ETA guide to 'greener'
cars
Tesco ends sale of whale meat in Japan
Fairtrade footballs
New corporate ethics league table
The Good Wood Guide
and more
Green or mean?
The greenest car on Britain’s roads today is the Honda Civic 1.4IMA Executive, a petrol/electric hybrid, says the Environmental Transport Association (ETA).
The ETA is an alternative breakdown service which highlights the most environmentally effective cars in their annual Car Buyers' Guides. The guide is available on line at www.eta.co.uk/car-buyers-guide.asp
Next best, the Toyota Prius 1.5 Hybrid, is the most efficient mass-produced car on the market, says the ETA, with 66 mpg and the lowest CO2 emissions of all cars at only 104g/km. The Vauxhall Corsa 1.3CDTi 16v Life is also in the top 10 with a new generation diesel engine giving huge fuel consumption savings.
The Guide also points out the worst performers. Heading the list is the Lamborghini Diablo which produces five times the amount of climate change gases as the Toyota Prius. Driving the Lamborghini is the equivalent of cutting down three fully grown oak trees every day. (Lamborghini Diablo = 520g/km CO2 and 16,000m a year travelled. A fully grown tree absorbs 13kg of CO2 a year.)
Top Ten
• Honda Civic 1.4 IMA Executive
• Toyota Prius 1.5 Hybrid
• Vauxhall Corsa 1.3 CDTi 16v Life
• Daihatsu YRV 1.3L
• Daihatsu Charade 1.0 L
• Smart City Coupe Hatchback
• Ford Focus C-Max 1.6 TDCi
• Volkswagen Touran 1.9 TDI
• Peugeot 407 Saloon 1.6 HDI
• Honda Accord 2.2 i-CTDi Sport
For more info, contact the ETA at 68 High Street, Weybridge KT13 8RS
Telephone free on: 0800 212 810
Tesco ends sale of whale meat in Japan
Since we reported in EC88 that Tesco was selling whale meat in its Japanese chain of C Two-Network supermarkets, the company has announced that it has decided to stop selling all cetacean (whale, dolphin and porpoise) products in these stores, following a joint campaign by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), WDCS (Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society) and Greenpeace.
The conservation groups met with Tesco representatives twice and informed them that the Japanese government sanctions the killing of more than 800 whales under the guise of ‘scientific research’, in direct contravention of the International Whaling Commission’s ban on commercial whaling. More than 20,000 small whales, dolphins and porpoises are also killed in Japan’s coastal waters.
Tesco’s decision will help reduce the market for whale meat in Japan, putting pressure on Japan to abide by the worldwide ban on commercial whaling.
Fairtrade footballs
Fairtrade footballs are now available from www.getethical.com, selected Co-op shops and independent fair trade outlets as well as from www.fairdealtrading.com, the website of The Fair Deal Trading Partnership which helped establish production methods in the villages of the Sialkot region of Pakistan where three quarters of all the world’s footballs are made.
Meanwhile in Scotland, Green Party MSP Mark Ballard is seeking cross-party support for his campaign to encourage all Scottish league teams to use Fairtrade footballs to ensure workers in developing countries have fair pay and conditions.
For more information, contact Fair Deal Trading Partnership:
Dr Martin Kunz tel: 020 8992 0175
Corporate ethics league table
An ethical ranking of all the companies in the FTSE 100 has just been published on our Corporate Critic database. Topping the league table are real estate companies, pubs and hotel chains. Supermarkets, food multinationals and oil and gas companies are bottom of the pile.
Users of the database can choose to rank companies or products by any of 20 ethical criteria and create personal rankings which best fit with their own ethical priorities.
You can get instant, online access to the Corporate Critic database from as little as £25. See for yourself at www.corporatecritic.org
Good Wood Guide
Greenpeace have produced a guide for DIYers to help them buy good wood. The ‘Good Wood’ guide uses a green, amber and red rating scheme for a number of well-known timbers, highlighting any links to illegality, social conflict and/or ancient forest destruction. The guide also identifies Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified alternatives.
Download a copy of the guide (in Adobe PDF format) from www.greenpeace.org.uk
Alternatively, order a hard copy of the guide by telephoning 020 7865 8100.
Greenpeace has also launched a multimedia CD-ROM, ‘How to Specify Good Wood.’ Aimed at UK architects, specifiers and contractors, the RIBA approved CD-ROM provides a step by step guide to ensuring that wood used on construction projects comes from legal and sustainable sources. It will be distributed to 30,000 architectural practices, construction companies and local authorities around the UK. Order a free copy of the CD from www.greenpeace.org.uk/forests/gwg.cfm
Adopt an-ex lab monkey
In a new scheme you can adopt an ex-lab monkey. The British Union for
the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV)
discovered fifty macaque monkeys in tiny, barren cages at a testing
lab in Thailand, having been there for ten years in solitary confinement.
After months of planning and negotiations BUAV managed to convince the
lab to release them to a wildlife and rehabilitation centre in Thailand
with the skills and expertise to provide the monkeys with a permanent
home, funded by BUAV.
For £24 you can adopt a rescue monkey, which will help BUAV cover
the costs of providing care for the monkeys at the sanctuary. You’ll
also receive a photo and story plus an adoption certificate, toy monkey
and regular updates. As far as BUAV is aware this is the only scheme
in the world where you can adopt an ex-lab animal.
Contact BUAV for more details:16a Crane Grove, London, N7 8NN. Tel:
020 7700 4888, email: fundraising@buav.org.
The Green Building Bible
“Don’t think about renovating or extending your home or even
moving house until you have read this book”, says Keith Hall editor
of The Green Building Bible.
The second edition of the Green Building Bible has just been published.
The very many subjects covered include: tips on how to obtain planning
permission, choosing green building products, insulation, solar power
for electricity and heating, automated wood fired heating systems, roofing,
painting and decoration, buying a home, grants for ecological renovation
or retrofit, waste management and much more.
This book will also be useful in assisting readers in the selection
of experienced green building professionals who can undertake design,
alterations, upgrades or new projects that readers may wish to carry
out.
Price £9.95 inc p&p (when ordered online at www.newbuilder.co.uk)
or available direct from the Green Building Press: PO Box 32, Llandysul,
SA44 5ZA
