GreenOzarks

Fresh & Green Friday: Countdown to Turkey edition

admin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:55:46 +0000

With fresh water a scarce commodity and mountainous areas a little more common, an amazing German plan to catch fog and turn it into water is catching on in Peru. A sustainable and simple plan for sure!

Just up I-44, Saint Louis University has teamed up with Discovery News to give you ten tips for staying healthy and H1N1-free this season. Bless you!

The last thing you expected just joined the 21st century. The Butterball turkey hotline (tied with emergency responders as the number one call next week!) is going digital. Tips for the perfect turkey can now be found on Facebook, Twitter, and your smartphone.

Can a farm-in-a-backpack save Sub-Saharan Africa? Treehugger takes a look at this food source in a bag that’s presenting a sustainable, autonomous solution to need.

Whether you’re saving gas or trying to save yourself, you know biking’s one of the best transportation options available today. GOOD backs this up with a stunning infographic examining the effect of biking on obesity statistics.

If you think things are looking up, you’re seeing green. News just arrived that the US Labor Department will be allocating $55 million for green jobs training.

Don’t you always wonder what would happen if you ate a white dwarf star? You do? Great! PopSci has the breakdown (and it’s not pretty).

And if you’re making this for Thanksgiving, we’re coming over to your house. This week’s Feast Your Eyes is pumpkin gnocchi.

Urban Farming: food for the rest of us

admin — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:15:32 +0000

Once you pass the pavement, the Ozarks offer the perfect view of the sustainable lifestyle: miles and miles of rolling hills and farmland, countless crops and the long-standing tradition of living off the land.

It’s living inside the city limits that makes people think that same lifestyle is out of their hands. Admittedly, there’s not a lot of farmland in downtown Springfield, but that doesn’t have to stop urban dwellers from growing and enjoying their own harvest. In Fresh Food From Small Spaces: The Square-Inch Gardener’s Guide to Year-Round Growing, Fermenting, and Sprouting, author R. J. Ruppenthal takes this rural idea and puts a decidedly city spin on it. Ruppenthal gives a pretty comprehensive “how-to” for urbanites who want to eat sustainably in their own spaces.

The key advice? You don’t need much space to grow your own food. Small living spaces lend themselves to growing “sprouts on a counter top, salad greens on a windowsill, dwarf fruit trees on a patio, [and] tomatoes on a balcony.” Mushrooms and sprouts can thrive indoors, while many vegetables can be grown just fine in containers outside.

Ruppenthal’s Top 5 things every urban ecoist should know about urban gardening:

“You can grow a lot of different food crops in limited spaces, even in apartments, condos, townhouses, and other small homes.”
“Start with something that is relatively trouble-free (such as salad greens, peas, or even tomatoes) and work up from there. You will learn a lot from your successes and your failures. If you try some simple crops and do everything you can (such as provide good soil and water) to ensure their success, then you will experience some success.”
“Do not be afraid to fail. All of us have our hits and misses. Sometimes you forget to water or you planted the wrong variety for your climate, or for whatever reason, a particular plant simply was not happy. …The only difference between a ‘black thumb’ gardener and a ‘green thumb’ gardener is that green thumbs learn from their mistakes, try again, and keep trying until they get it right. Then they replicate and build upon their success. There is a learning curve associated with gardening, just as there is with anything else.”
“People do not realize that they can build a garden bed directly on top of concrete, stone, or rocky soil. Almost anything can grow well in containers, but even a patio, driveway, or walkway can be converted to a productive garden bed by building the soil up (as opposed to digging down, which you would not be able to do without a jackhammer). Twelve inches of soil is deep enough to grow almost anything. This really increases the available growing space in cities; so much of our good space is paved over, but it is no longer off-limits to creative gardeners!”
“Try to reuse your resources in the garden. I wash my produce in a bowl or basin, then dump that water back into the garden. It conserves water and saves a small amount of good soil from going down the drain. Then compost your food scraps along with any coffee grounds, newspapers, cardboard, and old plant material. Start a compost pile or buy a tumbler, bin, or worm composter. For plant fertilizer, though, do not rely on your own compost: you will need to add some organic fertilizer as well, which is available from your local nursery.

Ruppenthal adds that if you have the chance to grow just one type of food in your small space, in order to save money, the most viable option is potatoes. “For a survivalist crop, nothing beats potatoes (and homegrown potatoes taste great!) You can grow a meaningful amount of potatoes in a pretty small space. Spuds pack more calories per square foot of soil than any other crop. They can grow in most climates and in most soils [and] you can store them for months at a time.”

