Should we dispense with garbage disposals?

Here's a good article on using the garbage disposal appliance vs. throwing food in the trash can dilemma.

Recess time

from Environment New York:

With our economy in pretty dire straits, one of the few bright spots is the clean energy industry.

Emerging clean energy industries, such as wind and solar power, are not only taking steps to solve global warming and America's energy problems. They're creating good jobs that help the economy. Promoting these industries is a no-brainer.

So why is Congress about to leave town without renewing the most critical program for these industries?

Right now, as you read this e-mail, Congress is debating whether to renew a series of critical tax incentives for the renewable energy industry. These tax incentives, including the solar investment tax credit and the wind energy production tax credit, allow utilities, businesses and homeowners to take a benefit on their taxes when they invest in solar or wind power.

The Senate just voted to renew the incentives. Now it's time for the House to do the same.

If they get away without renewing the program, there's a shockingly good chance that these incentives will expire at the end of the year.

Given the challenges we're facing -- a sagging economy, our dependence on oil, and wildly fluctuating energy costs -- we need to do everything we can to cut our reliance on fossil fuels.

These important tax incentives were first put in place years ago and have already been effective at jump-starting wind and solar power in the United States.

The problem is that they'll expire at the end of this year. If they do, it would amount to a crippling tax increase on the fast-growing clean energy industry, costing us at least 116,000 clean energy jobs and $19 billion in investment and setting back our progress to a new energy future.

Congress needs to act now -- before they go on recess -- to avoid a disastrous blunder for the wind and solar industries.

Don't let them get away without renewing clean energy incentives. Click here.

Nokia earns a nod from Greenpeace

Greenpeace's often hotly-debated list of electronics companies that are or are not eco-friendly came out last week, with mobile phone giant Nokia nabbing the top spot on the eco-friendly list.

"Nokia scores very well on toxic chemical issues, launching new models free of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) since the end of 2005 and aiming to have all new models free of brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and antimony trioxide (a chemical flame retardant) by the end of 2009," Greenpeace said in its report.

It also noted that 25 percent of the energy used by the Finnish handset maker in 2007 came from renewable sources and that it aims to increase use of renewables to 50 percent by 2010.

Nintendo and Microsoft, on the other hand, fared the worst. Apple, who was heavily blasted by Greenpeace last time, did a bit better this year, thanks to their efforts to remove brominated flame retardants, PVC, and mercury in their products.

Some notes from our getaway

We got back from our holiday just last night, and we're pretty thrilled about all the amazing sights we saw in two national parks. To paraphrase Cez, how could you not want to protect the environment when you look at the beauty of nature?


We rented a Prius for the trip, and it blew me away with its looks, its roomy interior, and its fuel efficiency, as corny as that sounds. Fuel consumption was excellent, and after a day of driving, we only had to put in $15 worth of fuel. At the end of the trip, we only made three brief trips to the gas station, and the last one was just for rental car return purposes. I'm now officially in love with the car, and I only wish it's available in the Philippines. Highly unlikely, and even if it were, it would most probably be classified as a luxury vehicle. Pfeh.

On our last night, we had dinner at a Filipino restaurant called Nanay Gloria's (5980 W Spring Mountain Rd # 2 Las Vegas, NV 89146, (702) 252-3255 for anyone who wants to try it out). They have a small sign on their door proudly proclaiming that they recycle their used cooking oil. I didn't get to see clearly which company receives their cooking oil (it may be called Baker Technologies, but I could be wrong), but I certainly hope it serves as a cleaner fuel alternative.

Do you think you could pass an eco-driving test?

And we thought driving tests were nerve-wracking enough as they already were. The UK's Driving Standards Agency will soon be evaluating drivers on how green their driving is. But no need to worry; drivers won't be getting any points for it. The evaluators will simply let drivers know how their green driving is and also offer pointers on becoming a more eco-friendly driver.

Among other orders, drivers will be told they must not move down through the gears when preparing to stop, and that they should memorise the mantra "gears are for going - brakes are for slowing".

Smoother acceleration, keener appreciation of gaps in traffic at roundabouts and avoiding sudden braking are also advised.

It would probably be a nice idea as well if workshops were held to help drivers figure out how their driving can be more fuel-efficient, just to make sure UK drivers are keeping up with what they learned during their test.

Teens for Safe Cosmetics

To all the teenagers out there, have you heard of Teens for Safe Cosmetics? If not, you can find out more about them here.

