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Invasive Species Refined: Bioplastics from Water Hyacinth

Posted on February 29, 2024February 29, 2024 by dishanth

In a pioneering breakthrough, researchers have unveiled an innovative technique to make bioplastics from water hyacinth (Pontederia crassipes) to solve pollution and plastic waste. Leveraging the notorious water hyacinth, an invasive aquatic weed causing havoc in waterways, the scientists have demonstrated a circular approach to tackle environmental challenges.

Revolutionizing Bioremediation and Value-Added Products

Water hyacinth is endemic to South America and was introduced to North America and the rest of the world as an ornamental plant. However, once in the environment, they are infamous for choking waterways, causing damage to ecosystems, and causing over $100 million in annual control costs in the U.S. alone. However, the research team at the University of California, Riverside, led by Dr. Zhiwei Hu, discovered a way to harness the potential of this invasive plant for environmental redemption. Their technique involves using water hyacinth to absorb and break down pollutants from wastewater, addressing excessive nutrient pollution, and then converting the biomass into valuable bioplastics and fertilizer.

“We aimed to tackle two environmental problems — excessive nutrient pollution and plastic waste — with one circular solution,” explained Dr. Hu. “And we discovered the resulting bioplastics from water hyacinth perform on par with standard petrochemical plastics in terms of flexibility, durability, and strength.”

This groundbreaking approach provides a sustainable solution to the environmental issues associated with water hyacinths and offers a valuable resource for manufacturing bioplastics from water hyacinths. The researchers are investigating ways to enhance the experimental bioplastics to enable full industrial substitution for materials like polyurethane in consumer goods.

Turning a Troublesome Weed into a Resource

Fueled by excessive nitrogen and phosphorous levels in surface waters, water hyacinth outbreaks have been wreaking havoc on freshwater habitats. Creating bioplastics from water hyacinths and other valuable products could jumpstart more resilient regional bio-manufacturing ecosystems.

“The collaboration between wastewater treatment plants and our water hyacinth bioremediation technique combined with material generation is under exploration,” noted Dr. Hu. “Scaling this will help relieve stress on conventional plastic supply chains while supporting greener, carbon-conscious manufacturing.”

Towards a Greener Future: Scaling and Collaboration

The potential for scaling bioplastics from water hyacinths holds promise for addressing the challenges posed by water hyacinths and contributing to sustainable manufacturing practices. Water hyacinth is an invasive aquatic plant that can cause substantial ecological and economic damage by outcompeting native species, reducing biodiversity, and impeding water flow.

However, researchers have discovered that the fibrous tissues and polymers within water hyacinth can be extracted and used as feedstock for biodegradable plastics. By repurposing these invasive plants into valuable bioplastics, an immense potential exists for transforming an environmental burden into economic opportunity.

The research showcases the environmental benefits and highlights the economic potential of repurposing invasive plants. Scaling up bioplastic production from water hyacinth could provide a renewable, compostable alternative to conventional petroleum-based plastics.

Water hyacinth is an ideal candidate for sustainable bioplastic feedstock as an abundant and fast-growing invasive species requiring no additional land, water, or nutrient resources. If successful, this approach could present an economically viable alternative to conventional plastic production, supporting ecological resilience through invasive plant control and closed-loop manufacturing powered by renewable plant biomass.

Additionally, the bioplastics from water hyacinths offer promising mechanical properties comparable to polyethylene and polypropylene. The research indicates that water hyacinth bioplastics could replace conventional plastics in various applications. By incentivizing large-scale harvesting of invasive plants, bioplastic production can mitigate ecological damage while meeting material demands.

Unlikely Collaborations: A Key to Sustainable Solutions

The collaboration between scientists and troublesome flora exemplifies the potential for finding solutions where they are least expected. By tapping into the disruptive tendencies of invasive plants, the research opens up new possibilities for environmental redemption and industrial symbiosis.

As the world grapples with pollution and plastic waste, bioplastics from water hyacinths offer hope. It showcases the transformative power of unlikely collaborations and the ability to turn environmental challenges into opportunities for innovation and positive change. The researchers believe that such groundbreaking initiatives could pave the way for a greener, more sustainable future in both environmental conservation and manufacturing.

Source Happy Eco News

What is water cremation? UK now offers eco-friendly burial alternative

Posted on February 19, 2024 by dishanth

The UK’s biggest funeral care provider is now offering water cremation. But what exactly is it and what is its impact on the environment?

Water cremation is now available in the UK following rising demand for more environmentally friendly end-of-life options.

When you die there are currently only two options in most of Europe – burial or a traditional fire cremation.

But new options are becoming more popular.

What is water cremation or resomation?

Water cremation, also known as aquamation, resomation and alkaline hydrolysis, uses water to bring the body back to the skeletal remains.

