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Which is Greener – Car Wash or Hauling out the Hose at Home?

August 25, 2009 in Go Green, Save Energy, Saving Money by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger
Grabbing a sponge and turning on the hose at home is definitely a cheaper way to clean your car than driving to your local car wash – unless you factor in the value of your time, but really, you weren’t doing anything anybody was going to pay you for this weekend, anyway, now were you?

But is it more eco-friendly?

First, the car wash is likely to use less water than you will. Some automatic car washes use only 30 gallons of water in a drive-through wash. You’re likely to use that much in only four minutes – and lots more, if like me, you wind up chatting with your neighbor and get a little distracted (you call it ADD, I call it being sociable). Score one for the car wash on the green scale — as long as you don’t have to guzzle too much gas to get there.

Even more important — the handling of the runoff water is key. Sure, there is dirty water either way – and the water isn’t simply dirty but contaminated with detergent, gasoline, antifreeze, oil and whatever other toxic filth your car has accumulated in your travels. But, when you do the deed at home, your filthy water just runs out into the street, into the nearest storm drain, which empties into nearby waterways – and could end up killing little fishes in rivers and creeks near and far.

The car wash, however, is required by law to dispose of their waste water at local sewage treatment plants – where it is filtered — and the residue deposited at landfills. Depending on how well the car wash complies with the law, that’s Score Two for the carwash.

So don’t feel guilty – put the sponge and hose away – grab your kids (or your neighbor’s kids, if you don’t have any) and go for a drive-through adventure.

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8 Great College Biking Programs: Free Bikes, Rentals, even Valet Bike Parking

May 18, 2009 in Biking, Eco-Travel, Go Green, Save Energy, Saving Money, Uncategorized by susan | 2 comments

By Susan Seliger

College campuses are launching a variety of innovative programs to get students to kick the car habit and take up biking. Motivations for these greening efforts vary – some schools are running out of parking spaces. Others want to encourage healthy living to help students ward off that “Freshman 15” – a weight gain that, despite its name, can carry over into senior year. And still others say giving bikes the edge over cars is an easy way to lower the school’s carbon footprint and keep the campus green and beautiful.

1. Nothing beats free: The University of New England and Ripon College in Wisconsin are giving free bikes to every new student who agrees not to bring a car on campus. At Ripon, David Joyce, the president of the college, who is such a bike enthusiast that he builds bikes in his basement, has thrown in a free helmet, lights and a bike lock along with the Trek 820 mountain bike – which students get to keep.

2. Rent a bike: St. Xavier University in Chicago launched a bike-sharing system that allows students to unlock and pay for the bikes with a wave of their ID card (costs about $2.50 an hour).

3. Biking made easy and secure – valet parking?: Stanford University has set up bike racks with space for over 12,000 bikes all over campus – and they offer valet bike parking for special events such as the Cardinals home football games.

4. Free Bikes and more: The University of New England is giving not only free bikes to Freshman who promise not to bring cars on campus, but they also offer free Zipcars and free downtown shuttle service and discounted taxi or limo service.

5. Recycling bikes: Mercer University in Macon, Ga., is refurbishing old bikes for students – and painting them orange and black, the university colors.

6. Discounts and Free Rentals: Emory University in Atlanta launched Bike Emory, in August 2007, and works with local bike shops to provide bikes that students can rent and ride for free — or buy their own at discounts. Students also get a free helmet, lock and taillight. And if you don’t want to go to class all sweaty after the bike ride, no problem. Emory has installed showers in buildings and added bike racks to its free campus shuttle buses.

7. Bike-sharing– check out a book or a bike: Ohio State University lets students check out a Schwinn Heavy Duty Cruiser for 48 hours from the recreational center just as easily as they can walk into their library and check out a book.

8. Commuter Bikes for Free: Michael Zane, founder and former president of Kryptonite Locks, donated 96 commuter bicycles to his alma mater, Franklin & Marshall College, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

MORE, MORE, MORE…
To find out what you can do to keep your bike from getting stolen – or to recover it if it is, register your bike at the The National Bike Registry.

For more info on biking on college campuses, check out Bicycling Magazine’s article
and this New York Times round-up: With Free Bikes, Challenging Car Culture on Campus

Photo credit: www.washington.edu

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5 Big Sales and Free Green Products – in Honor of Earth Day

April 18, 2009 in Free Stuff, Go Green, Green Products, Kid Stuff, Save Energy, Save Resources, Saving Money by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger

Nothing beats saving some green while going green. Here are some down-to-earth sales that’ll provide that two-fer.

