Got this in my inbox the other day. I've always know that slowing down saves gas but I like thier factual representation of it.
Live Sustainably
Dave
Memorial Day Weekend is coming and -- in spite of gas prices -- more Americans than ever are planning to getaway by car. But that doesn't have to cost as much as you think.
There are lots of ways to save gas (checked your tires lately?) but the easiest and most effective way is to slow down (just a little bit). When you add up the savings, it's like getting paid to relax.
So before you get behind the wheel for the upcoming holiday, show us what you're made of. Pledge to Drive 55 (or whatever the speed limit is on the roads you're traveling) for Memorial Day Weekend. Poor Sammy Hagar can't do it, but we bet you can. After all, even jets are slowing down to save money!
The Union of Concerned Scientists tells us that dropping from 70 to 60 mph improves fuel efficiency by an average of 17.2 percent. Dropping from 75 to 55 improves fuel efficiency by 30.6 percent!
Put another way, in a family sedan, every 10 mph you drive over 60 is like paying 54 cents per gallon more for gas you bought at $3.25 a gallon. That extra cost is even higher for big SUVs and other less-efficient vehicles.
And the time you save by going easy on the accelerator may not add up to as much as you thought. On a 300-mile trip, driving 65 instead of 70 mph would cost you only 20 minutes -- but save money and spew less carbon.
Have a great Memorial Day,
Greg Haegele
Director of Conservation
Monday, May 19, 2008
Gas Saving Tip From The Sierra Club
Saudi Arabias US Backed Nuclear Program
I guess this is really for anyone out there who still wonders whether we are running out of oil. Saudi Arabia has now rejected Bush's request to amp up oil production 3 times (well on the levels that he has requested anyway) and now it looks like the US is going to help the Saudis build a nuclear power program.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
A Little CSA Primer For Ya
This is an email that my good friend Chris sent out a few weeks back. Chris is an amazing guy who truly works to make the world a better place and I really admire all he does (but have no idea how he does as much as he does). Of course it resonates a bit more specifically if you live near him in Minnesota but the concepts are universal.
Dave
Two thoughts on simple steps for saving the world this week:
If you are shareholder of a community supported agriculture (CSA) farm, call them, see if they need help recruiting members, and throw a house party to build a member-base. (If you're not a member, find a good one and join!).
An audacious goal if there aren't CSAs or co-ops in your area: Start them. It can be done. Anna and I were charter members of one of our two food co-ops for some time before the actual ground-breaking.
Last night we threw a party for Mike Noreen, owner of Burning River CSA. We are a neighborhood drop-site for his farm, and have helped him build support for two (perhaps three) other drop-sites in town (and close to one another to help him reduce his travel expenses).
For those attending from our immediate neighborhood, the other purpose was to build more local support for our neighborhood food coop. Mike also has a drop-site there.
Anna cooked a variety of appetizers - all featuring greens (kale, chard, cabbage). So many of our friends indicated that they simply didn't know what to do with so many greens.
In any event, we're on the journey to support Mike as he builds up to 150 members (his goal for this year). We think we will definitely help him hit 15 members this year, possibly 20+ from these drop-sites. (Seven folks actually broke out their checkbooks and signed up during the party. We have commitments from several more, many of whom couldn't attend last night, some of whom came but sans checkbook.)
All this by way of saying we had a great time, built community, geared folks up to take more control over their food lives, helped drive support for sustainable local agriculture, and will help everyone save money, as Mike's farm shares yielded an immense amount of food for the cost through the course of last summer.
Two great ways to learn more about CSAs: Read the fabulous book, "This Common Ground - Seasons on an Organic Farm," by Scott Chaskey. Watch the documentary, "The Real Dirt on Farmer John."
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Trash Talking
This is an interesting articles about the Seven (New) Garbage Wonders of the World. As you may recall, a bit back they voted to decide on the new seven wonders of the world, a sort of best of the best if you will. This article lists the 7 worst of the worst, from The North Pacific Gyre to the Electronic Waste Dumps in Guyiu China, they are testament to the problems of a disposable society and are somehitng that each of us needs to confront.
Live Sustainably
Dave
Take Back The Filter Campaign
This is a really great campaign that Beth over at Fake Plastic Fish spearheaded. Clorox, who now owns Brita North America, does not accept filters back for recycling and re-use while their European counterparts have been doing this since 1992. It makes no sense and in an environment where people should be heading towards filtered water and away from bottled, we need to keep the pressure on companies to be responsible for the waste involved in the filters. For more info about the campaign check here and makes sure to sign the petition as well!
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Waste Not
A great article from The Atlantic about the wasted energy in the business sector and how the technology to recapture it is not only old, but tried and true.
"A 2005 report by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that U.S. industry could profitably recycle enough waste energy—including steam, furnace gases, heat, and pressure—to reduce the country’s fossil-fuel use (and greenhouse-gas emissions) by nearly a fifth. A 2007 study by the Mc Kinsey Global Institute sounded largely the same note; it concluded that domestic industry could use 19 percent less energy than it does today—and make more money as a result."
A lot of people I talk to are always on the "technology will save us" train. Like this article illustrates, technology may already be there, but if we don't recognize and adopt it, it won't do much to change things.
Live Sustainably
Dave
Monday, May 12, 2008
Tired of mowing....plant Wheat!
Here's a pretty cool little story that my friend Marc sent me. It was on NPR's Day to Day a month or so back and really speaks to what i think makes this country great. A bakery in Northampton Ma, tired of volatile wheat prices and the problems that lawns create (think water shortage and fossil fuel use, not to mention pollution) asked some of the local townsfolk to tear up a ten by ten patch of lawn and plant wheat.
