In this day and age, finding ways to lower our environmental impact are front and center not only in the minds of individuals around the world, but at the state, federal and international level as well. In fact, actions are being taken across the globe to combat the impact we are having on the environment by improving sustainability worldwide.

One of the first steps designers, builders, home owners and others can take is to get educated on, and learn more about the sustainability options that are available. Sustainability comes in many shapes and sizes, so we can all take measures to improve our quality of life, make us less dependent on the finite resources the Earth offers, and make us more independent and self-reliant.

In order to provide a little inspiration for those who are interested in living a little more sustainably, here are some examples of creative sustainable homes:

1 – This first one is a zero-energy home designed by LivingHome and priced with a single couple or small family in mind. It is officially known as the C6, and a portion of the proceeds from each sale go towards supporting “Make It Right“. The best thing about it? The fact that it is easy to build and is “the first Energy Star certified production home with a LEED Platinum level environmental program” makes this home quite a winner. Here is a video of the installation of the Home Depot LivingHome C6 in Long Beach:

2 – This next sustainable living project is titled “Containers of Hope” and involves the use of 40-foot shipping containers to build affordable and sustainable homes. One of the many features that makes these homes sustainable is the incorporation of enough windows to allow the home to have a refreshing level of natural light and a connection to the great outdoors.

Image from benjamingarciasaxe.com

3 – This is one of my favorite ones. It comes from urban designer and architect, Mitchell Joachim, and it involves growing your own home rather than hiring a traditional contractor to build it. Just take a look at the video and you’ll see what I mean:

4 – This next one comes from Habitats Hawaii and is a cool example of sustainability in a small, comfortable and mobile fashion. With an outdoor shower and composting toilet, these types of homes may not suit everyone, but you do have to admit they are pretty cute.

5 – The “Freedom House” comes courtesy of a JMU Alum. This house is a much larger house than the previous one, however due to some key innovations it has been designed and build to be extremely efficient and free from the electric and water grids. Maybe add a living wall out back and you would be good to go.

6 – This next home was a finalist in the Queensland Premiers Climate Smart Awards of 2011. It comes from Wagtail Homes and is built to maximize solar energy, natural ventilation, energy efficiency, material selection and more. Each home is tailor-made to owner specifications and strives to be stylish, unique and most importantly, sustainable.

7 – Now, I know this is more than one home, but I read this article the other day and thought these green portable homes were just too cute to pass up. To me these seem to be designed with the traveling single or nature-loving couple in mind. Even someone who simply wanted a little change of pace could probably find at least one of these to fit their needs.

8 – This last one is from Silicon Valley. I see it as kind of a hybrid home. It has been touted as “The World’s Greenest Home” with all manner of sustainable features including solar panels, rainwater collection, natural and recycled building materials and much more. In addition, it has been fitted with a hi-tech control system geared to keep the entire house functioning smoothly and energy-efficiently.

Most people think about solar panels, rainwater harvesting, wind energy, urban gardening and more when they think about how to become more sustainable. There are, however, so many different ways homes can be made more sustainable. Homes can be built using energy-efficient bricks made from industrial waste, from home-grown mushroom bricks, from recycled materials, from natural materials like seaweed, with living walls and more.

When it comes to sustainability, the possibilities are endless. I personally look forward to seeing Damien Hirst’s plans to build 500 sustainable homes in Devon come to fruition. When it all comes down to it, the key is making the decision to take that first step away from dependency and closer to independence and sustainability.

When it comes to living environments everyone seems to be looking for something different. Some need room for a large family. Others want to be close to work. Some want yards or swimming pools. Others are more concerned with living in a greener home and cutting down their environmental impact on the world around them.

Image by destination arctic circle

Regardless of what you are looking for in a home, here are 5 small, cool and green living environments you might enjoy checking out:

1) First there is the Earthbag home. Yes, you read that correctly. It’s the “Crazy Green Earthbag Home”. Designed by Lisa Majors and being built by Lisa and her husband Paul, the Earthbag home is green upon green. They are building it using tires, cans, bottles and other recycled materials. It does not have a wood frame, there is no central air, there is a water collection system built in to the design, the home will essentially heat itself…I could go on and on.