1. Home Depot – On Sunday, April 19th, you can get a FREE CFL light bulb (they’re giving away one million) plus a free tomato, oregano or basil plant for every one you buy. On addition, they’ll tell you if you’re eligible for a $1500 tax credit on energy-efficient home improvement.

2. Amazon.com is celebrating a sale on selected green products for the entire month—from composters and solar chargers to a 400-watt wind generator.

3. ItsEasyBeingGreen.com is offering 25% off water efficiency and energy efficiency products and every other item on the site, from CFL bulbs and an LED Night Lite to EPA-approved high-efficiency toilets, on the real Earth Day, April 22. , 2009.

4. Seventh Generation – the green cleaning and paper products company, is offering lots of coupons for discounts on its excellent range of eco-friendly products.

5. Not just for Kids—The Scholastic Store is having a giant sale on books and DVDs and more all about Planet Earth and butterflies and lions and tigers, oh my.

Photo credit: www.Goinggreenproductsonline.com

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Green Freebie: Win a Ford Fusion Hybrid – Plus a Trip to See American Idols

April 10, 2009 in Free Stuff, Save Energy, Save Resources, Saving Money by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger

If you’re feeling so happy you’re tempted to break into song about an American car company getting into the hybrid game — and getting 41 MPG, as Ford clams for its new 2010 Fusion — then sign up to win one. Ford, the sponsor, will also award the winner a trip to LA plus VIP seats to hang with the idols at the show. The only catch – you have to watch a video of the idols fooling around with Ford cars in order to enter this contest. If that seems like too much to ask, see if you can find a teenager lurking nearby to handle this part of the transaction. But then you just might have to share driving rights. Your choice. We just tell you where to go to find greener pastures – the journey is up to you. Start here. Deadline: 5-08-09.

Photo credit: LA Times

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Turn Off Your Lights Tomorrow—Saturday—For Earth Hour! What You Do After That Is Your Business

March 27, 2009 in Go Green, Save Energy, Save Resources by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger

Go dark! Tomorrow – Saturday, 3-28-09 – is Earth Hour when cities, and businesses and tens of millions of people like yourself all over the world will be turning off their lights for one hour – from 8:30 to 9:30 PM (your time) –  in honor of saving energy to save the entire planet.

Join in – flip those switches to OFF and feel the powerful energy of tens of millions of others, like yourself, sitting happily in the dark, saving energy. Do it with a friend — it’s more fun that way.

Anybody who is anybody will be tuning in and turning off, according to the World Wildlife Fund, which has organized this delightful plunge into the dark. Nearly 200 cities in the U.S. are officially committed; 2400 cities in 82 countries have officially signed on.

Broadway theater marquees and other world-renowned landmarks will be turning off their lights:

  • Empire State Building
  • Rockefeller Center
  • Chrysler Building
  • Golden Gate Bridge,
  • Space Needle
  • Sears Tower
  • Great Pyramids and Sphinx in Egypt
  • Acropolis in Greece

For those of you with short attention spans who have difficulty reading past the first word “ Earth” and are confused – this is not Earth Day – it’s a little dress rehearsal. So if you are reading this after Saturday, and you didn’t get to join in the dark-hour fun, you can still make up for it to the gods of green on April 22, 2009, for the big Earth Day.

Turning off is a big turn-on.

Watch this video of the lights going out: Earth Hour in Years Past

Even the Las Vegas strip is turning lights off. And like Vegas, what you do during Earth Hour, stays in Earth Hour.

LINKS:

Earth Hour 2009 video

30 Second PSA voiced by Cate Blanchett

Want a minute-by-minute account? Here’s a new iPhone application “Earth Hour Trainer”:


Photo credit: 2witches.com/blog/tag/earth/

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Go Green in a New York Minute: Check Out these Affordable, Eco-Condos (No, Not DiCaprio’s Crib)

March 24, 2009 in Eco Celebrities, Go Green, Save Energy, Save Resources, Saving Money, Uncategorized by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger

Here’s the simplest way to green your apartment — in a New York minute: buy one that’s already greened up. I visited a new condo-complex that fills the bill for all of you busy-lazy city dwellers who want to live greener but also say make-it-easy-for-me or fuggeddaboutit.

While there are a number of eco-friendly apartment complexes in NYC to pick from – most come with price tags that only Leonardo Di Caprio and friends can afford. (And we do hear he has bought one of those gorgeous, oh-so-bamboo-and-all-hand-carved-wood-furniture-in the-lobby versions in Riverhouse, so close to the Hudson River you could throw a tofuburger into it from his window – though, that wouldn’t be eco-friendly, now would it?)

