The Green Life

Daily Tip : October 1, 2007

Paper towels or electric dryer?

There's no contest. Did you know electric dryers are twice as energy-efficient as paper towels, even towels made from recycled paper? Although the production of the electricity that powers electric dryers generates greenhouse gases, the production of paper towels is twice as energy-intensive and creates more greenhouse gases overall. Also, the manufacture of paper towels emits pollutants, including chlorine, and many paper towels are made from virgin wood rather than recycled material. Your small choice can make a big difference.

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Solar Showdown

Talk about cramming for a test: Student teams from 20 colleges will have just ten days to assemble solar-powered houses before putting them through their paces in the biannual Solar Decathlon. Instead of discus and hurdles, the ten events will assess qualities like curb appeal and temperature control. Homes, like the 2005 entry above, will be open to the public October 12-20 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Too far to trek? Find local green homes to visit at nationalsolartour.org.

(Photograph by Stefano Paltera/Solar Decathlon)

Fast Fact

The average U.S. house creates double the greenhouse-gas emissions of the average car. Audit your home's energy use (and learn to reduce it) at hes.lbl.gov.

Insulating Made Easy

We've got a nice sunny weekend predicted for San Francisco, but in many parts of the country, people are starting to think about getting ready for winter. If you listened to Sierra Club Radio today, you know that adding insulation and improving the air sealing in your home are two key ways to improve energy efficiency year-round and minimize heating costs in the winter.

Not sure where to start? Cruise over to the Department of Energy's website for some good DIY ways to detect air leaks in your home and tips for hiring a pro to do a more thorough energy audit. (The agency's guides to caulking and weather-stripping are heck of useful too.)

Once you know what some of the problem areas are, check out Sierra's July/August 2007 article "Remodeling Right" for simple, sophisticated, and "whole hog" ways to get your home in tip-top shape.

Knowledge is Power

We talked awhile back about how the fuel-consumption display in the Toyota Prius inspires drivers to try and get even better mileage out of their hybrids. Now (or at least, recently--I'm a bit behind, so thanks, Grist, for catching me up), Nissan is putting similar devices in all of its cars. "You will become a little less lead-footed if you can see what putting your foot to the pedal does to your fuel economy," spokesman Tony Pearson told USA Today. What do you think: Would knowing your real-time mpg encourage you to drive better, or less? And what other ways could technology be used to prod people toward conservation? A note on your computer sign-in screen telling you how much energy you'd wasted by leaving it on overnight, perhaps?

Media Lounge

Come on in and feed your mind

A CRUDE AWAKENING
a film by Basil Gelpke and Ray McCormack
It doesn't feature any zombies or serial killers, but this might be the scariest movie you'll see all year. Somber visits to onetime oil boomtowns, chilling interviews with former industry executives, and an eye-opening look at how this ever-scarcer resource is intertwined with our culture all add up to one conclusion: Oil, the "bloodstream of the world economy," may well bring an end to it. oilcrashmovie.com

THIRST
a book by Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman with Michael Fox
The new water barons want free public access to clean water to be a thing of the past. But citizens around the world have mounted fierce resistance to attempts by multinational corporations like Nestle and Suez to privatize "blue gold." This literary follow-up to the authors' 2004 documentary of the same name is an urgent call to stop the sale of water sources to the highest bidder. --Silja J. A. Talvi

KING CORN
a film by Aaron Woolf
It sounds like the setup to a joke: Two college buddies move from Boston to Iowa to grow an acre of corn. But this lighthearted documentary is also enlightening, as the pair supplement their farming efforts by tracking corn through the food system--visiting cattle operations that use it as feed, interviewing urban doctors about obesity that may stem from corn-based sweeteners, even brewing up a batch of their own high-fructose corn syrup. kingcorn.net

BLESSED UNREST
a book by Paul Hawken
Smith & Hawken's founder didn't set out to pen a hopeful book. "Optimism," writes Paul Hawken, "discovered me." By his count, more than a million groups around the world are fighting for the environment, social justice, and indigenous rights--what he terms a decentralized "immune system" response to the planet's troubles. Visiting Hawken's new Web site, wiserearth.org, a collaborative tool for 100,000 such groups, might cheer you too. --Joan Hamilton

Let's Talk: Discuss this selection with your friends and neighbors.

