Scrapping the promised $1 billion Tax Breaks for Green Buildings program would prevent Australia from picking the ‘lowest of the low hanging fruit’, says the nation’s leading green building organisation. [ + ]

The Australian Water Association (AWA) and Opus International Consultants (Opus) have announced the arrival of a new registered training organisation for the water sector, AWA Opus Water Industry Training Institute (WITI). [ + ]

Process solutions provider Bürkert has appointed Pacific Rim Technical Services (PRTS) as its distributor for North Queensland. [ + ]

Canon is proud to be celebrating 10 years of the Cartridges 4 Planet Ark recycling program. This anniversary is a significant milestone, with more than 18 million cartridges diverted from landfill since 2003, of which 4,267,687 were Canon cartridges. [ + ]

The Republic of Korea, the world’s 15th largest economy and one of Australia’s top trading partners, has passed legislation for a national emissions trading scheme (ETS). [ + ]

Parliamentary Secretary for Industry and Innovation, Mark Dreyfus, has announced that the 2012 Australian Clean Technologies Competition is now open for nominations. [ + ]

More organisations worldwide are building sustainability into their service provider selection and purchasing processes, according to the results from the 2012 Rackspace Green Survey, conducted by Rackspace Hosting. [ + ]

The Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, Mark Dreyfus, has released a revised National Carbon Offset Standard (NCOS), allowing Australian businesses to offset their products with pollution reduction under the government’s Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI). [ + ]

EMSc (UK), manufacturer of the Star range of energy-saving solutions - including voltage optimisation system Powerstar - has announced the launch of a global, multilanguage website. [ + ]

Eight companies have been appointed to help businesses in New Zealand cut their lighting bills. The suppliers have been chosen by the Energy Efficiency and Conversation Authority (EECA) to install subsidised lighting controls for businesses looking to save electricity. [ + ]

A high-tech autonomous robot is to be sent into the depths of Brisbane’s reservoirs to monitor the health of our drinking water. [ + ]

Geothermal experts from the University of Melbourne are working with Department of Primary Industries to demonstrate the efficiency of a form of renewable energy that will play an important role in the energy mix of Victoria’s Future. [ + ]

An exposure draft of the Product Stewardship (Televisions and Computers) Amendment Regulation 2012 and associated commentary is now available for public comment. [ + ]

Entries are now being accepted for the ENVIRO Innovation in Sustainability Award. [ + ]

The 2012 savewater! awards are calling to action all exceptional water savers from Australia and around the world to be recognised on efficient water use in the face of changing climate patterns and population growth. [ + ]