However, the Kalahari on 115th Street in Manhattan is an eco-conscious condo with a difference. Sure, it’s green — it meets the US Green Building Council’s LEED Silver Standards. But what makes it unique among green buildings in this high-priced city is that half of the apartments are for sale at subsidized rates to low-income residents, and the other half are priced at fair (in this economy, that now means fairly decent) market rates.

The deal gets even better once you move in. The building uses almost one-third less energy than comparable new buildings (keeping maintenance costs low). And each homeowner will save an average of $1,200 per year on their energy costs.

The Kalahari Harlem also features some cool, green amenities like green roofs, ionic and plex-air filters for cleaner air, bamboo flooring (eat your heart out, Leo) and on-site Zip Cars (low-cost rental cars allowing you to drive only when you absolutely have to, without the costly-parking-headaches of owning in a big city). There’s also a nifty meter in every apartment so you can see just how much electricity you’re using — or saving, when you unplug all your stuff and cut out that phantom power waste.

“The tiles on the roof reflect the heat and they also allow for water to be retained underneath them, delaying water going down the drain,” explains Julia Lynch Siegel, Project Manager of Sustainability at Full Spectrum NY, the eco-real-estate developers for the Kalahari. Pointing to the solar panels on a different part of the roof, Julia says, “These panels supply all the electricity we need to light the lobby, the entry and the artwork in the building.” Though that’s only a small percentage of total energy needs, the building’s sponsors project that by 2030, the 200+ Kalahari homeowners will collectively have saved over $21 million in total energy costs.

During construction, the sustainable developers kept millions of tons of waste out of the landfills by using recycled materials, from the structural steel and concrete in the foundation to the carpets in the hallways and the recycled-glass tiles in the kitchens.

Inspiration for the name of the building and the dramatic colors and artwork used throughout come from the San bushmen of the South African Kalahari Desert, whose commitment to preserving the earth’s natural resources (and their “click” language) were made famous in the movie, “The Gods Must Be Crazy.” (Go watch it again – you know you want to.)

** If you’re in the market for a green condo in NY, check out the Kalahari website.

** If you’re not in the market for condos in NY, but want to let your local builders see how green building can be done, if the spirit is willing, forward them the website:

** For more on greening the apartment you’ve got, check out this blog post from Best Green Home Tips.



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Send This to Your Favorite College Students Only: Win a Free Toyota Prius

March 23, 2009 in Eco-Travel, Free Stuff, Go Green, Save Energy, Saving Money by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger
Every prize you can win in this “Live Green/Get Green” contest – except the big Grand Prize — was created with materials that would have gone to waste – but now can find a home with your favorite college student. If you’re over 18 and enrolled in a college or university, you can enter this General Mills contest every hour, for a chance to win some little green stuff (like a recycled Nature Valley messenger tote bag, Chex Mix laptop portfolio sleeve, or a Lucky Charms notebook). Each entry steps up your chances at the biggie – the fuel-efficient 2009 Prius.  So if you want to be a big green hero on campus and save energy and money while driving your friends around  (not to mention getting to back up like a pro using that cool TV screen gizmo) , start clicking – the deadline is April 30.

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Don’t Dig for Oil — Grow It! 10 U.S. Companies Developing Algae Biofeuel Need Your Help

March 12, 2009 in Biking, Eco-Fashion, Eco-Travel, Free Stuff, Green Products, Save Energy, Save Resources, Saving Money, Uncategorized by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger

There’s nothing nicer — in life as in geometry proofs — than the simple, elegant solution. Why dig for oil when you can just grow it? Maybe not tomorrow — but just around the corner, there’s an exciting new green fuel source — algae biofuel.

In this video by Ecopolis, the award winning science show on The Science Channel, you’ll meet Valcent Products’ Glen Kertz explaining what part algae biofuel could play in our energy future.

Here are 10 companies that are doing more than talking about turning pond scum into fuel — they are small companies actually doing it. Maybe this is where you should put your retirement savings instead of that dwindling 401K.  (For more on these companies and a peek at five more, see this post from Earth2Tech on 15 algae fuel startups:

Aurora Biofuels
Bionavitas
Blue Marble Energy
GreenFuel Technologies
Inventure Chemical
Live Fuels
Petro Sun
Solazyme
Solena
Solix Biofuels

For more on saving money and energy, check out these posts:

And tell me what you’ve been doing to save energy and money in your daily life.