A SLICE OF ORGANIC LIFE
a book edited by Sheherazade Goldsmith
Hard work never looked so enticing as in this lushly illustrated manual for cooking, gardening, and scrubbing your way to a better planet. Former British model Sheherazade Goldsmith's glamming up of rural living may not tempt everyone into raising chickens or pigs, but who wouldn't enjoy tips for giving eco-presents or a recipe for organic mulled wine?

Daily Tip : September 28, 2007

Every Friday we feature a user submitted tip. Keep sending yours in!

Eat less meat!  Eating meat has an enormous impact on our environment. Do whatever you can handle.  If you can become a vegetarian or better yet, vegan, do it!  If you can't handle that, only eat meat 3 times a week instead of every day.  When you're torn about what to make the family for dinner, or you're out to eat debating between a couple of dishes, choose the one without meat.  You may find that it is easier than you think to come up with healthy meals that do not involve meat.

-- Submitted by Christy

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Build a Better Lightbulb

Say so long to flickering, unflattering light: Energy-efficient compact fluorescents now come in various shapes, brightness levels, and hues--some even work with dimmers. Find bulbs for every socket at environmentaldefense.org/maketheswitch. Proper disposal is a snap with prepaid recycling kits from www.sylvania.com/recycle.

(Chart by Peter Hoey--click on the image to see a larger version)

Daily Tip : September 27, 2007

Around 10 million pairs of perfectly usable eyeglasses and sunglasses are discarded each year in Europe and North America. These glasses can be used to help people in the developing world to see. For more information visit http://www.uniteforsight.org/.

Question of the Day: What was the last item you donated?

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Green is the New Fierce

It's no secret around the Sierra office that I get an inordinate amount of enjoyment out of the so-bad-it's-good reality show America's Next Top Model. And tonight, I can watch my guilty pleasure without any guilt at all--in fact, I can even call it research. The next episode, titled "The Models Go Green" promises to set the girls up with a green mode of transportation (presumably not the Hummer limo they've been tooling around in the last few seasons) and move them into an "environmentally friendly Los Angeles mansion" (which, admittedly, sounds like more than a bit of an oxymoron). Maybe they can even find some ecofriendly weaves for the makeover episode.

Daily Tip : September 26, 2007

Reheating that leftover Chinese food from last night? You probably have several appliances available in your kitchen that you can use, but which one you choose -- and how you use it -- can have a significant impact on your energy consumption.

To reduce your kitchen energy consumption you can:

• Think small
  Ovens: In general, the smaller the oven, the less energy used in cooking, so choose the smallest appliance suited to the task.
  Stovetops: With an electric stovetop, make sure your pan completely covers the heating element. With gas burners, make sure the flame is fully below the pan; otherwise, you’re paying to heat the air around the pan, not just the pan itself. Also, use the appropriate size pan for your meal.
• Take advantage of residual heat. Turn off the oven or electric stovetop several minutes before the recipe indicates. Both will stay hot enough to complete the cooking process.
  
• Don't preheat the oven unless a recipe requires it.
• Use the right cookware. Glass and ceramic cookware conducts and retains heat better than metal. If a recipe calls for a metal baking pan, switching to glass or ceramic allows you to lower the oven temperature by 25 degrees.
  
• Don't peek. Opening the oven door can lower the internal temperature as much as 25 degrees. Use a timer to set the cooking time, and be sure your oven window is clean enough for you to see how your dish is progressing.
  