But take a look at this little video the Majors put together to give you an idea about how green their Earthbag home will be:

2) Next there is this cute little “shotgun shack” for a family of three. It’s 320 square feet, cost under $20,000 to build and it’s fully paid off. Yes, mortgage free! They had the home built to their needs, so it has what they wanted and needed to function as a family. If there is one thing anyone can take away from this particular home it’s that a key to green living is not having to have a lot of “stuff”.

3) Then there is this passive solar straw bale home built by a single mom about 10 years ago for around $50,000. It’s a green home and is extremely energy-efficient. Needless to say, a lot of work went into this home. Take a look at the process she went through and the terrific end results:

4) Next we have another example of a straw home. Anyone else getting a “Three Little Pigs” flashback here? But don’t worry, this particular home is as sturdy as they come and it’s an eco-friendly home to boot. It’s been painted with non-toxic paint, has solar panels on the roof to collect natural energy and much of the structure itself was put together using recycled or reclaimed materials.

5) Last, but not least by any stretch of the imagination is this Lego-style apartment. Talk about making the most of a small space. This apartment may seem scarce at first, but just wait until you see how this home transforms:

Of course there are many more examples of these types of homes out there, but the ones I mentioned above are just a few I thought were worth reviewing. Which is your favorite? Do you think you could live in one of these small, cool and green homes? Who says you have to live big to live happy?

Earlier this year I shared the good news that Richardsville Elementary School was working towards becoming the first net-zero energy public school. As you can imagine, that is quite an undertaking and will be quite an accomplishment when it opens. Well…..as good news would have it, construction is nearing completion and Richardsville Elementary is on target to be open by the end of August!

As principal architect on this project, Kenny Stanfield AIA and LEED® AP (Accredited Professional), described it:

“For our team, the goal of achieving a net zero school was simply the next step – to go from a proven, design operating facility (Plano) that requires only 28 kBtus of energy per square foot annually to a facility that needs 18 kBtus to operate.”

The design for this net zero energy school was even awarded the Green Design Concept Winner 2008 Green Education Design Showcase.

Now, if you are unfamiliar with the term “net zero building”, it basically describes a structure that generates as much (or more) energy than it needs to operate. It does that through renewable energy resources such as wind and solar.  This doesn’t mean it isn’t connected to the electric grid, but it does mean the building itself generates more energy than it consumes.

Besides the fact that it completely generates its own energy, Richardsville Elementary is a relatively “typical” school in that it has classrooms, a gymnasium, cafeteria, library, etc. Another difference though is that it was designed and built as a tool to educate students on the value of energy conservation, solar, water conservation, recycling and more.

Let’s take a look at some of the features that take Richardsville Elementary up to the next level in educational building standards.

First there is the design layout of the school property:

As you can see, it includes a full array of solar panels on the main building as well as the covered drop-off/pick-up area in the parking lot. Renewable materials were used during construction whenever possible and ICFs (Insulated Concrete Forms) were used as a green construction measure to provide smart insulation. Additionally the building was laid out in a north-south site orientation in order to increase solar output and naturally conserve energy.

As you can tell from this picture of the front entrance, the building has a clerestory spine running down the middle of the building. This was designed to allow for maximum natural daylight and minimal lighting costs. The windows themselves are made from Nanogel® filled sandwich panel glass to provide a nice aesthetic for the building without lowering energy efficiency.

This photo shows the rear of the school building, with the media center on the second floor and a covered outdoor classroom below it. The stair towers to the left and right are encased by windows and decorated by sunshades at each level to minimize heat/glare.

The south facing facade (classrooms) clearly shows the use of daylighting as well as the incorporation of sunshade devices in the design and practicality of the building.

The new gymnasium floor was made mostly from bamboo with the dark hardwood sections salvaged from the old gymnasium. Acoustical wall panels were added to give the room optimum acoustics. You can also see a bit of the clerestory daylighting in place here as well.

With regard to the kitchen area, Energy Star rated equipment was used and combi-ovens were chosen as a healthier option to traditional fryers and skillets. So not only will the cafeteria be energy-efficient, it will be able to provide healthier food choices to the students as well.

In terms of overall construction costs, the building and site itself ran about $12,160,000 with the solar/Photovoltaic costs adding an additional $2,753,124. Bringing the total construction costs to a little under $15 million. As the building is 77,466 sq ft, that breaks down to approximately $193 per sq ft.