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Green Freebie: Win this Bike — Can Your Manhood Stand up to Pink?

March 5, 2009 in Biking, Free Stuff, Go Green, Save Energy, Saving Money by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger
Make a statement – put away the car, pull out the bike. Haven’t got one? Well, now you can try your hand at winning this cruiser free, sponsored by Fresh Produce Sportswear. The only question left is, Are you bold enough to make a statement in pink? Hey, if Pamela Anderson can do it – while holding a cup of coffee – you can, too. Be brave. Sign up to win – the deadline is 3/31/09..

Photo credit: http://www.cyclelicio.us/

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HOW GREEN IS OBAMA? What’s in the Stimulus Plan for Greening the Economy? Who wins, who loses, who pays?

February 27, 2009 in Go Green, Save Energy, Save Resources, Uncategorized by susan | No comments

By Susan Seliger

After the banks, the mortgage lenders and the auto industry grab their share of the $845 billion stimulus package, you might be wondering what’s left for saving our environment and making the world a safer, greener place for us all.

Good news: there’s some green in the stimulus plan for greening today ($150 billion) – and even more ambitious plans for raising revenues to spend on greening down the road ($646 billion). Here’s a rundown, so you can see through the political fog: Who wins, who loses – and the big question – who pays?

ENERGY: The Big Picture

THE BUCKS: $150 billion in the plan, plus $646 billion to be raised over 10 years – NOT a handout from the stimulus package

THE PLAN: Heard about the cap-and-trade plan? Here’s what it means: Obama’s energy plan hinges on a call for legislation to put a cap on carbon emissions and require companies to pay for permits to pollute (emit greenhouse gases) and trade those allowances. That money – a projected $646 billion over the next decade — would go toward finding clean energy technologies and another $65 billion a year to pay for middle-class tax credits. Those tax credits (Obama’s “Make Pay Work” plan) would be worth as much as $800 a year to low-and-middle-income workers, according to the Washington Post.

ENERGY DEPARTMENT

THE BUCKS: $33.9 in 2009, down to 26.3 billion in 2010 (up from $24.1 billion in 2008)

THE PLAN: The increased spending – plus another $38.7 billion in the stimulus package — will cover new money for weatherization programs, modernization of the electric grid and renewable energy projects.

THE EPA (ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY)

THE BUCKS: $10 billion — a 34% budget increase.

THE PLAN: The increased spending goes to clean water projects, research, a Great Lakes restoration program as well as expanded efforts to improve regulation and enforcement of pollution standards. There’s also an extra $19 million to establish a national carbon control plan. (More on the EPA from the New York Times.)

INTERIOR DEPARTMENT

THE BUCKS: $12 billion

THE PLAN: Raise $31 billion money over the next decade with fees on oil and gas companies (for example, for drilling on federal land) to be spent on conservation plans including park maintenance, endangered species protection.

GREEN JOBS AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

THE BUCKS: Totals not tallied yet – but projections are to double the production of renewable energy in three years, via tax breaks and loan guarantees for the industry, according to CNN/Money.com, and thereby create more green jobs.

THE PLAN: Here’s a sampling of some specific programs, from a summary on the House Appropriations Committee Web site:

Energy Efficiency Housing Retrofits: $2.5 billion for energy efficiency, including new insulation, windows, and furnaces.

Reliable, Efficient Electricity Grid: $11 billion

Renewable Energy Loan Guarantees: $8 billion for loans for renewable energy power generation and transmission projects.

Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Research: $2 billion to universities, companies, and national laboratories.

Advanced Battery Loans and Grants: $2 billion for manufacturers of advanced vehicle batteries and battery systems

Home Weatherization: $6.2 billion to help low-income families reduce their energy costs.

Smart Appliances: $300 million to provide consumers with rebates for buying energy efficient Energy Star products to replace old appliances.

GSA Federal Fleet: $600 million to replace older vehicles

Electric Transportation: $200 million for a new grant program to encourage electric vehicle technologies.

Cleaning Fossil Energy: $2.4 billion for carbon capture and sequestration technology demonstration projects to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from industrial facilities and fossil fuel power plants.

Alternative Buses and Trucks: $400 million to help state and local governments purchase efficient alternative fuel vehicles

Diesel Emissions Reduction: $300 million to state and local governments — includes technologies to retrofit emission exhaust systems on school buses, replace engines and vehicles, and establish anti-idling programs.

Photo credit:  EarthFirst.com

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