocacy and action in five key areas:

Consumer Transparency: Improving the quality and accessibility of information available to consumers about the food they purchase for themselves and their families.
Environment: Advocating for innovative, science-based solutions to take action against the costly impacts of climate change, build more resilient communities, promote renewable energy, and further develop sustainable agriculture systems.
Food Safety: Ensuring the quality and safety of food products and the global supply chain.
Nutrition: Developing and advocating for policies that help people make better-informed food choices that contribute to healthy eating while supporting sustainable environmental practices.
People and Communities: Advancing policies that promote a strong, diverse, and healthy workplace and support the supply chain, including rural economies.

At launch, one important policy area the Alliance intends to engage on includes carbon emissions.

The Alliance will work to advance climate policies that are impactful for the environment, while accounting for the specific business imperatives of supply chains, including farmers, ranchers, and other producers. This will include:

Urging U.S. policymakers to ensure the Farm Bill and other farm policies reflect the pressing need to increase the scale of actions to address water quality and water conservation issues, focus on improving soil health, and expand the deployment of renewable energy, particularly wind and solar. The Farm Bill should leverage all available tools, including research and public-private partnerships such as the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), to make smart investments in conservation and sustainability.
Exploring the economics of sustainability, including financial incentives to reduce emissions and transition to low-carbon alternatives, with a particular focus on ways to create value for farmers, ranchers, and others who are implementing leading-edge practices to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Advocating on behalf of smart, comprehensive energy and environmental policies at the state, national, and international levels, including the Paris Climate Agreement, the Clean Power Plan or other commitments that result in change necessary to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in line with what evidence-based science says is necessary.

In a joint statement, Mariano Lozano, CEO, Danone North America; Tracey Massey, president, Mars Wrigley Confectionery Americas; Steve Presley, chairman and CEO, Nestlé USA; and Amanda Sourry, president, Unilever North America said:

"The Sustainable Food Policy Alliance was founded on the principle that food companies can and should be doing more to lead and drive positive policy action for the people who buy and enjoy the foods and beverages we make, the people who supply them, and the planet on which we all rely.

"As an Alliance, we commit first and foremost to leading by example. Each member company has independently proven a willingness to advocate for the long-term interests of the people who farm and supply our raw materials, and people who make and consume our products.

"We are committed to a collaborative approach and to listen and learn about issues affecting all parts of our food system from the field to the store shelf and beyond. We understand that we don't have all the answers and will rely on the best available evidence-based science to inform our positions. We will be transparent about how we reach our decisions and what we hope to achieve.

"With so many pressing food policy opportunities on the horizon, now is the time to help steer America's food policy and our food system on a better path for long-term success."

To learn more about the Sustainable Food Policy Alliance, visit www.foodpolicyalliance.org.

California Eyes 100% Renewables by 2045

EarthShare — Thu, 05 Jul 2018 18:10:35 -0400

California Eyes 100% Renewables by 2045

amanderson2/Flickr

Originally published on the Environmental Defense Fund blog by Lauren Navarro

It’s summertime in California, and one thing that means is lots of sunshine. Lucky for us, the Golden State is a national leader in turning that sunshine, and other renewable resources, into electricity to power homes and business across the state.

Currently, the state is working to produce 50% of its electricity from clean energy resources like solar and wind and is closing in on that goal. Next month, lawmakers will get the chance to advance that goal even further – to 100% by 2045.

SB 100, authored by Sen. Kevin de León, is the bill that, if passed, could solidify the new, bigger, bolder target. California would be the second state in the nation to pass this high of a target – only behind Hawaii. A handful of other states are considering aiming at 100% clean energy, including Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Washington, and Pennsylvania.

California’s leadership could help tip the scale. California has the opportunity to show the rest of these states and countries across the world that 100% clean energy is possible. With climate change already affecting us, we don’t have much more time to waste.

100% clean energy is achievable

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, 100% clean energy is 100% possible. California’s big utilities are on their way to meeting the current target of 50% by 2030 – they are already meeting, or will soon meet (depending on the utility) 2020 goals ahead of schedule. This is a huge feat deserving some serious props.

As of the first quarter of 2017, California leads the nation in installed solar capacity with almost 19,000 megawatts. What’s more, last month California’s grid operator hit a new record with solar alone providing more electricity than natural gas for the first time on a monthly basis. (It’s important to note that this does not represent the sunshine-powered energy coming from people’s rooftop panels.)

100% clean energy brings big benefits

As California has proven, a healthy environment and a healthy economy can go hand in hand. All of the progress the state has made in clean energy and climate policy has drawn huge investments and created good, local jobs:

In 2016, total state clean tech investment grew by 12% to $1.7 billion – more than two-thirds of the total U.S. investment in clean tech.
California is the number one state in solar employment with 86,414 jobs. This reflects a 14% rate of growth in 2017, and another 13% increase expected in 2018.
The Golden State has tripled its wind-energy capacity since it passed its first renewable energy goal. This incredible growth has created 12 wind manufacturing facilities in the state producing $12.6 billion in investment through 2017.

These only represent some of the economic benefits of California’s clean energy policies. It’s clear from our track record that further investment in clean, renewable energy will only continue to strengthen our economy – now the 5th largest in the world.

