Planetsave

Green Cities California (GCC) announced today the release of its Master Environmental Assessment (MEA) on Single Use and Reusable Bags. The MEA, commissioned by GCC and developed by ICF International’s Sacramento office, summarizes existing studies on the environmental impacts of single use plastic, paper, compostable and reusable bags, as well as the impacts of policy options such as fees and bans on bags. Meanwhile, proposed Minnesota legislation would tax plastic bags, adding to momentum against their continued use. Read the rest of this entry »

If you are reading this article, I think you are probably more concerned about the environment than most others. I assume that you keep up with environmental news a bit, reading more than the miniscule amount covered in the mainstream media.

However, I cannot make any guess as to how much you actually do to live a more environmentally friendly life.

Why?

The bottom line is, people inform themselves of the environmental problems in the world much more than they act. And even for those deeply concerned about the environment, it is very likely there is more they could be doing in their own lives to live a cleaner or greener life.

That is why I want to give one general tip for how to live a greener life. Maybe it is simple. But I think it is one of the best things you can do to transform your actions.

First, though, if you want some statistics on the difference between what people think need to be done and what they are actually doing, take a look at the results of this Americans’ Actions to Conserve Energy, Reduce Waste, and Limit Global Warming. January 2010 study from George Mason University and Yale University Project on Climate Change researchers.

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The Business and Biodiversity Offset Program has left me torn: is this a genuine attempt to preserve biodiversity, or just another exercise in corporate greenwashing?

The Business and Biodiversity Offset Program is a work in progress.  Its name includes that reviled word “offset”, a red flag for many deep greens.
However, unlike the dreaded carbon offset, this is not a market mechanism which allows industry to greenwash its way through normal operations.

Instead it’s a recognition that large industrial developments have a huge impact upon sensitive natural environments and can undermine the cultural lifestyle of local populations. Read the rest of this entry »

Before I get into this topic, please read my article on cancer dedicated to someone special to me, each view constitutes a larger donation to cancer research. http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/27/help-me-fight-cancer/

The “green movement” is gaining some steam in the general public, and hey I am all for it.  As long as it doesn’t become a fad that fades away into a footnote like slap bracelets and Crocks. The Apple iPhone is the hottest smart phone going today, and with over 65,000 applications in the iTunes App Store and counting, the usefulness of this pocket device goes up all the time. This can only mean that there will be green apps on the iPhone, and of course there will be some clunkers. With all these apps floating around there must be some gems as well. I’ll give some apps a try and tell you what I think, so you, my loyal reader, doesn’t have to.

(Part 2: Paid Apps, will be coming soon, so check back at PlanetSave.com)

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I remember the good old days, playing backyard baseball. Every now and then the perfect pitch would come, and, no matter how terribly I’d been hitting up to that point, I’d knock that ball out of the park. And the crowd would go wild…until everyone saw where that ball was headed. And with a crash it was realized: right through Mr. Saunders window. And then I had to fess up to old, grumpy Mr. Saunders that I, yes I, was the Great Bambino who had smashed his window. And he let me know darn well that I, yes I, had to pay to fix it. I, yes I, had to clean up my mess.

Cleaning up after ourselves is nothing new. And yet, if this be the case, why, then, do outsiders always have to ask companies and industries who affect the environment adversely, to clean up after themselves? Didn’t their mothers (and fathers) teach them that if they make a mess, it is their responsibility to return everything back to how they found it? Didn’t anyone tell them that the broken window won’t fix itself? Read the rest of this entry »

In 2002 the Coca-Cola Company used 3.12 liters of water to produce every liter of poduct. The company, which has captured the taste buds of drinkers worldwide used .57 megajoules of energy and averaged 12.54 grams of waste per liter of product. It’s no wonder that the Coke Kingdom has been less than popular among environmental groups.

With concern for the environment rising among pop culture, however, Coke’s pop has begun to lose its fizz with more than just special interest groups.

Since 2002 the Coke Kingdom has made some changes in order to become more sustainable. In India, the company has worked to offset their water usage by establishing local rainwater harvesting facilities. Over the last two years, Coke has installed 320 rainwater harvesting structures across 17 states in India.

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I can’t believe I’m writing an article about Justin Timberlake. On Saturday, the 27-year-old actor and singer opened the first LEED Platinum certified golf course in the United States.

The multi-talented Timberlake’s latest business venture, Mirimichi Lakes golf club in North Shelby County, Tennessee, opened Saturday after Timberlake christened the course with a 291-yard drive crushed down the middle of the fairway, after which, the singer and actor grinned and said, “nobody’s happier about this course.” Read the rest of this entry »

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson called on minorities to be a bigger part of environmentalism in a speech to the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council on Tuesday. Sierra Club showed their appreciation for the EPA’s remarks and highlighted their own commitment to diversity on the same day. “We applaud Administrator Jackson’s call for the environmental movement to better reflect the diversity of all Americans, and we are proud that Sierra Club has such successful diversity programs already established,” said Sierra Club President Allison Chin.

Sierra Club went on to highlight its own diversity related programs, also pointing out that Allison Chin is the first Asian-American president of the organization.
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In 2003 “Nature” published a study showing that 90% of the large fish living in our oceans were fished out of existence. A group of scientists recently predicted, major seafood stocks will collapse by 2048. This is a staggering number, considering the technology and amount of people needed to cause overfishing is a relatively new phenomenon, starting really only in the late 19th century.

Most governments have shrugged these claims off, and continued their fishing practices. Alaska has shown to be the only sovereign state willing to self-police their fishing practices. Sarah Palin jokes aside… Threatened with the loss of one of its top industries, Alaska began limiting the number of fishing vessels, restricting the size of their catches; and perhaps most importantly, giving incentives to fishermen. Alaska currently gives fishermen a stake in the long-term viability of salmon and other fish.

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How long did the idea that green issues and the economy were in competition proliferate the US? For decades. Now, top-of-the-world entrepeneurs, the President of the United States, leading representatives in Congress, and research institutes are saying that green jobs and a green economy are the way to a healthy economy. Recent statements by Barbara Boxer (Senator from California), John Doerr (venture capitalist who helped to launch Google and Amazon.com), Obama, and a report by the Pew Charitable Trusts state that the only way to lead the world in the 21st century is to lead in green energy and green jobs.

In reference to Thomas Friedman’s book, Hot, Flat and Crowded, Boxer said yesterday: “The nation that aggressively addresses the issue of climate change will be the nation that will thrive, the nation that will lead, and the nation that will prosper.”
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