Masdar to invest £1bn with UK Green Investment Bank
Masdar, the Gulf state’s renewable energy company is planning on investing up to £1bn in alternative energy schemes alongside the UK’s state-owned Green Investment Bank. Masdar will be able to invest alongside the green bank in future projects under the terms of a deal to be signed today. The deal is likely to provide a major boost to the £3bn Green Investment Bank, which currently operates more like a fund than a real bank. The new deal, brokered by the UK’s Climate Change Minister Greg Barker, is designed to enable the Green Investment Bank to have co-investment partners, mirroring similar arrangements used by private equity firms. (Financial Times*, Business Green)
Water
Coca-Cola joins WaterAid to provide safe drinking water in Africa
The Coca-Cola Africa Foundation this week joined forces with WaterAid to increase accessibility to safe drinking water for one of the poorest suburbs of Burkina Faso and in two rural communities in Ethiopia. They plan to extend existing water pipelines and install new water points that provide residents with clean, treated drinking water. This will help residents reduce the risk of contracting waterborne diseases that are highly prevalent in the area. It also will reduce the amount of time women and girls spend walking to get water each day, and open up the possibility for them to use the time to attend school, earn an income or care for their children and families. (Sustainable Brands)
Environment
Global carbon dioxide levels set to pass 400ppm milestone
The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has reached 399.72 parts per million (ppm) and is likely to pass the symbolically important 400ppm level for the first time in the next few days. "The 400ppm threshold is a sobering milestone, and should serve as a wakeup call for all of us to support clean energy technology and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, before it's too late for our children and grandchildren," said Tim Lueker, an oceanographer and carbon cycle researcher with Scripps CO2 Group. (Guardian, Sydney Morning Herald)
Rankings & Indices
FTSE unveils latest environmental index
A new FTSE index has been launched to track the performance of companies whose core business focuses on the development and operation of environmental technologies. To qualify for the new FTSE ET100 index companies must derive at least half of their revenue from clean tech sectors, such as renewable energy, energy efficiency, water and waste management, pollution control and environmental support services. David Harris, director of FTSE, said the market had shifted since the launch of the original ET50 index, from being dominated by a small number of large renewable energy companies to featuring energy efficiency and water firms as the largest players on the index. (Business Green)
Policy & Research
Bee-harming pesticides banned in Europe
Environmentalists hailed a "victory for bees" yesterday after the European Union voted for a ban on the nerve-agent pesticides blamed for the dramatic decline global bee populations. Despite fierce lobbying by the chemicals industry and opposition by countries including Britain, 15 of the 27 member states voted for a two-year restriction on neonicotinoid insecticides. That gave the European Commission the support it needed to push through an EU-wide ban on using three neonicotinoids on crops attractive to bees. Friends of the Earth's head of campaigns, Andrew Pendleton, said: "This decision is a significant victory for common sense and our beleaguered bee populations. (Guardian, Independent)
New carbon credit system considers women’s well-being
The advocacy organisation, Women Organizing for Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources Management (WOCAN) has come up with a new way to inspire sustainability by reaching out to the women workers in agricultural production. The Women’s Carbon Standard (WCS), launched last week, aims to make women key players in questions that help to promote carbon mitigation. It is a set of project designs and implementation requirements that complement existing compliance or voluntary carbon standards such as the Verified Carbon Standard and the Clean Development Mechanism. The WCS will aid communities by helping to inspire better living standards through education, food security and improved income. (Triple Pundit)
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