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Daily Tip : September 25, 2007

Do you really need your own garbage can at work? Chances are you rarely use it and more than likely the plastic garbage bag will get changed out that evening by the janitorial service whether there's trash in it or not. Save a plastic bag and go without your own can.  Use one of the main garbage cans in a common area. It's a good reason to get up from your desk every now and then and stretch your legs.

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Daily Tip : September 24, 2007

Get a home energy audit. Take advantage of the free home energy audits offered by many utilities. Simple measures, such as installing a programmable thermostat to replace your old dial unit or sealing and insulating heating and cooling ducts, can each reduce a typical family's carbon dioxide emissions by about 5 percent

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Happy Park(ing) Day!

It was a good reminder on my hurried way to work: "Breathe." The sign, put up by a downtown yoga studio, hung over a small plot of green space where a car would usually park, part of an international effort to celebrate--and advocate for--public space. In the United States, groups from Portland to Providence, Miami to Missoula, are transforming a corner of their towns for the day. If there's a park(ing) space near you, take a break this afternoon and check it out. If not, watch a video of last year's event and get inspired to create your own temporary park next time around.

Daily Tip : September 21, 2007

I noticed that when my friends and I play board games such as Pictionary and Beyond Balderdash, we use an enormous amount of paper. Recently, I found these miniature white boards at the dollar store that can be re-used and that came with their own marker. So each player got their own little board and we used not one sheet of paper!

-- Submitted by Sharon Schiffman

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That Not-So-Fresh Feeling

Sickly sweet smells aren't the only potential hazard of air fresheners. According to a report released this week by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), these scented sprays can aggravate asthma and contain hormone-disrupting chemicals known as phthalates. In response, drugstore chain Walgreens has already pulled some brands from its shelves. Today's San Francisco Chronicle names some of the problematic air fresheners and provides a list of easy, ecofriendly alternatives, including:

• "Mist a solution made from water and items like lavender or lemons."
• "Use a cup of baking soda in problem areas such as the fridge or the trash cabinet."
• "Make your own potpourri with dried flowers and fruits."
• "Grind up half a lemon in the garbage disposal."
• "Bake something. Nothing makes a home smell nicer than fresh cookies or bread."

The lemon and baking-soda tips have definitely worked for me. What are your favorite green ways to clear the air?

Daily Tip : September 20, 2007

How many parts of your outfit could be green? Take a look at your shirt, nylon and polyester suck up fossil fuel during their manufacture. These synthetics are a fashion don't -- keep an eye out for recycled polyester or alternative fabrics, like bamboo or hemp. Moving on down to your feet, why not try investing in shoes that use vegetable-tanned leather or organic materials, like canvas or cotton. Once they are worn out, try getting them resoled instead of buying a new pair.

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Trendsetter

Lauren Sullivan, age 33
Cofounder and codirector, Reverb

A former campaigner with Rainforest Action Network, Lauren Sullivan is out to prove that loving nature and being "a bit of a pop culture queen" can be complementary. With husband Adam Gardner, a guitarist for campus faves Guster, she founded a nonprofit to help musicians and venues go green. reverbrock.org

Q: What does rock 'n' roll have to do with the environment?

A: Music has been a place of activism and action. That took a hiatus after the 1960s and '70s, but now it's back. Folks listen to celebrities. And energy use in this industry is very significant.

Q: You've worked with artists from Bonnie Raitt to the Beastie Boys. How do you green a concert or tour?

A: Convert the band's bus and truck fleet to biodiesel, arrange carbon offsets for their emissions, coordinate backstage recycling programs--we even do little things like provide rechargeable batteries for monitor packs and recycle broken guitar strings.

Q: How do you get fans involved?

A: We create an eco-village of nonprofits and green businesses to reflect each band's interests. For singer-surfer Jack Johnson, we invited Surfrider, which we knew would resonate with his fans. It adds a way for folks to engage that isn't a buzz killer.

