3p Contributor: John Laumer
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An End To Greenwash? Interview With Marcello Manca Of Underwriters Laboratories, “UL Environment”
Marcello Manca, VP & General Manager, UL Environment
Marcello Manca is Vice President & General Manager of UL Environment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a global leader in product testing and safety certification for more than a century. UL Environment (ULE) was launched in January 2009, and the organization has more than doubled in size over the past year. Read on for Marcello’s insights into the future of environmental standards setting and claims making.
John Laumer: What is UL Environment and what does it do?
Marcello Manca: UL Environment is an environmental evaluation company which provides independent confirmation of claims, certification to standards, and develops standards to provide transformation to the marketplace.
We are:
• A part of the UL family of companies.
• A local business with global capabilities.
• Interested in helping companies bring products to market.
• A trusted source for environmental information.
USEPA Is Back. Will New Regulations Be Cost Burden or Strategic Advantage?
MACT air emissions regulatory compliance tools
Image credit:Processing Magazine
Operators of energy-intensive US industrial facilities, having benefited from years of USEPA ‘enforcement light,’ now face an old-fashioned onslaught of environmental reporting requirements. USEPA is poised for action – gathering what information it needs before revised or new regulations are published. Even though new industry rules by EPA – reporting previous year’s carbon emissions for operating sites, or estimating prospective site clean-up costs, for two examples – seem reasonable, meeting the Agency’s deadlines may be a serious challenge for many operating sites and for overseeing corporate staffs. Why?
No one left to delegate to
Over the last 8 to 10 years, corporate-level Environmental, Health, & Safety (EHS) staffs have been thinned past the bare bones stage. I’m not talking about the happy talk “Sustainability VP,” a slot usually disconnected from regulatory compliance. (That will change.) I’m talking about the loss of seasoned regulatory professionals who’d spent their careers learning how to measure emissions, apply for and receive operating permits, testify at public hearings, and answer questions from plant neighbors. This stuff is definitely not taught in college.
Business Not As Usual: Natural Gas Is The Electric Hula Hoop Of Tomorrow, And More
- Natural gas is the new energy Hula Hoop. See Speed Saves: Fastest Way To Low-Carbon Electricity Is To Hit The [Natural] Gas Pedal for evidence that coal is about to come under direct financial pressure and, indirectly, under regulatory pressure from home-land produced natural gas. Business significance: U4/C5
Business Not As Usual: Climate Action Chain Reaction And More
US Senator Robert Byrd
- All manner of dramatic actions and hyperbolic statements are being made regarding the upcoming climate meeting in Copenhagen. No wonder industry leaders are keeping still. For a quick sampling of the latest, consider: Sen. Byrd to Big Coal: “Let’s Speak a Little More Truth.” and, Sarah Palin Issues Statement Calling for Obama to Boycott Copenhagen, Mocking Environmentalists; and, Government of Nepal Meets on Everest to Discuss Climate Change; and, Lou Dobbs Outraged That Obama’s Attending Copenhagen (Audio); and, well that’s enough of that. You see the point. Business significance: U1/C5
Business Not As Usual: FTC Proposes Multi-Attribute Label For Light Bulbs, CFL’s First
- After a lengthy hiatus from its early 1980′s guideline on green product declarations and advertising, the US Federal Trade Commission [now] Proposes CFL Labels For Light Output, Color, Mercury, & More. The FTC’s draft proposed rule, should it become final close to its present form (see above example for one of the possible label layouts), is likely to set a precedent affecting other consumer product sectors and, eventually, make third party verifications of environmental claims a standard procedure. Business significance: U2/C5
Business Not As Usual: Twitter Commentary On Corporate Succession Planning
- When corporate executive change gossip spills outside the pages of financial pages of record and onto thousands of cell phones, something big and new is going on. Wouldn’t you know, the first big example has something to do with maintaining a company’s green image. See Vattenfall Wakes Up to VattenFAIL Reputation: Did Twitter Help Topple CEO? for discussion. Business significance: U2/C3
Business Not As Usual: Astroturfing Follows Congressional Lead, And More
- US corporate-funded astroturfing continues, like a game of whack-a-mole. Expose one of these vampire moles to the light and another one pops up in a different sector. A uniquely American enterprise, the common thread which seems to tie all astroturfing together is Congress. Threaten Federal legislation and up comes a bloody gopher. Have a look at Americans Against Food Taxes?: Who’s Really Fighting Preventative Medicine? for a recent example. Business significance: U5/C3
Business Not As Usual: Hundreds Of Free Green Patents…And More
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Delinquent dioxane isomers seen lurking in darkened store aisles: Walmart to the rescue! Or not.