Anyway, they came up with Teens Turning Green, "an unprecedented collection of eco body care products just for teens, sold exclusively at Whole Foods Market". And yes, you'll get more information here.



Image from the Teens for Safe Cosmetics website.

Red Dog Sportswear's "Eco-Sport" underwear

To all the guys out there, have you heard of Red Dog Sportswear's "Eco Sport" organic cotton underwear? Here's what their website says:

"Introducing Red Dog Sportswear 'Eco-Sport' boxer briefs, trunks, sport briefs and tee for eco-conscience men. Our products are made with SKAL certified organic cotton (exclusive of trim). They are extremely soft and comfortable because they are made from cotton that is grown without chemicals or pesticides. Low impact, eco-friendly dyes were used for product color. Feel the difference."

Check out their stuff here!

BPA

From The Daily Green:

HP comes out with eco-friendly notebooks

Looks like computer manufacturers are looking for more ways to make their products eco-friendly. HP is coming out with a series of green Pavilion notebooks, dv4, dv5 and dv7, and they're more energy-efficient and have parts that can be easily recycled. Not only that, but HP has also committed to reducing packaging of the HP Pavilion dv6929 notebook by 97 percent, a move which Wal-Mart has recognized in its Home Entertainment Design Challenge.

Overfishing

From Environment New York's Anna Aurilio:

New England's waters once contained a bounty of seafood, whales, dolphins and other wildlife.

George's Bank, Stellwagen Bank, Gulf of Maine . . . These places used to host some of the most productive marine ecosystems on our planet. But not anymore.

Many of New England's most important fisheries now hold only 10 to 20 percent of the fish they once held. Like the canary in the mine shaft, New England's fisheries should serve as a warning to our government about the dangers of overfishing.

Don't let the Bush administration ignore this warning. We have until Sept. 18 to make our voice heard. Send your comment today:

http://www.environmentamerica.org/action/oceans/comment?id4=ES

We have a chance to avoid the same collapse of our fisheries, and even a chance to bring back a vibrant ocean ecosystem to New England.

We can reverse decades of damage. All it will take is tough rules and tough enforcement to stop overfishing. The Bush administration's National Marine Fisheries Service must have all our comments in by Sept. 18.

Over the next month, the administration will finalize its fishery rules. Not surprisingly, big industrial fishing interests will oppose good rules. We've got to counteract them with thousands of voices.

http://www.environmentamerica.org/action/oceans/comment?id4=ES

With your help, we'll begin to restore our oceans' health.

Green guilt-ridden no more!

Or not so much...thanks to Alamo. I booked a midsized hybrid for almost $210, less than the $300+ rates I've been seeing the whole day. I gotta be thankful for discount codes, although I searched the internet for hours!

I originally booked a car with Hertz from its Green Collection - a midsized Toyota Corolla for $199, also booked using a discount code. The Corolla was part of their Green Collection. I settled for the Toyota Corolla because the Hertz site said the Green Collection cars had EPA Highway Fuel Efficiency rating of 28 Miles or more per gallon. I thought that wasn't bad. But when I thought about it long and hard, it seemed 28+ mpg is hardly much of a difference. And why was I settling? I can easily book a Toyota Corolla (or similar car) elsewhere, even if it's not labeled "green", and it would probably be cheaper. The Hertz in Las Vegas only have Toyota Prius Hybrid ($58.99/day), Toyota Camry ($58.99/day), Toyota Corolla ($45.99/day), and Ford Fusion (sold out).

Good thing I went online again tonight. I found a hybrid for $43.90/day. And booked it pronto.

Now, I've got a complaint on this car rental search. Only Orbitz gave me a rate on hybrids. The other sites I usually go to were unusually silent on hybrid or green car rentals. I had to look up discount codes per car rental company, go to each car rental company's website, and snoop around for a hybrid. Not a lot of results, but when Prius came up, the rates were about $300+. Enterprise supposedly has a big fleet of hybrids, but their website drove me up the wall! It took forever to load. I was alternating between Hertz, National and Alamo, testing all the discount codes I found until I got the cheapest price.

No wonder most people I know just settle for the cheapest car rental. Why, oh why, do they make it so difficult?

Green guilt-ridden

My sisters and I are Vegas-bound next week. I'm the official travel arranger and as a budget-conscious traveler, I've been snagging good deals starting with the airfares and lodgings. But now that I'm doing the car rental, I'm in a fix.

