The top 10 environment-related news items for 2008

January 16, 2009 | Staff Essay

by: Shoko Sugasawa

NIKKEI disclosed the top 10 environment-related news items for 2008 on 26th November.
3695 viewers of NIKKEI web voted for the ranking.
http://eco.nikkei.co.jp/news/today/article.aspx?id=MMECn2001025112008 (Japanese)

Here are top 3news from the ranking.
No1.Green car l（electric car and hybrid car）has started to phase into actual spread period
No2Growing numbers of eco-bag and movements of reducing uses of plastic bag
No3.Japanese government declared to aim 50% CO2 reduction by 2050 in the Toya-ko　Lake Summit.

One of the biggest green news for 2008 in Japan were related to “green car”. This was unexpected, because I don’t use car in my daily life.
On the other hand, I was more familiar with number two ranked news In Tokyo, clerks in convenience stores started ask their customers whether they need plastic bag or not, and I am happy to see increase in the number of young people with eco-bags .
About No3, I saw few models of green lifestyle which enables us to cut 50% of CO2 emission in Eco-Products Exhibition this year.
Here are the lists of examples of green ideas from the model; 1)Filtering drainage from kitchen and watering it for vegetable garden, 2)Shifting lights to LED and powering them by solar energy generated in balcony.

What is biggest green news for 2008 in your country?