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Can Nuclear Energy Be Green? Thorium And Traveling Wave Reactors Give It A Shot

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The recent events in Japan have sparked renewed debate over the risks of nuclear energy. Nuclear energy advocates defend uranium as a sustainable source of energy that is relatively safe, that is until something goes wrong. Opponents have long maintained the health and environmental risks associated with uranium mining and nuclear waste alongside the threat […]

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Valero Invests in Producing Car Fuel From Wood Waste

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The cellulosic ethanol movement got a much needed boost yesterday with the announcement that Valero, the nation’s largest independent oil refiner, is investing $50 million into the Mascoma Corporation’s plans to build a commercial sized wood-based biofuel refinery in Kinross, Michigan. Together with subsidiary Frontier Renewable Resources, Mascoma, based in Lebanon N.H., intends to break

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3 Reasons Light Rail is an Efficient Transportation Option for U.S. Cities

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Light rail is a type of electric railway that runs on right-of-way railroad tracks or on tracks in city streets. Using their own lanes and able to go anywhere, light rail cars mix well in urban settings by not getting caught up in traffic congestion. Though the United States operates the largest and most efficient

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Update: Bank Of America Tower, Greenest Skyscraper In The U.S.

Architecture, Rain Water Harvesting • • 6 Comments

A while back, MetaEfficient profiled what could be the greenest skyscraper in America, the Bank of America Tower in New York City. Located in midtown Manhattan at One Bryant Park, the 945-foot tall, 55-story structure is scheduled to open later this year. Here’s a closer look at some of the groundbreaking features that should help

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Chinese Design Winner: High-Rise With Vertical Hydroponics

Architecture, Hydroponics • • 11 Comments

This apartment high-rise concept won a sustainable housing award recently in China. It integrates a vertical greenhouse into the high-rise. Designed by Knafo Klimor Architects, the “agro-housing” concept allows the residents to produce their own food, reducing commuting needs and providing a green neighbourhood. The greenhouse is a multi-floor structure for cultivation of crops such

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Optimal: European Toys

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This post has been updated and expanded here: Classic European Toys. Toys that are well-designed and made with renewable materials are optimal. European toys often fit this description. This durable block set, for example, is made in Germany by Haba using solid, natural, untreated beech wood that is harvested from sustainable forests. Toys like this

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