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Procedure Against Serbia for Lack of Adoption of a National Emission Reduction Plan

Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay
Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

Today, the Secretariat of the Energy Community sent an Opening Letter to Serbia to address the incomplete implementation of the Large Combustion Plants Directive. The Directive took effect on 1 January 2018 in the Energy Community. For existing large combustion plants, two alternative implementation avenues exist: either compliance with the emission limit values for SO2, NOx and dust at individual plant level, or implementation of a National Emission Reduction Plan (NERP). Every plant must be covered by either of the two options. Out of the sixteen existing large combustion plants in Serbia, nine are under the scope of the dispute settlement case.

The draft NERP of Serbia was approved in 2016 by the Secretariat. In the past years, the Secretariat repeatedly called upon the national authorities for its adoption, which however has not happened. In the Opening Letter, the Secretariat takes the view that in the absence of a legally binding NERP, the existing large combustion plants in Serbia have to comply with the emission limit values of the Directive at individual level. This is not the case for the nine  plants concerned.

By sending the Opening Letter, the Secretariat initiated a preliminary procedure, the purpose of which is to give Serbia the opportunity to react to the allegation of non-compliance with Energy Community law within two months and to enable the Secretariat to establish the full background of the case.

Source: Energy Community

RB Partners With Veolia to Drive a Circular Plastics Economy

Photo: Unsplash / VanveenJF
Photo: Unsplash/Yifan Zhang

BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Reckitt Benckiser (RB) and Veolia announced today a new joint partnership to drive the shift toward a circular plastics economy. This partnership with Veolia is the latest step taken by RB to fulfill its pledge to make 100 percent of its plastic packaging recyclable and to contain at least 25 percent recycled content by 2025.

Two years ago, Veolia and RB began working together to increase the use of post-consumer recycled plastic in RB’s packaging.

The first offering from the partnership is new packaging for Finish Quantum, which now contains 30 percent recycled plastic and is grey in color, the result of a decision by RB to not add masking pigments or additives to the packaging.

The companies will continue their collaboration on designing for recyclability as well as efforts to maximize post-consumer recycled content. To accelerate the circular plastics economy, a team of 20 experts from RB and Veolia are also working to develop enhanced collection systems, driving behavior change to aid consumer sorting habits and to improve recycling from households.

“The partnership between Veolia and RB Hygiene Home brings together our complementary capabilities to drive a positive contribution to the circular economy. We have just started the journey by increasing recycled content and improving recyclability and are excited about the wider opportunities across our value chains,” says Fabrice Beaulieu, EVP Marketing, R&D and Sustainability for RB Hygiene Home.

“We are delighted to be collaborating with RB on this ongoing strategy to reduce their environmental footprint. We are working hand-in-hand with RB to develop packaging with greater recycled content and improved recyclability for the RB group’s consumers,” says Antoine Frérot, Chairman and CEO of Veolia.

Veolia group is the global leader in optimized resource management. With over 171,000 employees worldwide, the Group designs and provides water, waste and energy management solutions which contribute to the sustainable development of communities and industries. Through its three complementary business activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, preserve available resources, and to replenish them.

In 2018, the Veolia group supplied 95 million people with drinking water and 63 million people with wastewater service, produced nearly 56 million megawatt hours of energy and converted 49 million metric tons of waste into new materials and energy. Veolia Environnement (listed on Paris Euronext: VIE) recorded consolidated revenue of €25.91 billion in 2018 (USD 30.6 billion). www.veolia.com

RB* is a leading global health, hygiene and home company inspired by a vision of the world where people are healthier and live better. Its purpose is to make a difference by giving people innovative solutions for healthier lives and happier homes. Through its two business units, Health and Hygiene Home, RB has operations in over 60 countries and its products reach millions of people globally every day. Its trusted household brands include names such as Enfamil, Nutramigen, Nurofen, Strepsils, Gaviscon, Mucinex, Durex, Scholl, Clearasil, Lysol, Dettol, Veet, Harpic, Cillit Bang, Mortein, Finish, Vanish, Calgon, Woolite and Air Wick. RB’s drive to achieve, passion to outperform and commitment to quality and scientific excellence is manifested in the work of over 40,000 diverse, talented entrepreneurs worldwide. For more information visit www.rb.com
*RB is the trading name of the Reckitt Benckiser group of companies.

 

ECOS® Is U.S. EPA 2019 Safer Choice Partner of the Year

Photo: Pixabay
Photo: Pixabay

ECOS®, a global leader in green cleaning products, is honored for its commitment to creating safer products for consumers – community celebrates the award at Lacey, WA, facility

LACEY, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The maker of ECOS® environmentally friendly cleaning products, Earth Friendly Products®, was honored today as the 2019 Safer Choice Partner of the Year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The celebration was held at the company’s northwestern division in Lacey, Washington during America Recycles Week.

The manufacturer of plant-powered laundry detergents and cleaners for over 50 years, Earth Friendly Products® has earned the recognition for its outstanding achievement in the design and manufacturing of innovative products that are safer for consumers and the environment. The company opened its Washington facility in 2010 to service the Pacific Northwest and western Canada.

“Our number one priority is the safety of our ingredients,” says ECOS® president and CEO Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks. “The Safer Choice seal gives consumers the peace of mind that our products are safer for their families, pets and the planet while meeting high performance standards. We’re honored that the EPA is recognizing ECOS as the innovative green leader of this great community.”

ECOS® offers over 140 products that are certified Safer Choice. To qualify for the Safer Choice label, a product must meet the EPA’s Safer Choice standard, which includes stringent human and environmental health criteria. In fact, ECOS® offers more Safer Choice-certified products than any other manufacturer.

A leader in safer consumer products and sustainable manufacturing, ECOS® is the first company in the world to have achieved the “trifecta” of carbon neutrality, water neutrality, and TRUE Platinum Zero Waste certification. The company uses 100 percent renewable energy to make its green cleaning products at its facilities located in California, Washington, Illinois, and New Jersey. Each facility partners with local vendors for sourcing ingredients and packaging, contributing to the state economy and the company’s carbon neutrality.

“Earth Friendly Products® is recognized as an outstanding 2019 Safer Choice Formulator-Product Manufacturer and has been a Safer Choice partner since 2008,” the EPA noted in its announcement of the award. “Safer Choice values its dedication to formulating products with safer ingredients.”

This award marks the third time that Earth Friendly Products® has earned the prestigious Safer Choice Partner of the Year designation since the program began in 2015. Earth Friendly Products® was also the first manufacturer to feature the Safer Choice logo on its packaging and has been an active participant in the EPA’s safer ingredients programs since 2008.