One note though, as this is a net zero building, the project was able to get a federal bloc grant through the Kentucky Dept of Energy for 50% of the solar costs.

If you are interested, you can follow some of the final construction via the Warren County Public Schools’ webcam.

A special thank you to Kenny Stanfield from Sherman-Carter-Barnhart for providing me with photos and additional information on this great accomplishment of the first net-zero energy school – Richardsville Elementary in Warren County, Kentucky. For more information on Sherman-Carter-Barnhart’s other green projects, you can check out their website.

Congratulations to all involved! Building the first net zero energy school is definitely a historical moment and hopefully there will be many more schools following suit. I can’t wait to hear more about Richardsville Elementary once school is in session.

Image via eric_arbras

Electric vehicles are gearing up to become the next best thing since sliced bread, aren’t they? Well, that may be what the EV auto makers would like us to believe, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves just quite yet. I mean what good is an electric vehicle without a charge?

At this point most electric vehicles are reported to get a maximum of 100-200 miles per charge. With limited charging stations, where are those EVs going to “fill up” if they’re away from home? A lack of charging stations is going to seriously limit the mobility and practicality of the electric vehicle.

Image by felixkramer

First take a look at some of the hottest electric vehicles we can expect to see on the roads in the new future. From the Nissan LEAF to the Chevy Volt to the Tesla Roadster and more, these electric vehicles are looking to make a major change in what people drive and how they get around.

Make no mistake, if the electric vehicles can gain the popularity auto makers are hoping for, they can make a serious dent in lowering harmful emissions. They also require less maintenance, they can be charged using solar power and they are much more energy-efficient overall. But that now brings us back to charging stations.

Without charging stations littering major highways and thoroughfares, driving your vehicle long distances will simply not be an option. Luckily that’s where companies like BetterPlace and Coulomb Technologies (with their ChargePoint® Network) come into play.

Image from coulombtech.com

Coulomb Technologies is aiming to place their charging stations at homes, existing gas stations, rest stops, curbside parking spots, businesses and more. They think (as do I) that if you are going to have an electric vehicle it should be just as convenient, if not more convenient, to get it charged up.

You can even suggest locations for charging stations if there aren’t enough ChargePoint charging stations near you. They also have a recently released iPhone app for your convenience to help you find charging stations, check availability, receive messages when your vehicle is charged and more.

Better Place aims to provide not only access to charging stations worldwide, but to battery switching stations and other services essential to making the EV driver experience a pleasant one.

Until that point, I’m afraid it’ll be just hit and miss. Check out this Southern California EV charging station map for example. I thought it was interesting that some users made comments that the location they used didn’t even realize they had an EV charging station. Wow!

So, if you are considering getting an electric vehicle, I highly recommend you do your research first. Otherwise you may end up with an electric vehicle that doesn’t get used as it should.

Hopefully though, sooner rather than later, we’ll start seeing charging stations pop up at every “gas station” up and down the highway. Until that point, work on driving less and driving smarter.

Image by Todd Mecklem

Image by Heather Elias

Mother’s Day is fast approaching. Do you have anything special planned for your mother? Are you taking her out to eat? Are you buying her gifts? Are you taking her to the spa? Well, if you don’t already have something planned (or even if you do), what about doing one of these more bio-friendly Mother’s Day ideas?

1) Take your mom on a walk: Most moms love spending time with their kids. But how long has it been since you’ve spent some one-on-one time with your mom? I mean just the two of you. You can talk, reminisce, laugh and just enjoy each other’s company. Even though it doesn’t cost anything, it’s the kind of memory you both will cherish.

Image by mikebaird

Besides think of the emissions, gas and money you will save by going on a walk rather than driving somewhere. It’ll be good for both of you to get outdoors and get some fresh air too.

2) Give your mom a scrapbook or photo album: Whether you live nearby or far away, moms love seeing pictures of you and your family. (Trust me, they do.) Putting together a simple photo album, while it may be a more time-consuming gift, will be worth the effort.

Image by ali edwards

Plus, if you make your scrapbook or photo album from stuff you have around the house, not only are you are recycling materials, and saving gas and energy by not driving to a store, you are saving money at the same time. It’s a win/win.

