On Wednesday, the world's largest online auction unveiled its prototype reusable shipping container, The eBay Box, which the company is printing 100,000 of in three different sizes. The boxes will be available at first to select eBay sellers

The idea for the eBay Box emerged from eBay's 'Innovation Expo' that invites eBay employees to develop prototypes for new products and breakthrough innovations that benefit the company's buyers and sellers. Basically, The Green Box is a durable box designed to be used over and over and over again.

According to eBay's calculations, if every box gets reused at least five times, the boxes could "protect nearly 4,000 trees, save 2.4 million gallons of water and conserve enough energy to power 49 homes for a year."

And just like the old-school system of cards in library books or those inter-office envelopes, the Green Box leaves a space for users to sign and leave some information about what the box was used for or where it has traveled.

When the boxes reach the end of their usable life, because they are made from 100% recycled content, the FSC-certified corrugated cardboard and are fully recyclable.

As a fairly eBay user, I look forward to seeing one of these in my mailbox some day. Even more than that, I look forward to turning around and shipping something off in one -- whether I really needed to sell it or not.

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During the celebration, GM delivered two Chevrolet Volts to the Shanghai Expo Bureau for use as part of its VIP transportation fleet at World Expo 2010 Shanghai. The Volt will shuttle special guests to and from Shanghai’s Expo Park.

“GM has made a long-term commitment to bringing our industry-leading technology to China,” said Kevin Wale, President and Managing Director of the GM China Group. “This is enabling us to provide the best mobility solutions for addressing the transportation challenges associated with the growth in demand for personal mobility."

The Chevy Volt has a total driving range of about 340 miles and is powered by electricity at all times. For up to the first 40 miles, the Volt drives on electricity stored in its 16-kWh lithium-ion battery. When the Volt’s battery runs low, a gas powered engine seamlessly operates to extend the driving range another 300 miles on a full tank. The short electric range for the Volt would make it ideal for short trips around town or shorter commutes (of less than 20 miles each way). The benefit of the range-extension is that the car can skip town without any range anxiety kicking in for the driver.

Like in the U.S., the Volt will be available in China with the OnStar in-vehicle safety, security and communication service.

In the U.S., GM is currently taking orders for the Chevy Volt, due out in late 2010.

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If you've ever traveled on a U.S. Interstate at night, you've likely come across large numbers of trucks idling at rest areas and truck stops. Long-haul truckers are required by law to rest for 10 out of every 24 hour period. But at rest, most trucks will idle their main diesel engine to provide heating and cooling, to keep the engine and fuel warm in winter, and to provide power for electrical appliances like microwaves and TV sets without draining the batteries.

But all that resting really adds up, both in terms of cost to the truckers and trucking companies, and in terms of  environmental cost. At current fuel prices, the average long-haul truck uses $3,000-$4,000 worth of diesel every year just idling. And with some fleets as large as 10,000 vehicles, the high cost of idling cuts into already narrow profit margins.

But the bigger issue for state and municipal governments is not fuel cost, it is air pollution (the federal government has yet to enact any anti-idling laws but they have set forth guidelines for states to follow if they wish). Idling anywhere between 500 and 3,500 hours a year and burning an average of .80 gallons of diesel fuel per hour, long-haul trucks emit 11 million tons of CO2, 200,000 tons of NOx, and 5,000 tons of particulate matter into the air annually.

Trucking companies used to eat the costs of truck idling, including the cost of state and local fines. But rising fuel and fine costs have spurred companies to seek alternative solutions to truck idling because, according to some reports, it has gotten to the point where it can cost less to get a hotel room than idle a truck.

New laws spurring development of clean-idling technologies

As of July 2010, 22 states and several large municipalities including the District of Columbia have enacted anti-idling regulations that normally limit idling to no more than five minutes. And in California, anti-idling enforcement is on the rise (pdf). In 2007, the California Air Quality Resources Board issued 135 anti-idling violations for large vehicles. In 2008, this number jumped to 511.

But despite the rash of new regulations and stepped-up enforcement, industry estimates are that less than 10 percent of the 1.4 million big trucks on the road have some form of auxiliary power unit (APU) on board that allows the main diesel engine to shut down yet still provide heating, cooling and electrical power for interior lighting and appliances. And of those roughly 100,000 trucks that do have APUs, most of those still run on diesel fuel, emitting CO2 and particulates into the air. Not only that, but the more costly diesel APUs still require fuel and cost more to keep up.

Bucking this trend, several companies including Thermo King, Idle Free and Glacier Bay have developed all-electric APU and battery systems that can provide climate control and electricity for a truck cab or sleeper -- and do so while producing zero emissions.