ABOUT ECOS®

Family owned and operated since 1967, Earth Friendly Products® is the maker of ECOS® Laundry Detergent and over 200 other environmentally friendly products that are safer for people, pets and the planet. Made with plant-powered ingredients, ECOS® cleaners are thoughtfully sourced, pH balanced, readily biodegradable, easily recyclable, and never tested on animals. ECOS®, Baby ECOS®, ECOS® Pets and ECOS® Pro cleaners are available at major club and grocery retailers and natural foods stores throughout the U.S., internationally and online retailers. For more information and retail locations, visit ecos.com.

Colgate Launches Vegan-Certified Toothpaste in Recyclable Tube

Photo: Facebook (screenshot)

Colgate has launched a new toothpaste which is being billed as the first of a kind because it comes in a recyclable tube.

Photo: Facebook (screenshot)

Toothpaste tubes have traditionally been impossible to recycle because they are made from a mixture of plastic and aluminium. Consumers get through 20bn packs of toothpaste every year with discarded tubes contributing to the plastic pollution crisis.

But Colgate’s new Smile for Good brand, which has also been certified by the Vegan Society, comes in a tube made from high density polyethylene (HDPE) which is the same plastic as milk containers.

Colgate said its engineers had figured out a way to turn the hard plastic, which is widely recyclable, into a “comfortably squeezable” tube.

The technology will be shared with rivals, Colgate-Palmolive said, as part of its commitment to reduce usage of what is one of the most widely used forms of plastic packaging that cannot be recycled.

However, the green toothpaste, which is on sale in Waitrose and Boots, comes at a high price. At £5 for 75ml, Smile for Goods costs more than six times as much as a regular tube of Colgate.

Colgate-Palmolive’s chief executive, Noel Wallace, said: “Colgate wants to make tubes a part of the circular economy by keeping this plastic productive and eliminating waste. If we can standardise recyclable tubes among all companies, we all win. We can align on these common standards for tubes and still compete with what’s inside them.”

Colgate has also taken the unusual step of listing the toothpaste’s ingredients on the tube alongside a simple explanation of their function. Consumers trying to buy greener products were confused by the role of the various ingredients, the company said. While the role of fluoride is probably well understood, the tube explains that silica cleans and polishes while glycerin prevents the paste from drying out.

As concern grows about the impact of single-use plastic on the environment, manufacturers and retailers have begun to tackle their substantial footprints. Colgate-Palmolive, which also owns the Palmolive and Sanex brands, has said the packaging on all its products will be 100% recyclable by 2025.

Last year Unilever said it would halve its use of virgin plastic by creating greener versions of its household products, a shift that could make shampoo refill stations, cardboard deodorant sticks and toothpaste tablets the norm in supermarkets.

Source: Guardian

The Adriatic-Ionian Ports Through Projects to Improved Energy Efficiency

Photo: The PoWER project team
Photo: The PoWER project team

After World War II, ports in the mentioned region along with the river ports along the Danube have lost their past roles as dynamic marketplaces and cultural centres. Also, the new challenges presented by improvements in communication and technology have left ports outdated and without the chance to perform at their full potential. In Serbia, through which the Danube flows 558 kilometres, there are excellent conditions for water transport, a way of transporting goods which has been neglected. However, the fact that European foundations have invested funds in revitalizing revitalize these harbours is encouraging, and there are also targeted EU programs, along with international Adriatic-Ionian regional initiatives, like the “Ports as Driving Wheels of Entrepreneurial Realm – PoWER”.

PoWER is an initiative which has its complete methodology based on the idea which was submitted by the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS), which was first adapted for use in the maritime sectors and port areas. The project aims to re-evaluate the condition and situation of the Adriatic-Ionian ports and restore the historical roles that these places once held as development and exchangecentres but adapting to modern-day challenges and requirements.

Ports are very complex systems. In comparison to other transport infrastructures, ports are more harmful to the environment and as such, face high maintenance costs with the need for continuous investment and development toward the less environmentally harmful operation. Making ports more efficient can be achieved in a few sometimes simple, other times rather costly steps.

In focus:

For instance, to lower harmful vehicular emissions, trucks could be turned off when unloading goods. In the case of ships, this is a bit different since, sadly, turning them off is not an option. Repairing roadways to make terrestrial shipping easier in the port area may also improve efficiency, with acceptable costs. However, if the seabed or river bed is polluted, cleaning requires much higher costs and additional human resource engagement followed by long-term investment plans. It’s clear to see that each type of port infrastructure intervention comes with high costs. Still, they are necessary since, with time, the entire infrastructure deteriorates, and maintenance and intervention costs increase proportionally. Due to this infrastructural deterioration, the economic value of port areas is diminished, thus creating a vicious circle.

Photo: The PoWER project team

In response to the challenges that ports face in their day-to-day operations, the PoWER project was created to test and develop a methodology for driving innovation in port areas in response to currently identified needs. The project supports the development of ports and changing them into Innovation Hubs, or other centres where innovation is cultivated. This process brings together many stakeholders who are involved in the ports’ “supply chain”, and as such, requires enhanced cooperation on both local and international level to achieve both vertical and horiontal objectives of the proposed innovations. The project is currently being implemented in 6 pilot ports (Bari, Brcko, Drac, Igoumenitsa, Ravenna and Rijeka) with the main objective to improve their energy efficiency.

The results of the project will be visible upon completion when the activities and strategies proposed by the local decision-makers during the project are expected to be implemented. The backbone of the project finding a solution to the problem of insufficient energy efficiency that most ports of the Adriatic-Ionian region are facing and the ultimate goal of the initiative is to offer a methodology for solving this burning problem.

The PoWER project was supported as a part of the First Call for Proposals of the ADRION Interreg V-B Transnational Program, funded by the European Regional Development Fund and the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance, the so-called IPA II.

Prepared by: The PoWER project team from the “European Affairs Fund” APV

This article was published in the new issue of Energy portal Magazine GRINNOVATIONS, December 2019 – February 2020.

 

Hamilton Partners with Ameresco to Transform Closed Landfill into Source of Renewable Energy

Photo: Pixabay

Ameresco will design and develop a solar energy project that prioritizes environmental stewardship and responsible reuse of public land

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#cappedlandfill—Ameresco, Inc., (NYSE: AMRC), a leading energy efficiency and renewable energy company, today announced that it has partnered with the Town of Hamilton, Massachusetts, to install a 930 KW-dc ground-mounted solar panel system at the community’s closed landfill. This renewable energy project and beneficial reuse of public land will have both a positive environmental impact in the community and save Hamilton an estimated $287,000 in energy costs over the 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).

Ameresco was awarded the contract for Hamilton’s solar project last  year as part of the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) Program — a statewide incentive program that encourages the development of 1,600 MW of new solar PV technology across Massachusetts utilities. Under the agreement, Ameresco will be responsible for the design, development, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of Hamilton’s solar array.

