Every idea needs to be presented in a compelling way if it is to catch on. According to Jeremy Shere, “What we need more of, to my mind, are stories about energy on a human scale, stories that give the average person a sense of what’s at stake and why he or she should care.” More here.

Compare how Denmark handles its trash with the way New York does it. New York doesn’t fare well in this comparison.

Advancing technology always provides society with new terms, and some of them make the mainstream. Among the new words defined in the Oxford Dictionary this year is “carbon capture and storage”: the process of trapping and storing carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels.

In this year’s edition you will find “carbon capture and storage” along with “vuvuzela”: an obnoxious-sounding horn blown incessantly by spectators during the 2010 World Cup (OK, that is my definition, not the one in the dictionary).

A study conducted by Wood McKenzie determined that by subsidizing the oil and gas industry, American taxpayers are picking up a portion of the real cost of those fossil energy sources. In turn, that discourages conservation and makes it harder for renewable energy sources to compete on price.

I guess that’s why we also now subsidize renewable energy research!

Here is a great feature at Living Green and Saving Energy: the Green Newsfeed. The latest green news scrolls continuously, updated throughout the day. Check it out.

Genencor reported on progress in its project with Goodyear Tire to develop a process to produce isoprene, the building block of rubber in products such as tires.

In a presentation at the Society of Industrial Microbiology conference in San Francisco this week (August 1-5, 2010), Genencor described how synthetic biology is being applied to increase the yield and rate of production of this large volume chemical currently entirely derived from petroleum. BioIsoprene, as they call the renewably-produced isoprene, would make the tire and rubber industry less dependent on petroleum-derived materials.

A new concrete containing a catalyst that breaks down nitrogen oxide from tailpipe emissions has been developed.

Dutch researchers at the Eindhoven University of Technology have created what they call an air-purifying concrete. The material contains titanium dioxide, which in the presence of sunlight acts photo-catalytically to convert nitrogen oxide to environmentally benign nitrate.

Tests were carried out by resurfacing part of a busy highway with more than 1000 square meters (about 10,000 square feet) of the material. Air-purity measurements found the NOx content was 25-percent to 45-percent lower in areas using the new concrete stones.

The cost of the material is claimed to raise road-building costs by only 10-percent.

Imaging how green this concrete would be if the Pavegen concept were added to it?

Serious people and companies are starting to sped significant money to develop ways to capture carbon dioxide emissions.

Some projects seek only to capture the carbon dioxide (CO2) and then sequester it, for example, by injecting it deep into the earth. Assuming the CO2, which is gas, doesn’t leach back out into atmosphere, this would remove the CO2, at least for  while.

But I think the best ideas involve using the captured CO2 to produce another useful product. Apparently, the US Department of Energy agrees. US Energy Secretary Stephen Chu recently announced his agency is stepping in with some big bucks to fund six projects that aim to find ways of converting captured carbon dioxide emissions from industrial sources into useful products such as fuel, plastics, cement, and fertilizers. Read the whole story here and get Jim Lane’s take on it at Biofuel Digest here.

Albemarle Corporation, the Baton Rouge, LA-based specialty chemical company, has launched a new division focused on sustainable, eco-friendly products. With the name and branding of “Earthwise™” this division has as its mission the development and commercialization of a family of green chemistry products. The first Earthwise product due to be commercially available in late 2010 is called GreenArmor™ with a targeted application of fire safety. Earthwise™ will be a company-wide initiative, and, taking a page from the Intel playbook, products incorporating the branded chemicals will promote the moniker “Earthwise Inside.”

I like it.

It happened again. But this time, the reason is different.

Verenium, the enzyme developer that was created when Diversa merged with cellulosic ethanol developer Celunol, has now sold its cellulosic business to BP for $98.3 million. Included in the transaction are the facilities in Jennings, LA and San Diego, CA.

Verenium will retain its specialty enzyme business, including its enzymes for facilitating biofuels production.

As a result of this deal, Verenium is returning to its original focus on biocatalysis and the development of improved enzymes for industrial applications. Read the press release here.

With all the talk about corn and crop lands being diverted away from food production and toward the production of biofuels, everyone has been expecting shortages of food and higher food prices. With this as background, I was surprised to read this morning that the EPA is now predicting a period of food abundance due to the rapid pace of innovation in productivity. Crop yields have risen dramatically along with biofuel yields from corn and soybean, and newer technologies are being developed that will replace corn with cellulose or switchgrass, or even algae.

The result is a predicted food glut, with more food available in the future than there will be a market for. Get the full story here.

A great article by Jim Lane on what he calls the “infinite loop” of renewable fuels financing. Shari Lewis could not have described the situation any better.

The winners of the 2010 Presidential Green Chemistry awards include Merck and Codexis for their collaborative work on a new enzyme-based process for manufacturing Januvia and LS9, Inc for its work toward developing a petroleum-like biofuel. The full list of recipients is here.

I am not talking about the color of the playing surface.

This year Team USA and 8 other teams are wearing jerseys made entirely from recycled plastic bottles. And get this: they are also higher-tech, being 15% lighter-weight and providing better breathability due to thousands of tiny, laser-bored holes in the sides. Nike has provided these remarkable uniforms (free plug for Nike).

Very cool. (Go Team USA!)