Consumers have been cutting back on gasoline use.  Many conserve because it is the right thing to do.  More of us agree with that sentiment but have no real economic alternative to gasoline or diesel for the family’s transportation.  Electric car and hybrid capital costs remain much higher than conventional car prices and many gas-fueled [...]

In the recent proposal for a 2014 budget, the White House offered consumers a 10-year outlook of proposed federal spending and revenues.  So far, tax hikes and entitlement cuts to Social Security and Medicare have attracted the most news coverage, but there are some remarkable budget numbers in the Energy and Transportation sections of Table [...]

Permission to speak plainly?  The U.S. could approach energy self-sufficiency in the next decade.  We are slowly gaining experience in wind and solar, but cost, technical snags and logistics remain unaddressed worries.  The EPA’s jihad against coal damaged that low cost piece of the energy puzzle.  America’s taste for nuclear is soured by Japan’s calamity, [...]

Earlier this year, the American Consumer Institute started studying issues surrounding “forest certification” and their impact on domestic timber and consumer markets.  These are under the radar issues for many Americans, but they are important to raise because they impact consumer perception of the sustainability and commensurate value of wood and paper products.  As new [...]

The National Legal and Policy Center wrote this informative piece on the why the current movement toward a single forest certifiation standard is wrong and harms consumers.  They point out that, as Milton Friedman said, programs need to be judged based on their results, not intentions.  The piece can be read here.

Fears of groundwater depletion have led to some desperate plans.  The Biscayne aquifer serves millions in Florida, but it is rapidly depleting.  Pembrooke Pines planned to accelerate Biscayne’s replenishment by injecting treated sewage deep into the aquifer instead of the traditional approach which allows treated sewage to trickle from wetlands, lakes and fields into the [...]

Each day, groundwater provides drinking water for half of U.S. consumers and another 50 billion gallons for agriculture.  Other U.S. industries also rely on groundwater.  Unfortunately we take more of this clean low cost water than we put back.  The supply is dwindling and since we cannot do without massive quantities of clean water, we [...]

On October 24, 2012, ACI filed comments with the US Green Building Council in connection with their LEED v4 rating system.  The brief comments can be viewed here.  The paper referred to in the comments can be downloaded here.  

The familiar saying “you get what you pay for” applies in many circumstances. Under certain conditions, however, this statement can be very misleading. For example, when customers pay a higher price for wood and paper products with “green” labels, they may not actually be getting something that is better for the environment. A combination of [...]

Forest certification is becoming an important tool in balancing resource sustainability and economic viability, but there is growing confusion in the marketplace over certification standards and eco labels. According to a new report by the American Consumer Institute (ACI) Center for Citizen Research, that confusion could be driving up prices by as much as 15 [...]