“As a rural-suburban community, we deeply value sustainability and view renewable energy not only as an opportunity, but as an imperative,” said Timothy J. Olson, Director of Public Works for the Town of Hamilton. “We selected Ameresco to be our partner in this solar project because of the team’s experience and proven expertise in developing renewable energy projects for communities like ours, and in closed landfill settings.”

Upon completion, Hamilton’s solar system will generate enough emissions-free energy to power 135 households for one year, which is also the equivalent of taking 165 passenger vehicles off the road or preserving 913 acres of forests for one year.

“We have seen an uptick in both community solar and closed landfill solar projects over the last several years, due in part to incentive programs and a concerted effort to work toward sustainability and carbon reduction goals,” said David J. Anderson, EVP and Director, Ameresco. “The Town of Hamilton clearly understands the importance of environmental stewardship, and we are proud to be their partner in this endeavour.”

Construction began at 500 Chebacco Road in May 2019, with commercial operation expected in March 2020.

To learn more about the solar energy solutions offered by Ameresco, visit www.ameresco.com/solution/solar-power/.

About Ameresco, Inc.

Founded in 2000, Ameresco, Inc. (NYSE:AMRC) is a leading independent provider of comprehensive services, energy efficiency, infrastructure upgrades, asset sustainability and renewable energy solutions for businesses and organizations throughout North America and Europe. Ameresco’s sustainability services include upgrades to a facility’s energy infrastructure and the development, construction and operation of renewable energy plants. Ameresco has successfully completed energy saving, environmentally responsible projects with Federal, state and local governments, healthcare and educational institutions, housing authorities, and commercial and industrial customers. With its corporate headquarters in Framingham, MA, Ameresco has more than 1,000 employees providing local expertise in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.ameresco.com.

The announcement of the development of a renewable energy asset by Ameresco is not necessarily indicative of the timing or amount of revenue from such asset, of the company’s overall revenue for any particular period or of trends in the company’s overall total assets in development or operation. This project was included in our previously reported assets in development as of September 30, 2019.

Harmony Fuels Provides First Ever Carbon Neutral Heating Oil and Propane Products for Residential Customers from Maryland to Maine

Photo: Pixabay

New Division of Shipley Energy to Provide Unique Heating Options for Eco-Conscious Residents of the Northeast and Beyond

YORK, Penn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#carbonneutral—Shipley Energy today announced a new division, Harmony Fuels, that will provide the first-of-its-kind carbon neutral heating oil and propane products to residential customers from Maryland to Maine. For each gallon of heating oil or propane a customer purchases, Harmony Fuels will purchase the equivalent number of pounds of carbon offsets from certified green energy projects. Despite the purchase of carbon offsets, Harmony Fuels expects pricing to be equivalent to or lower than the average consumer cost of heating oil and propane.

“Consumers are increasingly aware of the impact they have on the environment and they want to be responsible,” says Steven Downey, President of Harmony Fuels. “Shipley Energy has always demonstrated a commitment to being good environmental stewards by implementing technologies and products that help reduce carbon emissions. With the launch of Harmony Fuels, we are excited to offer our customers a carbon neutral option as a step toward reducing our collective carbon footprint in an effort to mitigate climate change.”

While using electricity to heat homes is an option in the southern regions of the U.S., single family homes in the northeast typically rely on heating oil and propane, which are dirtier fuel sources. “More than 56 billion pounds of carbon is produced each winter by homes using heating oil in the northeast,” Downey says. “It can be overwhelming. The cost of replacing oil and propane furnaces in 12 million homes1 is astronomical and unrealistic. People wonder what they can do.”

Harmony Fuels was created to offer a market-driven solution to provide customers with the energy needed to heat their homes in a way that is less harmful to the environment. Ultimately, Harmony Fuels customers will be delivered and use standard low or ultra-low sulfur heating oil and propane, but Harmony Fuels purchases the equivalent number of carbon offsets which encourages and helps fund additional projects that lead to cleaner air and lower overall carbon emissions. When customers buy their oil and propane from Harmony Fuels, they will be funding projects around the country that are restoring the climate balance.

Customers will select the specific type of project that their specific carbon offsets will come from (solar, wind, landfill methane recapture, livestock methane capture, fugitive emissions capture, and others). The consumer will not only know what type of renewable project they are purchasing their carbon offsets from, but Harmony Fuels will also provide the project names, location, and description for consumers to see. The purchases will be powered by Cloverly, a trusted platform for the purchase of certified carbon offsets.

Harmony Fuels is able to offer their customers the opportunity to invest in sustainable energy products while heating their homes at a cost that is equal to, or even less than, average heating prices due by leveraging the existing delivery partners of its sister company, Smart Touch Energy. Volume equals reduced prices. Harmony Fuels is giving customers the opportunity to invest their savings in the future of a healthier planet for future generations.

“All reputable scientific sources point to carbon production being a significant risk to our way of life, both as a nation and globally,” Downey says. “We believe strongly that it will take many solutions and continued innovation to address this crisis and a service like Harmony Fuels provides consumers a way to start making an impact today.”

Home Heating Oil Carbon Emission Facts:

  • The carbon produced by burning 600 gallons of heating oil is the equivalent to driving 17,000 miles in the average car2, which is the same as three round trips from New York to Los Angeles.
  • Each gallon of heating oil produces more than 22 pounds of carbon emissions3. An average delivery of 200 gallons of oil will produce more than 4,400 pounds of carbon. Propane produces just over 12 pounds per gallon of fuel.

For additional information, visit harmonyfuels.com.

References

  1. U.S. Energy Information Administration, Short-Term Energy Outlook, Table WFO1, January 2019.
  2. U.S. EPA, The 2018 EPA Automotive Trends Report: Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Fuel Economy, and Technology since 1975. March 2019.
  3. U.S. Energy Information Administration, Carbon Dioxide Emissions Coefficients by Fuel, February 2016.


Waters Corporation Announces 2025 Sustainability Goals

The company advances its sustainability initiatives by announcing first-ever five-year goals and committing to reporting its progress annually

MILFORD, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) announced its 2025 sustainability goals and simultaneously announced a commitment to report its sustainability progress annually. These goals were developed following a comprehensive materiality assessment and are published in Waters’ latest sustainability report, which covers activities and progress from 2018 and key highlights from 2019.

“Our focus on sustainability is stronger than ever, and we’re building on that momentum to establish our first-ever set of five-year sustainability goals. Our 2025 goals underscore our commitment to Deliver Benefit to all stakeholders, including our customers, employees, shareholders and society,” commented Chris O’Connell, Chairman and CEO of Waters Corporation. “We have reduced our greenhouse gas footprint by nearly 10%, increased the percentage of women in leadership positions and on our Board of Directors, and developed efforts to address global food and water safety. Through these actions and our new goals, we expect greater value creation for all of our stakeholders.”

