More Graduation Gowns Made From Recycled Materials.

The Los Angeles Times (6/11, Hsu) reported, "Graduation planners around the country are greening their ceremonies, cutting back on printed materials and balloons filled with non-renewable helium and choosing compostable dinnerware, biodegradable water bottles and campus-grown floral displays." This was the case at Caltech's recent graduation, where according to the Times graduates were wearing over 12,000 recycled bottles' worth of graduation gowns and caps. Oak Hall Cap and Gown, which manufactured the garments used at Caltech's graduation, "introduced the GreenWeaver line of eco-friendly garb in late 2009 and has seen orders nearly triple in the last year." The Times noted, "Oak Hall experimented with fabrics made from bamboo and wood pulp before deciding on the GreenWeaver material, which it said was softer and more breathable than traditional gowns - while looking no different."

UTA Installing 1,500 Low-Flow Showerheads.

The Fort Worth Star Telegram (6/6, Smith) reported the University of Texas at Arlington "is installing 1,500 low-flow showerheads in residence halls and other student housing" that "were provided by the city and are part of ongoing efforts to promote water conservation and sustainable practices." Dustan Compton, the conservation program coordinator for Arlington, said the new showerheads "use 1.5 gallons of water per minute, compared with 2.5 gallons per minute for standard showerheads." UTA officials said the showerhead initiative dovetailed with the school's broader goal of improving sustainability on campus.

End of Year Dream Board Party!

Next Thursday, June 9th, Project GREEN will hold its final meeting of the year and look toward the future.  We're making a dream board (or two), so bring FOOD, bring ART SUPPLIES, bring your CREATIVITY, and bring your DREAMS for Project GREEN as we set goals for the years to come.

Solar-Assisted EV Charging Station Unveiled.

Tennessee's Oak Ridger (5/28, Huotari) reported, "A new charging station where up to 25 electric vehicles can recharge their batteries at Oak Ridge National Laboratory will likely be the largest in Tennessee, officials said after a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday morning. The 25-vehicle charging station is solar-assisted, meaning it has roof-mounted solar panels that can pump power into the electric grid when the sun is shining." The solar-assisted electric vehicle charging stations are part of an electric vehicle demonstration project led by the DOE and industry partners. "Wednesday's ceremony included officials from the lab, state of Tennessee, US Department of Energy, and Tennessee Valley Authority, as well as executives from Nissan and ECOtality North America."

Pilot Project To Test New Biofuel Production Method.

The Tri-City (WA) Herald (5/18, Cary) reports that a DOE grant "will pay for a pilot project to test a promising new way to produce biofuel and use Mid-Columbia ag and other waste to do it. The $1.5 million "BioChemCat" pilot project will be conducted at the Bioproducts, Sciences and Engineering Laboratory at Washington State University Tri-Cities in cooperation with the Port of Benton, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and startup company Clean-Vantage." The goal of the program is to demonstrate that many types of agricultural waste can be converted into jet fuel, diesel or gasoline with the BioChemCat process. The article explains that "unlike most biofuel manufacturing, the fuel doesn't need to be bone dry, which requires energy at the front-end of the production process and increases cost and production time."

Town Owner Pushes For "Sustainable Wonderland."

The Los Angeles Times (5/4, Hsu) profiles the town of Nipton, California, which when Gerald Freeman stumbled upon it in 1984 had become a virtual ghost town, but after buying the town for $200,000, Freeman thinks he has discovered what to do with the Mojave Desert outpost. "He put up rows of gleaming solar panels, and recently began selling hats emblazoned with the hamlet's new motto: 'Nipton, powered by the sun.' It's part of a major push to make Nipton a sustainable wonderland, a green hospitality center for nature lovers headed into the neighboring Mojave National Preserve." He also has plans for energy-efficient buildings, electric vehicle charging stations and more solar installations. But "Nipton isn't the only US town hopping on the environmental bandwagon," as the Times cites other towns, including Greensburg, Kansas which has adopted a green push since the town was nearly destroyed by a tornado in 2007.

Artificial Leaf Design Stable, Uses Inexpensive Components.

The Wired (3/28, Brown) "Wired Science" blog reports "MIT professor Daniel Nocera claims to have created an artificial leaf made from stable and inexpensive materials that mimics nature's photosynthesis process." The artificial leaf is "no bigger than a typical playing card, which is left floating in a pool of water" and "uses sunlight to split the water into its two core components, oxygen and hydrogen, which are stored in a fuel cell." Wired notes, "Nocera's leaf is stable - operating continuously for at least 45 hours without a drop in activity in preliminary tests - and made of widely available, inexpensive materials." It is also substantially more efficient than a natural leaf at harvesting energy from the sun.

        Popular Science (3/28, Dillow) notes, "The Nocera Lab's artificial leaf, it should be noted, isn't the first working attempt at recreating photosynthesis in artificial materials." However, "previous attempts have led to artificial leaves full of unstable materials that are expensive and lead to short life spans."