Natural and Sustainable

• Collect rainwater from downspouts and use it to water your won garden and plants.

• Say no to carpeting. Carpet contains more contaminants and pollen and dust than anything else in your home.

• Buy green power when you can and ask your utility company to off it if they don’t already. The typical U.S. household uses about 10,000 KWH a year.

• Repair, and don’t replace appliances. Each fix means your won’t be buying a new one and it will keep your old one out of landfills. IF you feel you must replace, then donate the broken or semi-broken one to a company that refurbishes or repairs then and resells then.

• Buy energy-efficient appliance when you do replace. Energy Star appliance use 10 to up to 50% less energy and water and must meet EPA efficiency guidelines.

• Dry your dishes on the dishwasher rack and if your dishwasher offers the air dry option, use that as well.

• Buy secondhand clothing or household items as tag sales and save the carbon cost of new production.

• Hang your laundry out to dry on a clothes line and eliminate one dryer cycle per week or more.

• Clean AC filters or replace them when necessary to keep your AC unit running smoothly.

• Run ceiling fans instead of the air conditioner in hot climates; this can save you more than a ton of CO2 waste within your won home.

• Use cold water to wash and rinse your clothes, only use hot water when the laundry is very dirty and always wash your bedding in hot water to kill bed bugs and dust mites.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Go for low flow showerheads, this switch can save you 1800 in eclectic cost and 43o in natural gas depending on how your water is heated. Not to mention the savings in water cost and waste as well. Consider putting in a low-flow toilet as well.

When you are in the market for new appliances, make appealing the last thing on your list of wants. Look for ones that are good for the environment as well as beautiful. Here are three ways to help in that process in order to make it good for your home and good for the environment all the way around.

1. Make sure you make it healthy: You don’t want contaminates like mercury showing up in your food items, so why would you want them showing up in your refrigerator where your food is. Make sure your fridge complies with Restriction of hazardous substances (RoHS) by eliminating the lead, mercury, cadmium and other chemicals that are potentially harmful when the fridge was manufactured.

2. Go for the Energy Star: Energy Star is a rating system given by the Department of Energy for energy efficiency within an appliance or other item, such as light bulbs. When you in the market and shopping for a new appliance or other item for your home, make sure the item or appliance is Energy Star approved and displays this symbol proudly.

3. Go for the green all the way around: Packaging and production and even waste removal systems also contribute greatly to the global warming issue more and more. Make sure you choose environmentally responsible choices at all stages of production, which includes the reduction of chemicals, solvents, and even the consumption of energy. Make sure your choice uses recycled packaging at 100 percent of these materials and the company is even environmentally responsible in the clean up after the production process of these goods as well.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Make Every Day Earth Day 2008 Program helps encourages companies to implement green initiative in their business though the spa community. This year’s winner was the Gaia Day Spa in California.

It’s hot, so what’s the first thing most people think to do? Get cooler, obviously. Most people have central heating and air conditioning inside their homes or at least a water cooled air system or even a window unit to help cool their homes. But, did you know that placing ceiling fans in proper locations within your home will help cool the air even more.

Ceiling fans use 90 percent less energy than an air conditioning system and they make the room seem cooler by seven to even ten degrees cooler. They ultimately help push the air around making it seem cooler automatically.

By placing a fan in your attic alone will help cut your air conditioning cost by at least 10 percent, depending on the size of the fan, of course.

If you must still cool the air in order to be in your home during the summer months, depending on where you live, look for Energy-Star-rated models, which have an Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) about a 10. Call you local air conditioning dealer to ask which Energy-Star approved model is best for your home. Mike’s Heating and Air Conditioning in Royal, Arkansas sells brands such as Frigidaire/Nordyne and Rheem systems that are all Energy-Star approved. What’s more with nearer Energy-Star approved models is the change from R22 to new Environmentally Friendly 410 A. This new refrigerant isn’t harmful to the ozone layer and is better for the environment overall. Ask your local A/C dealer if they carry the new refrigerant and how to change your older model A/C that uses R22 to a more environmentally friendly model. Do it for your health and your environment.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Buy local by shopping at you local neighborhood farmer’s market. This option allows you to support farmers and introduce your children to fresh, seasonal foods. If you can, join a Community Supported Agriculture group, (CSA). These groups cost about $20 a week and give you access to fresh shares of vegetables, fruits and even some meats and eggs. Check out Local Harvest to get started taking advantage of the groups in your area today.