A comprehensive stakeholder materiality assessment performed in 2018 identified and prioritized the company’s five 2025 sustainability goals:

  • Advance Our Innovation Ecosystem: We will systematically implement measurable, sustainable practices in how we innovate, develop, and deliver our products.
  • Reduce Our Environmental Impact: We will improve our operational performance by decreasing environmental impact and increasing natural resource efficiency.
  • Enhance Our Sustainable Supply Chain: We will advance an end-to-end product and supply chain sustainability program that identifies opportunities in engineering, procurement and operations to reduce the environmental impact of our products and supply chain.
  • Lead by Example in Our Employee Development and Engagement: We continue to focus on the employees we have today – and the employees we will need tomorrow – through programs and initiatives that drive diversity, inclusion, and development.
  • Nurture Our Culture of Health, Safety and Well-being: We will foster an attitude of awareness, preparedness, and responsiveness across our workplace and throughout our supply chain.

In addition to detailing the 2025 goals, the sustainability report highlights key advancements the company made in 2018. These include:

  • Increased the representation of women on Waters’ Board of Directors to 30% and signed the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion™ pledge.
  • Achieved global renewable energy use of 9% and a greenhouse gas reduction of approximately 9% since 2016.
  • Developed a proprietary employee success model to articulate the behaviors and attributes that will strengthen the values and vision of the company.
  • Invested $215 million in a state-of-the-art precision chemistry manufacturing facility that will employ elements of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design™ (LEED®) building standards.
  • Established the International Food and Water Research Centre in Singapore to address the growing global challenges of food and water security and safety.

To view the complete sustainability report and learn more about Waters’ commitments and successes, please see the report on the Waters website.

About Waters Corporation

Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT), the world’s leading specialty measurement company, has pioneered chromatography, mass spectrometry and thermal analysis innovations serving the life, materials and food sciences for more than 60 years. With approximately 7,200 employees worldwide, Waters operates directly in 35 countries, including 15 manufacturing facilities, and with products available in more than 100 countries.

Waters is a registered trademark of the Waters Corporation.

Grass Growing Around Mount Everest as Global Heating Intensifies

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Rohan Reddy)

Shrubs and grasses are springing up around Mount Everest and across the Himalayas, one of the most rapidly heating regions of the planet.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The impact on water supplies of the small but significant increase in vegetation between the treeline and snowline is not yet known but could increase flooding in the vast Hindu Kush Himalayan region, which covers 4.2msq km(1.6m sq miles), feeds Asia’s 10 largest river systems and supplies 1.4 billion people with water.

Scientists used satellite data to identify increases in vegetation in the inaccessible subnival (the highest zone allowing plant growth) ecosystem, made up of grasses and dwarf shrubs with seasonal snow. This ecosystem is known but could play a crucial role in the region’s hydrology, covering between five and 15 times the area of permanent glaciers and snow in the region.

Studying images from 1993 to 2018 provided by Nasa’s Landsat satellites, researchers from Exeter University measured the spread of vegetation cover across four height brackets from 4,150 to 6,000 metres above sea level.

The melting of Himalayan glaciers has doubled since the turn of the century, with more than a quarter of all ice lost over the last four decades. Research has suggested that its ecosystems are highly vulnerable to climate-induced shifts in vegetation.

“A lot of research has been done on ice melting in the Himalayan region, including a study that showed how the rate of ice loss doubled between 2000 and 2016,” said Dr Karen Anderson, of the Environment and Sustainability Institute on Exeter’s Penryn Campus in Cornwall.

“It’s important to monitor and understand ice loss in major mountain systems, but subnival ecosystems cover a much larger area than permanent snow and ice, and we know very little about them and how they moderate water supply.”

It is not yet known how more vegetation might affect water supplies but studies of increased vegetation in the Arctic found that they delivered a warming effect in the surrounding landscape, with the plants absorbing more light and warming the soil.

“That would be bad news for the Himalayas,” said Anderson. “The subnival zone is where seasonal snow is held and if it is warmer you will get flashy hydrology – quicker melt rates and an increased risk of flooding.”

But Anderson said that more vegetation may not actually increase warming and flood risks in the Himalayas, with the only study in the region, in Tibet, finding that the water in the plants that is evaporated through their leaf surface actually exerted a cooling influence.

“We really don’t know much about this area and we need to direct research attention towards it because it’s a major part of the water supply story in the Himalayas,” she added.

The study, published in Global Change Biology, was made possible by Google’s new Earth Engine, which provides researchers with a freely accessible collection of government agency satellite data in the cloud. Previously, researchers would have had to build a super-computer to sift through the enormous quantities of satellite data.

“It has really revolutionised this kind of work and enables large-scale, long time-series investigations like this to happen,” said Anderson.

Source: Guardian

‘Most Realistic’ Plant-Based Steak Revealed

Foto: Facebook NOVAMEAT (screenshot)

The “most realistic” plant-based steak to date has been revealed, mimicking the texture and appearance of a real cut of meat.

Photo: Facebook (screenshot)

The fake steak’s ingredients include pea, seaweed and beetroot juice, which are extruded into fine fibres to recreate muscle tissue. Its producer, the Spanish company Novameat, says the steak will be available in some restaurants in Spain and Italy this year before scaling up in 2021.

The enormous impact of cattle and other livestock on the environment has led a swathe of companies to create plant-based alternatives to meat, with the Beyond Meat burger and Greggs sausage roll among the vegan successes. But recreating the texture of whole cuts of meat is far more challenging than ground meat.

“I started with steak I think because it is the holy grail of plant-based meat,” said Giuseppe Scionti, founder of Novameat. “It is the most difficult.” The company unveiled a 3D-printed steak in 2018, but the new steak has both the firm, fibrous texture and meaty appearance of a real steak, he said, making it the “most realistic” to date.

The company is still experimenting with the taste, but Scionti said the company’ can use the ingredients already used to create convincing beefy burgers from plants. He expects a final formulation in the next few months.

The key to the new steak is patented micro-extrusion technology that produces fibres between 100 and 500 microns in diameter. This allows the complex structure of real meat to be replicated, with muscle fibres and fat entwined. Existing extrusion technology produces much larger fibres.

The 50g steak produced cost $1.50 (£1.15) to make, similar in price to current supermarket steak in the UK. But Scionti said the cost will drop when the process is scaled up. The company plans to commission a pilot plant in 2021 which can produce 50kg of steak per hour. But to reach a mass market, the company plans to licence its technology to existing food manufacturers who can develop their own recipes.

