Over the past two years, Pure Advantage has dedicated significant resources towards understanding and identifying the opportunities for New Zealand to foster green growth and create skilled jobs while at the same time contributing towards the conservation of natural resources and the environment in New Zealand. Pure Advantage has just released an independent report called ‘Green Growth: Opportunities for New Zealand’, which was prepared by Vivid Economics of London in conjunction with the University of Auckland Business School and includes a foreword by Lord Stern. [ + ]

CSIRO mathematician Dr Aaron Thornton was named a 2012 Victorian Young Tall Poppy last night in recognition of his work in carbon dioxide and molecular gas research. [ + ]

EUA finance through Low Carbon Australia, National Australia Bank and Eureka Funds Management will enable the Suleman property development group to make a 30% saving in energy costs for its 15-storey office block in one of Melbourne’s most sought-after business locations. [ + ]

Today’s waste diversion solutions can actually complement a public space, whether at an airport terminal or a five-star foyer, so in the context of increasing landfill rates in Australia, it’s imperative that such solutions are increasingly available. [ + ]

University of Melbourne engineers have developed a novel method of collecting and storing carbon dioxide that is claimed to be able to reduce the cost of separating and storing carbon dioxide. [ + ]

Sika has provided the green roof waterproofing membrane for one of Australia’s largest desalination plants that was recently completed in Wonthaggi, Victoria. [ + ]

Up-and-coming Australian scientist Kim Jye Lee Chang from the University of Tasmania was one of the state winners at the 2012 AusBiotech/GSK Student Excellence Award for his work in identifying new microorganisms that can be used to produce oil from recycled carbon sources. The discovery could provide Australia with a secure, environmentally sustainable fuel feedstock for the future. [ + ]

Environment Minister Robyn Parker has released the NABERS Energy Management Guide for Tenants, which is designed to help office tenants take control of their energy costs and environmental impacts. [ + ]

Selecting a burner for any process heating application always involves a choice between different burner models and different burner sizes. Both will have a significant effect on product quality and system efficiency. [ + ]

Capturing and recycling ammonia from livestock waste is possible using a process developed by US Department of Agriculture (USDA) researchers. This invention could help streamline on-farm nitrogen management by allowing farmers to reduce potentially harmful ammonia emissions and concentrate nitrogen in a liquid product to sell as fertiliser. [ + ]

Phillip Island residents and businesses are set to benefit from improved water security following the completion of the Phillip Island Recycled Water Scheme project. The scheme will save 194 million litres of drinking water each year by providing Class A recycled water to developing residential areas, as well as agricultural and commercial businesses. [ + ]

A $130,000 grant from assistance program Commercialisation Australia will help one of Australia’s largest tyre recyclers, Queensland-based Chip Tyre, to refine a process that turns rubber crumbs recycled from old car tyres into explosives for use under wet conditions. [ + ]

University of Waikato ecologist Professor David Hamilton has been awarded a $920,000 Marsden Grant to study toxin production found in blue-green algae in lakes. [ + ]

A University of Canterbury lecturer in New Zealand is researching the possibility of producing fuel from air and electricity. The technology removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and produces methanol, a liquid fuel similar to petrol. [ + ]

Research from carbon analytics firm RepuTex indicates that growth of wind capacity in the Australian National Electricity Market (NEM) is expected to outstrip growth in electricity demand by more than 2.5 times over the next seven years. [ + ]