3) Make your mom a special meal: Mother’s Day doesn’t need to be a consumer-driven holiday. You don’t HAVE to go out to eat or buy lots of expensive gifts in order to show your mom you care.

Why not make your mom one of her favorite meals? Even if you aren’t the best cook (like me), you and your siblings could team up and make something mom would enjoy. I know my mom would probably be beside herself if I made her a Mother’s Day dinner.

Image by kimberlykv

There are also the extra benefits of not having to drive to the restaurant, try and find parking, wait in line with all the other people who are taking their mothers out for Mother’s Day, pay for an expensive meal, try and carry on a conversation in a loud, crowded restaurant, etc.

4) Take mom to the Farmer’s Market:  If you really feel the need to go shopping with/for your mom on Mother’s Day, how about a trip to the local farmer’s market? You can shop together, maybe even plan a great Mother’s Day meal together and spend some quality time with your mom.

Image by Yodel Anecdotal

If you live close enough, you can even walk or ride your bikes. And don’t forget your re-usable bags so you don’t need to get plastic bags for all your farmer’s market goodies!

5) Send your mom a home-made care package: Sometimes it isn’t feasible to visit mom on Mother’s Day, but that doesn’t mean she can’t get a great care package from you. Some creative items for your care package include:

- home-made yummies (baked goods, canned fruits/veggies, etc),

- seeds to plant herbs, veggies or flowers in her garden,

- pre-seeded containers with her favorite flower or herb,

- home-made card or gift from you (and the kids),

- a scrapbook or even a CD with photos on it,

- and simplest of all, include a poem or letter written by you to your mom to let her know just how much she means to you.

Image by Supernan

Remember, it’s not how much something costs that makes it valuable. Sometimes the simplest activities or gestures from family are valued the most. What are your plans and ideas for a biofriendly Mother’s Day?

When it comes to the latest in hot and stylish eco-transportation, most people usually think four wheels. Hybrids, electric vehicles and even an occasional three wheeled vehicle are gaining more and more popularity. But other than motorcycles, what makes two wheels better than more?

Well, check out these cool two wheel eco-vehicles:

1) Segway® PT – I’m sure you are familiar with the Segway® Personal Transporter. Promoted as “the world’s first self-balancing human transporter”, the PT has continued to capture people’s attention because even though it only has two wheels it still manages to stay upright.

You’ve seen individuals riding them around town, places like the San Diego Wild Animal Park offer tours on Segway® X2s and over 1000 police and security installations around the world use them for their officers on patrol.

The Segway PT can go around 24 miles on a single battery charge (depending on your style of driving, of course, and the terrain). So using your PT for a quick trip around town is a much more eco-friendly choice than taking your car – EV or not.

Who knows, maybe even one of these days, Zipcar will start renting out Segways as part of their car sharing program. (Zipcar Segway image by davidcrow on Flickr.)

Now of course walking is the most eco-friendly choice, however we’re talking about two wheeled vehicles here.

2) Segway® EN-V: For those of you who would rather ride in an enclosed vehicle, Segway has an option for you as well. The Segway EN-V is not only fully enclosed, just like your car, but it can hold two passengers.

In collaboration with GM and SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp.), Segway decided to take the simple concept of the PT and apply that to a multi-passenger vehicle.

The new EN-Vs (Jiao, Xiao and Miao) use the Segway-developed chassis and electric drivetrain, however it can provide more power, more range and more speed even with two passengers.

The EN-V is also apparently “five times as energy efficient as the average U.S. passenger car“. Besides, doesn’t it look like a fun ride?

For a video showing more about the EN-Vs and how they are made, you can check out this.

3) BMW C1-E: Although it’s just a concept vehicle, BMW hopes their C1-E will quickly catch on. Designed as a contribution to the European safety project eSUM, the C1-E is the electric, more eco-friendly older brother to the original BMW C1.

The C1-E features an electric motor powered by a lithium-ion battery. It could potentially be equipped with an efficient, low-emission internal combustion engine as well.

BMW states “the advantage of two-wheeled transportation is that it offers a great opportunity for improving the flow of traffic in urban locations. Moreover, it is environmentally friendly...”.

The design of the C1-E concentrates on rider safety with features such as: a roll-over bar, energy absorbing impact material in the nose of the vehicle and yes, even a seat belt.

