The nonprofit product-testing organization Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. (UL) plans to open

the nation’s first commercial wind turbine certification and test facility near Cheyenne, in rural Laramie County, Wyoming by the end of 2004. Distributed Generation Systems, Inc. will coordinate the design and construction of the facility, which will accommodate both utility-connected and off-grid turbines. UL began certifying wind turbines in May 2002, and as of June 2004 listed certifications for six different models. For details, visit www.ul.com/dge/ or e-mail windenergy@us.ul.com.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) will be accepting

feedback on the LEED^® for Commercial Interiors (LEED-CI) rating system through Tuesday, July 13, 2004. The current draft includes significant modifications from the version that has been in use for the LEED-CI pilot program over the past two years. The official release is expected by November 2004. To review the draft and submit comments, visit https://www.usgbc.org/LEED/Drafts/drafts_main.asp.

Surprising both politicians and environmentalists, Russian President

Vladimir Putin made a strong statement in support of the Kyoto Protocol in May. The European Union (EU), which ratified the protocol in May 2002, has agreed to support Russia’s bid to join the World Trade Organization only if Russia ratifies the protocol. “The EU has met us halfway in talks over the WTO, and that cannot but affect positively our position on the Kyoto Protocol,” Putin said. “We will speed up Russia’s movement toward the Kyoto Protocol’s ratification.” The protocol, which was signed more than six years ago, requires the ratification of countries responsible for at least 55% of the developed world’s greenhouse gas emissions; since the U.S. backed out in 2001, Russia’s ratification is necessary in order for the protocol to take effect (see

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Vol. 11, No. 7).

Stanford University’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is seeking applications for a tenure-track assistant professor or untenured associate professor

position focusing on the sustainable development of buildings and other infrastructure. The review of applications will begin September 15, 2004. More information is online at cee.stanford.edu/faopps/.

The Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) has named

Douglas H. Reid its new executive director. Reid is leaving his current position as director of development at the University of Massachusetts College of Natural Resources and the Environment in Amherst. NESEA is online at www.nesea.org.

The green-building consulting firm Paladino & Company, Inc. has hired

Kristin Ralff Douglas as director of business development and programs. Ralff Douglas will lead the expansion of Paladino’s Get to Green^® training workshops and direct programs tailored to campus and multiple-building clients who are adopting a sustainable asset-management approach. Ralff Douglas’s former experience with green design includes roles as publisher and editor of

Environmental Design + Construction and managing director of the U.S. Green Building Council. Paladino is online at www.paladinoandco.com.

The U.S. Senate has voted against eliminating a tax incentive for renovating existing buildings. Intense lobbying by preservationists led to the defeat of a plan to sunset the portion of the

Federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit that applies to pre-1936 Main-Street-style commercial buildings that are not designated historic. The rehabilitation credit was enacted in 1981 to encourage private-sector reinvestment in existing buildings. The elimination of the credit had been proposed to help pay for the larger Jumpstart Our Business Strength (JOBS) bill, which the chamber approved. More information is available at www.nationaltrust.org.

first U.S. laboratory approved to test office equipment to the German Blue Angel standard (see

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Vol. 12, No. 11). AQS, based in Atlanta, will test office equipment including printers, fax machines, and photocopiers for emissions of ozone, benzene, styrene, dust, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Germany’s Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing developed the standards for Blue Angel certification and worked with AQS to ensure that their testing procedures comply with Blue Angel requirements. More information about Blue Angel is online at www.blauer-engel.de. AQS is online at www.aqs.com.

Environmental Science and Technology. The study examined reactions between ozone, which results from vehicle exhaust, and fragrance molecules, including pinene and limonene, which are released by air fresheners that plug into electrical outlets. “If you open a window on a high-ozone day, you could trigger these reactions,” says Mark Mason, who led the study. (Of course, using ozone generators in the presence of these air fresheners would have the same effect. For more on the hazards of ozone generators see

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Vol. 12, No. 10.)

Latest in the growing list of small architecture firms created with an explicit focus on sustainability is

Architerra, led by Ellen Watts, AIA, and Dan Arons, AIA. Architerra plans to focus on high-performance building design, sustainable urban design and campus planning, smart growth, adaptive reuse, and brownfield redevelopment. The new firm, based in Boston, is online at www.architerra-inc.com.