How we can put all this clean energy to use

A crucial aspect of setting and achieving 100% clean energy in California is ensuring we can effectively and efficiently use all of that renewable power. The good news is we already have, or are working towards, tools to help us achieve this:

A regional electric grid for the West – California lawmakers are also considering a bill – AB 813 – which would create a renewable energy engine out of western states. By joining California’s electric grid and energy market with its neighbors, states can more easily and quickly buy and sell clean energy. This has the potential reduce climate change causing pollution, lower electricity costs, and support renewables across the West.
Time-of-use electricity pricing – California’s major utilities (PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E) are moving towards time-of-use pricing for all of their residential customers. This clean energy tool makes electricity cheaper when renewables are abundant and makes it more expensive when the electric grid is stressed and relying on polluting fossil fuels. By shifting some of our energy demand with time-of-use pricing, we can rely more on cleaner power.
Smart electric vehicle charging – The California Public Utilities Commission recently approved nearly $780 million in utility programs to electrify transportation. By charging these vehicles smartly, when clean energy is abundant, the state can use renewables efficiently and help ensure the electricity that powers vehicles comes from clean resources, locking in the climate and air quality benefits.

By using these tools and many more to ensure we can integrate all of our clean power, California can pass legislation leading the way to an electric grid with high levels of renewables, knowing we can get there.

A cleaner future for California

By passing SB 100, California would cement its clean energy leadership and help protect against the worst impacts of climate change, while protecting the health of families and communities, supporting our economy, and showing the way towards a clean, sustainable energy future.

Europe to Ban 10 Single-Use Plastics

EarthShare — Wed, 30 May 2018 11:23:01 -0400

Europe to Ban 10 Single-Use Plastics

Read original press release here

With the amount of harmful plastic litter in oceans and seas growing ever greater, Europe is proposing new rules to target the 10 single-use plastic products most often found on Europe's beaches and seas, as well as lost and abandoned fishing gear. Together these 10 products constitute 70% of all marine litter items.

Where alternatives are readily available and affordable, single-use plastic products will be banned from the market. For products without straight-forward alternatives, the focus is on limiting their use through a national reduction in consumption; design and labelling requirements and waste management/clean-up obligations for producers. Together, the new rules will put Europe ahead of the curve on an issue with global implications.

"Plastic waste is undeniably a big issue and Europeans need to act together to tackle this problem, because plastic waste ends up in our air, our soil, our oceans, and in our food," said the Commission's First Vice-President Frans Timmermans. After addressing plastic bags in 2015, 72% of Europeans said they have cut down on their use of plastic bags.

Across the world, plastics make up 85% of marine litter. And plastics are even reaching people's lungs and dinner tables, with micro-plastics in the air, water and food having an unknown impact on their health. Tackling the plastics problem is a must and it can bring new opportunities for innovation, competitiveness and job creation.

Having one set of rules for the whole EU market will create a springboard for European companies to develop economies of scale and be more competitive in the booming global marketplace for sustainable products. By setting up re-use systems (such as deposit refund schemes), companies can ensure a stable supply of high quality material. In other cases, the incentive to look for more sustainable solutions can give companies the technological lead over global competitors.

The new rules will introduce:

Plastic ban in certain products: Where alternatives are readily available and affordable, single-use plastic products will be banned from the market. The ban will apply to plastic cotton buds, cutlery, plates, straws, drink stirrers and sticks for balloons which will all have to be made exclusively from more sustainable materials instead. Single-use drinks containers made with plastic will only be allowed on the market if their caps and lids remain attached;
Consumption reduction targets: Member States will have to reduce the use of plastic food containers and drinks cups. They can do so by setting national reduction targets, making alternative products available at the point of sale, or ensuring that single-use plastic products cannot be provided free of charge;
Obligations for producers: Producers will help cover the costs of waste management and clean-up, as well as awareness raising measures for food containers, packets and wrappers (such as for crisps and sweets), drinks containers and cups, tobacco products with filters (such as cigarette butts), wet wipes, balloons, and lightweight plastic bags. The industry will also be given incentives to develop less polluting alternatives for these products;
Collection targets: Member States will be obliged to collect 90% of single-use plastic drinks bottles by 2025, for example through deposit refund schemes;
Labelling Requirements: Certain products will require a clear and standardised labelling which indicates how waste should be disposed, the negative environmental impact of the product, and the presence of plastics in the products. This will apply to sanitary towels, wet wipes and balloons;
Awareness-raising measures: Member States will be obliged to raise consumers' awareness about the negative impact of littering of single-use plastics and fishing gear as well as about the available re-use systems and waste management options for all these products.
For fishing gear, which accounts for 27% of all beach litter, producers will be required to cover the costs of waste collection from port reception facilities and its transport and treatment. They will also cover the costs of awareness-raising measures.

To mark World Environment Day on June 5, the Commission will also launch an awareness-raising campaign to put the spotlight on consumer choice and highlight individual people's role in combatting plastic pollution and marine litter.

Of course, tackling EU-produced marine litter is only one part of the world-wide picture. But by taking the lead, the European Union will be in a strong position to drive change at the global level.