Henry Daniell, a scientist from the University of Central Florida has developed a method of using household waste materials to produce ethanol.
Sources claim his approach could be greener and less expensive than current methods used to fuel vehicles which are powered by the substance.

The Engineer reports Daniell’s method has been used on products such as orange peel and newspaper, but can also be applied to products such as sugarcane, straw and switchgrass.

The method uses plant-derived enzymes to break down materials into sugar which can then be fermented into ethanol. Currently corn starch is used in the fermentation process and conversion into ethanol but this method is believed to produce more greenhouse gas emissions than petrol.

200 million gallons of ethanol could be produced from the discarded orange peels of Florida state alone, said Daniell.

British Airways have revealed a plan to create Europe’s first sustainable jet fuel plant which will convert household waste into environmentally-friendly aviation fuel.

In a partnership with US bioenergy group solena, British Airways will set up the new plant in east London claims eTravel and hope to be able to power part of its fleet by 2014 with the greener, low-carbon fuel.

The plant will convert roughly 500,000 tonnes of waste materials from households into some 16 million gallons of green jet fuel via a process that offers lifecycle greenhouse gas savings of up to 95 per cent compared to fossil-fuel derived jet kerosene.

The environmental savings would see the equivalent of 48,000 cars being removed from the roads each year.

In addition to the fuel conversion, using household waste would also lessen the impact on the volume of waste sent to landfill sites, as well as cutting down on the production of methane. The project will also see 20MW of electricity generated each year.

Willie Walsh, British Airways’ chief executive, said: “This unique partnership with Solena will pave the way for realising our ambitious goal of reducing net carbon emissions by 50 per cent by 2050. We believe it will lead to the production of a real sustainable alternative to jet kerosene. We are absolutely determined to reduce our impact on climate change and are proud to lead the way on aviation’s environmental initiatives.”

Anti-whaling activists and Japanese whalers have exchanged hostile water cannon fire in the Antarctic Ocean as two activists’ boats tailed the Japanese whaling fleet in an attempt to foil the killing of any whales.

Wales Online report that the Sea Shepherd conservation group said its ships – the Steve Irwin and the Bob Barker – had surprised the Japanese factory ship Nisshin Maru early yesterday.

Each year, the US-based activist group sends vessels to confront the Japanese whaling fleet and two collisions have already occurred this year alone.

Japan’s hunt for whales is allowed under world whaling regulations as a scientific expedition even though commercial whaling is banned.

The government has unveiled a new shatterproof pint glass which it hopes will help to save billions of pounds in healthcare costs says the Huffington Post.

The glasses are designed to prevent them being used as weapons when smashed and the government has developed two prototypes of the new barware. The government plans to introduce the new glasses for use on a voluntary basis in pubs, providing tests show the glasses’ durability, safety and cost-effectiveness.

With around 87,000 alcohol-related glass attacks each year, the new glasses have been met with a positive reaction by alcohol concern charities and groups with healthcare costs incurred by attacks resulting in hospital treatment being estimated at around £2.7 billion.

Harry Potter star Emma Watson – Hermione Grainger in the films based on the books by JK Rowling – has launched a fashion range in collaboration with People Tree, a sustainable fashion label to produce environmentally friendly clothes and accessories reports Edie.

The range is scheduled to launch next week (February 8th) and Emma acted as creative advisor on the designs which includes jerseys, t-shirts, dresses and trousers among others. The range will be available to both men and women.

Emma previously also fronted advertising campaigns for Burberry.

The People Tree line will use 100% organic and fair-trade cotton, and will be made entirely by hand by fair-trade groups in India, Bangladesh and Nepal.

A Japanese company has developed a fire alarm that alerts hearing-impaired people by emitting the odour of WASABI!

The pungent foodstuff was chosen from a host of different scents during tests to determine which odour would cause people to wake the fastest from their slumber. It was found that wasabi – Japanese horseradish – acted quickest with almost all the test subjects waking within 2-and-a-half minutes of first exposure.

Wasabi contains a substance called allyl isothiocyanate – the same substance as found in mustard – and further tests were required to find the appropriate amount of odour release required without causing people’s eyes to water – which could hinder peoples’ attempts to escape a fire.

The alarm, which measures 21cm by 8cm and weighs just half-a- kilogram was developed by the Japanese fire extinguisher company Air Water Safety Services and has already been sold to residential homes for the elderly as well as hotels says the Daily Telegraph online.

It wouldn’t work for this writer, however, as the scent of wasabi is likely to lead to the kitchen rather than any escape point!