Some plant-based alternatives to meat have been criticised for being as high in fat and salt as the food they are intended to replace. Scionti said plant-based alternatives do not contain cholesterol or the hormones and antibiotics often found in real meat. In future, he said, beneficial ingredients such as omega-3 fatty acids could be added.

Novameat is not alone in developing plant-based steaks, with Israel-based Redefine Meat being a leading competitor. Unlike Novameat’s product, the Israeli company’s meat has been publicly tasted, receiving positive feedback, but the firm has not yet revealed a textured steak.

Others include Atlast Food, which is using a fungus fibres to create textures similar to meat, and Emergy Foods. Another Israeli company, Aleph Farms, has produced a steak from real beef cells cultured in a laboratory, which, the firm says, will have a much lower environmental footprint than real meat.

There is definitely a role for technology that can structure both plant-based and lab-grown meat into more complex products, said Rosie Wardle, at the Jeremy Coller foundation and advisor for CPT Capital, which has invested in Redfine Meat. “I’ve eaten early versions of the Redefine products and they were truly delicious,” she said.

Read more: Guardian

EFSE and BT Mic Join Forces to Provide Local Currency Financing for Romanian MSEs

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) has provided BT Microfinanțare (BT Mic), part of Banca Transilvania Financial Group, with a second loan in Romanian leu equivalent to EUR 7 million to expand access to local currency finance for micro and small enterprises (MSEs) in the country.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

BT Mic focuses on financing MSEs: a largely underserved segment in Romania but a key contributor to employment and economic growth. The company has grown dynamically since its foundation in 2016 to become the largest microfinance institution in the country – financing more than 10,000 entrepreneurs. BT Mic has been an EFSE partner lending institution since December 2018, benefiting so far from both dedicated financing and tailored technical assistance aimed at increasing the company’s institutional capacities in serving MSEs and its visibility among local entrepreneurs.

EFSE Board Chairman Christoph Tiskens said: “We are proud to be supporting BT Mic. EFSE recognises the crucial role MSEs play in developing the economy of Romania; the new loan facility will allow BT Mic to provide financing to more than 800 growing businesses in their own local currency, thus protecting them from exchange rate risk.”

BT Mic CEO Cristina Sindile said: “EFSE decided to join us in this journey more than one year ago, and now we are glad to expand our collaboration. We share the same vision and goals with regard to the MSE sector and we aim to contribute more to its development through a sustainable lending approach.”

About the European Fund for Southeast Europe

An impact investment fund established in 2005, the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) aims to foster economic development and prosperity in Southeast Europe and the Eastern Neighbourhood Region by investing in the success of micro and small enterprises as well as improved living conditions for private households. As access to financial services is key to developing this segment, EFSE focuses on helping local financial sectors strengthen their ability to provide responsible financing for this target group. Alongside its investment activities through local partners, EFSE multiplies its impact through the EFSE Development Facility, which provides technical assistance, training, and other nonfinancial support to entrepreneurs and institutions.

EFSE was initiated by KfW Development Bank with the financial support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Commission. As the first public-private partnership of its kind, EFSE draws its capital from donor agencies, international financial institutions, and private institutional investors.

Finance in Motion GmbH, Germany, serves as EFSE’s advisor and Hauck & Aufhäuser Fund Services S.A., Luxembourg, acts as manager.

For more information on the European Fund for Southeast Europe, please visit: www.efse.lu, and for more information on Finance in Motion, please visit: www.finance-in-motion.com.

About BT Microfinantare

BT Mic, part of Banca Transilvania Financial Group (BT), is dedicated to the financing of small businesses, complementing the role of BT in supporting Romanian entrepreneurs. It targets entrepreneurs with an annual turnover up to RON 1 million, regardless of the field of activity and the form of organization – commercial companies, authorized individuals, enterprises/family associations, sole proprietorships, self-employed persons, or persons who practice economic activities. To date, more than 10,000 micro-companies are supported by BT Mic.

For more information about BT Mic, please visit: www.btmic.ro.

UK Could Put Tariffs on Food From Countries With Lower Standards

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The UK could introduce tariffs on imports of food from countries with lower food safety and farming standards than the UK, using World Trade Organization rules, the environment secretary has suggested.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

“We want to ensure all our food comes from countries that meet our standards,” Theresa Villiers told an audience of farmers on Wednesday. “That is what the powerful tools of the WTO do, they enable us to impose tariffs where we believe products do not meet our high standards.”

The surprising suggestion, which would be highly controversial with any potential trade partners and could provoke a trade war, followed an admission by Villiers that farming would be a key component of any post-Brexit trade deal, and that the UK would face heavy bargaining from potential trade partners.

“Absolutely, there will be pressure on agriculture [in trade negotiations], there always is,” she said. “Agriculture is always the last chapter to close on a trade deal.”

But she vowed to uphold UK standards. “We put in our manifesto our commitment to our standards of food safety and food security, animal welfare and the environment,” she said. “That’s what we will put on the table.”

For a country such as the UK to insist on being able to maintain its own high standards on environmental protections would be legal under WTO rules, she said.

Farmers were sceptical of her stance, however. After her speech at the Oxford Farming Conference, the hundreds of participants were asked to raise their hands if they were convinced that she would in fact protect their interests against trade partners, including the US. No hands were raised.

Rob Percival, head of food and health policy at the Soil Association, said: “Villiers’s suggestion that tariffs could be placed on imports that don’t meet UK standards suggests the government is looking for ways to support UK farming, but such piecemeal measures need to be part of a coherent trade policy, which we are yet to see. This policy and the ensuing legislation must ensure non-regression on environment, food and farming standards, and ensure the UK can continue to raise the bar in response to the climate and nature emergency.”

Villiers refused to back farmers’ demands for an independent trade commission that would rule on whether trade deals met the UK’s standards, but said she would relay their views to her government colleagues and a decision would be made.

Mark Bridgeman, president of the Country Land and Business Association, which represents landowners and rural businesses, said farmers were also concerned about the transition to a new subsidy system. Under plans laid out by Villiers, farmers will be moved over the next seven years from payments based on the amount of land farmed to new subsidies based on agreements by farmers to provide environmental protections.

Villers said these agreements would be made with individual farmers based on their circumstances, which would be a huge undertaking, but provided few details of what would be involved.

Bridgeman said: “Farmers are already starting to plan for 2021 and beyond, so we need early clarity on how direct payments will be reduced during the whole transition period. There are serious risks to many farming businesses if there are major reductions in direct payments before the introduction of the new [environmental land management systems].”

Farmers at the conference also heard about some of the problems with diets in Britain, including obesity and poor health caused by a poor diet. Healthy and environmentally sustainable food should be more widely and cheaply available, said Henry Dimbleby, co-founder of the Leon restaurant chain, who is leading the government’s national food strategy.

Read more: Guardian

Governments, Smart Data and Wildfires: Where Are We At?