The body is placed in a steel vessel filled with water and an alkaline solution.

It is then heated up which takes the flesh back to its chemical components – amino acids, peptides, sugars and salts.

After about three to four hours, only the bones remain. They are then ground down to a white powder, placed in an urn and given to the family.

Last summer the UK’s biggest funeral provider, Co-op Funeralcare, announced that it would start offering the service. This made them the first business to do so.

Water cremation was already legal in the UK subject to compliance with health, safety and environmental regulation.

It’s the method that South African anti-apartheid hero Desmond TuTu chose following his death in 2021.

He wanted an eco-friendly funeral and according to UK-based firm resomation, it uses five times less energy than a fire cremation.

What is the environmental impact of the funeral industry?

“For decades there have been just two main choices when it comes to [peoples’] end-of-life arrangements: burial and cremation,” says Julian Atkinson, director of resomation company Kindly Earth.

“[We] will be providing people with another option for how they leave this world because this natural process uses water, not fire, making it gentler on the body and kinder on the environment.”

And there appears to be an appetite for such a service.

Research by YouGov, commissioned by Co-op Funeralcare, found that 89 per cent of UK adults hadn’t heard of the term resomation. But once explained, just under a third (29 per cent) said they would choose it for their own funeral if it was available.

“The rise in ecological and sustainability concerns over the past decade combined with a desire to be part of nature or laid to rest in a natural setting, means more people are considering the environmental impact of their body once they die,” says Professor Douglas Davies from the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University.

Around 245kg of carbon emissions are generated by one traditional cremation, the equivalent of charging your smartphone over 29,000 times.

Traditional burials also have negative environmental consequences. The chemicals used in the embalming process can leak out and pollute the surrounding soil and waterways.

Which European countries offer water cremation?

The UK is not the only European country to make waves in the resomation scene.

Ireland is set to open its first water cremation facility this year. The service is also available in the US, Canada and South Africa.

Belgium and the Netherlands are among the other European countries looking to introduce resomation, but there are regulatory hurdles that must be overcome first.

Source euronews.green.com

Meta Powers Towards Net Zero with Carbon Removal Projects

Posted on February 7, 2024February 7, 2024 by dishanth

Any organisation worth their sustainability salt knows that reaching net zero emissions in operations alone is not enough

Decarbonization must extend beyond offices and factories to include Scope 3, from the emissions caused by suppliers to those created by employees.

For Meta, the world’s fifth-biggest tech company, this challenge is being met with ambitious targets and bold, meaningful action.

Having already hit net zero emissions in global operations in 2020, the social media giant now has its sustainability sights set on achieving net zero value chain emissions by 2030.

This is quite the challenge, given 99% of Meta’s carbon footprint came from Scope 3 in 2022 – and this continues to rise.

“We know that reaching net zero emissions across our value chain will not be an easy task,” Rachel Peterson, Vice President of Data Centre Strategy at Meta said in the company’s 2023 Sustainability Report.

“Right now, our Scope 3 emissions are increasing and will continue to do so as we work to support the global demand for the services we provide.”

Meta Tackles Hard-to-Abate Sectors with Carbon Removal Projects

Meta acknowledges that reaching this goal requires a significant shift in how it builds infrastructure and operates its entire business – and the 20-year-old company is prioritising efficiency and circularity in its business decisions and embracing low-carbon technology to operate with a lower emissions footprint.

For example, through its supplier engagement programme, Meta is working to decarbonise its supply chain and enable at least two-thirds of its suppliers to set SBTi-aligned reduction targets by 206.

However, there are some emissions from hard-to-abate sectors the Facebook owner knows will be difficult to reduce by the end of the decade.

And so to tackle this, Meta has turned to carbon removal projects, the third pillar in its high-level emissions reduction strategy.

In a white paper outlining its Net Zero Strategy, the company says investing in value chain emissions reductions projects is necessary to address sources it can’t directly influence – like companies or processes used to extract and process the copper in data centre hardware or mechanical electrical equipment.

“These projects offer a significant opportunity to decarbonise our business at pace and scale require to achieve our 2030 reduction target,” the paper states.

For Meta, a diverse approach to carbon removal that includes both nature-based and technological approaches is crucial – not only to ensure near-term climate impact but to support carbon removal solutions for the future.

This strategy involves the purchase of credits from projects that align with Meta’s principles, from reforestation to investment in direct air capture technology.

Nature-Based Solutions in Mitigating Carbon Emissions

Since 2021, the social media giant has supported numerous nature-based carbon removal projects, from Australia to Kenya, including increasing forest carbon stock of community ejido forests in Oaxaca and increasing stored carbon via protection of forests that provide habitat for mitigating salmon in California.

