With so much happening in the world of corporate sustainability, SustainabilityOnline has introduced The Sustainability Brief – a regular round-up of some of the top stories making headlines around the world.
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EU countries submit national plans to implement Nature Restoration Law
EU Member States have submitted draft national restoration plans to the European Commission under the EU Nature Restoration Regulation. The plans must set out measures and areas for restoration through to 2030, with strategic actions for 2040 and 2050, as well as timelines, financing needs and links with climate, agriculture, forestry, fisheries and water policy. Following assessment by the Commission and the European Environment Agency, observations will be provided to Member States.
Fervo, Google sign 396MW enhanced-geothermal PPA
Fervo Energy and Google have signed a 396MW power purchase agreement for the Cape Station enhanced-geothermal project in Utah, which is expected to begin operating in 2028. The agreement is described as the world’s largest enhanced-geothermal PPA to date. Google will have an option to expand its offtake by approximately 600MW, potentially taking the arrangement to almost 1GW by 2030.
Avnos brings 450-tonne direct-air-capture project into operation
Avnos has commenced operating Project Brighton, its largest hybrid direct-air-capture deployment, in New Jersey. The facility is designed to capture up to 450 tonnes of atmospheric CO₂ annually while producing approximately 475,000 gallons of clean water a year. Developed with funding from the US Office of Naval Research, the project is being used to test direct-air-capture CO₂ for potential sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production.
Cargill expands water programme into four more countries
Cargill and the Global Water Challenge are expanding the Cargill Currents water initiative into Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica and Türkiye, alongside existing projects in Brazil, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and North America. Since 2021, the programme has completed 35 projects, improved water and sanitation access for nearly 200,000 people and supported regenerative agriculture across about 42,000 hectares in North America. The new projects will address water access, irrigation efficiency and watershed restoration.
Human mobility could cut wastewater-treatment emissions by up to 18%
Researchers from the Harbin Institute of Technology, Eastern Institute of Technology and Southern University of Science and Technology found that adjusting wastewater-treatment operations to population movements could cut facility-level emissions by up to 18%. Using more than 170 million population heatmap records from Shenzhen, the study found that emissions intensity rose 28% during the Spring Festival as population presence fell 64%, while commuting-related population increases reduced emissions intensity by 27%.
Blue Planet reports 8.92m tonnes of waste processed and 1.24m tonnes CO₂e avoided
Singapore-based Blue Planet Environmental Solutions has published its first annual sustainability report, covering FY2024-26. The company reports processing 8.92 million tonnes of waste and estimated avoided emissions of 1.24 million tonnes of CO₂e through activities including landfill biomining, electronic-waste recycling and biofuel operations. The group operates across 13 countries.
Kyocera invests in water-treatment technology for data centres
Kyocera Ventures has made a strategic investment in VVater, with the companies planning to collaborate on water treatment for data centres, manufacturing operations and home water systems, according to reports. The partnership will focus particularly on closed-loop water reuse and cooling-water treatment for data-centre infrastructure supporting AI workloads. VVater describes the investment as the basis for wider collaboration on water infrastructure and advanced treatment technologies.
