As always, there has been a lot of crazy environmental (or anti-environmental) and climate change political news over the past week. Here’s a weekly link drop of what I thought were the top stories…
Crazy Environmental & Global Warming Politics News {Weekly Round-Up} Read More 👉
Ever wonder how much energy is used by your different major appliances or electronics? Or how much energy all such appliances and electronics in the U.S. use? Here’s some info on that for four big ones: TVs, computers, clothes dryers, and refrigerators.
Before checking it out, try to guess how much each of these use in an hour — see how close you come!
Energy Use per Hour {Infographic} Read More 👉
I covered the rebound effect here on Planetsave a couple times a couple months ago. The common argument of rebound effect enthusiasts is that energy efficiency actually increases energy use. Sound hard to believe? Yeah, that’s because it’s not true. Anyway, NRDC’s David Goldstein, Sierra Martinez, and Robin Roy delved into this topic in more depth recently and I’m reposting a great article by David Goldstein on their new report below.
Keeping cool during the summer is not as difficult as it seems. With simple changes in the way you cool yourself, you can save an enormous amount of money on air conditioning and save it for unusually hot and humid weather.
Green and Cheap Summer Cooling Tips Read More 👉
Earth Hour will be this Saturday, March 26th at 8:30 (local time). At this time everyone will switch off their lights around the globe for Earth Hour and people will commit to actions that go beyond the hour. So grab some candles and help in the biggest grass roots movement on the planet.
Earth Hour 2011: Join The World, Turn Off Your Lights! Read More 👉
The fast-growing poplar tree is starting to build up its cred as an all-around resource for the sustainable future, and its latest contribution is in the area of new cool roof technology. A research team in China has developed a waterproof coating that mimics the leaf’s highly efficient reflective properties, which could lead to a new generation of roof-cooling materials.
Poplar Leaves Inspiration & Model for Energy-Efficient Cool Roof Technology Read More 👉
Here’s some awesome news. SPAM gets a huge shot in the chest and the world saves a ton of electricity in the process.
Energy efficiency policies can create a ton of highly-needed green jobs in the United States.
State & National Energy Efficiency Policies Will Create More Jobs Read More 👉
One of the most energy-efficient ways to stay warm on those cool nights is to take a hottie to bed. A hottie uses less energy than an electric blanket or a space heater, and a hottie can help you keep your body hot and your thermostat down.
Take a Hottie to Bed — Stay Warm & Save Energy Read More 👉
As the price of electric goes up more people are looking for ways to reduce their power bill. One of the largest consumers of electricity in our households is the heating and cooling system.
Cut Your Electric Bill with a Programmable Thermostat this Summer Read More 👉
Two months ago, I wrote a post on a survey of energy professionals and what energy policies they recommended. The results of the survey, which was conducted by Bloomberg Businessweek Research Services and funded by ABB, are worth coming back to in light of the horrible nuclear catastrophe occurring in Japan right now.
It won’t save the world, but reducing your consumption of “standby power” in your electronic devices will save both money and resources.
Will Reducing Standby Power Save the World? Read More 👉
Whether you want to do your bit for the planet or you just want to cut down your electricity bill, ensuring your house isn’t leaking all that warmth outside is going to be good for your pocket, and good for the environment.
Cheap and Easy Ways to Make Your Home More Energy Efficient – Leaking Read More 👉
Following up on my post about the rebound effect & Jevons paradox, someone commenting on that post added a lot of useful information/ideas.
Delving Further into the Rebound Effect Read More 👉
Whether you want to do your bit for the planet or you just want to cut down your electricity bill, changing to compact fluorescent bulbs is not only sensible, but damned easy as well.
Cheap and Easy Ways to Make Your Home More Energy Efficient – Bulbs Read More 👉
While people may increase usage some after switching to a more energy-efficient technology, research has shown pretty conclusively that they don’t do so nearly enough to considerably offset the energy savings. Thus, they do end up decreasing energy usage, not increasing it, in the end.