What’s good for the Earth is good for your health. Here’s how to get an eco-friendly home-quickly.

You recycle regularly, use compact fluorescent light bulbs, and try to buy organic. But, there’s a lot more you can do to your home to turn it into a healthier, safer and greener one as well. Do you know how to make your fridge more earth-friendly? How about the easiest way to keep the new-rug smell without the new-rug toxins? Take this eco-home quiz and find out how much you really are in the know about eco-conscious living.

1. Staying indoors protect you from pollution. {T/F}

2. The best way to save energy & lower electric bills is to turn off household appliances. {T/F}

3. Which type of refrigerator is the most energy efficient?
A. Freezer on the top, refrigerator on the bottom.
B. Side-by-Side Model
C. Freezer on the bottom, refrigerator on the top.

4. Which gives off more pollution?
A. Your Car
B. Your Snow blower
C. You lawn mower

5. Since mold and mildew quickly accumulate on shower curtains, it’s better to use a disposable vinyl version. {T/F}

6. Washing laundry in hot water is worth the extra energy because it gets clothes cleaner. {T/F}

Answers:

1. False: Pollutant levels in your house can be 2 to 5 times higher-and even as much as 100 times higher, than those outside. Paint, carpet, flooring, and furniture emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which can cause a variety of ills. Formaldehyde, the most common VOC, can trigger headaches, coughing, nausea, and breathing problems after long term exposure. Plus, there’s less ventilation indoors to remove cigarette smoke, pet allergens, mold and other problems.

2. False: Most appliances, including televisions, DVD players, and cell phone, or anything with an LED display, takes electricity through the outlet even when they are turned off. In fact, about 75% of home electronics power is consumed while the products aren’t even being used at the time.

3. C: Your fridge accounts for about 9% of your home’s energy usage, that’s more than any other appliance. Freezer below versions require approximately 16% less energy than side-by-side models (The freezer-on-top configuration uses about 13% less than side-by-sides.)

4. C: A typical gas-powered lawn mower emits as much pollution in 1 hour as 11 cars. And though snow blowers come in third on the list, they’re not exactly easy on the environment either. They put about 2 pounds of carbon monoxide into the atmosphere per hour.

5. False: Vinyl curtains, made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), are cheap, but release VOCs for a month or more after they are purchased.

6. False: Cold water is almost always good enough. Set the temp gauge to cold, except for very soiled clothing. Cold water will give you the same benefit of clean as with warm or hot water. Always wash your bedding in hot water though to kill dust mites and allergens.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Bring Your Own Bottled Water (B.Y.O.B). Make sure that bottled water is in a glass container and not a plastic one as well.

There are many changes that can be made now to help with energy cost and your own pocket book. Choices like Energy Star appliances and turning off and unplugging power-drainers when you leave for the the day, go to bed or are gone on vacation. These little changes that can become a habit to do will not only help with the energy pull down on the environment, they will end up saving you loads of money in the long run.

If you go with Energy Star, which you should in your own home, here are some things to keep in mind:

• Item:

1. Central Air Conditioning; Cost: $2,500; Premium: $380; Savings per Year: $95

2. Low-Flow Showerheads (2); Cost: $63; Premium: $3; Savings per Year: $63

3. Washing Machine; Cost: $1,100; Premium: $174; Savings per Year: $58

4. Refrigerator; Cost: $1,000; Premium: $43; Savings per Year: $43

5. CFL Bulbs (6); Cost: $32; Premium: $26; Savings per Year: $32

6. Dishwasher; Cost: $500; Premium: $50; Savings per Year: $10
(Source: ACEE)

• Power Down Your Gadgets: Letting equipment sit idle will drain power.