And demonstrating its continued commitment to investing in nature-based solutions to mitigate carbon emissions, Meta recently signed a major carbon credits deal for 6.75 million carbon credits with Aspiration, a leading provider of sustainable financial services.

These credits hail from a myriad of ecosystem restoration and natural carbon removal approaches, including native tree and mangrove reforestation, agroforestry, and the implementation of sustainable agricultural practices.

Meta’s role in the voluntary carbon market extends beyond purchasing credits from projects to supporting new project development through financing and encouraging the evolution of standards that bring more certainty to the market.

Among the ways Meta is driving development in the sector is through collaborative action that will “aggregate the resources of multiple companies to create rapid change at scale”.

This includes a collaborative pledge to develop carbon projects that centre Indigenous leadership.

Through 1t.org, the National Indian Carbon Coalition and Meta have pledged to support and promote a model of carbon projects that centre on the leadership, traditional ecological knowledge, and vision of Indigenous Peoples for themselves and their land.

Among other collaborative projects:

Participation in the Business Alliance to Scale Climate Solutions (BASCS), which provides a platform for businesses and climate experts to meet, learn, discuss and act together to improve climate solutions.
Collaboration with the World Resources Institute to develop a method to map forest canopy height↗ at individual tree-scale using a new Meta AI training model. We have mapped forest canopy in California and São Paulo, Brazil, and are making the data public and freely available

Meta’s Role in Scaling Carbon Removal Technologies

In further driving development in the sector, Meta joined forces with other big tech companies in 2022 to accelerate the development of carbon removal technologies by guaranteeing future demand.

While some say focusing on carbon capture is a distraction to the real goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Meta argues that both emissions reductions and carbon dioxide removal are needed.

And climate science backs this up.

Scientists say removing the carbon emissions that we have already pumped into the atmosphere is necessary if we are to avoid the 1.5-degree rises in global temperature set out in the Paris Agreement.

Launched in 2022, Frontier is a US$925 million joint commitment between Meta, Stripe, Shopify, McKinsey Sustainability and Alphabet – more recently bolstered with four new companies – Autodesk, H&M Group, JPMorgan Chase and Workday – committing a combined US$100 million.

Frontier helps its member companies purchase CO2 removal via pre-purchase agreements or offtake agreements. The goal is to spur the development of a new industry by providing a novel source of funding that isn’t based on debt or equity investments, but on actual product purchases before the technology is fully available at scale.

So far, Frontier has spent $5.6 million buying nearly 9,000 tonnes of contracted carbon removal from 15 different carbon dioxide removal startups.

Among these, RepAir uses electrochemical cells and clean electricity to capture carbon dioxide from the air, while Living Carbon is a synthetic biology startup working on engineering natural systems to remove carbon dioxide.

With this strategy, Meta is helping to expand the voluntary carbon market, overcome barriers to scale, and at the same time achieve its own ambitious net zero goals.

Source

Sustainable procurement doesn’t have to be a headache – here’s how your business can benefit

Posted on November 6, 2023November 6, 2023 by dishanth

For business leaders, environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals are very much front of mind. More than 70 countries, including China, the US and the European Union, now have firm pledges to reach Net Zero, and the UK is committed to hitting this by 2050. Businesses of all sizes are increasingly aware that they have to be part of the solution, rather than add to the problem.

Procurement leaders are uniquely positioned to drive positive change and broader business impacts on ESG goals. While organisational sustainability efforts have historically been grounded in ensuring compliance with regulations, a comprehensive, proactive approach to sustainable procurement can reduce risk exposure (such as reputational, brand safety or regulatory), create savings, and improve brand value for the enterprise.

Procurement departments are certainly aware of the need to thoroughly assess the provenance of the products they purchase. But while this may be possible with core purchases – usually involving large amounts of money where there is a direct relationship with the supplier – it is simply not possible to vet every single product, particularly in categories such as IT purchases, catering items and health products, where the overall spend may be lower but individual purchase volumes are higher.

A trusted smart business buying solution, such as Amazon Business, can help operationalise and scale a responsible purchasing program. As well as other benefits, including access to business-only pricing, a familiar user interface, and Amazon’s reliable delivery network, buyers can select more sustainable products across business-relevant categories, specifying from over 40 certifications covering a wide range of credentials.

This allows businesses to set specific requirements, and even set preferences, ahead of employee product searches. These out-of-the-box buying policies can direct your team to products and sellers that can help satisfy your organisation’s purchasing goals, and would make products with certain sustainability certifications the preferred product in a buyer’s search results.

Clear labelling of products with sustainability certifications frees up time spent finding, validating and growing a base of suppliers that can help you meet your organisation’s responsible purchasing criteria, using an interface with which employees may already be familiar. In turn, business leaders can access pre-built reports (for example, orders, shipments, returns, refunds, reconciliation, related offers and the credentials report which contains product sustainability details), or build custom reports to identify purchasing patterns and track spend toward more sustainable products that meet ESG goals.

