CVS pays customers to reuse bags

CVS will begin giving customers a $1 coupon for every four times they use a cloth bag. While grocery stores have been offering discounts on reusable bags for a while now, the amount of the reward CVS is offering is a lot greater than similar programs.

Members of the company's ExtraCare rewards program will have the opportunity to purchase a "Green Bag Tag" card to attach to their cloth bag. Every time they make purchases, the tag will be scanned at the register. After the tag is scanned four times, the customer will receive a $1 coupon as part of their receipt.

Company officials said its stores will have the tags in about two weeks. To read more, check out this story from The Boston Globe.

UK company develops laptop bags with solar panels

Mascotte Industrial Associates, a UK company, has developed the first line of consumer electronics bags with built-in solar panels.

The bags are fitted with Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells. This marks the first time that DSSC technology has been used in consumer products. DSSC is a type of "thin-film" solar technology that allows solar panels to be manufactured quickly and molded to fit various materials. A similar techonology is being used in cell phones that are fitted with solar panels, which providers have started marketing this year.

The bags will be displayed at the Hong Kong Electronics Fair this week and will be capable of charging laptops, cell phones, cameras, and other devices. For more information, check out this story from Business Green.

Biofuel firm makes fuel from sewage

U.S. biofuel company Qteros says it has created the first commercially-viable technology for creating ethanol from the materials found in municipal waste (what we would call sewage).

The company has teamed up with an Israeli bio-tech company, Applied CleanTech, to use one of Applied's technologies to complete the process of making ethanol. The technologies have the potential to save municipal waste water plants a lot of money by giving them a way to create revenue by selling energy.

For more information on these technologies, check out this story from Business Green.

Competition showcases solar-powered houses

For the new two weeks, the National Mall in Washington, D.C., has been turned into a residential development to showcase the best solar homes available in the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon competition.

University teams from around the country as well as teams from Germany and Spain have spent over two years building solar-powered houses. Like the decathlon at track & field competitions, the contest has 10 "events," or areas that the house are judged on: architecture, market viability, engineering, lighting design, communications, comfort zone, hot water, appliances, home entertainment, and net metering.

The purpose of the competition is to promote the world's growing need to find ways to harness and use alternative energies. For more info on the Solar Decathlon, check out this story from CNN.

Patriot Place to install solar power generator

Patriot Place, the retail and entertainment complex adjacent to Gillette Stadium, is having a photovoltaic system installed on the roofs of seven buildings to produce solar power at the site. The system, which will consist of 2,800 solar panels, is expected to generate enough power to account for 30 percent of the total power used at the complex.

Work crews will begin installing the photovoltaic system later this month, and a spokesperson for Patriot Place said construction will likely be completed by the end of the year. The use of solar power at the site will reduce emissions by more than 8,000 metric tons of CO2, which is the equivalent of taking about 1,600 cars off of the road.

For more on this story, click here.

Tax credits put more green in your pocket

As part of the federal stimulus package passed earlier this year, home owners can get tax credits for making green renovations to their home, such as installing solar panels, environmentally-friendly doors, or geothermal heating systems.

The details are pretty simple. The U.S. Treasury Department will give you 30 percent of the cost of energy-efficient windows, doors, heating/cooling systems, water heaters, and other items. Other types of credits are available as well. For instance, if you purchase a $20,000 solar-electric system, you can get a tax credit for $6,000 of the cost.

For more info on other home renovation tax credits that are available, check out this story from The Globe.

Alternative energy vehicles displayed at expo

More than 50 alternative energy vehicles were on display yesterday at the Fifth AltWheeles Fleet Day at the Staples World Headquarters in Framingham, Massachusetts. The expo is the largest display of alternative energy vehicles on the East Coast.

The vehicles on display were fueled by everything from electricity to lithium-ion batteries to compressed natural gas. Experts on the manufacturing and operation of the vehicles were on hand to answer any questions that fleet managers attending the event had. Industry leaders also spoke about the importance of using alternative energy vehicles in corporate fleets.

For more info on AtlWheels Fleet DAy, click here for a story from The Boston Globe.

Green cell phone turns heads

Samsung's Reclaim cell phone is turning heads among those interested in sustainable technology. The phone is manufactured using 80 percent recycled materials and includes a standard energy-efficient charger.

In addition to being more sustainable than your average cell phone, the makers of the phone did a good job of making sure it would be "cool" enough to interest the typical cell phone user. The phone includes a slide-action QWERTY keyboard and sports one button links to popular website such as Facebook and Twitter. The Reclaim also comes preloaded with green and environmental tips.

For more information on this and other green phones, click here.

Green Taxis Act would allow cities to require hybrid taxis

Federal courts have previously struck down attempts by cities such as Boston, New York, and Seattle to require taxi companies to deploy hybrid fleets.

Last year, Boston passed a regulation that would have required fleets to be all-hybrid by 2015 before the courts ruled that it violated federal laws. The city justified the regulation by saying that hybrid vehicles are 74 percent more efficient than many of taxis currently on the road.

However, the Green Taxis Act of 2009, introduced by Senator Kerry in the Senate today, would allow cities to decide on their own whether taxi fleets should be all-hybrid or not.

“This legislation will help empower cities and towns across the nation, including Boston, to improve air quality, lower carbon emissions, and save cab drivers and passengers money,’’ Kerry said in a prepared statement. “We know we must reinvent the way America uses energy and once again Boston is leading the way.’’

For more info on the Green Taxi Act, check out this story from The Globe.

Environmental groups praise Kerry-Boxer Climate Bill

Environmental groups were unanimous in their praise for the Kerry-Boxer Climate Bill that was introduced in the Senate yesterday, but, as expected, the groups stressed that the bill was just a first step of many towards making the environment safer with climate legislation.

According to The Daily Green, environmental groups praised the bill for many reasons, including:

• Creating new "green jobs" via the Green Construction Careers Demonstration Project and funding for the Green Jobs Act
• Setting a short-term target for greenhouse gas reductions of 20% from major sources by 2020
• Preserving existing Clean Air Act regulations that will allow the Environmental Protection Agency to curb greenhouse gas pollution from power plants and other major sources.

While the praise was unanimous, the criticism of what the groups consider a emissions reduction requirement that is too lenient was also close to unanimous. For more on the bill, check out this story.