Sustainable Definition

Oil Just Isn't Sustainable

So what does sustainable mean. You hear about it all the time talked about in the same breath as green topics and global warming. The sustainable definition is to say that what ever is sustainable can be done over and over with no necessary end. That may sound confusing because what in the world can be done over and over without ending at some point eventually in the future?

Well let's think of a few things that ARE NOT sustainable, but many people thing they are. The biggest one is the use of oil to power the world. Oil is a result of fossilized animals from millions of years ago dieing. They bodies were decomposed and because of the pressure they were under the energy that it took to grow their bodies was eventually converted into oil. Oil is very dense in energy mainly because it's the result of solar energy which was converted into animals millions of years ago and then compressed underground. This process not only took a very long time (again, millions of years) but it happened under very specific periods of environmental heating which occurred on Earth only a couple of times. So to get oil you need millions of creatures to die, have them decompose for millions of years, in conditions that are pretty rare on Earth. We are lucky that so much oil was created during these periods of Earth's history, because once man discovered oil they quickly because addicted.

You can understand why we could get so easily addicted to a resource like oil. It is so energy dense that we can use it to do so much. It's what had drive the rapid growth of our society over the last 150 years or so. There is so much energy in a barrel of oil that for one man to do the same amount of work that a barrel of oil can do, it would take them months. So one man can work tirelessly for months, or you can pump one barrel of oil out of the ground. What's not to love.

Well, environmental impacts of burning oil aside just for the moment, the trick is that there was so much oil that humans never thought of it as something finite. But, if you haven't thought of it before, think of it now, oil is going to run out. No more oil is being created way down under the surface of Earth. Whatever is there is there and that's all we get. So every day we pump millions of barrels of oil out of the ground.

Think of it like that free drink you got at the bar on your birthday last year. Sure it was huge and that straw seemed tiny. And each time you took a sip it seemed like the level in the drink didn't even really go down. But eventually after drinking it for hours, it was gone. Nothing was left in your glass. Oil is the same way. We are just sipping it out when you compare it to the total that was originally there. But we have been doing it for over a 100 years now. And in the last few decades the demand of it has gone through the roof and we all want more stuff in the industrialized nations, and new emerging nations start to become industrialized. It's a double whammy. We are all ready taking way too much of what is left if we really did want it to last, and each year we take significantly more then we did the previous year.

So I got a little off topic there, but because oil is going to run out, it is not sustainable. In other words, we cannot sustain what we are currently doing in the long run.

An example of something that is sustainable is wind and solar energy. Realistically the wind is always going to be blowing here on Earth. Once you build the turbines, you can keep using the energy for as long as you can keep your consumption below the amount they can produce. The same goes for solar. Once the panels are built and installed, as long as you don't need more then you can produce then you can keep doing it indefinitely.

Buy Green

Once you realize that the Earth is in trouble because of what man has done to it, you realize there are tons of things you can do to start to reduce our impact, or carbon footprint. They can be things as small as cutting your shower a little shorter each day, to as large and putting solar panels on your roof. One area where we can all do a lot more is to start shopping green.



Environmentally Products

 Yes, you should plan your shopping trips so that they are close to your house and get everything you need while you are there so you can cut down on burning gas driving to and from the store. But when when i say being more green in shopping I am really talking about the products that you choose to buy. If you buy green products it means that those products are better for the environment in some way then competing products for sale. This can be because the technology of the product is better and the energy you consume while using the product will be less. This can also mean that the environmental impact of the manufacturing process to create that product was less then it's competitors. Ideally you'd like to find products that do both.

Like anything in life, buyer beware! Keep in mind that just because a product you are looking at has "green products company", "environmental products", or some other phrase talking about how much better it is for the environment, this just means they spend to get that printed on the label. You would hope that if a company decides to call it an eco product, that it would indeed be "green". The trick is that green is in the eye of the beholder. There isn't really any low dealing with calling something green, the way there is about calling a food item "low fat". Basically as long as the company can make an argument (true or not) that their product is green then it's OK to label it as such. Obviously companies know they can charge more for a green product so there is a large incentive to call their items green, irregardless of what it is doing to the environment. To really know for sure you really have to do the research.