1. Computer; Cost: $1,000; Premium: $0; Savings per Year: $70

2. Fax; Cost: $300; Premium: $0; Savings per Year: $15

3. Copier; Cost: $700; Premium: $0; Savings per Year: $10

4. DVD Player; Cost: $150; Premium: $0; Savings per Year: $7

5. TV; Cost: $500; Premium: $0; Savings per Year: $4

6. Audio System; Cost: $500; Premium: $0; Savings per Year: $3

• Make and Eco-Emergency Kit:

1. Crank Flashlight: Is powered entirely by you, not battiers or electricity.

2. Solor Shortwave Radio: Runs on sumlight and still works at night.

3. Katadyn Water Bottle: Filters out sediment and nasty protozoa.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: A faucet leaking 1 drop per second wastes about 2,700 gallons of water a year-5 times what an average car uses in gas alone.

Build your home the energy efficient way.

When you build or have a contractor build for you, ask about and shop for an energy-efficient home. You can end up getting $2,000 in government tax credits for enviro-smart construction. Typically, these homes have state-of-the-art heating and cooling systems, as well as features like windows with insulation coatings and energy-saving lighting and appliances. Many owners of these new modern age homes have cut up to 50 precent or more off their utility bills.

Upgrade and save: You don’t have to buy a new home to reap the rewards of energy efficiency. Just upgrade the house you already own. Invest in double-glazed windows, a high-efficiency furnace, and other energy-saving products and techniques to save big on repairs and energy bills. You will also benefit from nice tax breaks. Here’s an idea of some energy break down in billing:

• Solar Panels (San Diego; difference between efficient and standard models): Cost-$20,925; Premium (above-average electric rates and sunlight)-N/A; Savings per year-$4,350 (includes one-time tax credit)

• Double-Glazed Windows: Cost-$2,700; Premium (above-average electric rates and sunlight)-$550; Savings per year-$310 (includes one-time tax credit)

• High-Efficiency Furnace: Cost-$2,000; Premium (above-average electric rates and sunlight)-$480; Savings per year-$230 (includes one-time tax credit)

• Composite Decking: Cost-$2,000; Premuim (above-average electric rates and sunlight) -$950; Savings per year-$203

• Upgraded Insulation: Cost-$580; Premium (above-average electric rates and sunlight)-N/A; Savings per year-$155 (includes one-time tax credit)

• Duct Sealants: Cost-$1,200; Premium (above-average electric rates and sunlight)-N/A; Savings per year-$133

• A total of $5,381. That really starts to add up once you crunch the numbers out and find out where the savings can happen within your own home or a newly build home with energy-saving beenfits.

Building a green house for the ground up is easier than you think. Here are some ideas to keep in mind when planning your house plans out.

1. Solar panels mean lower energy costs all around.

2. Insulation is key to preventing heat loss, even in the hottest parts of the house.

3. Duct sealant stops ait leakage at connection points. Be sure and include duct sealant inside the home as well where the duct work meets the furnace or visa versa.

4. Windows with coated glass reflect heat back into a room. You can also have this put on or do it yourself to your existing windows.

5. High-efficiency furnaces reduce costs and greehouse gases. If you model is older than 1998, even if it is in good shape you might want to consider an upgrade to a more efficient one to help curb energy useage.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Living green is good for the environment, but did you know it’s also good for you wallet too? With energy-saving light bulbs to affordable solar paneling for you your roof. You could very well save more than a thousand dollars a month in these changes alone.

The polar bear is one of nature’s most beautiful and fascinating creations, but global warming and oil drilling threaten its existence.

