The Northern Hemisphere is warmer now than it has been at any point in the past 2,000 years, according to a study by British and American researchers published in

Geophysical Research Letters this August. Meanwhile, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) acknowledged in a July press release that global warming is causing... Read more

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning a

national program to promote water efficiency, in the hopes of reducing both water use and water and wastewater infrastructure needs nationwide. As part of the program, EPA is considering a water-efficiency label similar to the successful Energy Star label. More information on... Read more

The

ozone hole over Antarctica had reached a record size by early September and may break the all-time record of 11 million square miles (28.5 million km2) before shrinking as the austral summer begins, according to British Antarctic Survey scientist Jonathan Shanklin, one of the hole’s discoverers in 1985. Hopes were raised that the... Read more

A new rule, signed by EPA’s acting administrator, Marianne Horinko, allows polluting power plants to significantly upgrade without updating their pollution control equipment, previously illegal under the Clean Air... Read more

Metropolis magazine survey.

Metropolis posted a questionnaire on their Web site during last April and May and received 371 responses to questions about how schools are teaching sustainable design. Although 93% of respondents agree that sustainability is... Read more

Few things are as fundamental to human well-being as the air we breathe. This issue of EBN features air filtration, a complex and important topic. Lurking behind the filtration technologies and life-cycle cost analyses, however, is an ethical and social minefield.

In recognition of the United Nations’ “International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer” on September 16, the nonprofit Global Environment & Technology Foundation released

a comprehensive report on “The State of Stratospheric Ozone Depletion.” The report is available online at

www.getf.org.

On September 4, 2003, DuPont Textiles & Interiors, a wholly owned subsidiary of DuPont, announced that it will be called INVISTA™, effective immediately. The name change is designed to give INVISTA an identity independent of its parent company, DuPont, as a step towards a more complete separation. DuPont is in exclusive negotiations with... Read more

According to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials, Energy Star® programs have prevented the release of over 150 million tons (136 million tonnes) of carbon emissions. Moreover,

every dollar spent on Energy Star returns $70 in benefits. Despite its success and bipartisan support, including recent praise from the White House,... Read more

As EBN readers know, Interface... Read more

The

Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) is seeking a new executive director as current head

Warren Leon begins work as program director for public awareness and education at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative’s Renewable Energy Trust. A full job description and application information for the NESEA position... Read more

Portland, Oregon builder

Renaissance Homes has agreed to build exclusively to Portland General Electric Earth Advantage™ standards. Each home (up to 300 over the next two years) will be certified to Earth Advantage standards, using at least 15% less energy than required by Oregon’s strict energy code in addition to meeting criteria for... Read more

Over one million acres (400,000 ha) of

Washington state forests will soon be certified to both Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) standards, the Pinchot Institute for Conservation reported in August. Lanoga Corporation, the country’s third-largest supplier of lumber and building products to the... Read more

Environmental Building News since there is always something new and useful to learn.

Indeed, your July feature article (

Vol. 12, No. 7), “Moisture Control in Buildings: Putting Building Science in Green Building,” gave me something totally new to study and reflect upon.

Joe... Read more

Chicago’s Mayor Richard Daly has recruited

Sadhu Johnston, founder and executive director of the Cleveland Green Building Coalition (CGBC), to fill a newly created position overseeing the greening of Chicago. Johnston began work on October 1. In related news, CGBC is seeking a new executive director; details are online at

www.... Read more

This article contained misinformation about the cost of testing and certification under Greenguard. The statement that it could cost a company "over one million dollars per year" to certify a product line was based on an unconfirmed statement from a manufacturer. In fact, the most any one company has paid to date is $180... Read more

the Chicago Departments of Environment and Housing held the

Green Homes for Chicago competition to solicit green, single-family home designs (see EBN

Vol. 10, No. 1). Designs were judged on affordability, energy efficiency, sustainability, and how well they fit the economic and social context of surrounding communities... Read more

The

use of ground granulated blast-furnace slag in cement reached a record 22.9 million metric tons (25.2 million tons) in 2002, up 22% from 2001, according to the Slag Cement Association (SCA). Blast-furnace slag, a mixture of nonmetallic minerals, is created in the reduction of iron ore to iron. According to SCA, using slag cement in... Read more

... Read more