Of course it would be impossible to background check companies on every little product you buy in your life. But on big purchases it would be do-able. And for that matter most of the items you buy in a grocery store are all made by just a handful of companies. You might not be able to research all the individual products but you could look up the track record of the major corporations that make most of the items you are buying. That way you would know just because something claims to be one of the new green products, it may or may not really be truly green!

PS - I'll be putting together a post in the future to talk about what actually makes products environmental, so keep an eye out!

10 Ways To Go Green

Go Green Images

You hear about it all the time these days, which is a great thing. Being Green, Going Green, Green Products, etc. Anyone that had put any real and objective thought into it it, knows that the Earth is in trouble and being green is the way that we are going to save it! So if anyone asks you why to go green, tell them it's to save the Earth from the crumbling spiral that it's now in which is caused by man's reckless actions.




Below are 10 easy ways to go green:

1. Change out your traditional incandescent light bulbs for CFL's. This is a really easy one, and yes CFL's are more expensive then incandescent but you are indeed going to save in the long run. Since CFL's are more expensive I suggest that you just buy them as you existing incandescent bulbs burn out. Then it's only a couple bucks more once in a while, and each of the new CFL's will pay for themselves over their life, and reduced power consumption.

2. Buy a new refridgeration. This of course is going to be a more expensive of the ways to go green at home. This trick is that your refrigerator is the appliance that used the more electricity in your home. It takes a good amount of energy to make it that cold and it is ALWAYS on. On average refrigerators you buy today at about twice as efficient compared to those from just 10 years go, because of new technology. This means you can cut in half the electricity you are going to use on the appliance that used the more electricity. Not bad!

3. Take shorter showers. Now I'm not saying skip showers...that would stink! :-) But think about how long you spend in the shower each day. Could you cut that by one minute? I would guess anyone would be able to cut their shower by one minute if they put their mind to it. There is a cost and power consumption associated with getting water to flow out of your shower head. There is an ever bigger cost and power consumption associated with making that water hot! So you and everyone in your family cut the shower by one minute and see the savings add up.

4. Turn off the water while your are brushing your teeth. I am always amazed at the number of folks that leave the water running while they are brushing their teeth. I know it's a matter of habit, but you need to change your habit! I mean are you worried there their may arise an emergency where you have to rinse your brush in an instant or your hair will catch on fire?! Turn it off and you'll make the writer of this go green blog very happy!

5. Unplug your phone charge when not in use. Did you know that your phone charger draws a little bit of power when it's plugged in and not attached to and charging your phone? This is one of the go green facts that many people have never heard of this but it's true. It is a relatively small amount of power but still why pay for a little bit of power for anything if you aren't using it at all?!

6. Insulation. Whether you are heating or cooling your house insulating it to seal out air leaks will make a big difference in the amount of energy you use. This can mean laying more insulation in your attic to reduce the escaping of heat through the roof, or sealing up air leaks around windows and doors. Removing even a small air leak can make a big difference in your energy bill. This is an example of the go green projects that will easily pay for themselves.

7. Buy go green energy. Many power companies now offer green energy options. Basically you can option pay a small amount more to be supplied with only electricity from green energy sources like wind turbines and solar arrays. Yes the name of this blog is Saving Green, not Spending Green, but sometimes when it's a very small amount of money, it makes sense to spend a little to save the Earth.

8. Ceiling Fans. When ever you can use a fan to cool yourself off instead of air conditioning you are going to save a large amount of energy. If you don't have a ceiling fan above your bed you would be really surprised to see how much cooler a fan makes you. Many hot nights I can turn off the AC units and just run the fan when I got to bed. It makes for a large savings on my electric bill in the summer months.