One example of a supplier that offer products with sustainability certifications is UK firm Portus Digital, which helps to repurpose or recycle redundant computer equipment. “Our aim is to be a frontrunner in the industry and set an example of how it is possible to combine technology and sustainability,” explains Tash Clementis, Director of Marketing. “People are more likely to choose a greener option when it’s easier and more accessible.”

Amazon Business also works with suppliers to help them become certified, ensuring they can benefit from organisations looking to make more sustainable and responsible purchases. “We launched on Amazon to help more businesses make sustainable IT decisions,” says Rob Judd, Director of Sales at Portus Digital. “We’re pleased by the response we’ve managed to generate so far – it’s exceeded our expectations.”

Research from McKinsey shows that organisations that embrace a comprehensive ESG strategy can enhance investment returns, increase top-line growth and keep and attract quality talent. Further, improvements on reporting can help businesses demonstrate their progress towards ESG goals more broadly, providing specific metrics to proactively measure against social responsibility and sustainability goals.

Amazon Business can also partner with organisations as they look to improve sustainability in other ways. Amazon Business Prime members can choose to consolidate their deliveries using Amazon Day, which gives them the choice of two days each week during which they can receive their orders. On, average, this reduces the number of packages. For larger orders, it’s also possible to receive bulk deliveries by the pallet, meaning organisations can stock up on items while minimising delivery journeys, where available.

Amazon Business, as part of Amazon, is committed to adopting sustainable practises, including reducing packaging and making use of electric delivery vehicles. It has also committed to power its operations with 100 percent renewable energy by 2025.

With sustainability and responsible business rising up the agenda for organisations, investors and consumers, it’s vital companies take steps – and can demonstrate those steps – to source responsibly. This is an issue that all businesses must embrace, and one they cannot afford to ignore.

Source Independent

Green dreams: Algae biorefineries could help in the race to net zero

Posted on October 26, 2023October 31, 2023 by dishanth

The world is looking for new solutions to address the challenges we’re facing in the race to net zero. Things we rely on each day, like transport, agriculture and plastics are significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions.

Enter algae. This diverse bunch of tiny organisms are emerging as a solution to a number of our fossil fuel problems.

Algae are aquatic photosynthetic organisms, which means they use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to grow. Examples include seaweeds, microalgae, plankton and phytoplankton. There are thousands of distinct types of algae. And each type has specific uses and benefits that we are only just starting to discover.

From pond to pump: Know your algae

Algae fall into two main groups:

Microalgae: these are single-celled photosynthetic micro-organisms, which can live in salt or freshwater.
Macroalgae: these are multicellular aquatic plants that also photosynthesize. There are three types: green, red and brown. Each has different proteins, carbohydrates and fats which lend themselves to various uses.

Getting to net zero means we need to change our industrial processes. We need to increase efficiency of our traditional agricultural systems. And we also need to expand our ability to produce products like food, fuel and chemicals from new sources that are not reliant on fossil fuels. This is where algae come in.

Realizing the potential of algae biorefineries

Algae are promising because they don’t compete for land, freshwater or other precious resources, and produce high yields. They can also help purify the waters in which they grow by removing excess nutrients that lead to poor water quality.

Dr. Anusuya Willis is the Director of our Australian National Algae Culture Collection. She says much of the potential of algae is yet to be realized.

“The future of algae needs to be tempered because of a lack of fundamental research. None of the solutions will happen quickly but we need to make progress,” she says.

Warren Flentje is the Industrial Decarbonization Lead for our Towards Net Zero Mission. Warren believes algae biorefineries could be the solution to several of our challenges. These facilities are similar to traditional biorefineries that process biomass, but algal biorefineries specifically use algae as the raw material. However, this technology is in the early stages of research, and requires more investment before it’s ready to be rolled out.

“Algal biorefineries provide ingredients to make fuel, as well as other products like oils and plastics, and even new proteins for our diets or base products for health or cosmetic end uses,” Warren says.

“We need to do more with less—in our existing systems. And at the same time, we need to be working on the systems of the future.”

A sustainable source of bioenergy and biofuels

Biofuels can be a renewable and sustainable fuel for transport. Made from biomass, it can be used as an alternative to fossil fuels. Biomass is material from living things like agricultural crops and waste, animal fats and vegetable oils.

However, growing crops specifically to make biofuel takes up valuable agricultural land, which is already under increasing pressure from our food systems. So, we need new ways of producing the biomass feedstock that go into biofuels. Which is why we are looking at algal biomass and other future feedstocks.

Demand for biofuels is increasing. It’s being driven by increased oil prices and climate change policies. People are already starting to reduce emissions with biofuels by using E10 (regular unleaded petrol with 10% plant derived ethanol) or by using sustainable aviation fuel.