According to Glacier Bay company spokesman Russell Castronovo, who I recently spoke with via telephone, Glacier Bay's ClimaCab can keep a truck’s cab at 75°F for 10 hours anywhere and at any time of year in the US and Canada.

The ClimaCab combines a four-battery system with advanced battery management and variable-speed compressors and blowers. The variable speed motors are critical component of maximizing battery life and performance while the truck is at rest.

"Depending on variables, an electric APU can pay for itself in 1-2 years," said Castronovo. The all-electric ClimaCab system costs $6,000-$7,000 to install on a standard sleeper-cab truck.  Castronovo also pointed out that many states have rebates and other incentives that could help reduce the cost even more.

And apparently Glacier Bay is onto something. In 2009, while the market for new trucks was down by 50 percent and the overall trucking APU market was down by 70 percent, Glacier Bay grew from a $2 million business to a $15 million business.

Photo: 'Idling trucks' Some rights reserved by C. G. P. Grey

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(Click map to expand)

New intermodal route shaves 250 miles and a day's transit time between Norfolk and Chicago.

Ten years ago, about 70 percent of the Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) international freight arrived in West Coast ports and was distributed from there. Today, however, the company's East Coast port network got a big shot in the arm as the company began running test trains on its new $261-million Heartland Corridor between the port city of Norfolk and U.S.' national freight rail hub in Chicago, including the construction of a new intermodal terminal in Columbus, Ohio.

The new corridor project, which runs on tracks already a part of Norfolk Southern's rail assets for over 100 years, will shorten the length of the trip between Norfolk and Chicago by 250 miles, thereby reducing associated fuel costs and carbon emissions.

“Our goal strategically is to provide as many opportunities for steamship partners," said Jeff Heller, Group Vice President International Intermodal at Norfolk Southern on a phone call today with reporters. Heller emphasized that they had no intention of dictating how their shipping clients should access the Norfolk Southern rail network (West Coast v. East Coast), but that providing another point of access to the network would be well received by many shippers, especially as the Panama Canal expansion begins allowing the new generation of monster freighters through its locks.

The Port of Virginia at Hampton Roads can also handle big boats because of its deep water and lack of ‘air-draft’ limitations (ship height).

"We’re going to be able to run some big honkin’ trains through there," said Heller of the new Heartland Corridor, which was built to allow the more efficient double-stacked trains along its entire route. The project involved improving the clearance in 28 railroad tunnels in Virginia and West Virginia to accommodate double-stacking.

One intermodal train can take 250-300 trucks off the highway and double-stacking allows freight rail companies like Norfolk Southern stay competitive with long-haul trucking. “Hundreds of containers on each train that will translate into hundreds of trucks” taken off the road, said Heller.

"Double-stack trains are able to ‘densify’ the movement," said Heller.

Public-private project financing

The project was made possible by a unique public-private financing partnership, one of the largest public-private rail projects in U.S. history. Of the $261 million project cost, NS was responsible for $141 million and public sector partners subsidized to the tune of $120 million. The bulk of the public sector financing came from the U.S. Government via the transportation bill of 2004. The remainder came from the states of Virginia and Ohio.

According to Heller, Norfolk Southern began running test trains on the tracks today in preparation for the first double-stack train scheduled to go through the corridor on September 9.

Learn more about the coal-centric past and container-focused future of the Heartland Corridor:

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In the last few years, computing and electronics giant, Dell (NASDAQ:DELL), has established itself as a company with a strong green gene -- and that focus on sustainability extends to making advancements in materials and packaging.

In December 2008, Dell announced a plan to transform computer packaging. And in that time, the company has increased the amount of recycled content in its packaging by approximately 32 percent, including the introduction of bamboo packaging. To achieve the company's larger packaging goals of increasing recycled content in its packaging by 40 percent by 2012 the company is implementing a strategy based on the three Cs: Cube, Content and Curbside.

“Establishing these packaging goals has transformed my team from great packaging engineers to inspired environmental champions,” said Dell’s senior manager of Global Packaging, Oliver Campbell.

Dell outlines the three Cs strategy in their recently released 2010 Corporate Responsibility Summary Report (pdf):

Cube

Reducing the size of product packaging has required changes ranging from putting fewer items in the box, which allows for smaller packaging and a simpler "out-of-box" experience for customers, to using engineering tools to run various “what if” scenarios.

Using these tools, Dell says it has optimized its Inspiron 15 laptop packaging so that 63 laptops fit on each shipping pallet, up from 54 before the retooling. More laptops on each pallet means fewer shipping vehicles and a smaller environmental impact from shipping

Content

As mentioned above, Dell has increased the amount of recycled content in its packaging. For heavier products that require sturdy support, the company has stepped up the use of recycled foam versus using virgin product.