Is Energy Efficiency Really Good? (A Look at the "Rebound Effect") Read More 👉
You can find energy-efficiency rebates and other incentives easily, in seconds, on a new website from Silicon-Valley-startup Ennovations. Yes, that means, no Googling for hours (or days) trying to find what options you have in your area. Looking to retrofit your home a bit and make it more energy-efficient? Now you can save the most
Oil. It’s the single-most important resource for transportation in the world, but its use goes well beyond that. As a finite resource that can be attributed to much of the damage that has been done to the environment by man in the last century, many in the world are waking up to the fact that
Imagine A World Without Oil [INFOGRAPHIC] Read More 👉
This sounds absolutely wonderful. A green underground data center. Building its facilities underground, Helsinki is cutting its carbon emissions by huge amounts. Instead of using electricity to cool the computers in the data center, it is using sea water. Which is also used to provide heat to the city. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXNyEiw28D0 Below Helsinki, Finland lies the
Helsinki:The Worlds Greenest Underground Data Center Read More 👉
Here’s another interesting infographic. Enjoy. Credit: WellHome Related Infographics: The Internet and the Environment Little Things Can Add Up: Energy Savings of “Low-Hanging Fruit” Understanding Cap & Trade
Energy Myths, Misconceptions, and Lies [INFOGRAPHIC] Read More 👉
Think you can’t green your home? Even the 1931 Empire State Building can and has done so. And while it cost a ton for the Empire Building to go green, the retrofit is expected to save $4 million a year and will pay for itself in 3 years. For more, watch the video below: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZw4bQuq9gI
Empire State Building Gets a Greening [VIDEO] Read More 👉
I was recently approached by someone from WellHome about featuring some environmentally-related infographics on Planetsave. I love infographics, as most people do, so I said I was happy to do so. Here’s the first one, on the tremendous energy savings (which translate into financial savings) possible if more people pick the “low-hanging” fruit and do
Little Things Can Add Up: Energy Savings of “Low-Hanging Fruit” [INFOGRAPHIC] Read More 👉
Originally published on WWF. Beijing – Economic development plans in China need to further promote a low carbon economy, says a new WWF report assessing the climate and energy impacts of China’s stimulus package. In November 2008, the State Council (China’s highest decision-making body) decided to invest four trillion RMB – approximately 586 billion US
More Energy Conservation Stimulus Needed in China Read More 👉
If you ask environmentally-minded people or typical liberals/progressives about what sort of energy we should be using and what energy technologies our governments should be promoting, you are sure to see a lot of support for renewable energy like solar and wind, as well as the components that make those options more viable, like large
The Future of Energy & How to Achieve It Read More 👉
I have to admit, I hadn’t heard of “Green Cribs” before, but ran across the “world premiere” of Green Cribs: Holiday Edition recently and while I think it could have gone a lot further, it is a useful enough and funny enough video that I thought it was worth a share on here. As the
Santa Comes & Greens Your Crib (Green Cribs: Holiday Edition) Read More 👉
Every now and then we get to cover a story that is just simply awesome. For me, as a kid, whenever I wasn’t watching Thomas the Tank Engine, I would desperately be trying to watch TUGS. I like the idea of tug boats. They’re small but powerful. And now, a new study by the University
Hybrid Tug Boat Cuts Emissions Read More 👉
Going Green Tip #7 comes from Reggie Norris, Executive Vice President & General Counsel for Clean Energy Experts. Clean Energy Experts is a firm dedicated to accelerating the adoption of cost-effective energy saving products and technologies through education and awareness. A home energy audit is a comprehensive review of the exterior and interior of a
Get a Home Energy Audit (Going Green Tip #8) Read More 👉
Our most recent Going Green Tips post was on “cutting the coal.” One of the best ways to cut the coal is to cut back on your electricity usage, and one of the best ways to do that, especially if you live in the South, is to cut the air conditioning. Author Chip Haynes, who
Cut the Air Conditioning (Going Green Tip #7) Read More 👉
The Green Business Blog Carnival comes to Planetsave! Following up on Green Business Blog Carnival post #13, an excellent summary of green business news on Sustainablog (one of the Carnival’s co-founding sites), here’s the next edition of the Carnival for your surfing, reading, or eating pleasure (ok, nothing to eat here, sorry). The big business
Green Business Blog Carnival #14 Read More 👉
A new survey of Americans shows that many Americans believe saving energy can be done using relatively useless methods. The survey, which asked Americans in 34 states what they believed was the most effective way to save energy, found that many Americans have a very limited understanding of what they can do and what their
Americans are Clueless on Saving Energy Read More 👉
It’s amazing to see how much energy the average American uses annually. Visual Economics breaks it down for us.