Algae as a livestock feed additive

FutureFeed is a supplement for livestock made from a type of native seaweed (Asparagopsis). It can reduce methane emissions by more than 80% in cattle, sheep and goats. This is important because each molecule of methane has 28 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide (on a 100-year scale). This makes methane a potent greenhouse gas for our warming atmosphere.

Asparagopsis seaweed contains bioactives, which are compounds that have a biological effect and can interact with the microbes in a cow’s stomach. They disrupt the normal processes that would lead to the formation of methane gas.

Dr. Michael Battaglia is a Director at FutureFeed and leads our Towards Net Zero Mission.

“FutureFeed, a great Australian innovation, looks promising. But for these solutions to create impact, we need to focus on scaling seaweed cultivation, aggregation and processing,” Michael says.

FutureFeed has been driving commercialization of Asparagopsis, with licensees growing the product. We’re continuing to research and develop the product to drive adoption. However, we need to attract more investment in sustainable seaweed farming and speed up the regulatory process.

Seaweed can help tackle climate change and biodiversity loss

Seaweed ecosystems could also become strong nature-based solutions to tackling climate change, biodiversity loss and help protect our coastlines. Kelp is a kind of macroalgae, which creates large underwater forests. Kelp forests cover an area more extensive than coral reefs or rainforests.

Through photosynthesis, kelp use sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to grow. This converts carbon dioxide to organic biomass for short-term storage. If kelp is not grazed, consumed or decomposed, it can be buried in seafloor sediments or transported to the deep ocean. There it acts as long-term carbon removal to help mitigate emissions.

“A lot more work needs to be done in this area to accurately measure the long-term storage of carbon captured via kelp forests,” Anusuya says.

Maintaining healthy seaweed and kelp ecosystems is part of the puzzle in protecting our oceans.

“If we want to use kelp in the ecosystem restoration economy, we need to incentivize kelp protection and restoration through carbon value,” says Anusuya. “But the value of kelp in the carbon cycle is complex and ways to monitor sequestration aren’t yet fully understood.”

Challenges of scaling up algal-based solutions

Each type of algae comes with unique challenges. As demand for algae grows, we need to make sure we work to manage cultivation and farming to ensure sustainability.

Microalgae can be grown on land in controlled bioreactors. But for it to be useful, we need to invest in new ways of harvesting algae on a large scale. It is all about understanding how to grow algae in the most efficient way. On the other hand, we can’t control the environments of macroalgae as much, because they grow and are farmed along our coastlines. To unlock the ability of kelp to retain carbon, while restoring balance and boosting biodiversity, we need to follow an ecosystem-based approach to sustainably manage kelp forests and protect the ecosystem.

For all these algae-based solutions, scaling up has challenges. But algae have a role to play in working towards net zero. They can increase efficiency in our traditional agricultural systems, while expanding our ability to produce products like food, fuel and chemicals from new sources. It’s why we are working with research and investment to scale and de-risk some of these solutions to increase adoption.

HUGO BOSS: Shaping the future of sustainable fashion

Posted on August 3, 2023August 3, 2023 by dishanth

Headquartered in Metzingen, Germany, HUGO BOSS is a global luxury fashion and lifestyle brand offering high-quality women’s and men’s apparel, shoes and accessories.

HUGO BOSS is comprised of two powerhouse brands – BOSS and HUGO. Although both brands boast distinct attributes, they are united by unwavering standards of quality, innovation and sustainability, aiming to provide consumers with impeccable attire for every occasion.

The brand operates in 132 countries, with almost 20,000 employees, generating €3.7bn (US$4.7bn).

“CLAIM 5”: HUGO BOSS’s clear commitment to sustainability
HUGO BOSS’s sustainability vision is clear: To lead the way as the ultimate premium tech-driven fashion platform on a global scale. As part of our ambitious growth strategy for 2025, known as “CLAIM 5,” the business is committed to becoming one of the top 100 global fashion brands. What’s more, CLAIM 5, aims to revolutionise the fashion industry, leveraging cutting-edge technology, boundless creativity and an unyielding focus on sustainability.

“CLAIM 5 consequently includes a strong commitment to sustainability,” says Daniel Grieder, CEO of HUGO BOSS. “We are consistently placing the consumer and its high expectations at the heart of everything we do. Our ambition is to further increase brand relevance and ultimately become one of the top 100 global brands. At the same time, we aim to make a positive contribution to our environment and society.”

HUGO BOSS’s journey to net zero

By 2030, the company has pledged to reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions from primary energy use and electricity supply by at least 50% – from the base year of 2019. According to the brand’s most recent sustainability report, the brand has also set the goal of reducing Scope 3 emissions by at least 50% by 2030.