We're definitely getting a midsized car. We'll be doing a lot of long driving on highways. I know that we should rent a hybrid, but it's expensive. Here's why:

Assumption: an estimated 600-mile trip total with estimated gas price of $4.20 per gallon (either in NV or UT)

For a hybrid:
estimated 60 miles per gallon
a 600-mile trip would require 10 gallons
rental fee - $325 (courtesy of Orbitz)
gas expense total - $42
TOTAL: $367

For a non-hybrid:
estimated 20 miles per gallon
a 600-mile trip would require 30 gallons
rental fee - $125
gas expense total - $126
TOTAL: $251

Costs-wise, it seems a non-hybrid is the way to go, unless I computed it the wrong way. But a part of me thinks that the savings from airfares and lodgings can very well be directed to the hybrid rental.

So now I'm confused. Help!

Green, red, white and blue

Send your old mobile phones to Cellphones for Soldiers and help the troops call home.

Morphy Richards' Ecolectric line

Morphy Richards of United Kingdom has the Ecolectric line that includes Ecolectric Turbo Steam Iron (£39.99), Ecolectric Jug Kettle (£34.99), Ecolectric 2 Slice Toaster (£34.99), Ecolectric Slow Cooker (£34.99) and Ecolectric PerformAir 1000w Bagless Upright Vacuum Cleaner (£99.99). I hope these stuff will be available here in the US soon.

Lapa Rios Eco-lodge in Costa Rica

Costa Rica's Certification for Sustainable Tourism (C.S.T.) program awarded the Lapa Rios Eco-Lodge a "five leaves" rating for sustainability. I blogged about this program before. Anyway, it turns out that so far, only four accommodations in Costa Rica have been awarded this rating. For more information, check "Costa Rica Eco-lodge Earns "Five Leaves" Rating for Sustainability".

Save the produce!

With rising gas prices and food costs, we should all be more conscious about food storage so that we don't waste food or our hard-earned money. How many times have you tossed out spoiled food items because you didn't eat them in time? Ideal Bite offers the following tips:

• Use those freezer bags to store meats.
  
• Store fruits and vegetables separately because some fruits emit ethylene, which speeds ups ripening of veggies.
• Click here for Virginia Tech food storage guidelines.
• Try these reusable bags.

Uh-oh Oreos!

Say it isn't so...Oreos, one of my favorite snack foods, is on the hit list of environmental activists. How come? Its use of palm oil, which contributes to rainforest destruction. Read article here.

Compete to Conserve

We've all got our own ideas and plans that keep us firmly on the road to a greener lifestyle. Sometimes, it can be hard to keep track of our progress, though, or even remember everything we were planning to improve in our households or offices. Compete to Conserve creates a supportive community that helps its members achieve their green goals and allows everyone to share tips on being more eco-friendly.

Cruise along on a green skateboard

Let's EVO and Fibra Sustainable Design have teamed up to create an eco-skateboard called Dry Leaf. This skateboard is made of the Papunha veneer, which comes from the waste material of the sustainable palmheart industry, fibers like jute, malva, and curaua, and organic Mosso bamboo. All these materials are held in place with an adhesive derived from vegetable sources like corn and soy.

Interesting idea to make an eco-friendly skateboard, seeing that it's actually a pretty energy-efficient means of transportation, though one that not all of us are willing to give a shot! Wonder what skateboarders will think of this particular board.

Mass action for mass transit

Representative Earl Blumenauer is sponsoring a bill called the Transportation and Housing Choices for Gas Price Relief Act.

"There is no magic silver bullet that will solve the energy crisis, but there are things we can do now to reduce the impact of high gas prices on American families," said Rep. Blumenauer. "One thing we must do is give people more transportation choices, and my bill does this by offering incentives for commuters to carpool, ride public transit, bicycle, or telecommute. By diminishing the impact of gas prices on family budgets, these common sense ideas can make an immediate difference in the lives of over-stretched Americans."

Though not up for a vote yet, you can contact your Representatives in Congress so they can co-sponsor this bill.

No sour taste

Instead of using conventional cleaning products, good ol' white distilled vinegar will often do the trick. It is natural, non-toxic and even removes odors. It won't leave a sour taste in your mouth. Ideal Bite offers the following tips:

Mix water and vinegar 1:4 in a spray bottle to clean windows.

To clean countertops and mildew: Mix vinegar and water 1:1 in a spray bottle.

To get rid of rings in your toilet bowl, use pure vinegar.

Fabric softener: Add 1/2 cup to the rinse cycle.

Weed killer: Use higher concentrations of vinegar (most household vinegar is 5%, so go for 10% or higher, available at hardware stores).