The Daily Five: Wednesday, 1 October, 2008

That $25 billion automaker bailout will be coming with a few strings. And researchers announce a new kind of solar cell which achieves 40.8 percent efficiency.

Detroit Bailout Loans On The Road To Approval, With Condition Attached - Car Makers Meet 35 MPG By 2020: The $25 billion dollars approved by the Senate this weekend to help modernize U.S. carmakers is coming with some strings. Automakers will be expected to deliver an average fleet fuel economy of 35 miles a gallon by 2020 under the deal. While that’s 40 percent higher than current standards, 35 MPG vehicles have been available since the mid-1980s. (Treehugger)

Solar Cell Sets World Efficiency Record At 40.8 Percent: Solar cells are getting better. A team at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory has managed to juice more power from a solar cell than ever before. The new photovoltaic cell converts 40.8 percent of the light it receives into electricity — a world record. It’s likely to be developed for space applications and for use in concentrated solar photovolaic arrays. (Science Daily)

Hamburg allows Vattenfall to build coal-fired plant: In a sign that tougher economic times may lead governments to ease up of environmental goals, the German city of Hamburg has decided to approve the construction of a new coal-fired power plant. Despite European commitment to meeting aggressive CO2 reduction goals, the new facility will become Germany’s larges coal power plant. Environmentalists and an unusual coalition of the Green and Christian Democratic parties hoped to halt construction of the $2.8 billion project. (Reuters)

Sony Ericsson Offers Environmental Warranty,GreenHeart Phone Concept: Sony is upping the ante on its green electronics commitment. The company recently introduced an “environmental warranty” which would guarantee free disposal and recycling of its devices. Now Sony is showing off a new line of what it calls GreenHeart phones. The wireless devices are designed with eventual recycling in mind, starting with a non-petroleum bioplastic case. The keyboard is made from recycled materials, the manuals are only available in PDF form, and the phone are shipped with a free environmentally themed game called Ecomate. All GreenHeart phones will be shipped in environmentally friendly packaging. (Environmental Leader)

Theft of Grease for Biodiesel on the Rise: CA Adjusts Laws: Higher fuel prices have encouraged a whole new kind of crime: grease theft. Restaurants used to pay to have their leftover kitchen grease hauled off, but its value as a biodiesel stock has led to an epidemic of late-night thefts. Now California is hoping that lowering fees for the legal transportation of grease will encourage backyard biodiesel brewers to go legit. Duties have been dropped from $400 to $75 a load. It’s still too early to see if the measure will have any effect. (Gas 2.0)

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