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In the United States it seems we vote with our pocketbook, even if that means we vote on borrowed money. While the supermarket checkout doesn’t tally how often we vote for organic milk or refills of soap, companies would like to know whether their green logos are resonating with consumers.

That explains the Buzzback Market Research survey of UK and US consumers on their environmentally friendly habits. Pre-Earth Day they asked about what people buy, what they recycle and what they turn down. It appears that both the lovers of the Queen and the lovers of the Dollar also love energy efficient light bulbs and recycling paper , glass and plastic.
just over one thousand people were surveyed, and of those half said they also purchased recycled paper and other products. Those that sell green-only products are gaining in the market, but not as much as their owners might hope. Only 10-percent of those surveyed said they bought products exclusively from green companies.

I do wonder how it’s even possible to buy only from green companies. Which companies make green cars? Which companies make green gasoline? I digress.

Americans, bless our hearts, are also turning down the thermostat and turn off their appliances.

[Via Forbes]

Eighteen US states have given the figurative finger to the Bush administration. Representatives of the states gathered at a conference at Yale University and pledged to take action on climate change, a commitment that’ s been notably absent at the federal level.

To be fair, Bush finally came to the climate change table last week, or at least hovered nearby with an interested expression, with his belated acknowledgement that the US needs to actually do something at a national level. However, he offered no concrete plan and indicated that American participation in any international treaty would be contingent on China doing the same.

By contrast, the states participating in the conference signed a declaration that expressed a willingness to influence the feds, and also to act independently. The latter tactic, of course, hasn’t always been successful in the past, as when the EPA put the kibosh on California’s attempts to increase auto emission standards.

California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger spoke warmly at Yale of the current crop of Presidential candidates, asserting that either Clinton, Obama, or McCain would all be good for the environment.

States which signed the declaration against climate change were Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Virginia and Washington.

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According to reports, roost-ruling, green automaker Toyota has confirmed plans to launch a plug-in hybrid by 2010. Our man in Japan Katsuaki Watanabe (company president) dropped the bombshell at this year’s Detroit Auto Show while detailing the automaker’s plans for tackling environmental concerns. Apparently, the new lithium-ion-equipped vehicles will first be made available to Toyota’s commercial customers — such as government agencies. Watanabe gave no indication of when a general consumer rollout would occur. The vehicle, which is a modified version of the ultra-popular Prius, is capable of achieving fuel efficiency of 99.9 miles-per-gallon in EV mode, though it can only sustain pure battery power for about seven miles. The announcement will no doubt come as a total bummer to GM, which has plans to sell its own plug-in, the Volt, around the same time — though the Chevy vehicle is said to be able to make trips of up to 40 miles on a six-hour charge. It’s about time we saw some healthy competition in the green-auto-game — let’s just hope consumers reap the benefits.

[Via Engadget]

We surprisingly haven’t heard a ton about green(er) tech at this year’s CES, but there’s still some news going down — and Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba have just announced that they’ve formed a new joint venture, the sexily named Electronics Manufacturers Recycling Management Company, to handle collection and recycling of their products in the US. MRM seems to have formed in response to some new stringent regulations recently passed in Minnesota, as well as similar regs that are about to go on the books in Connecticut, North Carolina, Oregon, Texas, and Washington, but the idea is to provide recycling programs to state and local governments and other manufacturers — and to that end, MRM already has deals with Hitachi, JVC, Mitsubishi, Philips, Pioneer, Sanyo, and Syntax-Brillian. MRM’s managed to collect and handle 750 tons of old gear in its first five months in Minnesota, a feat the company credits to its strategy of making electronics disposal convenient to consumers — sounds like an idea whose time has come.

[Via Engadget]

Gas prices are only getting worse (as we run out of the stuff) and hybrids are a bandage where we need stitches or maybe an amputation. But for those who missed our original article, the Honda FCX Clarity fuel cell car drives like a dream, emits nothing but water vapor and can be leased by real people to actually drive. It’s a viable product…but only 100 are on the market.

So when is Honda planning to mass produce their awesome fuel cell technology? Not for 10 years according to Honda President Takeo Fukui. Why? Or should we say, WHY???????????

It doesn’t seem like they’re waiting on the cars themselves. Instead, it’s a lack of hydrogen refuel stations that is making the job difficult, along with a lack of a feasible home solution for consumers. So Honda is working on the home solution part. And while it sounds like a nice idea, I don’t mind stopping at the gas station every once in a while…and we’ll certainly have plenty of open corners once hydrogen technology destroys fossil fuels. But apparently Honda plans to build their own infrastructure within the home to force private business to follow.[Via Gizmodo]

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�After years of development, Nanosolar has announced today that they have shipped their first batch of inexpensive solar panels to the site of their first real-world deployment, a megawatt solar plant being built on the surface of a landfill in eastern Germany.

Nanosolar’s innovative process for “printing” thin, inexpensive solar panels has attracted several high-profile investors, including Google’s co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. By simplifying the manufacturing process and eliminating pricey silicon, many see the new process as the breakthrough needed to drive cheap solar power into the mainstream.

The first production panels to roll off the assembly line are getting special attention�one’s being exhibited at Nanosolar HQ, another is heading for the Tech Museum in San Jose, and a third has been put up for auction on eBay. The current going rate for a piece of green tech history is $1,095�get your bids in now!

[Via Popsci.com]