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Issy Bailey)

The ongoing bushfires in Australia have focused media attention on wildfires more generally and their link to biodiversity and habitat loss, as well as global heating.

We take a look at the some of the different types of wildfires, assess their impact and what is causing them, and why accurate, real-time data is so important for wise action to curb them.

Different types of wildfires

Did you know that wildfires occur naturally or can be started deliberately or by accident by humans? In some parts of the world, such as Indonesia and Brazil, forest fires have been started deliberately to make way for oil palm and soy bean plantations, or pasture for cattle—all in the name of alleviating poverty, creating economic wealth, and jobs or, mistakenly, food security.

Photo: UNEP

Forest fires on peatlands are particularly worrisome in terms of global heating—they release far more CO2 into the atmosphere than other forest fires and are extremely difficult to detect and extinguish. Some of the largest peatlands are in Malaysia and Indonesia. The occurrence of fires is low under undisturbed conditions, but rapid land use changes—deforestation and peatland conversion or drainage—are leading to increased frequency of wildfires and peatland fires. This is especially the case on the island of Borneo (73 per cent of which is part of Indonesia).

On many days during the 2015 fires in Indonesia, the daily emission rates from the fires exceeded that of fossil fuel emissions in the United States. They caused an international outcry to which the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and partners responded by establishing the Global Peatlands Initiative.

“The peatland fires in Indonesia in 2015 affected the health of millions of people and became a world environmental disaster. Since then, Indonesia has made tremendous efforts to protect and sustainably manage their peatlands, including most recently, leading the way towards the United Nations Environmental Assembly resolution on the Conservation and Sustainable Management of Peatlands,” says UNEP peatlands expert Dianna Kopansky.

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Marcus Kauffman)

Crop fires are usually started deliberately. They exacerbate air pollution and have damaging health consequences.

In Africa, wildfires on savannah grasslands are generally a natural phenomenon, and can be beneficial for ecosystems. Elsewhere when vegetation catches fire, the danger is that it may spread to forests or human settlements.

In Africa, fires are also used as a land-clearing tool to expand agricultural areas. Burning improves the palatability of young pasture for grazing animals. For farmers, fires eliminate parasites from crops, and are a cheap alternative to insecticides and herbicides. However, along with the release of large quantities of (CO2) into the atmosphere, grass and shrub fires have considerable impacts on soils and vegetation. The loss of vegetation cover facilitates water runoff and wind erosion and reduces water infiltration.

Other human-induced fires can take hold in industrial areas and/or are linked to chemical plants or oil and gas facilities. These fires usually release large amounts of nitrous oxide into the atmosphere, a gas 300 times more potent that CO2 in terms of global heating. Emissions from these fires can also contain high levels of toxic substances.

We need to better understand the different drivers of wildfires and be able to prioritize which wildfires cause the most environmental damage. Big data can help.

The importance of accurate, real-time data

“The trick is to marshal the relevant data to make it useful to governments and that’s where platforms like the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP’s) World Environment Situation Room can help,” says Pascal Peduzzi, Director of UNEP’s Global Resource Information Database in Geneva.

The World Environment Situation Room is a work in progress, though data on biodiversity, pollution, disaster risk and climate change is already available. The plan is to have the full database up and running for launch at the next United Nations Environment Assembly at the end of next year.

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Issy Bailey)

Valuable research and data sources such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States, Global Forest Watch, data produced by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, MapX (developed by UNEP/GRID-Geneva and UNEP/CMB, and which is used as the geospatial component of the World Environment Situation Room), and UNEP research contained in publications like the Foresight Briefs and the Frontiers Report (the latter on issue of emerging environmental concern), are fed into the Situation Room and generate graphics and other data visualization tools. Data searches can be carried out by geography, theme or product type (e.g. satellite imagery, graphs or maps).

“UNEP’s strength is that we have built solid foundations,” says Peduzzi. “UNEP chairs the UN Geospatial Network—25 UN agencies. We are also building the One Global Partnership with 17 partners to feed the Situation Room and get buy-in across UNEP through the Acting as One group. We’ve gathered 1,200 geospatial datasets over the past two years.”

However, there’s always room for improvement. “Smouldering peatland fires are difficult to detect by satellite or other means,” says Peduzzi.

Source: UNEP

The Key to Sustainable Development Is Political Will

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Jace & Afsoon)
Photo: French Embassy

The eyes of the entire world are on France when it comes to combating climate change, not only because of the 2015 Paris Agreement, which pledged this country to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050. Not a day goes by without some environmental news from France getting around the world, whether it is about new government measures or laws in the implementation of climate policy, the strong reaction of citizens to them, or, in turn, green inventions and new advances in clean technology.

However, as the world talks about France, the French government and French citizens have come a long way in their common goal of tackling climate change as effectively as possible in the spirit of social justice. It is, therefore, no surprise that France, after Denmark, Sweden and Finland, is the fourth country in the world to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and even second in the world in the implementation of environmental protection measures. French Ambassador to Serbia Jean-Louis Falconi gladly shared with us his country’s green experiences, as well as several democratic lessons that show us the importance of massively involving citizens in all levels of decision-making about their country’s climate.

EP: France is in the top 5 most sustainable countries in the world, and it is ranked #2 in EPI2018. When did this ecological revolution start, and how did France become one of the global leaders in environmental protection?

Jean-Louis Falconi: In France, the awareness of the harmfulness of overexploitation of natural resources is not new. In the 1990s, the UN’s international summits and the agreements that emerged from them – Rio and Kyoto – have also contributed much to the national awareness on this subject. At the environmental conference on sustainable development in 2012, the French government decided to establish a roadmap on the issue, with five round tables, on the energy transition, biodiversity, health risks, ecological taxation and environmental governance. Then, in 2013, a national public debate on the energy transition was launched. The French government’s guidelines were drawn from its conclusions.

Today, France’s climate commitments are structured around the Energy Transition for Green Growth Act, passed in August 2015, and the Energy and Climate Law promulgated in November 2019. With these two texts, France intends to meet its obligations made during the COP21, chaired by France in Paris in November 2015, and accelerate the transition towards a Greenhouse Gas Neutral society in 2050. In this context, the most emblematic commitments of my country are to end the sale of cars using fossil fuels until 2040 and to prohibit any new hydrocarbon exploitation license  on the French territory to put an end to their extraction by 2040.

In focus:

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Valentin B. Kremer)

EP: What are the major factors that most affect France’s high level of sustainable development – renewable energy resources, biofuels, government support for clean technology or something else?

