I=PAT

This interesting article in the NY Times yesterday talks about the relationship between a country’s wealth and it’s footprint. I certainly agree with many of the points John Tierney makes – it seems that they more people have to worry about money, health, and education, the less time and energy they have to be environmentally conscious. 

But, Tierney’s commentary that we will eventually reduce our impact on the planet does not seem like the correct reasoning to follow. If we have higher emissions standards for all countries – including the developing nations – can we just skip some of this Kuznets curve trajectory? I feel that pursuing better environmental standards will only help, not harm, our populations and our earth.

Lower emissions standards to increase economic health seems almost asinine.

Regardless, if the US is on it’s way down the Kuznets curve, then there’s your Earth Day good news…

Buyer’s Guide – the only one you’ll need.

So we remember that simplicity is key, here’s the Tongue-and-cheek Green Buyer’s Guide. 

Laundry Pod

This little washer pod is great for small loads – especially a bunch of dedicates that can’t go in the washing machine anyway, but are a pain to handwash separately! The device was derived by industrial design company RKS Design and utilizes technology of a salad spinner. The catch is that it uses only human power and very little water. 

From Dexigner:

Laundry POD is designed for the times you need to do a small load quickly and don’t want to waste water, energy, or a trip to the Laundromat. Intended for delicates, hand-washables, and small “in-between” loads, Laundry POD’s spinning action gently washes, rinses, and then extracts water to improve drying times. This ability to rid consumers of the need to wring clothes dry, potentially damaging them in the process, is one of Laundry POD’s key advantages.

Although this may never replace a washing machine, it should certainly cut down on the amount of energy & water you may use with smaller loads. And you’ll tone those triceps!

How to Recycle Everything

This amazing list from Real Simple magazine details how to recycle over 50 items! It also includes tips on recycling like this one:

Lotion samples and nonpaper promotional items affixed to glue strips in magazines should be removed because they can jam up recycling equipment (scented perfume strips, on the other hand, are fine). “One of the biggest challenges we get is pages of promotional stickers and stamps,” says Matsch, “which can adhere to the machinery and tear yards of new paper fiber.” 

Here’s the link.

Chest Fridge

Here’s a post from Ecorenovator about a chest freezer conversion. By converting a chest freezer into a refrigerator, Tom Chalko was able have an inexpensive fridge that is 10 to 20 times more efficient than anything on the market!

In short, the reason this chest fridge works so well is the amount of insulation (compared to conventional fridges) plus the location of the door. By having a door at the top, the cold air (which is heavier than the warmer air outside) stays in the fridge. Every time you open the door to your vertical fridge, you let the cold air out – it cannot stay in because of the location of the door.

Very cool.

Check out the Ecorenovator post here. And PDF of the chest conversion can be found here.

Great Eastern Ecology

Offsets are a bit controversial. Why offset when, in many cases, you could just build sustainably or not at all? Regardless, an offset is better than nothing. 

Great Eastern Ecology consults for companies planning to either make green sites/parks/etc or to offset a project that will negatively impact a wetland. They also work on cleaning up otherwise unusable sites (e.g. a park set to include a salt marsh and 80+ acres of green space in NYC).

Watch Sundance’s Eco Biz segment on Great Eastern Ecology here:

Tax Credits for your Green Installation

Did you recently install more efficient insulation, windows, or doors? Purchase a Prius or Biomass Stove?

 

Now Uncle Sam is going to flow some of that money back to you! It’s a great reward for consumers who are doing well by the earth. 

This Energy Star site has a comprehensive outline on what qualifies for tax deductions and how to get them. April 15th isn’t so bad now…