Whether you’re a trying to cut back on your carbon footprint, newlyweds trying to save up money, or a student avoiding fast food and the dining hall, urban gardening is an easy and sustainable goal for your own square foot of the Ozarks. Are you a city-dweller getting into gardening, or an experience green thumb with tips of your own? Share them in the comments!

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(Quotes from R.J. Ruppenthal from the Makenna Goodman interview on the Huffington Post, November 16, 2009.)

Steve Mouzon on learning from green buildings

admin — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:00:20 +0000

Eco-designer Steve Mouzon develops new buildings that thrive by learning from old structures, and highlights these connections in his books and online. Treehugger’s Llyod Alter caught up with Mouzon at GreenBuild to get insight on sustainable places and spaces.

Mouzon says sustainable places are:

Nourishable
Accessible
Serviceable
Securable

And sustainable buildings are:

Lovable
Durable
Flexible
Frugal

What does sustainable building mean to you? Is it a cavernous brick hearth, a repurposed old firehouse, or a modernized century-old home? Let us know in the comments, and get more inspiration with Mouzon’s video below.

Steve Mouzon on Learning from Old Buildings from Lloyd Alter on Vimeo.

Too much guesswork in going green? An eco-survey may be the solution.

admin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:51:17 +0000

For many businesses, the cost of eco-consultation outweighs the benefits of shrinking the company’s carbon footprint. But taking a good look at your energy consumption can be the right first step toward shrinking your energy bills and encouraging green awareness in your employees and customers.

You likely know the obvious points: turn off the lights, recycle, consider alternate transportation. Highlight behavioral changes like flipping the light switch every time you leave a room. Encourage carpooling among your employees. Basic energy-saving techniques can encourage ongoing change. What do you do when you’re ready to see that change on the bottom line? Do an eco-survey.
Doing an eco-survey of your business is a do-it-yourself approach to energy savings. By doing a walk-through checklist (like those on Carbon Trust) you can pinpoint areas of unnecessary energy usage, cut energy use effectively, save money, and decrease your carbon footprint.

A quick primer on a DIY eco-survey:

The tried-and-true standards? Turn out the lights, avoid keeping outside doors open, change your fan circulation to increase heat, etc.
Install energy monitors (like the Efergy) that chart energy usage through regular meter reading.
Ask your energy supplier for a detailed bill showing regular energy consumption.
Plot your energy consumption (from the bill or meter) on a chart that compares energy usage with regular business hours and activities.
Look at unnecessarily high energy usage. Does the graph show spikes during quiet periods? This is a good time to check for vampire power.
Monitor real-time electricity readings. The Energy Saving Trust claims this can save you between 5 and 15% of energy consumption.
Take a look at the people involved. How do your employees contribute to your company’s carbon footprint? Encourage them to find do eco-surveys of themselves.

Now, a simple walkaround can miss major factors like transport emissions, but an eco-survey can take some of the guesswork out of going green. Once you’ve taken an effective look at your business and established your carbon footprint, you may find that a few targeted changes can make a big impact. You’ll save money by keeping close attention to what you’re paying for, since seeing stark figures can encourage you to keep improving things. And maintaining a record of your eco-survey will help–keeping tabs on progress can motivate you to carry out and continue changes!

Fresh & Green Fridays: El Niño Edition

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:01:13 +0000

WebEcoist highlights the high life, literally, with a look at tree houses that will make you wish you were 7 again. How very Swiss Family Robinson!

If you missed it, here’s a video report about the shark C-section in New Zealand earlier this week, when a routine shark fight resulted in the successful birth of 8 shark pups.

The votes are in, and PopularScience’s list of 100 Greatest Innovations of the Year is out. The grand award goes to an elegant and functional stethoscope (brr) and green winners include a mushroom-based styrofoam and the Voltree javelin, used to detect forest fires.

Are you ready to cut the cord? The BBC examines the slow death of landlines.

A fantastic idea of a feast: British gastropubs are introducing a bring your own bounty idea, letting diners trade fresh vegetables and game for drinks. The meal will cost you, but you get to have a part in creating great and traceable cuisine!

Does winter have you looking for ways to keep out the cold and get cozy? Here are 6 tips for “eco-nesting” without using energy or losing warmth.