- Eco-commons, a project of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development now has over 100 public domain green patents available online. See Sharing Green Patents: Eco-Patent Commons & Green Xchange. for some details. Business significance: U1/C2
- Speaking of patents: Chinese banks are underwriting a US$1.5 billion dollar wind farm in West Texas, built using…you guessed it…turbines made in China. You won’t believe the cost analysis. See “Chinese” Wind Farm in Texas: Green Jobs FAIL? for details. Business significance: U5/C5
Business Not As Usual: Eyes On The Electric Vehicle Market…& More
Solving the chicken or egg dilemma for electric vehicles.
- Rocky Mountain Institute just rolled out another one of its typically fascinating crystal balls – one which gives a glimpse into the future of electric vehicles. Is yours one of the many businesses looking for opportunities in a booming electrical vehicle market? Timing will be everything. If your firm wants to catch the wave, or is just thinking about it, have a look at What Will It Take to Get EVs on the Road (Really) Business significance: U3/C5
Business Not As Usual: e-Readers Threaten Paper, Printer Markets, And More
e-Book readers, a threat to paper and printer markets?
- With e-Book designs improving and choices expanding, commodity pricing may arrive within a few years, threatening existing markets for books, magazines, printers, ink cartridges, and fine paper. Even printers and publishers need to pay attention. Get a status snapshot on this technology with Barnes & Noble Says Yes, Microsoft Says No to New e-Readers Business significance: U1/C5 (See rating explanation below)
Business Not As Usual: Sorghum Burning At Coal Plants, And More
- It’s not unusual to encounter wood-fired biomass power plants. Utilities in Europe and the USA currently add wood to the coal boilers. Here’s a new tactic for biomass burning. A large Louisiana coal-fired generator is planting a food crop as well as switch grass to do some trial burns. There are permitting and Cap & Trade issues worth contemplating. See Coal-Fired Power Generator To Supplement Boiler Feed With Switchgrass And Sorghum for details. Business significance rating: Urgency 2, and Criticality 4. (U2/C4).
Business Not As Usual: Apple Polishing; Footprint Verification, & More
- Apple has responded to years of NGO pressure tactics by posting life cycle inventory (LCI) study findings on its website. Such studies generally offer low business value and generate little consumer interest outside a small audience of the most eco-savvy. (Anyone seen peer reviewed, published evidence that life cycle inventory contributes to a business bottom line?) This is mostly about corporate image backup. See Apple Adds More Environmental Impact Information to Website for a full discussion. This particular apple seems unlikely to roll far from its tree; though others may elect to cultivate a green image in more effective, ways. I’m rating business significance fairly low – a scale explained at the bottom of this post – as U1/C3
Business Not As Usual: 12% Of Ocean Shipping Armada Stands Down, & More
- Up to 12% of the world’s cargo ships are standing down, absent cargo or crews. Will there be a commensurate reduction in shipping-related CO2 emissions? Will 2009 be the baseline year against which shipping companies could be required to accomplish reductions? For details, see Ghost Fleet Moored Off Singapore: 12% Of Ocean Shipping Armada Stands Down Business significance for #1 is :U2/C3.
- Do you work in a supply chain for the personal care products? Niche offerings from the green side are poised to threaten the market shares of multinational brands. An online distributor, Become Clean, is moving to be the Amazon of healthy and safe versions. For details, see Become Clean Offers 20% Off Natural Personal Care Products Business significance for #2 is :U1/C5.
Business Not As Usual: Chinese Environmental Activists Riot, And More.
If you’re in the business world, here are five recent TreeHugger.com posts we think you’ll appreciate seeing. Note the rating system introduced in this post ’roundup’ to help you grab the items that mesh with your needs in product design, market development, and corporate management systems. Business “criticality” (C) and “urgency” (U) are each ranked, subjectively, on a scale of 1 through 5, with 5 being the highest, and 1 the lowest. Instructions on how to put the rankings to use are at the bottom of this post.
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