Green Room
This edition of Green Room looks at why environmentalists will not be sending a card to the coalition government on its first anniversary. It also brings you news on how the latest eco-app for your smart phone can help some of you get closer to nature.
As we approach the first anniversary of David Cameron pledging to make the coalition the "greenest government ever", there have been some grumblings within the environmental movement.
Some groups are asking if Mr Cameron has left his green credentials behind
For example, Friends of the Earth UK published a report assessing how the .
It assessed 77 government policies and "found little or no progress in more than three quarters of them".
The author was Jonathon Porritt, former chairman of the Sustainable Development Commission (which, incidentally, has been scrapped by the coalition).
In his blog, Mr Porritt said , adding that greens had little to applaud as the first anniversary approached.
However, he did offer a glimmer of hope:
"There is of course a long way still to go, assuming that the Coalition does not fall apart. The hope must be that the more progressive elements in the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats will use this first year anniversary to take stock of why they hcave made so little progress to date - and what needs to happen now to retrieve the situation."
Another group feeling the pressure of green angst is the biofuels industry.
Once viewed as a green saviour of the transport fuel sector, the alternative fuel source has found most of its environmentally minded chums becoming increasingly critical, questioning its carbon neutrality, and the industry's role in deforestation and risk to food security.
One of the latest offerings comes from a group of EU-based green NGOs operating under the banner of "".
They have released a cartoon that tells (very young viewers, it has to be assumed) why and has a bigger impact than just stopping Peter growing his beloved potatoes.
No new message or science, and it is hardly In the Night Garden, but offers an insight into how efforts to get across policy positions are evolving.
For the grown ups, the journal contains an article that attempts to offer a olive branch in the ongoing row.
Author Joyce Tait from the University of Edinburgh calls for an
Professor Tait observed:
"Biofuels are one of the only renewable alternatives we have for transport fuels such as petrol and diesel, but current policies and targets that encourage their uptake have backfired badly. The rapid expansion of biofuels production in the developing world has led to problems such as deforestation and the displacement of indigenous people. We want a more sophisticated strategy that considers the wider consequences of biofuel production."
Finally, if you are in the northern hemisphere and planning to get a little closer to nature over the summer, then an app for your smartphone called Leafsnap could help your stroll become a little more informed.
Developed by US scientists, the .
Before you get too excited, so far it only features trees from two US cities (Washington DC and New York). However plans are afoot for the app to cover the entire US.
If you are elsewhere, such as Europe, watch this space... or take a book.