What do you think? Would you consider the BMW C1-E as your form of eco-friendly two-wheeled transportation?

4) YikeBike™: If you are looking for the ultimate in urban freedom, then you’ve got to check out the YikeBike. No more trying to find a place to park your car or bicycle. No more worrying about your bike being stolen from in front of your office. No more hoping there is going to be room on the bike rack of your bus or train.

YikeBike is a new face for bicycles, electronic or otherwise. It can go up to 25 kph (15.5 mph) and unlike a regular bike, when you ride a YikeBike you are pretty much sitting upright. Another exciting feature is that it is the first bike in the world that has electronic anti-skid brakes.

But one of the most convenient features is the YikeBike folds up completely in about 20 seconds and fits in a handy carrying bag that you can bring into any store, restaurant, office, etc. Nobody would even know you were carrying your ride home.

Currently its range is about 10 km (6.2 miles) on one charge and the battery recharges in about 40 minutes. Perfect for local trips and rides around town.

And if you are interested in getting what Time Magazine referred to as one of the top inventions of 2009, you’ll be happy to know the YikeBike will begin shipping at the end of June 2010.

Of course you can always opt for human pedal power with a traditional bicycle – but these are just a few of the many options for eco-friendly transportation on two wheels. What’s your favorite two wheeled ride?

Well, the time has come again….Earth Hour 2010 is scheduled for Saturday, March 27th at 8:30pm. Millions of individuals, businesses, cities and government offices around the globe are gearing up to go dark in order to show their support towards creating a cleaner, greener and safer future.

It’s a simple action really, but with a global “joining of forces” it becomes a massive way for people to show they want to, and are willing to, do something that can make a difference.

Last year nearly 1 billion people turned out for Earth Hour 2009. 4100 cities in 88 countries on 7 continents made it clear they wanted to make a difference. Over 80 million Americans and over 300 U.S. cities pledged their commitment by going dark during Earth Hour 2009.

Landmarks including the Empire State Building, the Las Vegas Strip, U.N. Headquaters, the Seattle Space Needle, Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Great Pyramids of Giza, St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, Big Ben in London, Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Sydney Opera House were amongst the many locations worldwide to show their support during Earth Hour 2009.

This year’s Earth Hour is expected to reach even further, with the WWF estimating thousands of cities in at least 115 countries will be active participants in Earth Hour 2010. Over 5.5 million people have already pledged their commitment and if you want to be one of them, pledge your commitment here.

While some may see Earth Hour as merely a symbolic act, others see it as a way to unite and show their desire to make a difference. In all candidness, what do you think of Earth Hour 2010?

As far as my personal view, I think it’s a great way for people to join together to show their support and interest in making this a better world. However, I also feel that many companies, cities and others may be using it as a way to make it appear they are “going green” and are making BIG changes, when that isn’t necessarily the case.

Let me give you an example…the State of California is listed as an “official Earth Hour state” and has pledged to turn off the lights on the State Capitol building during Earth Hour 2010. A number of cities and towns are also pledging their support, Mayors are signing declarations designating March 27th, 2010 at 8:30pm as “Earth Hour”. Over 90 California schools, 41 universities, 94 organizations and 278 businesses have also signed the pledge.

While all this is great news, why does it take a global movement to get these states, cities, governments, companies, schools and individuals to turn off all non-essential lighting? And why are they only willing to do it for one hour? If they were serious about making a change, not to mention saving money, wouldn’t you think they would ALWAYS turn off non-essential lighting?

You and I know that in order to save money and use less electricity we can do simple things like turn off lights when they aren’t in use, unplug unnecessary equipment or put them on power strips to prevent them from sucking energy when they aren’t in use, switch to energy-efficient lighting, etc, etc. Why aren’t companies, cities, governments and countries doing the same thing on a daily basis?

Take the WWF’s Climate Savers program. It’s currently in its 11th year yet only has 21 corporate members. The program is designed to work with corporations to improve efficiency and reduce emissions, yet only 21 corporations (albeit some of the world’s largest corporations) have gotten on board.

But did you know that the WWF estimated that by 2010 those 21 Climate Saver companies would have cut carbon emissions by approximately 14 million tons annually? Just think of what could be done with more companies on board.

