• Sony Cuts Carbon: Sony Corporation says it has reduced its carbon emissions 31 percent, compared to levels in 2000, and met or exceeded the majority of targets set in its Green Management 2010 plan. In recapping its work toward green goals, Sony noted today that the original target for emissions was a 7 percent reduction. Other environmental progress included a 54 percent reduction in waste generation and a 41 percent reduction in water use at business sites, where targets for each were 40 percent and 20 percent cuts, respectively.

• Plastic Bag Wars?: The movement to reduce use of plastic shopping bags is up against a big foe in the U.S., where people use an estimated 102 billion plastic shopping bags a year and "the plastics industry has launched a concerted campaign to derail and defeat anti-bag measures nationwide," Kitt Doucette reports in an article for Rolling Stone.

• U.S. Army Cleans Its Steel: The U.S. Army's Chemical Material Agency says it has recycled more than 6.5 million pounds of steel -- 3,250 tons, enough to build 26 Statues of Liberty. The recycling resulted from a project to decontaminate 1,600-pound steel containers that once held hazardous materials. Rather than washing down the containers, which would have created 660,000 gallons of hazardous liquid waste, the agency devised a magnetic induction heating process. That enabled the army to decontaminate as many as 10 containers at a time and do so thoroughly enough to make the material suitable for recycling.

• A "Greener Choices" Tool: In an effort to engage customers -- and potential ones -- on green issues, SC Johnson launched a "Greener Choices" forum on its corporate website this week. The online feature includes a carbon calculator that SC Johnson is offering in partnership with Conservation International.

• Solar Deal in Spain: First Solar, based in Tempe, Ariz., is selling a nearly 10-megawatt solar farm that's being built near Zamora, Spain, to the European Solar Power Fund, a fund focused on renewable energy for institutional investors that's managed by KGAL. The solar plant, whose sales price was not disclosed, is expected to produce 15,000 megawatt hours of electricity a year, about enough power for 3,400 Spanish households a year, and prevent 5,600 metric tons of CO2 a year.

• Green Apps: Is an electric vehicle right for you? Laura Schewel, chief scientist at Virtual Vehicle Company, has created a mobile app to help drivers make that decision. The app keeps tabs on a driver's behind-the-wheel habits for 30 days, analyzes the data, then makes suggestions on cars that meet the driver's needs. Fast Company reported on the app and Smart Planet's video of an interview with Schewel is below.

Staffing agency Kavaliro launches a free job search app for iPhones and iPads tomorrow. The app could come in handy for people looking for jobs in smart grid and renewable energy: More than 50 percent of the jobs the company has been filling recently are in those areas.

Image CC licensed by Flickr user taberandrew