Dell has also increased its use of post-consumer recycled plastics, integrating the equivalent of more than 9.5 million half-gallon milk jugs into its packaging.

In 2008, Dell embraced bamboo as a strong and compostable alternative to the molded paper pulp, foams, and corrugated cardboard often used in packaging. Starting with its Inspiron Mini 10 and 10v netbooks, the company now uses bamboo packaging in its new 5-inch hybrid device, Streak, and for several of its Inspiron laptops.

Curbside

A critical part of any sustainable packaging strategy is closing the loop. Ensuring its product packaging is curbside-recyclable is part of that commitment. To reach its goal, Dell increasingly selects recyclable materials for its packaging, including PCR plastics and molded paper pulp.

While bamboo is still not accepted by many municipal recyclers for curbside pickup, Dell is teaming with Georgia Pacific, Unisource Global Services and Environmental Packaging International in an effort to certify its bamboo packaging for recycling.

According to Dell's Campbell, “The progress we’ve made has kept a lot of materials out of landfills, made responsible packaging disposal easier for customers and is making Dell a more environmentally responsible company.”

via: Greener Packaging

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With 38 million going to U.S. landfills annually, should single use plastic water bottles really be winning awards?

When Nestlé first launched their "Eco-Shape" PET plastic water bottle a few years back, the 15 percent reduction in plastic used (as compared to the average for .5 liter plastic bottles) in the bottle was hardly enough to garner the "eco" prefix. In fact, I thought the bottle--and the marketing campaign that went along with it--was a laughable and blatantly transparent example of greenwashing.

So when Nestlé announced it would be receiving an award for the Eco-Shape bottle, I must admit that I threw up in my mouth a little.

But the 2010 Gold Connecticut Quality Improvement Award's Innovation Prize was not given to Nestlé for the old 12.3-gram Eco-Shape bottle introduced in 2007, it was given for the new-and-improved second generation Eco-Shape bottle, which weighs an average of 9.3 grams and uses 25 percent less PET plastic than its predecessor and 60 percent less PET than the company's pre-Eco-Shape PET bottle. The new bottles use 30 percent less PET than other bottle designs of the same size.

But considering that 80 percent of plastic bottles are never recycled and 38 million plastic bottles go to the dump annually in the U.S. alone, I'm not comfortable with an "eco" designation being attached to any plastic bottle, even if the bottle is lighter, and uses less plastic and paper than other bottles of the same size.

Now I'm not necessarily knocking Nestlé for the packaging "advancement." In fact, the company claims that the Eco-Shape is credited with reducing Nestlé Waters' carbon emission equivalents by more than 356,000 tons since 2007. The company also boasts the fact that the new bottle's label is 35 percent smaller than the previous label, saving nearly 10 million pounds of paper annually.

Taken at face value, the advancements in material efficiency in the new Nestlé bottle are a good thing. But just because the package uses less plastic--and is cheaper to produce and transport--does not mean Nestlé should be slapping an "eco" on it.

And it definitely doesn't mean they should be winning any awards.

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Try your green skills on running a major international company with the CEO2 Climate Game by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Allianz.

A friend of mine on Twitter recently sent me a link to a computer game where you get to be the CEO of a major corporation (you choose the industry -- automotive, chemical, insurance, or utility) and are challenged to green your company in the most effective (long-term) way. In the game, after making a series of executive decisions on how best to spend your resources greening your company, you leap forward in time 2 years, 4 years, and then 10 years and the game tells you the results of your decisions and the reasons for those results at each point in time. After that, you have an option to go back to the drawing board and turn your company around or keep your success going.

I found playing the game quite interesting and it opened my mind a bit to future possibilities in this complex world. I'm not sure if all of the game's assumptions about the future are correct. As I just said, it is a complex world, and not many people can predict the future so well. Nonetheless, there is a lot of food for thought in there and I think it could help make anyone interested in this matter realize that there are a lot of things to consider when choosing the best green practices for your company.

If you're looking for both a fun and informative break to your day, or if you're just extremely interested in this topic, head on over to the CEO2 Climate Game and test out your green business skills.

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Officials with the Maryland Transit Administration say the new MP36 commuter locomotive built by MotivePower in Boise, Idaho drastically reduces emissions of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons and particulate matter, all while topping-out at a speed of 108 mph.

Unlike the genset locomotives which can toggle down from its operating power of 3 running engines down to 1, the diesel electric locomotives from MotivePower shut off the diesel engine altogether while idling and keep the motor turning via an electric APU (alternative power unit).