For anyone who may be a little skeptical of Earth Hour, the WWF has no illusions about the impact of Earth Hour 2010. In their own “Blueprint for Individuals” they state:

“We know that the amount of energy saved during one hour won’t be enough to save our planet from the potentially devastating impacts of climate change, but that misses the true purpose of Earth Hour. Earth Hour seeks to provide a forum in which people can engage on climate issues and find ways in their own lives to become part of the solution to this global threat.”

So maybe, for that one hour on March 27th at 8:30pm you will plunge into darkness along with the millions and millions of other people around the globe who are attending Earth Hour 2010. After that hour…that’s up to you. You’ll probably want to check out some longer-term energy saving tips though, that might also help ensure your home energy costs don’t get you down.  See you there!

Image from CookForLife.com

When it comes to eating healthy many people forget to factor in the cookware they are using to make their meals. You could be buying fresh vegetables and only natural or organic foods and still not get all the nutrients you hoped for. Your cookware could be thwarting your efforts to go green, plus it could be adding toxins into the “healthy” food you are making.

Just like you can pick your vehicle based on the form of gasoline, diesel, bio-fuel, alternative fuel or fuel additive used to make it more fuel efficient and better for the environment, the same idea applies to choosing your cookware.  What kind of cookware is best to ensure your food stays healthy after you cook it? What kind of cookware is better for the environment?

Well, there are many you can choose from, but from my personal experience, I’d recommend going with Kitchen Craft® Cookware, made by Americraft. You won’t find them in department stores or your local Bed, Bath and Beyond, but you can find them at most State Fairs or Home Shows.

It’s made from stainless steel and while it isn’t as “easy to clean” per se as non-stick cookware, it doesn’t release chemicals or toxins into the air or into your food as some non-stick cookware can do. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather put a little more elbow grease into cleaning rather than worry about toxins or little pieces of plastic getting in my family’s food.

Now I may be a tad bit biased as my sister sells Kitchen Craft cookware and she did give us a basic set as a wedding gift about six years ago. But, since I pretty much use the cookware every day, I’d say it was one of the best gifts I received.

Not only is the cookware stainless steel, but it is commonly referred to as “waterless cookware“, which is a great way to cook while saving water and energy at the same time.

Now I’m no chef, by any stretch of the imagination and my hubby does do a lot of the cooking, but having this cookware really does help with making good quality, healthy meals. That’s why I thought it would be worth mentioning!

Here’s a simple video that shows you how simple it is to make chicken and potatoes without a lot of fats, oils or grease:

And another that shows you some of the green benefits of Americraft’s manufacturing process, including:

• No harmful chemicals are used in the manufacturing process
• Renewable wind energy provides the electricity to power their machines
• Energy-efficient windows allow natural light in
• Their containers are made from 30-100% recycled fiber
• They use reverse osmosis to reduce water consumption and filter discharge
• No VOCs
• They use natural cleaning methods

Some of the benefits experienced by people using their cookware include:

• Saving energy, as it only requires low-medium heat to cook to perfection
• Saving space, as you can not only stack the cookware when not in use, you can stack the pans on top of each other during cooking – requiring only one burner to be in use.
• Saving money, as your cookware will last longer and you can get more nutrients from your food than other types of cookware. You can even take advantage of their $50 off coupon or email healthycookware@gmail.com to see what offers are available.
• Improving health, if used properly this cookware will allow you to prepare your meals using less water, less oils and fats, have less cholesterol as a result, etc. You can even do things like cook fried chicken without grease or boil an egg without a pot full of water.
• Saving time, as there is less prep time involved with most cooking and less need to constantly check your food.

So if you want to improve your health and make sure the food you are cooking maintains its nutrients, invest in a long-lasting, reliable cookware like Kitchen Craft cookware (aka The Healthy Gourmet). They definitely get a green plus in my book for healthy cookware.

Image from superbowlflorida.blogspot.com

Last year an estimated 98.7 million Americans tuned in to the watch the big game on Super Bowl Sunday. That’s not including the 70,000+ people who actually attended the game. But do you have any idea of the costs, both monetary and environmental, of the Super Bowl? Well, let’s review some of those facts and figures as well as go over some environmental tips for your own personal game day activities.