The U.S. Green Building Council has issued its 2009 Green Jobs report, which predicts that the green building industry will be responsible for the creation or support of 7.9 million jobs, contributing $554 billion to the U.S. GDP, in the next four years.

And last but not least, you knew we couldn’t resist something like a homegrown sweet potato cheesecake with pecan crust, didn’t you? Of course you did. Feast your eyes!

1 Million Energy-Efficient Americans Can’t Be Wrong

admin — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:54:45 +0000

For many, the holidays are the time to present Dad with that new television, or the season to turn the heat up in the house to keep out the cold. This year, if you’re going to upgrade, why not join more than 1 million American families and add an energy efficient bump at the same time?

When it comes to eco-construction, the two biggest names are LEED and Energy Star, standards programs that set the bar for construction and refurbishing in American homes and businesses. So it’s no wonder that this week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced an outstanding milestone for the Energy Star program: the 1 millionth Energy Star-qualified home was completed.

The EPA’s Energy Star label has been in place since 1995 and has saved eco-minded homeowners an estimated $1.2 billion in energy bills. The benefits also include a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 22 billion pounds and an estimated annual savings of $270 million on utility costs. Earning the Energy Star label requires meeting energy efficiency guidelines set by the EPA including effective insulation systems, high-performance windows, efficient HVAC equipment, construction and duct standards, and high-efficiency lighting and appliances.

The Energy Star label can apply to construction standards, but it also includes high-efficiency features and appliances. Many home appliance companies offer Energy Star lines of washers, dryers, televisions, and more. If higher-efficiency heating is on your list this winter, the Energy Star site has a great guide to lowering your heating costs with energy efficient options. For home features and appliances, local stores such as Lowe’s, Home Depot, and Sear’s offer a wide range of options for heating and cooling, refrigeration, building materials, entertainment appliances, and more.

Marriott to offer a more sustainable stay

admin — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:26:38 +0000

On November 11, Marriott Hotels announced it will expand its green hotels trial by 1000% in the next five years, adding nearly 500 eco-hotels across the country.

A green hotel prototype for the company will be pre-certified LEED and will be available in Spring 2010. The prototype should reduce the hotel’s energy and water use by up to 25%, savings that, coupled with green incentives, should return the LEED investment in 2 years. The first green hotels will be for Marriott’s Courtyard brand, which has approximately 160 hotels in development worldwide. The company intends to expand use of the prototype to its other lines in 2010.

Marriott was the first hospitality brand to join the U.S. Green Building Council and currently has an extensive rainforest protection program in place called Marriott Spirit to Preserve. For more information on the expansion of Marriott’s eco-hotels, see TreeHugger.com’s profile on the project. To learn more about Marriott’s current eco-minded efforts, visit the Marriot Spirit to Preserve site.

TED Talks: Edward Burtynsky follows the path of oil

admin — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:23:36 +0000

In a recent TED Talk photographer Edward Burtynsky follows the path of oil through modern society, highlighting where it came from, how we use it, and whether we can live without it. The stunning pictures that accompany his presentation provide a glimpse into this life-changing substance and the challenges associated with it.

You may remember we featured a link to a TED Talk by William Kamkwamba earlier this fall. TED videos are a great way to explore cutting edge concepts and experience thought-provoking presentations by experts all over the world. For more, visit www.TED.com.

Springfield’s freshest focus on recycling

admin — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:00:33 +0000

The City of Springfield is releasing an updating Guide to Recycling on its recycling portal. If you’re looking for a recycling center, wondering what Springfield includes in its recycling program, or how to recycle household chemicals, the recycling guide has the information for you. Look for frequent updates on this fast and easy way to go green and give the environment a break.

For more information:
Barbara Lucks
E-Mail: blucks@springfieldmo.gov
Web: www.springfieldmo.gov/recycling

LEED Certification Study Sessions begin this week!

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:44:10 +0000

USGBC-Missouri Heartland kicks off its LEED v3 Study Sessions with Wednesday’s (November 11) Intro to LEED from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. at Drury University’s Trustee Science Center.

Following study sessions include sustainable sites, water efficiency, innovation in design, and more. The price per study session is $10 (includes presentation slides and food) and the LEED study guide is $40. USGBC-Missouri Heartland is offering a pre-paid package of 5 sessions and the study guide for $70. For more information or to RSVP please contact: MCox@emsi-green.com.