To achieve these climate targets, HUGO BOSS is focusing on saving energy, as well as procurement and self-generation from renewable sources.

“Our goals are ambitious: we aim to reduce our CO2 emissions by at least 50% by 2030 and achieve “net zero” by 2050. Promoting and implementing a circular business model is of particular importance in this regard,” Grieder adds.

“We are fully committed to further extending product life cycles and noticeably reducing waste in the coming years by promoting the use of high-quality and recyclable materials. We are therefore working intensively, among other things, on replacing environmentally harmful polyester and nylon fibres with sustainable, recyclable alternatives.”

To support this, the brand has recently launched its first BOSS polo shirt made of around 90% innovative and fully recyclable AeoniQ yarn. Grider explains that although this is just one example of BOSS aims to lead change, “it clearly demonstrates” steps being made towards a “better future.”

Source Sustainability

Allbirds touts world’s first net-zero carbon shoe

Posted on March 28, 2023 by dishanth

The US-based footwear and apparel brand has not yet launched the shoe, called M0.0NSHOT, for purchase, but has provided key information on how design and material innovation have resulted in a net-zero shoe.

Some parts of the shoe’s lifecycle do emit carbon, such as transporting the components and the finished pair. However, as all of the key components are certified as carbon negative, Allbirds claims that the emissions which have been created are ‘inset’ across the lifecycle of the shoe.

The shoe’s upper is made using a carbon-negative merino wool from the New Zealand Merino Company, for example. The Company uses regenerative farming methods to enable the soil to draw down carbon. It has been certified as carbon-negative by Toitu Envirocare, a third-party carbon certification business, with carbon sequestration outweighing emissions.

Other carbon-negative elements of the shoe include bioplastic eyelets made using methane-based polymers and sugarcane-based foam midsoles. Allbirds has been using carbon-negative, sugarcane-based foam for soles since 2018 and calls this material SweetFoam. The new shoes include a next-generation version of this material, called .

Additionally, the shoes will be housed in sugarcane-derived, carbon-negative packaging which has been light-weighted to minimise emissions from transportation.

Allbirds’ co-founder and co-chief Tim Brown said: “Creating a net zero carbon shoe that is commercially viable and scalable is the culmination of our entire back catalogue of work. M0.0NSHOT isn’t a silver bullet for the climate crisis — it’s a proof-point that, when we take sustainability seriously and are laser-focused on carbon reduction, we can make incredible breakthroughs.”

The brand’s head of sustainability Hana Kajimura added: “We believe this will revolutionize the path to net zero, and act as rocket-fuel for the entire industry. We could spend decades debating the finer points of carbon sequestration, or we can innovate today with a common sense approach.”

Allbirds has not yet confirmed when the M0.0NSHOT shoes will go on sale and specifics like how many pairs will be available and the markets they will be sold in. However, it has pledged to open-source information relating to the design of the shoes and the carbon accounting methods used, in a bid to help other brands in the sector innovate to reduce emissions.

Allbirds’ director of materials innovation, Romesh Patel, was a guest on the edie podcast last year, discussing the brand’s ongoing work to scale lower-carbon and more circular materials. You can stream that episode here.

Fashion scorecard

The average pair of shoes comes with a life-cycle carbon footprint of 14kg of CO2e, and more than 20 billion pairs of new shoes are manufactured globally each year. Many shoe designs bear a high carbon footprint due to their use of leather and/or synthetic, fossil-based glues, foams and materials.

This week, a new scorecard from Stand.earth assessed 43 apparel and footwear companies on their work to descarbonise their value chains. None of the brands received a top grade, and two-thirds received one of the two lowest grades.

One key focus was the use of energy in supply chains, with the conclusion being that many big-name brands, despite publicly stating net-zero ambitions, are doing little to transition suppliers off of coal and on to clean energy. Stand.earth’s methodology also covered emissions from shipping, the use of low-carbon and more durable materials, and whether brands were advocating for renewable energy policies.

Brands to have scored one of the two lowest grades include Walmart, Target, Primark, Amazon, Under Armour, Armani, Guess, Chanel, Prada, Boohoo, Shein and Uniqlo’s parent company Fast Retailing.

Allbirds only managed to secure a ‘D+ grade. It scored highly for its clean energy procurement and commitments but lost marks elsewhere. The top-scoring company overall was H&M Group, closely followed by Levi’s and Puma.

“Failure by brands to support the transition to renewables, while at the same time increasing energy consumption, will further entrench fossil fuel infrastructure in the Global South where their supply chains are focused, and lock in harmful health and climate impacts for decades to come,” warned Stand.earth campaigner Seema Joshi.

“Brands need to transition to renewable energy in their supply chains, and be more transparent about who their suppliers are and where they are located. The fashion industry has a responsibility to show progress engaging with suppliers to support a just energy transition, including through financing and training, and advocating to governments to meet the increased demand for renewable energy.”