Jean-Louis Falconi: The key to success is above all, the political will to set ambitious commitments and to stick to them. This will is noticeable in all sectors of the economy. Concerning energy, the 2019 Climate Energy Act provides, for example, for the shutdown of the last coal power plants by 2022. On the other hand, we rely on innovative resources and investment funds to develop new technologies and ensure their functioning. The second factor is, of course, French know-how in research and development. All large companies comprise units working on innovation in their respective fields, anticipating our needs and the challenges of tomorrow. France also has a proactive policy aimed at start-ups specialised in the environmental field, either in terms of taxation, subsidies or the creation of working conditions conducive to their development.

EP: France’s most significant environmental challenges are climate change, air pollution and waste. What is the national strategy to cope with these problems?

Jean-Louis Falconi: The energy and climate law, adopted in July 2019, has particularly raised the target of reducing fossil fuel consumption to 40 per cent by 2030 compared to 1990 (and compared to 30 per cent per today). The budget for 2020 also provides for the introduction of an eco-contribution for all flights departing from France, which will go directly to financing transport infrastructure, notably the rail infrastructure. With regard to waste, a Circular Economy Roadmap was published in April 2018, aiming at reducing waste and make recycling procedures more efficient. It requires action at all levels – by introducing measures in favour of eco-design of products, the integration of recycled materials into the industrial production, a more responsible consumption, by extending the life of the things we own and others. Finally, measures are being implemented to optimise the sorting of waste and develop recycling. An anti-waste bill is currently being considered in the Parliament.

EP: Although the French government has committed to a net-zero emissions for 2050, some reports show that the reduction of carbon dioxide emission is not fast enough. In the first place, it hasn’t been done enough in the field of traffic modernisation and renovation of old buildings. What efforts are you making to reach this goal?

Jean-Louis Falconi: Although France is currently in the process of exceeding the joint objective adopted with the European Union for 2020 under the Climate Convention, we are not on the path we set for ourselves in 2015. We have emitted 65 million tons of CO2 more than expected. All this despite the reduction of our emissions by more than 4 per cent in 2018 compared to 2017, and by 18.8 per cent compared to the level of 1990.

The newly created High Council for Climate highlights the lack of progress made in the transport and building sectors: the transfer to modes of transport alternative to cars and road transport is insufficient, new vehicles on the market are not as effective as expected, while the renovation of buildings, although more numerous, remains insufficient. With regard to transport, the Mobility Orientation Law, adopted in November 2019, encompasses the goal of complete decarbonisation of land transport by 2050. To achieve this, it targets the development of low CO2 emissions vehicles for 2030, and the end for the sail of new light fossil-fueled vehicles by 2040. For these initiatives to fit all pockets, the law puts in place measures to facilitate carpooling, the use of bicycles with adapted roadways, or the provision of charging stations for electric vehicles.

In the building sector, France has set an ambitious renovation plan for old buildings, with a € 14 bn fund dedicated to energy renovation. At the beginning of 2019, the government set up a mechanism allowing households to replace their boilers for only € 1. Of course, none of this can be done without incentives such as reinforcement of environmental taxation, reimbursements for conversion to a low carbon, bonuses for purchasing low-carbon cars, penalties for polluting vehicles, flexible taxes for company vehicles.

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (John Towner)

EP: Last year, yellow vests protested against a new carbon tax that was supposed to increase carbon dioxide levies, but the fee was waived. To what extent do these democratic pressures make it more difficult, or sometimes easier, to implement a set climate policy?

Jean-Louis Falconi: Although the protest movement was triggered by the rise in the carbon tax (which has been frozen at the 2018 level), protesters’ claims were broader than carbon taxation, and focused more on social justice, renewal of democracy, territorial divides and purchasing power. The President of the French Republic announced in December 2018 his intention to organize a Grand National Debate to allow all of us to discuss issues which are essential for the French people. It was held in the first quarter of 2019 and structured around four themes: the ecological transition, taxation and public spending, democracy and citizenship, the organisation of the state and public services. An online platform has collected nearly 2 million online contributions, and more than 10,000 local meetings have been organised. The President of the Republic announced, during his press conference in April 2019, his proposals in response to the conclusions of the Great National Debate. On the climate aspects, this included the organisation of a citizens’ conference of 150 randomly selected citizens with a mandate to define a series of measures aiming to achieve our climate objectives in a spirit of social justice. This democratic experiment, unprecedented in France, started at the beginning of October and will provide a list of measures by the end of January 2020.

Interview by: Gordana Knezevic

Read the whole interview in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine  GRINNOVATIONS, December 2019 – February 2020.

Nature’s Oasis “Carska Bara”

Foto: Ribarsko gazdinstvo "Ečka"
Photo: The fish farm Ecka

How Carska bara recovered after the fire incurred by stubble burning and how wildlife is taken care of at the Special nature reserve Carska bara, we asked Dejan Zejak, the manager of fish farm Ecka, which runs the above-mentioned nature reserve. Needless to say, we took advantage of that chance to also find out to what extent is the popularity of Carska bara as a tourist attraction and what the traditional cuisine of this region is.

The last year battle for preserving the natural resources of this region against the blaze Dejan Zejak described as a casualty in which the area affected by the fire had added up to 338 hectares. “It was sheer luck that it was October, the time of the year when offsprings had already grown up and managed to draw back in the face of the flame while migratory birds had moved south”, explained Dejan. He added that the belvedere was burned down, as well as the wooden footpath that stretched to it and was at the part of the reserve which was inaccessible to firefighters.

The cause of the fire in these circumstances usually appears to be reckless stubble burning. Last autumn, the fire spread from the summer home area, which lies along the Zrenjanin-Belgrade road, straight to the nature reserve. As the cold wind was blowing that day, ember was flown across the Begej channel into the nature reserve. Initially, the part of the nature reserve called Perleska bara caught fire, that was subsequently spread to Tiganjica, Stari Begej, also Carska bara, Botoski rit and Fakazdinski rit. The blaze was spreading ever further towards the village of Belo Blato, but it was eventually put out on the edge of that village.

Upon being asked how these accidents might be prevented, but also how to get through to the farmers in the most efficient way to reduce the consequences incurred by stubble burning, Dejan Zejak replied that it is necessary to “educate citizens and bring awareness of damage caused by stubble burning”, indicating for that matter that the latter activity primarily spoils the soil quality. Also, he believes that the culprits, namely those who keep on clinging to that bad custom, should be fined.

However, Dejan suggests that this autumn fewer fires were registered in the area, along with more strict control. He reckons that it is still going to take a lot of time until this dangerous habit of thoughtless people becomes eradicated.

