pElAgUS' 

Baby, You Can Buy a (More Efficient) Car

Really bad Beatles allusion aside, there are more reasons than ever these days to focus on fuel efficiency when shopping for your next car. If gas prices continue moving in the upward direction we've seen over the past few years, "summer driving season" may become a contradiction in terms! By making fuel efficiency a priority when you shop for your next vehicle, you can take a bit of the sting out of gas prices, and also green up your life.

Hybrid-electric vehicles have gotten incredibly popular for their high efficiency (upwards of 60-70 miles/gallon), but they still may be a bit pricey for some buyers (even with the tax credits offered by the federal government). The Green Life Guide points out a variety of more efficient vehicles that are available on today's market, including:

• High-mileage vehicles - conventional cars that achieve higher-than-average fuel economy. These include the Honda Fit, the Toyota Corolla, and the Hyundai Accent (all manual transmissions, though).
• Flex-fuel vehicles - cars that can run on multiple fuels such as unleaded gasoline, gasoline-ethanol blends (or gasohol), and natural gas. The cars themselves are fairly widely available; the fuels, unfortunately, aren't.
• Electric cars - these require no liquid fuel, as they run on rechargeable batteries. Unfortunately, they're also not widely available on the market.

Of course, there's another option for some - do you need to own a car? Could you take advantage of carride-sharing services, or public transportation, or your bike, or your feet, and avoid the costs of insurance, gas and maintenance completely? Not owning a car is always an option... and

Your Action for Today:
Look at Greener Car Options

You may not be in the market for a car right now, but it's certainly not too soon to start looking at your greener vehicle options. Some sources you might want to check:

• The Green Life Guide's "Automobiles" section
• The EPA's list of "Highest and Lowest Overall Fuel Economy" vehicles
• FuelEconomy.gov's tool for comparing hybrid and non-hybrid cars and models

Find anything interesting? Write it down in your Green Journal.

Tomorrow: Shopping for (and Disposing of) Electronics

Sincerely,

The GO Team
GreenOptions.com

Mow Green for Mo' Green

We're down to the last third of 30 Days to a Greener You, and from here on out, we'll take a look at various steps you can consider to move beyond the "low-hanging fruit." Keep in mind that greening your life doesn't have to involve big investments; at the same time, we all do make larger purchases, so keeping our environmental footprint in mind when shopping for bigger-ticket items is a natural next step in greening our lives.

If you're a homeowner or house renter, keeping the yard and garden healthy takes a lot of work, and various kinds of tools, particularly power tools, help ease that work load. If you're cranking up a gas-powered lawn mower, leaf blower or rotor tiller, though, all of your efforts to green your gardening may be offset by the pollution that tool is belching into the atmosphere: according to a 2001 Swedish study, small engines such as lawnmowers may contribute up to 5% of the US' total air pollution.

Fortunately, greener alternatives are available. Reel mowers (you know: the "old-fashioned" lawn mowers) use only human power, and are a perfect tool for a small yard. If you still need some power for a bigger yard, consider an electric mower (many of which are now cordless), or even a solar-powered mower (they're still a bit pricey, but what a way to impress the neighbors - and avoid any emissions).

Your Action for Today:
Take a Look at Some New Tools

While you may not currently be in the market for a lawn mower, it's good know what's available. Take a look, and record what you think might work for you (and why) in your Green Journal.

• Reel mowers are likely the greenest alternative - no fuel or batteries.
• Solar-powered mowers have batteries that are charged by sunlight - Appropedia tells you how to build your own!
• Electric mowers require plugging in at some point, so while they don't emit pollutants themselves, they're drawing electricity that may come from a dirty power source. Overall, they're slightly better than a gas-powered model.

And a tip for organic lawn care: leave the clippings on the lawn - they don't contribute to thatch growth, and do provide organic material for your lawn.

Tomorrow: Time for an audit

Sincerely,

The GO Team
GreenOptions.com

Clothes Make the (Green) Man (or Woman)

Look at what you're wearing... go ahead, look. What you see, whether made from cotton, wool, silk, rayon or leather, likely has a pretty hefty environmental impact. A recent report (in PDF) from the UK's Cambridge University notes that the clothes we wear represent large expenditures of energy, toxic chemicals (esp. fertilizers), and water (both in production and cleaning), and also create huge amounts of waste because of changing fashion trends. On average, every American throws away 68 pounds of fabric per year - that's over 10 million tons of waste annually.

Fortunately, greening your wardrobe doesn't have to mean buying all-new clothes (clearly, that's part of the problem). Rather, it involves choosing carefully when you do buy, and then lowering the use of energy and toxic chemicals when caring for them.

Your Action for Today:
Take a Look at Your Wardrobe

Take a look at the clothes you own, and think about your normal buying patterns. Answer the following questions in your Green Journal.