(Photograph by Kevin Brusie)

Fast Fact

Switching its tour bus to biodiesel reduced rock band Guster's CO2 emissions by 100,000 pounds a year.

Daily Tip : September 19, 2007

Connect your PC, monitor, fax machine, and computer peripherals to a single power strip that can be turned off when they're not in use. This will end "leakage" from devices that drain power even when they aren't turned on. This technique can also be used for your home entertainment components.

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Daily Tip : September 18, 2007

Turn your investments green: Support socially and environmentally responsible corporations. Check out SustainableBusiness' report, The World's Top Sustainable Stocks: Companies Changing the World for the Better.

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Daily Tip : September 17, 2007

Use natural alternatives for everyday tasks: mineral oil is an excellent lubricant for those squeaky hinges!

Whoops! As so many of you pointed out, mineral oil is made from petroleum and is not a natural alternative. We apologize for the error and thank our ever-vigilant readers for correcting us.

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The Sound of Sustainability

The San Francisco Bay will be rocking this weekend, with 28 electronic and indie-rock bands bringing live music to Treasure Island for the first time in 65 years. Along with good grooves, attendees can expect to absorb a bit of eco-consciousness, as the Treasure Island Music Festival will continue the trend of venues and festivals going green by providing zero-emission buses for transport to and from the island, running generators on mix of biodiesel fuel, printing materials on recycled paper, and donating leftover food to local shelters. Concert-goers will even be able to win prizes for recycling bottles and cups. Now that's got a good ring to it.

Check back next week for an interview with the cofounder of Reverb, a nonprofit that helps bands make their tours more ecofriendly.

Daily Tip : September 14, 2007

I started composting my non-meat, non-oil kitchen scraps and am amazed at both how easy it is and how much less waste I'm putting into a landfill. Composting has literally cut my "garbage" in half, plus by the end of the fall, I'll have my first batch of nutritious fertilizer for next summer's garden.

I took a garbage can and drilled holes in the bottom for drainage, lined the bottom with a bunch of branches for air circulation, and then started filling it with fruit and vegetable waste along with coffee grounds and filters. Every now and then, I put layers of leaves or newspaper on as well.

-- Submitted by Tania Crawford

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Park Parking Only

On September 21, your city may have a little more green space than usual--at least for an hour or two. Sparked by the "art-ivism" of the San Francisco-based group Rebar, people around the world will be turning parking spots into temporary parks to reclaim public space from cars. Here's how to join the fun:

1. Find a vacant parking space and feed the meter.

2. Roll out a tarp and some sod.

3. Add plants, benches, and other amenities.

4. Chat with passersby and tell them about the project.

5. Clean up your site and reuse or recycle all materials.

Illustration by Josef Gast

Daily Tip : September 13, 2007

As an alternative to REcycling your used products, why not try UPcycling and turn them into higher quality goods! A recent article in the New York Times highlights the global community of IKEA hackers who are upcycling IKEA products into functional art. Check out Apartment Therapy's Green Home Blog for ideas.

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Grapevine

Moscow has introduced a label to identify foods free of genetically modified ingredients. * The largest solar photovoltaic facility in North America is being built outside Las Vegas to provide energy for Nellis Air Force Base. Meanwhile, the Vatican is installing solar panels on the Paul VI Hall, a 6,300-seat venue used for concerts and papal addresses. * Hertz and Avis are boosting the number of hybrid vehicles in their rental-car fleets by 3,400 and 1,500, respectively. * Google pledged to cut or offset all of its greenhouse-gas emissions by the end of the year, invested $10 million to develop plug-in hybrid cars, and joined Intel and other tech companies to halve computers' energy use in half by 2010. climatesaverscomputing.org

Daily Tip : September 12, 2007

Visit your local library or borrow from a friend. It's great to support local bookstores, but how many books do you need to own?