9. Power settings on your computer/laptop. Monitors tend to use quite a bit of electricity, as does your CPU. All computer operating systems today offer power setting options where you can choose the amount of idle time before you computer will turn off the monitor, sleep, hibernate, etc. You know best how you use your computer but more often then not, if you are idle for more then 2 mins you can turn off your monitor. Then if you are idle for more then ten mins you might as well have you computer go to sleep because you are obviously busy doing something else. Adjust these settings to the lowest possible time frames that doesn't cause major inconveniences.

10. Power strips. Any piece of electronic equipment that responds to a remote control is going to draw some power even when it's off. This is because it needs some power to operate basically waiting for you to ask it to turn on. If you plug in your TV, DVD, Cable Box, and all other AV components, into a power strip, you can turn them all off quickly and easily when you aren't using them. This will save power from going to all those components all day long while you are at work, and all night long when you are in bed.

These are just a few power savings options that will help you be green. There are tons of others. Basically think about how you are using power on a day to day basis and always be thinking of how you can reduce it. Let me know if you can think of other great way to save power, and I'll continue to publish top ten lists with other great ideas.

Global Warming Facts: It's Real Folks!

Wikipedia's global warming definition is the follwing: Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its related effects.



Global Warming Pictures

 The effects of global warming are all around us everyday. You see many of the obvious one everyday on TV and they are dramatic and an enormous problem and that's why they get so much attention. The reduction in the polar cap is a big one you see all the time, which huge chunks of glaciers falling into the ocean as it recedes. Another dramatic shot is pictures of glaciers from the same vantage point today and 20-40 years ago. Day to day you don't notice that kind of thing but when you look at those kind of global warming effects over time you really can see the damage that is being done.

There are many that will argue that this is not a man made problem or even doubt that there is a such thing at global warming. Folks get with it! If you read scientific paper which are not funded by large corportations ALL of them say that the temperature of our planet is rising. Not only are they rising but they are rising very quickly. These are the global warming facts!

Not only is it the higher temperature, it's the speed at which it is risking that is the scary part. If you look at the ice cores and fossil records we can tell that the Earth has been hotter before but never has it warmed this quickly before. This very quick rise in temperature directly coincides with man discovery of oil! There is simply no doubting that global warming is real and caused by us!

What causes of global warming you ask? The very short answer is, humans. To be a little more detailed though it the increased consentration of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, etc) in our atmosphere. They are called greenhouse gases because they allow the rays and heat from the sun to enter Earth's atmosphere but do not allow them to escape. The effect of these global warming causes over time is to increase the temperature of Earth.

So if you are looking for the casues of global warming then you are really looking for what is causing more green house gases to be released into the atmosphere. These are human activities that release carbon dioxide and methane. Essentially this is burning things that contain carbon. Coal, wood, and oil are the big ones. Methane pound for pound has a much larger greenhouse effect but you always hear about carbon dioxide because it is so much more abundant then methane. For a while the folks who are against doing anything about global warming were arguing that cow farts were much worse for Earth then buring oil. It made for great news story lead-ins. Like all the arguments against global warming though the facts are warped to make their point. Yes a pound of methane in the atmosphere will reflect more heat back down to Earth then a pound of carbon dioxide. That is true. But there is just so vastly more carbon dioxide being released then methane that the arguement just doesn't make sense. It's the same as saying that a big dog bite is worse for you then a kitten scratch, which is obviously true. But they fail to mention it's one dog and one bite, but it's 10 billion kitten scratches all at once. The dog bite will hurt, but the kittens are going to kill you.

So if for some reason you are still on the fence about global warming then read up on it. Just make sure you know who is writing the global warming articles you read. Many doubter articles are written but groups that sound legit but are really just fronts for big business and folks that have a vested financial interest in not combating global warming and the end of our planet!

Bamboo Green

One of the coolest ways to go green is to use bamboo in construction when ever you can. Now you aren't going to start seeing bamboo framing lumber down at the home depot anytime soon. It doesn't have that kind of strength. But you can use it for finish types of jobs. Laminate flooring is one area that has really taken advantage of bamboo. Also, windows coverings.