Source edie

Rolls-Royce launches pathway to power net zero economy

Posted on June 17, 2021 by dishanth

Focused on producing the technology breakthroughs society needs to decarbonise three critical areas of the global economy and capture the economic opportunity of the transition to net zero
New products compatible with net zero by 2030, whole business compatible by 2050
By 2023, all in-production civil aero engines to be proven compatible with 100% sustainable aviation fuels, contributing to UN Race to Zero breakthrough goal for sustainable aviation
Science-based target to reduce lifetime emissions of new sold products from Power Systems by 35% by 2030; new generation Series 2000, 4000 engines to be certified for sustainable fuel by 2023
Increasing proportion of gross R&D spent on lower carbon and net zero technologies to 75% by 2025 to decarbonise transport, energy and the built environment

Accelerating the race to a zero carbon economy

We are today setting out our near-term actions to achieve net zero by 2050 at the latest. Our pathway shows how we will focus our technological capabilities to play a leading role in enabling significant elements of the global economy to get to net zero carbon by 2050, including aviation, shipping, and power generation. This includes the development of new technologies, enabling an accelerated take-up of sustainable fuels and driving step-change improvements in efficiency. One year on from joining the UN Race to Zero campaign, we are announcing plans to make all our new products compatible with net zero by 2030, and all our products in operation compatible by 2050.

These products power some of the most carbon intensive parts of the economy. We are also introducing short-term targets – linked to executive remuneration – to accelerate the take-up of sustainable fuels, which have a key role to play in the decarbonisation of some of our markets, especially long-haul aviation. We are already well advanced with net zero and zero carbon technologies across our Power Systems portfolio and as a result have sufficiently reliable data to be able to define a science-based interim target to reduce by 35% the lifetime emissions of new products sold by the business by 2030.

Driving system change to meet Paris Agreement climate goals

There is no single solution to net zero and so we are innovating across multiple areas simultaneously. However, the pace and prioritisation of technological solutions, as well as global consistency and collaboration in policy, will also be key to success. Consequently, we are expanding our collaboration with partners, industry leaders and governments across the three critical systems in which we operate – transport, energy and the built environment – to accelerate progress. These hard to abate sectors are all identified by the UN Race to Zero as requiring technological breakthroughs in order to meet the Paris Agreement climate goals and limit the global temperature rise to 1.5°C.

Warren East, CEO, Rolls-Royce, said: “At Rolls-Royce, we believe in the positive, transforming potential of technology. We pioneer power that is central to the successful functioning of the modern world. To combat the climate crisis, that power must be made compatible with net zero carbon emissions. This is a societal imperative as well as one of the greatest commercial and technological opportunities of our time. Our products and services are used in aviation, shipping and energy generation, where demand for power is increasing as the world’s population grows, becomes increasingly urbanised, more affluent and requires more electricity. These sectors are also among those where achieving net zero carbon is hardest. As a result, our innovative technology has a fundamental role to play in enabling and even accelerating, the overall global transition to a net zero carbon future. We believe that as the world emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic and looks to build back better, global economic growth can be compatible with a net zero carbon future and that Rolls-Royce can help make that happen.”

Nigel Topping, UN High Level Champion for COP26, added: “Winning the race to a zero emission economy by 2050 at the latest requires radical collaboration and technology breakthroughs across energy, transport and the built environment – critical parts of the economy that are also among the hardest to decarbonise. By organising its industrial technology capabilities to deliver the system change society needs, Rolls-Royce is putting itself at the forefront of the defining economic opportunity of our time; one that customers want to buy, investors want to back, and the brightest talent want to apply their skills to.”

Pioneering the innovations that can enable the transition

We have many years of experience in pioneering solutions to some of society’s toughest technological challenges and, increasingly, we have focused that effort on the creation of sustainable power. We already make the world’s most efficient large civil aero-engine in service today, the Trent XWB, and its successor, UltraFan®, will be 25% more efficient than first generation Trent engines, significantly improving the economics of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). In addition, we have built a microgrid business and designed a small modular reactor (SMR) power plant with the potential to transform how we power cities or industrial processes. We are investing in battery storage technology, demonstrating fuel cells and building a leading position in all-electric and hybrid-electric flight. Next month our Spirit of Innovation all-electric plane will take to the sky as it prepares to break the world all-electric flight speed record. Collectively and individually, these technologies represent the extensive expertise Rolls-Royce has to enable a net zero world.

Pivoting our R&D investment to lower and net zero carbon solutions

In line with the commitments we have made under the UN Race to Zero campaign, we are aligning our business model to the Paris Climate Agreement goals and setting out the pathway that will take us to net zero. We are already boosting our research and development (R&D) expenditure to pivot towards lower and net zero carbon technologies, moving from approximately 50% of our gross R&D spend today to at least 75% by 2025.