It may be the latest evidence of global warming: Polar bears are drowning. Scientists for the first time have documented multiple deaths of polar bears off Alaska, where they likely drowned after swimming long distances in the ocean amid the melting of the Arctic ice shelf. The bears spend most of their time hunting and raising their young on ice floes. As the sea ice goes, that will directly, to a very great extent, be what happens to polar bears.

Coca-Cola began airing commercials featuring polar bears in 2004 to try to get the word out about how important it is to save these polar bears. These commercials continue to air as of today. But, a lot of people that view these commercials, don’t know what they are all about.

Although the magnificent creatures are well adapted to the water, and can swim scores of miles to solid land, the distance is getting ever greater as the Arctic ice diminishes. They just kind of float along and kick. But as the ice gets farther out from shore because of warming, it’s a longer swim that costs more energy and makes them more vulnerable.

Climate change is a very real threat. It not only threatens us as humans is it treatening everything that lives and breaths. Climate change is threatening polar bears with starvation by shortening their hunting season. If you think it is just little animals getting threatened by global warming, it isn’t. This threat is only the beginning. Positive changes have to be made NOW!

Here are 5 changes in your lifestyle you can do to help, remember, every little bit helps:

1. Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket.
You’ll save 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year with this simple action. You can save another 550 pounds per year by setting the thermostat no higher than 50°C.

2. Cover your pots while cooking.
Doing so can save a lot of the energy needed for preparing the dish. Even better are pressure cookers and steamers: they can save around 70%!

3. Take a shower instead of a bath.A shower takes up to four times less energy than a bath. To maximise the energy saving, avoid power showers and use low-flow showerheads, which are cheap and provide the same comfort.

4. Use a clothesline instead of a dryer whenever possible.You can save 700 pounds of carbon dioxide when you air dry your clothes for 6 months out of the year.

5. Reuse your shopping bag.
When shopping, it saves energy and waste to use a reusable bag instead of accepting a disposable one in each shop. Waste not only discharges CO2 and methane into the atmosphere, it can also pollute the air, groundwater and soil.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE TIPS TO HELP SAVE THE POLAR BEAR.

**Having matress issues? Catherine Neal over at San Jose, CA. blog here at 451 Press is and boy, does she have a commical story. Read her funny air mattress mishap here.**

(Sources: Wal Street Journal, Daily Mail)
*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: After you finish baking a cake or a holiday meal in the oven, turn the oven off and leave the door open to help heat your home. If your kitchen is already warm, don’t open a door to the outside, just turn your heater or furnace down and let the heat from the oven wrap up the warmth. Why open a door and let the heat out and waste more energy when you can cut the energy source off completely. Let common sense be your guide to conserving energy.

Your kids model their conservation habits after yours, so when you make an effort, the whole family does. Eco-friendliness is about change. Start with these tiny changes that have a huge impact on the earth.

ACTION:

1. Water Savers:

A. Turn off the water while brushing your teeth. Proper brushing requires at least two minutes and that’s eight gallons of water down the drain. Yearly savings of for a family of four is 23,360 gallons and $234.

B. Cut down on your shower time by one minute. Seven gallons of water flow through the average showerhead every minute. Yearly savings for a family of four is 10,080 gallons and $101. Install a low-flow showerhead, and when it comes to the toilet, if it’s yellow let it mellow and if it’s brown………….

2. Energy Savings:

A. Wash half your laundry in cold water. A whopping 90 precent of the total energy used each cycle goes to heat the water. Yearly savings of a family of four is 72 pounds of carbon and $33.

B. Don’t preheat the oven (unless baking bread or pastries). If you turn the oven on when you put the food in, you save half a pound of carbon each times. A yearly savings of a family of four is 78 pounds of carbon and $22. Look for Energy Star labels when purchasing appliances, and unplug them when not in use.

3. Waste Reducers:

A. Dry your hand with dish towels, not paper towels. Even if you buy a roll of recycled paper towels, you still have to toss them in the trash after use. Yearly savings of a family of our is 59 pounds of paper and $44.