Video via Clean Skies

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Unlike traditional plastics made from non-renewable petroleum, the new material PG&E will use in its Pantene Pro-V, COVERGIRL and Max Factor brands is made using a process which transforms sugarcane into high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic, a type commonly used for product packaging.

P&G will source the sugarcane-derived plastic from Braskem SA, who manufactures the material using ethanol made from sustainably-grown Brazilian sugarcane. The sugarcane-derived HDPE is 100% recyclable in existing municipal recycling facilities.

By launching this renewable packaging on some of its global beauty brands, P&G hopes to leverage its tremendous scale and reach to deliver meaningful environmental improvements.

''This innovation is truly consumer-driven. As we talk with women around the world, they tell us that they want to make themselves more beautiful without making their environment less beautiful,'' said Gina Drosos, Group President, Global P&G Beauty. ''With this new packaging innovation, women can have confidence that their favorite brands are helping to make a difference.''

The pilot sugarcane-derived packaging will be rolled out globally over the next 2 years, with the first products expected to be on shelf in 2011. There is still no word whether Proctor & Gamble has any intention of rolling out the sugarcane-based plastic in any of its other major consumer brands.

Photo: Some rights reserved by Deivis

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This article was written by Duncan Clark and Mike Berners-Lee, for guardian.co.uk on Thursday 12th August 2010 09.00 UTC

The carbon footprint of the internet:
Around 300 million tonnes of CO2 per year, equivalent to every person in the UK flying to America and back twice over.

All carbon footprints are hard or impossible to pin down accurately, but the internet is a particularly complex case. This isn't just due to the fact that the "net" consists of millions or even billions of machines owned by countless people and companies. There's also another problem: even if we knew exactly how much energy all these devices consumed (which we don't), we still wouldn't know how much of that energy was spent on offline jobs (such as creating documents in Microsoft Office) and how much was spent on online jobs (such as emailing those documents to a friend or colleague).

It's possible, nonetheless, to take a rough stab at working out the internet's carbon footprint. A good place to start is the world's data centres – buildings packed top to bottom with servers full of the web pages, databases, online applications and downloadable files that make the modern online experience possible. Data centres use lots of electricity, both for powering the machines they contain and – all importantly – for the air conditioning needed to keep the servers from overheating.

According to a report by Gartner, data centres already account for around a quarter of the energy consumed (and the carbon emitted) by the information and communication technology (ICT) sector as a whole. In other words, around half a percent of global CO2 emissions.

By Gartner's figures, the world's PCs and monitors are even more power hungry, accounting for around 40% of the total ICT energy demand and 0.8% of global CO2 emissions. If we decided (somewhat arbitrarily) that half of the emissions from all these laptop and desktop machines were down to internet-based activity, and then add on the emissions from the data centres that make all this online activity possible, then the internet would clock in at around 1% of all the CO2 emissions released from burning fossil fuels. Put another way, the internet releases around 300m tonnes of CO2 – as much as all the coal, oil and gas burned in Turkey or Poland in one year, or more than half of those burned in the UK.

These figures tie in fairly well with a study by the UK's market transformation programme, which concluded that 343.5 million tonnes of CO2 was down to consumer and commercial ICT in 2005 – equivalent to around 1.2% of current fossil-fuel CO2 emissions. ICT's footprint is due to climb by 60% by 2030, the same report suggests. If that was to happen, and global emissions had already fallen by then, as climate change experts suggest they must, then the internet's share of total carbon output would climb significantly higher still.

All this depends on what happens between now and then, of course. Companies have already been exploring technologies that can take the heat from data centres and use them to warm nearby buildings, thereby reducing internal air-conditioning requirements and local demand for heating fuels. And Iceland, which has an abundance of renewable, low-carbon energy is angling to be the world's data-centre capital.

In the meantime, it's interesting to note that 1% is about the same proportion as printing and paper-based publishing represents in the UK. The comparison isn't entirely valid, for a whole host of reasons, but the fact remains that despite ecological claims for the virtual economy, the digital era may be no less energy-hungry than the paper-based world of 20 years ago. Part of the reason is the so-called rebound effect – the phenomenon that when something (in this case the storing and interrogation of data) becomes cheaper and more energy-efficient, we often end up simply doing more of it, with the result that there is no net reduction, or even a rise, in cost or impact.

On the other hand, the internet is likely to be crucial to any move to a low-carbon world. Without its capacity to carry the huge flows of energy data, there could be no "smart grid", for example, and without online video conferencing it would be much harder to reduce the number of business flights in coming years. Ultimately, then, it's not just technological developments that will affect the growing carbon footprint of the Internet. Just as important is how we choose to use it.

• See more carbon footprints

• This article draws on text from How Bad Are Bananas? The Carbon Footprint of Everything by Mike Berners-Lee.

guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010

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