Ever Wonder How the Average American Uses Energy? Read More 👉
The latest Earth Policy Institute news release by Lester R. Brown discusses the issue of appliance efficiency, with information on this issue from countries around the world. Lester R. Brown There are enormous opportunities to use energy more efficiently. Investing in energy efficiency is often far cheaper than expanding the energy supply to meet growing
Raising Appliance Efficiency: A Big Win for Consumers and the Climate Read More 👉
Its official name is Strata SE1, and it’s the first “skyscraper” to integrate wind turbines into its original facade. The 42 story, energy-producing building is hopefully representative of a not-too-distant-future trend in large-scale, urban structure design and development.
The Strata: World's First Skyscraper with Built-in Wind Turbines Read More 👉
In Earth Policy Institute‘s latest release, Lester R. Brown discusses changing our light bulbs. (Headings and bold text added.) Lester R. Brown [social_buttons] The lighting sector is on the edge of a spectacular revolution, a shift from the century-old, inefficient incandescent light bulb to far more efficient technologies. Perhaps the quickest, most profitable way to
How Many Energy-Efficient Light Bulbs Does It Take to Close 705 Coal Plants? Read More 👉
[social_buttons] For the first time in 10 years Americans believe that increasing energy supplies should be prioritized over the environmental conservation. For the first time since the question was first asked by Gallup in 2001 – at which point 52% of respondents favoured environment over energy production – Americans are favouring themselves in the form
Americans Want Focus on Energy over Environment Read More 👉
[social_buttons] We know that it is actually a positive thing these days to care about the environment. It is not a fringe, weirdo concern. For this reason, we now even have the problem of corporate greenwashing — companies (or politicians, people, etc.) trying to convince people they are green when they are not. As we
[social_buttons] 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
(Free) Green iPhone Apps Reviewed. Part 1: Free Apps Read More 👉
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.
Coke Extends Commitment to Reduce Carbon Footprint Read More 👉
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
Green Jobs and Clean Energy: #1 Way to Lead the World Read More 👉
Oh! The weather outside [can be] frightful, which is why Stephen Chu of the U.S. Department of Energy announced Monday that 7 states (Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, and New Hampshire) will be the recipients of more than $288 million dollars, which will be put toward weatherization projects.
Weatherizing the Nation: States to Receive Recovery Act Funding Read More 👉
Spring your clock ahead one hour this Sunday! Benjamin Franklin once noted that by waking up earlier to make use of the morning sunlight, Parisians saved on candles. We see from this comment that the argument for Daylight Savings as it relates to energy consumption–most notably energy from lighting the home–began long ago.
Daylight Savings = Energy Savings? Read More 👉
By now you are aware that there are many ways to prevent global warming, but I would like to focus on things that you can do to help stop global warming on your way to work. First, it is useful to know exactly how Americans are commuting to work to realize just how much improvement
Learn How to Prevent Global Warming On Your Way To Work Read More 👉
With over 11 million players across the globe, a Stanford professor thinks World of Warcraft creators Blizzard Entertainment could harness the power for good by rewarding home energy and water conservation within the game. [social_buttons] Professor Byron Reeves had previously suggested that someone create a MMOG (Massively Multiplayer Online Game) that incorporates smart meter technology,
Could World of Warcraft be Used to Promote Conservation? Read More 👉
This holiday season, you can save a cloud forest, adopt a tiger and remove 1 ton of CO2. Although none of it will fit in a box or under the tree, Changing the Present makes all these things possible by giving consumers access to a variety of charitable initiatives so that they can give the gift of hope,
[social_buttons]A new report suggests that with an aggressive replacement program, compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) could drastically cut global lighting demand and begin reducing greenhouse gas emissions immediately. Fresh off the recent announcement that the European Union had banned incandescent light bulbs, the report, prepared by the Worldwatch Institute, suggests that replacing incandescents with compact
New Report Suggests CFLs Could Cut Global Lighting Energy Demand by 40% Read More 👉
FedEx’s New Solar System Is Enough To Power 370 homes FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp, broke ground on its first – and largest – international solar energy facility on Monday. The facility near the Cologne, Germany airport will house over 16,000 square meters of solar panels. The new solar panel installation is slated
FedEx Ups Its Solar Power Production To Almost Double Read More 👉
If you’re excited by the possibility of cutting back on your home energy consumption and saving a few precious dollars on your energy bill, let me introduce you to the idea of hot box cooking. A simple hot box provides a wise solution to preparing meals without the excessive use of your stovetop or oven.
Take Action to Save Energy: Cooking with an Insulated Hot Box Read More 👉