Memo to Google: Coal is not green: Google got a lot of great press for its new plan to “voluntarily cut or offset all its greenhouse emissions by the end of the year.” But was it all deserved? According to the Boston Globe, “Google is planning to spend $600 million to build a data center in western Iowa that will receive power from a MidAmerican Energy Co. plant fired by coal, the fuel that emits the most carbon dioxide.” Ouch! Maybe reduce your own pollution before paying other people to reduce their pollution as an offset. — Grist

Plant a tree, save the earth part I: All schools in Malaysia are to plant at least three trees to help raise awareness among school children as well as Malaysians in general about the importance of trees and the environment. A group of Malaysian school children plans to present a proposal to the United Nations to make the last Saturday of September the `World Tree Day’. — Bernama

Plant a tree, save the earth part II: As an annual affair, dozens of eunuchs planted trees in the industrial town of Yamuna Nagar, India, in a bid to save the environment. Eunuchs from across the State gathered under the banner of city-based Haryana Environment Society in a bid to educate people on the importance of planting trees. — DailyIndia.com

Rival supermarkets bag plastic: New Zealand’s two major supermarket chains have joined forces to promote a new campaign aimed at reducing shoppers’ use of plastic bags. Progressive and Foodstuffs are getting together as part of a commitment made in 2004 to cut consumption by 20% in five years. — TVNZ