If you attended Super Bowl I, you would have paid about $6 per ticket. Advertisers paid an estimated $42,000 for a 30-second ad spot. Today if you wanted to see Super Bowl XLIV, you’d pay anywhere between $1275 and $5650 per ticket.  Advertisers are paying an average $2.65 million for a 30-second ad spot…and that’s down from the last two years.

Some past advertisers including General Motors, FedEx and Pepsi, have opted out of this year’s advertising slots. However, despite complaints received by the Treasury Secretary, Chrysler plans on being the only U.S. auto-maker to run an ad during this year’s Super Bowl.

Take a look at this 1969 Super Bowl commercial from Chrysler:

Even though Pepsi is not having an ad during the Super Bowl, they are the official drink of the NFL and are debuting their new energy-efficient, HFC-free coolers at the Super Bowl, so I’m sure they will get plenty of promotion.

As far as the stadium and those in attendance for the big day….there are 20,000 parking spaces available e.g. a potential for 20,000 vehicles. The EPA estimates there is about 19.4 pounds of CO2 emitted for every gallon of gasoline burned. Even if each car only drove 20 miles to get there, that would still be over 7 million pounds or over 3500 tons of CO2 emissions. (NOTE: That doesn’t factor in trucks used to bring in food, supplies or any other CO2 emissions generated during game day preparations.)

When you factor in the trash generated on game day from left-over food containers, promotional flyers, etc you are talking even further environmental impact. Did you know at the 2004 Super Bowl, over 428 tons of trash was collected during the four-day event?

Luckily the the NFL has the “Super Bowl XLIV Environmental Program“ in place this year. Their program is designed to help lower the environmental impact of Super Bowl XLIV.

Solid Waste Management/Recycling: They intend to have recycling containers at all major event facilities where Super Bowl related activities will take place.

Prepared Food Recovery: Excess prepared food will be collected up and donated in coordination with Daily Bread Food Bank. Last year over 65,000 pounds of food was donated, due in part to activities like this and the annual “Taste of the NFL” event.

Materials Donation: After the Super Bowl, the NFL plans to donate as many supplies and materials as possible, so as not to waste them. This includes building materials, non-perishable foods and drinks, decorations, live plants, etc.

Sports Equipment/Book donation project: The “Super Kids-Super Sharing” project will be working to collect used sports equipment and books from local schools and school children for donation to other under-equipped schools and school children in South Florida.

Climate Change Initiative: Last but definitely not least, this initiative has a variety of facets, including using renewable-sourced energy to “power” the stadium and other facilities. Basically, the NFL has teamed up with NextEra Energy Resources who will supply Green e-certified Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) to match electricity consumption during the Super Bowl and related events. They will also be decreasing transportation emissions from the Super Bowl fleet by using hybrid vehicles or alternative fuels. Providing sources for alternative fuels to all vendors and partners, including the broadcast media, for use in powering their on-site generators. Planting trees in coordination with the US Forest Service and local community groups to help offset carbon output, etc.

So, with the NFL doing their part to help lessen their environmental impact on Super Bowl Sunday, here are a few tips for you:

1) If you are driving to another location to watch the big game, car-pool with friends. If you are unable to do so, a proven fuel additive could help lower your emissions.

2) Use recyclable or bio-degradable plates, cups, etc. Try to recycle as much as you can.

3) Make your own game day treats, don’t have food delivered. Delivery means someone has to drive food to your home (emissions) and your food will probably come in non-recyclable containers inside a plastic bag. Be prepared and get your food ahead of time.

4) Don’t waste food. Most Super Bowl parties will have more food than people will eat, so package up what you don’t eat and save it for later.

If you really want to offset your Super Bowl Sunday and help the environment, you can always purchase a “Super Bowl Party Offset” from EarthEra. For $10, they say they will offset 1200 pounds of carbon dioxide. And 100% of their revenues from EarthEra product purchases apparently go to build more solar and wind energy project in the U.S.

What are your plans for Super Bowl Sunday? Do you have any tips you use to help lower your environmental impact on game day? Hope you have a great weekend…and don’t forget to get outside a little bit (before or after the game).