Among the reed and rush

Each year, this nature reserve in cooperation with the Bird Protection and Study Society of Serbia observe the number of birds’ species and their migration. And how impressive the particularities of plants and wildlife of this nature reserve are, says Dejan. “The major signature of this place is birds and here is one of the most significant ornithology station in this part of Europe. Neither one protected area has at its verges a fish pond of this size which serves as a huge food resource and a cause of this high numerosity and variety of birds. Around 250 birds’ species are registered here, as well as animals that feed on fish. All ten species of herons which live at the European continent nest only in our nature reserve. There are white-tailed eagles, but also a huge number of otters is reported, which are classified as highly protected species and true indicators of water quality. When it comes to fauna, there are more than 500 different plants.”

Fighting the fire wasn’t the only challenge the nature reserve had to deal with. A few years ago they had problems with sludge deposits which threatened plants and wildlife in the fish pond, reducing at the same time the number of tourist visits as the approach to the tourist boat was restrained. Last year they got a small grant from the Ministry of environmental protection for meeting the costs of partial dredging of the part of the Stari Begej bed. The fish farm Ecka now serves as the only source of income being used for improving the tourist offer at the nature reserve.

Photo: The fish farm Ecka

Protection first, tourism later

As for tourism, the nature reserve Carska bara is a typical case of sustainable tourism, and as such it is cited in the books for positively demonstrating the advance on that field. “The number of the visitors is limited due to the specificity of the nature reserve and sustainable development, so we can’t aim for a significant rise in the number of tourists as it would lead to endangering the birds which are the main feature of this reserve. Our employees take care of the visitors’ conducts, and the focus of our tourist offer is on education and raising awareness of the proper treatment towards nature”, says the manager of the fish farm Ecka pointing out that the reserve protection is primary. “Tourism is secondary, for that matter.”

He believes that their tourist offer could be significantly improved by building another belvedere, getting canoes and pedalos, as well as by placing information and education boards which would give pieces of advices to visitors in the reserve zones where those activities could take place. It seems that the full potential of this place hasn’t been tapped into, which is caused by the lack of money, which is their biggest obstacle.

The staff at the fish farm tries to save this nature reserve from climate change. Dejan brings out that they pay special attention to restraining the human factor so that it doesn’t ruin the natural processes of the ecosystem. During the cold winters, the reserve’s staff makes small apertures in the ice to provide fishes with oxygen. In contrast, during the extreme droughts they pump in water into Carska bara so that the ecosystem wouldn’t be in danger. All of these activities are done according to the directions given by the Institute for nature conservation of Serbia.

In focus:

Dejan thinks that the situation with the fishery and its future in Serbia is volatile, as it all depends on factors which affect the production estimation, such as viruses and diseases, whose effect is damage beyond repair. Talking about downsides, he stresses the problem of the black market and also extremely low subsidies in comparison to the region, which substantially reduces competitiveness.

However, along with all challenges, the tale about the Ecka carp still goes around. This fish has been bred at the Ecka fish farm ever since 1891, and it is known for its particular taste which probably should be attributed to the water and soil quality, namely substrate of the fish pond. There was the time when the Ecka carp was a must-have delicacy at the restaurants’ menus and holiday dinner tables throughout former Yugoslavia, and it was also exported to Macedonia, Italy and Germany. Today the widely famous carp of Ecka can be found at some chain stores and delicacy stores.

Dejan told us about his favourite fish recipe. The delicacy name is the Carska fish broth which is made from carp fillets, and you can try it next time you head for Zrenjanin if you remember this article, so you decide to take a break at Carska bara.

Prepared by: Jelena Cvetic

This article was published in the new issue of Energy portal Magazine GRINNOVATIONS, December 2019 – February 2020.

 

How to Grow Air?

Photo: AlgiOx

Recognizing that their fellow citizens have moved too far away from nature due to lack of time and money and with the desire to bring nature directly into their four walls, five students from Serbia have joined thinking about it, and that’s how AlgiOx was born.

Photo: AlgiOx

David Vucen, Ivana Stankov, Ivan Citakovic, Mina Hasanovic and Jovan Jovanovic met in February during the ParkUp! competition at the Science and Technology Park in Belgrade. For five days, they were intensively developing their initial idea, and their effort was wreathed in victory and the opportunity to present a new means of combating air pollution. According to them, AlgiOx is smart, self-sustaining air generator that uses the power of microalgae to produce oxygen and remove harmful particles and gases from the air.

The general public has recognized the importance of this innovation, so the newspapers published stories about Serbian youth who cleans the air with the help of microalgae. Readers received this news with enthusiasm and pride. “Our device works according to the natural principle of photosynthesis”, explained Ivana Stankov, reminding us of the basics of biology – microalgae produce oxygen that we breathe while absorbing carbon dioxide that we release when breathing.

AlgiOx is better than other air generators on the market because it is more than that. It makes something we all need – air. Ivana told us about one more advantage compared to the other commercial devices. “Thanks to the mobile app, users could connect with their device and check the air quality and other parameters in their home anytime they like”, Ivana discovered us.

The team, however, thinks they can still improve their invention. According to Ivana, the size of AlgiOx device could be a problem, because people got used to the small appliances, but the team is already working on it.

In focus:

At the end of the year, they will test the air generator in real conditions. About ten chosen candidates will have the opportunity to try the AlgiOx in their homes. “We incorporated in this device all the assumptions about possible criticism, and now we want to check them”, said our interlocutor and added that they have high expectations.

Photo: AlgiOx

Although robust at first glance, AlgiOx is not an overly energy-consuming appliance. “The invention is very green and consumes up to 50 watts of electricity per hour which is less than the average light bulb – in case it works 24/7 at maximum load, which generally does not happen. It uses the sun as one of its primary energy sources, while in other situations it draws less than 25 watts per hour. This is almost the same as a phone charger”, Ivana pointed out.

In several competitions, the team has ranked among the best start-ups, and each of the competitions brought them one step closer to realising the project. “AlgiOx has received a lot of support from the community, and that makes us very happy! We are glad that people recognize our vision of a healthier environment and a better life for future generations”, said the representative of the innovators’ team. Given that mass production is essential for the development of every start-up, AlgiOx is looking for an investor who will understand its value and hopes to hit the market in the third quarter of the next year. To this end, they will apply for various funds next year, including the Innovation Fund.

Except in households, these young inventors imagine that AlgiOx will also be used in kindergartens and schools someday, where our young generations spend most of the time.

In the future, they are to certify the safety of AlgiOx device and they are getting ready to participate in competitions and programs to help them grow their business. They are also planning a crowdfunding campaign. “It would mean the help of individuals who have experience in designing”, Ivana told us. Also, an industrial designer would be an important reinforcement for them.

The money they received in 2019 from the City of Belgrade will be invested in renting a workspace where they will work on improving the device and educating team members.

Ivana, on behalf of the whole team, invited us to grow air. We will respond to her call. How about you?

Prepared by: Jelena Kozbasic

This article was published in the new issue of Energy portal Magazine GRINNOVATIONS, December 2019 – February 2020.

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