Earlier this month, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced the decision to create a NOAA Climate Service line office dedicated to bringing together the agency’s climate science and service delivery capabilities as a way of addressing the growing demand for climate data vital to planning and operations. NOAA is also unveiling a new Web site – http://www.climate.gov – that serves as a single point-of-entry for NOAA’s extensive climate information, data, products and services.
The Sustainability Institute launched the Climate Scoreboard this week as the UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen. The Scorecard interactive online tool is designed to enable the public, journalists and other interested parties to view daily update on how much future warming would be avoided if commitments and proposals currently under consideration were to be incorporated in a global treaty and fully implemented.
Amid the debates on Capitol Hill regarding climate change and the growing interest in renewable energy, PJM Interconnection is launching a one-stop resource to better understand renewable energy resources on the PJM power grid. The Renewable Energy Dashboard at green.pjm.com illustrates a user-friendly snapshot of the amount and type of generation that currently provides power to the 51 million people in the PJM region. The dashboard also features a map indicating where proposed renewable energy projects are planned and a summary of how much electricity has been produced by renewable sources since 2005.
The GreenHotels Directory, the first online reservation system designed for travelers seeking environmentally-friendly hotel accommodations, was launched last week by a partnership between Environment News Service and ARES Travel Network. Now, for the first time, business and vacation travelers are able to instantly locate and make online reservations at hotels offering responsible conservation features.
ForGreen Marketing and Design has created a free “claim to fame avatar” for those with a conscious – the Carbon Footprint frame can be used for your avatar.
Want to track where the stimulus is being used in your community? Check out StimulusWatch. StimulusWatch.org was built to help the new administration keep its pledge to invest stimulus money smartly, and to hold public officials to account for the taxpayer money they spend. The site accomplishes this by allowing you, citizens around the country with local knowledge about the proposed “shovel-ready” projects in your city, to find, discuss and rate those projects.
The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) recently published an online map that identifies and profiles more than 1,200 companies in key manufacturing states that they see as poised create new jobs when Congress passes a cap on global warming pollution. The interactive map spotlights companies located in manufacturing regions, including those in communities in the rust belt and coal country.