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Opportunity Knocks

It's easy to tire of kids hawking candy bars and magazines--even for a good cause. Fortunately, there are more-innovative, ecofriendly ways for schools to get their hands on much-needed cash. Students can collect used printer cartridges for recycling and sell fair-trade stationery, natural body-care products, or, in Wisconsin, locally made cheese. Mmm, cheese. Where's my wallet?

Illustration by Christoph Hitz

Fast Fact

Constructing green buildings can reduce costs for the average U.S. elementary or high school by $100,000 annually.

Daily Tip : September 11, 2007

Plant a tree. Get a group in your neighborhood together and contact your local arborist or urban forester about planting trees on private property and public land. In addition to storing carbon, trees planted in and around urban areas and residences can provide much-needed shade in the summer, reducing energy bills and fossil fuel use.

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Advice for better homes and gardens

In the September/October 2007 issue of Sierra, Mr. Green considers concerns about mulching, answers a question about cleaning up after a paint job, and reflects of the need to save energy, no matter how virtuous its source.

Curious, concerned, or just generally confused about environmental issues of all stripes? Send your thoughts and questions directly to Mr. Green, or weigh in in the comments section.

Daily Tip : September 10, 2007

If you're an urban-ite without your own garden, or just someone whose green thumb is not quite so green, check out Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). Many farms have produce subscriptions, where buyers receive a weekly or monthly basket of produce, flowers, fruits, eggs, milk, coffee, or any sort of different farm products.

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Daily Tip : September 7, 2007

I go to freecycle.org for almost everything now. It saves the planet by recycling household items. I place unwanted items on their website frequently. 75% of the items in my home and yard were from Freecycle. Something that would have possibly been thrown out now has a home and will continue to have a home because I will pass it back to freecycle when I have no need for it. You cannot imagine the money saved either!

-- Submitted by Lisa Graves

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Pop Corner

It's no "For Those About to Rock," but "March to ReEnergize Iowa" took on an anthemic quality when sung by Ben Folds at a Des Moines concert this summer. The indie singer-songwriter had whipped up a tune backstage to go along with the words on a flyer two fans handed him earlier that day. The topic: A march from Ames to the state capital to demand clean-energy solutions to global warming. Hmm, what rhymes with carbon dioxide?

Daily Tip : September 6, 2007

Take time once a week to take action and contact your representative about supporting environmental initiatives. Look for your representative's webform online to cut down on paper. You can also use our Action Center to find out more information about environmental initiatives that need your support.

To get information about current environmental legislation, sign up for the Sierra Club's Currents newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox once a week.

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Daily Tip : September 5, 2007

Keep your coffee green. Not only is fair trade the way to go, but you can forget the filter too. Use a coffee press for your morning beverage. Not only will you save money and waste on filters, but you'll also have some of the best tasting coffee around! Don't forget to compost the grounds -- your garden will love it.

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Pop Corner

As Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and Dave Matthews head to New York City to play Farm Aid 2007 on September 9, a tour of another kind will be making its way to the yearly concert. Sustainable Table's cross-country road trip to promote eating local, ecofriendly food--and to find the best pie in the United States--will culminate at the 23rd annual fundraiser for family farms. Even more fittingly, the nonprofit's tour bus is powered by biodiesel, one of Farm Aid cofounder Nelson's longtime causes (he even has his own brand, BioWillie fuel) and the subject of his new book, On the Clean Road Again: Biodiesel and the Future of the Family Farm.

Daily Tip : September 4, 2007

Green your kitty by switching to biodegradable litter.

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Greening Man

With 25,000 people camping out in the desert for a week, Burning Man abides by the "leave no trace" principle--efforts organizers are now expanding from the festival's northern Nevada site to the entire planet. For this year's event, tickets are being printed on tree-free paper; the radio station, medical outpost, and other facilities will be run on biodiesel; and a green art theme will see Black Rock Desert decorated with the likes of solar-powered sunflowers and a trash-fueled 80-foot mechanical slug.