Our decarbonisation strategy

Our strategy has three interconnected pillars:

1. Decarbonising our operations: We will eliminate emissions from our own operations (scope 1 & 2) by 2030^*. Some facilities will achieve this target sooner, such as our production site at Bristol, UK, which is set to be the first Rolls-Royce facility to achieve net zero carbon status, in 2022.

2. Decarbonising complex, critical systems by enabling our products to be used in a way that is compatible with net zero and pioneering new breakthrough technologies that can accelerate the global transition to net zero. A wholesale transformation of the systems that make up the backbone of our global economy is required to achieve net zero and we can help accelerate that transition firstly by further advancing the efficiency of our engine portfolio through next generation technologies, to improve the economics of sustainable fuels; and secondly by introducing new low or zero emission products, including fuel cells, microgrids, hybrid-electric and all-electric technologies. To help accelerate the take-up of SAFs, we will make all our civil aero-engines in production compatible with 100% SAF, through testing, by 2023. This means two thirds^** of our current fleet of Trent large jet engines and three fifths of our business jet engines will be SAF-ready within three years and aligns with the UN Race to Zero breakthrough goal of 10% of all the fuel used in aviation being SAF by 2030. The current generation of SAFs reduce lifecycle carbon emissions by up 70% but this is assumed to increase to 100% as production pathways for synthetically derived fuels mature. We will work with our customers in the armed forces to achieve the same goal for the Rolls-Royce engines they use and, as the use of SAFs increases, we will ensure that our future combat systems are compatible with net zero carbon. By 2023, we also intend to certify for use with sustainable fuels, the new generation of our mtu Series 2000 and Series 4000 engines. These represent the majority of the reciprocating engines we manufacture and are used across a range of applications from power generation to rail and shipping. Achieving all our 2023 targets now forms part of our executive remuneration policy.

3. Actively advocating for the necessary enabling environment and policy support to achieve this ambition.

Among our technological innovations:

In all-electric aviation, we are moving from demonstrators to commercial deals, such as with the UK’s Vertical Aerospace in the urban air mobility market, and with Italian airframer Tecnam and Norwegian airline Wideroe in the all-electric commuter aircraft. We are also currently testing the most powerful hybrid-electric propulsion system in aerospace and continuing to progress with our UltraFan aero engine, which will be 25% more efficient than the first generation Trent engines and improve the economics of SAFs. We are already exploring the use of SAFs in defence applications, including as part of our involvement in the Tempest programme in the UK.
We are advancing and selling microgrids, complete with our own battery storage solutions, to help expand the use of renewable energy across remote communities and our energy-intensive digital economy. We are also exploring additional functionality through the introduction of fuel cells to provide clean power for industrial vehicles and processes.
We are testing hydrogen fuel cell modules at our Power Systems facility in Germany and plan to have integrated 2MW of hydrogen fuel cells into operational microgrid demonstrators by 2023.
Our SMR consortium is set to make a significant contribution to net zero through its innovative approach to power generation, providing a generational change in the cost of nuclear energy. At 470MW, each SMR could help decarbonise a city of a million homes. With UK Government assistance and third party investment, the programme is now entering a new phase leading to design approval and power on the grid at the end of the decade.

Pioneering sustainable, net zero power sits at the heart of our strategy, future innovation and growth agenda. Our decarbonisation strategy will ensure that Rolls-Royce is not only compatible with, but actively enabling, a net zero future.

For an executive summary of our net zero report visit https://www.rolls-royce.com/~/media/Files/R/Rolls-Royce/documents/others/rr-net-zero-exec-summary.pdf, and for the full pathway including the steps we are taking to lead the transition to net zero carbon visit https://www.rolls-royce.com/~/media/Files/R/Rolls-Royce/documents/others/rr-net-zero-full-report.pdf. We are committed to playing our part in the global journey to net zero. Undoubtedly, the very nature of this transition will mean that there may be general and sector specific circumstances which will influence the output from our roadmap. These are set out on page 32 of the full report. We also recognise that we must be prepared and able to adjust our decarbonisation ambitions in the context of the changing landscape.

^*Our current scope 1 & 2 target excludes product testing and development. Currently, only a 50% blend with traditional fuels is approved for use in commercial aviation. We are playing an active role in advocating for this to rise to 100%. As an interim measure we are committing to 10% of the fuel we use in testing and development activities being SAF by 2023.

^**Based on in-service fleet as of end December 2019; Based on the in-service fleet as of end December 2020, over 80% of our Trent engine fleet would be SAF-ready by 2023, but usage in 2020 was obviously impacted by the pandemic.

https://www.rolls-royce.com/innovation/net-zero.aspx

Source Rolls Royce