Why is Bamboo Green?

You hear all the time about how we are deforesting the world, especially the rain forest. There is tons (literally) of carbon stored in the trees of the world. Humans release much CO2 in the process of cutting down trees from the energy that is required to cut down the trees, haul them to the mill, mill them, ship them to retail locations, etc. This is still not counting the carbon that is released in burning and decomposition of the waste from the tree that don't become home and furniture. The biggest CO2 loss is the loss of all the CO2 that would have been captured in the future by the trees that are cut down if they had just been left alone.

Bamboo is a quickly growing source of wood. You can use a relatively small acreage and grow a crop of bamboo which is cut down and sent to the mill. You can have it in an easily accessibly location so the energy it takes to cut it down and get it to mill and store is minimal compared to traditional foresting. Then once you cut it down you can replant and, relative traditional trees, quickly have a new crop ready to go again.


So the next time you are looking to update your home and you want to be green with your decisions think about bamboo as an option. It really looks great as a laminate flooring and wears well over time. It can be expensive, but if you shop around and look for sales you can find it as cheap if not cheaper then traditional laminate flooring.

Be Green

Be green.

It looks so basic but really it means many different things to different people. What does it really mean to be green?

Well the very basic answer is that you are doing things in a way that are good for Earth and it's environment. Being green could mean not throwing away plastic bottles and making sure they are recycled. Being green can mean taking steps in your home to use less electricity. Being green can mean taking steps to use less oil for driving and heating your home. Being green can mean buying your food locally and organically. Being green also means taking steps to combat the effects of global warming. There are really many areas of the green movement but they all have saving the Earth at their core.

While I agree that saving the Earth is indeed what we should all want to do with out any incentive, I also know that reality means it's not going to happen that easily. There are just too many incentives for too many people not to worry about saving the planet. The rub really comes in when you see that people and companies have never factored into their pricing what they are doing to the environment. Thing about the plastic packaging that comes along with any small electronic device that you might buy. The company that manufactured that device can likely tell you how much it cost them to produce or buy that packaging and get their product in it. I'm sure though they have no idea what the cost of that packaging finally being disposed of someplace in the planet. It's just not something that we are programmed to think about. Even on a personal level you might know how much you pay to have your trash taken away, but it is a flat monthly fee and throwing out one more package won't change the price. We pay for trash removal and not trash disposition. In other words, we are paying for the price for a company to stop at our house and take it to the dump. The price of that trash sitting in that landfill and all the effects it'll have in our environment aren't factored at any point along the way.

It a problem that was born into our thinking from way back in history when there were far less humans then there are now. If you go back far enough in history there just weren't enough humans doing bad environmental things to effect the environment as a whole. We could make things and throw things out and put them in a pile in the woods and while it wasn't a great thing, it just wasn't enough to hurt Earth. But then as our population number grew and we started doing worse and worse things from an environmental standpoint, our same thinking carried through. To be fair humans didn't really understand that what they were doing could have an effect on Earth. The trick is that as some of us were able to see what was happening was bad, the ball was all ready rolling very quickly downhill. We may have gotten into all this innocently enough but now we're all guilty and either we know it or we're pretending we don't. For years and year companies were going about their business without any concern or cost to them based on the impacts of what they were doing on the planet. This lack of cost was built into all their pricing. Imagine what would happen if every product we bought had to factor in it's impact on the environment. Or if we had to pay the real cost of throwing out the trash. It would really change what we buy, what we could afford to buy, and what we throw away.

Companies have had it too good for too long to want to give up this free cost of doing business. They have all the money and are working to convince the world that global warming is a hoax. Don't believe the hype! You and I need to be Green. Companies need to Green. The only question is really whether we as a planet are going to figure out what being green means and how to do it, before the effects of not being green ruin the whole planet for all of us!

Heating season

With cold weather approaching in the north i was wondering, does anyone out there have electric heat which they run only on electricity from personal solar panels or wind turbines?