B. Use a water filter instead of water bottles. American’s drink 56 billion 16-ounc bottles a year, and ferwer than 15 precent are recycled. A yearly savings of a family of four is 730 plastic gallon jugs, and $620. Buy in bulk to cut fown on packagins, and opt for reusable containers over plastic bags in your child’s lunchbox.

**Need some gift giving ideas for Christmas or whenever really? Check out Summer Minors ides on Creative Mom Cafe. She suggest giving a coupon book and making the coupons for chores or a plate of cookies, etc. Read how here.**

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Don’t use pesticides on your lawn.

Ever wonder how your life changes can make a difference? Here’s some tips to give you the push in the right “earth-saving” state of mind:

• Once released into the environment, the spread of pesticides cannot be controlled. Radioactivity traced pesticides sprayed over the United Kingdom were detected five to seven days later in the southern part of the United States. So always use earth-friendly pesticides on your lawn and garden plants. And if at all possible, don’t use any at all.

• Wrap a package of energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs in recycled paper. Each new fluorescent light bulb reduces greenhouse gas emissions by about 1,300 pounds over its lifetime.

• The government won’t solve our problems of global warming it is up to us as individuals. If you feel guilt about driving so much in your gas-powered car, then everytime you fill up, put 20 cents into a box and at the end of the year donate that “cents” fund, which will be dollars by the end of the year if you start come January 2008, to a local charity.

• When you travel to a beach or resort located on the many hundereds of coast lines make sure that resort or lodge developed the coast in a sustainable way. If they don’t then stay elsewhere. Every person who takes a trip to the coast lines ends up putting great pressure on that coastal area.

• Calculate your carbon footprint. Reduce the footprint. Offset that footprint. And produce your one power whenever and however you can.

• If 100,000 households each installed an eight-foot diameter wind turbine, the cumlative annual CO2 reduction would be 900,00 tons.

• When you make a purchase, remove the package waste there at the counter after checking out. It may seem silly, but if enough people did this, then the stores would have to tell the manufacturers to cut back on package waste.

• When your fishing buddy calls, and you repond, don’t use mailorder wigglers. Anglers as well as home composters are responsible for for proliferation of nonnative species in just wigglers alone. If you travel to a national park or another country, be sure not to bring back anything with you as well. It is not only illegal, it is also harming the environment more than you think. (There is 60 billion metric tons of CO2 released annually by the world’s soil.)

• If one million U.S. airline passengers skipped one coast-to-coast flight, it could eliminate the emisson of one million tons of COs.

• Next time you stay at a hotel or resort, look around, if you can’t tell what country you are in or what continenet you are on, then you are at a place where there is zero unsustainable tourism. Talk to the hotel clerk and managers and let them know how you feel about sustainable traveling. If you are one in a thousand that does this, then the hotel must meet demand.

• If every U.S. home received and paid their bills online, annual greehouse gas emissions would drop by 2.1 million tons.

**Jennifer Hoffman over at the Milwaukee, WI blog has posted some great shots of the Veteran’s Day Parade that was held there in her city. To view these photos and to read more about what Jennifer writes about for Veteran’s Day, click here.**

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Go toxin-free in your own home. Start with the cleaners you use on your shower and toilet. What are they? If they hurt your nose when using them, then why flush those down the drain and toilet and then eventually into our waterways?

This past summer I checked out Ridgeway Farms up in Turner, Oregon on their Visitors Day, September 8th. This farm had just begun and offered the best apples that I have ever tasted. The farm is owned by Terri Barczak or Toni Rogers and everything grown on this land at the farm is natural and all-organic. I found out about Ridgeway Farms through Local Harvest. And even though I live in quite a small town, where the isn’t much going on as far as events and businesses listing under Local Harvest, I was grateful to receive an email on a company that is now in my area caring about the environment as much as I do. Ridgeway Farms is located on the Turner exit off I5 north. They were tucked back from the road and it did take us a few moments to realize where they were located. My first impression was “this is quite a small farm, and sort of difficult to find.” But, once inside the gate, I realized Ridgeway Farms was much more than just a small farm.