Image by Wayne National Forest (via Flickr)

When it comes to “going green” you’ve probably heard companies use the excuse of cost as a reason for not switching to a more environmentally-friendly method of doing business. This is true of individuals as well, but is this really just an excuse or is it the truth? Is the cost of going green too much for some businesses or individuals to afford?

Let’s take a look at a few examples of some real costs of going green:

Solar Energy: We all know there are costs involved in turning your home or business into a solar-powered one. Of course these costs depend on what kind of solar power you are looking at installing. Are you looking for a solar water heater? Solar panels for your roof? Or are you looking at tapping into solar energy in a more passive way?

As of right now there is a 30% federal tax credit on solar energy systems including solar water heaters and solar panels. Many local utilities also provide incentive programs for individuals or businesses who install solar panels. In Los Angeles, the Department of Water & Power caps their residential incentive program at 75%, but per their website, most customers have received a payment of between 30-50% of their solar system costs.

So let’s say your solar panel installation costs were about $9-10 per Watt to install. With the average installation being approximately 3 Kilowatts (3000 Watts), you are looking at anywhere between $27,000-$30,000 minimum costs.  With the 30% federal tax credit and let’s say only a 30% tax incentive from your local utility, that cost comes down to around $12,000.  Factor in how much you will save on monthly/annual utility bills and installing solar panels becomes a lot less costly than originally thought.

Water Conservation: Water conservation has many facets, you can go all out and get a solar water heater, low-flow or tank-less water systems, replace all the water fixtures in your home with water-efficient ones, etc.  You can also go simple and do things like take showers instead of baths, turn off the water while you brush your teeth, use bath water to water your plants, run the dishwasher only when it’s full, etc.

If you want to take it to the next level you can buy things like this Deluxe Water Green House EcoKit™. For less than $60 you get water-saving tools such as a hand-held massaging showerhead (that uses less water without sacrificing water pressure), leak detection tablets (to help you find any leaks your toilet may have), a swivel aerator for your kitchen (to help save water while washing dishes), toilet tank bag (which can displace 0.8 gallons per flush) and more.

Of course if you are going to go all out, check out this EcoLogic™ toilet. It’ll run you about $300, while other eco-toilets can run anywhere between $100-$2000 a pop. However this one received the EPA’s WaterSense® label for using at least 20% less water than a standard 1.6-gallon toilet, while still maintaining strict flushing performance guidelines. (Which we all know is a good thing to maintain!)

Cutting down on chemicals/toxins: For an individual or family, this can be as simple as getting rid of your toxic cleaning supplies and buying eco-friendly cleaners. Or better yet, making your own cleaning supplies.  Cutting down on our use of chemicals and toxins is a simple way to go green. However, for some businesses, it may not be so simple.

Take for example a dry cleaner. Cost is a real concern for an independent dry cleaner who is looking to turn over a green leaf. Many dry cleaners still use perc machines to dry clean clothes (although I’m not sure why considering the EPA classifies perc as a Toxic Air Contaminant). If they need to purchase a brand new machine, it could cost them upwards of $175,000.

However there are a few options…if a dry cleaner is currently using a hydrocarbon machine, they could potentially convert their machine over to a greener cleaning method, such as GreenEarth® Cleaning, without having to purchase a new machine. Other options include switching over to a CO2 dry cleaning machine or wet cleaning equipment. All are greener choices than using perc, so take a look at this chart and see which you would prefer be used on your clothes.

Another example of someone cutting out chemicals is the Organic Farmer. You’d think it would be simple to switch from growing fruits/vegetables using toxins or pesticides and become an organic farmer, right? Well, did you know in order for the USDA to certify a farm as organic that farm has to submit a list of all substances applied to the land for the previous 3 years? That means it has to be free of all prohibited pesticides for 3 years running in order to be certified as an organic farm.

I also came across this document from the California Certified Organic Farmers about the costs involved with and the importance of Handweeding in Organic Farming.

There are many more examples I could give you, but hopefully you get the idea. Going green doesn’t mean you need to spend a lot of money. Yes, there are costs involved as you move over to a more eco-friendly building or business. But if you do your homework and research out potential tax credits, your costs may soon balance out.

As a final note, I suggest checking out these smart conservation tips that can save you a lot without costing you a lot! And if you have been considering making energy-efficient changes to your home, please take a moment to figure out what changes best suit you and why now may be the right time to make those green changes.