1. Are you a "dedicated follower of fashion?"
   We all like to dress well, but constantly buying "the latest thing" contributes to an awful lot of waste. More timeless styles don't have to cleaned out every season.
2. Do you buy all of your clothes new?
   Used and vintage clothes can be inexpensive, and carry a much lighter footprint - think of them as "offsetting" the purchase of a new item. Clothing swaps are becoming popular social gatherings, and allow you to change up your wardrobe frequently without as heavy an environmental footprint. On the flip side, when you're done with an item of clothing that's still wearable, donate it - don't throw it away.
3. Do many of your clothes need dry cleaning?
   Traditional dry cleaning uses perchloroethylene (or "perc"), a highly toxic chemical. While some efforts are underway to change this, and some cleaners are adopting more eco-friendly practices, avoiding dry-clean only clothes prevents this dilemma altogether.
4. Do you ever use a clothesline?
   Drying is the most energy-intensive part of laundering clothes. Cut your electric or gas bill (as well as your carbon emissions) by using a clothesline. If you use a liquid fabric softener, dry the clothes for five minutes to activate the softener, and then remove them and put 'em on the line.
5. Are most of your clothes made from cotton?
   Traditionally-grown cotton needs lots of water and fertilizer; add the drying time and ironing needed to keep it looking good, and you've got a fabric with a massive environmental footprint. Organically-grown cotton is better, and much more available than in the past - Wal-Mart, in fact, is the biggest seller of the fabric. Synthetics that require little drying time and ironing are even greener. Fabrics like hemp and bamboo, while not yet as widely available as cotton, are catching on with designers... and they're much more eco-friendly.

Want a look at some of the most affordable green apparel designers? Check out the Green Life Guide, and our weekly series "Green Style Spotlight."

Tomorrow: Green Food by Subscription

Sincerely,

The GO Team
GreenOptions.com

Up, up and away!

For the typical American, that’s exactly what’s going on with their energy bill, especially when the weather is very warm or very cold. According to ENERGY STAR, the US government’s energy efficiency program for consumers and businesses, the average American spends $1,900 on energy, much of which is consumed for heating and cooling. With the prices of natural gas and heating oil on the rise, that figure will certainly go up.

Additionally, every American generates about 2,700 pounds of carbon emissions per year in operating their home, mostly through using electricity to power the range of appliances. Taking control of your energy use will not only lower your utility bills; it will also help decrease your impact on the planet.

Take Charge of Your Energy Consumption!

Fortunately, you don’t have to be a professional contractor to make your home more energy efficient. You can take simple steps over the next few days to reduce your energy use, lower your electric bill, and put a cap on your carbon emissions.

Your Action for Today:
Learn about Saving Energy at Home

ENERGY STAR@Home is an interactive tool that will help you identify the places and devices using energy in your house or apartment, and give you tips on how to reduce the amount of energy needed to keep living well. Visit the site, spend some time looking at the facts and suggestions it presents, and then commit to making three changes around your house in the next two days. These changes don’t have to be large or expensive: changing several light bulbs, for instance, can have an impact on your costs and your environmental footprint.

Record your specific commitments and actions in your Green Journal. While you’re there, take a look at what other 30 Days participants are saying. Give them your feedback and support!

Tomorrow: Start looking at the impact of your transportation choices.

Sincerely,

The GO Team
GreenOptions.com

First You Buy It, Then You Throw it Away

Doesn't make a lot of sense, does it? Yet, we do this every day: we buy paper towels, napkins, plates, cups and tissues. We buy plastic cups and utensils. We use them once, and then we throw them in the trash. We also buy products in perfectly usable containers that we throw away when the product's gone. Is this convenient? Certainly! Is it green? Hardly.

Reusable Rocks! Recyclable Rolls!

We discussed recycling in Day 2, but reusable items are even greener: beyond the materials and energy used to create them, items we reuse only require a little soap and hot water to return to their useful state. We wash clothes and dishes regularly, so the inconvenience involved isn't life-changing; rather, it usually involves a few extra items in a dishwasher or laundry load.

Still, sometimes we will want the convenience of disposables, especially if we're going to be away from home, or are casually entertaining a large group of people. Occasionally choosing disposable items shouldn't send us into paroxysms of green guilt; it should, however, make us look at the products we do buy, and ensure that we're purchasing the greenest items available. Many paper items, for instance, come in varieties with post-consumer recycled content - that's a good place to start. Other convenience items are compostable - throw them into the backyard compost pile to turn them into soil nutrients for your lawn or garden (Note: some materials will require industrial-grade composting - check your local phone or business directory for services in your area).

Finally, many of the products you buy come in reusable containers. So, why not reuse them! You may find that you can buy refill quantities of soaps, cleaners and other household necessities.

Your Action for Today:
Take a Look at Your Disposables

Take a look around your home, and notice the things you buy regularly that get thrown away. Paper towels? Plastic utensils? Liquid soap? Identify three items you regularly throw away that have non-disposable or greener (recycled, compostable) alternatives. Commit to buying those items in your Green Living journal. A good place to start looking: Green Options' "Tip(s) O' the Day".

Tomorrow: Reduce your food miles: eat local!

Sincerely,

The GO Team
GreenOptions.com