They offer fruits in the variety of: McIntosh apples, Fuji apples, Yellow Delicious apples, and green apples, Sekel and Comice pears, Misty, Blue Crop, Duke, Patriot, Bridgett blueberries, Caroline raspberries and vine ripened kiwi.

They offer vegetables in the variety of: Yellow crookneck, papaya and delicata squash, jack-o-lantern pumpkins, Russet, yellow Finn, red and purple potatoes, Peacevine, Brandywine, Stupice, Legend, Willamette, Current, Oregon Spring Bush tomatoes, Tuscan, Wild Red, Wild Garden kale, amaranth, Bibb, Red Sails, and Black Seeded lettuce, Avon, Melody, Mountain, Bloomsdale spinach, Purple Top turnips, Walla Walla, Spanish and Evergreen Bunching onions, Sunder and Danver carrots, Sumter and Straight Eight cucumber, shallots, California Wonder sweet peppers and Ring-o-Fire cayenne, jalapeno, New Mexico Joe E. Parker and Aci Sivri hot peppers.

They grow herbs in the variety of: Cilantro, basil, tarragon, mint, chives and parsley.

With knowing that Ridgeway Farms offers organic growing practices, it is one reason I am so happy to have visited their farm and partake in the benefits of a natural grower that shares passionate thoughts about the environment, as myself. While I was there learning about their growing practices I was also told that the demand is greater than their product. They are growing organic apples during the summer months and they never meet their own orders completely before the colder weather hits. If you are interested in trying some Ridgeway Farm apples or other organic produce, be sure and call now and place your order before the demand. For wholesale orders contact Ridgeway Farms at: 503-881-9346 or email at: ridgeway_farms@hotmail.com .

If you would like to see what farms, nurseries, markets, and growers are in your own area that offer organic, natural growing practices then log onto Local Harvest. You can even sign up for their email service that will contact you anytime a farm, grower, market, etc. is doing any type of public offering. This is how I became aware of Ridgeway Farms and if I hadn’t logged onto Local Harvest I would never have known that there was a great little farm that grows organic produce just outside my own town.

**Cruise over to YouTube Digger here at 451 Press and bid farewell to JM. She can still be found on other blogs on this site, but jump over there and leave her a parting comment. Read her farewell note here.(JM-You were a great writer for YouTube Digger and I am sad to see you leave that blog.)**

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Seal up your house this winter to prevent heat loss. It’s always a great idea to seal up your home, shop, garage or even your attic to prevent this energy loss in the winter months, but it also helps out with less energy waste in the summer when you run you airconditioner as well.

Here’s an idea from Natural and Sustainable:

Buy an Energy-Efficient one. How?

• Seek out the Energy Star® logo: Dishwashers that meeth the newly improved 2007 Energy Star® criteria are at least 41 precent more efficient than federal energy standards. Some Energy Star® dishwahers qualify for federal tax credits as well.

• Think smaller: The bigger the dishwasher, the more water and power it is going to use up. Unless you have a large family or go through a log of dishes daily, choose a smaller one that is less expensive.

• Shorten the cycle: Choose a dishwasher with an “energy-saving” or “light wash” cycle that uses less water and operates for a shorter time.

• Look for an air-dry option: This option uses circulating fans. Heat-dry modes use heating coils, which draw considerable amounts of electricity.

• Read the EnergyGuide®™ label: This will show how much energy each unit uses compared with similar models.

• Opt for a hot water booster: On internal water heater that raises water temperature inside the dishwasher (most Energy Start modesl have this.)

• Think long term: Most energy and water-efficient appliances cost more initially, but they will save you money in the long run through lower monthly utility bills.

**Were you one of the lucky ones that got Colorado Rockies tickets? Anthony Amobi over at Fastball Fans wasn’t and he writes about why, read the whole story here.**

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Upgrade your toilet to a low-flush, low-water model. They save money and give a better flush.